Happy Friggin' New Year! Now get up and feed me!

The next time I go out in public I might have little claw marks all over my face. It seems 'the kids' don't understand that dad needs a few extra hours of sleep New Year's Day before getting up to feed them wet food. Twice this morning, once at around 6 am (which is unheard of) and again at 10 am (which is about an hour and half late) I was awakened to a clawing feeling on my face from my 18 pound cat.I am no pet psychiatrist, but I know enough NOT to wake up and feed him or the little one after he does this kind of thing. If he learns that all he has to do is poke me on the face with his claws to get fed, there's no end to the potential torture I might have to endure. Pavlov should have used a cat!Bear in mind, the kitties never starve. I have a full cannister of dry food that is available 24/7. They just like the ritual and taste better of wet food.

"I haven't shaved my legs"

I'm still trying to figure this one out. If I hadn't heard it twice from two seperate women within the past five days it wouldn't have seemed so pronounced.I have women friends that like to bounce ideas off of me. Last week, I was told by one of them that she wasn't going to sleep with her ex-boyfriend. She stated with confidence "I haven't shaved my legs, so I know I won't have sex with him".I just heard it again from another friend not more than a hour ago about HER ex-boyfriend.Use some common sense here. If you're that hot for your ex, or even someone new, hairy legs aren't gonna make a difference. They sure aren't gonna matter to him. Especially an ex-boyfriend that has seen you at your worst. He's not gonna say "I know I'm hot and heavy for some heavy duty penetration, but eewww! I can't have sex with you cuz you've got hairy legs!"So this can be considered a PSA for women out there. Please don't rationalize the hairy legs scenario any more.

Fancy that--Vacant buildings on the rise

It's kind of funny that after I posted a continuation of my rant about losing Atlanta history in favor of development, the Sunday biz section of The Atlanta Journal Constitution printed this article: (please forgive me for not knowing how to do a cut)THE 2003 ECONOMY: REAL ESTATE: PR execs get pick of places for officeLeon Stafford - StaffSunday, December 28, 2003When Bob Cohn, Jim Overstreet and Amy Parrish decided to open a public relations firm earlier this year, they needed office space in a hurry. Such need is a poor bargaining chip in the world of lease negotiations, but it wasn't a problem for the firm. In today's commercial real estate market, Cohn, Overstreet & Parrish had the upper hand. "When we were looking, agents were throwing amenities at us right and left," Overstreet said, ticking off such perks as deals on parking, utilities and cleaning services. "They were giving away property." And that is looking to be the case in 2004, said John Zintak, vice president at Carter, an Atlanta commercial real estate firm. There will be a moderate recovery next year, he said, but the surplus space is too large to be reversed in one year. After looking at space at three or four different buildings, Cohn, Overstreet & Parrish settled for Midtown Heights on Spring Street, which gave the fledgling company free furniture. Mark Pettit, president and chief executive of Creaxion, another Atlanta public relations firm, said he gets at least one call a week soliciting his interest in moving his company from Buckhead's Atlanta Financial Center. He was even cornered at a recent holiday party by an agent offering space for $12 a square foot. That's a marked change from Creaxion's first search for space in 1999, when it had just three employees. "It was the other way around then," he said. "The landlords were in charge." Creaxion has grown to 12 employees and has enlarged its space three times, all while watching its neighbors move out. "I think what they see in us is a steady business," Pettit said. And if the Financial Center wants to keep Creaxion, Pettit wants more than just a more competitive lease. "I want our name on the sign." Vacancy rates on riseVacancy rates have been creeping upward all year, reaching roughly 17 percent, reports Torto Wheaton Research.What demand there is for space seems to have been coming from smaller tenants, who account for more than half of all leased office space, according to a Prudential Financial report.That is consistent with signs, while tentative, that small businesses are leading the economic expansion, Prudential reports. "The recovery in tenant demand that we expected in the second half of 2003 has not yet materialized."About 31 million square feet of office space in metro Atlanta was empty at midyear. That's a vacancy rate of nearly 25 percent, the worst since 1992, according to Cushman & Wakefield. More than 63 million square feet --- 14.5 percent of the total --- of industrial space was vacant, according to Cushman & Wakefield. Federal Reserve economists have predicted a pickup in commercial real estate next year. However, Economy.com estimates it will take at least a year for the national vacancy rate to dip to its 10-year average of 13 percent.--- Michael E. Kanell

The Matzoh Ball

I know I've got two entries within hours of each other, but I felt the need to vent.Every year on Christmas Eve, some of the Jewish groups put together a party for all the Jews in Atlanta. Last year's party was at The Ravinia. Probably about 600 to 900 people. I had a great time meeting a lot of new people.This year, there were two parties. One, again at The Ravinia, and another one at Park Tavern in Midtown. Feeling that the party at The Ravinia was going to be basically the same as last year, I headed down there again.Bad mistake. There were probably about 150 to 200 people at The Ravinia and probably 800-1000 over at The Park Tavern. Unfortunately, friends convinced me to stay at The Ravinia. "We have a room upstairs and we'll be having a party after the event is over"Lame party...nuff said...I never expect to meet anyone significant. I was just hoping my night would have been more fruitful.I did get two unexpected compliments that meant a lot to me, so I suppose it wasn't a total wash.

more of atlanta fading

well, contractors will be tearing down the Lindbergh Plaza soon. It used to be called Broadview Plaza and has many memories for me. Before the bridge was fully developed on Buford Highway, there was only a dirt road to Broadview Plaza. There was a small amusement park in the back called KiddieLand. Hoem Depot is there now. My Mom and Dad used to be in bowling leagues at the Broadview Bowl-o-Matic.The Office Depot used to be Club 2001 VIP Discotech, and there was an amusement arcade next door that my girlfirend at the time used to work at.The Screening Room (George Lefont's) was a great place to see movies.I saw Sextette there when I was really young. The entire audience was invited to Backstreet after the movie. Before Lefont bought it, I saw Seargent Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club starring Peter Frampton and the Bee Gees. I think it was the first time I had ever been exposed to Hi quality stereo. If you've never seen it, the movie starts with a mono (monaural score) and doesn't change until we're taken into present day at which point the screen widens and the new score from the Bee Gees takes over in stereo.And even before it was a movie theatre and nightclub, it was the great southeast music hall.The K-Mart in that plaza has been there since it opened I believe.It's unfortunate, but I just feel that we're losing too much of original Atlanta in favor of more condos, and more buildings that will stay vacant.The entire area where Marta is building Atlantic Station used to be highly important to the film community. There were a number of movie post houses, sound stages, screening rooms, and a hotel all in the same area. Production companies could fly into Atlanta, stay at The Ramada, and walk a few blocks to do all their work. Golly gee whiz, now we're going to have even another mall of sorts to try and fill!That whole "revitalization" of underground Atlanta has been a roaring success. I don't knwo what we would have done without another Great American Cookie Company in that historic area. Gee you think I could get a Blimpie sandwich while I'm shopping and taking my life into my own hands at underground? Of course, you have to pay to park nearby, and risk getting mugged or having your car broken into by someone just to shop there.Which brings me to another point....why is it that we have to pay someone to park somewhere. The guy in the lot just collects money and doesn't care about any of the cars in the lot! Now they've even eliminated the attendant in some lots with the 'honor box'. All they have to do is boot your car for $75 if you refuse to pay five bucks in their lot. I really wouldn't mind paying the five bucks if someone were actually doing something besides collecting your money.Don't even get me started on Lakewood. Long story short--Lakewood Fairgrounds were falling apart and being used rarely. There was speculation that transforming the old fair hangers into soundstages would have guaranteed Atlanta a booming film business that would have rivaled hollywood. Near the airport, but not so close as to interfere with filming, lots of empty space on the fairgrounds themselves plus a neighborhood in need of revitalization that would have readily welcomed the boost to the economy. So we ended up with an amphitheatre instead. It's used about twice a month maybe. From what I understand, it's hard to draw people down down there anyway. I've even gotten several free tickets from Hi-Fi Buys in the past few years. But atleast we've got an amphitheatre.I suppose most of this goes back to my original post--The mural they tore down on Peachtree has indeed been replaced with new condos.Now, there's a church on Ponce de Leon near N. Highland that (surprise) is being turned into condos.Again, I have nothing against the free market. My problem is with blatant business stupidity at the expense of Atlanta history.People almost destroyed the Fox theatre in favor of more 'development'So my question is: what happens when investors tear down an Atlanta landmark in favor of building more of what the city doesn't need and then lose their collective asses once everything is completed? The answer is: The city suffers. Sure, the investor has provided employment and economical benefits temporarily, but sometimes it just doesn't justify the end. Perhaps these banks should scrutinize these construction projects more closely before agreeing to tear down a landmark to pave a new parking lot.

Similar...

SimilarMinds Compatibility Results

all a blur

So I made it to the Looney Tunes screening at 10:30 this morning. I got about three hours sleep before the screening. I feel like crap.When I got back home, I fell asleep. I missed the Good Mews new location opening. I missed a friend's party.I still feel like crap. Hopefully, I'll feel better later on.

I'm tr...

I'm trying to get all my Livejournal friends' locations plotted on a map - please add your location starting with this form.Username:(Then get your friends to!)

S.A.D.

Seaonal Affective Disorder--I really hate the fall time change. People freak out when the sun starts to set at 4:30.It's bad enough that the days are shorter. It's even worse that the time shift is early in the morning when a lot of people aren't even awake yet anyway. Who was the brilliant person to come up with Daylight Savings time?The biggest problem with trying to change it is it's an individual state law/resolution for every state. You'd have to get every state to change it.

E.R.

I am thoroughly convinced that prozac is a secret sponsor of E.R.I don't know why I continue to watch this show. It always manages to depress me. The central characters are getting drug addicted, developing brain tumors, losing limbs, and facing other interesting dilemmas.How is it possible than in a group of less than 10, the percentage of Tsuris (yiddish word) is so great?