Join the Atlanta Foundation for Public Spaces (AFFPS) on Saturday, Jan. 23, and Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016, as they celebrate the third annual Callanwolde Arts Festival. The award-winning, two-day indoor festival is located in one of Atlanta’s most distinctive historic properties, the 27,000-square foot Callanwolde Mansion in Druid Hills, and features approximately 86 painters, photographers, sculptors, metalwork, glass artists, jewelers and more. The festival, which is open to all ages, will also offer artist demonstrations, live acoustic music, food trucks with healthy alternatives, and live music and dance performances. Admission is $5 at the door.
Art lovers are also invited to take advantage of the ticketed V.I.P. Preview Sales Party on Friday, Jan. 22 from 6 to 9 p.m. Upon arrival, guests will be greeted are with a glass of wine to sip on as they stroll throughout the historic home and will be the first to view and shop the artwork showcased at this year’s festival. Guest are also invited to enjoy complimentary hors d’oeuvres while they mix and mingle with the artists and enjoy live acoustic music. Admission to the V.I.P. Preview Sales Party is $20 for ages 21 and up. Tickets can be purchased at the door or in advance by visiting www.callanwolde.org or http://www.facebook.com/CallanwoldeArtsFest.
Friday, Jan. 22, from 6 to 9 p.m. – V.I.P. Preview Sales Party
I’ve always lived somewhere with a strong ACC presence. In North Carolina, if you’re not an ACC fan, then what are you? Virginia has the Hokies and that other little school up I-64. When my family lived in Georgia, we still had our ACC fix with Georgia Tech in Atlanta. Even in Pennsylvania, we had decent ACC coverage because of the proximity to Maryland and Virginia; when Pittsburgh and Syracuse joined the ACC, that helped, too.
Side note, why on Earth is Syracuse in the ACC? And don’t even get me started on Notre Dame.
Then I moved to Tennessee. It’s SEC or nothing here.
It’s not like I wasn’t expecting that. I’ve had plenty of exposure to the madness that is SEC football. In fact, a dear friend of mine from middle school came from a divided SEC family. Her dad went to Auburn and her mom went to LSU. She used to come to my house during LSU-Auburn games because her parents bickered so much the whole time. I knew enough about the SEC teams and their fans and who hated whom the most; I figured I could blend in well enough.
I started following Tennessee football (not super closely, but closely enough) just to be informed. If I ever got into a conversation with Tennessee fans–which I thought would be a more common occurrence–then I’d be able to follow along.
It helped, but not enough. My ACC ties stuck out like a sore thumb.
Maybe it’s geography and proximity, but I really only experienced the SEC from Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Florida and Auburn fans. I met a few Vanderbilt people in Nashville, ran into the occasional Ole Miss or Mississippi State fan downtown, and I think I saw a South Carolina fan somewhere. The Kentucky fans have started appearing now that it’s basketball season (much to my chagrin). And until the other week, I’d totally forgotten that Texas A&M and Missouri were even in the SEC.
Here’s what I learned and experienced in my first year fully immersed in SEC Country:
Tennessee fans may sport their creamsicle orange loud and proud, but it’s just the wrong shade for me. Not that I can really pull off orange all that well, but if there’s any shade of orange I wear, it’s my Burnt Orange, accompanied by that beautiful Chicago Maroon. Auburn’s orange is more of my shade. It’s closer, at least. War Eagle?
There’s a cute little boutique about five minutes down the road from my apartment that I like to shop at sometimes. While they don’t carry any “official” SEC fanwear, they do have several racks sorted by team colors: blue and orange for Florida, black and red for Georgia, navy and orange for Auburn, etc. One day I found a really cute top on the crimson-and-white rack, and thought it looked close enough to my favorite dark red hue that maybe I could pass it off as a Hokie color. But I knew it was intended for Alabama fans’ closets, and I just couldn’t bring myself to buy it. It was such a cute top, though.
I work with two SEC alums: one from Florida and one from Alabama. Sometimes I wonder how they get along. All kidding aside, the only time I ever heard them bickering was the week before the SEC Championship game. My fellow Hokie coworker and I kept each other sane this season (and consoled each other when appropriate).
If there’s one thing I learned quickly, it’s that everyone hates Alabama. That’s easy enough. I don’t think I’ve ever uttered the words “Roll Tide” in my life (and it felt so wrong typing them just now), and I don’t plan on ever uttering them. When my Hokies played ‘Bama in the season opener a few years ago, it was all I could do to get through watching the game without vomiting a little every time I heard that stupid “Rammer Jammer” chant.
I guess Alabama is to the SEC like Duke (barf) is to the ACC: if you don’t love them, you hate them. There’s no in between.And in my head, Texas A&M will always be a Big 12 team that just happens to play SEC teams.
And, after the whole season, I still don’t know a single word to “Rocky Top.” I even had some preparation from a gym teacher in elementary school. She was a Tennessee alum and played “Rocky Top” for us every Friday, whether it was football season or not.
The SEC is a completely different world compared to the ACC. I like it. It’s entertaining. I may live in SEC country, but I am an ACC girl always and forever.
Kate Robertson is a features writer for Pretty Southern and a Virginia Tech alumna. She also holds an M.A. in Interactive Media from Elon University.
Born in North Carolina, raised in Georgia, Kate lives in Chattanooga, Tenn., where she works as a social media maven and kick-ass writer covering the lovely South.
Atlanta foodies seeking a new year filled with good luck and prosperity should ring it in at Saltyard.
On Thursday, Dec. 31, the South Buckhead restaurant is hosting the “Feast for Fortune” New Year’s Eve dinner celebration featuring Executive Chef Nick Leahy’s special menu of dishes believed to bring good luck, prosperity and happiness in the coming new year.
Guests will choose from a menu of more than 20 small plates keeping in theme with traditional Southern new year’s staples such as pork, greens, and black-eyed peas paired with delicacies such as scallops, ahi tuna, and delightful desserts. The night will end with a balloon drop and midnight toast featuring a champagne cocktail made from local whiskey brand, American Spirit Whiskey. Additional á la carte items such as oysters on the half shell, a grand seafood platter, and petit bone-in-filet will also be offered at an additional charge.
Oysters and champagne for NYE? Let’s toast to that
Feast for Fortune Dinner highlights include:
Slow braised pork belly with apples and sweet potatoes in a bourbon jus
Eye of ribeye carpaccio served over arugula with a truffle vinaigrette and crispy parmesan
Pan-roasted scallops with hoppin’ john in a parsley vinaigrette
Ahi tuna tartare in a roasted garlic aioli with arugula pesto, pickled onion, basil, and crispy capers
Squid ink linguine, squid, shrimp, scallop, shellfish cream, chili breadcrumbs
Featured Desserts are available for $7 each including tasty treats such as Meyer lemon polenta cake, pistachio ice cream, candied pistachios, or espresso pot de creme with whipped vanilla and chocolate dipped espresso beans.
The cost of the dinner is $59 per person for five courses and seating is extremely limited. Reservations should be made by calling Saltyard at 404.382.8088. Saltyard is located in The Brookwood building at 1820 Peachtree Rd. NW, Atlanta, GA, 30309.
Full disclosure: I’m a Southern girl and a huge Star Wars nerd.
When I was about 7 years old, I got to watch the first trilogy. Princess Leia became my new hero. Here was this awesome lady who was a smart, brave, and gun-slinging defender of the galaxy. She was a welcome idol in the age of Disney princess cartoons.
Fast forward (or hyper drive) to 2015.
In Episode VII: The Force Awakens, Leia, Luke, Han, Chewie, C-3PO, R2-D2, and the gang are back. What’s better is there are multiple powerful females to cheer for in Episode 7.
Daisy Ridley as Rey is a hero for both girls and boys of all ages. From the moment we meet her spelunking in a cavernous crashed battle cruiser, we’re rooting for her to win.
She’s not the only wonder woman of the new Star Wars. The remarkable Lupita Nyong’o plays a completely CGI character, Maz Kanata. Game of Thrones fans will be happy to see Gwendoline Christie (a.k.a. Brienne of Tarth) as the Captain Phasma, leader of the Storm Troopers. Christie is once again defying gender stereotypes for how females are portrayed in the media.
Okay, now that I’ve got the #GirlPower out of my system, let’s talk about the movie.
In order to see the early screening of the film, media had to agree not to share any plot twists or spoil anything for our readers. I wouldn’t want to. This film is arguably one of the best movies I’ve ever seen. The Star Wars series will continue to entertain generations to come. Here are the traits which I think made this movie so fantastic.
Acting – unlike Episodes 1-3, there are no namby pamby diatribes from Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker. The quality of acting from all the players, even the CGI ones, is on point.
Directing – J.J. Abrams is a master storyteller. As a fan of both Lost and Star Trek, I’ve come to admire his work. He went above and beyond for this film. I got chills when “A long time ago, in a galaxy far far away…” scrolled across the screen. The chills kept coming, especially during nostalgic moments.
Cinematography – Now this is filmmaking. The overly done animated landscapes from Episodes 1-3 are welcomely replaced by throwback physical sets, such as the Millennium Falcon. And those special effects…can I say “on fleek”? This is Star Wars for 2015.
Music & sound – Glorious is the word. John Williams, yes, the John Williams of the original Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Jaws, Hook, Jurassic Park, Home Alone, Harry Potter (I could keep going) created another opus. You can close your eyes and just listen, but don’t do that. Even the digital chirps from the precocious droid BB-8 aim to please.
Script – the dialogue in Episodes 1-3 particularly bothered me. It was awful, and not only because of Jar Jar Binks but from campy one liners even Natalie Portman couldn’t improve. Episode 7 is brilliantly written. Michael Arndt of Oscar-winning Little Miss Sunshine and The Hunger Games wrote the original script. It’s a hell of a story.
So let’s talk about the story, with no spoilers. Even if you knew nothing about Star Wars, you might consider Episode VII: The Force Awakens as one of the best films of our modern times. For fans of the series, you’ll be delighted. At the media preview, I sat in front of a diehard fan who said he “couldn’t be f—ing happier” with the movie.
From the bevy or previews and trailers, we know that the galaxy is not safe. The viewer sees remnants of the old empire. Even after the demise of Darth Vader in Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, there’s a new villain named Kylo Ren. Darth Vader was ruthlessly evil, but he was also calculated. Kylo Ren, on the other hand, has a temper. I’ll leave it there.
His foil is Rey, a lonely girl working to collect scrap metal on the barren planet of Jakku.
Early in the story, Rey meets Finn a storm trooper with a conscience, who says in the trailer: “I was raised to do one thing. But I’ve got nothing to fight for.”
Rey and Finn thus begin their quest together on Jakku.
Where it goes from there…well, I’m gonna stop while I’m ahead. Forget about Episodes 1-3. Even if you’ve never seen the original Star Wars trilogy, Episode 7 is a strong enough film in-and-of itself to not rely on the canon. The same classical elements of Episodes 4-6 are felt throughout the film, especially the cinematography.
With four movies planned to come in the series by 2020, the Star Wars saga will continue to influence the zeitgeist of pop culture. What are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments section below.
Celebrate the spirit of the season this Saturday, December 12, 2015 at The Frye Company at Ponce City Market during a rockin’ holiday caroling event with The Whiskey Gentry. From 1 to 4 p.m., shoppers are invited to a experience a high-energy, live acoustic show outside the store from the catchy, toe-tapping band, shop Frye’s Holiday Collection, and enjoy hot drinks and cookies from Farm to Ladle. Shoppers will also receive a fresh holiday wreath with purchase from Adaptation Floral Design.
The event is open to the public by RSVPing to RSVP@TheFryeCompany.com. The Frye Company’s Atlanta flagship store is located in Ponce City Market at 675 Ponce de Leon Ave. NE, Atlanta, Georgia 30308. Visit The Frye Company online at www.TheFryeCompany.com. Stay connected on Instagram and Twitter via @thefryecompany | #fryeatlanta.
Are you naughty or spice? STK’s Executive Pastry Chef Abbie White has once again whipped up a specialty holiday dessert featuring the favorite flavors of the winter season. Throughout the month of December, diners can warm up at STK Atlanta with a White Chocolate Cremeux served with a light spice cake, cranberry compote and topped with gingerbread ice cream for just $10. And, for those looking to imbibe or compliment their dessert with the perfect drink, STK is offering the Naughty or Spice cocktail throughout the month – a delectable mix of spiced rum, lemon juice, Rekorderlig Pear Cider and ground cinnamon.
STK is a unique concept that artfully blends the modern steakhouse and chic lounge into one, offering a dynamic, fine dining experience with the superior quality of a traditional steakhouse. STK distinguishes itself by focusing on the social experience with a sleek, contemporary design and an in-house DJ who creates an infectious, high-energy vibe. The menu features reimagined classic American cuisine with signature dishes like bite-sized Lil’ BRGs made with Wagyu beef, Lobster Mac & Cheese, and, of course, the highest quality steak. STK defines the modern fine dining experience with incredible food, world-class service and the perfect atmosphere. STK has locations in New York City, Washington DC, Miami, Chicago, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, London, and Milan with additional locations coming soon to Dallas, Toronto, and Orlando. For more information about STK, please visit www.stkhouse.com.
STK Atlanta is located at 1075 Peachtree Street in Midtown Atlanta on the corner of Peachtree and 12th Streets in the 12th & Midtown development. Stay connected on Twitter at www.twitter.com/STKAtlanta and Instagram at @eatstk #stkatlanta.
Kate Robertson is a features writer for Pretty Southern and a Virginia Tech alumna. She also holds an M.A. in Interactive Media from Elon University.
