Ranger Seeks Librarian

A confession for you, one we’re loath to make:

We here at the Reynoldstown Rangers resemble, in one basic way, that unfortunate hairstyle known as ‘the mullet.’

Is it because our vibe is all ‘koozie and denim shorts?’

Hush your mouth.

Like the mullet though, the Rangers, when viewed head on, convey a certain level of polish and competence. We’re definitely ‘business in the front.’
Spin us around though, and check out our backside. Something of a mess. 
What’s going on back there? Not exactly ‘party.’
More like ‘racoon family circus.’

Here’s a specific example: our research, archive, and fact-checking department. Seems like we got our act together, yes? Month after month of juicy A+ output, across so many subject areas. What keeps these waves of knowledge rolling out?  Surely there’s some impressive system backing it up.

Across the coming months, we’re expanding our knowledge gathering, storing, and sharing capacity. A new website debuts soon, making our resources more accessible to all. We plan an oral history archive, featuring thoughtful interviews with our beloved elders. We need deeper dives at the Atlanta History Center and other archives, delving into all aspects of the neighborhood. 

But to pull this off, we need a few new Rangers. Among our thousands of neighbors, we know that you’re out there:

004: Placemaking with Teri Nye and Annie Appleton

It once was true that parks and pleasure grounds were the province of kings and such, leaving us simple folk who wanted a moment of respite or breath of fresh air to go squat on a pumpkin. 

But now parks are for the people! Progress! 

Except that:
It’s often left to the people to figure out where and why to make a park happen. Or how to pay for it, or to renew and expand it. Our very own Lang-Carson Park is a prime example. Not so many years ago, it seemed pretty shabby. Remember the rotten wooden ramp? Or how completely invisible it felt, hidden behind an overgrown truck lot? Look at it now, with scores of users, most daylight hours. 

How does a change like that take place?

Behind any such transformation are years of effort, countless conversations, constituents to consider, and dollars to raise. This month, we’re pulling back the curtain, and revealing what goes into making a public place.

Please stroll around Lang-Carson Park with the lead designer of its new form, our neighbor Teri Nye, and with Annie Appleton, the founding force of Friends of Lang-Carson Park.

We’ll learn how this project went from dream to consensus to plan to reality.

How much does a swingset cost? Where does stormwater go? Who picks up the trash? Who picks up the bill? What role do parks and other civic spaces play in our lives? 

Annie and Teri know every square inch of Lang-Carson. An hour sharing their expertise will change the way you view our common greenspace.

Walks with Resident Experts 004, Placemaking with Annie Appleton and Teri Nye steps out on Tuesday, May 21, at 6:30 pm.

This Month’s Ranger Calendar

New Reynoldstown Quilters 1st Birthday, Sunday, May 5th, from 3 to 6p, 142 Stovall Street.

New Reynoldstown Quilters, Sunday, May 12, from 3-6p (Blue House)

Walks With Resident Experts 004: ‘Placemaking’ with Annie Appleton and Teri Nye, May 21, 6:30p

(No Quilters on May 26, Memorial Day Weekend)

(‘May I Read You a Poem?’, detailed last month, will debut in a few months.)

Confused by the Quilters location code? Contact J. Gibson to get in the know!

FARQs (Frequently Asked Reynoldstown Questions)

Dear Pearl,
My props on your question. 
Worth investigation:

Reynoldstownite? Doesn’t feel right. 
Reynoldstownizen? Not even now and then.
Reynoldstownarian? Sounds antiquarian.
Reynoldstowner? Total downer.
Reynoldstownfolk? That some kinda joke?

If it’s one or it’s two,
Only this name will do
(If you want to prevent
Pandemonium)
Say it clear, say it proud
Far and near, cry out loud,
‘I’m a million percent
Reynoldstonian!’

Glossary

Clay!
(King of Neighborhood Bingo, AV wizard, and generally joyful R-town mainstay. Clay has tirelessly served on the RCIL Board since basically forever. Topnotch dreadlocks, sly smile, twinkling eyes behind glasses — he’s giving cooler, slimmer Santa. More down to earth than the following Clay.)

Clay
(Way less fun than the previous Clay. Is any other state synonymous with its dirt? Red Georgia Clay is found throughout the state's Piedmont region and is made up of silicon and aluminum. Add a healthy dose of iron oxide (aka rust) to get that signature red color, resistant to laundering. In Reynoldstown, there’s typically a thin surface layer of fill dirt, or urban hard pack, but after that, like turtles, it’s red clay all the way down.)

Chester Avenue
(was, along with Kenyon Avenue [formerly Oliver], Selman Street, and Wylie Street, one of the four streets which made up the original Reynoldstown, from the 1870s or soon after. BUT! Not under that name; Chester was known as Delta Place until its name was changed in about the 1920s. Now – to those dear readers who wonder if, way back in the 19th century, Delta Place got named for Delta Airlines: 
Just, no.
Because history.) 

Coyotes (Mate for life. Love persimmons. Share child-rearing. So — coyotes, just like us? Wrongity wrong wrong. Though they pose a vanishingly small threat to humans and our domestic animals, coyotes are wild animals. Whatever you were thinking of doing with/to/for them — just stop it. Our Ranger mascot Wylie T. Coyote is part of a stable extended family, and, though he’s literate enough to write a newsletter column, you gotta admit that’s not a very high bar. Learn much more at atlantacoyoteproject.org and look for a Walk with Coyote Experts in the next few months.)

Cherokee, Creek, and Muskogee (A reminder that Reynoldstown’s history does not begin in 1870. Indigenous people lived here [or near] from about 15,000 BCE. That’s 17,024 years of history to cover. And you wonder why we are, above, seeking history helpers.)