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Friday, November 23, 2007
A stranger (but wonderful) Thanksgiving
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Editor’s Note: Here’s a follow up to a story by AJC reporter John Kessler on a gathering of strangers for Thanksgiving dinner, organized over the internet through Atlanta New In Town Meetup (ANITM).
Early Thanksgiving morning, we rolled out of bed, and as usual, checked our e-mail. I’d been a little curious whether or not we’d find ourselves in the newspaper!! I was barely awake when Janet yelled from the other room that she’d been contacted by CNN, who saw the story and was interested in a possible phone interview. A check to my own e-mail showed that we had a ton of new members sign up for the group, as well as some new Turkey Day RSVPs, so it was safe to say we were mentioned somewhere! However, I did not expect to see Janet’s smiling face looking up from the front page while having my morning caffeine!
After reading the story, and laughing at our pictures, we checked out the Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday sales circulars, and headed to CVS for some essentials, before starting the preparations for the day. We’d made a majority of the food the day before; Thanksgiving was largely reserved for the turkey, baking a few odds and ends, tidying up, and greeting friends. We’d anticipated a less hectic day that Wednesday, but on our way home, the phone rings, and it ends up being ABC World News, interested in doing interviews for a national segment!! The phone call ended with us zooming home, after a McDonald’s pit stop, as they said a camera crew would be there in an hour.
By 1 PM, the turkey was safely in the oven, we were dressed and ready to greet guests. The dogs were excited by the idea of people and food, and ABC arrived to set up their cameras. A quick glance at my e-mail showed we were up to 21 RSVPs, and I also had a note asking if NBC could stop by during the party to say hello. A few of our regular members and good friends left messages asking if they could come early to help out (including Dave, who was chuckling over being called a “sweet-looking guy”, and wondered if that was a quote from us, or a compliment from the AJC. :P )
By 3:30, ABC had finished the interview with Janet, the turkey was telling us it would be good to go in an hour, and the dessert table was starting to look impressively full. I was out of tasks to work on, so I attempted to distract the cameramen with cookies and wine; sadly, they, like everyone else on Thanksgiving, were on the couch watching the game!!:)
Around 4:30, the guests were arriving, and the party was in full swing!! Of course guests brought things with them, so our food table kept on growing!! After about an hour of the more familiar faces sharing entertaining stories amongst themselves, as well as with the new folks, we all sat down to dinner. Turkey with stuffing, sweet potato and green bean casseroles, rolls, corn souffle, garlic mashed potatoes, and a few other delicious concoctions assured that we were full and couldn’t get up before we even took a look at the dessert table!
Dessert consisted of pumpkin pie, apple pie, pumpkin bread, gingerbread, two types of cookies, a blackberry pie, and a few other things I’m sure I’m forgetting, topped with a healthy dose of whipped cream. Afterwards, we moved to the living room, where we all spent a few hours chatting, telling amusing stories about ourselves, about one another, about the families we had at home, wherever home happened to be.
I escaped for a few moments to send e-mail wishes to a few members of our ANITM family who couldn’t be at the event, as well as to my own family and close friends across the country. Out of sight certainly doesn’t mean out of mind. When I returned, phone calls were coming in on various cell phones from Atlanta, Jacksonville, Indiana, New York. Our friends and family were not only calling to wish us a Happy Thanksgiving, but to mention they’d seen us in the paper, and on the news.
It was a reminder that in so many ways, we all had so much to be thankful for; not just good food and families and friends around the world that care about us, but an extended family that makes you feel you’ve come home for the holidays, even if you couldn’t. :) It was absolutely a warm, family Thanksgiving atmosphere, and our new folks felt right at home. One even brought his dog in from the car to meet Janet’s four, and a new friendship was born. :)
Though it’s not usual for our events, especially our parties, which often go into the wee hours of the morning, Thanksgiving Dinner was an early night. By 10, all the guests had departed, the kitchen looked slightly like a tornado hit it, and Janet and I were off to the outlets to be there for the midnight Black Friday sales!! We shopped until we dropped…literally. By 7 AM and many,many stores later, we were both exhausted, and when she dropped me off at my house, we both made plans to sleep away Friday. :)
It was a wonderful, wonderful few days!! Thank you so much to the AJC for showing those out there who might not know or understand that ‘families’ form in the strangest ways, and strangers can become friends in a matter of hours. We’ve added a number of new members to ours, and hope to see more than a few at next weekend’s Martini Night. Thank you, too, to all the friends, new and old, who came to share their holiday with us. You all certainly made it one to remember!! :) >>
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Live Black Friday updates: Traffic, deals, photos
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It was a day of early-morning fever and early afternoon fatigue for shoppers throughout the Atlanta area on Black Friday. Reporters and photographers (and readers) were out documenting this sale-induced holiday fever - from long and cold lines before dawn to hungry shoppers braving an outside chill so they could find a seat at the Mall of Georgia. To get a feel for the day as it unfolded, check the chronological blog below. Readers can comment below on their experience — whether out and about or cozy at home. Check out the photos here. Story. Video.
2:30 p.m. Like many of the early-morning shopping shoppers, AJC shopping and fashion reporter is calling it a day out at the Mall of Georgia. She said many of the shoppers who had been out since 6 a.m. (or before for those waiting in lines) have hit the wall, so to speak. “There wasn’t like a second shift,” she said. But really, six hours of crowded shopping and walking and carrying bags can get tiresome. Nedra said many of the stores will continue with sales (not the “doorbusters”, but the typical buy one thing get another half off) throughout the weekend.
1:43 Well, we won’t know for sure if $2,000 was the most spent today by one person (surely it wasn’t) but staff photographer Vino Wong talked to a gentleman from Nashville that dropped two large at Gwinett Place Mall. Vino took the man’s photograph with all of his merchandise. Check the gallery soon.
1:27 p.m. New photos keep coming in from AJC reporters, freelancers and staff photographers. Check the gallery here.
12:19 p.m. The food court at the Mall of Georgia is packed, and there is limited seating indoors so hungry diners are outside in frigid temperatures balancing bags and food trays as they try to chow down on some French fries. — Nedra Rhone
We want in Some service stores can’t exactly offer the same sales but are still taking advantage of the larger audience at the malls. Doctor’s Vison Works at the Mall of Georgia has a big sign that reads: “Don’t Let Your Vision Insurance Benefits expire on Dec. 31. Come in today.”
Noon Chad Evitts of Lawrenceville said he and his family didn’t get out early enough to get the big deals. The 15 to 25 percent off — which is pretty standard for all stores today — “was just enough to make you feel like you had to buy something,” he said. — Nedra Rhone
Sale update Old Navy at the Mall of Georgia has $30 to $40 cashmere sweaters, which is a huge deal. The 15-to-20 minute wait in line suggests others feel the same way. — Nedra Rhone
10:32 a.m. Take cash, says AJC shopping and fashion reporter Nedra Rhone. She’s partially joking, but that’s how she cut time from standing in line at JC Penney’s at the Mall of Georgia. A credit machine broke at a register and the woman behind the counter called for Cash Only, causing an obvious uproar. “JC Penney was a madhouse,” Nedra said. The store had 40 to 60 percent off almost everything. Nedra said the catch to many of these sales is there is a time limit, which is why so many shoppers get an early start. The JC Penney sale ends at 1 p.m. American Eagle’s 15 percent off everything in the store runs until noon.
10: 30 a.m. A two-for-$30 sale on NCAA fleeces is causing a madhouse at Finish Line at the Mall of Georgia. — Nedra Rhone
9:45 a.m. What better place to experience Black Friday than Georgia’s largest mall? The 40-minute drive from downtown was uneventful. It seemed like everyone decided to get off at the exit for the Fry’s Electronic’s in Duluth (see below). It did take about 10-15 minutes to find parking at the mall, but it wasn’t much different than an average Saturday at Lenox. — Nedra Rhone
7:30 a.m. In the Fry’s parking lot in Duluth, a few shoppers struggled to get all their purchases in the trunks and backseats of their vehicles. The challenge became a puzzle, as they turned some bags sideways and piled boxes on top of one another to make all the pieces fit. Other shoppers yelled into their cell phones. They spoke in English, Vietnamese and Spanish as they coordinated with friends and family members. Ken Le from Lawrenceville picked up a set of speakers at Fry’s for a friend who was trying to buy a laptop computer from Best Buy. Le didn’t plan to buy anything for himself, but the speakers were so cheap he got a pair for himself. “You see all the sales while you’re waiting in line to buy stuff and you get more than what you planned,” Le said. “That’s how they get you.” — Laura Diamond
7:30 a.m. David Jones of Snellville last slept Wednesday night. He started chugging caffeine about 8 p.m. Thursday to stay awake for Friday’s shopping. His quest was to find “geek stuff for cheap.” He and two friends searched for hard drives, flash drives and digital photo frames. By about 7:30 a.m. Friday, the group was getting ready to walk into Fry’s electronics in Duluth. They already hit Circuit City, Staples and OfficeMax. Jones said he already spent $357, including $50 worth of gifts for others. Jones reasoned that because he’s young, single and has no kids he can afford to splurge on himself. “If that means I have to go without eating for a month I can handle it,” Jones joked. — Laura Diamond
DeKalb County Police boost presence, warn shoppers In a release, the DeKalb County Police Department said it’s stepping up patrols at Perimeter, North DeKalb, Stonecrest, Northlake and South DeKalb malls. Basic idea here is to deter theft targeting shoppers. Here are some of tips they give. 1. Place purse, valuables in the trunk. 2. Keep aware of surroundings. 3. Walk in groups. 4. Pay attention to other vehicles to see if you’re being followed.
6:45 a.m. The shopping complex at Edgewood wasn’t as crowded as I figured. Best Buy’s parking lot was mostly filled but there were still some spots and I expected more of a zoo. There were about seven to eight people lined up outside GameStop. And it’s always a little unsettling to see someone crossing a major street with a huge boxed TV in the dark of night. Felt like I was watching “The Sopranos.” — Mike Benzie
6 a.m. Suzanne Bishop and her sons McClain, 12, and Mills, 16, were leaving the Buckhead Ritz-Carlton headed for area shops at 6 a.m. Friday. It was their second outing of the day. The trio, in town for Thanksgiving from St. Simons Island, went out the first time at 4:30 a.m. They burst back into the lobby about an hour later carrying shopping bags from Belk, across the street at Phipps Plaza. They saved big on items from digital photo frames to Hannah Montana gear, and were eager for another round of bargain hunting. “We’re going to Circuit City next,” Bishop said. Lynn Youngblood, a Ritz guest in town from Easley, S.C., was headed out close to 6 a.m. “We’ll probably start at Target, then we’ll hit Macy’s,” she said. “A little something to stimulate the economy. “I’m not planning to buy a condo, though,” she continued, in jesting reference to Atlanta’s housing market, “although I understand that’s what y’all need.” — Jennifer Brett
5 a.m. Duluth resident Lynda Ashby starts her pursuit at Gwinnett Place Mall. “Some people like to get up early to go hunting,” Ashby said. “This is my version of hunting. I’m hunting for deals and I’m finding them.” Ashby, dressed in a comfortable sweat suit and sneakers, expertly balanced arms full of shopping bags. She bought clothes at Belk. She picked up bathroom slippers, cologne and perfume and other items from Macy’s. She bought gift cards from other stores. Ashby finished her day at about 8 a.m. — Laura Diamond
4:45 a.m. Circuit City employee Josh Jones made his way along the line of 500 outside the store on Barrett Parkway in Kennesaw, announcing a few basic ground rules to the anxious, cold shoppers. “No running over people, no chaos” Jones told shoppers. “If you run over people, we’re going to shut the door.” Jones, who assured shoppers that everyone would get in, said that the line wasn’t quite as long as last year’s line on the morning after Thanksgiving, which overflowed into the adjacent Carmax parking lot. — Mike Morris, Patti Bond Read the Story.
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Radio Bull goes all Christmas
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
With the legacy of being the all Christmas station as Lite 94.9 for six years, 94.9 The Bull has decided to do it, too. In this case, though, the Christmas music is almost all country artists.
As you may recall, a week before Christmas last year, Clear Channel shocked Atlanta radio by abruptly cutting off all-Christmas music on Lite a week early and switching the station format to country music.
Program Director Clay Hunnicutt said he has no regrets doing that a year ago. But he knows the legacy Lite has with Christmas so he decided to go the Yuletide route with 80 to 90 percent country artists and a bit of Burl Ives and Nat King Cole thrown in, too. While hundreds of soft rock stations and Christian stations go all Christmas between Thanksgiving and Christmas, Hunnicutt said only a couple of other country stations do this nationwide.
“The format as far as country is fairly religious in tone and music such as Brooks & Dunn’s ‘Believe’ and Carrie Underwood’s ‘Jesus, Take the Wheel,’ ” he said. It helps that virtually every major artists does a Christmas album or contributes to some Christmas compilation at some point. He was able to compile a relatively deep playlist of 400 to 450 songs compared to just 150 or so B98.5 used last year. And to pay homage to Lite 94.9, the station is using the on-air line “The tradition continues.”
The year-old Bull, which has done almost as well as its predecessor in the key 25 to 54 demographic but still lags far behind mainstay Kicks 101.5, started all Christmas at the same time as B98.5 at 7 p.m. Thanksgiving evening. (Christian soft rock station 104.7/The Fish started a bit earlier. And the south-side leaning soft rock station Lite 96.7 launched Christmas earlier this week.).
So Atlanta has three Christmas stations and four if you count Lite 96.7 (which I really don’t because it isn’t a metro-wide signal and doesn’t have enough listening to qualify to show up on the Arbitron ratings.).
The first hour last night featured Alan Jackson’s “Holly Jolly Christmas,” Taylor Swift’s “Silent Night” (wow, she already has recorded a Christmas song!), Bing Crosby’s “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas,” Toby Keith’s “Joy to the World,” Alabama’s “Christmas in Dixie,” Martina McBride’s “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” Garth Brooks’ “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” Gene Autry’s “Here Comes Santa Claus,” Trisha Yearwood’s “Away In a Manger,” George Strait’s “Christmas Cookies,” the Eagles “Please Come Home For Christmas,” Brad Paisley’s “Winter Wonderland,” Carrie Underwood’s “Do You Hear What I Hear,” Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock,” Willie Nelson’s “Pretty Paper,” Tracy Lawrence’s “All Wrapped Up In Christmas,” and Johnny Mathis’ “The First Noel.”
Where are the best holiday cookies?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dainty. Pretty. Sweet. I’m not talking about the members of the DAR.
I’m talking cookies — beautiful, delicate cookies decorated better than a Christmas tree or menorah to light the season. Cookbooks — my lastest fave is “Cookie Craft” by Valerie Peterson and Janice Fryer — are abundant about them. School carnivals can’t get enough of them. And kids (from one to 92) love them.
Where are the best decorated and decked-for-the-halls cookies in Atlanta?
Get great deals on Black Friday?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Shopping early birds are flitting across the region this morning, looking for great holiday deals. Some braves long lines and waits. How did your shopping experience go today? Were the deals there? Any advice for fellow shoppers?
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