Lagniappe: October 24 - 30, 2018

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WEEKLY

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LAGNIAPPE

OCTOBER 24, 2018 - OCTOBER 30, 2018 | www.lagniappemobile.com ASHLEY TRICE Co-publisher/Editor atrice@lagniappemobile.com

ROB HOLBERT Co-publisher/Managing Editor rholbert@lagniappemobile.com GABRIEL TYNES Assistant Managing Editor gabe@lagniappemobile.com DALE LIESCH Reporter dale@lagniappemobile.com JASON JOHNSON Reporter jason@lagniappemobile.com

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BAY BRIEFS

Why should he change? The second part in our series on Domestic Violence features an interview with a man accused of abusing his wife.

COMMENTARY

Can we really feel safe is this is the way MPD is handling things?

BUSINESS

Bob Baumhower’s Las Floriditas Latin Americanthemed restaurant will open mid-2019 in the basement of the RSA Trustmark Building.

KEVIN LEE Associate Editor/Arts Editor klee@lagniappemobile.com

CUISINE

ANDY MACDONALD Cuisine Editor fatmansqueeze@comcast.net

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STEPHEN CENTANNI Music Editor scentanni@lagniappemobile.com STEPHANIE POE Copy Editor copy@lagniappemobile.com DANIEL ANDERSON Chief Photographer dan@danandersonphoto.com LAURA MATTEI Art Director www.laurarasmussen.com BROOKE O’DONNELL Advertising Sales Executive brooke@lagniappemobile.com BETH WOOLSEY Advertising Sales Executive bwilliams@lagniappemobile.com DAVID GRAYSON Advertising Sales Executive david@lagniappemobile.com SUZANNE SAWYER Advertising Sales Executive suzanne@lagniappemobile.com

COVER

Mobile City Councilwoman Gina Gregory speaks candidly about her March breast cancer diagnosis and subsequent treatment.

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CONTRIBUTORS: J. Mark Bryant, Asia Frey, Brian Holbert, Randy Kennedy, John Mullen, Lynn Oldshue, Jeff Poor, Ron Sivak, Judy Stout, Tom Ward

ON THE COVER: GINA GREGORY

BY LAGNIAPPE LAGNIAPPE HD Periodicals Permit #17660 (Volume 4, Issue 4) Copyright 2015 is published weekly, 52 issues a year, by Something Extra Publishing, Inc., 704 Government St., Mobile, AL 36604 (P.O. Box 3003 Mobile, AL 36652).

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ARTS

There’s a bowl of creative Halloween treats in Artifice, no costumes required.

MUSIC

STAN ANDERSON Distribution Manager delivery@lagniappemobile.com JACKIE CRUTHIRDS Office Manager legals@lagniappemobile.com

As the weather turns cooler, it’s time to talk about hot sauces.

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Times have changed, but after more than 25 years in the music business, horror-punk band The Independents are still doing their thing.

FILM

Fairhope Film Festival feature “Rodents of Unusual Size,” examines the impact of nutria, an invasive species, on southern Louisiana.

SPORTS

Alabama’s only Spartan Race returns to Saraland next March with a bigger footprint and additional events.

GARDENING

Understanding the wide range of plant adaptation may expand our appreciation for gardening.

STYLE

“Three Not So Ordinary Joes” is Julie Hedgepeth Williams’ story of an unlikely trio who create a literary genre.

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GOING POSTAL

A polio-free planet

Country over party

Editor: What would you think if you woke up on Monday morning with a slight headache and by the end of the week you could not move your legs? This nightmare has recently occurred to clusters of children in Colorado and Minnesota as the Centers for Disease Control reported a mysterious outbreak of acute flaccid myelitis, which mimics symptoms of polio.

Could it happen here? It already has. In 1941, newspapers across Alabama were reporting widespread polio outbreaks statewide. Some simply contracted flu-like symptoms. Others were permanently paralyzed, some died. Why? Polio is a virus that attacks the nervous system. It can be transmitted through direct contact with someone infected with the virus or through contaminated food and water. There is no cure for polio but it can be prevented.

Fortunately, in 1955 Dr. Jonas Salk developed a vaccine which stopped the virus dead in its tracks. In 1979, Rotary, an international service organization, and Mobile area clubs chose to lead the way to eradicate polio around the world and thus help protect all of us. As a result of Rotary’s efforts more than 2.5 billion children have been vaccinated and protected from polio.

Rotary’s World Polio Day is Oct. 24, Dr. Salk’s birthday. This year the Mobile Sunrise Club celebrated the date at their regular club meeting. Members divided into teams and played Jeopardy! with questions about the Rotary International Fund and Polio Plus campaign.

Guests were welcomed and encouraged to participate. Next year the club plans on putting on more special events to raise awareness and support to end this dreaded disease.

How effective has Rotary been? In 1979 there were more than 350,000 polio cases worldwide in more than 100 countries. As of today, only two countries are still reporting cases of the wild polio virus. But we cannot rest until every country gets the all-clear. Teams of doctors, nurses, researchers, analysts and field study personnel must be supported along the way in order to keep polio at bay and ultimately defeat it.

The vaccine itself is very inexpensive because Dr. Salk and those who followed him chose not to get a patent, recognizing this lifesaving discovery was bigger and more beneficial to the world than any paycheck. Salk is a true inspiration of the love he had for his fellow man.

Mobile Rotary Sunrise invites you to join us in “Be the Inspiration,” be a part of history by giving generously to end polio now. The club meets on Wednesday mornings at the Mobile Country Club. Each year the club raises money for the fight against polio and local charities.

Guests are always welcome.

To donate or find out more about Mobile Rotary Sunrise and other local Rotary clubs, go to rotary.org. You, too, can help end polio today.

Editor: I’ve voted for a Republican. Once. I’m about to vote for a Republican again.

So, what in this age of tribalism, when American voters choose a side and pledge their undying loyalty, would make me turn toward the other team? Not what, but who.

In November, when I cast my vote for Alabama House of Representatives District 97, my vote will go to Stephen McNair, Republican candidate for House Seat 97.

“Now, hold on, self-proclaimed feminist and proud tree-hugger, you’re voting for the man?” you might question. “Why would you do that?” you ask in disbelief. The answer is simple: District 97 needs someone who knows what to fight for, when to fight and how to fight. I want someone who is ready to fight tooth and nail for Mobile.

Stephen McNair knows how special District 97 is. He knows our potential. He was raised here, and is a proud graduate of Murphy High School, but don’t vote for him because you want the cannon painted blue and white. Vote for him because he has the stamina to fight the long fights.

In 2009, McNair completed the 2,181 mile long Appalachian Trail, including hiking a 700-mile stretch then a 1,000-mile stretch. To do this, he and his wife, Lila, averaged 20 miles a day. This is the determination I want for us in Montgomery. Rest on your laurels when the job is done, legislators, but not a mile or even an inch sooner.

I want someone with empathy in Montgomery fighting for District 97. Someone who knows our district is a melting pot of socioeconomic circumstances, but remembers we all deserve the opportunity to thrive.

In 2005, as Hurricane Katrina barreled toward the Gulf Coast, McNair was a student at Tulane University. He lost everything in the storm. With no money, no job and plenty of student debt, he turned to FEMA and the Red Cross for food, clothing and shelter. When I asked what that experience taught him, he answered, “When you’re in a Red Cross shelter waiting on your food card so you can eat, you will never look at people the same who need help.”

After working in Arkansas for a few months to regain financial footing, McNair returned to New Orleans, ready to help rebuild his second home. He and Lila stayed for five years. True empathy and perseverance are rare qualities, but McNair has an abundance of both.

As I consider the problems we have in our district — failing public schools, crime and inadequate infrastructure — I am tempted to wring my hands, lament over the job at hand being too tough, too daunting. But then I think, “No. Mobile deserves better than hand-wringing and lamenting.” Doing nothing has not moved us any closer to where we need to be.

We deserve someone who will fight for what is ours and what should be ours. We deserve a representative who will demand that Mobile no longer plays second and third fiddle to Birmingham and Huntsville. We deserve someone who will fight the long fight, the hard fight, the unpopular fight. Stephen McNair is the person for that job.

And if I must abandon my tribe to get us there, so be it.

Andy Falls, Mobile

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Jodie Cain Smith, Mobile

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BAYBRIEF | DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH

Why should he change?

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BY LYNN OLDSHUE

onnie walked into the small interview room in a blue jumpsuit and placed his cuffed and chained hands on the table. He had been in Metro Jail for two weeks on charges of domestic violence: strangulation and suffocation, and domestic violence, second degree — felony charges indicating he intended to cause his victim serious harm. Unsure of when he would be released, he explained why he had been arrested.

Working nights in a bar and days at an asphalt company didn’t leave much time for sleep. Ice (crystal meth) kept him up and Xanax brought him back down. Awake for several days, he saw the calls at 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. on the new phone he’d bought his wife. Under suspicion she’d been unfaithful, something snapped.

“Her body is my temple and she was giving it to someone else,” he said. “I went crazy. I didn’t mean to. I hit her in the jaw and took a box cutter and cut her finger and forehead. I put my hands around her throat, too. I didn’t think it was for that long. She kept saying she didn’t do it, and then she said she did. I just wanted her to tell me the truth.”

They married at 15 and had been together 30 years. She got pregnant; with barely enough money for food and diapers, the drugs began as an escape for him, but eventually took over his life. It got worse 10 years later when he saw his father commit suicide after his mother cheated on him. Ronnie said he beat his wife 14 years ago, but had not done it since.

He cried as he told of his dad beating him and of an uncle molesting him when he was a young boy. Jail had forced him off drugs for two weeks, the longest he’d been clean in 25 years, and he saw his life more clearly.

“I never dealt with any of this,” he said. “I didn’t tell anyone about my dad or my uncle because I didn’t want my wife to think I was weak. How is a man supposed to get help for problems like this?”

It is hard to find abusers who will tell their stories, but counselors say most have deep underlying issues, like Ronnie’s. They wear a mask to charm, disarm and build trust, rarely acknowledging their own need for help. Security and stability come from controlling a submissive partner, not from within. His woman is his property, his “temple,” there to serve and meet his needs. If control and power slip away, he takes action to re-establish his will. For him, total power is holding her life and death in his hands.

Domestic violence is the leading cause of injuries in women. Every nine seconds a woman is assaulted or beaten in the U.S., according to the Partnership Against Domestic Violence.

Each day, more than three women are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends. The men they fall in love with are the biggest threats to their lives. Strangulation, one of Ronnie’s charges, was recently upgraded to a felony in Alabama because it indicates intent to kill. Every domestic violence injury, every death, is a choice made by an abuser.

“Domestic violence is a cycle and a learned behavior for the victim and the abuser, but a perpetrator could stop if he wanted to,” Joan Duncan, prevention education coordinator at Penelope House shelter for victims of domestic violence, said. “It’s not the devil in him, but a mix of insecurity, narcissism and being raised that men ‘wear the pants.’ He is self-centered

bile Police Department and the FBI. On Dec. 1, 2017, an argument over putting away a gun left three boys without a mother in Prichard, and a neighborhood without the woman who cared for those who lived around her.

Jesse Darrington, 18, and two of his younger and has a partner putting his needs first, doing brothers were home the day their mother, Cindy everything his way. Why should he change?”

Darrington, was shot and killed in their kitchen.

Duncan said the victim can get help and get Jesse said the boyfriend was a quiet man and he out, but it is difficult to rehabilitate the abuser who doesn’t believe in a relationship of respect didn’t see much fighting during the five months they dated. and equality. Having no empathy toward his “We are used to gunshots in our neighborpartner or children, there is no reason to give up hood, but it sounded a little too close, like it the entitlements his superior attitude thinks he was inside my house,” Jesse said. “I ran to the deserves. If one victim gets away, he will find door. My brother ran into me from the kitchen another woman and do it all over again. and jumped into the farthest corner of my room “The perpetrators depend on these relationand said mama was shot. I started down the ships for their power and they recognize the hallway and the boyfriend hit the corner and women who will let them have it,” Rhyon pointed the gun our way. I slammed the door Ervin, executive director of The Lighthouse and put the dresser in front of it. After he was shelter in Robertsdale, said. gone, I ran to her, but she was dead. It took “The role of a man is defined as power and control, and you are going to defend your role,” the police six hours to get her off the floor. My she said. “We teach boys the only emotion they brother said she was watching the news and can have is anger — they can’t cry or be scared. told her boyfriend to stop playing with the gun and he shot her for no reason.

This creates men who can’t deal with emo“I was the man of the house and protective tions beyond anger, and society accepts it with of my mom, but I couldn’t protect her from ‘that’s just what men do.’ We have to change him,” Jesse said. the rules.”

Davona Tinsley said she couldn’t protect Victims say abusers use stories of difficult her daughter, Satori Richardson, from abusive childhoods to rationalize their actions, creating men and is now raising her two grandchildren. sympathy and drawing their partners closer. The On July 4, 2014, Richardson’s boyfriend, Jamal traumatic stories explain where the behavior Jackson, stabbed her 32 times, strangled her, came from: he watched his dad knock out his mama’s teeth; he hates women because he hated dropped her in the bathtub and set fire to the apartment they’d moved into three weeks behis mother, who never gave him love and attenfore. Satori’s 4-year-old daughter saw it all and tion; his dad did three tours of duty in Vietnam and treated his sons like they were soldiers, wak- testified in court.

After surviving a murder attempt by another ing them in the middle of the night to beat them. boyfriend the year before, Tinsley thought her “Physical, mental and economic abuse.

Anger, manipulation and infidelity. Perpetrators daughter had found a good man who made her happy. A friend from Richardson’s work said use all of these to control their partner because Jackson drove her to the cemetery a few weeks it works,” Steve Searcy, law enforcement before and told her that is where she was going training coordinator for the Alabama Coalition to be if she didn’t act right.

Against Domestic Violence, said. “Alcohol “There is an epidemic of black men killing and drugs can be triggers, but they are not the black women in Mobile,” said Tinsley, who surprimary reason the offender wants to put his hand on his wife and hear her scream. Violence vived her own abusive relationships. “Why do they think they can take our lives? I am giving Satori a erupts from the cracks created by what he was voice and sharing her story to raise awareness and exposed to and those cracks may only reveal themselves in intimate relationships. Violence is maybe help another woman stay alive.”

Violence against black women and stories how some fractured men survive.” like Jesse’s and Davona’s are why John C. Searcy says the act of violence is hitting the Young, a sergeant with the Mobile Police Dereset button in the cycle of buildup, assault and asking for forgiveness. “They try to be good, but partment, is speaking out for change during his off time. On April 4, 2018, Young walked along violence overtakes them,” he said. “Everything Government Street wearing a sign that read becomes arguable or a flashpoint and it will get “Black Men, Please Put Down Your Guns,” progressively worse. Peer pressure and society with the numbers of black women killed in norms have little effect on fractured men.”

2016, 2017 and 2018.

Searcy, a former domestic violence bureau “There have been 19 black women killed commander with the Montgomery Police by black men in Mobile in the last three years Department, interviewed hundreds of abusand most of those were with guns,” Young said. ers over his 34-year career and says whatever “Where is the outrage? Where are the protests their method of manipulation or violence, it all and demonstrations, or even a hashtag? These comes down to control.

“There is no referee, and if he got away with women aren’t statistics. They are mothers, daughters, sisters and friends. We have to admit pushing and shoving to bring her back in line, this is a problem in our community so we can then the next time he could push it a little farther,” he said. “He may push until he kills her.” fix it.

“More police, jails and government programs There have been 25 domestic violence homicides in Mobile over the last three years, includ- can’t solve what is happening in our families,” ing a 33 percent increase from 2016 to 2017. Of he said. “Men have to be positive role models again. We have to raise our kids to be young men the 25 victims, 40 percent were black females, and young ladies who respect themselves. If we 32 percent were black males, 12 percent were white females and 12 percent were white males. don’t, our problems of violence, drugs, killing (Advocates say some of these homicides against and abuse are going to get worse.”

Counselors agree the best hope for change in men are retaliatory offenses, when the victim abusers is early intervention during childhood takes the law in her own hands and fights back and better examples in the home. against her abuser.) In 2017, 24 percent of the “By the time violence begins, it is difficult 50 murders in Mobile were domestic violence homicides, according to statistics from the Mo- to stop the behavior,” Reed Bechtel, a behavior

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therapist in Fairhope, said. “Lack of meaningful attachments and insecurity can begin as early as three to six months. By the time he learns to be manipulative to get attention and his needs met, it may be too late.”

There are programs for victims and children, but counselors say help for perpetrators is ineffective because the rewards of abusing a partner outweigh the costs of change.

“Penelope House stopped offering intervention programs because the recidivism rate was so high,” Tonie Ann Torrans, executive director of the Penelope House, said. “It is difficult for perpetrators to admit the damage they cause because they minimize and distort their behavior.

They don’t see abuse the same way.”

Clean and in touch with God and himself while in jail, Ronnie admitted to the damage to himself and his family. “I was on the highway to hell and I want to get off. I know I need rehab and have work to do.

“I realized my family means everything and I just want them back and to do good by them,” he said. “I wrote a letter to them from prison to apologize and tell them I love them. It is the first letter I have ever written to them and I should have been writing them letters like this the whole time. I have children and grandbabies. I don’t want to pass this down to them.”

Time will tell if Ronnie truly is repentant and eventually rehabilitated. Searcy says it takes a significant emotional event for a perpetrator to change direction, but a partner leaving or fear of more jail time may do it. The partner and the legal system can set the conditions; the rest is up to him.

“It will take a long time and a lot of work to change,” Searcy said. “He will have to show by actions, not through words, that he wants his family back. That trust will have to be earned.”

Trust, empathy and respect are the opposite of abuse, control and power and these opposing forces can’t exist together in a healthy relationship.

“Love doesn’t hurt, hit, belittle, manipulate, strangle or shoot,” Searcy said.

As awareness of domestic violence inceases and the legal and judicial systems offer more protection for victims and punishment for offenders, the perpetrator remains the unsolvable part of the equation. Entirely responsible for the abuse, he rarely feels the pain. Leaving behind a broken spirit, bruises, scars and blood, he remains unchanged. Holding the gun that will end her life and leave children without a mother, he pulls the trigger anyway.

“We can’t keep letting abusers get away with this and make excuses for them,” Ervin said.

“Women have to speak up against this behavior, press charges and leave. Communities must hold these men accountable for what they do, even if it breaks societal rules.”

Ervin said victims can’t fix their abuser, become good enough to please him or love him through to a better place.

“Odds are, he’s not going to change.”

If you need counseling services, contact Lifelines Counseling Services at 251-602-0909.

If you need domestic violence help, Penelope House is a shelter in Mobile that provides safety and protections for victims of domestic violence and their children. Its 24-hour crisis hotline is 251-342-8994. The Lighthouse is a shelter in Baldwin County and its crisis line is 800-650-6522. You can also call 211 to find the help you need anywhere in Alabama.

As October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, this story is the second in a four-part series. Next week, “A System of Protection.”

BAYBRIEF | MOBILE

Give and take GULFQUEST BOARD ASKS FOR RESTORED FUNDING

BY DALE LIESCH

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llowing GulfQuest Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico to close could have far-reaching financial impacts on the city for years to come, museum board member Richard Weavill warned members of the Mobile City Council Tuesday.

Citing an analysis from attorney Preston Holt, Weavil told councilors that allowing the museum to “go dark” would force the city to pay back a significant portion of a $27 million federal grant used for building construction. He also warned defaulting on the grant’s obligations could also jeopardize grant funding for the revitalization of Broad Street and funding for the proposed bridge over the Mobile River.

Weavill and other board members spoke at Tuesday’s meeting to ask the council to reconsider a roughly $500,000 cut to GulfQuest in the 2019 budget passed at the end of last month.

Councilors defended the move by referring GulfQuest board members back to the initial agreement between the museum and the city, where the board promised to pay for employees and other operating expenses inside the city-owned building.

For the past two years, Mayor Sandy Stimpson has budgeted funding for about half of the museum’s staff, or about nine employees. The council cut that funding this year.

Councilwoman Bess Rich said payroll for the employees, janitorial services and other operations were the responsibility of the museum. She asked the council, board and mayor’s office to get together to renegotiate the agreement.

While councilors seemed willing to work with Stimpson on a budget amendment, they noted it would have to be generated from his office, per the Zoghby Act. Council Vice President Levon Manzie requested City Clerk Lisa Carroll-Lambert write a letter asking Stimpson to bring an amendment forward to address GulfQuest funding.

Councilman Joel Daves accused his colleagues of creating the funding issue at the museum by cutting its budget in half. He said it should not be up to Stimpson alone to fix it.

The strongest rebuke of this plan came from Councilman Fred Richardson, who criticized the racial makeup of the board and where the museum’s employees live. Of the board members who spoke to the council, only former U.S. Attorney Kenyen Brown is AfricanAmerican.

“I’ve told this board more than once I’m not going to keep giving taxpayer money to the board when 54 percent of the people of the city are African-American,” Richardson said.

“When you look at the board, it does not reflect the city. The one African-American member lives in Spanish Fort and you have employees who live in Baldwin County … .”

Richardson said before he could support a budget amendment to restore the museum’s full funding, it would have to increase its minority participation.

Other councilors acknowledged the communication breakdown between the council

and the administration, which led to a number of unintended financial consequences.

Councilman C.J. Small said the cuts were made only after communication with Stimpson failed.

“In defense of a majority of my colleagues, we asked the mayor’s office for funding suggestions before making cuts,” Small said. “A lot of my colleagues didn’t get a response.”

Both Manzie and Councilman John Williams seemed hopeful for the future of GulfQuest and a possible resolution to the funding issue.

Mobile Housing Board agreement The Mobile City Council unanimously passed an agreement with the Mobile Housing Board (MHB) to help the authority with planning and capital in order to get more apartments online. The board will pay the city a total of $198,000 annually in equal monthly installments, according to the agreement. In return, Senior Director of Community Housing and Development Jamie Roberts will help the board develop a master plan and direct capital funds of between $2 million and $3 million to the authority to help make more units move-in ready.

The city would also direct developers interested in working on public housing projects toward housing board properties. The agreement is good for a year and can be re-evaluated by both MHB and the council at that point.

MHB is currently without its top four leadership positions, including an executive director. Former Executive Director Akinola Popoola was fired by the board late last month.

MHB attorney Raymond Bell said the agreement would take some of the scrutiny from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) off the board. MHB is no longer considered troubled by the agency, but it is still in a two-year period of review related to the designation, HUD spokeswoman Gloria Shanahan wrote in an email.

Councilors spent a good portion of a preconference meeting Tuesday debating the merits of the agreement. Councilors with MHB property in their districts had concerns, but ultimately decided the agreement would be better than allowing HUD to take over the board.

Manzie said his main concern with the agreement is the movement westward of public housing residents indigenous to the midtown area.

“I’m concerned,” he said. “I’m going to be watching for anything of this nature that furthers the case for displacement and gentrification.”

Small said he shared Manzie’s concerns.

In the case of competitive tax credits through the Alabama Housing Finance Authority, which many private developers use to build public housing in the state, more points toward the grants are given to developers proposing to place public housing in traditionally higherincome areas rather than in areas that are traditionally considered low-income neighborhoods.

Richardson said his concerns over the agreement stem from its duration. He believes it shouldn’t take a year for MHB to replenish its leadership. He was in favor of a six-month agreement.

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BAYBRIEF | MOBILE COUNTY

‘Premium investment’ MOBILE COUNTY AGREES TO CONTRIBUTE $2.5 MILLION TOWARD USA STADIUM

BY JASON JOHNSON

Photo | Submitted

The University of South Alabama is seeking $75 million from public and private donors to construct an on-campus stadium for its football program to open by the 2020 season.

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obile County will be contributing to the University of South Alabama’s campaign for an oncampus football stadium by putting $2.5 million into an academic center for student athletes.

The contribution will secure the naming rights to the facility, which will be called the Mobile County Center for Academic Success.

Two of three Mobile County Commissioners approved the contribution this week, though all were supportive. In a statement, Commission President Connie Hudson said

the contribution was a “great opportunity to support the student-athletes in all sports at USA.” “The 7,800-square-foot facility provides the resources for student-athletes to excel academically,” she added. “We are proud of our partnership with USA and this investment in education here in Mobile County.”

The contribution is a fraction of the combined $20 million in public money USA initially solicited from the city of Mobile and the county. Currently estimated to cost around $72 million, USA sought a contribution from the

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city to help pay down the debt service on construction.

However, those plans fell apart over the summer after the Mobile City Council rejected a plan submitted by Mayor Sandy Stimpson that would have seen the city contributing $500,000 per year for 20 years in exchange for the university’s help renovating and downsizing Ladd-Peebles Stadium.

Since then, USA has unveiled a major fundraising effort called Get On Campus and is currently offering “investment opportunities” to public and private entities that want to fund specific components of the stadium’s construction.

With its $2.5 million contribution, Mobile County became USA’s largest investor so far.

Despite the fundraising hurdles, USA President Tony Waldrop said the stadium is still on track to open in time for the Jaguars’ 2020 football season.

He said USA remains engaged with other potential investors and hopes the county’s contribution will motivate others.

“I think it’s a positive sign the commissioners have agreed to support this,” Waldrop said following the vote. “This is really supporting the scholar part of the scholar-athlete, and many of those students that will be studying in this facility come from Mobile County.”

USA Athletics Director Joel Erdmann told reporters the center will “centralize all academic support services” in one place and will include space for counselors’ offices, study areas, computer labs, tutoring rooms for individuals and study groups.

While it will be housed in the new football stadium, the Mobile County Center for Academic Success will be open to all of the 400-plus student-athletes in all 17 Division I sports at USA. “It’s a statement about how we value academics in our athletic department,” Erdmann said. “We want to make the proper impression and declare what our priorities are.”

While the contribution will go toward an athletic facility, Commissioner Merceria Ludgood said, “for many students, athletics is their path to higher education and, ultimately, self-sufficiency.”

“USA’s commitment to its student-athletes provides educational opportunities to our entire region and beyond,” Ludgood added. “The county’s contribution is an investment in the young adults who will lead our community.”

Since it launched Aug. 31, USA’s Get on Campus initiative has raised more than $314,000 from 155 donors. Erdmann also encourages all of “Jaguar Nation” to stay informed and engaged with USA’s efforts to build its first oncampus stadium and to support it “at whatever level they can.”

More information about those fundraising efforts can be found at getoncampus.com.

BAYBRIEF | BALDWIN COUNTY

Go your own way LOCAL SCHOOLS CALL FOR REPEAL OF ALABAMA ACCOUNTABILITY ACT

BY JASON JOHNSON

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ast week the Baldwin County School Board formally called on legislators to repeal the Alabama Accountability Act (AAA), and many of the law’s detractors are hoping it could motivate other school systems to do the same.

During an Oct. 18 meeting the board voted 6 to 1 to introduce a resolution that will be delivered to each member of Baldwin County’s legislative delegation urging them to support repeal of the AAA, which has been controversial since passed in 2013. “[It] has now accumulated five years of historical data establishing that it has not served its intended purpose, and instead has caused harm to the financial wellbeing and academic progress of public school systems in Alabama,” the resolution reads.

The AAA is a school flexibility bill allowing students attending “failing public schools,” defined as those scoring in the bottom 6 percent of statewide reading and math scores, to transfer to another nonfailing public or private institution.

It also created a dollar-for-dollar reduction in state tax liability for businesses and individuals who contribute to organizations granting scholarships to students zoned to attend those failing schools — deductions which ultimately divert money from the Education Trust Fund (ETF).

The resolution passed Oct. 18 blames the AAA for the loss of “$137.4 million in direct tax credits” that would have otherwise gone to the ETF and been distributed to schools around the state.

The AAA was primarily written and passed by Republican members of the Legislature. School board member David Tarwater introduced last week’s resolution, and while he was elected as a Republican in 2010, he was recently

censured by the party for publicly endorsing a Democrat.

“It’s purely a voucher system. That’s what it is,” Tarwater said of the AAA. “That bill is stealing money from the children that I represent, and as board members, it’s our responsibility. There’s no way to fix it, and again, we’re asking for this thing to die and to die a quick death.”

Baldwin County is the first school district to publicly call for the repeal of the law, though it is not the only one to be critical of the bill. Officials with the Mobile County Public School System have often criticized the “failing school” label associated with the AAA. However, unlike MCPSS, which had nine failing schools in 2018, Baldwin County has never had one of its schools defined as failing under the AAA. Instead, most board members seemed concerned with money leaving the ETF and going to various private and parochial schools through the AAA. The resolution also notes that “69 percent of [AAA] scholarship recipients were not zoned to attend a ‘failing’ school.” Data collected by the Alabama Department of Revenue, which the law requires scholarship granting organizations (SGOs) to submit quarterly, shows similar numbers.

The Alabama Opportunity Scholarship Fund, the largest SGO in the state, listed 1,545 AAA scholarship recipients in its most recent filings, though only 679 were zoned to a failing school.

More than 160 nonpublic schools in Alabama have received students through the AAA, but only three of those are in Baldwin County. State data indicates only four students attending those schools receive an AAA scholarship.

There’s been more of an impact in Mobile County, where 23 nonpublic schools currently enroll AAA scholar-

ship recipients. According to the state, McGill-Toolen Catholic High School has more AAA students than any other school in Alabama.

The Alabama Opportunity Scholarship Fund currently lists 118 of its scholarship recipients as McGill students — only 64 of whom would otherwise be zoned to attend a failing school. That’s resulted in McGill receiving roughly $207,057 in educational scholarships from the SGO. That does not include students who receive scholarships from other organizations, though those numbers are much smaller. Speaking with Lagniappe, Principal Michelle Haas also noted McGill’s numbers are higher because it’s part of a larger network of local Catholic schools.

“Many of these students come to McGill-Toolen to complete their 9-12 education. Most, if not all, of the students who receive an AAA grant start at one of our [eight] partner schools,” Haas wrote via email. “Our AAA students represent about 10 percent of our enrollment.”

Earlier this week, the Mobile County Board of Education discussed adopting a similar resolution opposing the AAA and asked Superintendent Chresal Threadgill to draft one for the board to consider at a meeting in November.

That’s something opponents of the AAA are hoping other districts will consider as well. In fact, a spokesperson for Baldwin County indicated the resolution the board passed last week is already being disseminated by the School Superintendents Association of Alabama.

However, repealing the AAA could be trickier than passing a resolution.

Sen. Trip Pittman, R-Daphne, was the chairman of the education budget committee when it passed, and though he’s not seeking re-election he supports the AAA and believes others do too.

“I think it would be very shortsighted to just do away with AAA,” Pittman said. “The public school system is strong in Baldwin County, which is a great thing, but it’s better for individuals and families to have choices — especially for those who are stuck in areas of the state where the schools aren’t as good as they are here.”

Not all members of the local school board could agree on the resolution, either. Board member David Cox says he opposed the resolution his colleagues passed last week because believes in school choice and doesn’t believe AAA tax deductions create a financial burden for schools.

“Virtually all of the contractors who pave our roads and build our buildings are private businesses making a profit,” he said. “People say the state doesn’t need to spend tax dollars paying a private company to perform a service, but we do that every day.”

Cox also claimed the AAA is financially beneficial for Baldwin County schools because even if the system loses state funding from student transfers, it still receives federal and local funds for those students.

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BAYBRIEF | MOBILE

Booting the boot

CITY EYES CHANGES TO DOWNTOWN PARKING

BY DALE LIESCH

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towing because it costs less. It’s roughly $100 for a boot and can be upward of $350 for a tow.

“We are not in the towing business,” he said. “We think booting is a better alternative for our customers.”

While they don’t have a license to tow, Lawson said the company recommends towing if a vehicle has been unpaid in a parking lot for 48 hours straight.

“If I had to choose the penalty, I’d choose booting because my car is there and it’s cheaper,” Daves said.

Lawson, whose company has a contract with Premium Parking in Mobile, said they institute a self-regulated A new parking contract will install advanced parking meters with 15-minute grace period between the time the digital system credit card readers and smartphone access. indicates a vehicle owner is in violation and the time a boot is placed on the vehicle.

Charlotte and Tallahassee.

While options besides booting and towing exist for The cost of the new meters, totaling roughly $360,000, would be paid for parking lot companies, Lawson argued they are ineffective. through the life of the contract. In addition to the new meters, Republic would For instance, he said, in California companies write citareplace and improve parking signage. tions but they are rarely paid.

The city would pay a management fee to Republic of almost $2,200 per month or a total of $77,976 over the three years. Republic would also be paid New parking contract an annual incentive fee totaling 8.5 percent of meter revenue.

While the council is looking to possibly change lot Rose said seven companies responded to a request for proposals for a new parking, a new contract with Republic Parking, out of parking contract. Of those, four were interviewed, including Republic and SP Chattanooga, Tennessee, is set to change the way visitors Plus, the current contractor. Rose said he expects the new contract to be revto downtown pay for on-street parking. enue neutral when compared to the current contract.

Chief Procurement Officer Don Rose said the new threeSP Plus has been under contract since about 2000, Rose said. Since 2014, SP year contract would replace 400 existing meters downtown Plus has been working on a month-to-month basis and it was time to re-bid the with advanced meters that take credit cards and link to a contract, he said. smartphone app. The app would allow users to add money The parking enforcement hours will not change, Rose said. They will to a meter even if they are miles from the vehicle. continue enforcement on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The city would “Republic is excellent at embracing new technology,” receive all the revenue from citations, he said, although Republic would handle Rose said. “This contract is meant to improve the parking the issuance of tickets. The contract also allows Republic to set up a parking experience.” website for the city. The website would provide pertinent information related to Republic has agreements with such cities as Baltimore, downtown on-street parking.

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Photo | Lagniappe

he act of temporarily immobilizing illegally parked vehicles in downtown Mobile could be coming to an end, if one City Council member has his way.

Councilman Levon Manzie on Monday introduced an amendment to the city ordinance regulating privately owned parking lots downtown that would ban the act of booting vehicles. He said he asked for the change after taking an “inordinate” number of complaints about “aggressive booting” from restaurant owners and patrons. Manzie pointed to a complaint he received from a downtown restaurant owner complaining that customers from New Orleans were booted after becoming five minutes overdue in a paid parking spot after spending more than $1,000 on dinner.

“Some other cities don’t allow it,” Manzie said of booting. “It’s time for us to do the same.”

Manzie said if a remedy for aggressive booting is not advanced, he fears a push westward for restaurant patrons looking for a better parking situation.

“Downtown restaurants are at a distinct disadvantage,” he argued, adding that he is interested in having a conversation and coming up with a remedy both sides could agree to.

“This issue merits some action from the leadership of Mobile,” he said. “My preference is complete prohibition, but I’m willing to have further discussion.”

Councilman Joel Daves said he feels finding a balance would be the right thing to do.

Council attorney Wanda Cochran suggested towing could be an option for lot owners. But citing difficulty moving trucks in and out of tight spaces, Councilman Bess Rich said towing may not be an available option for everyone.

Chris Lawson of New Orleans-based Admiral Enforcement said booting is a better option for the customer than

BAYBRIEF | BALDWIN COUNTY

The long haul

PROPOSED BALDWIN BOAT LAUNCH RAISES LOGISTICAL QUESTIONS

BY JOHN MULLEN

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arett Myers of Paradise Marine in Gulf Shores said many a boat used to utilize the boat launch at the old Wolf Bay Lodge restaurant on the north end of Wolf Bay, and were headed to the Gulf.

“We used to do most of our deliveries at Wolf Bay [Lodge] at that boat launch,” Myers said.

“As the years went on we started to see so many Paradise trailers for people who now started using that launch on the weekends.”

The County Commission entered a $7.5 million purchase agreement for the property earlier this month and is trying to get Gov. Kay Ivey to release money from the Gulf of Mexico Energy Securities Act leases to build a boat launch west of the Foley Beach Express toll bridge. Part of the process is getting letters of support from local city governments, which Commissioner Chris Elliott said they have received or are close to finalizing.

“Foley passed one and the matter will also be taken up by Gulf Shores and Orange Beach,” Elliott said. “We anticipate support from the mayor of Mobile and the Mobile County Commission to show support across coastal Alabama.”

When it came time for the county to pass a letter of support it passed 3-1, with lame duck Commissioner Frank Burt voting against the letter.

“Most folks with boats wanted a launch where they could get out into the Gulf and go further out to fish,” Burt said. “They may enjoy going out in the canal, but if you look at the distance before they enter the Gulf — it’s quite a distance.”

Myers of Paradise says the traverse is one his

customers had been making for years before the fire at Wolf Bay Lodge and the loss of access to that launch. From the Foley Beach Express, the Gulf is roughly 12 nautical miles to the east at Perdido Pass, or 28 nautical miles to the west at the mouth of Mobile Bay. “That launch would be about the same distance coming all the way out of Wolf Bay versus coming from the bridge,” Myers said. “I don’t see that being an issue at all. We had people launching at Wolf Bay all the time to go and use their boats around the [Perdido] pass.”

Perdido Pass is a popular spot for boats to congregate and traffic there keeps the Alabama Marine Police busy during the summer season and on unseasonably warm fall and winter days.

“The increase in any kind of traffic down here is going to add to the problems we are already having,” Sgt. Jody Kelly of the Alabama Marine Police post said. “It is a problem right now that they don’t have enough boat ramps in this area for them to have access to the waterways, but the more access we provide them the more people that will be here. It’s already pretty crowded.”

County Commissioner Skip Gruber has been in favor of another boat launch on the south end of the county for years but has struggled to find the right spot. He believes the county has finally found it.

“There’s no property anywhere else that people are willing to sell,” Gruber said. “And we don’t want to put a boat launch in the middle of a community. This is the ideal place.”

BAYBRIEF | GULF SHORES

Sobering experience GULF SHORES WILL BAN ALCOHOL AGAIN DURING SPRING BREAK

BY JOHN MULLEN

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or a fourth straight year, the city of Gulf Shores will ban alcohol from its beaches during the spring beach season.

“It continues to pay dividends,” Chief Ed Delmore told the City Council in a recent meeting.

In 2016, unruly crowds of college students began spring break with massive gatherings on the beaches that threatened to overwhelm police.

One poignant incident showed a spring breaker throwing a long-distance pass with a football onto the roof of a Gulf Shores police cruiser. A video from the spring breaker’s perspective of the toss was widely shared on social media.

Police were not amused and a warrant was issued for a Texas State student. In a specially called meeting on March 18, 2016, the City Council voted to ban alcohol on the beach for the remaining month of the season. Most recently, it voted again on Oct. 22 to implement the ban for the third straight full season of spring break to include the 2019 season.

This ban — March 2 to April 28 — is an exceptionally long one influenced by the fall of Easter in the 2019 calendar, Herb Malone, president and CEO of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism, told the council. Easter falls on April 21 in 2019.

“A lot of schools dismiss for spring break after the first six weeks, like the first weekend

in March, second weekend in March,” Malone said. “Those don’t change. But a lot take their spring break either the week before Easter or the week right after Easter, so those float. If Easter’s late like this, you have to have a longer period to cover spring break.”

The first year or two of the ban local businesses were concerned it would hurt the spring break bottom line.

“There were a number of business owners and restaurant owners that were vehemently opposed,” Councilman Steve Jones said.

But numbers weren’t affected and in fact have been increasing over subsequent years of the ban, Malone said.

“The past few years, when you take March and April together we have seen increases in lodging revenue and in retail sales each of those three years,” Malone said.

Business owners have now embraced the ban, Jones said.

Malone and both coastal resort cities want Alabama beaches to be seen as family friendly.

The ban keeps out the more rowdy crowd and families are noticing, Jones said.

“It’s a shame we had to get to this point and do this to our visitors but I think it has resulted in higher-quality visitors or at least a better-behaved visitor,” Jones said. “And they spend more money and are satisfied with the experience.”

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BAYBRIEF | MOBILE COUNTY

Remote learning OUT-OF-DISTRICT VIRTUAL SCHOOL ATTRACTING LOCAL STUDENTS

BY JASON JOHNSON

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rom the comfort of their homes, more than 140 students have left local school systems over the past year to become virtual students of a district more than 300 miles away.

The Limestone County School District authorized its first fully virtual school in fall 2017, and today Alabama Connections Academy (ALCA) enrolls 2,030 students statewide. Part of a larger network of tuition-free online public schools operating across the U.S., ALCA is open to any Alabama student in grades K-12 and meets the same state curriculum and testing standards required of any other public school district. However, state law prevents virtual public schools from operating outside of an established public school system.

As a result, there are more than 100 ALCA students who live in Mobile County and around 40 from Baldwin County who are now officially Limestone County students.

From anywhere with an internet connection, ALCA students can login to classes led by state certified teachers for live lessons, classwork or one-on-one sessions. Like the students, some of ALCA’s teachers and counselors also work remotely in areas all over the state.

Kristi Kadel is a 16-year-old sophomore enrolled in ALCA. Even though — based on her address — she would normally be zoned to attend a brick-and-mortar school in the Mobile County Public School System (MCPSS), Kristi opted to attend school online after moving from Iowa.

“We think it’s a good fit for her, and her grades have just been phenomenal,” Kristi’s father, Roy Kadel, told Lagniappe. “She’s taking two classes through The University of Alabama’s Early College, and by the end of December, Kristi will have almost 11 hours of college credit.”

There wasn’t a specific reason his family leaned toward virtual school, but Kadel said he and his wife have been very involved with Kristi’s online education. In fact, all ALCA parents are required to submit reports on their child’s progress and the time they spend on their work.

Kristi said the biggest difference she’s noticed between her online experience and traditional public schooling is the individualized attention from teachers. She noted that during a live session or working on her own, she can ask her teacher a question and receive immediate feedback.

Because her schedule can also vary depending on how quickly she moves through her work, Kristi is able to move through the material at her own pace and find time for her college courses.

“I’ll have a certain number of days to complete an assignment, and I tend to do a lot on the first day everything is due, so the next day I’ll have more free time and to work on my UA classes or move on to something else,” she said.

“I do have a certain schedule for live classes, and if you have a question about something, the teacher can also meet with you in live lesson by yourself.”

According to Kristi, the live sessions are similar to a Skype chat. Teachers can also see what’s on students’ computer screens to make sure they’re following along, a feature school administrators and even parents can also access.

According to Principal Jodi Dean, the reasons for enrolling and the overall ALCA experience can vary from student to student. She says there really is “no one-sizefits-all” approach to effective education.

“You could look at all 2,030 of our students and just about every one of them has come here for a different reason and has a different setup to their educational track. It’s

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an individualized program that’s tailored to every student to fit whatever it is they’re needing at the time. There’s 100 different ways that we’ve seen students and families be successful.”

ALCA students had to take the Scantron assessment and the ACT exam in 2017 like all other students, but the state has yet to release those results. When they are tallied, ALCA will be subject to the same accountability standards as any other school system in Alabama.

Dean said students have to take those standardized tests in person, but because they are proctored by ALCA teachers working remotely, students don’t have to travel all the way to the school’s headquarters in Athens, Alabama.

Instead, testing centers are set up around the state.

“Most students won’t have to travel more than 45 minutes from home,” Dean said.

Dean, previously the principal at New Mexico’s Connections Academy, was brought in to help get ALCA off the ground when it launched last year. However, virtual schools are a relatively new concept in Alabama and, like anything new, haven’t come without some controversy.

In 2014, MCPSS opened Alabama’s first online school, the Envision Virtual Academy. However, unlike ALCA and similar online programs run through city school systems in Eufaula and Athens, Envision primarily serves local students.

Kadel said his family considered enrolling Kristi in Envision, which he called “a very, very fine program.” However, he said, she had a friend who was already taking classes through ALCA. Representatives from MCPSS did not immediately respond to requests seeking comments on this report, but state enrollment reports indicate Envision currently serves around 193 students, a slight decline from previous years. To the contrary, virtual schools pulling students from across the state have continued to grow.

Athens City Schools had close to 5,000 virtual students last year, while Eufaula instructed more than 3,785 students online.

Increased online enrollment has been a concern for some in education circles because, in Alabama, tax dollars follow the student. That means school systems receive the same state and federal allocations for each student whether they physically come to school or sign in hundreds of miles away.

Prominent virtual schools, including ALCA, also advertise around the state to attract new students.

However, Dean rejected the notion that virtual schools enrolling out-of-district students are creating a problem for any one school system. She noted the 100-plus students from Mobile County enrolled at ALCA only make up around 0.3 percent of MCPSS’ total student population.

“We have 2,030 total students, but that’s from across all of the counties in the state of Alabama,” she said. “When you break that apart, it’s a very small percentage for each district.”

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COMMENTARY | DAMN THE TORPEDOES

Should we feel safe?

ROB HOLBERT/MANAGING EDITOR/RHOLBERT@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

trespass, receiving stolen property and drug possession. A frequent flier for sure.

The plot thickened the next day when Fox10 News ran a story about a good Samaritan who had helped a man who passed out in the downtown McDonald’s on Tuesday night. Apparently he’d been smoking mojo and she rubbed his chest and soothed him until authorities arrived. You guessed it — the passed-out guy was our hero, Christopher Walker. I’m not sure what authorities did with Walker after he flopped out at Mickey D’s, but by the next morning he was again wandering the streets high on mojo.

I don’t mean for this to come off as being down on MPD, because I know it’s a tough job and the vast majority of what they do is very positive for our community, but it was disturbing to see not only the length of time it took to respond to an attempted attack, but also the disinterest by officers and then the clear administrative mess that exists in getting warrants signed.

Public Safety Director Jim Barber told me he has been working with the city of Mobile’s Judicial Adviser Charlie Graddick to get magistrates set up at more locations around town so victims can file warrants more easily. He also told me the police operator mistakenly held the call for 22 minutes on Wednesday because three downtown units were busy, instead of calling another precinct.

I know there’s not much police can do about the revolving door of crime intersecting addiction and mental illness that puts potentially dangerous people on the streets over and over. But still, MPD and the city need to do what they can to handle their end of the equation better. History would suggest Walker will be wandering the downtown streets again soon. How safe should we feel?

THEGADFLY

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not like it is on TV,” she explained.

So we got in the car and headed west.

Along the way Boykin called to make sure we were on the way and to reiterate that if we weren’t she would release him. But when we got to the precinct building the woman inside said we couldn’t sign a warrant without having an appointment. After some protesting on our parts she told us to have a seat and wait.

While we sat, a man came in to file a warrant on an employee who stole $1,200 in cash from his business. He said he’d been sent there from another precinct. But he was quickly told he couldn’t sign a warrant in TiCo either and would need to go to an office on Virginia Street. His frustration was obvious and I walked up to ask him what was going on. He said he’d been given the runaround a few times and couldn’t even get a detective to come see him about the crime.

Beth finally got called back and as I waited in the lobby, an officer walked out from the back offices and began talking to one of the women out front. He said he had six or seven warrants and asked if he could get them signed there. He was told no. He replied that he’d been to about three other places to get it done and no one was at any of them.

“They’re fixing to walk free!” he said in frustration before leaving.

The lack of organization was shocking.

How was it possible victims of crime were expected to drive all the way to Tillman’s Corner to file warrants, only to find confusion and a lack of helpfulness when they arrived?

Even the cops couldn’t navigate the system.

When I got back to my office, we looked up Christopher Walker, the 25-year-old man who tried to grab Beth on the street. What we found were nearly 30 charges since 2013. Those included 15 domestic violence charges, others for theft of property, criminal

SO M WA EO AN K NE E HA YTH ME PLEA GE PP ING UP S E NE EN RA S I AT A IF ZZ L EL N TH LL ZZ ZZ ECT IS ZZ IO ZZ N.

Cartoon/Laura Mattei

L

ast Wednesday morning at 9:54, I got a message from my wife, Beth, saying a man had attempted to grab her while she stood in front of her office downtown on St. Michael Street. I called and she described talking on the phone on the sidewalk and becoming aware of a man moving closer, so she backed up toward the door and was able to duck into her office as he lunged and swung his arm at her. All of this was captured by the company’s security camera.

She had already called police and was waiting for them to arrive.

My first instinct was to jump in the car and go find this guy. Previous interactions with the Mobile Police Department since moving into our office downtown in January had left me less than certain this would be handled quickly. I hoped that just four months after Douglas Dunson was arrested for allegedly attacking and attempting to rape a woman in a downtown parking garage one weekday morning, something like this would be a priority, but I wasn’t going to take that for granted.

It didn’t take long to locate the man. He was in a parking lot on St. Louis Street pulling on car door handles and looking in their windows. Surprisingly he came out onto the sidewalk and started slowly walking down the street in front of me. At 10:04 a.m. I called MPD to let them know I was following their suspect. And as he walked along, oblivious to the car creeping along behind him, I gave the operator one update after another.

Along the way I realized a couple of men from the Downtown Mobile Alliance (DMA) were also tracking this dude. I was able to talk to one of them and he said they had also called police earlier and were waiting on them. So we all kept creeping along through downtown as this would-be attacker zigzagged his way toward Government Street.

After several minutes on the phone with MPD I began to get irritated. I finally asked the operator if they were actually coming or if I was just wasting my time. She said she was waiting for someone to return her call. As the guy reached Government, the man from DMA confronted him and got him to walk into the Social Security Administration building. I hung up after 14 minutes on the phone with police.

Two officers finally showed up at 10:22 a.m., more than half an hour after they were called about an attempted attack on a woman on a downtown street. It had been even longer since DMA called.

But the officers didn’t offer any reason for the delay. In fact, they seemed sullen and pissed off to be there. They asked nothing about what I had seen. Sgt. Elsie Boykin was actually far more interested in trying to stop me from taking a picture of the arrest while standing on public property. Might be time for a First Amendment refresher at MPD. As we stood there watching the officers crush one of the suspect’s legs in a car door until he screamed, I asked the men from DMA if a 30-minute response time was something they normally saw downtown. They indicated it wasn’t terribly unusual, particularly for certain officers.

They also told me the guy had said he was smoking mojo, a synthetic marijuana.

Next we went to my wife’s office to get her statement. The officers were curt and showed little to no “bedside manner,” just telling her to fill out a statement and then going back to their cars to talk to each other.

There were few questions and zero interest in seeing the security video.

When Beth took the statement outside, Boykin told her to bring it over to the car where the guy who had just tried to attack her was sitting. Beth said she didn’t want him looking at her, so Boykin trudged over and got the report.

She informed us we’d need to go immediately to sign a warrant with the magistrate since the charge was misdemeanor harassment and the officers hadn’t personally seen it, technically making this a citizen’s arrest. The nearest magistrate, she said, was in Tillman’s Corner, and if we didn’t go right then she was going to release the man. “It’s

THE GENERAL ELECTION IN ALABAMA HAS BEEN PRETTY SLEEPY.

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COMMENTARY | THE HIDDEN AGENDA

The final countdown ASHLEY TRICE/EDITOR/ASHLEYTOLAND@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

A

pparently, we have an election in a couple of weeks.

Judging by the ads on the ol’ flatscreened boob tube, it seems we will be choosing between Ron DeSantis or Andrew Gillum for governor and Rick Scott or Bill Nelson for senator.

Oh wait, that’s not us.

Are we even having a general election here in Sweet Home Alabama?

I do occasionally see a spot or two mixed in with the endless political ads from Florida, with whom we share a media market, for some guy named Walt who is 45 and a woman named Kay who has a dog named Bear.

(Strange choice for an Auburn grad; shouldn’t it be Bo?) But other than that, it has been a snoozer of a general election season. Which I guess is to be expected in a red, red state where most of the mudslinging and money is spent on the primary, as it is considered a given the Republican will waltz into office.

And it seems that conventional wisdom will prevail in the governor’s race.

Even though Gov. Kay Ivey refused to debate her opponent, wouldn’t send in answers to questions about her positions for the League of Women Voters’ website and put the bare minimum of effort into outlining her beliefs on her own campaign website, while also dealing with persistent rumors about her failing health and advancing age, Ivey will most likely stroll right back into the governor’s mansion with relative ease. And this from a woman who was never even elected to this particular office in the first place, so we never even got to kick the tires on her for governor in previous elections.

I am sure this exact same scenario plays out in the bluest of blue states, where there are Republican candidates who have no chance.

I get it. We live in the world of tribal politics, where party means more than person (usually — except in extreme cases like Roy Moore).

And I understand there is a reason for that — there’s at least a general sense of what it means to identify as a Republican or Democrat and a set of shared values.

But I still feel to my very core that “we, the people” should get as much access and information as possible about the candidates who want to serve us. They work for us. And they should provide information and make themselves accessible. To refuse to even participate in the process (even if you know you are the frontrunner) is just so arrogant. And I mean that for any race, in any state, no matter what your party affiliation or if the pundits all agree your opponent doesn’t have a snowball’s chance in an Alabama August. If you run for office, you should have to debate and answer questions, even if it’s just to seal the deal with your party’s base. And sadly, that was not done in this race.

But if you are fighting an uphill battle in a state where your political party is not dominant, you also have to run an almost flawless race. And that also was not done.

Walt Maddox just never really caught fire.

After Doug Jones’ victory I really thought some of the same fervor would be channeled into Maddox. But I haven’t really seen that at

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all. And I don’t know why. By all accounts, Maddox should have been an even more exciting and energetic candidate than Jones — and more palatable to independents and moderate Republicans. I hear he was even encouraged by some GOP operatives in the state to run as a Republican.

But just in my own circles, which contain folks from all parts of the political spectrum, I hear no one talking about this race. At all.

During the Jones/Moore race that is all anyone could talk about. But if people are talking about politics now, it’s still all about Trump (love him or hate him or hate his Tweets and petulance but love my tax cuts and judges) and/ or the Kavanaugh hearings.

The Maddox yard signs you see versus the ones during Jones’ race pale in comparison.

And Maddox’s ad campaign has been pretty forgettable and uninspiring.

Maybe it’s money. Maybe it’s just that even though Ivey has her own set of issues, her number one quality is she isn’t as bad a candidate as Roy Moore, which, of course, is realistically the main reason Doug Jones is the Democratic senator from Alabama, too.

And things are going pretty well in the state.

I mean, for a state that has myriad problems, is almost always rife with corruption and ranks last in almost everything you can be ranked in, it still seems like we’ve had some wins on the economic front of late, so there’s that.

But, as always, turnout will still be a factor.

In other states, with more competitive races for senate and congressional seats that have gotten national attention, the thought seems to be there will be record turnout on both sides. I’m not so sure that will happen here. Will Alabama Republicans be complacent because they think they have this, and more Democrats show up because they are more energized (more so over national politics) and just want to prove a point?

Or will Democrats stay home because they think it’s a waste of time, at least on a state and local level? I don’t know, we shall see. My feeling is it will probably be pretty consistent with previous elections that don’t have someone accused of fondling 14-year-olds on the ballot — so in other words, pretty low across the board. And probably few surprises.

But there are some local races in which turnout will be key in determining the winner, including the one for Alabama House District 97 between Steve McNair and Adline Clarke and the circuit judge race between Karlos Finley and Brandy Hambright. Those will definitely be the ones to watch on Nov. 6.

I’m just ready for Nov. 7 to get here, though, so I can stop hearing about Rick Scott’s messy grandkids and Bill Nelson’s space walks.

In democracy, those who cannot vote for candidates in a different state should not have to endure the mind-numbing television advertising of said candidates.

I’m pretty sure Ben Franklin said that. Or I’m sure he would have. In any case, he would say, “Go vote! We fought a revolution to give you this precious right, you bunch of ungrateful freaks. Please don’t let us down.”

Sadly, we probably will, Ben. We probably will.

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COMMENTARY | THE BELTWAY BEAT

Walt Maddox’s blown opportunity

BY JEFF POOR/COLUMNIST/JEFFREYPOOR@GMAIL.COM

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fter nobody won Friday’s Mega Millions and Saturday’s Powerball top prize, a total of at least $2 billion in lottery winnings were up for grabs at the beginning of the week.

That’s “billion” with a “b.”

Around the state of Alabama, people flocked to border towns in Tennessee, Georgia and Florida to drop untold amounts of money on long-shot chances to win a share of this money.

On the I-10/Nine Mile Road exit, the first after crossing the Florida-Alabama line, a security guard was stationed outside a Circle K as people wrapped around the building to get in and buy what they could not obtain in Alabama — a lottery ticket.

People aren’t flocking to Pensacola, or to Ardmore, Tennessee, or Tallapoosa, Georgia, because they see a lottery as a means to help Florida, Tennessee and Georgia achieve the goals of some noble public policy endeavor.

They wanted to buy a lottery ticket so they could have a chance, even if it is minuscule, to become a billionaire.

They drove hundreds of miles, in some cases, for this opportunity.

Message to Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox: Those could potentially be your voters.

These are people that don’t care about Class III gaming and what that might mean for the Poarch Creek Indians casino. They’re not interested in what the money is spent on. They may not even understand the moral argument against gambling.

In fact, they may see their inability to buy a lottery

ticket closer to home as a result of an overly paternal government that doesn’t think its people are responsible enough to spend their own money on gambling.

The lottery is a big issue in this boring Alabama election cycle given there’s not a whole lot else about which to care.

The lottery is also a big issue nationally because the jackpot is shattering all kinds of records and dominating the news.

At least one local-broadcast channel TV newscast per designated market has done some iteration of the manon-the-street interview segment, “What would you do with $1.6 billion?”

This was your time, Mayor Maddox. Rather than all these nonsensical, destination-less, rabbit-trail campaign tactics, the lottery could have been your thing.

You should have deployed volunteers to every state line, border town gas station with a lottery terminal from the Flora-Bama to Cypress Inn, Tennessee. The volunteers should have had “Walt Maddox for Governor” T-shirts and some glossy postcard touting the virtues of Alabama having its own lottery, but with one added feature: “You could have saved a lot of time and money on gasoline if Alabama had a lottery. If I’m elected, I’ll work to make that a possibility.”

There’s never been a time in Alabama when potential voters have cared more about the lottery than right now.

But you didn’t do that.

Instead, you ran goofy ads touting your pro-Second Amendment and pro-life stances. You looked into the cam-

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era and told us how old you are. You overhyped this idea that you could play up this worst October surprise in the history of Alabama politics by questioning a then-Lt. Governor Kay Ivey hospital visit in Colorado from 2015.

Most people have just enough attention to remember the score of last week’s Alabama football blowout. They’re not going to care about some alleged convoluted scheme to hide health problems that happened three years ago.

This is not how you win the governorship of Alabama.

If I’m a Democratic politician in Alabama outside of the 7th Congressional District and a few other areas around the state, first I’m considering a switch to the GOP. If that’s not feasible, then my game is not to defeat a Republican opponent on ideological grounds. This is a battlefield long lost. Unless my opponent is accused of child molestation, I’m running against the status quo.

Most of the voters I would need to pick off aren’t worried about Medicaid expansion. If they’re even thinking about the health care system, they’re concerned about the cost of their own health insurance premiums, likely provided by their employers.

They have a precise idea of what the state government should do. Ivey’s EKG readings are definitely not on their minds.

If you want to win as a Democrat in Alabama, you have to win over some Republicans. That’s how Doug Jones did it. He won over the Republicans that, given the right circumstances, might vote Democrat.

These were voters in Baldwin, Jefferson and Shelby county suburbs.

They’re in academia-laden Lee and Tuscaloosa counties. They’re employed in the tech sector in Madison County.

They have enough expendable income to take a car ride to a nearby state line and buy lottery tickets. They likely have a commute to and from work that involves a congested road the Alabama Department of Transportation has neglected because it has its own political aims.

What they probably don’t care about is gubernatorial debates or Kay Ivey health conspiracy theories.

If your goal is actually to win an election, you can do so within your own political and ideological framework that appeals to the people that might vote for you. These are people that otherwise couldn’t care less about the election, or if they do care, they vote Republican just because everyone else does and have never been given a good enough reason to do otherwise.

That’s where you blew it, Mayor Maddox.

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BUSINESS | THE REAL DEAL

Baumhower previews Las Floriditas

BY RON SIVAK/COLUMNIST/BUSINESS@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

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agniappe was recently given an exclusive early tour of Las Floriditas, the newest restaurant from former University of Alabama All-American football lineman, NFL Miami Dolphin All-Pro and current local restaurateur Bob Baumhower. Las Floriditas is scheduled to open in mid-2019 in downtown Mobile.

Baumhower is the founder and owner of the wellknown Baumhower’s Victory Grille, which has several locations throughout the state. The locally owned, singularly popular fine-dining restaurant Dauphin’s, situated on the 34th (and highest) floor of the RSA Trustmark Building in downtown Mobile, is also part of his group. Baumhower’s ventures are held under the Aloha Hospitality corporate umbrella and headquartered in Loxley.

Baumhower said the idea for Las Floriditas originated during his NFL days in South Florida. He cited Mobile’s sister city — Havana, Cuba — as the inspiration for the new 6,000-square-foot after-hours cocktail bar and tapasthemed eatery, which will be in the basement level of the aforementioned RSA Trustmark Building.

An avid outdoorsman, Baumhower went on many deepsea fishing trips around Bimini, the westernmost district of the Bahamas and about 50 miles due east of Miami. It was during these excursions that Baumhower became a fan of the writings of Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Ernest Hemingway. “I first became a fan of Hemingway while fishing in Bimini and then became a fan of Cuba through Hemingway’s work,” he said.

One narrative in particular that resonated for Baumhower was a novel posthumously published in 1970, “Islands in the Stream.” The first two chapters, titled “Bimini” and “Cuba,” influenced Baumhower’s decision to create his restaurant in Mobile, with its swirl of Latin

American influences.

Another inspiration was found in El Floridita, a famous 200-year-old fish restaurant and cocktail bar still open in Havana’s oldest section, once a favorite haunt of Hemingway’s. Reportedly, the eatery commissioned a life-sized bronze likeness of the novelist in 2003 that now sits at the end of the main bar, waiting to be served the Cuban-style daiquiri for which the restaurant is world famous.

Elements of the original architecture, which housed a 1960s-era First National Bank, were not only retained in the floor plan, but a massive vault door has been repurposed to serve as a key feature of the decor, adorned with neon lights.

Additionally a “secret” entrance — consisting of a sliding bookshelf covering the main entrance — is only steps away from the elevator door’s basement opening. The disguise resembles something out of a 1960s-era James Bond spy movie.

The lounge floor plan comprises three sections. The main area encompasses some 3,000 square feet with the bar, kitchen, freezer and food-serving sections found to the left, a small dance floor and stage near the back of the area and stylish tables and chairs spread throughout the rest of the space.

Roughly 2,000 square feet have been set aside for the appropriately named Vault lounge space, reached by walking through a massive, round doorway running parallel to the serving area and main room. A smaller 1,000-squarefoot sitting area is found to the left and adjacent to the bar for patrons to congregate.

“We’re going to have some pictures of some 1940 ships from the era since there is a shared history here between Havana and Mobile,” Baumhower said.

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The sister city relationship was established in 1993 by former mayor Mike Dow, according to the Society Mobile-La Habana website. Baumhower also cited his strong relationship with Maria Mendez, Latin America director with the Alabama Port Authority, as another connection between Mobile and Havana that influenced the theme of Las Floriditas.

Hours will tentatively be Tuesdays through Saturdays, 4 p.m. to 2 a.m., with a possibility of Las Floriditas becoming an after-hours destination for patrons of Dauphin’s.

Other food choices will include West Indies-themed fare. Drinks will center around Cuban-style daiquiris, mojitos and Cuba libres. Beer will be available with an 8-12 draft tap selection flowing from behind the bar, in addition to a select bottle selection.

Total capital expenditure to renovate the space was upward of $200,000.

Baumhower expects to have a grand opening involving the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce at a date to be announced. The restaurant expects to hire 30 new employees when it is staffed at full capacity. Other updates about Las Floriditas will be reported in future issues of Lagniappe.

Commercial real estate moves

• Pelican Point Advisors, LLC, a locally owned start-up company, announced the rollout of Pelident Financials, a financial software package servicing the dental industry. The company recently leased new office space in the USA Coastal Innovation Hub at 600 Clinic Drive, in suites 323 and 325 encompassing some 750 square feet.

Backed by several local-area “angel” investors, Pelican Point Advisors has hired two full-time employees with expectations to hire more within the next six to 12 months, per founder and president Adam Chronister. More information about the company can be found at pelident.com • Club 4 Fitness, an all-inclusive fitness facility, is expanding in the central Gulf Coast market with the addition of four new locations in Alabama and Louisiana. Justin Toomey with Stirling Properties and Kenneth Herring with Kerioth Corporation worked with the tenant to identify and secure their retail locations locally.

Club 4 Fitness will occupy some 20,000 square feet of retail space in Hillcrest Plaza at 813 Hillcrest Road in Mobile. Plans are in place to open the facility sometime during first quarter of 2019. Cummings and Associates Inc. represented the property owner in the lease transaction.

Additionally, Club 4 Fitness is leasing a second site inside some 29,696 square feet of gym space at Schillinger Place at 2502 S. Schillinger Road in West Mobile. Angie McArthur with Stirling Properties represented the landlord in the transaction. Club 4 also plans to open this location sometime in the first quarter of 2019.

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CUISINE | THE DISH

Hotter than a two-dollar pistol

BY ANDY MACDONALD/CUISINE EDITOR | FATMANSQUEEZE@COMCAST.NET

to fund their centuries-old monastery — he’s too progressive of a thinker. By the way, can we please stop using the word “artisanal”?

I’m not even sure how to pronounce it, but of all the ways I’ve heard it spoken there is no way to not sound like a pompous jackass. It’s as useless as the phrase “classically trained.”

Anyway, Bubble obliged and told me his simple method. Boil the peppers in vinegar with salt and a little garlic, process them in a blender and strain them into a bottle. Easy enough, right?

There are some precautions you must take. The oils from the peppers can burn your skin or irritate your eyes when cooking. My first step was to wait for Katie and the boys to be out of the house.

She took Henry to see his grandparents and the other two had school, so I took advantage of the free time.

The second step was getting gloves. Most kitchen supply places and even some grocery stores sell them cheap. You could also get your favorite bartender/waitress or chef to swipe a pair from work but that wouldn’t be right. Hospitals have the good ones you can

THERE ARE SOME PRECAUTIONS YOU MUST TAKE. THE OILS FROM THE PEPPERS CAN BURN YOUR SKIN OR IRRITATE YOUR EYES WHEN COOKING. MY FIRST STEP WAS TO WAIT FOR KATIE AND THE BOYS TO BE OUT OF THE HOUSE.”

Photo | depositphotos.com

Cooler weather means it is time to heat things up with peppers.

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can feel the cool weather in my knee. An old college injury, nothing glamorous, but the telltale sign lets me know we are nearly done with summer, and by the time you read this I will have pushed my bedtime back late enough to feel the first real dip into the 50s. Deep into football season, I confess to having already made a decent pot of chili, but there will be more to come. Fall greens, winter soups and many other cold weather dishes that arrive during flu season beg for (as does my stuffy nose) hot sauce. This year I am making my own.

It was an easy decision to come to. My friend Nick Holmes (the rockstar architect) and his lovely wife, Ginger, presented me with a bag of orange habanero peppers and I had no other use for them. This, coupled with the fact that Mr. Bubble made some excellent sauce from his jalapeño crop a week ago, gave me the confidence to give it a whirl.

I’m a minor enthusiast when it comes to hot sauce. As a food editor, as you might imagine, friends (and sometimes strangers) give me all kinds of hot sauce, from exotic flavors to the, dare I say, mundane. Everyone of them is around for a reason. It’s not about finding the right hot sauce for the dish, the task is rather

finding the right dish for the sauce.

I think the first person to give me Sriracha was guitar picker/ longtime friend John McCook, who since then has turned me on to a handful of stellar sauces. In the year 2000 I found myself in California where Cliff Fulkerson, founding member of Fat Man Squeeze, showed me the ways of Dave’s Insanity Sauce. We thought it was the hottest thing ever. I’ve since had some that dangerously put it to shame. Those are worthless to me. After a certain point it’s not fun anymore.

I do eat hot sauce daily so I stick to the mainstream stuff.

Tabasco, Crystal, Louisiana Red Dot, Sriracha and a new bottle of Pappy & Co. — aged in Pappy Van Winkle bourbon barrels — are in my current rotation. None of those lasts too terribly long around here.

I was impressed enough with Bubble’s hot sauce and expressed how it was so much better than his previous attempt (also good), mentioning I wanted to use his method. I’m certain it’s something he got off of the internet, as he’s not one who might employ the same techniques passed down from generations of monks who sold their batches of artisanal hot sauce

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blow up into balloons. No matter how you get them, just make certain you don’t do this barehanded. Jalapeños can burn bad enough at 2,500-8,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHUs) so you can imagine an orange habanero could do some real damage in the 150,000325,000 SHU range. Don’t worry — the sauce won’t be nearly that high, but we must take care when preparing it.

I was fearful I’d have too much heat so I made two separate batches, one hot and one sweeter. Of the 19 habaneros, I used five for the first batch, tops removed and halved but not seeded. I’m an onion freak so I measured a half cup of diced white onion, two cloves of garlic, a half teaspoon of salt and a cup and a half of vinegar. For sweetness I added half of a red bell pepper, diced. Following Bubble’s directions I boiled it for about 10 minutes, cooled it and processed it in the Vitamix.

Batch number two was certain to be a beast. The remaining 14 peppers were cut the same way and I used identical amounts of onion, garlic, salt and vinegar. This time I prayed it wouldn’t melt the Vitamix, but when I opened the lid to start straining I had to cover my nose with my shirt. It was powerful. I’m sure I was a sight to behold standing over my sink in a filthy shirt covering half of my face, plastic gloves that don’t fit and tears staining my cheeks while I tried different sieves, hoping the next would be faster than the previous one.

I’m not sure if you can smell Scoville units, but if you can I would guess of the possible 325,000 of them, we were pushing 326k. It translated as much milder in the sauces. The “sweet” version has more heat than your average hot sauce but is very usable in moderation. The crimson color and flavor is great for egg yolks and sausage. The yellow, hot version is more than just hot. I can’t wait for it to spice up a chili or a dash in some salsa. It was a successful first attempt.

Soup, casseroles, ballgame wings, knee don’t fail me now. I want the cold weather here. I need the cold weather here. I have just the remedy to make it hot.

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CUISINE | THE BEER PROFESSOR

Good People, great beer

BY TOM WARD/THE BEER PROFESSOR

Photo | Facebook

Muchacho is a light, crisp Mexican-style lager that pairs well with pizza, burgers, Mexican and Cajun cuisine, roasted meats and seafood.

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irmingham’s Good People Brewing Co. celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, the oldest craft brewery in the state. Founded by homebrewers Jason Malone and Michael Sellers in 2008, the brewery now produces almost 25,000 barrels per year and is available not only in Alabam but also in parts of Georgia, Tennessee and Florida.

The taproom on 14th Street, a short walk from the UAB campus and right across from Regions Park — where the Birmingham Barons play every summer — is a sleek, refurbished

WORD OF MOUTH

Newk’s reopens McGowin location after aiding in hurricane relief We’re no strangers to the damage a storm can cause here in Mobile. When Hurricane Michael hit the Florida Panhandle as a Category 4, we knew the outcome would be devastating. Forever a city sympathetic to those affected by forces of nature, Mobile has and continues to reach out to help our neighbors to the east as they struggle to rebuild and regain infrastructure. One Mobile restaurant shut its doors in order to focus on feeding those in need.

The Newk’s location at McGowin Park was closed to the public for a few days after the company was contracted to prepare box lunches for disaster relief workers. Employees worked tirelessly, packaging more than 1,000

warehouse. It has an industrial but cleaned-up feel, with great indoor and outdoor spaces to enjoy a beer or two if you’re in the Magic City. The actual brewery can been seen behind glass from the taproom, and there are brewery tours most Saturday afternoons from 1-4 p.m., on the hour. Tours cost $15 and include a souvenir glass and one beer.

Along with being a great destination spot, the taproom features a host of beers not available anywhere else. The last time I was there I had their Oktoberfest special, an amber lager crafted

boxes per day. Eastbound and down, the meals were loaded up and trucked to Florida to feed the contractors and linemen working the Sunshine State. The branch has now reopened and everything is business as usual.

Sunset Pointe to host Meiomi wine dinner If you’ve not been to Fairhope’s Sunset Pointe at Fly Creek Marina, then run, don’t walk. Temperatures are perfect for that early dinner dusk meal of small plates. Now imagine that view and food with Meiomi Wines.

Wednesday, Nov. 7, 6-7 p.m., Sunset Pointe is hosting a wine dinner featuring food from Chef Josh Brown paired with Meiomi Wines. The four-course meal will showcase a sparkling wine, a rosé, a chardonnay and, of course, their popular pinot

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with German hops (although not very hoppy at all), with spice notes at the finish.

Even if you don’t get up to Birmingham, most of Good People’s styles are available in our area, on tap and in cans in your grocery aisle. The brewery’s very first style, the Brown Ale (5.8 percent ABV), is a perennial favorite, as is its IPA (7.2 percent alcohol by volume, or ABV) — noticeable in its red, white and blue can. My favorite Good People style, however, is its Pale Ale (5.6 percent ABV), which really reminds me of what most IPAs tasted like a few years ago before everybody decided to go crazy with the hops.

It has nice hop flavor, but is not overpowering — a great everyday, all-day beer.

One of the trends in craft brewing this year is the rise of rise of Mexican-style lager. If 2017 was the year of the sours, it seems cervezas are the trendy new style this year, and Good People is on the bandwagon with its Muchacho (4.8 percent ABV). It looks a lot like what we expect from a Mexican lager — a light golden color with little head — but Muchacho is malty, with a spicy finish — no lime needed!

Last year Good People acquired Avondale Brewery, just across town on the corner of 41st Street and 2nd Avenue South. The two taprooms have very different feels, and the beers are different as well. Housed in a great old building that was previously a post office, firehouse, bank, saloon and (allegedly) a house of ill-repute, Avondale’s taproom has an elegant old bar that opens to a great large outdoor courtyard, which often hosts concerts.

Avondale also has a secondary taproom, the Sour Room, just around the corner from the main brewery. It is here that you can sample the really unique beers in Avondale’s arsenal, ones you just can’t find anywhere else. Last time I was there they had a Sweet Tart sour on the menu along with a number of other interesting sours; like nothing I’ve ever had before — took me back to candy at the movies as a kid.

In our area, there is a great event coming up at The Hangout in Gulf Shores on Nov. 2 and 3. The Oyster Cook-off and Craft Beer Weekend will feature beers from 36 brewers from across the region and the nation, including Good People and our own local favorites, Fairhope Brewing Co., Big Beach Brewing and Serda Brewing.

There are a variety of ticket packages available; information can be found at hangoutcookoff.com.

noir. Chef Josh is suggesting Murder Point oysters, duck confit salad, Florida clams with linguine and a cheesecake.

The price per guest is $60 plus tax and gratuity. Reserve your seat by calling 251990-7766.

Forks and Corks Gala at Art Sea Lab Time is running out. Get your tickets for the Forks and Corks Gala Friday, Oct. 26, 6-9 p.m. at the Art Sea Lab, 101 Bienville Blvd., Dauphin Island. Tickets are available at disl. org for $30 per person or $50 per couple and will include a seafood challenge between Mobile County Public Schools’ Culinary Arts and Hospitality programs.

Enjoy live music as you sample the culinary creations at the gala.

Oyster Cook-Off and World Food Championships come to Gulf Coast

It’s a busy couple of weeks on the coastline of Alabama. First we have the annual Hangout Oyster Cook-Off and Craft Beer Weekend Nov. 2 and 3 in Gulf Shores. The Hangout will be shucking and jiving with live music, awardwinning chefs and more than 40 restaurants competing for the best oyster dish. Don’t forget my favorite part, the raw oyster showcase!

Next, the World Food Championships will be coming to The Wharf in Orange Beach Wednesday, Nov. 7 through Sunday, Nov. 11 with countless food activities. More than 1,500 chefs and home cooks will battle it out and you can be part of the fun.

Check out both of these events on social media.

We’ll have more details as the dates approach.

Recycle!

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COVER STORY

Councilwoman Gina Gregory talks cancer diagnosis, treatment DALE LIESCH/REPORTER

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Photo | Lagniappe

reast cancer never crossed the mind of MoAfter getting a second opinion, Gregory decided to bile City Councilwoman Gina Gregory. Even have both breasts removed through a bilateral mastectomy. when her doctor felt a lump on her left side “Because the cancer I have is what they like to call during a routine exam, she didn’t think any‘very sneaky,’ meaning it’s hard to detect, obviously, we thing of it. decided a bilateral was the best move for us because I When a surgeon later told her the lump was not a cyst, didn’t want to be back in a couple years with cancer on she still wasn’t worried. the other side,” she said. “For me and for a lot of women “I guarantee you, I never thought I had breast cancer,” who get a tumor on one side, there is a good possibility she said. “That was the furthest thing from my mind. you’ll get a tumor on the other side and since mine was Nobody, really, in my close family had breast cancer, but so hard to detect, I just didn’t want to be back in two as I’ve learned that doesn’t matter.” years with cancer on the other side.”

Gregory was diagnosed with the disease in March and There was good news at first as has been documenting her treatment a flurry of scans found no traces of for the last seven months while concancer anywhere else in Gregory’s tinuing to represent the city’s seventh body. district.

“You know, it was an alphabet “It has been surreal, really, and soup of scans. Trying to keep up still today it’s hard for me to believe THE RATE OF BREAST CANwith all of them is difficult,” she I have breast cancer, but I do,” said. “It’s PET scan, CT scan and she said in her ninth floor office in CER IN ALABAMA IS LOWER heart this … I did all the tests and Government Plaza last week. “Godidn’t show cancer anywhere.” ing through the chemo has certainly THAN THE NATIONAL AVERmade it real.”

While on the operating table unAGE. NATIONWIDE, THE RATE dergoing the mastectomy, Gregory’s The first steps were a whirlwind, Gregory said. Following a biopsy IS 124.7 CASES PER 100,000 fate would turn when doctors biopand MRI showing the location and sied samples of her lymph nodes. mass of the tumors, it was time to “They took out 20 total; nine FEMALES; IN ALABAMA IT’S talk about treatment and recovery. were cancerous,” she said. “So, 120 PER 100,000.

“My husband and I were still from my underarm, all the way up just — I think we were glassy-eyed, to almost my collarbone, they took like, ‘are you kidding, this cannot out lymph nodes … there’s nothbe happening to us,’” she said. “The ing there because they took out so surgeon said ‘well, you’ve got to get an oncologist on much.” board and figure out where you go from there because Following the 10-hour surgery, Gregory knew she’d you’re going to need chemo, you’re going to need this, need chemotherapy. you’re going to need that’ and we’re like, ‘slow down, “We went in with the idea that I would have the masslow down, we’ve got to let this all sink in.’” tectomy and take oral medication for five to 10 years and Todd Golomb, Gregory’s husband, had a hard time it’d be good,” she said. “Well, no it didn’t happen.” putting into words how he felt when she was first diagChemotherapy started with 12 weeks of a drug nosed. He said he was surprised and disappointed the called taxol. cancer wasn’t discovered earlier.

“I tolerated that pretty well,” she said. “I did get a It also wasn’t the first health scare for the couple, as rash on that. There was some fatigue, some dizziness that Golomb had issues with his heart. got worse over time because it’s cumulative.”

“She was in my shoes,” he said. “I had already experiAs expected, Gregory also began losing her hair. She enced not knowing what the future held with my heart.” began wearing a wig.

The issues seemed to be tougher on the spouses than After the taxol regimen, Gregory was introduced to on the one receiving the diagnosis, Golomb said. When the “red devil,” or adriamycin cytoxan (AC). With AC, his irregular heartbeats frightened her, he was at ease.

With the cancer, the opposite was true. the nausea got worse — so bad that she’d wake up in “I stepped in her shoes,” he said. “They were a hard the morning, move to the couch and limit the number of set of shoes to step into.” times she’d move throughout the day. She also lost what was left of the hair on her body, including her eyebrows Treatment

The Mobile City Council proclaimed Oct. 8, 2018, “Councilwoman Gina Gregory Day.” Gregory was diagnosed with breast cancer in March and has been documenting her treatment on social media. and eyelashes. She said she has had to get used to wearing false eyelashes for the first time ever.

“So, the AC was really the tougher one,” she said. “You can only have it once in a lifetime because it’s tough on your heart. I mean, I could have heart damage because of this.”

Council work

Despite being on a heavy dose of chemotherapy, Gregory made it a point to attend as many City Council meetings as she could. Golomb said she only missed one.

“For her, she felt like it was a blessing from the very beginning,” he said.

“It gave her a lot of strength.”

Regardless, Gregory found it tough to proceed as normal at the meetings.

The best course of action, she said, was to listen more.

“Well, I had said to myself during all this treatment that I probably should sit and listen rather than speak,” she said.

“I brought crackers with me and made sure I had antacids in my purse if I needed them, but it wasn’t too terribly bad.”

With the stronger chemotherapy, she balanced her schedule the best she could. She would do AC treatments on Tuesdays so she’d feel better by the time the next council meeting came around.

“I knew I’d be feeling good the Tuesday I would be coming in for the

COVER STORY treatment and then I’d have a full week Gregory hopes her experience will be of recovery. And really, by the Tuesday of helpful to others. recovery week, I was feeling OK.” “So somebody like me, who’s not afraid Determined to be present, she explained, to put it out there and show what we’ve “I didn’t want people to think ‘Oh she’s the shown, I think it’s important to show you sick girl. She’s sick and can’t do her job’ can get through it, and here’s what it looks because I knew I could get over it,” she said. like,” she said.

“I knew I could do what I needed to do.”

Gregory said women have been reachAs for her colleagues on the council, ing out to her about their own experiences Gregory said they’ve been great from the start. with the disease since she opened up. She “From bringing me food after I got out of said she has learned a lot from other women the hospital to coming to visit and pray with about how to deal with it and what to expect. me; they have been really supportive,” she Still, the journey is not over. Gregory will said. “Nobody has said anything, you know, finish reconstruction surgery on Nov. 2 and if I needed to duck out. There’s been nothing then will begin radiation treatment. After but support from everybody.” radiation, it’s hopeful the cancer will be Tough times among the seven members of the council can prove what the public may not IN A LOT OF WAYS IT’S PROBsee, Gregory said.

“I think no matter what people ABLY SHOWN ME THAT I’M think, or think they see, we are really a good family here,” she said. STRONGER THAN I THOUGHT I WAS,” SHE “We all get along well personally.

We like each other, you know, and SAID. “I’VE ALWAYS BEEN A STRONG PERI think it’s really important people SON AND A BELIEVER IN GOD AND THAT understand that.”

HE’S ALWAYS IN MY CORNER AND I’LL BE The council’s support of Gregory was recognized during OK, BUT I THINK IT HAS STRENGTHENED the Oct. 9 meeting, a full week after her last chemotherapy treatMY FAITH.” ment, when the six other members of the council, along with some staff members from USA Mitchell Cancer gone, she said.

Institute (MCI), surprised Gregory with a As for how the process has changed her, resolution. The other councilors were all Gregory said she’s still evolving from it. secretly wearing pink shirts with the slogan “In a lot of ways it’s probably shown me “Team Gina” on the back. that I’m stronger than I thought I was,” she “I was just going along and I guess it said. “I’ve always been a strong person and shows how gullible I am,” she said. “I saw a believer in God and that he’s always in the guys wearing pink shirts and I thought my corner and I’ll be OK, but I think it has ‘they just didn’t have anything pink on, strengthened my faith.” that’s nice.’ When they turned around with their pink shirts on, I about lost it.”

Local cancer statistics The rate of breast cancer in Alabama is lower than the national average. Nationwide, Documenting her journey the rate is 124.7 cases per 100,000 females; The former television news reporter and in Alabama it’s 120 per 100,000. The rate public relations specialist was not shy about in Mobile County is below the state average her diagnosis. In fact, she has made a point at 118 cases per 100,000, while the rate in of sharing it on social media as a means to Baldwin County is slightly higher at 122 per inspire others impacted by the disease.

100,000.

“Because I’m not shy and used to putMCI Researcher Casey Daniel, Ph.D., ting it all out there and with my public life surmises the Baldwin rate might be higher now in City Council, I just thought having because the population is older. a voice would help other women and other Of MCI’s 6,000 total patients, 5,325 have families,” she explained. “For so many years a cancer diagnosis. Of those, 1,550 patients, when someone had breast cancer it was hidor 29.1 percent, have breast cancer, accordden, it was secretive, or you were ashamed ing to information provided by MCI. and it doesn’t need to be that way.”

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ART ARTIFICE

No trick, October is loaded with treats

BY KEVIN LEE/ARTS EDITOR/KLEE@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

A

rtifice loves October. More than its chance for occasional respite from the standard heat and humidity, it’s the most imaginative month on the calendar.

So here’s a grab bag of sweet October indulgence. Charlie Brown’s trick-or-treat sack might have held a bunch of rocks, but this one is full of potential.

• If you were on Carlen Street this past Sunday and Monday, you saw cars outside Joe Jefferson Playhouse.

As mentioned in our Oct. 3 issue, auditions for the musical “Young Frankenstein” were underway.

Previous conversations with director Gene Murrell reveal his perfect grasp of how timing makes Mel Brooks’ material work. Hey, he was a natural playing Max Bialystock in JJP’s 2016 version of “The Producers.”

But a persistent question arises: Wouldn’t this be best in October? I thought the same while enjoying their August/September 2016 rendition of “Sweeney Todd.”

The answer probably has to do with organization, striking and building sets, and so on. Then there’s clashes with football games, Greek Fest and seasonal soirees affecting attendance.

Granted, Playhouse in the Park normally fills this niche every year but few others. Do we need more Halloweencentric productions during the last weeks of October?

There has to be a wealth of material to choose from, psychological thrillers, comedies. I’d even settle for radio-style readings of things like “War of the Worlds” or other classic tales.

Easy for me to say when I’m not depending on the box office, though.

• Speaking of playing parts, there’s another seasonal outlet in curiously short supply here. We’ve got all the parts to make it work, we just need an organizer.

I was lucky enough to spend part of my childhood in a haunted house. Not a place with sincere claims, but something far more fun.

My father was a Birmingham Jaycee, the civic organization whose Mobile chapter started the Azalea Trail, the Greater Gulf State Fair, the Junior Miss Pageant and the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo. In 1970, they needed a new moneymaker and staged a haunted house. It became their biggest fundraiser for close to 40 years.

My parents were in the thick of it. Mom had a creative bent so she designed and constructed sets and costumes, and applied makeup. She even took shifts playing a female vampire.

So my sister and I spent the weeks of October there with our parents. We toured the rooms before and after the public arrived. We spent hours backstage with Mom and watched her creativity. We heard adults talk about the crowds, who they scared, what worked and what didn’t.

We were young, ages in single digits, but we loved it.

It was unique for a grade-schooler, being backstage at a fright factory, and explains my early fondness for the eerie and mysterious.

Did it warp me? Thankfully so.

Why isn’t this in Southern Gothic Mobile? It doesn’t have to be a Jaycees project, but you would think it would have arisen by now.

I’ve only seen a pair in town, a little less than a decade ago. Produced by a couple of young artist coalitions, they

International focus in local art project

Ribald comedy opens at MTG

Tom Jones is an 18th century young man of suspect parentage and lustful habits. Nevertheless, his romantic notions about Sophia have caught her fancy and stirred her father’s ire. Her father wants to marry her to another fellow with better pros-

• For October, Artifice headquarters is always awash in as much seasonal film fare as we can muster. Having haunted this planet for over a half-century, we’ve seen all the trends, what works and what doesn’t, what lasts and what ebbs.

Our perennial favorites lean toward classics. Free-flowing gore and plentiful jump scares are cheats.

For comedies, there’s the aforementioned “Young Frankenstein” and both of the Addams Family flicks, a pair whose delightful insanity is infectious.

“Psycho” isn’t a bloody slasher film but a groundbreaking work of suspense.

“The Omen” and “The Sixth Sense” have two of the creepiest kids on film.

GRANTED, PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK NORMALLY FILLS THIS NICHE EVERY YEAR BUT FEW OTHERS. DO WE NEED MORE HALLOWEEN-CENTRIC PRODUCTIONS DURING THE LAST WEEKS OF OCTOBER?” While the original “Nosferatu” is exquisite, 2000’s “Shadow of the Vampire” adds so much more texture and horror to an already chilling tale it almost can’t be topped. Its performances are impeccable.

“Sleepy Hollow” is derived from America’s oldest Halloween lore and Tim Burton’s homage to Hammer horror is dripping with atmosphere. Chris Walken is perhaps at his most spinetingling.

“Rosemary’s Baby” is still superb. Not only did Ruth Gordon snag an Oscar for her work but Stanley Kubrick cited it as his favorite horror film.

It’s well-worn, but Kubrick’s “The Shining” is a necessity. Its economy, lighting, performances, music, just every iota of it is utter genius. When you can make the phrase “Come and play with us, Danny” ominous, it says more than my mere adjectives.

pects. Once Tom is discovered and banished, Sophia and her maid set off to find him.

Behind Sophia are her father, his sister, Tom’s master and the hopeful rival for Sophia’s affections. Madcap adventures ensue on their collective road to London. Through odd characters and risque pursuits, the chase builds until a knot of lineage and fortune becomes gleefully twisted.

When playwright David Rogers interpreted Henry Fielding’s ribald 1749 masterpiece into a digestible stage production, he opted for simplicity in setting and execution to get out of the way of an involved plot. It worked, to deserved raves.

Mobile Theatre Guild (14 N. Lafayette St.) presents the play Oct. 26 through Nov. 4. Friday and Saturday curtain is at 7:30 p.m. Sunday matinees are at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $20, $15 for students, military and seniors.

For more information, call 251-433-7513 or go to mobiletheatreguild.org.

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Chamber music brings Empire State piano trio

The New York-based Lysander Piano Trio has earned a reputation for innovative programming of masterworks alongside newer pieces and hidden gems. The Strad described the 2012 Concert Artists Guild Competition winners as boasting “passionate playing, articulate and imaginative ideas and a wide palette of colors.”

Their most recent tour has found them playing for the Chamber Music Society of Philadelphia, the University of Wyoming for a performance of Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with the University Symphony Orchestra, at Cal State University/Chico, at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in Tallahassee and in the Princeton Summer Concert series.

They will perform for Mobile Chamber Music on Oct. 28 at 3 p.m, at the Laidlaw Performing Arts Center on the University of South Alabama campus.

Tickets are $20, $10 for students.

For more information, call 251-633-8840 or go to mobilechambermusic.org.

ARTSGALLERY

“My Endless Dreams” is a street art project based on Sahar K. Alford’s youth in Iran. Her status in a minority religious group was used to deny her pursuit of higher education. This project is part of #EducationIsNotACrime and the “Changing the World, One Wall at a Time” international street art and human rights campaign promoting educational quality for the Baha’i in Iran.

Alford was chosen by the Mobile Arts Council to collaborate with female residents of James T. Strickland Youth Center in creating an art project. It is in place at 106 Dauphin St., across from The Haunted Book Shop.

were one-offs.

We’ve got the talent, the painters, makers, actors, costumers. What we might be short on are vacant mansions.

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MUSIC

BY STEPHEN CENTANNI/MUSIC EDITOR/SCENTANNI@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

FEATURE

Punk or treat?

BAND: THE INDEPENDENTS, CHILDREN OF OCTOBER, THE SHITFITS, THE ZOMBIE RAMONES DATE: SATURDAY, OCT. 27, 10 P.M. VENUE: THE MERRY WIDOW, 51 S. CONCEPTION ST., WWW.THEMERRYWIDOW.NET TICKETS: $8, AVAILABLE THROUGH TICKETFLY

A

national touring act. Presly says these shows would feature everything from funk to country to punk.

These diverse lineups allowed Presly and Willy B. to explore their own sound by incorporating different influences from the bands with which they shared the bill.

When the band moved to greener pastures, this open-minded attitude allowed them to craft a versatile horror punk style that has transcended generations and demographics, unlike many other groups preceding them.

“We were all exposed to different music,” Presly explained. “There was everything from punk to classic country and funk and everything else, and we were using all those influences in our music.

Then we were able to go all these different scenes in the country, where ska might be big or where metal might be big. We’ve been lucky to cross over with so many different influences in our music.”

One of punk rock’s most iconic names gave The Independents their first big break. Presly was attending a performance by The Ramones. While at the show, he and bassist C.J. Ramone struck up a friendly conversation. At the time, Presly didn’t realize who he was speaking to. Only when C.J. walked out onstage did Presly realize who he was.

The two became friends, which led to The Independents scoring an opening spot for The Ramones on tour.

After their first show, Presly says frontman Joey Ramone approached him and said he’d been listening to The Independents nonstop. From there, Ramone established a close, longtime friendship with Presly and acted as mentor and manager for The Independents. He even joined them in the studio as the producer of the band’s EP “Unholy Living Dead.”

“He was strict as hell [in the studio],” said Presly. “He had this look. If you screwed up, he’d look over the glass like a school teacher and let you know you f*cked up. He really showed us a lot, business wise. He took us out of being a small little punk band to incorporating the band and making sure everything was covered. When it came to producing, he was a music fan.”

The Independents have never shied from the studio, and Presly says the band has compiled a number of new songs. However, they are also one of many bands trying to traverse and interpret the music industry’s new business model. Presly and

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Photo | Submitted

holiday dedicated to ghosts and goblins in a city with such a storied past is so revered that many local establishments have no problem celebrating Halloween a few days early. Once again, The Merry Widow will conjure up musical spirits from the underground for a party that will plunge innocent bystanders into the netherworld of punk.

This spectral, four-band lineup will include two punk tribute acts featuring seasoned veterans of the underground scene. The Shitfits will pay homage to horror punk’s most iconic band, The Misfits. The Zombie Ramones will haunt the crowd with cuts from American punk legends The Ramones. Pittsburgh horror punks Children of October will use their modern horror punk to electrify the crowd and usher the return of Mobile’s favorite horror punk band, The Independents.

Last year, The Independents celebrated 25 years of spreading a catchy brand of punk. This band captures the raw energy from the early days of rock ‘n’ roll and focuses it into a furious burst of adrenalized punk highlighted by the raging guitar work of Willy B. and the smooth croons of Evil Presly. Through numerous studio releases and relentless touring, The Independents continue to draw newcomers to their zealous following.

Presly will be the first to admit life on the road iShore! a lot easier than when the band set out for fame and fortune. However, he maintains fond memories of the group’s early years as an up-andcoming punk outfit.

“We’re pretty well-known now, so the money is better, of course,” Presly said. “The shows are more fun. There’s a lot more freedom, and I’m not worried as much about things as when we first started touring. The early days were the best times of my life. We were sleeping in rest areas and sleeping in a van and sharing a can of ravioli with five different people.”

Conceived in the small town of Florence, South Carolina, the band found it the perfect environment in which to forge their innovative punk rock.

In those days, Presly said, their performances consisted of a couple of shows each month at the local VFW. Since Florence had a small music scene, a wide array of local bands would be recruited to support a

Evil Presly and Willy B. of The Independents made fast friends with the late Joey Ramone. Since 1992, they have recorded more than seven studio albums.

Willy B. have embraced the fact that record sales cannot provide financial support as they did when they first started. With this in mind, Presly says he and Willy B. are unsure what to do with the new material. With hopes of releasing it in early 2019, options have ranged from a vinyl album to just giving the songs away. Either way, Presly’s frustration with the digital music world is one shared by many experienced and up-and-coming bands alike.

“We look on Spotify, and we’ll have, like, 6,000 plays a day,” Presly said. “Then, you get 35 cents. It’s like .001 cents per play. I know Trump just signed something for more money.

I haven’t seen exactly what it is, but I’m happy he did it. It’s hard to make a living. You’ve gotta tour and push your T-shirts. I’ve got friends that sell hot sauce, and they’re trying to get us to do it. I’m in the music business, not the hot sauce business.”

On stage, The Independents’ goal is to cover as much material as possible in the relatively short performance time they’re given. Throughout the band’s set, The Independents will maintain an infectious chemistry created by Presly and Willy B.’s bond, both musically and socially.

“Will is like my own brother,” said Presly. “I’ve known him since I tried to beat him up when I was in third grade, and he was in fifth grade. We’ve had our tussles here and there, but we love each other. We’ve spent more time together than our own families. We’re almost like Siamese twins. I can’t go anywhere in the world without somebody asking, ‘How’s Willy?’

He gets the same thing too, and it drives us crazy.”

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MUSIC BRIEFS

Doctor’s orders

BY STEPHEN CENTANNI/MUSIC EDITOR/SCENTANNI@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

Band: The Prescriptions, The Brook & The Bluff Date: Friday, Oct. 26, 7 p.m.

Venue: Callaghan’s Irish Social Club, 916 Charleston St., www.callaghansirishsocialclub.com Tickets: $10

Outlaws like us Band: Riley Green with special guest Troy Cartwright Date: Thursday, Oct. 25, with doors at 6:30 p.m.

Venue: Saenger Theatre, 6 S. Joachim St., www.mobilesaenger.com Tickets: $20-$47, available through Ticketmaster Riley Green is bringing his “Outlaws Like Us Tour” to the Jewel on Joachim Street. In his hometown of Jacksonville, Alabama, country music surrounded Green throughout his childhood.

When he wasn’t indulging in traditional country, Green was performing onstage with his grandfather Buford Green at the Golden Saw Music Hall. Now Green is on tour in support of his EP, “In a Truck Right Now,” a combination of edgy modern and traditional country sounds.

Troy Cartwright will prepare the crowd for Green’s set. Cartwright’s style shifts between pop country and a mix of earthy folk. His two latest singles are a testament to a versatile sound that should resonate with a diversity of country fans. Included on his latest EP “Don’t Fade,” “Arkansas” is warm, gentle sonic excursion in the key of Ryan Adams. “Hung Up on You” contrasts with its bright pop country ambiance.

‘Haller’ at me Band: Hallerween Date: Friday, Oct. 26, with doors at 9 p.m.

Venue: Alchemy Tavern, 7 S. Joachim St., 251-441-7741 Tickets: $5 at the door With Halloween falling on a Wednesday this year, many Azalea City ghosts and ghouls will be celebrating on the preceding weekend. Local rockers The Hallers will use the occasion to hold the first-ever Hallerween.

The Hallers are still reveling in the release of the band’s EP “High Waters.” Recorded and produced by Memphis transplant Curry Weber (Sun Studio, Ardent Studios), the album pulls from a variety of influences from Social Distortion to classic Radiohead.

The Hallers will bring a terrifying addition to this haunting lineup. Originally from Mobile, Enjoy the Weather has been traversing the Austin music scene. The band’s return to the Azalea City will feature tracks from its new album, “Warm Island.” With vocal lulls and roars and instrumentation to match, Enjoy the Weather has evoked the same spirits that possessed the forerunners of grunge.

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Photo | Submitted | The Prescriptions

C

allaghan’s first hosted singer-songwriter/Birmingham native Hays Ragsdale and his Nashville-based project The Prescriptions two years ago. Now they return with tracks from their debut full-length album, “Hollywood Gold.”

Fans have already received a taste of this album through the release of its title track.

Ragsdale said the single dedicated to relationships in the day of the “omnipresent” media provides an underlying musical thread.

“When you’re listening to [“Hollywood Gold”], it’s a good representation of a lot of different things that we do,” he said. “It has elements in it of everything that also come up in each song on the album.”

In comparison to its EP predecessor “Either Side,” Ragsdale said the new album is more developed and sometimes “expansive,” with a variety of instrumentation. He added that some songs maintain a “spacey” attitude while others take on a more basic musical persona. Ultimately, Ragsdale says, the songs are allowed to breathe in a live setting as opposed to the sterile, restrictive studio environment.

“I feel like the live shows have been an effort to have a fun, cathartic live experience,” he said.

“The record captures some of that, but I feel like it comes through a lot more if you listen to our album and see us live. There’s a big difference there. It’s more of a fun, loose thing. The record is more of a tidy representation of the songs.”

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AREAMUSIC LISTINGS | October 24 - October 30 Please send upcoming music to listings@ lagniappemobile.com

by MONDAY before Wednesday’s paper.

WED. OCT 24 Bluegill— Matt Neese Blues Tavern— Music w/ Mike Boudreaux’s Cajun Grill— Ryan Balthrop, 6p Callaghan’s— The Marlow Boys Cockeyed Charlie’s— Music by JJ Cortlandt’s Pizza Pub— Marcus Elizondo, 7:30p Felix’s— Matt Bush Duo Flora-Bama— Neil Dover, 2p / Rhonda Hart Duo, 6p / Shea White, 8p / Spencer Maige, 10:15p IP Casino (Chill Ultra) — The Redfield, 8p LuLu’s— Adam Holt, 5p

THURS. OCT 25 Blind Mule— Habitat for Insanity Bluegill— Adam Holt Blues Tavern— Marcus & Ebony Boudreaux’s Cajun Grill— David Chastang, 6p Brickyard— John Hart Band Cortlandt’s Pizza Pub— Bryant Gilley, 8p Dauphins— Mark Pipas, 5p Felix’s— Grits N Pieces Flora-Bama— Elaine Petty, 2p / Spencer Maige, 5p / Dueling Pianos, 5:30p / Not The Real Band, But The Real Deal (Mark Sherrill), 6p / River Dan Band, 10p / Bruce Smelley Duo, 10:15p IP Casino (Chill Ultra) — Fortag, 8p LuLu’s— Justin Yawn, 5p Manci’s— Bobby Butchka McSharry’s— Rock Bottom, 7p Original Oyster House — Brandon White, 6p Saenger— Riley Green Veets— Jerry Smith, 8p

FRI. OCT 26 Beau Rivage— Here Come the Mummies, 8p Belle Fontaine Sandbar— Shannon Pierce Duo, 8p Big Beach Brewing— My Girl My Whiskey and Me, 6:30p Blue Water BBQ— Chase Brown, Destiny Brown, Bryant Gilley Bluegill— Lee Yankie, 12p / Bust, 6p Blues Tavern— Fat Lincoln

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Boudreaux’s Cajun Grill— Blind Dog Mike & the Howlers, 6p Brickyard— Brett Lagrave & The Midnight Transaction Callaghan’s— The Prescriptions w/The Brook & The Bluff Cockeyed Charlie’s— Gypsy Soul Dauphin Street Blues Co— Sunny Vaiden, 10p Felix’s— Swamp Hippies Flora-Bama— J Hawkins Duo, 1p / Lea Anne Creswell Duo, 2p / Bruce Smelley, 5p / Mason Henderson, 5p / The Big Earl Show featuring Jack Robertson, 5:30p / Bowling Buddies, 6p Brandon White Duo, 6p / River Dan Band, 10p / Spencer Maige, 10:15p / Yeah, Probably, 10:30p IP Casino (Chill Ultra) — Fortag, 8p IP Casino (Studio A)— Styx, 8p Listening Room— Sugar Lime Blue LuLu’s— Lee Yankie, 5p Manci’s— The Modern Eldorados McSharry’s— DJ Ozone, 10p Moe’s BBQ (Daphne) — Poarch Ninjas, 8p Moe’s BBQ (Mobile) — Stephen Sylvester, 6:30p Moe’s BBQ (Semmes) — Jamie Adamson, 6:30p

SAT. OCT 27 Beau Rivage— Kenny G, 8p Belle Fontaine Sandbar— Disciples of the Crow, 9p Blue Water BBQ— Cadillac Attack Bluegill— Elise Taylor, 12p / Hannah McFarland Duo, 6p Blues Tavern— Johnny Barbarto & Lucky Doggs Boudreaux’s Cajun Grill— David Chastang, 6p Brickyard— URI Cockeyed Charlie’s— Music by M Beazle Dauphins— Mark Pipas, 5p Felix’s— Blind Dog Mike Flora-Bama— Justin Jeansonne Duo, 11a / Mario Mena Duo, 1p / Smokey Otis Duo, 1p / Mike Diamond, 2p / Tyler Mac Band, 2p / Mike Diamond, 5p / The Big Earl Show featuring Jack Robertson, 5:30p / Justin Jeansonne Duo, 6p / Mario Mena Band, 6p / Brian Hill Band, 10p / Bruce Smelley Duo, 10:15p / Foxy Iguanas, 10:30p IP Casino (Chill Ultra) — Fortag, 8p IP Casino (Studio A)— Brian McKnight, 8p

Listening Room— Laurie Armour LuLu’s— Nikki Talley Duo, 5p Manci’s— Delta Smoke McSharry’s— DJ Chi, 10p The Merry Widow— Shitfits + The Independents + Zombie Ramones + Children of October Satori— Seafood Green, 8p Zebra Club— The Whyte Caps, 9p

SUN. OCT 28 Bluegill— Quintin Berry, 12p / Ben Leininger & Friends, 6p Boudreaux’s Cajun Grill— Blind Dog Mike, 6p Brickyard— Delta Smoke Callaghan’s— Oh, Jeremiah Dauphins— Roland Cobbs, 11a Felix’s— Leonard Houstin Flora-Bama— Smokey Otis Duo, 12p / Songs of Rusty, 1:30p / David Chastang, 2p / Shea White, 4p / Mike Diamond, 5p / Smokey Otis Duo, 6p / Justin Jeansonne, 9p / Brandon Coleman and Drew Nix, 10:15p IP Casino (Chill Ultra) — Jacob Arnold, 8p Listening Room— Melissa Summersell LuLu’s— Phil & Foster, 5p Saenger— Don Felder, Formerly of the Eagles Soul Kitchen— Unchurch, 8p Zebra Club— The James Hayden Trio, 6:30p

MON. OCT 29 Boudreaux’s Cajun Grill— David Chastang, 6p Felix’s— Lee Yankie Flora-Bama— Gove Scrivenor, 2p / Open Mic w/ Cathy Pace, 6p / Mel Knapp, 8p / Petty and Pace, 10:15p LuLu’s— Ronnie Presley, 5p

TUES. OCT 30 Bluegill— Ty Taylor & Gram Rae Boudreaux’s Cajun Grill— Matt Neese, 6p Butch Cassidy’s— David Jernigan / Dr. Tom & Karl Cockeyed Charlie’s— Music by Jordan Felix’s— Bryant Gilley Flora-Bama— T-Bone Montgomery, 2p / Al and Cathy, 6p / Justin Jeansonne, 8p / Mario Mena Duo, 10:15p LuLu’s— Chauncy Crandall, 5p Original Oyster House — Stephen Sylvester, 6p Soul Kitchen— Lauv, 8p

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Louisiana copes with coastal invaders — nutria

T

FILMTHE REEL WORLD

BY ASIA FREY/FILM CRITIC/AFREY@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

AREA THEATERS AMC MOBILE 16 785 Schillinger Road South Mobile, AL (251)639-1748 CRESCENT THEATER 208 Dauphin St Mobile, AL (251) 438-2005 REGAL MOBILE STADIUM 18 1250 Satchel Paige Drive Mobile, AL (844) 462-7342 AMC JUBILEE Square 12 6898 Highway 90 Daphne, AL (251) 626-5766 NEXUS CINEMA DINING 7070 Bruns Dr. Mobile, AL (251) 776-6570

hey had me at the title of the documentary “Rodents of Unusual Size.” This amusing but thoughtful film considers the nutria, a red-toothed beast swarming the Louisiana coastline, and the efforts to contain this seemingly unstoppable invasive species. From trapping to shooting to eating to keeping nutria as pets, “Rodents of Unusual Size” finds Louisiana residents from all walks of life united in their relationships with these oversized swamp rats.

A very informative, well-animated segment tells us how nutria were brought over from South America during the Great Depression to create a fur industry and jobs along with it, and how, to put it mildly, that was not what happened. Fast forward to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, and the cyclical nature of coastal erosion — it makes hurricane damage worse, and then hurricanes worsen coastal erosion.

Into this mix comes the voracious nutria, an eating, breeding machine overrunning and eroding the vulnerable coastline.

A grassroots movement to kill some of these hordes of nutria is indeed just that — the nutria burrow along the coastlines though the grass roots, undermining the structure and making it that much easier to lose precious feet of land.

We meet many citizens benefiting from a state bounty program that pays $5 for every nutria tail that’s turned in. Young and old, men and women hit the swamps and cash in; for some, it’s a means to a shortterm goal, like one guy who says it helps

pay for his college education. For others, it’s a family affair and a lifelong career.

Delacroix Island resident Thomas Gonzales is the latter. A scrappy, outspoken bon vivant and expert dancer, Gonzales has a philosophical attitude toward his prey and the swampy symbiosis they have enjoyed throughout his life. Gonzales sees himself and the nutria as survivors, and feels grateful to the animal for allowing him to provide for his family. In a film encompassing many ecological and economic realities, his reverence for what he kills to keep himself alive is profound.

Skip the concession stand for maximum survival of the more shudderinducing moments in this film, as some of the piled up carcasses are pretty hard to stomach, not to mention the ghastly sacks of disembodied nutria tails, valuable though they may be. Unfortunately, some of the least appetizing segments of “Rodents of Unusual Size” are about the efforts to make them just that: food.

Renowned New Orleans chef Susan Spicer describes her attempts to create dishes out of nutria, dryly admitting her efforts to “freak out the staff,” and does allow that it’s a lean and versatile protein option, akin to rabbit meat, perhaps one we’ll revisit if it’s ever the last protein source on earth.

Kermit Ruffins, jazz musician, actor and marvelously gravelly narrator of parts of this film, barbeques nutria in a very on-brand bath of Abita beer outside his concerts to promote consumption of the irredeemably gross-looking animals. A

Louisiana official describes other efforts to promote the meat in foods such as tamales, gumbo — of course — and even nutria Slim Jims, which is a terrifying concept and a great band name. Let’s just say these ideas have yet to take off.

Others try to promote nutria fur, which is what got Louisiana into this mess in the first place, as a sustainable fur option. A group called Righteous Fur puts on fashion shows with jackets, hats and even a tantalizingly described, but tragically unseen, pair of nutria fur leg warmers.

Mostly, though, people just shoot them, saw off their tails and turn them in for five bucks. An animal control officer makes some very insightful points about the class-level distinctions in responses to nutria infestations. He points out that wealthy people prefer to have them trapped alive and taken away from places like golf courses; they prefer not to get their hands dirty.

In each encounter and interview in “Rodents of Unusual Size,” you find a subtle or profound point or detail that you will think about long after you’ve squirmed through the visceral moments spent with these long-tailed, red-toothed rodents. This is a funny, gross documentary of unusual depth covering ecology, identity, culture, class and family through the lens of the life cycle of a gigantic, disgusting rat.

Catch “Rodents of Unusual Size” only at the Fairhope Film Festival, Nov. 8-11. Much more on the full festival lineup to follow.

AMC CLASSIC WHARF 23151 Wharf Lane Orange Beach, AL (251) 981-4444 COBB PINNACLE 14 3780 Gulf Shores Pkwy Gulf Shores (251) 923-0785 EASTERN SHORE PREMIERE CINEMA 14 30500 State Hwy 181 Spanish Fort, AL (251) 626-0352 Information accurate at press time; please call theaters for showtimes.

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Photos | Tilapia Film / Summit Entertainment

From left: In the Fairhope Film Festival feature “Rodents of Unusual Size,” hardheaded Louisiana fisherman Thomas Gonzales doesn’t know what will hit him next. After decades of hurricanes and oil spills he faces a new threat — hordes of monstrous 20-pound swamp rats. Gerard Butler and Gary Oldman star in “Hunter Killer.”

NEW THIS WEEK HUNTER KILLER

An untested American submarine captain teams with U.S. Navy Seals to rescue the Russian president, who has been kidnapped by a rogue general. All listed multiplex theaters.

BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY Biopic about the band Queen and their lead singer Freddy Mercury.

Crescent Theater.

THE HATE U GIVE

A teen witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend at the hands of a police officer. All listed multiplex theaters.

ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW

We’ve all done the Time Warp again, because it’s already time for the traditional, fully interactive screening at the Crescent Theater, Oct. 25, 26, 27 and 31 at 9 p.m.

NOW PLAYING HALLOWEEN All listed multiplex theaters.

BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE Regal Mobile Stadium 18, AMC Mobile 16 GOOSEBUMPS: HAUNTED HALLOWEEN All listed multiplex theaters.

FIRST MAN All listed multiplex theaters.

KINKY Regal Mobile Stadium 18 A STAR IS BORN All listed multiplex the-

aters, Nexus Cinema Dining, Crescent Theater.

VENOM All listed multiplex theaters.

HELL FEST All listed multiplex theaters.

NIGHT SCHOOL All listed multiplex theaters.

SMALLFOOT All listed multiplex theaters.

THE HOUSE WITH A CLOCK IN ITS WALLS All listed multiplex theaters.

A SIMPLE FAVOR Regal Mobile Stadium 18, AMC Mobile 16, AMC Classic

Jubilee Square THE PREDATOR All listed multiplex theaters.

WHITE BOY RICK Regal Mobile Stadium 18 PEPPERMINT Regal Mobile Stadium 18, AMC Classic Jubilee Square CRAZY RICH ASIANS All listed multiplex theaters.

CHRISTOPHER ROBIN Regal Mobile Stadium 18, AMC Classic Jubilee Square HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 3: SUMMER VACATION Regal Mobile Stadium 18

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS OCTOBER 24, 2018 - OCTOBER 30, 2018

HALLOWEEN EVENTS Fireside Tales at Blakeley Historic Blakeley State Park invites families and others interested in local folklore to gather around the campfire for a special storytelling presentation Friday, Oct. 26, starting at 6 p.m. Park admission $4 for adults and $3 for kids ages 6-12.

Kids under 6 are free. State Highway 225 about five miles north of Spanish Fort. Visit blakeleypark.com.

Sensory Friendly Trick or Treat The American Autism and Rehabilitation Center (8909 Rand Ave., Daphne) will host a Sensory-Friendly Trick or Treat on Friday, Oct. 27, 4:30-6:30 p.m. Parents or care providers must accompany children. Bags will be provided. Call 251-583-5530.

Halloween at the Exploreum Join us for an Animated Halloween at the Gulf Coast Exploreum on Saturday, Oct. 27, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for family-friendly activities and demos inspired by animation while exploring the amazing worlds of science, technology, engineering and math.

Visit exploreum.org.

Boo at Bellingrath Dress up your little goblins and enjoy a day of Halloween fun at Bellingrath on Saturday, Oct. 27, beginning at 11 a.m. Admission includes entrance into Bellingrath Gardens for the day: $14 for adults, $8 for children ages 5-12 and free for children 4 and under. Purchase online at brownpapertickets.com.

Haunted Forest Walk a 30-minute guided trail through the haunted forest of Graham Creek Nature Preserve, 23030 Wolf Bay Drive, Foley. Oct. 26 and 27. First tour begins at 7 p.m., last tour at 10 p.m. Tours will run at 30-minute intervals. Geared toward teens and adults.

Please wear closed-toe walking shoes. $15 admission. Call 251-923-4267.

Fear in the Forest Magnolia Corn Maze presents a haunting experience unlike anywhere else in our area. $20 per person includes two corn mazes, a hayride, petting zoo and all unlimited activities. Oct. 26, 27 and 31, 7-11 p.m. at 15275 County Road 49 S., Summerdale. Call 251-605-7216.

Family-friendly Haunted House Join Trinity Episcopal Church, 1900 Dauphin St. in Mobile, Oct. 26 and 27, 6:30-9 p.m. The Haunted House will also

be open Oct. 28 and 31, 3-6 p.m. $10 for adults or $5 for kids under 12. Special pricing for groups of 10 or greater. Call 251-473-2779.

Congressional town hall Congressman Bradley Byrne will hold two town hall meetings. Thursday, Oct. 25, 3 p.m. at the Saraland City Hall and Monday, Oct. 29, 11 a.m. at the Bayou La Batre City Hall. Meetings are open to the public and free. Information at Byrne.House.Gov/ TownHalls.

Fall Fest at The Shoppes at Bel Air The Shoppes at Bel Air will host its Fall Fest featuring games, activities and crafts for the whole family. Costumes are encouraged to amplify the Halloween spirit! Forks and Corks Join us Saturday, Oct. 27, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Join us Friday, Oct. 26, for an evening at the fountain near J.C. Penney. Call 251of food, music and marine science at the 375-1297.

Estuarium at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab as eight Mobile County Public School teams compete in a seafood culinary St. Mary Fall Festival Fall Festival with Trunk or Treat on Sunday, competition. Tickets are $30 each/$50 for two. Visit DISL.org/special-events or call Oct. 28, 1-3 p.m. Prizes for best trunk and 251-861-2141. other contests including costume, hula hoop, limbo and cake walk. Inflatables, haunted house and concessions including Kona Ice. Gate fee is $1 per tricker or treater.

Scary stories with Stephen Graham Jones Join us Monday, Oct. 29, 7 p.m. at the USA student center outdoor amphitheater for scary stories read by Stephen Graham Jones, a genre-bending writer who spans the worlds of experimental fiction, horror, crime and more. Email njpoole@ southalabama.edu.

Town of Terror Circus Asylum The most terrifying attraction on the Gulf Coast is every weekend in October at OWA in Foley. For older kids and adults. Tickets start at $19.99 and packages to the park and other attractions are available. For more information go to visitowa.com.

The Park After Dark Visit Saturdays in October inside The Park at OWA for a variety of kid-friendly events and activities. Grab the kiddos and spend a Halloween-themed day in The Park as they enjoy a hay maze, create fun arts and crafts, and make lasting memories! Times and activity details at VisitOWA.com.

GENERAL INTEREST Church Street Graveyard Tours Historic Mobile Preservation Society (HMPS) and Church Street Graveyard Society will present a tour of Mobile’s oldest cemetery Wednesday, Oct. 26, at 5:30 p.m. Learn all about the graveyard and the people laid to rest there. $10 per person, free for HMPS members. Tickets at historicmobile.org/events or pay cash at start of tour.

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ArtSeaLab Festival The inaugural three-day ArtSeaLab Festival is Oct. 26-28 at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab campus, 101 Bienville Blvd.

Culinary arts competition, outdoor arts and crafts show, high school and middle school “Love Our Gulf” art competition, marine debris 3D art competition, ecopoetry community workshops, live folk demonstrations, performances and children’s art plus science activity tents.

Visit artsealab.org.

64th annual Greater Gulf State Fair The fair kicks off on Friday, Oct. 26, with the return of music to the grandstand. MCA Nashville Records country singer and actor Josh Turner will open on Oct. 27, followed

by Back to the ‘90s featuring All 4 One, Coolio and Tone Loc on Nov. 2. Concerts are included with general fair admission; upgraded Gold Circle seating options are available, including access to private bathroom and bar. Visit www.mobilefair. com.

Gospel Fest Coastal Alabama Community College in Fairhope will host a Gospel Fest Friday, Oct. 26, at 4 p.m. Featuring African Universal Church Choir, Eastern Shore Choral Society and Path to Peace Choir. Bring chairs and blanket. Food, door prizes, singalong. Free admission.

Proceeds benefit Rotary Youth Club.

Contact LMason@RotaryYouthClub.org.

AOPA’s last fly-in Jack Edwards Airport in Gulf Shores is hosting the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association’s last fly-in for 2018 on Friday, Oct. 26, and Saturday, Oct. 27. The flyins are designed to give AOPA pilots and other aircraft enthusiasts the opportunity

to connect with each other, learn more about aircraft and have fun. Exhibits, free seminars. Open to the public. Visit aopa.org.

St. Paul’s Episcopal Chapel Speckled Trout Invitational Competitive angling, fresh-fried mullet and tasty sides, kid-friendly activities, live music and lively prizes combine for a day of fun for a good cause on Saturday, Oct. 27. St. Paul’s Parish Hall, 14755 Oak St., Magnolia Springs. Visit stpaulsms.org, call 251-9657452 or email admin@stpaulsms.org.

Elberta Sausage Festival Join us Saturday, Oct. 27, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for Elberta’s famous “One With Two Without” German sausage and sauerkraut, plus continuous entertainment for adults and children, and more than 200 arts and crafts booths. 13052 Main St., Elberta.

Movie on the Promenade Grab a blanket or chair and join GulfQuest for the movie “Coco” outside on the Riverfront Promenade, Friday, Oct. 26, 6:30-9 p.m. Our in-house restaurant, The Galley, will be offering a pizza slice and drink for just $5. Visit gulfquest.org.

Fall Market in the Park Fall market comes to Cathedral Square Saturdays through Nov. 17, 7:30 a.m. to noon. Live musical performances, oneof-a-kind arts and crafts produced by local artisans and locally grown produce, seafood, cheese and eggs, honey, flowers and plants, baked goods, pasta. Find us on Facebook @MobileArtsCouncil.

CUMC fall farmers market Christ United Methodist Church will hold a farmers market Tuesdays, 2:30-5 p.m., through Nov. 13. Locally grown produce, seafood, honey, fresh roasted coffee and local craft artist. West side of church property at 6101 Grelot Road, Mobile.

Fairhope fall farmers market Thursdays through Nov. 6, 3-6 p.m.

Enjoy delicious, healthy foods in season — greens, herbs, sweet potatoes — at the Fairhope farmers market. Enjoy live music, a variety of vegetables and produce, and leave with a fresh bouquet of flowers.

Fairhope Public Library Youth Services invites kids to come each week for activities at 4 p.m. Visit fairhopeal.gov for more information.

Pop-Up Riverside Enjoy free, family-friendly pop-up events including music, games and other activities Oct. 28, 2-5 p.m., at Cooper Riverside Park. Theme is “Just Add Fun.” Visit specialeventsmobile.org.

Bingo at Via! Bingo every Tuesday and Thursday, 1-3 p.m. Open to the public. Via! Health, Fitness, Enrichment Center, 1717 Dauphin St., 251-478-3311.

FUNDRAISERS “Pink is the New Green” Join us for the annual “Pink is the New Green” soiree, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 6:30 p.m. at Callaghan’s Irish Social Club.

Hosted by William Norville Harrison in memory of his wife, Debbie. Music by The Marlow Boys, silent auctions and door prizes. All donations will benefit USA Mitchell Cancer Institute.

Boots & BBQ Barn Bash The fifth annual Boots & BBQ Barn Bash kicks off Thursday, Oct. 25, to benefit the Children’s of Alabama Pediatric Rheumatology Clinic in Mobile. Beginning at 6:30 p.m. guests are invited to enjoy an evening of live music by Johnny Hayes and the Loveseats and barbecue at Moe’s Original Bar B Que (701 Springhill Ave.).

Admission is $40 per person. To register online, visit give.childrensal.org/barnbash.

St. Mary Parish Haunted House Sponsored by St. Mary Life Teen and Sunny Side Theater on Saturday, Oct. 27, and Sunday, Oct. 28, at St. Mary Parish (1453 Old Shell Road, Mobile). Tickets are $5 per person or $20 per family and can be purchased in advance at the Parish office.

All proceeds will go directly to benefit St. Mary youth programs.

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Join the American Cancer Society Making Strides Against Breast Cancer of South Alabama on Saturday, Oct 27, at Bienville Square to help create a world without breast cancer. Registration begins at 6:45 a.m. and the walk starts at 8 a.m. Visit MakingStridesWalk.org/mobileal for more information.

3rd annual Mobile Witches Ride Delta Dogs hosts the 3rd annual Witches Ride on Oct. 28 beginning with registration at 3:30 p.m. at the Blind Mule. Get your best, most fabulous witch costume together and hop on your broom (aka your

bicycle — yeah, decorate that too!) for a 3-mile, easy-paced bike parade around downtown Mobile and DeTonti Square.

Delta Dogs, a local nonprofit that provides free spay/neuter and veterinary care to the pets of Mobile’s community in need. Visit 2018mobilewitchesride.eventbrite.com.

Animal Art Safari Paws, claws, toes and tails have been put to canvas by the animals of the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo to create a one-of-a-kind artwork collection that will be on display and offered at auction on Saturday, Oct. 27, 5-8 p.m. at 1204 Gulf Shores Parkway in Gulf Shores. Proceeds will go toward the Build Your Zoo charitable fund. Tickets are $50/person in advance or $75 at the door.

Visit alabamagulfcoastzoo.com/art.

Prodisee Pantry Turkey Trot The 9th annual Prodisee Pantry Turkey Trot runs through Old Towne Daphne on Saturday, Oct. 27, with both a certified 5K Race and a 1-mile Fun Run/Walk. The 5K Race starts at 8 a.m. on Main Street at City Hall. The Fun Run/Walk begins at 9 a.m. Proceeds from the Turkey Trot benefit Prodisee Pantry, Baldwin County’s largest nonprofit emergency food pantry. Visit prodiseepantry.org or call 251-626-1720.

Ace of Hearts Poker Run WKRG will hold its 2nd annual Ace of Hearts Poker Run Saturday, Oct. 27, noon until 5 p.m. Riders can leave from Mobile or Pensacola Bay Harley-Davidson, hitting up different stops along the way and culminating with the after party at Flora-Bama in the tent. Benefits the American Heart Association. Look for more information on wkrg.com.

ARTS “Freaky Friday” auditions Come out and audition for a brand new musical, “Freaky Friday: The Musical!” on Oct. 26 and 27, 6-9 p.m. at The PACT (3995 Cottage Hill Road, Unit C, Mobile). Download the audition packet at thepactmobile.com.

Garden sketch club Visit Mobile Botanical Gardens every Friday, 2-4 p.m., for a relaxing time sketching in the gardens. All levels of experience welcome. General admission $5 for nonmembers.

Matriarchs of the Poarch Creek” through December.

“Animation Academy” at the Exploreum Visitors will learn about the history of animated drawings, from prefilm animation devices to today’s computer-generated animation, and try their hand at drawing characters. Through Jan. 6. Call 251-2086893 or visit exploreum.com.

“Mystery of the Mayan Medallion” Secrets of an ancient world await at the History Museum of Mobile, through Dec. 30. Visit historymuseumofmobile.com.

“Madagascar: Island of Lemurs” at Exploreum Academy Award winner Morgan Freeman narrates the IMAX® 3D documentary “Madagascar: Island of Lemurs,” the incredible true story of nature’s greatest explorers — lemurs. Visit exploreum.com.

“Everest” at Exploreum Celebrate the Exploreum’s 20th anniversary with “Everest.” An international team of climbers ascends Mt. Everest in spring 1996. The film depicts their lengthy preparations for the climb, their trek to the summit and their successful return to base camp. Visit exploreum.com.

Thursdays at MMoA Every Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., the Mobile Museum of Art offers free admission to all Mobile County residents.

No reservations are necessary. MMoA is at 4850 Museum Drive. Call 251-208-5200.

SPORTING EVENTS/ACTIVITIES SEC Women’s Soccer Championship Orange Beach will again host the SEC Women’s Soccer Championship Oct. 28 through Nov. 4. Tickets will be available at the gate for $5 per game for adults and $2 per day for children (K-12). All games will be broadcast live on the SEC Network. Visit SECSports.go.com/Clubhouse/Soccer.

MUSEUMS

Run-ish at FIVE Run-ish, walk-ish, bike-ish, drink-ish.

Choose your -ish and join us every Wednesday evening at 6-ish at FIVE, 609 Dauphin St. in Mobile, followed by drink and food specials. Call 251-308-3105.

Our Beloved Women” Exhibit The Marx Library at the University of South Alabama will host “Our Beloved Women:

Keep your brain sharp The Mobile Bridge Center (1510 S. University Blvd.) offers free bridge

lessons weekly, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Contact mobilebridgeclub@comcast.net or Mickey Groggel at 251-377-0322.

WORKSHOPS Medicare open enrollment seminars The Mobile Parks and Recreation Department has partnered with the Area Agency on Aging/SHIP to offer free seminars Fridays, 10 a.m. to noon, to better understand Medicare choices. Locations and dates include: Newhouse Park & Community Center (2960 Alston Drive) Nov. 16; Stott Park Community Center (2150 Demetropolis Road) Oct. 26 or Nov. 30; Laun Park & Community Center (5401 Windmill Drive) Nov. 2; and Mitternight Park & Community Center (5310 Colonial Oaks Drive) Nov. 9. Call 251-208-1610.

PUBLIC MEETINGS Baldwin County Commission: First and third Tuesday at 8:30 a.m., 322 Courthouse Square, Bay Minette. Work sessions are second and fourth Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. rotating between Bay Minette, the Foley Satellite Courthouse, the Fairhope Satellite Courthouse and the Baldwin County Central Annex Building in Robertsdale, baldwincountyal.gov.

Baldwin County Planning Commission: First Thursday at 6 p.m., 22251 Palmer St., Robertsdale, baldwincountyal.gov.

Bayou La Batre City Council: Second and fourth Thursday at 5:30 p.m., 13785 S. Wintzell Ave., cityofbayoulabatre.com.

Chickasaw City Council: Second and fourth Tuesday at 7 p.m., 224 N. Craft Highway, 251-452-6450.

Citronelle City Council: Second and fourth Thursday at 6:30 p.m., 19135 Main St., 251866-7973.

Creola City Council: Second and fourth Thursday at 6 p.m., 190 Dead Lake Road, #A, 251-675-8142.

Daphne City Council: First and third Monday at 6:30 p.m., 1705 Main St. Work sessions second Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m., daphneal.com.

Dauphin Island Town Council: First and third Tuesdays at 7 p.m., 1011 Bienville Blvd., townofdauphinisland.org.

Elberta Town Council: Third Tuesday of each month at 6 p.m. in the town hall.

Workshop meeting on the second Tuesday, townofelberta.com.

Fairhope City Council: Second and fourth Monday at 6 p.m., 161 N. Section St. Work sessions held before each council meeting at 4:30 p.m., cofairhope.com.

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THE NEW YOURK TIMES CROSSWORD PUZZLE GAME HUNTING

BY ROSS TRUDEAU / EDITED BY WILL SHORTZ ACROSS 1 ____ Page, the Queen of Pinups 7 Flavorful meat coating 15 End-of-week cry 19 O.K. to play, in a way 20 Obsession with a single subject 22 Country’s McEntire 23 “We can’t play that game — I can’t reach it on our shelf!”

25 Operating system developed at Bell Labs 26 Onetime White House family 27 Corroded 28 Sunken-ship sites 30 Travel option for Birthright trips 31 Natural-gas component 34 Dress (up) 35 Standout 36 Turning point in history 38 “My sincerest apologies, but that game is off the table” 43 Unearth 46 Bills 47 Many a Snapchat posting 48 Suit that’s hard to get into 51 Old Buick 53 What’s plucked in “she loves me, she loves me not” 54 “We can’t play that game unless we borrow someone else’s” 56 Laughs and laughs 57 French city grid 58 People vis-à-vis gods 59 It’s a trek 60 “It ____” (“Who’s there?” reply) 61 Show overuse, as a sofa 62 They may have attachments 63 Strand 65 Hammarskjöld once of the U.N. 68 Provisions 70 ____ school 71 Bone connection with convex and concave fittings 73 ____ Mode, woman in “The Incredibles” 75 Word repeated in the openings of “Star Wars” movies 76 “I’m begging you, let’s not play that game!”

77 Antinuclear treaty topic 79 Pop-up site 80 Daniel who wrote “Flowers for Algernon” 81 Island greetings 82 Take over 83 Info in dating profiles 85 “No, that game would be over in a flash” 88 One of 26 for Walt Disney 91 Common filler words 92 Common filler words 93 “If you are always trying to be ____, you will never know

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16 M F M, e.g.

17 One of the first birds released by Noah after the flood, in legend 18 Kind of number not much seen nowadays 21 “Of course!”

24 Krazy ____ of the comics 29 More villainous 31 Hosp. readout 32 Penalties for illegal bowls in cricket 33 Largest active Antarctic volcano 34 Little ’un 37 Vessels seen in 2004’s “Troy” 39 Like albino alligators DOWN 40 General ____ chicken 1 Isolated hill 41 Work (up) 2 Surround with light 42 Things needed in passing?

3 1996 Robert De Niro/Wesley 44 Supervillain in DC Comics Snipes psychological thriller 45 More smoky, as Scotch 4 Bird in a holiday song 48 Goals 5 “Black ____,” Georgia 49 Bird named for a Titan O’Keeffe painting at the Met 50 Polling calculations 6 Ewoks or Jawas, in brief 52 Spill coffee on, maybe 7 One of academia’s Seven 53 Blandishment Sisters 55 Actor’s honor, informally 8 Impersonate 56 Rigid 9 It might result in 59 Attacked a defensive TD 60 They’re shared among 10 Aviary sound friends 11 Full of broodiness, say 63 Whiz 12 Cheerleader’s cheer 64 Classic work whose 13 Synchronized states “shorter” version comes 14 Narcissist’s quality in two vols.

15 Who you really are 66 Image on the ceiling of la how amazing you can be”: Maya Angelou 96 Praise for a picador 98 Frida Kahlo, por ejemplo 100 Novelist McEwan 101 Grammy winner Mary J. ____ 102 Cosmonaut Gagarin 103 “I’ve finally decided! I’m …”

109 Small matter 110 “Looking to go somewhere?”

111 Densest natural element 112 Bead source 113 Officials in ancient Rome 114 They vary from past to present

chapelle Sixtine 67 Classic Pontiacs 69 He’s often pictured carrying an hourglass 71 Apply haphazardly 72 It comes just before a period 73 List-ending abbr.

74 Scale site 75 Fleet 76 When doubled, dismiss out of hand 78 Low voices 79 Turn’s partner 82 Secondary loan signer 84 D.C. insider 86 Get-go 87 Old vacuum tube 89 Suspect statements?

90 Fix, as a model plane 94 ____-nest 95 Aesop’s “The ____ and the Grasshopper” 97 Is for all intents and purposes 98 Taurus or Touareg 99 ____ Marino 101 Big name in speakers 102 Go on and on 104 Tyrant Amin 105 Catch 106 “Despicable Me” protagonist 107 Ominous sight at a beach 108 Go bad

ANSWERS ON PAGE 47

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SPORTS UPON FURTHER REVIEW

Spartan Race returns to Saraland with two days of action

BY J. MARK BRYANT/SPORTS WRITER/SPORTS@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM/TWITTER @GOULAGUY

W

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Photo | Mobile Sports Authority

hen the Spartan Race first came to Saraalso want to thank the Hatters Pond, LLC, group for agreeland, it was an immediate success. According ing to host the Spartan Race on their property.” to the Mobile Sports Authority (MSA), the The Saturday race — “The Alabama Super” — will obstacle course event had an economic impact consist of a 10-plus mile course with more than 24 natural of more than $2 million in 2015 and another $1.8 million and manmade obstacles. It is expected to test the endurin 2016. With more than 4,100 competitors the first year ance and determination of more than 4,000 competitors. and close to 5,000 the next, it was the largest race MSA On Sunday, the racers can celebrate St. Patrick’s Day had ever sponsored. with a Sprint Race. “The Alabama Sprint” will consist of Unfortunately, the lack of an adequate site for hosting a three-plus mile course with as many as 20 obstacles to the massive course forced fans to find other locations the navigate. past two years. However, that will all change in 2019.

Spartan Races offer three primary formats. The previMSA and the city of Saraland have announced the ous races in Saraland were the “Super” class. In addition return of the only Spartan Race to take place in the state of to the Sprint Race, there is also the Beast Race (13-plus Alabama. In addition, the program miles, 30-plus obstacles). will be expanded.

Competitors are encouraged to The Alabama Spartan will be complete each of the primary race holding two events over two days distances to achieve “Trifecta” status, instead of a single day. Spartan offiearning pieces of a medallion for THE EVENT CATERS TO INDIcials will be running a Super Spartan each finish. The three sections interon Saturday, March 16, while a lock to form the medal. Unlike other VIDUALS LOOKING TO TEST Sprint Spartan is set for Sunday, obstacle-focused events, Spartan THEIR PHYSICAL LIMITS, March 17.

Races are always timed.

“Saraland is very excited to wel“For the upcoming race, Spartan FROM EVERYDAY PEOPLE come back the Spartan Race to our competitors can come to Saraland LOOKING TO LEAD A FITTER city,” said Saraland Mayor Howard and earn two of the three legs of their Rubenstein. “We are honored to host annual Spartan Trifecta Medal in LIFESTYLE, TO ELITE ENDURthis national event and are pleased one weekend,” Corte said. “That’s ANCE ATHLETES SEEKING THE to be able to provide a quality venue very exciting and we’re all looking for the many competitors who will forward to seeing what happens as ULTIMATE PHYSICAL TEST. be attending.”

Spartan returns to Saraland in 2019.”

The inaugural Spartan Race took The weekend will also feature the place in 2010. The event caters to Spartan Kids Race. The new compeindividuals looking to test their physical limits, from tition site is positioned off Radcliff Road in Saraland. everyday people looking to lead a fitter lifestyle, to elite There are also opportunities for people to volunteer endurance athletes seeking the ultimate physical test. and/or participate in the Alabama Spartan Race. Those inThe previous Saraland events were among the first terested in volunteering or assisting with site buildup and/ Spartan Race locations to host a Friday Night Pre-Race or race day activities may contact Rita-Nicole Wright of Party. Hosted by the Saraland Area Chamber of Comthe North Mobile YMCA by email at rwright@ysal.org. merce, “Taste of Saraland” gives participants and visitors a Registration is now open for the Alabama Spartan Race chance to try local food while enjoying live entertainment weekend. Visit Spartan.com for more information, race and a little Southern hospitality. This year’s party will take registration and volunteer opportunities. place Friday, March 15, beginning at 5 p.m. in front of the chamber offices at 939 Saraland Blvd. Admission to the Sports briefs pre-race party will be free to those involved.

• The Southeastern Conference is returning to the “Since 2014 when the idea of bringing a Spartan Race to Mobile County was originally visited, the Saraland com- Orange Beach Sportsplex for its women’s soccer championship Oct. 28 to Nov. 4. The event has taken place in munity, led by Mayor Howard Rubenstein, Saraland City Baldwin County since 2003, and a recent contract will Council President Joe McDonald and the entire Saraland Chamber organization to our entire dedicated local comextend the tournament through 2020. mittee, as well as several of our local Spartan competitors, Tickets will be available at the gate at $5 per game have been extremely dedicated to help us bring Spartan to for adults and $2 per day for children (grades K-12). All our area,” said MSA Executive Director Danny Corte. “I games will be broadcast live on the SEC Network, includ-

The Spartan Race caters to individuals looking to test their physical limits, from everyday people looking to lead a fitter lifestyle, to elite endurance athletes seeking the ultimate physical test. ing the championship match that Sunday at 2 p.m.

• The Alabama Soccer Association is hosting its 3V3 Soccer Festival Nov. 3-4 in conjunction with the collegiate championship. The cost to register is $30 per player, including admission to the SEC championship match. To register, go to ALSoccerLive.org/Reg. Visit SECSports.go.com/Clubhouse/Soccer for more on the SEC and ALSoccer.com for more on the state soccer association.

• The sixth annual Generational Resilience Conference will take place at the Via! Center (1717 Dauphin St.) on Friday, Oct. 26, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The keynote speaker is Shirley Cunningham, Ms. Senior Mobile 2005.

Cunningham currently holds the Alabama State Powerlifting Record for the 74-year-old age bracket. Her remarks, “Stronger for Life,” are based on her childhood growing up in the Deep South and how she discovered the path to mental and physical wellness. The Mobile native has the distinction of serving as the first African-American assistant to the president of Cornell College. In addition to powerlifting, Cunningham is a motivational speaker and an active volunteer in the community, teaching line and swing dancing at several community centers in Mobile.

The event is free and open to the public. Registration is required. For more information, call 251-470-5229 or send an email to bestes@viamobile.org.

• The Alabama Marine Resources Division (AMRD) will conduct a community oyster meeting Wednesday, Nov. 7, 1-3 p.m. at the South Bay Coastal Response Center, 7385 Highway 188 in Coden. This meeting is open to the public.

The focus will be to update the community about present AMRD activities related to the management of Alabama’s oyster fisheries and to receive public input. AMRD representatives will discuss 2018 oyster reef survey results and upcoming oyster-related projects.

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SPORTS FROM BEHIND THE MIC

The hype has already begun for LSU-Alabama

BY RANDY KENNEDY/CONTRIBUTING WRITER

N

othing could be better for college football than a matchup of Top 5 teams in one of the greatest settings in the sport. The only element missing in Baton Rouge next weekend is the belief that the home team actually has a chance to win the game.

The countdown is on for Alabama’s visit to LSU on the first Saturday in November. Combined, the two teams have gone 15-1 this season. LSU alone has wins over ranked teams Miami, Auburn, Georgia and Mississippi State.

Three of those opponents were undefeated and ranked in the Top 10 at the time LSU beat them.

The Tigers have come alive behind a stout defense that has stars at every level and a gritty quarterback who is on his way to earning his Bayou name, Jeaux Burreaux (for now he’s simply Joe Burrow from The Plains, Ohio).

Both Alabama and LSU control their own destiny in their pursuit of the SEC West title, the overall SEC championship and a spot in the College Football Playoff.

ESPN GameDay will be there to provide the hype. CBS will be on hand to televise the game.

But does all the hype feel a little too forced? Is it all just make-believe that this is going to be the most exciting game of the college football season? Do observers really think LSU has a legitimate chance to pull off the upset?

The experts in Las Vegas certainly have their doubts.

More than a week before kickoff, Alabama is a two-touchdown favorite. That’s much less than the 29 points the Tide was favored by in its last road game at Tennessee, but it’s still a substantial number.

College teams that are 14-point underdogs win those

games only 14.9 percent of the time. That win percentage drops to 6.3 when a team is a 17.5-point underdog. I expect the Alabama-LSU line to settle somewhere between those two numbers.

So, is there reason to believe LSU could overcome those daunting odds and pull the upset? Or, the better way to phrase the question might be to ask if Alabama is going to allow LSU to hang close long enough to pull off the upset in the fourth quarter at a raucous Tiger Stadium.

Among the dozens of crazy stats about this Alabama team, this one may be the most amazing: Georgia is second in the SEC in scoring at 39.0 points per game. Alabama is averaging 38.7 points in the first half alone. Overall, the Tide is scoring more than 15 points per game more than second-place Georgia.

Alabama has scored a touchdown on every opening drive this season. LSU will be without Devin White in the first half while he sits out a suspension for targeting, so that certainly doesn’t help the Tigers’ chances of stopping that streak.

The Tide has sucked the life out of opponents — and college football in general — by playing with a doubledigit lead during 82 percent of all game time this season.

This LSU team, on the other hand, has proven to simply be a bunch of winners who are easy to love. Despite a loss at Florida, the Tigers have risen to No. 4 in the country without the benefit of explosive offensive playmakers such as Leonard Fournette or Odell Beckham Jr. Defensively, it’s been nice to see former Murphy High star Neil Farrell emerge as a very effective player on the

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defensive line for the Tigers, who do have plenty of star power.

I want this to be a great matchup. For the sake of college football, LSU needs to at least show there are some chinks in the Alabama armor, even if the Tigers can’t pull off the upset.

Here’s the truth ESPN and CBS and all the national media hyping this game and this season don’t want to admit: It may well be that LSU has a better chance to beat Alabama next week than any team left on the Alabama schedule — and that includes the postseason.

This is the only true road challenge on the Alabama schedule. No matter all the gaudy stats Alabama has accumulated, LSU is not going to be intimidated or lose the game before the opening kickoff like so many teams in the past.

The only serious teams left on the Alabama schedule — Mississippi State, Auburn and potentially Georgia in the SEC Championship Game — have already proven they aren’t as good as LSU.

THE COUNTDOWN IS ON FOR ALABAMA’S VISIT TO LSU ON THE FIRST SATURDAY IN NOVEMBER. COMBINED, THE TWO TEAMS HAVE GONE 15-1 THIS SEASON. LSU ALONE HAS WINS OVER RANKED TEAMS MIAMI, AUBURN, GEORGIA AND MISSISSIPPI STATE.” Notre Dame would be no more a challenge for this Alabama team than the team that made the national championship game and was humiliated by the Tide.

Clemson could certainly offer a challenge and even a great offense like Oklahoma would be an interesting matchup against the Tide.

But, factoring in the home field advantage at Tiger Stadium, none of those teams has a better chance to derail the Tide than the Bayou Bengals. Can they do it? The odds say no. But all the hype leading up to the game will certainly make most of us believe just enough to be glued to the game next weekend.

Randy Kennedy writes a weekly column for Lagniappe and is co-host of “Sports Drive” every weekday from 3-6 p.m. on WNSP 105.5 FM, the country’s first all-sports FM station.

STYLE GARDENING

Fascinating flora!

BY JUDY STOUT, MOBILE COUNTY MASTER GARDENER | COASTALALABAMAGARDENING@GMAIL.COM

Photos | Judy Stout

From left: Obedient plant, mother of thousands and lamb’s ear.

W

e appreciate plants for many reasons — beauty, landscape, fragrance, food, environmental health, general aesthetics and others. Readers and callers to our Helpline frequently inquire about a “weird” or unusual flower or plant and are amazed at the often-surprising answers. Understanding the wide range of plant adaptations may expand our appreciation. Let’s explore some fascinating facts about a few you may encounter. BTW: You can certainly impress your friends and entertain your children with these!

“OMG! There are baby plants coming out of the leaves of one of my plants!” Some plants, typical of harsh environments that limit flowering, may still flower occasionally but have nonviable seeds. To reproduce, they have adapted to produce “pups” along the stems or margins of leaves. Often these small plantlets already have roots formed before they drop off the mother plant to begin growth as a new individual. Some common examples grown as houseplants are found in the genus Kalanchoe. These include mother of thousands and donkey’s ears. Be forewarned!

Some may be so successful that their babies take over your flowerpots and neighboring plants, too!

How about a more cooperative plant? The obedient plant is popular as a bedding plant for its stalked clusters of attractive flowers. It gets its name from the unique feature of the flowers.

Although they grow up the flower stalk on all sides, you can gently rearrange them in any pattern you want, on one side only or maybe opposite each other on the stalk, and they will “obey” and remain in that arrangement! A great demonstration for children (and your friends and neighbors).

“Pet me!” seems to be the message from lamb’s ear. Leaves

densely covered with soft white to silver hairs have made this a favorite in sensory and children’s gardens. The hairs may aid the plant in reduction of moisture evaporation from the leaves and prevent attacks from insects such as aphids. Additionally, the hairs serve to repel water from the leaf surface, reducing the possibility of the succulent leaves rotting. Other “hairy” plants include dusty miller and Artemisia. Water repellency can also result from waxy leaf surfaces such as on water lotus and cabbage. As water rolls off leaves it may carry away harmful materials including dust, pollutants and fungal spores. Scientists seek to understand the plant properties of leaf hairs and natural waterproof surfaces in the development of artificial surfaces and coatings for useful manmade materials.

You may notice trees that seem to be either sunburned or dying because the bark is really peeling off. Often observed on crape myrtles and river birch in the winter, this is a natural phenomenon called “exfoliating bark.” Scientists are uncertain about the function of this adaptation, but it may allow the trunk to expand as new tissue layers are added beneath the old, dead bark. Other trees, like oaks and hickories, exhibit cracked and furrowed old bark, serving the same function.

Another explanation may be that insect pests living beneath the bark may be removed. This feature results in very attractive textures and colors on the trunks. The new bark left behind may be multicolored, colored in mosaic patterns or slick to the touch.

You may also have sycamores or some maples and elms that exhibit this characteristic. Enjoy them in your landscape planning along with other remarkably adaptive plants.

There are so many fascinating flora, we are going to explore this topic further in the Nov. 7 edition of Lagniappe.

GARDENERS, CHECK THIS OUT What: Market on the Square (look for the Master Gardener tent for gardening info) Find: Local produce, homemade bread, jams, preserved, honey, crafts, music When: Saturdays through Nov 17, 7:30 a.m. to noon Where: Cathedral Square, 300 Conti St., Mobile What: Mobile Master Gardeners Lunch & Learn When: Nov. 19, noon to 1 p.m.

Where: Jon Archer Ag Center, 1070 Schillinger Road, N., Mobile Topic: Native American and Midwife Gardens at the Mobile Medical Museum Speakers: Daryn Glassbrook, Ph.D., and Carol Dorsey What: Mobile Master Gardener Greenery Sale and MBG Holiday Market When: Nov. 30 and Dec. 1 (Friday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.)

Where: Mobile Botanical Gardens, 5151 Museum Drive, Mobile Deadline for pre-order: Nov. 15. For order form, email jda0002@aces.edu or go to mg.aces.edu/mobile/category/announcements/.

Master Gardener Helpline: 1-877-252-4769 or send gardening questions to coastalalabamagardening@gmail.com.

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STYLE BOOK REVIEW

The origin of Southern literature

BY MICHAEL THOMASON

M

any Southerners debate the origins of “Southern literature,” none more so than Mobilians who fondly recall Madame Octavia Le Vert and other local writers over the decades.

Indeed, the city had one of the antebellum South’s most famous printers, H. Goetzel & Co., which published “The Discovery of Sir John Franklin” in 1857 by Joseph Addison Turner (1826-1868), but it was drowned by critical reviews in Mobile, New Orleans and elsewhere. Turner had been working to establish a “Southern” literary style, inspired by his namesake, Joseph Addison (1672-1719), an English author and wit who had published a successful newspaper, The Spectator, more than a century before.

Turner was the son of a well-educated plantation owner in Eatonton, Georgia. His father’s extensive library and careful education of his young son enabled the boy, and later the man, to advocate and appreciate good, straightforward writing, but Joe’s book did not reflect the lessons of his English namesake and was a failure.

Joseph Addison (J.A.) Turner was never poor, but his early literary efforts were not especially successful. He submitted many articles on Southern topics, few of which saw publication.

While he worked away, he ran one or more plantations in Putnam County, Georgia, practiced law, tried politics and got married. In all but marriage he failed to make much of a mark until the Civil War, when he published a newspaper from his plantation called The Countryman.

It was modeled on The Spectator with articles on culture, plantation life, poetry and little about the war.

J.A., seriously crippled since early childhood, could not serve in the Confederacy’s armed forces though he patriotically wished to do so. He had opposed secession, and advocated unusually fair treatment of slaves. He believed the institution of slavery caused the war, in part because few in the north understood it. He believed his approach to owning slaves was far more widespread than it actually was, so the institution he defended saw the slaves as human beings whose lives were to be respected. He believed slaves could learn to read if they wished to do so, but drew back from favoring formal education for them.

He practiced a form of paternalism when few other slave owners did.

Turner published his newspaper from a building on his plantation, Turnwold. It had a remarkable readership of 2,000 copies and became one of the widest-circulating newspapers in the Confederacy. It was faithful to Addison’s standards of brevity and clarity. Only defeat in the war ended it, as the Union troops destroyed the old press.

Sadly, in 1868 J.A. died of a lung infection, aged 41.

Despite his efforts he failed to lay the foundations of Southern literature, or so he thought. He underestimated the “printer’s devil” he hired to help produce The Countryman in the midst of war in 1862, a shy, redheaded local bastard boy who stuttered. The boy’s name was Joel Chandler Harris, aged about 15.

Harris went to live with the Turner family, sharing a room with one of the sons. It was a life-changing experience. He learned the printer’s trade very quickly and began writing articles for the newspaper within a few months.

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He also accompanied Turner’s older children down to the slave quarters where “Uncle” George Terrell, an older slave, told stories that fascinated the children.

In these stories animals took on human personalities and played tricks on one another. Each of the stories had a lesson told in the slave vernacular, which Harris would later capture on the pages of The Atlanta Constitution and in subsequent books. He was a bestselling author worldwide in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Readers applauded the stories and Chandler’s retelling of them in dialect.

Williams argues this was the beginning of a distinctive Southern literature that crossed regional, racial and national boundaries. The stories, which were attributed to the slaves, were African in origin and are still told in West Africa, but that connection was not stressed by readers at the time — or by Julie Hedgepeth Williams in “Three Not-So-Ordinary Joes: A Plantation Newspaperman, a Printer’s Devil, an English Wit, and the Founding of Southern Literature.” Her focus is on Addison, Turner and Harris for their shaping of a literary form. She also points out that all three men believed that newspaper articles, not ponderous books, were the nursery of literature — a view not endorsed by many academics and other modern writers!

Joel Chandler Harris wrote his stories in Plantation dialect, which we shy away from today, thereby missing the contribution of slaves to these stories.

Williams also avoids what we now call “the N-word,” which was commonly used in the South until recently with various overtones depending on the speaker. We have thereby sanitized and thus partially destroyed the stories Harris heard in the Turner family slave quarters. Williams is very careful to explain this.

“Three Not-So-Ordinary Joes” is not a long book, but it is very well researched and written. The people in it are quite believably human, even when their views about slavery and race are historic artifacts. There is gentleness in Williams’ touch: there were good masters and slaves who remained with them after emancipation, perhaps only a minority, but enough to give birth to this book and Southern literature in general.

Professor Julie Hedgepeth Williams is a professor of Media History and Journalism at Samford University and has published many books and articles about Alabama and the South.

Julie Hedgepeth Williams, Three Not-So-Ordinary Joes: A Plantation Newspaperman, a Printer’s Devil, an English Wit, and the Founding of Southern Literature, (NewSouth Books, Montgomery, Al 2018.) ISBN 978-1-58838-3235; 224pp $23.95.

STYLE HOROSCOPES FEELING KIND OF FAIR SCORPIO (10/23-11/21) — Inspired by the Rhinestone Roper’s performance at the Greater Gulf State Fair, you’ll bedazzle an entire jean jacket and join a traveling rodeo. Life tip: Refuse to leave your bar stool at Taco Mama until you’re united in marriage with their fresh guacamole.

SAGITTARIUS (11/22-12/21) ­­— In spite of the plethora of culinary options at the Greater Gulf State Fair, you’ll gladly settle for one or two foot-long corn dogs. Go on a strict lamb and olive diet and wear a light suit of armor to prepare for next year’s Spartan Race.

CAPRICORN (12/22-1/19) — You’ll enter the fourth dimension during the MoonPie Eating Championship at the Greater Gulf State Fair. Thinking about the state’s virtual high school program, you finally enroll in that home economics class you missed out on years ago.

AQUARIUS (1/20-2/18) — A better way to spend $2 is to donate it to breast cancer research. Coincidentally, the odds of winning a $1.6 billion Mega Millions drawing are about the same as winning a balloon-popping dart game at the Greater Gulf State Fair.

PISCES (2/19-3/20) — You’ll get lost in the hall of mirrors but ironically be transparent with yourself. At a West Mobile bar long after the Greater Gulf State Fair ends, you’ll realize the escape artist is still a slave to his own self-doubt.

ARIES (3/21- 4/19) — About three bottles in, you’ll discover at a coworker’s brunch party that Cheerwine contains no alcohol. Country music star Josh Turner wrote a sad song about it and may perform it at the Greater Gulf State Fair.

TAURUS (4/20-5/20) — Discussing recent celebrity sightings, you predict Liam Hemsworth will become the Stephen Baldwin of the Hemsworth brothers. You suspect the stuffed animals awarded as prizes at the Greater Gulf State Fair are recycled Mardi Gras throws from months earlier.

GEMINI (5/21-6/21) — Amid rising tension over the quirky confection, you’ll witness the world’s first death attributed to candy corn rage. One everyone can agree on is cotton candy at the Greater Gulf State Fair.

CANCER (6/22-7/22) — After binge watching “The Haunting of Hill House,” you begin to understand it is in fact a ghost who is responsible for forgetting to flush the toilet. A joke you make about sword swallowers at the Greater Gulf State Fair wades dangerously deep into #metoo territory.

LEO (7/23-8/22) — You’ve had intermittent success with Tinder, but it’s not only farmers at the Greater Gulf State Fair’s 4-H cattle show. Your ability to score competitors on indicators such as body capacity, frame and udders will suit you well throughout life.

VIRGO (8/23-9/22) — With the stock market not gaining much ground year to date, you conceive a new retirement plan funded by nutria harvesting. You’ll be enchanted by the view from the ferris wheel at the Greater Gulf State Fair.

LIBRA (9/23-10/22) — You’ll get déjà vu at the Elberta Sausage Fest when you catch your first whiff of sauerkraut. You’ll get vujà dé at the Greater Gulf State Fair when Coolio performs “Fantastic Voyage.”

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STYLE BOOZIE Timberlake and Jessica Biel. You can’t blame them — no one raises babies like we do here in the South. Just smother ‘em with love! (And overfeed them.)

A royal feast of gossip

Opa!

BY BOOZIE BEER NUES/SOCIAL BUTTERFLY

H

ear ye, hear ye, hear ye: It is time for your weekly dose of gossip, and this time it includes news from The Palace. And I’m not talking the Panda Palace Buffet at McGowin Park. This is real, certified, bona fide royal news from the Queen related to Mobile, Alabama, which you know, happens all the time (sarcasm detected?). Also, there is more Hollywood and Jersey “royalty” news (yes, there is royalty from Jersey — one person) to report from the Port City, which you know, doesn’t happen that often either.

Anyway, fix yourself a spot of tea and a crumpet (whatever the hell that is) and sip on this heavily steeped cup of royal gossip. Is your pinky out? It better be!

More star sightings

Mobilians and Eastern Shorians have been aflutter with multiple sightings of Hollywood stars Liam Hemsworth and Vince Vaughn, who are in town filming a movie called “Arkansas.” Since our last report, which had him at Foy and Julwin’s, among other spots, Liam has dined at Arroy Thai on Government Street near Broad Street and La Dolce Vita in Spanish Fort and picked up coffee at The Coffee Loft in Fairhope. Vince has been seen at The Grand Hotel in Point Clear, as has Liam.

In addition to the Liam and Vince goodness, Liam’s main squeeze, Miley Cyrus, apparently came to visit her man and the two were spotted together in Pensacola at The End of the Line Café.

They certainly haven’t been shy about getting out and about, so I guess they don’t mind the attention. And I am sure we are happy to slather that attention on them like butter on a biscuit.

And “Arkansas” isn’t the only movie being shot here right now. Romantic comedy “This is the Year” starring

up-and-comers Madison Iseman, Vanessa Marano and Gregg Sulkin is also in production right here in Mob-town.

And you can have a part in it! They are filming a big music festival scene out at Battleship Park on Saturday, Nov. 17, and need young folks who look like they are headed to an outdoor music festival like Hangout or Coachella to act as extras — which should be easy for us.

For more information on how you can get your first big starring role as “person in crowd #181,” check out www. thisistheyearmovie.com. You may not win an Oscar for your role, but I am sure it will still be fun.

JBJ at the Saenger

If Liam and Vince weren’t enough, Mobile also got Jovi-ed, Jon Bon Jovi-ed, that is. It seems New Jersey’s favorite son(prince, if you will) and the “Livin’ on a Prayer” and “You Give Love a Bad Name” singer, was playing a private concert for the JM Family Enterprise’s 50th anniversary party at the Saenger Theatre last weekend.

We hear JBJ and his band later popped into Veet’s.

Word on the street is that fans got a little too crazy and Jon had to leave, but his band stayed and played with the house band, The Family Jewels, for a bit. We hear Heroes owner David Rasp may have also met JBJ while taking out the trash. Glamorous!

The Royal Nanny

So according to a British newspaper, Prince Harry and his bride, Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, have hired Mobile’s own Nanny Connie Simpson to keep their royal bambino that is due this spring.

Nanny Connie has also helped nurture the babies of the Clooneys, John Krasinski and Emily Blunt, and Justin

F U T U R E S H O C K

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One of Mobile’s best food festivals had another great run last week. Greek Fest, held on the grounds of the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church on Ann Street, serves up the best gyros, calamari, baklava and spanakopita around, along with other tasty traditional Greek fare. You also get a great taste of Greek culture/music and get to see the beautiful church, a gem for our city. I am told the new layout of the festival was a hit and Congressman Bradley Byrne was spotted buying some baked goodies. We are so blessed to have such a great event in our own backyard.

Little Sisters Lawn Party a hit

Mother Nature, Mother Mary or somebody was smiling down on the Little Sisters of the Poor on Sunday, as they got absolutely perfect weather for their annual Lawn Party in Midtown. I am told they had record attendance. The event, which features delicious food (especially the sausage dogs and fried fish plates), games and inflatables for the kids, and bake and rummage sales, is always a great day for the whole family.

And apparently it’s also a great place to politick too. Republican Alabama House candidate for District 97 Steve McNair was there, a team for Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Walt Maddox made the rounds and Circuit Court Judge Candidate Brandy Hambright was serving up hot dogs, according to my spies.

It’s wonderful the Sisters raised so much money for their great organization.

And the winner is …

Every year Goodwill Easter Seals of the Gulf Coast unveils its pick for their annual “Christmas on the Coast” ornaments. They are always a favorite, and the one for 2018 is none other than the Mobile institution, Pollman’s Bake Shop. Pollman’s is celebrating its 100th year in business so what a perfect pick!

And what a great Christmas present idea, a chocolate dobash cake or a box of petit fours and a Pollman’s ornament!

Also, for fans of McGuire’s Irish Pub, that is Pensacola’s ornament this year.

To order either of the 2018 ornaments, or ones from previous years, visit www.gesgc.org.

Well kids, that’s all I got this time. Just remember, whether rain or shine, dramatic or scandalous, or some plain ol’ royal baby lovin’, I will be there.

Ciao!

LAGNIAPPE LEGALS | 251.450-4466 | legals@lagniappemobile.com FORECLOSURES FORECLOSURE NOTICE Default having been made in the payment of the indebtedness described in and secured by that certain mortgage executed by Terrance L. Gibbs to Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. (MERS) acting solely as nominee for Lender, Homecoming Financial Network, Inc., and Lender’s successors and assigns, dated January 26, 2006, and Recorded in Book 5912, Page 1436 of the records in the Office of the Judge of Probate, Mobile County, Alabama, which said mortgage was subsequently assigned to Pac-Perl, LLC by instrument recorded in Book 7031,Page 735 of said Probate Court records; notice is hereby given that the undersigned as mortgagee will under power of sale contained in said mortgage, sell at public outcry for cash to the highest bidder, during legal hours of sale on November 9, 2018, at the front door of the Courthouse of Mobile County, Alabama, 205 Government Street Mobile, AL 36602, the following described real property in the County of Mobile, State of Alabama, being the same property described in the above referred to mortgage: LOT 186, FIRST ADDITION TO CHICKASAW, ACCORDING TO PLAT THEREOF RECORDED IN DEED BOOK 156, PAGE 202 OF THE RECORDS IN THE OFFICE OF THE JUDGE OF PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA. ALABAMA LAW GIVES SOME PERSONS WHO HAVE AN INTEREST IN PROPERTY THE RIGHT TO REDEEM THE PROPERTY UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES. PROGRAMS MAY ALSO EXIST THAT HELP PERSONS AVOID OR DELAY THE FORECLOSURE PROCESS. AN ATTORNEY SHOULD BE CONSULTED TO HELP YOU UNDERSTAND THESE RIGHTS AND PROGRAMS AS A PART OF THE FORECLOSURE PROCESS. This property will be sold on an “as is, where is” basis, subject to any easements, encumbrances and exceptions reflected in the mortgage and those contained in the records of the office of the judge of the probate where the above-described property is situated. This property will be sold without warranty or recourse, expressed or implied as to title, use and/or enjoyment and will be sold subject to the right of redemption of all parties entitled thereto.

Said sale is made for the purpose of paying the said indebtedness and the expenses incident to this sale, including a reasonable attorney’s fee. The sale will be conducted subject (1) to confirmation that the sale is not prohibited under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code and (2) to final confirmation and audit of the status of the loan with the mortgagee.

Pac-Perl, LLC Mortgagee William McFadden McFadden, Rouse & Bender, LLC 718 Downtowner Blvd.

Mobile, AL 36609 Lagniappe HD Oct. 10, 17, 24, 2018

NOTICE OF MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE SALE BALDWIN COUNTY, ALABAMA Default having been made in the payment of the indebtedness secured by that certain Mortgage dated September 30, 2002, executed by Angel Gauci to Whitney National Bank, which Mortgage is recorded at Instrument No. 685673, in the office of the Judge of Probate of Baldwin County, Alabama; the undersigned, Hancock Whitney Bank, a Mississippi banking corporation formerly known as Whitney Bank, formerly known as Hancock Bank, the successor by merger to Whitney Bank, a Louisiana state chartered bank, formerly known as Hancock Bank of Louisiana, the successor by merger to Whitney National Bank, as Mortgagee, under and by virtue of its Mortgage and the Order granting Hancock Whitney Bank’s Motion to Amend Judgment and Decree of Foreclosure entered by the Circuit Court of Baldwin County, Alabama by the Honorable C. Joseph Norton, will sell at public outcry, to the highest bidder for cash, in front of the Main Entrance to the Baldwin County Courthouse in Bay Minette, Alabama, by and through the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Department, during the legal hours of sale, on the 31st day of October, 2018, all of its right, title and interest in and to the following described real estate, situated in Baldwin County, Alabama, to-wit: Lot 28, Sunrise Subdivision, Unit One, as shown by map or plat recorded at Slide 2007-D, Probate Court Records, Baldwin County, Alabama.

THIS PROPERTY WILL BE SOLD ON AN “AS IS, WHERE IS” BASIS, SUBJECT TO ANY EASEMENTS, ENCUMBRANCES AND EXCEPTIONS REFLECTED IN SAID MORTGAGE AND ALL MATTERS CONTAINED IN THE RECORDS OF THE OFFICE OF THE JUDGE OF PROBATE OF THE COUNTY WHERE THE ABOVEDESCRIBED PROPERTY IS SITUATED. THIS PROPERTY WILL BE SOLD WITHOUT WARRANTY, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, AS TO TITLE, CONDITION, USE AND/OR ENJOYMENT AND WILL BE SOLD SUBJECT TO THE RIGHT OF REDEMPTION OF ALL PARTIES ENTITLED THERETO. This sale is made for the payment of the indebtedness secured by said Mortgage, as well as expenses of foreclosure, including but not limited to, the cost of publication and a reasonable attorney’s fee, as provided for under the terms of said Mortgage. The Mortgagee reserves the right to bid for and purchase the real estate and to credit its purchase price against the expenses of sale and the indebtedness secured by said real estate. This sale is subject to postponement or cancellation; contact the phone number below prior to sale. This is an attempt to collect a debt, and

any information received will be used for that purpose.

Alabama law gives some persons who have an interest in property the right to redeem the property under certain circumstances. Programs may also exist that help persons avoid or delay the foreclosure process. An attorney should be consulted to help you understand these rights and programs as a part of the foreclosure process.

Hancock Whitney Bank, Mortgagee Robert C. Matthews, Esq. Attorney for Mortgagee 11 North Water Street, Suite 22200 Mobile, Alabama 36602 (251) 345-8218 Lagniappe HD Oct. 3, 10, 17, 24, 2018

CIRCUIT DIVORCE IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY ALABAMA DOMESTIC RELATIONS DIVISION NOTICE OF DIVORCE ACTION CASE NO. 02-DR-2018-901225.00H ZEINAB HAMADE, Plaintiff vs.

ALI HAMADE, DEFENDANT ALI HAMADE (Defendant), whose whereabouts is unknown, must answer the plaintiff’s Petition for Divorce and other relief by DECEMBER 17, 2018 or, thereafter, a Judgment by Default may be rendered against him/her in the above styled case. The defendant’s written answer must be filed with the Court and a copy mailed to the plaintiff’s attorney of record at the address provided below.

Done this 11th day of October, 2018.

JoJo Schwarzauer, Circuit Clerk Attorney: Alison Baxter Herlihy P.O. Box 1385 Mobile, AL 36633 Phone: 251-432-7909 Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, Nov. 7, 14, 2018

PROBATE NOTICE OF ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA Estate of: AMANDA MARCIA LEWIS Case No. 2018-1568 Take notice that Letters of Administration have been granted to the below named party on the 15th day of October, 2018 by the Honorable Don Davis, Judge of Probate of Mobile County Probate Court, Alabama and that all parties having claims against said estate should file the same with the Probate Court of said county within the time allowed by law, or they will be barred. DIANA MARIE NELSON as Administratrix of the estate of AMANDA MARCIA LEWIS, deceased.

Attorney of Record: RUTH R. LICHTENFELD, Esq. Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, Nov. 7, 2018

NOTICE OF ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA Estate of: BENJAMIN LEE MOORE Case No. 2018-1559 Take notice that Letters of Administration have been granted to the below named party on the 16th day of October, 2018 by the Honorable Don Davis, Judge of Probate of Mobile County Probate Court, Alabama and that all parties having claims against said estate should file the same with the Probate Court of said county within the time allowed by law, or they will be barred. BENJAMIN JOSEPH MOORE as Administrator of the estate of BENJAMIN LEE MOORE, deceased.

Attorney of Record: IAN A. BRENDEL, Esq. Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, Nov. 7, 2018

NOTICE OF ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA Estate of: DEBORAH CLARKE HOLLINGSWORTH A/K/A DEBORAH RUTH HOLLINGSWORTH Case No. 2018-1929 Take notice that Letters of Administration have been granted to the below named party on the 15th day of October, 2018 by the Honorable Don Davis, Judge of Probate of Mobile County Probate Court, Alabama and that all parties having claims against said estate should file the same with the Probate Court of said county within the time allowed by law, or they will be barred. TOMMY HOLLINGSWORTH as Administrator of the estate of DEBORAH CLARKE HOLLINGSWORTH A/K/A DEBORAH RUTH HOLLINGSWORTH, deceased.

Attorney of Record: CHARLES J. POTTS, Esq. Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, Nov. 7, 2018

NOTICE OF ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA Estate of: LEO E. JACKSON, Deceased Case No. 2018-2004 Take notice that Letters Testamentary have been granted to the below named party on the 15th day of October, 2018 by the Honorable Don Davis, Judge of Probate of Mobile County Probate Court, Alabama and that all parties having claims against said estate should file the same with the Probate Court of said county within the time allowed by law, or they will be barred.

KENNETH KARL JACKSON as Executor under the last will and testament of LEO E. JACKSON, Deceased.

Attorney of Record: PATRICK B. COLLINS Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, Nov. 7, 2018

NOTICE OF ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA Estate of: JOHN ALLAN SHUFORD, Deceased Case No. 2018-1949 Take notice that Letters Testamentary have been granted to the below named party on the 4th day of October, 2018, by the Honorable Don Davis, Judge of Probate of Mobile County Probate Court, Alabama and that all parties having claims against said estate should file the same with the Probate Court of said county within the time allowed by law, or they will be barred. SHARLEE S. SHUFORD as Executrix under the last will and testament of JOHN ALLAN SHUFORD, Deceased.

Attorney of Record: PATRICK B. COLLINS Lagniappe HD Oct. 10, 17, 24, 2018

NOTICE OF ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA Estate of: MANOJ KUMAR DAMODAR ANNYARUMBHATLA Case No. 2018-1850 Take notice that Letters of Administration have been granted to the below named party on the 8th day of October, 2018 by the Honorable Don Davis, Judge of Probate of Mobile County Probate Court, Alabama and that all parties having claims against said estate should file the same with the Probate Court of said county within the time allowed by law, or they will be barred. MALATHI PARCHA as Administratrix of the estate of MANOJ KUMAR DAMODAR ANNYARUMBHATLA, deceased.

Attorney of Record: JENE W. OWENS, JR., Esq. Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 31, 2018

PUBLIC NOTICE JOINT MOBILE METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION (MPO)/ TECHNICAL COORDINATING AND CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING The Mobile MPO Policy Board will meet on Wednesday, October 31st, 2018 at 10:00 am at the GM&O Building located at 110 Beauregard Street. The Destination 2040 Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) will be modified to account for the tolling of the I-10 Mobile River Bridge.

When the LRTP was adopted, tolling was not a financial commitment. To assist in the planning process, the LRTP will be modified to account for the tolling along with changes to the Bike/Ped Element, the Environmental Justice Element, and the Future Traffic Volumes. Also, the Mobile MPO will review and adopt the PM2 performance measures for bridge and pavement condition, and there are various changes to be made to the 2016-2019 Transportation Improvement Program: DEMONSTRATION FUNDS 100062412 (CN) I-10 Mobile River Bridge And I-10 Bayway Widening from Exit 24 (Broad Street) to Mobile County Line; Jul 26, 2019 $1,102,000,000 100062411 (UT) I-10 Mobile River Bridge And I-10 Bayway Widening from Exit 24 (Broad Street) to Mobile County Line, March 01, 2019 $10,000,000 INTERSTATE MAINTENANCE 100056331 (PE) I-10 East Tunnel Interchange Bridge Bearing Rehabilitation DELETE 100056332 (CN) I-10 East Tunnel Interchange Bridge Bearing Rehabilitation DELETE 100067507 (CN) Resurfacing on I-65 from 1.1 Miles North of SR-13 (US-43) to SR-225 1/25/2019 $3,232,705 100067506 (PE) Resurfacing on I-65 from 1.1 Miles North of SR-13 (US-43) to SR-225 9/1/2017

$49,504 100055108 I-10 Roadway Lighting Rehab from SR-16 (Exit

27) to SR-26 (Exit 35) along the Bayway Bridge DELETE NATIONAL HIGHWAY 100062408 (PE) I-10 Mobile River Bridge and I-10 Bayway Widening from Ext 24 (Broad Street) to Mobile County Line; (11/1/2018) $51,614,003 100060154 (CN) SR-158 Extension Lott Road Overpass And Jug Handle.

Grade, Drain, Base, Pave, and Bridge (EB Seabury Creek Tributary and Partial Lott Road) Old Engineers Estimate: $32,400,000 $20,000,000 100066639 (CN) Resurfacing on SR-42 (US-98) From Magnolia Grove Parkway to Stimpson Lane; 2/22/2019 $2,386,416 100066636 (CN) Resurfacing on SR-163 from the North End of the Dog River Bridge to the South End of the I-10 Overpass; 12/7/2018 $2,559,851 STP ATTRIBUTABLE MOBILE 100037215 (CN) Zeigler Boulevard, Forest Hill Dr to Athey Rd (Additional lanes) FY 2019; Old Cost Estimate $13,698,359 $17,650,000 100046895 (CN) Zeigler Boulevard, Cody Rd to Schillinger Rd (Additional lanes) FY 2019; Old Cost Estimate $4,195,000 $9,400,000 100052459 (UT) Dauphin Street Additional Lanes from Sage Ave. to West of I-65 at Springhill Memorial Hospital was FY 2019, now FY 2021 $283,574 100052460 (CN) Dauphin Street Additional Lanes from Sage Ave. to West of I-65 at Springhill Memorial Hospital was FY 2019, now FY 2021 $7,070,000 100052462 (RW) Three Notch Road (CR-32) Additional Lanes from Schillinger Road to McDonald Road was FY 2019, now FY 2021 $933,346 100052463 (UT) Three Notch Road (CR-32) Additional Lanes from Schillinger Road to McDonald Road was FY 2019, now FY 2022 $458,990 100059789 (RW) New Alignment of CR-25 (McFarland Road) from CR-28 (Old Pascagoula Road) to CR-358 (Three Notch Road) was FY 2019, now FY 2020 $6,060,000 100052601 (UT) McGregor Ave. Widening from Airport Blvd. to Dauphin St. and Installation of a Roundabout at Dauphin Street. Old Target Date: 12/1/2018, New Target Date: 11/1/2019 $1,500,000 100052601 (CN) McGregor Ave. Widening from Airport Blvd. to Dauphin St. and Installation of a Roundabout at Dauphin Street. Old Target Date: 12/1/2018, New Target date: 11/1/2019 $3,382,411 BP FUNDS 100068576 (CN) SR-158 Extension from 0.5 Mile East Of Glenwood Road To West Of Lott Road (SR-217). Grade Drain, Base, Pave, and Bridge (EB Collins Creek, EB McCrary Road, and EB Collins Creek Tributary) 9/14/2018 $30,005,229 Physically challenged persons who need special accommodations should contact SARPC in advance so arrangements can be made to meet their needs.

Transportation Planning Coordinator South Alabama Regional Planning Commission P. O. Box 1665 Mobile, AL 36633-1665 PHONE: 251-4336541 FAX: 251-433-6009) EMAIL: transportation@sarpc.org Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 2018

BAYOU LA BATRE FIRE DISTRICT BOARD MEETINGS The Bayou La Batre, AL Fire District Board will hold meetings on the first Thursday of each month at 3:00 p.m. at the Bayou La Batre Fire House.

Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

NOTICE OF COMPLETION STATE OF ALABAMA COUNTY OF MOBILE In accordance with Chapter 1, Title 39, Code of Alabama 1975, notice is hereby given that Modern Sound & Communication, Inc., Contractor, has completed the Contract for Audio Video Systems Upgrade at Government Plaza, Project No. CCP169-18, 205 Government St. Mobile, AL 36644 for the Mobile County Commission, (Owners), and has made request for final settlement of said contract. All persons having any claim for labor, materials or otherwise in connection with this project should immediately notify Modern Sound & Communication, Inc. 4359 Midmost Drive Mobile, AL 36609 Lagniappe HD Oct. 10, 17, 24, 31, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on November 5, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 2814 Government Boulevard (West side of Government Boulevard, 330’+ North of Magnolia Road, extending to the East side of Magnolia Road, 240’+ North of Government Boulevard) for a Rear Setback Variance to allow a storage shed within the 25’ minimum rear street frontage setback in a B-3, Community Business District; the Zoning Ordinance requires all structures to meet the minimum street frontage setback in a B-3, Community Business District. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 15th day of October, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on November 5, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 351 George Street (Southeast corner of George Street and Savannah Street) for a Use Variance to amend the site plan of a previously approved Use Variance to include a walk-in cooler and dumpster pad which were added since the most-recent Use Variance approval in an R-1, Single-Family Residential District; the Zoning Ordinance requires that variances are site plan-specific and any revisions to the site plan of a previously approved Use Variance must be approved via an amended Use Variance in an R-1, Single-Family Residential District. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 15th day of October, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on November 5, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 221 Dauphin Street (South side of Dauphin Street, 60’+ East of South Joachim Street) for a Site Variance to allow gallery columns to not have bases or capitals as well as a 16” thick gallery deck on a proposed building renovation in a T-5.2 Sub-district within the Downtown Development District: the Zoning Ordinance requires gallery columns to have bases and capitals and prohibits gallery decks thicker than 9” in a T-5.2 Sub-district within the Downtown Development District. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 15th day of October, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on November 5, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 721 Oak Circle Drive West (East side of Oak Circle Drive West, 350’+ North of Cottage Hill Road) for a Tower Height Variance to amend a previously approved Tower Height Variance to allow a 154’ high cellular telecommunications tower to replace an existing 150’ high tower in a B-2, Neighborhood Business District; the Zoning Ordinance limits structures to a 35’ height, and Tower Height Variances are height-specific in a B-2, Neighborhood Business District. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama.

This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 15th day of October, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on November 5, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to

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LAGNIAPPE LEGALS | 251.450-4466 | legals@lagniappemobile.com consider a request at 7107 Zeigler Boulevard (Southwest corner of Zeigler Boulevard and Cody Road North) for a Sign Variance to allow a digital pricing sign within 300’ of residentially zoned property, and three canopy signs on a multi-tenant site in a B-3, Community Business District; the Zoning Ordinance does not allow digital pricing signs within 300’ of residentially zoned property, and allows one canopy sign per tenant on a multi-tenant site in a B-3, Community Business District. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 15th day of October, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on November 5, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 1451 and 1459 Government Street, and 1458 Church Street (Southwest corner of Government Street and Stocking Street, extending to the North side of Church Street, 200’+ West of Stocking Street). for a Use, Use Across Multiple Building Sites, Multiple Buildings, Fence Height, Queuing Space, and Maneuvering Surface Variances to allow a plant and garden nursery to operate across multiple building sites with multiple buildings on a single building site, a 5’ high fence within the 25’ minimum building setback, a vehicle queuing space for gates of 15’ from the right-of-way, and aggregate maneuvering surfaces in a B-1, Buffer Business District, and R-3, MultiFamily Residential District; the Zoning Ordinance requires a minimum B-3, Community Business District, for a plant and garden nursery and requires a business to be located on a single building site with one building per building site, fences higher than 3’ to meet the 25’ minimum building setback, a minimum vehicle queuing space of 60’ out of the public right-of-way for gates, and requires maneuvering surfaces to be paved with asphalt, concrete or an approved alternative paving surface in a B-1, Buffer Business District, and R-3, Multi-Family Residential District. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 15th day of October, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on November 5, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 4350, 4354, 4356, 4358, 4360, 4362, 4364 and 4366 Old Shell Road (North side of Old Shell Road, 390’± West of Dilston Lane extending to the East side of North McGregor Avenue, 480’± North of Old Shell Road) for a Reduced Building Frontage, Increased Access Drive Width and Sign Variances to allow a 41%+ building frontage along Old Shell Road, and a 46%+ building frontage along McGregor Avenue North; to allow a two-way access drive width of 38.88+; and to allow two pylon signs to remain on site in a Village Center Sub-district of a Traditional Center District overlay; the Zoning Ordinance requires an 80% building frontage, allows a maximum two-way drive width of 30’, and does not allow freestanding signs in a Village Center Sub-district of a Traditional Center District overlay. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 15th day of October, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

ADVERTISEMENT FOR BIDS ADVERTISEMENT FOR BIDS Project: Innovation PortAL 358 St. Louis Street Mobile, AL 36602 Owner: Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Inc. 451 Government Street Mobile, AL 36602 – 2319 Separate sealed BIDS from General Contractors for the construction of Innovation Portal per plans and specifications will be received by the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Inc, at the 451 Government Street address until 3:00 pm CST on Tuesday, November 27, 2018 and then at said office publicly opened and read aloud. The Scope of work includes: Demolition, Sitework, Renovation and

New Construction. The project is an approximately 29,000 square foot new business incubator facility to occupy a full block in downtown Mobile, Alabama. About half the building area is renovation and half is new construction.

The BID DOCUMENTS may be examined at the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce, 451 Government Street address.

A digital version of the BID DOCUMENTS, at no charge, and printed documents for purchase, can be obtained from Southern Reprographics, 924 Butler Drive, Mobile AL 36693, (251) 655-7170. A PRE-BID conference will be held on Wednesday, October 31, 2018 at 1:00 CST at the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce, 451 Government Street address. Bid requirements include: BIDDERS LIST. General Contractors must submit a bid deposit of $250 to the offices of the Architect, Giattina Aycock Architecture Studio, 2625 5th Avenue North, Building C, Bessemer, AL 35020 to be included on the BIDDERS LIST. Companies on the Bidders list will receive addenda and be kept apprised of changes. Deposits will be refunded at the conclusion of the bidding. The project will be partially funded with federal funds from the US Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration (EDA) and be therefore subject to federal laws and regulations associated with the program. Federal Procurement Standards will prevail if any conflict arises with provisions described. EDA Investment @04-79-07143 Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, Nov. 7, 14, 21, 2018

STORAGE AUCTIONS

In accordance with Alabama Law, notice is hereby given that A-Cool Self Storage located at 3310 Demetropolis Rd. Mobile, AL 36693 will conduct a public lien sale or dispose of the contents of the following units to pay rent and or other charges due. The sale will be held on November 13, 2018 @ 2:00pm. #01194 Lisa Woods 111 Parker St Mobile, AL 36604 Household goods,furniture,boxes #01019 Lewis Meyer 1160 Newbury Ln E Mobile, AL 36695 Household goods, washer, deerheads ,furniture, boxes #01299 Providence Family Physicians 5100 Rangeline Rd N Mobile, AL 36619 Paperwork #01410 Jessica Andrews 8113 Sylvan Way Theodore, AL 36582 Furniture #03501 Matthew Lewis 301 Hospital St Apt 7 Bay Minette, AL 36507 Dryer & flatscreen TV, Yeti cooler #03509 Georgia Allen 36 Robbie Lane Saraland, AL 36571 Restaurant Equipment

Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, 2018

In accordance with Alabama Law, notice is hereby given that Dawes Stor-All Self Storage, located at 8601 Jeff Hamilton Rd Ext Mobile, AL. 36695 will conduct a public lien sale or dispose of the contents of the following units to pay rent and or other charges due.

The sale will be held on 11/13/2018 @ 9:30am Betty Feliz #610 Croquet set, misc household Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 2018

ABANDONED VEHICLES NOTICE OF SALE The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 26, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 31 Timothy Ave., Prichard, AL 36610.

2002 BMW 530I WBADT63462CH87743 Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 26, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 1806 Duval St., Mobile, AL 36605.

1994 Chevrolet Silverado 2GCEC19H1R1166072 2002 GMC Envoy 1GKDS13S522417768 Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 26, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 5136 Rangeline Rd., Mobile, AL 36619.

2000 GMC Sierra 1GTEK19T9YE134765 Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 26, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 5041 Dossett Lane, Eight Mile, AL 36613.

2007 Honda Odyssey 5FNRL38267B092958 Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 26, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 7960 Two Mile Rd., Irvington, AL 36544.

1995 Cadillac Deville 1G6KD52B4SU304410 2000 Chevrolet ‹S›Truck 1GCCS1953Y8259641 2002 Lexus ES300 JTHBF30G020030591 2014 Dodge Avenger 1C3CDZABXEN184268 Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 26, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 3351 Dauphin Island Parkway, Mobile, AL 36605.

2004 Nissan Xterra 5N1ED28T74C625001 Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

These abandon vehicles will be sold at 5781 Three Notch Road Mobile Al. 36619 at 9am on 11/22/2018 if not redeemed BMW WBADW3C56BE439747 CHEV 2G1WL54T1N9234544

Lagniappe HD Oct. 17, 24, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 30, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 5562 Cottage Hill Rd., Mobile, AL 36609.

2007 FRGHT Convt.

1FUJA6CKX7LX08887 2013 Hyundai Elantra KMHDH4AE0DU567783 2011 Honda Accord 1HGCP2F82BA091787 Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 30, 2018 – Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 5911 Hunter Woods Dr E., Wilmer, AL 36587.

1996 Ford F150 1FTEX15N4TKA13807

Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 30, 2018 – Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 104 Morgan Ave., Bay Minette, AL 36507.

2014 Nissan Altima 1N4AL3AP5EC104164 Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 30, 2018 – Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 1479 Plaza Dr Apt B., Mobile, AL 36605.

1991 Chevrolet Caprice 1G1BN53E9MW180329 Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 30, 2018 – Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 1602 Main St., Daphne, AL 36526.

2005 Pontiac Bonneville 1G2HZ54Y95U139389 Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 30, 2018 – Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 7960 Two Mile Rd., Irvington, AL 36544.

2005 Chevrolet Impala 2G1WF52EX59390402 2017 Chevrolet Spark KL8CD6SA7HC707349 1996 Ford Mustang 1FALP4043TF190211 1999 GMC Yukon 1GKEC13R4XJ712193

Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 30, 2018 – Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 3940 Moffett Rd., Mobile, AL 36618.

2008 BMW 528I WBANU53568CT16427 Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on November 30, 2018 – Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 7401 Half Mile Rd., Irvington, AL 36544.

2014 Ford Explorer 1FM5K7D80EGC62734 2007 Freightliner Convt 1FUJA6CV37LZ20766 Lagniappe HD Oct. 24, 31, 2018

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