Atlantan Amanda Plumb
Location: StoryCorps Atlanta booth
Date taken: October 19, 2012
Give Amanda Plumb two minutes, and she’ll discover your story. The questions she asks usually go something like this: “What’s the relationship between the two of you? How did you first meet? What was your first impression of each other? What was the point when your relationship changed?”
As the Atlanta Site Supervisor for StoryCorps, Amanda helps Atlantans record the stories of their lives. At the StoryCorps booth, located at WABE, Amanda facilitates interviews between family members, friends, co-workers and others. Often children and grandchildren interview grandparents or engaged couples record the story of how they met during the week of their weddings. And sometimes the relationships between people are more unique, such as the man who interviewed his psychic advisor.
“It’s fun because you never know what people are going to say and what stories they are going to tell,” said Amanda, a native of Rock Hill, S.C. “And, it’s a privilege to share in people’s lives. More often than not, people come to talk about big topics … death, divorce, falling in love, people who have impacted them. In a way, StoryCorps gives them the space and permission to talk about those important events in their lives. And people tell me that the conversations continue long after they leave the studio.”
Before working at StoryCorps, Amanda served as a union organizer, a job that frequently took her into people’s homes to ask them about their work life — the good aspects and the not so favorable ones. Community involvement and social justice have been an important part of Amanda’s life since she was young, and she sees her role with StoryCorps as a continuation of that passion.
“It’s so important to let people know that their stories matter,” Amanda said. “It’s a validating experience to tell your story or hear a relative tell the story of where your family came from. Through StoryCorps I have helped foster children and undocumented workers and others who normally might not have a strong voice in society tell their stories. And, in this way, we communicate that everyone matters.”
Atlanta StoryCorps is open by appointment on Thursdays and Saturdays for Atlantans to come in and record their stories. Listen to the stories of fellow Atlantans every Tuesday during WABE’s Morning Edition and City Cafe. Learn more about StoryCorps and view animated shorts online.
Stand as close as you can to your favorite band
Location: Candler Park Fall Fest
Date taken: October 13, 2012
Race a bed through the streets
Location: Furniture Bank of Metro Atlanta‘s annual bed race at Atlantic Station
Date taken: October 13, 2012
If you are working on a “bucket list” or “things to do before I die” list, then I suggest going ahead and adding to it “race a bed.” Each fall, the Furniture Bank’s fundraising event gives Atlantans a chance to do something unique. Jump on a bed. Sure, that’s easy. Make a bed. You probably do that every day. But racing a bed through the streets … that’s one of those things you have to do at least once. So, sign up your team of 5 people (one rider, four racers). Come up with a theme (Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Bed Thieves, Breakfast in Bed, Bed Bugs, etc.). Then put on your helmets and start running. Yes, helmets are required — beds on wheels move fast. People fall down. People fall off.
Find a perch to watch a parade
Location: Little 5 Points Halloween Festival and Parade
Date taken: October 20, 2012
The best thing about the Little 5 Points Halloween Parade is not the official parade itself — instead, the best part is the parade of dressed up people who walk up and down Moreland and Euclid Avenues. Kids and adults of all ages debut their Halloween costumes early at the Little 5 Festival. My favorite part of the day is picking a spot early in the afternoon, bringing a chair or spreading out a blanket and enjoying people watching. The parade, which features neighborhood businesses, can be entertaining as well (depending on the year). But, the residents and visitors who embrace the spirit of Halloween are the highlight of this annual event.
Atlantan Fatimah Abdulah
Location: The Department Store (ASIFA-Atlanta headquarters for the 12n12 competition)
Date taken: October 21, 2012
As soon as she was old enough to draw and sketch, Fatimah Abdulah was enamored with animation. PBS’s show Arthur about a young aardvark contributed to Fatimah’s fascination. She recalls a segment of Arthur called “A Word From Us Kids” where the show’s creators visited a local elementary school, collected drawings from the students and then animated the drawings.
“I remember thinking ‘Wow, kids can do that. I want to do that,” said Fatimah, a native of Marietta, Ga.. “Animators were and still are so impressive to me because not only do they draw something — they also bring it to life. It is completely imagination. There are no limits.”
Fatimah was on track to pursue a career as an animator until one day in college when her dad called to tell her that Disney had laid off a large number of its animators. Instead of animation, Fatimah decided to use her skills and artistic abilities (she’s also a painter) in administration.
Now, the Georgia State graduate manages creative projects for Bark Bark as her day job, but in her free time, she serves as the president of the Atlanta chapter of the International Society for the Animated Film (also known as ASIFA-Atlanta). In this role, Fatimah not only works to provide resources and community for animators, but she is a part of introducing people to animation – from the different styles around the world to letting people see their drawings in animation.
“I love being able to simplify animation for people,” said Fatimah, who occasionally does her own animation projects. “When we lead a workshop and people see what they have drawn come to life on the screen, there’s usually a collective gasp. I love that. I love that people are awed by it. I am too.”
Interested in viewing animated films from around the world? October 28 is the 11th Annual International Animation Day. ASIFA-Atlanta will be hosting a day of animated short films at the Plaza Theatre. Also, check out workshops offered by ASIFA-Atlanta throughout the year – including how to build your own animation stand.
Go out and play
Location: Atlanta Youth Soccer Association’s Howard Field
Date taken: September 22, 2012
What’s your favorite sport to play? What sport do you want to try? I guarantee there’s a group of people in Atlanta already getting together and playing it. Indoor soccer. Outdoor soccer. Co-ed soccer. Football. Dodgeball. Softball. Handball. Basketball. Volleyball. Ice hockey. Roller hockey. There’s a website with a list of tables for air hockey. Want to play in a disc golf tournament? Atlanta has that. What about a Saturday morning playing croquet? You can do that with the Atlanta Malleteers. Want to ride around a velodrome? Just head to East Point.
Take a history tour
Location: Party with the Past at the Margaret Mitchell House & Museum
Date taken: September 26, 2012
The name Margaret Mitchell House is sort of misleading for the large brick house that sits at the corner of Peachtree Street and 10th Street. Mitchell, a native of Atlanta and author of Gone With the Wind, never owned the house or occupied all of it. Her space in the home was Apt. 1, a tiny, one-bedroom apartment located on the bottom floor and facing Crescent Ave. Mitchell, who lived there with her husband for many years, referred to the building as the “The Dump”. Despite its negative nickname, this was place where Mitchell wrote her best-selling novel. Take a tour of the house and you’ll see the restored apartment and her typewriter (shown here). But the most interesting part of the tour is learning about the author herself — her career as a reporter, her uneasiness with fame, her work to provide scholarship to Morehouse students and the story of her untimely death.
atlantaheydays.com 
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