Atlanta Metblogs » kendall

Those Crazy Canadians

kendall — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 16:25:28 +0000

Are you an ex-pat from our border to the north? Do you pronounce “about” as “aboot”? Do you have a poster of Bob and Doug McKenzie hanging in your room?

If so, I’ve got the event for you.

via http://atlcanadians.com/, the 2nd Annual Canada Day Celebration will be held tomorrow - Saturday, June 30th - from 3pm until close @ Meehan’s in Sandy Springs. Eh.

The 6 P’s

kendall — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 15:03:12 +0000

Michael Moore’s new flick “Sicko” has it’s sneak preview tomorrow night at the Midtown Arts Cinema.

And? So? I bet you’re tilting your head like the RCA dog. Stop it. Your neck will stick like that.

Lemme splain the obvious conflict. Traffic? Near the park? This weekend? For a movie that’s not Sordid Lives (that’s playing tonight, darlings) or Mommie Dearest? Please. You couldn’t pay me to drive through that.

HOWEVAH, if you live walking distance and want to grab a ticket to take in the flick then report back : Yeay you! Here’s the linkie.

Mmmmm. Beer.

kendall — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 14:18:00 +0000

I’m in the process of acclimating to semi-suburban life and it’s not going well, so I called a friend who also lives in the hood and she suggested we meet up for a beer tasting at Muss and Turner’s, right in ourveraownbackyard.

I was excited to see her and try something new, but as a person who doesn’t drink beer I was skeptical that I’d enjoy the event. On the other hand, it was only $12 which is half the cost of having your lip waxed and it promised to be - at a minimum - more fun than that.

It’s a good thing I don’t get paid for predicting the future or I’d be broke.

Rick is the resident bartender and a true brew historian at Muss & Turners in Smyrna. I was wow’ed by the depth of his knowledge, his preparedness (a ballot, a map and a sheet documenting the beverages we were tasting as a take-away) and his ability to built a rapport with everyone at the table…including me. Which really - let’s face it - is a challenge for anyone.

I walked in knowing nothing about beer other than Guinness has less calories than other beers and I walked out (slightly tipsy) and knowing about IPA’s and why they’re hoppy, what hops were originally used for, fermenting with slate, and a bunch of other stuff that’s going to be really annoying for someone in a bar one day when I get sloppy drunk next to them.

After the tasting we stuck around for a bite (at a discount since we attended the tasting) and I was pleasantly surprised by that too. Whodda thunk they’d have 3 kinds of pickles to choose from? Whodda thunk they’d have drool-a-riffic Ritz dressing on their turkey sandwich? Not me, but hell if I didn’t gobble ‘em both up. (Get it?)

This was a fantastic experience in a nice, clean, quiet environment. Based on my experience here, I’d suggest any of their three current offerings if you’re looking for something a little different and not too far away or if you find yourself in Smyrna and looking for something to do. Their offerings in addition to a bar, deli and restaurant: wine tasting, beer tasting, and food education.

http://www.mussandturners.com/

Authors note: this is a blatent (slightly edited) repost of a review I’ve posted on Yelp!

Whiskey Tango Dogwood?

kendall — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 23:21:07 +0000

As Steve just blogged, the Dogwood Festival is this weekend, but what in the fine print is this?

My friend Stacey (I

And another thing…

kendall — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 15:20:08 +0000

Riddle me this, Batman - why the ‘ell are hair salons in Atlanta closed on Sunday and Monday?

It’s bad enough these businesses are closed Sunday when a bijillion ‘Mercins are out running errands and have the day off but that one I get on account of …blue laws? But really, Sunday and Monday? What about Tuesday and Wednesday? Or Monday and Tuesday? Or even just Sunday but half staff every other Monday?

I don’t understand why not only are my options for dining out grossly limited on Monday but now my already horrible hair has to suffer along with my tummy?

It’s just not right.

OTP Stuffs

kendall — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 00:48:50 +0000

Yeah yeah I know it’s Atlanta Metblogs, but I read it in the AJC so it’s like hearing from your cousins plumbers brother about Ferris passing out at the 31 Flavors at Peachtree Battle last night, so it mostly counts mmkay? It’s Atlanta-lite. Vicinity-ish.

So I’m minding my own business over brunch at Manuel’s which PS is one of the best kept secrets in the Hot Hot in the event you didn’t read my Yelp! write up about it and The Boyfriend is reading the paper and he slips me the travel section to distract me from effing with his coffee by dropping things in it. There in that pretty dirty grey print that didn’t rub off on my fingers was something called the Southeast Calendar. Well well. What have we here?

We have these two bits I scribbled an asterisk next to:

Macon
May 4-6
Macon Gardens, Mansions and Moonlight 2007
www.hayhouse.org

Warwick (there’s a Warwick ,GA?)
April 14
The 10th Annual Grits Festival
www.gritsfest.com

If only they were combined and there was a ghost walk and some swimming with turtles, I could go and die happy and then be flash frozen at one of those cryopreserving places and woken up in 20 years to do it all over again…

Competition is good, but…

kendall — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 20:05:49 +0000

I see boutique banks popping up everywhere, most recently with this gem delivered to my mailbox.

The Private Bank of Buckhead, which opened to customers December 12, will hold a grand opening celebration Thursday, February 8.

Now don’t get me wrong - I believe that there should be options other than the SunTrust’s and Wachovia’s and Bank of America’s, but there’s something in the back of my brain that’s tingling and whispering “Savings and Loan” and that there should be more parties open to the public offering free food and/or drink. Hell if I remember what the S&L scandal was all about or if it’s even fair to throw that out as a related thought because frankly I’m too damn lazy to look it up - but I will say that there’s something about this that makes me a little nervous (don’t give me any FDIC blah blah, I know all about it).

I’ve seen at least a dozen of these little guys sprout out of nothingness around town and in the ‘burbs recently and I’m really sincerely wondering: what’s the deal?

Where do you think you’re going?

kendall — Sat, 27 Jan 2007 18:51:56 +0000

Look at me when I’m typing to you, Zoo Atlanta. What’s this BS I hear about you picking up and moving out of Grant Park? What do you mean, what do I mean? Someone told me you’re thinking about moving to Lakewood. What do you mean, who? Does it matter?

Why would you want to move out of town after all these years? There’s no such thing as a geographical solution, you know. You can just run away from your problems and think that it’ll all be different with a change of scenery.

You’d be moving from 35 acres to 120, you say? I can see where that would be enticing. And a lake on the property? Sure. 800 parking spaces ready to go, you say? Have you ever even drawn that many people? Do you think you will? Right, right…the baby panda.

Well, if you want to go, I’m not going to stop you. I understand that being in the same spot for over 100 years can get a little old, really, I do. And I know that if I’m going to convince you I care, I should visit more often… but we’ll always have that day in the summer of ‘98…

(Footnote: if you have no idea what the hell I’m talking about, read the AJC article)

Breaking the rules

kendall — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 20:25:25 +0000

I’m not sure this is Atlanta specific (and therefore shouldn’t be posted here) but I’m seeing it all over town and I’m too damn lazy to look up the rules myself so I thought I’d just bear the gaping hole in my chest where a heart should be and ask: exactly how long are we going to fly all these flags at half mast?

Atlanta’s Second Gift to the World

kendall — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 12:30:09 +0000

Atlanta’s second gift to the world has been known to frequent a in Augusta during The Masters.

In 2002, as a member of the faculty at Emory University, he won the Nobel Peace Prize “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.”

The foundation established by he and his wife aims to “wage peace, fight disease and build hope”. He’s recently published a new book called “America’s Moral Crisis” and has an immaculately landscaped “Center” named after him tucked into a fork in the road. A road built (presumably) in his honor. A road called Freedom Parkway, also called the Presidential Parkway.

Still stumped?

Then you’re an idiot unworthy of the peanuts I want to throw at you.

Our second gift is Jimmy Carter, a man who made human rights a priority in his life after office. He didn’t sit back in a wingback chair smoking fat cigars and making a mint selling more BS political propaganda - he got out there and continued to work on the things he believed in. Hallaluja for ideals, and hallulja for sticking to ‘em.

Sure, he wasn’t elected to office a second time, but do you remember that even after his defeat he continued to negotiate the release of American hostages? Iran released the 52 Americans the same day President Carter left office.

Haven’t visited the library because you were lacking a reason? Consider Preschool Visitors - Monday Book Nook and Garden Safari or to hear guests speak like Broughton Coburn co-editor of “Himalaya: Personal Stories of Grandeur, Challenge and Hope” or Kati Marton author of “The Great Escape: Nine Jews Who Fled Hitler and Changed the World” (a few of Decembers offerings, free and open to the public).

And now for a list of pukaloid trivia bits yanked from Wikipedia about our fair Georgia peanut farmer that I found particularly endearing chock-full of more GA ties:

Jimmy Carter was the first former Governor of Georgia to serve as president.
Jimmy Carter was the first president born in a hospital.
In sequence, Jimmy Carter was the 39th president to serve but the 41st to be born. George H.W. Bush was the 40th born and George W. Bush was the 42nd born.
Jimmy Carter’s original legal name was James Earl Carter, but he eventually changed his legal name to Jimmy. (As I may some day. Not to Jimmy, obviously)
Carter once greeted Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother of the United Kingdom with a kiss on the lips. Angered, she reprimanded him by saying, “No man has done that since my husband died.”
Awarded a D.E. (honoris causa) from Georgia Tech in 1979
Awarded the Martin Luther King, Jr. Nonviolent Peace Prize, 1979

Bonus linkage:

Hear him read an excerpt from his latest book via NPR
Read a summary and reviews via Amazon
Hit the Carter Center Library site
Hit the Carter Center site