Welcome to “Living in Georgia”
By Jim Qualls
We have a new and interesting opportunity here on BrownsGuides.com to share what many of us already know about Georgia (because we’re here) and what others wonder about Georgia (maybe because they want to be here).
Georgia has been my home for 41 of my 46 years, and I plan to be a Georgian the rest of my life. Over these years, I have seen great change in Georgia, especially in the metro Atlanta area, but in other areas as well. Those changes are probably more than most realize from the outside looking in. Population growth, cultural changes, changes in the land, changes in socioeconomics can be explored and studied in as much detail as any of us desire.
Like most any other place, Georgia has its needs and its struggles. But undoubtedly Georgia has much to celebrate.
Just last week, I relished the chance to spend an hour or two walking around the historic district of Savannah, Georgia’s oldest city. A quick business trip back down to where it all began in Georgia was interesting as always. Take a minute to Google some photos of Savannah if you’re not familiar with it. Or, maybe you’ve seen movies made there or have seen Paula Deen’s cooking show. Last week, I savored the noticeable aromas of the azaleas fully in bloom in Savannah. I once again enjoyed the restored beauty of the old buildings. I felt wrapped in the best of culture that is Savannah. In one of the “squares”, I observed a contrasting scene: On one side an artist drawing passersby as he peacefully worked on a new painting, and not so far away an angry street preacher receiving awkward stares as he passed through with his sign. It’s the mix that makes Savannah.
That can be said all over Georgia. I’ve traveled and spent time all over this state. The terrain varies, the dialects vary, and the people do, too. Just when you think you could describe a stereotypical Georgian, you meet yet another, and realize you have to start all over. Well, it keeps it interesting.
From Savannah and the Coastal Plains to Macon and the Piedmont region Blue Ridge and some of the oldest Mountains in the world, Georgia is a beautiful, wonderful, interesting state. I want it to stay that way—I want it to get even better.
So, I invite you to kick around Georgia with me in Brown’s Guides’ “Living In Georgia”, and let’s kick around whatever Georgia is putting “on your mind.” I promise to keep it honest, helpful, and, hopefully, interesting.
Jim Qualls is a realtor with Coldwell Banker Bullard and an avid cyclist who has seen much of the state from the seat of a bicycle. Read his bike tours of the state in the “Bicycle Trails” category of this blog.