Atlanta - Urban Lifestyle
It’s summer. The land is green with short grasses and oak trees. The earth when revealed by erosion and building construction is red clay. Gone is the drought that left us nearly waterless. Our steamy five-month summers have returned and the air is familiar with heat and humidity. The recent Fourth of July Independence Day holiday was marked by thunderstorms that dampened fireworks displays and outdoor barbeques.
Nearby street and place names such as Druid Hills and Ponce de Leon (or “Ponce” as locals call it) are not mere labels bestowed by the whimsy of developers. They're part of the history, people and places that have repeatedly captured the attention of the world.
Margaret Mitchell wove the burning of Atlanta and the heroic and iconic substance of the American Civil War into her book Gone with the Wind. Ken Burns made the events of this conflict palpable in his series for Public Television.
Our country’s legacy of slavery birthed a civil rights movement in Atlanta’s Fourth Ward. An historic district managed by the State of Georgia preserves the house, the church and parts of the community where the civil rights leader and Nobel Prize winner Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born, preached and sought to engage the consciousness of the nation. Former United States President Jimmy Carter’s Carter Center is nearby.
Inter-connected walking neighborhoods inhabited by joggers and dog-walkers – rare in this 17 county metro area with minimal public transportation that is dominated by a car culture – support mid-rise apartments, lofts, churches, costly bungalows, subsidized housing for the elderly and disabled as well as independently owned restaurants and retail stores. Established and emerging artists, young hipsters, the working poor and the homeless live here anchored economically by community-minded, middle class residents.
This area includes a distinctive arts and entertainment district called Little Five Points frequented by locals and tourists. L5P is an officially designated “hate free zone”. Long-time residents claim there was a standoff with Ku Klux Clan members in the streets during the 1970’s. This feisty, tenacious neighborhood is unique in the city, the state and perhaps the entire South.
This is where I work, live and socialize when I'm not traveling throughout the state, the region, the country or the world. It is a home with an urban edge - potent with history and activity.
Nearby street and place names such as Druid Hills and Ponce de Leon (or “Ponce” as locals call it) are not mere labels bestowed by the whimsy of developers. They're part of the history, people and places that have repeatedly captured the attention of the world.
Margaret Mitchell wove the burning of Atlanta and the heroic and iconic substance of the American Civil War into her book Gone with the Wind. Ken Burns made the events of this conflict palpable in his series for Public Television.
Our country’s legacy of slavery birthed a civil rights movement in Atlanta’s Fourth Ward. An historic district managed by the State of Georgia preserves the house, the church and parts of the community where the civil rights leader and Nobel Prize winner Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born, preached and sought to engage the consciousness of the nation. Former United States President Jimmy Carter’s Carter Center is nearby.
Inter-connected walking neighborhoods inhabited by joggers and dog-walkers – rare in this 17 county metro area with minimal public transportation that is dominated by a car culture – support mid-rise apartments, lofts, churches, costly bungalows, subsidized housing for the elderly and disabled as well as independently owned restaurants and retail stores. Established and emerging artists, young hipsters, the working poor and the homeless live here anchored economically by community-minded, middle class residents.
This area includes a distinctive arts and entertainment district called Little Five Points frequented by locals and tourists. L5P is an officially designated “hate free zone”. Long-time residents claim there was a standoff with Ku Klux Clan members in the streets during the 1970’s. This feisty, tenacious neighborhood is unique in the city, the state and perhaps the entire South.
This is where I work, live and socialize when I'm not traveling throughout the state, the region, the country or the world. It is a home with an urban edge - potent with history and activity.
