Posted: Jan 06 2017 09:32AM EST
Updated: Jan 06 2017 10:49AM EST
ATLANTA – The city of Atlanta is preparing for wintry weather this weekend.
„We take advanced storm planning very seriously,“ Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed said at a news briefing Friday morning.
Mayor Reed, along with other city officials, talked about the city’s preparations and offered recommendations to ensure the safety of Atlanta’s residents.
APP USERS: Watch Mayor Reed’s news conference
„We have 100 pieces of equipment that are ready to move into action once the city has been cleared,“ Reed said. „It is critical that we maintain the safety of our roadways. “
The 100 pieces of equipment include 40 snow plows.
Two thousand tons of salt and 10,000 gallons of salt brine will be dispersed.
„We expect road conditions to turn hazardous this evening and remain that way through Sunday,“ Reed said. „Once the snow starts falling, the Department of Public Works will ensure priority roads are passable. “
In order to ensure the city remains safe, Mayor Reed is asking for everyone to participate in staggered departures. City of Atlanta schools will begin releasing students at 11:30 a.m., which is also the time parents are being asked to pick up their children. Private sector employees within the city are being asked to leave work at 12:30 p.m. Non-essential employees should be home by 4 p.m.
Click here for a complete list of weather closings
Chief E. Shields, „We are prepared. The joint operations center will be open starting today at 4pm. “ #winter2017 pic.twitter.com/sD7Mm4HF41
At the news conference, Reed urged residents to secure adequate food and fuel, recommending residents have three days worth of food as well as water.
„It’s critical to stay well informed and help keep tabs on our children, sick and the elderly. “
Winter weather coverage: Depend on the FOX 5 Storm Team
Mayor Reed said he will be tweeting and sharing updates on Facebook throughout the day to help keep residents informed. He also suggested anyone who lives in the region utilize the city’s emergency notification system “ Notify ATL. “
„This is a very serious weather event,“ Mayor Reed said. „This is a very significant storm. „

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Few among rock and soul’s elder statesmen have been as uncompromising and creatively prolific as Van Morrison. The Belfast-born singer-songwriter has taken sabbaticals in his career, but always bounced back with a new outlook or direction for his iconoclastic, organic and often transcendent music. Morrison released his latest album, Keep Me Singing , in September to critical acclaim and a No. 9 debut on Billboard ’s album chart. He returns to the U. S. for five shows this month, including two in Las Vegas, after a year that started with his being knighted by Prince Charles before performing a steady stream of dates in the U. S. and U. K.
Morrison ended most of those shows with “Gloria,” the 1964 classic he wrote as the singer for Them, but that’s been the only consistent aspect of his marathon concerts. A 40-song repertoire enables him to frequently switch up set lists, which this fall often included songs from Keep Me Singing such as “The Pen Is Mightier than the Sword,” “Memory Lane” and the title track. It doesn’t take much motivation to keep Sir Van Morrison singing, though. As he told the Prince of Wales in February, he’s far from ready to retire. His voice is still a force of nature, having lost none of its Northern Irish soul power as it graciously ages.
While Morrison prefers that fans and critics pay attention to his most recent original work, he’s well into an appreciation phase of his career. Last year, he revisited his songs with artists such as George Benson, Michael Bublé and Steve Winwood for the album Duets: Re-working the Catalogue. A collection of his lyrics, Lit Up Inside , was published (by City Lights Books in the U. S.) in 2014. “You put your own meaning on it, don’t you? I mean, that’s what it’s about,” he told an interviewer in a promotional film for the book. “It’s different things to different people, and it could mean stuff to me later on that I didn’t mean in the beginning. And when I perform them, they’re changing all the time. They have different meanings when they’re done live.”
That’s apparent to fans who heard Morrison’s latest live renditions of songs such as “Someone Like You” or “Have I Told You Lately,” or the recently remastered version of his 1974 live album It’s Too Late to Stop Now. He’s a restless spirit, always searching for the transcendental moment in music that he first found as a boy discovering his father’s extensive, eclectic record collection. Morrison was a professional musician long before he scored hits such as “Here Comes the Night” and “Baby Please Don’t Go” with Them, and followed his own muse through 36 studio albums since debuting as a solo artist with his meditative 1968 classic album Astral Weeks.
He may have a reputation for being mercurial, but reviews of recent U. K. shows have been glowing. Manchester Evening News compared his voice to a fine Bordeaux, while the Nottingham Post praised him for overcoming an apparent cold to sing with “explosions of primal power.” Performing, said Morrison in the Lit Up Inside interview, is acting. “It’s a bit like if you’re in a theater and somebody’s doing a play. So what I’m doing is basically a form of psychodrama, but actually through music.”
Caesars Palace, 8 p.m. Jan. 13-14, $56.50-$257 plus tax and fee. 866.320.9763

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Celebration Singers of Asheville will honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in a concert on Sunday, January 15, 2017, at First Congregational Church, 20 Oak St., downtown Asheville at 4:00 p.m. Admission is free (donations are appreciated at the door.) The youth chorus will perform with piano and flute accompaniment songs by Andrea Ramsey, Edward Elgar, Stephen Hatfield, Bob Chilcott, and a group of African songs and spirituals with readings honoring Dr. King. One special song for this concert is I DREAM A WORLD by Dr. Andre J. Thomas based on the poem by Langston Hughes.
Celebration Singers (now in its 10th year) is a non-profit educational charity established to provide music education and performing opportunities for youth 2nd grade through high school. They have performed with Asheville Choral Society, Asheville Lyric Opera, Modern American Music Project, Carnegie Hall and New Orleans, as well as festivals in North Carolina.
Founded in 2007 by Ginger Haselden, Artistic Director, this group of auditioned and talented singers will be featured at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast on Saturday, January 14th.
Celebration Singers of Asheville will also be performing at the:
MLK Prayer Breakfast
Saturday, January 14
8:00 am
Crowne Plaza
&
February 14, 2016
Singing Valentine Serenades & Roses
Delivered to your door!
Fundraiser

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(CNN) New year, new Ed Sheeran.
Cause I’ve been away for a bit here’s two singles rather than one – Castle On The Hill & Shape Of You https://t.co/QuZMnEhS8P pic.twitter.com/VCznN8nLd4
CRYING