It begins with a
24-hour nap and
then another one.

• • •

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Let’s say 25,000 children left behind: The Birmingham school system is shopping for another superintendent. Craig Witherspoon surprised many with his Oct. 7 resignation after four-and-a-half years on the job.

Most Birmingham superintendents since 1984 have served 2 to 4 years before moving on. Witherspoon’s tenure was marked with a high degree of rancor with the previous board and an apparent falling out with the current one.

Oh, and the state took over the city school system. One of the state’s worst districts was so dysfunctional (a situation Witherspoon inherited), it had to be run by the state itself, among the worst in education nationwide.

• A timeline of Craig Witherspoon’s years as Birmingham schools superintendent [al.com]

Ethics, or the lack thereof: The 2010 Republican takeover of the Alabama Legislature came about in part by a pledge to end the corruption of Democratic rule for a century. Monday, the leader of that revolution was indicted on 23 counts of corruption.

Mike Hubbard is still Speaker of the House, but for how long? He’s accused of using his office and his previous role as head of the Alabama Republican Party for monetary gain, including getting help from former Gov. Bob Riley and Business Council of Alabama president Billy Canary among others.

Are we better off than we were 4 years ago? An editorial in the Anniston Star says far from it, arguing that no matter which party is running the government, the state suffers with no relief in sight.

• Editorial: The culture in Montgomery [The Anniston Star]

Houses of the holy: The Dalai Lama arrived Friday in Birmingham for a weekend visit. At 9 a.m., he will participate in a UAB symposium, “Neuroplasticity and Healing,” which will be streaming live for free on YouTube.

On Sunday, the spiritual leader will take the stage for two events. “Beyond Belief,” a 2-hour interfaith discussion, takes place at 9 a.m. at the Alabama Theatre downtown. He’ll speak at Regions Field starting at 2 p.m., with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra.

Both events will stream live for free in the window below.

• Human Rights Week in Birmingham

Video: The Dalai Lama at UAB’s symposium,
“Neuroplasticity and Healing”

Video: The Dalai Lama participates in an interfaith
discussion at the Alabama Theatre.

Video: The Dalai Lama with Birmingham mayor
William Bell (skip to 1:09).

• • •

More headlines | send us your news tips.

The Great Pumpkin will
skip visits this year out of
fear of ebola.

• • •

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The hurried touch-ups,
the sweat and fret, it all seems
as if by magic.

• • •

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From left, Bottle and Bone’s Wil Drake, Chris Izor, Jen Barnett
and Victor King, with Angela Schmidt of Chef U.

My friend (and client) Jen Barnett is opening her new store at 4 p.m. today. It’s called Bottle and Bone, and you should stop by soon.

Located at Uptown, next to the Westin Birmingham, this butcher shop/restaurant will offer housemade sausage, bacon and hot dogs. The pub side will have beer (including local brews) and wine, by the bottle, growler or glass (once the liquor license is cleared). Stop in for lunch or dinner, or pick up steaks and stout on the way home.

Alabama Wagyu bone-in ribeye

Bottle and Bone offers fresh local meats, charcuterie, sandwiches and small plates, plus free weekday beer and wine tastings from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Desserts and baked goods are available from Birmingham-based Baking Bandits.

Jen was most recently owner of the Freshfully market in Avondale. Her associates are Victor King, a Nashville native who previously worked in the kitchen at Highlands Bar and Grill; Wil Drake, one of the chefs at the Knife Party pop-up dinners; and Chris Izor, front-of-house manager who previously worked at Jones Valley Teaching Farm.

Bottle and Bone is located in Uptown, 2311 Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. N., Ste. 200 [map]. (205) 538-7106. Hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday.

• Website | Facebook | Twitter @BottleandBone | Instagram

Bottle and Bone marks the full occupancy of new
Birmingham entertainment district Uptown.

Video: Alabama’s 13 reports on Bottle and Bone.

Bonus video on page 2 …

Nothing will ever
be more important than how
celebrities look.

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First, Men’s Health. Then, NBC’s “Today.” And this afternoon, “Ellen.”

Alabaster’s Noah Galloway, the first reader to appear on the cover of Men’s Health, will stop by “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” today.

Galloway, who works as a personal trainer, is an Army vet and father of three. He won the Ultimate Men’s Health Guy contest against some 1,200 other entrants, earning the November 2014 magazine cover.

He joined the Army in October 2001. On patrol in Iraq in December 2005, he survived an explosion after his Humvee tripped a wire on a roadside bomb. He returned home without his left arm or left leg.

Men’s Health describes his journey to fitness after battling depression and alcohol. Galloway has competed since then in marathons, 5k and 10k races, CrossFit competitions and other contests.

“Ellen” airs at 3 p.m. on WVTM Alabama’s 13.

Video: Men’s Health on Noah Galloway

•

Video: “Today” announces Noah Galloway as the
Ultimate Men’s Health Guy.

Noah Galloway

• Website | Facebook | Twitter @Noah_Galloway | Instagram

Update: Noah Galloway’s Oct. 22 appearance on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.”

Questions get answers.
False assertions get steamed looks.
Come ons get sly grins.

• • •

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Alabama State, left, and Alabama A&M will battle Saturday
in the Magic City Classic.

The largest black football classic in America kicks off again Saturday. The 73rd annual Magic City Classic features Alabama State (4-3) vs. Alabama A&M (2-5) at Legion Field.

It won’t be just Hornets vs. Bulldogs in football, but also in the Battle of the Bands, tailgating and partying this week. The events start tonight with the Throwback Ole School Event at 7 tonight at the Birmingham Museum of Art, with singer Yvette Cooke.

Other Classic events include the 7 a.m. Magic City Classic Scholarship Breakfast at the Harbert Center downtown, plus the 3 p.m. Classic Day Party and Concert with Willie Clayton and George Tandy at Legion Field, both on Friday.

The parade begins at 8 a.m. Saturday downtown. The game itself begins at 2:30 p.m., airing on ESPN3; tickets are $20 for general admission and $25 for reserved seats. Following the end will be a concert with Bell Biv DeVoe.

More events can be found in the Classic Weekend Event Guide below.

Video: “Scrubs” does Bell Biv DeVoe’s “Poison.”

Magic City Classic

• Website | Facebook | Twitter @MagicCtClassic | Instagram

She took notes on the
doctor’s notes and patient’s notes,
all for paperwork.

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The Design Shop, located at the Alabama Center for Architecture,
has goods from local and regional designers
during Design Week Birmingham.

Design Week Birmingham returns for a second year with a series of events around town, including lectures, workshops and discussions. For more details and tickets, visit the Design Week Birmingham site.

Design Week Birmingham

• Website | Facebook | Twitter @dwbhm | Instagram

A look at Birmingham in videos …

Fort Payne’s Pierce Pettis performs at Moonlight on the Mountain in Hoover. From Alabama Music Office.

•

Charlotte from Birmingham goes skydiving. From Chattanooga Skydiving Company.

•

Birmingham-Southern College Cross Country JSU Foothills Invitational. From Sharks Soccer.

•

Mobile group Willie Sugarcapps performs at WorkPlay in Lakeview, full 3-hour performance. From Alabama Music Office.

•

Andrew Thompson of Birmingham’s Plenty Design Co-op at the Southern Makers event in Montgomery. From Joy to Life Foundation.

•

Claire’s solo at the Greater Birmingham Ministries’ 45th anniversary celebration at Boutwell Auditorium downtown. From Molly Merkle.

•

A passenger held a camera to the window for 30 minutes of a Southwest flight from Dallas to Birmingham. From Benjamin Gebo.

•

Chattanooga gospel group Back Home found inspiration for its song “Birmingham” from a waitress’ story of failure, rejection and redemption. From Fresh Well Media.

•

The 10th annual Barber Vintage Festival. From Eddie Roberts.

•

Centreville’s Megan McMillan performs at WorkPlay in Lakeview. From Alabama Music Office.

• • •

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

You will be sitting
quietly, when the earth shakes
and the mind screams pain.

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Photo: Craig Sunter (CC)

My picks for #sundayread for Oct. 19, 2014:

• 30 Birmingham women to be honored for service
• Ernest Angley church rocked by accusations involving abortions, vasectomies, by @BobDyerABJ
• Flashback: Media of Birmingham: Only site ever banned from al.com’s state blog list
• South Alabama Football Breaks Out of the Lab, by @HollyAnderson
• Y’all Connect: Inspiration from the women of Hollywood
• Finalists for the 2014 National Book Award
• Content Curation for Smarties: What you said
• Hope in a Bottle, by Andrew O’Hagan (via @hunteryharris)
• Flashback: Project Bulk – Day 49: Milestone
• My former Southern Living pals @annietravel, @ArtMeripol created “Alabama Barbecue” [aff. link]
• Lessons of the Fall: 3 Things We’ve Learned From 2014 TV Season, by @AndyGreenwald
• Future of Culture Wars Is Here, and It’s Gamergate, by @kylenw (via @jayrosen_nyu)
• Telling My Troll Story Because Kathy Sierra Left Twitter, by @AdriaRichards
• How we created the “Saturday Night Live” 40th season title sequence, by @AlexBuono

More posts from Wade this week:

• Vestavia boy to compete on ‘Project Runway: Threads’
• Video: What area in metro Birmingham is this?
• Recycling in the short term and long term
• 12th annual Jewish Food Festival adds pony rides, cornhole
• The Birmingham channel: Gurneys, blood moon, AFI, cystic fibrosis

The latest #sundayread tweets

#sundayread Tweets

• More #sundayread recommendations from me

Children everywhere
(and a few adults) gave up
on sleep for tricks, treats.

• • •

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