Photo: George Redgrave (CC)

My picks for #sundayread for Nov. 23, 2014:

• Books: Excerpt from Carrie Rollwagen’s ‘The Localist’
• Program to aid ppl harmed by vaccines fails, keeps claimants waiting (via @Jay_Reeves)
• Y’all Connect: Nichole Kelly talks social media and business strategy
• Librarians pick favorite books of 2014, compiled by Lily McLemore (RT @WeKnowBooksETC)
• Thread alert: Best Birmingham T-shirts
• Why People Keep Trying to Erase the Hollywood Sign From Google Maps, by @awalkerinla
• Review: “Fed Up” @fedupmovie: http://itswa.de/1C04qMT
• Top Books of 2014 – Little Professor Edition, compiled by @medusasmirror
• Everything I would fix about your terrible restaurant website right now
• How far Uber will go to silence journalists, attack women, by @sarahcuda (via @csledzik)
• Oral History of the Poop Emoji (Or How Google Brought Poop to America) by @LaurSchwar
• A Rape on Campus: A Brutal Assault & Struggle for Justice at UVA, by @SabrinaRErdely
• The Secret Life of Passwords, by @ian_urbina
• “Science … For Her!” excerpt + interview with @meganamram

More posts from Wade this week:

• ‘Muscle Shoals’ documentary returns to PBS
• Three-and-a-half Nutcrackers
• Friday’s Fall Festivale pouring it on at Regions Field
• Movie bargains in Birmingham: 3 ways to save big
• The Birmingham channel: The downtown scene

The latest #sundayread tweets

#sundayread Tweets

• More #sundayread recommendations from me

Roaming vacuums clean
our floors while Christmas lights flash
in synch with Dokken.

• • •

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Legendary soul singer Aretha Franklin spends time in both
the town and the documentary “Muscle Shoals,”
airing next week on PBS.

The music documentary “Muscle Shoals” will air nationally on PBS for an encore run next week. The 2013 film chronicles the music, the artists and the special sound from the northwest Alabama, focusing on FAME Studios and Muscle Shoals Sound Studio.

Among the celebrated musicians are Aretha Franklin, Steve Winwood, Bono, Spooner Oldham, Mick Jagger, Gregg Allman and Percy Sledge.

The film airs as part of the “Independent Lens” series, and includes the short doc, “Waiting for a Train: The Toshio Hirano Story.” Airtimes include both Alabama Public Television’s main channel 10.1 and World channel 10.2:

• 8 p.m. Monday on 10.1;
• 11 p.m. Tuesday on 10.1;
• 3 a.m. Wednesday on 10.1; 6 and 11 p.m. on 10.2;
• 7 a.m. and 1 p.m. Thanksgiving on 10.2;
• 1 and 11 a.m. Nov. 29 on 10.1;
• 2 a.m. Nov. 30 on 10.1.

Video: trailer for “Muscle Shoals”

•

Videos: soundtrack videos for “Muscle Shoals”

In December, Wade on Birmingham will feature an excerpt from “Muscle Shoals Sound Studio: How the Swampers Changed American Music,” written by our friend Carla Jean Whitley. If you can’t wait, get the book from Amazon or iTunes [aff. links] or the Jefferson County libraries.

“Muscle Shoals”

• Website | Facebook | Twitter @muscleshoalsmov
• Movie available on [aff. links] Amazon | iTunes | Jefferson County libraries
• Soundtrack available on [aff. links] Amazon | iTunes | Jefferson County libraries

His anxieties
crept into bed with him and
took all the blankets.

• • •

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I love the recent crop of Birmingham-themed T-shirts. Maybe you need something to wear in early 30-degree weather. Or a cheap Christmas gift that doesn’t require braving Black Friday or Mauve Thanksgiving or Vermillion Wednesday.

Please note that I have no innate fashion sense, and that the tees are not listed in any particular order.

Birmingham = Birming + ham, by Brantoe
$23.40 from Redbubble

•

Birdmingham, by Brantoe
$23.40 from Redbubble

See more designs from Brantoe.

•

Left, Vintage 1871 B’ham tee, $24 from Original B’ham;
right, white Original B’ham classic tee, $20 from Original B’ham.

•

I ❤ B’ham – ladies’ tee
$24 from Original B’ham

See more designs from Original B’ham.

•

Red Mountain iron ore sign
$24.95 from Big City Brand

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Birmingham Bulls
$24.95 from Big City Brand

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Legion Field
$24.95 from Big City Brand

See more designs from Big City Brand.

•

Lyric Theatre
$20 from Yellowhammer Creative

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Birmingham Mountain Radio
$20 from Yellowhammer Creative

•

Made in the Magic City
$20 from Yellowhammer Creative

See more designs from Yellowhammer Creative.

•

It’s nice to have you in Birmingham
$24 from Alabama Goods

See more designs from Alabama Goods.

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Original Southern Sweet Tea Shirt
$19 from Earth Creations

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Southern Wonders of the World
$19 from Earth Creations

See more designs from Earth Creations.

•

Sweet Home Alabama
$18 from Bourbon and Boots

See more designs from Bourbon and Boots.

•

Birming-HAM, by NuzzoCollective
$23.40 from Redbubble

See more designs from NuzzoCollective.

•

Sloths Furnace, by AllanDoodles
$20 from Etsy

•

And because I couldn’t resist …

B Town: Birmingham, More Magic Than Ever
$18.95 from TruckerTeez

 •

Added Nov. 25:

Birmingham the Magic City
$20 from Humphries Screen Printing and Design

See more designs from Humphries Screen Printing and Design.

•

Did I leave out your favorite? Let me know in the comments.

Pie is good, pie is
kind, pie doesn’t judge, pie gives
joy, pie renews faith.

• • •

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Video: Dog auditions for “The Mutt-cracker” at Birmingham Ballet

Three dance companies are taking the stage with their variations on holiday classic “The Nutcracker” for Birmingham audiences … 

• The “Great Russian Nutcracker” from the Moscow Ballet jetés into town tonight. Two dancers form the Dove of Peace with a 20-foot wingspan; other characters include 10-foot-tall silk puppets and lifesize nesting dolls. Showtime is 7 at the Alabama Theatre downtown. Tickets are $38.60-$81.50 and available through Ticketmaster.

• Birmingham Ballet has its “Nutcracker,” too, but with an opening night twist. In addition to performances on Dec. 13 and 14, the company presents “The Mutt-cracker” on Dec. 12. Some two dozen dogs take the stage alongside humans for this special production; proceeds for that night benefit the Greater Birmingham Humane Society. BJCC Concert Hall downtown. Tickets for all performances are $27.85-$54.75 and available online.

• The Alabama Ballet offers two weekends of “George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker” at Samford University. The company is one of seven worldwide with the rights to perform this version. Audiences can shop for nutcrackers before the show and during intermission. Dec. 12-14 and 19-21 at Samford’s Wright Center. Tickets are $25-$55 and available online.

Dancers, two-legged and four-legged, take the stage
in Birmingham Ballet’s “The Mutt-cracker.”

Fall Festivale offers dozens of beers for attendees to sample.

Beer lovers have a new venue for sampling old favorites and new flavors: Regions Field.

The fourth annual Fall Festivale returns Friday with beers from 32 breweries, including half from Alabama. The list includes:

• A porter (firkin with cinnamon and chocolate) from Avondale Brewing Company;
• Oktoberfest from Cahaba Brewing Company;
• El Gordo from Good People Brewing Company; and
• Nilbog (American barley wine) from TrimTab Brewing Company.

The event runs from 7 to 11 p.m. at Regions Field [map].

Tickets are $29, $39 at the door, and available online (free for designated drivers). Admission includes six pours and a souvenir glass. Free the Hops, a statewide nonprofit beer advocacy group based in Birmingham, is holding the event.

For more information, visit the festival website.

Admission includes six pours and a souvenir glass.

Fall Festivale

• Website | Facebook

The mutt padded in
and plopped down on the kitchen
floor, safe from the cold.

• • •

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No one is thinking
about you. And no one is
thinking about you.

• • •

Read more haiku.

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“Dumb and Dumber To” is one of the new releases
already discounted in Birmingham.

The holiday movie season is upon us. If you’re the ultimate cheapskate like me, you’ll be enjoying the latest Hollywood releases … around July 2015 on Blu-ray from the library. (Or possibly Redbox.)

I have three easier ways to save at the box office, whether for you and a date or a whole brood of wee watchers.

1. Wait a few weeks and see it at the “dollar theater.” That would be the Carmike 10 in Hoover. Movies are $1.50 for all ages and all showtimes, $3.50 for 3D. Who cares if everyone tweets “Interstellar” spoilers long before you see it in person …

2. See any movie for $5 on Tuesdays (like today) at the Edge 12 in Crestwood Festival Center. Same prices for kids and adults, matinee or late night. Plus, beer and wine, the kind you can buy at the concession stand and not sneak in via your personal flask. Enjoy the Filipino family drama “Edsa Woolworth.” Take in the rock documentary (or “rockumentary”) on Australian musician Nick Cave, “20,000 Days on Earth.”

Or just see “Gone Girl” for the third time.

3. Buy a discount ticket through Dealflicks [aff. link]. I’m a big fan, as it has offered low prices for some time at the Edge 12. This fall, it expanded to all the first-run Carmike houses in Birmingham: Lee Branch 15 in North Shelby County, Patton Creek 15 in Hoover, The Summit 16 and Vestavia Hills 10.

Prices vary depending on release date of the movie and showtime.

For example, the new “Dumb and Dumber To” already has a Dealflicks special for Wednesday evening at Vestavia: $10.25 for ticket and medium popcorn (usually $10.25 just for the ticket). If you wait till Monday, you can see it during matinees at the Edge for $5.60 (or $14 for ticket, large popcorn and large drink), or evening for $7.75 or $14.70, respectively. Edge tickets are regularly $7.50 for matinee and $9 for evening.

I like to think of it like buying plane tickets: prices vary based on popularity of time and cinematic destination. So check the site often for deals, availability and prices.

Did I mention that Carmike Vestavia not only has “Big Hero 6” but also the Jon Stewart-directed “Rosewater” and the Michael Keaton acclaimed indie “Birdman”?

Save on movie tickets, and spend the loot on ugly sweaters.

The Edge 12’s $5 Tuesday includes Disney’s “Big Hero 6.”

No bitter wind can
strip warmth from this campfire
as we gasp at stars.

• • •

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A look at Birmingham in videos …

We signed a contract. From Randy and Anna.

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“Now What” from the album “Songs of Peace and War.” From Andy Spain.

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The Big Picture, part of the annual fund-raising drive. From the Birmingham Museum of Art.

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Veterans Day parade, drone’s-eye view. From Kevin Henderson.

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LightRails. From Jan-David Soutar.

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http://instagram.com/p/vMxBWDR-wq/

Work in progress. From imean_war.

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My Trucking Life: Russellville, Ark., to Braselton, Ga. From Trucker Josh Vlogs.

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A look at hero:Kulture, a fund-raiser for autism nonprofit organization KultureCity. From Crooked Tree Productions.

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City of Birmingham District 5 Fun Day in Railroad Park. From Crooked Tree Productions.

•

See St. Paul and the Broken Bones in concert.

•

See “A Salute to the Troops.”

• • •

Send us links to your videos. | More videos on the Birmingham channel.

A third of our lives
is spent asleep, a third on
the phone with support.

• • •

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Photo: Craig Sunter (CC)

My picks for #sundayread for Nov. 16, 2014:

• Internal debate: Should UAB football continue?
• New Orleans police didn’t investigate 1,100+ sex crimes in 3-yr period (h/t @Jezebel)
• @annietravel, @artmeripol visited 75+ restaurants in 50+ cities for new Ala. BBQ book
• Jenny Schmitt dissects millennials (figuratively)
• How to Gather 100,000 Emails in One Week, by @JeffreyRaider (RT @SurvivalPlanKit)
• A Birth Story, by Meaghan O’Connell @meaghano
• Boost your confidence with body language
• Why won’t journalists ask Bill Cosby the tough questions? By @hitsville
• How chicken went from rarely eaten backyard bird to huge food source (RT @legalnomads)
• Flashback: Project Bulk – Day 76: Steady on
• “Supernatural” at 200: The Road So Far, An Oral History, compiled by @lauinla
• Gambling in Alabama: A game of political intrigue, by @Josh_Moon (via @WarOnDumb)
• The Sex-Abuse Scandal Plaguing USA Swimming, by @resturtz (via @legalnomads)
• Jon Stewart answers Reddit’s questions

More posts from Wade this week:

• Trussville’s Art Show and Tasting Event to raise scholarship money
• Birmingham-area Thanksgiving restaurant options 2014
• St. Paul and the Broken Bones, a virtual concert
• Happy Veterans Day!
• The Birmingham channel: Wonders of fall, out at night, on the set

The latest #sundayread tweets

#sundayread Tweets

• More #sundayread recommendations from me