A Bitter-Sweetness

We found Circus Arts Institute pretty early on in our Atlanta  experience.

I wanted Skye to be able to continue her "PE" classes, as it were.

So I managed to find a place where she/we could continue studying aerial arts.

The Circus Arts Institute became much more than that.

They became family.

Wednesday night was our last night at class, on this particular journey.  I feel that we have not seen the last of Atlanta or our circus family here.

I made a few music mixes for the class, one of them included the Eartha Kitt song, the Day the Circus Left Town, so I decided to use it as the title to my blog post.

How clever.

Then I found out that Eric Clapton also wrote a song entitled Circus Left Town about the day with his son before he died, beautiful song, but so sad.

No More Tears

Enough of the bitter aspect of our nomad life, and what did that video have to do with us or the circus class or Atlanta or anything really.

Check out the pics and videos of our time at the Circus Arts Institute.

We had never been on the Spanish Web before arriving in Atlanta.

It's not my favorite apparatus, but Skye has certainly taken to it.

I should probably learn to endure its cruel pain more because it can be a pretty macho and bad-ass.

The videos speak for themselves, for the most part.

Hoopalicious

Fellow hooper and circus gal, Katina aka the Happy Hooper made this amazing hula hoop for Skye.

The two of them took turns dazzling us with their skills and the newest hoop to our growing collection of circular toys.

We had a great time playing and learning new skills.

Yet another reason to return to Atlanta.

On Being Earnest

Actually it ended up not being so wild and no goats were harmed at the A WILDE NIGHT: After-Party at the Goat Farm.

Not because it wasn't a great party, but more because Cindy and I were already exhausted. I had purchased the tickets the week before, not knowing our schedule.

I figure that we both love events hosted at the Goat Farm, it was to benefit Georgia Shakespeare and I have always been a huge fan of Oscar Wilde, who much to my dismay didn't show up.

We must stop meeting like this

One of our wonderful teachers, Jacosa from Circus Arts was performing which was an unexpected treat.

We ran into her the other day at the Sweetwater Festival where she was at the Circus Camp booth but she merely handing out flyers, so it was fun to see her up on the trapeze.

And The Band Played On

Blair Crimmins & The Hookers were rocking  the room with a vaudeville and ragtime kind of flavor and we would have probably kicked up our heels and joined in with the dancing, but as I mentioned we were exhausted and our feet were already wanting to go home.

We gave in and headed home after not so long, but it was fun time while there.

Atlanta Streets Alive 2012

I attended this event last year.

It was held downtown, in June. It was around twenty degrees hotter with probably 1/5 the vendors and activities and 1/10 the attendees.

I rode down there by myself, Cindy and Skye were up in Nashville. I didn't know anybody, so I did my best to make it interesting, but it was really hot and there was no shade in sight and almost nothing going on.

Location,Location, Location

This year, Atlanta Streets Alive was held right on Highland, our street. The weather was perfect. We had several friends who were participating in the event and several more who were attending. We were also invited to a pool party taking place a few hundred yards from the event. Unfortunately Cindy had to leave by 4 which gave us 2 hours, which I thought would be plenty of time.

I was wrong....


Too Much To See and Do

We hopped on our bikes and headed out.

We didn't get a hundred yards from the apartment when I spotted one of our friends from Circus Arts Institute playing in a crazy mash-up game of kickball/dodgeball . She invited us to play, but Cindy, not realizing Skye and I had stopped, was already a block ahead of us.

We sped through the crowd to catch up to her.
Meanwhile I got a call from another one of our buddies that we met in our Circus class but hadn't seen in a while who was a the festival but happened to be at the end where we would be ending up.

I figured we would pedal to where the Bike Parade was starting and then check out the various booths on the way. back.

What Atlanta festival would be complete without Kelly’s Seed and Feed Marching Abominable Band.

And imagine that, one of our pals from circus class was in the band.

The street closure went further than I realized. With the crowds making cycling a slalom challenge and significantly slowing us down, we realized we were already in a time crunch.

People Power

"Atlanta Streets Alive was inspired by the ciclovia in Bogotá, Colombia, where city streets are closed to car traffic to allow people to participate in all kinds of free health and community-oriented events." A concept which I think is great and I wish would happen more often and in more cities.

One thing I'm going to miss about Atlanta is the size and accessibility. In Los Angeles, an event like this would be bound to get complicated, crowded and expensive. We have been incredibly fortunate to have been welcomed into several ":communities" ranging from the home-school crowd, to "burners" and of course our circus friends and X3-Sports family, not to mention all of those in the film business.

Things Seen and Not Seen

We had to race by booths with hula hoops, cross-fitters, Zumba dancers, as well as more than a few corn-hole set-ups.

Atlanta has a ton of festivals and events. One that I'll be sad to be missing is the Red Bull Soapbox Race.

At least I got to check out one the soapbox racers at their stand as well as a pretty cool bicycle DJ set-up.

Unicorn Sighthings

I've always had a thing for unicorns. I know that might sound a bit odd and perhaps that would be deserved, but I like a lot of what they represent.

On that note, what started as a funny facebook comment has evolved into yet another one of my hobbies/past-times; that is unicorn sightings and there have been plenty while I've been in Atlanta.

Did you spot it in one of the videos?

Silks, Circles and Raw Foods

The folks from Kinetic Hive set up their aerial rig and were doing demos and performances.

"Kinetic Hive is a space for workshops, classes, and events that is dedicated to community, collaborative learning, physicality, participatory fun, inspiring each other, and play."

I stumbled on the Hive towards the end of our stay, right before I started working on Revolution. We were able to make it to a couple of acro-yoga classes and Skye went to a hooping class, but unfortunately with our schedule and such we weren't able to get over there nearly as much as I wanted. It's a mere five-minute walk from the condo and has a great energy and ridiculously diverse offerings in workshops and classes and meet-ups.  Maybe next time.

Our friend, Ladell Hill was there with Chuice samples. I got hooked on Chuice the first time I ever tried it and now drink it everyday. Another thing I'll miss when we leave. He'll ship it to me wherever I end up, but it's not like walking down the street and getting it minutes after they've made up a batch; talk about local and fresh.

We saw more circus folk and then Cindy had to leave to get going to Chattanooga.

Skye and I were just about to head over to the pool party when Cindy called to tell me I accidentally grabbed her car keys. 

Oops

Time Zone Blues

One of the things that has been a pain lately, and all things considered barely rating beyond a nag, is that being here in the Eastern time zone, Laker games typically air at around 10:30 at night.

So last night after a long week and going out for a quick drink with Cindy so we could hang out together in the neighborhood a final time, we got back and settled in on the coach to watch Game 4, Lakers vs. OKC, which might as well be Game 7, because if we can't put it together to win on our home court after winning the night before, it is highly unlikely that we will win three in a row; two on the road and one back at home.

It's possible but highly unlikely.

I fell asleep during the half-time break. We were in the lead and looking good. I woke up to the post-game wrap-up.

Half-asleep I realized they managed to blow it again.(Notice how we were in the lead, but they managed to blow it)

It wasn't until this morning that I checked out the highlights on-line that I saw how lame and how typical it was for the Lakers to give another game away.

And the finger pointing was happening pretty quickly.

If they don't win the next three, which I don't think they will, not that they can't or shouldn't, they just probably won't.

They lost game one which can be written off to being tired and the Thunder having a nice break. Then they gifted the next one by two points in the last 30 seconds. But they dictated the tempo and style of the game.
They won the next game at home, just barely, but they did avoid being swept.
And then there was last night. The Lakers led by nine at the start of the fourth quarter and by 11 with 7:45 remaining, but couldn't hold on down the stretch for the second time in the series.

So when/if they don't win the team will be exploded.

I can't imagine the coach, Mike Brown will be around. I heard a rumor that Phil Jackson is missing coaching. Pau will probably be sent off. Kobe is "a Laker for life"  Bynum still has the stuff to build a team around, just not the maturity which LA, a city not known for its patience, has already grown tired of. 

Monday will probably determine whether our road trip is spent looking for places to camp or places that have access to the game.

After many years as a Laker fan, I'm prepared for either one, the Hollywood version or the LA version.

My Groupon Affair

The first time I really heard much about Groupon was among the moms hanging out at various home-school functions that Skye was doing.

It seemed like a great idea, but i I don't often use regular coupons because they're usually for things that I wouldn't typically get or with conditions not worth the savings. So I pretty much blew of the concept.

However.....

Relatives of Groupon

I was at a restaurant and saw an ad on one of those little stand up displays on the table that said I could get $15 off just by downloading this certain App and then saying I was eating at the restaurant. That seemed simple and innocent enough. So I did and it worked.

Maybe I should re-think this whole coupon concept.

I joined Groupon, Scoutmob, Active.com, and LivingSocial, and probably a couple others that I've forgotten about. And I have legitimately saved money buying things I normally would and going to places I wanted to go at the time I wanted to be there.

I have also ended up at restaurants at odd hours, sometimes dragging Cindy and Skye along for an evening out when we were all pretty tired and would have stayed in if it weren't the last day to use the money saving coupon I had already paid for.  And we ended up at a couple events that I was just marginally interested in, which I did end up enjoying and was glad to have went.

But for the most part, I had a pretty good track record. That is until I went on a Groupon shopping spree.

It's not that I made purchases I wouldn't normally use, its more what changed in our living situation. I started working practically non-stop on Revolution and as soon as I was finished Cindy started working practically non-stop on her job and our time in Atlanta was coming to an end.

So, now with a week and a half before we hit the road with no ultimate destination and not much of an itinerary, I have a couple's retreat to a local spa, some sushi dinners, and a scuba diving certification class to cram in and test for, (when I called a couple of weeks ago they told me the certification typically takes 4-6 weeks of weekly classes and additional practice dives. I told them I was living by the month's end. They were kind enough to do accommodate me with 3 four-hour one-on-one intensive classes with me doing extra studying out of class, plus a referral letter so that I could do my final open-water exam where ever I ended up.)

Add to this equation, the fact that Cindy's job has her in Alabama and Tennessee much of this month.

Needless to say this has added to the already complicated "moving"/ nomadic living adventure/process.

The Road Less Traveled

You might be wondering how and why I ended up driving all the way up to northwest Ohio to go to a picnic. As you might guess it's a long and not so easy answer, but it stems and intertwines from many of my interests and pursuits.

The not-so-short answer is Atomic Athletic, an incredible resource for strength and fitness equipment and all sorts of things that might be of interest to a "physical culturalist".

Again, I'm going to need to devote a separate post to the story behind my discovery  of Atomic Athletic, but after a brief phone call with Roger LaPointe, the President and driving force of the company, about an order I had placed, I was struck by his passion and incredible knowledge. 

I was more than a little curios about this Olde Time Strongman Picnic he had been hosting for the last several years.

Truth be told, I loved the T-shirt and poster for the event and I wanted to save a little money on shipping.

.
Much Ado About.....

Skye and I pulled up to the picnic at around 11:30 a.m. We had driven a long way and we didn't want to miss a thing.

I really didn't know what to expect or when the various demonstrations and events were taking place.  The poster said 11 am - 6pm, but from the looks of things, they were still setting up.

There were a couple of pop-up tents, some folding tables and chairs, maybe a dozen people. I was beginning to think we had driven 11 hours for nothing. We decided to grab some breakfast and come back in a bit.

After looking at the website for information on the event, I saw that it started at one o'clock. When we returned, there were a few more people, but not the extravaganza I had been expecting.

The Atlatl and Getting Into the Spirit of Things

The picnic was, if nothing else a gathering of niche sub-cultures, definitely not mainstream, right up my alley.

So it was quite fitting that there was a demonstration of the Atlatl, a primitive weapon that predates the bow and arrow, going back some 12,000 years.  I gave it a go and after a dozen tries managed to get the spear to stick in the target maybe twice.  Skye was a natural at it and before long was zeroing in on the bulls-eye. It was amazing the power generated from little more than a flick of the wrist. 

Power lifting is a niche in the weight lifting world which is a sub-culture of the fitness world. The 2012 USAWA Heavy Lifts Championship which was happening at the picnic and consisted of 3  lifts; the Hand and Thigh Lift,  the Neck Lift and the Hip Lift, was a very thin slice of the physical culture world, made up of very devoted and focused specialists.

A Niche to Make My Neck Ache

I had read about the various lifts but I couldn't quite imagine them. Even in person, what was going on was pretty unfathomable. I think my spine compressed a bit just watching them lift. By the end of the day records were broken and 860 lbs was hoisted up.

Age Is Only a Number

Speaking of numbers, Dennis Michell, 80 years old lifted 400 lbs in the Hand and Thigh lift.

That is impressive on several levels.

 
The Atlas Stone

Having lifted my fair share of heavy and awkward things, I had always wondered about how I would do with the Atlas Stones I've seen on World's Strongest Man competitions and the like.

There was a stone there that weighed 282 pounds. I picked up things that weighed that much before, just not in the shape of a sphere.

And I still haven't lifted. I was able to roll the thing around but there was no way I was getting that thing off the ground.

I have an 8" diameter concrete sphere that weighs in at around 20 pounds that I made from a mold I got from Slater's Hardware and I was thinking about getting another mold but didn't know how big to go.  I have a better idea now.

 
Bending Nails & Blowing Up Balloons

Some how we missed the bending of a metal skillet, although I did see the end result being paraded around by a little kid. We did get to see the Strongman perform a couple of other stunts, much to my regret I have forgotten his name, he seemed like quite an amiable fellow on top of being able to burst hot-water bottles and bend nails while in a wrestler's bridge.

Skye with one of the many nails he bent that day.

Walking Like A Farmer

I could handle this weight fairly easily and was even able to lift them when they loaded them up to the competition level, not sure what that weight was.

But I wasn't about to embarrass myself and enter into the competition. I wasn't the only one who backed away from that one. In fact, there were only to participants. A skinny high school kid who just got a few feet, (the weights were heavier than he was) and then a bouncer who ran up and back down the field with them.

 

Checking out the "Museum"

Roger's wife, Lisa was kind enough to walk us over to the Atomic Athletic showroom and warehouse and give us a guided tour. I was able to check out several things that I had been eying from afar on the internet.

And its a good thing I did. I had been looking at the Globe Barbells and toying with possibly getting a set. Until that is I tried moving it around. Like the Atlas Stone, it looked much more manageable than it actually is. It will be some time until I will be anywhere close to being able to use such a beast in my training.

I also got to check out various stone padlocks, Indian Clubs and all sorts of other things that I had only seen before on the internet. It was quite an experience.

I ended up getting some dumb bell bars for the Iron Boots(also purchased from Atomic Athletic) I have back in Atlanta as well as a pair of Plate Loaded Kettlebell Handles.

I think I showed a goodly amount of restraint.

All in all it turned out to be a pretty cool experience. I am in awe and wonderment not just in regards to the ridiculous amount of weight being moved around but also to the focus and discipline. I being a jack-of-all-trades have an impossible time sticking with routines and such.  It definitely gave me a little food for thought.

A big thank you to Atomic Athletic for hosting the event and to all those who participated.

A Change of Plans

Prior to Skye's appendix bursting and the subsequent surgery and hospital stay, we had planned a trip to go up to Bowling Green, Ohio to check out a the Great Black Swamp Olde Time Strongman Picnic.

Along the way we were going to grab several more high-points, five to be exact, which would have been a nice haul and well worth the detours.

However because of what happened to Skye, I had pretty much cancelled the trip altogether. On Thursday night we learned that Skye was going to be released from the hospital the next day. It's a ten and a half hour drive to Bowling Green which meant that we could still make it.

Skye said "Let's Go For It" and with that we were heading from the hospital home to pack and on the road.

THE STRONGMAN PICNIC

"Saturday, May 12, 2012: See old time strongmen and martial artists performing amazing feats of strength and dexterity at the picnic grounds of the Old South Main School (437 South Main St., Bowling Green, OH 43402) from 1PM to 6PM.

No where else can you see performances like this! Not since the Bob Hoffman Birthday Picnics at the old York Barbell has anyone seen a classic picnic like you will witness in Bowling Green." from the Atomic Athletic website.

We made it to the picnic with time to spare.

It deserves its own post and I promise to have one up in the next day or so. As to the guy doing this one arm lift, each of those plates is 100 lbs and the bar and the bar weighs at least 45 lbs.

But like I said more on that to come.

Under the Influence

This blog is obviously about me and from my viewpoint. It is after all, Jon of All Trades.

That said my life has always been hugely influenced by my little nuclear family.

Before Skye came around, Cindy and I worked together more often than not over the course of those six years. When Skye entered our lives, I put my "career" on the back burner to a certain extent.  Cindy had the deeper resume, a better reputation and actually enjoys working in the film business. I oftentimes can barely endure it.

When we decided to home-school and I took the role of primary educator/administrator, my main trade became that of teacher/chauffeur/event coordinator.

Thus the lion's share of my life and activities is informed and/or sparked by Skye and Cindy.

Dancing with Skye

I've been dragging Skye onto the dance floor since she could just barely able to walk, so I wasn't too surprised that she took to swing dancing the way she did, even though that isn't my dance of choice. I tend to go for the Latin steps.

She started taking classes with a bunch of other home-school kids at Swing Strong down in Decatur at Down South Swing.

Give and Take

The other day they performed at Medlock Gardens assisted living facility.

It was a wonderful experience for Skye.

She got to dance in front of a captive audience, take that as you will. 

When it came time to intermingle, one of her strongest attributes, compassion came into the fore.  She was remarkably comfortable and at ease.



She often puts other people first, sometimes to a fault, but that is the not so objective opinion of a father.

Then it was time to dance.....

Chasing the Moon

Last Sunday morning started off just like any other Sunday morning, at least for us and our topsy-turvy world.

I had dragged Skye out of bed just a bit before 5, so we could try to get some good pictures of the Super-moon that would be setting at around 6:30 a.m.

We set up on a bridge that has incredible views of downtown Atlanta but in no time at all the moon slipped behind an apartment building, so we raced off to Piedmont Park.

There we scrambled up and down the hills trying to capture the perfect picture.

We never did.

It wasn't because there weren't great shots to be had, we just didn't have any idea how to operate our fancy new camera. 

We ended up with a lot of blurry pics of a big bright orb and what sort of looks like a city skyline.

Skye started complaining that her stomach hurt because she was so hungry. I simply took it as the complaints of a teenager who is not a morning person. When we got home and she blew off getting something to eat because she was too tired and went back to bed, my theory was confirmed.

Or so I thought.

Hours later when she finally emerged from her room, her stomach still ached.  She's generally not one to complain, especially when compared to the typical teenager, so when her tummy ache continued into the next day, I was more than a little concerned. 

What would usually be considered a strength, her stoic nature, would be her undoing.

After what had now been around 30 hours since she mentioned any sort of discomfort and when the tummy ache moved down and over to her right side, I decided that her symptoms sounded like appendicitis and rushed her to the hospital.

The first doctor agreed and shortly after we arrived at the emergency room, she was being carted away on a gurney and in an ambulance to the nearest children's hospital.

Laughter...Not Always the Best Medicine

She managed to get pretty much every one of the hospital workers to laugh at some point.

I was amazed at her composure.

And proud of her bravery.

The doctor at the children's hospital was convinced that it wasn't her appendix because kids with appendicitis are typically not in as good of spirits as Skye ,even though she was telling him that on a scale of 1-10 her pain was at a 6. That might not seem like much, but for Skye to even admit to an outsider she was in any sort of discomfort, I knew was of great significance.

Not only did it turn out to be her appendix, but it had ruptured which would mean a much longer hospital stay.

As to the above sub-title, laughing caused her more pain than almost anything else, so even when she was making others laugh, for her to join in, well .....

Bad Timing ?

I know there is no good time to have your appendix bust, and maybe in retrospect it was actually good timing.  But when it was happening it certainly didn't feel that way.

Cindy was already working 14 plus hour days, and they hadn't even started shooting. And we were supposed to start an already ambitious road trip in just a couple days.

So we would cancel the road trip and at least Cindy was in town and not shooting, so maybe it really was good timing.

Skye Undefeated

Skye had her appendix remove in the wee hours of Monday night or perhaps Tuesday morning.

We would stay in the hospital all week.

Her IV stand would be her constant companion, accompanying her to the bathroom and on trips to the cafeteria and lobby and even through the outside gardens and koi pond.

On Friday, when she was released from the hospital she asked if there was still time to make it to the Olde-Time Strongman Picnic.

She knew that I really wanted to go.

It was a 10 1/2 hour drive and the event started the next day at around 11 a.m.

Yes there was time to make it.

We checked out of the hospital at 3 that afternoon.

We were at the picnic the following morning and managed to get to the highpoint in Ohio along the way, but that's for another post.

And she'll be in her Swing class on Monday morning.

Spring Time

During the winter months, when many of the farmers markets closed, we fell into a standard routine. Wednesday we would head over to the Decatur market and on Saturday we might go back to Decatur, but usually I like to mix it up and adventure all the way up to Marietta or over to the Morningside market.





More incredible oyster mushrooms from Deep South Mushrooms , just can't get enough of them and they're so easy and quick to prepare.

However in the last couple of weeks some of our old favorites have been starting up again, which is wonderful, but does make for some ethical decisions.

You see, as much as I love the Decatur farmers market, there are some things that I prefer about some of the other markets. It might be the setting, or selection or time or a particular vendor or product, however I am a very loyal customer, especially when it comes to local, small operations.

Decatur kept going, rain or shine, even when it got pretty cold or windy. I couldn't just abandon them.


Decisions, Decisions....or Not

The solution I've come up with is to buy less at each market and go more often and eat even more home prepared meals.

For me the markets are a field trip, a way to support the local economy and food being produced the "right" way. It's a good excuse to get out and because of our regularity, its become a time to socialize as well.

Opening Daze

Peachtree Road Farmers Market is the largest farmers market I've been to in Atlanta and I had imagined that it would be the one opening that we'd all go to as a family, however as it would happen, Cindy was exhausted from the job she's on and I decided to let Skye sleep in because there was a very real possibility that she would be racing with me later that day in the Great Urban Race, (she did).

So I went at it alone and early since I needed to get ready for aforementioned race. (note;for some reason I really like the word aforementioned)

It's a good thing I did because it was insanely crowded, not in the LA sense where it is better to forgo the event, but in the, "Wow! There sure are a lot of people up early for a farmers market."

I decided to splurge and go for the market burger, with a fried farm egg and goat cheese from Decimal Place Farm; Skye's first home-school field trip here in Atlanta was out to their place, so a little nostalgia kicked in, not to mention how delicious their cheeses are.

There's nothing like knowing how and where your food is grown but actually having been there makes it even better, as close as you can get to raising it yourself.

Old Favorites

There were several vendors there that I hadn't seen in months.

Indian Ridge Farm always has a varied, interesting and beautiful array of "greens", although often they're not the color green.
They usually have several plants that we most think of as "weeds" like dandelions that might not look or taste like a traditional green salad,  but are quite delectable, an adventure and experience for all the senses.

Sweet Savannah Shrimp was there with there amazing and almost local shrimp.
You really can tell the difference, as soon as you start shelling them. Their texture is firmer than what most of us have become accustomed to and the taste...yummy yummy.

East Atlanta Village

The EAV Farmers Market is probably my favorite for a few reasons.

It's in a lovely local, the only market that I can recollect being on dirt and grass rather than on asphalt or cement.

It's also very much part of the community, with several of their own planter beds and compost bins and other educational demos.

And hula hoops lots of hula hoops.

I think we first came across S&J's Wood-fired Pizza at the Peachtree Road market.

We used to have our own wood-fired oven in our backyard in LA, so I know first hand what it takes to make pizza in them, how hot it gets,(around 750 F worked best for me) how long it takes,(just a couple of minutes tops) and how amazing and delicious they are.
So whenever I see them I make sure to get me one of their latest concoctions.

I've become a big hula hoop advocate. Its a great way to get into the "flow" which is more important than people tend to realize.

Hooping and juggling, two things I think people should be doing more of.

Plus a live band and a couple of food trucks and of course local fresh veggies, eggs and all the rest.

Also the EAV farmers markets hosts several craft fairs and Eco-awareness events through out the year. 

Another Opening Day

We don't often make it over to the Grant Park market because we've either been to the EAV on Thursday or one of several of the markets on Saturday or perhaps both, so by Sunday we really have no reason to go to another market.

However when schedules get hectic and we haven't  able to get to the other markets, well on those occasions, Grant Park has been a more than able substitute.

The day of its re-opening however was not one of those days, although we decided to go anyway to show our support.

Crack in the Sidewalk Farm is really local and really small (1/2 acre) but always have a nice mix.

Recently we've got arugula, some spicy mixes to braise and mulberries.

But since we had just seen them on Thursday and still hadn't finished off the goodies from then, we just said hello and meandered down the path.

We did find a new mushroom source, Atlanta Gourmet Mushroom, which is good because we are fungi fiends and they never last for long at our house.

A Road Less Traveled

We trekked up to Marietta one Sunday because Cindy had heard that once its spring the market moves to a larger location and there are around twice the number of vendors.

The bit of information she missed was that was on Saturdays.

Sundays are a relatively new thing and well as you can see, not quite yet the event as its older brother.

We still haven't been to that one yet or ELF, East Lake Farmers market and I'm sure several other note-worthies.

But I did return to Your Dekalb Farmers Market which is where so many people from Atlanta think I'm going when I tell I'm off to the Farmers Market.

It is an amazing store in its own right. And if I did enjoy the experience this last time around. It has wonderfully fresh food from all over the world.  So not very local, but no worse than say Whole Foods and much more affordable. If I were entertaining like I did in LA, I'm sure I would be in there more often.

And it was quite an education for Skye to see how much of our food comes from so far away.

Enough for now. It's taken me forever and a day to finally put this post together and now its done. There are many more vendors and stories and ......

Lovely Bookends

At last year parade, we were new to the neighborhood, and the Inman Park Festival and Atlanta were complete unknowns to us.

Atlanta has become like home to us and Inman Park has become our backyard.

Last year I was titillated by the bunch of "gnomes" going for a Guinness World Record. Now I know several of them and were invited to join in on the annual rebuff.

Last year we shouldered our way to the front of the crowd to see and hear the marching band, Kelly’s Seed and Feed Marching Abominable Band. Since then we've seen them at several other events and one of the members worked with Cindy on movie and another was a teacher at Circus Arts Institute.

To the point where we were much too casual about things this year.

Around noon we walked less than 100 yards over to Park's Edge, to meet up with some friends. This was our first time to this restaurant which is more about the even closer, Barcelona.

It's been on our "bucket list" since we saw it on Chef Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares, one of Skye's favorite shows and chefs.

Anyhow, we hung out for too long and almost missed the parade.

Almost....

My Heroes

We made it to the parade just in time to catch the Imperial OPA Circus, a group of performers that several of our "circus" friends are involved with, including
Stevens Seaberg our hand-balance teacher at Circus Arts.

The first time I saw the Box Top Hero Corp, I thought they were really cool.
So did a friend of ours, David who also takes classes at Circus Arts.

So much so that he tracked them down and became one of them. Way to go after your passions.


And of course, we can't forget.......
the video goes on for a while, because, well there were a lot of gnomes.

They are going after a Guinness World Record after all.

Too Much Technology or Was There?

The day was marred by horrible cell phone receptions that made finding one another and other friends nearly impossible.

Granted we hadn't formed any sort of plan, or figured out meet-up spots or even the parade route before hand, like we would have prior to Iphones, Google and the like.

Skye, who has become my event photographer, was busy playing around with our new Lytro camera, which we found out later isn't yet compatible with PC or even slight older Mac OS. So now many of our parade and festival images are essentially locked in this little box until software becomes available or we figure out how to access them in another way.

Oh well..

So this is not the best or most flattering picture of my teacher, Steve, out of focus with smeared make-up, but its the best I have.  The chap in the pink skirt is another member of the Imperial OPA.

It was great to see so many gnomes in one place.

I really didn't hang out much longer.
It was hot, really hot.

I didn't need festival food, what with my "new" diet and all.

I certainly didn't need to buy any more "stuff" because I was just getting ready to start figuring out how much and what I will be jamming into the little Rav 4.

And the couple beers, I did manage to acquire hit me fast and hard due to points mentioned above, temps and empty stomach.

Will we be around for the next Inman Park Festival?

Who knows?

I thought last years' would be my first and last.  Maybe I'll show up sporting a red pointy hat and a fluffy white beard.