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Hello Asheville! Hope your coffee’s especially good this morning.

In today’s bring-the-kiddos edition: I-26 connector finally starts after 37 years, the Harlem Globetrotters 100 Year Tour, and gold hits record highs + excuses to get the fam out and about this week.

Heads up for pet parents: An emergency vet visit could cost you $7,000+ (ask me how I know 🙃). From the initial fee just to be seen to x-rays, surgery, medicine, and aftercare, it adds up quicker than a chew toy turns into a crime scene. The good news? You could get up to 90% cash back on your vet bill with this pet insurance plan.*

📰 In the news

Red tape, redesigns, resistance: After 37 years of planning, work on Asheville’s I-26 Connector is finally starting, with early construction near I-40 and I-240. Noise and environmental reviews continue as costs near $1.8 billion — read the full story.

Support for frontline nonprofits: United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County awarded $800,000 to nine groups helping Tropical Storm Helene recovery, bringing its total investment to $5.33 million for urgent community needs — see how funds are used.

Travel momentum holds steady: Asheville Regional Airport saw its second-busiest year in 2025 with 2.24 million passengers, compared with 2.17 million in 2024, and baggage claim and rental car counters will open this spring — read the full story.

Gold just hit record highs. What about your savings? While traditional IRAs have been treading water against inflation, gold has gained over 50% in three years. That gap is why more retirees are rolling a portion of their savings into gold IRAs (the kind that hold physical metal). We compared the top five options and broke down who they’re best for. Check it out here →

Paying hundreds of dollars a month for car insurance? Switching providers could save you up to $600 a year, and shopping around is way faster than it used to be – free comparison tools like this one make it easy.*

Highlights this week:

• Celebrate Burns Night with whisky tasting
• Experience Natural Shocks’ gripping one-woman journey
• Little ones sing, dance, learn Spanish
• Unlock clinical-level wellness data from home*

💎 Local business spotlight

Steep, sip, repeat: Craving a calming pu-erh, floral oolong, or playful bubble tea? At Dobra Tea Asheville, the vibe stays mellow with a pages-long menu, cozy corners, and herbal sips for caffeine-free days, plus several locations around town so your midweek reset is never far.

Where Asheville sings: Between sold-out nights and pleasantly surprising openers, The Orange Peel keeps a stacked calendar of touring heavies and local gems, ideal for a spontaneous midweek plan or that long-promised friend hang. Let the guitars ring, soak up the room, and remember why Asheville still feels like home.

A quick art escape: Craving a midweek creative reset? Momentum Gallery rotates contemporary shows with striking paintings, inventive sculpture, and crisp curation in a spacious two-level setting. When you need inspiration that lingers, this gallery reliably jumpstarts the right brain.

These aren’t ads or sponsored placements, just some cool nearby spots we think are worth a visit.

🫶 We got your back

Makeup that actually works: My sister and I were talking the other day about how the makeup we used in our 20s… just doesn’t work now that we’re in our 30s and 40s. Laura Geller’s entire makeup line addresses this shift, with formulas that smooth, brighten, and actually stay put. If you’re in the same boat, *their curated kits are worth a look →

Own a piece of Apple for less than a coffee: Every time you buy something from Amazon or Starbucks, you’re putting money in their pocket. Fractional shares flip that: you can own a slice of those companies for as little as a dollar. Most investing apps make it incredibly easy, with zero commissions and no account minimums. See which ones we recommend →

Mom says she’s fine. You’re not so sure: “What if something happens when you’re home alone?” You’ve asked a hundred times, but the outcome’s always the same. I don’t need that. Life Alert’s for old people. The real struggle isn’t finding a medical alert system that’ll work… it’s finding one she won’t fight you on. We looked into five options designed to settle the standoff, from smartwatches to systems with nothing to wear at all. See which ones stood out →

Thinning hair? Your shampoo was never going to fix it: I’ve spent an embarrassing amount of money on hair-loss products, biotin, masks, sprays, you name it. Not one of them lasted. Turns out, most things target the strand, not the follicle (where thinning actually happens). Dermatologists have been prescribing treatments that work for years, but there are now plenty of options available with no office visits required. See our top picks for men and women →

Strangers can buy your personal data for $0.50: Data brokers sell your name, home address, phone number, estimated income, and other personal info to anyone willing to pay. Scammers and identity thieves use these databases to take advantage of you. There are dozens of affordable services that can help you protect yourself. These three are our favorites →

📆 Fun for the whole fam

Have an event to share? BaseLocal Verified Businesses can submit them for free! Learn more about how to submit an event here →

All events are subject to change without notice. Always check official event pages for the most up to date information.

🎨 National Quilting Day @ Milepost 382 Blue Ridge Pkwy, Asheville, NC, United States, North Carolina 28805 | Thursday (3/19) at 10:00 AM – Pop into the Folk Art Center for a three-day salute to our region’s quilting tradition, with antique, vintage, and contemporary works showing off patriotic patterns and slices of domestic history. Chat with Guild mainstay Connie Brown, quilting expert and storyteller, and yes, admission is free.

🎮 PokeKon-Fest @ Holiday Inn Asheville – Biltmore West | Saturday (3/21) at 10:00 AM – Nothing beats a family-friendly Pokémon takeover at the Holiday Inn Biltmore West, with voice actors, vendors, local artists, TCG, video games, and a healthy dose of nostalgia. Bring the kids, pretend it’s for them, then trade cards like it’s 1999.

🏀 The Harlem Globetrotters 100 Year Tour @ Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville | Saturday (3/21) at 5:00 PM – Round up the kids, or your inner child, and catch Harlem Globetrotters’ 100 Year Tour, a century of dunks, trick shots, and showmanship. It’s joyful, silly, and skillful, with fan moments before and after. They’ve been doing this longer than we’ve been complaining about parking.

💰 NC Mountain Coin Show @ Asheville Poke Card Show | Saturday (3/28) at 10:00 AM – Break out the change jar for the first NC Mountain Coin Show, a day of historic coins, shiny bullion, and local finds at The Salvation Army on Haywood Road. Swap stories with collectors, get the scoop on Grandpa’s silver dollar, all for $5.

🎈 Golden: A K-Pop Kids Party @ The Orange Peel | Sunday (3/29) at 3:00 PM – This family-friendly K-pop dance party turns The Orange Peel into a mini rave, with remixed movie anthems, familiar soundtracks, and kid-approved sparkle. Costumes encouraged, dancing inevitable, and yes, you can supervise from the groove zone.

🐦 Bilingual Birdies @ Pack Memorial Library | Friday (4/3) at 10:30 AM – Round up your littles, ages 0–5, for a first Friday Spanish singalong at Pack Memorial Library, where wiggling counts as dancing, and every hola earns applause. It is free, but tickets go fast, snag day-of passes at 9 AM from Youth Services, space is limited.

🐰 New Dawn Starkestra @ The Grey Eagle | Sunday (4/5) at 7:00 PM – Hop in on Easter Sunday for New Dawn Starkestra’s Space Bunny Apocalypse, an all-ages, standing room only jam that jumps from Southern soul to spacey fusion. Sipe, Todd, Hadden, and Sternberg keep it loose, you hunt eggs, we grin.

Wanna see more? Browse our full events calendar →

📻 Asheville report

Weather forecast

Today – High: 47°F – Low: 26°F – Precip: 11%

Partly sunny, with a high near 47. West wind 1 to 6 mph. Later: Partly cloudy, with a low around 26. South southeast wind 1 to 6 mph.

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Tomorrow – High: 61°F – Low: 37°F – Precip: 1%

Partly sunny, with a high near 61. West southwest wind 1 to 5 mph. Later: Partly cloudy, with a low around 37. West southwest wind around 5 mph.

This house is wild

Custom mountain modern by Jade Mountain Builders in Olivette pairs striking rooflines, warm wood and stone, and walls of glass. Sunlit living spaces frame the forest with seasonal French Broad River views. The chef’s kitchen features black cabinetry, exposed beams, and radiant heated concrete. A studio tops the garage. Outdoor terraces and firepit pair with river access and trails.

Take a peek inside →