Georgia Magazine - February 2021 - 4

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Comments from our readers * Compiled by Jennifer J. Hewett

Observing the night sky
Your article [about places to view the night sky] in the August 2020 Georgia
Magazine was very good and well-written. [See " Eye in the sky, " page 24; bit.ly/
eyesky820.] The night sky is beautiful and something to really look at, [no matter] if a
person is a novice, amateur or professional astronomer. There is always something
interesting to look at every night. It is just too bad the night sky today is not what it was
in Middle Georgia up to the 1990s.
I used to have an observatory in my backyard that housed a 6-inch reflector
telescope. I would stay out until 1 or 2 a.m. taking photos or
trying to see an object I've never seen before. Sometimes I
would be out all night long just to watch a lunar eclipse and
MAGAZINE
take photos.
Then progress moved from Warner Robins out toward
Centerville, with the car lots, shopping malls, restaurants
and more powerful streetlights. When the humidity reaches
60 percent, light pollution causes the whole sky around
Centerville, Warner Robins, Byron and Perry to be lit up.
In the face of progress, I closed down my observatory
and made a storage shed out of it. I still have a telescope, and
on low-humidity, clear and cool nights I have seen through
the rings of Saturn and the bands on Jupiter with its four
brightest moons. Only the brightest of meteor showers can be seen; as many as 50 an
hour could possibly be seen if it wasn't for light pollution.
Yes, the best way to see the night sky is to travel to an observatory out in the woods
away from light pollution or to a dark place with open visibility to the sky. Thank you
for an interesting story about the observatories of Georgia. Good reading material.
-Danny Pickens, Centerville

Georgia
Celebrating the Georgia lifestyle

GEMC

Addressing the
connectivity gap
page 12

Tips for attracting
hummingbirds
page 27

AUGUST 2020

GEORGIA MAGAZINE

page 24

Georgia's hometown
orchestras
page 20

Recipes for
summer's bounty

www.georgiamagazine.org

01_Cover_0820.indd 6

page 30

7/13/20 10:40 AM

We have a winner!
I was the reader whose picture was chosen for the " Picture this? " contest in the
October 2020 issue. Thank you for the $25 Target gift card!
I love reading this magazine each month. My bride, Cheryl Johnson, was with me
when we took the [featured] picture. Thanks again!
-Mark S. Johnson, via Facebook

Georgia Magazine would like to pay tribute to
renowned author Terry Kay, who died at his
Athens home on Dec. 12 after a battle with liver
cancer. Though he is best known for his novel " To
Dance With the White Dog, " Kay also was a longtime champion of rural electrification and electric
membership cooperatives. He served as senior
vice president of corporate affairs at Tucker-based
Oglethorpe Power Corp. from 1974 to 1989 and
served on Georgia Magazine's Advisory Board in
2005-06. His first novel, " The Year the Lights Came On, " told the story of the
dawn of electricity in a rural Southern town and drew on his memories of
growing up in Hart County. Among his many honors were induction into the
Georgia Writers Hall of Fame in 2006.

BETH MCMILLAN

In memoriam

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Georgia Magazine

February 2021

From THE EDITOR
February is traditionally the
month for romance, so in this issue
we celebrate an important aspect of
romantic involvement: weddings.
Couples have a lot to consider when
planning their big day, and the pandemic has added a whole new list of
concerns.
One trend that has emerged is the
scaled-down wedding. Small enough to
comply with crowd-size limits and
enable social distancing, these events
allow couples to tie the knot responsibly. Luckily, Georgia has a wealth of
wedding venues for those looking for a
more intimate setting. See " Goin' to the
chapel, " starting on page 24, to find out
more about these charming locales.
And the venue isn't the only big
decision when planning a wedding; ask
any bride and she'll likely tell you that
the dress is the most important thing.
Choosing a wedding dress can be
fraught with emotion, as childhood
dreams clash with the realities of personal style and budget considerations.
No one knows this better than Lori
Allen, owner of Bridals by Lori in Sandy
Springs and co-host of TLC's " Say Yes to
the Dress: Atlanta. " During the 40 years
that Allen has owned her shop, she has
dealt with brides of every stripe. Yet
she'll be quick to tell you that her greatest challenges have been her battles
with cancer and injuries sustained
while on set.
Turn to " Saying 'yes' to the future, "
starting on page 14, to discover how
Allen has met these challenges and set
the stage for a new chapter in her life.
February is also Black History
Month, and on page 16 we celebrate
one of the unsung African American
artists of the 20th century. The son of
former slaves, Roland Hayes achieved
international fame as a concert vocalist.
Read " Remembering Roland Hayes " to
learn more about this underappreciated genius.
Enjoy!

Laurel George
Editor

http://bit.ly/eyesky820 http://bit.ly/eyesky820 http://www.georgiamagazine.org

Georgia Magazine - February 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Georgia Magazine - February 2021