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September 16, 2015. | Issue 4, Volume 64 | thebluehunnernet -
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By Larisa Karr | Features Editor | iakarr@unca.edu
Many stories lurk throughout Asheville, whether they are behind the Vaudevillian jazz-folk played
by buskers around Pritchard Park, the colorful businesses decorated with funky, hand-made crats
or the laughter echoing from a patio as locals and tourists alike enjoy delicious beer.
"Beer Man", originally
from Asheville
“I was bom in 1996, back when
Highland Brewery first opened its doors.
That was back when the drinking age was
embryo.”
And you partook in that, clearly.
“Yes, absolutely. That is why I’ve main
tained my svelte figure to this day. It’s a
long time of drinking.”
What do you do in terms
of profession?
"Weil, I travel throughout Asheville
and prevent people from making bad beer
decisions. 1 promote local, local only. I
just caught a guy drinking a Miller Lite
a ntinute ago and you know what I did? 1
drank that beer so he wouldn’t have to. I
didn’t want to dp it. It’s not like he owed
it to me.”
How do you get away with openly
i-.r drinking on the street?
' . “Well, this is just a cos-
. v*. {■'V^ ’ tume. I know the rules. I
*||f' . V don’t drink openly. 1 don’t
f| ^ " drink and tell, over-drink,
binge drink, or in general.
alcoholic behavior. I like to
enjoy delicious beer that’s
brewed locally here by the gods that
are the brewma-sters in Asheville, North
Carolina.”
What are three words to describe
your style?
“I.xt’s go Kanye West combined with
Chris Farley combined with Cher. There
you go, drop the mic.”
Who inspires you?
“Good question. Who inspires Beer
Man? WellI guess Duff Man would
inspire me. although he’s a little more
physically tit. He's kind of a show-off
and I have a chair called the Becnnobile
3000 that I use to accentuate ray flat-out,
dope style. 1 can do a full 360 and even
moonwalk in it. Check it out, pretty
impressive stuff,”
When did you realize that you were
Beer Man?
“Do you know pretty much when
von wake uo and ask ‘do I want to eat
oatmeal today or something that’s a lot
better than oatmeal? Do 1 want to have a
cup of coffee or perhaps some water to
hydrate my unnourished body?' I wake
up everyday thinking, T want to have
another delicious beer. I’m just going to
call myself Beer Man and dress like the
part,’ So, that’s basically my daily do’s
and don’ts. Always be yourself. Stay in
school. ”
Is that your personal motto?
“Always be yourself or stay in school?
Because it wasn’t stay in school. 1 mean,
look at me. Come ON! Hahahaha. I
definitely didn’t stay in school. But, you
know, sometimes our purpose in life is to
serve as a warning to others. That’s my
motto. Print it.”
What would you say are the be.st and
worst beers in Asheville?
“Oooh, that’s a tough question. Right
now, my personal favourite is 'Perfect
Day IPA’ from Asheville Pizza & Brew
ing. My least favorite beer in Asheville
is at this new place that just opened up
called Suba Brew. It’s just some guy in
the back of his Subaru that brewed up
something called ‘Clingman Ave. Co-op’
and it is terrible. I think he used sardine
oil in it. I don’t know,”
Olympia Garrett,
massage student,
originally from
Asheville
“I studied Mass Communication at
UNC Asheville and we had to write
two-to-five page papers every night.
Our instructor was the guy that was the
chief editor of the Asheville Citizen
Times at that point. That was back in
the ‘80s. Now, I’m taking massage ther
apy. I’m about to graduate and get my
license. I’m doing free massages.”
How would you describe
your style?
“This all came from a second-hand
shop. 1 just put it together. This was a
pair of culottes and I made a scarf with
it.”
How would you describe it
in three words?
“Southern Afro-chic”
Who would you say is an inspira
tion to you?
“Spiritually, I practice my reiki.
I’m a reiki practitioner as well.
That’s the biggest thing for me, because
1 want to educate my people on mas
sage. There’s a stigma that came about
during the wars, you know, where the
soldiers would go and travel and they
would go to the massage parlors. I want
to change that. That is still part of the
stigma in our culture. Touch is not just
erotic, it’s also healthy. It's natural.
“It will definitely lower blood pres
sure. Our culture has high hypertension.
It lowers blood pressure. It reduces
stress. It relieves the tension in the mus
cles and it causes all types of healthy
benefits. That’s why I’m doing that.”
If you had a personal philosophy,
what would it be?
“All is well. No matter what, ail is
well. Even if it looks like it’s ugly or it’s
not going to happen, it’s still okay be
cause everything happens in good time
in its own time. All is well.”
How are liking Goombay so far?
"I like it, except for the weather! It’s
getting chilly. We’re tropical creatures!”
Photos by Jimmy Raines - Contributor
#BFTS Olympia Garrett, left.
#BFTS Beer Man, above.
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