Welcome To Atlanta

Meeting A Great Friend, And Surviving The Welcome

Note: Phone is down again, so photos will appear in a bit. Still, will do the pictures when I fix my phone again. Promise. In the meantime, enjoy the story.

I had heard just how rough Atlanta was from my friends in Nashville. Something told me that they were right and I booked a hotel to handle my arrangements. I found a decent rate, and then proceeded to board the bus from Knoxville.

If you’re going to bus south, you can’t avoid Atlanta. To go south, or go into the Carolinas, you have to go through it. Be warned, it’s got a rough flavor to it.

The caged back where the buses hung out were my first clue. Buses behind fences like this were in neighborhoods that had problems. Stepping outside the greyhound I see a scene out of a movie.

A gentleman (? Really not sure.) drugged out of their mind, started cursing everyone that came out of the station, threatening to fuck someone up. Not even ten seconds after hearing this rant, a large gentleman approached said curser, punched them in the stomach, then across the jaw, dropping them. The larger man stripped the smaller man down to the pants and robbed him and bailed.

Security rushed out right after this, and the curser rose up and started jumping on cars. This all took place in under sixty seconds. That's Atlanta.

I ubered into the outskirts immediately. Now the Outskirts of Atlanta are a different face altogether. I saw no punches or kicks thrown there. Suburbs are generally suburbs everywhere, and this is true here. Atlanta’s outskirts are fun.

The hotel was okay. The people in it? Awesome. The guy that checked me in was better than the hotel he worked at. I got to compliment him and some of the guests I go to meet, including a very kickass musician. She was fun to chat with, and hopefully I get the chance to on the podcast sometime.

Now, I was passing through, as the winter storm was a couple of days behind me, so I rushed. There were two things I wanted to do.

I wanted to explore the Legoland place. It turns out, I was too old. Adults are not allowed in the Legoland place without a kid with them. I was crushed. Lego truly is the coolest toy in the universe. I didn’t get to see it. It still depresses me.

I’m going to do a Lego Factory. Someday.

The other major thing I got to do? Meet JD Estrada. JD is without a doubt one of my favorite people in the biz. He’s a fantastic writer. He’s a better person. As a person, he’s someone to aspire to be. He’s cool, I love our chats, and I think he’s done great things. I got to meet his significant other, who also rocks, and chat with him in person.

Get a book of his sometime. He’s great.

As quick as my time in Atlanta, came, it went. I had to beat the storm that was coming, and I was heading to Jacksonville. I was planning to go down one side of the boot and hit the other in Florida. It was a crazy plan, but I figured it would kill time while I waited.

On the way to the bus, I saw another inner city outburst. A local Atlantean snapped and started yelling at the bus driver. No violence this time, but there was tension. I can only compare this part of Atlanta to what I saw in Detroit in the late 2000s. It’s not a nice place in the inner city. I would recommend if you do travel there, avoid it. Stick to the outskirts. There are some amazing people in the city.

I got back to the Greyhound bus, and I got to watch my Lions get crushed by the Commanders as I waited for my bus. It was a sad moment, but life went on, and I was off to Jacksonville.

Florida…lots to say about it. But that’s next time.