All about Tommy... [STUDIO AVL] [Saturdays 3pm-7pm]
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A Western North Carolina native, Tommy grew up in Highlands, North Carolina and moved to Asheville in 1997 to attend college. He attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville and received a degree in Composition for the Theater; an independent major drawing from disciplines in music, theater and literature. While at UNCA he acted, directed and performed sound design duties in campus productions, as well as composing incidental and theatrical music scores for several plays around the Asheville area. In 2002, he founded The Feral Chihuahuas sketch comedy troupe, a project that has consumed much of his free time for the last 6 years. Keeping very busy, he writes, acts and composes music for the troupe. Tommy has also been playing guitar and singing with several different bands in Asheville for over 10 years. He has produced several albums in varying styles from acoustic to hip-hop and has a very diverse background in music. He also writes and performs radio commercials, some of which you are probably familiar with. He has two beautiful children Hennie and Xavier who are the light of his life and a lovely lady Christine who keeps him in line.
What factors would distinguish a rational, pro-science “skeptic”—who has honest questions about the HGCC consensus—from members of a Denier Movement who think a winter snowstorm means there’s no net-warming of the planet?
Is such a distinction anything more than polemical trickery?
Well, in fact, it happens that I know some people who do qualify as climate change “skeptics.” Several are fellow science fiction authors or engineers, and you can quickly tell that they are vigorous, contrary minds, motivated more by curiosity than partisan rigor. One who I could name is the famed physicist Freeman Dyson.
(In fact, if truth be told, there are some aspects of HGCC that I feel I want clarified—that seem to be poorly-justified, so far. I am an ornery, contrarian question-asker, of the first water!)
After extensive discussions with such folk, I found a set of distinct characteristics that separate thoughtful Skeptics from your run of the mill, knee-jerk Denier dogma puppet.
Here’s the first one:
WHO IS AN EXPERT?
Skeptics first admit that they are non-experts, in the topic at hand. And that experts know more than they do.
Sound obvious? Especially regarding complex realms like atmospheric studies, or radiative transfer, or microcell computer modeling. But this simple admission parts company from…
Deniers, who wallow in the modern notion that a vociferous opinion is equivalent to spending twenty years studying atmospheric data and models from eight planets.
(Note: this is important. Since the Neolithic, human civilizations have relied on specialists, a trend that accelerated across the 20th century. Want an irony? As coiner of the term “age of amateurs” I’ve been helping to push a new trend toward more distributed expertise and citizen-empowerment! Yet, I also avow—as “Skeptics” do—that a nation has to start by respecting knowledge and those who have it.)
THE NEWS I NEED FROM THE WEATHER REPORT
Next, the Skeptic is keenly aware that, after four thousand years of jokes about hapless weathermen who could not prophecy accurately beyond a few hours, we recently entered a whole new era. People now plan three days ahead pretty well, and more tentatively as far as two weeks ahead, based on a science that’s grown spectacularly adept, faster than any other. Now, with countless lives and billions of dollars riding on the skill and honesty of several thousand brilliant experts, the Skeptic admits that these weather and climate guys are pretty damn smart.
The Skeptic admits that this rapid progress happened through a process of eager competitiveness, with scientists regularly challenging each other, poking at errors and forcing science forward. A rambunctious, ambitious process that makes Wall Street look tame.
Deniers also share this utter reliance on improved weather forecasting. They base vacations and investments on forecasts made by…
...by the same guys they call uniformly lazy, incompetent, corrupt hacks. Miraculously, they see no contradiction.
(Side note: There is a distinction between weather and climate. Both deal in the same oceans, vapors, gases and sunlight, using almost identical basic equations and expertise. Both are extremely complex, and deal with that complexity by making different simplifying assumptions and boundary conditions. Clearly, climate modeling is more primitive, right now. Perhaps it is even rife with errors! But the overall tools, methods, community and eagerly-skilled people overlap greatly.)
A LITTLE HUMILITY
Skeptics go on to admit that it is both rare and significant when nearly 100% of the scientists in any field share a consensus-model, before splitting to fight over sub-models. Hence, if an outsider thinks that there appears to be “something wrong” with a core scientific model, the humble and justified response of that curious outsider is to ask “what mistake am I making?”—before assuming that 100% of the experts are wrong.
In contrast, Deniers glom onto an anecdotal “gotcha!” from a dogma-show or politically-biased blog site. Whereupon they conclude that ALL of the atmospheric scientists must be in on some wretched conspiracy. Simultaneously. Uniformly. At the same time.
THE YOUNG GUNS OF SCIENCE
Now dig this. The Skeptic is no pushover! She knows that just because 100% of those who actually know about a scientific subject are in consensus, that doesn’t mean that consensus-paradigm is always and automatically right! There have been isolated cases in scientific history when all of the practitioners in a field were wrong at once.
Still, the skeptic admits that such events are rare. Moreover, a steep burden of proof falls on those who claim that 100% of the experts are wrong. That burden of proof is a moral, as well as intellectual geas, as we’ll see below.
The Denier, on the other hand, knows no history, knows nothing about science, and especially has no understanding of how the Young Guns in any scientific field—the post-docs and recently-tenured junior professors—are always on the lookout for chinks and holes in the current paradigm, where they can go to topple Nobel prize winners and make a rep for themselves, in very much the manner of Billy the Kid! (Try looking into the history of weather modeling, and see just how tough these guys really are.)
This is a crucial point. For the core Denier narrative is that every single young atmospheric scientist is a corrupt or gelded coward. Not a few, or some, or even most…but every last one of them! Only that can explain why none of them have “come out.” (And note, Exxon and Fox have even offered lavish financial reward, for any that do.)
Oh, I admit that it’s easy to see why the Denier can believe this. He imagines that all of the Young Guns are either cowed, intimidated, or suborned by greed for measly five figure grants…because that is the way things work in the Denier’s own business and life!
He has no idea that most scientists are propelled by adventure, curiosity and sheer macho-competitive balls, far more than they are by titles or money. If all the post-docs in atmospheric studies have timidly laid down, then it is the first time it has happened in any field of science. Ever.
Oh, but if the Denier thinks they are all just greedy, conniving little putzes, this is a natural human mistake, to assume that others are like yourself. But it is a mistake.
Sorry… but this is a point to reiterate: I am not saying that all young scientists are noble and brave. I’ve known plenty who weren’t. But I have served in almost a dozen scientific fields, and I know that the best of the Young Guns would be screaming now, if all those “holes in the theory” were real.
They have the knowledge, the tools and the ambition. Their failure to “bark in the night” means something! Their acceptance of the HGCC model means something. It means a lot more than any number of glib spin-incantations from Sean Hannity.
The Skeptic realizes all of this. She takes it into account. She adds it to the burden of proof borne by the other side. But let’s move on.
The Denier claims that the corruption of 100% of the experts—(upon whom he relies for his weather report)—is propelled by “millions pouring into green technologies”...without ever showing how a space probe researcher studying Venus at JPL profits from a contract going to a windmill manufacturer in Copenhagen. But I’m repeating myself, so hold that thought for later.
In contrast, our Skeptic, still fizzing with questions, hasn’t finished “admitting things” first.
May I present...Mayer Hawthorne. A dorky white kid from Michigan with more soul than a Shaquille O'Neil sneaker. He's got a couple of albums you should check out, and you will be surprised at the authentic vintage sound of his style. Here's a video of he and a quartet busting out some acapella soul on an LA street corner. Pretty Sweet.
Broadway's Club on Lexington Avenue, a long time Asheville staple for me and many others, is now non-smoking. Hell hath frozen over. Pigs have flown. Maybe you were there in the early days, before the PBR trail was painted on the floor. Perhaps you enjoyed the first 80's night on Wednesday. Perhaps you saw that avant-garde performance from those guys dressed in Noid costumes who ended up naked dancing atop the bar to the chagrin of attending bartender Mariah. Maybe your band played there, I know mine did. (Broken Broadway anyone?) I know lots of you loaded that amazing jukebox with $20 so you could drink, smoke, and play pool for hours. You remember when they added the (sic: Grand) Patio complete with outdoor bar. You've probably done the awkward attempt at human conversation coupled with smartass asides and smirking insults with legendary greaser-like doorman Brandon. And you may even remember shakin' it while DJ Rob Da Rich spun Hip-Hop on Thursdays. I can count numerous incredible nights and horrible mornings as the result of Broadways. It used to be a well traveled last stop for me on my way home after a night of heavy drinking. I recall many disappointing walks home after a fruitless hunt at 80's night. Asheville's version of the Corner Bar. There is still the remnants of stale smoke lingering in some of my clothing that just won't wash clean.A little bit of Broadways that hangs on to my clothes and yes my heart. Yes, I used to frequent said hipster dive A LOT. So much in fact, in my younger and more beerpoundering days, I would walk in and whether it be Don, Kinto, Mariah or Todd...there would be an ice cold dollar Old Milwaukee freshly opened and sitting on the bar waiting for me. Alas, two children have slowed down my late night wandering and it's rare that I get the opportunity to enjoy time at Broadways. Yes, my pallete is more refined, and I enjoy a local microbrew to the schwill of Milwaukee these days. But on the opportunity I've darkened that already dark door, I expect a few things. Cheap beers in the ice filled cooler, below the bar, something crazy, but hip on the jukebox, the first game of pool already racked on the table, and a cigarette hanging from my mouth. Yes, that awkward "reach-around" to ash your cigarette on the ledge behind you while you're playing pool is a huge part of the Broadways experience. Now they tell me the joint is non-smoking. A crushing blow to the reminiscentrevisits of this watering hole. Yes, it's best for our health. Yes, I prefer to not smell like I rolled in a smoke sauna when I get home. But there's something romantic about the old corner dive where you can order a shot and a beer and light up a smoke while you're bellyin' up to tell a dirty joke or two. Will I still go to Broadways when I get the chance? Of course. Will I miss the pungent aroma of smoke soaked felt near the pool tables? You're godamned right. But alas, things change and I've grown older as my tastes and habits have shifted to a more responsible parent model, I understand the inevitability of change. But there is a part of me that likes to return to those "glory" days, and Broadways was that constant, waiting bastion of memory. Where I could feel if but just for a little while a piece of the youth I squandered in those smoky environs. As I wander in now the faces have changed some, but the hipster attitude is the same. I recognize dopplegangers of regulars I saw in Broadways for years, and if i look off to a corner table there's even semblances of me and my friends cracking up over god knows what while kickin' back gallons of PBR's. So as it has been written, you can't go back, and now that Broadway's has been changed irrevocably, the youthful haunt of years past just won't be the same.
Americans laid eyes on actual Haitians for the first time on Jan. 12.
PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI—Less than two weeks after converging upon the site of a devastating magnitude 7.0 earthquake, American anthropologists have confirmed the discovery of a small, poverty-stricken island nation, known to its inhabitants as "Haiti."
Located just 700 miles off the southeastern coast of Florida, the previously unaccounted-for country is believed to be home to an estimated 10 million people.
Even more astounding, reports now indicate that these people have likely inhabited the impoverished, destitute region—unnoticed by the rest of the world—for more than 300 years.
Researchers believe this was once the capital, though it's unclear if the Haitian people ever had a truly functional government.
"That an entire civilization has been somehow existing right under our noses for all this time comes as a complete shock," said University of Florida anthropology professor Dr. Ben Oliver, adding that it appeared as if Haiti's citizens had been living under dangerous conditions even before the devastating earthquake struck. "Of course, there have been rumors in the past about a long-forgotten Caribbean nation whose people struggle every day to survive, live in constant fear of a corrupt government, and endure such squalor and hunger that they have resorted to eating dirt. But never did we give them much thought."
"Satire is a sort of glass wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own; which is the chief reason for that kind reception it meets with in the world, and that so very few are offended with it. - Jonathan Swift
TSA Joke Not Funny
A TSA Employee plays a bad joke on an unsuspecting traveler named Rebecca Solomon. Plants a baggie of what looks like cocaine on her carry on, freaks her out and then says its only a joke. Not cool, man.Here's an exerpt from the article:
By Daniel Rubin
Philly.com
"After pulling her laptop out of her carry-on bag, sliding the items through the scanning machines, and walking through a detector, she went to collect her things.
A TSA worker was staring at her. He motioned her toward him.
Then he pulled a small, clear plastic bag from her carry-on - the sort of baggie that a pair of earrings might come in. Inside the bag was fine, white powder.
She remembers his words: "Where did you get it?"
Two thoughts came to her in a jumble: A terrorist was using her to sneak bomb-detonating materials on the plane. Or a drug dealer had made her an unwitting mule, planting coke or some other trouble in her bag while she wasn't looking.
She'd left her carry-on by her feet as she handed her license and boarding pass to a security agent at the beginning of the line.
Answer truthfully, the TSA worker informed her, and everything will be OK.
Solomon, 5-foot-3 and traveling alone, looked up at the man in the black shirt and fought back tears.
Put yourself in her place and count out 20 seconds. Her heart pounded. She started to sweat. She panicked at having to explain something she couldn't.
Now picture her expression as the TSA employee started to smile.
Just kidding, he said. He waved the baggie. It was his."
So this cat in Atlanta has started an All White Basketball League, because he says "Whites who play basketball are far more fundamentally sound, the ones who are better players. Because they don't quite have the natural athleticism.You're not gonna see the dunks, you're not gonna see this kind of thing."" Lewis said he wants to emphasize fundamental basketball instead of "street-ball" played by "people of color."It's pathetic reverse racism.
League Organizer Don "Moose" Lewis
Watch Video of this guy try to defend his All White Basketball league without sounding racist.
The worst part is some sleezy TV Execs have approached this guy about a Reality TV Series where his all white team will play an all black team in a show called "Sno-Ball vrs Bro-Ball". It makes me nauseas to even think about it, further reducing my faith in the modern entertainment industry.
Chihuahuas First Review from Chicago
So Time Out Chicago reviewed The Feral Chihuahuas performance at the Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival. Sweet! Time Out Chicago Wriiten By Jason Heidermann
"Two groups—Asheville, North Carolina–based Feral Chihuahuas and local jokers Robot Vs. Dinosaur—did a fine job shelling out the ridiculous. The former impressed me with its wig-donning, glitter-throwing theatrics.
In one sketch, the troupe pays homage to the awkwardness of acquaintanceship with a fully choreographed dance number inspired by ’70s variety shows. I also loved a video clip in which a member of the Blue Man Group gets a blow job, a sketch that peddled hip-hop for the deaf and an imagining of what it would’ve been like if Facebook had been around during medieval times."
So notorious right wing douchebag, Pat Robertson claims that Haiti made a pact with the Devil years ago and that's why they've suffered for so long and been afflicted, apparently with the present earthquake. Yeah right. What an idiot. How insensitive to the suffering of human beings in the midst of a crisis. Watch the video footage belowand prepare to scoff.
My Love Affair with Italian Beef Sandwiches
The Feral Chihuahuas Journey to Chicago
So my Sketch Comedy Troupe the Feral Chihuahuas took a journey to the Windy City to perform in the 2010 Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival. What an experience! Four days of delicous Chicago food, and comedy. Here's a breakdown of the trip:
1-6-09
We arrived Wednesday night after getting turned around in Gary, Indiana (A common occurence I've been informed) and adding an hour to our trip. We drank heavily and immediately and wandered down to Pete's Pizza for some grub. Ordered up a huge Wise Guy Pizza complete with Italian Beef, giardiniera and Italian Sausage, and ordered a traditional Stuffed Chicago style Pizza. We didn't even finish the first one. Wow! Luckily we had leftovers for days.
Now dat's a Chicago Pie.
That's a deep dish salute to Chicago Pizza.
With that heavy food coma setting in we settled down to bed and prepared for day 2.
1-7-09
We woke up and wandered the town, in search of Italian Beef sandwiches. It had begun to snow in the middle of the night and would continue until the next day. Chicago, we won't be daunted. We caught the Brownline down to Ontario Street and headed towards the fabled Italian Beef Sandwich.
Clowns to the left of me...
Jokers to the right.
Finally, we reached our destination, Portillos. A round of Italian Beef sandwiches and goblets-o-beer later, grins decorated our noggins and glee danced in our stomachs. I was in love. Perhaps it's the thinly shaved, slow-cooked beef, perhaps the sauce laboriously placed, or maybe it was the combo with giardiniera ladled atop it. Something changed inside me, and I knew this sandwich was going to change my life.
Our next destination was to the venue where we were performing: Theater Building Chicago. We checked in and got our passes and awaited our first shows of the evening. We met Executive Producer of the Festival, Brian Posen and gave him a Chihuahua shirt. He called us "Smart, smart people.' We had arrived.
The Venue.
Sketch Fest sign made of emptied red bulls. High energy was a big thing at Sketch Fest.
Hey Look. There's our logo on that schedule.
So next we ran into a group of Sketchers that we performed with at the Shadowbox Sketch Comedy Festival: Cell Camp. Good to see them again and it was great to see some of their hilarious stuff at the Festival, including this video gem, Vagantic:
We saw three groups that night, including Hey You Millionaires and Klepper and Grey a male female duo who dealt with relationship issues et al. We then wandered down to Joey's Brickhouse for some post show beers and throwback with the other groups. We were also pleasantly surprised by some unplanned Burlesque throughout the night. Then the DJ kept playing Lady Ga Ga until we felt the inherent awkwardness and caught some cabs back to our apartment. Crazy snowy sidestreets and slippery cab service, one more nightcap beverage and Night One at the festival was in the books.
Hey You millionaires on stage.
Adam borrows the team leader badge from Cell Camp whilst we reveled at the bar after their show.
Drew has one more drink before bed after Night One.
1-8-09
Today was our day to get ready to perform. We had some time to scuttle around town and have some lunch before our 4:10 PM tech rehearsal at the theater. We rehearsed a bit in the apartment just to get ready.
Drew kept his costume on and decided to run Caveman tastic through 6 inches of Chicago Snow. I didn't intend to, but made an crazy jump cut edit to this video and as you'll see about halfway through it looks like Drew magically appears from the sky like a super hero or perhaps as if riding a comedic zephyr. I was filming him and he took forever to get out of the car so I stopped filming, he hopped out when I looked away and I resumed filming a few moments later and my phone made one video with the two and Huzzah! Accidental comedy ensues.
Then we rushed through our tech rehearsal and had a few hours before shows began that night. So...more delicious deep dish pie, Italian Beef sandwiches and we were off. Excitement was building. We caught a couple of shows before ours including The Cool Table and a group who knocked our socks off Pangea 3000. Below was one of our favorite sketches of the festival. Hilarious.
So then we rushed over to the theater next door to get ready for our show...drumroll please. Well, we were competing against hometown favorites BriKo and a well regarded troup from New York called BoF. So we had 50 excitable folks at the show, and we brought the funny...Asheville style.
After the show the nice folks at Sketchfest provided burritos, cheesecake and all the Sam Adams we could drink as we hung out with other groups and networked, cracked up and had a blast. Then we wandered back to the apartment to prepare for our last day in Chicago and last night of performing on Saturday.
1-9-09
It was time to see some more of Chicago, so my buddy Ben the Neuroscientist tooled me around the city. Had a delicious roasted pork sandwich at Jerry's, and set off to see some things. We drove down Lakeshore Drive and took in the coolest approach route for Chicago.
Lakeshore Drive towards Chicago. Dat's Soldier Field on duh right der. Dat's where duh Bearz play.
Then we wandered up to the Hancock building right at sunset and took in the sights of the city, complete with a few cocktails.
And completely unplanned I ran into Adam, Katie and Andrew from the Chihuahuas who happened to be in the Hancock at the same time. Kizmit! GAAIISSGGHHHH!!!
Then it was time for some more shows before our last performnce of the festival that night. We tried to get into the 8 o'clock shows, but they were all sold out, so why not? One more delicious Italian beef sandwich at Murphy's before I leave Chicago. Back to catch two more performances by Heavyweight and Hard Left Productions before our 11 PM show. Heavyweight was insane, fast paced comedy that at times meandered into absurdity and bizarre twists. Apparently those guys locked themselves into a hotel room for 72 hours and wrote the whole show a few days before the Festival. Hard Left was more traditional and had a funny video about a Suicide Baby roomate and an Asian Country song. At last it was time for the Chihuahuas to bring it once more. We had a bunch of performeras at the Festvial at our show, and some Asheville folks who showed up. About 100 people and they were laughers. great response and feedback from everybody, our best show of the weekend. Huzzah!!!
After the show a bunch of performers piled into one theater for an event called Sketchubator, where groups tested some of their more experimental material for other Sketch Groups...and yes the Sam Adams was free, along with delicious pizza. Saw some hilarious stuff included use of a real dog shocking collar, a post modern princess rapped about how she wanted bad guy lovin', and hot dance moves galore. All and all it was a great trip and good exposure for local favorites The Feral Chihuahuas. Farewell Chicago, I'll miss your frigid streets and your delicious Italian beef sandwiches. I'll miss the cacauphonus laughter of your patrons. Not to worry. We'll be back soon.
My Top 10 of 2009
AFTER MUCH DELIBERATION HERE'S MY TOP 10 ALBUMS OF 2009:
1) The Dark Was The Night Compilation
2) Monsters of Folk - Monsters of Folk
3) The Avett Brothers - I And Love And You
4) Built To Spill - There Is No Enemy
5) The Decemberists - The Hazards Of Love
6) Grizzly Bear - Veckatimist
7) Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career
8) Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
9) Andrew Bird - Noble Beast
10) Benji Hughes - A Love Extreme
New Sitcom on Fox
Serena Ryder draws my portrait in Studio AVL
So Serena Ryder stopped through Studio AVL a few weeks back and decided to draw my picture on the wall of the Studio. Luckily her friend was filming it, and they posted it to her website. Check out the video of her sketching me at the link below:
This is incredible. This is the kind of innovative thinking that could help our environmental situation and prepare us for the future. It's the simple things that some of us take for granted that could be the keys to useful technology. It's simple. Look what a guy can do with a Wii remote and $10. FIND OUT MORE.
Metroid Metal
Were you a fan of the original Metroid Nintendo Game? Did you love the music? Well Grant Henry (You may remember Zen Mafia, Minivoid and other local powerhouses) spent an extensive amount of time arranging all of those awesome Metroid songs into Metal! They sound awesome. I had the opportunity to play a few of those songs when Grant and I used to play together. Now he and his bandmates play these songs full on for packed audiences all over the nation. Kudos Fellas. Well they've been gracious enough to play a show here in Asheville Friday. Check the poster for more details. There's a sample of them playing live below as well. Get your gamer/metal lovin' dork on!
A Western North Carolina native, Tommy grew up in Highlands, North Carolina and moved to Asheville in 1997 to attend college. He attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville and received a degree in Composition for the Theater; an independent major drawing from disciplines in music, theater and literature. While at UNCA he acted, directed and performed sound design duties in campus productions, as well as composing incidental and theatrical music scores for several plays around the Asheville area. In 2002, he founded The Feral Chihuahuas sketch comedy troupe, a project that has consumed much of his free time for the last 6 years. Keeping very busy, he writes, acts and composes music for the troupe. Tommy has also been playing guitar and singing with several different bands in Asheville for over 10 years. He has produced several albums in varying styles from acoustic to hip-hop and has a very diverse background in music. He also writes and performs radio commercials, some of which you are probably familiar with. He has two beautiful children Hennie and Xavier who are the light of his life and a lovely lady Christine who keeps him in line.
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