Bloglanta

Atlanta has a burgeoning film industry.   It even has a Yahoo group with hundreds of members.
Now, ‘Motor Home Massacre‘ is having it’s premiere and if you like horror movies, you should go see it.  The premiere is August 4th @ 7:30 P.M. at the Plaza Theater on Ponce.  
The entire movie was shot in Metro Atlanta.  All the actors are from Atlanta & it used an Atlanta crew.   If the film premieres well and sells out, it will keep Atlanta on the film radar. 
This is not the first movie shot here.  Other films such as ‘We Three Kings‘ have premiered and done the festival circuit.  However, they did not get picked up for national distribution and hence can only be found at independent stores. 
For Atlanta to become a hotbed, well made films need to get national distribution.  Only then will Atlanta get the kind of attention and economic impact that Wilmington, N.C. has received. 

What is this, Rag on MARTA Day?

Yes, yes it is.

Maybe if MARTA were a feasible option for more people, I wouldn’t have left work early today feeling like crap because of a Code Red smog alert.

I’m not putting the blame totally on MARTA. People also need to have it beaten into their skulls that yes, you can get your fat ass up out of your car and still go where you need to go (understanding caveat #1 [above], of course) - driving isn’t the only way to get places! This mentality has got to change… but I don’t know how to accomplish it when people from Alpharetta are scared that The Black Man will ride public transportation up to their big-ass house in the boonies and steal their children and their family fortune.

Why, for the love of all that is holy, does the North-South MARTA train stop running from Arts Center Station at 8:00 PM?? Please, somebody explain this to me so I can stop banging my head on the desk - I’m developing quite a lump, thanks very much.

You see… I want to ride the hell out of MARTA, I really do… if only it would work with me, not against me (and everything that makes any kind of sense).

MARTINIS and TRANSIT
If you’ve ever wondered why America has the worst public transportation in the industrialized world, and the most freeways, come see “Taken for a Ride’, a movie that documents what happened to America’s streetcar system.
What: Free film showing – Taken for a Ride
When: Tuesday, July 26th. Happy Hour at 7:30 pm, Film starts at dusk (8:45-9:45 pm)
Where: Park Tavern (10th and Monroe)
MARTA Directions: from Midtown, take bus #45. From North Avenue, bus #27.
For a detailed synopsis of the film, see New Day Films
A FREE film event presented by: Citizens for Progressive Transit
“Fascinating…Taken for a Ride offers strong evidence. It raises unsettling historical questions about why public transit has let the public down.” -Caryn James, New York Times

Now we mourn with Egypt.  We dearly hope that all those injured at Sharm el Sheik recover and that the world has the fortitude to withstand this.
There is a degree to which these attacks, and all ‘fundamentalist’ attacks, are an attack against cities.  Fundamentalists strike out against complexity.  They attack the idea that people from different places and with different points of view can do more than just co-mingle, they can thrive… and where do they do that?  In cities. 
Cities are where we make the connections to form a new paradigmatic synthesis.  We take our old traditions, are confronted with new ones, and out of that, yield a new way to live that involves the most productive elements of all.  It sounds corny but it’s true. 
I have met more Indian people in the past year who like Reggaeton than I would ever have imagined.  I also know more people studying middle eastern dance than I’d have believed.  When everyone gets together, the two merge.  It’s an amazing to see people belly dancing to Reggaeton.  Fundamentalists hate that. 
What they really hate is that people work out their differences and get along.  We send our best wishes to Egypt and to everyone who has suffered loss.  We live in cities precisely to thwart the wretched scum who try to blow up people trying to get along.

The City Council has indefinitely tabled the Pan Handling Ban.  Apparently, they can’t stand the heat, so they closed the kitchen.
The ban has a lot of problems, but there is a need for it.  Recently, in Decatur, I witnessed what I can only describe a predatory pan handling.  There was a guy trolling the public parking on Clairmont waiting for women to drive into a space.  He would then approach the drivers side of the car and stand next to it, making it tough for the women to open the door.  If they handed him money, he went away.  He never touched them, he never touched the door, but his intent was obvious.
He didn’t do this to the men who pulled up, just the women.  I can easily understand how they would feel intimidated. 
The problem is that asking for money is obviously protected speech, and in order to define a behavior as crossing the line beyond protected speech, one must be able to delineate precisely where the behavior goes out of bounds in a non-arbitrary way. 
The city should erect signs that discourage visitors from giving directly to Panhandlers, while asking downtown businesses to have collection cans for support agencies.  The result is that panhandlers will be less effective and hence panhandle less.  At the same time, people downtown will feel they have a charitable opportunity to make a difference.  Council should then pass clarifications to the menacing statutes and encourage the police to enforce those laws.
Lastly, the state needs to make a committed effort to deal with the portion of Atlanta’s panhandling community that suffers from mental illness. 
Keeping downtown enjoyable is important to the city’s growth, but keeping people free is even more essential. 

Yes, it’s true - this post is merely a shameless plug of my Atlanta photo gallery. But in my defense, I think I’ve got some pretty good pictures. My ultimate goal, I suppose, is to capture on film CF card all the various neighborhoods and suburbs of Atlanta. I think it’s important to have pictures of the environs in which we go about our day-to-day lives, for our own enjoyment as well as that of future generations. (I’ve been a shutterbug all my life, like my mother and grandfather before me - I can’t help it, it’s in my blood!)

Favorite collections thus far: Cabbagetown, Springtime in Midtown, Marietta.

And if someone could tell me what this weird tower in the Old Fourth Ward is, I would greatly appreciate it! It’s been bugging me to no end.

Remember MAACC?
They’ve actually been working hard and have a plan.  Bill Nigut, the group’s executive director, talked to the membership of the Atlanta Coalition of Performing Arts and gave a rundown.  Here’s the general direction their going.
MAACC sees itself as the link between the arts community and the business/civic community.  Their job is to champion the importance of the arts in the life of a successful city. To that end, they have some programs going. 
First, they’ve started an Arts Leadership program similar to Leadership Atlanta.  Classes contain Arts leaders, business executives, and government officials who all work together in a 4 day format to understand issues, solve problems and build bridges.  The first class has already graduated and they’re preparing for the second class.
They’re also building a database of arts patrons.  That way, the folks who are interested in the arts can be given opportunities to mobilize or to get unique opportunities for special arts programs. 
They do have a website up which provides another portal for listing events.  They are trying to use this to partner with local media companies to garner further exposure for the arts scene.
One interesting item that Nigut discussed was the perception that big ticket cultural institutions, such as the Woodruff Arts Center, Georgia Aquarium, and NASCAR museum will draw funding away from the smaller cultural institutions that really need it.  Nigut urged people to think about this as a chance to get business and government aware of the power of cultural institutions improve the attractiveness of the city and they leverage that awareness toward greater funding.  Whether that can actually be accomplished is another story. 
Still, it’s good to know that MAACC is working and generally working toward progress in the right directions. 

Dear #23 Bus,

Why you got to do me like this? I thought we had something going. For over a year now, you and me, we’ve been like this. [Holds up index and middle finger, crossed.] But then today… what’s up, #23 Bus? There I was, at the bus stop at 15th & Peachtree at 2:00, ready to head up to Piedmont Hospital for my 2:30 doctor’s appointment. Where were you, #23? You totally stood me up. As it happened, I had driven to work that day because I thought it was going to be raining all day; so I sprinted back to my car in the Colony Square parking garage and drove - yes, you heard me, don’t act so shocked - to my appointment, barely making it on time.

Please explain yourself, #23. It shouldn’t be a big deal to go ~2 miles up the road in the middle of the afternoon, should it? I want to commit to you, I really do - but you’re making it so difficult. If only you’d treat me right, #23, I wouldn’t have to keep going back to my car.

Love Always,
Amber

Why is there now valet parking at Lindbergh Station?  Upon arrival today at the Center Garage, there was a sign for the lower levels saying ‘Valet Only’.
According to the website, the lower levels are being reserved for retail parking only.  Here’s my question.  WHAT RETAIL?  The shops have been ready for occupancy for years but no one has gone in!  Are there clothiers?  No!  Starbucks?  No!  Restaurants?  No!  Well, okay, there is Longhorn Steakhouse, but it was built as a separate building!
Longhorn, however, may be the crux.  They may have demanded parking and were willing to pay to have that portion of the garage cut off.  I hope MARTA is going to generate a ton of revenue because they are already making people mad.  Even now, there is not enough parking at Lindbergh.  They need to open up the top floors of the decks and let everyone who can use that space. 
Yes, MARTA needs the money, but they need loyal ridership more.