Free-For-All Friday 11/16/12
Decatur Metro | November 16, 2012Feel free to use this post to ask questions and make comments about local issues not discussed here over the past week.
Comments close on Monday.
- rss
Feel free to use this post to ask questions and make comments about local issues not discussed here over the past week.
Comments close on Monday.
Wondering if there might be another place to put the large garbage cans that sit on the sidewalk between Starbucks and Salon Red. I walk around the Square a lot and notice that sometimes they really reek (and don’t look so hot either). Happy that this is the extent of my current Decatur concerns (small potatoes).
Another relatively minor concern, but the section of Sycamore Street near the rec center is awfully dark at night. I assume the street lights have been disabled because of the rec center construction, but I’m not sure why that is still necessary.
You could ask the City Public Works folks and/or do a service request on the City website.
The new streetlights have been installed and lit. If anything, it is too bright. Cute Traditional lighting.
Me too! I’ve brought it up before. Can they be moved or a fence built around them? Small potatoes but would be so nice!
Granite curbing on Scott Blvd?? Who knew GDOT’s partial sidewalk installation was going to be so dang fancy.
Cool. I’ll be walking to the Y in style! You think I can talk them into “accidentally” sidewalking Garden/Lamont/Vidal while they’re at it? You with me, AHID?!?
As I recall, that was an area which said they didn’t want sidewalks a few years back when the City was using bond money to build sidewalks.
To my knowledge, Garden Lane residents have not been involved in an effort to get sidewalks. We were not part of the Lamont/Vidal effort that failed. Maybe JT can work on it for us.
Well, I just offered the crew up the street a hundred bucks but they said the going rate for bribes in DeKalb is a lot more than that. Maybe we can pool our resources.
I thought Garden was part of the Lamont/Vidal effort but I could certainly be mistaken. That was before my time in the neighborhood. I’d love to have at least one side of the street sidewalked but I’m not sure I have the stomach for a fight over it. I thought a community garden in the vacant floodplained lot was a great idea, too, but turns out that, shockingly, not everyone thinks like I do.
No, they didn’t include us in that sidewalk effort. Hasn’t been attempted in our 20 + years on the street. We tried to do something with that lot when the county first tore down the house, but people on Lamont protested. They didn’t want us to do anything that would attract children to the space.
Alanis Morissette would be proud of irony then. One of the concerns about building the garden was that it would take away space that the kids play in!
To be fair to Lamont (not that we have to be), the floodplain lot comes out on Vidal, not Lamont. Barely. Garden Lane ought to spite Lamont/Vidal by putting in sidewalks. Then everyone will use the floodplain lot as a cut-through to sidewalks on Garden. When Lamont and end up being the only streets without sidewalks in Decatur, affecting house values, justice will have been served.
To be fair to Lamont/Vidal residents, the majority were probably FOR, not against, sidewalks but we’ll never know because a poll wasn’t conducted. The City cancelled plans based on a vociferous few who circulated a petition. No pro-sidewalk petition was circulated. Big mistake.
I stand corrected. It was a couple of homeowners on Vidal who objected to our plans for the lot. Sorry, At Home. Love the idea of a cut through to a sidewalk.
So, this is a very interesting conversation for me. I never heard why the plans for a community garden on the open lot fell through. I thought there were going to be some meetings on the issue, but I didn’t hear anything. As immediate neighbors, my wife and I thought it was a great idea. Please, share more details? What happened?
Regarding sidewalks on Garden, I’ve been asked my opinion by city officials at various meetings. I’m not necessarily opposed to them, but I do admit that I don’t really see the value. My neighbors and I are constantly walking along the road, along with our dogs and kids, and along Lamont/Vidal. There seems to be plenty of room for both cars and people, and adding sidewalks comes across to me as a solution for a problem that doesn’t really exist. Just my thoughts on the subject.
The short answer is that several of the most immediate neighbors expressed two primary concerns: increased traffic/parking on the street and the fact that it would take play area away from the neighbor kids. Nobody said “Hell No, we don’t want it” but, with less than an overall enthusiastic response, it just didn’t seem worth going further into the application process for city approval.
As for sidewalks, I see the point about the road being wide enough for people and cars as it is. However, the more than ample width of the road also encourages the cut-through drivers to speed way too fast down the street. It’s not as big a problem as we feared because it really doesn’t make sense for most people to use it as a cut-through, but the ones who do tend to treat is as an extension of Scott Boulevard rather than as a residential street. Narrowing the street and putting more space between pedestrians and cars could only help. But yeah, in the end, there are many problems that need prioritizing over this one. I guess personally I just think it’s weird because I’m not used to living someplace without sidewalks.
Is this definitely about sidewalks? My husband was asking but it looked as much like drainage as sidewalks to me when I drove by the other day. I’m definitely all for sidewalks. Scott Blvd. sidewalks won’t bother the anti-sidewalk folks because they aren’t worried about other people’s property, only their own. My husband says not to worry about the anti-sidewalk folks because Darwinian evolution will eventually kick in and they’ll all be run over. I just hope that no children are hit first.
Follow-up: As the work more clearly emerges as sidewalks, it looks like a vast improvement. Hope it eventually takes over both sides of Scott. Could go a long way to making it more walkable. It’s amazing how just some extra concrete changes the walkability.
Someone has once again been rifling through glove departments of unlocked cars – this time ours on Adair. Fortunately the thieves had absolutely no interest in emergency diapers or two-year-old chocolate Clif gels. Lock your cars, folks!
While I share your concern, if you lock your car you often have to deal with a broken window as well as a rifled through glove compartment. It’s quite a catch-22.
I thought about that, too. It seems the burglars last night preferred the stealth approach as our neighbor’s two locked cars were untouched. Of the two approaches I prefer to simply leave it unlocked but make sure there are no valuables inside will continue to do so even after this episode.
Remove all valuables. Unlock doors. Put big dog in car. Problem solved.
I put a cat in the cat overnight once.
Car for sale. Cheap! Slight pet odor, unnoticeable if windows left open.
Almost forgot – rig car battery to door handles and place deadly asp in glove department. Moat full of alligators optional.
When’s the next Agenda 21 meeting in Decatur?
The first rule of Agenda 21 is you don’t talk about Agenda 21. City Hall can’t be expected to effectively collude with the United Nations for global collectivism and world government if everyone knows about it. C’mon, man!
No mind control needed to snare me; the treacherous minions of the “Brick Store complex” have stripped me of my will to patronize Appleby’s.
It was going to be Monday, but over half of us had a conflict with the Death Panel meeting at the same time.
Probably also need to make sure it doesn’t conflict with any Good Growth DeKalb meeting or rally!
For those curious what this is all about, I recommend “Top Georgia GOP Lawmakers Host Briefing on Secret Obama Mind-Control Plot”. If you scroll down a bit, you can see a cool ppt slide comparing Obama’s record to Stalin’s and Mao’s.
*sigh* I see the tinfoil hat brigade is alive & well in Georgia (and sadly, in our Legislature).
This is really the kind of stuff that keeps me coming back!
Maybe we should take an *unskewed* poll to find out what works best for all of us.
http://blogs.ajc.com/jay-bookman-blog/2012/11/16/agenda-21-the-lunacy-infiltrating-state-leaders/
A shout out to the guys at the Pure station on E Ponce. They walked around the corner to help my wife with a flat tire last week on Sycamore and Church. No charge! An asset to the community. Mayberry in all the best ways!
Decatur Pure rocks !
+1!
Ya know what is NOT Mayberry-ish in any way? A Decatur cop ticketing the pizza delivery guy in the high school parking lot on Friday night. Andy would have helped the guy get them into the concession stand and certainly not ticketed him! I have never been so disappointed in one of our cops. Except when one of them arrested a dad at graduation last year. I forgot about that for a minute.
They also let me borrow their portable air compressor when I had a flat of my own. My office is a few blocks down.
+1 for me too! They plugged a nail hole in my tire for no charge a couple of weeks ago.
Hey All
Quick question. I sat on my favorite sunglasses this week getting in the car and completely flattened them. They are nice metal frames and bendable, but they are so flat, I need professional help. Any ideas/suggestions on where I can take to get fixed?
I’ve had these for something like 7 or 8 years, so am hoping for some good advice… Thanks in advance DM brethren!
Take them over to Decatur Eye Care and see if Renee can heal them or at least advise you. Call, though, their hours are somewhat less than 8-5 M-F.
Funny you should ask. I still have the search saved from a few weeks ago when I broke my last pair of glasses. There’s a place just up Clairmont near Briarcliff:
http://www.eyewearrepair.com/faq.htm
I have no idea if they are any good because I got so frustrated after visiting a few local places for new glasses that I just ordered a few new pairs from Zenni and I could live with the broken ones for a week. However, it’s the only local place I found that specializes in eyeglass repair and it’s also who the guy at Lenscrafters recommended.
Or you could do like Mrs J_T and use this as an excuse to buy a new pair “on sale” (meaning they only cost twice as much as I’d ever consider paying for sunglasses rather than four times much).
Yep, we gonna see if Mrs J_T still reads DM…
Gracias J_T and STG. Where can I bring your empanadas? Going to get some this afternoon.
You know where I live
Believe it or not, I was supposed to meet some friends there for lunch today but work stuff rudely squashed those plans. The double indignity is that I just ate a leftover wilted salad for lunch. Gonna have meat pie on the brain for the rest of the day!
Where do you get your empanadas?
Buford Highway Farmers Market. Best empanadas in town. You may disagree with me about many things, but on this I am right.
Seconded
After he sat on his beloved heirloom RayBans, husband took them to Eyewear Repair Express at 2712 Clairmont Road, and the repair has lasted for years. Some repairs take longer and can be kind of expensive because of the cost of the equipment and materials, but the repair is undetectable and durable.
OK Yall
I took them to Eyewear Express on Clairmont and they fixed them for me in about 15 minutes! Cash discount and nice guys. I highly suggest them for future glasses issues and will go back next time I do something dumb to my shades.
The strange hours at the one in Oakhurst made it inconvenient.
For people who keep up with this sort of stuff, Neil Young & Crazy Horse played a show this past Tuesday in Calgary and encored with the first electric, up-tempo version of Helpless they’ve done since 1976.
Thanks Joe, love me some Neil.
Me too. This is terrific. Thanks for posting.
Every year for the holidays I make a CD for friends and family. The list keeps expanding and last year I think I made about 120 (!). Since I just have a ‘home’ CD burner, I had to do them 1 at a time which took forever!
Any ideas or recommendations of someone in the recording business or who has access to some professional/industrial equipment who could do this for me at a reasonable cost? I even already have the CDs.
Thx.
Try calling Nostalgic Media on Clairmont. Seems like they’d have the equipment for a project like this.
nostalgicmedia.com
So, you’re looking for professional help to commit piracy?
I’ve just noticed I made an assumption that I should not have. If your CD does not contain copyrighted material, please excuse my accusation.
I bet places that convert film to DVD can do it too. There’s one at Sage Hill, I think.
Anyone have experience having a party at Twain’s? I want to get my friends and family together and there will be a few school-aged children. My own children enjoy the billiards and darts, so I thought Twain’s would be a good place to eat, give the kids something to do, and stand around and socialize. My house is too small to throw a party! Anyone have other ideas? I’m only thinking about 30-35 people.
Yes it’s a great place for a party. My kids love shuffle board. Little kids can always bring coloring books and legos to keep them occupied. I find there is something for everyone on the menu. I love the Harbour Bar for an outdoor party in the backyard but it will probably be too cold.
Just came back from Twains… Our fav party spot. No kids after nine. Sit downstairs at the big tables. Also, Big Tex has a game room tucked in back as an option. Not sure it could handle 35.
How did Atlanta get one of these going before we did?
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/peacefully-grant-city-atlanta-leave-withdraw-state-georgia-and-remain-part-united-states/Dldp5hKT
the last line is hilarious-
“and the parts of Macon, Georgia made famous by the Allman Brothers”
I need some clarification before I can sign the petition. Is it meant to be City of Decatur, greater annexed Decatur, or postal Decatur?
these awesome people rode by our house on sunday…it was almost like the scene out of a movie…it was so cool!
http://www.cnn.com/2012/11/13/living/bicycle-fashion-tweed-ride/index.html?hpt=hp_c3
We saw some too. I was very perplexed. Relieved when I heard the explanation. Why no bike helmets? Can’t an helmet be fit under a turn-of-the-century bonnet or fedora?
And cue STG in 3, 2, 1…
Does anybody really need to hear any more from me about that? Or about anything at the moment? :-d
Yes. How was Halloween this year? I’m still waiting for an answer if you participated LAST year!
Get comfortable and don’t hold your breath!
Laura, the woman quoted in the article, is a friend of ours and is joining us for Thanksgiving this year. I’ve asked her if she is planning on riding to our house in all of her holiday finery but have not yet received a response. Maybe all of us will go out for a post-dinner ride.
Strong recommendation for the VW folks over at Karma VW on College near the Avondale MARTA station. Fair, very interested in explaining their diagnosis and proposed solution, and reasonably priced.
+1 They keep our 93 VW Pop Top in tip-top condition!
So far this FFAF is full of win. Keep it up.
Sorry if I have missed the tread this year, but what restaurants are open or catering out the day of thanksgiving?
we did this already. check last week’s FFAF.
thanks!
If you don’t mind a trek downtown, Busy Bee does amazing Thanksgiving catering. Truly masterful Southern cooking. Getcha some.
With the coyotes on the prowl, numerous sightings, and seemingly getting bolder by strolling down the streets, I make a motion to the City Council that we pay to have this lady brought it to take care of the coyotes once and for all.
http://gawker.com/5961078/grandmother-who-killed-wolf-with-axe-is-most-badass-person-in-russia
Here’s an irritating fact about the DeKalb County School System. In order to be considered for an open position, before they’ll even look at your application, you must submit 3 professional references. You must include your current employer. You must submit not only their names and contact information, but actually have them fill out a reference form and send it to the school system.
I have to think this discourages a lot of good potential applicants from applying. I, for one, do not wish to bother my references every time I think about exploring a job opportunity. If I were currently employed and unhappy in my position, I can’t imagine giving my supervisor the “heads up” that I was looking for a new job.
This might save their HR department some time in the short run, but I’m willing to bet I’m not the only qualified candidate turned off by the premature requirement.
To apply with CSD you need a recommendation from your current principal. Fortunately, mine is very understanding and supportive, but it’s just another example of how illogical many aspects of the teaching profession are.
If I recall correctly from my recent job search, CSD does pretty much the same thing as DeKalb. It might have been 2 references instead of 3, and it didn’t make sense to me to have to ask someone to take the time to fill out a form in advance when I haven’t even been considered for a job.
Hmmm. I wonder what the school board(s) might have to say about this. After all, they have a vested interest in ensuring that they are attracting the best candidates. I’ll call CSD’s (since I’m a parent here) and someone else call Dekalb?
Want to know what irks me? No salary range. Why do companies want to waste their time with applicants way under or above the range? Drives me nuts!
I completely agree. DeKalb does at least give a range. I like Emory’s descriptions the best, with minimum and a midrange salary information.
good people-
to all out there who have put forth poor worker treatment as a reason to keep wal-mart out of your area, I encourage you to join ranks with the rank and file as they attempt to organize a walk-out this coming black friday.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/11/16/1162368/-Walmart-Workers-are-Standing-Up-Something-incredible-is-happening#
Do I get to walk out with a $78 TV and a Magic Bullet with me?
nevermind
Thanks. Very interesting. Inspires me to compose new lyrics to a classic song:
“Imagine there’s no Walmart.
DailyKos wants you to try.
Fewer jobs for low skilled workers,
But now plenty of Obama pie.”
My apologies to the LyricsGuy. He’d done it better.
Instead of a boycott of WalMart in particular, how about a boycott of shopping on “Black Friday” at all? I find it disturbing to watch the images of people waiting out in line in the cold and dark for hours, so that they can be among the first ones to rush through the door and grab the discounted electronics and other goodies among a frenzied crowd. Spend the day sleeping in, picking through leftovers, and lounging around with your family.
+1. I haven’t shopped on Black Friday in 25 years (except maybe an emergency run for mayonnaise or gin). I think of it as a cult that even the stable-minded get sucked into every year.
Thanks. I wouldn’t call it a cult, but I do think that in general the continuing spread of consumer culture to cover all of our lives is a bad thing, and that in particular the rise of Black Friday Shopping Mania has helped make the world a worse place than if it hadn’t existed. In my case, for several years 5 different households in my extended family (spanning 4 generations) started getting together every Thanksgiving, when various relocations allowed us to do so. It was really nice. But many of the people (including my mom) spent much of Thanksgiving poring over the various advertising circulars deciding what items they were interested in getting and mapping out their plan of attack on which stores to go to when. They weren’t so gung-ho as to camp out, but there were some tense negotiations about how early to set out, with my cousin pushing that they all set their alarms early to make sure they wouldn’t miss out on too much.
I still enjoyed the get-togethers, and there were plenty of people around on Friday to hang out with. But I regret that those people were absent much of the time.
“emergency run for mayonnaise or gin”
OK, I must admit that this scares me. I hope to God that I never have an emergent need for mayonnaise.
It makes your hair really fluffy. (Rinse first.)
OMG. Once in my early teens, I followed that advice (probably gleaned from Seventeen Magazine). It took about six hard shampooings over two days to get the mayo out of my hair. Any benefit was vastly stripped out by all the scrubbing.
Yeah, I was just trying to think of what a mayonnaise emergency might be. I remember similar disasters with eggs in hair—they scrambled in hot water.
Two nuns walk into the A&P and pick up some beer. One of the nuns looks innocently at the counterman and says “It’s for washing our hair.”
The counterman hands them a bag of pretzels and says, “Here’s some curlers to go with it, Sisters.”
My grandfather told me that joke almost 50 years ago. Thank you for reminding me of it (and him.)
You can’t have a decent turkey sandwich without mayonnaise. Plus, sometimes you need to add a little bit to freshen up the leftover Waldorf salad, depending on the quality of the apples used to make it.
I’ll give you the turkey sandwich. My favorite meal of the year is not Thanksgiving dinner, but lunch the day after. Leftover turkey meat and cranberry sauce on good bread with mayo. I don’t use mayo on many things, but it’s pretty necessary for the turkey sandwich. And none of that Duke’s crap, either. It’s gotta be Hellman’s like my grandmother always used.
Add stuffing, delete mayo and add gravy instead and you’ve got yourself one delish sandwich!
“emergency run for mayonnaise or gin”
Bombay Blitz
1 shot gin
1 TB mayonnaise
2 oz. seltzer
bitters, to taste (optional)
shake well and serve neat
Replace gin with Jager.
Replace mayo with Jager.
Replace seltzer with Jager.
Forget the bitters.
Serve cold.
Well you should count yourself very fortunate. Many of the people who shop on Black Friday do so because it’s the only way they can afford the items offered. It may seem crass, but it’s a reality many open minded people seem to forget.
But, but, but…consumerism. We all need to pray before the alter of consumerism. The true religion of America.
Yep. I’ve often heard the argument that having people buy lots of luxury goods is necessary in order to have a thriving capitalist economy. And so, if you decide to pursue a simpler lifestyle because you think that it would make you happier, you’re selfishly ignoring the greater good.
Hey, that’s my excuse for ordering from the J. Jill catalog (only on sale, of course). It’s for the greater good!
I prefer to spend the day not giving two hoots about how others want to spend their holiday.
Wait, seriously? You really don’t want to spend your Thanksgiving judging others? But isn’t that what we do here? You know, where we pretend to care about those who may need to take advantage of Black Friday sales, but we secretly despise them for that need? Shame on you, DEM.
Whenever I read comments like some of those above, I can’t help but think of what Ambrose Bierce said. “Hypocrisy: prejudice with a halo.”
To be fair, it’s not hypocrisy if you don’t pretend to care in the first place.
DEM proclaimed indifference, not judgement. Your venom is mis-directed.
I happen to concur with DEM – If people find joy or value in the hunt on Black Friday – good for them. None of my concern.
I prefer to stay far away from the traffic and crowds to spend time with family, football, food, fire and bourbon.
Please go back and reread my post. My venom is not toward DEM; it’s toward those who ARE judging.
Thriving Capitalist Society….Many people shop Black Friday for coats and shoes, not 42″ flat screen televisions. Were you able to pay full price for your flat screen television? If so , I say again, you are fortunate. Be careful not to judge…..equality for all. Right?