TABLE OF CONTENTS JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2021 ISSUE Authors:

Filmmakers:

Stephen Foster and Chuck Pelletier

Q & A Panels from the 2020 AIA Film Festival

Tony Deane

Small Business Owners:

Artists:

TWEE

Vlad and Niki

Claire Friday

Musicians:

Publicists/Media:

A-Lex

LaTonya McChelle

Danny Ashkenasi

Biker Relative:

Book Review:

Wackadoo Brewery

Standing on Principal

Actors:

Charity:

Joe Finfera

The New Vintage Church

J Dixon Byrne

Film Review:

Featured Artwork:

The Assassin’s Apprentice

Epifano Photography

Eli

The Artwork of Angelica Altoro

The Search for the Cheeseman

Poetry of Juan Carlos Pairol

Florence

Cin’s Monthly Product Picks Enhance By Nature ShopWorn Get Hirschs Ben Bridge Jeweler The Clio Brewer

NOTES FROM THE FOUNDER

Hello All: I am saddened that some time has passed since I have published my magazine. Many of the followers of my magazine are well aware that my professional obligations are finding me at full speed without stopping. For the last month, I have been on and off a set, filming and starring in my first television series, Sonny and Trixie. Any person that has ever been part of a production grasps how complicated and complex things can get, and mine has been a bit challenging. I am glad that we are getting down to the last two days of filming, and that we can now reap the rewards of all of this hard work. I want to welcome you into 2021 with much warmth, and I hugely hope that with this reading, you and yours are managing despite the mayhem. With a new year comes creative changes to Art is Alive. A few of our staff have moved on, with new ones signed on to bring the publication more praiseworthy work. I have decided to add what I call Cin's Product Picks and Splude’s Spotlight to the magazine. These items are anything and everything that I as a person and professional advocate. As to the latter add, this is an area where you will find reviews of all types from my teenage son, Trystin. Further down the road, we will be posting movie trailers, a plethora of small business advertisements, and additional varieties of art. One might even finally be able to read my advice column (a passion project of mine). Finally, stay tuned for details about my new conservative news creation, The First Amendment Advocate, set to launch late this month. As always, I am sending a huge amount of appreciation to my staff, subjects and my significant other. Without you, I would not be who I am or where I am. Enjoy our new issue!

Stephen Foster & Chuck Pelletier: Works In Progress Composed By: Cecil Delloma Stephen Foster and Chuck Pelletier combined their talents in writing, directing, composing and producing to start Round Earth Entertainment. Their collaborative production company has been the platform for showcasing their multi-award-winning talents, and their work has garnered them many accolades throughout their careers. Stephen Foster is an award-winning actor and writer from Fort Worth, Texas. He has been featured in many indie movies and web series, and did star in the Hollywood Fringe hit show “Seven Dreams of Falling”. His joined effort with Chuck Pelletier entitled, “That’s Opportunity Knocking”, won him five Best Supporting Actor awards. In addition to acting, Stephen directs, produces, teaches and is a very accomplished writer. His play “Legends and Bridge” won critical praise and multiple award nominations (3 ADA awards and a Broadway World Award). He authored “Awakening The Actor Within” ("The Artist's Way" for actors) which helps educate actors in the business. Foster’s screenplays "My Missing Year" and "Pyramid Scheme", were finalists in several major contests and his Foster/Pelletier/Damer musical collaboration, “The Green Room”, has been performed Off-Broadway & world-wide. The equally impressive Chuck Pelletier has a Bachelor of Arts in Music from the University of Illinois. He has studied with William Warfield (singing) and Roque Cordero (music composition), and took on additional study in literature and music at Oxford University in England. He is an award-winning writer and composer, credited with three written and produced musicals, hundreds of songs and has sold screenplays and licensed theatre pieces around the world. Chuck has acted professionally in plays, musicals, film and commercial work in Chicago and Los Angeles. He is currently the Vocal Music Director for Princess Cruise Lines. He released a solo album entitled “Flight Times”, and his original music is featured on radio stations and in several independent films. He composed all music and lyrics for “The Boy Who Stood Still”, a children’s musical which premiered at the University of New Hampshire. Also, his screenplays have won numerous competitions. Pelletier's musical “Sour Grapes'' premiered at the Copake Theatre. Chuck won the Songwriters Guild of America Award for Best Musical Theatre Song for “It’s All About Me”. Their comedy short, "That's Opportunity Knocking" (now on Amazon Prime), won a total of twenty-four film festival Awards. The gentlemen of Round Earth Entertainment were kind enough to share some insights with us.

Q: When did your interest in acting and writing begin? Stephen Foster: Thank you to The Art is Alive Magazine for taking the time to talk with us today. Thank you for keeping art alive in these crazy times. I was always writing skits and acting in them from a very young age. I guess it started from watching the Carol Burnett Show at my Granny's house in Haltom City, Texas. I loved her outrageous sense of character and timing. My sister and I would put on little plays using those characters. However, my real interest peaked in ninth grade when I accidentally entered a stagecraft class, and the teacher made us sign a contract for our grade! My first job in theater was PR and prompter. I ended up being nominated for an award, but I was too shy to even go to the ceremony. One of the main hurdles I had to surmount was being extremely shy.

Q: What put you on a path to pursuing these interests on a professional level? Chuck Pelletier: I majored in music and English at the University of Illinois, and in both those subjects, I was always most interested in their creative aspects. I have done a lot of music directing and teaching as a day job over the years, and I currently am the vocal music director for Princess Cruises. No matter how creative that is, music directing and teaching is more of an analytical art. Like it or not, my mind is always spinning with ideas, and usually the question is: what is the idea? For example, is it a screenplay, or is it a song? Is it a series or a feature - or maybe it is a poem? There is always an idea, a theme, or a set of words to drive you. So, in answer to your question, that has always been the case - even when I was in junior high. My mind was always spinning with those ideas. I am glad you said path and not choice. If I had had a choice, I would be the CEO of a huge company and be writing myself a very large bonus right now. True artists are artists because they have to be. Q: What was your inspiration and evolution for moving into teaching, and what do you find most rewarding? Stephen Foster: Well, I have always taught other actors and writers. I consider myself a student at the craft who shares information and tips to keep moving my game token forward along the Hollywood game board. I hope I serve as an inspiration and guidance for others. I teach a course called "Awakening the Actor Within" which is a self-help approach for actors who feel lost, scared, overwhelmed or "blocked." It grew out of my own unblocking using the tools in "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron. I became unblocked, and I suddenly found I had so many blocks that ONLY pertained to acting. So, I devised my own toolkit for myself and other actors. My teaching involves writing, acting games and learning techniques to handle rejection and the difficulties of showbiz. Q: How do you like working in the collaborative setting, and what inspiration do you draw from this partnership that that you don’t find in solo work? Chuck Pelletier: I feel that the bigger the project, the more collaboration I need. That might sound obvious, in that you need more people to make a film than you do to record a song. Honestly, I am talking more on a creative level. I have collaborated on many songs, but the vast majority of the songs that I have written, I have written alone. On the other hand, a feature screenplay is a much more challenging prospect. Two hours in comparison with three minutes of material. I have written very few feature screenplays by myself... two, I think. The rest have all been co-written. I have personally written a lot of feature treatments, and a lot of short film scripts. A feature screenplay seems like a mountain to me... something I can climb up by myself, but it just will not be much fun. It always seems as if it would be much easier, and much more fun to climb it with someone else. Q: You do a lot of work on both sides of the camera, so which do you prefer? Stephen Foster: I prefer acting because it lets me express myself in ways I personally NEVER would! I play comedy characters who are on the edge of personal sanity: they smoke, drink, cuss, and yell. These are things which I do not do. I am more of a bookworm in real life. I enjoy writing because it is private, and I can control what I put on the page via editing. Lately, I have enjoyed writing little skits and putting them on Tik Tok. It is a fun and outrageous blending of my acting and writing skills. Q: What kind of work do you have planned for 2021? Chuck Pelletier: I have written a new short film which is in pre-production, and Stephen and I have a script, "The Little Johnny Dickens Show", in the hands of Dramatically Incorrect Theater Group in Massachusetts. It will be directed by Paul Gymziak, who directed the online version of our musical "The Green Room." I am actually adding new songs to that project, so I am working on getting these tracks done. Then, as always, I am just trying to continue to learn. I recently finished reading a book on film lighting, and there are so many great books on filmmaking, it is almost like you have the information of a Master’s Degree just waiting for you in the Amazon book section. I watch a lot of videos on filmmaking, and I always try to continue learning. Chuck Pelletier and Stephen Foster are two humble and talented people with a great body of work and much more to come in the future. They can be found on line at: https://cstephenfoster.com.

Interview with Tony Deane Composed By: Chezky Greenberger

Tony Deane is a retired U.S. Army Colonel and a published author. Our conversation centered around his experience writing and publishing his book, Ramadi Declassified.

What compelled you to write Ramadi Declassified? There has been a lot of material written on Ramadi. In fact, every book about the war in Iraq has a chapter dedicated to it. For the most part, the purpose of those works was to illustrate how bad it was in Iraq – and yes, it was horrible. Yet, there was also a great deal of good there. No one really captured what we did in that department. I felt like that story had to be told. I was also just really proud of my guys, and wanted to discuss what they went through and how they persevered. These tales are absolutely incredible. People do not think of soldiers as individuals with deeply personal, vulnerable, or exceptional lives. I wanted to humanize my guys a little bit – to show them off as being profoundly human heroes.

You mentioned that by writing this book you wanted to show people what you did in the “Good Department.” Did you find that the book was received in the way you had intended? Yes, I think so. I have had many people reach out to me—some of whom study this stuff professionally/academically—who understood and appreciated the positive impact we had over there. They saw the book as a sort of a “how-to” blueprint, and wanted to ask me more questions in that regard. Interestingly enough, when I brought the manuscript to the publisher, they said the same thing. I was going to name the book Conquer or Die (which was our unit motto). However, since the story was so relevant for future conflicts, it was best to give it a name that reflects a more practical, official-sounding title. Hence, we settled on Ramadi Declassified.

To what extent were the publishers involved in determining the focus of the book?

There were a few prompts from the publishers, even before I finished the final draft of the manuscript. They would ask questions based on what I had already written, and then I would go off and write a chapter or two based on their queries. So, for example, after reading through one of the early versions of the manuscript, they asked me how things ever got so bad in Iraq in the first place. So, I went and wrote a couple of chapters describing how things escalated from the original invasion in 2003 to where we were in 2005. This kind of thing happened a few times. In the end, I had written a pretty solid history of the Iraq war. Ramadi Declassified is a fine read for lay persons wanting to get an idea of how we got to where we did during war time.

I saw people comparing your book to a “thriller” in genre. Was that your intention, or was it a natural result of the subject matter? Would any in-depth description of what happened in Iraq inevitably be “thrilling”? Oh yeah, there is no way to write about the fighting in Iraq and not have it be thrilling. It was day-after-day, fastpaced, relentless war. Sometimes I have these people come to talk to me about my book and, after a few minutes of me talking and telling stories, they forget that they are in the middle of an interview. They forget about their pen and notepad, and just listen. The stories are endless, as was the fighting and ferocious horrors. We saw real evil there in Iraq. I am not special in this regard, as anyone who fought alongside me can have you thrilled, gripped, and breathless with the telling of their experiences. Without a doubt, anyone who had a vantage point in that madness could write a book.

You are an extremely disciplined person, but writing a book requires a unique kind of tedious discipline. Did you find this at all challenging? It is funny you ask that, because the first draft of my book read like the Unabomber manifesto—it was an unmitigated mess. I was not used to the “book” style of writing. Army writing is all about condensing information to take up as little space as possible while communicating a practical message. However, this book needed to be entertaining. I had to learn to expound on information and make it interesting to the standard reader. Truth is, writing this book forced me to remember certain rules and terms I had not considered since English class in high school.

Did you get any pushback on the philosophical points of your book? Not really. At the end of the day, what we did there worked – so it is difficult for anyone to argue with that.

Did you influence the Iraqi locals philosophically? Was that partly the reason for your success in Ramadi? Not necessarily. The locals did not like that we were there, but they also wanted to get Al Qaeda out of the area. Once we realized this, we used it as a point of agreement. We had the same goal. We had not swayed them as much philosophically, as we just found a point of pragmatic connection and leveraged that to achieve regional peace. You know, the one thing I have realized by being in all these places is that people are generally the same. People want a place to live, food to eat, prosperity, and safety for their families. Wherever you go, you can find the core humanity in people. Whether you are in New York or Iraq, people basically all want the same things.

Did you gain a new appreciation for the craft of writing in the process of writing this book? Specifically, I have always been a reader of non-fiction. I find real-life historical figures to be much more fascinating in part because the things they experienced actually happened. I am endlessly fascinated by a guy like Churchill. What a life that man lived. Overall, I did gain a ton of respect for people who do this for a living, i.e. the writers of the world. Stephen King seems almost superhuman with the number of books he puts out. I also learned what goes into publishing a book, as in the marketing side of things. I have not quite figured it out completely, but as a subject, I find it fascinating.

Do you explore any personal emotionally vulnerable moments in the book? To be honest, what I realized being over there and in charge of a battalion of around eight-hundred guys, is that there really is not much time for emotions. Everything happens so fast and the responsibilities are never-ending. There is always something to do, and there are always lives at stake. You kind of have to just keep going. One time I was at a memorial service, and I snuck off to the side to cry. This was a rare opportunity for me, and it only lasted fifteen minutes. That is just how it was. So, while I do explain my thought process in the book, there is not much emotion discussed. As I said, no time for emotions. There were so many more pressing things, I had no choice but to just go.

Are these the sorts of things you talk about when you speak publicly/lead team-building events? Mostly what I talk about in team-building is the importance of helping the team understand the why along with the what. As a boss, as a commander, you can technically say “this is just the way itis gonna be” and have your subordinates listen to you. Yet, they are not going to appreciate or truly understand what it is they are doing. That will show up negatively in both their performance and willingness to collaborate with peers. It is always better when the team can wrap their head around a mission statement, that feels genuine and real.

What was it like transitioning from the high-stakes living of war to regular day-to-day life? I did not have it so bad because I was already in my 40’s when all this happened. The young guys have a harder time transitioning, since all they know is war. I was just glad to be getting out of that craziness.

Who are some of your heroes? Well, like every good army tanker, number one is Patton. Number two would probably be Churchill. Aside from everything he was involved in, the guy’s wit was amazing. While all that madness was going on, he still found a way to be clever and light. He also had incredible willpower. He stood up to the Germans when no one else would. Off the top of my head, it would likely be both of the aforementioned men.

As a wind-down question, how has 2020 affected your life, your career, and what are you looking forward to in 2021? I miss going out and doing these little book-signing events. You meet some really interesting people that way. Eccentric individuals with really niche passions and life experiences. I love that stuff. Regarding the public speaking/large gathering... yeah, I do not know when or if that will happen again. The world has gone crazy. It will be really interesting to see what happens when they ring the bell and announce that the pandemic is over. How do things reconfigure themselves? We will have to wait and see with that. As the cliché goes, for now, I am just taking it day by day.

For additional information on Tony Deane, visit http://tonydeane.com/

TWEE: What Will You Draw Today? Written By: Cecil Delloma

Philadelphia based TWEE is a female owned studio that specializes in small batch, handmade sidewalk chalk. This business is focused on creating a vibrant and imaginative playtime for children. All of the company’s colorful and creatively shaped products are eco-friendly and biodegradable. All of the quality materials, colors, and even the glitter used are kid safe, non-toxic, and environmentally conscious. Each product is designed in such a way where they fit perfectly into a small child's hand. Said items can positively impact fine motor skills and increase grip strength. Further, this chalk is deliberately dense in composition, making it stronger and less likely to break in use. The beautiful and vibrant colors come in many fun and fantastic shapes. There are reimagined sets of childhood classics like Sliders & Fries, Cheesy Pizza and Three Scoop Ice Cream for playtime. Colorful celestial sets of planets and stars, as well as fantasy themed sets of Dragon Eggs and Scales, Unicorn Horns, Castles and an assortment of colorful Gemstones. TWEE is also a contributor to some great charitable causes. Their Sam’s Slider & Fries Sidewalk Chalk Set helped benefit GLSEN. Their mission is to ensure that members of every school community are valued and respected, regardless of orientation, gender identity or expression. They also support the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia by donating a portion of their Mason’s Planets Sidewalk Chalk Set sales to help further autism research. When it comes to partnering, TWEE has picked some prominent names with which to network for the greater good. In collaboration with Disney Books, they brought to life chalk figurines of the much-loved characters Elephant & Piggie to promote Mo Willem's latest children's book release. Partnering with Audi paved the way for the creation of custom chalk R8 (in three racing colors) for Audi’s 2018 Summer of Fun promotional event. Finally, they helped Barney’s of New York celebrate the new Madison Avenue 9th Floor by creating a very special Alphabet Box for the occasion. TWEE also contributes to organizations in the Philadelphia area through their own, “Twee’s Misfit Toys Program”. The sidewalk chalk is mixed, poured, popped and decorated by hand. Sometimes, they occasionally make a beautiful “oops” and create a misfit piece that they may be unable to sell. Others might break in the popping process. A portion may have too little or too much color or glitter (Is that even possible?). Finally, there might be a trial or discontinued design. Yet, the one thing they all can still do is help kids use their imaginations to create little sidewalk masterpieces. Each month, boxes of “misfit chalk” are donated to schools and nonprofits that serve children in the Philadelphia area. Ordering is a simple process, and items usually ship within one or two business days of purchase. Products are available in the United States and in other countries. Qualified candidates are also able to explore wholesale opportunities. Share some time making memories and being inspired. TWEE handmade sidewalk chalk provides children the chance to play make believe and create their very own masterpieces. For pricing and order information, visit: https://tweemade.com

How an Arts Background Shaped the Career of Claire Friday Composed By: Cecil Delloma

Claire Friday is an entrepreneurial combination of education, passion and professionalism in the entertainment industry. A degreed professional in the areas of theater arts and stage management, Claire has built a fifteenyear career centered around the management, staging and production of live events, theatre, opera, and dance. In the past, Claire has worked with Warner Brothers Studios and The Hollywood Bowl, and was honored by The Kennedy Center. In addition to her production credits, Claire is also a writer and public speaker. She currently writes for Las Vegas Woman Magazine and My Vegas Magazine. Special Event Magazine proceeded to publish her article about the virtual state of the events world during the pandemic entitled, "Virtual Reality." Last February, Friday gave a TEDx in Louisville on the versatility of a performing arts education. Since moving from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, Claire has been actively supporting the performing arts community and broadening her work in the entertainment industry. She is a member of The International Live Events Association, the Las Vegas Hospitality Association. Friday is also the Founder of Done By Friday, which offers various logistical support services to a broad range of clients. Claire took some time to answer a few questions for us....

Tell us a bit about your background, interests and inspirations before you began your formal education in the arts. I was always intrigued by what went on behind the curtain, and performing arts in general. I think when I was very young, I was enthralled by the process in which an audience experiences a show. To be specific: their anticipation when they enter the venue, the conversations that go on before the curtain lifts, and the spectacle that awaits. My parents used to take me to the ballet when I was little, and it was initially dance that sparked my interest in the performing arts. I went on to become a competitive Irish dancer in my teenage years, and that eventually led to my need to be around entertainment. Music was, and still is, a major part of my life. The combination of the stage, music, and performance were truly the triple threat of elements that made me decide to focus my education in the arts.

What ultimately led you to your educational path? My intrigue with arts and entertainment ultimately led to choosing an educational path of seven years in arts education. When I entered my undergraduate years, I intended to be a dance major, but I switched to technical theater. From there, I went into stage and production management. That really opened the doors to shape who I am today, because education in stage management essentially forces you to understand your specific set of skills. You have to be a good leader, public speaker, communicator, and be able to adapt to different environments. I decided to go for my M.F.A. in theater after I took a year off when I finished my undergraduate training. If there is any program that truly helps you understand your creative potential and your range of skills and talents, it is a three-year Master of Fine Arts program. An arts education works if you do you and apply even the smallest skills and details to your everyday life.

What challenges did you face upon completion of your degrees? I never understood the importance of an internship until I graduated with my M.F.A. Between my first and second years in graduate school, I took an internship at the Kodak (now Dolby) Theatre in Hollywood, California. Had not taken that internship, it would not have opened doors to opportunities that ultimately strung together the interweavings of my career in production.

What would you consider some of your earliest professional endeavors? When I graduated from the M.F.A. program at The University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana, I went right into stage management at LA Opera and production in live variety television. Those were some of the most important first gigs out of higher education, and they taught me how to juggle two different genres of entertainment. Starting out in production in Los Angeles opened my eyes to the details of what was really required of me, and how to work with many different types of people in a variety of circumstances.

You wear many hats in the arts world. Is there any one role that you find most fulfilling? I really love the fact that I get to communicate to audiences through producing an event, writing an article, and speaking to a group. I find that each one of the hats that I wear becomes interchangeable. You have to essentially have the same skill set for each role, and be able to adapt to multiple environments based on needs, expectations, and the personalities with which you work.

What other talents might you have that are not well known by all? You mentioned reading music in your Tedx. Are you also a musician? In regards to music, I have always grown up around music. It is vital to my life. Without it, I cannot function. I was introduced to music when I was very young, and then went into dance at a young age. Dance did become the main vehicle for how I was introduced to performing arts and entertainment. I still get up and groove to a great tune when I hear one, but I cannot play a lick of anything on an instrument. It was working in opera stage management that taught me how to read music.

COVID has had an immense impact on the arts. How have you stayed involved and active with your work through this time? I continue to put myself out there and stay busy no matter what - whether that is writing, interviewing, doing a podcast, or working on an event in some capacity during these virtual days. Idle time is wasted time. You cannot get time back, but you can move yourself forward with how you spend the time that you have - even if it is progressing one inch per day. There were many days where I felt as though I could not make a single dent in

2020. What we need to realize, though, is that it was not a wasted year. I believe the effort put into even the most challenging days is the effort that brings the most results, and we will start to see that in 2021 - COVID or not. What encouragement and wisdom might you share with new people entering into this work and artists that are facing challenges through these times? It is important to stay the course and make small efforts to continue to advance your craft and your personal brand as an artist. In college, a mentor told me that if you keep putting yourself out there and make contacts, you set yourself up for a multitude of open doors and opportunities. No matter who you are and where you think you are going, there is no one way to get there. You may not see the opportunities right now in the middle of everything that is going on, but there is something to be said about timing - and the fact that it truly is everything when you put in the work. Sometimes it takes a while to see the results of your networking and job hunt, but you will see results.

You are a very hardworking and driven entrepreneur. What are some things you are working on for 2021? I just launched my new website, and I am starting a podcast on Instagram called "From the Desk of Claire Friday" (@fromthedeskofclairefriday). I am also going to continue to write and have my material published in various magazines and online journals. Right now, it is about staying relevant and finding ways to stay in the public eye until production comes back. I think we will see a roaring 20’s model for the comeback of the arts, entertainment, and events. Until then, you take one day at a time and do the best you can with what you have.

Claire Friday is an inspiring example of “If you love what you do, you never really work a day in your life.” Her passion, planning, hard work and vision have earned her credibility in the business world. Undoubtedly, Claire has a long future ahead in the industry. For more information on Claire, visit: www.clairefriday.com

A Night at the Musicabre Composed By: Matrell Wood Who does not know about the master of the macabre, Edgar Allan Poe? I cannot imagine anyone raising their hand and saying they have never heard of him or any of his works. Death and finality create suspenseful tales of darkness and woe, nonetheless, they remain entertaining. With entertainment comes innovation, and innovation breeds artistry. Artistry thrives in many forms when you are able to witness talents the likes of composer, actor, writer, and filmmaker Danny Ashkenasi. Ashkenasi is a German born American that grew up in a multicultural lifestyle. He went to a German/English school, walked both sides of their cultural norms, and learned a lot about life while he had his feet in two different worlds at once. His mother was an opera singer, so music followed him closely throughout his life. He told me that he could not remember a time that he did not love performing, but he did not become a composer until later in his life. Despite doing a whole lot of everything, Danny identifies himself, first and foremost, as a composer. Despite coming into composition farther down the road, it is the core of who he is and what he does. This culminated in his creation of The Tell-Tale Heart: A Musicabre. This is one of Edgar Allan Poe’s most universally known stories. As a dedicated fan of Poe, I have never seen it done quite like this. Take the dismal scene laid before you in The Tell-Tale Heart and add some music. This is not the grim drums and eerie background music you hear in some renditions. When the piece itself is turned into an awe inspiring and masterful musical performance, you are now witnessing the work of Danny Ashkenasi. The work was originally made for stage production, but with the ever-changing landscape that we have been accustomed to this past year, he morphed his vision into a screenplay. His musicabre aired during the Art is Alive Film Festival and was highly regarded (deservedly so), and thus, rewarded for its incredible production. However, he is not done with his walk down the dark path of Poe. He has already begun piecing together his next venture into the mind of the mad man. His next venture focuses on another of Poe’s popular works, The Pit and the Pendulum. He first got the idea for his music opera for The Tell-Tale Heart from a roommate he had in his early twenties. After bringing that story to life, he wanted to give it a companion piece that had the same depth and presence of the one man show. Hence, this is what drove him to choose this next project. Of course, this comes with its own set of difficulties and creative hurdles. One of the most complex was the creation of lyrics in Latin. They need to fulfill their intended purpose while fitting in this atmosphere, and of course, translate well to the song and overall performance. Danny Ashkenasi remains a man of many talents. Poe’s works are not the only pieces that he envisions bringing to life. I was particularly captured by a project he detailed to me about the renowned poet and social activist, Langston Hughes. Now you might be asking yourself, why would he want to tackle Langston Hughes’ works. The answer is something I can only hope reaches anyone willing to lend an ear. He embarked on an ambitious adventure – sifting through every single poem he could find by Hughes. He obtained the rights of use, and began putting together a story using Hughes’ poems. Ashkenasi wants to tell a tale that chronicled the world Hughes lived in and the issues he strove to bring out to the forefront. I, for one, am excited to see what Danny Ashkenasi brings to the table as he further refines his talents and brings his artistic visions to life. I will be the first in line to witness his Langston Hughes production, and I am incredibly excited to see The Pit and The Pendulum: A Musicabre. His ideas are fresh, and they are labors of love. Danny Ashkenasi is someone to keep your eyes on. For more on Danny, visit: https://dannyashkenasi.com/

Bikes and Beer – The Steven Fuller Interview Written By: Matrell Wood I know far too many people who state loudly and boldly that they absolutely HATE beer. Sometimes I think to myself - who can blame them? All they have ever had were the mainstream beers that never seem to improve in flavor or quality. Now, picture this, beer that does not taste like every other beer you have tried in the past. Have you ever heard of blueberry pancake beer? Steven Fuller, Owner and Operator of Wackadoo Brewing, might just blow your mind with the creations that he whips up in his brewery. Fuller generates all of these various flavors so as to go towards a good cause. Steven Fuller is a disabled veteran who served fourteen years in the Army, and is also an inspired independent biker. In April of 2019, he opened Wackadoo Brewing. Though he owns and operates the brewery, he actually works directly with the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Fountain, Colorado. Instead of opening his own tap room, he is the first ever in the country to open a brewery for a VFW post. Over the years, Fuller worked for multiple breweries. Though he did not have any real experience brewing before that, he is someone who strives to learn more about his mind’s fascinations. So, as he worked inside the breweries, he took on the challenge of learning everything he could about the business, the production, and the culture. After a discussion was had with his old roommates, it was decided that all of them no longer wanted to work for others. Hence, they chose to go into business together. Since the inception of the idea, Fuller has pursued his goals independently. For him, eighty hours a week is a slow week, but he loves what he does. He told me that when it came to mainstream beer companies, there was only one or two beer flavors available year-round. This was not the path he wanted to walk. So, he dove into craft beers that he brewed himself. He talked me through a large part of his process, but I would have to spend many years researching and practicing the skills he described to me. This makes his work that much more impressive. Now, since late spring of last year, Fuller has crafted thirty-four different beer recipes from scratch. According to him, he is incredibly happy (he says this with confidence) that he has never crafted a bad beer. This thirty-fourth recipe was a Hefeweizen that he had finished shortly before the day I was able to speak with him. Then, of course, there is the aforementioned blueberry pancake recipe, which was an imperial stout. Unfortunately, for those of us whose mouths water at the mention of a blueberry pancake beer, they do not serve this particular flavor. Since he possesses all of these recipes, he constantly changes what he has available on tap and keeps the lineup fresh and delicious. Despite doing all of this work, Fuller does not generate personal profits from his venture. Whatever he has made as a profit goes right back into the brewery and the VFW. His goal is to use this as a means to help others and not himself. Even while in the middle of his busiest time (his brewing Sundays), he holds an open class where others can come in and learn the tools and skills of the trade for free. They get direct hands-on experience so that they are able to use what they learn for themselves. If you get the chance, go grab yourself a craft beer from Steven Fuller. Also, on Veteran’s Day, Memorial Day, and Fourth of July, you can catch Fuller riding on his Harley Davidson Breakout, delivering beer to any veteran that contacts him. He is even crafting specialty red and blue beers that were requested for a Star Wars themed wedding. Whether brewing for others or riding his Harley for charity and other events, Steven Fuller is truly a pillar of his community. He is someone that should be recognized for the good he does, even though he undoubtedly would not personally ask that of anyone. Wackadoo Brewing can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/Wackadoo-Brewing-115002183540161/

J. Dixon Byrne: Lifelong Artist, Long Loved Actor Composed By: Michael Gentile

Many artists take a long, circuitous and sometimes painful route to rediscover their passion. Necessity notwithstanding, there are more than a few compelling reasons to put one’s artistic life on hold for a few decades and find contentment elsewhere. J. Dixon Byrne is one such journeyman who shared with me his unique spin on an old story, with refreshing results. From the start, Dixon seemed to claim the role of the late bloomer. It was not until junior year at Villanova that he joined their theater group and began serious studies. The late 60’s into the early 70’s was a vibrant time for the American Theatre, and Dixon and his fellow actors devoured the works of Ionescu, Beckett and many others. Shortly thereafter, Dixon hit a proverbial fork in the road and chose family and responsibility over art. An advertising office soon replaced the stage, yet Dixon managed to keep his hat in the ring. He continued his studies at H.B. Studios, performed in local theater productions when he could, and even managed a role as a mortician. He also picked up a producer’s credit for the feature film Clean, Shaven, which is now part of the Criterion Collection. One might think that such partial success would lead to frustration, but Dixon exudes none of this. He freely allows art to enrich his life whenever possible - enjoying the present for its own sake and not what might have been. He even managed to channel the loss of his son into something expressive and artistic by writing the memoir There’s a Person in Here in 2012. Poetry, short stories and a screenplay became part of his continued work. That year seems to have reignited a spark in his soul, and a renewed acting endeavor soon followed. Rather than making up for lost time, Dixon has a here and now approach to his acting. He keeps it as simple and honest as possible, embracing roles as varied as a mentally impaired husband and a suicidal clown. Throw in such character descriptions as alcoholic, unstable, twisted, tormented and plain old depressed, and you get the idea. One might call Dixon a natural character actor, but he eschews the term just as readily as he does leading man. Simply put, he is an actor. Yet, he is certainly aware of the odd cavalcade of characters that seem to find

him. He states “Disturbingly, it seems the roles I play focus on the unhinged. I wonder why that is? I think that I am drawn to scripts that offer me the opportunity to display what is missing in a person; to find the emptiness, the sadness, the conflicts, and possibly the last drop of hope that may reside deep inside a person’s psyche. Life can do that to you.” Saving the craziness for the characters he plays, Dixon’s calm, measured approach to the work and the business is paying off. Working with people sometimes a third of his age, he nonetheless gravitates towards directors like Michael Perrone, with whom he shares “a relentless pursuit of getting the story on film.” Relentless, indeed, and their third collaboration is the soon to be released feature, The Man Behind the Camera. In this picture, he plays a broken former Pulitzer Prize winning newspaper reporter who pursues a famous photographer that enjoys abusing his models. Perhaps earning repeat business is something Dixon perfected during his years in advertising, for another frequent collaborator is Sandeep Kumar, who directed him in the delightful comedy, Another Day in Manhattan. Playing a crusty old widower whose son convinces him to try speed dating was a welcome change of pace, earning him a Best Actor Award at the 2020 Art is Alive Film Festival. Neither man being inclined to rest on laurels, they are already in pre-production for their next film, Chasing William, and are patiently waiting for travel restrictions to ease. In Sandeep, he found a friend with similar views on life, which enriches their collaboration all the more. “For me, acting has many rewards. When working in collaboration with other actors, innovative directors, writers and a great crew, you have the opportunity to produce work that can actually change the person’s way of thinking and affect the trajectory of his or her life. I am extremely grateful for every opportunity that I have had to pursue this goal to help me to change lives for the better. That is what I plan to do in the future via film and theater.” It is worth mentioning that Dixon supports charities that enable others to realize their goals and assist the less fortunate. Hearts of Gold (heartsofgold.org) provides food, shelter and education to help mothers with children who are facing difficult challenges. On Broadway Performing Arts Training Program (onbroadway-patp.com) provides education and training for children ages five to eighteen in the theater arts. For more on J. Dixon Byrne, please visit: http://jdixonbyrne.com/

Film Review - The Assassin’s Apprentice Written By: Michael Haberfelner

Kaylee (Tarah Paige), assassin-in-training, is sent out on her first mission by her mentor (Star Trek: Voyager’s Robert Picardo), to kill a crime kingpin (Rico E. Anderson). She is instructed to use her female charms to move in closely enough, and then poison him. There is one problem though: Kaylee has only an hour to get to her target. She must pick up weapons and a suitable outfit along the way – and the traffic is jammed. So, she decides to handle things her own way and do the distance on foot using a (somewhat cheeky) drone as her guide. Said drone shows her the shortest way without taking into consideration that she cannot fly. Kaylee truly is a master in overcoming obstacles, and she manages to get her weapons and make it to the location aka a fancy bar on time – and appears absolutely stunning, too. So really, what could go wrong now? Well, whatever it is, it does ...

Of course, Trekkies will be pleased to see both Robert Picardo and Star Wars: The Next Generation’s sharing a credit (if not screen time) in this one, but it really is actress and stunt woman Tarah Paige’s movie. She is allowed to show off both her thespian and stunt skills here – and does so with quite some panache. The result is a very well put together, dynamically directed action tour-de- force based on a no-frills storyline. Nevertheless, it does allow for plenty of irony between the lines, and manages to surprise, despite its strictly straight-forward concept. In other words, it is actually pretty cool entertainment.

Further details can be found at: https://pro.imdb.com/title/tt6151014/

Film Review - Eli Written By: Taylor Peterke

With any short film, they can have the disadvantage of being too heavy handed with their message - or not saying enough given their time frame. Eli delivers a brutal glimpse into the horrors of war and the impact it can have on not just one specific person, but anybody unfortunate enough to witness it. This film does that and more without overstaying its welcome, but not lacking the bite of the truth behind what history has shown us.

The film shows us Eli, an elderly Jewish man in the waiting room of his doctor with a small array of other patients. Between his own personal demons and the rantings of a loud, foul mouthed woman also in the room, the experience gets extremely uncomfortable. The story escalates into a deep delving into the sad pasts of our waiting room patrons. Within roughly eleven minutes, director Colin Gerrard has shown us how the will to survive can be the connecting point to you and the person sitting next to you. It is a bold and brilliant peek into the psyche of several souls, and it is no surprise this project earned significant awards.

For more details on Eli, visit: https://www.7colliproductions.com/

Film Review - The Search for the Cheeseman Written By: Taylor Peterke

Few people can claim rock star and filmmaker on their list of credits, but Director Matthew Aird has accomplished that twice with stunning effects and strong song writing. The Search for the Cheeseman chronicles the twenty- year long journey of how Aird's passion project, Big Blue: A Fishy Tale came to life with the help of his friends and fellow bandmates. Aird was a longtime member of the Washington rock scene in the 1980's with bands such as Slutt Puppies and Sea City Dolls, so he surely has a strong background in the business. Aird and Company started with two scenes and a four page script for Big Blue, and it took over two years to put the story in place. For a variety of reasons, the film was shelved after completion of filming. It was his son's broken Gameboy that helped to renew Aird's passion to finally get his feature film remastered and released. In order to accomplish this, the entire cast and crew was contacted for legal reasons so the film could be shown publicly. The only problem was the Cheeseman could not be found. The eponymous Cheeseman was a character that was based on a real-life encounter. Aird had been outside a coffee shop when a mysterious stranger approached him so as to offer some cheese. He then vanished, and so the production could not be completed without finding this character.

Not only is The Search for the Cheeseman a no nonsense look at low budget filmmaking, but is also a film within the film Big Blue (currently still available for purchase). Further, there is an enormous amount of excellent indie rock performed by people who truly love the craft. The audience gets to see how Aird’s newest band, Vicious Kitty,was formed in the early 2000's by himself and former jam partners. We witness the performance of songs from Big Blue, and see the splendor it brought to the people of Buckley, Washington. This is the state in which it was filmed, and there is a plethora of pride held by the folks of this small town for this project. This is something every filmmaker aspires to experience. The Search for the Cheeseman is a nostalgic thrill ride I was honored to take. It not only satisfies my love of documentary filmmaking, but also profiles passionate people who are having a blast while making their dreams come true.

Updates on the film can be found via the Vicious Kitty website: http://www.viciouskitty.band/

Film Review - Florence Created By: Michael Haberfelner

Florence (Diane Kelber), a slightly wall-flowerish woman past her prime, has over the years become much a creature of habit. She has, without really realizing it, built a bubble around her to not let anyone (or really anything) new into her world. So, when the café across the street has run out of apricot jam, she finds this utterly irritating. After one of her daily trips to the café, she finds an anonymous love letter in her coat pocket - inviting her to a dance. Even though she has no idea who could have written this, she not only accepts the invitation, but also arranges to take dancing lessons. Florence unearths her old party dress from way back when so as to make sure she looks her prettiest for the occasion, but then the blind date does not go quite as planned...

Florence is a wonderfully unassuming movie that takes the slice-of-life approach to its story. It refrains from exaggerations, let alone spectacle, to keep things grounded. Instead, it is all the more touching for it in the process. This movie taps into similar emotions within all of us; even if our own stories might differ vastly from the film’s protagonist. Above that, one has to give the film credit for its uplifting ending, which sums up its heroine’s journey quite beautifully. Speaking of heroines, Diane Kelber does a great job of making what’s basically an “old spinster” role relatable without trying too hard for likeability. Her performance really makes this film so accessible, and in the end, also very compelling.

More information can be found at: http://florencethefilm.com

Vlad and Niki: Little Men Making Big Memories for Children Written By: Cindy Mich

The bond between two brothers is always a blessing, but in the case of Vladislav (Vlad) and Nikita (Niki), it also makes for a bountiful business. It takes a tremendous amount of time and a cluster of creativity to start and sell an online channel. However, for Victoria and Sergey, parents to the princes mentioned above, it was a task full of fun and making fond memories. From the onset, I am guessing this great family could not have predicted how wildly popular this program would get. As of this writing, Vlad and Niki are worldwide wonders on the web! To give some background, the Vashketous bunch did all the brainstorming for their business in their home country of Dubai. A simple start it was; with said parents shooting home videos of the boys. These were adorable adventures which eventually enveloped into a public platform where storytelling, being silly, and vlogging are on the daily agenda. Their official launch onto You Tube occurred in 2018, and the program would then take to publishing more concrete contact. Each episode was now a mixture of music, action and animation. There is a solid theme of sharing and togetherness interwoven within all shows. On select days, there are nursery rhymes nestled in, and what child would complain about hearing classics? Additionally, so as to pump up the “cute factor” for the channel, Vlad and Niki’s one year old brother Christian makes cameo appearances from time to time. If one has yet to turn on, or tune into, this program, let me introduce you to the two darlings who are the stars of the show. Vlad, the older child at eight years of age, is a second grader that is both an adventurous and competitive child. He enjoys soccer and water sports, along with kick boxing and hip-hop dancing. Niki, the five-year-old kindergartner, also has an array of creative and colorful hobbies. Food is fun for him, as he likes to cook and bake. Artistically, his passions are painting, singing and also dancing. Their regular routine has them more active than most adults I know! With all the life complications that children have endured of late, it is lovely to see some of them soaring. Vlad and Niki are currently on sixteen channels, with a total of thirteen translated languages. They hold a strong and steady subscriber base of over 152 million worldwide, with view in excess of 80 billion. They have added more consumer availability of their products by putting together a mobile app. Finally, if your children are online and cannot get enough of these brothers, there is a menagerie of merchandise available for offline use. Accessories include apparel, drinkware and in home items. To conclude, Vlad and Niki are little ones with a great deal to give to children of all ages, and in all countries. Their style of energetic entertainment will keep your kiddos engaged, excited and educated. I encourage all to try and tune in once or twice – for I promise it is impossible to not become an instant fan! For more on Vlad and Niki, visit: https://vladandniki.com/.

Interview with Publicist LaTonya MeChelle Composed by: Chezky Greenberger

LaTonya MeChelle is a publicist and CEO at TYGEREYEZ 360 MEDIA GROUP. Over the course of almost two hours, we spoke about her life, motivation, and LaTonya’s main focus: black American males.

Q: You wrote in your media kit that until someone experiences you, they do not know you. Can I claim to have experienced LaTonya MeChelle after this phone conversation we are about to have, or is the experience in- person only? Oh, don’t you worry about it; you will get the LaTonya MeChelle experience. I give my all to everyone with whom I encounter. Let me tell you something: we take everything for granted. Life, people; etc. We assume that everyone is okay and has a good life. I remember going to a store one time, and I happened to notice a punk rock girl. Unfortunately, there were all these people talking bad about her. So, I got behind her and started speaking to her. I told her I liked her outfit, her hair, and things like that. When we got to the register, she said “thank you.” I asked, “thank you for what?” She said, “I was about to go home and kill myself, and because of you, I forgot about it.” So, from that day forward, I talk to everyone. I will find the people who look crazy (like no one is talking to them), and strike up a conversation. It does not cost me a thing. I know that not everyone knows how to self-soothe, meditate, and make themselves happy. So, if I can help them, I am going to do that. There is no such thing as a stranger in my world.

Q: Does all this come to you naturally, or did it develop over time? Well, I was a military brat. We were moving all the time; my childhood was not very settled. I know what it means to be the oddball; moving from school to school to school and consistently being the odd one out. I know what it means to be alone, and no one should ever be alone. I was married for twelve years, and my ex-husband was abusive. I have dealt with low self-esteem, and was even homeless for a few years. I know the definition of hurt, and one can either choose to run from it or face it front and center. I went from having low self-esteem to people now thinking I have got the highest self-esteem. Well, I still have my down days and still self-sabotage, but I found a way to be happy. I had to go through stuff to become this way. I am the result of my experiences, both negative and positive. Now my thing is no matter where or how I meet you, you are going to remember how I made you feel. You will remember that for as long as we talked - you did not feel alone.

Q: Does it ever become difficult to hold the weight of so many people’s struggles? It can get overwhelming at times. I think you just need to learn to compartmentalize. You can listen and try to help people with their troubles, but you cannot let their woes become yours. You might never get out from under the grief, and that is a lot to live with every day. So, when it all gets to be too much sometimes, I just think about myself and how to insure I get enough care. Self-care is important. In general, the way I stay sane is by being incredibly honest and transparent. The great thing about being a military brat is that I was exposed to people of all races and creeds. Let me put it this way: I am going to respect you more as a person if you say “I don’t like you because you’re black” - if that is your truth. As long as you do not do anything disrespectful, I would rather you be honest with me; even if is uncomfortable to hear. I love when people state their uncomfortable truths. This allows me to then say: if they do not like black people, well, why don’t you like black people? Maybe then we have a productive conversation. At first, one of my good friends in the military, Marty, did not like me. One day, we sat down and talked. He told me that he had never been around black people, and that blackness made him uncomfortable. After further discussions, we eventually became great friends. No real change can come until we are willing to be honest with ourselves and each other. Communication is everything.

Q: What do you say to people who ask “why are you so focused on black men”? My response would be: because they are some of the most overlooked people in the world. Everyone overlooks them, including black women. So, I will continue to showcase positive stories of black men until I change the cultural perception of them.

Q: What I find so incredible is how you talk openly about having your reasons to think bad about black men. How did you overcome your own biases and experiences to rearrange your view of black men? You know what – it is still an ongoing thing. I think that when I started highlighting black men, I was doing it for them as well as myself. If I look at all the things I have suffered from in my life, a lot of it has been because of a black man. So, naturally, there was a time when I had no respect for black men. Then, I came back to my basics: the worst thing in the world is to be going through something alone and having no one to understand you. Unfortunately, most people do not understand me. I am a misfit. Now imagine being a misfit in society and at your job; unable to get out from under a pervasive and destructive misrepresentation of your type. That is what black men are dealing with today, and I wish to change that narrative. The trouble I am having is that some of these men have never had anyone believe in them in their entire life. They never had someone showing them how they can live a good life. Further, it is hard for them to trust that it is true... to trust that what I am saying about their strength is true.

Q: What is it like for you—a deep nuanced person—to exist in a world that is predominantly shallow and obtuse? Sometimes, I’m telling you, I feel like ET. There are perks to being this way. For example, I never allow myself to hate people. I will always try and understand the motivations of others, even if they wronged me personally. Hate is draining, so once I learned how to love, I made sure I would never hate again.

Q: What is it most people do not know about you that you want them to know? I am really a nerd and quite shy. I really suck at putting myself out there. People assume I do so without any issues, but the truth is I am full of anxiety. I happened to be comfortable in this interview because it feels more like a deep conversation. However, the norm finds me being crazy nervous and constantly overthinking.

Q: What do you mean when you say “life was never meant to be hard”? Is that another way of saying we, as humans, spend most of our time getting in our own way?

Yes! Life is not meant to be so hard. We make it worse for ourselves by getting in our own way. We are so judgmental and quick to hate. We have to unlearn some things taught to us by our parents and society.

Q: You said in an interview that if you had to define yourself in one word, it would be love. What do you say to skeptics who say human beings simply are not capable of genuinely loving everyone? That, to claim to love everyone, you must either redefine love or become something other than human? Maybe, I am something other than human.

Q: You talk about highlighting “everyday heroes.” You even joke in one of your speeches that you have no time for the Lebron James’ of the world. How did you become so interested, sensitive, and in-tune to the everyday grinders (the quote-on-quote laypeople) who are just going about their lives? They are the most inspiring to me. Everyone looks up to celebrities, and that is fine. However, there are so many heroes that nobody knows about who are just going about their lives. I think, in the end, that their stories are the most inspiring because they are also the most relatable. Most of us are not celebrities. I just think the everyday heroes are the important ones.

Q: What did you think of the film One Night in Miami? Oh wow, I loved that movie. It was straight inspiration. It was a great exhibition of four iconic black men discussing serious issues. They were capable of disagreeing with each other and continuing to remain brothers. It was a very self-aware, beautiful film. Anyway, I am a huge fan of Mohamad Ali. I love that guy!

Q: How have the events of 2020 affected your work, and what are you looking forward to in this new year? 2020 has just made me a better person. It motivated me. I lost some people close to me, and that was hard. Yet, you just got to push through. If you are not coming out of 2020 having learned a few things about yourself, who you really are, and what you want to do with your life... there is something wrong with you. In many ways, 2020 was my best year. I grew a lot. My main business is TYGEREYEZ 360 MEDIA GROUP. We do branding/media relationships. For example, people come to me wanting to start a magazine, and I help them through all the steps of actually getting that done. However, my main focus right now is Black Men Worldwide, which is a concierge service for black men. We help them in business and in their love life—which is my personal favorite. It is more or less a one-stop-shop for a black man looking to better his life.

Further information on LaTonya can be found at: www.latonyamechelle.com

BOOK REVIEW: STANDING ON PRINCIPAL Written by: Chezky Greenberger

Frank Vetro is not a writer, nor does he claim to be one. Writing and publishing an autobiographical book while still in his thirties was never high on his list of prominent ambitions. Well, not until 2006, at which time he experienced the sudden vitriolic dismantling of his life. Vetro was subjected to the muddled byzantine corruption of the United States’ legal system. Frank wrote Standing on Principal because he had no choice. That is not to say some external power or compelling peripheral threat made him write an almost three-hundred-page book. This driving force came from deep inside. Standing on Principal is, in summary, an account of Vetro’s battle with the Suffolk County Police Department and the friends, colleagues, and associates who collaborated to destroy him. However, it is also a raw, detailed and earnest piece of personal work. Vetro explores his childhood and the lessons he learned from a blue-collar immigrant dad who never had much in the way of emotions or expressiveness. This only makes Vetro’s writings more powerful as to perspective. He describes his younger self as hotheaded and temperamental; yet loyal with a stiff, unmoving, justice-seeking backbone. Frank credits his Tae Kwon Do training as a youngster for teaching him mental discipline and emotional fortitude. These traits ultimately aided him in coping with the public government's assault on his life, reputation, and career. Being an unstoppable force for good is the thematic spine of Vetro’s work. This makes the following excerpt exceedingly more poignant: “I found myself speaking about my life in the past tense, telling stories from years ago, as if my life was over; as if I were about to die. There was just nothing new to speak about on a daily basis. It was the same negative stuff every day. It had been years since I could bring something new to a conversation. Unlike everyone else, I wasn’t promoted at work, no one would even hire me. I didn’t get engaged or married. I wasn’t lucky enough to have children and brag about their firsts. I didn’t buy a new gadget to show everyone and compare. I didn’t go on vacation and take pictures to share with everyone. New York State had collectively beat me to the ground, took away what little I had left, and were trying to completely erase me from existence. That was my life—slowly and surely, I was dying. Fade to black?” Of course, Vetro has not, nor will he ever, fade to black. Standing on Principal is not a perfect book, nor is its author a perfect person—and says as much. Still, within these pages, he succeeds in communicating his sense of helplessness and frustration with a toxic system. The powers that be who propose to sanctify “right” and penalize “wrong”, yet seem to have a difficult time differentiating between the two sides. Reduced to ruins and pronounced guilty before being given an answer as to exactly what he supposedly had done. Compelled by a raging need for justice, Frank Vetro has authored a book that is full of honesty, hopelessness, and helplessness. It is also a story of survival and strength. It will enrage, engage and empower its audience. A plus on all accounts. To purchase a copy, visit: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/standing-on-principal-frankvetro/1123448809

NEW VINTAGE CHURCH New Vintage Church in West Allis, Wisconsin exists to invite people to know Jesus, grow in their love for him, and go out to share his message. This non-denominational entity desires that people will experience a life filled with overflowing peace and joy, purpose, and meaning. New Vintage runs on the beliefs that we have unity and liberty, and that we show love in all we practice. This splendid spot is run by Lead Pastor Paul Bartelme, who also specializes in marriage counseling and coaching. He is the author of the books “Fear Less” and “Pauper to Prince”, and creator of the “Called to Be Fearless” TV Program. Outside of Paul, there are six other team members that assist him in running this remarkable house of worship. Every week, the Church offers an array of activities for the whole family, including movies, fellowship, prayer meetings and Sandwich Sundays. As far as for the children, they are provided Kids Church as the adults assemble to continue their prayer service. The youth of the community meet monthly at different locales so as to safely work through their separate struggles. The Church ensures that every age is provided for spiritually and socially.

Services are held each Sunday at 10am. Pastor Paul is praying that you will stop by and see him. For more details on the Church, visit: https://newvintagewi.org/

EPIFANO DESIGNS PHOTOGRAPHY

ARTIST BIO: Ashley Epifano is the Owner of Epifano Designs. She went to secondary school for Graphic Design & Illustrations. She has made it her mission to survive, despite so many ups & downs. A few years ago, Epifano began to fully embrace the field of photography. This art form has allowed Ashley to learn and grown so much, but she keeps pushing herself to do bigger and better things. Her self-description is simply a go getter who never gives up; accepting life as is. To view her art, please visit: https://m.facebook.com/EpifanoDesigns/

THE ARTWORK OF ANGELICA ALTORO

ARTIST BIO: My name is Angelica Altoro, and I am sixteen years old. I was born in the Philippines, but raised here in America! Ever since I was little, my family and I would do cute little art projects or even just paint and draw together for fun. As I grew older, art became one of my biggest hobbies due to these projects. Also, my Father and Grandfather have art as a main hobby as well. I became inspired by my family, and then decided I wanted to become an artist just like them. Fast forwarding to now, art is one of my favorite things to do and ways to express myself. I now wish to keep art with me as I grow.

“Spanish Landscape” They almost run over my feeling in corners of the soul. A chauffeur yells insults at me, to the love that I live dying. Slowly smiled my frustration. I am disorienting streets; with a stuttering grin I advance. I show lacerating marks; defeats suffered, loving you, heaped lies of the soul on the day of being me without you Justified causes emerge; battles lost yesterday. Forgetful moments like yellowed papers; Punishing playful resources; those marginalized chances Sublime adventure is to see you; meet you in Benidorm, Your complexion, Caribbean sun, dazzling glances; Eager for your Latin curves, spirited full lips; Hips dragging desires, sensual cadence in your body. Where you say indifferent ... goodbye, in traces of cosmic dust that do not go to the insomniac heart; Suffering Mediterranean pain in shattered homo sapiens.

ARTIST BIO: Juan Carlos Pairol Perez is a writer and poet in Caracas. At age sixteen, he won the first prize for poetry "Concurso 17 de Abril", from the Air Force. Perez has participated in various literary events as an international lecturer. He is a Specialist in Conservation and Reconstruction of Architectural Works and Cultural Assets. His profession has him setting up exhibitions and biennials of international culture. Additionally, he is Advisor to the Vice Ministry of Culture, and has acted as Theater Producer of the group "Galiano 58". To view his work, visit: desgarresjohndelawton.blogspot.com

Clio Coffee Brewer

Many of us are unable to manage well in the morning without a crisp cup of coffee. The makers of the Clio Brewer want every single serving you make at home to be of the highest quality. Apparently, they are succeeding, as they were named one of the top ten coffee makers in 2020. Nice notch on the belt for any small business owner. How does one go about making an almost perfect cup of java? Well, the secret is: a clever combination of high-pressure brewing, double filter pods, and the best coffee beans. Northern Italy serves as the source for hand roasting, and this results in five fabulous coffee brands. You pick your favorite brand that has been placed in individual filter pods, and let the brewing begin! One can delight in a cup of iced coffee, latte, or double espresso, day or night. Pod subscriptions are available from $9.99 to $39.90. The Brewer comes in either red or white, and is available on both the website or Amazon for $129. There is no membership fee, and customers can sign up either automatic payments or pay as you go. For any first order, there is a twenty percent off discount given at checkout by using the code first20. For more information, visit: https://www.cliocoffee.com/

Hirsch’s Everyday Essentials

One of the nicest novelties of the last four years has hailed from New Jersey, and was invented by a man named Max Hirsch. Hirsch’s Everday Essentials was started in 2017, and the line itself consists of a number of luxurious and sustainable nine-ounce curated candles. The process of production starts in South Carolina, where chandlers mold these magical candles by hand. Each product has a mixture of soy wax, plant derived fragrance oils, and cherry wood wicks. Every item is one hundred percent organic and natural in nature. Essentials come in either single sizes or bundles, and are sold in glass that is recyclable. The logo placed on every product reminds consumers that they can expect the very best. A few examples of types are lemon and verbena, lavender and bergamot, and coconut and basil. As to pricing, you can count on spending anywhere from thirty-six to one hundred and twenty-five dollars. These treasures are currently only available online, and all stock is shipped to you for free. For more information on Hirsch’s, see: https://hirschsessentials.com/

Ben Bridge Jeweler In a day and age where family businesses are becoming more absent, it is so refreshing to see that Ben Bridge Jewelers is truly thriving. In eleven states, they have been able to help couples and consumers celebrate special moments. Five generations of sales people bringing shine and sparkle to so many souls is truly an amazing accomplishment. As expected, BBJ offers a plethora of rings for life events such as engagements, weddings, and anniversaries. However, they also provide his/her gifts, watches, Pandora products, earrings and bracelets. Switching over to services, they can custom design jewelry, cleaning/inspection, engraving, repairs (including items from other stores), and appraisals. Ben Bridge is also atypical for a few more reasons outside of the aforementioned facts. In one year, this organization donated $600,000 to various charities. They offer a virtual education on purchasing jewels, and two times a year, they produce their own publication entitled Timeless Magazine. As it relates to discounts, any shopper spending over $50 will receive free shipping for their orders. A gorgeous gift box is provided for each purchased product. Further, customers do have the option of payment plans via a charge account with Ben Bridge. Finally, they will take diamond trade-ins at any time. For more information, see: https://www.benbridge.com/

Enhance By Nature

One of the most sensitive parts of our physical makeup is skin. For the last five years, Jameelah Shamsidden has run Enhance By Nature, which is an organic skin care line whose scents are solely comprised of essential oils. Ms. Shamsidden’s intention is to encourage self-love and self-care for both her own family and a billion others. Strengthening the look and feel of one’s skin is of top priority to the Owner. Thus, she uses superfoods and plantbased products that have been known to keep the body healthier and happier. Moreover, it is proven that this line is meant to boost one’s mood. Select from a sizable number of smells, such as Oatmeal Honey, Passionfruit, Lemon Cream Sea Moss and more. The various types of skin products she sells include body butters/soaps/scrubs, facial/hair care and bath bombs. If you are big on being budget conscious, then Enhance is an exact fit for you. Inventory is priced starting at three dollars, and does not exceed twenty-four dollars. Free shipping is offered for anyone that spends over one hundred dollars. Their current special is thirty percent off the February collection, which includes the special Black History Month soaps (Soul Nation & and United We Stand) and Valentine’s Day & Apple of My Eye soap and candle set. Finally, for the busier bees, they offer the option to buy gift cards in twenty-five-dollar increments. To find Enhance by Nature online, go to: NaturallyEverythingForLife.com

ShopWorn

Have you ever wanted to own a luxurious wardrobe without breaking your bank account? Well, Shop Worn is an e-commerce platform that sells retail products at a hugely reduced rate. The owners have built a business from providing minimally blemished products to the population. When the likes of the New York Times are featuring your endeavors, then you know that you are considered the elite!

All pieces are one hundred percent authentic, and to back up this claim, the company insists on using an in-house photographer to shoot images of all inventory. As a purchaser, you are the first to own any item, and the bosses do their best to keep a high volume of brand variety in-house. Moreover, there is more than just clothing in their collection. They offer things such as jewelry, handbags, belts, wallets, pens and eye wear. At present, their product price points start around $500 and extend beyond $4,500.

There is free shipping offered for each order. Regularly, there are flash sales offered, which are short term promotions that offer deeply discounted savings on merchandise. Finally, there are clearance items available all year.

All ShopWorn items are available online at: https://www.shopworn.com/