Category Archives: Life In Atlanta

Summer Bucket List

5th June 2013

I’m not quite sure what it is, but even post-college, summer still seems to have a sweet aura about it where you can dig up a little extra time in the days and make the most of a great adventure or two.

Peachtree Road Farmers MarketWhile we are already a week or so in to my favorite season of the year, I’ve finally compiled my summer bucket list, one which I hope will evolve and result in supporting blog posts to document the tales.

  • Hike to the cliffs and jump. If you’ve gone tubing down the Chattahoochee before, you’ve seen the jumping cliffs. Fun fact: you can hike there too. Weeknight hikes are quickly becoming my favorite way to cap of a weekday and while hiking scaling the side of a cliff isn’t on my list of favorite things to do, I do seem to get less fearful each time. Plus it’s hot and jumping into the water while we leave our shoes on the cliff just sounds plain fun
  • Learn attempt to learn calligraphy. This one is slightly lofty, but it’s been on my list for quite some time, so what better summer project. I’ve been eying this program, but if anyone knows of a local in-person course, I’d happily take recommendations
  • Sharpen my media skills. This one is work driven, but I am no pro when it comes to media buying, vendors, etc. As my role requires me to have a fairly in-depth knowledge across channels, this is a good continuation
  • Buy vegetables from the farmer’s market. I finally made it to the weekly Peachtree Road Farmer’s Market last week and it was lovely. However, picking out greens seemed too overwhelming, I’ll get over this
  • Take a trip to the mountains complete with fresh fruit: blueberries, cherries and peaches … oh my. Maybe I can even cheat and get cherries in Michigan during our annual trip in August, I always seem to just miss peak season
  • Watch more than one sunset from PDK. Another favorite hidden Atlanta gem
  • Run once a week without a watch to keep pace. This is a big one, the watch is addicting and distracting. I need to spend some time falling back in love with the pavement (or trails)
  • (On the opposite effect) Run a sub-50 10K. With my recent knee issues, that don’t seem to be letting up, I’m not certain this is realistic, but you better believe I’ll try my darnedest on the Fourth of July
  • Kayak the Hooch. We can add tubing here, that’s bound to happen at least a few times
  • Make King of Pops a staple (as if it wasn’t already)
  • Celebrate turning 25 without fear of entering my “mid-twenties”

 

Learning the Art of Doing Nothing

2nd February 2013

Doing Nothing This morning, I set out to run for my first weekend run in a few weeks. Lucky for me, it was also one of the coldest Saturday mornings we have had all season here (read 35 degrees, this is Atlanta, not Chicago). As I haven’t run more than four miles consistently in a few weeks, I headed out to the river for an easy six miles.

Keeping with my resolution to take things a little slower, I decided to simply enjoy the day and not focus on my pace or setting record distance. When I pulled in, I realized I had forgotten my headphones, meaning I really was forced did get to enjoy six miles in nature. The six miles surprisingly flew by, I felt great despite the cold and finished with an average pace much faster than expected. Win.

Efforts like this deserve rewards. Enter Land of a Thousand Hills. If you have not been to this hidden Atlanta gem of a coffee shop, you are most definitely missing out. Tucked away off of the Chattahoochee River within the Walton apartment complex, this little coffee shop not only makes fantastically crafted drinks, but also has a killer view. Land of a Thousand Hills

I love this spot as a post-run treat, but today was the first time I visited by my lonesome. Taking things slow is not a virtue of mine. I’m not quite whatsoever a master of “doing nothing”, as P seems to say to me once a week, “slow down turbo”.

Hot chocolate in hand {confession, I actually HATE coffee}, I spent the next hour literally enjoying the view {OK, I may have taken one Instagram and checked-in on Foursquare, but that was it, I swear}. Taking things slower certainly means moving in baby steps for me, but this was a perfect ending to a solo morning.Hot chocolate with a view

How do you spend your down time? How do you love to spend a day doing nothing?

I’m Movin’ Out (best read in your Billy Joel voice)

20th January 2013

After two years in our first post-grad apartment, my roommate are on to bigger and better things. We wrestled with the idea of moving last year around this time, but oh the boxes, the cold, the reconfiguring. Nope. Not happening. We stayed put. However, the time has come to bid our current pad adieu and make a change.

When we first decided to make the leap from our cozy, suburb, rent-free places of residence a little over two years ago, making a decision was simple. We worked with a local rental source (Promove) who basically did all of the work for us, with flexible move-in dates. It was fantastic. And easy. Seriously, if you are looking to make a move in Atlanta, go visit the guys at Promove.

However, this time around, no one gave us a heads up that switching apartments in grown up world and in a big city isn’t quite like moving in college where everyone operates on the same schedule and has visited every location in town.

Our apartment “must haves”:

  • Less than $50 – $75 increase in current rent (though ideally less)
  • Nearby running trails
  • Safety – some form of gate / alarm
  • Two bathrooms
  • Large closets (seriously, this is Atlanta, not New York – we can afford not to budge on that one)
  • A view – maybe. A girl can dream, right?

Since I’m certain I’m not the only twenty something figuring all of this out for the first time, here are          the top four things we have learned in the last few months.

  1. Don’t begin seriously looking more than 60 days out, in our case, we really didn’t even start to see things opening up until less than 30 days from move out date.
  2. Craigslist is not entirely sketchy. We found more leads here than anywhere else, but always, always use your best judgement and take a friend when viewing a place. Also, check out PadMapper.com. This site basically takes posts from Craigslist and other similar sites and maps them for you.
  3. Use your mobile device to your advantage. We ended up finding our new place through an ad on Trulia. Trulia and Zillow are excellent sources for storing your favorite spots and seeing places on the go.
  4. Ask all of the right questions. We knew we didn’t want to be in a typical complex, which often means less rules and less tenants managed. Be sure to ask about deposits, potential move-in dates, pets, etc. as the management, building or owner views may vary.

Most important of all, have fun! Yes, it’s stressful. Of course with a month to go I wanted to know where I would be living next month. But…by taking the due diligence and patience route, it paid off. My roommate and I found a place that fits every requirement on our list (and then some) and even came in under budget. While I can’t wait to own a home to call my own, I cannot wait to jump ship and get to re-decorating, Pinteresting and making our new apartment, home.

What tips do you have from moving experiences? How did you find your current dream place?