The Cavaliers won the toss and elected to defer to the second half. Wake Forest is 6-1 in games in which it losses the toss. Talk about a cool (and meaningless) stat. ... Virginia’s opening kickoff was a moment to forget. Chris Gould, after faking a quick kick, lofted a floater that landed in the hands of Kenneth Moore around the 20 and with poor coverage, Wake started at the Virginia 39. Yes, Virginia is scared of Kevin Marion, but kicking the ball out of bounds would done the same thing. ... Chris Cook has his helmet on, but he did not start. 

Greetings, earthlings. Welcome back to another addition of Virginia football. ... A quick injury update - CB Chris Cook, FB Rashawn Jackson and TE Tom Santi are in uniform. Redshirt freshman LB John Bivens is not, but I have no clue as to why. Perhaps it is his knee again. Crutcher Reiss, the back-up long snapper, is not dressed out. I would imagine that TE Jon Stupar would be the emergency replacement for Danny Aiken. ... Virginia coach Al Groh and Wake coach Jim Grobe enjoyed a special embrace a few minutes ago. ... Look for Mikell Simpson to get the start at tailback - the sophomore was working with the first-team unit. ... The sidelines are packed with recruits. Honestly, it resembles a Virginia Tech game. ... Back with more when the coin toss takes place. 

OK. It’s 1:30 and I just got home from Day Two of the Virginia Film Festival.
I’m tired, so let me get straight to the point.
Here are two films to put on your must see list.
1) “The Savages.”
New York Magazine film critic David Edelstein, who carried a lively banter into the wee hours with director Tamara Jenkins, told Friday’s attendees that he felt Philip Seymour Hoffman’s performace in “The Savages” was his finest ever. He’s probably right, and I loved Hoffman as Truman Capote. Jenkins had a clue that Hoffman and Laura Linney would make believable siblings in the story that she both wrote and directed after stars stopped by her New York apartment for a rehearsal.
“They were talking in the living room and I was in the kitchen making coffee,” Jenkins said. “Their voices drifted into the kitchen, and it felt good.”
So did her film.
On to number ...
2) “Autism: The Musical.”
I’ll admit that the title did not make me want to run out and buy a ticket, but I’m sure glad I did. When you see a plethora of films in a few days you tend to start squirming, even with the good movies. But there was no squirming with this documentary. I was rivited. I dare say Tricia Regan’s project is one of the best films I have seen this year.
It is scheduled to be released on HBO this spring. If you don’t have cable, get someone to tape it for you.
“For one moment didn’t we all value those children,” David Gattell-Gordon said of the autistic children who worked for months to stage their own play.
Following the film about their efforts, the co-founder of the Virginia Institute of Autism moderated a six-member panel that including Josh Tucker, a seventh-grader at Tandem Friends School who was disgnosed with autism in 1998. Local audiences may have seen Josh perform in “Gypsy” at the Hertitage Theater or in “The Sound of Music” at Ash Lawn-Highland. (He also runs cross country and plays baseball). Friday, he sat up on stage and told the crowd how he identified with Wyatt, but his favorite part of the film was when the parents were talking.
“I don’t hear that side very often,” he said.
Josh cut short his school dance to share his thoughts with the Film Festival audience.
“If it helps a parent who has a child that was newly diagnosed, then it would be worth my while,” he said.
It would be worth your while to watch this film.
Now. I’m going to bed. I have to be back at the festival at 9 a.m.

It’s all about family.
I was so excited to get in to Harry Chotiner’s Behind-the-Scenes workshop at this year’s Virginia Film Festival. A former vice president of Twentieth Century Fox, he knows his way around movies.
It can be a little daunting to pick up a program and select which of the 50 films you want to watch over our four-day festival—especially since many of the films are new works that only have been seen on the festival circuit, so far.
But this workshop is a great way to find your way around, with a small family-like group of 20, and get some of the inside stories as well.
Yesterday, when we met for the first time, we were given tickets to seven films. We also meet to discuss the films, most of the time with the filmmakers themselves. This morning Nick Broomfield, who flew into town late yesterday evening, got up early to spend an hour with us, talking about his film “Ghosts.”
We learned his views on editing and sound and the fact that he worked with a crew of five, in one car.
I only wish I has seen his film. The rest of the class did, but I played hooky.
Instead, I went to the opening night film at the Paramount—“Honeydripper” with John Sayles, Maggie Renzie and Sean Patrick Thomas. It was great—loved the music—but I kept feeling guilty. Like I was cutting a class.
But I had asked Mr. Chotineer, if it would be OK if I switched out. You see, my Mom came down to from Northern Virginia to attend the festival. It’s become a family tradition, and we always attend the “grand opening” work.
I felt a little sheepish to ask, but the professor looked at me and gave me a big smile. “Family is the theme of this year’s festival. Go with you mother.”
This is such a cool class.
Gotta go now, we are off to see “Rebel Without a Cause.”

The question is, should Charlottesville pay a cool mill to start a new ambulance service?

The answer is no.

We’re lucky to have one of the best-trained, best-equipped emergency/rescue teams in the state right here in our fair city and right downtown where they can get pretty much anywhere pretty quickly. We’ve also got trained EMTs and paramedics riding nearly every fire engine as an escort and to make sure time is no problem. Charlottesville-Albemarle Rescue Squad (CARS) has everything it needs to provide top notch service AND FOR FREE.

That’s right, FOR FREE.

Funded by private donations and Albemarle County (gee, CARS serves the city but there’s no city funds in its budget. Hmmm, I wonder where that cool mill should go?) the rescue squad DOES NOT CHARGE for an ambulance ride. Cut your finger off in a jig saw accident but don’t have insurance?

Free ride!

Having my baby and we’re busted?

Free ride!

We’re talking Foghat city here, folks. Where else can you get great service and a free ride to the hospital? Where else do you have doctors, lawyers, teachers and a stray federal prosecutor rubber-gloved and waiting to serve you FOR FREE?

If the city sets up 24-hour service it will not be free. It will also be a from-scratch set up with new equipment, new people, new rules, new regulations and, of course, new fees.

If we need more staff and we need better service, feed the funds to the people who have proved for decades that they know what they’re doing. Give the money to CARS and take a free ride when you need it most.