202224-30,AUG.4NO.29VOL.CAROLINANORTHWESTERNFOREVENTS&ARTSNEWS,INDEPENDENTWEEKLYOFYEAR29THOUR
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM2
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 3 news tips & story ideas to NEWS@MOUNTAINX.COM letters/commentary to LETTERS@MOUNTAINX.COM sustainability news to GREEN@MOUNTAINX.COM a&e events and ideas to AE@MOUNTAINX.COM events can be submitted to CALENDAR@MOUNTAINX.COM or try our easy online calendar at MOUNTAINX.COM/EVENTS food news and ideas to FOOD@MOUNTAINX.COM wellness-related events/news to MXHEALTH@MOUNTAINX.COM business-related events/news to BUSINESS@MOUNTAINX.COM venues with upcoming shows CLUBLAND@MOUNTAINX.COM get info on advertising at ADVERTISE@MOUNTAINX.COM place a web ad at WEBADS@MOUNTAINX.COM question about the website? WEBMASTER@MOUNTAINX.COM find a copy of Xpress FACEBOOK.COM/MOUNTAINXDISTRO@MOUNTAINX.COMWWW.MOUNTAINX.COM follow us @MXNEWS, @MXARTS, @MXEAT, @MXHEALTH, @MXCALENDAR, @MXENV, @MXCLUBLAND CONTACT US: (828) 251-1333 • FAX (828) 251-1311 Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Mountain Xpress is available free throughout Western North Carolina. Limit one copy per person. Additional copies may be purchased for $1 payable at the Xpress office in advance. No person may, without prior written permission of Xpress, take more than one copy of each issue. To subscribe to Mountain Xpress, send check or money order to: Subscription Department, PO Box 144, Asheville NC 28802. First class delivery. One year (52 issues) $130 / Six months (26 issues) $70. We accept Mastercard & Visa. STAFF COPYRIGHT 2022 BY MOUNTAIN XPRESS ADVERTISING COPYRIGHT 2022 BY MOUNTAIN XPRESS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED PUBLISHER & EDITOR: Jeff Fobes ASSISTANT TO THE PUBLISHER: Susan Hutchinson OPERATIONS MANAGER: Able Allen MANAGING EDITOR: Thomas Calder NEWS EDITOR: Daniel Walton ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR: Thomas Calder OPINION EDITOR: Tracy Rose STAFF REPORTERS: Edwin Arnaudin, Thomas Calder, Justin McGuire, Sara Murphy, Brooke Randle, Jessica Wakeman, Daniel Walton SUMMER INTERN: Flora Konz COMMUNITY CALENDAR & CLUBLAND: Andy Hall CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Lisa Allen, Peter Gregutt, Mary Jean Ronan Herzog, Rob Mikulak REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS: Mark Barrett, Blake Becker, Morgan Bost, LA Bourgeois, Johanna Patrice Hagarty, Bill Kopp, Alli Marshall, Linda Ray, Kay West STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS: Cindy Kunst ADVERTISING, ART & DESIGN MANAGER: Susan Hutchinson LEAD DESIGNER: Scott Southwick GRAPHIC DESIGNER: Olivia Urban MARKETING ASSOCIATES: Sara Brecht, Vicki Catalano, Scott Mermel, Braulio Pescador-Martinez TECHNOLOGIESINFORMATION&WEB: Able Allen BOOKKEEPER: Amie Fowler-Tanner ADMINISTRATION, BILLING, HR: Able Allen, Mark Murphy DISTRIBUTION: Susan Hutchinson, Cindy Kunst DISTRIBUTION DRIVERS: Leah Beck, Desiree Davis, Tracy Houston, Marlea Kunst, Amy Loving, Henry Mitchell, Angelo Santa Maria, Carl & Debbie Schweiger NEWSA&CA&CWELLNESSNEWSFEATURE CONTENTS FEATURES PAGE 22 BEST MEDICINE WITH MORGAN BOST Xpress launches its latest feature, a comedy series led by Ashevillebased comic Morgan Bost. Each month, Bost will touch base with a rotating cast of fellow WNC come dians to offer humorous takes on local news stories. COVER PHOTO Cindy Kunst COVER DESIGN Scott Southwick 4 LETTERS 4 CARTOON: MOLTON 5 CARTOON: BRENT BROWN 6 NEWS 8 BUNCOMBE BEAT 16 COMMUNITY CALENDAR 20 WELLNESS 22 ARTS & CULTURE 34 CLUBLAND 38 FREEWILL ASTROLOGY 38 CLASSIFIEDS 39 NY TIMES CROSSWORD 11 BUNCOMBE BEAT Commissioners vote to create bond oversight committee 15 Q&A WITH NICOLE KOTT Founder of Helping Hands of Haywood 20 ‘A’ IS FOR ACCESS New grant increases mental health services to local schools 24 ‘ROCKWELL FROM HELL’ Art exhibit raises heavy questions about the future 28 NEW ADVENTURES Ginger’s Revenge adds South Slope Lounge 6 BATTLEGROUNDEDUCATION Edwards, Republican panel talk ‘leftist agenda’ in schools www.junkrecyclers.net828.707.2407 36,000 SQ. FT. OF ANTIQUES, UNIQUES & REPURPOSED RARITIES! P urge Unwanted Junk, Remove Household Clutter! call us to remove your junk in a green way! JunkGreenestRemoval! Asheville’s oldest Junk Removal service, since 2010 26 Glendale Ave • 828.505.1108 Openregenerationstation.comTheRegenerationStationEveryday!10-6pmBestofWNCsince2014!JunkRecyclersTeamBlueSuedeChair Find in TRS Inventory
Living Asheville (excerpts quot ed) specifies that development: be “‘transit-supportive’ higher den sity,” “along transit corridors,” a “well-connected” place, “minimizing traffic congestion” and “allow[ing] for transportation choices beyond theForcar.”each new development, we need to Whereask:is the nearest bus stop, and is it safely accessible via streets with sidewalks or bike lanes, or at least shoulders? The Citizen Times of Aug. 1 highlighted a study where Asheville ranks as the “No. 1 city in the state for pedestrian crashes.” If it is necessary for every resident of a complex to use a personal vehicle for safely getting to and from even nearby businesses, it increases traffic congestion, both on the local neigh borhood streets and on the arterials.
Well, at least he said it wasn’t sourPoliticsgrapes.in Buncombe County can get so personal. It’s times like these when I feel blessed to live in the calm er confines of Madison County, where the most contentious political question turns on whether there are any hold out hollers God has yet to take back. I don’t really care if Bill wants to carry on a vendetta against the Sierra Club. I don’t care for whom people in Buncombe County vote, and I don’t care what endorsements, if any, they rely on. But there’s an important point lurking in all this bitterness that should be underlined. People need to remember how cli mate change has complicated environ mental issues since the ’60s and ’70s, when everything was a simple matter of green-good, developer-bad. Carbon footprints matter now. We have to think in terms of managing growth. And nowhere is this reality better illustrated than in the incoherence of Branyon’s emotional opposition to “relentless urban infill” (atrocity No. 1 on his list of infamies that the Sierra Club has supposedly enabled through itsTheendorsements).factisthat people are mov ing into this area whether you’uns in Buncombe County like it or not. Smart growth involves tradeoffs, especially as we move to replace energy-wasting urban sprawl with more energy-efficient urban densi ty as the national paradigm. That doesn’t mean approving every devel opment that comes along. But it does mean increased density in places where it makes sense: that is, in the city core where infrastructure exists and alternatives to automobile traffic areThat’spracticable.whaturban infill — build ing new housing in existing neigh borhoods rather than the sprawling suburbs — is all about. It’s not an ecological disaster. It’s sound policy. There’s a ton of research to back it up. The trouble with Branyon and people who think like him is that they come from the King Canute school of public policy: If you don’t like the direction the tides are taking, just hold up your hand and order
A 4-acre, wooded lot on Hi Alta Avenue (which empties traffic onto Woodland Drive) is currently under contract and likely to be sold for development. It may technically be considered a prime candidate for another high-density housing devel opment, but it would further increase local and arterial congestion, being constrained by a lack of alternative transportation options. Air quality deteriorates, and traffic congestion increases — the quality of life that Asheville promotes and aspires to degenerates, reducing the value of living here. Asheville dies by a thousand cuts via high-density development that does not support alternative forms of transportation, with no space for rec reational opportunities or neighborly engagement. The city must make decisions that maintain or improve the quality of life and stop acting solely to enable concentrated devel opment. Enforce “smart growth”! — Randall GrohmanAsheville Smart growth involves tradeoffs
OPINION
CARTOON BY RANDY MOLTON
Send your letters to the editor to letters@mountainx.com.
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM4 Killing Asheville by a thousand cuts I attended the recent Planning and Zoning Commission meetings due to concerns about proposed rezoning to enable development of a rental townhouse complex on Woodland Drive, west of Patton Avenue. It is my observation that the commission ers are exercising due diligence in determining that projects brought before them generally meet the technical requirements for zoning. However, it is less clear that they are fully considering the goals of Living Asheville: A Comprehensive Plan for Our Future, a document adopted by the City Council to provide guidance for the city’s development. The concerns relevant to my neigh borhood apply to any proposed devel opment in Asheville. High-density housing is a primary goal of the city — “where appropriate” as described in Living Asheville . However, high-density development is clearly not appropriate for every project, if adhering to the spirit and intent of the plan. Indiscriminate development chips away at the qualities that make Asheville a desirable place.
I feel sorry for Bill Branyon. First, Branyon, who considers him self an environmentalist, doesn’t get the endorsement of the local Sierra Club chapter when he challenges popular incumbent Al Whitesides for a seat on the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners. Ouch. Then, Whitesides wins the Democratic pri mary by a more than 2-to-1 majority. Double ouch. Then, Branyon gives the Sierra Club some friendly advice about how to avoid backing winners like that in the future, and people in the eco-community go ballistic. To hear them talk, you’d think Bill had called the Sierra Club — one of the world’s most respected ecological advocates — a front for reckless, outof-town developers that has enabled some of the worst environmental atrocities in recent local history. Oh, wait. He did say that, didn’t he? [“Sierra Club Chimera: WENOCA Chapter Endorsements Are an Environmental Disgrace,” June 29, Xpress.] He also called the local chapter “one of Buncombe County’s most destructive environmental parasites,” and the “bane of what’s left of our environment” and cynical performers in an “environmentally destructive charade.”
A poll conducted for the Buncombe County 2043 Comprehensive Plan asks: “What is most needed for you and your family to succeed and have a healthy life?” The No. 1 response: “More safe and affordable ways to travel to places (biking, walking, or riding a bus/public transit).”
Walking and biking safety on the typ ically narrow neighborhood streets, many of which are further narrowed by street parking, are only further jeopardized by additional traffic. Does it meet the criterion of a “liv able built environment,” goal No. 1 of which is to encourage responsible growth by “thoughtful, holistic deci sion-making on behalf of residents”? Are there nearby parks and facilities encouraging recreation and commu nity? Does it show “respect for and enhancement of existing neighbor hoods”? And most especially, does it “maximize the potential for a variety of transportation options”? If there is only one way in and out of the property onto an internal neighbor hood street, as in the case of the Woodland Drive property, there is no opportunity for adding a bus route or improving the roads leading to the already inadequate arterials.
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 5 them to stop. Too many newcomers? Tell them to stop. Too much develop ment? Tell it to stop. Resulting hous ing shortage makes rents skyrocket? Well, you get the idea. Actually, I’m not being entirely fair. King Canute knew he couldn’t really stop the tides. According to the history books, he was just making a point to his fawning nobles about the limits of regal fiat. Bill and his friends have no such clue.
In the current model, it seems that many nuances of neighborhoods are lost. Traffic engineers calculate vehi cles per day, inbound and outbound numbers, and points of ingress and egress; they mention the thousands of additional anticipated car trips per day. But they do not take the proactive human-centered initiative to say, “Wow, that’s a 500% increase!
Local elected officials and appoint ed boards have a wonderful opportu nity to put their morals where their mouths are and come visit an actual community that would be severely impacted by a monstrous project built on land they annexed along Richmond Hill Drive. Here, Woodfin leaders will discover a close-knit community that does indeed matter. I believe commissioners and boards of citizen volunteers should take it upon themselves to more heavily scrutinize traffic impact analyses — especially when engaged community stakeholders (who are experts on their own neighborhoods) continue to voice valid concerns. As of now, it seems that so much critical information is left out or neglected when engineers merely count cars. To date, I’d be surprised to learn that any traffic engineer involved with the proposed Bluffs project has taken the initiative to park their car at various times and make an effort to conduct a deep and thor ough analysis. But hopefully, those who ultimately decide the fate of our Richmond Hill community will.
Regarding “Drop of Sunshine: How Much Solar Energy Does Local Government Produce?” Aug. 3, Xpress:] I would not build a new home without solar panels! Buncombe needs to get on with it!
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The contentious Woodfin mountain village is being proposed for an urban forest squeezed between a low-densi ty neighborhood and city park with no road from Woodfin to reach the site.
— PeterMarshallRobbins Buncombe needs to boost solar production
The bizarrely myopic assumption of many traffic engineers seems to be that traffic increases only impact other drivers who are wielding tons of steel. This isn’t true. Neighborhood traffic patterns impact those who aren’t driving just as much as they do those behind the wheel. This includes folks who work from home, retirees, parents tending children with autism or simply those who rightfully expect some peaceful enjoyment of the home they’ve worked hard to create.
Someone should go up there and take a closer look.” Currently, it’s baffling and frus trating to witness so-called pro gressive politicians supporting bike lanes on busy through roads such as Merrimon, while many of these people stand idly by as walkable, bike-friendly neighborhoods are being thrown under the bus and turned into thoroughfares. For example, I recently read a traffic impact analysis for the pro posed Bluffs at Riverbend that struck me like some detached-from-reality attempt to concoct science fiction.
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— RobertAshevilleMcGee Editor’s note: A longer version of this letter will appear at mountainx. com.
— Jean Port Black Mountain Traffic engineers fail to tell the whole story
A more complete story of future traf fic impacts might be told if engineers made a more comprehensive effort to understand neighborhoods where developments are being proposed.
Regarding “Counting Cars: How Do Traffic Impact Studies Shape Development Decisions?” Aug. 10, Xpress:] I come from a family of engineers, and I must say it’s a real head-scratcher to see the lack of wisdom aiding and abetting some of the larger housing projects getting greenlighted here.
The two proposals I’ve seen have projected traffic increases ranging from 400% to 1,200%. Yep, you read those numbers right. And yet, no one from the developer’s team or NCDOT seemed to have any qualms about a likely fivefold increase in traf fic. Nowhere in the study was there mention of the park, National Guard access, lack of sidewalks or the many years that heavy construction vehi cles would utilize this street where there’s an ordinance prohibiting the use of such trucks.
BY BRENT BROWN
CARTOON
It’s a proven fact that increased traffic brings with it pollution and noise. This leads to added stress levels, blood pressure spikes and, ultimately, diminished health of the human heart. Traffic (whether you’re in it or not) has as much to do with your well-being as it does with how quickly you can dash to Trader Joe’s.
‘STOP TALKING ABOUT PRONOUNS’ Gender identity discussions in schools were brought up twice during the panel. While criticizing the fed eral government’s role in education, Edwards said, “We’ve got to change the conversation. … We’ve got to stop talking about pronouns and start talking about protons,” he said, to audienceEducationapplause.should focus on “prepar ing children for jobs in the future,” Edwards continued. Later during the discussion, Whatley asked Holt, who is currently vice chair of the Henderson County Board of Public Education, “How important is it for us to have engagement on the school board — not just with the school board — as conservatives?” Holt responded, “That’s the most important thing we’re going to do, is raise these kids up and teach them how to read, how to write, how to do the right thing, how to have their own mind and their own thoughts and not be subjected to this figurehead in front of them all day, telling them that you must call Susie ‘Sam’ because that’s what Susie wants to be called.”
Earlier in the discussion, Whatley addressed Holt while discussing parental involvement in public edu cation. “I’ve been stung over the last two years as I’ve heard Democrat after Democrat after Democrat say that we don’t need parents involved in the education decisions for their children,” Whatley said.
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM6
‘LEFTIST AGENDA’
jwakeman@mountainx.com
NEWS Education battleground
Edwards, Republican panel talk ‘leftist agenda’ in schools
Holt continued, “That has no place in education. It’s not what we need to be doing for our children.”
The N.C. Republican Party’s Aug. 17 panel discussion in Hendersonville was billed with the theme of “Family First.” For Chuck Edwards — the Republican state senator for District 48 and nominee for North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District — and other local GOP leaders, those words primarily meant driving conservative change in public education. Among the priorities shared by the panel were divesting powers held by the N.C. Board of Education, encouraging parents to join local boards of education and eliminating discussion of gender identity in the classroom. Participants included Edwards; Henderson County Board of Commissioners candidate Amy Lynn Holt; Hendersonville City Council member Jennifer Hensley; state District 117 Rep. Tim Moffitt; and N.C. Republican Party Vice Chair Susan Mills, who is also a teacher. NCGOP Chair Michael Whatley moderated the panel at The 2nd Act, a Hendersonville cafe and bar, for an audience of roughly 50 people. About 20 protesters gathered outside the event in the rain, holding signs in support of reproductive rights and denouncing former President Donald Trump
Whatley asked Edwards whether the state’s top educational board needs structural reform.
(Of the 20 members of the N.C. State Board of Education, 11 are gubernatorial appointments approved by the state legislature. The composition of the board is dic tated by the state constitution.)
BY JESSICA WAKEMAN ELEPHANTS IN THE ROOM: Michael Whatley, left, chairman of the N.C. Republican Party, moderated a panel at The 2nd Act in Hendersonville with, from left, Henderson County Board of Commissioners candidate Amy Lynn Holt; state Sen. Chuck Edwards; Hendersonville City Council member Jennifer Hensley; state Rep. Tim Moffitt; and N.C. Republican Party Vice Chair Susan Mills. Photo by Jessica Wakeman
“My preference is that we abolish the State Board of Education,” the state senator replied, to approval from the audience. He called the board “unaccountable” to the public and declared, “They tend to bully the elect ed leaders of the education [system].”
Edwards shared that he has an unfiled bill on his desk in Raleigh to amend the state constitution, dis mantle the state board and transfer its power to the state superintendent. (In a follow-up email, Edwards said he hasn’t filed the bill because he was unable to secure the votes needed for it to pass.) He then turned to Moffitt, who is running for the District 48 seat Edwards is vacating to run for Congress, and said he would be happy to hand that bill over. Concurred Moffitt, “Structural reform is needed from top to bottom.”
Whatley praised Republican Catherine Truitt, the elected head of the N.C. Department of Public Instruction, as “a fantastic superin tendent of public education.” But, he continued, “We also have a school board that is run by [Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper] and making deci sions in terms of agendas and pro grams that the schools would have to follow all across the state.”
ABOLISH THE BOARD
Of the Panorama survey, Mills said, “So far, I’ve been able to avoid that in my homeroom.” She told the audi ence she let her homeroom students know that filling out the Panorama survey is optional and “if you want to play on your phone [instead of take the survey],” students could. Holt chimed in to say Henderson County Schools no longer conducts Panorama surveys. “They have a leftist agenda that they were trying to push into our schools, and we cut ties with them,” she said. “It’s the voices of parents — that things are being pushed to their children — that brought that up.”
Holt responded, to enthusiastic support from the audience, “There’s going to be nothing in your life that’s more important than that, to be involved in your children’s edu cation. And that includes going to board meetings, speaking up, email ing, showing up in the classroom.”
Photo courtesy of Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity
Whatley asked Mills, who is a teacher in Sampson County, about her experience “on the ground.” Mills said schools need to focus on literacy and continued, “One of the things a lot of my time is wasted on is the Panorama survey.” Panorama surveys solicit student feedback about classroom experienc es; how to foster safe learning envi ronments; cooperation among teach ers, staff and administrators; and healthy families. Sample questions for a “student check-in,” according to an information sheet on the company’s website, include “What emotion are you feeling the most today?” and “Do you feel bullied by other students?”
Both chambers of North Carolina’s state legislature are controlled by Republicans, but Democratic Gov. Cooper is able to veto legislation.
COME TOGETHER: On Aug. 5, Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity staff, volunteers and sponsors came together to help raise the first wall of Melvin Allen’s and his family’s new house. The future home is the 18th Women Build house project. A press release announcing the latest achievement declared, “Women Build affirms that women have the capability and deter mination to be part of the solution to the affordable housing crisis — one family at a time.”
“We need to have a veto-proof majority,” said Moffitt. He spoke about the Administrative Procedure Act, a state law dictating how agencies create and enforce regulations, which is set to change at the start of 2023. “As we begin to grant the regulatory authorities back into the legislature, the Democrats are opposed because the Democrats want a strong govern ment,” Moffitt said. “They want to rule every aspect of your life. And they do that through regulations that bypass the legislature at the federal level and at the state level, and we need to stop that from happening.”
A vote from three-fifths of elected officials in the legislature can over ride the governor’s veto; Republican majorities in the House and Senate currently fall below that threshold.
Holt then referenced “an issue in a classroom with an assignment that came from … a teacher within Henderson County” regarding a New York Times article about Trump. “That was the only resource they were allowed to use — it was unac ceptable,” she claimed. “But if we don’t find out about those things, there’s not a way for us to handle it. So we’ve got to have parents speak ing out, telling us what’s going on, so that we can stop this leftist agenda.”
VETO-PROOF MAJORITIES
Although the bulk of the discus sion concerned public education, panelists also discussed Republicans’ hopes for state regulatory reform and the need to acquire veto-proof majorities in the General Assembly to pass those reforms.
NO JOB TOO LARGE OR SMALL 100 Edwin Place, AVL, NC 28801 | Billy: (828) 776-2391 | Neal: (828) 776-1674 FATHER AND SON Home Improvement Billy & Neal Moxley
One topic that drew considerable discussion among panelists was Panorama surveys. The feedback tool, employed in at least 10 North Carolina school districts, is designed to assess social-emotional learning and mental health. (Panorama has partnered with Asheville City Schools since 2021, according to ACS men tal health liaison Luke Mackenzie The company has partnered with Buncombe County Schools since spring 2019, says spokesperson Stacia Harris.)
X SNAPSHOT
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 7
Greene’s sentence has been reduced, and she is scheduled for release at the end of March. Details regarding that sentencing change were not available from federal court
— Daniel Walton X
As of press time, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Greene continued to serve prison time at the Raleigh Residential Reentry Management Field Office in Granville County. The BOP describes such reentry centers as “halfway houses” that “provide a safe, structured, super vised environment, as well as employ ment counseling, job placement, financial management assistance and other programs and services.”
NEWS
SECOND ACT: Three years after being sentenced to prison on fed eral corruption charges, former Buncombe County Manager Wan da Greene is the subject of a new lawsuit alleging financial misdeeds. The suit also names Greene’s son, Michael Greene, and his wife, Cele na Greene. Photo courtesy of Bun combe County Your companion to land-use planning in Buncombe County
The complaint, which also names Greene’s son, Michael Greene, and his wife, Celena Greene, alleges that the former official hid hundreds of thousands of dollars with her family members to avoid paying restitution to Buncombe County. According to a document filed by Philip Anderson and Ron Payne, the attorneys retained by the county in this matter, Wanda Greene began transferring large sums to Michael and Celena Greene in August 2017, shortly after learning she was under federal investigation. Those trans fers, totaling at least $350,000, contin ued even after she reported to prison in October Anderson2019.and Payne also allege that, after Wanda Greene gave Michael and Celena Greene power of attorney upon her entry to prison, the couple deposited up to $108,000 in checks payable to her into their own accounts. (Michael Greene, who had been a business intelligence manager with Buncombe County, was himself sentenced in August 2019 to six months of prison time and a $5,000 fine for misuse of county credit“Wandacards.)Greene did not make, and Michael Greene and Celena Greene did not take or accept, the transfers in good faith,” the attor neys write. “Wanda Greene made the transfers with intent to hinder, delay and defraud the county and her otherThecreditors.”formercounty manager has already paid Buncombe $750,000 to settle one civil action, which released her from further claims related to her kickback schemes, improper use of county purchase cards and several other matters. However, Anderson and Payne say Greene reached no such agreement with the county over her role in a different corrup tion issue: the misappropriation of about $575,000 in county funds, together with former Commissioner Ellen Frost, to support the Tryon International Equestrian Center. Frost settled with the county for $175,000 in April 2021, and she served a six-month prison sentence after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit federal program fraud. In August 2021, the Superior Court ordered Greene to pay over $419,000 plus interest for her own participation in the eques trian scheme; according to Anderson and Payne, she has since “failed and refused to pay the default judgment or the debt underlying it, in whole or in Thepart.”county’s lawyers are asking that the Superior Court take the allegedly hidden funds away from Michael and Celena Greene and order Wanda Greene to pay her debt using that money. They also allege that the transfers constitute “unfair or deceptive trade acts” for which the county is entitled to additional damages in excess of $25,000.
Buncombe files new lawsuit against Wanda Greene
BUNCOMBE BEAT
The sordid saga of Wanda Greene reached an apparent denouement in August 2019, when the former Buncombe County manager was sentenced to seven years in federal prison on charges of program fraud, receiving kickbacks and making a false tax return. But like many good Hollywood tales, the story has gotten a sequel.OnJuly 6, county officials launched a new civil action against Greene in Buncombe County Superior Court.
On Aug. 5, Wanda Greene filed a motion through her attorney that she be given an extra 30 days to respond to the lawsuit. Michael and Celena Greene did not respond to the action, and on Aug. 16, the court entered default against them. Unless that judgment is later reversed, the couple will thus not be permitted to offer a defense.
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM8
The alleged transfers stand in stark contrast to Wanda Greene’s remarks at her 2019 sentencing, when she spoke in contrite terms about her fraudulent behavior. “I do realize that I have damaged Buncombe County significantly, and I accept full responsibility for my actions and choices using the poorest judgment I could possibly use,” she said. “I do hope that my ownership of my mistakes and acknowledgement of the damage I’ve done will begin to restore some of the community’s faith in the existing government and their willingness and their hard work to move forward.”
Therecords.fulltext of the county’s law suit against the Greenes is available online at avl.mx/bxo.
DEVELOPMENT GUIDE NOW!OUT Pick up your print copy in Xpress boxes or online at mountainx.com/development-guide High-Rated Salon in West Asheville Consistent • Professional High Quality Designs Walk Ins Welcome! TUES FRI: 9am-7:30pm SAT SUN: 9am-6pm MON: Closed OPEN SUNDAYS 511 Smokey Park Hwy, Ste 102, Candler, NC avantebeautylounge.comavanteavl@gmail.com828.747.733328715
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 9
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM10 SNAPSHOT CRAFT PROTEST: Bernard Ball, a local artist and retired emergency nurse, recently crafted this wooden sculpture depicting a uterus chained to the U.S. Supreme Court building. Ball has placed the design in his front yard in East Asheville, in protest of the recent Supreme Court ruling that over turned Roe v. Wade. “Images carry emotions,” Ball says. “This totem is not pleasant. My government owns no person. … All medical procedures are private.” Photo courtesy of Ball X Awards 2022 Sept. 8 at Highland Brewing Party Peggy Ratusz 5-6 p.m. Hope Griffin 6:15-7:15 p.m. DJ Lil Meow Meow 7:30-8:30 p.m. Special guests Asheville FM, the WNC Nature Center and more... And food trucks Melt Your Heart and El Kimchi BANDS:
Commissioner Wells, who rep resents the county’s District 1, rec ommended tracking the location of the impact of each grant award. The presentation included a geo graphic breakdown of the nonprofits receiving funds that showed that the majority were headquartered in District 1, which covers much of Buncombe’s eastern half. However, Wells suggested that the data didn’t necessarily show where the non profits would carry out their work.
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 11
Buncombe County voters haven’t yet authorized county government to issue up to $70 million in new debt; two referendums, for a $40 million housing bond and $30 mil lion land conservation bond, aren’t on the ballot until November. But in anticipation of those votes, the coun ty Board of Commissioners unani mously approved the creation of an oversight committee for the bond proceeds at its Aug. 16 meeting.
The resolution, presented by board Chair Brownie Newman with Commissioners Terri Wells and Amanda Edwards, would take effect if either or both of the bond referendums were approved. The oversight committee would monitor investments made with the bond money and ensure the funds were being used to meet Buncombe’s goals: conserve 20% of county land and increase affordable housing by up to 3,150 units, both by 2030. The committee would be made up of five members. Four would be appointed by commissioners based on subject-matter expertise in accounting, banking, affordable housing and conservation or green ways. The final member, who would have no specific portfolio, would be appointed by the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce. Members would serve until all bond funds had been committed, a process Newman said the county estimates will take seven years to complete. In voting to establish the com mittee, several commissioners cited the need to build confidence and trust in the community. “I think this is just an extra step, that we want to show the community that we have this citizen oversight board to assure them that there is complete transparency and that they can feel confident that the funds are being spent in the way that they are stated and intended,” said“OverWells.the years, we have had several bond issuances in both the city and the county, and one of the complaints has been transparency,” added Commissioner Al Whitesides. “I think this helps that, because we have the overall committee to really look at it. This is one of the areas where we can’t have too many sets of eyes looking at it” Other planned bond transparen cy measures were shared with the board during a June 7 presentation by Assistant County Manager Sybil Tate. In addition to the oversight committee, each bond will have a project manager responsible for maintaining a transparency website and reporting to commissioners and boards. A third-party audit will also be conducted annually.
The next application cycle will begin in December, but the commit tee will continue to meet year-round to monitor and support the nonprof its that were awarded grants. That includes site visits and quarterly performance reports, which will be published online at avl.mx/bxk.
“I think because of the way our districts are, if you just look at the districts, you’re not necessarily look ing at the overall geographic disper sion,” said Wells. “Being able to look at where the impact of this grant is going to take place, and [if] are we actually touching all or a majority of our county rather than just specific locations — I think that is really important going forward.” Carpenter said that the commit tee had discussed adding such an improvement to the grant process during its annual process review Aug. 4. Other suggested improve ments included a “soft cap” to encourage applicants to keep their requests below $80,000, as well as weighted scoring to prioritize proj ect budgets and plans separate from organizational capacity.
Commissioners also heard an update from the Strategic Partnership Grant Committee during the Aug. 16 meeting. The committee reviews and makes rec ommendations for funding through the county’s Strategic Partnership Grants program, which supports nonprofit organizations that align with the four pillars of Buncombe’s strategic plan. Those focus areas are an educated and capable com munity, environmental and energy stewardship, resident well-being and creating a vibrant economy. Committee member Annie Carpenter presented a breakdown of how much had been requested and awarded for each category for the current fiscal year. Out of more than $2.59 million in grant requests, the county had awarded $900,000, or aboutMost35%.applications fell into the category of resident well-being, which includes health and wellness, legal services, homelessness, men tal health and violence prevention.
— Nikki Gensert X
WATCHING DOLLARS: The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners unanimously supported creating a citizen oversight committee to monitor spending of up to $70 million in bond proceeds. County voters will decide whether to authorize the bonds in November.
Photo by Arianna Moore
BUNCOMBENEWS BEAT
Commissioners vote to create bond oversight committee
Pisgah Legal Services received the largest overall award, at $80,000 of the $120,000 it requested. The cate gory that received the least funding was environmental stewardship, although it was also the project area with the fewest applications.
partnershipStrategicgrants
Opportunity zones must consist of low-income census tracts or those where “the poverty rate is 20% or greater and/or family income is less than 80% of the area’s medi an income,” according to the N.C. Department of Commerce. Over 1,000 such tracts qualified in North Carolina, but federal legislation lim ited each state to choose 25% of its tracts as opportunity zones. In choosing North Carolina’s tracts, the state Department of Commerce “analyzed census data, public input, direct outreach and collaboration with local officials” to finalize 252 opportunity zones.
Created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, opportunity zones are specifically designated census tracts in which investors can receive spe cial tax considerations. Over 8,700 opportunity zones were selected across all 50 states, according to the IRS, “to spur economic growth and job creation in low-income commu nities while providing tax benefits to investors.”
Increase investments. Create new businesses and jobs. Inject much-needed energy and resources into low-income areas.
Those are the stated goals of the “opportunity zones” program, a fed eral initiative established during the administration of former President Donald Trump. The zones offer tax breaks to investors who put money to work in areas designated as econom ically depressed — including parts of every Western North Carolina county. Opportunity zones are now play ing a role in some of WNC’s high est-profile development projects, including the controversial Bluffs at River Bend in Woodfin. The latest edition of Xpress’ WTF feature — short for “Want the Facts?” — takes a deeper look into the significance and consequences of the program.
• Reduce the amount of tax paid on deferred gains if they hold an investment for at least five years.
• Exclude appreciation from the taxable value of investments when selling if they hold an investment for at least 10 years. The program is structured to encourage long-term investments, Ramsey explains, with the elimination of tax on appreciation value generally the greatest benefit.
WHAT’S RESULTED FROM OPPORTUNITY ZONES? Federal guidelines do not require detailed reporting on opportunity zones. It’s thus difficult to measure their impact with hard data, both nationally and at the local level.
Nathan Ramsey, executive director of the Land of Sky Regional Council in Asheville, says opportunity zone inves tors stand to benefit in three ways:
Opportunity zones WANT THE FACTS? NEWS EATS & DRINKS ASHEVILLE-AREA 2022 GUIDE Pick up your print copy today in everywhere!boxesNEWEDITION
Buncombe County contains the most opportunity zones in WNC with five census tracts, all in the greater Asheville area. Those zones include the Oakley, Southside, East End and Emma communities. All other WNC counties host at least one zone. Rutherford County has three designated tracts, while McDowell County has two.
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• Defer taxes for capital gains (the profit from selling an asset for more than its purchase price).
(Responding to an Xpress request for comment, Buncombe Board of Commissioners Chair Brownie Newman said, “I don’t recall local government having a role to play in the decision making.”)
To engage with the program, accredited investors, or those deemed qualified to invest in “complex or sophisticated securities,” must invest in opportunity zone projects through “qualified opportunity funds,” corpo rations or partnerships whose purpose is to invest in opportunity zones. Those funds must hold at least 90% of their assets in opportunity zone property. Funds must make “substantial improvements” to their investment properties, defined as “equal to the original value paid by the fund,” within a 30-month period to qualify for tax benefits. Certain businesses, such as golf courses, country clubs, racetracks, other gambling facilities and liquor stores, are excluded from opportunity zone projects.
WHAT IS OPPORTUNITYANZONE?
HOW OPPORTUNITYWEREZONESSELECTED?
HOW CAN INVESTORS PARTICIPATE?
WHERE ARE OPPORTUNITYWNC’SZONES?
Although lawmakers on both sides of the aisle had cited job creation as a rea son to establish opportunity zones, 97% of that money was expected to support commercial or residential real estate, with much of it going toward hotels and high-end apartments. A 2020 report generated by the Urban Institute con cluded that community-focused proj ects such as affordable housing devel opments are rare in opportunity zones, with many struggling to find investors.
While Ramsey says Land of Sky, in conjunction with A-B Tech, has conducted workshops to spread the word, Williams says more messaging remains to be done.
Because investment in opportunity zones is restricted to accredited inves tors — already wealthy individuals, banks, insurance companies and other established players in the financial sys tem — the low-income residents and businesses that are actually located in the zones often don’t have the resourc es to take advantage of their tax breaks.
Williams says she was strongly in favor of opportunity zones when they were first proposed, but that the program hasn’t yet had its intended impact.
“Most people don’t even know what they are,” Williams said. “Our local businesspeople end up sitting on the outside looking in. I hope those of us that know about these zones, that know about the benefits and have the knowledge, start going to work.”
— Ben Williamson X
As of 2020, according to The Pew Charitable Trusts, over $10 billion had been raised by opportunity funds.
WHO IS BENEFITING?
Dee Williams is president and CEO of Dee Williams Co. and Eagles’ Wings Development Corp., an Ashevillebased nonprofit focused on supporting economic growth for Black residents.
LAND OF OPPORTUNITY? State-designated “opportunity zones” span five Asheville-area census tracts. Investments in these areas can earn federal tax benefits through the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Graphic courtesy of the N.C. Department of Commerce
“We were not ready to play. We were not ready to afford ourselves of the opportunity. We don’t have the necessary players in place to jump out front and do it,” Williams says of local Black and low-income entrepreneurs accessing opportunity zones. She adds that the legislation “probably has” accelerated gentrifi cation in low-income communities as outside investors took advantage of theLookingprogram.ahead, education around the zones will be key to reaching a more diverse pool of investors.
Ramsey wonders if the tax breaks only sweetened deals that were already underway before the program was established. “The intent of oppor tunity zones is good, as it’s trying to increase investment in underrepre sented communities. I think the ques tion is whether [opportunity zones] increase new investment or whether these projects would have happened anyway,” he says.
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Kott, who has lived in Waynesville since 2006, notes her approach isn’t unique. “The people here are just amazing,” she says of her neighbors.
Xpress sat down with Kott to dis cuss her work, the challenges her clients face and the importance of treating everyone with dignity and respect. This interview has been lightly edit ed and condensed. What are some insights on home lessness that you’ve gained since launching the nonprofit?
— LA Bourgeois X
A complete picture of Haywood County’s homeless population is hard to track, Kott continues. She says the annual point-in-time count isn’t exact. “Many people sleep in cars, hotels, 24-hour laundromats or they couch-surf,” she points out. “Too often, too many people don’t get counted.”
FEATURES
I’d say that trauma and the hous ing crisis are responsible for most of our homelessness in Waynesville. Unlike other areas, our homelessness population is 90% local, if not more. These people know each other, and they’re part of the community in their own way. They’ll share their last cigarette with each other. I’ve had some of the best laughs and some of the best times with people that don’t have homes. They’re not sitting around crying and moping. They’re still living life. How did Helping Hands of Haywood come to be? In 2019, a group of us started talking about the issues faced by peo ple experiencing homelessness. We began offering supplies they needed to survive, whether it was a sleep ing bag, food or bandages. And by December of 2019, we incorporated as a nonprofit organization. By February of 2020, we received our 501(c)(3) status. Since then, we’ve just been trying to fill in the gaps. And we have found so many gaps. Waynesville has a homeless shelter and a domestic violence shelter. But you can’t get into the shelter without passing a drug test and having a background without violence, and you have to be local. You can’t get into the domestic violence shelter if the abuse you’ve experienced wasn’t coming from an intimate partner. What is your approach for con necting with clients? We sit down and get to know each person. I don’t normally have to look at a file to know someone’s first and last name and even birthday. I know our clients — the ones who are chronically homeless, the ones that have deeper-rooted issues. We build trust with them, because I never judge any of the mistakes they’ve made. I don’t condone, but I don’t judge. That’s not my job. What is the biggest challenge in supporting clients? The biggest challenge is finding enough mental health care to dive deep into trauma healing and rehab fast enough. We do have great men tal health services and great rehab. But when someone is ready for that, they’re ready in that moment. They’re not ready a week and a half from now at 1 o’clock. Meeting people where they’re at is crucial. Giving them hotel space and what care we can give until we can bridge them into a facility has been a linchpin in getting people sober. What do you think surprises people the most about those experiencing homelessness? That we’re all in the same human basket; that they’re not different. That’s the main thing. There’s so many people, even providers some times, that see a clear line between us and them. There is no them and us. Everybody could be one trauma away from from picking up a drug. Any renter can be one house-turnedAirbnb away from homelessness. It can happen to anybody.
Some of us just have more privi lege than others. Some of us have a grandpa with 30 acres and a mobile home that we can move into. Some of us have people that could help us with our bills. And some of us have never had anybody. We’re all human. Along with your nonprofit work, you’re a mother of three. Between your family and professional life, how do you avoid burnout? I’ve learned to lean on my staff [of two and 12 volunteers] a little more. That’s when I can rejuvenate. But burnout creeps up on you, you know? You feel fine until you don’t. And I’m glad that I’ve got great staff and volunteers when that happens. Lastly, if someone wanted to assist people experiencing homelessness, where would you suggest they start? Get to know people. The worst thing that we do as a society is walk right by, not make eye contact and not say hi. We have to get to know our neighbors without homes. And we have to get to know how they got in that situation. Talk to them.
NO ONE REASON: “Every single reason for homelessness is so dif ferent,” says Nicole Kott, executive director of Helping Hands of Hay wood. “Childhood events, trauma that goes untreated, trauma leading to self-medication — there’s no one reason.” Photo courtesy of Kott Nicole Kott on treating the homeless with dignity
Q&A:
“When somebody really needs some thing, the community comes togeth er, and they get it done.”
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 15 Nicole Kott never intended to launch a nonprofit. “I just wanted to know why we had people sleeping out in the cold,” says the executive direc tor and founder of Helping Hands of Haywood. “I put blankets on them. I went and ate cheeseburgers with them. And in doing so I found out that the reasons for homelessness differ from person to person.”
Launched in 2019, Helping Hands of Haywood’s mission is to expand programming and address the needs of those experiencing homelessness or insecure shelter in Haywood County. “Everybody needs some thing different,” Kott explains. “It could be something as simple as a tag registration, or it could be something much more intense like trauma, heal ing and substance abuse treatment.”
TELLING TALES: Asheville storyteller Connie Regan-Blake will share stories at Pack Memorial Library on Thursday, Aug. 25, at 6 p.m. as part of the American Perspectives Storytelling Project. Regan-Blake will pay tribute to master Appalachian storyteller Ray Hicks, who was her friend and mentor. Pictured, from left, are Regan-Blake and her cousin Barbara Freeman listening to Hicks at his homestead in the 1970s. Photo by Bob Hutchison, courtesy of Regan-Blake
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM16
Five guest artists approach the Carolina woodlands through their perspectives,personal revealing Appalachia through a fresh lens, inspired by fall. Open daily 10am, through Oct. 30. Marquee Asheville, 36 Foundy St Blown Glass Demos with Andrew Montrie FR (8/26), 1pm, Appa lachian Craft Center, 10 N Spruce St, Ste 120 Upstairs tionReopeningArtspaceCelebra Launching with three simultaneous exhibi tions; with food, drinks and music. Gallery hours will be Tuesday through Saturday, 12pm to 5pm. FR (8/26), 5pm, Upstairs Artspace, 49 S Trade St, Tryon What May Be Opening
A Walk in the Woods
AUGUST 24 - SEPTEMBER 1, 2022 For a full list of community calendar guidelines, please visit mountainx.com/calendar. For questions about free listings, call 828-251-1333, opt. 4. For questions about paid calendar listings, please call 828-251-1333, opt. 1. Online-only events Feature, page 24 Feature, page 26 More info, page 31 More info, page 32 Issues Publish 8/31 & 9/ 7 X Awards 2022 Reserve your space advertise@mountainx.comtoday!
Bullington Gardens Fairy Trail Three hundred yards of tiny doors that can be gently opened and closed to reveal fairy life scenes. Open 9am,. closed BullingtonSunday.Gardens, 95 Upper Red Oak Trail, Hendersonville American Perspectives: Stories from the Amer ican Folk Art Museum Collection Over 80 works of folk and self-taught art, including 2Ashevilleclosedsculpture.pottery,needlework,assemblages,paintings,quiltsandOpen11am,Tuesday.ArtMuseum,SPackSquare
COMMUNITY CALENDAR
The Way I'm Wired: Artist Reflections on Neurodiversity Artists share their lived experiences with neurodiversity and how these experiences have impacted their works. The exhibition aligns with WCU's school year campus theme, Mental Health and Wellness. Open Tues day through Friday, 10am. See p32 WCU Bardo Arts Center, 199 Centennial Dr, Cullowhee
When Was the Last Time You Saw a Miracle? Prints by Corita Kent In this selection of prints from the 1950s and 1960s, the artist combines vivid color with everydayquotations,slogans, and biblical scripture to create throughkind.harmonymessagesinspirationalofhopeandforhumanOpenTuesdayFriday,10am. See p32 WCU Bardo Arts Center, 199 Centennial Dr, Cullowhee
We Will Not be Silenced: Standing for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women A series of photographs and sculptures that bring voice to the inter national Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women movement through the lens of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Com anche Nation, Lumbee, and other Native American artists. Open 10am Tuesday through Friday. See p32 WCU Bardo Arts Center, 199 Centennial Dr, Cullowhee Artist Reception: Tim Tate Meet the artist, whose contemporary works largely employ cast glass and polyvitro to form narratives and provide social commen tary on a wide range of current topics. TH (8/25), Momentum5pm,Gallery, 24 N Lexington Ave Pop Up Art Show Local artists, every Thursday. TH (8/25), 7pm, Alley Cat Social Club, 797 Haywood Rd
A series of paintings by artistAshevilleSkipRohde, an award-winning painter who has sketches in the Smithsonian. Rohde is also the courtroom artist for WLOS. See p24. FR (8/26), 6pm, Pink Dog Creative Gallery, 348 Depot St Nature and Nurture : The Voorhees Family Artistic Legacy This multi-generation al, multi-media exhibit displays paintings, pottery and jewelry from seven members of the Voorhees fam ily. Numerous pieces feature some of NC landscapes and plants, connecting people with plants through artistic vision and skill. Daily 9am, through Sept. 5. NC Arboretum, 100 Frederick Law Olmsted Way Amanda Clark: Regeneration II The artist finds taboo topics such as the human reproductive system and mental illness as inspiration for her works. Hosted by Cindy Walton Fine Art. Open 10am daily, noon on PinkSunday.DogCreative, 348 Depot St On the Walls: Fea tured Artist Alexandra Bloch “Contemplative glimps es of a simple scene rather than a wide view of a jumbled world.” Open 10am, StEclipse11.Monday.ThroughclosedSept.Salon,16Wall Cherishing Mountain Moments Featuring paintings by Robin Wethe Altman during the month of August. Open daily 11am Ashevilledaily.Gallery of Art, 82 Patton Ave
5Rhythms Sweat Your Prayers Let it in, let it out, let it go. Hosted by Karen weekly. WE (8/24, 31), 5:15pm, Homewood, 19 Zillicoa St Taiji to Awaken the Flow of Qi With Andrew NugentHead. required.Registration WE (8/24, 31), 5:45pm, $20, Asia House, 119 Coxe Ave Pub Run Rain or shine, all ages and experience levels welcome. WE (8/24, 31), 6:15pm, RdBrewing,Archetype265Haywood Montford Tai Chi Hosted by Thursday.White.acupuncturistlocalTylerAllages,every TH (8/25, 9/1), 9am, Free, RecreationMontfordCenter, 34 Pearson Dr Tai Chi for Seniors: Balance, Mobility & Joint Health Taught by Karen Brinkman. Registration required. TH (8/25, 9/1), 1pm, Asia House, 119 Coxe Ave Waves on the Edge: 5Rhythms LGBTQ Sweat Your Prayers Follow the maps creat ed by Gabrielle Roth. First time dancers $10. Hosted by Karen weekly. SA (8/27), 9:30am, Haw Creek Commons, 315 Old Haw Creek Rd Empower Pop-up Class A Registrationspiritualmental,womenpracticefitnesstransformationalandembodimentdesignedforforphysical,emotionalandwellbeing.required. SA (8/27), 10am, $22, One World Brewing West, 520 Haywood Rd Goat Yoga A typical class - with Nigerian dward goats. SA (8/27), 11am, $35, Whistle Hop Brewing Co., 1288 Charlotte Hwy, Fairview SU (8/28), 11am, $35, Highland CharlotteCompany,Brewing12OldHwy Yoga in the Park Asheville An all-level friendly yoga class based on Hatha and Vinyasa traditions, outdoors by the river. SA (8/27) & SU (8/28), 11am, $10, Carrier Park, 220 Amboy Rd Sound SaturdaysHealing Practitioners will play the gongs, crystal singing bowls and the harmonium as attendees will reset and ground through vibrational frequencies. SA (8/27), 5pm, $22, Inner Wolf Retreat Space, 2854 Puncheon Fork Rd, Mars Hill Monday MeditationMorningGroup Silent meditation to set the mood for the week. Registration required. MO (8/29), 8:15am, $5, Asia House, 119 Coxe Ave Qi Gong 101: Begin ner's Course Access and flow your Qi for optimum health with Allen Horowitz. Registration required. MO (8/29), 9:30am, $10, Asia House, 119 Coxe Ave Breathwork & Meditation Guided by Allé, Trans Yoga Teacher. MO (8/29), 6pm, Free, EMOTE, 508 Haywood Rd Monday Run Club All levels and ages welcome, including walkers. MO (8/29), 6pm, Catawba Brewing Biltmore, 63 Brook St ART Border Cantos | Sonic Border A composerAmericanMisrachphotographerbetweencollaborationAmericanRichardandMexicansculptorandGuillermo Galindo, using the power of art to explore and humanize the com plex issues surrounding the 2AshevilleThrougham,border.Mexican-AmericanOpen11closedTuesday.Oct.24.ArtMuseum,SPackSquare
WELLNESS
TH (8/25), Candler1404Enka-Candler6pm,Library,SandhillRd, The Blue Ridge Big Band A 19-piece band whose repertoire showcases classic tunes from swing, jazz, beach, Latin, rock, funk and pop - with room to dance. SA (8/27), 7pm, Folkmoot Friendship Center, 112 Virginia Ave, Waynesville Saucy Sundays Family-friendly Latin vibe party with music, food trucks and salsa lessons. SU (8/28), 3pm, Haywood Country Club, 662 Haywood Rd
MUSICCOMMUNITY
TH (8/25), 5:30pm, Fairview Library, 1 Taylor Rd, Fairview The Book of Will The story of how the lone survivors of Shake speare's acting company worked together to save the plays.
FR (8/26, SA (8/27), SU (8/28) 7:30pm, Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre, 92 Gay St Sunday Sinema Free popcorn at this locals bar that does not serve burgers. Film will be announced at the event. SU (8/28), 9pm, The Burger Bar, 1 Craven St CLASSES MEETINGS&
The group meets at various shelters around the park, contact buncombecounty.orgzach.hickok@ or call (828)684-0376 for more info. Bring your own drum. TH (8/25), 5:30pm, Lake Julian Park, 37 Lake Julian Rd, Arden Live Jazz Hour Host and composer Michael Jefry Steven will be joined by musician friends for a live performance in the community room.
This exhibit shows how early settlers made their way into the Appalachian Mountains and made them their home, dispelling the myth of an uncultured people and reveal lives rich with customs and traditions, including herbal St,Museum,TransylvaniaSaturday.12pmbluegrasshandicrafts,medicines,andmusic.OpenThursdaythroughHeritage189WMainBrevard
From 67PackSunday10.state.ofthetionalmulti-facetedexhibitNorthPreservationCarolina,thisispartofaeducaprogramabouthistoryandlegacyBlackbuildersinourThroughOct.Open10am,closedandMonday.MemorialLibrary,HaywoodSt
Exploring Appalachian Culture
TU (8/30), 5pm, Mars Hill University, Mars Hill LITERARY Poetry Open Mic Hosted by Caleb Beis sert every Wednesday. See p26 WE (8/24, 31), 8pm, Sovereign Kava, 268 Biltmore Ave From Another Time: Celebrating the Legacy of Ray Hicks Storyteller Regan-Blake,Conniewhose life changed after meeting Hicks in 1973, will share tales as part of the American andAshevillesponsoredStorytellingPerspectivesProjectbytheArtMuseumArtBridges.
Mountain Legacies:
TU (8/30), 7pm, Highsmith Student Union, 1 University Heights Storytelling Perfor mance by Michael Reno Harrell Part of the byingPerspectivesAmericanStorytellProjectsponsoredtheAshevilleArt Museum and Art Bridges. TH (9/1), 6pm, Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St THEATER & FILM Guess Who's Coming to Dinner It’s the 1960s and a pro gressive white couple's proud liberal sensibilities are put to the test when their daughter brings her black fiancé home to meet them in this fresh and relevant stage adaptation of the iconic film.
Asheville Symphony: Concert in the Park With hits from classics like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Sound of Music, and more; plus iconic orchestral works including Rossini’s Wil liam Tell Overture and Dance of the Knights from Romeo and Juliet. See p 32 SU (8/28), 7pm, Pack Square Park Ramsey TraditionalCenterMusic Jam Session
WE (8/24), TH (8/25) 2pm; WE (8/24), TH (8/25) 7:30pm; FR (8/26), SA (8/27) 8pm; SA (8/27), SU (8/28) Flat2pmRock Playhouse, 2661 Hwy 225, Flat Rock Summer Movie Series: Hitchcock in the 50s: Vertigo Movie blogger James Rosario will introduce the film and lead a discussion after the showing.
The inaugural event, held on Lunsford Com mons, will be hosted by master regional musicians Roger Howell and Jerry Sutton. The monthly sessions are open to spectators and those wishing to jam.
WE (8/26), 2pm, Leicester Library, 1561 Alexander Rd, Leicester Sarah Addison Allen launches Other Birds in conversation with Wiley Cash UNCA's Katherine Min Memorial SeriesUNCA'sco-sponsoredReading,byVisitingWritersandMalaprop's.
TH (8/25), FR (8/26), SA (9/27) 7:30pm; SU (8/28) 2pm, Hart Theatre, 250 Pigeon St, Waynesville Blood at the Root A drama based on the Jena Six: six black stu dents who were initially charged with attempted murder for a school fight after being provoked with nooses hanging froma tree on campus. TH (8/25), FI (8/26), SA (8/27) 7:30pm, Wortham Center for the Peforming Arts, 18 Biltmore Ave Craft Cinema: George Nakashima, Wood worker The film offers a rare and perspectivepersonalofthe artist, his creative process and the work that he designed and produced over a 54-year period. Followed by a live, virtual Q and A with its director. FR (8/26), 6pm, Free, Center for Craft, 67 Broadway Family Movie Night: After Hours at the Enka-Candler Library Oceans of Possibilities themed, Disney/Pixarfeaturingfilm Luca. Children must be accompanied by a parent or caregiver at all times.
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 17
An Intoduction to Circling A present-moment rela tional practice where, instead of talking about things, attendees drop into and explore what is happening in the moment. turnedsuggested,tolevichettle@gmail.comEmailregister.Donationnooneaway. WE (8/24), $10-20, 17 Old U.S. 19-23, Candler The Learning Garden: Drop in and Learn Master gardeners will offer problem solving assistance to visitors, who are invited to bring plant problems and samples.
Cultivating Collections: Glass In this year’s exhibition, student researchers tell the stories of the Museum’s glass coll mction, which includes a range of artists who have made throughinStudiocontributionssignificanttotheGlassMovementWNC.OpenTuesdayFriday,10am. See p32 WCU Bardo Arts Center, 199 Centennial Dr, Cullowhee We Built This: Profiles of Black Architects and Builders in NC
We’ll make sure you get there! — We specialize in all makes and models! —
TH (8/25), 6pm, Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St Listen to This: Stories on Stage That Sum mer! Shared Stories of Memorable Summers An evening of stories and songs from some of the area’s most interesting writers, performers and citizens. Hosted by local come dian Tom Chalmers. TH (8/25), 7:30pm, Asheville Community Theatre, 35 E Walnut St Storytelling Perfor mance by Vixi Jill Glen Part of the umtheProjectPerspectivesAmericanStorytellingsponsoredbyAshevilleArtMuseandArtBridges.
Drum Circle
Corner.ToolsPlantClimbingof(10-11am)demonstrationInformalprogramsinclude:BasicsComposting,TamingRoses,InvasiveTable,ErgonomicandtheKids WE (8/24), 9am, Buncombe CarmelCenter,CooperativeCountyExtension49MountRd,Ste102 Financial Wellness for the Entrepreneur In this workshop Tiarra Wilkie, founder of onwhilecredittionbuildingFinancial,Groundbreakingwilldiscussasolidfoundaforyourpersonalandfinances,brieflytouchingbusinesscredit. WE (8/24), 11am, $35, Center for Craft, 67 Broadway Between Two Stills Flights, craft cocktails, and a learning expe rience with two local distillers, Adam Dalton from Dalton Distillery, and William Goldberg from Oak and Grist Distilling. 21+ WE (8/24), 6pm, $15, PULP, 103 Hilliard Ave Coffee & equaliTEA Time Log on and spend some time with a diverse group of LGBTQ+ 55+ community. Ask questions, avl.mx/bxl.andinvolvement,encourageadvocatelearn.Visit WE (8/24), 6pm, Online Spanish Club Spanish speakers of all ages and levels are welcome to join togeth er for conversation to 23 Sardis Rd, Asheville, NC 28806 (828) precisionInternational.com670-9191
FR (8/26), Candler1404Enka-Candler6pm,Library,SandhillRd, The Three Musketeers From the classic novel, penned in 1844 by Alexandre Dumas, this script was commissioned by The Barter Theater just a few years ago, and it will be making its WNC debut with this production, directed by Rodney Smith.
A morning of crafting and conversation. TH (8/25), Weaverville10am,Library, 41 N Main St, Weaverville Faith in Arts: A Con versation with Vandorn Hinnant Hosted by BMCM+AC and UNCA, life.practiceroleandcurators,diverseinterviewsconversationstheseandwithagroupofartists,faithleaders,scholarsexploretheofartsinspiritualandreligiousVisitavl.mx/bw7 TH (8/25), 1pm, Online Tik Tok Made Me Cook It Quick and easy recipes from Tik Tok for this cooking class. TH (8/25), 6pm, Shiloh Community Center, 121 Shiloh Rd WNCHA History Hour: Mountain Thunder: Stock Car Racing in Buncombe County This talk will explore the history of the four racetracks that hosted stock car racing in Bun combe County from the late 1940s to the late 1990s, during which races in NASCAR’s top division, as well as weekly races, took place. Visit avl.mx/bxs TH (8/25), 6pm, Online Global Fishing Watch: Discussion with Paul Whitaker A presentation on the works of an organization that is revolutionizing ocean monitoring with a focus on transpar ency, from Director of Business Development Paul Whitaker. Visit avl.mx/bw8 TH (8/25), 7pm, Online Dr. George Washing ton Carver Edible Park Community Work Day Mulching, light tree and shrub pruning, picking up trash and clearing invasives; as well as a hands-on demo of each technique, and a tour of the park. Any gloves, loppers, pruners or weeding tools are appreciated.
The instructor(s) will demonstrate the basics, provide some pointers, and maintain a safe archery and tomahawk throwing range. Equip ment is provided. TH (8/25), 10am, $25, Earthshine Lodge, 1600 Golden Rd, Lake Toxaway Dyeing with Madder Participants will learn how to grow the mad der plant, harvest the root and make the dye. Registration required.
COMMUNITY CALENDAR
The Importance of LGBTQ+ Creative Spaces
Asheville City Market South Midweek market oper ated by the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project (ASAP). WE (8/24, 31), 12pm, Biltmore Town Square, 1 Town Square Blvd Les-ter Farmers Market Support local farmers and craftspeople offer ing a variety of local produce, herbs, flowers, cheese, meat, prepared foods, art, gifts and much more - all locally grown and produced. WE (8/24, 31), 3pm, Leicester Community Center, 2979 New Leicester Hwy, Leicester River Arts District (RAD) Farmers Market Located on the river with live music and over 30 local vendors. Safely accessible via the greenway, plus ample parking. WE (8/24, 31), 3pm, Smoky Park Supper Club, 350 Riverside Dr Etowah Lions Club Farmers Market Fresh produce, meat, sweets, breads, arts, and more, through Oct. 26. WE (8/24, 31), 3pm, 447 Etowah School Rd, Hendersonville Weaverville Tailgate Market Local alongsidefoodstuffs,asmall lineup of craft and artisan vendors. WE (8/24, 31), 3pm, 60 Lake Shore Dr, Weaverville Wednesday Night Market: Vintage and Crafts Vintage and crafts from area-based vendors. WE (8/24, 31), 4pm, Fleetwood's, 496 Haywood Rd Flat Rock Tailgate Market A diverse group of local produce farmers, jam and jelly makers, bread bakers, wild crafters, and merrymakers. TH (8/25, 9/1), 3pm, Pinecrest ARP Church, 1790 Greenville Hwy, Flat Rock Enka-Candler Tailgate Market Fresh local produce and heritage crafts. Weekly. TH (8/25, 9/1), 3pm, A-B Tech Small Business Center, 1465 Sand Hill Rd, Candler
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM18 practice the language in a group setting. WE (8/24), 6pm, Black Mountain Brewing, 131 NC-9, Black Mountain
FR (8/26), 2:30pm, Dr George Washington Carver Edible Park, 30 George Washington Carver Ave Fridays at the Folk Art Center: Parkway vs. Park? Join a park ranger out doors for a 30 minute talk on what it takes to be a national park. Bring a chair or blanket. FR (8/26), 7pm, Folk Art Center, MP 382, Blue Ridge Parkway Birding Walk and Boat Ride Suitable for beginners and advanced birders of all ages. To sign up or for more callbuncombecounty.orgconner.white@information:or(828)684-0376.
SA (8/27), 8:30am, Lake Julian Park, 37 Lake Julian Rd, Arden Artists & Writers Coffee Inviting painters, sculp tors, writers, performers and more to a casual weekly drop-in gathering to share works in prog ress and chat about art and what’s happening in your community. SA (8/27), 9am, Tryon Fine Arts Center, 34 Melrose Ave, Tryon Plant Clinic Bring plant or insect samples for identifica tion and/or problem resolution to the last clinic of the season. Soil test kits and information about The Learning Garden activities and Gardening in the Mountains seminars will also be available. SA (8/27), 9am, Asheville City Market - Downtown, 52 N Market St Community Through Kudzu Kudzu Culture and RiverLink invite the public to learn about the history of kudzu as fiber, food, and medi cine. Activities include hands-on root crown identification, kudzu friendship bracelet making, and tasting kudzu root iced tea. SA (8/27), 9:30am, Azalea Park, Swannanoa River Rd Waterfall Cleanup"WaterfallKeepersHighway" The annual litter pick up along an eight-mile stretch of the Blue Ridge Parkway, north of NC 215. SA (8/27), 10am, Pisgah National Forest, Blue Ridge Parkway Michael Checkhov Method
Hear from art and creative venue leaders in Asheville discuss the importance of inclusive art space and what they mean for the community. WE (8/24), 6:30pm, Revolve, 821 Riverside Dr, Ste 179 Archery and Tomahawk Throwing
Originally developed as a movement theater technique, Noreen Sullivan has adapted the method to be inclusive for all artists and creatives seeking to expand their craft through modes of embodiment. Sliding scale. SA (8/27), 11am, $1040, Center for Connec tion + Collaboration, 65 Coleman Ave Walking Tour of Historic Downtown Black Mountain Museum staff will lead attendees through the streets while relaying the history of several buildings; as well as discussing topics including the building of the Swannanoa Tun nel and the disastrous downtown fire of 1912. SA (8/27), 1pm, Free$10, Swannanoa Valley Museum & History Center, 223 W State St, Black Mountain Asheville Mardi Gras Street Clean Up All supplies provided for this family-friendly clean up of the AMG parade route. Costumes encouraged. Sign up: avl.mx/bxm SU (8/28), 11am, South Slope The Free Clinics: 20th HomecomingAnniversary A lakeside bash with swimming, boxed lunches, beverages and cupcakes to celebrate 20 years of caring for neighbors in need. SU (8/28), 12:30pm, $20, Camp Tekoa, 211 Thomas HendersonvilleRd, Guardian ad Litem Volunteer Training GALs are volunteerstrainedwhoact as court advocates for children involved with DSS. Apply to become a GAL: volunteerforgal. org or call (828)2596603 with questions. MO (8/29), 1pm, ARC of NC Asheville, 30 Garfield St, Ste D Twisted Tuesday: Plant Swap With Plant Baby and Friends and DJ Chris Felinski, in the Meadow. TU (8/30), 6pm, Highland Brewing Co., 12 Old Charlotte Hwy Boy Scout Troop 91 Fall Kick Off For boys ages 11-18, free to attend first two meetings. Visit: avl.mx/bxq TU (8/30), 7pm, St. Pauls United Methodist Church, 223 Hillside St Laurel Chapter of the Embroiderers' Guild of America Barbara Dexter-Smith, the chapter’s VP, will teach a class on Sashiko, a 0572Annrequired:bag.createChapterclothusedembroideryJapanesetechniquefordecorationandreinforcement.memberswillalinenkinchakuRegistrationcontactMaryWyattat(828)681-orJanetStewart (828)575-9195. TH (9/1), 9:30am, Cum mings United Methodist Church, 3 Banner Farm Rd, Horse Shoe WNC Sierra Club: Why Two Bond Measures Deserve Your Vote Buncombe VisitRegistrationaratevotecountyWellsCommissionerCountyTerriwillexplainwhyvotersshouldyesontwosepbondmeasures.required.avl.mx/977 TH (9/1), 7pm, Online LOCAL MARKETS
TH (8/25), 10am, Free, Buncombe CarmelCenter,CooperativeCountyExtension49MountRd,Ste102 Weaverville Library Knitters and Stitchers
Produce, meat, eggs, baked goods, coffee, crafts and more from 30+ local vendors. With live music, kids' activities and cooking demos weekly. SA (8/27), 8am, 650 Maple St, Hendersonville Mills River Farmers Market
Fresh produce, bread and pastries, food vendors, and live music, weekly. SU (8/28), 11am, Glad heart Farm, 9 Lora Ln Asheville Punk Flea A pop-up flea market featuring vendors from local and surrounding areas. Find patches, pins, shirts, records, jewelry and more. Con tact info.gmail.comashevillepunkflea@forvendor SU (8/28), HaywoodFleetwood's,12pm,496Rd Celebrate 828 Maker's Market
FESTIVALS & SPECIAL EVENTS Fringe Summer
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Local goods and produce, weekly through Oct. SA (8/27), 10am, Mars Hill University, Mars Hill Junk-O-Rama Saturday Vintage antiques market, every Saturday through October. SA (8/27), HaywoodFleetwood's,11am,496Rd
Over 40 local vendors, every Tuesday. With music by Fancy and the Gentlemen.
six generations ago. SA (8/27) & SU (8/28), St John's Episcopal Church, 290 Old Haw Creek Rd
BENEFITS
Live music, an outdoor bar and local vendors.
A producer-only market, selling products raised or produced within 50 miles. With local musi cians, a wide variety of vegetables, fruits, meat, eggs, and high-quality crafts. SA (8/27), 8am, Mills River Rd,School,Elementary94SchoolhouseMillsRiver North TailgateAshevilleMarket
Emergency Visits • Tele-Dentistry Calls • Fri. & Sat. Openings Health Focused Mercury Safe Dentistry • Safe Mercury Amalgam Removal Technique Certified • Biological Dentistry & Products • Ozone Therapy • Digital X-rays = Less Radiation • Bio-Compatibility Test Kits Dr. Anders and Dr. Armistead’s Dental Office 3094 US 70 Hwy, Black Mountain, NC 28711 Includes cleaning, x-rays & exam Call 828-365-0194 New Patient Special $222 Downtown Highlands K-H Founders Park on Pine St. For info call: 828-318-9430 mountaintopshow.com ADVERTISING MADE POSSIBLE BY A GRANT FROM HIGHLANDS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE & VISITOR CENTER August 27&28 10 - 5MOUNTAINTOPROTARYRT & CRAFT SHOW
Jackson Arts Market Makers & Music Festival
SCB Summer Nights Market
TH (8/25, 9/1), 5:30pm, Sweeten Creek Brewing, 1127 Sweeten Creek Rd East Asheville Tailgate Market Local goods, every Friday. FR (8/26), 3pm, East Asheville Tailgate Market, 954 Tunnel Rd
One of the oldest openair markets in WNC, this unique market has a festival feel, with local growers who operate small family farms in Henderson County. SA (8/27), 8am, 100 N King St, Hendersonville Hendersonville Farmers Market
Asheville VisitBiddingchildren,homelessandneedsimmediate,raiseMinistry'sCommunityBuncombeChristiangoalisto$250Ktoprovidecriticalforindividualsfamiliesincrisis,womenandandVeterans.opensAug.24.avl.mx/bw5
Henderson County Tailgate Market
Fifty vendors offering fresh, handcraftedpreparedjams,flowers,coffee,eggs,produce,locally-grownmeat,poultry,honey,cheese,plants,herbs,cutbakedgoods,jellies,relishes,foodsanditems. SA (8/27), Downtown9am,Brevard Madison Co. Farmers & Artisans Market
Asheville's largest, curated pop-up market for antiques, art, vintage decor, jewelry and beyond - with a DJ, food trucks and adult beverages. SU (8/28), Foundation10am,Studios, 27 Foundy St Gladheart Farm Fest Market
Local produced and handcrafted goods, with live music from Taylor Knighton on Saturday and an open mic on Sunday. SA (8/27) & SU (8/28), 1pm, Downtown Sylva Uncommon Market
A rotation of local bakers, makers, and artisans - every Sunday through Oct. SU (8/28), 12pm, Highland Brewing Co., 12 Old Charlotte Hwy West Asheville Tailgate Market
SPIRITUALITY
WE (8/24), 5pm, Online Back to School Comedy Showcase and School Supply Dr A night of stand up comedy featuring local comics doing jokes and collecting school sup plies; with Julia Macias, Marlene Thompson, Becca Steinhoff, Mario Trevizo and more. 21+ WE (8/24), 7pm, $10, Asheville Beauty Acade my, 28 Broadway St Hemlock Volunteer Work Day Lend a hand to researchers at the Forest Restoration Alliance, where volunteers will be combating hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) by supporting the work of the FRA at their research facility in Waynesville, where they are breeding HWA-resistant hemlock trees. required.Registration FR (8/26), 10am, Mountain Research Station, 265 Test Farm Rd, Waynesville Woofstock To benefit Haywood Spay Neuter. Groovy threads encouragedwith karaoke, dancing and a prize for best duds. FR (8/26), 7:30pm, $25, Boojum Brewing Company, 50 N Main St, Waynesville Pints with SocietywithCollaborationPurposeSeriesAshevilleHumane Celebrating the work of The Asheville Humane Society: a market of pet-related vendors, a dog show contest with three categories, and long-dog races. With live music from The New Lefties. See p31 SA (8/27), 12pm, Highland Brewing Co., 12 Old Charlotte Hwy Vegan Fest Food from Wicked Vegan with a percent age of profits going to Farmshire, and shopping at booths from local artists and vendors, a raffle and live music by the Trusty Huskters at 5:30pm. Sweeten Creek will donate $1 per featured beer to the sanctuary. SA (8/27), 4pm, Sweet en Creek Brewing, 1127 Sweeten Creek Rd 13th Annual Give to the Music Benefit Concert Featuring Rock Academy Band and Flashback Band, to help rais emoney for Give to the Music and promote music education for local students. SA (8/27), 6:30pm, The Orange Peel, 101 Biltmore Ave Fairview Road Resil ience Garden Work Day All ages and skill levels are welcome to join to harvest, weed, plant, and build community. WE (8/31), 5:30pm, Fair view Resilience Garden, 461 Fairview Rd Firestorm Books Benefit Party & Queer Country Show To raise funds for the bookstore, with live music from Lurky Skunk, Molly Cottontail, and Connie Page Henshaw; plus, a raffle, vendors, mocktails and a vegan menu. Sliding scale, no one turned away. WE (8/31), 6pm, The Odd, 1045 Haywood Rd
Family Fun Day with the Wienermobile With live music from Mr Jimmy and 81 Drifters, local vendors, Smoky Mountain Axe House, food from The Hungry Ghost and a variety of beverages. SA (8/27), 1pm, Blue Ghost Brewing Compa ny, 125 Underwood Rd, Fletcher Food Waste Solutions Summer Gathering Joining with local partners the Food Con nection, WNC Farmers Market and DJ's Pickles to celebrate the abun dance of late summer with food storage tips, a quick-pickling demo, Food Connection truck tours and giveaways. See p31 TU (8/30), 5:30pm, The Wedge at Foundation, 5 Foundy St
Over 50 vendors and local products, including fresh produce, meat, cheese, bread, pastries, and more. SA (8/27), 9am, 52 N Market St
Black Mountain Tailgate Market Seasonal community market event featuring organic and sustainably grown produce, plants, cut flowers, herbs, locally raised meats, seafood, breads, pastries, chees es, eggs and local arts and handcrafted items. SA (8/27), 9am, 130 Montreat Rd, Black Mountain Haywood's Historic Farmers Market Weekly, located at HART Theatre. SA (8/27), 9am, 250 Pigeon St, Waynesville Transylvania Farmers Market
Part 2 A call to be a part of the 2023 Asheville Fringe Arts Festival, to be held Mar. 23-26 - learn more about the fest and get inspired by a performance.boundary-pushing WE (8/24), 6pm, One World Brewing West, 520 Haywood Rd Luella's 15 AnniversaryYear A pig-pickin' party in collaboration with Green Man Brewery, to benefit Downtown Welcome Table and its efforts to combat food insecurity in WNC. At both locations,restaurantuntilthe hog is gone. See p31 TH (8/25), 3pm, Luella's Bar-B-Que, 501 Merrimon Ave & 33 Town Square Blvd Top of the Grade Concert Series With Asheville's blues chanteuse Peggy Ratusz. Bring something to sit on. Coolers welcome. FR (8/26), 7pm, Free, McCreery Park, Smith Dr, Saluda Concerts on the Creek Three-piece Georgia band Southern Vantage will play Southern rock, country and classic hits. Food trucks on site. Bring a chair or blanket. FR (8/26), 7pm, Bridge Park, Dowtnown Sylva Homecoming Cooking Event A heritage cooking event curated and hosted by Haywood County native and motel owner, Joseph Franklyn McElroy, who (with guests) will prepare a traditional southern mountain pig picking with all the sides, a special elk chili appetizer, and a family heirloom recipe pineapple upside down cake for dessert. With tall tale swapping, and live music from Martin Vee at 6. SA (8/27), $25, HeritageSmokyMeadowlarkMountainCenter, 2878 Soco Rd, Maggie Valley Bee Bold Bee Fest The Honey atBazemorelivefeatureandgiveaways,farmcollaboratingCiderhoneywillbeonsitefortastetests,aspecialhoneymenu;withmusicfromAlexandFriends11am. SA (8/27), 10am, Bold Rock Asheville, 39 N Lexington Ave East End/Valley Street Community Heritage Festival Live music, vendors, food trucks, and a children’s area, with a parade on MLK Drive starting at 10am. In honor of the late Mack Moore of M&M Heating and Cooling. See p32 SA (8/27), 11am, Martin Luther King Jr Park, 50 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr
The oldest Saturday morning market in WNC. Over 60 rotating vendors. SA (8/27), 8am, 3300 University Heights Asheville City Market
VOLUNTEERING& 2022 andCelebrationTransformationAuctionGala
Local vendors at this brewery by the river. SU (8/28), 12pm, New Belgium Brewing Co., 21 Craven St Meadow Market
TU (8/30), 3:30pm, 718 Haywood Rd Nights
St. John's Anniversary150th Food and entertain ment that are typical of the late 1800s including pie-eating contests, sack races, square dancing, cake walks, live music and a Sunday 11am worship service using the 1789 Book of Common Prayer and hymns that were sung
SCHOOL-BASED THERAPISTS
Childhood is romanticized as the most carefree time of one’s life. But anyone who endured bullying by classmates, or was raised with an alcoholic parent, or struggled to afford basic necessities, knows child hood has never been easy.
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM20
Several agencies specializing in behavioral health have provided school-based therapy for years in ACS and BCS. They are now joined by MAHEC, a recipient in May of a $4 million grant from the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services. The NCDHHS Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Abuse Services awarded $20 million in total to five certified community behavioral clinics in the state.
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There is widespread agreement that children’s lives have become more difficult with disruptions to education and family life due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Adolescent Behaviors and Experiences Survey reports 1-in-3 high school students reported their mental health was not good most or all of the time during the pandemic, and nearly half of stu dents felt persistently sad or hope less. And a 2022 survey by Pew Research Center found 16% of teens are extremely or very worried that they have fallen behind in school during the pandemic.
“The increase in the mental health needs of our students and staff com ing out of the pandemic has been a monumental task in itself to over come,” Shane Cassida, Buncombe County Schools director of student services, tells Xpress Both BCS and Asheville City Schools are strengthening their mental health supports for stu dents, including bringing in more in-school therapists, to address the variety of issues kids are facing.
Most students will deal with a temporary struggle like bullying or a breakup with a romantic partner, and they will learn to navigate those challenges as part of growing up. But other students experience more persistent mental health issues that continuously affect their“Mostlives.of the mental illness that can occur throughout someone’s lifetime usually has its roots in childhood,” explains Dr. Nick Ladd , associate director of the Mountain Area Health Education Center’s psychiatry residency program. Anxiety, depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder are among the issues seen among younger patients, he explains. A diagnosis of psychosis and bipolar disorder is rarer. Ladd says addressing issues in childhood now can help manage problems that may exacerbate later, like eating disorders, sub stance abuse or self-harm. One of the most commonly faced issues is child“Weabuse.seeplenty of kids, unfortu nately, with PTSD, just because how common child abuse is,” Ladd continues. Individuals who are abused are more likely to go on to abuse others, underscoring the need to intervene with children early, he Buncombesays. County Child Protective Services received 4,664 reports of child abuse and neglect in fiscal year 2021, according to the 2021 Buncombe County Community Health Assessment Report. “It was determined through investiga tion or assessment that maltreat ment of children had occurred in 469 of these cases,” says Stacey Wood , spokesperson Buncombe County Department of Health and Human Services. And more than one-third of the adult population surveyed in Buncombe County have reported adverse childhood experiences. According to the Buncombe County 2020 State of the County Health report, 39% of respondents reported experiencing at least one childhood trauma in a WNC Healthy Impact telephone survey conducted for the Community Health Assessment. Emotional abuse was the most fre quent childhood trauma reported.
HEALING WOUNDS
ACS students in grades three-12 took a Panorama survey during the 2021-22 school year. In 2022-23, the survey will be offered to all grades at ACS from kindergarten to 12th. Parents can allow their child to opt out of the survey, Mackenzie says.
Pick up your print copy today in boxes everywhere! EATS & DRINKS ASHEVILLE-AREA GUIDE 2022 EDITIONNEW
IT’S OK TO FEEL: Luke Mackenzie, mental health liaison for Asheville City Schools, assists families with navigating mental health support for students, which includes schoolbased therapists. Photo courtesy of ACS
MAHEC’s funding, dispersed over four years, will place more licensed behavioral health profes sionals in schools to provide coun seling, among other objectives, says Kristy Smith , clinical services director of MAHEC’s department of Thepsychiatry.funding supports MAHEC’s 31 school-based therapists within BCS, ACS, Madison County Schools and McDowell County Schools, says Smith. Each therapist is creden tialed as either a licensed clinical social worker or licensed clinical mental health counselors. The grant also makes behavioral health more accessible for fami lies for whom English is not their first language. “We have a bilin gual therapist who will be working in Buncombe County Schools to increase services to the Spanishspeaking families who need mental health services,” Smith explains.
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 21
“By October we will have two addi tional MAHEC school therapists to support the elementary/middle schools,” Huffman says. Within BCS, in-school therapy is provided by MAHEC, RHA Health Services, A Caring Alternative and Access Family Services. Says BCS spokesperson Stacia Harris, “We can confirm that each school will have an assigned in-school therapist by the beginning of the school year.” BCS operates 44 schools.
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Parents typically call their child’s school counselor; ACS has 14 counsel ors who primarily support academic planning. But when a child’s mental health needs to be addressed, that counselor will loop in Mackenzie, who then confers with families to discuss options for their child, he explains. Within ACS, 13 in-school thera pists are employed by community partners Appalachian Mountain Community Health Center, Blue Ridge Health, Your Next Chapter Counseling, Family Preservation Services of North Carolina and MAHEC, says spokesperson Dillon Huffman. ACS also has seven school social workers within the district.
“Our goal is to increase the num ber of Spanish-speaking fami lies we serve by 20% every year” fromBringing2022-25.therapists directly into the schools eliminates transportation issues children might face, explains Smith. Kids can be “seen at school, where they’re already going to school every day,” she explains.
MAHEC psychiatrists, who work with therapists, can provide medica tion management to students receiv ing school-based therapy. This can be provided via telehealth or when young patients come into MAHEC’s clinic, Smith says.
BCS has 85 school counselors, 31 school social workers and eight social-emotional learning coaches, HarrisBothexplains.schooldistricts also conduct a survey that gives them a bird’s-eye view of what struggles students are facing. ACS and BCS conduct the Panorama survey, which assesses social-emotional learning and mental health. The survey is used by at least 10 North Carolina school districts.
But how do students find their way to a therapist? Luke Mackenzie, the mental health liaison for the nine schools within ACS, says students access help two ways. “We either have the kiddo advocate for them selves to a trusted adult in the build ing, or a parent is calling on behalf of them,” he explains.
Panorama survey questions ask “how does a kid feel about them selves, how does a kid feel about their peers, about teachers, and their interactions with those groups,” explains Mackenzie. The survey results allow teachers and adminis trators to know a student’s strengths, as well as areas where “more support is needed” both inside and outside of the classroom, he says.
HELP IS HERE
Given this column’s title and my pic ture in it, you might be asking yourself: Who is Morgan Bost? What are her medical qualifications? And should she even be holding that stethoscope? All great questions. I’m a local comic with no medical training whatsoever. But given the name of my column, I went ahead and ordered said stethoscope for branding and aesthetic purposes. Each month in print, I’ll convene with a rotating cast of local funny folks to get their takes on all things Western North Carolina. Our mission is to encourage some “hehes” and “hahas” in between the usual “yikes” and “oh noes” that our present-day news cycles typically inspire. Will this column solve all of your problems? No. Will it alleviate any existential dread? Probably not. But hopefully it will be zany and wacky enough to stimulate some laughter. And while I’m no doctor (as previously established), I can attest that laughter truly is the best medi cine. (I mean, not if you have a cold or something, but you see what I’m doing here.)
companion
Bost: Housing is our next topic, which is rarely funny. Now, I don’t mind people visiting Asheville or folks moving here — I’ve only been in the city six years myself. But many tourists wind up purchasing second homes in the area, which reduces affordable housing. Seeing as the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority spends a lot of money promoting the region, can you think of creative ways to discourage these same visitors from buying up all the real estate as mere summerLundbladhomes?
Your to planning in Buncombe County
DEVELOPMENT GUIDENOW!OUT Pick up your print copy today in Xpress boxes or online mountainx.com/development-guideat
land-use
A new monthly comedy feature on all things Asheville BOST
Morgan Bost: We’re known as Beer City, but what about Tear City? A friend and I are creating a crying map of Asheville so tourists can know where to go once kegs are tapped and bride-to-be Lisa finds out that maid of honor Kate once made out with Lisa’s fiancé in a Chili’s parking lot. What are your go-to crying spots in Asheville? Peter Lundblad: Well, as anyone who grew up in Asheville knows, the best place to cry is the Deerpark Restaurant on the Biltmore Estate. Why? Every high school in the coun ty has its prom there. It’s been sanc tified with 30 years of Axe-laced tears of yearning. The hormones glisten in the grass like a spring dew. Also: great buffet. Eric Brown: I would say my house is my favorite place to cry just judg ing by the numbers, but I don’t want to give that out as a crying hot spot. We got enough crying over here. I would suggest Patton Avenue in gen eral. In olden times, mystics believed in ley lines, ancient paths with magi cal power. I believe Patton Avenue is one of these ley lines, and the magic power is clinical depression. Now maybe I feel this way because my job is on that street, but I’ve personally never seen anyone having a good time on Patton Avenue. If you’re downtown, try crying in front of the courthouse. Nobody will question it, and the people inside are used to seeing it.
Nora Tramm: I once cried in a shoulder-to-shoulder crowd at The Orange Peel because the band played a song that reminded me of a different song that reminded me of my ex. Nothing satisfies your inner hipster more than standing with a horde of people who are all having the same experience and realizing that you alone are on a completely different wavelength. For day-to-day crying, though, check out Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary — especially that spot by the creek mouth with the cool tree. It feels just remote enough that you can really let yourself go, but it’s not so isolated that you won’t be stumbled upon by a nice older cou ple and make everyone’s afternoon really awkward. Just make sure you leave a couple bucks in the donation bin on your way out; the Blue Ridge Audubon Society does a lot of great work there. Bost: For me, the best place to cry in Asheville is definitely the Haywood Road Ingles — the one with no Starbucks and thus com pletely barren of hope. I’ve cried in that Ingles no less than three times thisButweek.when I need attention, I’ll cry in the window at Odd’s Cafe. It feels so poetic: a single tear running down my cheek as I sip espresso and journal about my Trader Joe’s crush, while staring longingly out the win dow and pretending I’m in a French film. I imagine people walk by think ing, “Wow, she looks so poetic. And so French.”
In my inaugural column, I speak with fellow comics Peter Lundblad, Eric Brown and Nora Tramm about the best places to cry in public, how to discourage out-of-towners from buying every last home in Asheville and how the city might find new ways to promote professional devel opment among our area’s youths.
ARTS & CULTURE Best Medicine with Morgan Bost
THE DOCTOR IS IN: OK, not really, but local comedian Morgan Bost, top left, is hoping to bring some laughter with her new feature, Best Medicine with Morgan Bost. Also featured, starting top right, clockwise: Eric Brown, Nora Tramm and Peter Lundblad. Photos by Cindy Kunst
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM22
: Double property taxes for a second residency with funds going into affordable housing initia tives. Oh, wait, you wanted a funny answer. … More marketing on the fact that the mosquitos around here have all learned to hum Kenny Rogers’ “The Gambler.” It’s been stuck in my head since ’03.
Brown: Obviously, the housing market in Asheville is a crisis we’re all struggling with. I have a simple and elegant solution for this prob lem. All Asheville locals should start living in the walls of these vacation properties until the tourists go back
morganbost1@gmail.com BY MORGAN
X 112 Virginia Ave, Waynesville,
org FOLKMOOT LIVE! At the Queen Auditorium Q W ANQ W A SepSaturday,tember 3 Doors: 5:30 PM, Concert:7 PM • $25 prepurchase; $30 at door Come early to enjoy Food Trucks and the Folkmoot Live! Bar
Now, I know what you’re thinking: This is the plot of the 1974 movie Bad Ronald. That is precisely the idea! We’re all gonna Bad Ronald these people. It means free rent for locals, and if the goingtheond-homeownerstourists-turned-secfinduslivinginwalls,youbetterbelievethey’retosellthathouse.
Bost: I think the first line of defense against single people looking to buy here should always be dating apps. One glance at an Asheville Tinder bio is enough to send anyone running from the hills. For those not on the dating market, a quick drive down I-26 during rush hour should do the trick.
• Tickets,
Tramm: If you’re reading this, it’s likely that you or someone close to you is a vegan, so you’re familiar with the distinctive bouquet of vegan flatu lence. It’s time we harness the power of this bountiful local resource! I call on all of the vegans of Asheville to load up on cabbage, beans and Soyrizo, then head down to tourist hot spots and start crop-dusting. Show them how our famous mountain air really smells. Do it for your community!
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 23 home; once these visitors leave, said locals will have the place to them selves the rest of the year.
Bost: OK, now to our final topic — children! The city recently held its annual Tiny Tykes Triathlon. The event got me thinking, what other activities should the city adapt for Lundbladkids? : Kid-friendly notary public training courses! Need to get your car title stamped? Trade two juice boxes to Tina or promise to do Jeffrey’s homework for a week. Need to put a witness under oath? Tammy can help right after kickball. Brown: I propose we teach our children something practical to help their lives as Ashevilleans. I call it “Traffic 4 Kids.” Anytime your child wants to do something fun, make them wait in line behind a bunch of children they’ve never met. This will prepare them for how most of their life will be spent in town, angrily waiting to make a left on Merrimon or sitting completely still on I-40 for no discernible reason. Who knows, maybe they can pass that lesson on to their children. And then maybe their grandchildren will remember those lessons fondly as they drive on what was once known as Future 26. I assume it’ll take about three generations to finish that.
Bost: I’d personally love to see a kid-driven LEAF Festival. Kids have incredible imaginations and would probably put on a great event. Kid LEAF Fest would have an awesome drum circle. Of course, the mainstage music would likely get redundant, with each band insisting on playing an extended cover of “Baby Shark” (essentially “Free Bird” for toddlers). The cuisine? Chicken nugget food trucks and wood-fired cheese pizzas. The kids could lead workshops on dance, yoga and slime making. Nap stations would be abundant and juice boxes available at every corner. Arts and crafts would be a central com ponent of the festival, so long as the toddlers are careful to avoid felony littering charges. NC Info: 828.452.2997 or Folkmoot
Tramm: Kids? In this economy? Asheville should meet the nation’s aging, childless millennial population where we are by offering activities for our surrogate offspring, rather than for the human children whom we lack both the emotional and financial security to care for. That’s why I’m proposing “Yoga for Houseplants.” I need someone to guide my little dar lings, Mintston Churchill and Sedum B. DeMille, through some sun saluta tions. Someone to help my sweet Jules Fern and Weird Aloe Yankovic shape themselves into the happy babies I’ve always known they are. And maybe, just maybe, if my precious Bromeliad Earhart and the Notorious F.I.G. can settle into a perfect child’s pose, my mother will finally get off my back about grandkids.
WHAT What May Be opening reception WHERE Pink Dog Gallery, 348 Depot St. Free. WHEN Friday, Aug. 26, 6-8 p.m. avl.mx/bxa
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM24 In local artist Skip Rohde ’s painting “Pleasantville (A Modern Family),” a family of four poses before a picket fence with their rough collie lounging near their feet. Flowers are in bloom, and the clan’s mother-daughter duo are both don ning their brightest summer dresses. Granted, much of the fabrics’ prints are covered by the bulletproof vest each member wears, not to mention the AR-15s clutched in their hands.
The painting, a commentary on America’s gun-crazed culture, is one of several works featured in Rohde’s upcoming exhibit, What May Be, on display at Pink Dog Gallery Friday, Aug. 26-Sunday, Sept. 25. Describing his style as “Rockwell from hell,” Rohde adds that addi tional artists such as Jerome Witkin also informed his collection’s unique mixture of nostalgic pastiche and hard-hitting satire.
“We’re in for a rough ride, but we could come out of it on the other side OK,” he says. What May Be is just one possibility of how things could turn out “if we don’t get our collective selves together,” the art ist cautions.
‘Rockwell
ART
‘CITY ON THE HILL’
Upon retiring from the Navy in 1999, Rohde relocated to Asheville, where he earned a degree in fine arts in 2003 at UNC Asheville. He notes that his passion for painting por traits is directly linked to his time in Afghanistan. And despite the style’s financial hurdles — “painting people doesn’t sell as well [as landscapes],” Rohde explains — he’s kept at it throughout his evolution as a fulltimeButartist.hisfocus, as displayed in his latest exhibit, also gravitates toward societal issues, such as aging, pol itics and war. What May Be , he says, is a cautionary tale that studies the present day as a way to antici pate the future state of the nation andForworld.locals, one of the most relevant pieces in the collection will likely be “City on the Hill.” At first glance, the skyscrapers looming in the distance appear to represent a city such as Los Angeles. But upon closer inspec tion, thanks in part to the highway signs near the work’s foreground, it becomes clear what viewers are star ing at: Asheville’s potential future. Like many of the other pieces fea tured in the exhibit, the painting urges local audiences to consider how the city’s current choices will make a lasting impact on future generations. More broadly, the exhibit implores viewers to consider how inaction in the face of violence, mass shootings and war normalize antisocial and destructive behaviors. Despite these severe interpreta tions, Rohde isn’t a complete pessi mist about the state of the world.
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‘NOW AND THEN’ Interested in art from a young age, Rohde says he initially pursued paint ing as a major in the mid-’70s at a “crappy art school.” Underwhelmed by the program and institution, Rohde ultimately put down his pal ette and brush to earn a degree in engineering from Tennessee Tech University in 1977. After graduating, Rohde enlisted in the U.S. Navy, where his interest in art resurfaced. Stationed for a time in Fort Meade, Md., he enrolled in night classes at Baltimore’s Maryland Institute College of Art. Tasked to create a still life, Rohde’s piece, “Now and Then,” featured a Navy hat and old teddy bear. A fellow student, he remembers, interpreted the piece as a commen tary on war’s quieter destruction, separating enlisted parents from their children. “That made me more aware that people have insights into my work that I sometimes don’t,” he says. “And so if I can get [viewers’] insights, then I can learn something more about the work and in turn learn something about myself.” Years later, while stationed in the Middle East, Rohde began sketching Afghan officials. The exercise turned into Faces of Afghanistan, a collection of 50 sketches now housed in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.
BY NIKO GONZALEZ
And while the issues confronted in the series raise difficult questions on topics such as war and gentrifi cation, Rohde’s approach includes light touches of humor throughout, allowing moments of levity amid the horror.
ARTS & CULTURE
ALL-AMERICAN FAMILY: Skip Rohde stands with his painting “Pleasantville (A Modern Family).” Though a critique of America’s gun-crazed culture, the artist says some viewers misinterpret the work as a celebration of deadly para noia and violence. Photo by Niko Gonzalez from hell’ Art exhibit raises heavy questions about the future nikog9482@gmail.com
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Timing is everything, as the saying goes, and Caleb Beissert can speak to the veracity of those words more than most people. In 2010, he’d recently graduated from Western Carolina University, moved to Asheville and was looking for places to read poetry and meet other poets. In the pages of this very newspaper, he saw that Sovereign Kava was hosting an open mic. “I went down there and asked about the event, and they said, unfor tunately, it had been canceled that night,” Beissert recalls. The venue, he notes, was having issues keeping a regular host. And while Beissert had no experience leading an open mic, something compelled him to offer his services. To his surprise, the bar agreed. “It’s kind of just snowballed from there,” he says. A dozen years and hundreds of eclectic performances later — “Any kind of weird art, I’ve seen it on the mic,” Beissert says — Poetry Open Mic Asheville is the longest-running open mic in town and, as far as Beissert knows, throughout North Carolina. But while that serendipi tous opportunity has worked well for him, more traditional planning has also proved successful in the forma tion of other area reading series that likewise take place in nontradition al spaces.
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Beyond the bookstore
FROM PAGE TO STAGE: Melvin Lewis performs at a Poetry Open Mic Asheville event at Sovereign Kava. Series emcee Caleb Beissert believes that the venue’s lack of alcohol encourages deeper listening and an overall welcoming vibe.
“I just wanted something that would be fun that would give local writers an opportunity to read new stuff or try out new work,” she says. “Or maybe just share some of the stuff that they didn’t get a chance to read. A lot of writers had books come out during the pandemic, so they didn’t really get to do a book tour. There’s a lot of reasons to start it and really try to support the literary community in Asheville.”
BY EDWIN ARNAUDIN
NEEDFUL THINGS Clint Bowman identifies poetry as his primary form of artistic expres sion and believes that being part of a community is vital to any writer’s growth. When he moved to Black Mountain three years ago, he knew he needed to find a group to help him focus on his writing. “Black Mountain’s history is already rich in poetry, given that the Black Mountain College resided here, so I was surprised to learn that no such group existed,” he says. “After searching around town for a while and not finding anything, I reached out to Melisa Pressley, the branch manager of the Black Mountain public library.” Pressley, also a writer, similarly recognized the unmet need for such a group in the community. Together, they launched the Dark City Poets Society in January 2020 at the Black Mountain Library, where a critique meeting is held on the first Tuesday of each month. DCPS’s Poetry Night takes place on the third Tuesday of the month, and, after outgrowing its original home at BAD Craft, has expanded to the business’s sister location, The Lowdown at Mellie Mac’s Garden Shack. The group still meets at BAD Craft in the winter and when there’s bad weather.
Literary readings branch out to nontraditional venues earnaudin@mountainx.com
ARTS & CULTURE
HOPS AND LINES: Asheville-based author Diamond Forde reads at a Punch Bucket Lit event at Cellarest Beer Project. Photo by Harrison Fahrer
“Aside from being free and acces sible to everyone, our founding goals were essentially created by the poets in the group,” Bowman says. “At the first few meetings, everyone took an interest survey that asked what their goals/interests were for the DCPS. Based on those responses, we decid ed to focus on sharing/critiquing poems and creating opportunities to share our work with others.”
Photo by Beissert
LITERATURE
In search of a nearby spot to host the monthly reading series — the name of which comes from a nick name for her cat, Punchy Eloise — Hanson pitched her idea to Harrison Fahrer, Cellarest Beer Project’s co-founder and general manager. Noting to Fahrer that the event would ideally feature one poet and one prose writer, Hanson quickly found an enthusiastic ally.
Rachel Hanson, assistant professor of literature at UNC Asheville, also had community in mind when form ing Punch Bucket Lit earlier this year. Though she appreciates the renowned authors the university attracts for its on-campus reading series, Hanson says she sought to establish a monthly literary event in her West Asheville neighborhood that would bring together WNC authors and poets.
“It always amazes me that people show up and stay all night, including people who come just to watch and not even perform,” he says. “The level of dedication of the performers raises the bar for everyone. You end up getting really quality work out of people, and that makes for a good show for everyone, not just the one personWhenonstage.”Bowman and Pressley looked for a host for DCPS’ Poetry Night, BAD Craft was their first choice due to its reputation as a central gathering point for artists in Black Mountain. The business’s selection of beers on tap and in cans also resulted in a portion of drink sales being donated to the library, and that partnership has continued at Poetry Night’s new home.
WE’RE MEETING WHERE? For each reading series, the unorthodox location has been key to developing a welcoming, inclusive environment. Sovereign Kava, for example, doesn’t sell alcohol, and its on-site absence grants the space a different vibe than a traditional bar. “It’s a lot more chill,” Beissert says. “I’m not saying there’s nobody on alcohol there, but I think overall it kind of gives this vibe where it’s more conducive to creating a listen ing room and a space where people are focused and they have meaning ful conversations that they actually remember the next day.”
VALLEY ENTHUSIASM: Dark City Poet Society’s Poetry Nights have become so popular that the events have moved from BAD Craft to The Lowdown.
Photo by Clint Bowman
That atmosphere has made Poetry Open Mic Asheville increasingly popular, to the point that perform ers — including poets, musicians, dancers, magicians and more — now have to show up prior to 8 p.m. each Wednesday and wait in line to secure a spot. Beissert opens each event at 8:30 p.m. with a set of his own poetry, then cedes the stage to a series of five- to 10-min ute spots. Each event runs until at least midnight, sometimes 1 a.m., fitting in 20-30 performers — all without breaks.
As a musician and a photographer, Fahrer says he’s worked to have Cellarest be “a tiny mecca for the arts in West Asheville.” Within its first year, he notes, the brewery commis sioned an outdoor naturescape mural by Ricardo Tejeda and Gus Cutty, began regularly featuring local art ists’ works inside and started hosting live music events. But sitting down with Hanson to hear her vision for a reading series proved revelatory. “I felt like she was bringing the missing piece to our space,” Fahrer says. “Since its inception [in March], I’ve personally found Punch Bucket Lit to be one of the most consistently therapeutic and empathetic experi ences that we host at Cellarest. More often than not, you’ll find the words you didn’t know you were looking for to describe an experience and feelings of your own.” Fahrer has Punch Bucket Lit read ings booked through June 2023 and has also scheduled several bonus pop-up events to keep up with the growing popularity. “All in all, we’re grateful and nourished on quality literature and lagers over here,” he says.
“With The Lowdown being located within an outdoor plant/gardening store, this new location creates a very welcoming and inspiring environ ment for all in attendance,” Bowman says. “Also, there’s booze, and a little liquid courage is often useful when it comes to vulnerably sharing yourThepoems.”sign-up sheet is set out around 5:45 p.m., and the events typically begin right at 6 p.m., with Bowman reading a few poems and going over the guidelines for the event. Everyone who signs up gets three to five minutes to read or recite their poetry. Once all interested par ties have participated, they take a 10-minute break, and then writers are invited to give a second reading. The formula has been successful, which Bowman attributes to Poetry Night being less of a performance and more of a way for the commu nity to come together and support one“Ouranother.group has steadily grown, and we have witnessed genuine friendships result from it,” Bowman says. “We have also witnessed increased confidence among par ticipants who now feel led to take on more facilitator-type roles. Over the past 2 1/2 years, my volunteer role as the primary facilitator has helped me tremendously in my own writing as well. Our poets are push ing boundaries, growing as writers and making crucial connections in thisThecommunity.”newestof the three series, Punch Bucket Lit events begin at 6:30 p.m., with a half-hour of min gling. Thirsty attendees can choose from alcoholic and nonalcoholic options, and, at 7 p.m., Hanson introduces the series and the writ ers, who get 20-25 minutes apiece with a 10-minute break between sets. Afterward, the bulk of attend ees continue to hang out and talk with one another, forming bonds that might not occur in more for mal settings. “I love readings at bookstores. I love readings at the university. I love them at art museums,” Hanson says. “But this is more casual and really focused on the writing and the work and people supporting each other. It’s superbeautiful.”
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“We envisioned a space where ‘Ginger and her band’ would go to hang out after band practice, gig gle a little and be creative,” says Tammy Combs, tasting room man ager. “Lime Agave is known to play well with others and is our Siren of Soul — and as a team we decided who better to be the inspiration for our South Slope Lounge? She is a total vibe.”
With the growth, the Ackleys are looking to distribute Ginger’s Revenge products outside North Carolina — eventually in cans, though considering the current aluminum shortage, they’re sticking with glass bottles for now. The Lounge also offers the ability to expand program ming, adding more intimate options like seminars and singer/songwriter performances while keeping ampli fied concerts at the Riverside space.
Edwin Arnaudin
The Lounge can fit around 80 people and will have 17 taps, pour ing Ginger’s Revenge’s year-round beers, rotating seasonal offer ings — including Cucumber Lime Basil Peppermint (summer) and Caramelized Fig & Vanilla (winter) — and small-batch beers available exclusively in the tasting room. Among the other options are non alcoholic beverages, rotating guest taps of traditional beer and even tually draft ginger beer cocktails, made possible by recent changes to state laws.
TWO OF A KIND: Ginger’s Revenge owners Cristina and David Ackley keep their big year going with the opening of their South Slope Lounge in late August. Photo courtesy of Ginger’s Revenge
Earlier this summer, shortly after celebrating five years of operation at their Riverside Drive brewery and taproom, Ginger’s Revenge co-own ers Cristina and David Ackley informed their staff that there would be a “special release” in November. While the crew wondered what kind of creative alcoholic ginger beer might be joining their lineup, the Ackleys soon revealed their surprise answer: Cristina is expecting the couple’s first child in the fall. Before the baby’s arrival, the Ackleys will also welcome another taproom into the mix. Slated for a late August opening, the South Slope Lounge is at 32 Banks Ave., in the former Wehrloom Honey and Meadery“We’vespace.been talking about a sec ond taproom location for years,” David says. “Our taproom at the brewery is not walkable, so it’s been on our minds for a while to figure out a situation that can get more walk-in traffic. And when we saw this one become available, we jumped at it.”
New adventures
BEER @Camdenscoffeehouse • 40 N Main St, Mars Hill, NC
The expansion is especially nota ble for a business that started out as a two-person operation. Though David is coy about whether he envisioned Ginger’s Revenge being this suc cessful when he first started making ginger beer at home a decade ago, or even as his products began attracting a following at Just Brew It and other homebrew festivals, the Ackleys’ belief in their alternative beverage has proved them to be nothing short of “Wevisionaries.definitely saw the potential,” he says. “We were paying attention to the beer industry and had seen what hard cider was doing. We felt like we had an opportunity in that group to create something different.”
To learn more, visit avl.mx/bws.
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LOUNGE LIZARDS
Ginger’s Revenge adds South Slope Lounge
The new location, says Cristina “will allow us to do some playful things that we haven’t had the tap space to Visitorsdo.”can access the Lounge on Banks Avenue through the doors between Buxton Hall Barbecue and Catawba Brewing Co., or via Buxton Avenue in the alleyway behind Green Man Brewery’s Dirty Jack’s taproom. Since the space was already a tasting room, converting it to meet Ginger’s Revenge’s needs has involved min imal work. The Ackleys kept the drawers from beehive boxes that the previous tenants installed and had the walls painted teal in honor of Lime Agave, the guitarist in the fictional band that adorns Ginger’s Revenge’s branding.
X ARTS & CULTURE
CONSISTENCY CREW As is the case at the Riverside Drive location, the Ackleys will carry bar snacks from fellow local producers such as Poppy Handcrafted Popcorn and Roots Hummus. Patrons are also welcome to bring in food from the growing number of neighboring options, including such recent addi tions as Harvest Pizzeria and Green Man Eats, which opened Aug. 18 in the former French Broad Chocolate Factory & Tasting Room.
In doing so, the brewery has become known as a welcoming place where craft beverage consumers can have a memorable experience — a reputation that’s at the core of the Ackleys’ goals for the Lounge.
“David and I both have long back grounds in customer service. We see it as that interaction with someone is your opportunity to make their day better, and all of our team mem bers embrace that,” Cristina says. “Having an inclusive space feels really important for us. We say ‘No matter your beverage persuasion,’ so that even people who don’t drink [alcohol] have cool options.”
RAMBLIN’ MAN: Daidala Ciders founder Chris Heagney has added to his skillset since moving back to Portland, Ore. Photo courtesy of Daidala
Summer is here, and Xpress’ monthly gardening feature is flourishing based on reader questions. Green thumbs & aspiring gardeners alike! Please submit all gardening inquiries to gardening@mountainx.com
Heagney has been assisting Kenyan Originals, a cider company in Kenya, with production strategies and recipe development. “I never imagined that cider would take me to East Africa,” he says. “It has been a wonderful experi ence traveling around the country and working with fresh ingredi ents that are not readily available in the U.S., such as passionfruit andThoughcardamom.”Heagney doesn’t have plans to distribute to Asheville in the near future, he’d like to even tually add the area back to the company’s sales network. (“I would love any excuse to spend more time in North Carolina,” he says.) Until then, he’s navigating the unpredict ability of supply chain and logistical obstacles that come with a focus on distribution, working through everything from extended lead times for label printing to increases in ingredient prices while maintain ing his love for the craft.
On-brand
With Ginger’s Revenge adding its second location within sight of Urban Orchard Cider Co., it got Xpress thinking about the area’s other nonbeer alcoholic beverage producers and what happened to one of its newest additions. Intrepid imbibers may likewise have noticed the absence of Daidala Ciders, which launched in Asheville in 2017 and added a taproom in the Cotton Mill Studios the fol lowing year. Billed as a “nomadic cidery,” which allowed founder Chris Heagney to make imagina tive, small-batch ciders on regional collaborators’ equipment to keep costs low, Daidala doubled down on that concept in September 2020, when Heagney moved back to Portland, Ore. “Like many, Daidala made a pivot in the way the business operated during the pandemic,” Heagney says. “For me, it was closing the retail space and focusing solely on distribution. Although it was sad to say goodbye to the cider bar, it was the right decision to make, and it opened the door to otherWhileopportunities.”hetraded one culturally rich city for another, Heagney nev ertheless misses Asheville’s access to high-quality food, drinks and outdoor activities, as well as its diverse array of music venues and independent movie theaters. He’s also sad to miss out on Ciderfest NC this October but is enjoying the perks of returning to the town where he learned the cider side of fermentation nearly a decade ago at Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider.
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To learn more, visit avl.mx/bwr.
“In many ways, [Portland is] still one of the most exciting plac es to make cider in the country,” Heagney says. “There are many people making fantastic ciders from heirloom apples and fruit that has been bred specifically for cider making. There are also the hopped ciders, the wild cider and plenty of great fruited ciders. There’s a lot of enthusiasm for the craft in the Pacific Northwest.” The collaborative nature of Daidala has led to Heagney work ing with numerous cideries and breweries in the region, each time adjusting his recipes and processes in consideration of the equipment available at the host site. Along the way, Heagney has made several new ciders in Portland, as well as some classics that were carried over from“I’veAsheville.tweaked recipes like Carolina Twang — now Cascadian Twang — which now includes hops to accompany the strong grapefruit character,” he says. “I’ve also done other variations on the sour/gosestyle ciders that we’ve made in theAdditionally,past.”
“New goals include expanding into new markets and working on offering new products,” he says. “Developing new ciders has always been a large part of Daidala’s oper ation — it keeps our customers engaged and preserves my passion for creativity and cider making.”
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New chef on The Block Benne on Eagle has landed its new est executive chef, Robert Alexander, who is tasked with overseeing The Foundry Hotel’s nationally recognized restaurant, in addition to all other food operations on-site. Alexander assumed the position on July 11, moving to Asheville from the Bridgehampton, N.Y., where he worked at JeanGeorges at Topping Rose House.
Ron Jimenez had a literal eye-opening epiphany. “I woke up one morning a couple years ago with an out-of-the-blue conviction to become a vegetarian,” he recalls. “From that day forward, I stopped eating meat and cut back on all animal products.” Raised in Asheville, Jimenez later relocated to Florida to pursue his culinary education before returning to the mountains with his wife and children. At the time of his epiphany, he’d put aside his chef’s hat to work in the health care industry. But he says he missed cooking and witness ing people enjoy his food. His change in diet led him to recon sider his educational background and training; he was also interested in seeing if he could create a concept that would encourage others to con sider giving up meat. Jimenez briefly considered drawing from his Puerto Rican heritage to develop a Caribbean menu, but he felt Middle Eastern cuisine was a more natural option for plant-based dishes and possessed a flavor profile he has always loved.
In July, Jimenez parked Tahini Jar food truck at Asheville Outlets mall, opened the service window and debuted his vegan Middle Eastern menu. “Our first day was a huge suc cess,” he says. “People in Asheville are very curious and willing to try new foods. And there are a lot of vegetarians and vegans here looking for something a little different.”
“We wanted the restaurant to continue to have an African American chef at the helm,” he says. “Benne has had multiple chefs in the four years since it opened, and now it is chef Robert’s chance to show what he’s about and what his take on the restaurant will be.”
The restaurant’s previous chef de cuisines have included Ashleigh Shanti (a 2020 James Beard award finalist for Rising Star Chef of the Year), Malcolm McMillian and Cleophus Hethington (a 2022 James Beard award finalist for Emerging Chef). Hethington departed in June, not long after operating part ner John Fleer (chef/owner of Rhubarb and The Rhu) ended his professional relationship with the hotel. Crosby says that Alexander’s expe rience in boutique hotels overseeing multiple food operations lined up well with The Foundry’s new operational model. As importantly, Alexander was immediately drawn to the history of The“WeBlock.talked about the original con cept of Benne, honoring the culinary traditions created by the African Americans who lived there,” says Crosby. “We discussed the legends whose portraits are on the wall, such as [the late] Mary Jo Johnson and Hanan Shabazz. We want Benne to speak to them, to The Block, to Appalachia and the agricultural bounty we have here.”
Alexander, born and raised in Richmond, Va., first learned to cook at a young age in the kitchen with his father before studying culinary arts in new in food Tahini Jar rolls in with vegan Middle Eastern cuisine
Though he ultimately wants to open a café or small restaurant, Jimenez decided to start with a food truck to test his concept. “It’s always a risk starting a new business and especially a restaurant, but a food truck is fun and relatively low risk, so we went that way.” Currently, the truck can be found Sundays at Asheville Outlet and Wednesday evenings at Mission Hospital. On Thursdays, Jimenez is testing different locations and will add more days of service as he segues out of his part-time job. Though his original intention was to combine vegan and vegetar ian options, the menu is now fully vegan — even the baklava, which he sources from a Middle Eastern bakery in Michigan after failing to find local options. Tahini Jar’s most popular items are the mushroom sha warma pita with fresh-made toum (a Lebanese garlic sauce) and the loaded shawarma fries. “People like that con cept of loaded,” Jimenez says with a laugh. For more information, visit avl.mx/bwu.
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Foundry General Manager Larry Crosby says management was very intentional in the search to fill the role.
ARTS & CULTURE What’s
FOOD ROUNDUP
Raising the bar Cheers to Asheville Rooftop Bar Tours for its third consecutive year in the top 10% of attractions worldwide as determined by Tripadvisor users. The award celebrates businesses that have received multiple excellent reviews from travelers the previous 12 months, recognizing the best expe riences in tourism and hospitality.
Benne on Eagle serves break fast and lunch weekdays, brunch Saturday and Sundays and dinner seven nights a week. Benne on Eagle is at 35 Eagle St. For more information, visit avl.mx/8qq.
Hog heaven
— Kay West X
OUT THE WINDOW: Ron Jimenez serves vegan Middle Eastern food from his Tahini Jar food truck. Photo by Courtney Jimenez 48 College St. Downtown, Asheville ORDER ONLINE: zellasdeli.com 828-505-8455
Pints & pups
Observe the waning dog days of August with a pint in hand and your pup at your side when Highland Brewing releases its final Pints with Purpose beer series of the summer, Hair of the Dog Indian Pale Ale. Gather in the brewery’s expansive meadow on Saturday, Aug. 27, noon-5 p.m., for a dog look-alike and costume contest, an agility course (for canines, not humans), wiener dog races and live music from The New Lefties. In addition, pet-relat ed vendors will be offering the latest in pet needs: Paws Mobile is offering nail trimming and microchipping; Patton Avenue Pet Co. will have a table with prizes; and the team from the Asheville Humane Society will share adoption and donation information. Highland Brewing is at 12 Old Charlotte Highway, Suite 200. For more information, visit avl.mx/bwi.
Luella’s Bar-B-Que is celebrating its 15-year anniversary with whole hogs on open smokers at both Asheville locations. The events will also feature anniversary merchandise giveaways and the release of Luella’s Popcorn Lager, a collaboration with Green Man Brewery. The pig-pickin’ party takes place Thursday, Aug. 25, 3 p.m. until the hog is gone. The event will benefit Downtown Welcome Table and its efforts to combat food insecurity in Western North Carolina. Luella’s Bar-B-Que is located at 501 Merrimon Ave. and 33 Town Square Blvd. in Biltmore Park. For more information, visit avl.mx/bwx.
Wasted away Food Waste Solutions WNC is teaming up with Food Connection, the WNC Farmers Market and DJ’s Pickles to present a free communi ty event at Wedge at Foundation, Tuesday, Aug. 30, 5:30-7 p.m. There will be food storage demos, quick-pick ling tips from chef Don Paleno of DJ’s Pickles, tours of Food Connection’s new mobile meals truck and takehome gifts from the WNC Farmers Market. Local cookbook author Cathy Cleary and Asheville Buncombe Food Policy Council coordinator Gina Smith will also make a short presen tation, “Save the Food: Storage Tips and Quick Preservation Hacks.” Wedge at Foundation is at 5 Foundy St. Learn more at avl.mx/970. Roll the rice Two more Tuesdays remain to buy a raffle ticket for the West Asheville Tailgate Market Summer Rice Raffle contest. The lucky winner will take home a quartet of locally grown rice from Lee’s One Fortune Farm: 1 pound each of sweet sticky, purple, red and brown. Tickets are $2 each and can be purchased Tuesday, Aug. 23, and Tuesday, Aug. 30, at the mar ket information booth. A winner will be drawn Wednesday, Aug. 31. All proceeds benefit the WAVL market, every Tuesday from 3:30-6:30 p.m. at 718 Haywood Road. Learn more at avl.mx/bwh.
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 31 high school. He later went to Johnson & Wales University Charlotte, interned at Walt Disney World and subsequently worked at several high-profile restau rants in Florida and Philadelphia.
Just two more weeks remain to sub mit Western North Carolina amateur and commercially produced wines to the annual WNC Regional Wine Competition hosted by the French Broad Vignerons. There will be two separate competitions: the Vinifera and Hybrid Wine competition, judged Saturday, Sept. 17, and the Muscadine and Fruit Wine competition, judged Sunday, Sept. 18. Medals awarded to wines will be double gold, gold, silver, and bronze. For entry forms and all the informa tion on rules, fees and product require ments, check the organization’s website at avl.mx/bwj.
Kaye Bentley launched Asheville Rooftop Bar Tours in 2018 to showcase city’s rooftop bars that serve crafted cocktails along with panoramic views of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the city’s art deco architecture. The tour also includes a narrated history. For more information, visit avl.mx/5rl.
Crush on you
TASTY
HOT BUNS & MEAT
THE LAST OUT: Though somewhat scatterbrained, this documentary nevertheless provides an intriguing look at Cuban baseball players’ fraught attempts to make it to the Major Leagues. Grade: B-minus — Edwin Arnaudin Find full reviews and local film info at patreon.com/ashevillemoviesashevillemovies.com
The latest East End/Valley Street Community Heritage Festival kicks off Saturday, Aug. 27, at 10 a.m. with a parade down Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. The Kuumba Watoto Dancers, Majorette Dolls of Asheville and Carver High School Band are among the many participants in the morning procession. After the march, the celebration continues at Martin Luther King Jr. Park, where vendors, food trucks and live music acts will keep the festivities going until 10 p.m. “The festival is a transformative placemaking activity that aims not only to reinvigorate — and in many cases, repair — our public realm and trust, but to remake relation ships between place and economy in ways that generate lasting mem ories and legacies,” says Renée White, the event founder and pres ident of the East End/Valley Street Neighborhood Association. As noted on the association’s website, the East End/Valley Street neighborhood was once the cen ter of Asheville’s Black communi ty, with several churches located in the area, as well as the former Allen High School and StephensLee High School. But by the 1970s, urban renewal destroyed homes and uprooted many residents.
The theme for this year’s gath ering is “We Rise as One,” notes White. The festival, she continues, aims to bring together all walks of life to share stories of the neigh borhood’s history as well as create newAlongmemories.withplenty of live enter tainment, the celebration will also feature kid-friendly activities, including inflatables, face painting, balloon twisting, crafts, games and a bubble machine.
The following month, the ALT ASO mobile chamber orchestra series returns, kicking off at Hi-Wire Brewing AVL RAD Beer Garden on Tuesday, Sept. 13, at 7 p.m. According to the symphony’s web site, the season debut will feature a hybrid New Orleans jazz band and Balkan brass band.
The MCI and EBCI Tribal Historic Preservation Office will work togeth er to return the artifacts to Cherokee ancestralAnnouncementshomeland.on the project’s progress will be shared via the muse um’s website. The Museum of the Cherokee Indian is at 589 Tsali Blvd., Cherokee. Hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. For more information and ticket prices, visit avl.mx/afa.
HALLELUJAH: LEONARD COHEN, A JOURNEY, A SONG: Daniel Geller’s and Dayna Goldfine’s engaging documentary lovingly recounts the revered singer/songwriter’s personal and professional lives and the role that his biggest hit played along the way. Grade: B-plus — Edwin Arnaudin
A designated facility allows the MCI to grow its collections, with an emphasis on works by living Cherokee artists and craftspeople. The museum will also implement a collections care policy prioritiz ing Cherokee cultural protocols.
The East End/Valley Street Community Heritage Festival returns ROUNDUPARTS&CULTURE
CELEBRATING GOOD TIMES: After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The East End/Valley Street Community Heritage Festival re turns. Renée White, featured, is the event founder and president of the East End/Valley Street Neighborhood Association. Photo courtesy of the EEVS Neighborhood Association
MOVIE REVIEWS Local reviewers’ critiques of new films include:
“[We want] to make the ASO as relevant as possible, while also maintaining sky-high artistic stan dards,” says Executive Director Daniel Crupi. “We are seeking to do just that by continuing commu nity engagement work, expanding music education programs and utilizing a [variety] of local ven ues from churches to breweries to music clubs.”
The latest Community Heritage Festival, continues White, is in honor of Mack Moore of M&M Heating and Cooling, who died in “Mack2019. worked endlessly to give back to East End and made sure that the neighborhood legacy remained in the forefront,” says White. “He never missed an opportunity to support, sponsor, help or lead the way for the East End communi ty to remain vibrant and to never be forgotten.” Martin Luther King Jr. Park is at 50 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. For more information, visit avl.mx/bw4.
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The Asheville Symphony Orchestra’s season will launch with the free Symphony in the Park con cert in Pack Square Park, Sunday, Aug. 28, at 7 p.m. Conducted by ASO music director Darko Butorac, the concert will feature music from Pirates of the Caribbean; The Sound of Music; The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and more.
Symphony in the Park
Around Town
Moving on out The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians recently issued a land use permit to the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, allowing the lat ter to construct an off-site facility to house its growing collection. The facility will be near Kituwah, Mother Town of the Cherokee. Museum collections include arti facts, documents, photographs, maps and audiovisual materials pertain ing to the EBCI, Cherokee Nation and the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians. “I hope that our Cherokee visi tors feel represented and connected when they visit both the museum and the collections facility,” says MCI director of operations Michael Slee. “These spaces were created to reflect and serve them. I hope that our non-Cherokee visitors can relate to the authenticity of the sto ries we tell.”
Only humanity Asheville psychiatric nurse Maura Lin recently self-published her debut novel, Any Joe
Pack Square Park is at 80 Court Plaza. Hi-Wire Brewing AVL RAD Beer Garden is at 284 Lyman St. For more information, visit avl.mx/bwa.
— Flora Konz
“Enhancing psychosocial and cri sis intervention programs with the community to support the most vul nerable could be a first step for pre venting and mitigating domestic vio lence and sexual crimes,” she says. For more information or to pur chase Any Joe, visit avl.mx/bwg. Fall for art Western Carolina University’s John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center will present four new exhibitions starting this month.
X blo od at the ro ot a play written by Dominique Morisseau different strokes! performing arts collective presents August 25-September10 IMPERIAL 48 College St., AVL, NC 28801 Above Zella’s Deli imperial-avl.com • 828-505-8455 Closed on Wednesdays Call about Private Events Asheville'sMezcalleriaonly DJ every night! Why I Xpress:support “I depend on Mountain Xpress every Wednesday for keeping me in the know. Can’t imagine life without it!” – Susan Roderick Join Susan and become a member at SupportMountainX.com
Cultivating Collections: Glass fea tures student-led research providing information on the museum’s glass collection, which includes many art ists connected to the region. The exhibit is on display through Dec. 9. All exhibitions are free and open to the public. The John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center is at 199 Centennial Drive, Cullowhee. Hours are Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., and Thursday, 10 a.m.7 p.m. For more information, visit avl.mx/bvg.
In the book, Lin examines the lives of two fictional youths, Joe and Cherie, who must navigate their challenging home and social lives.
“There is no pure evil or goodness among humankind … there’s only humanity,” says Lin. “Each of us is capable of anything, given the right circumstances.” Any Joe shows the power behind healthier families, and Lin hopes that the book encourages families in need of support to reach out.
The author says she aims to help readers understand how a person’s family history influences many of their decisions throughout life.
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We Will Not Be Silenced: Standing for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women brings voice to the inter national Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women movement through the eyes of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Comanche Nation, Lumbee and other Native American artists. The exhibit will be on display through Dec. 9. When Was the Last Time You Saw a Miracle? features a selection of prints from the late Corita Kent, an artist, teacher and Catholic nun whose works convey messages of hope. The exhibit displays through Oct. 21. The Way I’m Wired: Artist Reflections on Neurodiversity invites artists to share their experiences with neurodiversity and how those experiences influence their art. The exhibit is open through Dec. 9.
HARMONYCLUBLANDATHOMINY:
THE OUTPOST Richard Barrett and Friends: Jay Franck (Americana, er-songwriter),sing6pm THE ROOT BAR Music Train (Grateful Dead, Southern rock), 6:30pm CHEROKEEHARRAH'S CENTERASHEVILLE Vince Gill (country), 6:30pm AUGUSTFRIDAY, 26 185 KING STREET Jack Marion and The Pearl Snap Prophets & The Brothers Gillespie (modern rock),AppalachianAmericana,roots,8pm 27 CLUB Fault Union w/ Fear Illusion, Victim Complex & 9pmcountryugly(metal/hardcore,Hempirerock'n'roll,highhashthrash), ALLEY CAT SOCIAL CLUB Friday Nite Salsa Dancing, 8pm ASHEVILLE BEAUTY ACADEMY • Early Dance Party, •7pmVenus (dark house dance party), 10pm ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Mr Jimmy's Big City Blues, 8pm ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Bricksquash & Vide, Cloud D, Kozmic, Exiszt (edm), 8pm BLACK BREWINGMOUNTAIN Andrew Wakefield (folk, rock, bluegrass), 6pm BOLD ASHEVILLEROCK Noah Fowler er-songwriter),(sing8pm BOLD ROCK MILLS RIVER Local Gossip Party Band: Summer Dance Party, 6pm BOTTLE RIOT DJ James Nasty, 7pm BREWSKIES Karaoke, 10pm CAFE CANNA Anniversary Party w/ DJ Ek Balam, Mad Mike and Eaze Dogg, 8pm
TAPROOMDOWNTOWNHIGHLAND Moon Water (Ameri cana roots), 6pm ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 • Asheville Sessions ft Robert Thomas (jazz, pop, rock, blues), 7pm • Poncé & Chilltonic (rock, hip-hop, funk, reggae), 8:30pm JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Bluegrass Jam w/Drew Matulich & Friends, 7pm MAD CO. BREW HOUSE Karaoke Night, 6pm BREWINGOKLAWAHACO. Kool Dewey 7pm(singer-songwriter),Kudzu
PISGAH COMPANYBREWING Ashley Heath and Her Heathens, 6:30pm RENDEVOUS Gin Mill Pickers (Amer icana, Piedmont blues, ragtime), 6pm SALVAGE STATION Devin the Dude (rap), 8pm SOVEREIGN KAVA Stand Up Comedy for Your Health, 8pm STATIC RECORDSAGE Basement Brain, LiNE & Super Flower (indie/ experiemental), 9pm THE HOTELFOUNDRY The Foundry Collective ft Pimps of Pompe (jazz, acoustic), 7pm THE GETAWAY RIVER BAR • Rum Punchlines Com edy Open Mic, 6pm • Karaoke w/Terraoke, 9pm THE GREY EAGLE • Bald Mountain Boys (bluegrass), 5pm • Josh Morningstar w/ Trae Sheehan (country), 8pm THE ODD Bumpin' Uglies Pres ents Emo Night, 8pm
THE ORANGE PEEL Shinedown (rock), 8pm
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Local “bluegrasstafari” band The Pond Brothers Trio will play at FBO at Hominy Creek on Saturday, Aug. 27, 4-6 p.m. The venue, which is on a peninsula where the creek meets the French Broad River, has a few picnic tables along the water and kayak rentals. Photo courtesy of The Pond Brothers Trio
For questions about free listings, call 828-251-1333, opt. 4.
ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Phirsty Phursdays w/ Lumpy Heads (Phish tribute), 9pm ONE BREWINGWORLD Noah Fowler er-songwriter),(sing8pm ONE BREWINGWORLDWEST Squatch (Appalachian, roots), 8pm
12AUGUSTWEDNESDAY,24BONESBREWERY Robert's Totally Rad Trivia, 7pm 185 KING STREET Trivia Night: 90s Themed, 7pm ASHEVILLE BEAUTY ACADEMY Aquanet Goth Party w/ Ash Black, 9pm ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Disclaimer Stand-Up Comedy Open Mic, 8pm ASHEVILLE PIZZA & BREWING CO. Trivia! Trivia! Night, 6:30pm BLACK BREWINGMOUNTAIN Jay Brown (roots), 6pm BOLD ASHEVILLEROCK Survey Says: Family Feud Style Trivia, 7pm BOLD ROCK MILLS RIVER Trivia Night, 6pm BOTTLE RIOT Wax Wednesday w/the Riot Squad, 7pm CATAWBA BREWING BILTMORE Singo (musical bingo), 7pm CATAWBA BREWING SOUTH SLOPE Trivia w/Billy, 7pm HI-WIRE BREWING Weekly Trivia Night, 7pm HI-WIRE BREWING RAD BEER GARDEN Game Night, 6pm HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Well-Crafted Wednes days w/Matt Smith, 6pm ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 Sophie & the Broken Things w/Stacy Antonel (Americana, country), 7:30pm JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Old Time Jam, 5pm BREWINGOKLAWAHACO. Mountain Music Jam, 6pm ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Wild 10pmWednesdays, ONE BREWINGWORLDWEST Latin Night Wednes days w/DJ Mtn Vibez, 8pm RENDEZVOUS Albi (musique Fran caise), 6pm SILVERADOS Wednesday Night Open Jam hosted by Hamza Vandehey, 6pm BREWERYAPPALACHIANSOUTHERN Jazz Night DeCristofaro,w/Jason6pm STATIC AGE RECORDS Advertisement, Powder Horns & Walkhome (rock), 9pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Witty Wednesday Trivia, 6:30pm THE DUGOUT Karaoke Party w/ Sandman, 8pm THE HOTELFOUNDRY Andrew Finn Magill (acoustic), 7pm THE GREY EAGLE Travis Book & Friends ft Alexa Rose (indie folk), 7pm THE POE HOUSE Team Trivia w/Wes Ganey, 7pm TWIN LEAF BREWERY Open Mic, 6pm WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Traditional Irish Music Session, 7pm 185AUGUSTTHURSDAY,25KINGSTREET Ages Past (bluegrass), 7pm ASHEVILLE BEAUTY ACADEMY Kiki Thursdays Drag and Dancing, 8pm ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR • Blue Ridge Jazzway, •7:30pmMGB (covers, sing er-songwriter), 8pm BATTERY PARK BOOK EXCHANGE Dinah's Daydream (Gypsy jazz), 5:30pm BOLD ASHEVILLEROCK Trivia Night w/Mindless Minutia, 7pm BOLD ROCK HARD CIDER Robert's Totally Rad Trivia, 7pm CAFE CANNA SpanGLISH Karaoke Patio Party, 9pm CATAWBA BREWING BILTMORE Thursday Trivia w/Billy, 6:30pm CROW & QUILL Black Sea Beat Society (Baltic, Turkish),Klezmer,8pm DOUBLE CROWN Gospel Night w/Ray & The Gospel Keys, 9pm FLEETWOOD'S The Stargazer Lilies, Red Feather, Day and Dream (dream pop, ambient rock, shoegaze), 8pm FRENCH BREWERYBROAD Jerry's Dead (Grateful Dead & JGB Tribute), 6pm
THE ROOT BAR Lucky James & the High Rollers (blues), 8pm BREWINGUPCOUNTRYCOMPANY Metro Rock, 6pm WXYZ BAR AT ALOFT DJ Molly Parti, 7pm 27AUGUSTSUNDAY,28CLUB Hex Sign, The Discs & Plaid Overdrive (alt/ indie), 8pm ASHEVILLE BEAUTY ACADEMY SOL Dance Party w/ Zati (soul house), 9pm ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Mark's House Jam and Beggar's Banquet, 3pm BENT CREEK BISTRO Old Men of the Woods (folk, pop), 1pm BLACK BREWINGMOUNTAIN The Dark City Kings (outlaw country, rock), 3pm BLUE BREWINGGHOSTCO. Sunday Open Jam w/ Knob Creek Incident, 4pm BOLD ASHEVILLEROCK Bluegrass Brunch, 10am
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SILVERADOS Ward Davis (country), 7pm SOVEREIGN KAVA Royal Skyyy (hip-hop/ rap), 9pm STATIC RECORDSAGE Upchuck w/Psychic Death (alt/indie), 9pm SUNNY POINT CAFÉ Albi (fingerstyle guitar), 6pm THE BURGER BAR Best Worst Karaoke w/ KJ Thunderk*nt, 9pm THE HOTELFOUNDRY Jazz Soul Trio, 7:30pm THE GETAWAY RIVER BAR Slasher (hard dance party), 10pm THE GREY EAGLE • The Squealers & Fortezza (punk), 5pm • Mac Arnold & Plate Full o' Blues w/Roots and Dore, 8pm THE GROCERY Gin Mill Pickers (Amer icana, Piedmont blues, ragtime), 6:30pm THE LOFT CAFE & PUB Geriatric Jukebox (oldies), 6pm THE ODD Party Foul Drag and Whiskey & Gogo, 8pm
CEDAR CANTEENMOUNTAIN Jazz w/Jason DeCristo faro, 2pm CORK & KEG The Old Chevrolette Set (classic country), 8pm CROW & QUILL The Sufi Brothers (vintage rock'n'roll), 8pm DRY FALLS BREWING CO. CPR (rock), 7pm FBO AT HOMINY CREEK Bald Mountain Boys (bluegrass), 6pm FLEETWOOD'S Smoky Mountain Sirensw/GÄK & Guy (punk/alt-rock),Roswell8pm GINGER'S REVENGE CRAFT BREWERY & TASTING ROOM Eliza Thorn (blues, soul, country Americana), 7pm GUIDON BREWING Baggage Brothers (acoustic duo), 7pm HIGHLAND BREWING CO. We Have Ignition (surf rock), 7pm TAPROOMDOWNTOWNHIGHLAND • Drag Music Bingo w/ Divine the Bearded Lady, 7pm • Take Out (rock, country, disco), 7pm ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 • Tyler Nail (Americana, soul, funk), 7pm • Dave Jordan & The NIA (rock, funk, R&B), 8:30pm JACK OF THE WOOD PUB The Well Americana),(progressiveDrinkersbluegrass9pm MAD CO. BREW HOUSE Kid Billy (roots, blues, ragtime), 6:30pm MOTELMEADOWLARK Friday Night Karaoke, 7pm MILLS BREWINGRIVERCO. Raditude (rock), 7pm NEW BREWINGBELGIUMCO. Queen Bee & The Honeylovers (swing), 5:30pm BREWINGOKLAWAHACO. Twisted Trail (Southern rock, blues, country), 8pm ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Free Dead Friday w/ Generous Electric and Gus & Phriends, 6:15pm ONE BREWINGWORLD 5j Barrow (folk rock), 8pm ONE BREWINGWORLDWEST • Pimps of Pompe (jazzed-up pop & hiphop), 6pm • Below the Bassline (jazz, reggae, world rhythms), 9:30pm RHAPSODYRIVERSIDE BEER CO. River Logic, 6pm SALVAGE STATION Red Clay Revival (Smoky Mountain soul grass), 8pm SILVERADOS Eric Gales w/Andrew Scotchie & the River Rats (blues, rock), 7pm SOVEREIGN KAVA Lo Wolf, Lau Magie & Brennan Carroll (sing er-songwriter), 9pm THE GETAWAY RIVER BAR • Getaway Comedy: Brad Sativa, 8pm • Ho Down: a Honky Tonk Drag Show w/ Nova Jynah, 10pm THE GREY EAGLE • The Mango Furs (psych), 6pm • Circles Around The Sun (indie roots/folk), 9pm THE ODD Perversions: August Edition (play party), 8pm THE ORANGE PEEL The Hot Girls’ End of Summer Report, 8pm WXYZ BAR AT ALOFT Jay Dipaola (Ameri cana), 7pm EATERY305AUGUSTSATURDAY,27LOUNGE& Old Men of the Woods (folk, pop), 1pm ASHEVILLE BEAUTY ACADEMY Big Gay Energy Dance Party w/DJ Ganymede (dance, pop, house), 10pm ASHEVILLE CLUB Mr Jimmy (blues), 8pm ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Vince Junior Band (local craft blues), 8pm ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL The Chase Brothers ft Chris Bullock of Snarky Puppy, 10pm BATTERY PARK BOOK EXCHANGE Dinah's Daydream (Gypsy jazz), 5:30pm BOLD ASHEVILLEROCK Buffalo Kings (blues country, soul, rock), 7pm BOLD ROCK MILLS RIVER • Bee Bold Bee Fest w/ Apple Country String Band, 11am • TrancEnd (trip-hop), 6pm BREWSKIES Pool Saturdays,Tournament7pm CORK & KEG Zydeco Ya Ya (Cajun), 8pm DRY FALLS BREWING CO. Bad Rabbit (alt country, rock), 7pm FBO AT HOMINY CREEK • SUP Race w/DJ Jut Rut, 11am • The Pond Brothers Trio (bluegrasstafari), •6pmBrushfire Stankgrass, 7pm FLEETWOOD'S Katie Sachs and The Attacks w/Aunt Vicki & The Deathbots (rock, indie rock, punk rock), 8pm GINGER'S REVENGE CRAFT BREWERY & TASTING ROOM Tina and Her Pony (folk, Americana), 4pm GUIDON BREWING Daniel Sage (rock), 6:30pm HIGHLAND TAPROOMDOWNTOWNBREWING Up Jumped Three (jazz), 7pm ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 • Highland 8:30pmer-songwriter,•(Americana,Reveriefolk),7pmAnneSteele(singclassics), JACK OF THE WOOD PUB • Nobody’s Darling String Band, 4pm • Big Dawg Slingshots (Western swing), 9pm MOTELMEADOWLARK BBQ & Live Music w/Mike (acoustic),Ogletree6pm MILLS BREWINGRIVERCO. • Auragami (jam band), •2pmChalwa (reggae), 7pm BREWINGOKLAWAHACO.
Caitlin Krisko & The Broadcast (psych pop), 9pm ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Crypto Wave Radio (edm), 10pm ONE BREWINGWORLDWEST • Drip A Silver (Jerry Garcia tribute), 5pm • Adam Knight's Buried Alive (Phish tribute), 9pm OSKAR BREWERYBLUES Ras Alan & The Lions (Applachian reggae roots), 6pm RABBIT RABBIT Thundercat (R&B, soul, jazz), 6pm RHAPSODYRIVERSIDE BEER CO. Stevie Lee 6pm(singer-songwriter),Combs
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The Current classical,(Americana,soul),7:30pm JACK OF THE WOOD PUB • Bluegrass Brunch, •12pmTraditional Irish Jam, 4pm MILLS BREWINGRIVERCO. Dirty Dawg (acoustic, Grateful Dead, Jerry Garcia), 2pm ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Shakedown Sundays (rock, jam band), 8pm ONE BREWINGWORLDWEST Sunday Jazz Jam & Brunch w/The Fully Vaccinated Trio, 1pm OSKAR BREWERYBLUES
Vollie McKenzie w/Elise Leavey & Gina Leslie (Americana, country, jazz), 6pm CROW & QUILL The Roaring Lions (parlour jazz), 8pm DSSOLVR Misery Loves Company (emo), 6pm FBO AT HOMINY CREEK The Get Right Band (psychdelic indie rock), 5pm FLEETWOOD'S Country Night w/Lo Wolf, Jessie Smith, C.A. Blomquist, Kelly Reidy, 6pm HI-WIRE BREWING Cornhole Tournament, 4pm ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 • Chuck •acoustic),(Americana,Brodskyfolk,6pmHank,Pattie&
CORK & KEG
Robert's Totally Rad Trivia, 7pm ASHEVILLE BEAUTY ACADEMY • Beauty Parlor Come dy: Anya Volz, 7pm • Aquanet Goth Party w/Ash Black, 9pm ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Disclaimer Stand-Up Lounge Comedy Open Mic, 8pm ASHEVILLE PIZZA & BREWING CO. Trivia! Trivia! Night, 6:30pm BLACK BREWINGMOUNTAIN Jay Brown (roots), 6pm BOLD ASHEVILLEROCK Survey Says: Family Feud Style Trivia, 7pm BOLD ROCK MILLS RIVER Trivia Night, 6pm
5AUGUSTMONDAY,29WALNUTWINE
BOTTLE RIOT Wax Wednesday w/the Riot Squad, 7pm CATAWBA BREWING BILTMORE Singo (musical bingo), 7pm CATAWBA BREWING SOUTH SLOPE Trivia w/Billy, 7pm HI-WIRE BREWING Weekly Trivia Night, 7pm HI-WIRE BREWING RAD BEER GARDEN Game Night, 6pm HIGHLAND BREWING CO. Well-Crafted Wednes days w/Matt Smith, 6pm JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Old Time Jam, 5pm BREWINGOKLAWAHACO. Mountain Music Jam, 6pm ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Wild 10pmWednesdays, ONE BREWINGWORLDWEST Latin Night Wednes days w/DJ Mtn Vibez, 8pm RENDEZVOUS Albi (musique Fran caise), 6pm
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SILVERADOS Wednesday Night Open Jam hosted by Hamza Vandehey, 6pm BREWERYAPPALACHIANSOUTHERN Jazz Night DeCristofaro,w/Jason6pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Witty Wednesday Trivia, 6:30pm THE DUGOUT Karaoke Party w/ Sandman, 8pm THE HOTELFOUNDRY Andrew Finn Magill (acoustic), 7pm THE GREY EAGLE Night Palace, Kenosha Kid & Cicada Rhythm (alt/indie), 7pm THE HAWK HAWTHORNE& Paul Izak Trio & The Freedom Family Band (folk, blues, rock), 6pm THE POE HOUSE Team Trivia w/Wes Ganey, 7pm TWIN LEAF BREWERY Open Mic, 6pm SEPTEMBERTHURSDAY, 1 185 KING STREET Congdon & Co. ft Hope Griffin (covers), 7pm 27 CLUB Thursday Night Trivia w/Joan Wilder, 10pm ASHEVILLE BEAUTY ACADEMY Kiki Thursdays Drag and Dancing, 8pm ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR • Jazz 8pm•7:30pmThursday,BlueRidgeJazzway, ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Kursa & Murkury (edm), 9:30pm BLACK BREWINGMOUNTAIN The Blushin' Roulettes' (Americana), 6pm BOLD ASHEVILLEROCK Trivia Night w/Mindless Minutia, 7pm BOLD ROCK HARD CIDER Robert's Totally Rad Trivia, 7pm CAFE CANNA SpanGLISH Karaoke Patio Party, 9pm CATAWBA BREWING BILTMORE Thursday Trivia w/Billy, 6:30pm DIANA THEATREWORTHAM Comedy Night: Night of National Comedians,Headlining8pm FRENCH BREWERYBROAD Jerry's Dead (Grateful Dead, JGB tribute), 6pm ISIS MUSIC HALL & KITCHEN 743 • Asheville Sessions ft Marisa Blake (jazz, rock, blues), 7pm • Will Overman & The Brothers Gillespie (rock, pop, Americana), 8:30pm JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Bluegrass Jam w/Drew Matulich & Friends, 7pm ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Phirsty Phursdays w/ Lumpy Heads (Phish tribute), 9pm ONE BREWINGWORLDWEST Thursday Residency w/Ben Balmer (rootsy contemporary Ameri cana), 7pm RENDEVOUS Gin Mill Pickers (Amer icana, Piedmont blues, ragtime), 6pm THE FOUNDRY HOTEL The Foundry Collective ft Pimps of Pompe (jazz, acoustic), 7pm THE GETAWAY RIVER BAR • Rum Punchlines Com edy Open Mic, 6pm • Karaoke w/Terraoke, 9pm CLUBLAND
Mr Jimmy & Wild Bill Loftus (blues), 2pm PISGAH BREWING CO. Sunday Jam hosted by Spiro and Friends, 6:30pm STATIC RECORDSAGE Night Teacher w/ Laura Boswell (folk, electro-pop, blues rock), 9pm THE GREY EAGLE • Larkin (singer-song writer), 5pm • Elana Brody & Madelyn Ilana er-songwriter),(sing8pm THE ODD Urban Combat Wres tling Presents: Fight Night, 8pm THE ORANGE PEEL Satisfaction: The International Rolling Stones Show, 8pm CHEROKEEHARRAH'S CENTERASHEVILLE Heilung (experimental folk), 6:30pm ZILLICOAH BEER CO. PubSing (Gospel jam & sing-along), 4pm PLĒB URBAN WINERY Robert's Totally Rad Trivia, 4pm BAR Freshen Up Comedy Showcase, 7pm ASHEVILLE BEAUTY ACADEMY Martini Monday, 8pm BREWSKIES Open Jam w/Tall Paul, 7:30pm CATAWBA BREWING SOUTH SLOPE Musicians in the Round, 6pm DSSOLVR Robert's Totally Rad Trivia, 7pm GREEN BREWERYMAN Old Time Jam, 5:30pm HAYWOOD COUNTRY CLUB Taylor Martin's Open Mic, 6:30pm JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Quizzo! Pub Trivia w/ Jason Mencer, 7:30pm LITTLE JUMBO Live Jazz Mondays: Fly Casual Organ Quartet ft Brian Felix, 7pm BREWINGOKLAWAHACO. • Oklawaha Synthesizer Club, 6pm • It Takes All Kinds Open Mic Night, 7pm ONE BREWINGWORLD Open Mic Willingham,w/Tony8pm STATIC RECORDSAGE Deer Scout w/Bacchus (indie, folk), 9pm THE GETAWAY RIVER BAR Trivia by the River w/ James Harrod, 8pm THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Mr Jimmy at and Friends (blues), 7pm THE ODD War Cloud, Rocky MTN Roller, Bone Dozer (heavy metal, rowdy rock), 8pm 185AUGUSTTUESDAY,30KINGSTREET Sticks N' Thorns ft Jon Stickley & Andy Thorn w/Travis Book (genre defying bluegrass), 6:30pm 27 CLUB Dead Billionaires, Safety Coffin & Carpal Tullar (indie punk, blues rock, prog pop), 9pm 5 WALNUT WINE BAR The John Henrys (jazz, swing), 8pm ASHEVILLE BEAUTY ACADEMY Downtown Karaoke w/ Ganymede, 9pm ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Tuesday Night Funk Jam, 10pm BOTTLE RIOT Turntable Tuesday w/ DJ Lil Meow Meow, 7pm CASCADE LOUNGE Tuesday Bluegrass Jam, 6pm FLEETWOOD'S Heavy Metal Mixer w/ Reuben, 6pm FRENCH BREWERYBROAD Robert's Totally Rad Trivia, 7pm HEMINGWAY'S CUBA Para Gozar (Cuban), 6pm TAPROOMDOWNTOWNHIGHLAND Not Rocket Science Trivia, 6:30pm ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Early Tuesday Jam (funk), 9pm ONE BREWINGWORLDWEST Grateful Family Band Tuesdays (Dead tribute), 6pm PULP All Hobo Magic Show, 7:30pm RHAPSODYRIVERSIDE BEER CO. Anniversary Party w/ Pocket Strange (rock), 2pm SALVAGE STATION Dispatch & O.A.R. w/G. Love (rock), 6pm STATIC RECORDSAGE Stuck (alt/indie), 9pm THE BURGER BAR C U Next Tuesday! Late Night Trivia w/ Cervix-A-Lot, 9pm WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Open Mic Night, 7pm 12AUGUSTWEDNESDAY,31BONESBREWERY
Going out of business sale. Loveseat, rugs, tables, 2 - large computer desks, bookshelves, dishes, chairs, throw pillows, frames, some other misc. Items range in price from $1-100. Sale will be in Suite #11 of the REFINERY, 207 Coxe Ave. 28801, from 9-3 on Saturday, Aug. 27th, if items still available).
Large property management company seeks a full-time person. Every day is different, it is a fast-paced position. Must be a quick leaner with experience in Microsoft office. Person would be responsible for keeping projects and files in order and provide resources to vendors and staff. Preferred to have basic knowledge in collecting bids, electrical, mechanical, and other things building and facility management, but not required. Must be a team player with good communication skills, be organized and be willing to take on responsibilities.
+$1000NEVADALINEsierranevada.com/careers/https://COOK-SIERRABREWINGSIGNONBONUSBENEFITS
AUG. 24-30, 2022 MOUNTAINX.COM38
The Dishwasher, who reports to the BOH Supervisor, is a member of the kitchen team who will receive and organize products; wash and sanitize equipment, plates, utensils, and spaces; stock equipment as needed in order to maintain proper BOH operations for the continuity of the guest experience.
SHOWROOMFORISTRATIVEBOOKKEEPER/ADMIN-comASSISTANTLOCALRETAIL
4 hrs/ day M-F: morning hours preferred but negotiable. Extensive knowledge of Microsoft Office and Quickbooks required. Excellent communication skills. Small business experience a plus. email resume to: bellahardwareandbath.comadmin@ no phone calls or drop-ins.
DOGcareers/https://sierranevada.com/BATHERNEEDED!
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Whenever you are contemplating a major decision, I hope you raise questions like these: 1. Which option shows the most self-respect? 2. Which path would be the best way to honor yourself? 3. Which choice is most likely to help you fulfill the purposes you came to earth to carry out? 4. Which course of action would enable you to express your best gifts? Are there questions you would add, Virgo? I expect the coming months will require you to generate key decisions at a higher rate than usual, so I hope you will make intensive use of my guiding inquiries, as well as any others you formulate.
The Line Cook is a member of the kitchen team, who will work closely with all other positions in the Back of the House operations to prep, cook, and expedite food to the guests ordering onsite, delivery, and to-go. The Line Cook, who reports to the BOH Supervisor Team, operates grills, fryers, broilers, and other commercial cooking equipment to prepare and serve food.
GENERALEMPLOYMENTBREWERYSUPPORTWORK-ER
HIRING? Advertise your job listings Place your ad here and get a FREE online posting Contact us today! advertise@mountainx.com
Shampoodles Salon is hiring! We need a dog bather for our busy salon. 17/hr. 30-40 hours per week. Contact Richard @ 828-707-4620 or comshampoodlessalon@gmail.KNOCKERFILElon.comwww.shampoodlessa-RUNNER/DOOR We do research on properties and need to check court files and speak to homeowners about their options. $25-$50 per job. Please call Bob 510-522SKILLED6888 LABOR/ FULLTRADESTIME
with excellent diagnostic skills, detail-oriented, good communicator, and passionate about serving our program participants. 25
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): In the Spanish language, there’s the idiom pensando en la inmortalidad del cangrejo. Its literal translation is “thinking about the immortality of the crab.” It applies to a person engaged in creative daydreaming — her imagination wandering freely in hopes of rousing innovative solutions to practical dilemmas. Other languages have similar idioms. In Finnish, istun ja mietin syntyjä syviä means “wondering about the world’s early origins.” Polish has marzyć o niebieskich migdałach, or “dreaming about blue almonds.” I encourage you to enjoy an abundance of such explorations in the coming days, Capricorn. You need to fantasize more than usual.
$350/mo medical stipend.
ANTIQUES STILLCOLLECTIBLES&BUYINGANTIQUES Seeking old stuff! Cast iron, advertising signs, military, primitives, collections, art, pottery, estates, crocks, bottles, silver, license plates, unusual stuff, taxidermy, rifles, bbguns, more. Call/ Text •COMPANIONCAREGIVERSaim1@yahoo.com828-582-6097,steady-SERVICES•CAREGIVERLIVE-IN VACCINATED • Alzheimer's Experienced • Heart failure and bed sore care • Hospice reference letter • Nonsmoker, with cat, seeks live-in position • References • Arnold, (828) MEN'SPAYINGANNOUNCEMENTSANNOUNCEMENTS273-2922.TOPCA$HFORSPORTWATCHES! Rolex, Breitling, Omega, Patek Philippe, Heuer, Daytona, GMT, Submariner and Speedmaster. Call 888SPECTRUM320-1052 INTERNET AS LOW AS $29.99! Call to see if you qualify for ACP and free internet. No Credit Check. Call Now! 833-955-0905 TRAIN ONLINE TO DO MEDICAL BILLING! Become a Medical Office Professional online at CTI! Get Trained, Certified & ready to work in months! Call 866-243-5931 (M-F 8am-6pm ET). Computer with internet is required. MIND, BODY, ASTRO-COUNSELINGSERVICESCOUNSELINGSPIRIT Licensed counselor and accredited professional astrologer uses your chart when counseling for additional insight into yourself, your relationships and life directions. Stellar Counseling Services. Christy Gunther, MA, LCMHC. (828) 258-3229 REAL ESTATE & RENTALS | ROOMMATES | JOBS | SERVICES ANNOUNCEMENTS | CLASSES & WORKSHOPS | MIND, BODY, SPIRIT MUSICIANS’ SERVICES | PETS | AUTOMOTIVE | XCHANGE | ADULT Want to advertise in Marketplace? 828-251-1333 advertise@mountainx.com • mountainx.com/classifieds If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Remember the Russian proverb: “Doveryai, no proveryai,” trust but verify. When answering classified ads, always err on the side of caution. Especially beware of any party asking you to give them financial or identification information. The Mountain Xpress cannot be responsible for ensuring that each advertising client is legitimate. Please report scams to advertise@mountainx.com MARKETPLACEFREEWILL ASTROLOGY BY ROB BREZSNY
apply: •https://bit.ly/WWAutoTech FACILITIESTOADMINISTRATIONOFFICEADMINISTRATIVE/orgwww.workingwheelswnc.ASST.THEDIRECTOROF
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): You should never allow yourself to be tamed by others. That advice is always apropos for you Leos, and even more crucial to heed in the coming weeks. You need to cultivate maximum access to the raw, primal sources of your life energy. Your ability to thrive depends on how well you identify and express the beautiful animal within you. Here’s my only caveat: If you imagine there may be value in being tamed a little, in harnessing your brilliant beast, do the taming yourself. And assign that task to the part of you that possesses the wildest wisdom.
CIAN Seeking
35 hrs/ wk; $20-22.50/hr
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Kabbalistic writer Simon Jacobson says, “Like a flame, the soul always reaches upward. The soul’s fire wants to defy the confines of life. It cannot tolerate the mediocrity and monotony of sheer materialism. Its passion knows no limits as it craves for the beyond.” That sounds both marvelous and hazardous, right? Jacobson concludes, “Whether the soul’s fire will be a constructive or destructive force is dependent on the person’s motivation.” According to my astrological analysis, your deep motivations are likely to be extra noble and generous in the coming weeks, Sagittarius. So I expect that your soul’s fire will be very constructive.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): My Aquarian reader Georgie Lee wrote to tell me what it’s like being an Aquarius. I offer it to you because you are potentially at the peak of expressing the qualities she names. She says, “Accept that you don’t really have to understand yourself. Be at peace with how you constantly ramble, swerve, and weave to become more of yourself. Appreciate how each electric shift leads to the next electric shift, always changing who you are forever. Within the churning, ever-yearning current, marvel at how you remain eternal, steady, and solid — yet always evolving, always on a higher ground before.”
ARIES (March 21-April 19): In the coming weeks, I urge you to flee from stale and rigid certainty. Rebel against dogmatic attitudes and arrogant opinions. Be skeptical of unequivocal answers to nuanced questions. Instead, dear Aries, give your amused reverence to all that’s mysterious and enigmatic. Bask in the glimmer of intriguing paradoxes. Draw inspiration and healing from the fertile unknown. For inspiration, write out this Mary Oliver poem and carry it with you: “Let me keep my distance, always, from those who think they have the answers. Let me keep company with those who say ’Look!’ and laugh in astonishment, and bow their heads.”
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Libran blogger Ana-Sofia Cardelle writes, “I look back on past versions of myself with such love and tenderness. I want to embrace myself at different parts of my life.” I hope you’re inspired by her thoughts as you carry out the following actions: 1. Create an altar filled with treasures that symbolize major turning points in your destiny. 2. Forgive yourself for what you imagine to be old errors and ignorance. 3. Summon memories of the persons you were at ages 7, 12, and 17, and write a kind, thoughtful message to each. 4. Literally kiss seven different photos of your face from earlier in your life. 5. Say “thank you” and “bless you” to the self you were when you succeeded at two challenging tests in the past.
The Resource Development Director is a member of the senior leadership team and is responsible for successful planning, execution, and evaluation of fundraising and marketing goals for the organization including donor development, grants, special events, and communications. This position works closely with the Executive Director, program staff, board members and supervises the Communications and Events Coordinator.
CHILDREN FIRST COMMUNITIES IN SCHOOLS IS HIRING FOR A DEVELOPMENTRESOURCEDIRECTOR
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): You know more about how karma works than all the other signs. Scorpio-style intelligence typically has a fine intuitive grasp of how today’s realities evolved out of the deep patterns and rhythms of the past. But that doesn’t mean you perfectly understand how karma works. And in the coming weeks, I urge you to be eager to learn more. Become even savvier about how the law of cause and effect impacts the destinies of you and your allies. Meditate on how the situations you are in now were influenced by actions you took once upon a time. Ruminate on what you could do in the near future to foster good karma and diminish weird karma.
PET GROOMER NEEDED! Full Time pet groomer needed at Canine Shear Heaven, located on McDowell St. 2 years experience preferred. Hand scissoring skills required. Commission, paid vacation and retirement. heaven@gmail.comk9shearor WORKING828-707-4620WHEELS
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Cancerian poet Danusha Laméris discovered that earthworms have taste buds all over their bodies. Now she loves to imagine she’s giving them gifts when she drops bits of apples, beets, avocados, melons and carrot tops into the compost bin. “I’d always thought theirs a menial life, eyeless and hidden, almost vulgar.” But now that she understands “they bear a pleasure so sublime,” she wants to help the worms fulfill their destinies. I mention this, Cancerian, because I suspect you may have comparable turnarounds in the coming weeks. Long-held ideas may need adjustments. Incomplete understandings will be filled in when you learn the rest of the story. You will receive a stream of interesting new information that changes your mind, mostly in enjoyable ways.
HOUSEWARES,SALEMERCHANDISEGENERALcareers/https://sierranevada.com/XCHANGE-FURNITURE,MISC.
SEEKS AN AUTOMOTIVE TECHNIsomeone to + To
The Brewery Support Worker 1 is responsible for maintaining the cleanliness of the brewery and restaurants to the highest standard of quality. Reporting to the Brewery Support Supervisor, the core responsibility of the role is to perform facility wide housekeeping and sanitation duties to ensure the facility is orderly and hygienic. This is an entry-level position into a production facility with internal growth opportunities.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Here’s a good way build your vibrancy: Use your emotional intelli gence to avoid swimming against strong currents for extended periods. Please note that swimming against strong currents is fine, even advisable, for brief phases. Doing so boosts your stamina and fosters your trust in your resilience. But mostly, I recommend you swim in the same direction as the currents or swim where the water is calm and currentless. In the coming weeks, I suspect you can enjoy many freestyle excursions as you head in the same direction as vigorous currents.
BENEFITS$1000SIERRADISHWASHERSFOODRESTAURANT/employment/childrenfirstcisbc.org/https://PTANDFTNEVADABREWINGSIGNONBONUS+
Monday thru Fridays 8:30 to 5:00 with reliable transportation. Benefits included after 90 days, plus holidays and health insurance. Salary depends on experience. Please send your resume or CV to steve@tessiergroup.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): A blogger named Chaconia writes, “I’ve cultivated a lifetime of being low maintenance and easy-going, and now I’ve decided I’m done with it. Demanding Me is born today.” I’m giving you temporary permis sion to make a similar declaration, Taurus. The astrological omens suggest that in the coming weeks, you have every right to be a charming, enchanting, and generous version of a demanding person. So I authorize you to be just that. Enjoy yourself as you ask for more of everything.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): The witch Lisa Chamberlain writes about the magical properties of colors. About brown, she says it “represents endurance, solidity, grounding, and strength.” She adds that it’s used in magic to enhance “balance, concentration, material gain, home, and companion animals.” According to my reading of the astrological omens, the upcoming weeks should be a deeply brown time for you Geminis. To move your imagination in a righteous direction, have fun wearing clothes in shades of brown. Grace your environment with things that have the hues of chestnut, umber, mahogany, sepia and burnt sienna. Eat and drink caramel, toffee, cinnamon, almonds, coffee and chocolate.
MOUNTAINX.COM AUG. 24-30, 2022 39 17 Jokes Hospital?GeneralMassachusettsat 19 Grads, now 20 naturalSome fences 21 Doing some mess hall duty, in army lingo 22 Apt name for a planner?financial 23 Sch. with the most championshipsfootballPac-12 25 ___ jure (by the law itself: Lat.) 28 Late to a meeting?LampoonHarvard 32 Hubs of activity 33 Catherine of “Home Alone” 34 ___ story 35 “Uncle” in chess 38 Part of botanicala garden 40 X-ray alternative 41 drinkAfter-dinner 43 “Noted” 44 fishatInvitationBeantownmarkets? 48 Oracle 49 Autobahn units: Abbr. 50 Abu land:Dhabi’sAbbr. 51 Buffoon 53 Waves, perhaps 56 Certain residentPeninsulaArabian 58 aborrowerratehighUnexpectedlyinterestforafromBostonbank? 61 withdance,Herky-jerky“the” 62 Beyond great 63 cereal)(breakfastO’s 64 Chasm 65 Bit of chicanery 66 Some body art, informally DOWN 1 General villain“Superman”___, 2 Alibaba forthemGrubhubandhadin2014,short 3 Big field informallystart-ups,for 4 Facing ruin, say 5 Center Bollywoodof 6 You can get two for a sawbuck 7 Spearheaded 8 Don’t give up, say 9 Nobelist Pavlov 10 Rapper with the “Hardplatinumdouble-albumCore” 11 about“Soundsright” 12 inoftenConveniencepromotedstorewindows 13 “___ (WagnerRheingold”opera) 18 “Animal Farm” pronoun 21 Earthy tone 23 [groan] 24 Scottish island home Fingal’stoCave 26 Got the point? 27 “Well, see you later then!” 28 “Tuesdays With ___,” AlbomMitchbest seller 29 1990 #1 rap hit that ends “too cold, too cold” 30 orCorporalsarge 31 Body part that “pops” 32 Hobbles 36 ___ Lupino, first woman to direct a classic noir film 37 Commercialmascotwhosenamesoundslikethatofitscompany 39 afterCommentaswish 42 interruptionsPodcast 45 King of the Titans, in mythologyGreek 46 Subtlety 47 Cries of glee 52 Popular comic strip about school17-year-oldahighstudent 53 It’s rigged! 54 What aincludesoftenchairlift? 55 “Law & Order: SVU” co-star 56 British pop star Rita 57 Soprano’s group? 58 ___ “Ben-Hur”Wallace,author 59 Nail polish brand with the Inner“EspressocolorYourSelf” 60 Wallops edited by Will Shortz | No. 0720 | PUZZLE BY JOSH KINDLER THE NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD PUZZLE ANSWER TO PREVIOUS NY TIMES PUZZLE 1234 5678 910111213 15 16 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 33 34 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 BI TE PA BL O OA KS EDE N EQ UA L BR AN ALA S GU SS Y AG RI DE MU R AL A SM EL T JE AN VA LJ EA N LG A MA IN LO T TA M PA CT ST EE R RI DE GL OR IA GA YN OR AL BU S PE N CEAS E LI PS YN C R ENEDE SC AR TE S POP EYE YA HW EH ID OS AN NE S RI LE NE XT TI AR A ON ME TO YS EL WA Y EG AD NC DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE & CONSUMER SERVICES is Hiring! The Cooperative Grading Service is recruiting a seasonal apple grader in Henderson County. Position will be temporary with full-time hours during harvest season, beginning in August. Education and/or experience in the performance of a variety of manual tasks, normal color vision, basic math, and basic computer skills. Salary starts at $12.00. End of season $500 Bonus! Paid training provided; mileage paid at state rate. A PD-107 (NC State application) is required. EOE. For more information call Melissa at 252-333-5042 JOIN OUR TEAM! HUMAN RESOURCES & ADMINISTRATIVE COORDINATOR, ASHEVILLE Inclusive Development International is seeking a highly motivated, experienced and mission-driven administrator to help us build a more just and inclusive global economy. Competitive salary + Generous benefits package LEARN MORE AT inclusivedevelopment.net/careers/ mindfulselfcompassionasheville.com Mindful Self-Compassion Asheville 9-Session Fall Course Saturdays Starting 9/17 Outdoors, Rain or Shine X Awards 2022 Sept. 8 at Highland Brewing Party Peggy Ratusz 5-6 p.m. Hope Griffin 6:15-7:15 p.m. DJ Lil Meow Meow 7:30-8:30 p.m. Special guests Asheville FM, the WNC Nature Center and more... And food trucks Melt Your Heart and El Kimchi BANDS:
