This past Friday, everyone's favorite hometown hero Braves player, Jeff Francoeur, was traded to the New York Mets. Francoeur started strong, hitting a home run his first time up to bat at The Ted, but has struggled to live up to his "first-timer's luck" for the past two seasons. He was recently sent back to the Minors to brush up on his skills, a move his teammates say could have negatively impacted his psyche.

Francouer, letting his local loyalty show, told the AJC, “I never wanted it to happen this way. … You can imagine getting traded, but you never imagine getting traded to your biggest rival.”

Francouer will return to Turner Field on Thursday, bearing his New York colors, as the Braves take on the Mets at 7 p.m..

UGA fans and alums, surely you've all heard about the sad fire a few weeks ago at the beloved Georgia Theater in Athens. This building is an Athens landmark, home to many shows and also the best place to watch the football game on the big screen if you can't score a ticket.

While the walls are still standing, the interior is almost completely destroyed. Not going down without a fight, the team behind the theater is bracing for the long and expensive rebuilding process. To help them out, local Buckhead restaurant The Taco Stand, which also has Athens locations, is holding an Atlanta area benefit concert. This Saturday, July 11, at 7 p.m., head to Taco Stand for live music from Athens bands, raffles, giveaways, and of course beer and tacos. A portion of all sales and raffle tickets will go to the rebuilding to The Georgia Theater.

Three Atlanta chefs will be joining the party as Bravo takes Top Chef to Vegas for the sixth season of this exciting cooking competition. So, which Atlanta culinary talents will be representing us this time around?

Executive Chef Kevin Gillespie of Woodfire Grill, Hector Santiago of Pura Vida and Eli Kirshtein of Eno. Way to represent, greater Midtown area! The new season starts on August 26 at 9 p.m., don't miss it!

I love learning new things about Atlanta - anything from the next big restaurant opening to stories of Atlanta 100 years ago. Today another great local blog, Pecanne Log, provided us with a brief rundown (complete with vintage postcards!) on what used to take place where we now flock to shop at Whole Foods on Ponce de Leon.

This shopping center site is rich in Atlanta history. It used to be a man-made lake with summer homes (Yes, it is right in the middle of the city, but remember, Inman Park is also Atlanta's first "suburb"). It was also home to The Atlanta Crackers baseball team. I knew a bit about them, but never knew where the field was (how could you? Its a shopping mall now!). Back in 1903, it was known as Ponce de Leon Park, "The Coney Island of Atlanta." Sounds like a fun and crazy place!

While I do enjoy being able to find exotic veggies and sushi grade tuna just a few miles from my house, it makes you a little sad to look at a parking lot and think about what an interesting Atlanta landmark it used to be. Check out the post with pictures on Pecanne Log.