The plight of the stark, lo-fi troubadour is not an easy one. In a post-Bright Eyes, post-Mountain Goats world, indie rock has seen just about every riveting trick one lonely man with a guitar can get away with &#151; as well as the ones he can&#146;t. But when BEN TRICKEY strums and sings about the dark, emotional side of life as an imperfect man, you believe him. The characters and narratives in his songs resonate with somber timelessness, scorched tones and dirty production qualities that add depth to his frail and frazzled arrangements. www.bentrickey.com. less...

Best local vocalist BOA Award Winner

Caroline Engel

http://www.myspace.com/carolineandtheramblers1

Runner-up
Abby Wren
www.nerdparade.net

Best lounge BOA Award Winner

Clermont Lounge

Runner-up
Halo
817 W. Peachtree St. #E100, 404-962-7333, www.halolounge.com

Best outdoor music venue BOA Award Winner

Chastain Park Amphitheatre

Runner-up
Aaron's Amphitheatre at Lakewood
2002 Lakewood Way, 404-443-5000, www.livenation.com

Best place to hear local music BOA Award Winner

The Earl

Runner-up
Eddie's Attic
515-B N. McDonough St., Decatur, 404-377-4976, www.eddiesattic.com

Best sign that you can't keep a good music scene down BOA Award Winner

CLOSED: Star Community Bar

Runner-up
Eddie's Attic
515-B N. McDonough St., Decatur, 404-377-4976, www.eddiesattic.com

Best affordable day care BOA Award Winner

Haygood Weekday Children's Ministries Preschool and Child Development Center

Runner-up
Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta
5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, 678-812-4000, atlantajcc.org

Best bizarro local news story BOA Award Winner

Pamela Graf

Best bizarro local news story BOA Award Winner

Parking deck collapse

Runner-up
Bestiality with a dog

Best down-to-Earth place in Atlanta BOA Award Winner

Little Five Points

Intown Atlanta's renaissance was a welcome change, but it posed a conundrum for some neighborhoods: As newcomers settled in, the urban villages began the slow brewing process of finding their identity. Thank God that LITTLE FIVE POINTS doesn't care if it has a cohesive one. Though best known as the go-to &#146;hood for music, brews and tattoos, it&#146;s also one of the most homegrown hamlets in Atlanta: Next to Virginia-Highland, no other intown neighborhood offers more independent businesses (community-owned credit union, anyone?). Through white flight and gentrification, L5P has been a welcome reprieve from the plastic Buckhead and the quick-built Atlantic Station. You can nurse (or pound) a beer at Corner Tavern or the Euclid Avenue Yacht Club, or you can stop by for an impromptu concert at Criminal Records. Undeniably, home prices have gone up, but the well-inked and laissez-faire vibe remains the same. Euclid and Moreland avenues. www.l5p.com. less...

Best down-to-earth place in Atlanta BOA Award Winner

Decatur

www.decaturga.com

Runner-up
Little Five Points

Best jogging path BOA Award Winner

Freedom Parkway Trail

Runner-up
Silver Comet Trail
Lake Road and Mavell Road, 404-875-7284, www.pathfoundation.org

Best local athlete BOA Award Winner

Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons

Runner-up
Chipper Jones

Best marching band BOA Award Winner

Seed and Feed Marching Abominable

Runner-up
Grady High School
929 Charles Allen Drive, 404-802-3001, www.gradyhighschool.org

Best morning drive-time show BOA Award Winner

Q100

Runner-up
"Morning Edition" (90.1 WABE-FM)
www.pba.org/

Best muckraker in lean media times BOA Award Winner

Jim Walls

The prediction is that online &#147;citizen journalists&#148; will one day replace daily newspapers. There could be something to that if there were more free-range Internet scribes like JIM WALLS, the admitted &#147;ink-stained wretch&#148; behind Atlanta Unfiltered. Having overseen the AJC&#146;s investigative reporting unit for 12 years until taking a buyout in 2008, Walls is the master of the public records search. Since launching his site in late March, he&#146;s beaten his old employer on several news stories, including the messy firing of DeKalb Police Chief Terrell Bolton; an illegal attempt by the state Public Service Commission to switch chairmen; and a costly legal malpractice decision against a DeKalb state lawmaker. We&#146;re not sure how Walls makes a living, but having a guy like him on the beat is a benefit to us all. www.atlantaunfiltered.com. less...

Best neighborhood for nightlife BOA Award Winner

East Atlanta

eaca.net

Runner-up
Virginia-Highland
www.virginiahighland.com

Best place to ride your bike BOA Award Winner

Silver Comet Trail

Runner-up
Freedom Park
1500 Clifton Terrace N.E., 404-817-6813, www.freedompark.org

Best posh preschool BOA Award Winner

Riverstone Montessori Academy

Runner-up
Paideia
1509 Ponce de Leon Ave., 404-377-3491, www.paideiaschool.org

Best street character BOA Award Winner

Baton Bob

www.batonbob.com

Runner-up
Bicycle shorts man

Best tree to climb BOA Award Winner

Piedmont Park

Runner-up
Decatur Recreation Center
231 Sycamore St., Decatur, 404-377-0494, www.decaturga.com

Best antique store BOA Award Winner

Kudzu Antique Market

Runner-up
Paris on Ponce
716 Ponce de Leon Place, 404-249-9965, parisonponce.com

Best approachable bling BOA Award Winner

Solomon Brothers Fine Jewelry

Anyone who&#146;s ever shopped for diamonds knows about the four C&#146;s: cut, clarity, carat and color. But what about the long-lost fifth C: cost. Can a material girl on a budget ever catch a break? At SOLOMON BROTHERS FINE JEWELRY, the answer is yes. The staid showroom, hidden away on the 17th floor of a Buckhead high-rise, is far from intimidating, and Solomon&#146;s staff is friendly, not pushy. Best of all, you&#146;ll get a quality piece of sparkle for a totally fair price. 3340 Peachtree Road. 404-537-2859. www.solomonbrothers.com. less...

Best Asian food market BOA Award Winner

Super H-Mart

Runner-up
Buford Highway Farmer's Market
5600 Buford Highway, Doraville, 770-455-0770

Best colonic BOA Award Winner

Nile Wellness Center

Runner-up
Midtown Wellness Center
117 Fifth St., Suite 1, 404-347-9444, www.midtownatlantawellness.com

Best drag wear BOA Award Winner

Junkman's Daughter

Runner-up
Psycho Sisters Consignment Boutique
428 Moreland Ave., 404-523-0100, www.psychosistersshops.com
And other metro Atlanta locations.

Best florist BOA Award Winner

J Patrick Designs

Runner-up
Candler Park Flower Mart
1395 McLendon Ave., 404-522-0005, www.candlerparkflowers.com

Best furniture for trust fund babies BOA Award Winner

Room & Board

Runner-up
Roche Bobois
3400 Around Lenox Road, Suite 204-205, 404-467-1900, www.roche-bobois.com

Best gamers shop BOA Award Winner

GameStop

And other metro Atlanta locations.

Runner-up
Oxford Comics and Games
2855 Piedmont Road, 404-233-8682

Best head shop BOA Award Winner

Forty Two Degrees South

Runner-up
Junkman's Daughter
464 Moreland Ave., 404-577-3188, www.myspace.com/junkmansdaughteratlanta

Best health food store BOA Award Winner

Sevananda Natural Foods Market

Runner-up
Whole Foods
650 Ponce de Leon Ave., 404-853-1681, www.wholefoods.com
And other metro Atlanta locations.

Best hip men’s clothing store BOA Award Winner

Boy Next Door Menswear

Runner-up
Urban Outfitters
3393 Peachtree Road, #2241-A, 404-264-8849
1061 Ponce de Leon Ave., 404-541-9256
www.urbn.com

Best independent bookstore BOA Award Winner

A Cappella Books

Runner-up
Outwrite Bookstore and Coffeehouse
991 Piedmont Ave., 404-607-0082, www.outwritebooks.com

Best kids' clothing BOA Award Winner

Wiggle

Runner-up
Gymboree
3393 Peachtree Road, 404-846-8707, www.gymboree.com
And other metro Atlanta locations.

Best local clothing designer BOA Award Winner

Bill Hallman Original

Runner-up
Michael Knight

Best martial arts studio BOA Award Winner

Unit 2 Fitness

Runner-up
Atlanta Kick
764 Miami Circle, Suite 204 and 206, 404-352-1140, www.atlantakick.com

Best massage therapist BOA Award Winner

Sweet Earth Therapeutic Massage

Runner-up
Robert Joiner

Best maternity store BOA Award Winner

A Pea in the Pod

Runner-up
Izzy Maternity
2385 Peachtree Road, #A2cd, 404-949-0222, www.izzymaternityclothes.com

Best nail salon BOA Award Winner

Jazmin Spa - Little Five Points

And other metro Atlanta locations.

Runner-up
Nail Talk & Tan
62 Fifth St., 404-817-9326, www.nailtalkandspa.com

Best outdoor farmers market BOA Award Winner

Morningside Farmer's Market

Runners-up
Tie
Decatur Organic Farmer's Market
163 Clairemont Ave., Decatur, www.decaturfarmersmarket.com
and
East Atlanta Village Farmer's Market
1231 Glenwood Ave., www.farmeav.com