Man Listen… You Live Here. Act Like It.

I have met too many people who have lived in Atlanta for three, five, seven years and have not done half of what this city has to offer. They go to the same three restaurants. They stay in the same two neighborhoods. They miss the Jazz Festival every year because they keep thinking there's going to be another opportunity.

There is always another opportunity. And then one day you move away, or the thing closes, or the season ends, and you realize you were living in one of the most extraordinary cities in the country and you left things on the table.

Not anymore. Here is your list. Start working through it.

Food & Drink

1. Eat the fried chicken at Busy Bee Café on a Sunday after church. 2. Get the Ghetto Burger at Ann's Snack Bar and understand immediately why people drive from other states for it. 3. Have brunch at Twisted Soul and order the shrimp and grits without compromise. 4. Try a full vegan meal at Slutty Vegan and be genuinely surprised by yourself. 5. Attend a Sunday dinner popup from one of Atlanta's Black culinary underground chefs. 6. Eat at one spot in the Sweet Auburn Curb Market. 7. Have one drink at the Sundial Bar and Restaurant at the top of the Westin Peachtree Plaza and watch the city turn below you.

Culture & History

8. Walk the full Auburn Avenue historic district and read every historical marker. 9. Visit the MLK National Historic Site including the birth home and Ebenezer Baptist Church. 10. Attend a concert at the Fox Theatre and appreciate that the building is as much of the experience as the performance. 11. Walk through the National Center for Civil and Human Rights and give yourself a full afternoon. 12. Visit Hammonds House Museum — Atlanta's only dedicated museum of African American art. 13. Attend a performance at the Alliance Theatre. 14. Spend a Saturday morning at the Krog Street Market and talk to at least one vendor about their business.

Outdoor Atlanta

15. Walk the entire Eastside Beltline Trail from Piedmont Park to Reynoldstown. 16. Watch the sunrise from Stone Mountain. Yes, the history is complicated. The view is extraordinary. Hold both. 17. Kayak on the Chattahoochee River and remember that Atlanta has a river. 18. Have a picnic in Piedmont Park on a perfect spring afternoon. 19. Catch the Atlanta Botanical Garden at night during one of their illuminated events.

Events & Nightlife

20. Attend ONE Musicfest at least once. 21. Go to the Atlanta Jazz Festival on Memorial Day Weekend. Free. Perfect. Go. 22. Attend an AUC Homecoming event, alumni or not. 23. See a show at the Tabernacle and remember why live music is irreplaceable. 24. Attend one Atlanta Hawks game at State Farm Arena and experience Atlanta's NBA atmosphere. 25. Go to a day party in April or May when Atlanta's outdoor season begins and the whole city comes alive.

Community & Growth

26. Volunteer with a Black-led organization doing work in Atlanta's communities. 27. Attend one Atlanta City Council meeting or community planning session. 28. Mentor one young person from Atlanta's public school system. 29. Shop for a full week exclusively at Black-owned businesses and track where your money goes. 30. Have the conversation you've been avoiding — with your financial advisor, your doctor, or yourself — about where you're going and what you're building.

Atlanta is waiting. It has been waiting for you to show up fully. You've got the list. Now go live it.