After catching up on family and future plans we drove to the King Center. Admission is free and the exhibit in the visitor’s center was excellent. It began with a history of segregation, moved through the Civil Rights movement, and closed recounting King’s vision for economic equality. The information was, of course, not new to me but still emotionally evocative. And reflecting on the courage and resolve to maintain a nonviolent approach while enduring violence made me wonder if there is anything I am that committed to.

I hope so.

And I mean… damn. The group leader prepared a pork roast complete with rosemary and other aromatic herbs; there was a strawberry and spinach salad, spiced sweet potatoes, green beans from the farmer’s market, watermelon and deviled eggs, and a strawberry cake with cream cheese icing for dessert. Not to mention a solid selection of red and white wines, German and local beers.

I’ve so enjoyed the friends I’ve found in the group. And for some unknown reason, they’ve really loved and accepted me.

post pot-luck smiles

I finally met one of my future classmates yesterday. I helped her move some furniture into her new apartment and then headed downtown with her for lunch at Trappeze. While their menu was short, the food was far above the pub food standard. It was really great to finally connect with someone in the program, find things in common, and share all the Athens facts and tid-bits I’ve been storing for just such an occasion.

Downtown Athens hosted three separate festivals yesterday afternoon. There was the Hot Corner Festival on the corner of Washington and Hull; Hot Corner was described by Flagpole as “the early 20th century epicenter of African American commerce and culture in downtown Athens.” I appreciated the saxophone music that seemed to voice all the feelings in a Southern summer afternoon. And then there was the Indie Arts and Crafts festival. Check out these local artisans (I loved them): Bella Bee, Christy Wooke, Prairie Dog Inc, Genevieve Gail. And finally on College Ave was the Human Rights Festival, marked by a stage holding a banner that read Stop All Wars. (Amen, amen).

Last night I met several friends at the Terrapin Brewery, which distributes throughout the Southeast but brews in Athens. Basically the tour involves paying $8 for a glass and 8 tickets, each ticket allowing you to sample 1 beer, and then hanging out in a warehouse-like-building, listening to a local band, and getting your glass refilled. There is a bit were you can listen to one of the owners/founders give a tour, but what that really means is standing in one place while he tells you how they came up with the name (Grateful Dead fans), what ingredients are in beer, and what special brews they’ve been doing recently. The tour is only vaguely interesting, but the whole experience really is fun. I only used three of my eight tickets and tried the rye, wheat and golden beers. One day I’ll suck it up and try the darker brews – I’m just not that brave yet.

I quickly discovered that while cocktails run cheap in Athens, haircuts are a pretty penny. After talking with friends and calling several salons for price checks, I confirmed that the average cut in Athens (shampoo and blowdry included) runs between $40-$50. And I was advised that a good cut will be at least $70. This, of course, horrified me.

The trendy salon (as in, this is where all the cool kids go) is fairly new and located above Tasty World downtown on Broad, called Republic. I’ll let the website speak for itself, but rumor has it the owner does hair for fashion week in NYC.

I got my cut (bangs and long layers, no drama) at Fantastic Sam’s for about $24 – including a deep conditioning treatment. If you go, ask for Stephanie.

I went to the Athens Quaker meeting yesterday. They meet from 9:30am till noon, which was a bit much for me. So I left before the second hour. It’s an unprogrammed meeting, which means that there is no speaker. Members sit in meditative silence for an hour and speak as they feel led. Mostly I thought about how I couldn’t stop thinking. It was really difficult to focus and think intentionally. I feel like I have realized the importance of living and speaking intentionally for some time now, but haven’t really given much weight to thinking intentionally about things that matter or are edifying. Instead I think about nail polish colors, boys I’m not dating, and whether or not I’ll be any good at grad school.

My apartment-mate is leaving for the summer on Wednesday. I don’t think I’m prepared to live alone for three months yet. I’m not mature enough.

Today was the Twilight Criterium, a professional cycling event and the biggest thing that happens in Athens each year (except for football season, I imagine). And it was super fun. We parked on Prince and walked downtown. Four streets were blocked off for the races, with food vendors and music on College Ave. We watched the amatuer race from the starting line and it’s intense. And much cooler than it sounds. The professional races followed. There were a few blown tires and one wipe out that I know of. I’m already excited about next year.

I also went thrift store shopping today and scored two sun dresses.

The city has  small parks that straddle Barnard, Bull, Abercorn and Habersham Streets between the Savannah River and Forsyth Park. The visitor’s center is on MLK Boulevard and the center for trolly tours – including Victorian homes, carriage rides, and ghost tours. Broughton Street is home of the boutiques, from Marc by Marc Jacobs to Satchel. And Bay Street has the Moon River brewery – Savannah’s only microbrewery and where I had dinner at my coworker’s recommendation. I tried one of their pale brews, Wild Wacky Wit. My favorite street however was mostly residential with a smattering of antique stores – Jones Street. Every so often I would pass a wrought iron gate, and a closer peak in revealed beautifully kept but untamed gardens that hinted at an English heritage. The trip was a lovely distraction and enough was left undone that a second visit need not be postponed.

Oh, and I was officially laid off from Lucky Wings today. Should their financial situation improve, I can expect a phone call. My breath is not held.

Only 3 more weeks to go.