Finally! I've Written a Book!

I've written and published a book!

Of course, that was my intention when I began writing online way back in 2006 while I was still in the classroom, but the book I've published isn't exactly the book I had planned.

The planned project - a teaching memoir - will still be published along with a few other projects, but this book feel into my lap along the way, and it needed to be done.

History education is my prime focus along with writing curriculum. Over the last couple of years I've written some college courses used by teacher candidates at Johns Hopkins University School of Education, and I have some other curriculum ideas up my sleeve, but local history has taken a front-burner position over the last year.

I've been researching and writing the local history of Douglas County for the past four years, and have had a weekly column with the Douglas County Sentinel for a year and half.

I've been a longtime fan of the Images of America series of books from Arcadia Publishing. Several towns in Georgia are included, but my town of Douglasville was missing.

When Arcadia contacted me last year, there was no other alternative than to sign the contract and get busy. The book was released July 14th, and I'm very proud of it.

The book contains 200 vintage images depicting the history of Douglasville, Georgia with some dating back to the 1870s and covering the next one hundred years.

As far as a southern town goes, Douglasville is a bit unique as it IS the quintessential New South town having been birthed in 1875 during Reconstruction.

You can see a Google preview of the book HERE, and you can purchase it via Amazon HERE.

College Park's Cox College

I wish I had a five dollar bill for every time I ventured up Highway 29/Roosevelt Highway from Red Oak to downtown College Park. I’d have a tidy sum to invest.

From the age of four until I was around 20 years of age I made that trip often…sometimes daily….sometimes two or three times a day whether I was running errands with my mother or simply going back and forth to school. 

During all those years I didn’t give the history of College Park any real notice. It’s where I hung out and lived. I was too busy going about the business of growing up to be concerned with what might have happed on any given block.

Of course, once I entered the tenth grade and began to have more rigorous history courses, and once I began attending Woodward Academy – the former Georgia Military Academy – where history and tradition just seem to ooze from every monument and brick, I couldn’t help but be interested.

For years the block along Main Street where College Park’s city hall, library and what once was College Park High School seemed to hold a secret – a secret of a past occupant due to the positioning of the  lovely old trees. I could hear the secret whispering to me as Mother and I would drive past. I’d look out of the window and wonder what had once been there, but never had the time to really look into the matter... though I heard rumors.

Who knew that back as early as the 1890s a very large and well thought of female college was on that very property – a college known as Cox College and Conservatory? The picture below shows the main building on campus. This building faced Main Street, and this picture shows what they called the Marble Entrance.

 

 

To get the whole story regarding Cox College we need to go back a little bit to 1842 when Pastor John E. Dawson organized LaGrange Female Seminary.  By 1854, the name changed to Southern Female College. The campus was located close to the intersection of Dawson and Seminary Streets. During the Civil War the school was used as a hospital and unfortunately, was lost in a fire. A second building was erected near Smith and Church Streets, but that building is also gone and is now the location of a post office.

Ichabod F. Cox took over as president of the school in 1857. When he was ready to retire his son, Charles C. Cox took over, and in 1895 he moved the school to Manchester, Georgia. The Cox family had been in charge of the school for so long that the name Cox was so strongly associated with the school that eventually folks just referred to it as Cox College.

The folks in Manchester were happy about the arrival of Cox College and welcomed the young ladies who attended. The people in Manchester were, according to Robert Ballentine author of The Woodward Story, “very school-minded and envisioned Manchester as an educational hinge in the southern area. By 1900, the college had an enrollment of more than 300 young ladies and was internationally known as an outstanding female school.”

Yes, the folks in Manchester were very school-minded, so much so they changed the name of the town to reflect it. Beginning in 1896, Manchester was known as College Park, Georgia.

Mr.Ballentine, who I remember fondly as my principal at Woodward Academy, writes in his book about the day Colonel John Charles Woodward headed up to College Park from his home in Newnan one spring morning in 1900 for a meeting about another school the citizens of College Park wanted to form.

Woodward would have noticed the large and very impressive structure of Cox College as he disembarked from the train and began walking up Main Street to the White home (today’s College Park Women’s Club) where the meeting would be held.  Colonel Woodward would have walked right by the college grounds and noticed how the campus filled a “block and forty acres”. 

Rachel Mays Dempsey advises in College Park Heritage (1958), "The campus was covered with native hickory and oak trees...There were many varieties of shrubs, hundreds of roses that bordered the walks and rows of violets and beds of rhododendrons, azaleas and camellias…The campus outlined with a low white wooden fence, was bordered on three sides by attractive homes of the faculty.”

You can get an idea of what the campus was like in these two pictures.

 

The inside of the school was just as luxurious for the period.  Here is a picture of the grand staircase,

 

 

As you can see from these few pictures the young ladies at Cox College enjoyed a beautiful campus. They had all of the modern conveniences at the turn-of-the century including electric lights, steam heat, hot and cold water, baths, a passenger elevator, tower clock, electric bells and speaking tubes per an ad in Alkhest Magazine I found online.

There was gymnasium space for tennis, and in infirmary with an experienced nurse.

The library which I picture below contained 5,000 volumes.  The school also boasted a museum of natural history and industrial chemistry with over 7,000 specimens and physical and chemical laboratories. 

So much for thinking a young ladies finishing school was simply about elocution lessons, right?

 

 

The fine arts department had 46 pianos, a large pipe organ, 2 Italian harps , an orchestral outfit, and art studios with flat models and statuary.

Charles C.Cox was known to boast, “A merely cheap school is not the aim of the management of this institution; we are working for the best in education, and are building with reference to the future.”

Getting back to the meeting Colonel Woodward attended in College Park that day in 1900…He was meeting with a group of folks to discuss the abandoned property where the Southern Military Academy had been located.  Charles Cox was a member of the group along with Colonel P.H. Brewster, I.C. McCrory and others.  At that meeting College Park’s second academic center was formed as Colonel Woodward was persuaded to take over the abandoned property, and the group became the original committee who established Georgia Military Academy/Woodward Academy.

Cox College went on for several more years educating hundreds of young ladies from across the South, however the school did close several times between 1923 and 1933 due hard times.  

Cox College closed their doors for the last time in 1938, and eventually the property became home to College Park's government complex.

You can find more pictures of this amazing place at my Facebook page under “albums” here.

…and in case you aren’t aware Colonel Woodward did take on the abandoned 16 acres. The abandoned building was renamed Founder’s Hall and Georgia Military Academy embarked on their own rich history.

Chinchillas, Ponies and Donkeys.....Oh My!

Growing up in Red Oak, Georgia along U.S. 29 or Roosevelt Highway my father indulged my sister and I with just about every pet imaginable with reptiles being the exception. Of course, we had the regular assortment of dogs and cats that just seemed to take up with us...usually at a time when they were about to bless the world with a litter of puppies or kitties, but we also had a few unexpected animals of the more exotic type.  

While Red Oak wasn't exactly the city during the 1970s it was more city than country and considering we lived on the grounds of a large lumber yard....West Lumber Company...it wasn't the spot where you would expect to find a large assortment of animals. 

For example, we had bunny rabbits and colored chicks bought at the feed store in College Park during the springtime along with various ducks that would run around the yard quacking up a storm. I had little turtles bought with my allowance money from the Woolworth at Jamestown Shopping Center, and so many goldfish were flushed down the toilet at Red Oak I'm amazed my parents didn't have serious plumbing issues.

At one point we had six chinchillas. My sister and I loved waiting for them to be in the right position in their cages so we could reach in and grab them by the tail...the only way to safely pick up a chinchilla since they have very sharp teeth and love to bite. Daddy had designs on breeding, raising, and selling the little critters, but at some point I think he finally realized all of our chinchillas were...alas....of the male persuasion.

Daddy, being the farm boy that he was, felt my sister and I needed to experience a cow...a calf to be more exact at some point when I was seven or eight.   So, a baby calf was delivered to the house inside a rather large wooden crate. I say large because the crate was as big as my bedroom. Every single day our job was to give the calf his food and give him his bottle. 

Yep....he had a huge bottle resembling a baby's bottle with the longest nipple I'd ever seen. For a time it was one of the highlights of my day to visit the calf and give him/her the bottle. While he or she ( I really don't remember) pulled and tugged at the bottle I tried to keep steady by using my other hand to pet the calf and I would tell him all my deep dark secrets.

Then there was the Christmas morning that my sister and I heard a commotion on the front porch along with a knock on the door. We had already waded through the stacks of presents under the tree and just figured company had come "a callin'", so we opened the door not realizing yet another animal was about to enter our menagerie.

A pony!!!

A pony had climbed our front steps and was standing on our front porch.  I couldn't believe my eyes. From what I now understand our little pony had won several ribbons and various trophies, and his owner needed to retire him, so the pony came to live at our house for awhile. 

It was a very exciting Christmas morning!!! 

Then there was the day we found the donkey tied up in our yard. We never named our larger animals. The calf was The Calf....the pony was the The Pony...and the donkey was....you guessed it....The Donkey.  I felt sorry for him since he was rather homely in that donkey kind of way.  I mean....he was a donkey, right?

He put up with a lot from me. At my young age I patted, prodded, and rubbed him. I talked to him, hugged him, rubbed his nose, kissed him, fed him treats, and just generally loved him very much...probably too much because one day he figured out how to loosen the knot from the rope tied around one of our oak trees. I'd really like to think he just wanted to go exploring a bit, but more than likely he was trying to escape all of the love I tried to bestow upon him.

The donkey decided he'd take a trip down to the center of Red Oak. Instead of taking the highway he decided to run down the rail road tracks. I caught sight of him and my screams alerted  an employee of my father's who set off after my beloved donkey. To make matters worse we could hear a train whistle in the distance, and I was afraid not only my donkey would be hit by the train....I was concerned for the man trying to rescue him for me.

The train went whizzing past the house and it wasn't until the train passed I saw the man carefully making his way up the side of the tracks...rope in hand...pulling the donkey with him. He had managed to catch up with the donkey and get him off the tracks just before the train passed.

Another hot summer afternoon I heard a commotion out on the highway in front of the house. I went to the porch and saw where the donkey had gotten loose yet again and ventured across the tracks and was standing in the middle of the highway. I had been told to never cross the tracks without an adult so...I commenced to hollering and crying afraid my donkey would get hurt.

Mom came running and hurried across the tracks to get to the donkey. Then I really began screaming and crying because now not only was my donkey across the tracks...so was my mother. When I was younger I had tremendous separation anxiety during most of my elementary years where my mom was concerned.

Looking back on it now the whole situation was hilarious....even though at the time I was scared and NOT amused. Not accustomed to seeing a donkey in the middle of Roosevelt Highway the traffic had come to a stop both ways and the cars were gingerly taking turns slowly making their way around my donkey...first one direction and then the other. The donkey...well, he just stood there on the center line of the road...just staring into space as most donkeys do looking off towards College Park with his rope dangling down his side and leading off behind him. Every now and then his tail would twitch and swat at a fly.

Mother grabbed the rope and tried to get him to turn around towards our drive so she could lead him home. The donkey would have none of that.....

She tugged.

The donkey resisted.

She pulled.

He shook his head at her.

She pushed.

He bared his teeth at her.

By this time several folks were getting impatient and began to honk their horns upsetting all of us...the donkey, Mother, and me. The donkey didn't like the car horns and began making noises. 

Yes, he stood there in the middle of the road and began braying as loud as he could.

Heeee-Haaaaaw........Heeeee-Haaaaw......Heee-Haaaaaw!!!!

A few of the folks who actually knew us hung their heads out the windows as they inched by mom saying, "Heeey, Geri!", "Having fun?", or just attempting to give her advice or encouragement of some sort.

By this point the donkey was tired of the whole "game" and took a set-down. Yep, I now know why a donkey is often referred to as an ass or a Jackass to be more precise. The donkey just plopped his big fat ASS right down on the center line of Roosevelt Highway....just sat down and proceeded to ignore my mother for the next fifteen to twenty minutes.

Then as suddenly as he had sat down he stood up, turned around and walked back across the tracks and into our yard as if he owned the world and did that sort of thing every day. 

My mother wearily looked on and then trudged on along behind him across the tracks, into our yard and up the steps. She didn't even offer to tie him up. I think my dad did that once he arrived at the house.

Our donkey found himself put out to pasture at a family friend's farm within the week where he proceeded to irritate the Mama Cows by trying to mother their calves.

Our family stuck to dogs and cats after that.

A Lone Grave

We’ve become very accustomed to seeing macabre crosses and wreaths on the side of the road marking some terrible tragedy, but an actual lone grave on the side of the road begs some explanation even though hundreds of people pass it each day with nary a notice.

At one time someone did take notice and surrounded the grave with a fence and actually enclosed the grave with bricks and a marker. A bench was added, a decorative sundial and the remnants of a few plantings still exist.

The grave is at the intersection of Burris and Land Roads in the Clayton Community of Cherokee County, and is at the outer edge of the property belonging to Clayton Elementary School.

The grave is marked Aaron Burris…..1796-1864. The year of death leads one to think perhaps Mr. Burris was a soldier in the Civil War, and was slain by an enemy bullet, but look at the birth and death dates again. Do some elementary subtraction and we discover Mr. Burris was 68 at the time of his death – a little old to be traipsing off to whoop some Yankee butt.

The story goes Mr. Burris was one of a few handful of men who were left behind with the ladies while their men folk marched gallantly off to defend the ill-fated Confederate cause. Some ailment took hold of Mr. Burris and he passed away.

Suddenly the women living in the Clayton Community had a neighbor to bury and no men were around to do the necessaries.

Now…….I consider myself to be a very strong Southern woman. In fact, if you knew half of what I’ve experienced over the last four to five years you would beg me to let you off my crazy roller coaster ride, BUT….prepare my neighbor’s body for burial and dig the grave????

I’m not THAT woman, but – perhaps I need to rethink here – my quickness in doubting my abilities betray the memories of those women and one in particular Sarah Emmaline Land (Cline), wife of James Johnson Land, my great-great grandmother.

The Civil War/Atlanta page at The Examiner has more information regarding women on the home front.

Shared Space

I have never thought of myself as a groupie but I just may have to reconsider after visiting Hemingway’s on the Marietta Square last weekend to see a high school acquaintance perform. I’m ready to pack my bag and become a camp follower of sorts.

Jeff Pike is a bona fide Woodward Academy man having matriculated all twelve years at my alma mater. He and I weren’t friends in school as far as I can remember. In fact, he was a year ahead of me, and I doubt he ever knew who I was until we linked up on Facebook mainly because at one time we shared academic space – evidence enough that we are family of sorts…something akin to being blood brothers or sisters for life.

Right?

Actually…..I had seen several of Jeff’s Facebook updates regarding where he was performing next, so decided to see what the fuss was about and share some more space with him.

I’m glad I did.

First, the venue – Hemingway’s is a wonderful neighborhood bar and restaurant located on the square in Marietta, Georgia with lots of atmosphere. It’s been around since 1993 and is dubbed Atlanta’s “Parrothead Paradise” by the Atlanta Journal. There are plenty of tables inside and out on the patio yet the place isn’t too large. As Goldilocks would say the place is just right.

A long stacked stone bar was occupied with various patrons of all ages when I arrived, so I found a quiet table in the back where I could see the stage. The staff was moving about the place serving everyone with a smile, and doing exactly what I like – they look you in the eye and they check back often. Of course, as I looked around the place and noticed the molded tin ceiling tiles and the exposed foundation rock that can be seen as you traverse the stairs to the restrooms, I wondered about the history of the location…however, that will have to be another story for another time.

Now on to the Jeff Pike Trio, or JP3….This particular Sunday the trio consisted of Jeff Pike and Chaz McDonald…sadly, the third member James Cobb , was absent, but I’m sure I’ll meet up with him soon enough since I’ve decided to become a groupie.

One thing is for sure…..they know showmanship is more than standing on a stage and strumming a guitar.

Jeff expertly words a room making each and every person free welcome and takes the time to greet every person during his breaks asking for requests, visiting with people he’s performed for before, and getting to know new folks. He even make Elementaryhistoryteacher….ME…..who tends to stick to herself wallowing in her quirkiness with iphone and her current writing project (Yes, I take it everywhere I go) feel special and welcome. Thanks, Jeff!

Jeff and Chaz’s performance was just plain fun for laid back entertainment. Each set was filled with interplay between the audience and the performers that included several requested songs from the catalogs of Bob Segar, the Allman Brothers, Elvis and the Eagles. The best part of the afternoon was the Jimmy Buffet favorites such as It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere and A Pirate Looks at Forty

The afternoon evaporated all too quickly while soccer and baseball flickering on the large screen televisions scattered about Hemingway’s melted into golf. Song after song rocked me, relaxed me, and reminded me of times long past. Outside cars rushed by, people meandered down the sidewalk and families frolicked in the park as we became lost in the entertainment.

You can find out more about Jeff Pike and his wonderful career at his website found here and more about A1A, Jeff’s band that is known far and wide for presenting the Official and Original Jimmy Buffet Tribute show here.

Go on.....find out where Jeff will be performing next. Share some space with him. You won't regret it.

The Gift

Back during another lifetime in the 1970s you would have found me on Friday night sitting in front of our family television….the one where the knob had fallen off and we had to resort to using needle-nosed pliers to change it…patiently waiting for my favorite television show to air.

There I was – gazing up at the screen – watching a parade of commercials and happily munching on taco-flavored Doritos – then I would hear the theme song I can sing to this day and even if you won’t admit it, you can as well.

Here’s the story…of a lovely lady…who was bringing up three very lovely girls…All of them had hair of gold like their mother’s…the youngest one in curls.

Here’s the story…of a man named Brady…who was busy with three boys of his own…They were four men…living all together…yes, they were all alone.

I loved the Brady Bunch. They were different. They were not a cookie-cutter version of my very average family. Not everyone was related by blood, not everyone got along all the time, but there was a lot of love and acceptance. Take two families with former tragedy and throw in a dash of Alice and presto! An Instant American family I would have loved to be a part of.

Look around in any American classroom or neighborhood. We have more families with steps and halves and live-ins than ever before, and if you are like me you have often side-stepped an important facet of American History….our family history.

It’s easy to ignore these days , isn’t it?

I have had students who have their fair share of tragedy….parents on drugs, in jail, molestations, mental illness, a different uncle in the house every week or so, physical violence…a plethora of mixed families that make the Brady Bunch-type family impossible to achieve, so I can understand why educators might be leery of asking children to examine their families, to answer the question why their families are important, and to decide how their family fits into the American quilt even with all the baggage that sometimes accompanies family life these days.
But, how can we ask students to connect to a bunch of folks discussed in the study of history that they’ve never heard of and will never meet unless they can connect to how they fit in….how their family fits into our society no matter the baggage and no matter the circumstances?

A brand new book has dropped into my lap that I think would serve as a great reminder that families come in all shapes and forms. A family doesn’t necessary have to be a group of people all related by biology….they have to have things in common and those things bind us together in love.

The book I’m talking about is called The Gift. Its author and illustrator, Karen Craft, just happens to be my dear sister.

In The Gift, Karen tells the true story of Baby Boy who came to live with a family who wanted a little boy very much. The book covers numerous themes from family love, overcoming tragedy, and even an honest look at what makes the concept of family what it is and to be more precise what makes the concept of a mother….a mother.

As the first page of the book states, “A Mama isn’t just someone that gives birth to you. She’s someone that sits with you when you’re sick, and doesn’t mind. She’s the one who bakes you cookies late into the night, when you forgot to tell her earlier. She will clap louder than anyone at your piano recital. She reads your favorite book to you over and over. And over. She really listens to you when you need to talk and when you’re scared she makes you feel safe. She teaches you to be polite and chew with your mouth closed. She’s the last person you see when she kisses you good night, and the first person you want to see in the morning. You know in your heart that she’s your Mother, you Mom, your Mama. She’s your gift and you are hers. Sometimes biology just isn’t so important after all.”

The Gift is a great book to open the door to discuss adoption with students of all ages, to discuss blended families, to discuss losing a family member, and to discuss how non-family members….our friends and neighbors….are important parts of our families as well.

Children will love the story details regarding Da, Mama, Sister Dear, and Baby Girl. The story even has its own version of Alice in the guise of Nanni-K who in reality happens to be my dear niece.

It is a great resource for your classroom library, a media center, or a home library. Students, young and old, will love The Gift as a read aloud as they make Mother’s Day cards and presents, and the book lends itself well to small group reading activities for older students.

Karen Craft’s illustrations are brought to life even in more exact detail by artist Meghan Branscomb from Mornin’ Glory Studios. As you can see from the story illustrations I’ve scattered through this post they are exceptional and make the story even more entertaining. I’m already thinking about making a few slides of the illustrations in enlarged detail to show to students as the book is read.

It’s a great book to purchase for your child or another child you know. With Mother’s Day around the corner it is also a perfect gift for your mother, mothers you know young and old, and even those motherly-types you have in your life. I have a few of those….and I know you do too.

Visit Karen Craft's website, Just Sharing a Story, to purchase your copy of The Gift.

You can become a fan of Karen’s on Facebook and get updates on future publications HERE

This post originally ran at my other site History Is Elementary. If you are wondering why I’m recycling posts see my explanation HERE.

Another View of the Red Oak Train Depot

I grew up in Red Oak, Georgia…..a little strip of real estate between College Park and Fairburn. I attended elementary and high school while living there…..I made life-long friends there…..I did the Girl Scout thing there…I was baptized there…..I learned to drive there……I LIVED there , and it was a fantastic place to grow up back in the early 70s.

I loved that place…..I still do even though most everyone I knew is long gone including me, my home, and even the train depot.

Of course….the train depot seen with this post was long gone before I ever moved to Red Oak, but I rode by its location at least twice a day for many years.


I originally wrote about the train depot in December , 2007 when I was lucky enough to locate the original building plans for the depot which you can see HERE along with some of recollections of my daily visits to downtown Red Oak.

Go on….click through….you KNOW you want to read that post as well. :)

At that time someone by the time of C.E. Waltz commented and advised his grandfather had been the postmaster until the mid 60s and his grandmother had run a store out of the depot as well. He also advised that instead of the building being demolished it had been torn down and moved….and it had become a restaurant.

So , now the plot thickens. I wonder if any of my Red Oak friends I’ve hooked up with on Facebook or new friends that find me through Google searches know where the old depot building wound up and if it is still a restaurant…….
I’m waiting, and I'd love to know the rest of the story…:)

I snagged the depot picture from the Atlanta History Center site……HERE. I hope they don’t sue me for posting it……I’m giving full credit though.

And……it’s the season of the mulligan here at Georgia on My Mind while I’m busy telling myself I can write a book I'm revisting some of my older postings…..for an explanation see the link HERE.

Mulligan Season...

Over at History Is Elementary I’ve declared this spring to be the season of the mulligan – see my explanation here.

Basically, it means I will be re-posting past articles here at Georgia on My Mind as well as History Is Elementary and Got Bible?. I’m doing this so I can concentrate on a book project with a looming deadline.

Don’t worry though….I’ll be checking in often, and I do have a few new Georgia blogs to add to the blogroll for your reading pleasure.

I also plan to get the Georgia Carnival up and running again in April….so look for the announcement and call for submissions soon.

Your continued attention to my meager efforts here is greatly appreciated….

….and I want you to keep Georgia on your mind because our great state is the jewel of the south, and it is always on MY mind.

Rain, Rain....Go Away!

So far my family has come off easy regarding storm/flood damage. While I'm in the lowest spot in my subdivision my home sits up fairly high. However, the creek that runs along the back of our property is very, very angry. It washed out the dirt around one of our trees and down it came. Luckily it missed the house.

It will be a long night. We have several large trees on the front of the house, and IF they fall....they WILL hit the house.

Still, I have many friends who report they have lost their homes or have severe property damage. They are hurting, and my hearts go out to them.

Invading The Melting Pot for a Sweet 16!

If you happened to be in downtown Atlanta last Saturday night and found yourself next to a white stretch limo at a red light you might have noticed what looked like strobe lights going on and off inside the car.

No, it wasn’t a rolling disco. No, it wasn’t even over anxious paparazzi practicing for a celebrity sighting.

It was just my sixteen year old daughter and seven of her friends….along with her father and I on our way from our home west of Atlanta to The Melting Pot for her birthday dinner. Of course each girl had her own camera plus I had my own. We took more than our fair share of crazy pictures and videos to remember the occaision.

Ben Eratabe from Goodness Limo took great care getting us downtown and back home again in regal style. Here is a picture of the girls in front of the limo, one of Dear Daughter with Ben, and another of the party inside the car enroute. Yes, the music was turned up loud.

Everyone had a blast. Dear Daughter’s birthday was actually at the end of February, but an over scheduled life on the part of her parents and her busy social life as well necessitated in a month-long wait for the big dinner and spend-the-night-party.

While the melting pot is a bit pricey, the service was impeccable, the food great (if you don’t mind cooking your own), and the surroundings interesting.

Along with a wonderful salad course we had three more courses of great fondues….cheese, meats, and a chocolate course that was wonderful. Since we were a party of ten we had three fondue pots on the table. For each course we ordered a different cooking style for each pot which ended up giving everyone more variety as we shared and shared alike. The girls liked the cheese and chocolate courses the best.

When you visit their main page here notice the three fondue pots on the left side side of the large picture click those for an interactive tour through the courses. Roll your curser over different parts of the table for more information to pop up. The page for the Midtown Atlanta (4th and Peachtree) location can be found here.

Ben got us all home safely and Dear Husband and I trudged away to our bedroom to TRY and get some sleep. The hard part was yet to come…..getting everyone up, dressed, and out the door for church Sunday morning, so they could all be reunited with their parents.

We made it just as services started. :)

I hope you had a very happy birthday celebration, Daughter Dear.

A Vinings Kind of Thursday

Vinings—the village proper—always intrigued me as an interesting place. There were cute shops and restaurants, and later when I learned the history behind Vinings it held even more interest. Still with all of that intrigue Vinings merely served as a quaint place to drive through as I continued to use Mother’s cut through long after our shopping trips ceased and I was on my own.

I made myself take a day out for me last Thursday. I went by the local Publix and picked up things for dinner (so I would have no excuse to NOT fix dinner that evening), made sure the family kitty had food, and then off to Vinings I went.

When I was a little girl my mother always used Paces Ferry Road near Cumberland as a cut through to get over to Lenox Mall. In that way she avoided downtown Atlanta traffic, and we always enjoyed the route dotted here and there with grand estates and historic homes—many of which have now been razed to make way for even more modern mansions or cluster-type estate communities.

I understand progress, but it’s rather sad as well.

Around 1830 Hardy Pace operated Pace’s Ferry which took people and goods across the Chattahoochee River as they traveled from Atlanta back and forth to Buckhead and Smyrna. Vinings was known at that time as Paces after the ferryman. Later the village became known as Vinings after William H. Vining, a construction worker for the railroad, who oversaw the construction of “Vinings Bridge”.

During Sherman’s March to the Sea, Union forces occupied Vinings. Several pre-Civil War structures were destroyed at that time including the Pace home which had been used as a hospital. All that remains today are the steps.

Following the Civil War, Vinings became an area for Atlantans to retreat to during the hustle bustle and often frustration of Reconstruction. There were plenty of springs and pavilions to encourage tourists.



On Thursday I made a beeline to the shops at Vinings Jubliee. I’ve bought several things for my home in the various stores as well gift items for friends. One of my favorite stores is Limetree Gifts.

For my lunch location I had many great places to choose from, but I opted for Soho, also located in the Vinings Jubliee complex.

Trey was my waiter, and after going over the specials for me I ordered a hamburger with Alpine cheddar cheese and Applewood Smoked Bacon. Instead of fries I ordered the fruit salad thinking that was a much better choice. Since my surgery I’ve sworn off the life’s blood of Atlanta—Coca Cola—so I had water instead.

Soho has many interesting lunch choices, but health concerns kept me from ordering some of the more exotic ones like the Maple Grilled Salmon or the Chinese Grilled Chicken Salad. Trey returned in a few minutes with my water and a small wire basket. Inside the basket was a nicely folded white linen napkin and nestled inside was a sliced French baguette. Within a small silver cup I found a creamy spread that was just warm enough with some type of diced peppers. It was a nice update to merely serving rolls as a precursor to a meal.

It didn’t take long for my hamburger to arrive, but while I waited I wrote a little bit of what you are reading here and observed my fellow lunch companions in the dining room—businessmen in suits to casual wear, groups that appeared to have come from an office setting ( a mixture of men and women), and of course, there were several tables of ladies who lunch—you know, those ladies who don’t work and lunch is their occupation. I caught smidgens of business-type conversations, two ladies were discussing an upcoming fundraiser they were planning, one table of ladies who lunch were discussing a wedding, and the two women next to me were discussing a recent hospital stay—too close to home for me.

When my meal arrived it looked like this:

My fruit salad included chopped Granny Smith apples, cantelope, and strawberries served plain. After cutting my burger in half to prompt me to only eat half I attacked my fruit saving half of the burger for last.

Everything was great, and hopefully in the future I can return to Soho and order one of the more exotic menu choices. I’d like to return to Soho some Wednesday night for something they call a Flight Night. Soho was voted “Best Wine Bar” by Atlanta Magazine. Per Soho’s website….a Flight Night is an evening where locals and inquisitive wine lovers gather to experience fine wines from famous appellations and regions around the world.

I rounded out my trip by stopping by Macy’s at Cumberland before heading back home.

It was a great Thursday!

Images can be clicked to enlarge them. The image of the the post-Civil War picnic was taken from the Vinings Historic Preservation Society webpage….a great resource for Vinings.

Another resource to check out is the official Vinings, Georgia webpage.

Have a Safe Trick-or-Treat

From my home to yours....have a safe trick-or-treat!

So, Where Ya Been EHT?

If you want more details about my recent hiatus and surgery check out my post from History Is Elementary titled So, Where Ya Been EHT?

Mirth For Monday

I may be his momma, but I’m not eactly exaggerating when I say my son has a little talent. His talents include a fantastic singing voice, self-taught guitar skills, and an ability to immerse himself in various musical roles he undertook in high school.

It was no surprise when Dear Son called me over the weekend and directed me to the YouTube video I’m featuring below asking, “Hey Mama, ya wanna see me in a starring role?”

Well, of course I did, and I hurried right over to the link he provided. So, I present here my son in the starring role of Jeff Goes to College, a short promotional video for this year’s orientation at Truett McConnell College. Yes, that's the place....the place we pay thousands of dollars to each year. :)



Yep, that’s my boy……the one in the bear suit. When he’s not a YouTube star my son is busy pursuing a history degree….at least that’s his story for this week.

Enjoy your Monday!

Memorial Day Observed....

Yes......I'm still on my trip out of town. We spent almost the entire day at Arlington National Cemetery on Thursday. It was the perfect place to be on a Memorial Day weekend....so inspiring.....so thought provoking....There is no way I could not leave there without feeling pride and gratitude for all of the men and women who have served in our armed forces.

Have a great day and look for the Georgia Carnival to post sometime Tuesday.

Celebratin' at Stoney River

Let me set the scene for you…..My family and I were doing the over the river and through the woods thing heading to my mother-in-law’s for Mother’s Day when suddenly I was struck with the realization that my birthday was just around the corner….Last Sunday was the big day for moms everywhere, but May 13th would be the big day for me, and all the other babies born that day.

There we were…one dad, one mom, one son, and one daughter enjoying the sunshine after the early morning Mother’s Day storms talking and laughing our way down the road when I suddenly interrupted the revelry with an exclamation of, “Oh crap!”

Dear Hubby nearly ran off the road thinking we were about to experience a semi plowing into us, or perhaps I had spotted a Georgia State Patrol car he had overlooked. “What?!? What?!? What?!?,” he asked over and over.

Very slowly and in a quiet voice I said, “I just realized I’m going to be 46….there’s nowhere to go now but sliding on down to the muck and mire of 50. Oh my gosh! I’m going to be 50 in four years!

By the time we arrived at my in-laws I had worked myself in such a state of despair that the kids had to help me into the house. Dear Hubby brought me a cold compress, and I contemplated the rest of my life on the other side of the 50 year line.

So, what finally got me out of my funk and ready to face the rest of my nearly past 50 life?

Dear Hubby took me to Stoney River Legendary Steaks to celebrate my birth!

We decided to venture out of our part of town and hit a place we had never been. I left the plans up to Dear Hubby and as usual he did not let us down.

Stoney River Legendary Steaks located adjacent to Cumberland Mall looked interesting from the outside….once inside it was just as their website says, “The relaxing ambiance of a first-class mountain lodge.” Polished concrete floors, an interesting bar area separated from the rest of the dining room by a large double-sided fireplace, intimate booths and chairs covered in dark leather, and and open kitchen area across the back of the dining room all added to the atmosphere.

Our reservation was for eight o’clock, and when we arrived the dining room was rather full….always a good sign. The hostess took us right away to a table near the rear of the dining room close the kitchen. At first I wasn’t so sure I wanted to be that close to the kitchen,. and since the dining room was full it was a bit loud. Sara, our waitress, came right over, introduced herself, and took our drink order.

By the time my Martini arrived I had become accustomed to the buzz of conversations all around me and the occasional clank or crash from the kitchen. Perhaps it was the Lemondrop Martini that got me in tune with Stoney River’s atmosphere. The drink was a blend of citrus and sour with a ring of colored sugar around the glass and a lemon slice perched along the rim. I don’t normally order a cocktail, but afterall I don’t turn 46 everyday either. Prior to this I was Martini virgin…..I’m glad I decided to change that.

Sara quickly returned to advise us regarding the specials and to take our orders. Dear Hubby and Dear Daughter decided to share a crabcake…..unlike many establishments this crabcake was large enough to share. While I don’t particularly care for crabcakes I did taste the Lemon Caper Sauce the crabcake sat in. It was great.

For our salad course Dear Hubby chose the Head of Lettuce which was actually a third of a head sliced longways so it would lie flat. It was covered with bleu cheese, tomatoes, and bacon. Dear Daughter enjoyed the Ceasar Salad while I gratefully surrendered to an add-on salad to the night’s menu. It was Heaven sent…..Bibb lettuce with bleu cheese crumbles, sugared pecans, and thin slices of Granny Smith apples. It was wonderful.

For the main course we all had steak, of course. Pure perfection……the kind of steak that would make you slap your mamma! Dear Hubby and I both ordered Bernaise on the side with our steak. Bernaise Sauce holds a special place in our marriage as we ordered it for our wedding night dinner at Hugo’s (used to be located in the Hyatt Regency in Atlanta). Over the years we’ve become experts with Bernaise Sauce. For our sides….Dear Hubby had asparagus while I opted for the baked potato, of course.

We also enjoyed a glass of wine….I had the Shiraz while Dear Hubby savored the Kenwood Jack London Cabernet. Both were perfect pairings with our meal.

While the food was wonderful and the atmosphere interesting, it was the little details that make Stoney River Legendary Steaks so legendary. The way the food was presented, the glass wine decanters, and the impeccable service all made the evening so special.

Today marked the one week anniversary of our visit to Stoney River Legendary Steaks, and amazingly the folks at Stoney River are still serving us. In today’s mail we discovered a nice hand-written thank-you card from our expert server, Sara.

Wow! What a way to remember the beginning of my slow descent into the muck and mire of 50 and beyond.

If this is what it’s going to be like I’m ready to undertake the slide willingly.

On Hold Till Monday, But There's Plenty Around Here to Keep You Busy...

Did you know that timbers from Georgia were used to construct the USS Constitution, a ship we fondly remember as Old Ironsides? I’ve posted 13 things about the vessel here over at History Is Elementary and over at American Presidents I’ve recounted a mostly forgotten incident where Andrew Jackson lost his head. Don’t worry though….they reattached it.

Many of you received an email telling you the Georgia Carnival would be delayed until Monday or saw a recent post because I will be out of town. If you aren’t receiving emails from me and you would like occasional news and reminders regarding the carnival please forward your email address to me at gamind@mail.com.

Have a great weekend!

Love Seats and Kissing Rocks

On my father’s side of the family I’m the youngest of nine grandchildren. The next oldest grandchild is my sister and a couple of others. The age difference between us is six years. The oldest segment of grandchildren was in their late teens or early 20s when I was born. It was this segment of our grandchild population that passed along to me their own childhood lore of The Place---the one-time farm in Cherokee County where my father lives today.

If we all got together today and walked The Place we would share some of the same memories regarding particular trees, trails, and other spots. Some memories would be specific to each person, and some memories would be more relevant to each of the three generational groups.

One such memory would be the love seat which was a large, rectangular quartz rock that jutted out at the base of a very large, old tree in front of my great-grandmother’s home. The rock formed a ledge that could support the derriere of two slender people. As a child I played in an around the tree, and I never went to my grandparents without sitting on the “love seat.”

Today, if I mentioned a love seat to my students they would instantly picture a small sofa that could seat two to three people, but in the 1800s, however, a love seat was a place to date much like the movies or the mall might be today though the word “date” would have been largely unknown.

A young man might escort a girl to a dance, church, supper, or party, but that was about it. Most of the interaction occurred at the young ladies home in her parlor or on the front porch. In a USA Today article Johns Hopkins University sociologist Andrew Cherlin defines traditional courtship: "It was a process where parents and others kept watch while young people found a spouse. It had rules, steps carried out in view of everyone. It meant sitting in a parlor and chatting with parents.”

Often times a courting couch or loveseat was placed in the parlor or living room for the courting couple to sit close to each other. A loveseat was basically a sofa created from two chairs facing in opposite directions. In this way the man and woman could sit together, but there was a boundary between them….the shared arm of the chairs.

Dating [finally] began at the beginning of the 20th century, implemented by upper class women who were moving into academic and professional circles. They demanded the right to be able to dine out with a man and not damage their reputation. They also craved the freedom that going out on a date gave them, away from the prying eyes of their parents. They would sneak out to the dancehalls to meet who they wanted [per this article].

While Georgia girls might have snuck out to the dancehalls or various shops to meet a beau, girls attending the State Normal School in Athens, Georgia would head out to the Kissing Rocks. These “normal” girls were teachers in training, and the “normal” comes from the fact that they were being taught the standards or “norms” of education.

Per the New Georgia Encyclopedia the University of Georgia College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts used the campus until 1891, when it was purchased to establish the State Normal School. In 1932 the University of Georgia’s Department of Education assumed teachers’ training for the state. The normal school was taken over by the university and became known as Coordinate College but was used only as dormitories for freshmen and sophomore women.

Later the Naval Supply Corps School was housed in the buildings including Winnie Davis Hall, built with funds raised by the United Daughters of the Confederacy and named after Confederate president Jefferson Davis’s daughter. Varina Davis, wife of Jefferson Davis sent a letter to be read at the laying of the building’s cornerstone. You can see it here. The Navy controlled the property until very recently which resulted in the property being turned back over to UGA.

This report, produced due to the anticipated closing of the Naval Supply Corps School, discusses the buildings and the property in general including the Kissing Rocks, a group of boulders along Prince Avenue. The story goes that students at the Normal School would gather at the Kissing Rocks to steal a few kisses with their beaus. The site is also newsworthy for the prehistoric artifacts found at the location during a 1951 excavation.
While I did find some interesting online links about the State Normal School I was a little disappointed I couldn’t find an image of the Kissing Rocks. If anyone out that way would like to help, please send an image to gamind@mail.com and I’ll post it with your credit.

A bit of the school’s history can be found at Rootsweb while pages of The Crystal, the yearbook for the State Normal School, can be found here.

The picture with this post was snagged from OnlineAthens.com

It's Spring!

Well the new outfits have been bought, a menu planned, groceries bought, and arrangements have been made with Sir Bunny to leave a few bits of chocolate for my really-too-old-for-the-bunny-thing children. When does it stop? I mean they are 15 and 22!

Who am I kidding! If someone fixed me an Easter basket I’d take it. I’d want lots of chocolate and a few sparkly things too!

All that’s left to do is the churchin’, the cookin’, and the eatin’.

If you need something to read you might enjoy a former post from History Is Elementary titled Sticky Easter Memory…I never celebrate Easter without remembering the particular Easter detailed in my story.

Whether you celebrate Easter or not I send good wishes your way that your weekend is safe, relaxing, and filled with what you desire.

I’ll be back Monday…