Vibrant foliage isn’t enough to cheer gardeners this time of year as they watch their labors of love shrivel and suffer a crunchy brown death.

Each Thanksgiving season, a few unlucky Americans manage to burn down their houses trying to deep fry a turkey.

Big Bird is leaving Sesame Street! That’s what he decides on the “Sesame Street” season opener. A rapping real-estate agent pitches him on migrating to a new habitat (“habitat,“ the episode’s “Word on the Street”). After sizing up a beach and a swamp for his new habitat, Big Bird chooses a rain forest.

He liked his Mountain Dew cold and his pencils sharpened. And he loved Loretta Lynn.

Today is Thursday, which means this must be Black Friday. Yes, every day is now Black Friday in the world of retail shopping.

A robot powered by a ground-based laser beam climbed a long cable dangling from a helicopter on Wednesday to qualify for prize money in a $2 million competition to test the potential reality of the science fiction concept of space elevators.

As the leaves change once again, so returns the Bright Leaf Brew Fest. The beer sampling festival that brought hundreds to downtown Danville last year is back for a second round Nov. 14.

Clara Fountain makes recording family history look easy. During her presentation at the Wednesday Club last week, Fountain, a retired Averett University librarian and archivist, shared what she has learned about organizing and preserving information about ancestors.

Hollywood loves money. So does Ebenezer Scrooge. So what better way to launch the holiday season than putting the old money-grubber at the head of the line to separate movie-goers from their cash?

One local auto body repair and paint shop owner changed the way he did business to help the environment.

God’s Pit Crew has made good use of the space in their headquarters on North Main Street since moving there in 2005 and contracting to purchase it from Roman Eagle Memorial Home Inc. last year.

Like other non-profit organizations, God’s Pit Crew has had a tough year financially, but as Randy Johnson, executive director, said recently with his tongue-in-cheek, “We’re still here, so I guess we’re successful.”

Leaves swirl. Autumn’s chill is in the air. It must be time to set the clock back.

HICKORY - Turning bags of Halloween candy into piles of cash is this year’s goal for the patients of a local orthodontist.

Most college students put in a monster study session or two. Marina Levina’s students get to spend sessions studying monsters.

Fear of the swine flu is no reason to be scared off of Halloween.

All-natural may be all the rage in the food world, but will candy lovers have a sweet tooth for beet juice and purple cabbage?

With vampires taking over pop culture this year, the North Theatre is latching onto the craze — and just in time for Halloween.

Fall is a busy time for decorating, second only to Christmas, and the period when vegetables are valued more for their beauty than their flavor.

It was the best of times.

It started out as a simple diet experiment.

The notion that you can’t have too much of a good thing is about to get a major test.

Phil Bradley shivered in lonely silence on the mountain by the demolished plane. His injuries left him unable to move. He knew better than to look at the bodies of his fellow passengers. If help didn’t come soon, he realized he’d face a more agonizing death than any of them had.

The company that has exclusive rights to salvage the Titanic wants to make another expedition to the world’s most famous shipwreck in 2010.

What’s the point of having Halloween anymore?

As one downtown building’s facelift nears completion, Downtown Records plans to relocate from Union Street to Main Street in November.

More than ghosts and goblins will be descending upon Danville on Halloween weekend. More than 100 bowlers from across North Carolina and southern Virginia will also be in town for the 13th annual Carolina Bowling Alliance and Shootout Blind Bowler’s Tournament Oct. 30–Nov. 1.

A lucky swap and some eager building propelled a 19-year-old Norwegian student to the top of board game fame and sent three would-be tycoons to the poor house at the Monopoly World Championship in Las Vegas.

Before fire, there was only raw food. In recent years, a number of Americans have embraced this diet.

Building the future of Shockoe Bottom is uncovering bits and pieces of its past.