Asheville Mardi Gras Parade

(Photos taken from http://www.ashevillemardigras.org)

Sunday, February 19, 2012 | 2:00pm until 10:00pm

Come one and all to the most fabulous funky glittery parade to hit the streets of Asheville!

Asheville Mardi Gras is an all volunteer community based organization made up of New Orleans ex-pats, aficionados of that culture, and — okay, some folks who just LOVE a good party!

Feel free to put together your own Krewe if you would like to participate.

See the Krewes Page for details!


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Valentine "Let Your Love Roll" Ride

Your total body Gigglegasm for Valentines Day!

LaZoom's "Let Your Love Roll" Ride is the absolute finest way to tell your sweety that he/she/he-she/she-he is "worth it." A Valentines ride for couples with games, performance, special guests, and LaZoom's special brand of heart warming mayhem, breaking at a super special secret location with a romantic live band just for YOU and your LOVE!

Do it right this year and "Get on the Bus" with Augusta Wind, Sister Bad Habit, and... she's beautiful, she's bodacious and SHE'S BACK! It's BABS!

The LaZoom "Let Your Love Roll" Ride pulls out Friday Feb 10 through Tues Feb 14 departing from The Thirsty Monk at 92 Patton Ave, downtown Asheville.

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BLUE RIDGE PRIDE Today!

Blue Ridge Pride festival is happening with lots of entertainment noon-6 p.m. at Pack Square Park. Performers include children’s entertainer 23 Skidoo, Stephanies id, Cantaria, Natalie Smalls Productions and and the Idgies. After the festival, singer CeCe Peniston performs at the Grove House, 11 Grove St.

We'll be taking over Pack Square Park from 12-6 pm on Saturday Oct 1 to celebrate and raise awareness of the diversity of our community. We've got great entertainment, vendors, and community groups all coming in to make this a day you can't miss! Don't forget to check the events page for pre and post festival parties!

On the Net: www.blueridgepride.com

The TURQUOISE Ball

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Walk A Mile in Her Shoes

This event already happened Saturday morning. Sorry to be late but definitely wanted to document this worthy cause.

Join the hundreds of Asheville and Buncombe County men who are dedicated to ending sexual violence in the second annual "Walk a Mile in Her Shoes" on Saturday April 30th at 9:00 am at City County Plaza. Register yourself or a team online today at www.walkamileasheville.org

This is part of Walk a Mile in Her Shoes ® - The International Men's March Against Rape, Sexual Assault and Gender Violence and is a benefit for Our VOICE, the Buncombe County Rape Crisis and Prevention Center.

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Waking Up Mama - Spring Equinox

CELEBRATION OF THE VERNAL EQUINOX
Saturday, March 19, 2011

7:00pm to 9:00pm

Waking up Mama - celebration of the Vernal Equinox (Public Ritual)

Family-friendly pubic ritual to celebrate the vernal equinox.

Location: Parish Hall of All Soul's Episcopal Church, Asheville, NC

This family-friendly and light-hearted spring welcoming ritual is open to the respectful public. A love offering will be accepted for Temple outreach projects and Mother Grove continues to gather non-perishable food items for the Mother's Cornucopia food pantry.


For more information, contact the Temple at info@mothergroveavl.org or

828-230-5069 | Link

If you are looking for a unique place to worship, visit this website for more information on their Sunday gatherings.

Activist Community Potluck

5-8pm, Sunday September 19
Malvern Hills Park
Asheville, NC

This is the first of many monthly potlucks, each on a different topic, and each in a different location. All activists, community builders and leaders, and any community members are welcome. This is a great opportunity to get together, build relationships, network, share ideas, brainstorm, and synergize.

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Asheville Octoberfest

October 9, 2010

On the 200th anniversary of the first Oktoberfest, the Asheville Downtown Association is proud to bring you Asheville's own Oktoberfest! One of the highlights of the event will be the Brewery Team Contests! Asheville Brewing Co., Craggie, French Broad, Green Man, Highland and Pisgah will each field a four person team for team contests held throughout the day!

Contests will include:

* Keg-Rolling
* Stein Races
* Dizzy Gnome
* Bratwurst Eating Contest
* Alphorn Blowing Contest

Link

Amy Sedaris is coming back to Asheville

So who doesn't love North Carolina born Amy Sedaris? First let me just state that besides our alternative weekly magazine, Mountain Xpress bringing us all the goods each week, they ALSO keep their awesome, newsworthy website updated. You can sign up and comment there as well. And that's where I saw this article on Amy Sedaris. (via)

Amy has a new book out: Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People and, according to her book tour dates she’ll be at Malaprop’s on Friday, Nov. 12. Yay!

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TEDxAsheville

Ideas are the nexus of our future. Some of us are dreamers some of us are doers. Those who speak at a TEDxAsheville event have lived in both worlds and excelled. come hear themshare their ideas worth spreading.

Sunday August 29th, The Orange Peel

"The Last American Man" EUSTACE CONWAY
along with:
Percussionist RIVER GUERGUERIAN
Innerpreneur JOHN MILES
Activist LAURIE MASTERSON
Songwriter BILLY JONAS
Filmmaker ANGELA SHELTON
and many more!

Link | Facebook

The Return of Free Water Project

Saturday, April 24, 2010 at 7:00pm

The Garage at Biltmore
101 Fairview Rd. Suite B
Asheville

The Return of Free Water Project is a multimedia installation exploring issues surrounding the commodification of our world's water supply. We hope that you will join us at 7pm for an educational reception hosted by Ilsa Ananda Door of Creatrix Laboratories. Following the reception, at 8pm, you may mingle and dance the night away to fine local artists for the ear, eye and heart!

The Story of the Oasis…

The Oasis is a grove of trees made from the detritus of the water industry (plastic water & soda bottles, discarded PVC pipe, etc.) linked together to filter rainwater, pond water, or gray water into pure, clean water that you can drink. The Oasis is one phase of the Return of Free Water Project, an immersive, collaborative multimedia installation with the intention of helping people realize that they have the power to make a difference in our world’s water crisis by transforming their own relationship with water.

We invite you to join us in an evening of wonderful music and dance, live art, and transformation. Your donation at the door not only grants you entry to the event but helps the RoFW Project to purchase materials crucial to the timely development of this installation. Art has the powerful ability to draw people’s attention to the relevant issues of our time. When complete, the Return of Free Water will tour the Americas to spread its message to the masses.

For ideas on how you can make a positive difference, opportunities for participation, and for more information about the Project and our world’s water crisis, visit:

http://www.ReturnofFreeWater.org

7p - Reception and overview of The Return Of Free Water
8p - 5am(ish) - Music with:
LOGOS (live) http://www.logosmusic.net
Annuaki (live) http://www.touchsamadhi.com/live-acts/Annunaki
Gilbot http://www.ashevillefullmoongatherings.org
Arun - AVLFMG
Zennsie - TOUCH Samadhi
PoiZen - AVLFMG / TOUCH Samadhi

Visuals by Creatrix Laboratories & Awe Lucid http://www.awelucid.com

$10 entry 21+ to drink

Friday @ Asheville Green Drinks

This Friday, Rev. Itsumi and Sister Denise of the Nipponzan Myohoji peace-walking Buddhist monks will be speaking at the weekly Green Drinks gathering.

People gather for Green Drinks at 6:00 to socialize, and the presentation starts at 6:30. It usually involves a talk of about 20 minutes with questions to follow. The location is the Bobo Gallery, 22 North Lexington (just off college Street).

Itsumi and Denise will speak about the interrelationship of peace and environmental issues, specifically emphasizing how they are intertwined at the nuclear weapons manufacturing complex in Oak Ridge, TN, just over the mountains and upwind of western North Carolina.

Link | Facebook
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Green Drinks isn't just an Asheville thing but it does lean "Green". And it's global. If you're not in Asheville, see if your local node has a gathering.

Asheville FringeArts Festival!

Thursday, January 21, 2010 at 8:00pm
End Time: Sunday, January 24, 2010 at 5:00pm
Location: Bebe Theatre and other venues
Street: 20 Commerce St, etc

Come One, Come All! Experience the best of the avant-garde, the experimental, the fringey, freaky, and titillating performances at the 8th Annual FringeArts Festival!

Featuring many talented local performers in a few venues!
All shows are different, so come see them all!

Festival Opening Night Extravaganza!
Jan 21st at 8pm
Located at Scandal's Nightclub, 11 Grove St.
Tickets only $8.00
Jen & The Juice, our musical headliners with Cookie La Rue, our mistress of ceremonies!

Fringe in a Blackbox: A Fringe Focus on Movement and Theatre
Jan 22nd, 23rd at 7:30pm, Jan 24th at 3pm
Located at Bebe Theatre, 20 Commerce St.
Tickets: $12 Students with ID/Seniors $10

Fringe on Wheels: A LaZoom Bus Mystery Tour
Jan 22nd, 23rd at 7:30 and 10pm
Bus departs from the Bebe Theatre
Tickets: $12 Students with ID/Seniors $10

Fringe Audio: A Fringe Focus on Sonic Experimentation
Jan 22nd, 23rd at 8pm
Black Mountain College Museum and Arts Center, 56 Broadway
Tickets: $12 Students with ID/Seniors/BMCM+AC members $10

GET YOUR FREAK PASS AND SEE ALL SHOWS FOR JUST $25!!!
**Tickets for individual shows are also available

Visit ashevillefringe.org for schedules, to buy tix, and get more fringey info.

See you at the Fringe!

Asheville Vaudeville

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Friends of Asheville Vaudeville Facebook Group

Are You A freak?

The Freaks Pageant is much like a standard beauty pageant, but without the beauty, swimsuits and tiaras. You'll perform your fabulous offbeat talents, show your best get-up-and-go costume gear, and of course, give the all-important interview.

And, much like standard beauty pageants, you can bribe the judges. At the auditions, expect to perform a short piece of your choosing and show photos of your costume creations (or other -fully clothed- exploits).

Please register immediately to receive audition guidelines by e-mailing avlfreakscalendar@gmail.com.

A registration fee of $25 will be required to secure an audition appointment.

The Freaks of Asheville pageant will take place at Grove House (11 Grove Street) from 8-10 p.m. Feb. 13.

Contestants will perform a 3-minute talent segment, show a costume of their own creation runway style and respond to 3 minutes worth of interview questions relevant to the kingdom of freaky behavior and thought. Contestants will compete for a single appearance in the 2011 Freaks of Asheville Calendar.

The Freaks of Asheville Pageant is produced by Kitty Love, Craggie Brewing Company, and the Freaks of Asheville. The Freaks of Asheville calendar is a fundraiser for Arts 2 People.

Read More »

Winter Solstice Events

Monday, Dec. 21

WINTER SOLSTICE HIKE, 7-9 p.m., Hooker Falls parking lot, Dupont Road, DuPont State Forest, Hendersonville. A winter solstice hike will offer participants an opportunity to quietly welcome the return of the sun to the northern hemisphere and celebrate the darkness of the longest night along the 1/4-mile moderate trail to Hooker Falls. Hikers are urged to bring flashlights and a warm drink to toast the winter solstice.

DuPont State Forest, DuPont Rd.; Monday, 7-9 p.m.; free; (828) 692-0385; www.eco-wnc.org

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A Swannanoa Solstice
December 20, 2009, Sunday
2:00p.m. & 7:00p.m.

The Winter Solstice is a time for joyful and thoughtful seasonal reflection. Delight with family and friends at the 7th annual edition of this holiday concert that has become a warm winter tradition of tis own.

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**There are still a few Winter Solstice celebrations that aren't being widely advertised so I'm not going to post them until I can find out if they are for everyone. So regardless, have a wonderful Winter Solstice.

Organicfest 2009

is TODAY!

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Asheville Full Moon Gatherings

Sept. 4-7, 2009
Location: Kuykendall Falls, Brevard, NC
Theme: Pisces Moon-Exstasis

The theme for this gathering is Exstasis - A transference of consciousness from the physical plane to another inner and superior plane, accompanied by awareness and memory of the experience.

Please bring artwork, costumes, and food to share at the Saturday and Sunday lunchtime potlucks. As this is a gathering we also ask you to help with any labors of love needed during the weekend.

This is a leave no trace event. Pack it it and pack it out. There is no trash and recycling removal except YOU.

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TEDx Asheville

--by Jason Sandford in the Mountain Xpress.

Call it a circus for your brain. Call it an idea explosion with a rock-and-roll vibe. Call it a variety show for nerds, by nerds.
No matter how organizer Jennifer Saylor describes it, the TEDx Asheville event set for Aug. 30 at the Orange Peel will do one thing — spotlight the ideas and talents of Asheville's big thinkers and creative minds. The event is the culmination of several months of planning after a local group of fans of the annual California-based conference known as TED (which stands for technology, entertainment and design) got together and decided to stage an Asheville version of the event.

"Our presenter lineup is the result of around 90 speaker nominees and months of volunteer labor, watching videos, reading bios, discussing our options, listening to talks and ideas," Saylor says. "We think our lineup is completely in the TED spirit of humor, mastery, changing society and having vision for the future. It's made up out of the coolest and most interesting people we could find in a citywide search several months long."

The line-up of speakers includes David McConville, co-founder of The Elumenati, an Asheville design and engineering company that creates custom immersive environments such as domes; Drew Jones, a specialist in systems dynamics and climate-change modeling who is program director for the Vermont-based Sustainability Institute; Dee Eggers, an environmental studies professor at UNC Asheville; Robert Zimmerman, whose Web development company has created sites for illustrators and art directors; and Caroline Yongue, a home-funeral educator who talks about end-of-life transitions.

There's plenty of entertainment mixed in the four-hour event, with acts including poet Glenis Redmond and Chris Tanfield and Dave Hamilton. Saylor promises a couple of "big surprises" as well.

Seating is limited to 400 people and the show is free, so Saylor is encouraging people to arrive early to be sure they get a seat. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. The party starts at 7 p.m. Saylor says she doesn't have a feel for whether the event will fill up, but adds that interest has been high.

Asheville resident Rick Fornoff, who coaches public speakers and is a TEDx Asheville organizer, has been coaching four of the event speakers. The TED requirement is that each speaker be limited to 18 minutes.

"Part of the power of the talks is that it's great information that's condensed. You don't have long to get it out there," Fornoff says. "So it's a matter of pruning and getting to the point."

Both Saylor and Fornoff note that local organizers have a real passion for TED, which is built around the idea of offering a global forum for ideas worth spreading. They hope that their excitement shows in the production.

"We're all fans of TED, and in Asheville we're all proud of the fertility of the community here," Fornoff says. "This is a chance for us to show off our intellectual capital."

The goal is to hold the event again next summer, with planning for that starting in October. Saylor urges anyone interested in getting involved to send an e-mail to tedxavl@gmail.com.

For more information, visit http://www.tedxasheville.com.

Source | live simulcast of this Sunday’s TEDx event

Gathering of the Peacemakers

Asheville/Black Mountain, NC

August 30-September 5, 2009

Our 90th One Event - Our 4th One Love Retreat!

Tons of events and music!

link | performers