Jameka Mikell

I started doing more hiking of late because it really allows me to get away and brainstorm about exciting new goals and ideas. For those that in the West Atlanta Georgia area looking for a good place to hike, I would recommend Sweetwater State Park located off of I-20 near Thornton Road. You can visit the http://www.gastateparks.org/info/sweetwater/ for more info.

Some upcoming guided hikes are below:

"New Manchester History Hike"
Saturdays until September 26, 2009
(10:00pm - 12:00pm)

These mile-long hikes (easy to moderate) lead to the ruins of the Civil
War era New Manchester textile mill and will focus on the history of the
Sweetwater Creek valley. Highlights of this tour will include going
inside the impressive mill ruins and seeing the beautiful white-water
rapids (both providing great photo opportunities). These hikes will be
led by local historian and "Friends of Sweetwater Creek State Park"
volunteer Dan Emsweller or a Park Interpretive Ranger. There is a
parking fee of $5 per car and a program fee of $2 for adults and $1 for children
(under 18). For more information please call Sweetwater Creek State Park at
(770) 732-5871.

"Ruins to Rapids - Full Moon Hike"
Tuesday, July 7, 2009 8:00pm - 10:00pm
Wednesday, August 5, 2009 8:00pm - 10:00pm
Friday, September 4, 2009 8:00pm - 10:00pm
Sunday, October 4, 2009 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Monday, November 2, 2009 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Wednesday, December 2, 2009 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Thursday, December 31, 2009 7:00pm - 9:00pm

This 1.5 mile ranger-led hike is moderately difficult and visits the Civil War era New Manchester Mills ruins alongside the lovely rapids of Sweetwater Creek. Please wear sturdy shoes and bring a flashlight. Children under 6 years and dogs will not be permitted on this hike. There is a parking fee of $5 per car and a program fee of $2 for adults and $1 for children (under 18). For more information please call Sweetwater Creek State Park at (770) 732-5871.

Periodically, I will review certain neighborhoods in the Atlanta area to provide insight into lifestyle, cost of living and quality of schoools for the area.

The first city on the list is Douglasville, GA which is located about 20 miles west of Atlanta.

Here are some statistics for 2008 in Dougasville

Median Income: $57,139

Median Home Price: $143, 050

Home ownership in Douglasville is around 66% which is a little higher than most metro counties. Also, Douglasville has crime risk rates that are below average for all crimes. Douglasville has many established communities with the Chapel Hills and Anneewakee Trails areas being some of the largest residential developments in the county.

Douglas county currently has four high schools

Litha Springs High School

Douglas County High School

Alexander High School

Chapel Hill High School

There is currently a new high school under construction on the east side of the county which will help with the rampant growth that has occurred on the east side of the county. Also, Douglas county has one of the lowest cost of living indexes in the Atlanta metro area. Due to the fact that Douglas county is a more rural area, property taxes, housing and food costs tend to be less than areas closer to the heart of downtown Atlanta. Douglasville, also provides excellent shopping, restaurants nearby with Arbor Place Mall being the hub of the primary area that has most shopping and dining options.

You can learn more about Douglas County by visiting the county website, Douglas County Official Website.

Well, I figured I would take a break and post something not related to real estate but instead have some fun with our laws in the state of Georgia. I was looking around and found these at the Crazy Topics blog website. Details are some of the zany laws are below: Georgia

• Acworth: All citizens must own a rake.
• A Kennesaw, Ga. law makes it illegal for every homeowner not to own a gun, unless you are a convicted felon, conscientious objector or disabled.
• Atlanta: Against the law to tie a giraffe to a telephone pole or street lamp; One man may not be on another man's back.
• Columbus: Can't cut off a chicken's head on Sunday; It is illegal to carry a chicken by it's feet down Broadway on Sunday.
• Gainesville: Chicken must be eaten with the hands.
• In Columbus, Georgia it is illegal to sit on one's porch in an indecent position.
• In Georgia, movie houses that want to show films on Sunday must reserve one showing a month for religious material.
• It is illegal in Georgia to use profanity in the presence of a corpse.
• In Quitman, It is illegal for a chicken to cross the road.
• It is illegal to change the clothes on a storefront mannequin unless the shades are down.
• It is illegal to say "Oh, Boy" in Jonesboro.
• It is illegal to take a bath of orange peel.
• Kennesaw: Every head of household must possess a firearm of some kind.
• Marietta: Though it is illegal to spit from a car or bus, citizens may spit from a truck.
• Members of the state assembly cannot be ticketed for speeding while the state assembly is in session.
• Signs are required to be written in English.
• St. Mary's: No spitting on the sidewalk is permitted after dark.

Have fun and make sure to share these with your friends and be careful out there, you never know what law you maybe breaking!