Candice Dyer

Dec 9, 2024 | ajc.com | Candice Dyer

That victory dance, on the roof of the world, took chutzpah. After grueling weeks in the cold, thin air of the Himalayas, mountain climbers tend to get punchy. For Atlantan Mimi Zieman, the only woman in a 1988 expedition attempting to summit Mt. Everest, the time seemed right to goof off. So, she donned her tie-dyed tights and tap shoes and did a jaunty little jig. Then she taught the other climbers how to do “jazz hands” in their gloves.

Nov 8, 2024 | ajc.com | Candice Dyer

When an American flag is draped over a military casket, the stars should be positioned over the deceased’s heart. Removing and presenting the flag is a meticulous, two-person job. The veteran at the foot of the casket (the “folder”) starts to fold, one corner over the next, with methodical, Euclidean precision, while another veteran (the “holder”) holds the other end stationary, until they come together in an act of hushed, sacred origami.

Oct 17, 2024 | ajc.com | Candice Dyer

This story was originally published by ArtsATL. For journalist Daniel Pearl, his violin was almost as essential as his notepad. In troubled hot spots around the world, he would whip out his instrument and instigate impromptu jam sessions with strangers, who quickly became friends — and sources. Music proved a universal language that transcended cultural boundaries and helped him land scoops.

Oct 8, 2024 | ajc.com | Candice Dyer |Kimberly Brock

Georgia’s low country has acquired a masterful new fabulist. Kimberly Brock’s sprawling third work of historical fiction earns its evocative title on every page. The marshland, in her hands, fairly thrums with stories that, tended with time and care, add up to heritage. With writing as lush as that generative pluff mud, Brock, who lives in Atlanta, brings the sepia-toned past to vivid life.

Aug 20, 2024 | gardenandgun.com | Candice Dyer |Liv Reilly

What's New “No kid is going to go hungry around me,” says Michael Meaders, who has quietly raised thousands of dollars for school lunches Sixteen thousand dollars in cash ain’t peanuts, but that is how much the little legume raised for low-income children who could not afford their school lunches in the mountains of North Georgia. Michael Meaders sells them, five bucks a bag, boiled to briny, slick perfection, at Papa Mike’s Peanut and Produce Stand in the town of Cleveland.