Ari Meier's Blog

Pramuka Physics

Pramuka Physics Tanggal 27 januari 2018 saya sedang menjalankan tugas untuk memenuhi progam KKN 2018 yang di selenggarakan oleh STKIP Al Hikmah Surabaya saya melaksanakan tugas tersebut di SMAN Umbulsari tempat SMA saya dahulu.

Dalam progam tersebut ada tugas yang mengharuskan saya untuk  mengajar organisasi Pramuka di sekolah tersebut. Waktu yang diberikan oleh pihak kampus adalah 2 pekan mulai tanggal 15-28 Januari 2018. Saya sudah membuat rencana mengajar Pramuka pada pekan pertama namun rencana itu gagal. Pada waktu saya mau mengajar pramuka di sekolah saya ternyata sistemnya berubah jadi waktu aktif untuk sekolah dalam satu pekan hanya 5 hari mulai dari hari senin – jumat. Jadi organisasi Pramauka di SMAN Umbulsari atau biasa disebut dengan DA (Dewan Ambalan) masih mengatur jadwal untuk latihan.Satu pekan terlewati dan DA menetapkan untuk latihan pada hari sabtu tanggal 27 Januari sekaligus mempersiapkan lomba pramuka, meskipun itu dekat waktu kepulangan saya pun menghubungi Ketua Dewan Ambalan untuk meminta izin mengajar pramuka di SMAN Umbulsari  karena dia dulu adalah junior jadi langsung di izinkan. Saat Kegiatan Sebelum berangkat saya berfikir materi apa yang akan saya berikan kepada anak Pramuka SMAN Umbulsari yang sekiranya ada hubunganya dengan fisika. Saya pun teringat waktu pramuka di SMAN Umbulsari pernah diajarkan tentang materi menaksir dan materi itu menurut saya cocok dengan prodi saya yaitu fisika bab pengukuran.  Bersama DA SMAN Umbulsari
Menaksir adalah memperkirakan (mengira - ngira)tinggi  suatu pohon, lebar sebuah sungai, arus sungai, jarak perjalanan, keadaan cuaca dan mengukur berat suatu benda. Dikutip dari ( https://pramukaayee.wordpress.com/teknik-kepramukaan/menaksir/)Pada saat itu saya memberikan materi tentang bagaimana cara menaksir tinggi 2 tongkat  pramuka yang jadikan satu. Meraka sangat aktif untuk bisa menaksir bertanya dan selalu berani mencoba menjadi ciri khas mereka. Pendekatan Intensif
       Satu per satu pun selesai untuk menjadikan 2 tongkat menjadi satu dan saya pilih 2 orang untuk maju mempraktekan langsung caranya. Dengan sedikit penerangan dan kecerdasan meraka akhirnya mereka paham dan bisa menaksir tinggi tongkat. Pengukuran
 Sebelum saya menutup latihan saya memberikan sedikit cerita dan hikmah dari kegiatan kita yang barusan kita lakukann. Mereka sangat antusias mendengarkan. Karena belum ada yang mengaitkan pramuka dengan fisika apalagi  sejarah islam.  Pengembangan Materi
Bahwa pada zaman dahulu sebelum adanya alat ukur yang sudah kita kenal di zaman sekarang seperti penggaris,  meteran, voltmeter, jangka sorong, micrometer sekrup dll. Orang mesir pada zaman dahulu untuk mengukur panjang mereka menggunakan patung lenngan raja fir’aun, waktu diukur menggunakan jam pasir, matahari atau jam air. Intinya zaman dahulu saja yang masih minim teknologi perdaban mereka sudah maju, lantas apa yang sudah kita lakukan ? apa karya yang sudah kita ciptakan dengan banyaknya alat alat canggih di sekitar kita.Pramuka mengajarkan bahwa kita harus dapat hidup di manapun dan apapun kondisinya. Dengan cara mempelajari sejarah dan bersahabat dengan alam. Maka dari itu, jadilah buah yang tak pernah merasa matang, seorang pemuda yang berani dan berwawasan luas serta haus dengan ilmu dunia dan akherat. Semoga Bermanfaat...!!!

DARUL MUTTAQIN

An nas - Al zalzalah            Orang yang bermanfaat ilmunya merupakan orang yang tidak sombong akan ilmu yang dimilikinya dan ia lebih mementingkan ilmu akherat daripada urusan dunia.            Tujuan manusia yang sejati adalah mereka yang memprioritaskan akherat daripada dunia seringkali manusia menghabiskan waktunya hanya untuk mencari sesuatu yang nantinya tidak akan ditanyakan oleh para malaikat ALLAH namun mereka anggap penting.             TPQ darul muttaqin Kecamatan Umbulsari, Kabupaten Jember tanggal 15-22 Januari 2018 saya mengajar anak anak di TPQ tersebut. Mereka sangat antusias dan semangat meskipun pada awalnya kebanyakan dari mereka belum bisa memahami tentang hukum bacaan dalam Al Quran namun seiring waktu berjalan dan semangat dari  mereka perlahan pun ilmu mereka bertambah.            Usia mereka masih berkisar 6-12 tahun mereka masih bersekolah sd dan smp. Para ustad ustadzah yang sangat ramah mereka adalah orang yang tidak mengharapkan apa hanya cukup  ada yang mau datang untuk mengaji itu sudah menjadi kebahagiaan tersendiri bagi mereka.             Melihat senyuman yang malu malu dan polos membuat hati terasa untuk terus berada dalam TPQ tersebut. Tanpa memandang keadaan anak anak di TPQ tersebut sangat giat meskipun hujan mereka tetap datang untuk menuntut ilmu keadaan desa gunung memang sedidkit memprihatinkan banyak sekali anak anak yang masih SMP kelas 8 tidak mau melanjutkan ngajinya karena gengsi.             Para ustad/ustadzah tidak bosan bosanya untuk mengingatkan para anak didiknya untuk fokus dan mengurangi bercanda. Hanya sekitar 1.5 jam kami mengaji sebenarnya waktu tersebut sangatlah minim apalagi megingat waktu mereka kebanyakan di habiskan di luar TPQ yang cenderung memberi kebebasan bagi anak anak tersebut bergaul.            Perlunya penanaman akhlak pada anak sangatlahh penting. Rusaknya moral anak bangsa di karenakan sejak kecil mereka sudah dikenalkan dengan hp dan pergaulan mereka dibebaskan banyak yang enggan mengaji ataupun mondok. Dalam daerah Kec. Umbulsari bisa dihitung berapa anak yang di pondokan oleh orang tuanya. Perlu adannya motivasi dari dalam diri dan penguatan orang tua kepada anak agar mereka tidak goyah untuk mengaji                           Dalam waktu kurang lebih satu minggu saya mengajak anak anak di TPQ Darul Muttaqin untuk lebih mementingkan ilmu akherat saya mengajari mereka mulai dari hukum bacaan dalam Al Quran hingga mereka mulai mau untuk menghafal Al Quran memang targetnya belum saya tetapkan banyak, namun menurut saya untuk waktu yang singkat  itu sudah cukup menantang untuk waktu 3 hari mereka yang sebagian besar tidak pernah menghafal al quran, 85 % hafal dari surat ann nas - al zalzalah dalam waktu 3 hari.            Para ustad ustadzah sangat terkesan dengan kedatangan mahasiswa STKIP Al Hikmah dan sangat mendukung progam KKN 2018 karena progam tersebut dapat meningkatkan semangat anak anak untuk mengaji dan mereka sangat mengharapkan untuk mengadakan progam mengajar TPQ di darul muttaqin.           Kesejukan dan ketenangan menyelimuti hati ketika saya berada di tengah tengah mereka. Semoga ALLAH menjadikan umur kita barokah dunia dan akherat. AMIN.

ILMU BUKAN NILAI

ILMU BUKAN NILAI        Kami mahasiswa jika di beri pilihan untuk memilih mana yang lebih penting ilmu atau nilai?dari pengalaman saya yang saya dapatkan dari dosen saya Ust. Zainal Abidin salah satu dosen STKIP Al Hikmah Surabaya, bahwa nilai memang penting namun ilmu dan ketrampilanlah yang nantinya akan dibutuhkan waktu kita benar benar mengahadapi ujian kehidupan dalam sistem kemasyarakatan. Untuk apa memiliki nilai A atau 100 namun tidak bisa mempertanggung jawabkan nilai tersebut hal seperti itu yang nanti nyatakan menjadi kerugian bagi kita sendiri.            Keadaan pelajar indonesia sangat memperihatinkan kebanyakan dari mereka sangat obsesif akan nilai yang sampai tidak mempedulikan bagaimana mereka mendapatkanya. Tidak hanya itu sistem pendidikan di Indonesia juga menjadi salah satu faktor lemahnya daya juang para pelajar Indonesia untuk mencari ilmu.        Kesadaran diri dan kelemahan sistem pendidikan dapat diatasi dengan adanya guru atau tenaga pengajar yang mengerti faedah dari ilmu dunia maupun akherat. Dari mulai sd sampai sma mereka tetap membawa budaya yang sangat memvirus dikalangan pelajar indonesia yaitu mendapatkan nilai yang bagus dengan cara yang buruk (mencontek,kerjasama dll).    Kelas X Mia 1        Hal hal seperti itu yang menejadikan indonesia tidak maju maju. Dalam kegiatan KKN 2018 (lihat : pengalaman adalah guru terbaik) yang saya lakukan di sekolah asal saya SMAN UMBULSARI ternyata benar para siswa disana juga bingung ketika ditanya manakah yang lebih penting ?"ilmu atau nilai". Kelas X Mia 2mereka bingung untuk menjawabnya . Ada 4 kelas yang saya ajar dan itu merupakan tantangan sekaligus pengalaman yang bermanfaat bagi saya untuk nantinya jika sudah menjadi guru AAAMMINN.. Kelas X Mia 3       Pengalaman memang penting namun kita harus mengukur juga kadar kemampuan kita agar nantinya tidak terjadi kesalahan yang akan mengakibatkan penyesalan di kehidupan selanjutnya.
Kelas X Mia 4
       Mereka menunjukan semangat yang luar biasa untuk merubah mulai sekarang adapun anak yang sebelumnya tidak berani dan takut untuk maju mengerjakan soal alasanya tidak bisa. mengajar kelas x mia 2 mengajar kelas x mia 2
    Namun saya mendapat ilmu dari seseorang bahwa ALLAH SWT hidup di dalam prasangka hambanya jika fikiran dan hati kita bersatu maka apapun yang kita ucapkan dengan penuh keyakinan pada ALLAH SWT maka dia akan mengabulkan doa doa kita itu. saat mengajar di kelas x mia 4
jadi jika maenset kita akan hal hal yang belum kita ketahui sudah jelek maka hasilnya pun akan jelek. Kita hanya mampu memilih ALLAH SWT  yang menentukan . pendekatan intensif kelas x mia 4           Dengan adanya motivasi tersebut para siswa yang tadinya tidak punya  gairah untuk belajar akhirnya mulai berbicara dan mau untuk di ajari. pendekatan intensif siswa kelas x mia 4

       Semula yang mereka hanya duduk terdiam di belakang bangku mereka pada saat itu mereka tidak malu untuk bertanya dan berani menyampaikan pendapatnya dengan mengerjakan soal yang kita bahas pada saat itu. berani tanpa ragu
rise and shineBukan hasil yang di respect oleh ALLAH SWT tapi seberapa besar kalian menghargai proses , tetap berusaha dan berdoa serta ikhlas, insyallah kesuksesan akan datang ke kalian. semoga bermanfaat...!!!  

EXPERIENCE

PENGALAMAN ADALAH GURU TERBAIK
     Pengalaman adalah guru tebaik dapat diartikan sebagai kejadian atau peristiwa yang terjadi pada waktu yang telah lalu dan yang terjadi pada diri kita, kemudian dari peristiwa atau kejadian tersebut kita bisa menjadikanya sebagai pelajaran atau ilmu yang bisa kita pakai untuk menuju langkah perjalaan hidup yang lebih baik.
     Saya sekarang sedang menempuh  pendidikan Fisika S1 di STKIP Al Hikmah Surabaya. Kampus ini sangat istimewa daripada kampus lain. Kenapa seperti itu ? karena kampus ini mempunyai sistem yang konkret dan istiqomah yang bertujuan untuk mencetak para imam yang nantinya akan mengambil alih kekuasaan Negara Indonesia dan berjuang memperbaiki mental para masyarakat indonesia melalui pendidikan berkarakter Islam. STKIP Al Hikmah Surabaya

     STKIP Al Hikmah Surabaya mengadakan progam KKN 2018. Seluruh mahasiswa angkatan 2015, 2016 dan 2017 dituntut untuk mencari pengalaman dan ilmu di berbagai sekolah. Semester 1,3 dan 5 serta 7 sekolah yang dituju berbeda. Mahasiswa semester 1 diwajibkan untuk KKN di daerah asal, mahasiswa semester 3 diwajibkan KKN di Provinsi Jawa Timur, mahasiswa semester 5 di SMP/SMA Al Hikmah Surabaya dan mahasiswa semester diwajibkan harus KKN di luar negeri untuk tahun 2017 jangkauan kakak angkatan 2014 (angkatan 1) adalah negara negara ASEAN namun ad juga yang sudah melampaui target ada yang sudah ke Jepang dan Australia progam ini kami namakan “ketrampilan guru abad 21”.
     Disini saya sebagai mahasiswa pendidikan Fisika angkatan 2017 sekolah yang saya tuju adalah sekolah asal yaitu SMAN UMBULSARI. 15 Januari saya memulai KKN 2018 kegiatanya adalah sit in dan membuka serta menutup kelas Perizinan dengan waka kesiswaan (Ust.Saiful Bahri) Pada kegiatan sit in saya mengamati guru senior yang ada di sekolah tersebut namanya adalah  Dra. Ni Made Swastiningrat Msi dan susilowati. Dengan Bu.Made ( Tutor Fashion) BU.susi (The Humorator)

     Ketika saya dan teman saya Abdul Aziz Al Faruq sit in di kelas guru senior kami mendapat pengalaman yaitu bahwa untuk fisika sendiri tidak terus terusan kita diberi penjelasan tentang konsep teori dan rumus Fisika namun juga mengaitkan konsep pada kehidupan sehari hari kedua guru senior tersebut juga membuat suasana kelas menjadi santai namun tetap kondusif dengan sedikit humor yang mereka berikan.
     Seorang guru yang memperhatikan murid muridnya untuk menghargai teman sekelasnya karena seorang guru yang sejati adalah guru yang bukan sekedar memberikan ilmu pengetaahuan secara akademik namun juga memberikan pendidikan sikap dan mental yang bisa diterapkan dalam KBM. Bu.made telah memenuhi kriteria guru tersebut dengan menyelipkan akan pentingnya menghargai seseorang. Presentasi di kelas XI IPA 4             Dengan adanya pendidikan karakter yang diterapkan oleh seorang guru akan menjadi salah satu faktor terbentuknya generasi hebat negara Indonesia yang siap memikul tanggung jawab dan siap menerima resiko. Semangat...!!! Para Pemuda Bangsa...!!!

Replacing South DeKalb Mall With a New Mixed-Use Development

Photo credit: La Citta Vita



















Bringing Atlantic Station to the eastside
New York City-based Thor Equities is an international real estate development and investment company that owns the 800,000 square foot The Gallery at South DeKalb. 
From Thor Equities' page describing The Gallery at South DeKalb: 
OUTSTANDING LOCATIONThe Gallery at South DeKalb is located in the southeastern section of Atlanta, known as Decatur, Georgia. Situated minutes away from I-285, and directly off I-20 on Candler Road, the Gallery has tremendous exposure and visibility from the street. The daily traffic count of cars passing the Property is estimated to be about 136,000.
EXCEPTIONAL TRADE AREAThe Gallery at South DeKalb tailors itself to a close-knit community of African-American consumers with more than 600,000 potential customers in the primary and secondary market area. This trade area has the nation’s second-most affluent African-American base with an average household income at more than $60,000 for more than 257,000 people within a five-mile radius. There is also a deep relationship between the Gallery and their local religious partners. In their trade area, the 10 largest churches have more than 125,000 members, which support the Gallery at South DeKalb in many ways.
Just imagine for a moment that The Gallery at South Dekalb disappeared. When you drive up Candler Road, you don't see the 46 year-old mall, but you see something different. You see shops lining the street level at Candler Road, where you were able to look down into the valley that once held The Gallery at South DeKalb. When driving down into the valley, you see what looks like a small city center. You find buildings of differing heights and designs with retail names that are not within 20 miles of this location, but names that residents in the area seek out, drive to and shop at...20 plus miles away.
In your mind, you've seen this type of development, with names such as Atlantic Station, Glenwood Park, and Avalon. Residents of the actual city of Decatur and Atlanta come out to this location, to shop at stores that they used to have to travel much further to shop at. 
This is something that could happen. With I-20 being one of the busiest freeways in the south, south DeKalb residents shouldn't sleep on The Gallery at South DeKalb, or should I say, the potential of The Gallery at South DeKalb. There will be the usual, "this won't fly in south DeKalb, because of the income issues" crowd. It's all about providing a desirable destination. There's a solid middle class in the south DeKalb market area. 


Photo credit: Brett VAThe issue is not that most residents don't want to or can't support the retail, they like most consumers want the whole shopping experience to be something that they feel great about shopping at. Atlantic Station does a great job in this area. It's offerings are nothing out of the ordinary, it has a Publix, movie theater, mall-type retail, a huge confusing parking garage and enough events happening year-round. Atlantic Station is basic mall-type stores in a nice wrapping. They've also upgraded Atlantic Station once in the past nine years since it's opening. Retail center upgrades are important.  This is why in other parts of the metro with similar economic demographics, retail centers and stores are upgraded, renovated and refashioned often. The retail stores and shopping center owners know that doing a upgrade every 20 years won't fly with the consumers in those areas. Why should it fly in south DeKalb? 
Imagine having a Christmas tree lighting at the new South DeKalb. Imagine a weekend flea market. Imagine an amphitheater with events almost year-round. This is doable and we should explore this further. We should ask Thor Equities, "what are your plans for this property?" A repurposing of The Gallery of South Dekalb would be an amazing asset. 
If you're into planning and development, I came across a Livable Centers Initiative study commissioned by Dekalb County for the Panthersville/ Flat Shoals Parkway/ Candler Road area back in 2007. This is a great start, but the conversation needs to keep going. 

Photos are only depictions of ideas and do not represent actual future developments.

Why It's Time For South DeKalb County to Get More Diverse Restaurants and Retail

Photo credit: Le Petit Marche

Despite higher median income and traffic counts than other Atlanta suburban areas, trendy fast casual restaurants shun south DeKalb
On a recent evening, my wife and I contemplated on what we were having for dinner. Anything was okay if it didn’t involve firing up the stove, so we settled on Willy’s Mexicana Grill. My thoughts on biting into a tasty veggie quesadilla went from happy to stressful in a half of a second: it was 9:40 pm, and I knew that Willy’s would close in 20 minutes!
Thoughts of “can I make it in time” ran through my head. If we were living in Midtown, Buckhead, or near Emory, I wouldn’t be stressed about time, but we live off of Wesley Chapel Road in south DeKalb and the closest Willy’s is about 20 minutes away near Little Five Points.  While I won’t say how fast I drove in order to make it to Willy’s before closing time, I made it. It was a reminder that the area I chose to live in, doesn’t have much of a choice in restaurants beyond fast food outlets.
Some will say, “what about the Stonecrest Mall area? There are several fast casual and good sit-down restaurants in that area”. Although Stonecrest is not far, it’s also not close enough to make a 5 or 6-minute trip to get food. Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Starbucks, Chipotle, Taco Mac, Zoe's Kitchen, are a few of the national retailers found in other parts of metro Atlanta-sometimes with several outlets in close proximity. But they are nowhere to be seen in south DeKalb.
If you were to ask the restaurant company business or franchise development departments about the chances of locating an outlet in south DeKalb, they may say that the demographics in much of south DeKalb doesn’t ‘fit their business model'. According to Entrepreneur article, “How to Find the Best Location”, determining where to locate a restaurant can be as simple or complex. “There are, for instance, sophisticated location analysis tools available that include traffic pattern information, demographic and lifestyle data, and competitive analyses.”
Within demographic data is median income. Comparing population and median household income data between 5 south DeKalb ZIP codes and selected metro Atlanta suburbs, you'll find a few interesting things. Hiram, population 3,705, has a Starbucks, Japanese restaurant, Moe's Southwest Grill and a Cold Stone Creamery, all in an area with median household income of $46,793. In addition to Hiram, the cities listed below, have a plethora of fast casual, Japanese/ sushi restaurants.
Their populations are all less than the population of the south DeKalb ZIP codes and all of their median household incomes, except Roswell and Sandy Springs, are LESS than the median household incomes in south DeKalb. I chose Roswell and Sandy Springs for a reason. They are considered relatively wealthy, have high quality of life metrics and overall are highly desirable places to live.
The median household income in Sandy Springs was a little more, about $5.32 an hour more than the median household income in south DeKalb. 
South DeKalb (Zip codes 30034, 30035, 30088, 30058, 30038) Marietta Pop. 173,484 Pop. 60,014 Median household income(MHI): $48,203 MHI: $41,693 Roswell Sandy Springs Pop. 94,089 Pop. 101,908 MHI: $72,317 MHI: $59,196 McDonough Lawrenceville Pop. 23,004 Pop. 30,212 MHI: $45,077 MHI: $42,395 Hiram
Pop. 3,705
MHI: $46,793

South DeKalb compares favorably on median household income with the others. So it must be another metric that these desirable restaurants are using to determine where they'll open up. Traffic counts!
Traffic counts are conducted by the state of Georgia for traffic signal, intersection improvements and other updates to help with improving traffic flow. South DeKalb must be facing a dearth of more restaurant diversity because out traffic counts don’t warrant opening up right? Wrong!
Wesley Chapel's traffic count is 51,900 (the count was taken in front of JJ's Fish and Chicken and probably 48,000 of them are in JJ's drive thru!). Anyone who drives on Wesley Chapel is hardly surprised by this number, but to put it in proper perspective, let's look around the metro area and see how busy the other roads are. The number listed next to the roadway name is the largest traffic count anywhere on that road.
Ashford-Dunwoody Rd 49,400 Roswell Rd 40,100 Peachtree St/Rd 46,000 Cobb Pkwy 44,000 Highway 138 (Stockbridge) 35,200 Camp Creek Pkwy 50,100 Thornton Rd (Douglasville) 45,900 Pleasant Hill Rd (Duluth) 56,300 Jimmy Carter 69,600 Holcomb Bridge Rd 68,800 Buford Dr (near the Mall of Ga) 84,500
Driving on Ashford-Dunwoody Road is frustrating, the traffic is a little less than that of Wesley Chapel Road, but there are high-rise office buildings, hotels, tons of restaurants and a big mall in that area. Driving on Wesley Chapel, you'll pass a McDonalds, a Waffle House, KFC, Captain D’s, another McDonalds. No big malls, no restaurant variety, no high-rise office buildings and hotels.
Looking at populations, median household incomes and traffic counts around metro Atlanta, we see that south DeKalb compares quite favorably with the other areas, but we don't have what the other areas have. 
There is no reason why the households in this area makes more than Marietta, Lawrenceville, Hiram and McDonough, but doesn't have the restaurant choices those areas have. There are no clear reasons why I should have to drive to Little Five Points to get a Willy's quesadilla when the median income, population and traffic counts show that south DeKalb could support this and other similar restaurants and stores.

Sources:City-DataMoving.com Georgia DOT Traffic Counts
Written by Ari Meier
Copyright 2016 © Ari Meier

Restaurants and Retailers Avoid South DeKalb County Despite Favorable Economic Metrics

Photo credit: Le Petit Marche

Despite higher median income and traffic counts than other Atlanta suburban areas, trendy fast casual restaurants shun south DeKalb
On a recent evening, my wife and I contemplated on what we were having for dinner. Anything was okay if it didn’t involve firing up the stove, so we settled on Willy’s Mexicana Grill. My thoughts on biting into a tasty veggie quesadilla went from happy to stressful in a half of a second: it was 9:40 pm, and I knew that Willy’s would close in 20 minutes!
Thoughts of “can I make it in time” ran through my head. If we were living in Midtown, Buckhead, or near Emory, I wouldn’t be stressed about time, but we live off of Wesley Chapel Road in south DeKalb and the closest Willy’s is about 20 minutes away near Little Five Points.  While I won’t say how fast I drove in order to make it to Willy’s before closing time, I made it. It was a reminder that the area I chose to live in, doesn’t have much of a choice in restaurants beyond fast food outlets.
Some will say, “what about the Stonecrest Mall area? There are several fast casual and good sit-down restaurants in that area”. Although Stonecrest is not far, it’s also not close enough to make a 5 or 6-minute trip to get food. Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Starbucks, Chipotle, Taco Mac, Zoe's Kitchen, are a few of the national retailers found in other parts of metro Atlanta-sometimes with several outlets in close proximity. But they are nowhere to be seen in south DeKalb.
If you were to ask the restaurant company business or franchise development departments about the chances of locating an outlet in south DeKalb, they may say that the demographics in much of south DeKalb doesn’t ‘fit their business model'. According to Entrepreneur article, “How to Find the Best Location”, determining where to locate a restaurant can be as simple or complex. “There are, for instance, sophisticated location analysis tools available that include traffic pattern information, demographic and lifestyle data, and competitive analyses.”
Within demographic data is median income. Comparing population and median household income data between 5 south DeKalb ZIP codes and selected metro Atlanta suburbs, you'll find a few interesting things. Hiram, population 3,705, has a Starbucks, Japanese restaurant, Moe's Southwest Grill and a Cold Stone Creamery, all in an area with median household income of $46,793. In addition to Hiram, the cities listed below, have a plethora of fast casual, Japanese/ sushi restaurants.
Their populations are all less than the population of the south DeKalb ZIP codes and all of their median household incomes, except Roswell and Sandy Springs, are LESS than the median household incomes in south DeKalb. I chose Roswell and Sandy Springs for a reason. They are considered relatively wealthy, have high quality of life metrics and overall are highly desirable places to live.
The median household income in Sandy Springs was a little more, about $5.32 an hour more than the median household income in south DeKalb. 
South DeKalb (Zip codes 30034, 30035, 30088, 30058, 30038) Marietta Pop. 173,484 Pop. 60,014 Median household income(MHI): $48,203 MHI: $41,693 Roswell Sandy Springs Pop. 94,089 Pop. 101,908 MHI: $72,317 MHI: $59,196 McDonough Lawrenceville Pop. 23,004 Pop. 30,212 MHI: $45,077 MHI: $42,395 Hiram
Pop. 3,705
MHI: $46,793

South DeKalb compares favorably on median household income with the others. So it must be another metric that these desirable restaurants are using to determine where they'll open up. Traffic counts!
Traffic counts are conducted by the state of Georgia for traffic signal, intersection improvements and other updates to help with improving traffic flow. South DeKalb must be facing a dearth of more restaurant diversity because out traffic counts don’t warrant opening up right? Wrong!
Wesley Chapel's traffic count is 51,900 (the count was taken in front of JJ's Fish and Chicken and probably 48,000 of them are in JJ's drive thru!). Anyone who drives on Wesley Chapel is hardly surprised by this number, but to put it in proper perspective, let's look around the metro area and see how busy the other roads are. The number listed next to the roadway name is the largest traffic count anywhere on that road.
Ashford-Dunwoody Rd 49,400 Roswell Rd 40,100 Peachtree St/Rd 46,000 Cobb Pkwy 44,000 Highway 138 (Stockbridge) 35,200 Camp Creek Pkwy 50,100 Thornton Rd (Douglasville) 45,900 Pleasant Hill Rd (Duluth) 56,300 Jimmy Carter 69,600 Holcomb Bridge Rd 68,800 Buford Dr (near the Mall of Ga) 84,500
Driving on Ashford-Dunwoody Road is frustrating, the traffic is a little less than that of Wesley Chapel Road, but there are high-rise office buildings, hotels, tons of restaurants and a big mall in that area. Driving on Wesley Chapel, you'll pass a McDonalds, a Waffle House, KFC, Captain D’s, another McDonalds. No big malls, no restaurant variety, no high-rise office buildings and hotels.
Looking at populations, median household incomes and traffic counts around metro Atlanta, we see that south DeKalb compares quite favorably with the other areas, but we don't have what the other areas have. 
There is no reason why the households in this area makes more than Marietta, Lawrenceville, Hiram and McDonough, but doesn't have the restaurant choices those areas have. There are no clear reasons why I should have to drive to Little Five Points to get a Willy's quesadilla when the median income, population and traffic counts show that south DeKalb could support this and other similar restaurants and stores.

Sources:City-DataMoving.com Georgia DOT Traffic Counts
Written by Ari Meier
Copyright 2016 © Ari Meier

Stop Wasting Time On A Man That Won't Marry You

Okay, many online and print publications, have opinions or 'facts' about this topic. Millions of love starved women then click on the links hoping to find some groundbreaking information about the 'man will marry me signs'; only to come away with paragraphs of theory (fluff) about this age old dilemma.

I'm going to simplify this for the ones that need or want to know and will probably either piss off or gain some male fans with exposing this little known 'secret'. 
Are you ready to find out the truth? Do I need to add more paragraphs to make you feel it was worth your taking the time to click this link?

He Will Discuss his Intentions
While this is a no-brainer, women must know that it's in our nature to want to chase after, capture and hold onto what we treasure or love. A man with a clear intention of marrying you will not have to be coaxed or pleaded with or 'I hope he wants to marry me one day-ed'. He'll discuss it because he can't stand the chance of another dude coming in chasing and capturing you. 

No Excuses 
If you've been in a serious relationship with your guy after 3 years and he's still making excuses about why you can't get married soon; just know that you probably won't get married to him. It doesn't cost a lot to get married, but can cost a fortune to have a big wedding. Know the differences. It may cost much upfront money to buy a house, but doesn't take much to move a new husband or wife into a present home or apartment (providing that all of your belongings will fit). Careers don't die because of suddenly getting married and schooling shouldn't be affected. Of course if you're marrying a time thieving, envy monster; then the career and education part will matter. 

Stop Drinking the Kool-Aid
If your man is saying "I'm going to marry you" every year and you have been together for 3, 4, 7 years; do yourself a favor and stop getting drunk off of the Kool-Aid and have a serious discussion with him and if this is fruitless; plan your exit strategy.


Photo courtesy of OMGGhana

How Stonecrest Can Become the Next Dunwoody

Photo credit: High Street



After living in various parts of midtown Atlanta and Buckhead for about a decade, I moved back to south DeKalb in the summer of 2013. I’ve loved the area since buying my first home in the early 90’s and knew if I had to move to a suburban, more family-friendly area, I wanted it to be south DeKalb.
Because I believe in knowing my area, I started reading the Champion and Crossroads Newspapers to see what was happening in the community. I found an article about a group trying to form a city of Stonecrest. Another later article informed me of an effort to form another city, dubbed ‘City of South DeKalb’. This got me even more interested as I live within the latter’s footprint. I eventually joined the effort to create the ‘City of South DeKalb’, later rechristened ‘Greenhaven’.
This past election year, I celebrated that voters decided overwhelmingly to create Stonecrest. I found the idea of Stonecrest compelling, viable and representative of something that I’ve known for a while: many of the people in this area are smart, well-cultured and will make things happen if given an opportunity.
I see Stonecrest and Dunwoody as being very similar. Sure, Dunwoody has the tall office buildings and hotels, many shopping areas and lots of upscale housing, but it hasn’t always been this way. Forty years ago, Dunwoody was an unincorporated part of DeKalb County with a newly-built regional mall (Perimeter Mall), and a scattering of low-rise office parks. The business leaders of the area marketed it as an alternative to downtown and midtown for business.
Stonecrest must borrow from this playbook. There are many that may look at this idea as preposterous. After all, what and why would companies want to locate 20 miles outside downtown Atlanta? I’m sure when the developers of Perimeter Mall and Perimeter Center office park pitched their proposals, they were probably met with the same questions. Much of the Perimeter Center area pre-development was farmland and forest and not close to the center of Atlanta’s business communities.
Imagine the people who grew up in Dunwoody back in the 40’s and 50’s and how they remember the changes in the area. Many of them probably couldn’t imagine that pristine farmland eventually becoming one of metro Atlanta’s largest commercial centers. Imagine a high-tech company looking to locate in metro Atlanta and deciding on Stonecrest because of its proximity to the airport and downtown, low crime rate, highly skilled workforce, a diversity of housing choices and a bet that a MARTA rail line will come out that way in the near future. Now imagine them building a 6-story regional office in Stonecrest. A few years afterward, more companies want to move to the area. It’s like a snowball effect. Just as what made the Perimeter Center area popular, companies and people like to be in a ‘hot’ area. Then more housing comes, more choices in entertainment, which in turn, attracts more businesses. This is the simplified version of what happens. 
All it takes is a serious marketing/ branding of the area, improving/ maintaining the quality of life and Stonecrest will thrive. Stonecrest is no different than any other upstart area: no one really knows the true the potential. If the recent announcement of a big sports complex is a harbinger of what’s in store for a city that is barely a year old, just imagine what might happen a few more years as a city.
I see good things happening with Stonecrest. I see it becoming the next Dunwoody. I see MARTA rail going to the area, I see high-rise office and more high-density housing being built there. I see telling my grandchildren about how I remember when it was just a mall, some restaurants, and retail scattered around the mall back in the day. They’ll then look at me in disbelief.

Stonecrest Will Become the Next Dunwoody

Photo credit: High Street



After living in various parts of midtown Atlanta and Buckhead for about a decade, I moved back to south DeKalb in the summer of 2013. I’ve loved the area since buying my first home in the early 90’s and knew if I had to move to a suburban, more family-friendly area, I wanted it to be south DeKalb.
Because I believe in knowing my area, I started reading the Champion and Crossroads Newspapers to see what was happening in the community. I found an article about a group trying to form a city of Stonecrest. Another later article informed me of an effort to form another city, dubbed ‘City of South DeKalb’. This got me even more interested as I live within the latter’s footprint. I eventually joined the effort to create the ‘City of South DeKalb’, later rechristened ‘Greenhaven’.
This past election year, I celebrated that voters decided overwhelmingly to create Stonecrest. I found the idea of Stonecrest compelling, viable and representative of something that I’ve known for a while: many of the people in this area are smart, well-cultured and will make things happen if given an opportunity.
I see Stonecrest and Dunwoody as being very similar. Sure, Dunwoody has the tall office buildings and hotels, many shopping areas and lots of upscale housing, but it hasn’t always been this way. Forty years ago, Dunwoody was an unincorporated part of DeKalb County with a newly-built regional mall (Perimeter Mall), and a scattering of low-rise office parks. The business leaders of the area marketed it as an alternative to downtown and midtown for business.
Stonecrest must borrow from this playbook. There are many that may look at this idea as preposterous. After all, what and why would companies want to locate 20 miles outside downtown Atlanta? I’m sure when the developers of Perimeter Mall and Perimeter Center office park pitched their proposals, they were probably met with the same questions. Much of the Perimeter Center area pre-development was farmland and forest and not close to the center of Atlanta’s business communities.
Imagine the people who grew up in Dunwoody back in the 40’s and 50’s and how they remember the changes in the area. Many of them probably couldn’t imagine that pristine farmland eventually becoming one of metro Atlanta’s largest commercial centers. Imagine a high-tech company looking to locate in metro Atlanta and deciding on Stonecrest because of its proximity to the airport and downtown, low crime rate, highly skilled workforce, a diversity of housing choices and a bet that a MARTA rail line will come out that way in the near future. Now imagine them building a 6-story regional office in Stonecrest. A few years afterwards, more companies want to move to the area. It’s like a snowball effect. Just as what made the Perimeter Center area popular, companies and people like to be in a ‘hot’ area. Then more housing comes, more choices in entertainment, which in turn, attracts more businesses. This is the simplified version of what happens. 
All it takes is a serious marketing/ branding of the area, improving/ maintaining the quality of life and Stonecrest will thrive. Stonecrest is no different than any other upstart area: no one really knows the true the potential. If the recent announcement of a big sports complex is a harbinger of what’s in store for a city that is not officially open for business, just imagine what might happen when the city’s open for business.
I must say one thing about the mayor’s office (yes, I’m injecting some politics in this). I think Jason Lary is highly qualified to be the mayor of the city he helped envision and found. I’ve met him a few times at the Greenhaven town hall meetings and found him to be a highly intelligent person who I consider as less of a politician, and more of someone who is genuinely concerned about the community and who wants to make a big difference. If I could vote in the Stonecrest election, I would vote for Jason.
I see good things happening with Stonecrest. I see it becoming the next Dunwoody. I see MARTA rail going to the area, I see high-rise office and housing being built there. I see telling my grandchildren about how I remember when it was just a mall, some restaurants and retail scattered around the mall back in the day. They’ll then look at me in disbelief.