Let’s start with the numbers, shall we? Everyone knows that the current economic climate is terrible, but nothing throws an ugly situation into relief like the harsh light of statistics. Youth unemployment rates are at record highs.
Category: Words
Of Owls and Buffalo
In the not too distant past I worked in a downtown office-building food court, and one day as I trudged home from the fluorescent doldrums that filled my day, attempting to get the ringing of Fox News blather out of my ears, I saw a peculiar sight. Perched on the edge of the topmost tier… Continue reading Of Owls and Buffalo
The New Sound of the Shoals
The weight of history hangs heavy in Muscle Shoals. Not many towns as tiny as this Northern Alabama burg have such a strong connection with celebrity past, and the result is that Muscle Shoals’ national identity has been almost completely consumed by events that occurred there many decades ago. I refer, of course, to the… Continue reading The New Sound of the Shoals
For the Love of Music
Birmingham doesn’t do rock stars. We aren’t the next “it” city, and we don’t have a “sound.” People don’t move to Birmingham to get famous and launch their careers. Don’t get me wrong, there’s more great music being produced in Birmingham than most people can imagine. We’ve got a community of bands who are committed,… Continue reading For the Love of Music
Reversing The Lobotomy
The hip-hop community is at war. I’m not talking about the East Coast vs. West Coast battle that resulted in the deaths of Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls. The war I speak of isn’t a war of egos and guns, fought with real hardware and ending in all-too-real results… Read the rest
Bang! Boom!
Fire is fascinating. Even if you are terrified by fire, it holds you in some amount of awe. Fire is the total destroyer, the giver and taker of life, which brought us out of the wild and gave us civilization. I know I’m sounding like a firebug, but I’m sure I wouldn’t be far off… Continue reading Bang! Boom!
Capturing Idols
Here in the good old red-blooded U.S. of A, we love our pop gods, our rock and roll celebrities. In fact, in recent days, we like to eat them alive in a steady diet of reality crap and paparazzi offal. Most of modern celebrity culture is a poorly produced mess of cheap consumerism and will… Continue reading Capturing Idols
B-Metro Storm Updates
SORTING IT OUT: Crews of contractors sent to Madison County by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, including six crews from One Stop Environmental LLC of Birmingham, have begun a sorting process designed to separate harmful materials from the debris. Many homes contain dangerous substances… Read the rest
The Art Of Rebuilding
As we approach the one-month anniversary of the devastating storms of April 27, many victims are still struggling to recover from the damage done to their personal property and emotional well-being. It seems but a moment since our placid sense of security got ripped away, leaving us vulnerable and frightened. Piles of debris still sit… Continue reading The Art Of Rebuilding