Blue Skies

-Photograph by Tom Williams of Asheville, North Carolina-

Ya'll Welcome

Phoenix Eggs is a local food blog, and the newest addition to the BlogAsheville family.

Ya'll stop by and make her feel welcome!

Asheville Drinking Liberally presents "Iraq For Sale"!

Quick reminder - tomorrow evening, Asheville Drinking Liberally is pleased and excited to be hosting a screening of the new Robert Greenwald ("Outfoxed", "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price", "The Big Buy") documentary, "Iraq For Sale: The War Profiteers"! The reviews of this movie have been very good, and the buzz surrounding it has been nothing short of phenomenal.

Honestly, we weren't planning on the cold snap to happen, but we've talked to our gracious hosts @ the Asheville Brewing Company (77 Coxe Ave., Downtown) and they said it would be okay to move the festivities indoors if it gets too terribly cold outside. Either indoors our out, since there have already been 51 RSVPs at the official screening site, you would do well to get there early and get a good seat. This screening will be happening.

We're planning on getting things rolling around 7:30, with discussion to follow afterwards. It would be an honor and a privelege to have you join us for this event!

That's "Iraq For Sale", at the Asheville Brewing Company, 77 Coxe Ave., Downtown Asheville, @ 7:30 pm.

See you tomorrow!
syntax (yr co-host)

"Broken Government"

Anyone want to gather tomorrow night at Asheville Brewing Company to watch the CNN program on which some of us might be featured? I think it's from 8-9 p.m.

Lake Eden Arts Festival

Jam session. One of many on a stunning Saturday.

A Song For Sunday

"I Wanna Sing That Rock and Roll"
by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings

Vote!

I did. And here's photographic evidence!

You know something? It's a huge relief. I feel a sense of extremely comfortable detachment from the barrage of negative campaign advertising that's been flooding the airwaves (and will most likely escalate in the next 17 days). No matter how many ads I see from now until Election Day, it won't affect me at all.

Ahhhhhhhhhh.

One thing about the optical scan system (which I'm glad they implemented; they did manual paper balloting here in Buncombe County for the Primary, and the results were delayed until that Wednesday morning): it seems like it could be a very foolproof system. You fill in bubbles on the ballot form you're given (kind of like one of those old ScanTron test forms), and the scanning equipment automatically reads both sides of the form, registering your vote. (I checked: they weren't made by Diebold.) Filling out a paper ballot and scanning it electronically naturally solves the problem of having a paper backup. I'm guessing/assuming here that the equipment is programmed to look for ink marks within certain regions of the form, so make sure to fill the bubbles in completely!

Anyway, this is just a reminder that the Buncombe County Board of Elections will be operating ten one-stop voting locations six days a week during the run up to Election Day, and I highly recommend getting it out of the way early. Click here for more information and a list of locations. For those of you who are outside of Buncombe County, check with your local election board to see if they have early voting available. (I know that Henderson County is doing it, but I can't vouch for the other counties in the 11th District.)

So... vote, dammit!

3rd or 4th Annual "Leaf Season" Party

Last minute invite to the AVL blogging community to Jay's Autumnal Bacchinalian Extravaganza today, Saturday the 21st, at 7pm. This party annualy features a signature seasonal adult beverage, the "Leaf Season," a fine spread, and good times. This year, there's much to celebrate, so I'm kicking it up a notch.

For location, call 828.275.4637 after 1pm.

The Mountain Xpress plunges into blogosphere

The Mountain Xpress blog (arts & entertainment, news and letters) joins the Asheville blogging community.

Mountain Xpress blog

Over a year ago, Steve Shanafelt wrote a feature story [that I blogged about here and here] about the Asheville blogging community. Now the Xpress wades into the blogosphere which Jon Elliston trumpets in his post Blogs to match our mountains.

[T]he Mountain Xpress news department plunges headlong into the blogosphere. Our News Blog is here to offer Xpress readers, writers and editors a forum for sharing up-to-the-minute news and views.
So welcome aboard! Y’all come see us in cyberspace, where our door is always open …

[crossposted from 1000 black lines]

drinking liberally

happening tonight?

The Gypsies are coming!

Gypsy Bandwagon
at French Broad Brewery
Tonight, October 18, 5:45-8:00 PM

Gypsy Bandwagon is a high-energy folk band that performs Irish, mountain, and Gypsy music with original songs and arrangements.

Oh, and for Asheville bus riders, it's Route 8 leaving the Transit Center at 5:30 PM. There is not an evening bus. So you'll have to walk to the Biltmore Village/Lodge Street bus stop and wait for Route 36 heading to the Transit Center which should be there around 8:15 PM. You could also at take a cab or convince some at French Broad Brewery to drive you home.

[crossposted from 1000 black lines]

Public Transit Ninja

The Brainshrub Bus Project is now over three months old, and at this point I'm surprised to report that my regular vehicle the more cumbersome method of transportation. I actually get annoyed when I have no other choice but to drive it.

I move through the city of Asheville quickly, efficiently and with minimal energy. I know the bus schedule well enough that I don't even bother looking at it as I run my errands.

I use the roads just as much as you do, only I haven't needed to re-fill my car's tank in six weeks.

Six. Freaking. Weeks.

In other words: I'm a public transit ninja.

Becoming a public transit ninja wasn't an overnight process. It took a solid month to understand how the bus-system worked, and another few weeks to internalize the habit so that it became second-nature.

A public transit ninja is similar to being a vegan in that most Americans consider a 100% animal-free diet as an alien concept. When people meet a healthy, active vegan, it challenges their assumptions about their own diet.

Similarly, when people find out that I'm dedicated to public transit in a small city, I'm quizzed as if they don't believe that what I'm doing is possible. The same questions are asked over-and-over again:

Question: Doesn't it take you longer to get around?

Answer: If you time it right, no. In fact, I've never been on-time more often than these past few months.

Question: I hear that Asheville busses are unrelaiable.

Answer: That is a myth. Asheville public transit does a great job 95% of the time. Before you condemn them for the 5% they might run a tad late - are YOU on schedule 95% of the time in your car?

Question: Don't you hate it when you miss the bus?

Answer: If you arrive at the bus-stop at least 5 minutes in advance you'll never miss the bus. The key is to stop being scared of waiting a few minutes.

Question: What about places where the bus doesn't go?

Answer: If you look at the public transit map, you'll notice that with a bicycle, you can get to pretty much anyplace you need to be within 5 minutes.

Question: What about the people you meet on the bus?

Answer: That is part of the fun! But if you don't want to meet anyone, a set of headphones and a book drowns them out.

Question: What's it like being a public transit ninja?

Answer: It's great! I have more money to spend, more time to read and it's much less of a hassle to get around town when you are letting someone else do the driving. As an added bonus, I've lost 7 pounds from the biking!

This was originally posted here.

For the explanation behind the Brainshrub Bus Project, click here.

To see all posts for the Brainshrub Bus Project, click here.

is gordon in hawaii?

last i talked to gordon he was flying to hawaii yesterday, sunday. anyone know if he made it? and if he did what he found?

Leaf-lookers

Reds and yellows

Along the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Asheville Sunset

Photograph by Tom Williams of Asheville, NC

AC-T goes out on a limb

The front page of today's Asheville Citizen-Times features a photo of a couple (two men) and an article titled "WNC employers slow to join same-sex partner benefits trend." Here's the link to the story on-line.

I think this is a bold move (sad, but true) on the newspaper's part, and if you read the on-line comments on the article, as you can imagine, they're getting some bigoted, close-minded responses. I know there will be similarly nasty phone calls, e-mails, and letters to the editor.

So, if you support news that's bold and responsible to all, regardless of gender, race or sexual persuasion, please add a comment to the story or e-mail the editor at sihne@citizen-times.com or call her at 232-5954 or write a letter to the editor (e-mail to letters@citizen-times.com).

Feedback is an important component of citizen action towards our media. Thanks!

Introducing.....

Ya'll check out the newest additions to the Blogasheville Blogroll!

Eyes in the Pine
West And Center
Strange Enchanted
Girl
Shoe Zoo
The Courtyard Gallery Blog
The Oxymorons
Spicy Elf
MotherTrucker
Wildflowers

We also are sporting a brand new Pod Cast on Blogasheville:



As always, we are looking for a few good bloggers to help maintain the constant flow of bloggy goodness here on Blogasheville. If you are a linked blogger, and are interested, give us a holler at the email on the sidebar.

And, we remain, as before, as ever.

Yours

Fall Leaves, Heads up, and an Apology

Photographs by Tom Williams of Asheville, North Carolina

--------------------------------------------------------

Ok, Folks. I am remiss in my lack of attention to BlogAsheville these last weeks. New job, busy, busy, assorted lame excuses.

There will a new pod cast being added to our site, some new bloggers added to our expanding blogroll, and a heads up about the exciting beta blog test at MtnExpress.com.

So check back tomorrow, or the next.

And,

Thanks for reading..

Drinking Liberally: Meet Bill Scher (TONIGHT!)

Just a quick reminder...

Tonight @ the Asheville Brewing Company (77 Coxe Ave., Downtown), we will be joined by Bill Scher, the founder and executive editor of LiberalOasis.com and author of the recently published book "Wait! Don't Move To Canada!"

Bill's presentation should be getting underway at 8:00, and there could very well be some surprises earlier in the evening. This should prove to be a very fun, engaging, and exciting event, so come out and join us!

Thanks, and we hope to see you tonight!

syntax (yr. co-host)

It's Peanut Butter Charlie Time!

I figured that you all could use a laugh this afternoon, so here's a little video that I put together yesterday morning:

Drinking Liberally: And Now, Some REAL October Surprises!

Well, they're not really surprises, as a good deal of you already know about these, but here at Asheville Drinking Liberally HQ we have a few very special events brewing for the run-up to Election Day!

First of all, we're very pleased and excited to announce that we're going to have a special guest joining us on October 12th (two Thursdays from now). Bill Scher, the founder and executive editor of LiberalOasis.com and author of the recently published book "Wait! Don't Move To Canada!", will be joining us as part of his nationwide book tour! No amount of explanation I can give regarding this book will even begin to do it justice, but I can honestly say that "Wait!" would make a great companion read to "Crashing the Gate".

Secondly, on October 26th, be sure to join us for a screening of Robert Greenwald's ("Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price", "Outfoxed") acclaimed new documentary, "Iraq For Sale: The War Profiteers", which takes you "inside the lives of soldiers, truck drivers, widows and children whose lives have been changed forever as a result of corporations such as Halliburton/KBR and CACI profiteering from the reconstruction of Iraq. I have not seen this film yet, but based on Greenwald's previous track record this should be a good one.

Finally, in an unprecedented move, on November 7th we will be switching our normal Thursday DL activities to Tuesday! Come join us for some delicious microbrewed beer after the polls close as up-to-the-minute returns from the State Board of Elections are displayed on the big screen and returns from other state and national races-of-interest roll in. Either in celebration or defeat (I'm really thinking it's going to be the former instead of the latter), be sure to come out and join us!

Oh, for this Thursday? We were thinking of devoting the discussion theme to the recently passed "McCain Torture Bill", but then the whole Foleygate thing happened, and then a new batch of lie- and distortion-filled Charles Taylor campaign ads surfaced (I especially like the one with the sweet old lady insisting that Taylor never voted 'gainst "soshacurity" - there's just something about a sweet old lady that makes a bald-faced lie seem more truthful, huh?)... It's hard to keep up with all of this, so I'm thinking that maybe we can help each other make sense of it all and, most importantly, how to use this sudden momentum the progressives are getting as a result of this fallout!

So, just like a blackout party at Mark Foley's house, it's Anything Goes!

Be sure to join us this and every Thursday from 7:00 to 10:00 (except for November 7th, of course) at the Asheville Brewing Company at 77 Coxe Ave. in Downtown Asheville.

Thanks!

syntax (yr. co host)

Night and Day

Photographs by Tom Williams of Asheville, NC

Dull City

I luv you guys! I do.

And this bloggie has been rather dull of late.

I will accept much blame for not posting, or posting dully, myself.

But, I think it's time to get the party going.

Yesterday, I was furiously writing my next novel, which stars Blogasheville. Yep, this blog and some of you (fictionalized heavily) will be in the book.

So, here's what we're doing on Blogasheville in my novel (which, and you heard it first here is tentatively titled: Secrets in Cyberspace: An Edgy Mama Mystery).

Here's what we're doing today. You, bloggers and readers alike, are answering this question:

What's your PostSecret secret? Anonymous responses welcome.

Answer. NOW.