The Life In Decatur

I will be living on the streets of Decatur, homeless for the next 30 days, taking an in-depth look at homelessness in this area, and revisiting places nearly a decade after having done this before. I spend a great deal of my time eavesdropping and observing while being out here.  I am working on a major composting initiative and as part of that, I spend about 60 percent of my day, starting at 5 in the morning, on my bike, visiting homes and different neighborhoods in the area.  ( See: Don't quit your day job here ).  In between long rides to different destinations, I stop to charge up my phone, my tablet and check in. I keep up with social media, the things that are being said to and about me.  It has been interesting to say the least.  It is a vast change between now and the way things were a decade ago.  Facebook is what started this whole thing back then, but it was not as big of a deal then.  People at least in my circle, were not on it constan...

I will be living on the streets of Decatur, homeless for the next 30 days, taking an in-depth look at homelessness in this area, and revisiting places nearly a decade after having done this before. When I decided to come to this community, I wanted to see what was here in Decatur and what was missing; how to grow in this place.  It's a lot of work getting to know a place, however small and cozy.  There are new streets to learn and people to meet. I have decided to up the ante. While it is difficult to be homeless, there is actual work to be done.  When we look at how the average day is spent when you are on the street, the work is primarily logistical in the beginning.  Sleeping is one thing, but where do you go when the sun is up and you can no longer hide in corners? For many, it is part of a routine.  Once you get used to it, there is a pattern to packing up, a place to hide what you cannot carry with you, an awareness of where you can go and when. Fo...

Almost a decade ago, I packed up some clothes, my tent, a cold weather sleeping bag and stepped out of my condo in Chamblee, GA into the cold.  A week before, I had been shopping at REI and got all sorts of things that I would need for my trip.  I bought a new MP3 player and headphones.  It was the end of October, so I bought some long johns.  I didn't need too much else.  I am an avid camper and hiker and 30 days outside was not much of a push.  I locked the door, slid my keys into my pocket, and went to the MARTA station. I wasn't going hiking or camping though.  The idea that this was simply another camping trip was the first thing I had to get out of my head.  I wasn't going to the woods.  I was going to Little Five Points.  Little Five Points, or L5P was a little neighborhood close to the center of Atlanta.  Then, it was the center of the Bohemian South.  It was exotic and weird and there were people there playing music ...

Coming to a new community can be difficult, and this is coming from someone who has moved around a lot.  Sometimes, though, you just find a good place to grow; the kind of place where everything you need is close if not in reach. Welcome to Decatur, a nest of little towns just outside of Atlanta.  Having lived so many places; so many big cities, it is easy to be instantaneously jaded.  I am very liberal, verging on bleeding heart liberal, and being in the south...well... The key to starting in any new place, growing in any new place is testing the soil and then developing a plan based on the results. I have long been a proponent of what I call Neo-Permaculture.  Permaculture itself relies on people acknowledging their environment and essentially adjusting themselves and the environment in retroactive ways.  Let's be honest, the best thing for the earth right now is to give up cars and return, as a whole back to nature.  Let's also be honest and realize ...