ATL: Believe some of the hype

Midtown ATL from Peidmont Park

I believe that in previous posts I have conveyed through certain comments that I am not a big fan of Atlanta. I'm still not, but it does have certain enjoyable parts. One is the above, Peidmont Park. Visiting the park was the highlite of my week spent working up there (the rest of the time I spent getting over a nasty cold - what has happened to my immune system?). Specifically, the dog park within. Below are pics of Bella, the golden retriever of a friend of a co-worker (who I shall call M and H2, respectively). We had to go with a dog, otherwise we would just be skeezy dog voyuers. The taco dog was barking at us from a condo balcony as we left the park.



Bella, stared down by a big, poofy dog


Bella, blending into the environment



Yo quiero dos orejas.

Another cool thing about Atlanta I found on this trip is the new Atlantic Station area west of Midtown. This place is a really cool mixed-use re-development project that makes me think of all kinds of things I've been reading recently in Suburban Nation. Cities, even ones as screwed up as Atlanta, can be saved. I highly advise a visit to the Congress of New Urbanism website. Take a look at their slide show, they have a great mission and philosophy.

And how can I not mention the new IKEA store that just opened there? I went on a shopping spree. A spree so big I had to make a special trip to Southville and back (in one day) to haul my loot. Now my 1Bed, 1Bath is almost complete. I am happy, but I also feel a bit like Ed Norton in the beginning of Fight Club. That makes me a bit uneasy. Is my inner Tyler Durden going to blow it all up? Does he need to? I don't think so. Just because I bought myself some nice space-saving bookcases and storage-systems does not mean I have slipped into middle-class zombie-hood. I still don't own a TV, dammit!