A Story must be told...

It was a cold, crisp February morning. The wind blew threw me and chilled my core. I wish the sun would come closer, I needed to be warmed up a bit. A good washing would do me good. I feel dirty from all that surrounds me.

It won't be long til I'm gone...

It's always so still. The quiet, deafening. I could go for some beautiful banjo twang right about now. That would encourage my soul a bit. Life has been pure and wholesome...to say the least. It won't be long till I'm gone.

Bare naked I am, to the windows of my soul. I stand here alone, wide open for all to see, letting all the bugs in to my soul. It won't be long till I'm gone. Peace will fall on me as I fall to pieces. Oh how time has past here, near me. 

It's nice to have people over, making oneself feel useful again. It's been some time on this prolonging pursuit of the inevitable. 

I remember Ms. Abrams pressing Mr. Abrams shirt before he headed out to the market. She would stand there all day singing to any bird that caught her fetching eye. The freshest lavender trail would follow her everywhere.

My visitors were kind and reminded me of some of the best years of my life. Many holidays and shared precious moments that no others have seen the likes of. Even if it were only for a moment, it was nice to be useful and wanted again. 

Was it all a dream? I shall rest now...again...and forever. Thank You.

Special Thank You to

Whitney Diane

Anthony Bellemare

Travis McClure

I AM BLACK AND BLANC Art Show @ Izzy's on Lex

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It's still silent...

In almost every direction...I see lines. Smooth shapely gorgeous lines, chiseled strong powerful lines, crazy wobbly nonconforming lines. They are all magnificent in structure and hold tight to the colorful world in my head. 

My show at Izzy's on Lexington is about those lines. It's a simple and beautiful journey I see. 

I look forward to revealing a new series that I've been working on behind the scenes. This is a fun series for sure! Looking forward to testing new lighting and timing techniques, to paint a photo with little added editing. Look for it around April.

I want to thank Izzy's for hosting me! Everyone was comfortable and Chris is an amazing gentleman! Thanks dude! 

 I want to thank everyone who bought pieces from me! It means so much to feel respected and supported by you. It fuels me as well as other things I love. So much love and respect back to you! 

ASHEVILLE REFUGEES

They never gave you a chance. The world of the homeless, is not a world at all. It's chaotic on the best of days. A damp spot on a rainy day, is cozy. Your cold pizza on top of the trash can, is a 5 star meal. No, the life is not something I think most people seek out, but it arrives on the doorstep. Only to escort them out of their homes into a different kind of dark matter. The ground beneath some even disappears.

In these times, even the mentally ill get sent out here. And there's barely any help to make sure they have access to needed medications. Do you know where medication can be found? In the county jail. 3 hots and a cot is the saying. Without question some will deliberately aim for the 'safety' of jail. It's "Club Med" for the homeless. All just to feel safe. 
What if you were sane and had a home, but it wasn't safe to lay your head there? What if your only option was to leave? Take a minute to put yourself in those shoes. 

The only human part I can see how I will live a beautiful life is to say, yes, as a country that boasts so much about being the best I have yet to feel for a sustained time that it is. For a moment, when 9/11 was happening we all bonded, wanting so many lives to be saved. That moment was immediately extinguished as many questions were raised regarding who did what and for what reason. The divide was clear immediately, again. During WWII a lot of Americans did not want the Jewish people to come to the US.

I see history repeating itself time and time again. And I have only been here a nano second. It's sad to see it all play out the way it does. Hence, this is why you see me happy a lot. Yes, there are things in my life now that could make me sad or depressed. I choose to have a beautiful life. I wish this for all life. If we are so powerful as a nation, why can't we do both? Seeing folks living on the streets day after day is heartbreaking. People sometimes need help in this world to make it.

For the people who say, "They will let terrorist in!"

Have you seen the news lately?

We have to figure out a way to help the world. Help people where they live.

ONYX BALL 2015

All the pictures from the Color Ball Booth and more will be here. I enjoyed all of you so very much! It was my pleasure :)

https://micahmack.smugmug.com/ONYX-BALL-2015/

Series 'CONNECTED' Number 1

I remember my grandmother taking me downtown to Woolworth's. We would sit and have a cheeseburger, fries and an ice-cold coke. Then we would shop around for bargains and I would take in all the little ol' ladies. They were all so nice and colorful. It was a pastel time in my life. That's where the love for people watching began.

My favorite person to watch was Ms. Gahniva, or that's how I remember addressing that beautiful lady. She had a gum disease that some would say had deformed her face. I thought she was unique, kind, and accepting with a child's inner sight. I did not judge her on beauty, but on how she treated me. She still outshines most people I have known and probably will know while on this earth. True story. For those who have lived in Asheville since that time, you will know this story to be true. Ms. Gahniva would walk down the street balancing a 2 liter coke bottle on her head. Seemingly, she barely noticed it was there. I always wanted a drink from that 2 liter bottle. It must be something special! She would also talk to pigeons. They would keep pace and follow her about. I never knew the language but they definitely would talk back.

We all have a beautiful story on our faces.

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I see so many people I know in other people's faces. I have done this for the longest time. That connects me to them, and yet I wonder what they see. I've been told I have a doppelgänger in Charleston who I have yet to meet. I hope he is faring well after the recent storms there. 

Sometimes, the connection is fleeting, gone as I pass by. Other times, it deepens and the paths and story threads of two human strangers meet and time is changed. When I am going through a day and I start to feel it all colliding together and losing focus, I slow down and refocus. Those blurry moments are what I recognize and take time out for. This awareness in myself allows all the right steps to take place in order for me to experience someone or something new, someone or something that I haven't ever met before. Good things often come when you are open to them.

Today was such a day for me and I look forward to sharing a project I am calling, 'Connected.' Without a doubt, I see it. I have no control over not seeing it. As the simple and yet THE most impossible task if you can read, to see a word and not read it. I see the paths as they slightly collide and miss by seconds into inches. I have never seen such a lovely dance. No one knows the steps but it is all ebb and flow and we are all caught up in it.

I will sit in one spot for hours and just observe.

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I recently decided to try and capture what I see and feel is happening between all of us. Those missed encounters by mere seconds, happening every moment. The future is determined by you and those that shape it around you.