Educators rally to protest proposed N.C. budget cuts to education at the NCAE center on Salisbury Street in downtown Raleigh on Saturday afternoon, ... more

Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker said today he's ready to make a bet with Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl about the outcome of the Eastern Conference finals meeting between the Hurricanes and the Penguins.

"We're trying to get a bet going with the mayor of Pittsburgh," Meeker said. "We're going to try and do it on Monday."

As for what Meeker plans to offer should the Canes lose, think barbeque and beer.

"We're trying to clear it, but barbeque from The Pit and beer from Big Boss," Meeker said.

(UPDATE: The city announced today that Meeker will place the bet at 1:30 p.m. Monday and that he will wager 10 pounds of The Pit’s chopped barbecue and a case of Big Boss beer. No word on what brew. Mayor Ravenstahl will disclose his city’s offerings during Monday’s telephone conversation.)  

 In offering 'cue and beer Meeker is sticking to an approach that has been successful in the past.

During the Canes 2006 run to the Stanley Cup Meeker wagered three pounds of 'cue with Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. Brown ended up sending Meeker three pounds of Buffalo wings.

Before the Stanley Cup finals against Edmonton, Meeker put up a case of Holly Springs-brewed Carolina Pale Ale. Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandell ended up sending Meeker a case of Canadian beer from the Maverick Brewery in Alberta.

Get a glance behind-the-scenes of the annual Henside the Beltline Tour d'Coop.

See an audio slide show from the Wake County Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Service honoring the 19 Wake County police officers who have lost ... more

In honor of Bike to Work Week, May 11-15, staff photographer Travis Long recorded his daily commute to work through Raleigh with a 1860 frame stop ... more

City buses will get all dressed up in panels created by 12 artists

First Look: Photojournalist Corey Lowenstein's raw edit from St. Augustine's commencement ceremony on the campus in downtown Raleigh on Saturday, ... more

When Raleigh first began to flirt with the notion of a National Hockey League team in town, it was easy to find the naysayers. Now they don't dare be seen or heard. And there probably aren't that many of them left.

One fellow active in civic events told a group of cynics at a restaurant during that initial debate, "You are going to be amazed, because nothing brings a community together like a professional sports team." He had lived in Denver, he said, and knew it to be true.

Well, with the well-established and Stanley Cup-winning Carolina Hurricanes now back in the chase for the NHL championship, we can see, again, what he was talking about. A fellow with whom I frequently cross paths at the YMCA is a nutty Carolina fan and a native Tar Heel. But at the Y one night recently, I could hear him on his pedaling machine, looking up at the 'Canes game on TV (the sound was off) and grunting and shaking his arm in the air and criticizing the officials. He was lost in the game, this game none of us understood a few years back. 

At that time, some friends gave me a 'Canes sweater (jersey to those unfamiliar with hockey terminology) for my birthday, and some folks there thought it was really funny because hockey was never going to make it.

Who's laughing now?

RALEIGH — John Wall was charged last week with misdemeanor breaking and entering at a southeast Raleigh residence.

Wall, 18, a senior at Raleigh Word of God, was detained about 12:30 p.m. April 27 by a Raleigh police officer responding to a report of a breaking and entering in progress at an unoccupied dwelling at 3924 Laurel Glen Drive, Raleigh police spokesman Jim Sughrue said in a statement.

The officer saw Wall leaving from the rear door of the residence and detained him without incident, Sughrue said.

Read more about this developing story here.

N.C. State's Industrial Design and Computer Science students collaborate to create video games during a semester-long project.