Children from all over town would head to Rich's to ride Priscilla. Priscilla was a miniature suspended piggie monorail sized just for kids. The ride would begin under the Great Tree at the rooftop Christmas Village, and would "fly" indoors over the toy department. It would then land in "Santa's Secret Shop" where elves (high schoolers) would check a child's list, collect a few dollars and help the kids pick out small presents for their families -- away from Mom & Dad. They would then load back up into Pricilla and head back to their parents, who were probably snacking on chicken salad in a nearby cafe. This event became so popular, a second pig, Percival, was added to the mix.
These days, and probably many lawyers' opinions later, the monorail was deemed unsafe and too expensive to maintain it's proper safety. The Pink Pigs retired for a while in the Atlanta History Center while Rich's Department Store was purchased by Macy's. The monorail is now replaced with a bright pink shiny new piggy train under a giant pink tent located on top of a parking deck at Macy's at Lenox Square Mall. There is also a Giant Tree is displayed at the Lenox Macy's every year.
It used to cost a quarter to ride Priscilla/Percival, now it costs $3 -- with a portion of the proceeds going to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. Every rider receives a sticker, "I Rode The Pink Pig" as did their parents, and grandparents. . . 
Atlanta is also the home of Coca~Cola who owns the most easily recognized Santa face. 
Does anyone know the name of this elf in the above advertisement?
With Coke's headquarters here, we have a few Santa Coke billboards popping up this time of year. Santa also pops up unexpectedly at the Georgia Aquarium -- and I'm thinking the kids may be a little freaked out.
Sometimes our weather here doesn't "feel" like Christmas to those of us who are transplants here in the south. However, the beautiful tree in Atlantic Station (one of our work-live-play communities) . . .
. . . and downtown office buildings . . .
. . . keep us in touch with the holiday season.
I work in the area of Buckhead, and am in within 4 - 6 blocks of Phipps Plaza and Lenox Mall (now home of the Great Tree at Macy's) - which are two shopping malls practically across the street from each other. Needless to say, if anyone has visited Atlanta, it takes more than a little while to fight traffic after work in this area at this time of year.
However, I am very lucky to have a "living room" away from home that looks like this, where I can gather my thoughts, blog to the world, and work on my Christmas/shopping lists after work. . . .
all the while gazing at this sculpture, which is pretty much equal in height to Misty.
Palapala'ainaDeborah Butterfield
San Diego, California 1949
Deborah Butterfield's sculptural forms are based on her unique subject, horses. Building her sculptures with no preliminary sketches or maquettes, Butterfield constructs works directly with wood pieces or found metal scraps. The freestanding sculptures are created in both life size works and smaller bronzes.
"My work is not so overtly about movement. My horses' gestures are realy quite quiet, because real horses move so much better than I could pretend to make things move. For the pieces I make, the gesture is really more within the body, it's like an internalized gesture, which is more about the content, the state of mind or of being at a given instant. And so it's more like a painting ...the gesture and the movement is all pretty much contained within the body."
"Butterfield builds her horses from the inside out. Though quietly reflective, her works -- all horses -- are vital, spirited, ultimately grand. The artist finds in the arch and curve of muscle and bone the essence of equine elegance." William U. Eiland, Director, Georgia Museum of Art
I wish I could find a translation for "Palapala'aina."
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