Yes...that is paint!

And yes, that is carpet. Seems a few days before I got to Diane's to visit her and the kids, Matty and a friend, in a fantastic display of being the middle child, decided that it would be fun to re-decorate the spare room. While I appreciate his creativity and his desire to follow in Auntie Rachel's footsteps, I don't think mom appreciated it as much.

Oh, and by the way, this was AFTER both mom's spent hours scrubbing the floor, the walls, the bed, the curtains and anything else in the path of the 3 year old mini Picassos.

I have come a long way...

I am not sure what has changed on this trip to make it any different from any of the other trips to Atlanta, but I feel that the dreaded loathing of this city is lifting with each day. Maybe it is because I have no agenda here and am on vacation for the first time. It seems that every time I come here, I am on a time schedule and there are people to see and things to do and it is like I live here again.
I spent my first full day here this time driving around and remembering. It was like my mind had forgotten on the surface, but deep down the memories unfolded with each corner I turned and each place I visited. My real goal for the day was to go to my favorite art store (Sam Flax) and stock up on some good art supplies, but I found myself driving through my old campus on the way and taking old routes I used to take between GSU (where I studied) and GA. Tech (where I partied - I mean, can you blame a girl - 36 fraternities with a 4-1 guy to girl ratio! I never paid for anything!). I never got lost and I never used the navigation. It was great. I drove past old apartments and houses that I had lived in and was amazed by the growth of the city. Most of the people I ran across still possessed that southern charm and hospitality that I came to love in the early 90's which surprised me considering how much I thought that was disappearing when I fled the city in the mid 90's. I say fled like I was in trouble. I was just so ready to go at that point that the car couldn't go fast enough! I think part of the reason I thought the city had lost it's charm was the way I interacted with the people in it. No, not everyone is nice and happy to meet you, but when you are angry and annoyed on the outside, most people are not exactly going to bend over backwards to be nice to you. I am generally a happy person these days and I think it shows. Basically you are an asshole if you can't be nice to someone who is genuinely being nice to you. Those people that I ran across I just laughed at, but that is the same in any city.
My second day was spent remembering the public transportation system and getting lost on my old college campus. I even felt compelled to buy a GSU t-shirt and hat which I never even owned when I WAS a student. Being a downtown campus, I ventured on a photo tour of the city as well. I will always love the buildings in Atlanta. They are some of my favorite to photograph. It was a good walk and I think I did most of it with a smile on my face.
Anyway, I just felt it necessary to make a point about how I feel about this city. I have had such animosity towards it for so long and it has really taken be by surprise that I am enjoying the city so far. I am meeting up with an old friend of mine and her girls tomorrow and then off to see my best friend at the end of the week to hang out with her children. It's like a mini reunion for the people I love that are still attached to this city. Even if the rest of the week is blah and uneventful, I am happy to have been able to warm back up to the city that sheltered me and helped me grow from the end of my teen years and into my early 20's. Sometimes life can really surprise you!

Justice is sweet sometimes.

After all the issues I have had and have learned about this country's horrible health insurance in the past year (especially for those of us who must foot the bill for our own insurance), this made me smile.

Cancer Patient Wins

Good for her for fighting!

Befores & Afters

Long week decorating on a small budget with existing furniture. It was a beautiful house on Mulholland and I loved spending my days staring out huge windows that overlooked Universal and watching rain storms come and go, but I am exhausted and happy it is over. Apparently Mary J. Blige lived here for a while. Cool. The views were amazing and working late on the night of the lunar eclipse was fine with me considering the view of the event. I would loved to have more time on this job and do more things to the place, but I only had 5 days and a low budget, so I did what I could. Now I can relax and prepare myself for the wrap in a month. I called it my drop, decorate and run project. :)

Oh, and by the way, to save money, I printed every generic picture I had and hung them all over the house. Nothing like a little personal advertising on company time.

According to Forbes...

...Los Angeles is the 7th most miserable city in the country to live in. California on a whole hit the list 3 times adding Modesto (#9) and Stockton (#2) to the list as well. It's not all that bad I guess. It could be worse. We could be living in Detroit which was listed as the #1 most miserable city in America. And I quote:

"The Motor City has high unemployment and tops the country when it comes to violent crime. As if that wasn't bad enough—Detroit is toxic. It's near the top of the list of cities that require the most Superfund dollars to clean up toxic waste sites. Congratulations, Detroit! You're the most miserable people in the U.S.!"

Wow!

A little snack...

...for only a buck! I was doing a little preliminary shopping at IKEA for my next job (for free might I add since I don't technically start work until next week) and I got a little hungry. Mac and Cheese for a dollar and on a kids plate. You can't beat that. It made me think of me and Jess and made me smile. Funny how food and a simple moment can do that to you.