Tucker, Georgia: Mayberry Lives

Last weekend I spent some time walking around Tucker, Georgia.  Although my family is from Savannah, we lived in Tucker most of my childhood, and I consider it my hometown.  Tucker is a small town on the outskirts of Atlanta.  It has always reminded me of Mayberry from The Andy Griffith Show (one of my all-time favorites).   I'll take you on a little tour here.

This is The Tucker Fountain, an old fashioned soda fountain:

The Masonic Hall is next door:

Matthews Cafeteria is an old fashioned "Meat and Three" Southern restaurant.  When I was little I always preferred the veggie plate (4 veggies with cornbread or a biscuit).  I haven't eaten there in years;  I'm not sure if the veggies are vegetarian friendly (cooked without meat).

Across the street, there is Cofer Brothers hardware.  They sponsored me when I was a contestant in Miss Georgia National Teenager.

Here is another view of Main Street, with Tucker High School at the end of the road.

There is an old fashioned train train depot by the railroad tracks.  It is still in use.

 Local 7 is a little pub that is very casual and comfortable.  They have some delicious vegetarian and vegan options!

If you're in the mood for a homemade cookie, Sweet Dee's bakery is just a couple of doors down:

 E&B Jewelry Repair has been around from my childhood.  It looks exactly the same.

 Carr's Drugs is an old fashioned compounding pharmacy.

 A couple of blocks away you'll find the old Tucker Library.  They've moved to a new location, and the library I grew up with is now owned by a local church.  I love the Mid-Century Modern design of the old library.  This is where I fell in love with reading, and first read the Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace.  It makes me happy just to see this photo.

Thanks for joining me on a little mini-tour of Tucker.  Have you ever been there?  I would love to hear your Tucker memories in the comments section, below.

Friday Faves: Snow, Curry, and Trivia

Happy Friday!   We have had snow and ice and then some more snow in Atlanta.  I am happy to say that the sun is out and most of the snow has melted away.  I grew up in a warm climate, and love snow for about three hours.  Then I am ready for it to hurry up and melt.   My friend Bob of Gilliland Records took these gorgeous snow pics in the North Georgia mountains, and said that I could share them with you.

When it snows I want comfort food, ideally as simple as possible.  I just discovered the Tandoor Chef line of frozen foods.  Their selection of Indian food includes many vegetarian and vegan options.  The dishes are natural and preservative-free.  I love, love, LOVE their Channa Masala.  It is a spicy chickpea dish, and each package makes two servings.  I serve it in a bowl over rice.  Delicious!

On snowy days I also tend to go into "Snow Day" mode and spend more time than usual goofing off.  This week I discovered a fun app for iPad or iPhone called QuizUp (also coming soon for Android).   It is an insanely addictive trivia game.  There are over 350 categories to choose from.  They are widely varied and include Musicals, Children's Literature, Words, Classic Movies, 1960's Music, and much more.  You choose a topic and then the app matches you with another player (from anywhere in the world).  You play a short trivia game, very fast paced.  It is so much fun!

How are you doing this week?  How is the weather in your part of the world?   I would love to hear from you in the comments, below.

A Vintage Look at the Regency Hyatt House in Downtown Atlanta

The Hyatt Regency (or as Atlantans call it, the Regency Hyatt House) is a fabulous Mid-Century hotel in downtown Atlanta.  It was designed by architect John Portman, and built in 1967.   The top of the hotel had a unique rotating blue restaurant called the Polaris (now closed).   It was a unique addition to the Atlanta skyline.   You can see a few photos of the Regency Hyatt House at Wikipedia:  photos of the Regency Hyatt House in Atlanta.

I have several vintage postcards at Birdhouse Books showing the interior of this hotel in the 1960's or 1970's:  vintage postcards of the Regency Hyatt House in Atlanta.  If you click on the individual cards, you will notice the bubble elevator.  When I was a little girl, it was a treat to go shopping downtown at Rich's Department Store or Davison's, another great downtown store.  I always wanted to walk through the "hotel district" and ride in the bubble elevators.

You will find more vintage photos and links about Atlanta in the 1960's to 1980's on my Pinterest board.  You'll also find a fun selection of vintage Atlanta cards, books, and collectibles at Birdhouse Books:  Birdhouse Books loves retro Atlanta.

Born in the Kitchen: Plain and Fancy Plantation Fixin's - a rare cookbook by Flora Mae Hunter

Born in the Kitchen: Plain and Fancy Plantation Fixin's is a rare and hard to find vintage cookbook by Flora Mae Hunter.  Flora Mae Hunter was born on a plantation in Thomasville, Georgia in 1911.   In this book she recounts her life, growing up on a plantation, and shares many traditional Southern recipes.  This book is signed by Ms. Hunter with an inscription on the front endpaper.   The recipes look great!  The one that sounds especially tempting to me is Orange Cake with Chocolate Sundae Icing.  You'll find this book in my eBay store - Born in the Kitchen vintage cookbook at Birdhouse Books.  It would be of interest to anyone who collects Southern cookbooks, Black Americana, or Georgia history.

Item of the Day: 1965 - 1966 Druid Hills High School Student Directory, Atlanta, Georgia

This is a really fun find!  It's a 1965 - 1966 student directory from Druid Hills High School in Atlanta.  The title page is decorated with lipstick kisses.  Then the first half of the book is a directory of students, and the second half of the book is just plain fun!  It is drawings by students of things that were memorable about their school and being a high school student in the 1960's.  You'll find it here:  vintage school directory at Birdhouse Books.  I love items like this that are unique and one of a kind!