Looking back, I spent around 3 years after college in that home working remotely and venturing around the South. Unlike a lot of other Asians I've met with a Southern arc (which have been surprisingly numerous), I was very fortunate to have experienced nothing but Southern hospitality in its purest form during my time there. Whether it was Amber telling me to floss more, or Joy from BodyPlex greeting me at 6am every morning, Georgia felt like one of the kindest places I've ever lived — not that New Jersey set a very high bar.

There were a few instances of "not used to seeing your kind around here", and people saying "감사합니다" to me for holding the door, but these didn't carry any ill intent. After breaking through the playful racial misunderstandings and the temporary awkwardness that usually followed, these conversations felt really authentic and full of human touch, something that I now rarely see in conversations in San Francisco.

Atlanta has quite a few landmarks. The aquarium¹ with the massive whale shark bathtub sponsored by Home Depot is a big one, and the Coca-Cola factory² with the disgustingly sticky floors across is just as obnoxious. My favorite however, was always the Atlanta Botanical Garden³. Whenever I was stressed out from work, I would drive an hour out through torturous traffic just to walk around the garden and take photos. I appreciated how every time I went, it looked slightly different, and I probably did too.

I was only back for a few days, with most of the hours occupied by packing, so I only had time for one day trip. I decided to visit the botanical garden³ one last time.

To all the Georgians I've met and may never see again — stay safe out there.

[Open Memories]

I don't expect this to outlive me very long. Likely that I'll lose this domain when autopay finally gives out, or Netlify decides to start charging me money.

Everything is mortal on subscriptions. Happy Valentine's.