Evince Magazine July 2020

Take a Fire Hydrant Tour of Danville Page 5

* Where Can I Find Evince?

Page 10

Danville Fire Department

Book Clubbing Page 14

Adding Levity to a Serious Job See Page 4

Page 2 July 2020

Annie Penn Hospital We’re committed to safety.

Don’t delay your care. The doctors and caregivers of Annie Penn Hospital encourage you to not let coronavirus prevent you from receiving the care you need, or from scheduling appointments, surgeries and procedures. All Cone Health physician offices and facilities are strictly following the recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as other clinical experts. To learn more, call your doctor or visit conehealth.com.

Separate facility for COVID-19 care Masking everyone Screening everyone Testing scheduled surgery patients Testing all hospitalized patients Enhanced cleaning

Photo by Michelle Dalton Photography

Editor’s Note

COVID-19 has given us the time and the clarity to uncover many worldwide problems.

Evince acknowledges that, but, in the spirit of balance, we focus on the positive, uplifting people in our community—like the firefighters pictured on the cover. Right before this picture was taken, these guys responded to an emergency call. We waited with camera in hand and gratitude in our hearts for their service. They returned in good spirits and ready for the photo shoot.

See more about how they have added a little fun to our stressful lives on page 4 and page 5.

Seeking more clarity in our lives, Diane Adkins presents three books for you to read and ponder. See page 14. Dave Slayton teaches us how to have clarity in the wine we drink on page 7. Many readers have enjoyed exceptional customer service during these difficult times. Martha Athey tells one such story on page 6.

These might be the worst of times, but we are also living in the best of times. It’s all about concentrating on the positive and bringing the good into focus. As I finish writing this note, I can hear Johnny Nash singing, I Can See Clearly Now. Yes, one day soon “it’s gonna be a bright, bright sun-shiny day.”

Sincerely,

July Contents

3 Editor’s Note

4 Danville Fire Department

Adding Levity to a Serious Job

by Joyce Wilburn 5 Take a Fire Hydrant Tour of Danville 6

Spotting Exceptional Customer Service

by Martha Athey Shelter Fiction by Telisha Moore Leigg

7 The Wine Spot / Finding Clarity

by Dave Slayton 8 Watch for the Artmobile Coming to Danville

by Joyce Wilburn 10 Calendar

Where Can I Find Evince?

12 Reflecting Forward / Marking Time

by Linda Lemery 13 Around the Table / Peanut Butter Ice Cream Cake

by Annelle Williams 14 Book Clubbing / reviews by Diane Adkins

I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World

Made for Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in

the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander

How to be an Antiracist by Ibram Kendi On the Cover: Firefighters at Third Avenue Station #5 Nathan Sergeant, Jared Collins, and Trevor Moyer, place their hands on the painted hydrant that won the 2020 contest. Photo by Von Wellington Photography.

e ince Magazine is presenting the V 6th Annual Spirit Awards.

These awards recognize exceptional businesses and individuals in our region.

Vote online at evincemagazine.com

Nominate your favorites in the following categories:

Exceptional Customer Service Exceptional Products • Exceptional Service Exceptional Community Spirit Exceptional Community Involvement VOTING ENDS JULY 15

Evince Magazine Page 3

THE

OICE OF CLARITY

CEO / Publisher Andrew Scott Brooks Editor Joyce Wilburn (434.799.3160) joycewilburn@gmail.com Copy Editors Jeanette Taylor Larry Wilburn Contributing Writers

Diane Adkins, Martha Athey, Kim Eaton, Telisha Moore Leigg, Linda Lemery, Dave Slayton, Joyce Wilburn, Annelle Williams

Art & Production Director Demont Design (Kim Demont) Finance Manager Cindy Yeatts (1.434.709.7349) Marketing Consultants For ad information contact a marketing consultant listed below.

Lee Vogler Director of Sales and Marketing (434.548.5335) lee@evince magazine.com Sam Jackson Marketing Consultant (434.709.3528) sam@showcase magazine.com

Kim Demont (434.792.0612) demontdesign @verizon.net evince\i-’vin(t)s\ 1: to constitute outward evidence of 2: to display clearly: reveal syn see SHOW Deadline for submission of August stories, articles, and ads is Friday, July 24, at 5:00 p.m.

Submit stories, articles, and calendar items to joycewilburn@gmail.com.

Editorial Policies

Evince is a free monthly magazine with news about entertainment and lifestyle in Danville and the surrounding area. We reserve the right to accept, reject and edit all submissions and advertisements.

EVINCE MAGAZINE 753 Main St. Suite 3, Danville, VA 24541 www.evincemagazine.com For subscriptions to Evince, email info@evincemagazine.com.

Cost is $24 a year.

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© 2020 All rights reserved. Reproduction or use in whole or in part in any medium without written permission of the publisher is strictly prohibited.

Page 4 July 2020

W

hat do Oscar the Grouch, Tigger the tiger, and Fire Inspector Jay Thornton have in common? Don’t see it yet? Does expanding the list by adding an American flag and a firefighter help solve the riddle? Here’s a clue: Think fire hydrants.

Jay Thornton, Fire Inspector with the Danville Fire Department (DFD), was the organizer of the 2020 Make Danville Shine Hydrant Contest and all of the above were entries. Artistic DFD employees from three stations painted four hydrants with the goal of adding a little whimsy for passersby to enjoy. Jay explains how the contest originated three years ago, “We were looking for a way to go into the community and become involved while advertising the fire department.” At about the same time, a citizen requested permission to paint a hydrant during the month of May, the annual Make Danville Shine Month. The two ideas merged into a social media contest where votes could be cast by the community for their favorite painted hydrant.

Stephen Williamson, a member of the DFD social media team and Fire Support Analysis, jumps in with the details.

Firefighters from Station #5 Nathan Sergeant, Jared Collins, and Trevor Moyer celebrate with the winning trophy. Photos by Von Wellington Photography.

Danville Fire Department Adding Levity to a Serious Job

by Joyce Wilburn

“The contest was a good way to engage the community and boost our social media at the same time,” he says. Over 1,000 votes were cast this year before the June 2nd deadline. The 2020 entries join hydrants painted in previous years bringing the total of works of art to seven. Only employees of the fire department can paint the hydrants for very important reasons. “If someone paints over the hydrant threads and then firefighters can’t open it….” Stephen’s voice trails off, leaving unsaid the dire consequences of not being able to use a hydrant during a fire.

Not using the proper weatherresistant paint is also a concern.

Although protecting the people of Danville is very serious business, these two Danville natives enjoy the lighter side of their jobs.

They hope the next time you pass Oscar or Tigger or another painted hydrant, you’ll think about the dedicated men and women of the Danville Fire Department.

They work as a team 24/7 to protect us from danger but are also ready to nurture the lighter side of life.

100 Third Avenue: This hydrant painted to resemble a firefighter by Station #5 won the 2020 Make Danville Shine Fire Hydrant Contest.

The coveted trophy has circulated among the three winning fire stations: #7,#3, #5.

• Downtown South Boston also has a fire hydrant walking tour with seventeen stops. Read about it at www.downtownsobo.com or call 434.575.4209.

Evince Magazine Page 5

Take a Fire Hydrant Tour of Danville

Here’s another opportunity to get out of the house and discover public works of art created by dedicated first responders of the Danville Fire Department. (100 Third Ave. is pictured on page 4.)

1. 701 Broad Street: This work of art in front of George Washington High School commemorates the boys’ basketball team’s 2019 Class 4 state championship win.

4. Corner of Colquhoun & Lynn Streets: Oscar the Grouch is happy now because he has a home near Fire Station #1. It was painted by Station #1.

2. 420 West Main Street: Averett University’s school colors and a cougar mascot decorate this hydrant in front of Main Hall.

5. 3165 Westover Drive: This patriotic hydrant, waving at the corner of Westover Drive and Beech Avenue, was painted by Station #6.

3. Main Street Plaza: Tigger the tiger stands at the entrance to the parking lot at the corner of Bridge and Main Streets. It was painted by Station #1.

6. 423 Airport Drive: Stuart the Minion has become a fire fighter painted by Station #7.

Page 6 July 2020

Shelter Spotting Exceptional Customer Service

by Martha Athey

at the Danville Public Library

During the past few months, we have missed the opportunity to visit inside libraries, to check out the displays that point to newly published material or that feature publications relevant to current events in our city, country or in other parts of the world. Also missed are the talks with the staff and assistance from them, including a technology specialist who circulates and provides computer help when needed.

Sitting in a quiet place and reading has also been lost.

During this difficult time, we appreciated Danville Public Library’s informative and well-designed website that enabled us to search for, select, and request holds on materials that we wanted to borrow, and then, on scheduled days at specific times pick up and return items easily and safely without leaving our vehicles.

In times like these, when we are all inconvenienced, let’s hope that we stop and appreciate the efforts of the DPL staff who worked hard to help create some degree of normalcy. For these reasons, I nominate the Danville Public Library staff at 511 Patton Street for the Spotting Exceptional Customer Service Award.

Please let us know your experience with exceptional customer service. Email your story to joycewilburn@gmail.com.

fiction by Telisha Moore Leigg Sometimes when it is evening and the homeless have all gone into the night, Old Man sits while I sweep before I lock up the center. He sometimes tells me the stories of his gods--ones he studied decades ago at university and how he spent his lifetime following them down dark-soul streets of shadows for fame and glory. Old Man says humans try to hide from the gods’ wrath when they should run to it. We are all rebel dogs trying to find a warm hearth, a tender commanding hand. We all need shelter, Kwon, Dr. Corinth-Old Man tells me, and a hurting learning is the way the gods give us a home.

On his sad days, Old Man tells me of the lesser gods, like he once told his own child, my Mama Mandy Blue--the daughter he left when she was a child at fifteen turning like a moon into a woman. He left her like a dog to pursue the gods’ gifts of fame for himself. But he only licked the

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crumbs of that freedom; he didn’t get much from it. She did not find shelter right enough, soon enough to save her. She did not do well. I know Old Man swallows grief like jagged little stones when he thinks of her and what he did. Old Man tells me these memories are his soft and broken gods, tales they don’t teach in the schools. He says life without responsibility is just slices of mourning. I try to comfort him on these sad days, but he will not take it. He balls his fists.

I try not to be angry at Old Man. I try to give him the respect for his years and for his loss, but he sees my disdain. He pats my hand with wired and gaunt fingers. “If you can’t believe me,” Old Man says, “at least obey the gods.” He laughs a bitter sound. “Nothing stops the suffering, but at least you may find some peace.”

Some part of me wants to avenge that little girl he left--my Mama Mandy Blue, so I tell him I don’t believe in his gods. I ask him if he means we should have happiness instead of peace. Don’t most want happiness over peace? Old Man waves a watery smile, his regret an angry lover. All he explains to me is he drowned in his own reflection. I know the story of Narcissus. Old Man says he wished he knew the god of war and the goddess of love, and he wished that their children would always favor love and that’s where he lost me, somewhere in his tangled myths. Old Man babbles on and I try to listen. Outside it gets darker.

By midnight, Old Man still makes no move to leave. He wants to rest here at the center for the night, and it’s against the rules.

And this evening Old Man tilts his head back into the darkness, his jacket wrapping around slumping shoulders; he smooths his hands down his baggy slacks. “Kwon, they do not care that you really can’t follow where they go.”

“Who are you talking about, Dr. Corinth?” He puts on a smile and looks at his loafers. This night Dr. Corinth speaks to me like I am another child he is leaving, “Because you cannot find the gods, only follow them. And the myths you read are the chewed bones of those who said they did.”

“For what it is worth, I loved her mother so much. It all fell apart, and I stepped away.” Dr. Corinth puts on his jacket, doesn’t look back. He does not ask me to let him stay the night. And tonight, I do not offer to keep him.

Evince Magazine Page 7

Picture from the article, “The Gritty Truth: Why is There Sediment in My Wine?” by Kelsey Chesterfield.

The Wine Spot Finding Clarity: Clearing Up Sediment in Your Wine

by Dave Slayton

a member of the Master Court of Sommeliers

T

hose of us who enjoy wine have probably at some time noticed a powdery, granular substance at the bottom or side of a wine glass.

Grit may be a positive personality trait of perseverance, although it is not something I’m particularly fond of in my wine glass. It may be harmless, but I still find it hard to swallow. It’s like finding coffee grounds at the bottom of my coffee cup--not a cause for alarm but not particularly desirable. To some, sediment is an indicator of quality and they call it wine diamonds or wine crystals instead of sediment or wine dregs.

In the article, “The Gritty Truth: Why is there sediment in my wine?”

Kelsey Chesterfield says sediment can come in two forms: tartrate and colloids. Tartrates are the larger crystals you may find on the end of a cork or clinging to the sides of the bottle or a wine glass. These jagged, burgundy-colored, diamond-like structures form when tartaric acid (a natural element in grapes) binds with potassium while exposed to cold conditions. Colloids are the

smaller and finer-grained sediment made of polysaccharides and protein or can be leftover remnants of grape skins, stems, or seeds. For those of us who missed that day of chemistry class when polysaccharide was explained, it is a carbohydrate made up of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.

Some winemakers filter their wines to remove sediment. Others leave it because they believe it enhances the wine’s flavors. If you have sediment in your bottle and don’t want it, don’t “grit your teeth” and sip anyway.

Wine Spectator suggests setting the bottle upright for a day or more and allowing the sediment to settle at the bottom. When you’re ready to drink, position the bottle’s neck near a light source and pour the wine slowly into another container. Stop pouring the moment you see any sign of sediment in the neck of the bottle.

Afterward, toast yourself for getting to the bottom of this and clearing up the issue of sediment.

Cheers!

Page 8 July 2020

The VMFA Artmobile will bring View from Home: Landscapes of Virginia to Danville July 15-16.

Watch for the Artmobile Coming to Danville

by Joyce Wilburn

O

n Tuesday, July 14, be on

the lookout for an 18 wheeler cruising through Danville on the way to the Danville Museum of Fine Arts & History (DMFAH) on Main Street. Follow the massive vehicle that is thirteen feet longer than a traditional tractor trailer to the parking lot behind the DMFAH at 975 Main Street and watch for ninety minutes as it magically transforms into a mini-art museum. You will have witnessed the arrival of the Artmobile from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA)!

be played on the outside.

This traveling museum is a modern descendant of the world’s first Artmobile that traveled the roads of Virginia from 1953 to 1994. Today’s version is handicap accessible and climate controlled. Accept this invitation for a break from routine and travel Virginia with your eyes.

• The Artmobile will be open to the public on Wednesday, July 15, and Thursday, July 16, from 2:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m.

• The tour is free but tickets/ ticket numbers must be reserved and obtained from the DMFAH. For more info about tickets contact the DMFAH at info@ danvillemuseum.org. No more than two tickets can be reserved per email.

• For more information, visit www.vmfa.museum and www. danvillemuseum.org or call 434.793.5644.

Doors will open at 9:00 a.m. the next day, July 15. For two days, visitors can view paintings, photographs, woodblock prints and engravings from the Virginia Museum’s permanent collection in Richmond. A View from Home: Landscapes of Virginia showcases artists of various styles and periods who record the unspoiled nature of Virginia and the impact of human activity on it. Plan to stay for thirty to sixty minutes and enjoy the free interactive exhibit suitable for children and adults. If visitors have to wait to enter, they can watch an entertaining and educational O. Winston Link’s famous 1957 photo taken in Rural Retreat video that will will be on exhibit in the Artmobile.

Evince Magazine Page 9

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Page 10 July 2020

July Calendar All of the community events that are usually promoted in the Calendar section might not be happening.

Therefore, it’s best to contact the groups that usually sponsor these activities. This list might help.

The Danville Farmers’ Market, 629 Craghead Street, is open on Saturdays from 7:30 a.m. until noon.

The first hour is reserved for seniors and immuno-compromised shoppers.

434.797.8961.

The Caswell Farmers Market in Yanceyville, North Carolina, at 2246 Hwy 86, by Goodwill, will be open on Thursdays, 4:00-6:30pm with safety protocols in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Danville Master Gardeners will answer inquiries about gardening, lawns and landscaping on Mondays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Call 434.799.6558 or send an email to danvillemastergardeners@gmail.com.

Abbreviation Key

• AU=Averett University, 434.791.5600 www.averett.edu • DMFAH=Danville Museum of Fine Arts & History, 975 Main St. 434.793.5644 www.danvillemuseum.org • DSC=Danville Science Center, 677 Craghead St. 434.791.5160 www.dsc.smv.org • PA=Piedmont Arts, 215 Starling Ave, Martinsville 276.632.3221 www.PiedmontArts.org • The Prizery=700 Bruce St., South Boston, 434.572.8339, www.prizery.com

Ongoing

Guided Walking Tours: Millionaires Row, Holbrook Street and Tobacco Warehouse District.

Danville Historical Society. www.danvillehistory.org 434.770.1974 DMFAH: self-guided audio tours Brosville Library: 11948 Martinsville Highway www.pcplib.org 434.685.1285 Danville Public Library: 511 Patton St. readdanvilleva.org 434.799.5195 DPL Westover Branch: 94 Clifton St. www.readdanvilleva.org 434.799.5152 Gretna Library: 207 A Coffey Street, www.pcplib.org 434.656.2579

Gunn Memorial, Caswell County Public Library: 118 Main St, Yanceyville, NC www.caswellcounty.gov/library 336.694.6241 Halifax County Public Library: 177 South Main St. halifaxcountylibrary.org 434.476.3357 History Research Center and Library: 340 Whitehead St,, Chatham www.pcplib.org 434.432.8931 Mt. Hermon Library: 4058 Franklin Turnpike www.pcplib.org 434.835.0326 Pittsylvania County Public Main Library: 24 Military Drive, Chatham www.pcplib.org 434.432.3271 South Boston Public Library: 509 Broad St. 434.5575.4228 www.halifaxcountylibrary.org Langhorne House Museum: 117 Broad St. 434.793.6472

July 1 (thru 25)

16 Hands: Two Generations, Working Together: This free exhibit features work by Ellen Shankin, Brad Warstler, Silvie Granatelli, Benjie Osborne, Josh Manning, Donna Polseno, Hona Knudsen, Wendy Werstlein, Sarah McCarthy, Seth Guzovsky, Andrea Denniston and Josh Copus from Floyd, Virginia. Dreaming Geometry: An Artistic Exploration of Mathematics is on display in the Lynwood Artists Gallery. PA

July 7 (thru August 28)

Camilla Williams Exhibit: Williams was born in Danville and became the first African American to sing with a major American opera company in NYC. Exhibit features her opera costumes including Madame Butterfly. DMFAH

July 7

July 1(thru August 28)

Camilla Williams Exhibit: DMFAH

July 4

Danville Fireworks Display: Danville River District at dusk; fireworks will be detonated from the MLK Jr. Bridge Danville Patriot Challenge: Four Miles on the Fourth Anglers Park $30 434.793.4636 www.PlayDanvilleVa. com

July 4 (thru 25)

Yoga on the Lawn: free sessions taught by Firefly instructors on the DMFAH lawn Saturdays 9-10am

August 24

DCC classes begin

September 1

Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce will move to the Institute for Advanced Learning & Research, 150 Slayton Ave.

September 5

DMFAH: Re-opening day to the public

Derby Day: DMFAH

July 9

Chatham Rotary Club Auction & Gala: Olde Dominion Agricultural Complex 6-9pm www.chathamrotaryclub.com

Music on Main: featuring Mel Melton & the Wicked Mojos Crossing at the Dan Complex 7pm free Bring a lawn chair or blanket.

434.793.4636

July 11 & 12

DMFAH: free admission

July 15 & 16

VMFA on the Road: Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Artmobile will be parked behind the DMFAH. This free interactive art space will bring works from the VMFA’s art collection and features hands-on activities. See page 8.

September 26

Where Can I Find Evince?

Evince is available at many l ocation’s including the lobby of our office at 753 Main Street in Danville.

During business hours pick up several copies and take them to your home-bound friends and family. If you missed an issue, visit www. evincemagazine.com and search under the “virtual magazines” tab.

July 16

Music on Main: featuring Revolution Band Crossing at the Dan Complex 7pm free Bring a lawn chair or blanket. 434.793.4636

July 1 (thru 29)

Smokestack Theatre Reading on the Lawn: Wednesdays 6:308:30pm free DMFAH

July 2020

S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

July 18

Cars & Coffee: See classic cars, sports cars, muscle cars, etc in the parking lot of Crema + Vine 1009 Main St. Danville 9-10:30am 434.548.9862

July 23

Music on Main: featuring Jukebox Revolver Crossing at the Dan Complex 7pm free Bring a lawn chair or blanket. 434.793.4636

Save the Date August 19

AU classes begin

The deadline for submitting information for the August calendar is Friday, July 24, at 5:00 p.m. Please send just the basic information following the format on these pages to joycewilburn@gmail.com.

*

Evince Magazine Page 11 Danville Museum of Fine Arts & History proudly presents

tended to Exhibition ex

th

August 28

January 12 - May 24, 2020 Museum Hours: Tuesday - Saturday • 10am - 5pm Sunday • 2 - 5pm Admission:

Adults / $10 • Seniors (62+) / $8

Ticket price includes full access to museum and other exhibits.

Students / $4 • Age 7- College Children 6 and under / Free Members, Military, DoC / Free

The Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History would like to announce the Camilla Williams exhibition, made possible through a generous Make More Happen Grant from the Danville Regional Foundation. The Camilla Williams exhibition highlights the relationship this New York City Opera diva had with her hometown Danville, and explores the difficult path to fame in a racially divided South during the Civil Rights protests.

For more information call: 434-793-5644, or email: info@danvillemuseum.org

Amore Event Center | 434-441-3498 | amoreroyalty.com Chaney’s Service Center | 434-822-6734 E&W Maintenance | 434-203-6421 | ewmaintenance.com Farmhouse Junk Vintage Market | 434-250-3337 | farmhousejunkvintageshop.com Gwen Moschler (Schewel’s Danville) | 434-251-7277 | gwenmoschler@schewel.com Haymore Garden Center | 434-836-1722 | haymoregardencenter.com Heartline Restaurant | 434-799-2070 | facebook.com/heartlinerestaurant Love Jones Photography | 336-347-8776 | facebook.com/lovejonesphoto Main Street Art Collective | 434-602-2017 | mainstreetartcollective.com Office Plus Business Centre | 434-797-9090 | opbizz.com R.A.C.E. Clothing | 434-549-6040 | raceclothing.shop The Remnant Church of Power | 434-421-6740 | alfministry.com Riverside True Value Hardware | 434-792-2026 | stores.truevalue.com/va/danville/6204/ Skyview Automotive & Diesel Power | 434-770-2298 | skyviewautoanddiesel.com

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www.danvillemuseum.org • Sincere thanks to our sponsors:

Page 12 July 2020

I

’ve found a new way to mark time. I check the length of my leg hair. During this COVID-19 pandemic, I’ve been a fish out of water. Before the YMCA closed, I was swimming every morning by 5:30, burning through the water in a 30-minute sprint toward health. After finishing my shallow-end back exercises, I would fly out of the pool into the shower, take a 10-minute sauna, jump into my shorts and t-shirt, run up to the gym to do 30 abdominal crunches, 30 back extensions, 10 minutes on the bosu ball, 30 minutes on the walking track, then throw on my business clothes, gulp down a cup of coffee, and charge out the door to get me to work on time.

At work, I would race through various tasks until lunch, when I’d leave the building and run more errands than seemed humanly possible. I blasted my way through the afternoon, generally leaving late, only to screech to a halt in the driveway, leap out of the car, and rush into the house to start my afterwork activity du jour. It was rare to have an evening when I just came home and sat down. Then

Reflecting Forward Marking Time

by Linda Lemery

the pandemic blew in, Governor Northam told everybody who could to work remotely and self-isolate.

The gym closed, and my carefully constructed schedule toppled like a house of cards in that strong, frightening wind.

Subsequently, I was working from home with an old computer, a flash drive, and ever-present technology problems. Weeks went by with my barely keeping up. I tried to organize, but my stress levels were

mounting, the uncertainty levels were climbing, and exercise was going by the wayside. My husband and I tried to walk in the evenings. We trudged along in sweatpants until the weather warmed up and we walked down the driveway in kneelength shorts. I felt a breeze on my legs, as a warning. I paid attention. It was late May. The length of my leg hair told me that the gym had closed months prior, that same gym that was the

only place I shaved my legs. I read somewhere that body hair served as an early warning system for ancient hominids, our ancestors on the evolutionary scale. The stirring of body hair signaled that weather or something else was changing, spurring the hominid into action, flight, or hiding.

So, I’m hiding in plain sight. My leg hair has continued to grow. I still haven’t shaved. After work has finished for the day, I watch movies and read books. My only after-work activities are a monthly Google Hangout writers group, a monthly Zoom book club, home paperwork, home cleaning and refurbishing, gardening, and walking. And when I’m out for a walk, I‘m relaxed in shorts, mask, visor, wraparound sunglasses, and body hair. Maybe my priorities have changed or my mental state has shifted. Or maybe I’ve learned to value time in a new way. Not only do we mark time, but it marks us.

About the Author: When she’s not reflecting on body hair, Linda Lemery llemery@ averett.edu works as Circulation Manager at Averett University’s Mary B. Blount Library in Danville. She welcomes reader comments.

Evince Magazine Page 13

Peanut Butter Ice Cream Cake

by Annelle Williams

Summer is full steam ahead and our goal continues to be learning how to live this new life with COVID-19. Groceries are easier to come by these days, and the fear of chicken and pork shortages has passed. You can even find toilet tissue on the shelves, along with paper towels and napkins. Here’s a very easy dessert with simple ingredients that will satisfy everyone and help keep us cool. We’re having our cake and ice cream, too!

Peanut Butter Ice Cream Cake Use an 8-9 inch cake pan lined with parchment. Leave 2 strips of parchment long over sides of pan to help with removal.

Crust 2 cups mini pretzels 1/3 cup salty peanuts

2 T brown sugar 3 T butter, melted

Put pretzels, peanuts and brown sugar in food processor. Pulse until medium grind. Add butter and continue to pulse until combined. Mixture will begin to stick together.

Pour half the crumbs into cake pan lined with parchment paper. With a large spoon tamp the crumbs until they are spread evenly over bottom and up sides. Pour remaining crumbs on sheet pan. Bake both pans in preheated 350° oven for four or five minutes, until beginning to brown. Remove from oven and cool.

Cake 3 pints vanilla ice cream (or your favorite flavor that

complements peanut butter I used vanilla chocolate chip.)

3/4 cup smooth peanut butter 1 small container of whipped topping

Spoon half the ice cream into bowl. Stir and break up until softened. Fold half the peanut butter into ice cream, creating ribbons of peanut butter running through the ice cream. Spread this peanut butter/ice cream mixture on cooled crust. Sprinkle most of crust crumbs evenly over top. Cover with plastic wrap. Freeze until hard. Repeat with remaining ice cream and peanut butter. Smooth this layer over frozen layer. Freeze again until very hard about 4 hours.

When ready to serve remove cake from pan to a flat cake plate. Top cake with whipped topping. Garnish with remaining crumbs from crust. Serve immediately.

Questions or comments?

Email me: AnnelleWilliams@comcast.net I look forward to hearing from you!

Page 14 July 2020

Book Clubbing reviews by Diane Adkins

I’m Still Here

Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness

by Austin Channing Brown

The New Jim Crow

Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness

by Michelle Alexander

How to Be an Antiracist

by Ibram Kendi

For the past six years, an interracial discussion group has been meeting in Chatham May through September under the sponsorship of the Pittsylvania County Library System. The series originated with a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The group uses film clips to start the conversation which has been moderated by Dr. Andrew Canady, Associate Professor of History at Averett University.

Participating has taught me that there is a hunger to talk about race in America, and yet so few do it across the divisions we have constructed.

Recent events have increased white people’s interest in books that focus on these issues. Lists of these have proliferated, and there are many worthy ones to consider. Here are three I have found helpful.

Austin Channing Brown begins I’m Still Here by saying: “White people

are so exhausting.” Her roots in the church run deep, and her book does not shy away from addressing the difficulties and dangers of being a black woman in white spaces, places where white culture is assumed to be normal and universal. In groups that supposedly prize diversity, she learned diversity of thought or of culture was not wanted.

The New Jim Crow shines a light on the distressing history of our country’s war on drugs and how, as Alexander states, “it emerged as a stunningly comprehensive and well-designed system of racialized social control that functions in a manner strikingly similar to Jim Crow.” That system creates a stigmatized racial group and functions as a war, not on drugs, but on black people. The racial caste system has not been eliminated; it has been redesigned.

Ibram Kendi’s book shows that an idea, policy, or action is either racist or antiracist. Racism contributes to a history that treats different races as inherently unequal. Antiracism is trying to dismantle that history.

Racist policies increase racial disparities; antiracist policies are those that reduce those disparities. A person either treats races differently or works to end that. Racist and antiracist are like peelable name tags that are placed and replaced based on what someone is doing ... in each moment. These are not permanent tattoos. Being an antiracist is like swimming against the current---it takes effort.

Austin Channing Brown tells a moving story of a trip she took to the South with her college classmates. After a wrenching visit to a museum of lynching, one woman said, “I can’t fix your pain, and I can’t take it away, but I can see it….Doing nothing is no longer an option for me.” Later, Brown asks us, “If you care about racial justice, how do I know it?”

James Baldwin said, “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” These books, and many others, can help white Americans face what needs changing. Only then can we answer Brown’s question.

Diane S. Adkins is a retired Director of the Pittsylvania County Public Library System.

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