Terri [Tatum] opened the shop February 12 on Lakeside Avenue after running the same business on Route 301 in Hanover County…

“We just focus on home decor, unusual items, accessories, jewelry, anything but clothing really,” Terri says… “This is eighty-five percent consignment, but we also showcase the work of local crafters. Our goal is to give people a venue for coming in to find unusual things and hooking up for people — some of the crafters — that might meet the needs of what they would like to have customized.”

You’ve asked for evening hours and we’ve listened! On Thursdays, the Garden is open til 9 p.m.; the Garden Cafe and Garden Shop are open til 7 p.m.; and the Tea House has its last seating at 8 p.m. On the second Thursdays of the month (April 10, May 8 & June 12) leashed pets are allowed in the Garden.

Learn more about A Million Blooms including the Children’s Garden Spring Fling (April 20); Garden Week activities (wine-tasting and live music on April 22, 23 & 24); and Spring Plant Sale (May 1, 2 & 3).

HOW DOES IT WORK? Bring your labeled yard plants in disposable containers to the swap by 11:30. You will receive one token for each yard plant brought to the Swap (regardless of type). Plants can be purchased for one token or for $1.00.

WHO ELSE BENEFITS BESIDES YOU AND YOUR GARDEN? Any cash proceeds will be donated to the Bellevue Civic Association.

RAIN DATE? The rain date is May 4 from 11:30 to 1:00 pm.

QUESTIONS? Call Kath at 262-6835 or Jan at 262-5469.

Dot’s Back Inn: North Side landmark diner gets exposed April 14 at 10 p.m. on the Food Network. Owner Jimmy Tsamouras cooks, regulars shoot the breeze, and that blond guy eats it all up on “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.” 4030 MacArthur Ave. 266-3167.

A Memorial Day Parade is scheduled for Monday, May 26. The event will kick off at the Hatcher Memorial Church at 2 pm, turn left on Dumbarton, and proceed the wrong way on the southbound lane of Lakeside Avenue. The parade will continue to Hilliard Road where it will turn left again and proceed to Cottage Street. It will end at Lakeside Elementary School.

“We are really excited about this parade and the great support we are getting from the county,” remarked coordinator Dick McClure, a local Lakesider with much experience in the parade production arena.

First held in 1895, the charter run was known as “Deep Run Hunt Cup,” and was held on Broad Street Road. Subsequent runs were held at Ginter Park and later, on the grounds of today’s Country Club of Virginia.

During World War I, the Cup went on hiatus and resumed in 1927. It was also suspended during World War II. Today, thousands eagerly watch the races to see who comes away with part of the purses totaling nearly $70,000.

The races are named after the farm, Strawberry Hill, where the races were held on Laburnum Avenue from the 70s to the late 90s. The Strawberry Hill Races moved to Colonial Downs in New Kent County in 2000 which features grandstand seating and two fancy cocktail lounges: the Jockey Club and the Turf Club.

West, an honored professor of Princeton University, will lecture at Union-PSCE on April 23 in Watts Chapel. Seating is limited, and overflow seating is being planned for Lingle Hall.

All those who attend will need a ticket. To reserve yours, please call Peninnah Ziegler at (804) 278-4223.

One of America’s most gifted, provocative, and important public intellectuals, Dr. Cornel West, is known for writing, speaking, and teaching that weaves together the American traditions of the Black Baptist Church, progressive politics, and jazz.

The lecture will be at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 23, 2008.

Union-PSCE, located at 3401 Brook Road, is co-sponsoring the event with partners at Virginia Commonwealth University, Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond, the School of Theology at Virginia Union University, the University of Richmond, Randolph-Macon College, J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College, and other institutions in the Richmond area.

While located within the city limits of Richmond, the Ginter Park neighborhood has the feel of an old-fashioned Southern town, with its wide, shady streets and spacious houses enjoyed by generations of families. This pleasant neighborhood will be highlighted on the April 23 tour, co-sponsored by Historic Richmond Foundation and The Garden Club of Virginia. The area was conceived and planned in the late-19th century by wealthy industrialist and entrepreneur Major Lewis W. Ginter and was one of Richmond’s first planned communities. The April 23 event takes visitors on a leisurely walking tour along Seminary Avenue in the heart of the neighborhood, which has retained most of its ambiance of the turn of the last century with its old trees, large lawns and a wealth of architecturally diverse homes, renewed for 21st century living. While in the area, be sure to visit the wonderful Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, inspired by Major Ginter and his niece Grace Arents.