i'm a sucker for cafes and bungalows with porches

so, as of today, griffin has captured my attention way more than peachtree city, senoia, moreland or newnan. imagine. well it boils down to cafes and porches for me. perhaps a few more things, but primarily those. every day i walk out the door to lunch and stroll til i find something. so far for lunch, downtown walkable griffin offers

• mill town gourmet cafe (sidewalk tables)
• slices pizzeria (great pie)
• safehouse coffee (hipster central)
• angelo's mediterranean (go greek here)
• 6th street pier (evenings only, will try soon)
• bank street cafe (with 'french girl on a bike' mural on the grand entry hall)
• hollywood hills pub (might wait for an escort on this one)
• janah cafe (folks say they use odd 'seasoning', cant wait to try)
• and if you really need it KFC or Firehouse Subs

Dear griffin, i am home. Thank you. also on walkabout i discover murals EVERYwhere (i'll document those soon), the local ballet company dance studio, working theatre company, sewing centers, boutiques, lawyers, doctors, realtors, and such. there are no parking meters, all the crosswalks have stripes and walk buttons, and you get to hear a train or two every day. today i picked up brochures about the 2 upcoming productions in downtown theatre spaces, formerly the opera house.

Culcha too, one can stroll to the post office at lunch or run other errands. many folks jump in cars...but not sure why yet and not curious at all. i've also found a greenspace park with stage and secret courtyard for picnics. next weekend, they host the doc holiday beer fest in the park and perhaps i'll learn about huckleberries.
a few blocks from downtown, one can pull in for an oil change, unannounced and chat with the service tech about where to bike around town. then one can roll over to the local bike shop and pick up new wheels, accessories or scoop about local outings. i'll be working with lee and sara for sure to get folks out of their cars in this area.
many of the houses have porches and are of an era i love, so we're just waiting for it to all come together with a nearby bungalow that CB and I can walk from in the evenings and I can bike to/from work daily. i think its possible.

a flurry of firsts

so today was my first day on the new job, first time selling a house, first time leaving CB in the country dog daycare (aunt connie's), first time DRIVING to work 45 minutes, first time working in a library/closet, and first time watching trains at lunch. yes, its a bunch of adjustments and a time of highs/lows but its all for the good. of this i remind myself daily.

no alarm needed this morning as the dogs wake up at 730am, but it started with me getting dressed from my aunt's guest room, running the dog gauntlet to get thru the gate(CB, Belle, Lea, Bailey, Angel, Radar), walking thru the woods to mom's house, getting in my car and heading out...wait, the car is covered in pollen, quick hose off with mom's well-placed driveway hose and heck, my water glass is empty, might as well fill it up too (yep thats how we do it in georgia).

on the road driving east in the morning, didnt i say never do that? well, hopefully once i land in PTC, the drive will be south in the a.m. so yea, a quick stop at frazier's texaco to clean the windshield was in order, then on to griffin on hwy 16 literally from a few yards past my mom & connie's property. one road, no turns, no traffic jams, time to even fidget with radio stations. surprise there are a few in range down here. roll into town and park on main street USA at my new office. no meters, no maids, no nothing, just white lines. coffee shop across and down the block.

a lunchtime foray reveals train jam at a R/R park a block away, a pretty brick courtyard reuse by the preservation office, a couple of cafes, tons of cars/trucks lined up going somewhere important, and me walking the cobblestones looking for, hey i found it, the small in-town theatre on the green park, completely unused. i have a feeling i'll have it to myself most days. tomorrow i try the mill town cafe.

more tomorrow. oh and yes, my office is a former library/closet...gonna need a little fixin up help. thinking curtain rod and sheers, art on shelves, bright colors. major artery forming here as the ramp up to the bridge over the RR tracks runs between the two brick buildings

Fine dining, or at least interesting and local
dashed to Athens over the weekend to mow the grass and gather up stuff...now have plants and art on the way to the office library. lunch finds last week are: the salads and desserts are awesome at mill town cafe. great find. pizza at angelos, not so much, pizza at Slices, superb. back to angelo's for greek tho later this week. and of course coffee and masada bakery scones/muffins at safehouse anytime. how can i possibly complain when i now have 4 places to avoid the meat & three lunch option. and one day for dinner ill try 6th Street Pier and maybe even find a dinner option!

things are looking up in griffin and there is a cute bungalow just over from downtown with my name on it...if only i can talk them into a fenced option for CB.

week 2...