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Old Posted Apr 17, 2009, 6:22 AM
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Asheville neighborhood of the month: The leather-pervert farmer's tan

Golly! Today sure was a lovely April day, just perfect for getting out there and enjoying April, and even acquiring all the pictures I might need to put up a photo thread for this month, which happens to be April. Whoopee!

However, it was very sunny, plus it was warm and breezy. The warm part got to be a bit much after a while, the breezy part was nice, and the sunny part... Well... after about five hours out in the sun, my face is sunburnt, as are my forearms and the tops of my hands. Why aren't my wrists sunburnt though, you ask? Well, I was wearing my black leather bracers, which go just great with my black leather motorcycle boots. Add them up and I look like a leather pervert in training. And as it turned out, the bracers also block sunlight. Who knew? So there you have it. Red forearms. Red hands. White wrists. It's a leather-pervert farmer's tan!

In addition, I encountered cats and a Weimaraner.

All that and you don't even know which neighborhood we're exploring. Anyway, let's get started!

Today in Asheville...



Ignore this sign. We're not really in West Asheville.



Well, technically, I guess we are. If I were to cross this bridge, I would be in the River District, so I definitely am on the west side of the French Broad River.



Thing is though, I-26/240 slices West Asheville in half, and while the westernmost half is thriving, the eastern half... not so much. It's affordable though, as is the rest of West Asheville, which is attracting new residents priced out of other in-town neighborhoods. The eastern part is also steadily mutating into its very own neighborhood, which has acquired the wonderful name of East West Asheville. It's bounded on the west and north by I-26/240 and on the east and south by the French Broad River.

East West Asheville greets you with eye candy. Just in case you were curious, yes there was in fact a dead raccoon stinking from the bushes about where I took this picture. Not even this guy's cologne drowned out the smell of it. I appreciated his effort though.



Note: This is not eye candy.

















Yeah... I got nothing to add to this.





SSP bylaws require the inclusion of a squirrel in every photo thread. Don't blame me, I don't make the rules. I just go along with them. As will you if you know what's good for you.





























































Your guess is as good as mine.















It's a steal!



Welcome to the Rocket Club!



The entire building is painted silver. You can't call it anything but eye-catching.















The aforementioned Weimaraner. Her name is Creepy.







I approve of art deco gas stations.

















This is not a threat that one makes lightly either, so watch your back.





The effort is admirable, but it is not yet hot enough to stir fry on the sidewalk. Perhaps by August, or late July at the earliest -- be patient.





















Would you believe this house dates from 1857? According to the plaque next to the front door, it does. The girl with pink hair on the steps leading down to the sidewalk dates to 1980, in case you were wondering.











You've been noticing these things on various houses, haven't you? It is the mark of the hippie. Never, ever approach a house with these mandalas hanging up unless you have a few hours to devote to the lecture you're going to get on the benefits of veganism or about how Western culture is a hopeless spiral of unenlightened, outdated patriarchal capitalist hegemony.



Here we have the scrap metal garden.

























This is part of a medical complex that includes Asheville's free HIV clinic. If memory serves, their mental health services are housed in this converted home.































































The persistence of downtown. It's practically inescapable, really.



And that was a lot of walking around. Thirsty work, too, and so I went here...



...and got this. it's frozen chai tea. Highly recommended.



This is probably more Asheville than is strictly necessary:

Norwood Park and UNC-A in "March": Aristotle is my homeboy

Five Points and Chestnut Hill in February: Boobs, squid, and the Blair Street witch project

Downtown in January: Assorted hideous beasts, attractively arrayed
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"To sustain the life of a large, modern city in this cloying, clinging heat is an amazing achievement. It is no wonder that the white men and women in Greenville walk with a slow, dragging pride, as if they had taken up a challenge and intended to defy it without end." -- Rebecca West for The New Yorker, 1947

Last edited by hauntedheadnc; Apr 17, 2009 at 6:52 AM.
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Old Posted Apr 17, 2009, 9:33 AM
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best neighbourhood guide around.

i kinda want to visit this town.
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  #3  
Old Posted Apr 17, 2009, 11:09 AM
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hauntedheadnc hauntedheadnc is online now
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Originally Posted by touraccuracy View Post
best neighbourhood guide around.

i kinda want to visit this town.
Try it -- maybe you'll like it.
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"To sustain the life of a large, modern city in this cloying, clinging heat is an amazing achievement. It is no wonder that the white men and women in Greenville walk with a slow, dragging pride, as if they had taken up a challenge and intended to defy it without end." -- Rebecca West for The New Yorker, 1947
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Old Posted Apr 17, 2009, 3:48 PM
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Hilarious. You are a crazy loon.

All I can add is, I can't wait for Anal Cunt Earth Day. April 22, baby!!
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Old Posted Apr 17, 2009, 3:55 PM
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No wait, one more thing. This is the weirdest cross between a nipple and a phallus that I have ever seen.

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Old Posted Apr 20, 2009, 11:16 PM
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Okay, I'm bumping this because I think these may be some of the best pictures I've ever taken and I'm appalled, nay, offended that more people aren't making a fuss over them.

Fuss! Fuss now, I say!

...Or else I'll have to do something drastic in a desperate bid for attention and go to Detroit or someplace, and take pictures of that. And you wouldn't want that, now would you?

I didn't think so.
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"To sustain the life of a large, modern city in this cloying, clinging heat is an amazing achievement. It is no wonder that the white men and women in Greenville walk with a slow, dragging pride, as if they had taken up a challenge and intended to defy it without end." -- Rebecca West for The New Yorker, 1947
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Old Posted Apr 21, 2009, 1:02 AM
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Definitely worth a fuss! The photos are wonderful, artistic, and creative, and the place looks fascinating!
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  #8  
Old Posted Apr 21, 2009, 1:13 AM
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hauntedheadnc hauntedheadnc is online now
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Thanks, Rob. I really liked your last Ft. Wayne thread. Your courthouse is a treasure.
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"To sustain the life of a large, modern city in this cloying, clinging heat is an amazing achievement. It is no wonder that the white men and women in Greenville walk with a slow, dragging pride, as if they had taken up a challenge and intended to defy it without end." -- Rebecca West for The New Yorker, 1947
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Old Posted Apr 27, 2009, 5:58 PM
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OK, I'll bump this too. All in the name of fuss!
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Old Posted Apr 27, 2009, 6:11 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hauntedheadnc View Post
Okay, I'm bumping this because I think these may be some of the best pictures I've ever taken and I'm appalled, nay, offended that more people aren't making a fuss over them.

Fuss! Fuss now, I say!

...Or else I'll have to do something drastic in a desperate bid for attention and go to Detroit or someplace, and take pictures of that. And you wouldn't want that, now would you?

I didn't think so.
I loved your photos. You have such an interesting and creative eye. I think a lot of people tend to be homers on this board. There are some that will ONLY respond to Seattle threads, or Houston threads, etc and never look at other threads with other cities. However, if somebody is going to make a big stink about their response count, they should give others responses also. WHat goes around comes around.

Last edited by JackStraw; Apr 30, 2009 at 1:55 PM.
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Old Posted Apr 27, 2009, 10:08 PM
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Your Detroit thread prompted me to look at this one and I am glad that I did!
Great pictures! Asheville looks very inviting!
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Old Posted Apr 28, 2009, 1:24 PM
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hauntedheadnc hauntedheadnc is online now
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Thanks for looking.
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"To sustain the life of a large, modern city in this cloying, clinging heat is an amazing achievement. It is no wonder that the white men and women in Greenville walk with a slow, dragging pride, as if they had taken up a challenge and intended to defy it without end." -- Rebecca West for The New Yorker, 1947
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Old Posted Apr 28, 2009, 7:23 PM
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You definitely produce some great neighborhood tours. This was very enjoyable, thanks.
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Old Posted Apr 29, 2009, 2:29 AM
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First time I look at one of those Asheville threads... I actually even bothered looking where was Asheville on Google Earth. Thanks to Detroit.

Last edited by le calmar; Apr 29, 2009 at 2:48 AM.
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Old Posted Apr 29, 2009, 3:11 AM
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Glad this thread got a mercy bump. I missed it before and I always like neighborhood threads of hilly areas. The east coast doesn't have enough of those.
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Old Posted Apr 29, 2009, 5:37 AM
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I MUST visit that bar!
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  #17  
Old Posted Apr 29, 2009, 2:04 PM
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hauntedheadnc hauntedheadnc is online now
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And I thank you all for your comments and for taking the time to look around.
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"To sustain the life of a large, modern city in this cloying, clinging heat is an amazing achievement. It is no wonder that the white men and women in Greenville walk with a slow, dragging pride, as if they had taken up a challenge and intended to defy it without end." -- Rebecca West for The New Yorker, 1947
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Old Posted Apr 29, 2009, 2:56 PM
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Awesome photos hauntedheadnc. This is a great tour of East West Asheville. The neighborhood remains odd in spite of the pressures of gentrification, though the oddness is fading somewhat in West West Asheville.

I love the frying pan on the sidewalk. That is what the phrase "WTF" was invented for.
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Old Posted Apr 29, 2009, 3:02 PM
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Nicely done. I enjoy your ongoing Asheville series.
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Old Posted Apr 29, 2009, 11:32 PM
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hauntedheadnc hauntedheadnc is online now
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Quote:
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I MUST visit that bar!
It's got a really good vibe. The owner, who let me in, is from Chicago originally, and decries the fact that Asheville is continually splintering into ever-small neighborhoods. I disagree with him and love it that the various areas of the city are stepping up to claim their own identity and flavor.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Thundertubs View Post
Nicely done. I enjoy your ongoing Asheville series.
Thank you.

Quote:
Originally Posted by orulz View Post
Awesome photos hauntedheadnc. This is a great tour of East West Asheville. The neighborhood remains odd in spite of the pressures of gentrification, though the oddness is fading somewhat in West West Asheville.

I love the frying pan on the sidewalk. That is what the phrase "WTF" was invented for.
I'm not sure I'd say the western half of West Asheville is in danger of being Thad-and-Bootsie-tized at the moment. I don't see the House of Chintz Bed and Breakfast (the cutest thing you ever saw!) locating there any time soon. It's just less rundown than it used to be, at least in my experience. I've actually noticed a push to develop the area affordably, in fact. That new urban village going up on the St. Joan of Arc site is designed to be affordable, and I can think of another affordable condo project, but I can't remember the name.
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"To sustain the life of a large, modern city in this cloying, clinging heat is an amazing achievement. It is no wonder that the white men and women in Greenville walk with a slow, dragging pride, as if they had taken up a challenge and intended to defy it without end." -- Rebecca West for The New Yorker, 1947
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