Kids have a power that they don’t realize, the power that comes from the kind of unfiltered honesty that only the young have. Grandparents have it too, but there’s is often tainted by negative life experiences.

These kids very much behave just like my own does, and that in itself made me feel at home. Acceptance and openness. And the dynamic between the two of them was so familiar. They were a delight to spend time with.

We played the table top version of Magic the Gathering, Smash Up, and Spots. I now need to find Spots to play with my nephew. With the exception of at work over the holidays, I don’t get to play a lot of board games and the one I usually do get to play is Patchwork and that is exclusively with my nephew anymore… its pretty much his favorite game, and he kicks my ass at it.

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The Vortex, touted as the “best burgers in Atlanta since 1992” did not disappoint. Their gluten free options for the burgers are limited to having a lettuce wrap, which consists of your burger served on some lettuce, or going bun-less. I went with the lettuce wrap version of the Four Horsemen burger with a side of tater tots and an unsweetened tea. Though they did misunderstand my order initially and brought me a sweet tea which set my head spinning from the sugar in the first couple of sips, they did replace it with unsweetened when I pointed out the error.

At this location there is a comedy club, which we didn’t attend. Admittedly I don’t know if there was a show that night. But maybe someday I’ll catch a show there.

Friends on Ponce is a PIPOC queer space. Coming from Detroit, I have some experiences being in situations where I’m part of the racial minority (even in school), but none of those experiences have ever felt as welcoming as being present in this establishment. The bartender was a riot while being sweet and welcoming, and I didn’t feel anything hostile or unwelcoming from any of the other patrons. Its nice to be able to go into a place and just exist without overt judgement. It was a cold night and the bartender blamed the temperature for the low attendance. Based on the pictures on the walls and on the site, it looks like the venue hosts drag shows. We were there long enough for Wendy to have a couple of beers and for the 3 of us to play 2 games of pool. Its been a couple of years since I’ve had the opportunity to play, and while I wasn’t really any good before, the lack of recent practice hasn’t done me any favors. In spite of this, Keira and I tied for first place as a result of Wendy scratching on her shot for the 9 ball.

I’ve traveled a lot this year, almost more than I have the rest of my life (if I’m only counting air travel and automobile travel outside of the state), so the concept of “home” has gotten blurry. And that hasn’t just been as a result of all the travel, but the fact that one of the things that tied me to the place is no longer a drawing factor. I still have my grown child, my mother, my sister and my nephew that draw me to continue to call Michigan home, but the house I’ve called home for nearly 5 years doesn’t feel like home anymore. Yes, its where my bed is, its where I know where everything is and don’t have to ask about things, its where I have a key and can come and go as I please. But I feel like somewhat of an outsider there.

This visit was a first of its kind experience. But I hope its not one of those once in a lifetime experiences. I’m not ready to go back to the frozen North, even though I brought the cold with me. I’m not ready to dive back into the reality that being home forces on me. But life marches on and I’m called back into mine. There is much still to accomplish, and with the new year starts the timeline to accomplish those things.

The end of any visit is very bittersweet, sadness that it must come to an end, but knowing that the end puts the next visit that much closer. I don’t know when that will be, but I have 4 weeks of vacation to use next year, so I have time to work with.