Mountain Xpress 01.10.18 by Mountain Xpress

C O NT E NT S

PAGE 7 HEARING STUDENT VOICES Community volunteers Phyllis Utley and Michael Prault interviewed students at Asheville High School and SILSA about their perspectives on what's working and what could improve outcomes for all students. COVER PHOTO Courtesy of Asheville City Schools Foundation COVER DESIGN Hillary Edgin

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19 WEALTH OF HEALTH? Asheville High School hosts community debate about health care

21 ASHEVILLE UNPAVED City weighs environmental pros and cons of natural greenways

25 SMALL BITES Black Star Line Brewing Co. celebrates Martin Luther King Jr. with day of events

29 SPREAD THE WORD Asheville’s nonwhite literary scene, Part 3

33 ART OF RESISTANCE Nasty women and bad hombres exhibition benefits Planned Parenthood

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3 LETTERS 3 CARTOON: MOLTON 5 CARTOON: BRENT BROWN 6 COMMENTARY 14 ASHEVILLE ARCHIVES 15 COMMUNITY CALENDAR 16 CONSCIOUS PARTY 19 WELLNESS 21 GREEN SCENE 23 FOOD 25 SMALL BITES 26 CAROLINA BEER GUY 29 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT 34 SMART BETS 37 CLUBLAND 43 MOVIES 44 SCREEN SCENE 45 CLASSIFIEDS 46 FREEWILL ASTROLOGY 47 NY TIMES CROSSWORD

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OPINION

Send your letters to the editor to letters@mountainx.com. STA F F PUBLISHER: Jeff Fobes ASSISTANT TO THE PUBLISHER: Susan Hutchinson MANAGING EDITOR: Virginia Daffron A&E EDITOR/WRITER: Alli Marshall FOOD EDITOR/WRITER: Gina Smith NEWS EDITOR/WRITER: Carolyn Morrisroe OPINION EDITOR: Tracy Rose WELLNESS EDITOR/WRITER: Susan Foster STAFF REPORTERS/WRITERS: Able Allen, Edwin Arnaudin, Thomas Calder, Virginia Daffron, David Floyd, Max Hunt, Carolyn Morrisroe CALENDAR EDITOR: Abigail Griffin

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The scoop on Mumpower’s dog’s poop Though Mountain Xpress cartoonist Randy Molton long ago surrendered to liberal myopia, I admire his creative talents. His recent cartoon lamenting my lamentations on socialism was no exception [Dec. 13, Xpress]. Of additional interest were the liberties taken in the follow-up comments. Case in point, the Mountain Xpress reader who crafted the following observation [on mountainxcom]: “I would also like to add that Doctor Mumpower owns a beautiful Standard Poodle. Carl faithfully walks the dog daily at 9 am from his office on College Street throughout downtown. Every time I see them downtown, it appears that Carl does not own any Doggie Waste Bags. The dog poops, Carl no scoops. Please, can we set up a Go Fund Me? Dr. Carl Mumpower Doggie Waste Bag Drive, 2017. Times are tough and the struggle is real.” Experience demonstrates that far too many progressives similarly embrace vilifying the opposition and imaginative fabrication — like myopia — as irresistible sirens. Pepper is a black and white bird dog. We don’t walk downtown, we run downtown, and we do it four days a

week somewhere between 6:30 and 9 a.m. I always have a doggie bag, and I always clean up after my charge. Well, maybe there was one exception. A few years back, I forgot her accessory and had to rely on a copy of the Mountain Xpress to take care of business. As a counter to my antagonist’s “Go Fund Me” entreaty, I wanted to extend a “Go Catch Me” proposal. It’s my pleasure to offer a $100 reward for anyone who can furnish a photo of me skipping pet responsibilities — anywhere — anytime. I can be trusted to clean up after my dog. It’s unfortunate that when it comes to myopia, vilification and fabrication, there’s no matching means to clean up after humans. — Carl Mumpower Asheville

Repeal and replace Meadows Mark Meadows hates big government when it helps people with health problems, but he loves big government when it benefits his investments. Congressman Meadows voted to take away health care from 23 million people. Yet the road widening of U.S. 64, where, according to Meadows’ 2016 financial disclosure report, he owns 50 percent of Sapphire Lakes

CLUBLAND EDITORS: Abigail Griffin, Max Hunt MOVIE REVIEWERS: Scott Douglas, Francis X. Friel, Justin Souther CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Peter Gregutt, Rob Mikulak REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS: Jonathan Ammons, Liisa Andreassen, Kari Barrows, Leslie Boyd, Jacqui Castle, Scott Douglas, Tony Kiss, Bill Kopp, Cindy Kunst, Kate Lundquist, Monroe Spivey, Lauren Stepp, Daniel Walton ADVERTISING, ART & DESIGN MANAGER: Susan Hutchinson GRAPHIC DESIGNERS: Norn Cutson, Hillary Edgin, Scott Southwick, Olivia Urban MARKETING ASSOCIATES: Sara Brecht, Bryant Cooper, Niki Kordus, Tim Navaille, Brian Palmieri, Heather Taylor INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES & WEB: Bowman Kelley, DJ Taylor BOOKKEEPER: Amie Fowler-Tanner ADMINISTRATION, BILLING, HR: Able Allen, Lauren Andrews DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Jeff Tallman ASST. DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Denise Montgomery DISTRIBUTION: Gary Alston, Russell Badger, Frank D’Andrea, Jemima Cook Fliss, Adrian Hipps, Clyde Hipps, Jennifer Hipps, Joan Jordan, Laura Stinson, Brittney Turner-Daye, Thomas Young

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OPINION

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Properties and 100 percent of real estate agency Sapphire Lakes Group, [plus] other land in the area, is costing [nearly] $10 million a mile. He also happens to be on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit. If you want to know about the former Sunday school teacher Mark Meadows, read Matthew 23 in the Bible: “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.” I am supporting Phillip Price, who is running for Congress in the 11th Congressional District. He knows that everyone needs health care and supports health care for everyone. Go to price4wnc.org and donate your time, treasure and talent to repeal and replace Mark Meadows, who is using government to benefit his investments, not the people of the 11th Congressional District. Vote on May 8 for Phillip Price. — Kathy Kyle Hendersonville Editor’s note: Xpress contacted Meadows’ press secretary but received no response by press time.

What defines ethical slaughtering?

OFFER EXPIRES 01/22/18

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

Under normal circumstances, Wild Abundance’s “The Cycles of Life: Humane Slaughtering and Butchery Class” would not inspire me to speak up, but there is a unique twist to what the business is projecting about this specific course. In the course titled “Humane Slaughter,” I see no animal welfare certifications, or certifications of any kind, pertaining to the slaughtering and butchery teachings they offer. On their website, Wild Abundance does not describe their specific ethics/practices of the all-important step between the pasture and the plate, during slaughter. The use of the term “ethical slaughter” calls into question what ethics, the sacred and humane actually mean to them, so how they define and practice those terms is extremely relevant. What is it specifically about Wild Abundance’s practices that achieve that ethical ideal? ... Personally, I would like to see those words removed from their practices and course description. Wild Abundance has become a part of the trend of claiming one’s animal agriculture methods are of superior ethical

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standards or that animal agriculture is somehow completely necessary for the basic survival of a farm, a falsehood that warrants detailed explanation. Having once adhered to plant-based diets, as the minds behind the Wild Abundance slaughter course clearly stated they did, they are likely aware of the stigma, cultural perceptions and biases surrounding individuals who make that choice. Why then did they decide to categorize all vegans together as “bullies” as they chose to do with their continued use of the #stopveganbullying hashtag? ... By claiming a humane and ethical method of slaughter, coupled with promoting the #stopveganbullying campaign, Wild Abundance has established a “morally superior — us” versus “extremist vegan — them” scenario, which has been hard to ignore after watching this discussion be revisited both online and in the paper many times over. To be completely clear, the violence and threats of the obviously deranged individuals who personally threatened them and their families are abhorrent, regardless of their diets, religions, ethnicities, etc. Many have asked why anyone would question the practices of this small, local business instead of just going after large factory farms. From my own experience, I can say that their vocal stance of being former vegans/vegetarians who have now seen the light, combined with proclaiming their slaughter is ethical and simultaneously promoting the #stopveganbullying campaign, is what finally prompted me to speak up. The average slaughterhouse is unquestionably worse, but they do not claim an ethical slaughter platform and talk about vegan trolls in a local paper year after year. Additionally, much activism is also often done anonymously or in secret, as the government is historically quick to throw animal and environmental activists on the watch list. I’ve personally tried to adhere to the mentality of “to each their own” regarding dietary choices, but now feel as though Wild Abundance has carried this discussion to the point of being detrimental to the plant-based movement. ... In my opinion, it is a privilege to live in a time and place where I can now choose to not support the animal agriculture industry in any capacity, a choice I’ve made despite the fact that I used to work in that industry — and where I saw firsthand that even small, local farms can really miss the mark on animal

welfare despite what they intend and project. ... As someone who has slaughtered animals in the past in an effort to connect to my food source, I would like to understand how Wild Abundance has gone above and beyond the norm to earn the “ethical, sacred and humane” badge they vocally tout. Being better than the average slaughterhouse is truly commendable, but that does not mean that what is happening there is sacred, ethical or humane. — Danielle Keeter Marshall Editor’s note: A longer version of this letter will appear at mountainx. com, along with a longer version of the following response from Wild Abundance’s Frank Salzano: “My friend, first off, let me say … thank you for your deep and genuine concern for animal life. ... We are a small local school and not a farm or commercial meat producer. We don’t know of any organizations that would certify a permaculture school that slaughters two sheep a year. … “We are personally aware of, inspired by and certainly live up to the humane slaughter standards of traditional, land-based cultural practices, as well as those standards of modern organizations like the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. “And thank you to our fellow animal lovers! ... Here at Wild Abundance, we have unfortunately spent too much time these last two years dealing with harassment and death threats from animal rights activists all over the world. Yet, we know most animal rights activists are good-natured and nonviolent, and we will always hold a place of compassion, forgiveness and open-heartedness for all well-intentioned lovers of farm animals, even if your misdirected passion finds its way to our humble home or Facebook page. #MakeEmpathyGreatAgain. … P.S. Please, please, please leave us alone. Do yourselves a favor and focus your tremendous amount of energy, good intentions and free time on one of the many shady large corporations destroying the world.”

An omnivore’s perspective Gentle Ones: [In response to recent letters published in Mountain Xpress,] I’m getting rather tired of these selfrighteous vegans who, like extremists of every stripe, think their way is the

C A RT O O N B Y B R E NT B R O W N only way for everybody! I’m not going into the differing a priori between me and them about death, but I will speak about individual differences. Being an omnivore means that you may eat many kinds of food, not that you must eat a certain percentage of meat to qualify. And yes, teeth are an indicator of your diet because not all humans have the same kind of teeth. Are your incisors big and long, all your teeth about the same length and squared off at the ends? You have horse teeth — good for eating grain like other hoofed animals: sheep, goats, cattle, deer, etc. Vegetarianism would be easy for you. But perhaps you are like me and have small incisors and even smaller lateral incisors, plus pointed canines, pointed first premolars and pointed second premolars. One of my most memorable eating experiences was being at a beach picnic where grilled steaks were served, but nobody had brought any utensils. Biting into my handheld steak was highly pleasurable, and my lovely pointed canines helped a lot in making that bite! However, DNA has now added another item to consider. I had my DNA tested for genetic differenc-

es connected to dietary issues and found that I am lacking the gene that converts beta carotene (in vegetables) to vitamin A. I must, therefore, get my vitamin A from animal sources. I have been told that I would do very poorly as a vegetarian. For ecological reasons, I limit the amount of flesh that I eat, but I do eat at least one bite every day, usually canned fish or chicken, and I try to eat more pork and less beef, but bison has been touted as especially good for my genetic makeup. So you vegans go right ahead and feel superior if you must, but you will not win me over. — AA Lloyd Asheville

We want to hear from you! Please send your letters to: Editor Mountain Xpress 2 Wall St. Asheville, NC 28801 or by email to letters@mountainx.com. MOUNTAINX.COM

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

OPINION

When friends become family A mentoring choice that made all the difference BY JORDAN FOLTZ It was three years into his mentoring experience in Big Brothers Big Sisters’ community program that Nathan Brown received a phone call about his “Little Brother,” Dorian Palmer, from the boy’s mother. Now in eighth grade, Dorian was in trouble at school again, and he was getting sent home — only this time, his mom couldn’t stop her day to pick him up and was calling on Nathan to see if he could lend a hand. Up until this point, Nathan had been enjoying twice-a-month activities with Dorian — mostly consisting of lighthearted pursuits like board games, reading, going to the movies — standard protocol in the program for hanging with a child in elementary school. They had fun together in those first years, no doubt, but “there was not a whole lot of emotional investment,” reflects Nathan. But this was about to change. Now at 13, Dorian was emerging as a young man, facing new obstacles and pressures. Middle school had brought bullies, and Dorian’s attempt to deal with them involved an increasing effort to outdo his persecutors in badassery: “He thought maybe he could impress them and get them off his back,” Nathan says. In this instance, however, Dorian hadn’t just cut up; he’d actually threatened his teacher. As Nathan sat with Dorian’s mom on the other line, he was faced with a choice: If he picked Dorian up, it was no more “fun and games”: The innocent era of their relationship would have come to an end. If he didn’t pick him up, he might be able to retain a lightheartedness and comfortable detachment with his “Little.” But he would also sacrifice an opportunity to take a step deeper into this relationship, an opportunity to evolve and grow as Dorian was evolving and growing, and an opportunity to steer his mentee from an increasingly destructive course. The choice, perhaps, wasn’t difficult. On his way to the school, Nathan considered how he would handle the situation. What was his proper role as a mentor? What did “supporting” his Little look like when he was clearly starting to make bad choices?

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

LEAN ON ME: Nathan Brown, left, with his "Little Brother," Dorian Palmer. Photo courtesy of Big Brothers Big Sisters of WNC As Dorian waited for Nathan, he was scared and nervous. What was his mentor going to do? What would he say? Had he disappointed him? Would Nathan still want to hang out? Would he still be there for him? “I remember when he picked me up, he was clearly disappointed in me,” Dorian recalls. “He said, ‘This is not how you are going to behave — it’s not appropriate, it’s not fair, it’s unreasonable.’” Nathan describes the ride home as a “tear down and build up” moment. “Those kids you’re trying to impress are probably going to be at youth prison in 10 years,” he recalls saying. “They’re not the important ones. You need to work on yourself, because they’re not going to work on you. They’re not going to help you — only you can do that.” It was an awkward and jarring experience, and yet it stands out to both of them as a positive and pivotal moment in their relationship: proving to them both just how much Nathan cared about his Little Brother, proving that he was willing to endure difficult moments and be the “bad guy” for his Little’s benefit — that he was willing to take a stand for Dorian and claim a personal and emotionally invested stake in his success. “That was a moment for him and me,” says Nathan. “And it cemented our relationship.” “It took someone who wasn’t my mom, wasn’t my grandmother, someone who did not quote unquote ‘have to be there’ for me,’” says Dorian. Like many Little Brothers in the BBBS program, before his relationship with his

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“Big,” Dorian had never had a male role model in his life. He grew up in his mother’s home in Morganton while his biological father served out an extended prison sentence. Dorian says it was having someone choose to take a stand for him and his well-being that illuminated how valuable he and his future actually were, and galvanized his own commitment to life. In high school, the academic, social and emotional challenges didn’t relent for Dorian — but with every challenge, he had Nathan not only cheering him on, but also there to fall back on. When he became depressed and suicidal, Nathan was there to listen and help him rebuild. When he lost motivation for his studies, Nathan firmly held him accountable and impressed upon him that he was going to get his education and graduate — which he did. When he was 16, Dorian joined the advisory council of his local Burke County branch of Big Brothers Big Sisters of WNC, and at 19, he was invited to join the regional board of directors. Now 21, Dorian is working with the developmentally disabled and serves as vice chairperson of the board of directors for Big Brothers Big Sisters of WNC, headquartered in Asheville. He also serves on the board of United Way of Burke County. His fiancée is a Big Sister. “My biggest goals center around my community,” says Dorian. “And serving

JORDAN FOLTZ

my community is the most important thing to me in my life.” In 2016, Nathan was confronted with the devastating news of his wife’s cancer diagnosis and subsequent passing. As dark and sorrowful as this period was for Nathan, Dorian was the one who showed up consistently to support him through it and get him out of his depression. “Even when I was at my lowest, he was there for me … which just speaks so much to his character because there were a lot of people in my life who simply stepped away once she passed,” says Nathan. “I like to think that the inspiration [to be there for me] comes from my having never failed in my support of him.” At this point, Dorian describes Nathan as his best friend, and Nathan sees Dorian like a son — and he knows that the young man is going forward to do great things in the community. Big Brothers Big Sisters of WNC’s motto is “Start Something Big” because of the astronomical potential that can be unlocked in young people when they have a mentor who believes in them. Last year, Big Brothers Big Sisters supported almost 700 one-toone matches throughout our 10-county service area. Among them, there are powerful stories like Dorian’s and Nathan’s unfolding all of the time. Thanks to an abundance of volunteer applications we’ve received from our 100 Mentors in 100 Days fall recruitment drive, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Buncombe County is accepting new inquiries for enrolling Littles. Children 6-14 years old from single-parent households are eligible to be matched with a Big Brother or Big Sister. More info at bbbswnc.org or 828-253-1470. Big Brothers Big Sisters of WNC marks National Mentoring Month in January with a call to action to mentor. There is a particular need for male volunteers. Big volunteers help youths become successful and productive citizens. Independent studies find Littles are more likely than their peers to show improvement in academics, behavior, self-esteem and aspirations. National Mentoring Month, established by the Harvard Mentoring Project of the Harvard School of Public Health, MENTOR and the Corporation for National and Community Service, sets out to energize citizens to become mentors. X Jordan Foltz is the communications coordinator for Big Brothers Big Sisters of WNC. He lives in Asheville.

NEWS

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junkrecyclers1@gmail.com A SEAT AT THE TABLE: Asheville High School Principal Jesse Dingle, left, discusses the listening project with student Ana Lechman, who has volunteered to conduct some of the interviews. Photo by Leslie Boyd

BY LESLIE BOYD leslie.boyd@gmail.com Sometimes the best way to achieve innovation is a good brainstorming session. That’s the premise behind The Listening Project at the city’s two high schools, a project similar to the one at the city’s middle school a decade ago that led to the highly successful after-school program, In Real Life (see “Too Cool for School,” Xpress, Nov. 5, avl.mx/4hv). Asheville High School, which has 996 students enrolled currently, and the School of Inquiry and Life Sciences, with 378 students enrolled, are both located on the same historic campus at 419 McDowell St. “We have no idea what the results of this listening project will be,” says Kate Pett, a former teacher and executive director of the Asheville City Schools Foundation. Part of the reason for doing this now is that Asheville High has a new principal, Jesse Dingle, who came to Asheville from Arlington, Va.,

where he headed the largest high school in the state. “We’ve had turnover in leadership at the high school and we wanted to know how we might help Dr. Dingle to get established here,” Pett explains. HEARING VOICES Dingle says his first priority on arriving at the school was to open his doors to staff and members of the community. But he felt the student voice was missing, and when he heard about the listening project, he was enthusiastic immediately. “I liked what happened at the middle school, and you know, middle schoolers come to us eventually, so why wouldn’t we reach out to talk to students? All the stakeholders need to be in the room.” For the project, a group of trained listeners will interview 100 students about what’s important to them, what might help them get the most out of their high school experience and how they envision their school in the future. Each session will consist of 25 questions broken down into four sections: student goals and successes, classroom experience

and academic success, student supports, and race and equity (see sidebar, “Going deep”). Miranda Musiker, director of grants and scholarships for the foundation, hopes to interview parents later, but the current project is just for students, and to make certain their comments are honest and open, all of the interviews are confidential. More than 50 volunteer listeners — parents, teachers, students and members of the community — have been trained for the project. The training involves listening skills and how to work across cultural differences and differing perspectives. That alone, says Pett, is a good way to increase understanding (see sidebar, “Learning to listen”). “This is a full community effort,” Pett says. “And with the community involved in the process, that increases the odds that the community will buy in and work together.” Including staff from the Asheville City Schools, foundation staff and volunteers, nearly 250 people are expected to dedicate a total of over 2,000 hours.

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N EWS WHY NOT ASK THE KIDS?

“Kids have been excited to be heard and to give their input about how to improve the school,” says SILSA senior Dana Campbell, who volunteered to both give his input and listen to other students. He’d like to see the school do more to let students know of services available on campus. “Mental health services and things like that,” he explains. “A lot of kids don’t know where to get those services. If we made that more public and not as hidden, maybe kids would feel more comfortable going up there.” Campbell, who’s received offers of admission from several colleges for next year, says he’s known many stu-

Asheville High history teacher Lizzie Rogers is excited about what might come of the project, in part because it will be unique to the school. “We have tried so many different projects, but these new initiatives will be specific to our school and our school’s needs,” she says. “I am hopeful here solutions will be creative and not just some canned program for purchase. Our student body is incredibly talented and bring many gifts to the table.”

Going deep Designed to generate an hourlong conversation, the 25 listening project questions below explore high school students’ school experiences in a variety of areas. Interviewers’ guides also include suggestions for follow-up questions and techniques for eliciting more complete information. STUDENT GOALS AND SUCCESS • Tell me about the best thing that happened to you yesterday here at school. • What are your goals after graduation? • Is your high school experience setting you up to meet your goals after graduation? CLASSROOM EXPERIENCES AND LEARNING • Describe a time recently when you felt really successful here at school. • What are the leadership opportunities here at school that you know about? • Describe a time recently when you thought what you were learning in class was relevant to your life. How often does that happen? • What type of class is hard to relate to? Why? • What is one thing that adults at school could do differently to help you learn more? • When you need help with a class, who do you go to? Do you feel encouraged to get help? • Are you in honors or AP classes now? • What do your teachers expect of you? • If you were a principal or a teacher here, what would you change to help all students learn more?

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SUPPORTS AND SCHOOL CULTURE • Where do you feel comfortable and emotionally supported at school? • Do you have an adult on campus who you trust that you would go to for problems other than academics? • What obstacles have you faced here at school? Are there barriers you are facing to graduation? • Have you seen other students struggle here at school? What kinds of things do you see that keep students from being successful and graduating? • How has the counseling center helped you? Did you get the help you needed to select classes? Is there more help you need from the counseling center? • If you could redesign this school so it had all the supports you need, what would you change? DIVERSITY AND EQUITY • When and where do you get to hang out with the most diverse group of students on campus? • Which places at our high school are the least diverse? • Are your classes balanced by the number of students from different racial groups? Which ones? • Do your teachers balance the discussion of different racial groups’ histories, stories and contributions in class? • Do teachers make the classroom a safe space to talk about race? • How could AHS/SILSA become a more integrated and equitable community? • Do you feel that some students have been given advantages or disadvantages when it comes to your education based on race?

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LISTEN UP: Community volunteer Michael Prault, left, talks with Dana Campbell, a senior at SILSA. Campbell participated in the listening project as both an interviewer and a student providing input. Photo courtesy of Asheville City Schools Foundation dents who wanted to do well in academics “but didn’t have the support to keep them on track.” He hopes the listening project will lead to more support for both students and staff. Of course not all the concerns Campbell and other students are sharing are as weighty. Case in point: lunch period. With less than 20 minutes allotted for lunch in the current academic year, Campbell says, “I’m not the type that likes to devour my food. I prefer to take my time to eat. It’s not enough time for both eating and socializing.” TURNING INPUT INTO ACTION Once the interviews are complete, the results will be gathered and transcribed by sociology students at UNC Asheville, and then quantified. For example Musiker says, students’ replies when asked what one person makes school work for them can be broken down into percentages of students who say a teacher, the principal, a school counselor, etc. The results then can be analyzed further by focus groups. If a large percentage of students identify a certain need, that can be addressed, Musiker says. It was students’ identification of the need for something to do after school at the middle school that led to the current In Real Life program. “It’s just so obvious that kids know what schools need,” Pett says. “When you talk about what schools need, most people think about school supplies — notebooks, pens, backpacks — but what about a second breakfast or tutoring help?”

This is a community project, Pett says, and the more people who are involved, the more likely the community will be willing to provide the resources needed to address the issues that come up. “I believe the resources are out there,” Pett says. “As it happened with the middle school, it’s about setting priorities.” Results of the interviews should be tabulated before the end of the current school year, Pett says. Then the community can move on to deciding how to address the needs. BUILDING EQUITY The students taking part in the project were identified by teachers, who sought students who exemplified the diversity in the student body — people of color, LGBTQ students, athletes and artists, among others. According to school system spokesperson AshleyMichelle Thublin, 67 percent of students at Asheville High are white, 19 percent are African-American, 7 percent are Hispanic and 7 percent identify as belonging to other groups. At SILSA, 68 percent of students are white, 17 percent are AfricanAmerican, 9 percent are Hispanic and 6 percent are other ethnicities. In addition to the listening project, the foundation is convening other efforts aimed at narrowing the yawning achievement gap between white and black students in the Asheville City Schools (see “Closing the Gap,” Xpress, March 22, avl.mx/4f3), Musiker says.

Upcoming events that are open to the public include: • Tuesday, Jan. 30, “Legacy of desegregation in ACS,” a community discussion featuring stories from those impacted by desegregation in Asheville. • Wednesday, Feb. 28, “Increasing equity through full integration,” with Nikole Hannah-Jones, a reporter who covers racial injustice for The New York Times Magazine. • Thursday, March 22, “Promoting equity today,” an information session for

parents on equity work underway in the schools and how they can support it. • Thursday, April 19, “Becoming an equity advocate,” a workshop for members of the school community. For more information about these events and other initiatives, visit acsf.org. “You know, the old adage of 'it takes a village...’, it’s kind of worn out, but it applies here,” Dingle says. “I think it’s really neat that students, who have a fresh perspective, are part of this.” X

Learning to listen The basis for the listening project comes from Rural Southern Voice for Peace, based in the Celo community in Burnsville, says Miranda Musiker, director of grants and scholarships for the Asheville City Schools Foundation. The approach has been used to bring together people in divided communities but is adaptable to other situations. According to RSVP’s website (avl.mx/4ie), listening projects aim to identify community problems, issues and priorities; to include voices that might otherwise go

unheard; to build understanding among people with different or conflicting views; to generate creative solutions, develop new community leaders and form new coalitions; and to create long-term capacity for community action. The listening project approach has been adapted for use by such organizations as Concerned Citizens Against Toxic Waste in Harlan, Ky.; the Louisiana Racial Issues Project; Health for Hispanics in North Carolina; and the European Center for Conflict Resolution. X

Celebrating 30 years in Asheville!

828.254.5677

600-B Centrepark Drive, Asheville, NC MOUNTAINX.COM

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

N EWS

by Carolyn Morrisroe

cmorrisroe@mountainx.com

‘MORE WORK TO BE DONE’

Asheville’s equity manager reflects on MLK

BY CAROLYN MORRISROE

procedures advance equity, I am also being asked to embed equity analyses in the budget process as well as at the beginning of projects versus an add-on or check-the-box activity at the end of a project. Just as the disparities grew over generations, progress on advancing equity will take time. The city of Asheville has begun the journey by taking the first step.

cmorrisroe@mountainx.com Kimberlee Archie came on board city staff as Asheville’s first equity and inclusion manager last July, with the goal of establishing the use of an equity lens in all city programs and policies. The city stated that her initial areas of focus would include hiring and human resource management, purchasing, public engagement, sustainability, public safety, and community and economic development. In advance of Martin Luther King Day on Jan. 15, Xpress asked Archie to share her thoughts on King’s legacy and how it applies to the continuing effort to create equity in Asheville. What does Martin Luther King Jr. mean to you personally? How do you see yourself as continuing his vision and work? I celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. as the father of the civil rights movement, who engaged and involved young and old in the fight for civil rights. His commitment to undoing the inequalities of public policy for black people was unfaltering until the day of his assassination. The nonviolent organizing tactics used by Dr. King to change racial segregation and discriminatory policies and practices by local, state and federal government were effective for creating access to equal civil rights. After civil rights were won through the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Dr. King realized the need to change the direction of the movement. In addition to the need for the federal government to enforce the newly enacted policies, he understood that black people also needed access to opportunities economically, in housing and in education. I approach my work as the equity and inclusion manager as an extension of the direction Dr. King was preparing to move as written in his 1967 book, Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community? The racial disparities that exist in Asheville and small to large cities across the U.S. are due to generations of structural racism. In the 50 years since Dr. King’s final book, disparities have grown in every area of life for African-Americans from infant mortality, to cancer, chronic diseases and death rates, to education and incarceration rates as well as salaries, 10

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL: Kimberlee Archie became Asheville’s first equity and inclusion manager last summer. She hopes to work on decreasing the disparities that Martin Luther King Jr. identified that still plague American society today. Photo by Virginia Daffron homeownership and wealth. Dr. King discussed the need for access to better jobs, higher salaries, safe and affordable housing, and quality education for black people. The city of Asheville has decided to work toward undoing racial inequities and advancing equity for its residents through policies, practices, procedures and budget decisions. Equity is defined as recognizing that everyone doesn’t begin from the same place nor has the same obstacles; achieving equity is providing access and opportunities for all to succeed. The focus for the city, of course, is within the sphere of policymaking, implementation and operations as well as using the city government’s sphere of influence to partner and collaborate on advancing equity. How have your first few months on the job been going? Do you feel as if you are seeing a way for Asheville to make improvements in this area? My experience at the city of Asheville has been a positive one. All of the department directors and staff I have engaged have been open to my role and to participating in this

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institutional change management initiative. In the first five months in my position, the focus of the internal work has consisted of: • Developing a shared understanding of key terminology and method of analysis. • Learning about and discussing institutional and structural racism. • Analyzing government’s role in creating and maintaining racial disparities. • Organizing a working group of employees who represent each department within city government to grow institutional capacity. • Testing pilot projects to develop a citywide equity action plan. Although engaging all city employees in the equity and inclusion initiative is a goal, it takes time to accomplish. To get to the goal, I am working with city leadership and the employee working group to develop and implement a plan for citywide learning and capacity building. As employee awareness and knowledge increase, I am observing small wins and progress on a regular basis. In addition to project teams and department leaders requesting technical assistance in analyzing how policies, practices and

How can people get involved in this issue? What increases the success of this work sticking is that Asheville as a city is already involved in learning about and advancing equity. There are a plethora of opportunities for individuals to engage in racial equity, racial justice and anti-racism activity in Asheville. I am aware of Building Bridges of Asheville and training by the Racial Equity Institute. I am also aware of organizations and groups of white people who are engaged in being anti-racist allies, although I have not engaged with them as of yet. There are existing opportunities to get engaged in advancing racial equity in Asheville. Asheville City Council will hear recommendations in February from the blue ribbon committee on implementing a Human Relations Commission. If a Human Relations Commission is instituted as recommended, it will need members who are committed to working on advancing equity and inclusion in Asheville in an advisory capacity to the City Council. I also see the Human Relations Commission as the city’s equity, inclusion and anti-discrimination community engagement mechanism. Once the commission is up and running, it could be a powerful connection between community members most impacted by discrimination, racism and racial disparities and city government engaging in advancing equity across the city. I appreciate that a holiday celebrating the work and accomplishments of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. exists. It is necessary to acknowledge how far he led our country toward equal civil rights; however, an understanding that there is still more work to be done to get to fairness and engaging in that work keeps his memory alive and relevant on a daily basis versus one day a year. X

by Carolyn Morrisroe

cmorrisroe@mountainx.com

FOLLOWING HIS FOOTSTEPS MLK Day events offer chance for celebration, action

REMEMBERING MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.: The annual prayer breakfast takes place Saturday, Jan. 13, at the Crowne Plaza Resort in Asheville, keynoted this year by its founder, Oralene Anderson Graves Simmons. Photo of the 2017 breakfast by Cindy Kunst Events around Western North Carolina will celebrate the legacy of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., kicking off with the annual prayer breakfast on Saturday and continuing on MLK Day (Monday, Jan. 15) and throughout the week. SATURDAY, JAN. 13

PRAYER BREAKFAST The 37th annual Martin Luther King Jr. prayer breakfast takes place at 8 a.m. at the Crowne Plaza Resort in Asheville. Adult tickets: $25; youth tickets: $15; patron tickets: $35 with name listed in the program journal. The keynote address will be delivered this year by Oralene Anderson Graves Simmons, who founded the prayer breakfast in 1982. Tickets are available at mlkasheville.org or by calling 828-335-6896.

MONDAY, JAN. 15

march to City-County Plaza to hear speakers on justice and peace.

DAY OF EVENTS AT BLACK STAR LINE BREWING

MARCH AT WCU

Black Star Line Brewing, an African-American-owned brewery in Hendersonville, will host a full day of events, service, education and conversations about the life and legacy of King. The lineup includes films, music, poetry, service opportunities and a vegan community dinner. The event, called “MLK: Intersectionality, Beloved Community, Justice & Action,” takes place 9 a.m.-9 p.m. at 131 W. Third Ave. See avl.mx/4i8 for more information. PEACE MARCH AND RALLY The MLK Association of Asheville & Buncombe County will commemorate King with a peace march and rally beginning at 11:30 a.m. at St. James AME Church at Martin Luther King Drive and Hildebrand Street. At noon, participants will

The 2018 MLK Unity March will be held on the campus of Western Carolina University in Cullowhee starting at 2 p.m. CANDLELIGHT VIGIL A 6 p.m., a candlelight service will be held at Central United Methodist Church Fellowship Hall to honor area citizens and organizations that have dedicated themselves to the cause of social justice. TUESDAY, JAN. 16

POOR PEOPLE’S CAMPAIGN A town hall gathering will kick off the local Poor People’s Campaign 7-9 p.m. at Hill Street Baptist

CONTINUES ON PAGE 12 MOUNTAINX.COM

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

NEWS ing will be presented by Ashevillearea actors, including three UNC Asheville students. Director David Joliffe, professor of English at the University of Arkansas, will lead an audience Q&A after the reading. The event is free and open to the public and takes place 7-9 p.m. at the Dr. Wesley Grant Sr. Southside Center, 285 Livingston St., Asheville. THURSDAY, JAN. 18

KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY MICHELLE ALEXANDER

RACE IN AMERICA: Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow, will speak at UNC Asheville on Thursday, Jan. 18. Photo courtesy of UNC Asheville Church, 135 Hill St., Asheville. The event ties into the 50th anniversary of King’s vision of a Poor People’s Campaign and the new national campaign, launching in May, which will include educational events, protests and nonviolent direct actions. The Jan. 16 event will feature local speakers who have been impacted by their poverty in the main areas of policy concerns in the PPC: poverty, racism, militarism and ecological devastation. For more information, see the Facebook event at avl.mx/4i7. The town hall is free and open to the public. WEDNESDAY, JAN. 17

READING OF ON THE ROW As part of its week of events highlighting the legacy of King, UNC Asheville will host a dramatic reading of On The Row from the Northwest Arkansas Prison Project, which features the writing of death row inmates in Arkansas. The read-

Michelle Alexander, author of the best-selling book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, will deliver the keynote address for the UNC Asheville’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Week. No tickets are required for this free talk at 7 p.m. in Kimmel Arena at UNCA’s Sherrill Center. The doors will open at 6 p.m., and seating is first-come, first-served. For more information, contact UNC Asheville Events & Conferences Office at 828251-6853 or visit events.unca.edu FRIDAY, JAN. 19

CO-FOUNDER OF BLACK LIVES MATTER Malaprop’s Bookstore presents Patrisse Cullors, who was instrumental in the founding and growth of the Black Lives Matter movement, at a 6 p.m. event at Rainbow Community Center (60 State St.) in West Asheville. Along with Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi, Cullors created the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag in the wake of the 2013 acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teen. In conversation with Warren Wilson College professor Rima L. Vesely-Flad, Cullors will speak about her memoir, When They Call You a Terrorist. Tickets to the event are $10 and are available at avl.mx/4gz.

STORIES MATTER: Patrisse Cullors, a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter hashtag that spawned a movement, will speak about her memoir, When They Call You a Terrorist, on Friday, Jan. 19, at Malaprop’s. BUILDING BRIDGES BEGINS 25TH YEAR Building Bridges of Asheville will begin its 2018 winter session on Jan. 20. The nine-week Building Bridges session offers an introduction to the dynamics of racism and an opportunity to explore how race has impacted our relationships, communities and institutions. The sessions meet Mondays, 7-9 p.m. at

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(828) 210-1697

Central United Methodist Church in Asheville; the session costs $35. For more information and to regis-

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JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

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ter, see www.bbavl.org. X

NEWS BRIEFS by Max Hunt | mhunt@mountainx.com BLUE RIDGE COMMUNITY COLLEGE HOSTS MEDICARE FORUM JAN. 14 A forum focused on providing Medicare for all U.S. citizens will be held on Sunday, Jan. 14, 2-4 p.m. at Blue Ridge Community College’s Patton Auditorium in Flat Rock. The forum will center on issues of health, economics and social aspects surrounding access to Medicare. Joel R. Segal, a former senior legislative aide to U.S. Rep. John Conyers who worked extensively on the Affordable Care Act, will participate in the forum alongside local representatives from the health care industry. A networking period will precede the official presentation, which begins at 2:30 p.m. A Q&A session will follow the presentation. The event is free and open to the public. More info: avl.mx/4in N.C. WILDLIFE COMMISSION HOLDS PUBLIC HEARING ON HUNTING RULES The N.C. Wildlife Commission will host a public meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 7 p.m., at Haywood Community College in Clyde, to take comments on proposed changes to agency regulations involving wildlife management, fisheries and game lands for the 2018-19 hunting seasons. The regulation updates would include changes to deer season zones and hunting season lengths across the region, restrictions on maximum harvest numbers of deer, and the expansion of bear season in the Mountain Bear Unit by two weeks. More info on proposed

regulations can be found online at avl.mx/4ip. In addition to the public meeting, comments can be submitted online, emailed to regulations@ncwildlife.org, or physically mailed to the Wildlife Resources Commission at 1701 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, N.C. 276991701 by Feb. 1. Wildlife commissioners will compile feedback and meet later in February to make a decision on adopting the current proposals. Approved proposals will take effect beginning Aug. 1. More info: avl.mx/4io EPA RELEASES FACT SHEET ON CTS CLEANUP ACTIVITY Following concerns expressed by residents at a Nov. 30 community meeting to review cleanup plans at the CTS of Asheville Inc. Superfund site on Mills Gap Road, the Environmental Protection Agency, CTS and its contractor, TRS, released a fact sheet on controls and additional safeguards put in place during the installation and operation of the electrical heating resistance treatment system on the site. The fact sheet includes information for residents regarding TRS’ background and safety record, in addition to health information, safety and emergency response planning. More info: avl.mx/4i2 GRANT APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE The city of Asheville has opened applications for three grant programs: Community Development Block Grant, HOME Investment Partnership

Funds and the Strategic Partnership Fund. The deadline to apply is Feb. 9. The application process is online, and a training webinar is required in order for applicants to access the application. Because the application process has changed, the city invites the community to walk through the new application with staff. Technical support sessions will be held in January. More info: avl.mx/4i3 ASHEVILLE SEEKS AUDIT COMMITTEE MEMBERS The city of Asheville is calling for applicants to serve on its new audit committee. Established for the purpose of reviewing internal audits, the committee works with outside auditors and facilitates communication between auditors, city managers and City Council, in addition to providing annual reports to City Council. The audit committee consists of one sitting City Council member and four impartial members of the community, with non-Council members serving staggered three-year terms. Applicants must live within city limits, be financially literate and have no conflict of interests to qualify for positions, in addition to at least five years of experience in account management, finance or auditing. To apply, visit the city’s Boards and Commissions webpage at avl.mx/3wv, email s terwilliger@ ashevillenc.gov or call 828-259-5839. The deadline for applications is Wednesday, Feb. 7, by 5 p.m. More info: avl.mx/4im X

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JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

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F E AT UR E S

ASHEVILLE ARCHIVES by Thomas Calder | tcalder@mountainx.com

‘The most important achievement’ Asheville celebrates the opening of the Langren Hotel, 1912 Excitement lined the pages of the June 15, 1912, issue of The Asheville Gazette News. With less than three weeks to go before the July 4 opening of the Langren Hotel, Asheville was preparing for its celebration — as well as its promotion. According to the Gazette News, part of the city’s advertising involved the newspaper itself: “The Asheville board of trade has decided to send out over the south about 5000 numbers of The GazetteNews to be published on July 4 to be known as the Langren number. This edition of the paper will appear in celebration of the formal opening of the new hotel on that date and will be a special Asheville booster edition. The fact that it is to be so widely distributed by the board of trade will give the city some of the best advertising throughout the south that it has had for some time. … “In addition to this there will be a large volume of reading matter telling what this city has to offer the summer tourists in the way of amusements and comforts, sanitation, unexcelled water and an atmosphere that cannot be equalled anywhere in the whole country. The edition will boost Asheville and it will do it most effectively.” The Langren was located at the current site of the AC Hotel Asheville Downtown, on the corner of Broadway and College Street. (In 1964, BB&T razed the building to make way for its parking garage.) According to historian Lou Harshaw, it was the city’s first building framed by steel. Originally set to be named The North State, the hotel’s new and final name was reported in The Asheville Citizen on March 9, 1912. The paper informed readers that Langren was a combination of the names John Lange and Gay Green, the two men “who purchased the concrete frame some time ago and within the past few months changed its appearance from that of an eyesore to a mammoth hostelry, which, when completed, will be among the very best in the south.”

NOW AND THEN: The Langren Hotel was razed in 1964. Fifty-three years later, the AC Hotel Asheville Downtown opened on its former site. Top photo courtesy of North Carolina Collection, Pack Memorial Public Library, Asheville; bottom photo and location research by Will McLeod On July 4, a banquet was held inside the hotel to celebrate its opening. That same day, The Asheville Gazette News was distributed throughout the South, promoting the new business. The article began with a box highlighting the hostelry’s features and amenities. This included mention of its steel and concrete construction; 210 rooms, capable of accommodating 500 guests; and “twenty cars of ‘Pyro’ bars, gypsum and asbestos (fireproof) for partitions.”

The article went on to declare that the Langren’s opening was “the most important achievement in the way of provision for the tourist business, in western North Carolina in a decade.” Other points of pride included the the hotel’s roof garden, its Patterson system hot water supply, its public dining room (which was divided into “European style and American style compartments”), and the kitchen (equipped with the “the newest approved appliances and inventions, down to or up to a machine which boils your breakfast eggs just as you order them, so many minutes, neither more nor less”). On top of these features, the article stressed that the Langren Hotel was fireproof. “The owners do not carry a cent of insurance,” the paper stated. “Fire escapes are provided as a matter of compliance with law. They will never be used for their proper function.” But above all, the article wanted to make sure its 5,000 out-of-town readers knew the desirablilty of the city as a whole: “The city of Asheville had come to feel the need of more great hotels. For about ten years now, or since the great money crop of America, cotton, achieved the complete financial restoration of the south, and dating from the time of the last yellow fever scourge, the number of people flocking to the great play-ground, western North Carolina, has been gradually increasing. The houses of entertainment, of various styles and capacities, have been constantly overtaxed in the busiest of the season. Of great hotels, especially, it was found that Asheville actually needed more than she had, in addition to which it was realized that an increase in the number of really high class houses, such as would attract that class of visitors who are in position to command the best of creature comforts, would naturally be a strong factor in the further increase of the sum total of the business.” Editor’s note: Peculiarities of spelling and punctuation are preserved from the original documents. X

COMMUNITY CALENDAR JAN. 10 - 18, 2018

CALENDAR GUIDELINES For a full list of community calendar guidelines, please visit mountainx.com/calendar. For questions about free listings, call 251-1333, ext. 137. For questions about paid calendar listings, please call 251-1333, ext. 320.

MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY CELEBRATION OF DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. 828-273-3747, kenilworthchurch.org • MO (1/15), 5:308pm - "Standing Up by Sitting Down: Asheville Activists Who Sparked a Revolution," annual Kenilworth Celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with keynote speaker Lewis Brandon. Community potluck from 5:30-6:30pm. Childcare provided. Free. Held at Kenilworth Presbyterian Church, 123 Kenilworth Road LENOIR MLK MARCH 945 Lakewood Circle, Lenoir • MO (1/15), 1:30pm NAACP Martin Luther King Jr. Day community march. Free. MLK PEACE MARCH & RALLY mlkasheville.org • MO (1/15), 11:30am - Peace march and rally beginning at St. James AME Church and marching to Asheville City-County Plaza. Free. Held at St. James AME Church, 44 HIldebrand St. • MO (1/15), 6pm Martin Luther King, Jr., candlelight service. Free. Held at Central United Methodist Church, 27 Church St. MLK PRAYER BREAKFAST 828-281-1624, mlkasheville.org/ annual-prayer-breakfast/ • SA (1/13), 8:30am Martin Luther King, Jr. prayer breakfast with keynote speaker Oralene Anderson Graves Simmons. $25/$15 children. Held at Crowne Plaza Resort, 1 Resort Drive PUBLIC LECTURES AT UNCA unca.edu • TH (1/18), 7pm - Martin Luther King Jr. Week keynote speech by Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow. Free. Held at UNC Asheville Sherrill Center, 227 Campus Drive

ANIMALS SARGE’S ANIMAL RESCUE FOUNDATION 828-246-9050, sargeanimals.org • Through SA (1/13) - Proceeds from this holiday pet photo contest benefit Sarge's Animal Rescue Foundation. Information: sargeanimals.org. $15 per entry.

BENEFITS ASHEVILLE MUSIC SCHOOL 828-252-6244, ashevillemusicschool.org, ryan@asheville musicschool.org • FR (1/12), 7pm - Proceeds from "Mountain Soul Party," live music show featuring Asheville Music School youth ensembles Vinyl Crossroads and Defective Swing benefit the Burton Street ONEmic Studio and LEAF in Streets & Schools. $12/$10 advance. Held at Isis Music Hall & Kitchen 743, 743 Haywood Road HENDERSONVILLE COMMUNITY THEATRE 229 S. Washington St., Hendersonville, 828-692-1082, hendersonville littletheater.org • FR (1/12), 7pm Proceeds from the live music concert, "New Orleans Baroque - With a Classical Twist," benefit Hendersonville Community Theatre. $35. • SA (1/13), 7pm Proceeds from the live piano concert, "Jazz Standards - The music of George Gershwin, Cole Porter and Irving Berlin," benefit the Hendersonville Community Theatre. $35. HOPERX BENEFIT 828-393-5147, graceblueridge.com • SU (1/14), 6:30-8pm - Donations at this Anthony Mossburg singer/songwriter concert benefit HopeRx. Free. Held at Grace Blue Ridge Church, 109 Florence St., Hendersonville

RENOVATE WITH JAZZ: Whether you like your jazz straight up or with a twist, there will be jazz aplenty at the Hendersonville Community Theatre on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 12 and 13, at 7 p.m., when the Music Foundation of Western North Carolina presents New Orleans Baroque and Jazz Standards benefiting the Hendersonville Community Theatre’s building renovations and ongoing programming. The Friday night concert, New Orleans Baroque, is a mix of jazz and classical Baroque music performed by flutist Rita Hayes, double bass player Keith Freeburg, drummer Morgen Cobb and pianist John Cobb. The Saturday night concert, Jazz Standards, presents the music of George Gershwin, Cole Porte and Irving Berlin, performed by pianist Michael Jefry Stevens and vibraphonist Jason DeCristofaro. Tickets to each concert are $35. For more information or tickets, visit hendersonvilletheatre.org. Photo of John Cobb, Rita Hayes, Morgen Cobb and Keith Freeburg courtesy of Hendersonville Community Theatre (p. 15) PLANNED PARENTHOOD ART BENEFIT wedgebrewing.com/location-wedge-foundation/ • FR (1/12) - Donations and purchases at the opening reception of Nasty Woman & Bad Hombre art exhibition benefit Planned Parenthood. Event includes hors d'oeuvres, refreshments and live entertainment. Free to attend. Held at Wedge Foundation, 5 Foundy St. THE VANISHING WHEELCHAIR 175 Weaverville Road, Suite L., 828-645-2941, VanishingWheelchair.org • 2nd & 4th FRIDAYS, 7pm - Proceeds from “Magic, Mirth & Meaning,” familyfriendly, hour-long production featuring storytellers, singers, jugglers, and magicians benefit The Vanishing Wheelchair. $10/$5 children.

BUSINESS & TECHNOLOGY G&W INVESTMENT CLUB klcount@aol.com • 3rd WEDNESDAYS, 11:45am - General meeting. Free to attend. Held at Black Forest Restaurant, 2155 Hendersonville Road, Arden

CLASSES, MEETINGS & EVENTS BITCOIN? BEER? THIS SUNDAY (PD.) Learn about the Blockchain Revolution at

the Blockchain and Beer lecture series. Wedge at Foundation, January 14, 2pm-4pm. $30 admission, a beer and snacks. • First 20 to sign up get free etched pint glass. Find it on Facebook! EMPYREAN ARTS CLASSES (PD.) Beginning Aerial Arts on Sundays 2:15pm, Mondays 6:30pm and Tuesdays 1:00pm. Beginning Pole on Sundays 3:30pm, Mondays 5:15pm and Thursdays 8:00pm. Floor Theory Dance on Wednesdays 7:30pm. More Information at EmpyreanArts.org. Call/ text us at 828.782.3321. FOURTH WAY SCHOOL (PD.) Know Thyself - Wisdom Through Action, a Fourth Way School in the tradition of Gurdjieff & Ouspensky teaching practical application of the Work. Meets Thursday evenings. 720.218.9812 www. wisdomthroughaction.com

Center, 37 E. Larchmont Road ASHEVILLE TAROT CIRCLE meetup.com/ Asheville-Tarot-Circle/ • 2nd SUNDAYS, noon General meeting. Free to attend. Held at Firestorm Cafe and Books, 610 Haywood Road BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • WE (1/10), 4pm - "Mend, Alter and Embellish Your Clothes," workshop. For ages 12 and up. Free. Held at Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St. • SA (1/13), 10:30am Drone flight class with StarDust FPV. For all ages. Children under 12 must be accompanied by adult. Drones provided or you can bring your own. Registration required online. Free. Held at Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St.

VILLAGERS... (PD.) ...is an Urban Homestead Supply store offering quality tools, supplies and classes to support healthy lifestyle activities like gardening, food preservation, cooking, herbalism, and more. 278 Haywood Road. www.forvillagers.com

DISABILITY PARTNERS ASHEVILLE OFFICE 108 New Leicester Highway, 828-298-1977, disabilitypartners.org • FR (1/12), 2-5pm Monthly class and community potluck. Registration required: 828-298-1977. Free/Bring sandwich fixings to share.

ASHEVILLE CHESS CLUB 828-779-0319, vincentvanjoe@gmail.com • WEDNESDAYS, 6:30pm - Sets provided. All ages and skill levels welcome. Beginners lessons available. Free. Held at North Asheville Recreation

FIRESTORM CAFE AND BOOKS 610 Haywood Road, 828-255-8115 • MO (1/15), 5pm Blockchain and cryptocurrency, discussion group. Free to attend.

HOMINY VALLEY RECREATION PARK 25 Twin Lakes Drive, Candler, 828-242-8998, hvrpsports.com • 3rd THURSDAYS, 7pm Hominy Valley board meeting. Free. LEICESTER COMMUNITY CENTER 2979 New Leicester Highway, Leicester, 828-774-3000, facebook.com/Leicester. Community.Center • 3rd THURSDAYS, 7pm - The Leicester History Gathering, general meeting. Free. LITERACY COUNCIL OF BUNCOMBE COUNTY 31 College, Suite B-221 • FR (1/12), 8:30-9:30am - Coffee and tour to learn how literacy changes students' lives. Registration required: litcouncil.com/ literacy-changing-livestour/. Free. ONTRACK WNC 50 S. French Broad Ave., 828-255-5166, ontrackwnc.org • TH (1/11), noon-1:30pm & WE (1/17), 5:30-7pm "Dreaming of a Debt Free Life," seminar. Registration required. Free. • TH (1/18), noon-1:30pm - "Understanding Credit. Get it. Keep it. Improve it." Registration required. Free. • TH (1/18), 5:30-7pm "Budgeting and Debt," class. Registration required. Free. TRANSITION ASHEVILLE 828-296-0064, transitionasheville.org • WE (1/17), 6:30-8pm - Transition Asheville Monthly Social: "Energy

MOUNTAINX.COM

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

Dance Moms Give...

C O N S C I O U S PA R T Y by Edwin Arnaudin | earnaudin@mountainx.com

Straight “A’s” for Dance Education A A A A A

ffordable Monthly Tuitions ge-appropriate Music and Costumes ccepting of ALL cademically Centered ffirmative Environment

WNC Dance Academy Benefit Showcase

Now Registering New Students, Ages 2 to 92 Join the Dance Today and Perform in our 25th Annual Recital in June 2018

Interested...?

Come out and See our dancers perform at the Harlem Globetrotters Game this Sunday, January 14!

Information/Registration: www.ideafactoryinc.org

(828) 277-4010 • 3726 Sweeten Creek Road, Arden, NC 28704

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THE COMPANY: WNC Dance Academy’s Jan. 20 showcase at the Asheville High School auditorium features large group, small group, trio, duet and solo pieces. All proceeds and nonperishable food donations from the event will be given to MANNA FoodBank. Photo by Marlumor Photography WHAT: A dance showcase to benefit MANNA Food Bank WHEN: Saturday, Jan. 20, 6 p.m. WHERE: Asheville High School auditorium, 419 McDowell St. WHY: When WNC Dance Academy first decided to do a benefit showcase five years ago, the company considered working with Toys for Tots but decided to go with MANNA FoodBank because of the large amount of homelessness in the Asheville area. “[MANNA] was actually chosen by one of my younger dancers at the time, Ayla Orta, who was 7 years old. I believe she said, ‘People can live without toys, but cannot live without food,’” says WNCDA owner and director Tina Simms. “We are so grateful to be able to partner with MANNA FoodBank and to be a small contributor to help them restock their shelves after the holiday season. From what we are told, MANNA receives a lot of donations over the holiday, but the need is so great that their stock is depleted after the holiday season. That’s why we chose to do the benefit in January.” The latest show takes place Saturday, Jan. 20, at the Asheville High School auditorium. Last year’s showcase was also held there, after which WNCDA helped

MANNA create a food closet for AHS students who are homeless and in need. “The showcase will feature all styles of dance, as well as a vocal performance by Sophie Scott, who is a member of our adult company,” Simms says. “Dance styles will include ballet, modern, contemporary, hip-hop, lyrical and jazz.” Dancers ages 4-18 in the performing company will present large group, small group, trio, duet and solo pieces. The evening also includes guest performances by professional dancers Vanessa Owen, Gavin Stewart, Jaime Thompson, Jeff Ewing and Rebecca O’Quinn, most of whom teach at the studio. After the showcase, WNCDA’s company performers will dance at Givens Estates in February, attend various dance conventions and workshops, and vie in four competitions across the Carolinas between now and May. The company’s next public performance will be its spring showcase in June. WNC Dance Academy’s MANNA FoodBank Benefit Showcase takes place at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 20, at the Asheville High School auditorium. $12 and/or donate four items of nonperishable food. wncdanceacademy.com X

C OMMU N IT Y CA L EN D AR

Savers Network," presentation. Free. Held at The BLOCK off biltmore, 39 South Market St.

DANCE EXPERIENCE ECSTATIC DANCE! (PD.) Dance waves hosted by Asheville Movement Collective. Fun and personal/community transformation. • Fridays, 7pm, Terpsicorps Studios, 1501 Patton Avenue. • Sundays, 8:30am and 10:30am, JCC, 236 Charlotte Street. Sliding scale fee. Information: asheville movementcollective.org JANUARY COUNTRY DANCE (PD.) Friday, January 19, 7-10:30pm, Asheville Ballroom. Two-Step Dance lesson 7-8 with Richard and Sue Cicchetti. Dancing 8-10:30pm. Dance/Lesson $15, Dance only $10. Contact: 828-333-0715, naturalrichard@mac.com, www.DanceForLife.net STUDIO ZAHIYA, DOWNTOWN DANCE CLASSES (PD.) Monday 12pm Bootcamp 12pm Barre Wkt 5pm Teen Dance Fitness & Technique 6pm Hip Hop Wkt 6pm Bellydance Drills 7pm Bellydance Special Topics 7pm Tribal Bellydance Level 1 8pm Tribal Bellydance Level 2 8pm Raks Azure Pro Bellydance Troupe • Tuesday 8am Bootcamp 9am Hip Hop Wkt 6pm Intro to Bellydance 7pm Bellydance 2 8pm Creating a Solo • Wednesday 10am Hip Hop 12pm Bootcamp 5pm Hip Hop Wkt 6pm Bhangra Series 7pm Irish Dance 8pm Modern • Thursday 8am Bootcamp 9am Hip Hop Wkt 3:15pm Kids Hip Hop and Creative Movement 4pm Kids Hip Hop and Creative Movement 5pm Teens Hip Hop 6pm On Broadway! 7pm Stiletto Sculpt Dance 8pm West Coast Swing • Friday 8am Bootcamp 12pm Bootcamp • Saturday 9:30am Hip Hop Wkt 10:45 Buti Yoga Wkt 1pm Hip Hop • $14 for 60 minute classes, Wkt $8. 90 1/2 N. Lexington Avenue. www.studiozahiya.com :: 828.242.7595 OLD FARMER'S BALL oldfarmersball.com • THURSDAYS, 8-11pm - Old Farmers Ball, contra dance. $7/$6 members/$1 Warren Wilson Community. Held in Bryson Gym at Warren Wilson College, 701 Warren Wilson Road, Swannanoa

ECO 25TH ANNUAL SPRING CONFERENCE (PD.) March 9-11, 2018. at UNCA. 150+ practical, affordable, regionallyappropriate workshops on organic growing, homesteading, farming, permaculture. Trade show, seed exchange, special guests. Organicgrowersschool. org. (828) 214-7833 FARM DREAMS (PD.) February 3, 2018, 10:00am - 4:00pm Lenoir Rhyne 36 Montford Ave, Asheville, NC Farm Dreams a great entry-level workshop to attend if you are in the exploratory stages of starting a farm and seeking practical information on sustainable farming. ASHEVILLE GREEN DRINKS ashevillegreendrinks.com • 3rd WEDNESDAYS, 6pm - Informal networking focused on the science of sustainability. Free to attend. Held at The BLOCK off biltmore, 39 South Market St.

FARM & GARDEN LIVING WEB FARMS 828-891-4497, livingwebfarms.org • SA (1/13), 1-7:30pm - "Simplified Electrical Controls for the Farm & Homestead," workshop. $15. Held at Living Web Farms- Biochar Facility, 220 Grandview Lane Hendersonville POLK COUNTY FRIENDS OF AGRICULTURE BREAKFAST polkcountyfarms.org • 3rd WEDNESDAYS, 7-8am - Monthly breakfast with presentations regarding agriculture. Admission by donation. Held at Green Creek Community Center, 25 Shields Road, Green Creek

FOOD & BEER FAIRVIEW WELCOME TABLE fairviewwelcometable.com • THURSDAYS, 11:30am1pm - Community lunch. Admission by donation. Held at Fairview Christian Fellowship, 596 Old US Highway 74, Fairview FLETCHER CHILI COOKOFF 828-687-0751, fletcherparks.org • Through FR (1/19) Applications accepted for cooks who wish to participate in the Fletcher 17th Annual Chili Cook-Off on Saturday, Jan. 27 from 11:30am-2pm.

LEICESTER COMMUNITY CENTER 2979 New Leicester Highway, Leicester, 828-774-3000, facebook.com/Leicester. Community.Center • WEDNESDAYS, 11:30am-1pm - Welcome Table, community meal. Free. WEST END BAKERY 757 Haywood Road, 828-252-9378, westendbakery.com • WE (1/10), 7-9pm Cathy Cleary presents her cookbook, The Southern Harvest Cookbook. Free.

GOVERNMENT & POLITICS BLUE RIDGE REPUBLICAN WOMEN’S CLUB facebook.com/BRRWC • 2nd THURSDAYS, 6pm - General meeting. Free to attend. Held at Gondolier Restaurant, 1360 Tunnel Road. CITY OF ASHEVILLE 828-251-1122, ashevillenc.gov • WE (1/10), 7-8:30pm - Community feedback event for draft recommendations for the state Human Relations Committee to support unity and harmony and resolve discrimination issues. Dinner and childcare provided. Free. Held at Arthur R. Edington Education and Career Center, 133 Livingston St. HAYWOOD COMMUNITY COLLEGE Regional High Technology Center, 112 Industrial Park Drive, Waynesville, 828-258-8737 • TU (1/16), 7pm - N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission public hearing to take comments on proposed changes to 35 agency regulations related to wildlife management, fisheries and game lands for the 2018-19 seasons. Free. Held in the Haywood Community College Auditorium HENDERSONVILLE COMMUNITY CO-OP 60 S Charleston Lane, Hendersonville, 828-693-0505, hendersonville.coop • TH (1/18), 4-5:30pm - General meeting and discussion about opioid addiction in Henderson County with speakers from Hope Rx and the Henderson County Sheriff's Office. Free.

KIDS ASHEVILLE COMMUNITY THEATRE 35 E. Walnut St., 828-2541320, ashevilletheatre.org • SA (1/13), 10am - Red Herring Puppets’ presents, Little One-Inch. $7.

ASHEVILLE MUSEUM OF SCIENCE 43 Patton Ave., 828-2547162, colburnmuseum.org • 2nd & 4th FRIDAYS, 9-9:45am - Little Explorers Club: Guided activities for preschoolers (with their caregivers). Admission fees apply. • 2nd FRIDAYS, 5:307:30pm - "Night at the Museum," parents night out event for children 4-10 years old. Event includes pizza, movie and activities. Registration required. $15. • SA (1/13), 2-4pm - Saturday Science: "Compost Now," handson activities involving compost. Admssion fees apply.

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BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • FR (1/12), 4pm - Teen cosplay club. Free. Held at Enka-Candler Library, 1404 Sandhill Road, Candler • 2nd SATURDAYS, 1-4pm & LAST WEDNESDAYS (1/31), 4-6pm - Teen Dungeons and Dragons for ages 12 and up. Registration required: 828250-4720. Free. Held at Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St. • WE (1/17), 4pm - Makers & Shakers: Juggling class with Forty Fingers and a Missing Tooth. Free. Held at Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St. FIRESTORM CAFE AND BOOKS 610 Haywood Road, 828-255-8115 • SATURDAYS, 10:3011:15am - Spanish class for children aged 3-5. Free to attend. • SATURDAYS, 11:15am12:30pm - Spanish class for children aged 6-10. Free to attend. FLETCHER LIBRARY 120 Library Road, Fletcher, 828-687-1218, library. hendersoncountync.org • WEDNESDAYS, 10:30am - Family story time. Free. HANDS ON! A CHILDREN'S GALLERY 828-697-8333, handson wnc.org, learningisfun@ handsonwnc.org • TH (1/11), 11am-noon - "Blue Ridge Humane Day!" Event with a special animal from the Blue Ridge Humane Society. Admission fees apply. Held at Hands on! A Children's Gallery, 318 N. main St., Hendersonville • WE (1/17), 4-5pm "Science on Wheels," activities for children. Registration required: 828-890-1850. Free. Held

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MALAPROP'S BOOKSTORE AND CAFE 55 Haywood St., 828-2546734, malaprops.com • WEDNESDAYS, 10am - Miss Malaprop's Story Time for ages 3-9. Free to attend.

PISGAH CHAPTER OF TROUT UNLIMITED pisgahchaptertu.org/ New-Meeting-information. html • 2nd THURSDAYS, 7pm - General meeting and presentations. Free to attend. Held at Ecusta Brewery, 36 E Main St., Brevard

SWANNANOA VALLEY MUSEUM 223 W State St., Black Mountain, 828-669-9566, history.swannanoa valleymuseum.org • 2nd & 4th SATURDAYS, 2-4pm - Historically oriented crafts and activities for children. Free to attend.

SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN HIGHLANDS CONSERVANCY 828-253-0095, appalachian.org • SA (1/13), 9am “For Love of Beer & Mountains," moderately difficult guided hike in the highlands of Roan. Registration required: emily@appalachian.org or 828-253-0095 ext 205. Free.

OUTDOORS CHIMNEY ROCK STATE PARK (PD.) Enjoy breathtaking views of Lake Lure, trails for all levels of hikers, an Animal Discovery Den and 404-foot waterfall. Plan your adventure at chimneyrockpark.com

SWANNANOA VALLEY MUSEUM 828-669-9566, swannanoa valleymuseum.org • WE (1/10), 7-8pm Informational meeting about the Swannanoa Rim Hike Series for 2018. Free to attend. Held at REI Asheville, 31 Schenck Pkwy. • TH (1/11), 7-8pm Informational meeting about the Swannanoa Rim Hike Series for 2018. Free to attend. Held at Black Dome Mountain Sports, 140 Tunnel Road

FRIENDS OF CONNECT BUNCOMBE weconnectbuncombe.org/ about • SA (1/13), 9am - Group walk along the Beaucatcher Mountain Greenway to Helen's Bridge and back. Free. Meet at Memorial Field. Held at Memorial Stadium PISGAH ASTRONOMICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE 1 PARI Drive, Rosman, 828-862-5554, pari.edu • FR (1/12), 5:30-7pm "Winter Night Sky," presentation, tour and night

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• TU (1/16), 6pm - Foster parent information night. Registration required: chopple@bair.org. Free.

PUBLIC LECTURES BLUE RIDGE COMMUNITY COLLEGE 180 W Campus Drive, Flat Rock, 828-412-5488, phoenixrisinghealing.com • SU (1/14), 2-4pm "Healthcare for All, Y'all: We are Already Paying for It," lecture by Joel R. S egal, co-author of H.R. 676, Expanded a nd Improved Medicare For All. Free. Held in Patton Auditorium, Patton Building FIRESTORM CAFE AND BOOKS 610 Haywood Road, 828-255-8115 • SA (1/13), 3pm "Building a Gift Economy: Experiences from Catalunya," presentation. Free to attend. THE ASHEVILLE SCHOOL 360 Asheville School Road, 828-254-6345, ashevilleschool.org • TH (1/11), 7:15pm "From Monroe NC to NASA," public lecture by NASA pioneer, Dr. Christine Darden. Registration required: bit. ly/2CcXgb9. Free. WNC AGRICULTURAL CENTER 1301 Fanning Bridge Road, 828-687-1414, mountainfair.org • TH (1/11), 8-9pm - WLOS Town Hall: “Crossing the Line: Workplace Sexual Harassment," panel discussion and town hall. Free.

SENIORS BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • WEDNESDAYS (1/17) through (2/21), 10am-noon - Six-week diabetes management class for seniors. Registration required: 828356-2800. Free. Held at Haywood County LibraryCanton, 11 Pennsylvania Ave., Canton JEWISH FAMILY SERVICES OF WNC, INC. 2 Doctors Park, Suite E, 828-253-2900 • TUESDAYS & THURSDAYS, 11am-2pm - The Asheville Elder Club, group respite program for individuals with memory challenges and people of all faiths. Registration required: 828-253-2900. $30. • WEDNESDAYS, 11am2pm - The Hendersonville Elder Club for individuals with memory challenges and people of all faiths. Registration required: 828-253-2900. $30. Held at Agudas Israel Congregation, 505 Glasgow Lane Hendersonville

SPIRITUALITY A COURSE IN MIRACLES (PD.) A truly loving, open study group. Meets second and fourth Mondays. 6:30pm, East Asheville, Groce United Methodist Church. Information, call Susan at 828-712-5472.

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ABOUT THE TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION® TECHNIQUE • FREE INTRODUCTORY TALK (PD.) The authentic TM® technique, rooted in the ancient yoga tradition— for settling mind and body and accessing hidden inner reserves of energy, peace and happiness. Learn how TM® is different from mindfulness, watching your breath, common mantra meditation and everything else. Evidence-based: The only meditation technique recommended for heart health by the American Heart Association. NIHsponsored research shows deep revitalizing rest, reduced stress and anxiety, improved brain functioning and heightened well-being. Thursday, 6:30-7:30pm, Asheville TM Center, 165 E. Chestnut. 828-254-4350. TM.org or MeditationAsheville.org ASHEVILLE INSIGHT MEDITATION (PD.) Introduction to Mindfulness Meditation. Learn how to get a Mindfulness Meditation practice started. 1st & 3rd Mondays. 7pm – 8:30. Asheville Insight Meditation, 175 Weaverville Road, Suite H, ASHEVILLE, NC, (828) 808-4444, www. ashevillemeditation.com. ASTRO-COUNSELING (PD.) Licensed counselor and accredited professional astrologer uses your chart when counseling for additional insight into yourself, your relationships and life directions. Readings also available. Christy Gunther, MA, LPC. (828) 258-3229. EXPERIENCE THE SACRED SOUND OF HU (PD.) In our fast-paced world, are you looking to find more inner peace? Singing HU can lift you into a higher state of consciousness, so that you can discover, in your own way, who you are and why you’re here. • Sunday, January 14, 2018, 11am, fellowship follows. Eckankar Center of Asheville, 797 Haywood Road. (“Hops and Vines” building, lower level), Asheville NC 28806, 828-254-6775. (free event). www.eckankar-nc.org GROUP MEDITATION (PD.) Enjoy this supportive meditation community. Mindfulness meditation instruction and Buddhist teachings at Asheville Insight. Thursday evenings at 7pm and Sunday mornings at 10am. ashevillemeditation.com. OPEN HEART MEDITATION (PD.) Now at 70 Woodfin Place, Suite 212. Tuesdays 7-8pm. Experience the stillness and beauty of

connecting to your heart and the Divine within you. Suggested $5 donation. OpenHeartMeditation. com SHAMBHALA MEDITATION CENTER (PD.) Thursdays, 7-8:30pm and Sundays, 10-noon • Meditation and community. By donation. 60 N. Merrimon Ave., #113, (828) 200-5120. asheville. shambhala.org BLUE RIDGE BAHA'IS wncbahai.org • TSU (1/14), 6:30pm - Dinner and interfaith discussion on "eliminating prejudice." Register for location: pnei7808@gmail. com. Free. CREATION CARE ALLIANCE OF WNC creationcarealliance.org • TH (1/11), 5:30-7pm - General meeting and planning session for 2018. Free. Held at First Baptist Church of Asheville, 5 Oak St. FIRESTORM CAFE AND BOOKS 610 Haywood Road, 828-255-8115 • 2nd SUNDAYS, 2:30pm - Pagans for a Just Asheville, general meeting. Free to attend. FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF ASHEVILLE 40 Church St., 828-2531431, fpcasheville.org • MONDAY through FRIDAY until (1/23), 12:301:30pm - January Series of Calvin College broadcast. Free. GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH 1245 6th Ave W, Hendersonville, 828-693-4890, gracelutherannc.com • 2nd FRIDAYS, 1-2pm Non-denominational healing prayer group. Free. • WEDNESDAYS (1/17) through (2/7), 5:45-7pm - “Anxious for Nothing” adult class regarding spirituality and anxiety. Free. URBAN DHARMA 77 Walnut St., 828-2256422, udharmanc.com/ • THURSDAYS (1/11) through (1/25), 7:30-9pm - "Road to Refuge: An Introduction to Buddhist Practice," three class series regarding the buddhist faith and practice. $10 per class. URBAN DHARMA 828-225-6422, udharmanc.com/ • THURSDAYS, 7:30-9pm Open Sangha night. Free. Held at Urban Dharma, 77 Walnut St.

SPOKEN & WRITTEN WORD BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • FR (1/12), 10am-4pm Frugal Friday, book sale benefiting the Friends of the Library. Free to attend. Held at Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St. • TH (1/18), 2:30pm Skyland Book Club: I'll See You in Paris by Michelle Gable. Free. Held at Skyland/South Buncombe Library, 260 Overlook Road • TH (1/18), 6pm Swannanoa Book Club: The Woman Who Smashed Codes by Jason Fagone. Free. Held at Swannanoa Library, 101 West Charleston St., Swannanoa FIRESTORM CAFE AND BOOKS 610 Haywood Road, 828-255-8115 • 2nd & 4th FRIDAYS, 2:30pm - Wild Words writing group. Free to attend. • TU (1/16), 5:30pm Women in Transportation Book Discussion: Option B, by Cheryl Sandberg. Free to attend. FLETCHER LIBRARY 120 Library Road, Fletcher, 828-687-1218, library.henderson countync.org • 2nd THURSDAYS, 10:30am - Book Club. Free. • 2nd THURSDAYS, 1:30pm - Writers' Guild. Free. MALAPROP'S BOOKSTORE AND CAFE 55 Haywood St., 828-2546734, malaprops.com • WE (1/10), 4-5pm Howard Hanger presents his book, Let's Move in Together: Enhancing the Joy of Co-Living. Free to attend. • FR (1/12), 6pm - Bryan Robinson presents his book, Daily Writing Resilience: 365 Meditations and Inspirations for Writers, in conversation with Sara Gruen. Free to attend. • TU (1/16), 6pm - Thomas Pierce presents his book, The Afterlives. Free to attend. • TH (1/18), 6pm - Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner present their book, Unearthed, in conversation with Alexandra Duncan. Free to attend. NORTH CAROLINA WRITERS' NETWORK ncwriters.org • Through TU (1/30) Submissions accepted for the 2018 Thomas Wolfe Fiction Prize. See website for full guidelines. SYNERGY STORY SLAM avl.mx/0gd • WE (1/10), 7:30pm -Open-mic storytelling night on the theme

"gifts and curses." Held at Odditorium, 1045 Haywood Road THE WRITER'S WORKSHOP 387 Beaucatcher Road, 828-254-8111, twwoa.org • Through WE (2/28) Submissions accepted for the 29th Annual Writer's Workshop Poetry Contest. Contact for full guidelines. THOMAS WOLFE MEMORIAL 52 North Market St., 828-253-8304, wolfememorial.com • TH (1/11), 5:30-7pm - Discussion of Thomas Wolfe's short story The Anatomy of Loneliness, led by author Terry Roberts. Co-sponsored by the Wilma Dykeman Legacy. Free.

SPORTS ASHEVILLE WOMEN’S RUGBY ashevillewomensrugby@ gmail.com • Through SA (4/7) - Open registration for the spring season that runs through Sat., April 7. No experience necessary to participate. Free. BUNCOMBE COUNTY RECREATION SERVICES buncombecounty.org/ Governing/Depts/Parks/ • Through TU (1/16) Open registration for winter adult league dodgeball. Registration: dodgeball.buncombe recreation.org. $35.

VOLUNTEERING HAYWOOD STREET CONGREGATION 297 Haywood St., 828-246-4250 • 1st & 3rd THURSDAYS, 10am-noon - Workshop to teach how to make sleeping mats for the homeless out of plastic shopping bags. Information: 828707-7203 or cappyt@att. net. Free. LITERACY COUNCIL OF BUNCOMBE COUNTY 31 College Pl., Suite B-221 • TU (1/16) 5:30pm & TH (1/18), 9am - Information session for those interested in volunteering two hours per week with adults who want to improve reading, writing, spelling, and English language skills. Free. MOUNTAINTRUE 828-258-8737, mountaintrue.org • WE (1/17) - Volunteer to help fight sediment erosion by planting live stakes along the French Broad River. Registration required. For more volunteering opportunities visit mountainx.com/ volunteering

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Asheville High School hosts community debate about health care

COMMODITY OR RIGHT: Dr. Scott Donaldson, a Hendersonville urologist, takes the podium at a recent health care debate. A candidate for U.S. House in District 11, he said, “I think [health care] is the only issue right now. You talk about health care, you’re talking about jobs, education, wage stagnation — hot-button topics.” Photo by Sammy Feldblum

BY SAMMY FELDBLUM sfeldblum@gmail.com This fall, a dispute between Mission Health and Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina exposed the underbelly of the health care system in Western North Carolina. In October, Mission terminated the contract between the two, citing rising health care costs and hoping, by renegotiating the terms of its deal with the insurer, to keep care affordable for its patients. The conflict dragged into December, when the two sides finally struck a deal. But the question of affordable health care, here as everywhere, lingers. With that in mind, the Asheville High School/ SILSA (School of Inquiry and Life Sciences) speech and debate team and the Western Carolina Medical Society hosted a debate on the question of “Health Care: Right or Commodity?” on Dec. 15. Nine panelists took the stage to discuss the question. Leslie Boyd, a freelance writer for Mountain Xpress, highlighted the stakes of the conversation with the story of her son. Unable to get the care he needed, he died of colon cancer at age 33. Boyd sat glowering behind his photo and came down on the side of “right.” Noting that treating health care as a commodity limits access for the poor, she asked, “When did unemployment become punishable by death?” Katherine Restrepo, health care policy expert for the conservative Raleigh-based John Locke Foundation, worried about the social implications of

health care as a right. “If someone claims to have a right, then they’re forcing someone else to provide that right for them,” she said, “which infringes upon our freedoms as Americans.” She suggested that

voluntary markets can provide more access to care for more people. Already, though, health care is treated as a de facto right, said Dr. Steve Buie, psychiatrist at the Pisgah Institute in Asheville. He cited the 1986 federal law that emergency rooms must stabilize and treat anyone who comes in — regardless of ability to pay — as evidence that everyone has a right to health care. “If you aren’t willing to let people die because they can’t afford health care, you don’t really believe that health care should be a commodity,” Buie said. Mary Caldwell, a medical ethicist at Mission Hospital, couched the larger question in terms of the country’s character. “A democracy seeks to be a just society,” she said, “where we value all human beings as worthy of respect.” She later echoed the conservative pun-

CONTINUES ON PAGE 20

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WELLNESS dit David Brooks’ idea that “democracy starts with the individual dignity of men and women,” and that dignity, in turn, depends on their health. After a round of opening salvos, the debaters were allowed to ask one another questions. Longtime conservative political figure Carl Mumpower, an Ashevillebased psychologist, chairman of the Buncombe County GOP and no great fan of the government’s involvement in health care, asked whether anyone knew of “anywhere with socialized medicine where health care isn’t rationed?” Dr. Rob Fields, a family medicine practitioner at Mission, found Mumpower’s question wrongheaded. “If you think that health care isn’t rationed here, then you have a fundamental misunderstanding of what happens on the front lines,” he said. “Look at prescription drugs,” he later added. “People have to make decisions about whether they will pursue, in some cases, life-saving treatment based on economics.” The smiling face of Boyd’s son sat feet away. Fields heads a regional accountable care organization, in which doctors, hospitals and other providers coordinate care for Medicare patients to provide timely treatment and avoid dupli-

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cation of services. When Mumpower claimed that all health care systems with government involvement were failing, Fields countered that his group — which includes eight hospitals, 1,100 doctors, and 90,000 patients — had saved Medicare $11 million in treatment costs in the past year. As the speakers locked horns, Mumpower became the loudest procommodity voice and a lightning rod. He compared health care to air, food, clothes and heat, all of which he described as commodities. Market forces, he said, are what keep air clean, a claim met with wide derision. “Health care is the meat and potatoes, regulation the salt and pepper,” Mumpower continued. “Socialized medicine makes the salt and pepper the meal.” Here, Dr. Scott Donaldson, a urologist in Hendersonville, chimed in: “You lost me with that salt and pepper stuff.” Dr. Marsha Fretwell, a retired doctor and member of Physicians for a National Health Program, piled it on. The United States started treating health care as a commodity in the '70s, she said, “and that has been a failure.” Restrepo agreed with Mumpower that the logic of the market can encourage successful health care outcomes. She cited the direct primary care model, in which a flat monthly or yearly fee grants access to a range of primary care services, as a promising innovation. But the doctors as a whole came down on the side of health care as a right, although exactly what that meant was a question that was never answered entirely. What level of health care did that stipulate? If we say “adequate” health care, asked Dustin McIntee, a lawyer and an assistant football coach at Asheville High, then what does adequate mean? How do we define what is guaranteed when the answer cannot realistically be unlimited?

Fields came closest to addressing this point in his closing argument. Any underlying hesitation, he said, was based on the idea that “we can’t provide it as a right because it’s difficult.” “And I reject that idea entirely,” he continued. “Just because it’s difficult doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be done.” After the debate, the political candidates debriefed with the 40 or so attendees. Donaldson entertained a small crowd — he is running next year as a Democrat for the U.S. House of Representatives in District 11, which Republican Mark Meadows currently represents. As his primary approaches, Donaldson is focusing specifically on health care. “I think it’s the only issue right now,” he said. “You talk about health care, you’re talking about jobs, education, wage stagnation — hot-button topics.” He gave an example of someone working 40 hours a week with benefits who comes up with an idea to strike out and start a business venture of her own. “You’re not gonna leave a job with health insurance if you wouldn’t have health insurance after,” he said, adding: “It’s a question of freedom.” Ilze Greever, captain of Asheville High/SILSA’s speech and debate team, kept an eye on the candidates’ rhetorical performances. “I think it came off really well,” she said. “Lots of different perspectives on a really important issue.” The speech and debate team hosts these community forums semiannually on a topic of local political interest. Past renditions have taken on disenfranchisement of African-Americans and fracking in North Carolina. In the end, Greever considered Restrepo and Fields to be the night’s winners, “just because I liked how they brought evidence and thorough analysis, which is something we really focus on as debaters.” X

WELLN ESS CA LEN DA R A COURSE IN MIRACLES AND HEALING (PD.) Heart of Healing offers 6 week in-depth class beginning January 11, Thursdays, 3pm, Namaste Center, 2700 Greenville Road, Flat Rock Square, Flat Rock. Meet Up, Rev. Joan Rogers. 828-6761422 or www. heartofhealing.energy SHOJI SPA & LODGE • 7 DAYS A WEEK (PD.) Private Japanese-style outdoor hot tubs, cold plunge, sauna and lodg-

ing. 8 minutes from town. Bring a friend to escape and renew! Best massages in Asheville! 828-299-0999. www.shojiretreats.com BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • WE (1/10), 11am Mixed level pilates class. Registration required: buncombecounty.org/ library. Free. Held at Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St.

GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH 1245 6th Ave W, Hendersonville, 828-693-4890, gracelutherannc.com • TH (1/11), 12:15pm - Lunch and presentation about "Ageless Grace," brain fitness program based on neuroplasticity. Registration required. $10. THE BLOOD CONNECTION BLOOD DRIVES 800-392-6551, thebloodconnection.org

• WE (1/10), 9am4pm - Appointments & info.: 828-233-5301. Held at Park Ridge Health, 100 Hospital Drive Hendersonville THE MEDITATION CENTER 894 E. Main St., Sylva, 828-356-1105, meditate-wnc.org • 2nd WEDNESDAYS, 6-8pm - "Inner Guidance from an Open Heart," class with meditation and discussion. $10.

GREEN SCENE

ASHEVILLE UNPAVED

City weighs environmental pros and cons of natural greenways

BY KIM DINAN dinankim@gmail.com As greenways grow in popularity, the city of Asheville is looking into natural surface trails as a possible way to develop a greenway system that benefits people, the planet and the city’s pocketbook. Asheville has four greenways totaling almost 5 miles and four shovelready greenway projects that are pending funding: Bacoate Branch, Beaucatcher, French Broad River West Bank and Town Branch. The city does not currently have capital allocated for the four new greenway projects, and in November it surveyed the public to help prioritize the greenways in the fiscal year 201819 budget. According to Lucy Crown, greenways coordinator for the city, the Bacoate Branch, French Broad River West Bank and Town Branch greenways are all $4 million projects, while the Beaucatcher Greenway could cost closer to $6 million. “When the city put the greenway projects out to bid, the quotes came in about 30 percent higher than our professionally estimated costs,” Crown says. TRAIL TO SAVINGS The cost of using a natural surface can be substantially lower than paving, but the city’s consideration of natural surface greenways is not just an economic one. “We’ve been thinking about natural surface trails for a couple of years now,” says Crown. “It hasn’t just been a reactionary decision because of funding.” Asheville residents have asked the greenway committee to explore unpaved trails for many reasons other than the price tag, Crown says. “Their desire for natural surface trails are numerous: for better places to run (natural surface trails are easier on joints than paved paths); the aesthetics of a more natural experience; and the ability to save more trees and lessen the environmental impacts of greenway development,” she says. It is not always the case that naturally surfaced trails are cheaper to build than traditionally surfaced paths. If a dirt-and-gravel trail is used in the wrong place, long-term maintenance of the trail can become a burden. “The location of a natural surface trail is very

GREENER GREENWAYS: A woman rides her bike through French Broad River Park, part of the French Broad River Greenway. As the city looks to the future of its trail system, it’s considering natural surfaces in addition to paved ones. Photo by Kim Dinan important to consider when we are deciding what type of surface we should use on a greenway,” explains Crown. “If it is in a vulnerable area like a floodplain, or if it is a greenway corridor where a lot of people will be using it, it might make more sense to pave it.” In November, Asheville City Council approved construction of a natural surface path on the western portion of the Town Branch Greenway. For its first official foray into natural surfaces, the city is partnering with Green Opportunities, a local job-training organization that connects marginalized communities with sustainable employment opportunities, to install a natural surface trail on a flat field behind the Wesley Grant Southside Center. For the city, it’s an interim project. “When we do our bond project of building out the Grant Center to the master plan, we will pave that section,” Crown says. The city is also considering building out the Beaucatcher Greenway in a modified version different from the fully designed plan as an interim project until it has funds to complete it. “This would entail building the sections of the greenway to increase public safety and access but will leave the logging road in the parkland as it is now with minor improvements to improve water runoff issues,” Crown says.

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G REEN SC EN E These temporary avenues to getting trails on the ground are exactly the kind of innovation that makes Marcia Bromberg excited. Bromberg is the outgoing president of Friends of Connect Buncombe, which supports the construction of greenways throughout the county. “My perspective is in the short run if you want a connection, and you can’t afford a paved surface, the natural surface can act as a bridge,” she says. PATH TO ECO-FRIENDLINESS Greenways built with natural elements can have less of an environmental impact than those that are paved, says Mary Weber, chair of the city’s greenway committee. “Overall, natural surfaces are more sustainable for a number of reasons,” she says. “They aren’t as wide as a typical greenway, you aren’t using asphalt, which is petroleum-based, and they fit into the environment more.” Asheville’s paved greenways are 10 feet wide, but natural surface greenways will likely be narrower — possibly between 3 and 5 feet in width, says Weber. Their smaller size means reduced need for tree removal and, because they are pervious, less groundwater runoff.

The feasibility of a natural surface trail — and the kind of upkeep it requires — depends on the kind of surface used and its location. You’ve got to look at “whether you’re simply building a trail with nothing on it or whether you’re putting gravel on it and where the trail is located,” says Bromberg. She adds that designers need to consider whether the natural surface could wash into nearby waterways. One downside to natural surface trails is the potential for erosion if they are not designed strategically. “If they aren’t built to support the rain runoff, or if they’re not built for the number of people who are going to be using it, then they can fall apart pretty quickly,” says Crown. “They can have gullies and cracks in them. They can have really muddy sections.” Crown says the durability of natural surface trails comes down to construction. “If they are built in vulnerable areas or built incorrectly, with no regard to slope or water runoff, they require more maintenance in the long run,” she says. Gravel requires the correct incline, Weber adds, pointing out that the gravel used on these trails won’t be big, chunky rocks. “It’s basically rock dust. Either it’s a pretty small crushed rock or stone dust

that is compacted. It doesn’t wash away as much as gravel would,” she says. The city does not yet have a maintenance plan for natural surface greenways, but a framework for the natural surface trail program will be considered during an update of the city’s Greenway Master Plan this year. “We will not be rushing into natural trail construction without knowing the best way to build and maintain them,” says Crown. ROAD TO THE FUTURE The idea of natural surface trails is just being introduced, and the city is still determining where natural surface trails might be used, but a Greenway Warmer event the city hosted in mid-December drew a large crowd. “People were really enthusiastic,” says Weber. “Most people love natural surface trails.” Natural surface greenways have been successfully implemented in other cities. Charlotte has four temporary, natural trails it calls “dirtways,” and the Urban Wilderness in Knoxville, Tenn., a network of 50 miles of natural surface trail, has garnered national attention. The trails are designed to have minimal impact on the natural environment.

“The International Mountain Bike Association established a standard a long time ago for sustainable trails,” explains Carol Evans, executive director of Legacy Parks Foundation, a nonprofit that has played a key role in Knoxville’s trail system success. “We don’t cut trees; we don’t disturb natural features. Sustainable trails have been the practice from the very beginning.” As Asheville updates its Greenway Master Plan, the process will be open to public participation. “We are hoping to look at natural surface trails seriously in the upcoming year,” says Crown. Those interested in providing input on the Greenway Master Plan or who would like information on the future of natural surface trails can email Crown at lcrown@ashevillenc.gov and request to be added to the distribution list. In the meantime, greenway committee meetings are open to the public every first Thursday of the month from 3:30-5 p.m. at the Municipal Building. “We are at a tipping point right now,” says Weber. “A lot is happening and about to happen. I think as more of these greenways are connected, more and more people will support it.” X

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2017

Wellness Wellness Issues 2018

Publish Jan. 31 & Feb. 7 Coming Soon! Contact us today! 828-251-1333 x 320 Jan. 25th & Feb. 4th advertise@mountainx.com 22

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FOOD

LOT OF PROMISE New food truck court draws mobile eateries downtown

PIT STOP: The city of Asheville’s decision to turn the lot at 68 Haywood St. — a property that had been nicknamed the “Pit of Despair” — into a food truck venue has local vendors excited. “To have the city provide us with the space, I think, is a really great thing,” says Amazing Pizza Co. owner Elena Saladukha. “It’s something customers were inquiring for.” Photo by Brendan Hunt

BY HAYLEY BENTON hayleyebenton@gmail.com At the dawn of mankind, humans hunted for sustenance — and while civilization, eventually, brought us everything from grocers to pizza delivery, for many, there’s still a certain satisfaction in tracking down the next meal. In 2018, though, the hunter-gatherers of Asheville’s urban wild are armed not with bows and arrows, but with smartphones — which they use to scour the Facebook feeds of their favorite food trucks. What tasty treats await outdoors? Pick up the scent of El Kimchi or Melt Your Heart and the hunt is on — replacing wild game with the promise of teriyaki tacos and a turkey raspberry-mustard melt.

For wanderers in the heart of downtown, food trucks have long been a scarce commodity, only arriving to accompany street festivals and fairs. Enter the 68 Haywood Street Food Truck Court, the latest addition to downtown’s grab-andgrub scene. Kicking off the new year and new space with two mobile eateries per day, the venue will allow pedestrians to choose from a rotating variety of mobile-made cuisines for both lunch and dinner, Wednesdays through Saturdays. Previously nicknamed the “Pit of Despair,” the lot at 68 Haywood St. has long been a hot-button issue for both elected officials and lovers of downtown. It lies along one of downtown’s busiest stretches — across from the U.S. Cellular Center and Pack Memorial Library, within sight of the Basilica of St. Lawrence and just east of the Grove Arcade.

The vacant site has been considered for a park, hotel, small businesses and for a combination of these ideas (and various attempted compromises) — but over the summer it was approved for an array of temporary, multiuse projects and events ranging from pop-up gardens to “American Idol” auditions and, most recently, food trucks. And the local restaurateurs-onwheels couldn’t be more excited. “We have customers coming up all the time telling us, ‘Hey, we’re from Charlotte, and they have this food truck lot and it’s so great,’” says Elena Saladukha of Amazing Pizza Co. “But, you know, we’re just food truck owners. We’re not in charge of [public spaces]. So to have the city provide us with the space, I think, is a really great thing. It’s something customers were inquiring for. We

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FOOD can get together and pretty much stay open the whole day.” Guests at the brand-new Cambria Hotel and Suites, along with the Hyatt Place and Hotel Indigo, need only navigate a few blocks to grab a quick snack — or, with several parking garages nearby, others can head to the district to eat lunch or dinner from a fan favorite. Locals who work downtown have been yearning for something like this on a whole other level. “If you have an office downtown, and you eat lunch out two or three days per week, you eventually run out of places,” Saladukha says. Downtown restaurants are great, “but if I eat there five times every month, I’m going to eventually want something different,” she continues. “With food trucks — and there are a little over 40 or 50 trucks that are active — you always have some kind of new option. You can always try something different instead of going to the same places every day.” The new open-air food court is part of the city’s Mobile Food Vending Pilot program, which was unanimously approved by Asheville City Council at a Dec. 19 meeting.

Participating trucks must pay a fee of $50 for a one-year permit, which expires at the end of 2018, use on-site electrical hookups (no generators) and pledge to clean up all trash generated from their business. For food truck owners, the opportunity to cash in on downtown foot traffic means one thing: good business. “It’s a great opportunity to all be in one place, where we know people are going to be — and where people know we’re going to be,” Saladukha says. While 68 Haywood is starting out slowly for the winter season since fewer people are out and about looking for curbside dining, Saladukha explains that more times, dates and trucks will be added come spring. And rather than having a predetermined set schedule based on days of the week, food trucks will sign up for slots on a week-by-week basis. In the warmer months, hungry shoppers can expect to choose from up to four trucks anytime between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m.

If this all sounds familiar, that’s because it is. In 2012, Asheville’s first food truck lot opened at 51 Coxe Ave., a vacant space just south of downtown. The location was originally managed by a group of food truck owners, the Asheville Street Food Coalition. After some controversy in 2014, the lot reopened under new ownership — with an all-new indoor bar space and commissary kitchen — but has since closed. Then in 2016, a similar venture, the Asheville Food Park, opened in West Asheville at 219 Amboy Road. But due to its location in a mainly residential area, the park suffered from a lack of foot traffic. In November, owner Dean Pistor told Xpress he’s abandoning the food truck destination theme in favor of bringing in a brick-and-mortar

restaurant to

join the property’s bar, Cascade Lounge,

which

currently

undergoing renovations. But the 68 Haywood Street Food Truck Court shouldn’t suffer from a lack of pedestrian flow with its highly accessible location in the center of the downtown action. While more long-term plans are

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still in the works for the vacant “pit,” the food truck program — and all of 68 Haywood’s temporary uses — will continue for the foreseeable future. Trucks confirmed to appear at the lot so far include Amazing Pizza Co., El Kimchi, Foodstop, Nuwati Coffee, Ceci’s Culinary Tour, Farm to Fender,

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SMALL BITES by Thomas Calder | tcalder@mountainx.com

Black Star Line Brewing celebrates MLK cally aren’t happening at breweries. To that end, we’re looking to have conversations about intersectionality, modern-day activism … [and] transforming communities.” Black Star Line Brewing’s Martin Luther King Day celebration runs 9 a.m.9 p.m. Monday, Jan. 15, at 131 Third Ave. W., Hendersonville. For more information, visit avl.mx/4i8. BRAVO BREAKFASTS

CULTIVATING COMMUNITY: On Monday, Jan. 15, Black Star Line Brewing Co. owner L.A. McRae will open the Hendersonville taproom early for a vegan potluck breakfast and a day filled with events honoring Martin Luther King Jr. "We really want to hold space for the types of critically conscious conversations that typically aren't happening at breweries," says McCrae. Photo by Scott Douglas In recognition of Martin Luther King Day on Monday, Jan. 15, Black Star Line Brewing Co. will host an all-day celebration honoring the civil rights leader. The gathering will begin at 9 a.m. with a community vegan breakfast potluck. Soul food, says brewery owner L.A. McCrae, will be the focus, with the promise of dishes such as vegan cornbread, beans, sweet potatoes and collard greens. After breakfast, participants will have the chance to partake in a series of service projects, both on-site and around the community. Along with service opportunities, the brewery will collect donations on behalf of Henderson County Public Schools and Sweet Bear Rescue Farm. “We’re intending to raise $400 for the farm to feed the animals for a week,” McCrae says. On top of this, Black Star Line will donate 15 percent of its daily sales to Henderson County Public Schools. Throughout the day, McCrae adds, conversations will be held on the life and legacy of King. His writings, as well as transcripts of his speeches, will be available for guests to read. The lasting impact of the civil

rights movement and the ongoing struggles for equality will be among other talking points. In November, Black Star Line Brewing was the target of an act of vandalism. (See “Black Star Line Brewing Co. Deals with Racist Comments, Vandalism, Death Threats,” Nov. 22, mountainx. com.) The community’s response to the attack “has been absolutely remarkable,” says McCrae. “Folks have come in and really made a stance against the bigotry.” Evening celebrations will begin at 5 p.m. with a series of beer releases accompanied by vegan snacks. Special batches will include Dat Dere, Milkshake IPA, Botanicals (nonalcoholic) and I Have A Dreamsickle Pale Ale. Spoken word, music and a dance party will conclude the evening. “One of the things we’re doing at the brewery is really cultivating community,” says McCrae, noting that events like the Martin Luther King Day celebration help fulfill this mission. “We really want to hold space for the types of critically conscious conversations that typi-

On Saturday, Jan. 13, Laura Beck, founder of Your Vegan Mentor, will host Let’s Eat More Plants: Bravo Breakfast at the Hendersonville Community Co-op. Participants will learn plantbased breakfast recipes, including blueberry-banana smoothies, tofu scramble and banana-walnut waffles. The event is part of Your Vegan Mentor’s mission to help people transition to “a healthier, more compassionate diet and lifestyle,” according to its Facebook page. Bravo Breakfast will run 10:30 a.m.12:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 13, at The Hendersonville Community Co-op, 60 S. Charleston Lane, Hendersonville. Cost is $20 for members/$25 for nonmembers, payable at the Hendersonville Community Co-op front register. For more information, visit avl.mx/4hq. DISABILITY PARTNERS SOUP AND SANDWICH POTLUCK DisAbility Partners, a nonprofit that works for people with all types of disabilities, will host a motivational class on Friday, Jan. 12, followed by a potluck meal. DisAbility Partners will provide the soup, sandwich meat and pickles, and asks guests to bring sandwich rolls, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, onions, dessert or a beverage to share. Vegetarian options will be available. The soup and sandwich potluck runs 2-5 p.m. Friday, Jan. 12, at DisAbility Partners Asheville Office, 108 New Leicester Highway. For more information, visit avl.mx/4hu.

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CAROLINA BEER GUY

FOOD BIRTH OPTIONS BRUNCH Brunch and “mom-osas” will be served at Birth Options Brunch, hosted by Doulas of Asheville. The boutique agency offers support to families expecting babies and adjusting to life with infants throughout Western North Carolina. According to its Eventbrite page, participants will leave with a birth discussion guide to help people think through the birthing process and available options. Birth Options Brunch runs 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 13, at Nest Organics, 51 N. Lexington Ave. Tickets are $25 per person. For more information, visit avl.mx/4hs. PUNK WOK POP-UP AT BUXTON HALL BARBECUE The Punk Wok Pop-Up returns to Buxton Hall Barbecue. The weekly event will take place throughout January in the restaurant’s upstairs Remingtin Room, featuring IndoAsian inspired foods prepared by chef Elliot Moss with desserts by head pastry chef Ashely Capps. According to the pop-up’s Facebook page, the gatherings will include “metal-studded décor [and] tunes from Moss’ Asian + Elvis record collection.” The final event will feature special guest chef Jarret Stieber of Decatur, Ga.’s Eat Me Speak Me. Punk Wok Pop-Up runs 6-10 p.m. each Monday in January in the Remingtin Room at Buxton Hall, 32 Banks Ave. No reservations required. Plates run $8-$18. For more information, visit avl.mx/4id.

closed for good on New Year’s Day. In a Facebook announcement, general manager Jonas Cole wrote: “I’m sure you will hear many incorrect reasons as to why it’s closing, but the real reason is, is that it’s just time. The man who opened Lucky Otter, Roland Knoll, passed away a year and a half ago, and his wife and staff did an amazing job in continuing to keep the restaurant open, but now it’s time for change.” GO KITCHEN READY

SHOWCASE DINNER Students

the

Green

by Tony Kiss | avlbeerguy@gmail.com

Experience, education are key to landing local brewery jobs

Opportunities Kitchen Ready culinary training program will test their skills and celebrate their accomplishments

with

three-

course dinner on Thursday, Jan. 18. Tickets are $12 in advance or $15 the week of the event. GO Kitchen Ready is a food service job-readiness

course

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low-

income adults who face barriers to employment. All proceeds support the program. The dinner takes place Thursday, Jan. 18, at the Arthur R. Edington Education and Career Center, 133 Livingston St. Seatings are available at 5:30 and 7 p.m. For tickets,

FAREWELL TO LUCKY OTTER

visit avl.mx/4ik. For details, contact

After 15 years in business, West Asheville’s Lucky Otter restaurant

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JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

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HOPS QUEEN: Highland Brewing Co. brewer Katie Smith had prior brewing experience that helped her get hired for her current position. But local industry representatives say other skill sets, including manufacturing experience, translate well to the brewery setting. Photo courtesy of Highland Brewing Co. Want a job working at a local brewery? While there are many more employment opportunities in the Asheville-area beer scene than when local craft brewing began in the mid-1990s, getting hired can be challenging. A solid education, previous experience and a willingness to work hard can open doors. Also important are realistic expectations and accepting that immediately landing one’s dream job is unlikely. When Highland Brewing Co. turned on its equipment in 1994 in a cramped basement space under Barley’s Taproom

and Pizzeria on Biltmore Avenue, there were just three employees. And one of them was founder Oscar Wong, who didn’t mind delivering kegs or handling other lower-level positions. Today, Highland has about 50 full-time employees, says company President Leah Wong Ashburn. And around the region, an estimated 2,000 men and women are working in the local brewing industry, according to Kendra Penland, executive director of the Asheville Brewers Alliance,

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KIDS ISSUES 2018

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F OOD the nonprofit trade group representing local breweries and beer-related businesses. More than 70 breweries, both large and small, have opened in Western North Carolina, a number that continues to grow each year. The days of simply walking in the door and asking for work are generally long gone, brewery owners and brewers agree, though some sort of background is extremely helpful. “Sometimes, it doesn’t have to be brewery experience,” Ashburn says. “It really depends on the position you are interested in.” She notes one entry-level position is in packaging. “We are generally looking for folks who have experience in manufacturing — it doesn’t have to be at a brewery,” she says. Highland posts employment positions on its website. Applications are filled out online, and interviews are then scheduled. Entrylevel employees start at $10 an hour. “We do phone call interviews as a first step, and then you would meet with a group of people [at Highland],” Ashburn says. “I would also recommend going to the brewery. You should come by and see how the brewery feels. The size of the company is going to be a different fit for different people. It is really about that fit and the culture that you find.” Current vacancies at Highland include sales positions and retail account manager. One job that is not open is head brewer. Highland has left that position vacant since the departure of Hollie Stephenson, who took a job in August as U.S. head brewer for Guinness in Maryland. Ashburn says a team of current Highland employees continues to handle Stephenson’s duties. When applying for a brewing industry job, Penland recommends that potential employees give serious thought to why they want to be in this field. “It is hard work and it is fulfilling work,” she says. “You are creating a special product and being part of an amazing culture. But it is not easy work. It’s long hours. You are lugging stuff around. It’s not just a glamour thing.” She continues, “You need to get to know breweries that feel comfortable to you. That is the best way to know about opportunities. Not everyone will get to be a brewer. There are a lot of important jobs, everything from cleaning and maintenance to packaging and the retail side.” But even with many possible positions available, Penland stresses the importance of education. “I’m not saying it’s impossible to get work without it, but I think it’s really difficult,” she says. Programs like the Craft Beverage Institute at A-B Tech have pumped many highly trained brewery employees into the market. “There is a very good workforce out there,” says Mike Rangel,

president of Asheville Brewing Co. “We can seek a more experienced person.” Still, he echoes Penland’s advice that potential hires should know what awaits them at a brewery. “Ninety percent of it is cleaning and sanitizing and resanitizing,” Rangel says, but he notes that the financial rewards can be high for a skilled brewer. “If you come on as a full-time brewer for us, you can start at $40,000,” he says. By contrast, entry-level jobs at Asheville Brewing pay $12-$15 an hour but may also lead to brewing jobs. Between its two locations, Rangel’s company employs 160 men and women, including servers. “We have people who are exceptional in any position,” he says. “We try to accommodate them. Some of our brewers have come from [being] delivery drivers.” Similar success stories have occurred at Wedge Brewing Co., where founder Tim Schaller has seen employees go from washing kegs to brewing. “You learn along the way,” he says, pointing out that he regularly reaches out to A-B Tech for hires. “These are still entry-level jobs. You will be washing kegs, but these are people who have shown enough interest to complete two years of school.” Asheville’s biggest brewery, New Belgium Brewing Co., currently has a crew of 131. While spokesman Michael Craft says no openings are available at the moment, he recommends checking the company’s website for job listings. Oskar Blues Brewery in Brevard has 70 on staff, says spokesman Aaron Baker. “It is a little more common to find someone who has worked at a few breweries before applying at Oskar Blues,” he says. “The most important thing in hiring is enthusiasm and a willingness to ask good questions and take ownership.” Even the smaller local breweries maintain staff. Archetype Brewing in West Asheville has eight employees, most of whom work in the tasting room. The business posts most job openings on Craigslist, says owner Brad Cassanova. “We recently had a posting and had a great response and wound up with lot of qualified candidates,” he says. For the more technical jobs, he advertises on probrewer.com, an online beer industry resource. To work in the tasting room, some sort of bar experience is essential. “At least in pouring and serving,” says Casanova. “Showing up on time and being professional is not something that we want to teach.” Archetype offers its hires first-level cicerone training to enable them to get to know craft beer styles. With effort, an Archetype employee can move from the tasting room into beer production, he says. X

A R T S & E N T E R TA I N M E N T

SPREAD THE WORD

Asheville’s nonwhite literary scene, Part 3

BY ALLI MARSHALL amarshall@mountainx.com Local author Charles Blount is on a mission: To shake hands with children. “I say, ‘Do you like to read, because reading is important.’ … I say, ‘How many authors have you met?’ They say, ‘None,’ and I say, ‘Well, you just met one.’” Authors, he says, owe the community a piece of themselves. Above and beyond being a writer, though, Blount sees himself as an AfricanAmerican writer and part of a tradition that is “always about sharing, sacrificing and standing for what you believe in, and knowing that you might have to be the one to step up and do it.” He adds, “Globally, as an AfricanAmerican, I’m part of a village. … And if I’ve made it, who do I give thanks to? Nothing a person ever does is on their own.” That’s not to diminish the obstacles that must be overcome. “Though all artists suffer isolation associated with their craft, African-American authors have special concerns,” wrote Kenneth L. Harrell Jr. in his 1998 paper “From Acceptance to Autonomy: Ralph Ellison’s Engagement with Black Freedom in Invisible Man.” The thenUNC Asheville senior was completing a Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in literature. “After all, the existence of black authors defies notions of innate black inferiority that continue to plague American society. Therefore, black authors labor under a special burden; they continually challenge the notion that African-Americans are incapable of writing good literature.” A HEALING ELEMENT While poet and spoken-word artist Nicole Townsend acknowledges that there is a writing community in Asheville, and her work has been welcomed, “I don’t feel like I fit into it,” she says. “I don’t feel really connected to the writing community, and I think a lot of that is cultural.” She once tried to join a local writers group and, while she received helpful tips and feedback, “when I write, I want to be able to connect with people about the content, and it’s hard when someone’s just judging the structure,” she says.

SOLO PROJECT: Despite the isolation of the craft of writing, Charles Blount — author of Purpose, among other titles — says, “Globally, as an African-American, I’m part of a village. … And if I’ve made it, who do I give thanks to? Nothing a person ever does is on their own.” Author photo courtesy of Blount To forward her work in her own way, Townsend launched Existing While Black, a spoken-word performance. Raw, soulful and shot through with brutal truth, the show not only spotlights Townsend’s poetry but also gives a platform to other nonwhite artists, such as singer-songwriter Lyric, who performed at the November installation. The inaugural production, last April, was emceed by community activist and newly elected City Council member Sheneika Smith. Last year, Townsend told Xpress she birthed Existing While Black out of “wanting a platform to where we can go deeper and talk about things that are uncomfortable, that hurt, and that make people angry.” She continued, “When you use an art form, people are more accepting of it, because art is supposed to challenge you. … There is a healing element when messages come through art.” She’s currently putting together a Southern tour of the show, tentatively planned for September Blount, too, sees healing in writing. “Love and compassion: That’s what

I’m about,” says the Bronx-born writer, though he didn’t have the most supportive start. He spent time in group homes and detention centers. “Life has a way of cultivating you,” says Blount who, at the suggestion of a girlfriend, parlayed those experiences into his debut book, Whatever Happened to Charlie Boy, which he published in 2004. The author has since penned two more titles (Daddyhood in 2008 and Purpose in 2017), is at work on a new book and is writing a screenplay based on Charlie Boy. “Something sparked about being a writer,” he says of his initial foray into the art form. “Things happen in due time, but when it’s your time, it’s just your time.” NEW VOICES Poet Damion “Dada” Bailey also began writing as a response to life circumstances. As a young person, his dream was to become a police officer but, at age 15 or 16, when he started growing facial hair and transitioning

to manhood, the police he’d once admired began treating him with suspicion. “There was a certain amount of harassment,” he remembers. “It makes you militant. It makes you anti-police.” He expressed himself through music — first West Coast rap, such as NWA. But when, at 18, Bailey became a father, he decided to go to college for business in Greensboro. There, he was exposed to poetry open mics. Before that, “I wasn’t familiar with a poetry scene in Asheville, just a rap scene,” he says. “I started putting all this poetry I had in notebooks.” He collected that work into what would become his first publication, Often Thoughts. Bailey currently lives in Charlotte, where he’s the proprietor of The Wonderful World of Plumbing and is planning to illustrate an educational book about plumbing to encourage children — especially those of color — to consider a career in the trade. “I’ve knocked on a couple of doors where people were shocked to see a black guy,” he says. “I want to get rid of the [good ol’ boy] stereotype.” Kids need positive role models across the vocational spectrum. For Asheville-area teen writers and performance poets, programs like HomeWord and Word on the Street/ La Voz de los Jovenes magazine “are cultivating young people who will [create a literary] scene as they journey into adulthood,” says Townsend. But will those youth artists stay in Asheville? “If we don’t cultivate a scene for them, it would be easy for them to pop over to Atlanta or Durham,” Townsend cautions. So what does Asheville need? “A lot of things are about culture,” says Townsend. “In order to attract people, you have to have something in your establishment that they’ll gravitate toward.” She suggests literary institutions bring in nonwhite writers, hold more events centered on people of color and — in the case of bookstores — survey local nonwhite consumers to find out what books they’d like to purchase. “Right now … I’m educating myself about a lot of things that are going on politically and a lot of things that have happened throughout our history,” says Townsend. “Those books, for me, are mostly found at Firestorm or Barnes and Noble.”

CONTINUES ON PAGE 30 MOUNTAINX.COM

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NOT THE SAME STRUGGLE If local bookstores have not proved to be welcoming spaces for writers of color, neither have literary events such as open mics and readings. “I don’t feel like the mainstream is really mainstream for everyone,” says poet, playwright and author Monica McDaniel, who has found support within a network of friends and extended family. But beyond the African-American community? “It’s a bit tougher,” she admits. Talking about equality is not the same thing as creating an environment of equanimity. “Will I feel welcome at the venue? Will listeners treat me the same way they treated the person before me? Will they relate to my work?” McDaniel asks. “It’s a lot of factors.” She continues, “We want to be, as a city, more diverse, but we don’t know how to be diverse. … It’s a huge issue, and it’s been an issue for my almost-40 years of living here.” Bailey returned to Asheville for the launch of his last collection, My Journal, My Journey. The release party for that sophomore project, held at Club 828 (now New Mountain) was “a major turnout,” he says. “I read a poem [and] had a moment of silence for people who were gone but not forgotten.” Coming back to his hometown, he says, “is my way of giving back.” Despite a strong turnout for that book launch in a nontraditional venue (not a bookstore or library), Bailey doesn’t necessarily feel at home in “white” literary spaces. He remembers attending a couple of predominantly white open mics and didn’t read “just because the style and content was so different,” he says. Bailey says that for some in Asheville, there’s been a sense of reluctance to intermingle outside of their immediate communities. “If you’re brought up in Hillcrest, it’s not often you just walk uptown and go to drum circles and things like that,” he says. But, he concedes, lately Asheville seems more integrated to him that it has in years past. As for the segregated writing scenes, “It’s almost like hearing a pop song verses a slave spiritual,” Bailey says of white literary events versus those featuring writers of color. In works by the latter, “there’s a lot of emotion, sometimes pain, and superstrong, passionate expression. It derives from struggle, and the struggle in the black community is not the same struggle as the white community. The stories don’t parallel and they don’t coexist.” But, he adds, it would be awesome if they did.

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LESSON LEARNED: Warren Wilson College graduate James Raysean Love explored the connection of poetry and visual art at the local school, but he questions how nonwhites are treated and represented in writing programs and in published work. “A lot of my people are brilliant, they’re creative, and depending on who’s selling the story will [determine] what you get out of it,” he says. Photo by Parxx TAUGHT AND FELT Supported or not, nonwhite writers still find platforms for their ideas and creative voices. Local poet and visual artist James Raysean Love wanted to study writing, in part, because “in history, as far as I know, AfricanAmericans were the only group that was legally denied the right to read and write,” he says. The Burlington native started to pursue a degree at Morehouse College in Atlanta, a historically African-American institution. But after he didn’t make the basketball team at that school — the sport was his main focus — he transferred to Warren Wilson College. At the Swannanoa-based school, the majority white student body “threw me all the way off,” says Love. “It’s not like in Burlington I wasn’t exposed to it. You’re in America — you’re going to get exposed to it. [But] what helped was having a group of guys and ladies around me who just got it. Even if we can’t articulate clearly … we can feel each other.” Love’s Christian faith helped him weather the cultural shift, too. At times, he says, he slept in the college’s chapel, which became his place of refuge. Writing also served as a shelter: Love studied with poet and painter Omari Fox, who was a guest at Warren Wilson at the time, Lorrie Jayne and Gary

Hawkins “who really helped me see … the relationship between poetry and the visual arts.” Although Love returned to Burlington after college, and then pursued a basketball opportunity in Texas that didn’t pan out, he’s now back in Asheville. He recently performed in Left Behind, a stage production by McDaniel, and is contemplating his next steps. “I’m not interested in art that [only] passively entertains you,” says Love. “I’d like to introduce art to places like Pisgah View [Apartments, Livingston and] Erskine[-Walton], Dearverview [Apartments] … not to suggest [the residents] aren’t already whole, but to give them other outlets. … I think art and poetry can be big to opening the mind up to, ‘This is all a creation.’ … Art and poetry help you open up to possibilities.” Love is considering a Master of Fine Arts in Writing — his alma mater is well-known for its program — but points out the expense of such degrees can be prohibitive. And then there’s the issue that many MFA programs are overwhelmingly populated by white students and teachers. “It concerns me that the human is only acquainted with the white, and the others are just spectacles to be studied,” he says. Love also has an aversion to racial bashing and victim narratives, he says. “A lot of my people are brilliant, they’re creative, and depending on who’s selling the story will [determine] what you get out of it.” What he is interested in is, “What’s fresh? Can we break through that matrix real quick? … I’m not asking for ‘Kumbaya,’ I’m just asking for authenticity.” A BEAUTIFUL CRAFT Many writers of color are asking to be judged on their own merits, rather than the merits determined by a system constructed to exclude their voices. “The style has to match the author’s work so it keeps its powerful flow and tells the story through the eyes of the author,” says Blount. He once received a review that claimed, while his story was good, the writing wasn’t on par with “professional” authors. “I didn’t write the book [so] it could be up there in the writing world. … I don’t compete with writers,” says Blount. “I try to reach as many people [as I can] through the writing. It’s readable and comprehensible so they don’t have to go looking certain words up in the dictionary.”

NEXT GENERATION: Programs like HomeWord and Word on the Street are encouraging young writers, but will those youth artists stay in Asheville? “If we don’t cultivate a scene for them, it would be easy for them to pop over to Atlanta or Durham,” spoken-word artist Nicole Townsend, pictured, cautions. Photo courtesy of Townsend He knows his audience and crafts his work toward their tastes. And, as a selfpublished writer, Blount can do exactly that, rather than worrying about industry trends or style points from outside influences. When it comes to working with an editor, he says, “What it boils down to is having someone who will not change the story and will not take away its powerful essence of delivery.” He continues, “I don’t need someone to validate my work. It’s all the basics and foundation of sharing. As long as I’m on that track and have that passion … it’s a beautiful craft.” His work,

he says, gets read by the people who need it. Resilience

propels

Asheville’s

nonwhite writers forward in their work. For example, even as Bailey builds his plumbing business, poetry remains on his mind. “I have a bunch of snippets, and I have a bunch of torn pages with stuff on it,” he says. “Right now … I’m still putting it in a notebook. But I’ll probably — in the next year an a half — come out with my third self-published book.” X

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A&E

by Daniel Walton

danielwwalton@live.com

KEEP THE FAITH In one of his letters, author John Steinbeck observed, “A funeral isn’t for the dead. You’ll simply be a stage set for a kind of festival.” These words ring true about the sudden death last year of Jeff Knorr. The bearded bulwark of Asheville’s music scene, a keyboardist in bands such as The Secret B-Sides, Chalwa and Nuevo Montuno Salsa Orchestra, brought together players from many groups for his memorial service at Salvage Station in July. “[Knorr’s passing] made us realize how much we all love each other as a community, as well as how much we need to talk about and nurture that community,” says Secret B-Sides frontman Juan Holladay. In an effort to keep that flame alive, Holladay is dedicating another concert to Knorr’s memory: the third annual Mountain Soul Party, taking place on Friday, Jan. 12, at Isis Music Hall.

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Mountain Soul Party builds community for local musicians

CHURCH OF SOUL: The artists at the third annual Mountain Soul Party, including Ryan “RnB” Barber, pictured, come from different genres, but all are united by a love of music and community. Photo courtesy of Barber On first hearing, the name of the event doesn’t seem to cover the diversity of artists slated to perform. Headliner Ryan “RnB” Barber comes from a rhythm and blues background, while rapper Preach Jacobs from Columbia, S.C., adds hip-hop, and members of Empire Strikes Brass bring the funk. Other artists scheduled to appear during the night include the Secret B-Sides, CaroMia, Jesse Barry, Jordan Okrend, Jeff Thompson and Whitney Moore, with hosting duties handled by Cousin TL of Asheville FM’s “Stank Free Radio.” Holladay explains that for him, the umbrella of the soul genre is more functional than stylistic. “The term ‘soul music’ used to be synonymous with church music,” he says. “It makes sense for me — when I’m at the Tuesday Night Funk Jam at Asheville Music Hall, the music just completely fills my soul in that moment, and I become one with everyone in the room.” That unifying spiritual experience informs the Mountain Soul Party’s logo as well as its lineup. Based on an emblem from the U.K.’s Northern soul movement, the design by Asheville graphic artist Kevin Thompson features a monarch but-

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terfly with the words “Mountain Soul” and “Keep the Faith.” The symbol also pays tribute to soul legend and Asheville resident Sidney Barnes, who contributed to the development of Northern soul in the 1960s and will make a special appearance at the concert. Guest contributions and collaborations have become a hallmark of the event since its beginnings in 2015. Performers mix and match with members of other acts, creating unique combinations specifically for the show. Even Barber’s band draws personnel from Empire Strikes Brass, The Digs, The Business and the Tuesday Night Funk Jam house band. This spirit of cooperation gives Asheville’s soul scene a strength beyond its numbers. “I think these genres are making more of an impact in Asheville, slowly but surely,” Barber says. “A lot of local acts have been working hard to showcase and bring them to the forefront, and people are definitely starting to pay more attention — it’s a force to be reckoned with.” New to the Mountain Soul Party this year is an effort to foster members of the soul community in their earliest stages. Before the main show begins at 9 p.m., students from the

Asheville Music School (where Holladay works as a teacher) present a seated concert in the Isis lounge starting at 7 p.m. Youth ensembles Vinyl Crossroads and Defective Swing cover classic rock, pop rock and Motown tunes to hone their musical chops. “The whole point of this event is to build community,” says Holladay. “To really do that, you have to involve young musicians as well, because that’s as local as it gets.” He envisions the annual concert becoming a kind of incubator for new artists, with musicians moving from the youth ensembles to opening slots in the main room to headlining performances over time. Just as crucial as young performers, Holladay emphasizes, is a sense of responsibility to the scene. Proceeds from tickets for the youth show, which also cover admission to the event’s main stage, benefit the Burton Street ONEmic Studio and LEAF Schools & Streets. “It’s so powerful to have youths playing music that generates funds for other youths to record and play music,” he says. Holladay hopes the concert initiates a new generation into the faith of soul. It’s a creed of paying it forward, helping people enjoy themselves and playing well with others — lessons worth taking far beyond the stage. “When I teach ensembles, I’m teaching them how to listen, pay attention to their bandmates and work as a team to accomplish a goal,” he says. “I think that’s applicable to lots of other areas of life.” X

WHAT Mountain Soul Party WHERE Isis Music Hall 743 Haywood Road isisasheville.com WHEN Friday, Jan. 12, 7 p.m. $10 advance/$12 day of show/ $5 children younger than 5

by Lauren Stepp

lstepp98@gmail.com

ART OF RESISTANCE Asheville-based potter Kristin Schoonover doesn’t mince words when it comes to the current administration. “When Donald Trump was first elected, I thought, ‘He’s awful, but maybe other politicians will keep him from making horrible mistakes,’” says Schoonover. “That’s not been the case.” A year ago, the Clayspace Co-op member teamed up with Planned Parenthood South Atlantic to host the Nasty Women Art Exhibition in Asheville, a fundraiser that doubled as a rejoinder to Trump’s attitudes toward women’s rights and health care. Now, Schoonover and her collaborators are back at it, mounting the next iteration of the exhibit on Friday, Jan. 12, in the Wedge at Foundation. “We didn’t know what to expect last year,” says Kate Maxcy, communications associate at PPSA. “But it was amazing,” adds Shannon Wroblewski, associate director of donor engagement. “Knowing how much awareness it generated, we had to do it again.” Though Wroblewski and Schoonover were responsible for the legwork, they owe the event’s concept to New Yorkbased curator Jessamyn Fiore and artist Roxanne Jackson. Unnerved by Trump’s public objectification of women (particularly his behavior during the third presidential debate, when he described opponent Hillary Clinton as “such a nasty woman”), Fiore and Jackson invited female artists to express their shared disdain in a group show. The proposal garnered 1,000 submissions. “Feeling shaken and scared after the election, I wanted to send some pieces up to New York, too,” says Schoonover. “But the organizers came back and said what they actually needed was for people to host their own exhibitions.” Per Fiore and Jackson’s guidelines, any venue can participate, though the show must be inclusive of all female artists and benefit an organization that supports women’s rights. And so, after less than two months’ worth of planning, Asheville joined Boston, Chicago, Tucson, Rome and London in hosting an exhibition. The local show raised $8,000.

Nasty women and bad hombres exhibition benefits Planned Parenthood

WOMAN’S WORLD: Clayspace Co-op member Kristin Schoonover, pictured, co-organized Asheville’s first Nasty Women Art Exhibition last January, raising $8,000 for Planned Parenthood South Atlantic. Organizers expanded this year’s tagline to include “bad hombres” — male artists. Photo by Deb Anderson “It was a great opportunity to bring like-minded people together in our community,” says Wroblewski. “I left feeling so energized.” Schoonover, the event’s co-organizer, adds, “I thought it would be cool if the line went out the door and people were fighting over artwork.” She says, with a laugh, “That’s exactly how it was. The space was so packed.” One hundred artists submitted pieces, with highlights including a crocheted dildo and a cartooned depiction of the current American president. (Schoonover predicts more Trump-inspired works will crop up this time around.) Each piece was priced between $1 and $100, and could not exceed 12 inches in any direction. All female artists were welcome to submit, regardless of skill level. Several Buncombe County students even displayed their work. “For many people, this was their first exhibition,” says Schoonover. But excluding male artists — a standard that originated with the New York exhibition — just didn’t sit right with some Asheville residents. “Last time, we had to turn away men who wanted to participate,”

notes Schoonover. “This one guy was so sweet. I told him, ‘Oh, gosh. We can’t take your work.’ And he was like, ‘Well, what if I sign it in my wife’s name?’” To fully realize their goal of inclusivity, organizers expanded this year’s tagline to include “bad hombres” — a nod to the conversation in which Trump told Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto he would send U.S. troops to stop “bad hombres down there.” “I know so many men who showed up at the women’s marches. It just felt right to include them. Especially since Planned Parenthood helps men, too,” says Schoonover. In that regard, the Nasty Women and Bad Hombre Art Exhibition underscores the range of services offered by PPSA. With nine offices across North Carolina, PPSA provides birth control, vaccinations, cancer screenings, testing and treatment for STDs, HIV screenings, miscarriage management and other care to both men and women. In 2016, the organization helped 24,000 patients. Though supported by private donors, many health centers,

including Asheville’s McDowell Street location, also receive federal Title X funds for services such as family planning and wellness exams. As discussed on Planned Parenthood’s website, legislation supported by Vice President Mike Pence now threatens to reallocate those funds. “Over 60 percent of our patients in WNC are uninsured,” reads a statement posted on the local Nasty Women Exhibition webpage. “But sadly, we are preparing to be defunded.” According to Maxcy, PPSA is fighting back with education. Staff members encourage supporters to become PPSA patients (even if they are insured), subscribe to mailing lists, participate in rallies and attend events like the upcoming exhibit. “When you walk through our doors, we have our game faces on,” says Maxcy. “As human beings, the politics might affect us, but we’re still doing our jobs. We’re still here to do the hard work.” X

WHAT Nasty Women and Bad Hombres Art Exhibition nastywomanasheville.org WHERE The Wedge at Foundation 5 Foundry St. WHEN Friday, Jan. 12, 6 p.m.

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JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

SMART BETS

A&E

by Edwin Arnaudin | Send your arts news to ae@mountainx.com

Alex Krug Combo Led by its eponymous Asheville-based singer/songwriter/guitarist, the Alex Krug Combo sports a mix of instrumental accompaniment that adds dreamy sonic layers to grounded Americana lyrics and song structures. While Krug excels playing solo around the region and in a trio with Rachel Gramig (backing vocals) and Jackson Dulaney (lap steel guitar), the group takes on new dimensions as the ensemble grows. A larger edition of the band performs its first show of 2018 on Saturday, Jan. 13, at Salvage Station. According to Krug’s Facebook page, she’ll be joined onstage by Gramig and Dulaney, as well as Kyle Samples (electric guitar), Daniel Iannucci (upright bass) and Bill Berg (drums). The show begins at 9 p.m. $5. salvagestation.com. Photo by Josh Rhinehardt

Too Many Zooz Hailing from New York City, Too Many Zooz has gone from busking in the metropolis’ subways to performing with Beyoncé and The Dixie Chicks at the 2016 Country Music Association Awards. Composed of Leo P. (baritone sax), Matt Doe (trumpet) and King of Sludge (percussion), the so-called “Brass House” band combines AfroCuban beats and jazz with electronic elements to form its own energetic sound. Song titles such as “Spocktopus” and “Tricerahops” accurately convey the group’s high-powered approach. On Saturday, Jan. 13, the trio returns to Asheville Music Hall, where it played on consecutive nights in July. The evening begins at 9:30 p.m. with an electro dub set from Asheville’s own Oso Rey. $18 advance/$22 day of show. ashevillemusichall.com. Photo courtesy of the band

Bryan E. Robinson Anyone who’s tried to get a piece of writing published has dealt with rejection from those in positions of power, and the emotional fallout that comes from not immediately achieving one’s dreams. Bryan E. Robinson — a psychotherapist and author of 35 nonfiction books and two novels — combines those backgrounds in his latest work, Daily Writing Resilience: 365 Meditations & Inspirations for Writers, which he calls “the first daily meditation book and the only book on the craft of writing resiliency.” Robinson cites literary agents’ identification of perseverance as the key quality a writer needs to be successful (even more so than good writing). He presents his book in conversation with Sara Gruen, author of Water for Elephants and Ape House, at Malaprop’s on Friday, Jan. 12, at 6 p.m. Free. malaprops.com

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

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Charlie’s On Acid If you’ve seen the movie The Crow, you’ve seen Charlie’s on Acid — albeit under a different name. The North Carolina rockers backed up heavy metal guitarist and frontman Eric Draven (played by the late Brandon Lee) in his group Hangman’s Joke, and the final photos taken of Lee before his tragic death were with these fictional bandmates. In the real world, Charlie’s on Acid formed in Charlotte in 1990 and went on to open for White Zombie and Blind Melon. Along the way, the quartet built a strong following in Asheville and were regulars at 45 Cherry Street, where Archers of Loaf opened for them. Back in town as part of a three-day “Microdose Tour” of the Carolinas, the band plays The Mothlight on Friday, Jan. 12, at 9 p.m. $10. themothlight.com. Photo courtesy of the band

A&E CA LEN DA R

by Abigail Griffin

DANCE INTO THE NEW YEAR: Ballet Spartanburg performers present modern and classical ballet in their performance, Década, as part of the Something Different Series at the Tryon Fine Arts Center on Thursday, Jan. 16, at 7pm. The new show presents recognizable ballets such as Swan Lake and Romeo and Juliet juxtaposed with contemporary pieces. This special event celebrates the 10-year production of Ballet Spartanburg’s DanSynergy Series under artistic director Carlos Agudelo. Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for students. For more information or tickets, visit tryonarts.org. Photo courtesy of Tryon Fine Arts Center (p. 36) ART APPALACHIAN PASTEL SOCIETY appalachianpastelsociety. org • SA (1/13), 10am "Group Paint Around," meeting and presentation by Jim Hefley. Free. Held at Grace Community Church, 495 Cardinal Road, Mills River CAROLINA’S NATURE PHOTOGRAPHERS ASSOCIATION asheville.cnpa-regions.org/ • SU (1/14), 6-8pm - "Earth and Light Travelogue: Traveling the World as a Wildlife and Nature Photographer," presentation by Richard Bernabe. Free. Held at UNCA Reuter Center, 1 Campus View Road MALAPROP'S BOOKSTORE AND CAFE 55 Haywood St., 828-2546734, malaprops.com • SU (1/14), 3pm Micah Cash presents his book, Dangerous Waters: A Photo Essay on the Tennessee Valley Authority. Free to attend.

ODYSSEY COOPERATIVE ART GALLERY 238 Clingman Ave., 828285-9700, facebook.com/ odysseycoopgallery • 2nd SATURDAYS, 11am5pm - "Second Saturday Celebration," event with food, music and artist demonstrations. Free to attend.

AUDITIONS & CALL TO ARTISTS ASHEVILLE AREA ARTS COUNCIL 828-258-0710, ashevillearts.com • Through FR (1/26) Exhibition proposals accepted from Buncombe County artists. See website for full guidelines. • Through FR (1/12) Submissions accepted for juried AAAC member exhibitions. See website for full guidelines. CALDWELL ARTS COUNCIL 601 College Ave SW, Lenoir, 828-754-2486 • Through WE (1/31) Portfolios accepted for 2019 exhibition opportuni-

ties. Information: caldwellarts.com/157-guidelines/. THE CENTER FOR CRAFT, CREATIVITY & DESIGN 828-785-1357, craftcreativitydesign.org, info@craftcreativitydesign. org • Through TH (3/15) Applications accepted for a materials-based research grant. Contact for full guidelines.

MUSIC AMICIMUSIC 802-369-0856, amicimusic.org • FR (1/12), 7:30pm - "The Winds of Winter," concert featuring the Brevard Woodwind Quintet. Includes music by Franz Danzi, Jacques Ibert, Malcolm Arnold and Ludwig Thuille. $20/$18 advance. Held at First Presbyterian Church of Asheville, 40 Church St. • SA (1/13), 7:30pm - "The Winds of Winter," concert featuring the Brevard Woodwind Quintet. Includes music by Franz Danzi, Jacques Ibert, Malcolm Arnold and

Ludwig Thuille. $20/$18 advance. Held at All Souls Cathedral, 9 Swan St. BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • SA (1/13), 5pm "Musicians' Petting Zoo," event for all ages to experience a host of instruments, amps, and effects pedals. Try an instrument provided or bring your own. Free. Held at North Asheville Library, 1030 Merrimon Ave. FIRESTORM CAFE AND BOOKS 610 Haywood Road, 828-255-8115 • SA (1/13), 6pm - Ida Low presents, Americana concert Free to attend. PUBSING 828-254-1114 • 2nd SUNDAYS, 6-8pm - Gospel jam and singalong. Optional snack time at 5:30pm. Free to attend. Held at French Broad Brewery, 101 Fairview Road REVOLVE 122 Riverside Drive

MOUNTAINX.COM

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

A &E CA LEN DA R

• TH (1/18), 6-8pm Asheville FM, "Music Matters," lecture series. Free. UR LIGHT CENTER 2196 N.C. Highway 9, Black Mountain, 828-669-6845, urlight.org • SU (1/14), 4-6pm - Matt Venuti, singer-songwriter and EVI wind synthesizer concert. $20/$15 advance.

by Abigail Griffin

THEATER 35BELOW 35 E. Walnut St., 828-2541320, ashevilletheatre.org • THURSDAYS through SUNDAYS (1/11) until (1/21) - A Turnpike Sunset. Thurs.-Sat.: 7:30pm. Sun.: 2:30pm $20. BREVARD LITTLE THEATRE 55 E. Jordan St., Brevard, 828-884-2587, TheBrevardLittleTheatre. org

• SA (1/13), 6-9pm - 2017 Season Awards Banquet Gala and Annual Meeting. Black tie event includes a buffet dinner and live entertainment. $20/$5 children. HENDERSONVILLE COMMUNITY THEATRE 229 S. Washington St., Hendersonville, 828-692-1082, hendersonville littletheater.org • TH (1/11), 4:30pm Dedication of Brookes Hall with a cash bar and hors d'ouerves. Free.

TRYON FINE ARTS CENTER 34 Melrose Ave., Tryon, 828-859-8322, tryonarts.org • TU (1/16), 7pm - Stage Door Series: "Backstage with the Bard," readings of selected scenes from William Shakespeare works. Registration suggested. $5. • TH (1/18), 7pm Decada, performance by the Spartanburg Ballet. $20/$10 students.

GALLERY DIRECTORY MOMENTUM GALLERY

PUSH SKATE SHOP

and multimedia works.

24 North Lexington Ave.

& GALLERY

Opening reception:

• Through WE (1/31) -

25 Patton Ave.,

Friday, Jan. 12, 7-10

Exhibition of Japanese

828-225-5509,

p.m., with music by

woodblock prints by

pushtoyproject.com

Dr. HoTron.

• FR (1/12) through

TRANSYLVANIA COMMUNITY ARTS COUNCIL 349 S. Caldwell St., Brevard, 828-884-2787, tcarts.org • Through FR (1/12) - The Art of Life, mixed media exhibition of works creat-

Andy Farkas. • Through WE (1/31) Small Works, Big Impact, curated group exhibition

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

MOUNTAINX.COM

WE (1/31) - Culture War: The Art of

featuring paintings, origi-

Yamabushi and

nal prints and sculptural

Granpappy, featuring

works.

Super Mega Collage

ed by adults who attend Transylvania Vocational Services programs. • MO (1/15) through FR (2/2) - Faces of Freedom, group exhibition. Reception: Tuesday, Jan. 16, 4:30-6:30pm. WOOLWORTH WALK 25 Haywood St., 828-254-9234 • Through TU (1/310) Exhibition of works by Marilyn Sholin. Contact the galleries for admission hours and fees

CLUBLAND

1/10: T RIVIA ! 7-9 PM 1/11: $1 O FF F ULL P OURS COMING SOON: 1/27: T INA C OLLINS D UO 7-9 PM

Asheville Poetry Series:

TOP BILLING: In the capital of country music, Nashville-based soul-funk collective Marquee Mayfield is taking disco’s manic melodies out of mothballs and blending it with tinges of Stevie Wonder-style soul and modern day EDM stylings. The result is a brand of music at once classic & innovative, and imminently danceable. Get your butt onto the dance floor when Marquee Mayfield hits The One Stop in downtown Asheville for a 10 p.m. show on Friday, Jan. 12. Photo courtesy of the band HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Woody Wood Wednesdays (rock, soul, funk), 5:30PM

SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Brother Wolf Adoption Event, 6:00PM

ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 An evening w/ Dennis Warner, 7:00PM

SLY GROG LOUNGE Get Weird Wednesdays, 8:00PM

5 WALNUT WINE BAR Les Amis (African folk), 8:00PM

JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Old Time Open Jam Session, 5:00PM

THE BLOCK OFF BILTMORE DJ Phantom Pantone, 10:00PM

550 TAVERN & GRILLE Karaoke, 8:00PM

MG ROAD Salsa Night w/ DJ El Mexicano Isaac, 8:00PM

THE IMPERIAL LIFE Rotating jazz bands , 9:00PM The Berlyn Jazz Trio , 9:00PM

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 10 185 KING STREET Vinyl Night, 6:00PM Beats N Rhymes w/ Nex Millen , 8:00PM

ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Brad Hodge & Friends, 7:30PM BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Open mic w/ Mark Bumgarner, 7:00PM FLEETWOOD'S Secret Shame w/ Shanghai Beach & Kangarot, 8:00PM Shanghai Beach w/ Secret Shame & Kangarot, 8:00PM FUNKATORIUM John Hartford Jam w/ Saylor Bros (bluegrass), 6:30PM GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Open Mic Night w/ Grace Albritton & Riley Moore, 8:00PM

NOBLE KAVA Open Mic, 7:30PM ODDITORIUM Synergy Story Slam, 7:00PM Joshua Powell w/ Fashion Bath & Brucemont (rock), 9:00PM ONE WORLD BREWING Combs & Company (Americana), 9:00PM ORANGE PEEL ZOSO (Led Zeppelin tribute), 9:00PM POLANCO RESTAURANT 3 Cool Cats, 8:00PM POST 25 Albi & The Lifters (American swing, French chanson), 7:00PM

THE PHOENIX & THE FOX Jazz Night w/ Jason DeCristofaro, 7:00PM THE SOUTHERN Disclaimer Comedy Open Mic, 9:00PM THE WEDGE AT FOUNDATION Parodies for Charity, 7:00PM TIMO'S HOUSE Beats N Rhymes w/ DJ Nex Millen, 8:00PM TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES JJ Kitchen All Star Jam (blues, soul), 9:00PM

Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Monday, January 15 • 7:30pm

39 S. Market St. • theblockoffbiltmore.com

North Carolina’s First Cider Bar Family Owned & Operated Seasonal, craft-made hard ciders and tasting-room delights from local farmers & artisans.

#1 Best Place to Drink Cider in U.S.A. - Food & Wine Magazine

210 Haywood Road, West Asheville, NC 28806

(828)744-5151

www.urbanorchardcider.com MOUNTAINX.COM

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

CLU B LA N D

TAVERN

UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Music Bingo w/ Top-Shelf Productions , 8:00PM

Downtown on the Park Eclectic Menu • Over 30 Taps • Patio 15 TV’s • Sports Room • 110” Projector Event Space • Shuffleboard Open 7 Days 11am - Late Night

15 TV’s!

WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Jazz Night w/ Christian Howe, 7:30PM

FOOTB ALL RGERS, PIZZA &, BUEER! B

WILD WING CAFE Paint Nite, 7:00PM

COMING SOON wed 1/10

THU. 1/11 Jeff Anders & Justin Burrell

7PM-DENNIS WARNER

(acoustic rock)

thu 1/11

FRI. 1/12

7PM-RYANHOOD 8:30PM–ITALIAN NIGHT WITH MIKE GUGGINO & BARRETT SMITH

DJ MoTo

( dance hits, pop)

SAT. 1/13 The Groove Shakers

fri 1/12

(bluegrass, rock n’ roll)

7PM–MOUNTAIN SOUL PARTY 2018 LOUNGE

9PM–MOUNTAIN SOUL PARTY 2018 sat 1/13

7PM–CLIFF EBERHART W/ SPECIAL GUEST LOUISE MOSRIE

20 S. Spruce St. • 225.6944 packStavern.com

sun 1/14

5:30PM–JESSE BARRY AND DANIEL IANNUCCI 7:30PM–ALIEN MUSIC CLUB

1/12

fri

charlie's on acid

w/ gutterhound, strange avenues

1/13

sat

PRESENTS: BEST IN BLUES, VOCALIST PEGGY RATUSZ tue 1/16 7:30PM-TUESDAY BLUEGRASS SESSIONS wed 1/17

7PM-THE HONEY DEWDROPS 8:30PM-WILLIE NILE thu 1/18

disco sweat xxxvi

7PM-NOAH ZACHARIN Fri 1/19

7PM–ROB ICKES AND TREY HENSLEY

9PM-JUICE

1/16 tue david

dondero

w/ anthony lapalomento

sat 1/20

7PM-THE CHARLES WALKER BAND 9PM–ANDREW SCOTCHIE’S

Yoga at the Mothlight

Tuesdays and Thursdays- 11:30am Details for all shows can be found at

themothlight.com

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

MOUNTAINX.COM

BIRTHDAY-DAY BASH

ISISASHEVILLE.COM DINNER MENU TIL 9:30PM LATE NIGHT MENU TIL 12AM

TUES-SUN 5PM-until 743 HAYWOOD RD 828-575-2737

THURSDAY, JANUARY 11 185 KING STREET BRRRZDAYZ w/ JJ Smash & Genetix, 8:00PM 5 WALNUT WINE BAR Pleasure Chest (blues, rock, soul), 8:00PM ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Will Ray & The Space Cooties, 7:30PM BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Billy Owens, 7:00PM CAPELLA ON 9@THE AC HOTEL Capellas on 9 w/ Jordan Okrend, 8:00PM CROW & QUILL Carolina Catskins (ragtime jazz), 9:00PM FLEETWOOD'S Underwear Comedy Party, 9:00PM FOGGY MOUNTAIN BREWPUB Paper Crowns (Americana, jam), 9:00PM FRENCH BROAD BREWERY Reed Turchi (Americana, blues), 6:00PM GOOD STUFF Jim Hampton & friends perform "Eclectic Country" (jam), 7:00PM GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN The Stray Birds w/ Ross Livermore, 8:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Roots & friends open jam (blues, rock, roots), 6:30PM ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 Ryanhood, 7:00PM Italian Night w/ Mike Guggino & Barrett Smith, 8:30PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB The Clydes pre-jam, 7:00PM Bluegrass Open Jam Session, 9:00PM MG ROAD Taking Back Thursdays (emo), 10:00PM NATIVE KITCHEN & SOCIAL PUB Stevie Lee Combs, 7:00PM ODDITORIUM Naked Naps w/ MJ Lenderman & MT Sullivan (rock, indie), 9:00PM

ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Mitch's Totally Rad Trivia, 7:00PM The Message (jazz, funk), 10:00PM

BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Larry Dolamore, 7:00PM

ONE WORLD BREWING Hunter Grigg (singer-songwriter), 9:00PM

CAPELLA ON 9@THE AC HOTEL Capellas on 9 w/ DJ Phantom Pantone, 9:00PM DJ Z (electronic, EDM), 9:00PM

ORANGE PEEL Badfish w/ The Get Right Band (Sublime tribute), 9:00PM OSKAR BLUES BREWERY Eric Congdon (Americana), 6:00PM PACK'S TAVERN Jeff Anders & Justin Burrell (acoustic rock), 8:00PM PISGAH BREWING COMPANY Dennis "Chalwa" Berndt & friends, 6:30PM PURPLE ONION CAFE ScOOt Pittman, 7:30PM SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Stephen Evans, 7:00PM SLY GROG LOUNGE Will Franke, 9:00PM THE BLOCK OFF BILTMORE Keegan Avery, 8:00PM THE FAIRVIEW TAVERN Live Band Karaoke Jam w/ Old School, 9:00PM THE IMPERIAL LIFE The Burger Kings , 9:00PM THE MOTHLIGHT Off With Your Radiohead! (Radiohead tribute), 9:00PM TIMO'S HOUSE Brrrzdayz w/ JJ Smash & Genetix, 8:00PM TOWN PUMP Caleb Martin, 9:00PM TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Jesse Barry & The Jam (blues, dance), 9:00PM UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Cat & Crow (singer-songwriter duo), 7:00PM WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN The Quartet Davis w/ Michael Jefry Stevens, 8:00PM WXYZ LOUNGE AT ALOFT HOTEL WXYZ unplugged w/ Stevie Lee Combs, 8:00PM

FRIDAY, JANUARY 12 185 KING STREET DJ Dogg Dance Party, 8:00PM 5 WALNUT WINE BAR Lollygag (jazz, pop), 9:00PM ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR AGB Band Friday Dance Party, 7:30PM ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Phuncle Sam, 10:00PM

BOLD ROCK HARD CIDER Anthony Mossburg, 7:00PM

CORK & KEG The Old Chevrolette Set (country), 8:30PM CROW & QUILL Firecracker Jazz Band (New Orleans style jazz), 9:00PM ELLINGTON UNDERGROUND VOID w/ In Plain Sight, 10:00PM FOGGY MOUNTAIN BREWPUB The Gin Ricky’s (blues, jazz), 10:00PM FRENCH BROAD BREWERY Shaun Peace Band (funk, reggae), 6:00PM GINGER'S REVENGE Appalachian Renegades, 7:30PM GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Meow-crobrew Spectacular (dance party), 6:00PM HABITAT TAVERN & COMMONS Fortune & Glory, 9:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Wiseapple w/ Grassdance (bluegrass, jam), 7:00PM ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 Mountain Soul Party 2018, 9:00PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Chelsea Lovitt & The Boys, 9:00PM JARGON Justin Ray & Brian Felix (jazz), 9:00PM NOBLE KAVA Comedy Night w/ Tom Scheve, 9:00PM ODDITORIUM Yashira w/ Bathe & Uninhabitable (metal), 9:00PM ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Marquee Mayfield w/ Naked Scholar (R&B, pop), 10:00PM ONE WORLD BREWING Matt Ryans & Lavender Blue (rock, pop), 9:00PM ORANGE PEEL Turkuaz w/ The Fritz, 9:00PM OSKAR BLUES BREWERY Bradley Carter (acoustic), 6:00PM PACK'S TAVERN DJ MoTo (dance hits, pop), 9:30PM

PISGAH BREWING COMPANY Wiseapple/Grassdance Reunion Show (bluegrass, jam), 7:00PM SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Matt Walsh Band, 8:00PM THE BLOCK OFF BILTMORE Quartet Davis w/ Michael Jefry Stevens, 7:30PM Rhoda Weaver & the Soulmates, 10:00PM THE IMPERIAL LIFE Select DJ sets, 9:00PM THE MOTHLIGHT Charlie’s On Acid, 9:00PM Charlie's On Acid w/ Gutterhound & Strange Avenues, 9:00PM THE RIDGE AT NEW MOUNTAIN AVL PURE (trance, progressive), 9:00PM THE SUMMIT AT NEW MOUNTAIN AVL Sol Sessions, 9:00PM TIMO'S HOUSE Surprise Secret Show, 8:00PM TOWN PUMP Handsome & the Humbles, 9:00PM

TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Josh Singleton & Patrick Dodd (blues, country), 7:30PM Virginia & The Slims (blues, swing), 10:00PM

SATURDAY, JANUARY 13 185 KING STREET Mystery Cult Presents Dream Research & Friends, 8:00PM

ELLINGTON UNDERGROUND Flamingos w/ Futexture & Lavier, 10:00PM

WED

FOGGY MOUNTAIN BREWPUB Handsomebeast (jam, funk), 10:00PM

OPEN MIC NIGHT

FRENCH BROAD BREWERY Under the Gun (rockstripped down), 6:00PM

WED

UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY CyndiLou & The Want To (honky tonk, classic country), 8:00PM

5 WALNUT WINE BAR Zapato (funk, jazz), 9:00PM

550 TAVERN & GRILLE Ryan Perry (country), 9:00PM

THE STRAY BIRDS

VIRGOLA Adi The Monk (jazz, blues), 6:00PM

ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Swing Step Jam, 4:30PM The Gin Rickys - Swing/Jazz/ Blues, 7:30PM

FRI

MEOW-CROBREW SPECTACULAR

FRI

WEDGE FOUNDATION Nasty Woman & Bad Hombre (exhibit opening), 6:00PM WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Bob Hinkle, 8:00PM WILD WING CAFE Rigged (rock, country), 9:00PM WILD WING CAFE SOUTH A Social Function (Acoustic), 9:00PM WXYZ LOUNGE AT ALOFT HOTEL WXYZ electric w/ DJ Zues, 8:00PM

ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Too Many Zooz w/ Oso Rey, 9:00PM BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Ben Phan, 7:00PM CAPELLA ON 9@THE AC HOTEL Capellas on 9 w/ The Jordan Okrend Trio, 9:00PM

THU

12 SAT

13 MON

W/ GRACE ALBRITTON AND RILEY MOORE

THU

W/ ROSS LIVERMORE

MICHAEL TRACY

SAT

W/ THE MERCURY ARCS, REVELRY SOUL

WED

OPEN MIC NIGHT

EMILY SALIERS (OF THE INDIGO GIRLS)

GAELYNN LEA + ANTHONY MOSSBURG

SOMEWHAT PETTY

(TOM PETTY TRIBUTE BAND)

THE STEEL WHEELS W/ TWISTED PINE

CAAMP

Asheville’s longest running live music venue • 185 Clingman Ave TICKETS AVAILABLE AT HARVEST RECORDS & THEGREYEAGLE.COM

CHESTNUT Jazz Brunch, 11:00AM CORK & KEG The Barsters (old-time, bluegrass), 8:30PM CROW & QUILL Tom Waits for No Man (Tom Waits covers), 9:00PM

LIVE MUSIC FRIDAY & SATURDAY NIGHT NO COVER CHARGE! MONDAY

65¢ WINGS!

TUESDAY

FRIDAY

JANUARY 12

MOONSHINE & MAYHEM 9PM - 12AM

MOUNTAIN SHAG

SATURDAY

WEDNESDAY

RYAN PERRY BAND 9PM - 12AM

KARAOKE (8PM)

THIRSTY THURSDAY

JANUARY 13

SUNDAY NFL

ALL DRAFTS $3

FULL MENU — 15 TAPS OPEN WEEKDAYS 4 PM OPEN FOR LUNCH, FRI-SUN NOON Located Next to Clarion Inn — 550 Airport Road Fletcher — 550tavern.com — www.facebook.com/550TavernGrille

THIS WEEK AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL

THIS WEEK AT THE ONE STOP:

THU 1/11 FRI 1/12 SAT 1/13

The Message - [Jazz/Funk] Marquee Mayfield w/ Naked Scholar - [Pop/R&B] TUB w/ People of Earth - [Rock/Jazz]

UPCOMING SHOWS - ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL:

PHUNCLE SAM FRI 1/12 - SHOW 10pm (DOORS 9pm) - TICKETS $10

TOO MANY ZOOZ w/ Oso Rey

SAT 1/13 - SHOW 9:30pm (DOORS 9pm) - adv. $18

1/20 1/26 1/27 2/3

Ron Holloway Band Floyd is Dead (Presented by The Snozzberries) Larry Keel Experience The Funk Hunters w/ DeFunk (18+)

Tickets available at ashevillemusichall.com @avlmusichall MOUNTAINX.COM

@OneStopAVL JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

CLU B LA N D GOOD STUFF Doctor Ocular & The Jake Quillin Band (blues), 8:30PM

THE MOTHLIGHT Disco Sweat XXXVI, 10:00PM

ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Bluegrass Brunch, 10:30AM

GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Michael Tracy w/ The Mercury Arcs & Revelry Soul, 9:00PM

THE RIDGE AT NEW MOUNTAIN AVL Psychedelia w/ TOUCH Samadhi, 9:00PM

ORANGE PEEL Saved By The 90s (90s music tribute), 9:00PM

HABITAT TAVERN & COMMONS Yoga for Working Bodies, 12:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY The Message (jazz, funk), 7:00PM ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 Cliff Eberhardt w/ Louise Mosrie, 7:00PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Tarrant (Americana, country, folk rock), 9:00PM LAZY HIKER BREWING COMPANY Anthony Mossburg, 8:00PM MG ROAD Late Night Dance Party w/ DJ Lil Meow Meow, 10:00PM NEW MOUNTAIN THEATER/AMPHITHEATER GLOW: "Asheville's Largest Dance Party", 9:00PM NOBLE KAVA Astoria w/ Isabelle Celeste Ennis & Ryan Oslance, 9:00PM ODDITORIUM Odd Squad w/ The Municipators, The Hooliganz & A.N.G.S.T (punk), 9:00PM ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Tub w/ People Of Earth (rock), 10:00PM ORANGE PEEL Yonder Mountain String Band w/ The Southern Belles, 8:30PM OSKAR BLUES BREWERY Chicken Coop Willaye (blues), 6:00PM PACK'S TAVERN The Groove Shakers (bluegrass, rock 'n' roll), 9:30PM PISGAH BREWING COMPANY The Horse You Rode In On, 8:00PM The Horse You Rode In On (funk), 8:00PM PURPLE ONION CAFE Fayssoux McLean & The Bluegrass Messengers, 8:00PM SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Yoga w/ Cats, 10:00AM Doss Church & Derek Stipe, 8:00PM SLY GROG LOUNGE Kitty LittleBoyBigHeadOnBike w/ Tsunami & Shaken Nature/ , 8:00PM THE BLOCK OFF BILTMORE Youth OUTright's Drag Brunch, 11:00AM Latin & Salsa Dance Night, 8:00PM

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

MOUNTAINX.COM

THE SOUTHERN Eric DeSilva, 8:30PM TIMO'S HOUSE Dream Research & friends, 8:00PM TOWN PUMP Hard Rocket, 9:00PM TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Free Flow (funk, soul), 10:00AM Lenny Pettinelli (live music), 7:30PM TWISTED LAUREL Phantom Pantone (top 40's, dance), 11:00PM UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY The Log Noggins (progressive, Southern rock), 8:00PM VIRGOLA Jason Hazinski (jazz, blues), 6:00PM WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN The Bill Mattocks Band, 8:00PM WXYZ LOUNGE AT ALOFT HOTEL WXYZ live w/ Naked Scholar, 8:00PM

PISGAH BREWING COMPANY Sunday Travers Jam, 6:00PM PURPLE ONION CAFE The Stray Birds , 8:00PM SALVAGE STATION Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal (soul, Funk, R&B), 8:00PM SLY GROG LOUNGE Sly Grog Open Mic, 7:00PM THE BLOCK OFF BILTMORE Kevin Spears "Kalimba Man" Celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., 5:00PM THE FAIRVIEW TAVERN Hallelujah Hilliary's Comedy Revival, 9:00PM THE IMPERIAL LIFE DJ Z (electronic), 8:00PM TIMO'S HOUSE BYOV Open Decks , 8:00PM TOWN PUMP Rossdafareye, 9:00PM UR LIGHT CENTER Matt Venuti, 4:00PM WEDGE FOUNDATION Blockchain & Beers!, 2:00PM WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Winds of Winter w/ AmiciMusic, 2:00PM

SUNDAY, JANUARY 14 5 WALNUT WINE BAR Redleg Husky (Americana), 7:00PM ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Musicians Jam & Pot Luck, 3:30PM BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Matt Sellars, 7:00PM FUNKATORIUM Gypsy Jazz Sunday Brunch, 11:00AM GOOD STUFF Open Mic w/ Fox Black & friends, 6:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Reggae Sunday w/ Chalwa, 1:00PM ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 Jesse Barry & Daniel Iannucci, 5:30PM Alien Music Club w/ Peggy Ratusz, 7:30PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Traditional Celtic Jam, 3:00PM JARGON Sunday Blunch w/ Mark Guest & Mary Pearson (jazz), 11:00AM ODDITORIUM Free 80s/90s Dance Party w/ DJ Baby Bear, 9:00PM

MONDAY, JANUARY 15 185 KING STREET Open Mic Night, 8:00PM 5 WALNUT WINE BAR Siamese Sound Club (R&B, soul, jazz), 8:00PM ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Classical Guitar Mondays, 7:30PM GOOD STUFF Bingo Wingo Thingo, 6:00PM GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Open Mic Night, 6:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Game Night, 4:00PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Quizzo Trivia Night, 7:00PM Open mic, 9:30PM MG ROAD The Living Room Series, 7:30PM ODDITORIUM Risque Monday Burlesque w/ Deb Au Nare, 9:00PM ORANGE PEEL Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets (movie night), 6:00PM Mallrats (movie night), 9:00PM

OSKAR BLUES BREWERY Mountain Music Mondays (open jam), 6:00PM THE BLOCK OFF BILTMORE Asheville Poetry Series: Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. w/ Zach Zachary, 7:30PM THE IMPERIAL LIFE Ghost Pipe Trio, 9:00PM TIMO'S HOUSE Scott Duncan Art Show Opening w/ DJ JJ Smash , 8:00PM

Open daily from 4p – 12a

Social Mondays- $6 Social House Martinis Craft Wednesdays- $6 Feature Craft Cocktail Bite the Bulleit Fridays- $5 Smoked Bulleit Shots WEDNESDAY 10 JAN:

WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Jay Brown & Kevin Spears, 7:00PM WILD WING CAFE SOUTH Paint Nite, 7:00PM

TUESDAY, JANUARY 16 5 WALNUT WINE BAR The John Henrys (hot jazz), 8:00PM 550 TAVERN & GRILLE Shag Night, 6:30PM ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Gypsy Jazz Jam Tuesdays, 7:30PM ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Tuesday night funk jam, 11:00PM BEN'S TUNE UP Live Band & Hip Hop Cypher, 9:00PM

FWUIT

7:00PM – 10:00PM

THURSDAY 11 JAN:

FREEWHEELIN MAMAS 7:00PM – 10:00PM

FRIDAY 12 JAN:

LAZY BIRDS

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DOUBLE CROWN Groovy Tuesdays (smooth world vinyl), 10:00PM GOOD STUFF Old time-y night, 6:30PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Dr. Brown's Team Trivia, 6:00PM ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 Tuesday Bluegrass Sessions w/ Rob Parks & friends, 7:30PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Cajun/Creole jam w/ Trent Van Blaricom & Joy Moser, 7:00PM MG ROAD Keep it Classic Tuesdays w/ Sam Thompson, 5:00PM ODDITORIUM Free Open Mic Comedy w/ Tom Peters, 9:00PM POLANCO RESTAURANT Taco Tuesday & Blues w/ Michael Filippone's Blues Review, 8:00PM SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Taco and Trivia Tuesday, 6:00PM SLY GROG LOUNGE Black Box Theory w/ Walk Home & CD Grave, 8:00PM STONE RIDGE TAVERN Paint Nite, 7:00PM THE BLOCK OFF BILTMORE Jazz-n-Justice Swing Dance Benefit Tuesday (lessons @ 7 p.m. & 8 p.m.), 9:00PM THE MARKET PLACE RESTAURANT AND LOUNGE Rat Alley Cats, 7:00PM THE MOTHLIGHT David Dondero w/ Anthony Lapalomento, 9:00PM

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TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Early Tuesday Jazz & Funk Jam (jazz, funk), 9:00PM

FUNKATORIUM John Hartford Jam w/ Saylor Bros (bluegrass), 6:30PM

UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Open Mic Night w/ Arrow Sound , 6:30PM WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Irish jam & open mic, 6:30PM

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17 185 KING STREET Vinyl Night, 6:00PM 5 WALNUT WINE BAR Les Amis (African folk), 8:00PM

SLY GROG LOUNGE Get Weird Wednesdays, 8:00PM

HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Woody Wood Wednesdays (rock, soul, funk), 5:30PM

THE BLOCK OFF BILTMORE DJ Phantom Pantone, 10:00PM

ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 An evening w/ The Honey Dewdrops (Americana, folk, singer-songwriter), 7:00PM Willie Nile, 8:30PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Old Time Open Jam Session, 5:00PM MG ROAD Salsa Night w/ DJ El Mexicano Isaac, 8:00PM

550 TAVERN & GRILLE Karaoke, 8:00PM

NOBLE KAVA Open Mic, 7:30PM

ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Brad Hodge & Friends, 7:30PM

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where the impact of

POLANCO RESTAURANT 3 Cool Cats, 8:00PM

ONE WORLD BREWING Kris Gruda (singer-songwriter, soul, jazz), 9:00PM

THE IMPERIAL LIFE The Berlyn Jazz Trio , 9:00PM THE PHOENIX & THE FOX Jazz Night w/ Jason DeCristofaro, 7:00PM THE SOUTHERN Disclaimer Comedy Open Mic, 9:00PM TIMO'S HOUSE Zabuls (electronic, hip-hop), 8:00PM TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES JJ Kitchen All Star Jam (blues, soul), 9:00PM WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Jazz night, 7:30PM

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MOVIES

REVIEWS & LISTINGS BY SCOTT DOUGLAS, FRANCIS X. FRIEL & JUSTIN SOUTHER

HHHHH = H PICK OF THE WEEK H

In Human Flow, artist and activist Ai Weiwei examines the scale and human cost of the refugee crisis.

Human Flow HHHHS

DIRECTOR: Ai Weiwei PLAYERS: Ai Weiwei ACTIVIST DOCUMENTARY RATED PG-13 THE STORY: A overview of the worldwide refugee crisis that travels the globe, attempting to show the true scope and the horror of the situation. THE LOWDOWN: A truly exhausting and massive documentary that attempts to remind us of the human lives behind conflict and politics which, despite some flaws, succeeds. Ai Weiwei’s Human Flow is one of the most harrowing, mentally exhausting documentaries I’ve ever encountered. It’s also one of the more confounding, unfortunately, but only for minor reasons. It has the prob-

lem that many activist documentaries have: The people who need to see it, who might see the world in a different light if they saw it, simply won’t. A stark, 140-minute documentary on one of modernity’s worst failures — the global refugee crisis — is a hard sell to anyone, especially someone who doesn’t already have an awareness or sympathy to the subject. There is, in this sense, a danger of preaching to the choir, except the choir is perhaps whom the film is trying to motivate. The power of Human Flow is laying out the true horror and near impossibility and hopelessness of refugees and the rest of the world’s seeming inability — or even refusal — to truly come up with a solution, laid bare in one succinct film. While the film has talking heads and lots of facts, Ai is more concerned

with turning a camera toward the conditions refugees live in. The results are straight-up dystopian, showing shoddy camps without clean water or electricity, full of people with no work and no education, living on little more than humanitarian aid. What’s equally shocking is the lack of solutions or hope being offered, with instability caused by numerous seemingly endless conflicts and a lack of countries willing to take in and assimilate refugees. Much of what makes Human Flow worth watching lies in its ability to take the idea of a “refugee” out of the world of the abstract and into something more concrete, by showing the faces and telling the stories of actual refugees, to remind us of a shared humanity. And while the film carries considerable weight, it still has some quirks that keep it from true greatness. The runtime is an issue, though I’m not sure, in this case, if I’m prepared to balk at the idea of a languidly paced 140-minute documentary as I normally would. I’m just not sure the film should or could be any shorter — much of the point of the movie is to show the audience the sheer size and bloated scope of the problem. My biggest issue with the runtime is how much the film allows distractions to creep inside. This might sound very granular and specific to myself, but I had trouble understanding why, exactly, Ai kept allowing himself on screen. This is a different animal than, say, a Michael Moore doc, where the director is basically a character in the film. Instead, we see Ai speaking with refugees occasionally, but more often he’s wandering around taking footage with his smartphone. I suppose it’s worth knowing that there’s a human being behind the camera, who’s not just being a passive observer. But the times when Ai doesn’t appear in the footage — for example, when the film travels to Mosul right in the midst of offensives to push out ISIS — he becomes a sort of specter who haunts the film. He’s distracting when he’s there and he’s distracting when he’s not because there’s no explanation for either. For a film that demands the audience’s attention, opportunities to place the viewer’s focus on something that’s not

M A X R AT I N G Xpress reviews virtually all upcoming movies, with two or three of the most noteworthy appearing in print. You can find our online reviews at mountainx.com/movies/reviews. This week, they include: HUMAN FLOW (PICK OF THE WEEK) HHHHS INSIDIOUS: THE LAST KEY

HHS

HHH THE POST HHHS MOLLY'S GAME

the topic at hand is a problem. This is, I think, nitpicky since this was an issue only while I was in the midst of the film. Now that I’ve had some time to digest the film a bit, these quibbles are fading. This is, I think a testament to the power of Human Flow and its effectiveness. Rated PG-13 for thematic material including a disturbing image. Now playing at Grail Moviehouse. REVIEWED BY JUSTIN SOUTHER JSOUTHER@MOUNTAINX.COM

The Post HHHS

DIRECTOR: Steven Spielberg PLAYERS: Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Bob Odenkirk, Tracy Letts, Bradley Whitford, Bruce Greenwood, Matthew Rhys HISTORICAL DRAMA RATED PG-13 THE STORY: The Washington Post’s publisher must decide whether or not she will publish the Pentagon Papers at great personal and professional expense. THE LOWDOWN: Spoiler alert: She does. Anyone who’s had more than a cursory conversation with me about

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cinema has probably heard one of my diatribes deriding Steven Spielberg. Sure, I loved his stuff when I was a kid who didn’t know any better, and the occasional “important” Spielberg film like Schindler’s List or Lincoln might get a partial pass from me, but for the most part, I find his saccharine sense of schmaltzy sentimentality insufferable. So which category does The Post fall into — passably important or intolerably treacly? The answer is somewhere in between, but with a subject this timely and significant, you can count me among those disappointed in Spielberg’s slapdash execution. Spielberg’s film plays like a prequel to All the President’s Men — which could’ve been a great premise if he didn’t also play fast and loose with the facts. The movie covers the events surrounding the publication of the Pentagon Papers by the Washington Post, and the first 15 minutes of the film are a master class in economy of exposition. If the rest of the film had been so succinct, it would have improved my assessment greatly. Instead, we have a meandering film composed primarily of handwringing in defiance of a known outcome. We know how this all turned out, so there’s no suspense or tension in the process leading up to the historically inevitable. The central issue at play here is the decision made by Kay Graham (a characteristically excellent Meryl Streep), newly minted publisher of the Washington Post, to run the

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

illicitly obtained documents that the Nixon White House sued The New York Times to suppress. In Spielberg’s view, Graham is the reluctant hero, spurred on by executive editor Ben Bradlee (Tom Hanks, also great) to publish in defiance of the paper’s lawyers and financiers. The problem with this setup is that Bradlee and Graham both had extensive ties to the highest echelons of power in D.C., a fact the film glosses over with a few lines of dialogue rather than genuinely acknowledging the conflict of interest those relationships would have entailed. And that may be the single greatest flaw of The Post — a lack of conflict. Streep’s Graham hems and haws, wrings her hands and dithers, but who is she really fighting other than herself? Sure, Nixon looms as a shadowy presence, only glimpsed at a distance through a West Wing window, but his influence is only vaguely implied rather than truly felt. There are some great things on the margins of this film as well — an unlikely Mr. Show reunion between Bob Odenkirk and David Cross was a welcome respite from all the self-seriousness — but ultimately, a solid cast can’t make up for stolid storytelling. For a film clearly intended to comment on one of the most aggressively anti-journalistic presidential administrations in history, Spielberg’s movie seems to pull its punches. It’s pacing is laconic, and yet it feels distinctly rushed. Barring a few interesting shots of the Post’s presses in action, there’s nothing much to look at. So what’s there to like? Well, people who were sold on the premise of Spielberg, Streep and Hanks indulging in some indirect Trump trolling (a pastime I myself enjoy), the very fact that this film exists constitutes its own justification for doing so. Those looking for a complex analysis of the capacity of journalists to speak truth to power, however, will find that Spielberg has buried the lead. Rated PG-13 for language and brief war violence. Opens Friday at the Carolina Cinemark Asheville REVIEWED BY SCOTT DOUGLAS JSDOUGLAS22@GMAIL.COM

MOUNTAINX.COM

by Edwin Arnaudin | edwinarnaudin@gmail.com

COTTON STORIES: Claudia Stack’s 2017 documentary Sharecrop features oral histories from 10 people who were involved in the farming practice 1930-’60. Image courtesy of Stack Stories • The Morganton Public Library, 204 S. King St., Morganton, screens Monty Python and the Holy Grail on Saturday, Jan. 13, at 1:30 p.m. Light refreshments will be served. Free. bcpls.org • Brevard High School, 609 N. Country Club Road, Brevard, hosts a screening of Sharecrop on Saturday, Jan. 13, 7-8:30 p.m. Claudia Stack’s 2017 documentary features oral histories from 10 people who were involved in sharecropping 1930-’60. The director will be in attendance to answer questions, as will local author John Snyder (Hill of Beans: Coming of Age in the Last Days of the Old South), whose recollections are featured in the “Appalachia” section of the film. Free. stackstories.com • Designed to allow viewers to use film as their window into the minds and culture of Israel, the monthly Israeli Film Series — a collaboration between Grail Moviehouse, 45 S. French Broad Ave., and the Asheville Jewish Community Center — continues Sunday, Jan. 14, at 2 p.m., with Vice Versa. Amichai Greenberg‘s 2015 drama centers on the surprise relationship between a yeshiva student and a young, terminally ill woman that becomes an intimate and passionate love story, transcending the rules of religion, society and faith. A discussion will follow the film. Tickets are $7 and available online or at the Grail box office. grailmoviehouse.com

FILM BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • TU (1/16), 4-6pm - Selma, movie screening. Free. Held at Pack

Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St. HOMEWARD BOUND OF WNC homewardbound.wnc. org • WE (1/10), 7-9pm Proceeds from Gary Gose Gump, a craft

• Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St., hosts a screening of Selma on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 4-6 p.m. Ava DuVernay’s 2014 film dramatizes the efforts of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (played by David Oyelowo) and fellow civil rights activists to secure equal voting rights by marching from the titular Alabama city to the state capital of Montgomery in 1965. Carmen Ejogo (Coretta Scott King), Tom Wilkinson (Lyndon B. Johnson) and Oprah Winfrey (Annie Lee Cooper) also star. Free. avl.mx/ff • Local film historian Frank Thompson presents his book Asheville Movies Vol 1: The Silent Era on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 6-8 p.m. at Malaprop’s, 55 Haywood St. The introductory volume focuses on the production of films from the earliest days of the motion picture industry through the end of the silent era. Thompson’s presentation will include clips from films mentioned in the book. Free to attend. malaprops.com • The Screen Artists Co-op, 2002 Riverside Drive, Suite 42-P, hosts an open house on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 6-9 p.m. Anyone interested in screen acting is invited to meet and talk with the SAC’s mentors and current students, who range from beginners to film acting veterans. Complimentary refreshments provided. Free. screenartistsco-op.com X

beer-themed film parody of Forrest Gump, benefit Homeward Bound of WNC. $15. Held at The Wedge at Foundation, 5 Foundy St.

MALAPROP'S BOOKSTORE AND CAFE 55 Haywood St., 828-2546734, malaprops.com • WE (1/17), 6pm - Frank Thompson presents silent films, Asheville Movies Vol. 1: The Silent Era. Free to attend.

MARKETPLACE STA RTI NG F RI DAY

Paddington 2

Computer animated/live-action hybrid family film. According to the studio: “While searching for the perfect present for his beloved Aunt Lucy’s hundredth birthday, Paddington sees a unique pop-up book in Mr. Gruber’s antique shop and embarks upon a series of odd jobs to buy it. But when the book is stolen, it’s up to Paddington and the Browns to unmask the thief.” Early reviews positive. (PG)

The Commuter

Action thriller from director Jaume Collet-Serra (The Shallows), starring Liam Neeson. According to the studio: “Michael is an insurance salesman ... on his daily commute home, when it quickly becomes anything but routine. After being contacted by a mysterious stranger, Michael is forced to uncover the identity of a hidden passenger on his train before the last stop. As he works against the clock to solve the puzzle, he realizes a deadly plan is unfolding and is unwittingly caught up in a criminal conspiracy ... one that carries life and death stakes for himself and his fellow passengers.” Early reviews mixed. (PG-13)

The Post

See Scott Douglas’ review

SP E CI AL SCREENI NGS

F for Fake HHHH

DIRECTOR: Orson Welles PLAYERS: Orson Welles, Oja Kodar, Joseph Cotten ESSAY FILM Rated NR The Hendersonville Film Society returns this week with Orson Welles’ F for Fake (1973), the great filmmaker’s last properly completed work. Welles’ look at two famous fakes is a playful film — as much a feat of cinematic sleight-of-hand, laced with autobiography as anything else. At the time, Welles thought he’d found a brand-new medium in this “essay film” format, but it didn’t pan out that way. By itself, however, F For Fake has much to recommend it. This excerpt was taken from a review by Ken Hanke published on Jan. 7, 2014. The Hendersonville Film Society will show F for Fake on Sunday, Jan. 14, at 2 p.m. in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community, 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville.

Suddenly HHHH

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SEEKING SMALL APARTMENT Professional pianist seeks small apartment in exchange for house/yard work/cash. References from Emory University area in Atlanta. Guitar/music lessons also possible. Call John: (404) 740-6903.

EMPLOYMENT GENERAL GREEN OPPORTUNITIES IS CURRENTLY ACCEPTING RESUMES FOR A PARTTIME YOUTHBUILD JOB DEVELOPER Green Opportunities is currently accepting resumes for a part-time YouthBuild Job Developer. Please send resumes and cover letters to apply@ greenopportunities.org. To view the full description, visit www.greenopportunities. org. HIRING FOR NAVITAT'S 2018 SALES AND CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM! Spend 2018 working with a group of talented and passionate outdoor enthusiasts! We are seeking

hard-working, customer service-oriented sales team members for the 2018 season. Learn more at www. navitat.com. IC IMAGINE PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL SEEKS CUSTODIAL STAFF FOR IMMEDIATE START IC Imagine is now hiring qualified custodial staff to join our team. This is an hourly part-time position, pay is $10 - 14 / hour. Applicants must be able to lift 75 pounds, CDL B license preferred. Please email all inquiries and resumes to careers@ icimagine.org. For more details visit http://sites. icimagine.org/home/ careers/. NAVITAT CANOPY ADVENTURES - HIRING CANOPY GUIDES Thrill, Educate and Inspire! Spend 2018 working

KIDS ISSUES 2018

DIRECTOR: Lewis Allen PLAYERS: Frank Sinatra, Sterling Hayden, James Gleason, Nancy Gates CRIME THRILLER Rated NR An obscure but enjoyable bit of film noir role-reversal, Suddenly (1954) sees Sterling Hayden and Frank Sinatra flip the script slightly. We’ve all seen Sinatra as the conflicted hero trying to stop an assassination in The Manchurian Candidate, but here he’s a deranged psychopath trying to murder the president — and Hayden, having played killers and madmen in movies like The Asphalt Jungle and Dr. Strangelove, is now the straight-laced small-town cop trying to stop him. Director Lewis Allen (The Uninvited) keeps the pacing brisk and the atmosphere tense, but the real draw here is the film’s stars — though apocryphal legend has it that Suddenly may have influenced Lee Harvey Oswald prior to the Kennedy assassination. It may not be an indispensable classic, but it’s a fun watch with plenty to recommend it and few faults to speak of. The Asheville Film Society will screen Suddenly on Tuesday, Jan 16, at 7 p.m. at the Grail Moviehouse, hosted by Xpress movie critic Scott Douglas.

The Virgin Spring HHHH

DIRECTOR: Ingmar Bergman PLAYERS: Max von Sydow, Birgitta Valberg, Gunnel Lindblom, Birgitta Pettersson DRAMA Rated NR Highly regarded, but little loved, Ingmar Bergman’s The Virgin Spring (1960) was a title the director himself seems to have had little fondness for. I tend to agree with that. The fact that it was successfully marketed on the exploitation value of its story — rape and revenge — should perhaps tell you that this an ugly film. No, I don’t mean visually. Though more austere than the films that preceded it, The Virgin Spring is visually striking, though in a drab way (which I can only assume was deliberate). It is Bergman stripped to his essentials. Unlike the films that came before it, there’s not a hint of humor in The Virgin Spring. It exists in a grim world and is grimly presented. Is it a bad film? By no means, but it’s one I can do without. This excerpt was taken from a review by Ken Hanke published on Oct. 6, 2015. Classic World Cinema by Courtyard Gallery will present The Virgin Spring on Friday, Jan. 12, at 8 p.m. at Flood Gallery Fine Art Center, 2160 U.S. 70, Swannanoa.

Coming MARCH 14 & 21 MOUNTAINX.COM

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

FREEWILL ASTROLOGY ARIES (March 21-April 19): I’m happy to inform you that life is giving you permission to be extra demanding in the coming weeks — as long as you’re not petty, brusque or unreasonable. Here are a few examples that will pass the test: “I demand that you join me in getting drunk on the truth;” “I demand to receive rewards commensurate with my contributions;” “I demand that we collaborate to outsmart and escape the karmic conundrums we’ve gotten ourselves mixed up in.” On the other hand, Aries, ultimatums like these are not admissible: “I demand treasure and tribute, you fools;” “I demand the right to cheat in order to get my way;” “I demand that the river flow backwards.” TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Are you familiar with the phrase “Open Sesame”? In the old folk tale, “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves,” it’s a magical command that the hero uses to open a blocked cave where treasure is hidden. I invite you to try it out. It just may work to give you entrance to an off-limits or previously inaccessible place where you want and need to go. At the very least, speaking those words will put you in a playful, experimental frame of mind as you contemplate the strategies you could use to gain entrance. And that alone may provide just the leverage you need. GEMINI (May 21-June 20): While thumping around the Internet, I came across pointed counsel from an anonymous source. “Don’t enter into a long-term connection with someone until you’ve seen them stuck in traffic,” it declared. “Don’t get too involved with them until you’ve witnessed them drunk, waiting for food in a restaurant for entirely too long or searching for their phone or car keys in a panic. Before you say yes to a deeper bond, make sure you see them angry, stressed or scared.” I recommend that you take this advice in the coming weeks. It’ll be a good time to deepen your commitment to people who express their difficult emotions in non-abusive, non-psychotic ways. CANCER (June 21-July 22): My high school history teacher Marjorie Margolies is now Chelsea Clinton’s mother-in law. She shares two grandchildren with Hillary Clinton. Is that something I should brag about? Does it add to my cachet or my happiness? Will it influence you to love me more? No, nah and nope. In the big scheme of things, it’s mildly interesting but utterly irrelevant. The coming weeks will be a good time for Cancerians like you and me to renounce any desire we might have to capitalize on fake ego points like this. We Crabs should be honing our identity and self-image so they’re free of superficial measures of worth. What’s authentically valuable about you? LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): If I were your mentor or your guide, I’d declare this the Leo Makeover Season. First I’d hire a masseuse or masseur to knead you firmly and tenderly. I’d send you to the nutritionist, stylist, dream interpreter, trainer and life coach. I’d brainstorm with the people who know you best to come up with suggestions for how to help free you from your illusions and infuse your daily rhythm with 20 percent more happiness. I’d try to talk you out of continuing your association with anything that’s no damn good for you. In conclusion, I’d be thorough as I worked to get you unlocked, debugged and retooled. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): “It takes an extraordinary person to carry themselves as if they do not live in hell,” says writer D. Bunyavong. In accordance with the astrological omens, I nominate you Virgos to fit that description in the coming weeks. You are, in my estimation, as far away from hell as you’ve been in a long time. If anyone can seduce, coax or compel heaven to come all the way down to earth for a while, it’s you. Here’s a good way to get the party started: Gaze into the mirror until you spy the eternal part of yourself.

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

BY ROB BREZSNY

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In accordance with the astrological omens, I encourage you to move the furniture around. If you feel inspired, you might even want to move some of that old stuff right out the door and haul it to the dump or the thrift store. Hopefully, this will get you in the mood to launch a sweeping purge of anything else that lowers the morale and élan around the house: dusty mementoes, unflattering mirrors, threadbare rugs, chipped dishes and numbing symbols. The time is ripe, my dear homies, to free your home of deadweight. SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): When he was 16 years old and living in New York, Ralph Lifshitz changed his name to Ralph Lauren. That was probably an important factor in his success. Would he have eventually become a famous fashion designer worth $5.8 billion dollars if he had retained a name with “shitz” in it? The rebranding made it easier for clients and customers to take him seriously. With Ralph’s foresight as your inspiration, Scorpio, consider making a seemingly surface-level change that will enhance your ability to get what you want. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In 1956, the prolific Spanish poet Juan Ramón Jiménez was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. The award committee praised his “high spirit and artistic purity.” The honor was based on his last 13 books, however, and not on his first two. Waterlilies and Souls of Violet were works he wrote while young and still ripening. As he aged, he grew so embarrassed by their sentimentality that he ultimately tried to track down and eradicate every copy. I bring this to your attention, Sagittarius, because I think it’s a favorable time for you to purge or atone for anything from your past that you no longer want to be defined by. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Three centuries ago, Capricorn genius Isaac Newton formulated principles that have ever since been fundamental to scientists’ understanding of the physical universe. In addition, he was a pioneer in mathematics, optics and astronomy. And yet he also expended huge amounts of time and energy on the fruitless attempt to employ alchemy to transform base metals into solid gold. Those efforts may have been interesting to him, but they yielded no lasting benefits. You Capricorns face a comparable split. In 2018, you could bless us with extraordinary gifts or else you could get consumed in projects that aren’t the most productive use of your energy. The coming weeks may be crucial in determining which way you’ll go. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): A rite of passage lies ahead. It could and should usher you into a more soulful way of living. I’m pleased to report that this transition won’t require you to endure torment, confusion or passive-aggressive manipulation. In fact, I suspect it could turn out to be among the most graceful ordeals you’ve ever experienced — and a prototype for the type of breakthrough that I hope will become standard in the months and years to come. Imagine being able to learn valuable lessons and make crucial transitions without the prod of woe and gloom. Imagine being able to say, as musician P.J. Harvey said about herself, “When I’m contented, I’m more open to receiving inspiration. I’m most creative when I feel safe and happy.” PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): The Kalevala is a 19th-century book of poetry that conveys the important mythology and folklore of the Finnish people. It was a wellspring of inspiration for English writer J. R. R. Tolkien as he composed his epic fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings. To enhance his ability to steal ideas from The Kalevala, Tolkien even studied the Finnish language. He said it was like “entering a complete wine-cellar filled with bottles of an amazing wine of a kind and flavor never tasted before.” According to my reading of the astrological omens, Pisces, in 2018 you will have the potential of discovering a source that’s as rich for you as Finnish and The Kalevala were for Tolkien.

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SALES/ MARKETING

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PROFESSIONAL/ MANAGEMENT

SALES PROFESSIONAL Mountain Xpress has a salaried sales position open. Ideal candidates are personable, well-spoken, motivated, and can present confidently. Necessary skills include clear and professional communications (via phone, email, and in-person meetings), detailed recordkeeping, computer skills, and working well in a team environment. The position largely entails, account development and lead generation (including cold-calling), account management, and working to meet or exceed sales goals. If you are a high energy, positive, cooperative person looking to join an independent, community-minded organization, please send a

RESIDENTIAL LODGE MANAGER FOR HOLISTIC EDUCATIONAL CENTER IN RURAL WEAVERVILLE Experience in human relations, detail-oriented a must, enthusiastic, organized. Work entails various tasks to help open Center and run lodge. Apartment on site plus small weekly stipend. Send cover letter with resume to morgaineofthemountains@ gmail.com

RETAIL OPERATIONS MANAGER WITH FRIENDS OF THE WNC NATURE

CENTER The Friends of the WNC Nature Center is seeking an experienced Retail Operations Manager to oversee Gift Shop Operations at the Center. Email friends@wildwnc.org with resume and cover letter. wildwnc.org

TEACHING/ EDUCATION

INTERESTED IN WORKING AT A-B TECH? Full-Time, Part-Time and Adjunct Positions available. Come help people achieve their dreams! Apply for open positions at https://abtcc. peopleadmin.com

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RETAIL

RETAIL OPERATIONS MANAGER WITH FRIENDS OF THE WNC NATURE CENTER The Friends of the WNC Nature Center is seeking an experienced Retail Operations Manager to oversee Gift Shop Operations at the Center. Email friends@wildwnc.org with resume and cover letter. wildwnc.org

SALON/ SPA STYLISTS • NAIL TECHNICIAN Studio Chavarria, 17 Rankin Avenue. Seeking talented Commission Stylists and Nail Technician. We're located in downtown Asheville. Convenient parking. Established clientele. Please call to interview: 828 236-9191.

SERVICES

ARTS/MEDIA

ENTERTAINMENT

WNC MAGAZINE SEEKING ASSISTANT EDITOR WNC magazine is hiring a fulltime Assistant Editor. Great writing and proofreading skills, 2-4 years experience in publishing, and mastery of social media platforms a must. See wncmagazine. com/careers for details.

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The

Sustainability

Series

CELEBRATING EARTH DAY 2018

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FOR MUSICIANS MUSICAL SERVICES NOW ACCEPTING STUDENTS IN JAZZ PIANO, COMPOSITION, AND IMPROVISATION (ALL INSTRUMENTS). Michael Jefry Stevens, “WNC Best Composer 2016” and “Steinway Artist”, now accepting students in jazz piano, composition, and improvisation (all instruments). 35 years experience. M.A. from Queens College (NYC). Over 90 cds released. 917-916-1363. michaeljefrystevens.com

AUTOMOTIVE AUTOS FOR SALE

ACROSS

1 Miss Woodhouse, in literature 5 Mattress description 9 Marian, in Robin Hood legend 13 Manfred ___ (1960s band) 14 Medieval philosopher with a “razor” 16 Maker of outlandish products in Road Runner cartoons 17 Multimedia file format 18 Macho stereotype 19 Maggie Smith, for one 20 Majestic trees 21 Much-maligned official 22 Monarch’s headband 24 Meeting info for golfers 26 Made music on a comb 27 Motel units: Abbr. 28 MI6 concern 29 “Mamma ___!” 31 Member of the ancient Ionian League 34 Movie, play and book writer David 35 Michelle Pfeiffer film “___ Sam” 36 Molybdenum, for one: Abbr. 37 Mares’ hair 38 Measure (out)

39 Milliliter, e.g.: Abbr. 40 Makes repairs on 41 Mount Sinai climber 42 Mo. with St. Patrick’s Day 43 Moab’s neighbor, in the Bible 44 Math calculation 45 Material from Angora goats 47 Mouth-puckering drink 51 Muhammad Ali fight site 52 Muted, as lights 53 Mountainous state: Abbr. 54 Molecular unit 55 Model Campbell 57 “Memoir of Glamour and Dysfunction” writer Janowitz 58 Marlin’s son, in a Pixar movie 59 Matthew Broderick voice role 60 Motto word on the Great Seal 61 Mini-metropolis in Utah 62 Man in the ___ 63 Mount Olympus, at 72,000 feet, is its highest peak

edited by Will Shortz

No. 1206

DOWN

1 M. ___ Walsh, actor in “Blade Runner” 2 Makers of cabinets and violins use it 3 Muse of memory 4 Minute length 5 Meeting places 6 Meaning of Caesar’s “Veni” 7 Maintainer of law and order north of the U.S. 8 Midwife to the fairies, in Shakespeare 9 Manager of a house 10 Military schools 11 Most direct 12 Make the judgment to be 15 Mathematical sets 23 Multi-Emmy-winning “How ___ Your Mother” 25 Modern communications of a sort, in brief 26 Mansions, for some 28 “Melts in your mouth” candy 30 Midwest college town 31 Mining find 32 Michigan State, for a Spartans alumnus 33 Musician’s tempo keeper

PUZZLE BY CLIVE PROBERT

34 Main house on an estate 37 Mean relatives? 38 Motion creates it 40 More than a snack 41 Mother’s Day flower, in Australia

44 Monkey, for one 46 Message on a sign at a televised game 47 Middle state 48 Microwave brand

49 Make bones about something 50 Midterms, e.g. 51 Mexican’s hand 52 Major-___ 56 Marksman’s skill

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS NY TIMES PUZZLE

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AUTOMOTIVE SERVICES WE'LL FIX IT AUTOMOTIVE • Honda and Acura repair. Half price repair and service. ASE and factory trained. Located in the Weaverville area, off exit 15. Please call (828) 275-6063 for appointment. www. wellfixitautomotive.com

ADULT ADULT

T H E N E W Y OR K TI M ES CR OSSWOR D PU ZZLE

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Paul Caron

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• Black Mountain

JAN. 10 - 16, 2018

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