Survey Says?

Community Voting, Atlanta, 2011.

I saw this outside of a gas station in Atlanta back in June. I was in town to visit Scott while stopping through town on the way to Poultry Days. Since I was flying AirTran from SFO to Dayton, I figured, why not make the layover 30 hours instead of 3?

I hadn't ever been in Atlanta except for the airport. It was a great visit. The aforementioned Whole Foods visit may have been a bit disheartening, but I did see aspects of the city that made it feel alive with the right kind of life -- positive, creative, harmonious. I did have a few experiences that led me to think that things are still very racially divided down there. But there has to be hope, and this telephone pole, of all things, created some for me.

Not only do I like this system of community organization, I like the outcome of the vote. And I like that it wasn't defaced by the time I saw it. If six "yes" tabs and one "no" tab were already pulled, it had already been seen by how many -- at least 50 passersby by this time, right? I wonder if this would work in SF or Chicago. I also wonder what the greater purpose of this is, but I hope that it is leading to political organization, and, ultimately, a community garden here. 

This was standing within about a mile of the Sweet Auburn Curb Market, an old-school farmers market that would seemingly supply the needs of this locale with all the produce they may need. The market supplied me with an amazing cup of organic coffee and four even more amazing peaches.

Commuting by Unicycle

Unicyclist crossing Market at Sanchez, 2011

There isn't much to say about photographs that speak for themselves. I will point out that this gentleman seems to be a bike commuter: I took this on a work day; he's wearing a helmet, gloves that seem to have wrist reinforcement, and a high-visibility jacket; he wasn't waving or playing to an audience. He was using this giant unicycle to get from point A to point B. I'd like to know the distance he travels on this simple machine. 


I bet this fella has a pretty healthy sense of humor, despite his focused countenance in these shots.

Keeping things in order

Birds this way.

These murals are great. But, I am not sure that they help much to keep things in order. I waited a while in vain for a few birds to land on the wire in the frame. I guess I could have scattered bird seed on the street to force this to happen.

Seeing that would have been more likely than a car flying above the other one. Instead, I got a guy grappling senselessly with some unknown piece of trash. I honestly don't know what he's doing with that thing, or what it is. I guess I should have asked him for the sake of this post.

Having Fridays off is a great way to see the city I live in. Near this intersection a few weeks ago, I observed a white pickup truck with what looked (and smelled, as I biked behind it for a few blocks) like an enormous marijuana plant. I guess it needed some air?

The things that keep people busy!

Cars this way. // Both at 17th and Potrero, San Francisco, 2011.

The Number 23 and Money Bags

23rd and Mission, 2011.

The Number 23 has been the subject of fascination to many, even leading to a major motion picture. A group of high school friends and I became obsessed with the number by way of admiration of a Milwaukee Brewer, Greg Vaughn. The power hitter wore 23 on his jersey.

It led to us finding every possible way to connect things to this number. At football and basketball games as we watched our peers battle, each time the scoreboard ticked down to 0:23, we yelled "Vaughn" in unison. We were able to paint a mural on a window of Mr. Vaughn for Homecoming (which someone later adorned with "Stevie Ray" and we still joke about today). We strove to wear #23 on our own teams. We wrote V.I.KING on our notebooks (Vaughn Is King). We went to Brewers' Fan Fest and met Greg Vaughn once, posing for a group photo and even having him autograph our Denver Zephyrs hats. He probably hired an additional bodyguard after this bizarre interaction. Our group became known as "The Vaughns." It was weird, but fun.

I still enjoy seeing this number wherever it turns up. This is from an aging street mosaic project, about which I know very little, in my neighborhood at 23rd and Mission. (More here.)

And the following piece comes from my mom...

THE ONLY TIME WE WILL SEE AND LIVE THIS EVENT
Calendar for July 2011
July
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat


1 2
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30
31

Money bags

This year, July has 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays and 5 Sundays. This happens once every 823 years. This is called money bags. So, forward this to your friends and money will arrive within 4 days. Based on Chinese Feng Shui. The one who does not forward.....will be without money.


Kinda interesting - read on!!!


This year we're going to experience four unusual dates.

1/1/11, 1/11/11, 11/1/11, 11/11/11 and that's not all...

Take the last two digits of the year in which you were born - now add the age you will be this year,

The results will be 111 for everyone in whole world. This is the year of the Money!!!

The proverb goes that if you send this to eight good friends money will appear in next four days as it is explained in Chinese FENG SHUI.

Those who don't continue the chain won't receive.......

Its a mystery, but its worth a try, good luck.