Possums Morphing!

Here's what I did to The East Point Possums! Hope y'all like these!!!

Morphed Pics of My Twisted Sister, Daphne!

I hope you like these, Daph! Smooches!

On the "B List" Again

I guess that Melisha and I fall under the "Local Celebrities" category. I guess that's a step up- last year we were referred to in the "Many More" category. But-- I guess if you aren't a "Possum", part of the "Jenkin's Clan" or Gigi Monroe, you really aren't worthy of mention.

BTW, although the ad doesn't mention it, there will be a celebrity guest appearance by Dewberry, from TV's "Hell's Kitchen" show. Maybe Dewberry is also B-Listed under the "Local Celebrities" category.

I'm sorry if this is making me look like a Diva-- complaining about who gets top billing (or billing at all). I really don't care if my name is on the ad or not. It would be nice, but it's not something that I would get in a snit about. No one really asked my opinion to begin with. The Possums do do a lot of work to pull this benefit off, and the rest of us pretty much just arrive the night of the show. I don't really have any right to complain about how things are done, if I don't offer to help do these things.

Thanks, Daphne, for sending me a copy of this ad all the way from Louisville! It's a great ad! I'm glad that you'll be able to make it to HOTlanta to be in the show! It'll be fun to see you again.

Six Years Ago Today...

I closed on my house in East Point and moved in to the first home that I ever owned! That first night, I ripped up carpets to see what was underneath the shag rugs (surprise-- hardwood floors!!!!). I unpacked, arranged furniture and hung pictures. I met several of my neighbors that first day-- Janice and janet brought me a loaf of freshly baked bread (and Janet returned later to put some ant killer on a fireant bed in my front yard). Mr. & Mrs. Nix came over and brought me a pound cake. I didn't know that neighbor's like that still existed, but they do!

Living in East Point has been an experience! I've made many great friends, been to many great parties, forged bonds that will last the rest of my life, and got a good start on renovating this old house and making it my own.

I can't believe that I've been here for six years. I've never lived in the same place more than a year or two. I moved from aprtment to apartment every year since I left my parent's nest. I was always looking for the next hot property to call my home. Now I've been here six years and don't see myself moving any time soon. This is my home. And I love it!

More Fun with Morphing Pictures

I had some more fun tonight morphing pictures of myself, some of my friends, and family. I hope none of you are offended, or feel like I'm poking fun at you. If you think I didn't do you justice here, please send me a photo of yourself and I'll be happy to give it another try. I'm just having fun and working with the few pictures that I have.


Brian:





















Kitty:





















Bruce (as Melisha Manchaser):




















Beverly:



















Lynn:





















Peggy Jean:

















Jaime:



















Ashely:

The Many Faces of Keisha

Many thanks go to my friend Steve for introducing me to a new website and talking me through the process of morphing photos. With Steve's help, I was able to take a normal picture of Keisha and turn it into a works of art! I hope y'all like this one- it only took about 3 hours to get it right!!! I created 4 other versions of this same picture, but this one is my favorite.

Thanks again, Steve!



















Here are the other images I created from the same photo:

Great Dane!!! (and Weekend Wrap-up)

Friday night we took my cousin Martha to Panos and Pauls for a birthday dinner. The food was incredible and we all cleaned out plates. I was tempted to lick the bowl after finishing off the lobster bisque appetizer. Martha had a great birthday and we enjoyed our 2nd fancy meal of the week together!

I met my first Great Dane yesterday. Her name is Francine and she's the sweetest, best behaved dog in the world! I've never seen a dog that big in my life! Her back was higher than my waist, and she weighs 165 pounds (35 pounds more than me!). I'll never tell anyone again that I have 4 "big" dogs. My dogs are chihuahuas compared to Francine!

Francine is the "daughter" of my new friends, Pete and Francois. I had the pleasure of meeting the three of them in the house that the Biscuit sponsored for the Grant Park Tour of Homes. My job that day was to hand out gift cards to the first 10 visitors and pass out menus and other promotional info. That was my job, but I really didn't do much more than sit around and drink Mimosas and chat after the first 5 gift cards were distributed. It was a great day! Peggy Jean was all set up on the back patio cooking up sandwiches and other finger foods and neighbors were dropping in to eat, drink and visit. It was a lot of fun!

On the way to the Tour of Homes, I passed an Estate Sale and my car automaticlly pulled into the driveway! They had the best stuff at this sale-- I wished that I had more money and a pick up truck-- I would've bought just about everything that they had! I ended up getting a 29 gallon aquarium and stand for $40. What a deal! It included the hood and filters and gravel-- everything but the fish! I've been wanting an aquarium for years... I gave my last one away when I moved to East Point. I had moved that thing so many times and didn't want to move it again, so I gave it to a neighbor. Ever since then, I've regretted it. Now I have an exact duplicate of the aquarium that I gave away. I set it up in my sunroom last night and today I went to Petco and they were having a sale on Tropical fish-- 5 for $5. I got about 20 fish- neons, tetras, angels, and swords. I also got a mixture of live and fake plants. It's looking pretty, and I love having a water feature in the room that I spend so much time in.

Today I got up early and went to the 8am service at church. Afterwards, I had a nice chat with the Priest and Associate Priest concering my Confirmation on June 4th. I can't believe it's only 2 weeks away! Time flies! I met a nice man today at the early service and he asked if I was a visitor. I said no, but then re-thought it when I realized that after all of this time, I really am just a visitor. Two weeks from now, I'll be able to call myself a member.

After church, I had to go to work to do a catering job-- a brunch for a girl that is graduating from high school this week. I met her parents and grandmother and really enjoyed my time with them. This is the thing I like about doing catering: I get to help them plan the party, I get to talk to the customer about what they really want and then I sweep in and pull it off, just before their guests arrive!

When I got back to the restaurant, there were two film crews there: one from Channel 46, doing an expose about the sale of the Biscuit to Raving Brands. The other was the crew from TV One that I worked with earlier this week. They came back to do some crowd shots and some pictures of our sausage gravy.

The rest of the day was spent fish-shopping and settling all of the new babies into their new home.

Congrats, Diane!

One of our favorite customers graduated from college and moved back to New York this week. Diane~ we will miss you so much. You have been part of my daily life for the past two years and I don't know what we'll do without you. We'll miss the cute little way that you throw a hissy fit every time that we tell you that it'll be just a couple of minutes before your table is ready. We'll miss the way you don't order anything from the menu-- you look at the menu like it's a grocery list-- you disect every meal and get a special order every day. We don't call you "Miss High Maintenance" in a bad way- we think it's cute when you order your latte "1/2 reg, 1/2 decaf, 1/2 soy milk, 1/2 2%, three ice cubes". The waitresses don't mind running their butts off for you- it's worth it for that 3% tip you always leave. We especially love it when you bring your sorority sisters along and prove to them how high and mighty you are by ordering the servers around and insulting their clothes, their hair, etc. I'll never forget the day that your biscuit wasn't warm enough for you-- instead of sending it back, you tossed it across the restaurant and hit another diner in the head. Of course we had to comp that diner's meal, but it was worth it because you and your sisters seemed to get such a laugh out of it. It's all about making you happy, but you seem to understand that all too well. This week, you left us with a story that we'll be telling for years: our hostess was walking you to the table and you were following. You began to complain to the hostess, saying "can't you move any faster?". You probably didn't notice that the hostess was 8 months pregnant. But why should you care? You were probably in a hurry. Why bother wasting time on good manners? Afterall, she's just a restaurant worker-- she's so beneath you anyway.

We're sure going to miss you, Diane. It's been our pleasure to serve you.

"Turn Up the Heat"

(Click on the Blog title above for a link worth seeing!)

Today was a day from hell, mixed with a few silver linings!

My day began when I awoke at 3:30am to get ready for a busy day of catering. I was at work before 5am and out the dor with 3 breakfast deliveries to Emory University, Oracle Corporation and GA Tech. I was back in the office just as the rest of the staff were filing in to begin their day- just in time to get ready for the film crew from TV One's "Turn Up the Heat" TV show to film an episode for their nationally syndicated show.

Normally when I work with a "film crew", it's pretty low-scale and unobtrusive-- a director, a camera operator and that's about it. Today's crew was a little different. There were over twenty members of this crew-- producers, directors, cameramen, lights, host, etc. Within an hour they had transformed the Biscuit. Lights were mounted throughout the restaurant and bakery; monitors were set up in several different rooms and cables ran throughout the restaurant. Several of my co-workers were walking around with hidden microphones attatched to their clothing. At least one of them was treated to a make-up session prior to the filming (PJ wearing lipstick and blush-- who would've ever thunk it?). This was the most chaotic and frenzied (yet very professional) production crew that I've had the pleasure to work with.

The set up and filming went slowly, but it was worth it. They captured some great scenes, and the most beautiful food photography that I've ever seen (the cameraman, Hugh, also works on several popular food shows, including "Iron Chef").

I don't think that I will be on the show when it airs. I walked past the camera a few times, in the background, but for the first time I didn't view this as a chance to be on camera-- it was so professionally done that I got wrapped up in the experience of watching true art evolve before me.

Between scenes I was envolved in some major PR. For those that don't know, there was an article in the newspaper yesterday about the Flying Biscuit being bought by Raving Brands. The article wasn't accurate- there was no buy out- rather a partnership. However, our phones rang all day with questions, my email box was filled with over100 requests to buy into the franchise, the restaurant was filled with people coming in to say their goodbyes to the small town restaurant and staff (thinking that we were bought out and taken over). Several faces from the past showed up with bouquets of flowers in their hands and tears in their eyes- facing what they perceived as the end of an era. Several TV, newspaper and radio reporters called me to find out the details of the buy-out. I've never experienced being in the eye of a media blitz-- it's a crazy feeling! Hell, it's just a restaurant- why does anyone care about it? I guess it's a good thing that our diners are so concerned, but it's getting a little annoying already!

I met a lady named Sandy today that was THE original waitress at the Biscuit. She was there on opening day, and for several years to follow. She was the only waitres in the early days and she kept me wrapt with her stories for over an hour. I learned things that I'd never heard before. For example-- the Flying Biscuit was closed on it's 2nd day of operation-- they didn't expect a big crowd on the first day and ran out of food. They couldn't open the 2nd day because they had nothing to serve.

OK, back to the filming--the host of the "Turn Up the Heat" show is Chef G. Garvin. He was there with me throughout the long day and I found him to be a very nice man. He's a little ghetto acting, but very well informed on all types of food and their preperations. G. Garvin (real name is Gerry) really hit it off with our Executive Chef Peggy Jean Dodson-- their interactions on film will be very memorable. He also had a great time cooking omelets with our favorite Line Cook Mayacine Sarr.

The Little Biscuit that Could...

Wow!!! The Flying Biscuit is making all kinds of headlines today!

I found this article in the Business section of the Atlanta Journal Constitution this morning! To summarize, it says that the restaurant where I work was bought out by a big corporation. NOT TRUE! However, the article sounds very credible. We have been in negotions with Raving Brands for a bout a year now, but nothing has been finalized- and their intent is NOT on buying the Biscuit. The plan is for them to partner with us, in order to help with the franchise effort that we are planning over the next several years. RB is a huge corporation and they have people that specialize in opening restaurants- from demographic specialists to real estate depts, etc. They are partenering with us to help us expand and set a thumbprint for future locations, and the goal is to start franchising after we've opened several restaurants and our "theme" is in place. We will continue to seek out hip and funky neighborhoods to open stores in, and the bottom line is that nothing will change-- except for the fact that there will be more locations than there are now. OK-- here are two of the articles that appeared in the paper today (and online-- the online version currently has 82 comments from readers-- some positive/ some negative):

************************
Raving Brands buys Flying Biscuit
By LEON STAFFORD
The Atlanta Journal-ConstitutionPublished on: 05/17/06
Raving Brands, owner of Moe's Southwest Grill, Doc Green's Gourmet Salads, and Shane's Rib Shack, announced Wednesday it has bought Atlanta's Flying Biscuit restaurants with the intention of franchising the eclectic eatery into a chain.
Raving, which is based in Atlanta, said the acquisition allows the company to get into the breakfast category, a segment it has not covered with its eight other concepts.
"Flying Biscuit is quirky, genuine, and fun — just right for the Raving fans that have come to love our restaurants' great food and relaxed atmospheres," Raving Brands President Steve LaMastra said in a statement.
Flying Biscuit has two locations in Atlanta, the original store in Candler Park and a Midtown restaurant at 10th Street and Piedmont Avenue.
LaMastra said the plan is to open 50 Flying Biscuit locations in 2007 and another 50 in 2008.
The first franchises will be developed in Atlanta, with locations possible in downtown, Decatur, Sandy Springs and the Cumberland/Galleria area.


****************************



Flying Biscuits Everywhere?
By Susan Puckett Wednesday, May 17, 2006, 02:24 PM
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
With its gigantic signature cats’ head biscuits and quirky bohemian charm, the Flying Biscuit Cafe quickly rose to become one of Atlanta’s favorite breakfast eateries after its original Candler Park location opened in 1993.
But would it have the same appeal if there were one located on practically every street corner? Raving Brands, the Atlanta-based owner of Moe’s Southwest Grill, Doc Green’s Gourmet Salads, and Shane’s Rib Shack, just announced that it has bought the beloved restaurants with the intention of franchising it into a chain.
Besides Candler Park, there is also a Flying Biscuit in Midtown at 10th Street and Piedmont Avenue. With this plan, there would be 50 Flying Biscuit locations in 2007 and another 50 in 2008.

**************************

Stay tuned~~~ There should be another article in the paper/website tomorrow with a rebuttle; telling the truth behind the partnership with Raving Brands, as well as an annoucement of the location of our 3rd store!

Lyrics

Here are the lyrics to my favorite song of the moment. I love this song, and can see a whole movie written just to showcase this tune. Deep words, deep thoughts:

I'm Moving On

I've dealt with my ghosts and I've faced all my demons

Finally content with a past I regret

I've found you find strength in your moments of weakness
For once I'm at peace with myself
I've been burdened with blame,
trapped in the past for too long
I'm movin' on


I've lived in this place and I know all the faces
Each one is different but they're always the same
They mean me no harm but it's time that I face it
They'll never allow me to change
But I never dreamed home would end up where I don't belong
I'm movin' on
I'm movin' on

At last I can see life has been patiently waiting for me
And I know there's no guarantees, but I'm not alone
There comes a time in everyone's life
When all you can see are the years passing by
And I have made up my mind that those days are gone

I sold what I could and packed what I couldn't
Stopped to fill up on my way out of town
I've loved like I should but lived like I shouldn't
I had to lose everything to find out
Maybe forgiveness will find me somewhere down this road

I'm movin' on
I'm movin' on
I'm movin' on

The Best Thing About Gay Marriage

Gays have been fighting for the right to legally marry for a while now. So far it hasn't happened here in Georgia, but I hope that some day it will. Not that I'm itching for the chance to walk down the aisle. Not that my boyfriend and I are are excited about registering at Crate & Barrell and then throwing a huge wedding blast, knowing that the gifts that we received would add up to more than the cost of the wedding. Hell, I don't even have a boyfriend, but I want gay Americans to have the right to get married for one simple reason. With marriage comes divorce. And when there's a divorce, there's always Divorce Court!





Can you imagine "Gay Divorce Court"? It would be a hoot! I can see Judge Maybelline officiating over the case of "Smith-Johnson vs. Johnson-Smith". I think it'd go something like this:

Judge: Good afternoon. Today we are trying the case of Randall
Smith-Johnson vs. Kenneth Johnson-Smith. I understand that you are
seeking
a divorce on the grounds of mental
cruelty?

Randall:
That's right, your Honor. It all
started a couple of
years ago. I had
just gotten the best haircut of
my life! I went
down to Le Cut and my
hairdresser, Matthew, wanted to
try something new. He
encouraged me
to.....

Judge:
Is there a point to this?

Randall: Oh dear,
I'm so sorry, Judge.
But... Matthew is a genious when
it comes
to hair and he talked me into
getting a butch military cut.
He said I
could use some hair product to
make it spikey and fab, which I
did! I
bought some product, about $50
for a small jar. I have to
tell you, it
worked! My hair was
gorgeous!

Judge: That's very nice, but again--
is there a
point?

Randall: The point is-- I looked fab-u-lous!!!!
It was great until about 6
months ago.

Judge: What happened 6 months
ago, Mr.
Smith-Johnson?

Randall: That BITCH started using my
hair product!
(audience
gasps) He went to see Matthew at Le Cut
and got the same
haircut, but
didn't buy the product. He came into the
gym with MY
haircut and MY
product in it! He got lots of attention and
started using
my gel EVERY
DAY! Did he ever pitch in when it was time
to buy more
product??
NO! I also think I saw him wearing one of
my new Abercrombie
& Fitch
tank tops to the gym one day
too.

Judge (turning to
the defendant): How do you respond to this allegation,
Mr.
Johnson-Smith?

Kenneth: That was MY tank
top!!!! I let you
borrow it a couple
of times, but I bought it.
It was on the clearance
rack (audience gasps
very loudly) at The Boy Next
Door. I paid $79.95
for that tank top. As
for the
haircut-- GIIIRRLLL!!! He forgot to tell
you that he was
having
an affair with Matthew, his hairdresser!

Randall: Shut up, Bitch!!! You know it wasn't an affair. I slept with
him a couple of times to get a discount on hair product after YOU started using
it. Besides, if you knew how to satisfy me, I wouldn't have had to go
looking. If you'd just paid your share for the hair product, that
never
would've happened, anyway.

Kenneth: Like you chipped in on the Mary Kay Instant-Action Eye
Cream?
That cost me a pretty penny and I didn't have to sleep with my Mary Kay rep
to get it, either!!!

I think it would go something like that! I can only imagine all of the hand gestures, theatrics and character witnesses! It would be a hoot! Please remember this the next time that you get a chance to vote for or against gay marriage-- it'd make for some great TV if nothing else!

Feral Dog Pack Kills Gator In Florida

At times Nature can be cruel, but there can be a raw beauty, and even a certain justice, manifest within that cruelty. The alligator, one of the oldest and most savage of animals, often considered the "apex predator" in its natural ecosystem, can still fall victim to well-implemented "teamwork" strategy, made possible by the tightknit social structure and "pack mentality" bred into canines over several thousands of years through Intelligent Reconsideration. Note that the alpha dog in the photo has a muzzle hold on the alligator, thus preventing it from opening its mouth. The alligator's jaw strength resides in the clamping/closing muscles, as professional alligator wrestlers will attest, so this is a very sophisticated attack strategy. The rest of the pack prevents the beast from rolling, so that it cannot bring to its defense the powerful tail, capable of bone-crushing blows. The attached photograph is reproduced from Nature Magazine. Not for the squeamish! I strongly recommend that you preview this to determine suitability for younger audiences.

Family Visit

Keisha's cousin, Randy, came for a visit this weekend. He's a nice kid- easy to get along with, very well-mannered, etc. We were watching "Cops" on TV, and Randy become very upset for some reason. He went running down the hall to the guest room, screaming "I can't stand all of this violence!" as he slammed the door. I didn't know what to think, so I looked at Keisha. She was staring at the TV, thinking that she recognized one of the hookers on "Cops". Finally she looked my way and explained that Randy is a little high-strung- always been that way. She said the worse thing we could do would be to cater to his whims. I was advised to just act like nothing happened; to ignore any strange behavior that Randy might exhibit "because he's just so special".

A few minutes later, I heard the bedroom door open and waited for Special Randy to come into the living room. I was determined to follow Keisha's advice. I listened closely, but didn't hear any footsteps in the hallway for the longest time. All of a sudden, I heard it. He wasn't walking, he was galloping. He tromped into the living room dressed as Peter Pan! He had the green tights and the pointy ears and everything! He turned off the TV and started dancing around the room-- hopping into the air, clicking his heels victoriously. ""We've won this battle, Lost Boys! Let's go see if we can rid Neverland of all violence!". He pranced around a little and then skipped to the kitchen. Keisha hadn't seemed to notice a thing. I sat there on the sofa with my mouth wide open. I could understand this kind of behavior if Randy was 8 years old-- but he was in his 30's! No grown man that I know of prances or skips!

By this point, Randy had discovered the garbage can in the kitchen. It was overflowing and Randy had determined that it was evil. He pulled a harmonica from his pocket and played a few notes, summoning the assistance of the imaginary Lost Boys. "Boys, we must rid this house of all of it's garbage. Join me won't you?". He yanked the liner from the can and pranced towards the back door. I stopped him just in time- I didn't want the neighbors to take part in this freak show. I told Randy that I was a Lost Boy and I'd take the garbage out of Neverland for him. He pulled some glitter from his pocket and threw it on me, saying "Fairie dust will help you fly faster, Lost Boy. Think happy thoughts and hurry back."

When I came back to the living room, Randy was posing for Keisha in front of the TV. He had his hands on his hips, his legs pressed together tightly and his feet pointing opposite directions. As I sat, he came out of his pose and faced Keisha-- "Neverland is safe now, Tinkerbell. It's time for me to return to Wendy". He clicked his heals and then flitted back to the guestroom.

Keisha clapped and laughed as he skipped away. "Don't you just looovve him?", she asked.

Speaking of Cats...

Tomorrow (May 7th) is the 2nd anniversary of my Bixby's death. I can't believe it's been two years already.

Bixby found me when I was 21 years old. He was a stray kitten (about 6 weeks old) that wandered up to my front door. I fed him and he came back. My partner Steve told me not to feed him and he'd find his way back home. I agreed, but I secretly didn't want him to find his way home. I wanted my home to be his home. So, without Steve knowing it, I took a bowl of food outside every night. I came home during my lunch breaks and fed him again. I was determined that this kitty would be mine some day. After a few days, Steve agreed that I could keep the kitty (did he really have a choice?).

Bixby lived with me throughout the next 17 years. He comforted me when Steve left, he stuck by me through a few other partners and lots of roommates. He was there with me when my Dad died, and when my niece and nephew were born. He lived in houses, apartments and lofts. He never complained when I brought dogs into the family. In fact, I think he enjoyed being the big brother. The dogs grew to be 10 times his size, but he was always in control and they always did their best to protect him.

Unfortunately, they couldn't help him on his last night. The dogs were in the house; Bix opted to stay outside and explore. I'm sure that if Betty had seen Bixby being attacked, she would've crawled over the fence to save him. Betty loved Bixby with all of her heart, and she's never really been the same since that morning. How do you explain it to a dog? I couldn't comprehend it myself.

To quote a line from the movie My Dog, Skip: "They said that they buried him in the backyard under the old oak tree. That's not entirely true. Actually, he's buried in my heart."

Bix-- I miss you, and I'm glad that we got to share so many adventures together!