Mountain Xpress 11.18.20 by Mountain Xpress

OUR 27TH YEAR OF WEEKLY INDEPENDENT NEWS, ARTS & EVENTS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA VOL. 27 NO. 16 NOV. 18-24, 2020

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NOV. 18-24, 2020

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C ONT ENTS

WELLNESS

FEATURE

NEWS

FEATURES 6 LOOSE ENDS How will Asheville’s new Council approach old priorities?

7 BETTER TOMORROWS What are community members grateful for? Stacie Saunders, Rob Thomas and others offer thoughts

PAGE 18 COZY COMPANY

PUBLISHER: Jeff Fobes

How do you celebrate Thanksgiving in the middle of a pandemic? Members of the local restaurant industry say they plan to keep their personal festivities small and pod-centric — but tasty nonetheless.

ASSISTANT TO THE PUBLISHER: Susan Hutchinson

COVER ILLUSTRATION Brent Brown COVER DESIGN Scott Southwick 4 LETTERS 4 CARTOON: MOLTON

14 FROZEN OUT COVID-19 compounds housing crisis

CARTOON: BRENT BROWN

6 NEWS 9

BUNCOMBE BEAT

GREEN

11 NEWS BRIEFS 16 DIGGING IN School gardens keep growing despite pandemic

11 ASHEVILLE ARCHIVES 13 COMMUNITY CALENDAR 14 WELLNESS

FOOD

16 GREEN SCENE 20 FOOD ROUNDUP Thanksgiving, your way

18 FOOD 22 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT 26 CLUBLAND

A&E

28 MOVIES 24 ELEVENTH-MONTH DEVELOPMENTS Samara Jade, Awen Family Band release new albums

30 FREEWILL ASTROLOGY 30 CLASSIFIEDS 31 NY TIMES CROSSWORD

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Santa Fe Tobacco

MANAGING EDITOR: Virginia Daffron

Aura Home Women Vets

OPINION EDITOR: Tracy Rose

Baba Nahm Bottle Riot / formerly District Wine Bar

ASSISTANT EDITOR: Daniel Walton STAFF REPORTERS: Able Allen, Edwin Arnaudin, Thomas Calder, Laura Hackett, Molly Horak, Daniel Walton COMMUNITY CALENDAR & CLUBLAND: Madeline Forwerck MOVIE SECTION HOSTS: Edwin Arnaudin, Bruce Steele

Carolina Hemp Company Chinese Acupuncture & Herbology City of Asheville Sanitation Franny’s Farm Geraldine’s Bakery

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Peter Gregutt, Rob Mikulak REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS: Mark Barrett, Leslie Boyd, Bill Kopp, Cindy Kunst, Alli Marshall, Gina Smith, Kay West ADVERTISING, ART & DESIGN MANAGER: Susan Hutchinson LEAD DESIGNER: Scott Southwick

High Life Smoke Shop Highland Brewing Co. Ingles Markets Inc. Jack of the Wood Land of Sky Regional Council

GRAPHIC DESIGNER: Olivia Urban

Lean Times Meat Company

MEMBERSHIP AND DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR: Laura Hackett

Livewell in WNC / Live Well Mangum Pottery

MARKETING ASSOCIATES: Sara Brecht, David Furr, Tiffany Wagner

MediaSpace Solutions

OPERATIONS MANAGER: Able Allen INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES & WEB: Bowman Kelley BOOKKEEPER: Amie Fowler-Tanner

Mountains to Coast Ad Network Musician’s Workshop Nature’s Vitamins and Herbs Organic Mechanic

ADMINISTRATION, BILLING, HR: Able Allen, Lauren Andrews

Pack’s Tavern

DISTRIBUTION: Susan Hutchinson, Cindy Kunst

Pisgah Brewing Co

DISTRIBUTION DRIVERS: Gary Alston, Tracy Houston, Henry Mitchell, Tiffany Narron, Kelley Quigley, Angelo Santa Maria, Carl & Debbie Schweiger

Pisgah Legal Services RHA Health Services Inc. Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse Smoky Park Supper Club The Blackbird Restaurant The Regeneration Station Town and Mountain Realty

Wicked Weed Brewing

Working Wheels

MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

OPINION

Send your letters to the editor to letters@mountainx.com.

Speak out about what we want from police On Oct. 26, another young Black man was killed by police in Philadelphia. Walter Wallace Jr. was shot multiple times by officers after his mother told them he had bipolar disorder and was in the midst of a mental health crisis. This unconscionable act parallels the August shooting of Grant Paul Dalton in Asheville, who was shot by officers as he exited an empty [city] bus. Dalton was known by police to have mental health diagnoses and substance use issues. These two events highlight the inappropriateness and danger of allowing armed police to respond to individuals suffering from mental and emotional distress. They are also a sobering illustration of racial disparities in police encounters: Both Dalton and Wallace needed competent psychiatric crisis intervention. Responders in both incidents knew of their victims’ diagnoses and proceeded to fire their weapons. Dalton was shot once and survived. Dalton is white. Wallace was shot multiple times and is dead. Wallace was Black. We do not need or want police responding to our friends, family and neighbors in despair. We do not want people of color, neurodivergent or differently abled folks to fear for their lives when they are crying out for help. Firearms do not de-escalate; caring mental health professionals do. The city of Asheville recently passed an insulting 3% cut in the APD budget, one that trimmed the fat from innocuous [areas] like animal control. Please, Asheville, let’s continue to be vocal about these important issues through organizing, demonstrations and public comment at City Council meetings. Let’s demand ethical, compassionate care for everyone in our community and

C AR T O O N B Y R AN DY M O L T O N acknowledge that we cannot look to the police for these interventions. — Megan Piscitelle Asheville Editor’s note: Xpress contacted the Asheville Police Department for clarification about what police knew about Dalton. We received the following response from police spokesperson Christina Hallingse: “This incident remains under review by the Buncombe County District Attorney’s Office, and there is no additional information we can provide at this time. “Please note, it is standard procedure and the policy of the Asheville Police Department for all officer-involved shootings to be investigated by the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) and the Buncombe County District Attorney’s Office, as well as reviewed by APD to ensure all departmental policies and procedures were followed.”

Grace G. Evins MD, FACOG

Committed to optimizing your health and wellness! Telehealth appointments available.

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An Aug. 29 Citizen Times story reported that APD’s crisis negotiation team contacted Dalton’s mother during the incident, and she told them about her son’s mental illness.

Thoughts on reparations I think reparations are a wonderful idea — just as soon as you give us back our land! — Bob Rupert, cwy (Cherokee) Candler

A vision for Madison Cawthorn While the presidential election in North Carolina came down to a relatively slim margin, one race that, unsurprisingly, was not so close was that

of Congressional District 11 — a race between Republican Madison Cawthorn and Democrat Moe Davis. The slightly-less-gerrymandered-than-before lines of the district offered Cawthorn, a political novice, an easy path to victory. That the race was even as close as it was (54% to 42%) shines a light on a polarizing candidate. Still, Cawthorn’s conviction and tenacity during the race were admirable, and I, for one, appreciate his enthusiasm to “serve each and every member of this district,” and his vow to “bring an end to partisan politics . . . and stand for all Americans,” as he tweeted on election night. However, within minutes of earning victory, before those tweets, his first public statement as congressman-elect was a short tweet repeating a meme for liberals to “cry more,” apparently mocking their frustration or sadness. Right out of the gate, his first action was to sneer at those who did not vote for him. Is this what he means by standing for all of us? Did he type that and feel like a proud patriot, an elected representative for all people putting his best foot forward? As one of Cawthorn’s constituents, I certainly do not want to be represented this way. I made the brave decision to dive into the responses to his tweet, and it didn’t take long to find someone who responded with “walk more.” What a shocking and cruel and, literally, below-the-belt thing to say to a wheelchair-bound person! Unfortunately, I can’t say it was unwarranted. If you are going to begin your political career with such negativity, this is the level of discourse you will get. Is this type of name-calling that he wants? Is this constructive to making American great again? I know Madison can do better. Imagine, if you will, his first tweet was different, something like: “Thank you to the citizens of Western North Carolina for electing me. I look forward to representing all of you.” ... Instead, he chose to represent us all by making fun of half of us. Could he have put a better foot forward? Madison has a choice to make: He can be a uniter, working for all people of WNC, or he can be a divider. My hope is he moves forward with kindness, empathy and an open mind. These are not partisan traits. They are not exclusive to any party or ideology. They are the traits of great leaders, and unfortunately he showed none of them in his first action as a congressman-elect. His idol in the White House has made a lot of fans with hatred and lies, pride and wrath, and negativity, but in doing, so he’s alienated even more. ... Madison likes to boast about his titanium-reinforced backbone. It’s a great metaphor, but hints of jingoism and

C AR T O O N B Y B R E N T B R O W N xenophobia. Joe Biden has been willing to admit past faults and rethink his positions. Even Donald Trump has changed his ideas over the years. Conviction is admirable; everyone should have (informed) opinions. We can fight for what we believe, but please do so with an open mind. We can have differing opinions and still live in harmony. We can argue our points, but with respect and civility. (And facts!) We can listen to others. We can respect each other. We do not have resort to name-calling like the president does. Madison does not have to stoop to divisiveness. He can take the high road and be part of the solution. — Zac Altheimer Asheville Editor’s note: A longer version of this letter will appear at mountainx.com.

Those who appreciate Vance will carry on his memory I regret that I have been unable to locate the letter that was recently written in response to an article concerning the Vance Monument. I will say, however, that most all of the articles that I have read in your paper are not very complimentary to the monument; in fact, they are all, to my knowledge, in favor of tearing down or “repurposing”

it for some other use. It’s a shame that those who want to have another monument recognizing some other person or cause are too lazy to raise funds to build something of their own. If their monument is for someone that I find deserving, I would donate to it myself. No matter how much you find the Vance Monument offensive, it is at least equally offensive to those who have an appreciation of Gov. Vance for the difficult job he had to do from 186265 to hold this man responsible for all problems of society, real or imagined. History cannot be changed; it is what it is. Weeping and gnashing of teeth will in the end be futile. Those of us who remember Gov. Vance with respect and thanks for his service to North Carolina will carry on his memory. Yes, he had his faults, but as Jesus Christ said, “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” — Tom Vernon Asheville

Three little words Saw Cawthorn’s three-word comment on winning Meadows’ seat. Got three words for you: ignorant little twit. — Patricia Wald Asheville MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

NEWS

Loose ends

How will Asheville’s new Council approach old priorities?

BY MOLLY HORAK mhorak@mountainx.com The final ballots are counted, the last yard signs have been returned to their rightful owners, and now — finally — most Asheville residents can begin putting the 2020 election cycle behind them. Not Asheville City Council newcomers Sandra Kilgore, Sage Turner and Kim Roney. As the three embark on a new chapter of civic leadership following a close race, they inherit controversial priorities from the outgoing Council that will likely dominate the first few months of their term. The three women will be sworn in to their new roles on Tuesday, Dec. 1; a week later, they’ll join Mayor Esther Manheimer, Vice Mayor Gwen Wisler, Sheneika Smith and Antanette Mosley for their first public meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 8. But government transitions hardly ever come “wrapped up with a neat little bow,” warns outgoing Council member Julie Mayfield. From hotel regulations to reparations, the lingering loose ends will ultimately be transformative issues for the community. “‘I expected there to be ongoing projects and I’m ready to get to work,” Turner says.

FRESH FACES: In December, Sandra Kilgore, left, Sage Turner, center, and Kim Roney will join Asheville City Council. The three inherit a long list of ongoing Council priorities. Photos courtesy of Kilgore, Turner and Roney

HOTELS ON THE HORIZON

Asheville’s hotel moratorium, originally scheduled to run out in September but extended by five months in light of COVID-19, will expire in February. Two work sessions were held in October to bring Council up to speed on new guidelines that

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would allow developers to circumvent conditional zoning approval; the final proposal is tentatively slated to return for discussion at Council’s meeting of Tuesday, Jan. 26, with a vote in early February. It’s the one unfinished project Mayfield says she isn’t sad to step away from. “It’s a very challenging topic,” she says. “When the moratorium lifts, I’m guessing we’ll see a lot more hotels try and come through. Maybe not as many right now because of the pandemic, but it’s going to remain a big issue.” Kilgore says she is “very impressed” with the hotel zoning overlay district developed by the Charlotte-based Urban Land Institute, which was contracted to help evaluate Asheville’s current lodging ecosystem. Under that proposal, hotels could be built by right in certain areas if they met set city criteria. She also supports the steps city staff have taken to streamline the conditional zoning process, although she feels “a little tweaking” is needed to ensure new standards meet the needs of the community. Roney, the most progressive of the newly elected Council members, says the city must leverage future hotels to get the infrastructure Asheville needs. She objects to the proposed overlay map, which she claims would place new lodging development exactly where housing should go.

“Otherwise, we’re going to keep seeing resource extraction, and I mean people, power, water and land,” Roney says. “If we just fill the city up with hotels, we won’t have land to build affordable housing and we won’t have land to attract other industries, grow our small businesses and support our entrepreneurs.” And absent an overhaul of the county’s occupancy tax funds, which was supposed to go before the N.C. General Assembly before the COVID-19 pandemic dominated state legislative focus, Turner says she will “struggle to support” new hotel procedures, review bodies or ordinances as proposed by city staff before the lodging tax is discussed. “We need to take our time and get this right, then cross it off the list of open initiatives and move forward,” she says.

PROMISES, PROMISES

Asheville’s historic commitment to reparations for the Black community was the crowning achievement of outgoing member Keith Young: He helped draft the July resolution that formally apologized for the city’s role in slavery and pushed Council to allocate $4 million to a reparations fund before his departure. A last-minute change took a $1 million funding proposal off the agenda at Council’s meeting of Nov. 10; Mayor Esther Manheimer

explained that she had been asked by “more than a majority” of Council to hold a work session on reparations with the incoming members. Despite community frustrations that no action was taken, the delayed discussion makes sense, Turner says. The way the resolution came about was “fast and not fully vetted,” she claims, and Council hadn’t fleshed out what the money would specifically support. “I recognize the community is seeking action and I understand and empathize with the frustration of all words and no actions to date,” Turner says. “I can assure you there will be action, but time is needed.” At an October work session, Council member Mosley suggested hotel developers could earn extra points toward project approval by contributing to a reparations fund. Roney proposes taking that idea further by requiring all developers seeking conditional zoning approval, whether for a hotel, condos or a grocery store, to contribute to the fund. “I want to see if we can operationalize reparations so it’s a fund balance that’s tied to our city growth and increased property tax revenue, so it’s not contested year after year whether it should be included in the budget,” Roney says. “We could set it up similarly to the One Buncombe Fund so that it’s not just for the city,

but for the city, the county, nonprofits and individuals to participate in.” The reparations resolution calls for a new commission to steer future investment in Asheville’s Black community. As of press time, no information about this commission had been publicly released. However, Kilgore says she’s looking forward to partnering with the appointees to ensure the immediate and future needs of the Black community are met.

LISTENING TO OTHERS

Also up in the air is future funding for the Asheville Police Department. Activists, many of whom had called for 50% of the APD budget to be reallocated to community services, balked when City Manager Debra Campbell recommended just a 2.5% cut in September; Council ultimately voted 5-2 to approve that budget. A public engagement process to reimagine public safety prior to that vote drew responses from more than 5,700 community members. Since June, the APD has reported the resignation and retirement of at least 45 officers, a trend Turner says she is closely monitoring. “As we lose senior officers, we may need to look at increasing some funding to retain tenured officers and attract lateral

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Better tomorrows I am grateful for passionate and dedicated public health warriors with our agency and also among our community partners. Fighting a pandemic is hard work and it takes teamwork on many levels. I am grateful for a patient and forgiving family. My time with them has been reduced greatly in order to focus on COVID-19 response. I’m appreciative of the moments we get to explore our new home – hiking trails, wading in creeks and driving along the parkway. I think we are all looking forward to a time that we can be with family and friends again without worry of possibly getting them sick. That day is not today, but it will be a day in our future. For now, I hope folks will protect each other by wearing our masks, keeping distance, washing hands and limiting interactions. Doing these things today means

STACIE SAUNDERS

that there’s a day somewhere in the “tomorrows” that we won’t have to do them anymore. Saunders is public health director for Buncombe County. X MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

N EWS transfers, more diversity and officers with more restorative and community-based training,” she notes. And following the June creation of a joint city-county task force to explore the removal or repurposing of Asheville’s Vance Monument, the 12-member group will present its final recommendations to Council and the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners on Thursday, Nov. 19. The 65-foot obelisk is named after Zebulon Vance, North Carolina’s Civil War governor and a prominent slaveholder. Turner, Kilgore and Roney all say they want to hear the task force recommendations before making any decisions. “I have my personal opinions and I have a responsibility to listen,” Roney says. “What I am hearing from the community is that we haven’t gotten yet to a place of imagining what should be in place of the monument when it’s not there anymore. There are still some questions to be asked.”

NEXT UP

If the incoming members can work through the issues the previous

Council has left on the table, each has her own ideas for new action. Kilgore, who topped the results at 25,909 votes in the Nov. 3 election, cited oversight as her top priority, followed by improvements to the education system to address “many of the issues that are causing minority and marginalized students to fall behind.” Also on her personal docket is addressing the city’s lack of affordable housing, partnering with the Chamber of Commerce to bring clean and renewable companies to the area and promoting vocational training programs for community members who opt not to attend college. Turner, who placed second with 24,813 votes, says she’ll focus on realistic policy proposals. Her first priorities include updates to the city’s Unified Development Ordinance to help alleviate high building costs, advancing stalled bond projects and assisting with COVID-19 recovery efforts. She also plans to work closely with staff to assemble a list of ongoing initiatives and project timelines to determine what can be accomplished in the coming year. Roney, who snagged a third-place finish with 22,952 votes, touts an ambi-

tious agenda to address the overlapping COVID-19 pandemic, climate emergency, systemic racism and economic instability during her first 100 days in office. She plans to collaborate with community mutual aid groups, ensure all transit routes are running smoothly

and pass budget amendments to create more affordable housing. “If there’s ever been a time where we need to think about our needs as a community, it’s now,” Roney says. “We’re going to have to move the money in the direction of our values. We need to pick up the baton and run with it.” X

Community effort The one thing that I am most grateful for in life is my family around me. I do not mean only my blood relatives but all the individuals who make up my support network. I am thankful for never having to feel alone again. My work life and personal life are very much intertwined at the moment. I’ve built strong bonds with people who I fight alongside in this battle to move the needle of racial justice. We’ve experienced a range of emotions together and that tends to bring people together. Just like soldiers on a battlefield. The message of hope I see in this world relates to the theory that “the only thing constant is change.” This gives me hope that generations after mine will continue with progression toward a more just society, one day achieving it.

ROB THOMAS

Thomas serves as the community liaison for the Racial Justice Coalition. X

Best medicine Gratitude is medicine – love this MountainX Thanksgiving initiative. I’m professionally grateful for a very productive year, my in-my-twenties commitment to psychology as a profession and for a little leftover time to poke at the vanities of the liberal-progressive movement. Personally, I’m blessed with the grounding nature of my Christian faith, loved ones dedicated to light and the seven virtues over darkness and the seven deadlies, and a community that’s mostly safe, interesting and semi-affordable. A message of hope? America’s success equation is liberty + opportunity + responsibility = prosperity. More people than not understand we can’t leave out pieces and produce the same outcome. 8

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CARL MUMPOWER

Mumpower is a local psychologist, former member of Asheville City Council and political activist. X

BUNCOMBE BEAT

Reparations funding delay upsets some residents It wasn’t the ending Keith Young wanted. At its meeting of Nov. 10, Asheville City Council said its goodbyes to three outgoing members: Young, Brian Haynes and Julie Mayfield. But the bittersweet moment left a bitter taste for many residents — the farewells came after Mayor Esther Manheimer abruptly announced that Council would not discuss the creation of a $1 million reparations fund, a move Young had championed as his last act on Council. Manheimer explained that she had been asked by “more than a majority” of Council to pull the funding resolution from the agenda until incoming members Sandra Kilgore, Sage Turner and Kim Roney could attend a work session to “develop a road map” for reparations funding. “Frankly, we haven’t had time yet to discuss in depth in terms of how to move forward,” Manheimer said. “So let me reiterate: Council remains unanimously supportive of the reparations resolution already adopted.” The July reparations agreement — also spearheaded by Young — directs City Manager Debra Campbell to develop recommendations to “address the creation of generational wealth” in the Black community and establish a commission to “make significant progress toward repairing the damage caused by public and private systemic racism.” At Council’s meeting of Oct. 27, members supported a resolution to halt the sale of cityowned property acquired through urban renewal. But in a Facebook post shared after the meeting, Young, who lost his seat after a fourth-place finish in this year’s City Council race, said that Haynes was the only other member who supported immediate funding for reparations. As of press time, the post had been deleted. “There was a legitimate proposal on the table that didn’t require politi-speak,” Young wrote, adding that he had only been informed that his resolution would be off the agenda about an hour before the meeting. “$4 million was the proposal. Then it was shaved down to $1 million. It was doable. The current Council tonight turned their backs on the Black community.” Community members, also frustrated that they hadn’t been informed of the agenda change until they called into the virtual speaker queue at the

INVEST IN US: Asheville City Council took reparations funding off the agenda for its Nov. 10 meeting. Community members who called in to the virtual meeting were frustrated by the last-minute move to “kick the can down the road.” Photo by Laura Hackett

affordability standards for households earning 80% or less of the area median income, up from a previous requirement of 10%, to receive a city subsidy. • Budget amendments to accept $889,456 from the third round of federal Community Development Block Grant Coronavirus relief funds to offset costs of the city’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. • A resolution to help fund free internet services for residents in the Southside community, Hillcrest Apartments, Pisgah View Apartments, Klondyke Homes and Deaverview Apartments. The city is responsible for $50,000 of the project’s $520,000 overall cost. • A $560,000 contract extension with Young Transportation to continue supplemental transit services during the COVID-19 pandemic. • Resolutions of appreciation for Haynes, Mayfield and Young.

— Molly Horak X

start of the meeting, urged Council to invest far more than Young’s original proposal into an eventual reparations fund. “Four million dollars is frankly laughable when you consider the unbelievable harm that has been done to the Black community over the years,” said Paul Schulman of West Asheville. “For that to be removed at the last minute is really disheartening and sad.” Taking reparations funding off the table is the equivalent of being at a football game on a fourth down at the one-yard line and deciding to take a knee instead of finishing the play, said Rob Thomas of the Racial Justice Coalition. “I see this as political maneuvering,” Thomas said. “But maybe this isn’t a bad thing. Maybe you’re planning to put a lot more money into reparations for the Black community than the $4 million. Maybe you will do better. We’ll be watching.”

IN OTHER NEWS

Other highlights from Council’s meeting of Nov. 10 include: • Changes to Asheville’s Land Use Incentive Grant policy. The newly amended policy will require at least 20% of a developer’s units to meet MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

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NOV. 18-24, 2020

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NEWS BRIEFS

ASHEVILLE ARCHIVES

by Xpress Staff | news@mountainx.com

by Thomas Calder | tcalder@mountainx.com

INDOOR GATHERING LIMIT REDUCED Although North Carolina’s COVID-19 reopening will remain in Phase 3 for now, Gov. Roy Cooper is nevertheless tightening one restriction to combat the coronavirus’s spread. Through Friday, Dec. 4, indoor mass gatherings will be limited to 10 people, down from a previous cap of 25. Outdoor mass gatherings, which are much less likely to transmit the virus, remain limited to 50 participants. “This reduction in our indoor gathering limit aims to slow the spread and bring down our numbers,” Cooper said in a Nov. 11 press release announcing Executive Order 176. “It also sends a serious signal to families, friends and neighbors across our state. Success in slowing the spread will help our businesses.” The move comes as the state continues to set records for measures of the pandemic’s impact. New daily cases reached 3,885 on Nov. 14, and a record 1,424 people were hospitalized with the virus as of Nov. 15. According to a Nov. 12 press release from the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, community spread among white residents of rural counties is driving the state’s increased caseload.

NCDOT CLEARS MADISON COUNTY LANDSLIDE

Nearly nine months, 30,000 tons of boulders and 50,000 cubic yards of compacted soil after a Feb. 16 landslide in Madison County, Walnut Creek Road is open for business. The N.C. Department of Transportation announced completion of a $3.5 million repair project in a Nov. 11 press release. Clearing the debris will shave over 30 minutes off the commute to Marshall for many rural Madison residents; the road averaged 850 cars per day before the slide. “We appreciate the community support while we had so many people working so hard — often in wet and difficult conditions — to get the road open for residents,” said Gabe Johnson, an NCDOT maintenance engineer. “It’s been quite a project. Hopefully the biggest I’ll ever see.”

WARREN WILSON COLLEGE RECEIVES $1M GIFT TO SUPPORT JAZZ EDUCATION

Students of jazz at Warren Wilson College are set to get a major leg up — but they won’t know from whom. Two anonymous donors, described in a Nov. 9 press release as Asheville residents with “a love of jazz and passion for live music,” will establish

a $1 million scholarship fund for the college’s music program. Scholarships will be prioritized for students who are Black, Indigenous or people of color and have an interest in jazz performance. Jason DeCristofaro, a jazz instructor at the college, said the gift will support “well-rounded, creative and culturally conscious musicians for the 21st century.” BOOSTING BUSINESS • The city of Asheville is offering staff support to businesses weatherizing for outdoor service during the winter. More information is available through the AVL Shares Space winter guidelines at avl.mx/8pe. restau• Full-service rants throughout North Carolina are now eligible for up to $20,000 in COVID-19 relief through the N.C. Department of Commerce. The money may only be used to pay for rent or mortgage expenses. Apply online at avl.mx/8p9. • The Transylvania Tomorrow Relief Fund is offering grants of up to $3,000 for small businesses in Transylvania County that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Applications are due by Tuesday, Dec. 1, at avl.mx/8p8. X

2020

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‘An American saga’ Early reviews of Wilma Dykeman’s ‘The French Broad,’ 1955 In spring 1955, praise flowed like the French Broad River itself for Wilma Dykeman’s debut book, The French Broad. Combining regional and cultural history with environmental studies, the work was part of the Rivers of America series published by Rinehart & Co. Dykeman, who was born and raised in Buncombe County, lived in Newport, Tenn., when The French Broad came out. Her familiarity with both locations gave the author “intimate knowledge” of the river and its tributaries, wrote the Asheville Citizen-Times in an April 24, 1955, book review. The paper continued: “With warmth, understanding and humor, Miss Dykeman unfolds the panoramic history of the river from the happy and peaceful Yesterday, before the Indian had to fight ever-widening encroachments upon his homeland, to the bustling Today of cities, big industries and stream-pollution. “A book attempting to cover such a wide period of history, such varied ways of life, could easily have become a desperate recounting of times and names, but Miss Dykeman has described the historic sweeps of settlement, of Civil War and modern growth, by the happy expedient of bringing to life the people who lived and suffered and worked without realizing that they were making history.” National attention soon followed. On May 29, 1955, in the Sunday edition of the Asheville Citizen-Times, local reviewer George McCoy highlighted praise Dykeman received from The New York Times, which called The French Broad, “sound, flavorsome Americana.” McCoy went on to describe the work himself as “a fresh and fascinating treatment of the sturdy and independent people who settled in the valleys and on the hillsides of the French Broad country.” Returning to the national conversation around the book, McCoy shared a humorous observation made in The Atlanta Journal and Constitution. For individuals unfamiliar with the river, the paper wrote, the book’s title “might

WELL DONE: “Wilma Dykeman shows in her book an ‘uncommon awareness’ of the beauty and the lore of the French Broad and she tells it uncommonly well,” wrote the Asheville Citizen-Times in a May 29, 1955, review of the author’s debut book, The French Broad. Photo courtesy of the North Carolina Collection, Pack Memorial Library, Asheville give the impression that it is a racy novel about a French gal.” That October, Dykeman became the first recipient of the inaugural Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award. By December, local bookstores ran holiday ads promoting The French Broad as an ideal Christmas gift. Blurbs from national publications lined the advertisement, including endorsements from the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times and Christian Press, which proclaimed: “Here is the story, vivid and dramatic, of a little river with a big history. This fine book becomes, under the pen of its author, an American saga.” Editor’s note: Peculiarities of spelling and punctuation are preserved from original documents. X

MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

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COMMUNITY CALENDAR NOV. 18-27, 2020 For a full list of community calendar guidelines, please visit mountainx.com/calendar. For questions about free listings, call 828-251-1333, ext. 137. For questions about paid calendar listings, please call 828-251-1333, ext. 320.

In-Person Events = Shaded All other events are virtual SA (11/21), 7:30pm, Free, avl.mx/8on

ART Asheville Art Museum Annual Benefit Gala Silent auction. SA (11/14), 7pm, avl.mx/8pj Woven Christmas Star Class Led by Debbie Mills. Register: avl.mx/8pb. WE (11/18), 12pm, $25, Haywood County Arts Council, 86 N Main St, Waynesville Connections: Every Picture Tells a Story Discussion led by master docent Doris Potash at Asheville Art Museum. WE (11/18), 1pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/8oh Slow Art Friday: We Gather Together Discussion led by touring docent Kay Dunn at Asheville Art Museum. FR (11/20), 12pm, Registration required, $10, avl.mx/8oi 23rd Voorhees Family Art Show & Sale Studio tours, artist interviews, demonstrations and a raffle benefiting We Give a Share. SA (11/21), 10am, voorheesfamilyart.com Grand Mural Opening Celebration Viewing and vendor fair. SU (11/22), 2pm, Free, Open Hearts Art Center, 217 Coxe Ave

MUSIC Pack Library: Jazz by Request Featuring pianist Michael Jefry Stevens. WE (11/18), 5:30pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/8os Calidore String Quartet Presented by Asheville Chamber Music Series.

LITERARY Perspectives - John Cage: A Mycological Foray A conversation with Laura Kuhn of Atelier Ă&#x2030;ditions, hosted by Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center. WE (11/18), 1pm, avl.mx/8oL Black Mountain Library Book Launch Sarah Loudin Thomas presents The Right Kind of Fool. TH (11/19), 7pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/8ph Notorious HBC (History Book Club) The Coming of the Terror in the French Revolution by Timothy Tackett. TH (11/19), 7pm, avl.mx/7ik YMI: Black Experience Book Club My Mother was a Freedom Fighter by Aja Monet. TH (11/19), 7pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/8ot Leicester Library Creative Writing Group Community workshop. FR (11/20), 3pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/8pi Firestorm: Beyond Survival Weekly Book Club Five-week series on Beyond Survival: Strategies and Stories from the Transformative Justice Movement. MO (11/23), 7pm, Free, avl.mx/8g2 Firestorm: Stay Home & Write(rs) Group Community writing session. WE (11/25), 7pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/83c

EMPOWERING THE LEADER IN EACH BOY

Journeymen supports adolescent boys on their paths to becoming men of integrity. Our cost-free program is now enrolling young men 12-17. Mentees participate in bi-weekly mentoring groups and a semi-annual Rites of Passage Adventure Weekend facilitated by men in the community.

journeymenasheville@gmail.com (706) 949-3202

THEATER Listen to This: Stories & More on Screen Hello Al Fresco: Eating Outdoors Anecdotes by Tom Chalmers of Asheville Community Theatre. TH (11/19), 7:30pm, $15, avl.mx/8pa The Magnetic Theatre: Bar Story By playwright Jamieson Ridenhour. SA (11/21), 7pm, SU (11/22), 3pm, $15, avl.mx/8pl Asheville Community Theatre: Transition Staged reading by Maria C. Young. SA (11/21), 7:30pm, $10, avl.mx/8nq

BUSINESS & TECHNOLOGY Western Women's Business Center Annual Conference Women at the Table Now: panel discussions, breakouts, creative sessions and interactive activities. WE (11/18), 9am, $15, avl.mx/8oc Incredible Towns Business Network General meeting. WE (11/18), 11am, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/7g8 Association of Fundraising Professionals: National Philanthropy Day Celebration and awards ceremony. WE (11/18), 11:30am, Registration required, $5, avl.mx/8ow Craft Your Commerce: Leveraging Instagram to Drive Sales Mountain BizWorks webinar presented by Liz Kantner. WE (11/18), 2pm, Registration required, $5, avl.mx/8m5 Asheville Development Happenings Happy Hour Networking for builders, developers and architects. WE (11/18), 3:30pm, Rabbit Rabbit, 75 Coxe Ave Asheville Chamber: Business Before Hours Networking event. TH (11/19), 9am, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/8og The Business of Craft Beverage: Moving Product Sales and quality control webinar by A-B Tech. TH (11/19), 3pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/8pk Craft Your Commerce: Digitizing Your Business Mountain BizWorks webinar by Jeremiah Robinson. FR (11/20), 10am,

Registration required, $5, avl.mx/8oy

CLASSES, MEETINGS & EVENTS Mountain Housing Opportunities: East Haven Homecoming Celebration of affordable housing efforts with virtual tours and a raffle. WE (11/18), 3pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/8oj Justice Matters Tour Behind the scenes at Pisgah Legal. TH (11/19), 12pm, Registration required, avl.mx/7ur Spanish Conversation Group For adult language learners. TH (11/19), 5pm, Free, avl.mx/7c6 Asheville Transgender Day of Remembrance Hosted by Tranzmission. FR (11/20), 6pm, Free, avl.mx/8od Asheville Friends of Astrology Monthly meeting. FR (11/20), 7pm, fb.com/ ashevilleastrology

MARKETS & FAIRS RAD Farmers Market Produce, breads, meats and more. WE (11/18), 3-6pm, pleb urban winery, 289 Lyman St Black Mountain Tailgate Market Organic and sustainably-grown produce, and handcrafted items. SA (11/21), 9am-12pm, 130 Montreat Rd, Black Mountain Junk in the Trunk Market Outdoor vintage and handmade sale. SA (11/21), 10am, Lady Beatrice, 244 W Main St, Brevard

TH (11/19), 5pm, avl.mx/85h Silent Vigil for Immigration Reform Led by Progressive Alliance of Henderson County. FR (11/20), 4pm, Henderson County Courthouse, 200 N Grove St, Hendersonville

KIDS Miss Malaprop's Storytime Ages 3-9. WE (11/18), 10am, Free, avl.mx/73b Family Outdoor Movie: Frozen II SU (11/22), 4:30pm, $5, Rabbit Rabbit, 75 Coxe Ave Jackson Library: Family Night Around the World Games and activities from various cultures. TU (11/24), 5pm, Free, avl.mx/8pd

ECO & OUTDOORS Hemlock Restoration Initiative: Treatment Workshop How to protect hemlock trees using HWA. Register: avl.mx/8pg. WE (11/18), 9:30am, $20, NC Arboretum, 100 Frederick Law Olmsted Way Conserving Carolina: Cove Exploration Hike Guided nature walk. Register: meredith@ conservingcarolina. org. FR (11/20), 9:30am, Free, Anne Elizabeth Suratt Nature Center at Walnut Creek Preserve, 179 Wood Thrush Lane, Mill Spring Hemlock Restoration Initiative: Hike-andBike Educational ride. Register: avl.mx/8pp. SA (11/21), 10am, Free, Kitsuma Trail, Old Fort

Appalachian Dowsers Webinar Led by Joey Korn, author of Dowsing: A Path to Enlightenment. SA (11/21), 1pm, Free, appalachiandowsers.org

SPIRITUALITY Appalachian Tea Ceremony (PD.) Mary Plantwalker will be hosting an Appalachian Tea Ceremony every 3rd Thursday of the month! Come and enjoy local infusions with heartfelt offerings in a beautiful setting. Donation based. Registration required: info@ herbmountainfarm. com. Weaverville at Herb Mountain Farm off Maney Branch. Email for directions. 4:00-5:30pm. Baha'i Devotional: Are There Spiritual Solutions to Stress? Devotional with prayers and music. WE (11/18), 7pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/8om Groce UMC: A Course in Miracles Group Study Register to get Zoom link: 828-712-5472. MO (11/23), 6:30pm, Free, Online

WE (11/18), 6pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/82e Council on Aging: Introduction to Medicare How to avoid penalties and save money. TH (11/19), 2pm, Registration required, Free, coabc.org Recovery Support Meeting Hosted by First Contact Ministries. TH (11/19), 6:30pm, Free, avl.mx/7ko Jackson Library: Delicious Yoga Food-inspired workout. SA (11/21), 10am, Free, avl.mx/8pc

Homeplace Running Club Led by Raelin Reynolds. WE (11/25), 6pm, Free, Homeplace Beer, 6 South Main St, Burnsville

VOLUNTEERING Conserving Carolina: Rock Crushers Trail building and maintenance. Register: avl.mx/8i9. WE (11/18), 9:30am, Hickory Nut Gorge, Gerton

MountainCare: Coping with the Holidays Tips for managing grief during the holiday season. Register: connect@mtncare.org. MO (11/23), 4pm, $25, mountaincareservices.org

American Red Cross Blood Drive Free COVID-19 antibody tests for donors. Appointments: redcrossblood.org/ give. FR (11/20), 10am, Asheville Outlets, 800 Brevard Rd

Steady Collective Syringe Access Outreach Free educational material, naloxone, syringes and supplies. TU (11/24), 2pm, Free, Firestorm Books, 610 Haywood Rd

Conserving Carolina: Kudzu Warriors Invasive plant management. Register: avl.mx/8de. MO (11/23), 9am, Norman Wilder Forest, US-176, Tryon

Jewish Power Hour Hosted by Rabbi Susskind. TH (11/26), 6pm, Free, chabadasheville. org/zoom

WELLNESS Bounty & Soul: Making Time for You Led by Anayancy Estacio. Register: abbie@ bountyandsoul.org. WE (11/18), 5:30pm, Free, bountyandsoul. org Adult Eating Disorder Support Group Hosted by Carolina Resource Center for Eating Disorders.

The HeART of the Season Artist demonstrations and live music. SA (11/21), 10am, Downtown Brevard Asheville Punk Flea Market Art, craft and vintage clothing vendors. SA (11/21), 12pm, Fleetwood's, 496 Haywood Rd

CIVICS & ACTIVISM Vance Monument Task Force Presentation of recommendations to Asheville City Council.

MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

WELLNESS

Frozen out

COVID-19 compounds housing crisis

BY LESLIE BOYD leslie.boyd@gmail.com These days, Mary Jones expends most of her energy trying to find warm, safe places to sleep at night; she was evicted from her rental home three months ago. When COVID-19 hit and her roommates had to continue working, she had to ask them to leave, because severe asthma puts her at high risk of lethal complications from the virus. With an income of less than $800 a month, Jones couldn’t afford to pay the whole rent herself; she wasn’t able to find new roommates in time to forestall her eviction. She moved to a tent on private property in Madison County, but as the weather turned colder, she began to look for alternatives. Then, at the end of October, Tropical Storm Zeta destroyed her tent. “If I’m going to follow the guideline of spending 30% of my income on housing, that’s about $250 a month, and that’s not possible,” she says. Jones has applied for Section 8 housing, but the wait for an apartment is upward of three years, especially since Gov. Roy Cooper issued Executive Order 171 on Oct. 28. The order, which Jones applauds, shields renters from eviction due to nonpayment of rent or related charges, meaning fewer units are available. “It’s 100% COVID-19 that put me out of my home,” she says. “And it’s COVID-19 that makes shelters, motels and roommate situations unsafe for me. I have fallen through every crack there is to fall through.” Jones has established a GoFundMe page to enable her to rent a small space — or even a shed — for the winter, but she’s had to use the money raised so far

NOV. 18-24, 2020

SHELTER SHORTAGE: BeLoved Asheville is sending its team of street medics out to address problems homeless people experience, which are exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Agencies that work with people who are homeless say the needs are greater because of lack of access to places where they can get warm this winter. Photo courtesy of BeLoved Asheville to pay for a new tent, warm blankets and cold weather clothing.

NO READY SOLUTION

COVID-19 has had a huge impact on people who are homeless, advocates report. With a vacancy rate of between zero and 0.1% for affordable housing in Asheville, says Eleanor Ashton of Homeward Bound, there simply isn’t any to be found. And with AHOPE Day Center, the nonprofit’s shelter, closed for renovations, clients can only pick up mail there. “We’re still seeing 100 people a day, but they can’t shower there, can’t have lunch there, can’t warm up there, at least until mid-December,” notes Ashton, the

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organization’s senior resource development director. “For people experiencing homelessness, this is going to be a brutal winter.” As the weather grows colder, it will be increasingly difficult for people to get and stay warm, she says, and Code Purple, the status that allows shelters to take in more people on nights when the temperature falls below freezing, has been overriden by the pandemic. “We can’t do Code Purple,” says Micheal Woods, executive director of the Western Carolina Rescue Ministries. “We can’t take in people who have not been screened without risking the people already here and who have been screened. “For any number of reasons,” he continues, many of the folks who, in the past, took advantage of Code Purple “aren’t people who follow all the rules of living in a shelter. That doesn’t mean they should freeze.” And despite years of efforts to address the local housing crunch, there are still very few places that low-income people can afford. One such project, BeLoved Asheville’s tiny home village, will house a dozen or more people once it’s complete, with payments that even someone living on disability can afford. Because it’s owned by the community, not a bank, there’s no need to make a profit. It’s a promising model, says the Rev. Amy Cantrell, one of the nonprofit’s co-directors. The group has secured property (a gift from

the Land of the Sky United Church of Christ) and received enough financial donations to build the first house, which is now complete. “But this is not the solution for this winter,” stresses Cantrell. “We’re in the middle of an eviction crisis, and people on the street have fewer resources because of the pandemic.” Among other things, it means shelters are housing fewer people, and meals must be served outdoors in to-go containers. “We distribute 500 meals a day,” notes Woods. “We feed everyone who comes, but it has to be outdoors, so people can’t come in and warm up.” The Haywood Street Congregation is facing the same limitations, says Executive Director Laura Kirby. The church’s Wednesday lunch draws more than 600 people a week — considerably more than the pre-COVID-19 numbers, she says. “We have set up three tents in the parking lot so we can do recovery groups and allow people to meet with partner agencies, and we plan to put heaters in those tents. It’s not a perfect solution, but it’s something.”

WARM CLOTHES, CAMPING EQUIPMENT NEEDED

BeLoved and other agencies are collecting warm clothing and camping equipment, hoping it will be enough to keep people alive through the winter. Perhaps the most severe impact is on the Latinx community, says Cantrell. “They’re not eligible for any government help, so they’re scrambling for the most basic things. They can’t even afford diapers.” Accordingly, BeLoved has collected several tons of supplies, including sleeping bags, tents, blankets, water, food, diapers and cleaning supplies. The Rescue Ministries held its annual drive for coats, hats, gloves and hand warmers on Nov. 7; the Haywood Street Congregation and

MARY JONES

“For people experiencing homelessness, this is going to be a brutal winter.” — Eleanor Ashton, Homeward Bound

GEARING UP: Adrienne Sigmon of BeLoved Asheville holds a donated backpack. Photo courtesy of BeLoved Asheville Homeward Bound are also accepting donations (see box). But the lack of such staples is only part of the problem. “In addition to the virus, there’s a racism pandemic and a poverty pandemic,” says Cantrell. “We have our street medic teams out trying to address the lack of access to even the most basic care.” Tents, sleeping bags and clothes are even more crucial because there are fewer places where people can escape from the cold, notes Ashton. “You can’t go into Ingles and sit down with a cup of coffee for a half-hour anymore,” she points out. “We’re hoping to get together

with faith community leaders to provide warming stations — places where people can go for a bit, maybe have some coffee and a snack.” The warming stations would utilize a model similar to the one used by the Room in the Inn program, a women’s shelter that moves from church to church. Run by Homeward Bound, it relies on volunteers who supervise, cook meals and engage with the women. Woods has been recommending widespread rapid-testing protocols so people can be admitted to shelters more quickly, but those test kits aren’t readily available. One company Woods looked into last spring now has an eight-month backlog. “This has been a failure of government on every level,” he maintains. “I’ve been saying since March that winter is coming, and people kept saying we had plenty of time to put together a workable plan. Well, here it is, and we’re not prepared.” Woods isn’t sure what it will take to get people to come together and make a plan that will help people stay warm. Meanwhile, Jones plans to “driveway-surf” — camp out in people’s yards — through the winter, provided she can find enough folks to host her. “It’s one day at a time,” she says, adding, “I’m grateful to everyone who has helped me.” Woods, however, fears that some folks won’t be able to stay safe — or even alive. “I’m just afraid that it’s going to take people freezing to death before anybody is ready to make a plan, and in my opinion, that’s too late.” X

How you can help • BeLoved Asheville is accepting donations of warm clothing, camping equipment, diapers, cleaning supplies and money at the Land of the Sky United Church of Christ, 15 Overbrook Place, Asheville. Call 828-242-8261, email belovedasheville@gmail.com. Contributions can be mailed to P.O. Box 6386, Asheville, NC 28816. • Homeward Bound is accepting donations at its Welcome Home Donation Center, 205 Elk Park Drive in Woodfin. The nonprofit has wish lists on Amazon and Target. Monetary donations can be mailed to P.O. Box 1166, Asheville, NC 28802. • Haywood Street Congregation is accepting donations of warm clothing and camping equipment at the back door of the church (297 Haywood St. in Asheville) from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Tuesdays. Monetary donations can be mailed to P.O. Box 2982, Asheville, NC 28802. • Western Carolina Rescue Ministries is accepting donations of warm clothing at its thrift stores in Asheville (1078 Tunnel Road and 21 Westridge Market Place). Call 828-254-1529. X

MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

GREEN SCENE

Digging in

School gardens keep growing despite pandemic

BY GINA SMITH ginasmithnews@gmail.com Even with winter closing in, the young gardeners at Bell’s School for People Under Six in Fletcher are making good use of the plots and raised beds that occupy a broad corner of their sunny, open schoolyard. The corn, cucumbers, zucchini and sunflowers the children tended during the main growing season have been replaced by cabbages, collard greens and one patch of blue and purple pansies. “We tried broccoli, but the rabbits ate it,” says teacher Jodie Williams, laughing behind her cloth face mask. “Most recently, [the children] helped me pull up all the dead plants.” Williams, who teaches a reduced-capacity class of seven lively 3- and 4-yearolds, was recently named Henderson County’s Go NAPSACC 2020 Teacher of the Year for supporting health and wellness among her students through the Bell’s School garden. The county pro-

SPROUTS FOR SPROUTS: Jodie Williams, a teacher at Bell’s School for People Under Six in Fletcher, recently received a Henderson County award for supporting student health and wellness through gardening. Photo courtesy of Henderson County

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gram is based on Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-assessment for Child Care, a set of national standards developed by UNC Chapel Hill researchers. Garden learning has been core to Bell’s curriculum since it opened in 1978. And similar efforts across Western North Carolina have offered outdoor education opportunities at many other schools, as well as food security and sanctuary for their surrounding neighborhoods. But this fall, with many students learning online and in-person fundraising options limited by the COVID-19 pandemic, Williams and other local educators are digging deep and branching out to keep their school gardens viable.

11/19 - 11/22/2020

IN THE WEEDS

Most WNC schools moved to virtual learning platforms in March, just as their gardening classes were putting seeds in the ground. Since then, finding labor to maintain those gardens has been imperative, says Cathy Cleary, outreach coordinator for Bountiful Cities. The nonprofit’s garden and cooking education program, FEAST, collabo16

NOV. 18-24, 2020

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rates with seven area elementary school garden programs and supports full- or part-time garden teachers at Vance Elementary, Hall Fletcher Elementary and the Francine Delany New School for Children. “You don’t think that much about what 20 kindergartners’ or 20 third graders’ impact on a garden might be,” says Cleary. “But just keeping on top of the weeds in these gardens is huge, and it’s something the students would be doing if they were there.” As an early childhood center, Bell’s classrooms have remained open throughout the pandemic, although they will operate at half capacity for the foreseeable future. In March, when the school’s student population plunged from 40 children to just six, gardening efforts scaled back accordingly, says director Catherine Lieberman. “We didn’t make a big [garden] space,” she says. “And typically, Jodie would have been planting seeds inside and then transplanted things, so this year we did a lot of late-season stuff, and some stuff we just bought as sets and planted.” Hall Fletcher Elementary in West Asheville switched to virtual learning

along with other Asheville public schools in March. With classrooms empty and no immediate plans for an online gardening curriculum, Hall Fletcher’s FEAST teacher, Summer Whelden-Kendall, says she ramped up food production to provide a “living community food bank” for school families and the surrounding neighborhood. “We put down quick seeds, like peas and radishes, and a lot of low-maintenance crops like beets and carrots and got food out as soon as possible,” she says. The garden also encouraged home growing by giving away seedlings in the spring, hanging tomato baskets in the summer and elderberry plants in the fall. With her usual army of student helpers remaining at home, Whelden-Kendall tapped community volunteers to create a new workforce. Due to social distancing concerns, she’s been reluctant to invite the community at large, but she says many neighborhood residents have been walking over to lend a hand, on their own or in pods, since the pandemic started. Bountiful Cities also coordinated workdays at Vance and Hall Fletcher during the summer with small groups from UNC Asheville and Town and Mountain Realty to help with weeding and mulching. And the nonprofit’s landscaping program, Grass2Greens, has assisted with large maintenance and infrastructure projects.

SEED MONEY

Although Bell’s School has fewer students these days, it’s nearly doubled the children’s outdoor time as part of COVID-19 protocols, so gardening has become more of a focal point than ever. “Parents who sort of knew we gardened and weren’t really that interested have become more interested in what we’re doing,” says Lieberman. Williams points to a spiffy new set of raised beds where her students recently grew purple potatoes and other root vegetables, which they eventually harvested and cooked for their snacks. “A parent donated these,” she says. “And that’s pretty cool. I didn’t have those before.” Where students are learning online, some garden teachers have found ways to connect through virtual offerings. Vance Elementary School FEAST teacher Jordan Diamond, for instance, created a YouTube channel this fall documenting the life cycle of monarch butterflies in the garden, Cleary says. And though Whelden-Kendall hasn’t yet

PRIZE PRODUCE: Taylor Wiley, a student at Hall Fletcher Elementary School, holds a sweet potato from the school’s FEAST garden. Photo by Summer Whelden-Kendall moved online, Hall Fletcher may expand its virtual lessons in the spring to stream life sciences classes from the garden. But funding is the ultimate determinant of how well school garden programs can function. Bell’s School writes support for its garden into its annual budget, so although overall funding has been negatively impacted by reduced class sizes, the garden will go on. “It’s part of

our learning process here, so we’ll find a way to build it in,” says Lieberman. At Hall Fletcher, a funding shortfall was part of the reason Whelden-Kendall’s position was cut from full time to just five paid hours a week last spring after COVID-19 put FEAST classes and other school-based programs on hold. “Much of the grant funding that we had applied for and were pretty sure we would get ended up being diverted to emergency response of COVID-19,” explains FEAST co-founder and Bountiful Cities program director Kate Justen. Additionally, in-person fundraising events have been halted or altered by concerns over the pandemic, WheldenKendall notes. A student-run farmers market that helped support the Hall Fletcher garden ended when classrooms were emptied, while plans for the garden’s largest annual fundraiser, an Earth Day celebration, had to be abandoned in April. Yet she’s working hard to make do. “We’re kind of a scrappy organization,” Whelden-Kendall says of FEAST. “We had some really bare-bones times before, so I feel like we’re kind of good at operating on a minimum. But we’re definitely exploring other avenues of funding wherever possible.” X

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NOV. 18-24, 2020

FOOD

Gobbling up and scaling down Small is the new big for Thanksgiving in the age of COVID

BY KAY WEST

Biltmore Village, usually spend turkey day. “But this year we are not traveling to see family, and no one is traveling here to see us. My sister lives here, and a cousin lives here, and we have been seeing them, so that’s our pod this year.” Because their restaurant staff members are part of their professional pod, Coggiola says that with Cantina closed on Thanksgiving Day, he and Sherrye have invited employees to stop by the restaurant’s large outdoor space in the afternoon for a drink and a light bite. But it will be family only when it comes time to sit at the table for dinner that evening, where a smoked turkey from Luella’s will be carved. “We did that last year, and it was delicious,” he says. “I’d rather use that big chunk of cooking time and oven space for sides and pies.”

kwest@mountainx.com Alice Oglesby, marketing and garden manager for Sunny Point Café, speaks fondly of Thanksgivings past, which she and her partner traditionally spent around the dinner table of longtime friends in North Asheville. “Their daughter and her husband come up from Atlanta, they invite some other friends, it’s anywhere from 12-15 people. The hosts make the main, and everyone else brings sides and desserts,” she says. After dinner, Oglesby continues, the group customarily walks to the Omni Grove Park Inn to view its gingerbread house display before heading back for dessert. Sounding wistful, she adds what she calls the mantra of 2020: “But not this year.” Variations on the sentiment that “things will look different this year” have become part of a pandemic lexicon as COVID precautions have affected virtually every traditional celebration in 2020, starting with St. Patrick’s Day in March. As North Carolina segued through official phases of reopen-

LITTLE GOBBLERS: Jeff and Ashley Miller’s youngest two children, Betsy June and Charlie, learn safe knife techniques from the pros. Photo by Lynne Caldwell ing, many warm weather holidays, like Memorial Day, the Fourth of July

Celebrating the sunny side “Gratitude is something that takes cultivating in times like these when business owners like me are navigating huge changes. It is good to have people around you to help you see the sunny side of things and the realistic side of things, and for those people, those conversations, my staff and the community support for Sand Hill Kitchen, I am very grateful.” — Jamie Wade, owner of Sand Hill Kitchen X

and Labor Day, were relatively safely observed outdoors. But rising numbers of cases in Buncombe County and the state does not portend well for travel-reliant, indoor gatherings like Thanksgiving and Christmas. In a media release, Stacie Saunders, Buncombe County public health director, says the county’s contact-tracing investigations reveal that many new cases have been associated with small gatherings of family and friends. “The best protection is reducing contact with others outside of your household as much as possible,” she reminds. In other words: Thanksgiving 2019: Friendsgiving fun! Thanksgiving 2020: Pods-giving proactive. Womp, womp.

Jamie Wade; photo by Cindy Kunst 18

NOV. 18-24, 2020

MOUNTAINX.COM

PROFESSIONAL POD

Members of the restaurant industry have become experts on pandemic protective procedures, with little wiggle room between the professional and personal. For many, Thanksgiving will indeed look different this year, and small is the new big. “Normally, we get together with extended family,” says Anthony Coggiola of how he and his wife, Sherrye, owners of The Cantina at

A FEW GOOD FRIENDS

Jeff Miller, owner of both Luella’s Bar-B-Que restaurants in Asheville, is pleased when told of Coggiola’s turkey plans. “It’s the biggest honor to be on so many Thanksgiving tables,” he says. “The first year we offered them in 2007, we did about 12 and thought we were crushing it. Now we cap it at 250 turkeys, with 125 at each store, gallons of gravy and pounds and pounds of potatoes and veggies.” Even so, he says, he was a little surprised to find his own turkey on the table at their host’s house last year. “I was like, ‘You knew we were on the guest list, right?’” When he and his wife, Ashley, are hosting, he prefers a roasted local bird, though, for him, it’s all about the sides — particularly the mashed potatoes, which are his specialty. “Yukon golds, skin on, smashed and lumpy, with a ton of the highest-fat butter you can find,” he says. But for the Millers, there will be no large Friendsgiving gathering this year. “We are not sharing indoor space with anyone other than family right now,” says Jeff. Instead, they plan to dine al fresco with a couple of friends they spent time with outdoors over the summer. Should bad weather prevent that from happening, he says, they will pivot. With four kids between the ages of 4 and 15, the Millers still form a lively pod of six.

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Chef Joe Scully, co-owner of Corner Kitchen and Chestnut, will kick off Thanksgiving 2020 with his wife, Vanessa Salomo, as he normally does. “Every Thanksgiving, Vanessa and I and whoever wants to help go to [Veterans Restoration Quarters] and feed dinner to a few hundred,” he says. “We’ll still do that this year with a couple of menu and service changes.” Before their now-3-year-old daughter, Frances, was born, Scully says, he and Salomo took a low-key approach after serving the vets, usually going to a movie in the afternoon. This year, though, they will have dinner with Salomo’s parents, Kitty and John Webster, the only people the chef’s family spends time with indoors and unmasked. And dinner will be on him. “I’m the only person who cooks in my house,” Scully says with a laugh. “I’ll slow-roast a prime rib from Hickory Nut Gap, Yorkshire pudding, green beans, twice-baked potatoes, root vegetables and a pumpkin pie for my father-in-law. We feel very safe in that bubble.”

PLAN B

Oglesby plans to have Thanksgiving dinner with the pod quartet she and

her partner created months ago with another couple who, like them, have a low risk of exposure to the coronavirus professionally and are extremely cautious personally. They began in the spring getting together in their yard at opposite ends of a 12-foot table, progressing from drinks and snacks to potluck dinners, games of distanced croquet and even crafty projects like dividing aloe plants and painting pots. As more has been learned about how the virus spreads, the four have moved onto Oglesby’s covered, high-ceiling porch and a smaller table, though their weekly dinners are always preceded by check-in texts on individual levels of exposure the week prior, and if anyone is not comfortable, they postpone until the next week. Given the all-clear, on Nov. 26, they will convene earlier in the day due to cooling temperatures and the earlier sunset. And rather than cook, they will treat themselves to Sunny Point’s take-away full dinner for four. While marveling over the elaborate gingerbread houses at the Grove Park Inn is also COVID-canned this year, Oglesby has a Plan B. “Since I won’t be cooking dinner, I’ll make gingerbread instead, and after dinner, we can all make our own gingerbread houses,” she says. X

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Blessed to unite “Grind is grateful for the opportunity to hold space in such a historic spot [on Depot Street, which runs through the historically Black Southside community]. For years, our people have struggled and shed tears because of disenfranchisement. Our community was hurt from redevelopment. Gentrification is real. But we have been blessed to open a business that brings people together with a warm cup of coffee and programs that unite.”

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— Gene Ettison, co-owner of Grind Coffee Co. X

fe r i n g f o w o N d i n i ng r o o d t ou o ut e k a t d an Gene Ettison, right, pictured with Grind co-owner J Hackett; photo courtesy of Grind Coffee Co. MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

FOOD ROUNDUP by Kay West | kwest@mountainx.com

Thanksgiving, your way Big Thanksgiving gatherings are so 2019. Downsizing has its silver linings: Less chance of heated postelection arguments among warring family factions. Fewer dishes to wash. More pie for you! Recognizing the inevitable trend toward less crowded tables and fewer mouths to feed this year, many restaurants and butchers are offering prepared meals that feed just two to four people, smaller birds and turkey alternatives. Be sure to check ordering and in-house dining reservation deadlines; they are creeping up faster than those pesky pandemic pounds. Bouchon and RendezVous will both be open for prix fixe Thanksgiving dinner service with seatings at noon, 2:30 and 5 p.m. $65 per person. Reservations (maximum six per table) are required. Call RendezVous at 828348-0909 or visit Bouchon online at bouchonasheville.com.

TURKEY DAY OPTIONS: Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Be sure to check ordering and in-house dining reservation deadlines; they are creeping up faster than those pesky pandemic pounds. Photo from Getty Images Additionally, RendezVous will cook and pack a three-course meal portioned for two, four or six, which you can pick up, take home, transfer to your own service ware and claim as your own. Orders must be placed by Monday, Nov. 23, for pickup on Wednesday, Nov, 25. Email shannon@ashevillebouchon.com for menu and pricing. Bouchon, 67 Lexington Ave.; RendezVous, 184 New Haw Creek Road Foothills Meats not only does the cooking but also manages portion control, so you don’t have to. Holiday heat-and-eat meals include individual servings of sliced, house-roasted turkey topped with cranberry chutney, mashed potatoes and gravy, root veggies and biscuit stuffing for $18 per person. Also on the pickup menu are brined and smoked turkey breasts, family-sized sides and raw turkeys for the roast-it-yourselfers. Order at foothillsmeats.grazecart.com or call 828-357-9029 for more information. Foothills Butcher Bar West, 697 Haywood Road; Foothills Butcher Bar Black Mountain, 107 Black Mountain Ave., Black Mountain Thanksgiving marks the beginning of cheese ball season, and Black Bear BBQ has you covered with its fancy cranberry-chipotle goat cheese ball.

NOV. 18-24, 2020

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That’s just one of three starters on the restaurant’s Thanksgiving Made Easy menu, which also features

smoked turkey, chicken, sausage and the showstopping Chinese five-spice pork belly. Sides include Grandma Betty’s broccoli casserole topped with Cheez-Its. For the menu and ordering instructions, visit blackbearbbqavl. com. Deadline to order is Saturday, Nov. 21. Black Bear BBQ, 800 Fairview Road The Chop Shop Butchery invites you to think outside the turkey and consider smaller fowl like pheasant, quail, duck, poulet and poussin as well as alternate protein centerpieces such as pork crown roast and rabbit. Preorder at chopshopbutcher. com/thanksgiving for curbside pickup Saturday-Wednesday, Nov. 21-25. The Chop Shop, 100 Charlotte St. Baba Nahm’s reheatable feast takes Thanksgiving on a Mediterranean spin with turkey breast roulade, semolina bread and kale dressing, creamy cauliflower and sumac purée, and ras el hanout heirloom carrots. Portions for two, four or eight are $39, $75 and $140, respectively. Freshbaked breads, desserts and a wine selection are also available. Order at babanahm.com. Baba Nahm, 1 Page Ave. Twisted Laurel sets your table with a full dinner — choice of sweet-teabrined turkey breast or brown sugar-glazed ham — for six for $149. Or there’s the option to pick and choose from an a la carte menu of mains, sides and desserts. The deadline to order is Saturday, Nov. 21, for pickup at either

Smiles and work ethic “I’m incredibly grateful for the community that Sawhorse has managed to cultivate, both among our guests and our staff. Our guests have been overwhelmingly supportive and understanding throughout the pandemic, and our staff has somehow managed to maintain a smile and a work ethic I’ll never forget.” — Dan Silo, chef and owner of Sawhorse X

Dan Silo; photo courtesy of Sawhorse

the downtown Asheville or Weaverville location 2-6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 25. For details, visit twistedlaurel.com. Twisted Laurel, 130 College St., Asheville; 10A S. Main St., Weaverville The Rhu invites gluten-free folks to stuff themselves silly with its wildly popular gluten-free traditional stuffing covered in gluten-free turkey neck gravy. The smorgasbord of sides features green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, Lusty Monk mustard-glazed brussels sprouts, mashed

potatoes, cornbread sausage stuffing, and grits and oyster casserole. Order online by Monday, Nov. 23, at the-rhu. com for pickup Saturday-Wednesday, Nov. 21–25. The Rhu, 10 S. Lexington Ave. Additionally, the Ashville Independent Restaurant Association is maintaining a comprehensive, up-to-date listing at avl.mx/8pf of what local, independent restaurants are planning for Thanksgiving 2020 as well as Christmas and New Year’s. X

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Camaraderie and Cantonese food “Launching my own business during a global pandemic was one of the best things I have done. It has taught me a great deal about who I am and ignited my admiration and passion for Cantonese food all over again. I am most grateful for the camaraderie and meaningful relationships among our Asheville restaurant industry and market family and that Asheville has embraced Cantonese cuisine. It makes my heart smile with so much pride and gratitude.” — J. Chong, chef and owner of J. Chong Eats X

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“It’s been a rough and scary year with the normal avenues for selling our produce turned on their ear. But the meaningful relationships we had with some of our chefs before the pandemic have grown unbreakably stronger. To quote chef Kikkoman Shaw at Southside Kitchen, ‘It has brought a lot of us together who might not have crossed paths otherwise.’ I agree, and for that I am grateful.” — Aaron Grier, owner of Gaining Ground Farm X

Cyril, Aaron, Anne and Addiebelle Grier; photo by Jack Sorokin MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Next chapter

Wilma Dykeman’s childhood home to house visiting writers BY THOMAS CALDER tcalder@mountainx.com

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Near the end of her life, author Wilma Dykeman was preoccupied. “She kept asking me, ‘What’s going to become of the house?’” remembers her son Jim Stokely, who serves as president of the nonprofit Wilma Dykeman Legacy. The three-bedroom property, located on 11 acres in Beaverdam, was Dykeman’s childhood home. “She wanted to make sure that ‘The Place,’ as she and her mother referred to it as, would be preserved in some way,” Stokely continues. Since Dykeman’s death in late 2006, Stokely, along with his wife, Anne, and brother, Dykeman, have worked to fulfill their mother’s wish as well as celebrate her literary career, which included authoring 15 works of nonfiction and three novels. A decade later, and with support from several local organizations and individuals, the property is now the new home for UNC Asheville’s writer-in-residence program, an interdisciplinary initiative set to launch in fall 2021. “Everything takes time if you’re going to do it right,” Stokely says. “And I think we did it right.”

Local investor and philanthropist Ellen Carr was key to getting it right. She’s also emblematic of both Stokely’s hope and fear for his mother’s legacy. Because, although Dykeman is remembered by many lifelong residents in Asheville, her literary contributions are less known

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DISCOVERING DYKEMAN

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TEAM DYKEMAN: Jim Stokely, center, and his wife, Anne, right, are joined by Ellen Carr and her dog Skittles on the front porch of author Wilma Dykeman’s childhood home. The three played a crucial role in UNC Asheville establishing its new writer-in-residence program at the property. Photo by Thomas Calder among recent transplants and readers outside Western North Carolina. Carr, who relocated to the area by way of Nashville in 2012, says her own introduction to Dykeman was by chance. “I kind of stumbled across Wilma’s The French Broad because that’s her one book that’s most prominently displayed at Malaprop’s,” she explains. Published in 1955, the work combines regional history with environmental studies. (For more, see “Asheville Archives: Early

Reviews of Wilma Dykeman’s ‘The French Broad,’ 1955,” Page 11, Xpress) Impressed by Dykeman’s prose, Carr went on to read all three of the author’s novels. “I just really loved her writing and kind of scratched my head and thought, ‘Why didn’t I ever get exposed to her before?’” Carr, who now serves on the Wilma Dykeman Legacy board, purchased the author’s childhood home in September 2019, putting into effect the conservation

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easements from both RiverLink and the Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County that were part of the purchase agreement. A year later, she donated the property to UNCA. “I just thought it would be a great addition to the community,” Carr says. “It’ll provide people a chance to find that sort of creative community that is so important in maintaining a thriving literary tradition.”

THE BRIGHTEST STAR

Currently, the university’s plans for the program are still in development. During a recent virtual press conference, UNCA Chancellor Nancy J. Cable said one major hope is to have the property operating year-round. Ideally, visiting writers will live in the home during the fall and spring semesters; in the summer, the space may host conferences and other literary events. Carr, who is among the members of the writer-in-residence selection committee, stresses the program’s interdisciplinary approach. “This is not an English department or creative writing department endeavor,” she says. The group will work to select a diverse range of

writers each year, she maintains, inviting historians, environmentalists, journalists and authors alike to temporarily call the Dykeman house their home. In doing so, the program honors the many hats that Dykeman wore throughout her life. Along with her publications, the author and environmental activist taught creative writing and Appalachian literature at the University of Tennessee, while serving as the Volunteer State historian for over two decades. Regrettably, most of her contributions were overlooked, according to Stokely. “She dealt with injustice her whole life,” he explains. “Being a woman who worked in multiple fields dominated by men, she was used to ill treatment.” Because of this overt sexism, Stokely continues, he views the writer-in-residence program partly as a way to propel his mother’s name beyond the mountains of WNC. “It promises to be a bright star in the constellation of things that the Wilma Dykeman Legacy has done,” Stokely says of the home’s next chapter. “And it could be the brightest star in attracting world-class writers and broadening Wilma’s recognition across the United States and all around the world.” X

Revolutionary results “I’m very grateful for the love and support from my community of friends. If not for them, I might have lost my mind completely this year. In my professional work, I’m grateful for space and time. Over the past year, our band has been able to get a space to be our most creative versions of ourselves with less focus on the distribution of our music and more focus on the crafting of our music and building our relationships. In the grand scheme of things, I’m very grateful to the nation opening up to the idea of a social revolution. Things need to change, and I think they are in a way we haven’t seen in our lifetime. If we stay consistent with the pressure we’re applying to the public, we have the opportunity to change our world for the better.” — Mike Martinez, lead singer/songwriter for Natural Born Leaders X

Mike Martinez; photo by Ed Morgan MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

A&E

Eleventh-month developments Samara Jade, Awen Family Band release new albums

VARIED PATHWAYS: Samara Jade, left, tracked her new album in multiple locations, while the Awen Family Band’s latest release was recorded live. Samara Jade photo by Jackie Stuber. Awen Family Band photo by James Kennedy Life experiences can inform the creative output of artists in unusual ways — as can the circumstances under which a recording is made. Take the chamber folk of Samara Jade’s Nov. 15 release Zero, for example. Though some of the songs were written when

NOV. 18-24, 2020

Jade was living in Asheville (she’s currently based in the Pacific Northwest), the recording was completed on the West Coast, during a two-month quarantine that included a three-day fast. And while there’s a meditative and solitary quality to the songs on Zero,

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the album’s overall character is one that celebrates connection with the larger world. The leadoff single from Zero, “Night” was indeed written in the evening, at the end of a fast in Washington state. “I had spent the three days reckoning with a lot of my personal shadows, demons and whatnot,” Jade says. “But it’s also a beautiful process.” The experience helped her realize something: “The more that I expand my heart into being able to feel grief, the more expanded my capacity is to feel joy and to feel love.” And that duality is reflected in her music. “As a writer, I’m also very influenced by place,” Jade says. “But that doesn’t always come out in the traditional ways.” By way of example, she notes that while “Winged Nut” has “an Appalachian, old-timey feel,” it was written in California. “For the most part, I do most of my writing in nature and in natural places,” she explains. “That’s generally where I feel the most connected to source and tuned into my soul.” Jade likes to think of the songs on Zero as “a collaboration between myself, my soul and the land of wherever I am.” The album’s title is a reference to tarot. “The card for zero in the traditional tarot decks is The Fool,” Jade says, noting that the card’s significance is often misunderstood. “People

think of a fool as a negative thing: ‘You’re being foolish.’ It does have that meaning and that connotation, but on the flip side, The Fool [represents] the energy of spring. It’s the stepping-off, the quantum leap into the unknown.” And that embracing of the unknown — and sometimes the unknowable — is at the heart of Zero. Jade recorded much of the album’s basic tracks in Asheville, prior to the pandemic. But when it came time to overdub instruments to finish the project, she was fortunate to be self-quarantined at what she calls a “sanctuary” in Arcata, Calif. “Two of the people I was quarantined with happened to play,” she says. “One was a trombone player, and the other played lap steel guitar. I couldn’t have made that up. It was just so perfect, so magical.” samarajademusic.com

FAMILY TIES

The concept of family can be a fluid one: Beyond genetic connections, it often represents a circle of people with a common set of concerns, goals or values. In the case of the Awen Family Band, it represents a shared focus on musical expression, most recently with the acoustic EP, Back to the Source (released Nov. 12).

The group is a musical collective built around the core of Jackson Weldon, formerly of Dr. Bacon, and former Freeway Revival guitarist Tim Husk. The rest of the group’s lineup is ever-changing. That informal approach is carried through in the group’s music. According to Husk, the Awen Family Band “started out with the idea of going to festivals and just hooking up with other people there to play late night,” then turned its attention to “[building] a songbook.” He adds that the like-minded musicians are “just vessels for the muse,” and that the shared goal is to allow “the inspiration to flow through us and to not take it so seriously.” Standing in contrast to the Awen Family Band’s easygoing vibe is the fact that in the space of only 18 months, the group has produced no fewer than a dozen releases. “The reason for so much of it is because there’s just so much different music that happens,” Husk says. All of the group’s releases are live recordings, made either in front of an audience or from single takes live in a studio. That sense of immediacy is key to the Awen Family Band’s aesthetic. “We’re trying to honor the sound that comes out of the moment,” Husk says. As such, extemporaneous sessions make

use of “found” instruments alongside more conventional ones. These days, the group often plays in backyards with only a small gathering of listeners, but that was the concept even before the COVID-19 pandemic struck. “That’s where this idea spawned from,” Husk says. “Sitting around the kitchen table, people beating on the table, grabbing pots and pans, playing random instruments to create music right there.” And Back to the Source captures that spirit. “It just feels like a bunch of folks hanging out in the backyard,” Husk says. The rootsy feel of the music also reflects the shared philosophy of the musicians involved. “I like the idea of ‘from the beginning, to the beyond,’” Husk says. “When we’re playing, we have to reach all the way back to the beginning for all that inspiration. And then we’re pushing it all the way forward.” In turn, he believes that the music is meant to convey the idea that “we’re right in the middle of that, and we’re all connected in a way” and hopes that the Awen Family Band can help “allow the space for people’s hearts and minds to get there, too, if they’re not there already.” awenfamily.bandcamp.com

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— Bill Kopp X

Round-the-clock community “I am extremely grateful for my husband Greg’s culinary skills. He’s been awesome at planning and cooking creative menus throughout the pandemic. At work, I’m glad to be learning some new digital skills with the virtual cinema at the Fine Arts and the online store at New Morning Gallery. I’d like to thank the local community for their support, from our patrons to the folks behind #AshevilleStrong and Go Local to the Mountain Xpress and the Asheville Movie Guys, and to our neighbors on Biltmore Avenue. I appreciate you all so much!” — Leah Chang, manager/programmer at the Fine Arts Theatre X

Leah Chang; photo by Jerry Burkhart MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

CLUBLAND

Online Event= q WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18 SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Zack Meadows Writers Showcase, 5pm OKLAWAHA BREWING CO. French Broad Valley Mountain Music Jam, 6pm SALVAGE STATION G. Love & Special Sauce (alternative, hip-hop), 6pm RABBIT RABBIT Big Screen Trivia, 6:30pm TRISKELION BREWERY InterActive TriskaTrivia, 7pm TWIN LEAF BREWERY Open Mic w/ Thomas Yon, 7pm HI-WIRE BREWING BIG TOP Magnetic Theatre: The SuperHappy Trivia Challenge, 7:30pm

THE GREY EAGLE Indigo de Souza (garage pop), 8:30pm SOVEREIGN KAVA q

Poetry Open Mic, 8:30pm, avl.mx/76w THE PAPER MILL LOUNGE Karaoke X, 9pm

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 19 LAZY HIKER BREWING SYLVA Open Jam, 5pm GHOST TOWN IN THE SKY The Grey Eagle: Drive-in Show w/ St. Paul & the Broken Bones (rock, soul), 6pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Open Mic w/ Thomas Yon, 6pm THE ORANGE PEEL Stephen Lynch, 6pm OKLAWAHA BREWING CO. Kid Billy (solo multi-instrumentalist), 6:30pm

PSYCHED OUT: “Jazz and psych go hand in hand in terms of experimentalism,” says bassist Maddie Kendrick of psychedelic garage-rock band Fortezza. In its 2018 album Fiend, the genre-bending trio pairs hard-driving guitar riffs with subdued bass lines and raw, earnest vocals. The Asheville-based group will perform at Fleetwood’s Friday, Nov. 20, 7 p.m. $7. avl.mx/8pt. Photo courtesy of Fleetwood’s WORTHAM CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS An Evening with George Winston, 6:30pm THE GREY EAGLE The Pack A.D. (garage rock, psychedelic), 7pm RABBIT RABBIT Slice of Life Rooftop Comedy, 7pm ISIS MUSIC HALL The Lazybirds (Americana, roots), 7pm TRISKELION BREWERY Jason's Technicolor Cabaret: Music & Comedy, 7pm ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Gunslinging Parrots (Phish tribute), 8pm BEN’S TUNE UP Comedy Open Mic w/ Baby George, 9pm

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20 MAD CO. BREW HOUSE Mr Jimmy (blues), 6pm ONE WORLD BREWING WEST Lenny P. (solo multi-instrumentalist), 6pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING John Emil (Southern blues, rock), 6pm FLEETWOOD'S Fortezza (psychedelic, garage rock), 7pm ISIS MUSIC HALL The Wildmans (roots, folk), 7pm

NOV. 18-24, 2020

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JACK OF THE WOOD Sons of Ralph (bluegrass), 7:30pm BEN’S TUNE UP DJ Kilby Spinning Vinyl, 10pm

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21 SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Billy Mac & Friends (rock, soul), 3pm ONE WORLD BREWING WEST Chandler Carter (solo acoustic), 4pm BATTERY PARK BOOK EXCHANGE Dinah's Daydream (jazz), 6pm ISIS MUSIC HALL Kristy Cox (Australian bluegrass), 7pm THE GREY EAGLE Patio Show w/ the Maggie Valley Band (dark Appalachian), 7pm JACK OF THE WOOD Jackson Grimm (folk, Appalachian), 7:30pm WILD WING CAFE Karaoke Night, 9:30pm

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22 HIGHLAND BREWING CO. Reggae Sunday w/ Chalwa, 2pm RIVERSIDE RHAPSODY BEER CO. Drinkin’ & Thinkin’ Trivia, 4pm ONE WORLD BREWING WEST In Flight (jazz, experimental), 5pm

185 KING STREET Open Electric Jam, 6pm

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25

THE GREY EAGLE Patio Show w/ Harriers of Discord & The Callers (punk), 6pm

OKLAWAHA BREWING CO. French Broad Valley Mountain Music Jam, 6pm

TRISKELION BREWERY JC & the Boomerang Band (Irish trad, folk), 6pm

RABBIT RABBIT Outdoor Movie: Planes, Trains & Automobiles, 6pm

ISIS MUSIC HALL Peggy Ratusz & Daddy LongLegs (oldies, blues), 7pm

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 23 ARCHETYPE BREWING Old Time Jam w/ Banjo Mitch McConnell, 6pm RABBIT RABBIT Outdoor Movie: Star Wars Episode VI, Return of the Jedi, 6pm HIGHLAND BREWING CO. Totally Rad Trivia w/ Mitch Fortune, 6:30pm OKLAWAHA BREWING CO. It Takes All Kinds Open Mic Night, 7pm

SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Old Sap (solo acoustic), 6pm TRISKELION BREWERY InterActive TriskaTrivia, 7pm TWIN LEAF BREWERY Open Mic w/ Thomas Yon, 7pm SOVEREIGN KAVA q

Poetry Open Mic, 8:30pm, avl.mx/76w THE PAPER MILL LOUNGE Karaoke X, 9pm

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26 LAZY HIKER BREWING SYLVA Open Jam, 5pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Open Mic w/ Thomas Yon, 6pm

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24

TRISKELION BREWERY Jason’s Technicolor Cabaret: Music & Comedy, 7pm

OKLAWAHA BREWING CO. Team Trivia Tuesday, 6pm

ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Gunslinging Parrots (Phish tribute), 8pm

MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

MOVIE REVIEWS THIS WEEK’S CONTRIBUTORS

Hosted by the Asheville Movie Guys EDWIN ARNAUDIN earnaudin@mountainx.com HHHHH

= MAX RATING

H PICK OF THE WEEK H

Born to Be HHHH DIRECTOR: Tania Cypriano PLAYERS: Leiomy Maldonado, Garnet Rubio, Jess Ting DOCUMENTARY NOT RATED Among the many virtues of the Mount Sinai Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery in New York City is that everyone accepts its transgender and nonbinary clients for the people they know themselves to be. As the documentary Born to Be introduces the handful of trans patients that the film will follow, each person seems to glow with the joy of the clinic’s safe spaces — despite being in the typically stress-inducing atmosphere of a hospital, facing surgery with long and painful recovery periods and uncertain outcomes. The focus of Born to Be is plastic surgeon Jess Ting, a mild-mannered single father and classical bass player who had little contact with trans people before volunteering to become his hospital’s expert in gender-affirming surgery, the complex series of procedures developed from what used to be called “sex change operations.” Despite the many scenes of postsurgical elation and clients’ testimony about how Ting’s work changed their lives, Born to Be is not boosterism. It’s realistic about the barriers trans people face, and direct about the fact that a scalpel cannot repair deep-seated emotional damage, as one near-tragedy late in the film makes clear. Directed by Tania Cypriano, this is a straightforward and compassionate documentary, full of neatly delivered information and respectful of its subjects, who 28

BRUCE STEELE bcsteele@gmail.com

NOV. 18-24, 2020

tell of their own journeys — to a degree. Most clients keep their private lives private, sharing only those anecdotes and traumas that directly relate to their arrival at Mount Sinai. The exception is one older trans woman, who takes the film crew on a tour of the street corners where she used to turn tricks. Whether Cypriano chose to limit her crew mostly to the hospital or whether subjects declined to be more forthcoming isn’t clear. But during this particularly stressful time for trans rights in the U.S., Born to Be is an island of calm determination and normalization. Like Ting himself, it’s remarkable in part because everything about it is so evidently ordinary. Call it quietly transformative. REVIEWED BY BRUCE STEELE BCSTEELE@GMAIL.COM

Coded Bias HHHS DIRECTOR: Shalini Kantayya PLAYERS: Meredith Broussard, Joy Buolamwini, Silkie Carlo DOCUMENTARY NOT RATED Real-world artificial intelligence has not evolved like its pop-culture counterparts. We do not yet have helpful droids like C-3PO or programmable killers like The Terminator. Instead, we have algorithms — unseen, adaptable bits of code capable of analyzing and learning from data and tasked with automating everything from which ads you see on social media to hiring and firing, and much more. In this

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sense, the mass jumble of code operates more like HAL9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey than anything else, in that what it learns and how it uses that information isn’t always in our best interests. Shalini Kantayya’s documentary Coded Bias is not an Orwellian prediction of future privacy violations, but an eerie status report on the many ways in which Big Brother is already watching. Getting the ball rolling is MIT computer scientist Joy Buolamwini and her research into how AI and its algorithms discriminate on the basis of race and sex — and how the digital frontier may soon demand an influx of policies to address these concerns. Careful not to overwhelm viewers with technical mumbo-jumbo, Buolamwini and her predominantly female team — along with other watchdog groups from around the world — break down the wall of info in a way that’s both comprehensible and terribly frightening, simply by showing how the technology is used. And as they examine the history of how AI’s bias touches nearly every aspect of our lives, the consequences parallel the impacts of both modern and historical power structures. Where the film falls short is in its rote presentation. Cinematically, this is a cookie-cutter documentary with predictable, overused techniques. Some artistic flair would have gone a long way to set it apart from its peers, especially considering the obvious cool and creative sensibilities of its subjects. But packaging aside, the informational value of Coded Bias is what we came for, and, in that regard, it doesn’t disappoint. REVIEWED BY JAMES ROSARIO JAMESROSARIO1977@GMAIL.COM

Collective HHHH DIRECTOR: Alexander Nanau PLAYERS: Catalin Tolontan DOCUMENTARY NOT RATED Alexander Nanau’s Collective took multiple years to film and complete, yet its tale of deep-rooted corruption feels blisteringly current — and likely will remain so for some time. The gripping documentary begins shortly after a catastrophic fire at the Bucharest nightclub Colectiv in 2015, a national tragedy that resulted in additional deaths of burn victims who suffered relatively minor injuries. The rising body count prompted reporters at the Sports

James Rosario

Casey Ellis

Josh McCormack

Gazette to seek answers, and their findings lead to a fascinating series of revelations, each more sickening than the last. With a few exceptions involving some of the fire’s scarred survivors and family members of the deceased, Collective splits its time between investigative journalist Catalin Tolontan and newly appointed health minister Vlad Voiculescu, both of whom allowed the film crew remarkable access to their closed-door meetings and general professional lives. While Tolontan and his colleagues expose one corruption after another, Voiculescu deals with the fallout and attempts to make changes from within the government — inspiring efforts that Nanau chronicles as a seemingly invisible observer. Though the proceedings can feel a bit cold and clinical at times, the stories and people are so intriguing that additional stylization is all but unnecessary. REVIEWED BY EDWIN ARNAUDIN EARNAUDIN@MOUNTAINX.COM

Freaky HHH DIRECTOR: Christopher Landon PLAYERS: Kathryn Newton, Vince Vaughn, Alan Ruck HORROR/COMEDY RATED R I am the biggest sucker for a body-swap movie. The genre is a golden goose of slapstick and fish-out-of-water humor, but not all can ascend Mount Olympus to reign supreme alongside the gods — Freaky Friday, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and ... the other two Freaky Fridays. There has to be a hierarchy, people! Alas, some body-swap movies are created merely to serve the wellspring and keep it from stagnating. Freaky is in this class and accepts its lot — maybe a little too easily. To start, we find our awkward but lovable teen lead Millie (Kathryn Newton, Lady Bird) alone and suddenly assailed on a freakin’ weekend night by a bloodthirsty serial killer with a knife. After barely surviving the attack, she awakes the next morning to find herself in the lair of the Blissfield Butcher (Vince Vaughn). She is different. She is in a grown man’s body. She is freaked! Here’s the deal: If you think grown men talking and acting like Gen Z girls is funny, you will like this movie. Period. Vaughn is perfectly cast in the role, plus there are some really fun gore scenes. But, I think writer/director Christopher

Landon (Happy Death Day) rests on his laurels just a bit too much, resulting in a plot that packs the cinematic nourishment of a can of La Croix. You wrote the Happy Death Day sequel, Mr. Landon. You can do better! But now I’m thinking I’m giving this popcorn flick a hard time. While the story is thin, the vibe is fun and it’s really sad to know this won’t be enjoyed in packed theaters. This is the type of movie that deserves the screams, laughs and a few groans that only a room full of strangers can bring. Now playing at AMC River Hills 10 and the Carolina Cinemark REVIEWED BY CASEY ELLIS C.DALTON.ELLIS@GMAIL.COM

The Last Vermeer HHHS

DIRECTOR: Dan Friedkin PLAYERS: Guy Pearce, Claes Bang FACT-BASED DRAMA RATED R Apparently contractually obliged to star exclusively in well-made, midtier indie dramas about the art world, Claes Bang (The Square; The Burnt Orange Heresy) doubles down on his pigeonhole with the fact-based The Last Vermeer. This time, the Danish actor plays Capt. Joseph Piller, an Allied officer in post-World War II Holland who’s tasked with investigating whether Dutch artist Han van Meegeren (Guy Pearce) was a Nazi conspirator. Thus begins an appealing cat-andmouse game between the two gifted actors, in which van Meegeren requests merely his painting supplies to prove his innocence and a potentially bigger conspiracy arises involving Nazi money laundering — a suspenseful situation made even more so by mounting pressure from an unforgiving Dutch citizenry who want to see the accused pay for his alleged crimes. Gorgeously shot, the directorial debut of Dan Friedkin (whose credits range from a producer of Clint Eastwood’s The Mule to a stunt pilot in Dunkirk) hits a wall around its hour mark but finds new life in its second half, when it transforms into a courtroom drama. The storytelling may not leave much to the imagination — and its female characters, including Vicky Krieps (Phantom Thread) as Piller’s assistant, are given so little to do that they may as well be played by mannequins — but it makes for a satisfying mystery nonetheless. Starts Nov. 20 at the Carolina Cinemark REVIEWED BY EDWIN ARNAUDIN EARNAUDIN@MOUNTAINX.COM

Monsoon HHHS DIRECTOR: Hong Khaou PLAYERS: Henry Golding, Parker Sawyers, David Tran DRAMA/ROMANCE NOT RATED Set entirely in Vietnam, Monsoon follows the travels of Kit (Henry Golding, Crazy Rich Asians), whose family fled the country for England in the 1970s after the war. There’s so little plot that even a brief synopsis would spoil the film’s few revelations. So, let’s just say that Kit is gay, meets an attractive African American man named Lewis (Parker Sawyers, Southside With You) and is on a quest that involves visiting sites important to his past. Writer/director Hong Khaou is a skilled filmmaker, which keeps Monsoon visually interesting, but as a writer, he tends toward withholding. There are some lovely set pieces — Kit and an old friend explore a construction site that was once a pond; Kit visits a family who sits in a circle processing lotus blossoms for tea — but dialogue often tends toward the elliptical. Viewers are intended to fill in the blanks as they see fit, which includes extrapolating the meaning of the movie’s finale from inconclusive hints. It’s easy to say that Monsoon is about one man’s effort to find his place in the world or that it makes an interesting companion film to Da 5 Bloods in exploring the continuing impact of the Vietnam War. But Khaou doesn’t want to limit viewers’ reactions with conclusive plot twists or a dominant point of view. His Monsoon

draws you in but leaves you to find your own way out. REVIEWED BY BRUCE STEELE BCSTEELE@GMAIL.COM

Vanguard HS DIRECTOR: Stanley Tong PLAYERS: Jackie Chan, Yang Yang FOREIGN FILM/ACTION NOT RATED You’d be hard-pressed to find another modern action movie as incredibly generic as Vanguard. Part Fast and Furious wannabe, part Michael Bay rip-off, the latest feature from Stanley Tong reunites the director with his frequent ’90s collaborator Jackie Chan but is bereft of pretty much every quality that made their past films so enjoyable. The plot — if one can call it that — revolves around the titular special forces team led by Tang Huating (Chan) that’s tasked with protecting an accountant from a mercenary organization — I’m getting bored just typing this — and then has to save the entire world from these bad guys. Now, Tong’s and Chan’s previous films haven’t exactly relied on great screenwriting to succeed. (Rumble in the Bronx

has some of the most idiotic storytelling I’ve ever witnessed but still proves to be a blast.) The wonderfully choreographed action and Chan’s gift for physical comedy usually make even his most narratively deficient films work. That’s not the case with Vanguard, wherein Tong relies so heavily on quick edits and abysmal CGI that he obscures what I have to believe was great raw stunt work. More detrimental, however, is that Chan — now 66 years old — is only given a handful of fight scenes. These sequences prove to be the best parts of the film, but they’re few and far between. In his place, young actors Yang Yang (The King’s Avatar) and Miya Muqi (Kung Fu Yoga) handle the bulk of the action, and although they try their best, they can’t capture Chan’s magic or provide the amount of on-screen chemistry needed for this film to work. As Vanguard reaches its third act, the clunky dialogue and bafflingly generic villains prove to be increasingly unbearable. And what should’ve been a fun, well-choreographed action brawler soon devolves into a mind-numbing barrage of machine-gun and missile fire. Starts Nov. 20 at the Carolina Cinemark REVIEWED BY JOSH MCCORMACK MCCORMACKJOSHU97@GMAIL.COM

AVAILABLE VIA FINEARTSTHEATRE.COM (FA) GRAILMOVIEHOUSE.COM (GM) Born to Be (NR) HHHH (Pick of the Week) (GM) Citizens of the World (NR) HHHS (GM) City Hall (NR) S (GM) Coded Bias (NR) HHHS (GM) Collective (NR) HHHH (FA) Coming Home Again (NR) HHHHS (GM) Desert One (NR) HHHH (FA) The Donut King (NR) HHHH (FA, GM) Dosed (NR) HHHH (FA, GM) Driven to Abstraction (PG) HHS(FA) Fantastic Fungi (NR) HHHH (FA) Flannery (NR) HHHH (FA) Herb Alpert Is... (NR) HHS (FA) Jimmy Carter: Rock & Roll President (NR) HHHHH (FA, GM) John Lewis: Good Trouble (PG) HHHH (FA) The Keeper (NR) HHS (FA) Madre (NR) H (GM) Martin Eden (NR) HHH (FA) Meeting the Beatles in India (NR) HHS (FA) Monsoon (NR) HHHH (GM) Oliver Sacks: His Own Life (NR) HHHH (GM) Out Stealing Horses (NR) HHHHS (FA) RBG (NR) HHHH (FA) We Are Many (NR) HH (FA) MOUNTAINX.COM

NOV. 18-24, 2020

FREEWILL ASTROLOGY ARIES (March 21-April 19): Back in 1974, poet Allen Ginsberg and his “spirit wife,” Aries poet Anne Waldman, were roommates at the newly established Naropa University in Boulder, Colo. The school’s founder asked these two luminaries to create a poetics program, and thus was born the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics. Waldman described its ruling principle to be the “outrider” tradition, with a mandate to explore all that was iconoclastic, freethinking and irreverent. The goal of teachers and students alike was to avoid safe and predictable work so as to commune with wild spiritual powers, “keep the energies dancing,” and court eternal surprise. I think that would be a healthy approach for you to flirt with during the next few weeks. TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Any legal actions you take are more likely to be successful if you initiate them between now and the solstice than if you’d begin them at other times. The same is true for any contracts you sign or agreements you make: They have a better chance to thrive than they would at other times. Other activities with more kismet than usual during the coming weeks: efforts to cultivate synergy and symbiosis; attempts to turn power struggles into more cooperative ventures; a push to foster greater equality in hierarchal situations; and ethical moves to get access to and benefit from other people’s resources. GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Never follow an expert off a precipice. Nor a teacher. Nor an attractive invitation. Nor a symbol of truth nor a vibrant ideal nor a tempting gift. In fact, never follow anything off a precipice, no matter how authoritative or sexy or appealing it might be. On the other hand, if any of those influences are headed in the direction of a beautiful bridge that can enable you to get to the other side of a precipice, you should definitely consider following them. Be on the alert for such lucky opportunities in the coming weeks. CANCER (June 21-July 22): Malidoma Patrice Somé was born into the Dagara tribe of Burkina Faso. After being initiated into the Dagara’s spiritual mysteries, he emigrated to America, where he has taught a unique blend of modern and traditional ideas. One of his key themes is the hardship that Westerners’ souls endure because of the destructive impact of the machine world upon the spiritual world. He says there is “an indigenous person within each of us” that longs to cultivate the awareness and understanding enjoyed by indigenous people: a reverence for nature, a vital relationship with ancestors and a receptivity to learn from the intelligence of animals. How’s your inner indigenous person doing? The coming weeks will be an excellent time to enhance your ability to commune with and nurture that vital source. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Psychologists have identified a quality they call NFD: “need for drama.” Those who possess it may be inclined to seek or even instigate turmoil out of a quest for excitement. After all, bringing a dose of chaos into one’s life can cure feelings of boredom or powerlessness. “I’m important enough to rouse a Big Mess!” may be the subconscious battle cry. I’ll urge you Leos to studiously and diligently avoid fostering NFD in the coming weeks. In my astrological opinion, you will have a blessed series of interesting experiences if and only if you shed any attraction you might have to histrionic craziness. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): “Give up the notion that you must be sure of what you are doing,” wrote philosopher Baruch Spinoza. “Instead, surrender to what is real within you, for that alone is sure.” Spinoza’s thoughts will be a great meditation for you in the coming weeks. If you go chasing phantom hopes, longing for absolute certainty and iron confidence, you’ll waste your energy. But if you identify what is most genuine and true and essential about you, and you rely on it to guide you, you can’t possibly fail.

NOV. 18-24, 2020

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): “A little bad taste is like a nice splash of paprika,” said Libran fashion writer Diana Vreeland. “We all need a splash of bad taste,” she continued. “It’s hearty, it’s healthy, it’s physical. I think we could use more of it. Having no taste is what I’m against.” I understand that her perspective might be hard to sell to you refined Librans. But I think it’s good advice right now. Whatever’s lacking in your world, whatever might be off-kilter, can be cured by a dash of good, funky earthiness. Dare to be a bit messy and unruly. SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): To convey the spirit of the coming weeks, I’m offering you wisdom from two women who were wise about the art of slow and steady progress. First, here’s author Iris Murdoch: “One of the secrets of a happy life is continuous small treats, and if some of these can be inexpensive and quickly procured so much the better.” Your second piece of insight about the wonders of prudent, piecemeal triumph comes from activist and author Helen Keller: “I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble.” SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Sagittarian statesman Winston Churchill said that he was always ready to learn — even though there were times when he didn’t enjoy being taught. That might be a useful motto for you to adopt in the coming months. By my estimates, 2021 could turn out to bring a rather spectacular learning spurt — and a key boost to your lifelong education. If you choose to take advantage of the cosmic potentials, you could make dramatic enhancements to your knowledge and skill set. As Churchill’ s message suggests, not all of your new repertoire will come easily and pleasantly. But I bet that at least 80% of it will. Start planning! CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): In accordance with upcoming astrological indicators, I’ve got some good advice for you courtesy of your fellow Capricorn David Bowie. You’ll be well-served to keep it in mind between now and Jan. 1, 2021. “Go a little bit out of your depth,” counseled Bowie. “And when you don’t feel that your feet are quite touching the bottom, you’re just about in the right place to do something exciting.” For extra inspiration, I’ll add another prompt from the creator of Ziggy Stardust: “Once you lose that sense of wonder at being alive, you’re pretty much on the way out.” In that spirit, my dear Capricorn, please take measures to expand your sense of wonder during the next six weeks. Make sure you’re on your way in. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Most of us aren’t brilliant virtuosos like, say, Leonardo da Vinci or Nobel Prize-winning scientist Marie Curie. On the other hand, every one of us has a singular amalgam of potentials that is unique in the history of the world — an exceptional flair or an idiosyncratic mastery or a distinctive blend of talents. In my astrological opinion, you Aquarians will have unprecedented opportunities to develop and ripen this golden and glorious aspect of yourself in 2021. And now is a good time to begin making plans. I encourage you to launch your yearlong Festival of Becoming by writing down a description of your special genius. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): In 1969, humans flew a spaceship to the moon and landed on it for the first time. In 1970, the state of Alabama finally made it legal for interracial couples to get married. That’s a dramatic example of how we humans may be mature and strong in some ways even as we remain backward and undeveloped in other ways. According to my astrological analysis, the coming months will be a highly favorable time for the immature and unseasoned parts of you to ripen. I encourage you to get started!

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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 landrews@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 ads@mountainx.com RENTALS APARTMENTS FOR RENT 1 BEDROOM FURNISHED APARTMENT - YOU BRING FOOD AND CLOTHING Avail Jan-Mar $1,500 month pet OK. 5-star Airbnb rental available Jan-Mar. Includes: hot tub, WIFI, cable, washer/ dryer, off street parking. 5 minutes to downtown overlooking golf course. Comfy, private & quiet. text Melanie @ 515-707-3549. Melanie. curlee@gmail.com. BURNSVILLE, NC STUDIO Updated studio apartment 30 mins from Asheville and walkable to downtown Burnsville. Call Sage at (617) 987-1307 or email vsbarfield@gmail.com .

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HUMAN SERVICES HELPMATE SEEKS A PART-TIME VOLUNTEER PROGRAM SPECIALIST Helpmate, a nonprofit providing safety, shelter and support to survivors of intimate partner violence in Buncombe County, NC is seeking a part-time Volunteer Program Specialist to assist with recruitment, training, and retention strategies in order to keep volunteers and interns engaged in the volunteer program. This position will also help with coordinating Helpmate's 24-hour hotline and their survivor engagement program. Qualified candidates must hold a Bachelor's degree or at least 2 years' experience in a domestic violence or human services/social justice field. Diverse candidates are encouraged to apply. Email resume and cover letter to hiring@helpmateonline.org by December 1 at 5:00pm with "Volunteer Program Specialist" in the subject line. No phone inquiries, please. http://helpmateonline.org/ HELPMATE SEEKS LAP COORDINATOR Helpmate, a non-profit serving survivors of intimate partner domestic violence in Buncombe County, NC seeks a LAP Coordinator. This is a full time, non-exempt salaried position, reporting directly to the Program Director. The LAP Coordinator serves as the primary liaison and resource for law enforcement around officer response to domestic violence incidents, especially implementation, support and monitoring of

the Lethality Assessment Protocol. This position requires on-call responsibilities, including recurring night/weekend availability. Qualified candidates for this position will demonstrate significant knowledge/history of law enforcement and criminal justice work. They will have experience in victim & cross-systems advocacy, as well as experience delivering professional trainings. This position requires a Bachelor's degree, or equivalent experience, plus at least 2 years' service for domestic violence survivors or in a related field. Diverse candidates encouraged to apply. Fluency in Spanish, Russian, Moldovan or Ukrainian will be incentivized. Email resume, cover letter and salary history by COB on December 9th to hiring@ helpmateonline.org . No phone calls or email inquiries, please.

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edited by Will Shortz

T H E NEW Y O R K T IM E S C R O S S W O R D P UZ Z L E 1

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1 Lab test 6 View from Liechtenstein 9 Square

28 34

27 32

14 Water slide

16 Hall’s partner

15 Word that becomes its own opposite if its first letter is removed

17 So much, in music 18 *1st and 5th 20 “Count me in”

22 Garment often made of silk 23 Kid-centric org. 24 *1st separate, 2nd and 3rd together, and 4th and 5th together 27 Tied in ___ 28 Encourage 32 Spongy growth 34 Potent strain of marijuana 37 Chateaux-lined river 38 Sanctions 39 *2nd and 3rd separated 41 Irk 42 Response to “Am not!” 44 Newswoman Phillips 45 Spot for a sitting duck 46 101 47 Some natural hairstyles 49 *1st 55 “The Simpsons” shopkeeper 58 Four-time Grammy winner Lovett

No. 1014 59 Display contempt for, in a way 60 *2nd and 3rd crossed 63 Adult insect stage 64 ___ and wiser 65 Playbill part, informally 66 What each number in the starred clues represents 67 “They’re creepy and they’re ___” (start of the “Addams Family” theme song) 68 Dot follower 69 14 pounds, in Britain

DOWN 1 When Aida dies in Verdi’s “Aida” 2 Former performing orca 3 Popular beachwear 4 Charges 5 Extra on “Star Trek” 6 Outcome of being fired?

puzzle by Rich Proulx 7 Capital at an elevation of 12,000 feet 8 Disciplinary 9 With “please” or “if I may,” say 10 Language with more than 25 vowel sounds 11 Perched on 12 Soap that comes in blue-green bars 13 Far from harbor 19 Minions’ leader in “Despicable Me” 21 Long-stemmed mushroom 25 Unable to answer any more clues, say 26 ___ trip 29 Tries something 30 Gold and silver have them, but not bronze 31 “Step right up!” 32 Biblical kingdom in modern-day Jordan 33 Cajun cooking staple 35 Pen that’s full of oink?

for additional insight into yourself, your relationships and life directions. Stellar Counseling Services. Christy Gunther, MA, LCMHC. (828) 258-3229.

36 Goddesses of the seasons 39 Low, creaky speaking register 40 Traverses 48-Down, in a way 43 [Not my error] 45 High rollers’ preference, perhaps 48 Water hazards 50 Where Ross taught paleontology on “Friends,” for short

51 “Goodness me!” 52 Extremely cold 53 Strand at an airport, maybe 54 Govt.-backed security 55 “Well, I guess so” 56 Word with shirt or grounds 57 Off-the-neck style 61 Apt rhyme for “shriek” 62 This puzzle’s solver

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS NY TIMES PUZZLE

T G I F N A N A

W A T E R C L O C K

A L L T O O T R U E

L O M U I M I N A S K

S A L A L D E S

R E T O R T S

M A L E K

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I R E N E A D L E R

T O U G H C R O W D

A S P S

D R A T

S O N S E O W

C E O S

NOW!

POSITIVE HYPNOSIS | EFT | NLP Michelle Payton, M.A., D.C.H., Author | 828-6811728 | www.MichellePayton.com | Mind Over Matter Solutions books, online and face-2-face education, workshops and sessions for all learners--audio, visual, and tactile. Learn to use Positive Hypnosis—science of re-learning thru positive reinforcement, Emotional Freedom Technique, Neuro-Linguistic Programming, Birth Mix Personality Assessment, Past Life Regression.

AUTOMOTIVE AUTOMOTIVE SERVICES

Give online to 44 local nonprofits–

CASH FOR CARS! We buy all cars! Junk, high-end, totaled – it doesn’t matter! Get free towing and same day cash! NEWER MODELS too! Call 866-535-9689 (AAN CAN)

and get stuff back!

ADULT ADULT FEELING WHACKED? Let Kaye's revive you back! Incall/Outcall 280-8182

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NOV. 18-24, 2020

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