Common sense, compassion and marijuana I am writing you concerning the federal government and its relationship to American citizens. I have been involved in the medical-marijuana war for several years now. Going into this battle, I only knew that my wife needed marijuana because of her health. The only thing I really knew about marijuana […]
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Letters to the editor
Don’t forget Be Here Now [Editor’s note: Talk about raising a ruckus: No less than five Xpress readers objected to Mary Winchester‘s Oct. 7 letter bemoaning the closing of Black Mountain music establishment Grey Eagle. Readers were particularly riled by Winchester’s statement that “there is nowhere else locally for [musicians like Arlo Guthrie, David LaMotte […]
Street-fightin’ man
Mickey Mahaffey sits facing me across a table in Malaprop’s — sipping the coffee I bought him, discussing a way of life I never knew existed. It’s easy to listen to him — he’s smart and articulate, expressing himself in clear, vivid images. There’s more to it than that, though: Tall and tanned, muscular, face […]
See how you like it
Have you ever been homeless? On Saturday, Oct. 24, you’ll get your chance to personally take in what it means to have to fashion your own temporary shelter out of whatever materials are available — cardboard boxes, duct tape, possibly some string. The occasion, “One Night Out,” sponsored by Montreat College, will be held at […]
Notepad
The future is now In this age of partisan politics, human rights is perhaps the last issue that cannot be vivisected into assorted special interests. To address this unremittingly important issue, the Western North Carolina Chapter of the United Nations Association of the U.S.A. is presenting its U.N. Day (53rd anniversary) Dinner and Annual Meeting […]
Not just for kids
Once upon a time, puppetry was an art form enjoyed by young and old alike. These days, though, it’s mostly seen as light entertainment for kids (in America, anyway). But the Asheville Puppetry Alliance aims to change that notion. “It’s vitally important to us that puppetry be accepted as an art form in its own […]
Dressed to the nines
Vendetta Cream “sounds like it’s a dessert … a wicked dessert. So that’s one reason I like it,” confides Vendetta herself (a.k.a. Kelly Barrow) with a mischievous smile. Her alter ego’s stage name and sultry persona is “like a facet of my personality that’s kind of animated, or something,” says Barrow. The torch singer says […]
A diamond ?mid the rhinestones
Kelly Willis Singer/songwriter Kelly Willis is entirely too undead for the myth makers, persona pushers and bamboozlers of this world. Every sugarcoated dream-dose ever hatched in that fertile stretch of land that spans the gap between Nashville and L.A. has been slipped into her cocktail — at one time or another — by some hype-talking […]
The Grey Eagle—grounded for how long?
“We’ve got about a seven-week notice to get the heck outa Dodge,” said Bert Ivey, co-owner of the Grey Eagle Tavern & Music Hall, the beloved Black Mountain venue that recently announced it was closing its doors. But Ivey’s partner, Tyler Richardson, is optimistic that the club will soon reopen. “It’s bad timing all the […]
Play those stories again, Sam
Stories have become as much a part of Appalachia as the mountains themselves. The oral tradition runs strong in this region, and Playback Theatre takes it pretty seriously. “Everyone has a story, and I love stories,” avows Raphael Peters, the troupe’s founder and co-director (with Deborah Scott). But the stories Playback Theatre uses aren’t dusty […]
Letters to the editor
Dump these candidates As a registered Democrat, I am appalled at some of the candidates offered to voters. For example, in 1996, a sacrificial lamb [Harvey Gantt] was pitted against Congressman Charles H. Taylor. This year, it is Buncombe County Commissioner David Young. Rep. Taylor’s weak point is his dismal environmental record, but Mr. Young’s […]
For the birds
Bird watching has long been a misunderstood hobby that left many of us wondering why anyone would spend their time and money rambling through the hills in search of Blackburnian warblers or rose-breasted grosbeaks when we can see birds all around us, every day of the year. It’s not like they’re hard to find; heck, […]
A bountiful harvest, roadside style
Side-of-the-road produce stands rank high among the tempting dangers of curvaceous mountain highways. Seemingly benign, they’ll suddenly jump out at you as you top the rise or round the bend. Their mostly homemade signs — which strike the eye in swift, staggered barrages — are usually stuck right in front of the establishments, cramming the […]
Peering through the smoke
Doug Clark is a happy man. Since he was elected chairman of the WNC Regional Air Pollution Control Agency — during a period of intense public scrutiny and internal discord — the seemingly endless controversy surrounding the agency is finally showing signs of receding. After the APCA agreed, in early September, to be audited both […]
Buncombe County Commission
What is the role of public input in local government? That question — with its broad constitutional overtones — became the most debated (and debatable) topic in the Oct. 6 session of the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners. Apparently in response to the heated exchanges at the board’s previous meeting, on Sept. 15 — when […]
Notepad
A big job, a busy man Physicians for Social Responsibility is a 20,000 member group working to protect human health from the threat of nuclear proliferation, environmental degradation and gun-related violence. If you think that’s a worthy occupation, you’re invited to meet the man who leads PSR, Dr. Robert K. Musil, when he comes to […]
Notepad
Land of the sky, home of the brave Did you know that 27 different languages are spoken in Asheville and Buncombe County schools? That North Carolina’s Latino population has nearly doubled over the last seven years? To educate our citizens about our state’s increasing cultural diversity, the Mountain Family Resource Coalition is hosting a conference […]
Dear and far
At its heart, The Foreign Student (Harper Collins, 1998) — a brilliantly realized debut novel by Susan Choi — is a love story. Yet it seems fitting that at the story’s triumphal conclusion, the lovers in question, while united, are physically miles apart. For what this novel best illuminates are the peculiarities of isolation and […]
Ten-cent art (and other oddities)
Russell Biles is an anomaly among professional artists. Sure, many of his ceramic works sell for thousands of dollars. But some can be purchased for as little as 10 cents. The Greenville, S.C., resident’s body of ceramic sculpture — some of which is now on display at Semi-Public Gallery (located at 305 Hillside St., in […]
Letters to the editor
Losing the Grey Eagle Word is just now getting out. Thought you should know, if you don’t already. The lease for the Grey Eagle has not been renewed. The closing date is Oct. 31. The owners will close the bar and music hall. Plans are to expand My Father’s Pizza into the bar area and […]
Letters to the editor
Vanity’s inanities If Louis XIV shopped in today’s Wal-Mart, he’d forget Versailles and be mesmerized by the miles of aisles of miraculous products. It’s got everything! But what’s really amazing: About 50 percent of Americans avoid Wal-Mart whenever possible. Most think it’s too low-class. It’d be shopping heaven for the Sun King, but it’s slumming […]