From Lee Ann Harvey at the city…

I know that everyone is busy with the holidays, but we are now only 9 days away from the Tour and there are still lots of volunteer positions to fill. We would appreciate your help. As we approach Thanksgiving and look at what we are thankful for, I think about the hundreds of you who respond to my requests for volunteers at our many events and service projects in Decatur. I am thankful for knowing so many wonderful, caring people.

Volunteers receive a complementary ticket to take the Tour, which benefits the Decatur Youth Fund and the Decatur Preservation Alliance.

Descriptions of the homes are available at http://decaturtourofhomes.com. To sign up, just let me know your name, day & evening phone numbers and email address. Also please let me know which shift you prefer and whether there is a home you prefer (the first shift on Friday is nearly filled):

• Friday, December 4, 5:00 p.m. to 7:45 p.m.
• Friday, December 4, 7:15 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
• Saturday, December 5, 5:00 p.m. to 7:45 p.m.
• Saturday, December 5, 7:15 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

You may either email this information or call me at 678-553-6548. Please forward this email to anyone that you think might be interested in volunteering on the Tour.

If you live in Oakhurst, have read some of the Free-For-All Friday comments, or keep tabs on the Oakhurst Message Board, you know the neighborhood has problems with stray dogs.

Michelle writes in about a new collaboration looking to resolve the issue …

The number of strays has really increased- Southern Animal Rescue is a new group focused on the problem right here in our neighborhood. Chamblee Abernathy over at Decatur Village Vets is the organizer of this team of mostly women in our area who are working with DeKalb Animal Control to trap and give healthcare to these animals.

So Kick in the Fit boot camp is “freezin’ for a reason” and doing 12 days in December to stay in shape and help this group with 50% proceeds going to them. We’re calling it the Dog Days of December and it is a lot of fun.

Jump over to Kick in the Fit’s website for more details.  Or click the poster to enlarge.

I had heard about this new sandwich (and more) shop going in below Eddie’s Attic about a week ago, but was looking for a little more info before posting.

This morning Billy sends in a pic of a sign in the window and that’s good enough for me!  After a closer inspection I can tell you that tomatoes, pickles, olives and lettuce will all make appearances on the menu.

But seriously, I’ve heard that this is a sandwich, salad and smoothie sorta joint.  And heaven knows I’m always up for a sandwich…I mean “sammwich”.  Also, it’s great to see the old Little Shop/Jake’s space back in play, since it’s the only first floor retail on that side of the Square.

Photo from The Decatur Minute

With all the recent talk about pedestrians vs. motorists vs. cyclists and general crosswalk issues around the city, I thought it would be timely to remind everyone about the stamped concrete asphalt crosswalks that will soon be poured around the city.

Currently Decatur has only one slightly raised, stamped concrete crosswalk: at Ponce and East Courthouse Square.  But soon, we’ll have seven more!

The Decatur city commission just approved a bid by Traffic Calming USA at last Monday’s meeting and Asst. City Manager Lyn Menne tells DM that the crosswalks will most likely be poured after the holidays in January to avoid traffic issues. “Generally January is very slow…Looks like they want to start around January 4th.”

Where will you see these new crosswalks?  At some of the city’s most dangerous (and talked about) crosswalk locations, that’s where!

• Mid-block 200 E Ponce de Leon Avenue between the Decatur Renaissance Condominiums and the Townsquare Condominiums
• Ponce de Leon Avenue at Clairemont Avenue (All 3 legs of intersection)
• W Ponce de Leon Ave at Marshall Street
• W Ponce de Leon at Fairview Avenue
• West Howard Avenue at Adair Street
• SR 155 South Candler Street at Doughtery Street
• SR155 South Candler Street at the Agnes Scott College parking lot driveway

The West Howard crosswalk is hands-down the most complained about here, so it will be interesting to hear if driving and crossing habits change once it is slightly elevated and poured.  Stay tuned.

The Emory Report reports – hmm, that doesn’t sound so great…notes? – that Emory will be purchasing and serving 1,600 pounds of heritage breed turkeys this year at its annual Heritage Harvest Festival this year.

[Emory's sustainable food educator, Julie] Shaffer, working in conjunction with Emory Dining, leveraged her past role as the president of Slow Food Atlanta to bring something unique to Emory: breeds of turkeys that just a few years ago were on the brink of extinction. In fact, Emory is the only college or university in the nation to partner with a national distribution network that specializes in cultivating the resurgence of endangered breeds of turkeys.

And in an era when many are using food as a gateway to occasionally leave the mainstream, the festival won’t just be about eating to your stomach’s content, but also will offer learning opportunities for participants.

“Thanksgiving provides a seasonal opportunity to educate within the context of a holiday filled with good food,” says Patty Erbach, senior director, Emory Dining. “There will be a significant educational component associated with Emory’s Heritage Harvest Feast, including comparison taste-testing between Heritage and industrial turkeys, plus little-known facts about the turkey, and the rest of the sustainable-sourced menu.”