The book ration has been increased

 As much as I enjoy chocolate, my passion for books is far stronger.  So the library collection grew once again this week as I received my signed, numbered copy of 1984, by George Orwell.  As I mentioned a few days ago, this is a special limited edition volume published by The Folio Society on the 75th anniversary of the first release of the novel.  Despite its scandalously inflated price, I couldn't resist ordering my own copy of a book that means so much to me.  Even though my recent experiences with various shipping services such as UPS and USPS has been lackluster, FedEx conveyed my copy to me here in central Alabama from London, England in astonishingly fast fashion - arriving a day earlier than scheduled.  (Yes, FedEx delivering a book about intrusive surveillance is full of irony.)  Upon opening the package, I found an impressively well crafted tome, just as I would expect from Folio.  It is a top quality example of the bookbinder's art and includes artwork from illustrator La Boca and a forward by Turkish author Elif Shafak.  The book and beautiful barn door slipcase are largely hand crafted in a meticulous fashion, as shown in the video below.  To a book enthusiast like me, this is all an irresistible combination.  The pleasure of fine literature is always enhanced by luxury bookbinding.

Somebody's always watching me

 And interesting confluence of items crossed my desk yesterday.  First was an advertising email from The Folio Society, a purveyor of luxury editions of classic books.  They've recently released a limited edition of 1984, by George Orwell on the 75th anniversary of its first publication.  The landmark novel is one I have had repeated experiences with.  I was required to read it in high school, at a time when I couldn't yet fully comprehend its message.  I read it later as an adult and appreciated the dystopian tale much more.  Then in 2017, I attended a Broadway theater production of 1984, just as the full Orwellian nature of the Trump administration was becoming understood.  The loss of objective truth, the populist authoritarianism, the memory holes, and the doublespeak ("alternative facts" was an early feature of those dark years) was damage that the country still is dealing with.  The Broadway stage version of 1984 was as shocking and provocative as live theater could possibly be, and as gloomy and foreboding as Orwell must have intended.  Having experienced the show and having lived through the (hopefully only) Trump term, I will be forever changed.  So with that in mind, I ordered a copy of the new book, bibliophilic prole that I am.  More on that in a later post.

Concurrently with all that, I read an article in the Washington Post that describes a formal surveillance program of the US Postal System.  The so-called "mail covers program" allows the tracking of postal mail to and from targeted individuals, with little regulation or oversight.  Back when mail was still a primary mode of individual communication, and the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution was still respected, detailed laws were put in place to require warrants to open mail.  But merely monitoring and recording addresses of mail to a specific person requires very little formal approval.  Without warrants or judicial approval, law enforcement agencies of all descriptions can request the USPS to monitor the mailboxes of targeted individuals, which it does with little resistance.  Despite the Post's recent article, this is not a new practice.  In 2013, the mail surveillance of award-winning author William Vollmann was described in an article in Harper's Magazine.  Vollmann had mistakenly fallen under suspicion by the FBI of being a suspect in the Unabomber bombings.  His mail was tracked - and indeed opened - for years before his innocence was demonstrated by the brother of the actual Unabomber, who recognized his manifesto.  This is a sobering reminder for a snail mail aficionado like me, who likes to believe that old-fashioned physical letters escape some of the privacy concerns of online digital communication.  Indeed, I can't help wondering if my innocent personal correspondence with iconoclastic individuals like publisher Fred Woodworth has landed me on some watch list.  Woodworth himself has often written about incidences of FBI harassment in his own long publishing career.  The truth is evident: 75 years later, Big Brother is still watching.

Happy Typewriter Day!

 On this day, June 23, in 1868 a patent for the first conventional recognizable typewriter was granted to Christopher Latham Sholes.  And since then, the mechanical writing machine has been a symbol of authors, journalists, poets, and students as they pursue their literary quests.  Sholes' most enduring innovation, the QWERTY keyboard persists to this day, into the digital age.  It has made text entry familiar to generations of typists, whether they use all ten fingers, or just two thumbs on a cell phone screen.  While Sholes' mechanical wonder and all those that followed may not be in common use, they by no means have vanished from the writing ecosystem.  Many in the younger generations have re-discovered the joys of writing tangible documents, removed from the invasive, all-seeing digital landscape.  Fortunately, the mechanical typewriter, made in the millions in the early and middle 20th century, was a remarkably hardy and durable creation.  So many still exist in perfect working condition, and the trade in these machines on resale sites like Ebay is active and robust.  For those, like me, who have a tender heart for the time when these machines dominated the landscape, this is a special day to remember the beginning of a glorious age.

Eat local, drink local

Often, in the throes of despair over Alabama's well-deserved abysmal reputation, notably in her universally incompetent and corrupt politicians, I console myself in my home state's finer qualities.  Primarily as an unsurpassed destination for food and drink.  Perhaps unknown to the wider nation, The Heart of Dixie is a gustatory mecca worth writing home (or blog posts) about.  So on Friday after a long week of work in the laboratory, I stopped to pick up some local products to enjoy through the weekend.

What I brought home is a result of remarkable changes in the state over the last few years.  I first stopped at Beer Hog, a bar and package store offering over 60 beers on tap, and many more in packages.  The very presence of the store would have been unthinkable a few years ago.  But back in the mid 1990s, a grass roots group called Free the Hops sought to change Alabama's restrictive alcohol laws which limited the alcohol content (ABV) of beer to such low levels many quality beers were prohibited from sale statewide.  It was slow going at first, as the young activists climbed a steep learning curve while tackling the forces arrayed against them.  They fought not only sanctimonious Baptist state legislators, but big-business beer distributors who saw any change as a threat to their comfortable business monopolies.  In the end, after repeated attempts, Free the Hops succeeded in changing the laws to allow "high gravity" beers, and the beer landscape in Alabama was instantly changed for the better.  With growing momentum and legislative prowess, Free the Hops went on to change restrictive state laws to make it easier for small craft brewers to set up operations.  And then, that their products might be more easily distributed.  So when I came home from Beer Hog with two growlers, or fill-to-order containers, of locally produced craft beer, I was enjoying the efforts of years of activism by my fellow beer aficionados.  On Friday, I selected Chill Pils, from Straight To Ale, a craft brewer in Huntsville, and Snake Handler from Good People, one of the older brewers in Birmingham and the state.  That latter is a mind-blowingly potent double IPA, which I've long said is the best beer made in Alabama.  Too, earlier in the week I enjoyed beer at small local brew pubs very near my house:  Oversoul Brewing in Helena, and Siluria in nearby Alabaster.  Both offer superb products and it's awesome they are so close to home.  All this is only possible because of the activists with vision, and the small business owners with the determination to build their reputations with excellent products.

Along with my cold brew, I've been enjoying some boiled peanuts from Alabama Peanut Company in downtown Birmingham.  This is another amazing small business success story.  Alabama Peanut has long been a fixture of the heart of the Birmingham business district.  But in the early lockdown days of the Covid pandemic when the surrounding office buildings went vacant, the business faced a dire future.  Fortunately, the owners turned to innovative means to keep the business afloat.  Among other things, they offered free direct deliveries of their products to different regions of the metro area on a rotating basis.  This is when I became a devoted fan of boiled peanuts, as containers of fresh, still-warm goobers would be dropped off at my front door - even though I lived in a distant suburb, many miles from the shop.  When normality eventually returned to life in the city, Alabama Peanut continued to innovate.  Today, the shop has been remodeled from its spare, industrial warehouse look into a warm and inviting snack bar... with a liquor license!  One can now stop in and order a cold beer to go along with one's flight of flavored peanuts.  Superb!  As far as boiled peanuts go, they may be a little off-putting to the uninitiated.  But I've grown to appreciate the vast, seemingly endless variety of flavors that they can be infused with.  Alabama Peanut offers a couple different flavors each day, and on Friday I came home with a tub of delicious sauerkraut and Conecuh boiled peanuts.  (Conecuh is a famous smoked sausage made in Alabama.)  On a warm sunny Sunday afternoon, hot peanuts and cold beer is an unbeatable combination!

So while my home state continues to reap national scorn and mocking from its clownish US senators, I can at least proudly enjoy delicious locally produced snacks!

Fresh bread

 A few weeks ago, I mentioned the new scratch-and-sniff stamp issue by La Poste, the French postal system.  My hopes that I'd receive one on a Postcrossing postcard were satisfied today when I found a card from Marie in my mailbox.  How does it smell, you ask?  Well, to be honest, it's a little disappointing.  It does have a mild smell, and it's not unpleasant.  But I wouldn't have said it smells like a baguette.  More like a vague scent of baked goods- and something sweet, like a vanilla cupcake.  But definitely not a traditional French baguette, in my opinion.  Still, points to La Poste for the attempt.  France ranks among countries with some of the nicest stamps, I've always said.  Finland is the clear winner as far as interesting stamps, in my judgement.  But the stamps from France are usually large, very beautiful, and artistic.  And since France is not among the most active Postcrossing nations, cards from there are fairly rare which increases their value.  Vive La Poste!

Hot off the press 2

 Received earlier this week: Issue 126 of The Match!  This is the sporadically published 'zine from iconoclast Fred Woodworth to which I have subscribed for many years.  In fact, it is one of several publications the indefatigable Woodworth produces single-handedly and without use of any digital devices.  Indeed, Woodworth has no online presence and conducts his business completely in cash and via US postal mail.  As I've mentioned before, that alone captivates me as it feeds my typographical nostalgia.  The Match! is Woodworth's long lived "anarchist" 'zine (though he has recently shunned the use of the word).  With content more political than his literary 'zine, M&A Review, Woodworth has recently swerved from anti-authoritarian commentary to something more akin to MAGA conspiracy theories.  Despite that, and however much I may disagree with his political views, I always enjoy each issue when it arrives.  I mean, just consider- this issue includes a column that recalls material from previous issues of The Match! from 30, 40, and even 50 years ago!  Such dedication and longevity in itself is to be applauded.  Long may the analog typewriters and improvised offset printing press of Fred Woodworth live!

Happy Spite Day

 Here in Alabama, state workers today are enjoying a three-day weekend, as today is a holiday celebrating the birthday of Jefferson Davis.  Yes, you read that right.  In 2024, this state still observes an official holiday to honor an unremarkable leader of a failed nation who lived in Alabama for a very short time.  To those with a persistent white supremacist frame of mind, this shameful episode of history is what must be celebrated, and not merely recorded as something to avoid repeating.  But then, those who expect progressive, modern thought from Alabama are destined to be disappointed.