Atlanta

I just returned from Atlanta--for business not pleasure, darn it! But because of that trip I've let one more week elapse without writing. Bummer.

So, instead I thought I'd share a few thoughts and suggestions from my trip:

• When staying in the Buckhead region, visit Lola's Bellini Bar for dinner. It looked to be the new (a.k.a. "trendy") spot for after work socializing. I ordered their fish of the day--scallops with thin sliced roasted potatoes and asparagus. Divine. The scallops were HUGE! and so delicious. The Riesling was pretty good too.
• Another excellent place to eat is the Buckhead Diner, not at all what I expected. It was tres chic with gourmet plates. I had the salmon on cucumber salad. Yum. Plus, the service is beyond phenomenal. Our waiter was so patient with our giggles and questions, and none of the servers ever let my sweet tea glass go empty.
• A final place to eat (noting a pattern here?) is Brick Tops, another new and trendy place. I had the fish of the day sandwich--a sea bass. My only downer on this restaurant was that the sides weren't very customer friendly. I could only choose from french fries or a mayonaise cole slaw. But, everything else was excellent. The sea bass was light and flaky but not dry; the bun, toasted just right.

On another note, while I was in Atlanta the city experienced its first ever tornado in the downtown area. Luckily we were north of that area and only experienced wind and rain, but it made me think about lots of things. I was in Atlanta for a National Writing Project meeting for research grants and had experienced a major meltdown during the afternoon before the tornado. Needless to say I am MONDO STRESSED about this project and wasn't working well with the professor who was in Atlanta to work on the same project. Well, let's put it this way: I cried, and I rarely cry (heck, I made it through my dad's funeral without crying). So, I'm a little on edge, capesh? But after the tornado hit and I saw all the devestation on TV (and talked to my sister and my mother), I realized that in five years, all this will be well behind me, no longer "rattling my cage." There are many worse things out there, and I should just concentrate on how THANKFUL I am to have the life I live, the opportunity to go to grad school, the wonderfully supportive family I have, and so much else.

Okay, before I turn into a Hallmark commercial, I'll end my missive here. Atlanta is a beautiful city, one which I hope to visit again someday just for fun. I sincerely send them all my kind words and thoughts as they recover from the wrath nature visited upon them Friday night.

And to anyone who actually reads this--quelle shock! there's someone out there reading this????--I promise to post something less whiny and more creatively minded next week. Honest! (fyi: spring break starts this Friday--hooray!)