Good bread, good meat...

Every once in a while, I need to wander off on a tangent. Tonight, while driving back from the initial meeting for volunteers at the NHL All-Star Game, I drove by Fat Matt's Rib Shack (and let's not forget the Chicken Shack next door). So... I got to thinking about some of the great places I have been lucky enough to eat at here in Atlanta. I know it isn't about real estate, but we live here... and we have to eat... and if we are going to eat, we should eat well.

I guess I should start with Fat Matt's. This is a legendary stop in Atlanta. Aside from ribs that are known throughout the South, there is live blues seven nights a week. The last time I stopped in, there was a tour bus parked outside. As a blues neophyte, I couldn't tell you who the musician was, but one of my guests was just about beside himself that a legend would bring his bus up from New Orleans for a one night engagement in a rib joint. Don't let the look fool you... this place rocks... er blues... whatever.

The chicken next door is also quite amazing. That would be Fat Matt's Chicken Shack. No live blues (that I know of), but BBQ chicken for lunch is certainly a treat.

The next one on the list is actually gone now. For decades there was a place in Atlanta called Deacon Burton's Soul Food Grill. It was the very definition of Southern Cuisine. Deacon Burton passed away a few years ago, and there was a lot of drama involving the restaurant. Born of the drama is a place called Son's Place. I have not been there, but I hear it is across the street and has faithfully captured the experience. The reviews are good as well.

As long as we are on Southern foods, let's hit another BBQ place. This one is right around the corner from me. Spiced Right Bar-B-Q in Lilburn, GA. It is good sweet BBQ. Again, it isn't fancy, but that doesn't mean it isn't good. They have half a dozen different sauces, and they are all good. On my last visit, I enjoyed the brisket... and some pulled pork... and some chicken. Ok, I had some rolls, too.

Finally, not too far away is a DeKalb County tradition... but it's pretty close to Gwinnett County as well. Matthew's Cafeteria in Tucker is a favorite destination for locals at lunchtime. Like Son's Place, they are a "meat and three" place (for those that aren't familiar, that would be meat and three vegetables or sides). Swinging by around lunch, and the lot is plugged with police cars, while there is a steady stream of traffic from Cofer Bros. Lumber across the street.

If you are an Atlanta local, especially around Gwinnett County, I hope that you have a few new ideas for lunch or dinner in the next couple of weeks. If you don't live in Atlanta, drop in for a visit. Buy a house. I'll even take you to lunch...

Thinking of visiting Las Vegas?

Today is my last day here. I'll be hopping on the "red-eye" tonight and arriving back in Atlanta tomorrow morning. Look for my post tomorrow to be a little late...

So, what do I think of Vegas? Well, I've had a great time so far. It is a beautiful city, but not without its warts. Now, I can't talk about the areas away from the strip... because I have only been in the tourist zone, but the first thing that strikes me as a wart is the strip traffic. If hasn't affected me much, as I've walked almost everywhere. However, I've seen gridlock near the strip at all sorts of times.

The next thing I noticed is that the Blackjack rules in a few of the big casinos really suck. In stead of the 3 to 2 payout on Blackjack, I see a 1 to 1 payout. The balancing factor is that the dealer has to hit on a soft 17... so they should bust a little more. But, I haven't actually had a chance to sit down at a table... yet. I'm going to try to get in a few hands this afternoon.

Now for some good... I have met a lot of really nice people here locally. Some are in the real estate business (if you are moving here, I'd gladly give a referral). I also have felt much safer wandering around town (even off the strip) than I thought I would. Keep in mind, this is just an impression, and I just caught the end of a news report this morning and the chopper shot looked like it was on the corner near my hotel where the Police were apprehending some evil doer.

The very sight of the hotels/casinos on the strip is amazing. The lights, sounds and spectacle are impressive... and I haven't even seen the dancing water or sinking pirate ship yet. I don't even think I will have a chance to see a lot of it. The scale of Caesar's or the Venetian is also pretty daunting. I had someone tell me at one of the receptions last night that they were staying at Caesar's across the street from the Venetian (where the Convention is) and they think they might be walking farther than I am each day.

All in all, I definately plan on coming back, especially if I can do it without as many time constraints. It would be nice to meet back up with the new friends I've made here... Maybe I'll come back for the SEMA Show... ok, that won't be less time constraining, but you get the idea.

I'm in Vegas

I promise to do better than this later, but for now... I'm in Vegas.

What can I pass along?

If you are flying with a laptop, take it out of the bag and run it through the X-ray machine by itself. I didn't know that.

I will try to get back on later today and post up some pictures as well as anything else that looks interesting.

Going to Vegas for the NAR Convention

I am getting ready to go to my first NAR Convention. The NAR is the National Association of REALTORS(R).

I haven't been to one of the national conventions, but I am looking forward to it. I was able to schedule it at the VERY last minute. I do plan on posting each day, even though I know I will be very busy. I doubt if I'll even have time to squeeze in a hand or three of Blackjack, as I am scheduled to hit info sessions all day, every day.

Sorry for not having a normal post today, but I promise to make up for it... maybe I'll come up with something on the plane... or I'll watch "The 300" instead... we'll see.

Ahh, relaxed... ok, sorta relaxed

Some people like to watch baseball. Others think that basketball is what makes life worth living. I like things that involve a little more octane. From Thursday (Oct. 4th) through Sunday (Oct. 7th) my 4 wheel drive club ran registration for the Southern Four Wheel Drive Association.

Sunburned, fried, frozen, tired and glad would all be accurate descriptions of the last few days. Temperatures during the day were in the 80s with wonderful (and burning sunshine) and in the 50s at night. We ran registration from 7:00am (I am NOT a morning person) until as late as 11:00pm. It was a great time.

The big ugly tan and black Blazer belongs to a guy named Gabe (a future client). This was during the rock crawl competition. Justin (one of my clients) was his spotter. They did a great job bringing it in 3rd place in the big tire class.

As predicted, I never made it onto the trails... of course, I don't actually have a trail rig right now, while I'm building my Jeepster. However, I did manage to snap a few shots of some interesting hardware. Remember, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

The "truck" looking thing to the left is an Army M-715. This one is SERIOUSLY beefy, and did quite well in the rock competition.

But, despite the fact that I was busy for the majority of the time, I feel somewhat recharged (I will accept that it isn't the same as a cruise). We talked trucks, travel, and joked with each other. We talked about Tellico (the scene of the trail rides), Moab (the center of the 4wheeling universe) and the Rubicon Trail (the home of the fist Jeepers Jamboree). We talked about friends that couldn't make it up for the weekend, had moved on to other hobbies, or just moved on.

Batteries recharged. Attitude reset. Priorities back to normal. Isn't that what vacations are all about?

Looking forward to a little camping!

You heard it. At the end of the week, I'll be off to the wilds to do a little camping. While it isn't as much of an outdoor experience as some, it is a nice place to get away. That also means that I won't have new posts up Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

The Southern Four Wheel Drive Association (SFWDA) has their 21st Annual Dixie Run outside of Murphy, NC in the Tellico OHV area. I don't think I will even get to fourwheel this year (not really that unusual), since I will be spending most of my time in the registration area. However, my phone won't have service, and I won't be reachable from Atlanta for a couple of days.

BTW, that Yellow Jeepster isn't mine. It is cool though. He has a TJ Wrangler suspension under it, and it is quite clean. Quite a few people didn't notice how modified it really was.

So, it will be three days in a tent for me... and several hundred of my "closest personal friends."

However, if someone has a camper they want to loan me from Thursday through Monday, I might be willing to take you up on it. I guess I really am getting old.

A little more Moab, with a few friends...

Meet Pat Johnson of the blue CJ. This poor guy is often my road trip companion. This particular picture was on one of our Moab trips. If you look at the Moab, My Happy Place post, you'll see the tow rig dragging our toys out there. Here is Pat playing in the "Wedgie" on the Poison Spider Mesa trail. It started as a great day, and ended as a great story.

Poison Spider Mesa leads to a trail called the Golden Spike. That connects to a trail called Gold Bar Rim. That combo is generally an all day affair. It took us a little longer.

As I mentioned, everything started out great, but then we started having a few problems. We had five Jeeps in the morning. The first Jeep exploded a lock-out. He had a spare and was soon on his way again. The second Jeep had a serious case of angle issues with the carb. It kept getting worse, and he decided to turn back. The driver of the Jeep with the previously blown hub agreed to accompany him out. I wish I had a transcript of the CB conversation between those two on the way out. We could hear them all of the way into town.

Next up is Patrick Bennett of the olive CJ. He has built a VERY cool Jeep, but this day was not to be great for the Jeep. A short while after this picture, the power steering pump gave up its long fight. And then, an over-extended driveshaft caused further delay. In both cases, we were able to get everything back together and moving along.

Because of the delays, we hit on if the more famous obstacles on the Golden Spike at the most beautiful time of day, that golden light just before sunset. The problem is that it takes about five hours to drive back out to paved roads. That means that four hours is done after dark... and it was REALLY dark. Even with extra lighting, finding the trail markers became a challenge on the slickrock. In fact, it was enough of a challenge that our only passenger, Pat Johnson's wife Helen, had to walk in front of out little three Jeep caravan with a flashlight, searching for the trail markers. These faded markers were painted every few hundred feet, but were difficult to see with headlights. A wrong turn could lead to a disaster. At one point, we were on the end of a point. One way lead down a series of steps along the trail. The other lead over a 300 foot cliff. They looked the same from the driver's seat by headlight. Add an extra hour to only drive at walking speed.

We seriously considered camping for the night. Despite the daytime temperatures in the 90s and higher, nighttime temperatures were in the 50s. We took an inventory of our stores... several bottles of water, tarps, and a single "Lunchable" left over from lunch. We also had a few small bags of chips, and a couple of granola bars.

We decided to keep going.

After a little hiking at an intersection, we were soon on our way down the Gold Bar Rim trail. We were almost home free. The one problem we still faced was that Gold Bar Rim empties out into a valley that is criss-crossed with sand wash roads. It is also still 15 miles or so from pavement. It was dark. there were no signs, and none of us had run this particular trail before.

Referencing a map and a GPS, we determined the general direction to the exit of the canyon. I had run another trail in the area three years before on a previous trip.

We managed to find our way back to the pavement, and eventually to the condo. We had started on the trail around 10am, and finished the day at 2am. It was rough. But, all in all, it has been a great story to re-live every so often around a campfire. I've been back since then, and plan on going again before too long.

Atlanta Area Motosports Calendar

We have recently set up a Motorsports Calendar for Atlanta area events. Not only do we have big events like the NASCAR race at Atlanta Motor speedway and the NHRA Nationals at Commerce, but we also have local SCCA events, as well as Legends races and other amateur events at various venues around town.

Here is a direct link to the calendar.

If you or your club host an event that you would like included, such as a competition event, show and shine or even a club meeting, please feel free to let us know. We'll happily post your event on our Atlanta area Motorsports Calendar.

Mud Bogs, Drags, Solos, etc. are all welcome to be posted.

We do ask that you send a short blurb about the event, which we will post, along with any relevant contact info, in a link from the calendar entry.

7000 SF Log Home on Lake Lanier

I've been wanting to post about this property for a LONG time. It isn't my listing, but I know the sellers, and it is a fabulous home for the right people.

If you are looking for a unique home on Lake Lanier, this might be it. It is a Hearthstone Log Home, with over 7000 square feet on three levels. It also has several acres and several hundred feet of corps line frontage. It is almost like having your own deep woods lodge on the lake. The dock is nestled into a private cove, and a gentle walk down from the house.

There are 5 bedroom and 5 baths. Not only is the master suite on the main, but there is a guest suite there as well. There is also a nice sitting area between the upstairs bedrooms. The sitting area overlooks the two story great room. Without a doubt, this is a stunning home and property.

It is only a few minutes from Gainesville, and convenient to the northern suburbs. It is quite close to Brown's Bridge.

The home is currently listed for $1,995,000.

If you are interested, please give me a call. As I mentioned, this isn't my listing, but I have been to the house a number of times. I know the sellers, and they had this home custom built and have maintained it to a level that will even amaze your home inspector.

DisneyWorld Bargain Strategy

OK, I've already told everyone that Moab, UT is my happy place. But, there is another place that I really enjoy with my family. DisneyWorld.

I will be the first person to admit that Walt Disney World (WDW) is not a cheap place to take the family for vacation, but that doesn't mean that one can't maximize their value from the experience. Although I'm certainly FAR from being a local, and there are plenty of people that have been there more than we have, I thouth I would pass along a few tips that we've picked up from our WDW travels. Although I don't want to turn this post into a link extravaganza, there will be a few more links coming.

Some of you might be familiar with the DVC or Disney Vacation Club. It is Disney's version of a timeshare. Even though we have thought about buying into it, we haven't, but that doesn't mean that we can't take advantage of it to get a better deal. The way we take advantage of it is to rent points from a DVC member. There is a resource called DISboards that is a great place to find point rental opportunities. DVC members buy points that they can use each year for Disney trips. If they have more points than they can use in a particular time frame, they can rent out those point to third parties. While the points can be used at almost every Disney resort, there are specific properties that are DVC Properties. A DVC member, or point renter will get a lot more bang for the buck at these resorts. Generally, the DVC resorts are on par with Disney's Luxury Resorts. In fact, several are on the same properties. Those are: Animal Kingdom Villas, Beach Club Villas, Boardwalk Villas, Wilderness Lodge Villas. There are also Old Key West and Saratoga Springs, which are primarily DVC properties. You might also notice that these are listed by Disney Travel as "Home away from Home" resorts. All of the DVC properties have a kitchen or kitchenette. Some of the larger ones also have their own laundry facilities, too. There are Studio, One Bedroom, Two Bedroom and Three Bedroom villas available.

But, where is the deal?

On our last trip, we stayed at the Boardwalk Villas. We were in a studio. We went during the Adventure Season, so the room was 9 points per night Sun-Thurs, and 20 points for Fri-Sat. We arrived on Sunday, and left on Saturday, so we used 65 points. We were able to find points for $8 each, so the room for the week was $520 for 6 nights. That averages out to under $87/night. At that time, they were offering Value Resorts (the All-Star Resorts) for $89/night, and the Moderate Resorts were $119/night. Luxury Resorts were starting at $179/night. Had we booked our room through Disney, it would have been $349/night. I think we did OK. Here is a point chart. Last night I ran across points for August for $6ea. That means that one could stay in the same room for $66/night Sun-Thurs, and $156/night Fri or Sat. The only difference that you will notice is that the rooms do not get daily maid service. If you are there less than 4 days, you won't have any maid service. If you are there longer, you will get a maid visit after each four days.

The next strategy is with tickets. If you plan on going again, you might look at No Expiration Tickets. They are a little more, but they are good forever. Additional days don't cost that much, so the more you buy, the cheaper it is per day. I also recommend the Park Hopper Tickets. we like to visit different parks at different times of the day... like the Japanese Pavilion in Epcot for a Sushi Dinner.

Speaking of food... there is a fairly new dining plan available. It only became available for DVC stays since our last visit. Basically, it allows each person to get One Sit Down Meal, One Counter Meal and One Snack per night of stay. They don't have to be used each day. It costs under $40/night/person to add on. While it seems kind of pricey, it isn't that bad compared to paying Disney prices for food, and the Sit Down meal can often be a Character Dining experience. Make reservations and maximize your dining dollars. And remember, the Disney Calories are FREE. I keep telling myself that... and I tend to walk about 15 miles per day while we are there.

Another GREAT source for info is AllEars. Wander around the web, and see what sort of deals you can find. The AllEars Newsletter often has ticket discounts that aren't otherwise available.

Enjoy.

Stone Mountain Park, Animal Planet Summer Adventure

If you haven't made it over to Stone Mountain Park lately, I would recommend a trip. This summer, through August 5th, they are hosting the Animal Planet Summer Adventure. It's pretty cool if you are into animals. My family is definitely an animal family. We packed up and made the seven minute trip (are we there yet?... yes) last Saturday.

Normally we try to avoid going there on the weekend, but because of the show schedules, to see what we wanted we needed to go on the weekend. There are some cool shows, so it was worth it. We saw the Hog Wild Revue (... yep, it's pigs... doing tricks), Animal Encounters (you get to ?pet? a few different types of animals, like an armadillo, snake, hedgehog, etc.), Extreme Parrots (talk about flying low over the seats... keep your mouth shut), and Wonders of Nature (the flying squirrel only performs at the 2:00 and 6:00 shows). We didn't see All the King's Horses, but we had been to Medieval Times a few weeks earlier, and they have a similar demonstration. We also took a lap around the mountain on the train, and took the Skyride to the top of the mountain.

We live pretty close, and manage to go to SMP every week or two, but normally it is to play on the playground, or walk around the mountain. My son also likes watching the DUKWs (pronounced ducks). He's three, but I like to watch them, too. Oddly, I'm a car guy and in 18 years living in the area I've never managed to get to the car museum at the park.

As a little extra info, you can buy the "All Attractions Pass" at Kroger for $20 + tax instead of $24 + tax at the park. Kids are $16 instead of $19 (+ tax on both). The Animal Planet Summer Adventure is included with the AAP.

Have fun!

New Polls added

I just added a couple of new polls. I'd love to get your feedback, and help tune the information to better serve my readers (all three of you)...

Please take a moment to mark your preference, and leave a comment.

Thank you.

Moab, UT. My Happy Place

I want to write about my happy place. Moab, Utah.

I first went out to Moab with a friend back in 1997. We delivered a Jeep to Salt Lake City, and stopped in Moab for a couple days of 4wheeling before giving it over to the owner. We had permission... really.

Aside from having a great time driving across the country, we both decided that we loved 4wheeling in Moab. The scenery is awesome. The obstacles are incredible, and the traction is amazing. And there is good food, too. Don't forget that Moab is on the edge of Arches National Park, and Canyonlands National Park.

I've made the trek again... and again... and again. I went back in 1997 again with my own Jeep. I drove it on the 4000 mile round trip, and 4 wheeled for a week while out there. In 2000 and 2003, I towed my Jeep out there along with another Jeep. Each ride has attracted a little bigger group than the last. I think we had around 14 trail rigs on the 2003 trip.

Aside from the 4wheeling, we have rafted part of the Colorado River, took purely scenic drives, visited other areas nearby, and enjoyed some great food.

BTW, I recommend the Moab Brewery for casual dining, and the Sunset Grill for a little more formal atmosphere.