It looks like the lil’ chickens of marietta have launched their website! Be sure to stop over an check out the Artist Design Gallery to see the cool renderings of the lil chickens that will be produced by each Artist. I can’t wait to see them all over the city, how cool. Also, if you are a business or know of someone that would be interested in sponsoring a lil chicken, be sure to head over to the sponsorship page…enjoy and Happy 4th of July to everyone! Hope to see you out at the Square today for the festivities!

Scarecrows took over the Marietta Square in October as individuals, groups, businesses, schools and clubs created scarecrows for display in Glover Park. As part of the city’s Halloween Happenings, Marietta Parks and Recreation awarded prizes for the best scarecrows, listed below with links to their pictures.

Overall
First Place: Gallet & Assoc of Georgia, Inc
Second Place: The Sole Sisters
Third Place: Delmar Gardens of Smyrna

Non-profit
First Place: Marietta Gone with the Wind Museum
Second Place: Marietta Jaycees
Third Place: Keep Marietta Beautiful

Business
First Place: Bank of North Georgia
Second Place: Hair Art
Third Place: Something New

School Division
First Place: Marietta Charter School
Second Place: Sawyer Road elementary
Third Place: Marietta Middle School

Most Creative Use of Materials:  Marietta Board of Lights and Water
Spirit Award:  US Navy

Special thanks to the AJC for the article on our beloved Theatre in the Square…

in the park on the Marietta Square.

The public is invited to enjoy birthday cake, drawings for theater tickets and music by the cast of “Smoke on the Mountain.” The annual summer musical and “The 1940s Radio Hour” have been big money-makers for the theater.

This season’s first play is also drawing big crowds, said marketing director M.J Conboy.

“Turned Funny,” based on the memoirs of Atlanta Journal-Constitution columnist Celestine Sibley, is selling out some nights, she said. Last week, 96 percent of the seats were full.

“That’s unheard of. It’s a wonderful thing for us,” she said. “We’ve had to add two phone lines to handle the calls.”

Palmer Wells, producing director, and the late Michael Horne opened the theater with 85 seats in a freight storage room behind the former Marietta train depot. It was a low-budget venture the first three years, Wells said.

Patrons often brought cushions to pad straight-back chairs. And Wells and Horne, who worked for IBM, took turns during lunch checking the theater’s answering machine.

“There was a buzz on opening night and

we knew that this was going to work,” said Wells, 69. “For all of the ups and downs through the years, this has been amazingly satisfying.”

The theater, now at 11 Whitlock Ave., seats 225 for main stage performances and 123 at the Alley Stage at the back of the building. The theater had 3,700 season subscribers last year and a budget of more than $1.7 million.

“I can’t imagine not doing this,” said Wells. “I wouldn’t look back for a minute. I am always looking ahead.”

Information: 770-422-8369 or www.theatreinthesquare.com.

The city of Marietta and its partners built a new home for a citizen in need of improved housing and cut the ribbon on the Griggs Street house in a ceremony July 27. Venture Homes made generous contributions of labor and services to build the 1,320 square foot three-bedroom, two-bathroom home, saving $20,000 in construction costs.

Marietta purchased the land for the home after federal drug authorities seized it, and city officials expect the new construction will help redevelop the neighborhood. Elected officials hope other builders and developers will assist in revitalizing the community by becoming involved in the program.

The home was built as part of the federal Housing and Urban Development Community Development Block Grant and HOME program operated jointly by the city of Marietta and Cobb County Community Development Divisions. New homes are built for lower income homeowners when their current home is deemed rehab unfeasible and the cost for replacement with a new home is reasonable.

This is the eighth reconstructed home in Marietta since the program began in 2002, and three more are planned for next year.

Morning everyone! We had reported this story a few weeks back, but since the main star of it wrote us directly with all the details, we wanted to share it with the rest of you all (with his permission of course) !

Enjoy!

A 4th of July to Remember
9:00am- 2.5 weeks before our baby’s due date, my wife Erin and I went to Marietta, GA to see the 4th of July parade .
12:00pm – After watching floats and marching bands, we drove up to Lake Allatoona to enjoy picnicking and swimming. At the Lake, she told me that she had very small contractions but that there was no pain.
3:05pm – We arrived at the ESPN Zone in Buckhead to watch the world cup semifinal between Germany and Italy. Many of our friends were there to join us. At the Bar, she had more contractions; I even timed them. They were a little stronger but still did not hurt.
5:15pm – We went home and Erin rested for about an hour. At this time, her contractions were inconsistent in frequency and duration.
7:30 pm - Deciding to go to Marietta Square, we listened to “Little Big Town” (one of Erin’s Favorite bands) which played prior to the fire works.
The story really begins here:
Towards the end of the concert, Erin’s contractions were yet a little stronger, but it was still 2.5 weeks early so we did not worry too much. As the fireworks were nearing completion, Erin and I headed out to get a jump start home when she met one of the singers. I took a picture of them. As she told me she was now experiencing a little pain, we quickly walked to our car. By the time we reached our car, all the other 10,000 people reached their cars too, and there it was: THE WORLDS WORST TRAFFIC JAM AND LEVAN’S WORST NIGHTMARE COME TRUE. (And for nine months, I had been planning for 285 traffic. HAHA!) We sat in out car in the parking lot for 30 minutes and moved at the most a few yards. Erin’s pain increased; she began to cry. My panic increased also. I finally maneuvered the car out of the parking lot but traffic was worse on the little street (we were about 30-35 minutes from Northside). I jumped out of the car and asked other drivers to let me through because we were having a baby. This effort took us no more than 100 feet. Panic took a hold of me; I was sweating like a big dog in the humid weather. I called 911, and they said it would be very hard to find me in such bad traffic. I called back 5 minutes later, turned my flashers on, jumped out of the car, and ran like a crazy man looking for a cop. I finally found a cop; he came to the car and called some paramedics and the ambulance. Erin was sitting down. I thought she for sure was going to have our kid there. Finally, the ambulance made it through the traffic. They loaded Erin onto a stretcher and into the vehicle. I quickly backed the car up over the sidewalk to the parking lot, grabbed the camera (I am a smart man even though I was in panic), and sat in the passenger seat of the ambulance. In 25-30 minutes we arrived at Northside (11:15pm). Erin was already 7 cm dilated (craziness). In a short 30 minutes, she was fully dilated. And in 1 hour after being at the hospital, baby DANTE KAKHADZE was born. No epidural, no drugs, but O’boy was she in PAIN. (Note to future Dads in the labor room: don’t talk and do what she asks you to doJ). The whole experience was amazing; DANTE came out very healthy 16 minutes after midnight (so his birthday is July 5th) 7 lbs. 9 oz and 20.5 in. It was a blessing that labor in the hospital only took 1 hour, but I probably lost 2 years of my life before we got there thinking that I would have to deliver the baby in the car.
So nightmares can come true; however, we had many blessing that day: we had a full day of fun, Erin saw her favorite band, and Italy beat Germany and advanced to the world cup finals. Labor only took 1 hour and much more.
Lesson learned: if (when) we have a second child, you can find us camping out in the hospital parking lot for the last 4 weeks of pregnancy.J
Advice to fellow Atlantans: Never underestimate the traffic in our city, and when planning to reach your destination in a hurry, expect the unexpected, which, quite predictably, happens very often in Atlanta.
-Levan

My family and I were on the Square last night. After enjoying a meal at the Pizza Company, we were walking by the fountain and noticed that the lights were still on at Sugar Cakes Patisserie. During the week, I’ve always seen the charming dessert house, but it’s been closed. This being the weekend, though, was to our advantage as we walked into the entrance of the shop around 9:30 pm.

Before even eating the inviting foods, the decor of the location is aesthetically pleasing: warm, simple, modern. The chairs have a whimsical “coffee-cup-with-steam” carving in the backs of them. The pastry case is the main draw. It’s large, open, and showcases each creation for the customer’s viewing (and eventually, eating) pleasure. I really liked the small, orange lights in the cafe; they draw you in from outside.

The owner and dessert artist, Ted Arpon, was at the bakery last night. He has been working with pastries for 7 years. Arpon attended culinary school in Chicago, where he studied under a French mentor. Sugar Cakes definitely boasts an elegant, European-style preparation in their dessert making.

For our desserts, we enjoyed a chocolate cake with a raspberry filling, along with a nice dish of creme brulee. The chocolate was fine and subtle, without being overpoweringly sweet. The combination of chocolate and the raspberry filling was amazing, and the presentation was exquisite. The dish of creme brulee was delicious; the server behind the counter even let me come back to watch the sugar being carmelized on top of the dessert. Our daughter enjoyed a thick, rich chocolate chip cookie for her nighttime snack.

I would recommend this wonderful establishment to anyone looking for dessert on the Square. Sugar Cakes Patisserie has been opened for approximately 3 months and is located at 101 North Park Square. Their phone number is 770.218.9994. A website (www.sugarcakespatisserie.com) is coming soon.

Get ready - Art in the Park is less than 2 months away!

Whether you are an artist or an art lover, Art in the Park in Marietta, Georgia is the place to be on Labor Day Weekend. This juried art show has become one of the largest in the Southeast United States thanks to the quality of artists who enter the competition.

Marietta has maintained a cultural tradition that exceeds a city of our size, and this festival has contributed to this legacy. The juried art show spotlights original works of fine art and crafts including paintings, photography, pottery, graphics, sculptures, jewelry and much more. It offers a chance to not only view some of the finest work of contemporary artists, but also meet them and discuss their work. Many art lovers make this a “must attend” event for that very reason

In addition to the fine art and crafts that encircle Glover Park, there are antiques shops and galleries that shoppers can browse. Food is served by many fine restaurants and vendors on the square, and just a short distance from the festival is the Marietta/Cobb County Museum of Art, which makes Art in the Park an event to remember!

Miss America 2006 Jennifer Berry will bring a dash of glamour to a serious topic, “Building Intolerance to Drunk Driving and Underage Drinking,” Thursday at 11 a.m. in a talk in the seminar room of Marietta High School, 1171 Whitlock Ave.

The event is free and open to the public. Parents with teenagers and young drivers are encouraged to come. Home to the largest driver education program in Georgia, Marietta High is Berry’s first stop in the Atlanta metro area as part of her 20,000 mile a month, yearlong tour to raise awarnesses of the dangers of drinking and driving.

The Marietta/Cobb Drivers Education is a joint program of the Marietta City and Cobb County school systems. More than 2,600 teens each year go through the driver’s education program that has been recognized by the Georgia Department of Driving as a model for programs across the state.

Thanks to the AJC for this story!

If you’ve ever bought a piece of clothing from Vintage by Judith on the Marietta Square and received a dirty look from the store’s namesake, don’t take it personally.

Just understand — Judith Nudi runs her store more as museum than mercantile — she is reluctant to part with much of her collection.

Even now, as she tries to create some space for a new locale — three doors, and one level, up Roswell Street — Nudi cringes each time the cash register rings.

“Every day I’m taking things out,” said Nudi, who’s owned the vintage clothing and costume rental store for 15 years. A rent increase is prompting the move, which she expects to complete by Aug. 1. “I hate selling my stuff.”

And when she does, she’s picky about who buys it. She said she prefers selling to people “who are worthy of having that particular piece of clothing. They’ve got to love it as much as I do.”

That’s a tall order. While she’s experienced success as a retailer, Nudi is, by her own admission, more astute harvester than savvy businesswoman.

“Look at this 1940s Girl Scout uniform,” she said as she perused a rack of vintage garb. “I can’t stand to part with it.”

Nudi estimates she has 30,000 articles of clothing — ranging from Old South ball gowns to zoot suits — scattered between her current location and her new digs. Transporting that collection has made these past few months “the hardest in my life.”

“It’s been dragged out because I’ve had to go through every single piece,” Nudi said.

The items she felt she could part with are marked down, though don’t expect a hard sell from Nudi or her assistant.

“Between the two of us, we spend most of our time just admiring the clothes,” said retired social worker Susan Hopkins, who works part-time at Vintage by Judith. “It’s a roomful of history. You can develop a whole story line for these clothes.”

Nudi’s love of “old things” goes back to her childhood in Pittsburgh. While some kids blanch at the idea of accompanying their mother to an estate sale, Nudi was always a (vintage) clothes hound.

“I appreciate the quality of the fabrics, the craftsmanship … just everything about them,” she said. “I like to find something old and musty that might be worthless to someone else but is priceless to me.”

Nudi plans to emphasize the rental part of her business at the new store, relieving her of at least some of the sorrow that comes when she must part with one of her “children” (pack-rat speak for merchandise).

“I prefer to add [clothes] than subtract,” Nudi said.

Which leads one to wonder: Does she ever worry about running out of space?

“I’ve got a 3,000-square-foot basement at home that’s still got a little bit of room left,” she said.

Celebrate Independence Day in Marietta with your family and friends and enjoy the city’s largest event of the year! A parade kicks off the fun and is followed by an all day festival on the Marietta Square with arts and crafts, carnival games, entertainment, food concessions, concerts and fireworks display.

The parade features 100 entries and nearly 2,000 participants and begins at 10 a.m. at the Roswell Street Baptist Church. The parade will go down Roswell Street to East Park Square and end at the Cobb County Police Headquarters on North Marietta Parkway.

Roswell Street and all streets it crosses will be closed for the parade from 9:15 a.m. until the parade concludes around 12:15 p.m. North, South, East and West Park Streets around the historic Marietta Square will be closed the entire day for the festival.

The Festival promotes tourism, community spirit, quality family fun, and attracts an estimated crowd of 80,000.