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I never realized that the Happy Cat was such an anomaly. At least not until last Monday when the producers of Soul of Athens, our guru Brian Storm and I gathered at the multimedia conference room to discuss Soul of Athens. Producers from each section: Creativity, Spirituality, Environment, Characters and Youth updated the team on the status of their most promising stories.

Here was the initial dialogue:

Brian: “How’s it going?”
Producer: “Well it’s practically done (laughs). No…We’re a big step ahead from when you were in Athens last time.”
Brian: “What’s the process now?”
Producer: “I think the key now is that we actually have a plan, which I find very comforting (more laughs).”

Aside from going over the plan in-depth, some light was randomly shed on the miraculous creation called the “drive-through.” Unbeknownst to me, the drive-through is a rare convenience only found in Ohio. New York city-slicker Brian referred to the local drive-throughs as “epically cool,” as we all imagined taxis picking up a six-pack at the drive- through on 5th Avenue.

Most importantly, the topic of the drive-through led us into a thought-provoking discussion on drinking in Athens.

It is no secret that Ohio University has a renowned reputation as one of the greatest party schools in America. And “quite frankly, drinking is a really big thing here,” one producer said. However, the attention that Ohio University has received on the issue is not always desired, specifically by the school’s administration.

The discussion stirred in the group many reactions about why the Soul of Athens cannot cover drinking in Athens, “which seems to be a big story here,” added Brian.

Enter Zach Wise: “Drugs, sex and rock ‘n’ roll? Fine. Drinking? Not so fine.”

I was relieved to know that, PBR aside, footage taken at the Union, as well as my juicy blog entries, would be acceptable by those concerned at Ohio University. In many respects, it’s difficult to deny the presence of such provocative elements when encompassing soul in Athens. To close a blind eye to important issues may lack as much sense as a cement mixer.

But with that said, despite the school’s reputation, many sober people actually do exist. Some are straight edge, some are recovering alcoholics, some have healthier things to do with their time. And their stories juxtaposed to the surroundings, we agreed could make for enlightening visual journalism. Thus, more brainstorming with Brian Storm ensued:

Producer: “If we show a personal story and not speak for the whole of students at Ohio University…people might tolerate it. Plus, the story could give a perspective that would be interesting to hear…”

Whether a new story would come of the debate, we have yet to know, but our minds were brewing like Jackie O’s.

I’m pretty sure Zach Wise just called me a bigger geek than him.

Although, the truth is, you don’t have to be particularly geeky to enjoy the virtual trip, the alternative world, the parallel universe that is Second Life. With Ohio University leading the nation’s universities in development and design in Second Life, it’s natural that the Soul of Athens team would want to delve deeper into the newest wave in the realm of online communities.

Student organizations, community programs and Athens residents can now engage on OU’s virtual campus, where the picturesque environment, from the gate to the bricks, has been re-imagined in a world where anyone can explore it and learn about everything that OU and Athens has to offer.

While I didn’t exactly convey the perks of Second Life to Zach or Ryan Navaroli, it didn’t matter, they were already convinced. Before I knew it Zach was pulling out a notepad and asking for my name. But he didn’t want my First Life name.

“My Second Life name is Meghan Gildea.” I proceeded to spell it out.

As Zach was writing, Ryan chimed in, “My name is Blargo Swindlehurst.” He said it with a smirk, prompting me to explain my lack of creativity.

“I didn’t realize you could pick a fun name when I chose it!”

If most of this post has sounded like complete gibberish, then clearly Second Life needs some explaining.

Simply put, it’s The Sims on crack.

It’s also a little bit of Athens: uninhibited, unpredictable, a place where there are no limits to your imagination, even if it is a tad creepy, at least at first.

Ryan sat back, relaxed, as we discussed ideas for exactly how to approach this project, in a realm almost unknown to most of Athens’ population. Yet, it’s one that would infect them soon enough, we just didn’t know how. As I left, however, I was sure Blargo would come up with an answer.

To learn more about Second Life and how to sign up for a free account go to http://secondlife.com. Just remember, once you pick a name, it’s yours forever. See you in World.

The Knothole Parade on Saturday, April 21, dared to ask the question: How many? How many fire trucks exist in Athens county? How many sirens are needed to make a parade great? How many little leagers can be packed like sardines into the back of a pickup truck?

As I walked up Court Street to meet Sonya Hebert, who was photographing the parade for the Soul of Athens project, I felt an air of anticipation.

“What’s going on?” one woman asked as she waited expectantly on the side of the street. People didn’t necessarily know what was going on, but they were ready to enjoy it. Policemen blocked the streets, much to the chagrin of the Saturday drivers hoping to score a parking spot on Court Street.

I called Sonya as I neared the gathering spot for the parade, hoping to meet up and watch her in action. Then the sirens started. Phones, it seemed, were no longer a communcation option. I wandered along the street searching for a visual of Sonya- though all I knew about her appearance was that she was a girl with a camera. When there was no sign of her, I turned my attention back to the parade.

Like kids in a candy store, the fire truck drivers gleefully pulled their sirens. As I walked, I found myself wondering if there were any trucks left at the fire station in case of an emergency. It seemed that the only thing they would be extinguishing Saturday morning were any hopes Court Street residents had of sleeping in.

A little girl with pigtails covered her ears, unaware of the long-standing tradition of loud parades. To her, it was just noise. To others lined up along the street, it was pomp and circumstance.

After the barrage of fire trucks came the real reason for the parade: the little league teams. Above the crowd, they were free to call out and command attention. One particular exhibitionist took the opportunity to heckle people, myself included, calling out “Crackhead!” every few yards.

Their uniforms shone in the harsh sunlight, and banners with their team name fluttered in the wind as they waved to their families from the truck bed. They were also armed with bags of candy.

“I think the boys are using the candy as target practice,” one woman remarked with a laugh. As I walked by CVS, a girl was pelted in the face with a fairly large box of Dots. Others scrambled to pick up a few pieces of candy without sustaining any personal injuries.

The girls little league teams were also bearing candy, but seemed to be more focused on wowing the crowd with their chants and cheers. “Who’s the hottest team around? We are!” they screamed. Partway through the parade, I faintly saw a girl with a large camera snapping pictures of the teams much further down on the other side of the street. Was it Sonya? I looked up as candy whizzed by my head, and as quickly as she’d appeared, she was gone again, probably following a shot.

As the parade reached end of Court Street, the vehicles began speeding up and the magic of the parade was over. People came out of the trance the sirens put them in, and went back to their normal Saturday activities, be it sleeping, shopping, or playing ball. The candy debris thinned as I left Court Street, but I was still able to follow a candy trail all the way home, picking up a few Smarties and a Tootsie Roll along the way.

It took a chalkboard full of words for me to realize that Athens is, above all, a contradiction.

High on chalk dust and jelly beans, Michael Newman, Julia Marino, Meghan Louttit and I sat in a Scripps Hall and began writing every word about Athens that came to mind. Two themes seemed to emerge from this process: many words with sexual undertones (i.e. seduction, naughty, fertile…the list goes on) and a whole lot of contradictions.

How is it that this place can be both rural and cosmopolitan? Homogenous and diverse? Alive and brave, yet fragile? Its complexity and unpredictability make it all the more intriguing.

Conducting an interview the next day, I brought up these contradictions. Rosalie Romano, a passionate education professor, knew exactly what I meant.

“You must be able to see the beauty of a place like Athens, because it’s not physical,” she said. “The polar pairs mean everything. Nothing with meaning is without an underbelly. The human spirit doesn’t want conformity.”

I won’t try to say it any better, but I will include the complete list of words below.

Athens is: alive, alternative, beat, beatnicks, bohemian, bold, brave, bricks, cityclose-knit, coffee-addicted, controversial, cosmopolitan, creepy, dirty, diverse, edgy, feminist, fertile, fragile, free, friendly, funky, geeky, green, happening, haughty, hippies, home, homogenous, impoverished, intellectuals, liberal, loud, musical, naughty, nocturnal, nostalgic, ominous, outdoorsy, outspoken, picturesque, precarious, preppy, progressive, punk, quirky, restless, retro, rich (culture), rural, safe, skaters, studious, sub-culture, trail, uninhibited, unpredictable, urban, walking

The producer meetings are mix between chaos and organization. Our fearless leader Zach Wise sets out to make sure that each individual issue is covered, but sometimes in a project this large it is impossible to plan for everything. The people that are working on the design and technical side of the Web site sit in on corner and debate over hundreds of different color combinations that might be good for the Web site, while the content producers focus on individual contacts and how specifically each piece is going to come together.
For once we are outside enjoying the spring weather that Athens nearly forgot to give us and this week we are meeting outside. While talking about projects quotes like ‘When I approach it is like I am about to give him bad results form a VD test’ are said as the air is jovial but still poignant.
During this meeting however people are all together and Zach has promised a short meeting. Things on the site are starting the come around although there is still some dispute over what the Soul of Athens really should look like. Projects are starting to be finalized in idea if not execution. It looks like everyone is going to finish the shooting in the next couple of weeks.
Editing is the step after that but we have hardly even started to talk about that. All the producers know is that the final project is supposed to be ‘tight.’ The final pieces are going to be short and entertaining blurbs about what Athens really is.
As for me I know my favorite part about Athens is the weather and finally getting the chance to have a meeting outside is a God sent.
See another 360 image of the group here. (The group especially loves the ghost dog. It was moving too fast for these photographs.)

E-mails with the subject Soul of Athens have been filling my inbox for the last 4 weeks. To keep this project organized and focused the group has started a Basecamp project that allows members to receive e-mails whenever a new message is sent.
Needless to say I have filled my once ‘unlimited’ Gmail account to 30 percent. At first the e-mails were discussing ideas for projects and how the teams would be separated as the projects got underway and slowly turned to more practical like meeting times and more recently polling what people thing of the new design and how to increase Google ranking.
The conversation has been incessantly filling my inbox and through it I have heard some rather interesting things. For example, apparently Max, the programming guru of the group, broke his nose at some point recently. I am sure hilarity ensues and I will make sure he posts the story here.
To tease a little the sections of the Web site are going to include Creative, Spirit, Enviroment and Youth. Each section is going to have a list of ‘characters’ from the community that really describe that part of Athens. For these projects the producers are looking into using video, photography and infographics to try to explain the unique experience in the community.
Personally my favorite part of this project is that it is supposed to introduce new people to the community. Even though the people of the community will be drawn to this project, this project is supposed to get outsiders a peek into real world Athens. As someone who is leaving this very unique community I know I am going to miss this city that is ‘Precariously balanced on the tip of cosmopolitan Appalachia.’

Friday, April 13
1:30 A.M.:

The room was as packed as a fresh box of cigarettes.

DJ Barticus, clad in giant headphones, spinned on stage as the dancing flowed to the steady stream of PBR, Jack and turntables. A hearty night of music in Athens would not be complete without the raw aura of Dance or Die at the Union. And the Soul of Athens was there to capture and breath in all its seductive fumes.

Amid the swaying and socializing, I randomly discovered Soul of Athens multimedia artists Zach Wise and Chris Kelleher as they shot, recorded and soaked in the evening’s soul incognito-style. A mélange of makeout enthusiasts barely seemed to notice as the crew captured each moment. And when they thought no one was looking, I even caught Zach and Chris subtly dancing, but they’d never admit to it. Then again, it might have been the smoke clouding my vision.

Producing content for the “Creative” section of Soul of Athens, the team had previously documented other bars and venues that night until it melodically culminated at the elusive Union – tripod and cameras in hand. Check out the Dance or Die teaser.
Then go to the SoulofAthens.com. on May 28th and check out Athen’s creativity in full.

In a brave new world of multimedia journalism, the award-winning Visual Communication School at Ohio University lead by Brian Storm of MediaStorm.org and Zach Wise of digitalartwork.net dares to ask the question: What is the soul of the 200-year-old community of Athens, Ohio?

Athens soul is restless. Its stories lie beneath the bricks, waiting to be exposed. Precariously balanced on the tip of cosmopolitan Appalachia, its uninhibited subcultures test the bounds of predictability.

Go to soulofathens.com, tell us what you think the soul of athens is. Come back May 28th and see what we discover.