It is odd living OTP*. I’ve been saying, “We are trying to learn the language and customs of these odd and different creatures”, and I mean it. It is very different in Tucker.
For one thing: there’s nowhere to eat out. There’s a Longhorn, Applebee’s and Los Hermanos and the rest is fast food. There are no bars that I will go into. Tucker is all about the High School – it’s the prominent feature of Downtown Tucker. Families are the norm OTP, I know, but it’s still weird to me. Oh, and NO LIQUOR STORES. What is that about? I would think with all these kids around, the adults would NEED some liquor! LOL Driving all the way to Oak Grove for a liquor store? Really? I must be missing them…
The sounds are different here, too. It’s mostly very quiet since MARTA does not run on Norcross Tucker and there are no firehouses nearby. But there are noises, typically very early in the morning. There is a train crossing nearby, apparently, I hear the train’s horn every morning in the wee hours. Then there are the white people noises: yapping dogs, heavy equipment, howling dogs, chainsaws. Unfortunately, the yapping dogs are our next door neighbors’ who let them out so they can sit under our bedroom window at FOUR fucking a.m. and bark endlessly. There is a dog that howls 24/7, who we thought had been shot, but is back, so no luck there. The other morning, I was serenaded by equipment and chainsaws from the house behind our asshole neighbors’ house. ::sigh::
White people make very different noises than black people. In the old ‘hood, sirens, hoopdies with bass that rattles the windows, people honking at the curb and loudmouthed black people were the typical noises. Oh, and the copious gunfire every weekend and more so on July 4 and New Year’s. I got used to it and learned to sleep through most of it, so I assume it’ll be the same here except for the goddam yappy dogs. THAT can’t be slept through, we know, we’ve tried 3 times now. Gotta speak to the asshole neighbors about it. Bleh.
It was odd to be home on July 4th and hear NOT A SINGLE gunshot. Not one! Weird! I wonder if New Year’s will be the same?
I also feel safe enough to leave my radio in the car. I just read that there has been a string of older car thefts in Decatur. Can’t say I miss that shit. No MARTA makes a big difference, I’m starting to see why people really don’t want it.
The weather is different here, too. I’m serious! The city dome effect is VERY real and I can tell I’m not in it any longer. It rains a LOT more here. In the summer, the city dome typically diverts afternoon showers around it and I can tell it definitely rains more outside that bubble. THAT is very odd.
There is a Kroger right up the road, but no gas station. They are trying to convince the Shell station to sell to Kroger, but the owner won’t do it. Which sucks. The shell would be fine IF they gave the same discounts, but they don’t, only the 10¢ gallon discount. I think I’ll still shop at “my” Kroger in Decatur a bit. Both are being renovated, so I can’t catch a break. The Northlake store really sucks, but I still stop there for small things.
The 10 minute commute is making Nick VERY happy, so I guess it will all work out. I really do love this house and yard, but the rent is soooo high (UPDATE 2018: NOT really. Rents have skyrocketed in ATL and we have a LOW rent compared even to most apartment dwellers. So: YAY!). We went down to Decatur last night for a meeting and it was SO FAR. We are about 9 miles from downtown Decatur now (as opposed to 3 miles). I don’t think I like that much. I feel very removed from everything here. But it’ll do for now.
It’s not that I miss the ghetto, I DO NOT, but it’s more of a distance thing. Even DragonCon will kind of suck this year because we are so much farther out. It’s going to take about twice as long to go back and forth which will be a real drag. Plus, I don’t know what we’ll do with the Chernik Traveling Circus vehicles. They can’t get up the drive, I’m sure. Gotta work on that.
So, that’s my impression of OTP so far. If the asshole neighbors would keep their little shithead dogs INSIDE until a reasonable hour, I think it’ll be swell here. For now.
*Outside The Perimeter for non-Atlantans. I-285 is the circular bypass of ATL which we refer to as “The Perimeter”. OTP is where the uncool live. Or just those sick of ghetto and gunfire like we are. ITP (Inside The Perimeter) is rife with hipsters, homeless and thugs. You know, the Cool Kids™. ;)
