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Vote 2021: Meet Birmingham’s mayoral candidates

Tuesday, August 17th, 2021

In 7 days, Alabama voters head to the polls in a wide range of municipal elections. Here in Birmingham, we’ll select a mayor and all nine city council members.

Vote 2021What better way to understand the mayoral candidates and their plans than through barely rehearsed sound bites in the guise of a debate or three? Meet those vying for your vote in the videos below.

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WBRC-6’s debate from Thursday features former mayor William Bell, Cerissa Brown, Philemon Hill, Jefferson County Commissioner Lashunda Scales, Darryl Williams, incumbent Randall Woodfin and Chris Woods.

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WVTM-13’s debate from Friday has Bell, Scales, Woodfin and Woods.

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The al.com et al debate tonight features Bell, Brown, Napoleon Gonzales, Hill, Scales, Williams and Woodfin.

• • •

More Vote 2021 coverage.

Wade’s 101: Haiku retrospective 57

Sunday, July 18th, 2021

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  1. a society of things that need food, shelter
    Minimum wages,
    living wages are the cost
    of using humans.
  2. the plight of the omnivorous
    The fun thing about
    thinking about food is the
    endless variety.
  3. a zero-growth strategy
    Many are content
    with stasis, needing only
    to cover the churn.
  4. contentedness is its own reward
    Happy to remain
    still, grateful for what is and
    what is still possessed.
  5. the descent of spring
    Warm days with subtle
    pollinated breezes
    that waft through our toes.
  6. the lavish picnic
    Group tees and streamers
    galore in the pavilion
    at the shady park.
  7. no taste for accounting
    On your 1040,
    just write “COVID” in giant
    letters, pay next year.
  8. the commodification of mindfulness
    The utmost holy
    oneness with creation … as
    an in-app purchase.
  9. age appropriate
    Are cartoons for kids?
    Is sugary cereal,
    or tabletop games?
  10. makes me smile
    Half-remembering
    a dumb joke, or a mishap
    from long, long ago.
  11. drug trials
    Try this formula,
    feel it fail. Try that prescription,
    turn your insides out.
  12. technological leaps
    The joy of a new
    smartphone is soon outweighed by
    figuring it out.
  13. ownership in the digital age
    Creative works can
    vanish with flip of a switch,
    ones into zeros.
  14. planet of the oops
    Getting hotter and
    hotter, maybe this world is
    some other world’s hell.
  15. folders and photos and files and flotsam
    A cluttered desktop
    is the sign of a cluttered
    AI, it muttered.
  16. no one flies kites any more
    A scenic hilltop,
    gusting winds and a sky full
    of aerial hopes.
  17. emerging from the cave
    We take baby steps
    into a world once consumed
    with disease and death.
  18. may the circle be
    You are the five you
    keep closest. But what happens
    when you grow apart?
  19. april 27, 2011
    The morning storms spun
    up lesser tornadoes to
    scar Alabama.

    The evening brought a
    furious set of twisters.
    Hundreds would be killed.

    We remember that
    day 10 years on, what we lost,
    who we miss dearly.

  20. so bad it’s profitable
    Throw a bunch of shows
    at the wall and see who streams.
    A binge of big bucks.
  21. her fiftieth
    A peek back, and a
    stride forward into a life
    of love and kindness.
  22. one small step for mechanical man
    Robots use arms and
    legs to traverse terrain we’d
    rather not visit.
  23. pièce de résistor
    Gonna digitize
    my soul and sell it as an
    NFT. For Art!
  24. post-pandemic fever
    Let’s do everything
    all at once without masks and
    hugging and sneezing.
  25. enjoy your crippled lungs
    So many folks do
    not want the vaccine. More room
    for me on airplanes.
  26. antibodies and auntie betties
    We’re long overdue
    to welcome our relatives
    back into our lives.
  27. peak pfizer
    I will never be
    stronger than clomping through Five
    Below fully vaxxed.
  28. water can’t wash away relaxation
    Even in a burst
    of torrential rain, the dream
    vacation lazed on.
  29. methodical menuing
    It took a few tries,
    but he finally landed
    on the perfect dish.
  30. little doc
    The man can play a
    mean trumpet. A marriage of
    artist and hot brass.
  31. sgt. woodard
    He opened our eyes
    after being blinded by
    white supremacists.
  32. the medium of garbage
    They took out the trash
    and converted it to some
    profitable art.
  33. typecast
    INFJ or
    ESTP, MBT-
    I is DUM.
  34. 51 laps
    On the track, he took
    the punishment of asphalt
    for some 13 miles.
  35. might as well netflix and chill
    They couldn’t agree
    on a movie, time, row or
    location. Just snacks.
  36. nonfictitious license
    Need a long take on
    whaling, or race? I have the
    perfect doc for that.
  37. right shape, wrong texture
    The computer finds
    pies in round shapes with one to
    two crusts. (And cakes, too.)
  38. graduated, sort of
    Their senior year, one
    spent half at home, half in masked
    spaces, fizzling out.
  39. 3 million and counting
    COVID world death toll:
    As if we murdered all of
    Utah this past year.
  40. original? sin
    The smart money’s on
    sequels, reboots, revivals,
    remakes, do-overs.
  41. a pen like lightning
    Deadline? Write faster.
    Space to fill? Write faster. New
    insights? WRITE FASTER!
  42. rocket ship to uravarice
    Is the way to space
    paved with profitable ends?
    One small step for greed.
  43. a pair of pricks
    The first shot feels like
    apprehension. The second,
    a little like hope.
  44. the movie marathoners
    Long past a double
    feature, late into the night
    and next day, they watched.
  45. breakups and acquisitions
    The managers made
    moves, hoping for a payoff
    soon and mightily.
  46. the tub of the past
    The bin held photos
    and letters guiding loved ones
    to kin, history.
  47. the leaky purse
    Out slipped cold hard cash
    and plastic cards long worn down
    from endless swiping.
  48. words matter
    Free speech that causes
    blowback. Cancel culture? No,
    consequence culture.
  49. nicked with an apostrophe
    Sometimes, the perfect
    haiku arrives, ‘cept the loss
    of a syllable.
  50. the schizoid standoff
    He said the voices
    had never lied, unlike his
    weary family.
  51. pots and panic
    Her dating profile
    said she could cook it all. Her
    dating profile lied.
  52. crimes against nurture
    He’s not such a bad
    guy, they’d say in defense. That’s
    just how he was raised.
  53. white crosses as far as the eye can see
    The more veterans
    who commit suicide, the
    darker this day gets.
  54. the unherbalist
    I spray weed killer
    over the lawn. I have be-
    come what I despise.
  55. tuesday wine and cheese
    The hours flew by
    as they shared bits and pieces
    of their little lives.
  56. retreat or retrench
    On top of every-
    thing else, the boss said farewell
    to the dismayed troops.
  57. safety dance
    That weird feeling when
    wearing a mask while certain
    of no one’s status.
  58. line 3 is just retching noises
    Call on line 1, car
    warranty threat. Line 2 wants
    to buy your house now.
  59. the joys of working on ourselves
    We confront our worst
    fears, only to find we still
    have much work to do.
  60. pictures, but in word form
    Reading all about
    TV is often more fun
    than watching the shows.
  61. the chinese of mississippi
    Brought as cheap labor,
    they turned to opening shops
    for the Black townsfolk.
  62. the world’s oldest smartphone
    Calls, some apps, a cracked
    screen, slow charging and a lot
    of hints to upgrade.
  63. the destiny in your own hands
    We do not control
    others. We barely have a
    grip on our own fate.
  64. littlest buggers
    The termites bit through
    the foundation and nibbled
    away at a dream.
  65. real estate, real ante
    They had a tough time
    bidding on houses till they
    offered their first born.
  66. reefer referendum
    As society
    inches ever closer to
    legal pot, breathe in.
  67. quickee settee
    Come on down to the
    furniture palace … pick it,
    carry it, build it.
  68. the chicken hat
    Leave behind something
    to have an excuse to come
    back and make smooches.
  69. one thumb out
    “The movies are like
    a machine that generates
    empathy.” — Ebert
  70. two hundred years from now
    We’ll all be long dead.
    No one will remember us.
    Take comfort in that.
  71. uncle vanya
    When a relative
    goes batty holding down the
    farm. See, Chekhov’s won.
  72. for the juneteenth time
    Freedom Day, where the
    freedom came in dribs and drabs
    for a hundred years.
  73. hot. girl. summer.
    Summer ain’t summer
    without the hottest ladies
    and their sunny smiles.
  74. sweet, sweet home
    A foundation of
    love, windows of hope, shelter
    for souls, room for peace.
  75. to beat the rubik’s cube
    Slide, twist, double back.
    See the future in fifty-
    four shiny stickers.
  76. endemic to the end of the pandemic
    Well, whaddaya know?
    The shots worked, and the world is
    a little safer.
  77. the cost of moving on
    You can’t buy my for-
    giveness. I think it just kind
    of has to happen.
  78. at my parents’ house
    We sat on the same
    sofa, in front of the same
    bookcase, just agog.
  79. generation gapped
    What do you say when
    it’s been decades since you last
    spoke to each other?
  80. a century on wheels
    A formidable
    duo, they sailed down highways
    searching for freedom.
  81. the curve
    She dreaded the spot
    on the interstate where all
    her nerves knotted up.
  82. critical racist theory
    Let’s discuss race, but
    only one, and how that one
    is superior.
  83. a return to normal
    Everyone, feel free
    to be giant assholes to
    each other again.
  84. not to scale
    The digital map
    shows the same twisty line with
    the same twisty length.
  85. holiday weekend bender
    Party. Pass out. Then
    party harder. Pass out. Then
    really party. Hard.
  86. sunny, sunny florida
    It’s been too long, my
    palmy, sandy friend. Pour me
    a tall Sea Breeze, please.
  87. independence? depends
    The land where some are
    free, and the home of a few
    brave. Long may she live.
  88. the master of the grill
    Clean grate, piles of meat.
    Get the heat steady, get the
    tongs ready. Let’s cook.
  89. unmasked
    Tavern full of smiles.
    Hearts gladdened by handshakes and
    hugs as we gather.
  90. slow ride, but in 17 syllables
    They’d call out requests,
    and the humble scribe penned such
    mediocre verse.
  91. the blinder leading the blind
    Sure, I know the way,
    I hollered while nervously
    checking the compass.
  92. the long road ahead
    The car was loaded.
    The tank was full. And we were
    on our way back home.
  93. the wicked tongue
    Don’t ask me. I’ll just
    fill your head with such lies and
    pleasantries no end.
  94. rap squad
    They would turn their pain
    into rhymes, their rhymes into
    beats, beats into truth.
  95. smallest talk
    “I love to hike. Where
    do you hike near here?” “Around
    the hill or the valley.”
  96. pent-up post-pandemic priorities
    Every restaurant
    has a 3-hour wait. Ain’t
    this what we wanted?
  97. we’re all in this together
    Back to flipping off
    drivers, blasting staff. Were we
    ever civilized?
  98. manufactured outage 2021
    Trans kids on sports teams,
    Critical Race Theory and
    (boo!) vaccine passports.
  99. the secret to managing your to-do giant list
    Resetting deadlines
    far into the future and
    marking that lie “done.”
  100. birmingham-style pizza
    A crusty pie with
    vinegar-based sauce and an
    overrated rep.
  101. president boring
    An Oval Office
    where the occupant listens
    and leads with a plan.

• • •

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Wade's Daily Haiku | Photo: Steve Johnson (CC) https://bit.ly/23DJ3yF

Happy Independence Day!

Sunday, July 4th, 2021

Video: Celebrate independence while fighting
America’s greatest enemy, tea. It’s “Teen Titans Go!”

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Happy birthday, America!

Enjoy this cartoon as Robin battles … George Washington for control of the Teen Titans.

The Birmingham channel: Get out, get pumped

Friday, June 25th, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

Downtown vlogging, capturing video and shooting pics. From Jimmy Rooney.

More videos, after the jump …

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The Birmingham channel: The sounds of rock, country, rap and R&B

Friday, June 18th, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

Required tests for weather radios (our vertical video of the week). From Landon the EAS Guy 2005.

More videos, after the jump …

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The Birmingham channel: Hotter by the day

Saturday, June 12th, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

A May rally at Linn Park supporting Palestine. From Empat Lebah.

More videos, after the jump …

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The Birmingham channel: The man who walked a city

Friday, June 4th, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

Montreal visitor walks from downtown to Vulcan. From Jayson 2020.

More videos, after the jump …

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Happy Memorial Day

Monday, May 31st, 2021

Video: the Harlem Hellfighters

Happy Memorial Day!

Spend a few minutes of your holiday learning about the 369th U.S Army Regiment, or the Harlem Hellfighters, sent in 1918 to France during World War I. This all-Black unit won plaudits abroad while virtually ignored back in the States.

The Birmingham channel: Flooding and fire

Friday, May 28th, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

Los Angeles rock band Steel Panther performs “17 Girls in a Row” earlier this month at Avondale Brewing Company. From Frostbyte.

More videos, after the jump …

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The Birmingham channel: Strange encounters

Saturday, May 22nd, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

Riding into the gym. From TrapFlix TV.

More videos, after the jump …

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The Birmingham channel: May days

Friday, May 14th, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

Commercial for Birmingham Oddities downtown. From Matt Weber.

More videos, after the jump …

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The Birmingham channel: Big mettle

Saturday, May 8th, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

Handing out the 2021 American Advertising Awards at AAF Birmingham. From AAF Birmingham.

More videos, after the jump …

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The Birmingham channel: Under the wire

Friday, April 30th, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

Promo for Burrito Punx in Irondale. From Codey Richards.

More videos, after the jump …

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The Birmingham channel: Only non-fans

Thursday, April 22nd, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

C-SPAN’s “Book TV” talks with Jake Reiss of the Alabama Booksmith in 2011 in Homewood. From Retox44.

More videos, after the jump …

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The Birmingham channel: The storm that struck Shelby

Friday, April 16th, 2021

A look at Birmingham in videos …

Ministry in Linn Park downtown. From LEM Media.

More videos, after the jump …

(more…)