Fresh Loaf

1) Photojournalist Kristen Ashburn speaks about her exhibit Bloodline: AIDS and Family at Atlanta Photography Group Gallery.

2) Fringe Factory celebrates its one-year anniversary at the Highland Inn Ballroom Lounge.

3) Silver Scream Spook Show screens Giant Monsters All-Out Attack at the Plaza Theatre.

4) The Features and Selmanaires play the Earl.

5) The Rialto Center hosts Swamp Gravy, a folk-life play about Georgia.

(Photo by Kristen Ashburn)

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1) Dad’s Garage Theatre launches World Domination Theatresports Tournament.

2) Features play the Earl.

3) A New View of Realism continues at Oglethorpe University Museum of Art.

4) DJ Red Alert is at Center Stage.

5) W Midtown hosts readings and signings in conjunction with Black Gay Pride.

(Photo courtesy Linnea Frye)

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Barring major reforms, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools will revoke Clayton County Public Schools’ accreditation in September. Clayton’s students will lose scholarship eligibility and will be unable to transfer their credits. In the past 20 years, only two school systems in the country have lost accreditation.

“The Clayton County Board of Education is dysfunctional. Currently the Board does not operate with unity or a common sense of purpose. Individuals on the Board act in their own best interest or that of special interest groups. As a result the Board operates in a constant of confusion and conflict.”

— Southern Association of Colleges and School’s Feb. 15 report by the Special Review Team for Clayton County Public Schools

“ASSCLOWN!”

— The label given to Clayton County school board members Lois Baines-Hunter, Ericka Davis, the Rev. W. Rod Johnson and Sandra Scott on the website www.give-em-the-boot.com. The site accuses several top county officials of incompetence and corruption.

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By Sonia Clark
(photo by Joeff Davis)

Barbara Moody was a flight attendant for Delta Airlines for 45 years before retiring in December. Now she’s a professional pet sitter.

Her career choice was inspired by the flight attendants she saw as a high school student in Hawaii. “They all looked so glamorous. I thought, ‘That’s what I want to do.’”

Moody graduated from the University of Tennessee in 1962: “I went to college, graduated, went home, changed clothes and went to work for Delta.”

Her first flight was on a Convair 440 to Charleston: “One of the passengers had to tell me where the [cabin] light switch was. The passengers knew the plane better than I did.”

On the difference between pets and passengers: “People sometimes cannot accept that they are one out of 300. Pets don’t talk back and you can come to some kind of mutual agreement with them.”

In 2002, Barb volunteered for military charter flights to Kuwait. Once, while a plane was still on the ground in Kuwait, sirens went off indicating incoming fire. Barb and her fellow crew members had to don gas masks.

Although she was given the option by Delta not to fly anymore, Barb continued to fly after the 9/11 attacks because she did not want to give terrorists the satisfaction. “I was angry about what had happened, but I wasn’t going to change the way I lived.”

What Moody misses most about being a flight attendant: “Being able to go to dinner in a foreign city.”

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Last fall, when Sen. Hillary Clinton had a huge lead in national and state polls, Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., endorsed her candidacy. Now he’s not so sure.

“I have looked at all the candidates, and I believe that Hillary Clinton is the best prepared to lead this country at a time when we are in desperate need of strong leadership.”

– Lewis, endorsing Clinton for president Oct. 12, 2007

“Something is happening in America, and people are prepared and ready to make that great leap.”

– Lewis, as quoted in the New York Times Feb. 15, explaining his decision to vote for Obama at the 2008 Democratic Party Convention. A spokesman for Lewis said the Times’ report is “not accurate.”

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Months until 14th Street bridge replacement is supposed to be complete: 28

Southbound Downtown Connector off-ramps to Midtown now closed for bridge project: 3

Southbound Downtown Connector off-ramps to Midtown that remain open: 2

Months 14th Street bridge will be closed, starting this summer: 18

Number of bike lanes planned for replacement 14th Street bridge: 1

Number of cars that use the Downtown Connector daily: 340,000

Percent of Midtown drivers state says need to “get out of their cars” for traffic “to be able to move” during construction: 10

Number of new or enhanced MARTA routes near project: 0

Amount state will pay for 14th Street bridge replacement project: $88.5 million

Amount state contributes to MARTA annually: $0

Sources: AJC, Georgia Department of Transportation, Car & Driver, MARTA

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(Photo by Joeff Davis)

CL liveblogged the Super Tuesday primaries at Manuel’s Tavern and queried the bold-faced names in attendance. To view the night’s commentary, click here.

“I think it’d be pretty amazing to see McCain running against Obama. I think they both want to move the country forward.”

– Emory Morsberger, a former Republican state representative and leading advocate of the Brain Train

“It’s an exciting night for the Democrats. I’m a strong Hillary person. I’m excited to see such a strong turnout for Obama. I just hope the enthusiasm carries … over until November. I think [Obama’s] a fresh face and an inspirational voice that people have chosen at this time. …”

– State Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver, D-Decatur

“I’m looking for a job. I offered my services to the Hillary people and they didn’t want me, so I voted for Obama.”

– Former state Rep. Doug Teper

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(Photo by Joeff Davis)

Jerry “Cowboy” Hill, a former pro bass fisherman, has seen a lot during his 12 years of locksmithing, from dead bodies in car trunks to convertible owners who call him rather than climbing through their open tops.

Hill says his customers gave him the nickname “Cowboy” due to his attire. “Since they’re giving me their money, I go along with it.”

“We do what the average locksmith around here can’t do,” Hill says, due to the $275,000 worth of key blanks, electronic transponders and other equipment crammed into his van.

“You’d be surprised how many people lock their keys in their car at the gas station with the car running, and it turns out the passenger door was unlocked.”

“These elderly people in their big Lincoln Continentals, they never lose their keys. But the college kids, you’ll make them a key and then six weeks later they’ll call you back [for another one].”

“We have people who try to steal cars using a locksmith. We’ll get the story, ‘It’s my sister’s; she’s up at the store.’ And I’ll say, ‘OK, let’s wait for her.’”

Some thieves call Hill after they’ve stolen a car. “They’ll say it’s a rental, but you can tell it’s already been stolen.” He says he then calls the cops and takes his time making a key until they get there.

Hill replaces a lot of electronic car keys that people leave on top of speakers. The magnetic field can deactivate them.

Hill carries a gun, but says he’s only been attacked twice and only had to fire once. “There’s a one-legged crack dealer in East Point now,” he says.

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(Photo by Joeff Davis)

Dermatologist Dr. Scott Karempelis has been a tattoo-removal specialist at Dermatology Associates of Atlanta for 20 years. He uses a laser that breaks tattoo pigment into little pieces that are absorbed by skin.

How would you describe your job?

It’s very diverse and exciting without doing the same thing everyday. Each day I can work with skin cancer, wrinkles, liposuction or eyelids with people choosing to make the changes.

Who is your youngest client?

Thirteen years old, with a homemade knuckle tattoo. A lot of underage kids get tattoos from homemade ways, or by lying, or some unscrupulous person. The parents drag them in to get them removed.

What are some reasons for tattoo removal?

Gravel tattoos are when asphalt gets stuck in the skin from motorcycle accidents. We also remove the powder burns from a firecracker or black speckles from gun shots. These people are really happy that they can have these things removed.

Jewish people who were in Nazi prison camps like Auschwitz have come in for their prison tattoos to be removed. It is like removing a stigma from their body.

Has a tattoo artist ever gotten mad at you for desecrating his work?

Tattoo artists come in, not interested in removing their tattoos, but to change one area of a tattoo with mistakes. Many times we’ll knock out hearts with the name of the lover.

What is the most interesting tattoo you’ve removed?

This girl has the pink panther on her underwear line and it was the cutest tattoo. If you notice some of the African ladies have full ornaments tattooed on their neck and face from African tribes who come in to get them removed.

I removed the word “hot” and “cold” from a lady’s breasts.

What is the weirdest tattoo?
A guy with a gothic look had the devil outline tattooed to his face with the horns on the forehead.

If you could stand outside a tattoo parlor and give advice to someone about what they’re going to get, what would it be?

Don’t get it in the first place. But if you do, get a regular Indian ink outline without making it too deep. If you do get it, at least hide it on your butt or groin.

If you ever got a tattoo, what would it be?
Probably something artsy and small with some family emblem to it.

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Editorial boards of Georgia newspapers outside metro Atlanta have harshly criticized the recently passed statewide water plan.

“Georgia lawmakers have wasted an opportunity to craft an elegant statewide water plan that would have required fewer fixes in the future.”

— Savannah Morning News, Jan. 22.

“In this instance [Gov. Sonny Perdue, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle and state House Speaker Glenn Richardson], were peddling the statewide water plan, which is going up for legislative endorsement on a very, very fast track despite almost every written opinion about declaring it to be an insult to both common sense and Mother Nature.”

— Rome News-Tribune, Jan. 18

“What actually has been sliced, however, is the influence of the 143 counties outside the 16-county metro Atlanta region when it comes to how water will be allocated within Georgia.”

— Albany Herald, Jan. 20

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(Photo by Joeff Davis)

Jack Greenway opened B & J Awards T-Shirts in Doraville in 1976 with his wife, Brenda. He makes and sells trophies, mostly to nearby recreational sports teams and businesses.

How long have you owned a trophy shop?

Since 1976. I used to work for another trophy shop and I decided to start my own.

Did you receive any trophies when you were a child?

I never got any when I was a kid. When I was 18, I won a trophy for drag racing. I don’t have it anymore. I think I gave it to my nephew.

For whom do you make the majority of your awards?

I generally make trophies for recreational sports like soccer, baseball, football and things like that. I do a lot with the Doraville Recreational Park.

What machines or special equipment do you use?

I have a special laser engraver and another standard engraver. I also have a special saw to cut the wood and other materials into the lengths that I need.

How do you feel about participation trophies?

The kids want and expect them. It’s not really for being the champion, it’s more for sentimental value. I used to coach myself and I always gave participation trophies to the kids I coached.

Do you think everyone is a winner?

I don’t think everybody is a winner. I think that these leagues where everyone plays and no one wins are wrong. It takes away the teaching aspect. The kids need to learn not to expect to be rewarded for things that they don’t accomplish. I think that people should keep score and that there should be a winner. I think competition is a good thing.

Do you make trophies for pranks or jokes?

I make more prank trophies for golf and bowling than other sports. Someone might order a golf trophy as a prank and they’ll have it inscribed with “Take Up Bowling.” I also sell a trophy with a horse’s rear end on it. People will get that one for someone who finishes last or something.

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Atlanta City Councilwoman Felicia Moore introduced legislation calling for council oversight of the city’s involvement in the Atlanta Housing Authority’s plans to demolish public housing.

“[This] ordinance is to make sure in the future it’s clear by code there’s an understanding the Council is the governing authority of the City . . . ”
— Moore, as quoted in Atlanta Progressive News Jan. 7

“We respectfully submit that, because of the legally mandated autonomous operation of the AHA, these items of legislation are beyond the City’s authority and purview.”
— Attorney Sharon Gay, of McKenna Long & Aldridge, in a Jan. 14 letter to Atlanta City Council

“This is a blatant, purposeful media campaign to discredit me because they don’t like this legislation.”
— Moore, as quoted in the AJC, in response to a comment by AHA spokesman Rick White alleging that Moore worries demolishing public housing in her council district would move her supporters out of her district

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(photo by Joeff Davis)

Tea aficionada Carmelle Killick has hosted a Victorian-style tea ceremony at her home every spring for a decade. The Alpharetta resident invites friends and neighbors for a formal sit-down steeped in tradition, with international teas, waltzing and hat contests.

“We make tea every night, practice tea etiquette every night, so it becomes second nature. I try to keep that tradition in the family, and try to keep it as formal as possible.”

She’s a tea-totalitarian. “There’s no such thing as coming here and not having tea. If you come here I’m giving you tea.”

“I went to Catholic school in Haiti. You know how Catholics are. You have to sit straight, can’t talk, can’t laugh. I guess all this stuff stayed with me. I’m not a loose person at all. Even in a relaxed situation, I sit straight and am very formal.”

On sweet tea: “Southern tea is excellent. … But I see Southerners like their tea sweet. To me the sugar kills the taste of the tea.”

Killick’s French grandmother introduced her to tea and to her favorite tea, basil lemon honey.

She’s versed in a wide array of tea etiquettes, including English, French, Iranian, Turkish, Japanese and Arabian. “It’s something that, when you get into the practice, the etiquette, the tradition, the china, the settings, you can fall in love with it.”

“We travel a lot. Everywhere we go we bring tea back with us. Some of them we can’t pronounce, but we know if it’s good.”

Killick says she’s addicted to buying teacups and saucers on eBay, adding that some cost more than $500. “Some tea parties are like weddings. You can go broke if you’re not careful.”

On the tea party’s turnout: “You never know how many people will show up. You send out a lot of invitations hoping not everyone will show up.”

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Rob: I think it looks awesome, and the consensus is that it looks superdope. Most Atlanta hats are boring. This hat is crazy as hell and everyone would agree I’m crazy as hell. The girls like it better than the boys. Most guys wouldn’t normally wear this. The girls ask me where I got it from, but it’s a secret. I don’t want to tell them and I wouldn’t want to give a plug to this place because they’re a corporate monster. And it glows in the dark. That’s what separates it from the pack.

Danielle: I really don’t care. I don’t look in the mirror when I put on a hat. I just wear it when it’s cold. But it’s important that my boyfriend likes it, ’cause I care if he’s embarrassed to walk with me. And it’s old and my hair is messy. If he hadn’t liked it, I would wear the messy hair. But I get to approve his hat, too. He has a hee-haw hat that’s pretty cool. I wish I had that hat. My hat was purchased in Montreal, made in Bolivia, and I wear it in Atlanta.

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James & John: We enjoy the hard hats. I [James] like the color. It’s very visible. The color of our hard hats means something. Yellow is “caution,” and green is “high-visibility humans ahead.” Yellow draws bees. Green doesn’t draw anything. Bees gravitate to the yellow. It must look like a flower to them. You don’t see any green flowers. When you put on the hat, you feel “GIT ‘R’ DONE.” And there’s something about hard hats and women. They like them. I don’t know what it is, but they do.

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Atlanta’s African-American leaders are impressed by Sen. Barack Obama’s ability to energize and inspire presidential primary voters.

“What I like about Barack Obama is that he’s energizing a population that is not typically energized. And that he is providing inspiration.”

— Mayor Shirley Franklin, endorsing Obama on V-103’s (WVEE-FM) “Frank and Wanda in the Morning” on Jan. 9.

“. . . I believe he gives Georgia Democrats our best chance of retaking the White House in 2008 and building the coalition necessary to bring change as President.”

— Rumored Atlanta mayoral candidate and state Sen. Kasim Reed, endorsing Obama on Jan. 7.

“Thank goodness for what Obama has been doing in Iowa and New Hampshire. It’s historic. He’s tapped into a part of the electorate looking for something different, something new.”

— Rep. John Lewis, speaking to the AJC on Jan. 8. Lewis has endorsed Sen. Hillary Clinton.

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From zero to 100, Georgia’s overall state grade for public education: 80.2

Mississippi’s overall state grade for public education: 68.9

National average grade for public education: 75.9

Average dollars spent annually on each student in Georgia: 8,658

Rank of Georgia in United States for per-pupil spending: 27

Georgia’s grade for K-12 achievement: 68.1

K-12 achievement grade for Massachusetts: 85

Percentage of Georgia high school students who graduate: 56.1

Number of states with higher high school graduation rates than Georgia: 48

Source: EPE Research Center 2008 Quality Counts public education survey

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Prince Prinston wants to get a job, get rich and provide for his family. A recent transplant from West Palm Beach, Fla., the 17-year-old plans to become a lightweight boxer and learn to cook. He lives with his brother and sister-in-law in College Park.

“I wanna be a pro [boxer] in five years. I want my hands to be weapons, so I can’t fight a regular man.”

His favorite boxing movies: “Rocky, of course. The first one, second one and third one. My brother told me Cinderella Man was a good one.”

On leaving West Palm Beach: “There was too much violence there. I moved to get away from it. Ghetto stuff.”

“I’m going to Atlanta Job Corps. It’s just like school, but they pay you to go there. I’m gonna be doing culinary arts. I can’t cook, but they’ll teach me.”

On job prospects. “I ain’t consistent, but I’m looking. Wal-Mart, Publix, places for 17-year-olds.”

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Bloggers and community bulletin-board contributors are increasingly voicing frustration with Mayor Shirley Franklin’s leadership.

“And to think that our mayor has the time to write a letter on behalf of Michael Vick, but can’t be bothered to address the problems with Chief Pennington and his department.”

— PETERK30310, commenting on the Yahoo! group Capitol View Homeowner’s Forum Dec. 22. Mayor Franklin wrote a letter asking the judge in the Michael Vick case to grant the former Falcons star leniency.

“No, I’m talking about her failure to run basic functions of a major city government. Things like roads, traffic lights, issuing permits, crime, and cleanliness . . . Shirley doesn’t have time to bother with such trivialities. She’s on vacation. It’s someone else’s job. She has checked out and is waiting for the next mayor to take over.”

— Blogger decaturguy at the Atlanta Publics Affairs blog Dec. 28

“Maybe instead of supporting common criminals, she can write letters and speak out on more important issues such as police corruption, the Atlanta Housing Authority Fiasco, the Beltline’s effect on low income residents, or Grady.”

— Blogger A Mad Democrat Dec. 14

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