Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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Revenge of the Chickens by PITT DICKEY Our favorite dictator Hosni Mubarak has gone with the wind, leaving only his picture behind which the CIA has kissed a thousand times. His rapid exit from the Egyptian stage has spurred democracy movements in a variety of surprising locales: Iran, Yemen and other Middle Eastern garden spots too numerous to mention. Inspired by the success of the Egyptian people, the freedom agenda has spread from the Middle East to the animal kingdom. The most remarkable rebellion against oppressive authority took place in Delano, Calif., where a lone fi ghting rooster took a stand for fowl freedom. The rooster stabbed and killed a human spectator at a cock fi ght. Consider the proud story of Foghorn Leghorn, Chicken of Destiny. Foghorn came from a poor but honest clutch of eggs in central California. Foghorn was raised to be a gamecock, not one of those University of South Carolina cutesy fi ghting gamecocks, but a real rock-em, sock-em fi ghting gamecock. For reasons known but to the morons who like watching animals kill each other, Foghorn was born to be killed. The three most popular past times in California are cockfi ghting, spending itself into bankruptcy and earthquakes. Foghorn’s destiny was etched in stone when he was born on the El Loco Polo Gamecock Ranch. Foghorn was a real contender in the gamecock biz. He had an 11-0 win record with a shot at the Gamecock Champion of the World title. His fi ghting abilities were legendary. He had defeated much better known opponents, Superchicken, Chicken Little, Subservient Chicken, Robot Chicken and the San Diego Chicken in his meteoric rise to the top of the gamecock coop. All that was left between Foghorn and the World Gamecock Championship belt was a fi nal title match in January against the fearsome reigning world champion Giant Chicken. The Giant Chicken appears frequently in Family Guy fi ghting Peter Griffi n. Rumors have long circulated that the Giant Chicken is using steroids to produce his undefeated record and legendary roid rages in his fi ghts. Vegas bookies made odds of 10-1 that Foghorn would go down in defeat by the third round of his fi ght against the Giant Chicken. In cock fi ghts, each chicken gladiator has razor sharp metal spurs strapped to their feet, the better to kill or maim their opponent. The battle between Foghorn and the Giant Chicken lasted eight rounds until the Giant Chicken went down with a fatal wound to the gizzard. Foghorn was the new world champion! Bloody but unbowed, Foghorn strutted his stuff around the ring crowing out his triumph. Then suddenly in a moment of poultry clarity, Foghorn realized that his victory would only lead to other fi ghts which would eventually result in Foghorn ending up swimming in a pool of chicken and pastry. Foghorn realized he was the Spartacus of the chicken world. He would strike a blow for freedom for chickens everywhere by taking out a human spectator despite knowing it would cost him his life. Foghorn launched himself against the closest human crowing “You dumb cluck!” Foghorn stabbed the man in the leg with his razor. The spectator bled to death. Foghorn got his neck wrung. The Fowl Freedom movement lives on. Facebook’s Original Recipe Chicken page went viral. Freedom loving chickens began massing in Extra Crispy Square. The CIA predicted that Colonel Sanders would abdicate. Glen Beck blamed President Obama for losing the war on chickens. The orderly transition of power from people to chickens has begun. Chickens will once again rule the earth just as their ancestors, the dinosaurs had done zillions of years ago. Foghorn did not die in vain. Inspired by Foghorn’s heroic sacrifi ce, a chicken in the Indian subcontinent killed another human spectator at a cock fi ght. No more Tandoori chicken for him. The fowl freedom movement continues to spread. You can’t have chicken liberation without breaking eggs. Lady Ga Ga hatched from a giant egg at the Grammys to express her solidarity with the Chicken Liberation Movement. Mr. Leghorn was predeceased by his son, Humpty Dumpty, and is survived by his widow, the Little Red Hen. Memorials may be made to the Kentucky Fried Chicken of your choice. PITT DICKEY, Contributing Writer. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcomingweekly.com. Silent and Live Art Auction Set at Cape Fear Studios by BHAIRAVI BHATT If you have never stopped in the art collective known as Cape Fear Studios in downtown Fayetteville, then you are defi nitely missing one of the community’s greatest assets. The member studio is home to a number of Fayetteville’s most talented artists. While the artists use the venue as a workspace and as a means of marketing their work, they also use it as a vehicle to give back to the community. All of this comes with a price, and in the coming weeks, the venue is taking advantage of their unique skills to raise funds to support their involvement in the community. The annual Silent and Live Art Auction is one of the ways Cape Fear Studios gets the support from the Fayetteville community. Held on Friday, March 4, the auction will showcase various local artists as well as artist members of Cape Fear Studios. Ideal for a savvy art collector, this event will display diverse forms of art, which will consist of paintings, handmade jewelry, pottery, contemporary fused art glassware, wood art and more. To support this worthy event, local restaurants and businesses are also participating by donating gift certifi cates and an assortment of non-art items for the live auction. Chris Kastner, the executive director at Cape Fear Studios, encourages the local community to support this auction while pointing out that, “This is our primary way of raising funds.” She also encourages art enthusiasts, collectors and all those who would enjoy an evening of live music, complimentary wine or beer, hors d’oeuvres and fusion art to come out to support the studio. Tickets for the event are $35. 8 UCW FEB. 23 - MARCH 1, 2011 of the featured artists donated their work, so all of the proceeds will benefi t Cape Fear Studios. Cape Fear Studios also reaches out to the community via their Ashton Woods Kids Art Program that targets children ages 7 and up, and most notably concentrates on improving important factors such as self-image and confi dence while teaching them to express their unique artsy and creative side. Moreover, Cape Fear Studios also offers monetary scholarships to local college students enrolled in fi ne-arts programs. All of the community work done by Cape Fear Studios is possible because of the contributions and funds received through auctions, fundraisers and the sale of artwork created by members at Cape Fear Studios. In order to carry out such extraordinary support to the community, the studio needs its own support system, which consists of the local community and artists alike. Be sure to attend the auction on March 4 as a way to support the only visual arts cooperative, non-profi t organization in Fayetteville. The mission of Cape Fear Studios is “to involve, educate and enrich Cumberland County and surrounding communities with the opportunity to create and freely view art.” This piece of pottery is one of many artworks up for auction at Cape Fear Studios. Some of the artists portraying their work include: Rose Kennedy, Paula Fitzpatrick, Erica Stankwytch Bailey, Nancy Rose, Pandy Autrey and more. All The event begins at 7 p.m., and will be hosted at the Arts Council. Matthew William Buchanan and David Sinan Esensoy of The Fayetteville Academy will provide musical entertainment. The event is dressy, so take the opportunity to don your favorite festive attire and come out and support the artists at Cape Fear Studios. For more information, call 433-2986 or e-mail capefearstudios@yahoo.com. BHAIRAVI BHATT, Contribut- ing Writer. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcomingweekly.com. WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM