Stacyverb

Mom & Dad's wet Atlanta weekend

My folks visited from PA last weekend, and unfortunately, the weather here was the worst we've had all spring. And of course we had tickets to some outdoor events. But we didn't let the downpour stop us!

Saturday night: Willie Nelson (a family favorite) at Chastain Park Amphitheatre. Who would've predicted we'd need coats and wool hats for an outdoor show in Atlanta in May? We really lucked out because our seats were some of the very few at Chastain that are covered. We only got wet getting to and from the car.

 

Sunday afternoon: Braves vs. Mets at Turner Field. Braves won! The weather was actually pretty nice during most of the game, but it did start raining during the later innings. Again, we just happened to have seats that were covered, so we were able to watch the game in comfort.

Slimy weather or not, a good time was had by all!

Mondays on the Beltline

Lately on Mondays (our day off), Anthony and I have been taking long walks on the Atlanta BeltLine. Based on an old rail corrider that circles the city, the Beltline is transforming those abandoned rail trails into a network of parks and paved paths connecting dozens of neighborhoods.

The BeltLine is a great place to walk, run, bike, skate, whatever. It's amazing to be able to walk from all the way from, say, Inman Park to Piedmont Park, and not even feel like you've worked all that hard. The paths make it so easy and pleasant to get around, without having to dart across busy streets or wait at crosswalks. You just get on the trail and GO!

Here are some sights from today's walk on the Eastside trail.

Piper the cat and her (his?) mailbox, as seen on CNN and elsewhere.

 

Piper was amenable to some hands-on attention after we plied her (him?) with Greenies.

Paris on Ponce is always a good place to stop for a restroom break, not the least of which is because of Marie Antoinette here:

 

Isn't she amazing? Her dress and incredible wig are all made out of cut paper. I need to find out more about her. All I know is I have to pass by her to get the restroom in Le Maison Rouge (any excuse to go to Le Maison Rouge!).

Watch for more photos from the BeltLine in future posts!

Happy Record Store Day!

For some people, Record Store Day is a chance to grab all the special releases, either to collect or to sell on eBay. For others, it's a day to re-visit youthful times spent discovering exciting musical gems.

For me, it's neither of those things. In my rural childhood, we got our records at Zayre or the BX. Shopping for music was something we did while out buying socks, or on the way back from getting groceries at the commissary. In my teen years, we lived in a suburban area where I thought I was hot shit because I had easy access to a mall. The mall contained a Musicland --just a crappy corporate chain staffed by random people who needed whatever job they could find, but I wasn't thinking about any of that at the time. I was just impressed that there was a whole store devoted to nothing but music!

I don't think I had much experience at all with independently owned record stores until I moved to Atlanta in 1994. Really, I just hadn't had been exposed to such a thing. When I moved here and suddenly had not one but two shops in my own neighborhood, it was a whole new experience for me. You could ask the clerk about something, and they would be knowledgeable. You could casually mention some song you loved 15 years ago, and they would offer to track down a copy for you.

So to me, Record Store Day isn't about the thrill of hunting for exclusives or the nostalgia of reliving days gone by. It's about celebrating the fact that I have access to such places. Supporting small businesses. Being part of a community. Running into friends, drinking a beer, enjoying a spring day, and listening to a band. Discovering new music and handing my cash to a person, instead of just clicking my mouse and making Apple richer.

(Don't get me wrong, I do download music sometimes. But not if I have other options. Downloading doesn't help my neighbors pay their bills. And there's no ceremony in it. I often remember the circumstances around buying a physical record or CD--where I was, who I was with, what the weather was like, what else I did that day. But I never have lasting memories of the experience of downloading something.)

If you're lucky enough to have access to indie music stores, please support them today and every day!

Sunny and surreal

It was another beautiful spring weekend in the ATL! I am loving it. Especially because my sweetie just finished up a huge freelance job, so he has more time to goof off now. We spent Sunday afternoon at one of our favorite places, the Atlanta Botanical Garden.

 

Tulips and flowering trees were out in full force, and the Chihuly fountain was sparkling in the sunshine.

 

LOVED these tulips in hot colors. (I planted tulips once. Squirrels stole my bulbs. *shaking fist* Damn you, squirrels!!!)

 

Woody trunk of a wisteria vine. Impressive, huh? The wisteria wasn't blooming yet. It seems a bit late this year. The trees in our neighborhood are usually dripping with it by now.

 

This strange-looking tree reminded me of something out of a Tim Burton movie. I couldn't get close enough to its little label to see what it's called. Anybody know?

These umbrellas and upside-down flower pots were part of the Orchid Daze: Surreal Beauty exhibit.

 

Ditto these colorful shoe planters in the trees in the orchid house.

 

Not part of the surrealism exhibit, but a just plain gorgeous orchid.

 

Two goofballs enjoying the beautiful day together. I hope you all are having some wonderful days, too. Make the most of them!

Spring in Oakland Cemetery

The other day Anthony and I happened to be driving past historic Oakland Cemetery and we decided it was a great day to take a walk around there.

I'm not into cemeteries as a rule, but Oakland is a such an interesting feature of the city and a lovely place to walk around admiring monuments, landscaping, and city views.

Yes, the sky was really this blue. I love the light in Atlanta at this time of year, before the air gets so hazy with pollen and humidity.

Much like last weekend when I got on a roll with tail light photos, on this day I became obsessed with...mausoleum doors. (Click to embiggen.)

Now, I'm not a tour guide or a history expert, so I actually have no idea who any of these grand monuments belong to. But if you'd like to do more than casually admire Oakland Cemetery, they have a very informative web site, and for those of you who are local or plan on visiting Atlanta, they offer guided tours and other community events.

 

Here's one of my favorite sights in the cemetery. This mausoleum is so over the top, and I love the weird combination of Gothic architecture and landscaped...cacti?? Plus, this is such a cool view, with the MARTA track running behind it in the distance (and yes, I purposely did wait to take this shot until a MARTA train went by).

 

Here's a peek through the ironwork doors to the inside of the mausoleum.

 

And here's a shot of the gargoyles guarding it from the tower. (I don't know who "Richards" was, but I'm gonna go ahead and guess, "a rich white guy.")

So there you have it--a beautiful April day in Oakland Cemetery. It's a wonderful place to spend an afternoon, whether you visit for the history, the architecture, or just for some peaceful exercise.

Opening day

Here's what you do when you can't be at the stadium for the first game of the season.

Game on the radio, hot dogs & fries from Skip's, beer from The Beer Growler. And during the seventh inning stretch, I'll be busting out the mandolin for a little "Take Me Out To The Ball Game." Feel free to sing along.

GO BRAVES!!!

Brunch and chrome

Happy Easter to those of you celebrating it! We don't make a big deal out of it in our household, but it was a great day nonetheless.

One of our favorite comfort food spots, Our Way Cafe, hosted an Easter brunch that was totally scrumptious. They don't normally do brunch, but today's event was such a huge success, I'm hoping they'll make it a regular thing. Here we are enjoying our eggs, home fries, Pine Street Market bacon, biscuits, and gravy. Not to mention the cupcakes for dessert!

 

Meanwhile, in the parking lot, vehicles were gathering for an antique car parade. After brunch, we had a great time checking out all the cool cars.

 

Groovy grills!

 

Assorted old timey vehicles.

 

The pest control truck was made by a guy, from scratch! (You can just make a car?? Mind. Blown.) I was in love with that blue Ford on the bottom. I wanted Anthony to cause a distraction so I could steal it.

 

This cutie pie is Chumley. How he managed to restore this car with no thumbs, I have no idea, but he did a great job. Let's take a closer look at that tailfin....

 

Wow. I'm not generally a big fan of fins on cars, but these tail lights were spec.tac.ular. Then I became obsessed with taking pictures of taillights.

 

So many interesting design variations! One lady noticed me taking pictures of taillights and commented that people don't usually notice them, and that hood ornaments are the most popular subject for photos. Here I hope I've given these beautiful taillights the attention they deserve.

By far, though, the most jaw-dropping taillights had to be the ones on this (1958?) Mercury.

AMAZING.

Another angle.

 

Back view of the Mercury. I wish I'd gotten a shot of the whole car, because it was INSANE. Huge and shiny and full of all these weird, fabulous details.

So that was our Easter Sunday, non-Eastery though it was. I hope you all had a great day!

Title goes here

It's ridiculous how often I start to write a blog post, but then I can't think of a clever title, so I procrastinate writing the post. Anyway, title or not, it's time to catch you up on some things!

Last weekend was the official Grand Re-Opening party at my work. It was a great success! We had a big crowd and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.

Me and my workmates, in a rare moment when we're all together at the same time. After this photo, we declared that all staff meetings from now on must include champagne.

 

We had refreshments galore.  The customers seemed to appreciate our attempts to ply them with snacks and beverages.

 

DJ Lopi (aka my hubby) provided entertainment for the evening. Please note that he--a human--is sitting on the floor to create his playlist, while shop cat/diva Bibi hogs the furniture.

Also last weekend, Anthony and I went to the preview of the Frida & Diego exhibit at the High Museum. It was a perfect day to be inside at the museum, as we narrowly missed getting drenched in a downpour.

Not shown: me, almost having to be bodily removed from the exhibit. We were in the last room when the museum staff announced that they were closing for the day and we needed to proceed to the exit. I proceeded as slowly as possible, until I was the last person in there, and Anthony had to peek back around the corner past the security guard to tell me to get a move on.

What can I say? I was caught up in the moment. Frida's art is a great inspiration to me. That should probably be a whole post in and of itself for another day.

Judging from comments and messages I've received, the burning question on everyone's mind seems to be: did I finish the Library Dress? Yes, I did, and I wore it on Anthony's birthday as planned. But (of course there's a but) I'm not totally happy with the fit, so I want to make some adjustments before the dress makes its blog debut.

Finally, thanks to all of you who have asked about my wrist. It is gradually getting better. The main problem is that, using a wheelchair, I rely on my arms so much. So I don't really have the option of giving my wrist the total rest it needs to heal. Very frustrating. In the meantime, I continue to wear my brace, and I'm not in pain, so I just keep on keeping on!

Movin' on up (the street)

This week has been CRAZY, people. Mostly with good stuff, like a friend visiting from out of town. And finally getting a diagnosis for our senior cat, Mimi--she has diabetes! The vet says it should be totally manageable, but we're still getting used to the new routine of her special food and insulin (more about all that in another post).

It's all a lot to deal with while mainly, during everything else, my days have been filled with this:

My workplace has officially moved out of our old space and into the new. We're not re-open yet because, well, relocating is a huge undertaking. We work hard all day every day, and by nighttime it looks like we haven't even made a dent. But we have! We really have! And when we're done, it will be awesome.

Gotta go--there are more shelves to be moved and boxes to be unpacked!

And then my sinuses exploded

The other day, Anthony and I were strolling up to the market and I was admiring the many gorgeous morning glories that were growing wild along the way.

So many different colors, greeting the sun and making the beautiful morning even more beautiful...

...just winding themselves among the weeds, doing their thing.

We bought our groceries and trekked back toward home.  But apparently while we'd been inside the market, the county or whoever had come along and mowed down all the weeds along the side of the street, along with many of the morning glories. 

After that, everything is pretty much a blur of ragweed particles, snot, and allergy meds.  I basically spent the next several days recovering from this brief little outing.  It was worth it, though.  I'm glad I got some shots of these beauties before they got mowed under, and before my vision went all blurry and teary.