YES! Weekly - March 9, 2022

Guitar Resettlement Project provides guitars for local refugees

TRIAD MUSIC WOMEN

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MARCH 9-15, 2022 VOLUME 18, NUMBER 10

12 5500 Adams Farm Lane Suite 204 Greensboro, NC 27407 Office 336-316-1231 Fax 336-316-1930

IN GOOD HANDS

Publisher CHARLES A. WOMACK III

Triad musicians matter to Kristy Jackson, the Greensboro singer-songwriter who recently launched the GUITAR RESETTLEMENT PROJECT, an initiative to provide guitars for Afghan refugees in the area. As President and founder of Triad Musicians Matter, Inc. (a 501c3 non-profit corporation aimed at providing financial support for local musicians and their families in the event of health-related emergencies, fire, or natural disasters) Jackson is known for looking after her fellow music community—and is now setting her sights on welcoming newcomers who’ve resettled in the Triad.

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It’s “Women’s History Month,” y’all.

And whether chronicling history, making history—or both—TRIAD WOMEN bring our music scene to life. Ashley Virginia, Molly McGinn, Jha’mai, and Virginia Holmes are but a handful of Triad “hostesses with the most-esses,”...

5 Three colleagues came together to create a low code development to help businesses succeed. SOLUTIONSAFOOT started in 2017 when Josh Schuminsky, founding partner of Solutions Afoot and the Senior Application Developer, finished a successful career as a contractor.

6 ARIANO TREVINO ANGELONE, a fourth-year student at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) School of Filmmaking has received a nomination for a Student Heritage Award...

8 Generally speaking, wealthy people are not supposed to be eligible for welfare, and yet many of them routinely TAKE ADVANTAGE of subsidies and tax breaks not afforded to the rest of us. And boy do they make out like bandits in a financial crisis.

9 Taking its cue — or two — from Nancy Drew, Miss Marple, and, lest one forget,

Harry Potter, MISS WILLOUGHBY and the Haunted Bookshop (advertised in some quarters as simply Miss Willoughby) is the first in what the filmmakers are undoubtedly hoping will be a full-blown film franchise.

13 In THEIR EYES AT NIGHT, the new novel in The Last Ghost series by Guilford College professor emerita Mylène Dressler, Emma has reached the Utah desert, where she and Philip meet again, and the harshly beautiful landscape is not as empty as it looks, as even ghosts are haunted by those there before them.

14 While the Russian INVASION of Ukraine has highlighted the solidarity held by the Triad community and the globe during these challenging times, a local professor wishes that unity was consistent amongst world leaders and mainstream media.

19 Greensboro rockers, SUGAR MEAT, share the gritty and sweet nature of songwriter and guitarist, Suzanne Stafford, who’ll serve up another round of her “alt-country punk rock’n’roll” on March 17, with the Kneads and Kim Ware, at Gas Hill Drinking Room in Winston-Salem.

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DISTRIBUTION JANICE GANTT ANDREW WOMACK We at YES! Weekly realize that the interest of our readers goes well beyond the boundaries of the Piedmont Triad. Therefore we are dedicated to informing and entertaining with thought-provoking, debate-spurring, in-depth investigative news stories and features of local, national and international scope, and opinion grounded in reason, as well as providing the most comprehensive entertainment and arts coverage in the Triad. YES! Weekly welcomes submissions of all kinds. Efforts will be made to return those with a self-addressed stamped envelope; however YES! Weekly assumes no responsibility for unsolicited submissions. YES! Weekly is published every Wednesday by Womack Newspapers, Inc. No portion may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. First copy is free, all additional copies are $1.00. Copyright 2022 Womack Newspapers, Inc.

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[SPOTLIGHT]

NEWEST EATERY TO OPEN SOON

BY CAROL BROOKS

For months there have been rumors about what is going into the former Edward Jones office space on East Main Street. Social media has been abuzz.

Renovation of the space began in November but, like everything else affected by Covid, work has been slow.

“You name it, everything is taking more time,” said Keith Henning, one of the owners of the new business.

As expected, it will be a restaurant, but The Miller’s Market is not just a sit-down place to eat. In fact, that is not the main attraction of the business. With a motto of “Eat, Drink, Shop,” the eatery will feature fresh local foods for dine-in or grab-and-go take-out.

“We thought that [concept] might be good because we’re limited in space, limited in what we can do, so we turned it into more of a market with a coffee shop and a small menu,” Henning said. “People can just come here on the weekend, grab a glass of wine, go sit out on the patio, have a sandwich or cup of soup, and enjoy the day.

“We want to serve fairly simple food that’s really good.”

The café-style menu will feature made-to-order artisan sandwiches, soups and salads, charcuterie board, and other items prepared daily. The menu includes chicken salad, pasta, quinoa bowls and more, which patrons can grab-and-go for lunch or dinner. Craft beer is also available.

Mike Swanson is the new manager, but he is also a chef and his specialty is bread. He will create freshly-baked bread and create pastries and desserts daily.

Selections include sourdough, baguettes and focaccia.

“A lot of our menu is based on those breads,” Henning said.

Swanson uses stone-ground flour from Lindley Mills, located in Graham. The flour is sprouted organic non-GMO, which adds nutrients and makes the bread easier to digest.

There will be a full coffee bar and the Market’s own coffee roast is planned for the future. Patrons will be able to purchase it by the bag.

As for the restaurant portion, diners may choose from menu items prepared on-site and enjoy a meal at one of the tables, which were made by Jamestown resident Matt Kepley.

The shelves of The Miller’s Market will be stocked with specialty food items, jams, gourmet gifts and homemade treasures from the community, making it a specialty grocery store.

“I don’t know that we were looking for another space in Jamestown, but when this became available, we began to wonder what we could do with the space with the limitations we had,” Henning said, noting the space was not set up as a restaurant and did not have a hood or grease trap. “You’re kind of limited on what you can serve.”

Owned by the same group that owns Black Powder Smokehouse, which opened in 2019, the name continues to honor local history. Black Powder recognizes the many rifle makers in the area. The Miller’s Market is named for the many grain mills that used to dot the landscape, including the Robbins-Holton Mill that still stands nearby on Dillon Road. The name also honors the heritage of Oakdale Cotton Mill and the people involved there.

The Miller’s Market joins a growing list

The coffee bar will feature several varieties. Breads made in-house will be featured in the baskets on the right, with desserts in the middle. of eateries within walking distance of each other in downtown Jamestown.

The soft opening for The Miller’s Market, 116 E. Main St., should be in the third week of March. Watch the business’ social media for an exact date.

Hours will be 9 a.m.-4 p.m. but will probably expand as demand increases.

WiFi is available. The patio — “the best one in Jamestown” according to Henning and Swanson — will feature seating and musical entertainment. !

Black Powder owners expand The owners of Black Powder Smokehouse and The Miller’s Market also have a catering and events company in the former Henry James Bar-B-Cue location on Greensboro Road in High Point. An Asheboro location of the Smokehouse on Fayetteville Street is expected to open in the summer.

Jump, Jive, & Wail!

Featuring The Jive Aces

FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2022 DOORS OPEN @ 6:30PM SHOW STARTS @ 7:30PM British swing band The Jive Aces are renowned worldwide for their highenergy music and spectacular stage shows. There is sure to be a jumping good time as they perform swing classics like Just A Gigolo and That Old Black Magic by such greats as Louis Prima and Cab Calloway, plus rocking tunes such as Big Joe Turner’s Boogie Woogie Country Girl.

Sons of Mystro

SATURDAY, MARCH 26, 2022 DOORS OPEN @ 6:30PM SHOW STARTS @ 7:30PM Brothers Malcolm, 23, and Umoja, 20, use their violins to creatively interpret reggae classics, American pop songs, and their own creations.

Winners of the Emerging Artist Under 21 Years Old award at the International Reggae and World Music Awards, the brothers have been mentored by classically trained violinists Kevin Sylvester & Wilner Baptiste of Black Violin.

The coolers will soon be stocked with food and beverages for grab-and-go meals.

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2021-22 Season APRIL

10 Me, Myself and Shirley 29 Ballet Folklorico de Los Angeles

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15 Raleigh Ringers Acts and dates subject to change.

For up to date news, visit our website.

VISIT: HighPointTheatre.com for more information | FOR TICKETS CALL: 336-887-3001 MARCH 9-15, 2022

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Hostesses with the Most-esses bring Triad music to life

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t’s “Women’s History Month,” y’all.

And whether chronicling history, making history—or both—Triad women bring our music scene to life.

Ashley VirKatei Cranford ginia, Molly McGinn, Jha’mai, and Virginia Holmes Contributor are but a handful of Triad “hostesses with the most-esses,” whose efforts open pathways and help breathe life into our creative communities through live music residencies across the Triad.

The week starts off with the newest series of the bunch: Ashley Virginia’s “What the Folk! Songwriter Sessions,” Sunday afternoons at Oden Brewing in Greensboro. As implied by the name, the series highlights “independent artists, songwriters, and original music from the region,” Virginia explained. She performs for the first hour, followed by a special guest filling the second. “Songwriting is my jam, and it’s an honor to celebrate it and share the stage with other songwriters in the area,” she added. “I’m super grateful for the opportunity!”

In the spirit of sharing opportunities, Virginia tipped one of her many hats to Molly McGinn, with whom she played one

Molly McGinn of her first gigs during McGinn’s “Represent NC” residency. “It feels really full circle to be in my position hosting What The Folk: Songwriter Sessions,” she said, reflecting on the talent within her circle— Debbie The Artist, Laura Jane Vincent, Momma Molasses, and Maia Kamil have been a few of the featured guests so far.

While not a host, per se, Kamil is a Triad artist and ethnomusicologist deserving of her own mention. Not only are she and Virginia two recent recipients of the N.C. Arts Council Artist Support Grant (distrib-

uted through ArtsGreensboro) but Kamil also co-founded the Haus of Lacks collective with B-Side host Virginia Holmes; and currently cements every last Tuesday of McGinn’s latest weekly residency, “the Woodshed Experience,” at the Brewer’s Kettle in Kernersville.

“Molly is the queen of connecting people,” Kamil noted. “The Woodshed is exactly what it sounds like. It’s a space to come together in community and shed out the songs you’ve just written in your bedroom.” Serving as a sort of

creative incubator in action, “it’s one of those special musical spaces where there isn’t worry, perfection or judgment, just a bunch of good people making good music.”

Running every Tuesday, McGinn continues sharpening chops—now in Forsyth County—with her ever-widening musical circle. “Maia plays the last Tuesday of every month, otherwise, we play it by ear,” McGinn said. The endeavor is less laissezfaire than it seems—a hallmark of her casual, yet captivating, style.

“We host a variety of musicians and play around with new songs and ideas,” she explained of the series, which serves as more of a revolving artist roulette than a standard showcase. Still, notes of her retired “Represent NC” series, which celebrated female and LGBTQ musicians, resonate and echo out in the woodshed.

“The goal is to reach out and find those special folks writing and making music and bring them into the fold. Give new and dormant artists a chance to work things out on the fly, and give ourselves a weekly deadline to write and create new music.”

Over in Greensboro, Jha’mai, a songwriter and poet (and Represent NC alumna) co-hosts the B-Side Open Mic with Virginia Holmes, Wednesday nights at Culture Lounge on Spring Garden Street. “It’s truly a joy and a privilege to create a safe space for art and self-expression,” Jha’mai said of the multi-genre hybrid event.

PHOTO BY JON DOCKERY @DOCVISIONENT

PHOTO BY KATEI CRANFORD

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Virginia Holmes hosting Pieces of Now party

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Trio creates database solutions for local businesses

SHAYNA PRACE PHOTOGRAPHY

Ashley Virginia “It’s a reminder every week that the love we share deepens and strengthens our community,” she added, referencing her work as a co-host for live incarnations of the Poetry Cafe with Josephus Thompson. As a musician, she’s currently working on an upcoming release. “I seek to express my life through my music and empower others to be unapologetic and unashamed,” she explained. “Every experience is divine and intentional for the purpose of healing the community.”

Co-host Virginia Holmes reinforces that intention, the effects of which ripple throughout collective arts communities.

“As a Greensboro native, I also find myself invested in our rich history and dedicate much of my work to my ancestry and upbringing,” Holmes explained. “My goal is to create safe spaces for artists of various concentrations to freely express themselves. I do this by occupying unconventional spaces to host underground style art experiences.”

A part of the Haus of Lacks (who developed the “Underground Now” series at Double Oaks over the summer of 2021) Holmes helped curate the “Pieces of Now” exhibit at the Greensboro History Museum, as well as coordinated its anniversary party. She’s enhanced stages for the Carolina BBQ Music Festival and Earth Girl’s Festival. And most recently, she launched “The Eve Gene: A dedication to the Womb,” her second exhibition with the Center for Visual Artists (on display through April 3). “I hope to inspire other artists to be rigorous and to honor WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM

their roots,” Holmes said. “I’m grateful to be an influence in the growth and prosperity of the underground.”

From the underground to the forefront, Triad ladies share the sounds of now, using their talents to share talent—uplifting, empowering, and entertaining the rest of us in the process.

And while live show hostesses offer platforms that help birth artistic endeavors, they’re hardly alone in the Triad event communities, all woven by a rad web of fantastic women: comedians like Annie Lowe (who started the Monday comedy open mic at Monstercade) and Jennie Stencel (founder of the North Carolina Comedy Festival and owner of The Idiot Box Comedy Club). Visual artists and organizers like April Parker (Managing Director of Elsewhere) and the Artist Bloc’s Sunny Gravely Foushee and Darlene J. McClinton, continue extending opportunities across mediums.

Princess Howell Johnson (founder of Royal Expressions School of Dance) is organizing another Juneteenth Festival in the summer. And Laurelyn Dossett’s Ramble on Big Creek series returns on March 26.

Truly, there are more fine Triad ladies than can fit in print. And they all happen to be people worth highlighting yearround, but especially during “Women’s History Month.” Cheers, you majestic musical mermaids! !

KATEI CRANFORD is a Triad music nerd who enjoys spotlighting artists and events.

Three colleagues came together to create a low code development to help businesses succeed.

SolutionsAfoot started in 2017 when Josh Schuminsky, founding partner of Solutions Afoot Naima Said and the Senior Application Developer, finished a successful Contributor career as a contractor. “I began working in the world of databases in 2004 to expand my knowledge and capability which gave me the idea to become a certified Caspio partner, which is a software platform that is able to integrate with many different software’s like API,” Schuminsky said. “Not all solutions are worth investing in, so I wanted to come up with a holistic integration rather than a cookie-cutter service.”

Schuminsky crossed paths with Chris Vaughan at an event where they were both cordial but found common interest when discussing various projects they had been working on. “I hadn’t thought about adding anyone to the team at that moment, it wasn’t until after our first conversation. Our skill sets complemented each other very well, rather than competing with one another,” Vaughan shared.

“I became a partner of the company not long after.”

While both Schuminsky and Vaughan felt they were a dynamic duo, both knowing the work inside out, they didn’t know how they were going to correctly communicate the information to their clients.

That is when they were introduced to Nick Roach, who originally worked in health

care. “When you introduce a new code in the tech base it makes sense to those in the field, but if you’re trying to explain some of these complex situations to a business owner, majority of the time they want to know how we are going to solve it,” Roach said. “I don’t have a tech bone in my body. My position is to make it so that every partner speaks their language but I find a way to make it attractive to our clients. Everyone is happy.”

The team becomes hyper-focused on certain aspects of their work, giving them the ability to bounce ideas off of each other. “I never know what new company we are going to find a solution for. The most significant aspect is holding that initial foundation. When meeting with a new client that wants to work with us we initially begin with the planning, then divert our attention to the model itself to ensure proper testing before the final app development,” Vaughan shared. “Our day to day is constantly shifting, working on enterprise type projects, front end design, and grasping the look and feel of a good flow interface.”

Work, and finding importance in that work, is essential to the trio, but family is another factor to consider when joining a team. “We all have wives and children to go home to, and I don’t want any of us losing time to spend with them. You never get that time back,” Schuminsky said. “What’s nice about opening up your own business is scheduling and agreeing on your own hours, opening that space for a workhome balance. Just as family is important, so is a strong software infrastructure.”

For more information or to contact the team, visit www.solutionsafoot.com. !

NAIMA SAID is a 23-year-old UNCG theatre graduate and host of Heeere’sNeeNee Horror Movie Podcast.

One Wellness Center

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Information About Us, Goodies & Giveaways 5500 Adams Farm Lane, Suite 110 / Greensboro NC 27407 / 336-355-9006

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MON: $2 Domestic Bottles & All Burgers $9.99 TUES: 1/2 Price Wine WED: $3 Draft THURS: $5 Bud Light Pitchers and $3 Fireball

Band Schedule MARCH 10 THE DECADES BAND MARCH 17 JOHNNY O’ & THE JUMP OUT BOYS MARCH 24 TIN CAN ALLEY

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UNCSA reaps nominations and accolades for students and faculty Ariano Trevino Angelone, a fourthyear student at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) School of Filmmaking has received a nomination for a Student Heritage Mark Burger Award from the American Society of Cinematographers Contributor (ASC) for his work on Shadowboxing, a third-year UNCSA film directed by Zander Heiselman.

“We could not be more proud of Ariano,” said Deborah LaVine, School of Filmmaking dean. “To be nominated for an ASC Heritage Award is a tremendous honor and one that bodes well for a student’s career in the industry. We are also proud of Ariano’s faculty mentors, who have a track record of several student nominees and winners of cinematogra-

phy awards over the past few years.”

Shadowboxing, which was completed in May 2021 and screened online and at drive-in screenings for UNCSA films, was screened at the Real to Real International Film Festival in North Carolina in July 2021, winning the award for best editing.

In September 2021, it screened at the Full Bloom Film Festival and in October at Beyond: The Cary Film Festival and the Beaufort Film Festival, where it was honored alongside other UNCSA student films.

The film focuses on Miles, an ambitious young fighter participating in an underground MMA (mixed-martial-arts) league, and his manipulative father, whose dreams of being the best in the sport overwhelms his son’s. After Miles believes he accidentally killed an opponent, he struggles to confront his father, who urges him to continue competing regardless of the emotional toll on his son. Consumed by guilt, Miles is constantly reminded of his next fight and the bet wagered by an agent that could

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make or break his professional career.

Angelone is one of three finalists in the nation competing for the Isidore Mankofsky Undergraduate Award, named for the Emmy-nominated cinematographer who died in 2021 and whose credits included The Muppet Movie (1979), Somewhere in Time (1980), and the 1985 George Lucas production Ewoks: The Battle for Endor. The 2022 Student Heritage Awards is one of several educational programs created by the ASC to support a new generation of talent in the early stages of their cinematography careers.

Not to be outdone, the UNCSA School of Dance received an Outstanding Teachers Award at the Youth American Grand Prix (YAGP) Regional Semifinals, which were held Feb. 17-20 at Reynolds Auditorium. Six UNCSA high-school dance students and two students from the Preparatory Dance Program placed in the junior, senior, and pre-competitive categories.

High-school freshman Will Gyves of Winston-Salem placed first in the junior classical men’s category and second place in the junior contemporary men’s category, while fellow freshman Jett Lecamu (also of Winston-Salem) placed third in the senior classical men’s category and second in the contemporary men’s category. Gyves and Lecamu are alumni of the Preparatory Dance Program. Gyves, Lecamu, Jacob Duehring (of Greensboro), and Julian Pecoraro (of Winston-Salem) won first place in the small ensemble category performing the four cavaliers from the 19th-century ballet Raymonda.

Dancers Emma Cilke (of Albuquerque, NM) and Ava Grace Williams (of Wilmington) placed in the top 12 dancers in

senior classical and senior contemporary categories. Duehring also placed in the top 12 in the senior classical category.

Lennon Sullivan, a dancer in UNCSA’s Preparatory Dance Program, won third place in the junior classical women’s category and was among the top 24 in the junior contemporary category. Preparatory dance student Lucius Hamblen was among the top 12 in the pre-competitive contemporary/open category.

“Once again UNCSA dancers excelled at Youth American Grand Prix, and we are so proud of their achievements,” said Endalyn Taylor, UNCSA dean of dance.

“What this substantiates is a consistency of dedicated, quality training in both the classical and contemporary disciplines. We are particularly grateful that UNCSA has been honored with an Outstanding Teachers Award. It is a testament to the hard work of our renowned faculty.

The YAGP is the world’s largest international student dance competition. Regional semi-finals are held annually from January through March in such American cities as New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, Atlanta, San Francisco, Chicago, and Boston. The international regional semi-finals take place in Paris, Barcelona, Berlin, and Osaka, among other locations. Winston-Salem has been a YAGP host city since 2018. Several of the UNCSA students who competed at the regional level will be invited to compete at the YAGP Finals, which will be held in April in Tampa.

The official UNCSA website is https:// www.uncsa.edu/. !

See MARK BURGER’s reviews of current movies on Burgervideo.com. © 2022, Mark Burger.

Three Bars, Two Floors, One Good Time

March 11 @ 9PM

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[ WEEKLY ARTS ROUNDUP] ARTFOLIOS EXHIBIT @ GAIA

On Thursday, March 4, Artfolios hosted an opening reception for their current exhibit at Gaia, located at 45 Miller Street in WinstonSalem. Artfolios, founded in 2021, is Joshua Ridley a Winston-Salem based online fine Marketing & art gallery founded Communications in 2021 by Carrie Manager Leigh Dickey and Kimberly Varnadoe.

Artfolios represents a curated collection of artists in the Winston-Salem area. Gaia is a women’s boutique clothing store whose fashion is globally influenced.

To celebrate March as Women’s History Month, Artfolios’ exhibit consists of work made by women. The exhibit contains mixed media, oil, canvas, watercolor and more. The collective color of this exhibit is bright, floral, and feels like spring. “I wanted to bring together a collective of work that flows together and feels cohesive. March is the introduction of spring, and I wanted the work here to reflect that,” expressed Carrie Leigh Dickey, owner of Artfolios.

Works in the exhibit feature artists such as Kimberly Varnadoe and Sharon Hardin, both who previously taught at

Salem College. Varnadoe serves as the curator for Artfolios. In addition to her work curating the exhibit at Gaia, Varnadoe recently guest curated Women in the Arts: Celebrating 250 Years of Salem Academy and College. Women in the Arts is located inside of Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts. The exhibit consists of works from Salem Academy and College alumnae from 1972 to present day. Women in the Arts: Celebrating 250 Years of Salem Academy and College is on display until March 26.

Artfolios’ exhibit at Gaia will be on display through March 31, 2022. For more information about Artfolios, please visit Artfolios.shop.

ARTS COUNCIL is the chief advocate of the arts and cultural sector in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. Our goal is to serve as a leader in lifting up, creating awareness and providing support to grow and sustain artistic, cultural and creative offerings throughout our region.

We acknowledge that it takes every voice, every talent, and every story to make our community a great place to live, work, and play. Arts Council is committed to serving as a facilitator, organizer, and promoter of conversations that are authentic, inclusive, and forward-thinking.

There are over 800,000 art experiences taking place in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County annually. To learn more about upcoming arts and culture events happening in our community please visit www. cityofthearts.com.

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Time for taxpayers to stop supporting ex-Presidents

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enerally speaking, wealthy people are not supposed to be eligible for welfare, and yet many of them routinely take advantage of Jim Longworth subsidies and tax breaks not afforded to the rest of us. And Longworth boy do they make at Large out like bandits in a financial crisis. Take for instance when the Covid Pandemic began. By March of 2020, Congress had passed the CARES Act, designed to put emergency cash into the hands of regular folk, most of who were under lock-down orders, and unable to pay bills. But, as ProPublica reported, 18 billionaires and hundreds of millionaires received stimulus checks that they didn’t

need. We may never be able to reform the corporate welfare system, but there is legislation pending that might slow down the gravy train for ex-Commanders in Chief.

With just a few exceptions, America’s Presidents have either entered office wealthy, became that way after leaving, or both. Donald Trump, for example, is reportedly worth over 3 billion dollars, but George Washington was not exactly destitute. In today’s dollars, the Father of Our Country was worth nearly 600 million dollars before he became President. Others who were worth over 100 million dollars included Jefferson, Jackson, Madison, Teddy Roosevelt, and LBJ. Bill Clinton came to Washington virtually broke, and today is worth over 90 million dollars. Of the other surviving Presidents, Obama is close behind with $70 million, George W. Bush is worth $40 million, and poor Jimmy Carter brings up the rear with a net wealth of just $10 million. OK, so what does all this have to

do with welfare for the wealthy? A lot as it turns out.

We all know that when a President leaves office, he is still protected by the Secret Service. He sets up and staffs an office wherever he wants. He and his family get to travel extensively. His phone bills and postage are taken care of. He pays hardly anything for his healthcare premiums, and, of course, he receives a generous pension. And while these perks are only currently afforded to five men, nevertheless, taxpayers shell out considerable funds for this elite club of multi-millionaires.

To start with, according to the National Taxpayers Union Foundation, each of our surviving Presidents are paid over $221,400 per year for the rest of their lives. They each receive up to one million dollars per year for travel, and we give them $150,000 per year for staffing an office (that drops to a paltry $96,000 annually after the first 30 months). And what about those offices? George W. Bush spends $434,000 of our money to operate his office, while Bill Clinton hits us up for $579,000 each year just for office rent. We also reimbursed Bush for his $80,000 phone bill, and Jimmy Carter for his $15,000 in postage. Meanwhile, the budget for lifetime Secret Service protection has not been published, but you can bet it’s into the millions each year.

The origin of these taxpayer-funded perks came about in 1958 when Congress decided to subsidize Harry Truman’s retirement. That’s because Truman was virtually broke when he left office, so no one squawked at easing his burden.

The problem is that Truman’s financial situation would have nothing in common with any of his successors. All those who followed Harry were multi-millionaires

with an unlimited capacity for making money off of their name. Bill Clinton, for example, was paid $500,000 for making one speech, and he and Hillary together have pocketed over 150 million dollars in speaking fees between 2001 and 2015. Obama once earned $400,000 for a single speech, and he and Michelle received a 65 million dollar advance for a book deal.

The point is that anyone who makes a half-million dollars for one speech is not in need of government welfare. Enter Utah Congressman Jason Chaffetz, who, in 2016, introduced the Presidential Allowance Modernization Act which would have capped taxpayer-funded perks, and reduced them by one dollar for every dollar of gross income over $400,000.

The bill as proposed garnered little support, nor did a later version, which was introduced in May 2019. Then, last month, Rep. Joni Ernst of Iowa revived the original bill, and on February 17 it was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, where it is awaiting action by the Senate. But even if the bill passes, it doesn’t go far enough in limiting perks for ex-Presidents. Moreover, it doesn’t extend to Presidential cabinet secretaries and other high-level West Wing staff, most of who are also wealthy and receive handsome government subsidies in retirement.

The bottom line is this. If you’re a former President worth 70 million dollars, and you make a half million dollars per speech, then you don’t need a hand-out from taxpayers. What you need is a reality check. !

JIM LONGWORTH is the host of Triad Today, airing on Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. on ABC45 (cable channel 7) and Sundays at 11 a.m. on WMYV (cable channel 15).

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Book by Terence Mcnally Music bystephen flarerty Lyrics by Lynn Ahren

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Miss Willoughby weaves a mild mystery

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aking its cue — or two — from Nancy Drew, Miss Marple, and, lest one forget, Harry Potter, Miss Willoughby and the Haunted Mark Burger Bookshop (advertised in some Contributor quarters as simply Miss Willoughby) is the first in what the filmmakers are undoubtedly hoping will be a full-blown film franchise.

The title character, Elizabeth “Lizzie” Willoughby, is played by Scarlett Graham as a youngster and Nathalie Cox as an adult. Orphaned at an early age, Lizzie becomes the ward of her father’s military buddy, American expatriate Robert Thompson (Kelsey Grammar). Under Robert’s tutelage, she learns chess and literature to sharpen her intellectual acumen, and boxing and martial arts to sharpen her physical acumen. All of these, of course, will come in very handy during her subsequent investigation.

Comfortably ensconced in Robert’s country manor, Lizzie is a college lecturer, published author, and amateur sleuth. Her deductive abilities are put to the test when she is contacted by an old friend, Helen Deakin (Louise Bangay), the proprietor of a cozy bookstore nestled in the heart of London. The shop has been plagued by strange occurrences that lead the increasingly agitated Helen to believe her business is haunted.

Whatever dark and dire forces are at work, Lizzie is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery, aided and abetted by the faithful Robert. Red herrings and potential suspects abound, but Lizzie — played with a cool firmness by Cox — is WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM

not to be distracted or swayed.

Unlike Nancy Drew or Harry Potter — or Sherlock Holmes, for that matter — Miss Willoughby is an original, not being based on a book or graphic novel. It’s competent, picturesque, and set in a contemporary Britain that seems only to exist in the movies. Guessing whodunit — or, in this case, who’s-doing-it — isn’t difficult, and for a film promoting itself as familyfriendly, such topics as adultery, kidnapping, and attempted murder may alarm the kiddies instead of entertaining them.

(The film is rated PG, which is appropriate.)

Grammar comfortably settles into mentor mode as Robert, dispensing compassion and wisdom at regular intervals. Tara Fitzgerald has fun as a snooty society matron, Steven Elder plays Helen’s husband in an overtly twitchy manner, Nicholas Jones plays a crusty but lovable professor who spars affectionately with Lizzie, and strapping Wayne Gordon plays the handsome detective inspector who could conceivably, should the film engender followups, be a potential romantic interest for our intrepid heroine.

But it’s Graham, in her feature debut as the young Lizzie, who shines in her brief appearance as the young Lizzie. She’s so good, in fact, that one almost wishes there were flashbacks to further enhance her role.

Under the direction of Brad Watson (who also edited the film), Miss Willoughby and the Haunted Bookshop passes the time easily enough, but should it spawn sequels, there is certainly room for improvement, to say nothing of character expansion.

— Miss Willoughby and the Haunted Bookshop is available on Digital, on Demand, and DVD ($19.98 retail) from LionsGate Home Entertainment. !

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[NEWS OF THE WEIRD] THIS GIG STINKS

Omni, a plantbased pet food company in Britain, is offering a lucky(?) few dog owners more than $6,000 to “record their experience of introducing their Chuck Shepherd dog to a plantbased diet, monitoring their bowel movements, stool odor, health, energy levels, behavior, sleep pattern and physical attributes, such as weight, skin and fur condition” over a period of two months, according to the company’s website. Omni will provide a free supply of its pet food for the gig and will cover the cost of visits to a pet nutritionist, who will oversee the pets’ transition to plant-based food. Those dog owners who successfully complete the poop-monitoring period will earn the aforementioned cash for their work, while their dogs will receive a supply of dog toys and vegan treats. Applications will be accepted on Omni’s website through March 31.

CHECK, PLEASE!

Michael Spressler, 58, of Brick, New Jersey, thought he had broken a tooth when he bit into a raw clam and felt something hard in his mouth during a Presidents Day weekend visit to his favorite Jersey Shore seafood restaurant, The Lobster House. “I thought one of my molars cracked,” Spressler told NJ Advance Media. But instead of one of his own pearly whites, Spressler found a perfectly round white pearl.

“I’ve been eating clams all my life. This is the first time this ever happened to me,” Spressler said. Indeed, the odds of finding a pearl in a clam are said to be roughly 1 in 10,000, and The Pearl Source website says the little gem, which Spressler’s wife, Maria, would like to have set in a piece of jewelry, could be worth anywhere from $50 to $100,000.

GOLDEN TICKET

On Oct. 26, 1984, Northwestern student Michael Cole attended a basketball game alone, having been unable to find a friend to use the extra ticket he had purchased for $8.50. Thirty-eight years later, on Feb. 27, Cole, now 55, watched

that spare ticket, which he had held onto as a keepsake, sell for $468,000 at auction. What was so special about the ticket? It just happens to be the only known intact ticket from Michael Jordan’s debut game with the Chicago Bulls. Cole, whose 2012 Kia Sorento died just one week before the auction ended, said he plans to use some of his earnings to replace it with “a sensible used car.”

A LITTLE FAITH IN HUMANITY

Perhaps it’s a sad critique of the world we live in when a story like the following is classified as “weird” — but greed abounds in this modern age, so when an act of kindness rises above the usual dreck, it is weird news indeed. Eduardo Martinez of Honduras, who works near Broadway in New York, probably expected a more typical ending to his story: On March 2, as he rushed to get to work through jam-packed Times Square, Martinez dropped his wallet. Losing his IDs and personal effects would have been devastating enough, but Martinez also had $4,000 in cash inside his billfold. As he waded through the crowd of tourists and searched the ground, two police officers approached and informed him that the wallet had been picked up by a fellow commuter and turned over safe and sound — with all $4,000 intact.

Here’s to happy endings!

ANIMAL ADVENTURES

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— The Lang family of Whidbey Island Station in Washington owns five horses, but on the morning of March 2, only four could be found. The family began a search and discovered that Blaze, the missing horse, was in deep trouble — 15 feet deep, to be precise. The horse had broken through a barrier around 10 a.m. and fallen down a concrete well. Rescue workers from the Whidbey Island Naval Air Station dropped in and sedated the horse, and North Whidbey and Central Whidbey Fire & Rescue crews were able to get a harness around Blaze and lift all 2,000 pounds of equine out of the hole using an excavator from a neighbor’s farm. Blaze received an IV and was treated for a few minor cuts, but otherwise was unhurt in the incident. “If he had gone down any other way, he wouldn’t be alive,” owner Karl Lang told KING-TV 5. “Luckily he went down heinie first.”

— A 15-year-old poodle named Snowball has been reunited with his owner, Kathy, of Norfolk, Virginia. What kept the two apart? Only about five years and more than 900 miles. Snowball, who arrived recently at the Cape Coral Animal Shelter in Florida with matted

fur, infected eyes and ears and severe dehydration, had gone missing from Kathy’s home in Norfolk some five years ago. But thanks to the microchip Kathy had implanted in her bestie, the poodle was quickly identified, and Kathy booked a flight shortly after receiving a call from the shelter. Fox 4 Southwest Florida reports that Snowball’s eyes have been treated, his vaccinations have been updated, and his new health certificate will allow him to fly home with Kathy.

DID SOMEBODY SAY “SHOT”?

On Feb. 27, the Smoking Gun reported, Christina Blair, 33, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, began honking her horn and yelling obscenities at Gabriel Chavez while the two drove their cars on an Albuquerque road. Blair told police she had become enraged upon seeing Chavez’s “Vaccinated” bumper sticker. After Blair hit Chavez’s car with an object (later revealed to be a water bottle) at a red light, Chavez accidentally backed into Blair’s car. The two pulled into a Walgreen’s parking lot, where Chavez expected to exchange insurance information; instead, Blair pulled a handgun from her car and racked the weapon.

Chavez called 911, and police were able to use Chavez’s cellphone video to acquire Blair’s license plate info and track it to her residence. Blair was taken into custody and booked on a count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

TWO-DRINK MINIMUM

The buggy-drifting skills of Ray Byler, 20, of Sigel, Pennsylvania, sound impressive; his alcohol tolerance, not so much.

Byler was charged with a misdemeanor for driving under the influence and also was cited for careless and reckless driving. Police began following the Amish buggy he was driving and watched as Byler sped up at a turn and locked the brakes, sending sparks flying. According to Trib Live, when Byler pulled over to let the officers pass and they asked if he was OK, Byler’s response was slurred, and he smelled of alcohol. When asked if he’d been drinking, Byler told the officers he’d had “a couple of beers.” Byler was allowed to stand by his agitated horse’s side after the field sobriety test; police said he refused to take the blood draw test at the hospital. !

© 2022 Chuck Shepherd. Universal Press Syndicate.

Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com.

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In Good Hands: Guitar Resettlement Project provides guitars for local refugees

riad musicians matter to Kristy Jackson, the Greensboro singersongwriter who recently launched the Guitar Resettlement Project, an initiative Katei Cranford to provide guitars for Afghan refugees in the area.

Contributor As President and founder of Triad Musicians Matter, Inc. (a 501c3 non-profit corporation aimed at providing financial support for local musicians and their families in the event of health-related emergencies, fire, or natural disasters) Jackson is known for looking after her fellow music community—and is now setting her sights on welcoming newcomers who’ve resettled in the Triad.

“This project evolved organically. I hadn’t envisioned anything like this before,” Jackson said, turning to her efforts shared with a group of neighbors sponsoring an Afghan family. In addition to helping secure housing and other necessities, “As a musician, I thought it might be fun for them to have a keyboard in the house to tinker with.”

While the keyboard wasn’t quite the hit Jackson envisioned, the youngest son soon inquired if she played guitar. “I confessed that I was just learning,” she noted, “but that I had a lot of guitarist friends.”

Inspiration struck.

On Jan. 25, Jackson made her initial post: “Does anyone have an acoustic guitar collecting dust under their bed that I could give to an enthusiastic young man who wants to explore music?” The responses were practically instantaneous.

“Soon we were off to the races!” she said, having received three guitars within that first week.

With six guitars resettled thus far, and several more on the way, the project is just beginning. “We live in such a generous, loving, and involved community,” Jackson said, reflecting on her lineage of giving, which started in her home growing up. “My parents really instilled the importance of service to others.”

A member of the BMI “Millionaire Club,” as a songwriter, Jackson has worked with Grammy Award winners and major labels.

She wrote “Take It Back,” the first single off Reba McEntire’s 1992 record, “It’s Your YES! WEEKLY

MARCH 9-15, 2022

Call.” And garnered national attention in 2001, with her release “Little Did She Know (She’d Kissed A Hero)” the royalties of which were donated to various 9/11 charities.

Here in the Triad, she was voted “Best Songwriter” in the 2021 YES! Weekly Triad’s Best reader poll, and is currently working on new material. “It’s a talented community so I was really honored to be recognized,” she said of the award. As for her work, she’s been “breathing some new life” into songs—writing, pitching, and recording with Benjy Johnson at Earthtones Recording Studio.

While Jackson spearheads the Guitar Resettlement initiative, she’s quick to credit those who’ve helped bring the project to life—and help sustain the mission of Triad Musicians Matter. Praising folks like JR Luther, who’s lent his expertise in refurbishing guitars in varying conditions; and her husband, musician Bobby Kelly, who helps “match the right guitar with the right recipient.”

Kristy Jackson Together, they’re ushering in a new era of TMM, which celebrates its 11th year on March 16. “We’re just trying to continue the work we started,” Jackson said, reflecting on her initial motivation.

“Back in 2011, I had some career success and realized I was one of the few full-time musicians I knew who could afford health insurance,” she explained. “I was always struck by how it seemed musicians were always the first people to offer their time and talents for various fundraisers yet had nothing in place to help them.”

The initial group started with Sam Funchess, Ogi Overman, Terry VunCannon, and Justin Jackson. Her husband, along with Chris Roulhac and Doug Mokaren,

have also joined the fold of official officers over the years.

The artists they’ve helped extend across the area—including Bill Jordan (of the Allison King Band), Matty Sheets, and Snüzz are among the many musicians that have praised the benefits of their services. “It’s rewarding to help your peers in the industry who are struggling,” Jackson said. “We’ve helped numerous musicians over the years and look forward to helping more.”

She’s also looking forward to the eventual return of TMM fundraising concert events, which were paused for the pandemic. “There are still musicians in the area, as well as members of the community, that are still a little leery of big crowds,” she explained. “But as spring arrives and restrictions ease, we will assess the risks and take a look at future fundraising possibilities.”

For now, Jackson muses the promise and possibilities presented by the Guitar Resettlement Project. “I’d love to see it extend to underserved and at-risk youth in the Triad area,” she said. But first, her plan remains focused: spreading the word to sponsors and the Afghan community: “the Guitar Resettlement Project is here for you!”

And while excited to promote the project, Jackson remains careful to respect the privacy of recipients. “I ALWAYS ask permission to take a picture with their new guitar and show them the platform that it’ll be posted on,” she explained.

“Some decline because they’re leery of having their picture taken. Many still have family they’re trying to get out of Afghanistan.”

Anyone interested in either donating guitars, or who knows of a resettled individual that would enjoy a guitar, is invited to get in touch. More information is available at triadmusiciansmatter.org.

She also encourages folks to check out the North Carolina Refugee Assistance Program. “I’ve learned so much and became aware of the many resources made available to refugees resettling in this area,” she said.

“I just hope I can continue to make and share music and serve this community in ways that are productive and positive,” Jackson added. “Keep those guitars a’coming! Thank you so much!” !

KATEI CRANFORD is a Triad music nerd who enjoys spotlighting artists and events.

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Bones in the ground: Guilford professor’s ghost goes east More than a century after she drowned off the California coast, Emma is on the move.

She’s tracked

by Philip, a ghost “cleaner” determined to send her Ian McDowell to her final rest. But restless Emma is determined to travel Contributor the world, not leave it, in a way she never could while alive.

In Their Eyes at Night, the new novel in The Last Ghost series by Guilford College professor emerita Mylène Dressler, Emma has reached the Utah desert, where she and Philip meet again, and the harshly beautiful landscape is not as empty as it looks, as even ghosts are haunted by those there before them.

At 7 p.m. on Saturday, March 19, Their Eyes at Night debuts at Greensboro’s Scuppernong Books, where it’s already on sale. That weekend, Dressler, who currently lives and writes on the Oregon coast and the canyon country of Utah, will return to Guilford College to teach a creative writing workshop focusing on characterization.

The Hague-born author and professor was a professional ballet dancer before she began her literary studies at San Francisco University and earned her doctorate at Rice. From 2011 until 2021, she taught Creative Writing at Guilford.

Moving here to teach was also a transformative journey, said Dressler, who has also written realistic fiction that was often semi-autobiographical.

“My first novels, very much in the realist mode, were family dramas, sometimes psychodramas, in which history and general trauma haunted the characters. Midway through my career, I took what was always implicit in the work and made it literal.”

Dressler grew up loving The Turn of the Screw and The Haunting of Hill House, but despite those formative texts, “I didn’t feel authorized, for lack of a better word, to write ghost stories.”

In 2014, she published her fourth novel, The Wedding of Anna F, about an elderly Jewish woman who falsely believes herself to be Anne Frank. “It’s very clear that she is not that important figure from our history, but history was haunting that book.”

Dressler was feeling the emptiness that besets many authors upon finishing WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM

PHOTO BY MAIA DERY

Author M Dressler a big project, and her husband suggested a trip to California.

“We were driving up along the gorgeous coast-hugging Highway 1, twisting through gloriously atmospheric mists and crags, and I told my husband it was so beautiful that, if you died there, you wouldn’t want to leave. When I said that, Emma just sort of appeared in front of me and flooded my brain.”

At first, Dressler knew little about the character beyond the way the ghost appeared in her head.

“I had inklings she was a working-class immigrant, and knew this was going to be a story about someone forced to be invisible while they were alive, and still expected to be invisible in death.”

Telling a story from a ghost’s perspective was not new, but what Dressler did with that idea is.

“What I eventually learned from Emma is that in her fight to be visible, she also discovers that she needs to be mobile, and to reject the general understanding that ghosts are tied to a place. She was at the edge of a continent, at the western edge of the West Coast, and she could start to move eastward, and move through these different locations. She comes from an immigrant family herself, and I wanted her to reverse Manifest Destiny, and move backward across the country.”

As Emma arrives in new places, she is haunted by the ghosts already there.

“It becomes a series about moving into places that are not empty, and this is the driving theme. When this ghost travels, she’s entering into spaces that have

already been claimed. And so, the stories become about who gets to take up space in the world, how do you negotiate space. Not just between the living and the dead, but the different histories that haunt every landscape.”

Dressler said that in Their Eyes at Night, this theme is given its fullest development yet.

“The desert countries of Utah and the Southwest, where I live part of the year, are just rich with these competing and very complex histories of indigenous peoples, colonizers and immigrants, and travelers, and there are a lot of bones in the ground.”

The first third of the book is from the perspective of her pursuer, Philip Pratt.

“His whole perspective is that we’ve got to maintain the borders, and Emma unsettles that. He absolutely believes he’s doing the right thing and is bringing peace to the dead and to the living.

The novel is also about whether people can change when presented with new information. Which is very interesting to think about right now.”

And about more than Emma, Philip, and the desert where they meet again.

Its themes include colonization and climate change.

“The sheriff helping Pratt is halfNavaho. She partly occupies the indigenous world but is also descended from colonizers. I love characters who cross borders, navigate conflicting spaces, and defy definitions.”

When asked if her family history and heritage were influenced by this, Dressler said “absolutely.”

“I’m mixed race. I’m an immigrant. In my novels, there always seems to be an echo or a haunting related to that, because it’s my own positioning in the world. In my early novels, I was literally talking about my own Eurasian history.

And then it just became part of how I think about writing and the world, and my own way of moving through it.”

It was at Guilford College that she found a new way of exploring that.

“I was actually living in the desert and writing full time, but missed teaching creative writing and saw an advertisement for a visiting writer position at Guilford College. I thought it would be lovely to just come there for a year, but that was in 2011, and I stayed for a decade because I just fell in love with Guilford and with Greensboro.”

She credits the college and area with expanding her literary boundaries.

“I now know that was part of making this transition from the realist mode to speculative fiction, as Guilford is just the kind of place that nourishes that, and encourages you to make whatever you want to make in the world.”

She also discovered surfing.

“That was a Guilford thing, too, because a beloved colleague of mine there, Maia Dery, got me into surfing. It’s really transformed my writing as well. I think there’s a powerful connection between the almost kind of floating and willingness to go with the flow, that connects writing and surfing. I first surfed at Wrightsville Beach, and then spent a lot of the Pandemic surfing out here on the West Coast.”

When she moved back West, Dressler had regular access to the ocean.

“It’s become a huge part of understanding both myself and the nonhuman world. The new book is heavily invested in that. All the books are really settingdriven, as most ghost stories are, but the new one also thinks a great deal about the natural world and what the living are doing to it. There’s a kind of climate conversation running through it, and I think that comes out of my being able to spend more time immersed in the nonhuman world through surfing and hiking. It encourages me to think not just about the dead and the living, but the other thing that is living all around us, and dying too, which is the planet.” !

IAN MCDOWELL is the author of two published novels, numerous anthologized short stories, and a whole lot of nonfiction and journalism, some of which he’s proud of and none of which he’s ashamed of.

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Ukraine Military tanks cross the area.

Russian-Ukraine news coverage draws questions about support

Naima Said

Contributor

YES! WEEKLY

While the Russian invasion of Ukraine has highlighted the solidarity held by the Triad community and the globe during these challenging times, a local professor wishes that unity was consistent amongst world leaders and mainstream media.

Suja Sawafta, a Greensboro native of

MARCH 9-15, 2022

Palestinian heritage, a graduate of international studies from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro and a Ph.D. in Modern Arabic Literature from Oxford University, said she recently published an article in the Middle East Monitor highlighting how media networks and politicians inconsistently support global human rights issues.

Sawafta, who works as an Assistant Professor of Arabic Studies in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures at the University of Miami, wishes that the level of support was evident during former middle-east wars and crises.

“Orientalism is an ever-evolving, ever

metastasizing social disease, which as of late has moved the world’s most powerful leaders to decry the Russian invasion of Ukraine with a remarkable gusto that was largely absent six months ago with the fall of Kabul, or six years ago when Suja Sawafta Syrian refugees, fleeing the tyranny of Assad’s RussianArab and Middle Eastern Journalists Asbacked regime, made the arduous journey sociation released a statement on placing across the Mediterranean in search of a too much emphasis or importance on one passage to Europe,” Sawafta stated in her group of individuals in a time of war rather article. than another.

In response to such news coverage, the

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Ukrainians mourning loved ones and lost homes.

“The Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association (AMEJA) calls on all news organizations to be mindful of implicit and explicit bias in their coverage of war in Ukraine. In only the last few days, we have tracked examples of racist news coverage that ascribes more importance to some victims of war over others.

On Feb. 26, during a CBS News segment, correspondent Charlie D’Agata commented: “ But this isn’t a place, with all due respect, like Iraq or Afghanistan, that has seen conflict raging for decades. This is a relatively civilized, relatively European — I have to choose those words carefully, too — city, one where you wouldn’t expect that, or hope that it’s going to happen.”

Daniel Hannan, of The Telegraph, wrote: “They seem so like us. That is what makes it so shocking. War is no longer something visited upon impoverished and remote populations. It can happen to anyone.”

After listing more examples, the statement from AMEJA goes on to further state that it “condemns and categorically rejects orientalist and racist implications that any population or country is “uncivilized” or bears economic factors that make it worthy of conflict. This type of commentary reflects the pervasive mentality in Western journalism of normalizing tragedy in parts of the world such as the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, and Latin America.

It dehumanizes and renders their experience with war as somehow normal and expected.

Newsrooms must not make comparisons that weigh the significance or imply justification of one conflict over another — civilian casualties and displacement in other countries are equally as abhorrent as WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM

they are in Ukraine. AMEJA stands in full solidarity with all civilians under military assault in any part of the world, and we deplore the difference in news coverage of people in one country versus another. Not only can such coverage decontextualize conflicts, but it contributes to the erasure of populations around the world who continue to experience violent occupation and aggression.”

Sawafta agrees stating that she doesn’t stand for double standards and placing more value on one person’s life over another.

“Ukraine may not be part of the European Union but it is still part of Europe, a continent that has been in wars for centuries before the form of the Union, so Ukraine’s appeal for survival postulates on the concept of preserving European democracy,” Sawafta said.

In the build-up to the invasion of Ukraine, the country had found itself in a tumultuous dilemma after receiving several threats from Russia claiming that extremists that would threaten the safety of Russia, especially the Russian-annexed region of Crimea, had infiltrated Ukrainian institutions.

“The initial attack has led to a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has relentlessly voiced his obsession of rebuilding his country’s prestige,” Sawafta explained. “It is about gaining power, gaining control, and in many cases, gaining their resources with no regard for innocent civilians stuck in the aftermath.”

As with most of Europe, the United States has sided with Ukraine during this conflict, opposing the standing aggression

Refugee children in underground basement in Kiev. inflicted by Russia. Although such unity is commendable, the swift willingness to call out human rights violations by these countries is in contrast to similar violations made during the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, and the reluctance to accept refugees fleeing regions impacted

by American and European military involvement.

Paradoxically, with the evacuation happening in Ukraine, it has been reported that citizens and international students of color have faced discriminatory barriers preventing them from leaving the country.

Coverage on the matter has revealed a pattern of intentional delays inflicted on them where they have been turned away from the neighboring border or removed from buses to make way for white Ukrainian women and children.

“In the end, the hypocrisy of the United States and other Western countries’ reaction and response to international law being broken has slanted purposely

to the favor of other Europeans, leaving the silent suffering for those in the Middle East and neighboring countries. Israel has broken numerous international laws and the UN continues to bat an eye, but the minute the tables are reversed, it is unacceptable,” Sawafta said. “There is nothing fair about this, but the persistent push for acknowledgment and change.”

A push for change that AMEJA calls for in its released statement: “In order to prevent such explicit bias, we call on newsrooms to train correspondents on the cultural and political nuances of regions they’re reporting on, and not rely on American- or Euro-centric biases. Inaccurate and disingenuous comparisons only serve to inflame stereotypes and mislead viewers, and they ultimately perpetuate prejudicial responses to political and humanitarian crises.” !

NAIMA SAID is a 23-year-old UNCG theatre graduate and host of Heeere’sNeeNee Horror Movie Podcast.

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tunes

HEAR IT!

Gritty, Sweet Sugar Meat

G Katei Cranford

Contributor

reensboro rockers, Sugar Meat, share the gritty and sweet nature of songwriter and guitarist, Suzanne Stafford, who’ll serve up another round of her “alt-country punk rock’n’roll” on March 17, with the Kneads and Kim Ware, at Gas Hill Drinking Room in

Winston-Salem.

An unabashed rock’n’roller with a gravel and twang, Stafford’s vocals have been compared to Janis Joplin, though, “more recently, I’ve been told that Sugar Meat reminds people of Sonic Youth, and comparing me to Kim Gordon,” she said. “I like all of this.”

Crediting her musical taste to her older brothers (and their bestowed love of bands like the Pixies, Violent Femmes, R.E.M., Teenage Fanclub, and the Connells) Stafford owes her “ability to string words into melody to my Mama,” she said, “who watched every single musical movie known to mankind with me when I was young and impressionable.”

Sugar Meat, as a band, owes its name to her dad. “I’d planned to name the group as a nod to Lucinda Williams,” she explained, “but then I wanted it to be more personal, so I went with my Dad’s nickname for me: Sugar Meat.”

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The notion makes sense for the familyoriented Stafford, now a single mom of two, whose passion for music and songwriting bloomed early—starting in her father’s church choir at age 7. She penned her first song, about Duke basketball, at 8.

By 12, she had picked up piano and clarinet. As a teen, she held the honor of being a four-time “National Teenage Whistling Champion,” for which she appeared on both CBS This Morning and The Tonight Show.

Her history in Greensboro started as a University of North Carolina-Greensboro student in the late 90s, where she ran in the hip-hop and electronic circles with then-boyfriend, Shane Sealy (who worked at Obia Studios, operated by DJ Polo). The two recorded various tracks with an array of local producers, including Devour, Dana Lucci, and ShowDown (for whom Stafford sang an intro of his radio show on 102 Jamz).

Her introduction to area rock’n’roll came after she split from Sealy and was introduced to Dylan Ritter. “He had this whole ‘Rolling Stones’ vibe, and ran in completely different circles than I did at the time,” Stafford explained, referencing circles in which she still runs today. Together, they, and a group of friends, formed Scarlet Harlot. Channeling her inner-Chrissie Hynde, the 20-something Stafford learned guitar, “with an occasional jaunt playing a bass or keyboard,” and leaned heavily into rock’n’roll. They opened for Lucero at Ace’s Basement, put out an album (recorded by Steve Graham at Carey Sound), and called

Suzanne Stafford

it quits after a two-year run.

A heartbroken Stafford bicycled up to Boston and back, before a fateful meeting with Matty Sheets at his open mic produced a longtime friendship; and the alt-country outfit, Come Hell or High Water. Sailing through the mid-00s, the group opened up for Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit at the Blind Tiger and gigged around the state. Meanwhile, Stafford became a mother of two; and put music on the back burner for a bit, moving down east during her daughters’ preschool years.

Returning to Greensboro in 2016, Stafford soon cooked up Sugar Meat as an initially short-lived quartet with Sheets, Randy Seals, and Matt Goshow. That first incarnation dissolved following Sheets’ diagnosis with multiple sclerosis but was reborn after a fundraiser for his treatment acquainted Stafford and drummer, Aurora Echo.

The two played as a duo for years, with Stafford’s acoustic guitar enhanced by a fair amount of distortion. “After boring myself with the same sounds, I switched to playing electric guitar last summer,” she explained. Former Come Hell or High Water bandmate, Rob Sinnott, joined on bass in September. “It made all the difference. I’m a really lucky woman,” she said, praising the fully-formed rhythm section.

With Sugar Meat’s current setup in place, “I’ve found myself, my voice, my words, throughout the years through the experiences I’ve lived (and sometimes suffered) through,” Stafford noted, referencing ways her songwriting serves as therapy.

Keeping her work catchy and relatable, songs like “Dead John,” “Far Away,” and “Trouble” explore heartbreak, love, and ag-

gravation—along the lines of Evan Dando and The Lemonheads. Though politics aren’t off the table, as exemplified by “Refugee,” which highlights “the hypocrisy of Christians wanting refugees kicked out of the country.”

Ever a preacher’s daughter, Stafford holds those ideals—and the spirit—close to her heart. “Before every show, I close my eyes and sorta say a little prayer to help me feel the spirit,” she said. “I ask my parents, Kurt Cobain, Tom Petty, and Whitney Houston to help me dig into my soul and let everything out.”

Stafford’s been praying, and playing out, more often these days. “Making music feels like a magical antidepressant; and to hear that it’s coming off like that feels exceptional,” she said, referencing the validation she felt from a recent show with Starlight Speedway and Crenshaw Pentecostal. “In between songs, I heard someone say ‘there are some magical people in this world,’ which felt extra good,” she explained.

“Life has made music take a back seat, and I’m tired of that,” she added. “I’ve been playing in bands for 20 years. My hair is turning silver. It’s now or never. Performing for people is the best feeling, and I’m ready for it to happen more.”

Sugar Meat will be at Gas Hill Drinking Room, with The Kneads and Kim Ware (the Good Graces) on March 17. On April 29, they’ll play with Greensboro-punkers Totally Slow, and Alabama-scorchers, Lee Bains & The Glory Fires at the Flat Iron in Greensboro. !

KATEI CRANFORD is a Triad music nerd who enjoys spotlighting artists and events.

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Submissions should be sent to artdirector@yesweekly.com by Friday at 5 p.m., prior to the week’s publication.

Visit yesweekly.com and click on calendar to list your event online. home grown muSic Scene | compiled by Austin Kindley

ASHEBORO

Four SaintS BrEwing

218 South Fayetteville St. | 336.610.3722 www.foursaintsbrewing.com thursdays: taproom trivia Fridays: Music Bingo Mar 12: Kelsey Hurley Mar 19: Brooke McBride Mar 20: Mark Dillon & Friends Mar 26: analog Crash apr 2: J Floyd and the grave Sitters apr 3: randolph Jazz Band apr 9: Love & Valor apr 16: 80’s unleashed

CHARlOttE

BoJangLES CoLiSEuM

2700 E Independence Blvd | 704.372.3600 www.boplex.com Mar 10: Celtic woman Mar 11: iliza Mar 16: tyler, the Creator Mar 25: toBYMaC Mar 25: rodney Carrington

Mar 30: Bob Dylan apr 1: Marisela apr 8: Brian regan apr 9: no remorse Comedy tour apr 16: For King & Country

CMCu aMpHitHEatrE former Uptown Amphitheatre 820 Hamilton St | 704.549.5555 www.livenation.com apr 20: Modest Mouse May 3: Khruangbin May 16: Leon Bridges May 22: parway Drive Jun 5: Barenaked Ladies Jun 8: russ

tHE FiLLMorE

1000 NC Music Factory Blvd | 704.916.8970 www.livenation.com Mar 9: theory of a Deadman Mar 10: Dylan Scott Mar 11: Conan gray Mar 12: Badfish Mar 13: Jazmine Sullivan Mar 15: Jesse & Joy

Mar 17: Chelsea Cutler Mar 18: oliver tree Mar 21: Slash feat. Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators Mar 22: 311 Mar 23: underoath Voyeurist Mar 25: Lane 8 Mar 26: Epik High apr 2: KaLEo

pnC MuSiC paViLion

707 Pavilion Blvd | 704.549.1292 www.livenation.com apr 30: Jimmy Buffet May 8: aJr - the oK orchestra tour May 12: tim Mcgraw May 24: Foo Fighters May 29: nick Cannon

duRHAm

CaroLina tHEatrE

309 W Morgan St | 919.560.3030 www.carolinatheatre.org Mar 12: Mike Bigbiglia

Mar 13: the Chamber orchestra of the triangle Mar 15: graham nash Mar 21: Sonia De Los Santos, La golondrima Mar 29: welcome to night Vale apr 1: trevor wallace apr 2: gary gulman apr 2: Magic of african rhythm apr 8: Vir Das’ Manic Man apr 9: Kountry wayne apr 14: Steve Hackett apr 16: tommy Emmanuel apr 21: Little Feat apr 22: three Dog night apr 29: pink Floyd Laser Spectacular

DpaC

123 Vivian St | 919.680.2787 www.dpacnc.com Mar 9, 11: Bert Kreischer Mar 12: iliza Mar 16: Celtic woman Mar 19: Slash feat. Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators

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PROUD SPONSOR OF The Checkup with Dr. Jon - Mondays at 7pm Don Mark’s Surfside - Saturdays at 3pm The Non-Conformist Cult Radio Show - Sundays at Midnight

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Mar 20: Wow in the World Mar 22: Joe Bonamassa Mar 24: Gregory Alan Isakov Mar 25: Nate Bargatze

& Seven Spires Apr 26: Escape The Fate w/ The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Violent New Breed

BARN DINNER THEATRE

ELKIN

REEVES THEATER

129 W Main St | 336.258.8240 www.reevestheater.com Fourth Thursdays: Old-Time Jam Mar 11: Amythyst Kiah Mar 12: Ben Sollee Mar 18: Liam Purcell and Cane Mill Road Mar 19: Unspoken Tradition Mar 25: Yachtical Mystery Tour Mar 26: The Revelers Apr 1: Western Centuries Apr 2: Alasdair Fraser & Natalie Haas Apr 9: Tinsley Ellis Apr 15: Luke Mears Band Apr 22: The Malpass Brothers Apr 23: Todd Snider Jun 3: Paul Thorn

GREENSBORO

ARIZONA PETE’S

2900 Patterson St #A | 336.632.9889 www.arizonapetes.com Apr 9: Dragonforce w/ Battle Beast

120 Stage Coach Tr. | 336.292.2211 www.barndinner.com Mar 12-Apr 3: Smoke on the Mountain Apr 9-May 7: Crowns Mar 14-Jun 25: Groovin’

BAXTER’S TAVERN

536 Farragut St | 336.808.5837 www.baxterstavern.com Apr 1: Whistler w/ Pathway, Fowler, and Fox Season Apr 24: Cory Luetjen & The Traveling Blues Band

CAROLINA THEATRE

310 S. Greene Street | 336.333.2605 www.carolinatheatre.com Mar 13: Doug Baker Mar 15: Cane Mill Road Mar 18: Carly Burruss and Casey Noel Apr 1: Beatles vs Stones Apr 2: Brown Mountain Lightning Bugs Apr 9: Gregory Amos Apr 15: A Purple Rain Experience

COMEDY ZONE

1126 S Holden Rd | 336.333.1034 www.thecomedyzone.com Mar 11-12: Mutzie Mar 18-20: Nick Thune Mar 25-27: Steven Trevino Apr 1-3: Jason Banks May 5: Shayne Smith

CONE DENIM

117 S Elm St | 336.378.9646 www.cdecgreensboro.com Mar 11: Niko Moon Mar 19: Steel Panther Apr 7: Key Glock

FLAT IRON

221 Summit Ave | 336.501.3967 www.flatirongso.com Mar 10: Chasing Sunsets Mar 31: Marcus Rezak’s Truth in Sound

GARAGE TAVERN

5211 A West Market St | 336.763.2020 www.garagetaverngso.com Mar 10: Big Bump Mar 11: Gipsy Danger Mar 12: Huckleberry Shyne Mar 17: Hotwax & The Splinters Mar 19: Tin Can Alley Mar 25: Brothers Pearl

GREENSBORO COLISEUM

1921 W Gate City Blvd | 336.373.7400 www.greensborocoliseum.com Mar 11: Korn, Chevelle, Code Orange Mar 12: No Cap Comedy Tour Mar 19: The Avett Brothers Mar 20: Maxwell Mar 31: Rod Wave, DaBaby, and Boosie Badazz Apr 1: Slipknot Apr 2: New Edition w/ Charlie Wilson and Jodeci Apr 5: Justin Bieber Apr 9: Katt Williams Apr 19: Elton John

LITTLE BROTHER BREWING

348 South Elm St | 336.510.9678 www.facebook.com/littlebrotherbrew Mar 18: Paleface

PIEDMONT HALL

2411 W Gate City Blvd | 336.373.7400 www.greensborocoliseum.com Mar 26: Papa Roach, Hollywood Undead, Bad Wolves

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Upcoming in March

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3/10 Ciera Dumas & Patrick Rock

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3/12 DJ Mike Lawson 3/16 Karaoke 3/17 St Paddy’s Day Bash

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3/11 Brother Pearl, DJ Mike Lawson

3/18 Smashat, DJ Mike Lawson 3/23 Karaoke 3/24 Sip ‘n Paint 3/25, 3/26 DJ Mike Lawson 3/30 Karaoke

New Menu Served Mon-Sat 5-8pm Sunday Brunch 11am-2pm

221 N Main St, Kernersville • Upstairs • BreatheCocktailLounge.com • Mon - Thurs: 5-12 • Fri & Sat: 5pm-2am, Sunday noon-8pm WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM

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South End BrEwing Co. 117B W Lewis St | 336.285.6406 www.southendbrewing.com tuesdays: trivia night

StEvEn tangEr CEntEr

300 N Elm Street | 336.333.6500 www.tangercenter.com Mar 10: Bert Kreischer Mar 12: 90’s Kickback Concert Part 2 Mar 13: the Simon & garfunkel Story Mar 15: anne Lamott Mar 19: the ten tenors Mar 24: rodney Carrington Mar 26: walker hayes apr 1: Bob dylan

thE idiot Box CoMEdY CLuB

503 N. Greene St | 336.274.2699 www.idiotboxers.com Mar 12: david goolsby Mar 18: Steve Lesser Mar 19: Erik terrell Mar 26: Brian o’Sullivan Mar 26: Juice adkins apr 2: Lindsay glazer apr 9: Paul hooper apr 30: Pedro gonzalez

high point

aftEr hourS tavErn

1614 N Main St | 336.883.4113 www.facebook.com/AfterHoursTavernHighPoint Mar 12: fair warning Mar 18: Slightly Emotional Mar 19: Charos fM Mar 26: toyz apr 2: Bad romeo

high Point thEatrE

220 E Commerce Ave | 336.883.3401 www.highpointtheatre.com Mar 17: Sister Sledge feat. Sledgendary Mar 25: Jump, Jive, & wail Mar 26: Sons of Mystro apr 9: the rick webb family w/ tim Lovelace apr 10: Me, Myself, & Shirley

PLanK StrEEt tavErn 138 Church Ave | 336.991.5016 www.facebook.com/plankstreettavern apr 1: randy Condor williams

SwEEt oLd BiLL’S

1232 N Main St | 336.807.1476 www.sweetoldbills.com Mar 10: decades Band Mar 17: Johnny o’ and the Jump out Boys Mar 24: tin Can alley

jamestown

thE dECK

118 E Main St | 336.207.1999 www.thedeckatrivertwist.com Mar 9: Karaoke Mar 10: wesley Bryan acoustic Mar 11: room 42 Mar 12: the Plaids Mar 16: Karaoke Mar 17: St. Patty with Capt Jack & Silent disco Mar 18: Big City (formerly Jukebox revolver) Mar 19: Spare Change Mar 23: Karaoke Mar 24: Ethan Smith Mar 25: radio revolver Mar 26: Soul Central Mar 31: Chris and dan miller

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The week leading up to Selection Sunday (3/13/2022), visit the contest page on www.Rock92.com to pre-register.

Once the participating tournament teams are selected on 3/13/22, visit the contest page and select your brackets. You will be able to select your brackets teams and make changes to your brackets until the first tournament game begins on 3/17/22. *The Two “First Four” Games on 3/15 and 3/16 are considered byes.

Tournament dates: 3/13/2022 – 4/4/2022

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kernersville

BrEathE CoCKtaiL LoungE

221 N Main St. | 336.497.4822 www.facebook.com/BreatheCocktailLounge wednesdays: Karaoke fridays: dJ Mar 10: Ciera dumas & Patrick rock Mar 11: Brother Pearl, dJ Mike Lawson Mar 17: St Paddy’s day Bash Mar 18: Smashat, dJ Mike Lawson Mar 26: dJ Mike Lawson

KErnErSviLLE BrEwing CoMPanY 221 N Main St. | 336.816.7283 kernersvillebrewing.com thursdays: trivia

lewisville

oLd niCK’S PuB

191 Lowes Foods Dr | 336.747.3059 www.OldNicksPubNC.com fridays: Karaoke Mar 26: hawthorne Curve

liberty

thE LiBErtY ShowCaSE thEatEr

101 S. Fayetteville St | 336.622.3844 www.TheLibertyShowcase.com Mar 12: Lonestar

raleigh

CCu MuSiC ParK at waLnut CrEEK

3801 Rock Quarry Rd | 919.821.4111 www.livenation.com apr 23: Jimmy Buffet May 20: foo fithers May 21: tim Mcgraw

LinCoLn thEatrE

126 E. Cabarrus St | 919.831.6400 www.lincolntheatre.com Mar 9: Badfish: tribute to Sublime 20 Year anniversary tour Mar 10: Marc Broussard Mar 11: duCK w/ JuLia. Mar 12: the wild ones “thin Lizzy tribute” Mar 15: david archuleta Mar 16: relient K

rEd hat aMPhithEatEr 500 S McDowell St | 919.996.8800 www.redhatamphitheater.com May 7: aJr Jun 16: Cody Johnson Jul 16: Barenaked Ladies

PnC arEna

1400 Edwards Mill Rd | 919.861.2300 www.thepncarena.com Mar 19: winter Jam 2022

winston-salem

BuLL’S tavErn

408 West 4th St | 336.331.3431 www.bullswsnc.com wednesdays: Karaoke

EarL’S

121 West 9th Street | 336.448.0018 www.earlsws.com Mar 11: the Comedowns

foothiLLS BrEwing 638 W 4th St | 336.777.3348 www.foothillsbrewing.com Mar 16: Sam robinson

MidwaY MuSiC haLL

11141 Old US Hwy 52, Suite 10 | 336.793.4218 www.facebook.com/midwaymusichallandeventcenter Mondays: Line dancing w/ denise Mar 11: Brett tolley and friends Mar 12: Ea$y Money duo tim Sealey and david winger Mar 18: Jimmy Shirly Jr and the 8 track 45 Band Mar 19: diamond Edge Mar 25: Branded Mar 26: granite City rollers

thE raMKat

170 W 9th St | 336.754.9714 www.theramkat.com Mar 10: Brown Mountain Lightning Bugs, Sarah Sophia Mar 11: Magnolia green, the Pharoah Sisters Mar 12: dropping Plates, By george Mar 15: tiffany thompson Mar 17: the Kneads, Kim ware, Sugar Meat Mar 18: victoria victoria, the Pinkerton raid, Cashavelly Morrison Mar 19: Sona Jobarteh Mar 23: Marty Stuart & his fabulous Superlatives, Caleb Caudle Mar 24: Mdou Moctar, Emily robb Mar 25: P-90’s, Bangzz

winSton-SaLEM fairground 421 W 27th St | 336.727.2236 www.wsfairgrounds.com May 20: Classic Country Concert Series

wiSE Man BrEwing

826 Angelo Bros Ave | 336.725.0008 www.wisemanbrewing.com thursdays: Music Bingo

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last call

[THE ADVICE GODDESS] love • sex • dating • marriage • questions

MUD ABOUT YOU

I’m a recently divorced woman. With COVID restrictions easing up, I’d like to go out to bars again.

I’m rusty on flirting etiquette. Should I have a “pickup line” or wait for a man to make the first move and then hint I’m interested? —Unsure

Amy Alkon

Advice Goddess

Men do not speak hint. Hinting to a man is like trying to discuss a complex issue with your cat. It will give you a look like it’s considering your points — while meowing something that means, “Shut up and die so I can eat your face.”

In the wake of #MeToo, waiting for a man to approach you in a bar is likewise less than productive. Young guys tell me they feel “safer” using dating apps because a woman’s “likes” and replies make it clear she’s interested. (A few men joke — half-kiddingly — about having a notary under the bed during sex so they’ll have signed documents of consent: “Your Honor, see page four: ‘Agreement to go to second base.’”)

Not surprisingly, evolutionary psychologist T. Joel Wade and his colleagues find that men prefer women’s “direct” pickup lines — unambiguous requests for a phone number, a date, or sex. Direct lines “clearly convey interest” in a way “innocuous” icebreaker lines — like “What the hell is a macaroni ‘n’ cheese martini?” — do not.

“Flippant” lines — cheeky, creative open-

ers like “Are you an assassin?” — likewise leave men guessing (and often annoyed).

Though men will say they love when women ask them out, it’s a risky strategy unless you’re looking for a quick fling. Men evolved to be the chasers of the species and to expect to prove themselves to women with “high mate value” — which is why they cross deserts, fight duels, and build empires instead of napping. Effectively falling out of the sky into a man’s lap can suggest you’re desperate or broken.

Instead, make it totally (and repeatedly) clear to a man that you’re interested — with brief touch, extended eye contact, and almost sickening flattery — basically clubbing him over the head 26 times with “YO, DOCTOR DENSE, ASK ME OUT ALREADY.” Unless a guy’s willing to risk asking you out, you won’t know he’s really interested. In contrast with female choosiness, men are “opportunistic maters,” the researchers tactfully observe. Translation: Carpe dickum. Consider that there’s no pickup artist movement for women because the only seduction skill a woman needs is the question: “Wanna go back to my place and be strangers with benefits?”

PUG TRAFFICKING

tens as photo props were a thing for the mass-murdering jihadists of ISIS — like suicide bomber and furbaby daddy Abu Hurayra al-Amriki: “Before I blow up a cafe of innocent people, I like to have a cuddle with my widdle bitty kitty, Butterscotch.”

The men of OkJihad sneered at a CNN reporter’s speculation that this was a recruitment ploy to lure lady militants (she-hadists?), but it seems to be more than a random marketing strategy.

Evolutionary psychologist Maryanne Fisher and her colleagues found that men on dating apps seeking committed relationships — aspiring Mr. Boyfriends and Mr. Husbands — were more likely than the aspiring Captain Hookups to post pics of themselves with kids and dogs.

Chances are the doggie and baby nuzzlers did this subconsciously — probably out of an understanding (shaped by men’s co-evolution with women) of women’s long-term mate preferences. By showing a willingness and ability to invest resources and care for a needy little creature, they’re advertising themselves as “stay and pay” dads in a man mall of “hump ‘em and dump ‘em” cads.

Interestingly, cats appeared “infrequently” in men’s profile pics. The researchers speculate that catdaddy “might not be as strong a signal of male investment,” as cats require far less care, attention, and expense than dogs. (They even do their own grooming!) And bad news for our mass-murdering cat fancier friends: Cats are “often equated with femininity,” and men who pose with them are seen by women as “less masculine, more neurotic and less desirable.”

(Take that, you ISISSIES!) Now, before anybody shouts, “Hello, gullible!”: Yes, some of these “dogs and babies are my pickup posse” dudes could be lying about wanting a relationship.

For your purposes, that doesn’t matter. Posing with a dog or a kid sends the commitment-minded ladies just the right message: “I can care for a more advanced life form than a fake plant.” !

GOT A PROBLEM? Write Amy Alkon, 171 Pier Ave., #280, Santa Monica, CA 90405, or email AdviceAmy@ aol.com (www.advicegoddess.com). Follow her on Twitter @amyalkon. Order her latest “science-help” book, Unf*ckology: A Field Guide to Living with Guts and Confidence. ©2022 Amy Alkon. Distributed by Creators.Com.

I’m a single guy in my 20s using dating apps. It’s been hit-and-miss (mostly miss).

My sister showed me her account so I could see how other guys present themselves. I was confused by all the guys posing with cute animals. Isn’t it kinda cringe to see a guy cradling a dog in a Halloween costume? —Dr. Don’t-little It isn’t just the men of OkCupid posing with adorbs animals. Back in 2014, kit-

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