SG | Alabama State Fairgrounds, circa 1989. I can’t be sure of the year, but it most likely followed the summer release of Michael Keaton’s Batman because I can be sure of the shoes I wore: purple and white Joker edition converse All-Stars. My brother was in the decidedly hipper Batman edition (black with yellow... Continue Reading →
CG | If you’re a Gen Xer like me, you probably remember the particular joys of creating mix tapes for friends and loved ones. Maybe you were trying to get a song or two with a little extra meaning onto a cassette for someone you had a crush on. Maybe your little brother discovered that he... Continue Reading →
SG | One of the most endearing things about Alabamians is their perception of what a beach should be. Only because, for those lucky enough to have been sheltered from the rest of our nation's beaches, they think that’s just what a beach is. Vast stretches of powder-white sand so fine it squeaks when you... Continue Reading →
SG | I always figured there were things about the South that I liked and would miss if I left. On a college summer trip to England, for example, a friend from Alabama and I became obsessed with turning a pot of hot Earl Grey into something akin to iced sweet tea. That project saw... Continue Reading →
SG| I am fully aware of some habits and traits that are no doubt annoying to my family. I’m good with the toilet seat, and I always put the cap back on the toothpaste tube, but get me in the car and things get iffy. If we cross a state line, there will be honking.... Continue Reading →
SG | Imagine if you will: You're in the middle of a Beach Week and you’re fresh out of beer. You could also use some wine for that lovely spaghetti dinner planned for tomorrow night (you need a break from seafood). You hop in the car and get a good 10 minutes from the rental... Continue Reading →
CG | I’ll be completely honest: I’d never even considered the gardenia as a concept until I heard Dexter Romweber of the Flat Duo Jets inexplicably chanting the words “pink.... gardenia” during ragged breaks in the blazing rockabilly song of the same name. I was led to the Flat Duo Jets by way of the... Continue Reading →
SG | During my last Walmart trip, I found myself staring at a can of boiled peanuts perched on a top shelf in the grocery store-within-a-store. The question was not should I buy these peanuts, but whether to buy the regular or the “Hot & Spicy” variety. I chose the latter, imagining myself cracking the... Continue Reading →
SG | This weekend I spent a solid hour throwing pine straw on the ground. Why wasn’t it on the ground to begin with? you may ask. Well, it was, far away along the sun-dappled rows of some tree farm. Then it was raked and baled, shipped to the hardware store, and delivered to my... Continue Reading →
