[Editor’s Note: One of the delights of working at Flagpole is having a new writer show up with an idea so compelling that we’re forced to find room for it. Robin Whetstone recently emailed us with her suggestion for a series called “WTH? Athens,” and it starts in this issue as an occasional piece that we think you’ll enjoy. Here’s how it came about.]

I've lived in Athens for seven years and have spent most of this time driving around wondering, "What the hell?" For example: What the hell is up with the vacant lot next to Mama's Boy? Is that a homemade tank parked there? What the hell is the story with that house out towards Watkinsville? Why so many lawn ornaments and windchimes? Do elves live there? Why the hell does that woman who lives over by Chicopee have 27 tiny crosses in her front yard? Has she had really bad luck with a string of pet hamsters, or is it something more sinister? What the hell is the deal with George, that guy downtown who rolls around in his wheelchair and sells stories of Athens' history written in a suspiciously child-like hand? Does he really write them himself, or does he have an eighth-grade honors student on retainer?

Finally, I got tired of wondering and decided just to ask. Knowing the answers to little mysteries like these makes Athens a richer, more interesting place to live and reveals a community full of quirky passions and untold stories. I thought that perhaps your readers would be interested in these stories, too…

Signs and Wonders

You're sitting at Milledge and Lumpkin, snarled in 7:45 a.m. traffic, wishing you'd left a little earlier so you could pull into Jittery Joe's for a large dark, and suddenly you see it. The slightly goofy, totally affable face of that Realtor Guy with the made-up-sounding name. His fist is raised; his bald head gleams. The light finally changes, and the cars behind you honk, but you don't care. Because today that Realtor Guy is not trying to convince you to call him so he can sell you a condo. No. Right now that Realtor Guy is selling you one thing and one thing only: the chance to "Be Great Today."

"I will," you think, forgetting to swear at the pedestrians ambling across Lumpkin and eating up your green light. "By gum, I WILL be great today."

OK, so maybe one upbeat billboard won't change your whole outlook. That's why Reign Streiter, local Athens Realtor, has purchased 20 of them. Now, no matter where you go in the Athens area, there's a good chance you'll get a dose of Reign's optimism, like it or not. I wondered what would motivate a busy professional to spend his own money demanding greatness from strangers, so I called him and asked. It turns out “Be Great Today” is an expression he's known for among his friends, and one he thought would benefit everyone in Athens.

"I try to stay positive," explains Streiter, "and remember that our glass is 90 percent full. People in other places have massive problems. If your only complaint is that someone's not turning right on red, you've got it made."

Bar patrons in particular seem to appreciate the gesture. Reign reports that many drinkers, busy making their days great, raise their fists and ask to pose for pictures when they see him out on the town. His wife and kids are sometimes exasperated by all the attention, but Streiter takes it in stride. "I'm used to it," he says modestly.

Reign asserts that his one-man campaign is a hit with the public, and that he regularly gets messages from strangers thanking him for the boost. Sadly, though, not everyone appreciates the peppy realtor. "One client fired me when the signs came out. He said, 'You need to spend less time telling me to be great today and more time selling my house.'"

Reign is undeterred by Athenians who are content with merely passable days, however, and plans to update the signs in the next few months with other supportive messages. And though some might write Reign off as a delusional, hairless Polyanna, in today's tough housing market it takes determination for a realtor to look on the bright side. If he can be great today, maybe we all can.