With spring nearly upon us, you may be in the market for a new house. Or condo. Or just a fresh new apartment to rent.
It’s a buyer’s market these days, but you still need to know what’s available right now.
Our new Birmingham Real Estate page has up-to-date listings for the metro area, brought to you by local professionals. Check in any time day or night to see the latest open houses, properties for sale or for rent.
And if you’re looking for an apartment, we have a special $10 application fee discount available.
I started using Twitter on Feb. 4, 2009. As @WadeOnTweets, it’s been a great way to stay informed, connect with old friends and complete strangers and let people into my life.
I’ve been lucky enough to attract more than 1,700 followers and spout off nearly 9,300 tweets. I put together this short video to show my favorite tweets from the past year.
Music: “Nostalgia” by Alexander Blu (Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 license)
My friend Erin Shaw Street, @erinshawstreet, joined Twitter around the same time and loves it.
Happy Martin Luther King Day! Enjoy this 18-minute video of King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, a reminder of what this day is about:
We have come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy.
That was the all-purpose phrase my college roommate used to describe the odd goings-on of life. And for Birmingham in 2009, it is all too fitting.
The city’s casualties of 2009 include a crooked mayor, three magazines, the high school football playoffs, the city budget, the county budget, trust in elected officials, two music festivals, thousands of jobs,
In many ways, Birmingham is broken. Education, transportation, the economy and government continue to be hurdles to greatness. How can this city make progress if it can’t pay its bills, educate its citizens, move shoppers and workers from point to point or inspire residents to take action?
It is also broken in the sense that no one community unites us. We are tribes at odds over territory, pride or mistrust. But who will reach out first to end the stalemate?
That’s not to overlook the efforts of volunteers striving to make a difference. Or businesses who remain stubbornly open and within the city limits. Or the occasional bright spot that reminds us of why we stick with Birmingham even in these dark hours.
Would the city make a New Year’s resolution, it should simply be this: Birmingham resolves to deal honestly and fairly with any and all challenges.
In a year of bad craziness, we must push past to face these mounting crises with boldness, with insight and with humility.
Birmingham can be better in 2010, if only a little bit.
Dec. 1 | The Birmingham Leadership Awards winners? We have ’em.
Dec. 1 | Birmingham’s Bobby Bowden announced his retirement from Florida State football, wrapping a 44-year career in coaching. His final game will be the Gator Bowl taking on No. 18 West Virginia. The game airs noon Friday from Jacksonville, Fla., on CBS 42.
Dec. 17 | The newly seated Birmingham school board selects Craig Witherspoon, superintenÂdent of Edgecombe County Public Schools in Tarboro, N.C., as the new superintendent. The board had previously had problems picking a president, then faced accusations of bias during the superintendent search.
A look back at all things and people and events 2009 …
Video: Mary Buckelew gets probation
instead of jail time: “Justice was served today.”
Nov. 2 | Our Vote 2009 resumed coverage as a special election for mayor of Birmingham was set. As each of the 14 candidates announced, as each forum and town hall emerged, we had the info. And still, the campaign continues …
Nov. 3 | Birmingham looks to Austin for a way to spur badly needed economic development. Can the city and the Birmingham Business Alliance match the Texas metropolis’ success?
Nov. 4 | Do Birmingham’s nonprofit organizations and their volunteers deserve awards? YP Roundtable thinks so, but we call it “selfishly egotistically uncharitable.”
Nov. 12 | Speaking of discipline … Former Jefferson County Commission president Mary Buckelew escaped with a slap on the wrist, or 3 years probation and $20,000 fine for lying to a grand jury. She had faced 12 to 18 months in prison.
Nov. 30 | Two calendars, A Picture of Health and Brave Beauties, raise money for charity. Two weeks later, the cover model for “A Picture of Health” died from ovarian cancer.
Oct. 6 | One in seven registered voters showed up for the city runoff election. We almost counted the votes by hand. The new city council and board of education is set, but not without controversy weeks later, with political maneuverings for the presidency of both bodies.
Oct. 19 | We begin daily coverage of The Trial of Larry Langford, as Birmingham’s mayor has his day in Tuscaloosa federal court. Wade on Birmingham covers the trial on this site and through a special Twitter account, including live coverage on Day 5.
Oct. 29 | We review Chris Thile jamming with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra.
Oct. 30 | One of Birmingham’s biggest sporting events, the Magic City Classic, saw Alabama A&M defeat Alabama State in the 68th match. More than 55,000 fans attended, and we had the preview.
A look back at all things and people and events 2009 …
Video: Gov. Riley attends the Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival
closing film, “Alabama Moon.”
Sept. 11 | September in Birmingham means two things in downtown culture: Artwalk and Sidewalk. For Artwalk, we presented an hour-by-hour guide to the two-day art festival.
Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival | All eyes were on the 11th annual film festival with a new executive director in place and sizable debt to overcome. Our contributing reviewers watched 11(!) movies to size them up for you in advance, including the opening night documentary feature, “Best Worst Movie.” How do we do it? Volume, volume, volume.
A look back at all things and people and events 2009 …
Video: Bill Blount joins Birmingham’s Biggest Crooks
with a guilty plea.
Aug. 1 | We counted down the days to former mayor Larry Langford’s original Aug. 31 trial date with our greatest series ever, Birmingham’s Biggest Crooks. Seriously, look how many criminals we stuffed into one month …
A look back at all things and people and events 2009 …
Video: Birmingham moves closer
to building a domed stadium.
July 1 | John Katopodis, former politician and founder of a bogus children’s charity, not to mention a pal of former Birmingham mayor Larry Langford, was found guilty of fraud in federal court. He was originally to be sentenced in October, but that was delayed as he testified in Langford’s trial. And the dominoes continued to fall …
July 14 | The long-debated domed stadium received an annual $8 million boost from the city council, despite no approved 2010 city budget or even concrete figures. The $630 million project is scheduled to open in 2014.
July 31 | Area crime continues unabated, as Jefferson County is found dead, lying face down in a broken sewer. At this time, police have hundreds of suspects. The commissioners continue to wrestle with the occupational tax, despite numerous court rulings against it.
June 18 | Annual downtown music festival City Stages asks for a bailout before the gates even open. And we take a hard look at the numbers.
June 18 | A big fine for a big crook: HealthSouth founder Richard Scrushy is ordered to pay a $2.87 billion fine in a civil suit. Much of his estate has been sold at auction, including his Vestavia Hills mansion and his car collection.
June 25 | Twenty years down the drain: City Stages ends more than $1 million in debt, failing to pay its vendors tens of thousands of dollars. Organizers filed for bankruptcy in July.
A look back at all things and people and events 2009 …
Video: Samson native James “J.T.” Thomas Jr.
wins “Survivor: Tocantins.”
May 6 | A look at two scourges hitting Alabama hard: lost jobs and swine flu. U.S. Steel began a temporary shutdown of its 2,000-worker Fairfield plant that has lasted till now. And swine flu has spread statewide.
May 21 | I finally gained proof that I have a face made for radio, as I talk blogging on WBHM (90.3 FM). It was one of many broadcast interviews I did in 2009.
A look back at all things and people and events 2009 …
Video: Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham segment on the city’s future in 50 years, produced by Mike Cunliffe and Wade on Birmingham contributor Jennifer West
April 11 | A tremendous milestone for this site: post No. 2000. Another 2,000 posts, and that free breakfast at Denny’s is mine!
April 20 | The way Birmingham works takes a step forward with the opening of Shift Workspace downtown. Our sneak peek showed professionals what to expect from the new coworking space, including room for classes from the Birmingham Blogging Academy.
April 22 | Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival hires Chloe Collins as its new executive director, and we told you first. Plus, we had the exclusive interview with Collins on her plans to pull the film festival out of debt.
April 27 | We glimpsed into our crystal ball to see the city 50 years from now, with a little help from the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham. Given the challenges this year, looking forward seemed to be the only hope left. (The video above has a shout out to this site at 0:53.)
The high cost of free speech1Remembering Iranian journalist and blogger Omid Reza Mirsayafi on the 1-year anniversary of his untimely death, and why freedom of speech must not be taken for granted.
Character study: My first 10,000 tweets1As a writer, I have a decidedly unfair advantage in many social media channels. I use that advantage every chance I have. I've spent the past 13 months using a very condensed form of writing via …
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"We accept blogs as trustworthy; dismiss Wikipedia articles, transparent in creation, sourcing, as flawed." http://nyti.ms/dx7ktF4 days ago
Dec. 1 | Birmingham’s 
Dec. 17 | The newly seated 
Nov. 6 | ABC’s 
Nov. 24 | A council coup, of sorts. 
Oct. 20 | 
Oct. 28 | 
Aug. 11 | The dirge continued as we presented the 
July 13 | Dr. Regina Benjamin becomes the nominee for surgeon general. We 
June 18 | A big fine for a big crook: HealthSouth founder 
April 22 | 
