Pizza Passport 2

 At long last, we recently made our second Pizza Passport visit.  This is the ongoing project to visit all the prominent pizzerias in the metro area and record our experiences in a handy little booklet that we received as a Christmas gift.  Our second stop on the pizza trail was a place we've been before: Pizza Grace.  Located on rustic (and cobblestone paved) Morris Avenue in central Birmingham, Pizza Grace has been attracting plaudits for several years.  The place changed owners last year, and since then things have changed slightly.  The menu is now a little more extensive.  In addition to the well-made Neapolitan pizza standards like the Margherita, they now offer a changing lineup of some interesting varieties.  Last summer I had a delicious pistachio and mortadella pizza.  But on this visit we shared the chorizo: romesco sauce, green olives, Manchego cheese, hot honey, and generous amounts of fresh oregano.  It was tremendous!  All pizzas are made with traditional sourdough fermented crust made in a process that takes many hours.  This sometimes forces an early closure of the restaurant when the day's allotment of ready dough is used up.  Be mindful of this, especially on popular Saturdays- late arrivals may miss out on the best Neapolitan pizza in the city.  A substantial menu of side dishes, desserts, and a healthy wine list finish out a memorable meal.  Service is friendly, efficient, and knowledgeable.  Decore is stylish in a mod/industrial sort of way.  The dessert offerings are wonderful, I'm sure, but one can do no better that walk next door to Cannella for authentic Italian gelato after your pizza.  We always do.

Passport score: 5 of 5.

Pizza Grace- chorizo pizza

Happy Anniversary

 

Happy Postcrossing-versary to me!  It was on this day, 13 years ago that I joined the worldwide postcard exchange project known as Postcrossing.  On that day, I mentioned on Facebook that I'd joined, little knowing what I'd be getting myself into.  Since then, it has grown into a hobby that I devote much of my time to, not to mention significant expense.  Over the years, I have sent over 11,600 postcards and have so far received about the same number.  From 116 countries around the world, postcard have come and gone, sometimes in days, sometimes in months.  But I value each one I send and receive, as a small symbol of a fellow resident on planet Earth; no matter how similar or different we may be, we share our humanity and our passion for postcards.  I've managed to persuade a few friends and family to join Postcrossing with me, but even more participate in other ways.  My wife and some other family members are now always on the lookout for new and interesting postcards for me to send around the world, and I deeply appreciate their contributions.  So far, I see no prospect of relenting in my efforts to dispatch postal souvenirs from central Alabama to the wider world.  It's a hobby I hope to continue to enjoy for many years to come.  Write on!

Aftermath

 As predicted, it was a stormy day yesterday across much of the southeast.  In Alabama, storms began in the northwest in the early afternoon, and continued on through the state until about midnight.  Fortunately, these "storms are underperforming", according to the most prominent meteorologist in the region, James Spann.  There were incidents of severe damage, of course.  The small town of Gordo, AL was hit particularly hard, as was Calera, not far south of my own home.  But as of this writing, no fatalities have been reported statewide, and injuries seem comparatively minor.  At my location, we were battened down and prepared for the worst from early Saturday morning.  I'm glad to report that we suffered no more than heavy rain - 1.81" - and very blustery winds for most of the day.  No apparent damage to the house or property.  I'm very relieved that things didn't develop to be worse.  It's only the beginning of the Spring tornado season here in central Alabama, but I really hope that's the worst we'll see this year.

Bounce house

 Not to humblebrag, but my household has more cars than garage space.  Yes, the house's two car garage is spacious enough to accommodate our two vehicles and a small wooden sailboat I built myself a few years ago.  But this leaves one vehicle that must be parked outside in the elements.  When severe weather is forecast, I sometimes use my Hail Protector to shield the vehicle from damaging hail or flying debris in a storm.  It is, in essence, similar to a children's inflatable bounce house.  In other words, a fabric shell that is inflated by a constantly running electric fan.  This is designed to provide enough of a cushion to protect a vehicle from large chunks of ice falling from the sky.  It takes me about 15 minutes to install the thing, so advanced warning of severe weather is essential.  I have it set up at this moment, in advance of expected severe weather, including large hail, later this afternoon.  I've had this gizmo for a couple years, and deployed it a handful of times, as a precaution.  Haven't yet had any actual hail to be protected from.  Hope that streak continues today...  Stay tuned.

Springtime for Bham

 As we move into early Spring, we begin the most tempestuous time of the year for central Alabama.  The hints began almost a week ago as professional meteorologists began to mention the possibility of severe weather this weekend.  As data rolled in and computer models became more refined, it has developed that the forecast for tonight and tomorrow calls for especially severe weather, the type of which is seen only every few years.  And my home and nearby Birmingham seem to be right in the middle of it all.  High winds, large tornadoes, and large hail are all possibilities.  It is almost certain that some people in the state will be dealing with the loss of their homes by the time things calm down late tomorrow night.  All that can be done now is to prepare a safe place to go to when tornadoes are near, and to ensure a reliable source of weather information.  I've done that and now can only wait.  As it turns out, the waiting is the hardest part.  And as a homeowner, I worry about significant damage to my home and belongings.  Here's hoping things turn out to be less severe than predicted, and there's no loss of life in the region.  If you're interested, you can monitor my local conditions here in real time.  At least as long as the power and internet stay functional.  See you on the other side.

EDIT:  Since posting this, the risk for severe weather tomorrow has been increased to the maximum level- "5 High Risk" for central Alabama.  Somebody is going to have a really bad day tomorrow.

Sweet Home Alabama

 After a whirlwind weekend in New York, it was suddenly time to head home.  After the long day Saturday, the 8:30 am start for our return journey came early.  But wifey and I managed to get packed and ready to go with enough time remaining for essential morning coffee and breakfast at Jake's, the in-house coffee shop in the Knickerbocker Hotel.

Our UAB Alumni group then gathered in the hotel lobby and boarded the bus to LaGuardia Airport and retraced our steps home:  LGA to DCA, a short layover at Reagan Airport, then the last leg to BHM Shuttlesworth Airport and home.  In contrast to the outbound flights, the trip home was smooth, uneventful, and on time.  Almost.  We landed on time in Birmingham and taxied directly to the gate.  But American Airlines wasn't going to allow an entire trip to go completely without trouble.  We pulled up to the gate and then sat many minutes, waiting as nothing happened.  It turned out the jetway malfunctioned, and it was several more minutes before a tractor could be sent to tow our aircraft to another gate where we finally got off the plane.  Miraculously, our luggage was waiting on the baggage claim carousel when we reached it, and the adventure officially concluded.  We were home, our first real travel in over four years was complete.  It was a fun and memorable weekend.  Here's hoping the next one isn't so long in coming.

Even Dozen

 Today marks my 12th anniversary as a member of the international postcard exchange project known as Postcrossing.  Twelve years ago today I began an adventure that has occupied a significant amount of my leisure time, and has been rewarding in many ways.  Over that time, I have sent 10,709 postcards to 117 different countries, and I have received 10,684 postcards from around the world. Among the 74,946 registered Postcrossing members in the USA, I rank 27th in terms of number of cards sent.  Among the 802 members in Alabama, I am #1 - the leading Postcrosser in The Cotton State.  It's been a rewarding experience, mostly in coming to know people from all around the world, and to realize that we are all the same, more or less.  We all have the same dreams and goals.  And in sending so many cards, I've seen some familiar comments in the thank-you messages I get when a recipient registers the card I've sent.  Among the most popular: "I knew of the Birmingham in England, but not the Alabama one."  or "I did know of Alabama- from the Lynyrd Skynyrd song, 'Sweet Home Alabama'." or, only slightly less often "Donald Trump?!  What the hell is wrong with you, America?"  Here's to many more years of Postcrossing.  Write on!

Read Free or die

 Once again, it is Banned Book Week.  This is the time of year when we remind ourselves of the poor, hapless individuals in the world who are deeply threatened...by ideas.  Sad to say, it's a growing movement once again in this country, and especially in my part of it, to ban books.  Mostly in the guise of "protecting children", these misguided souls are rampaging through libraries and bookstores searching for anything they disagree with.  Not content with merely suppressing ideas, they are threatening the employment or even physical harm to those who they view as not sufficiently closed minded.  Quite predictably, the same people who want to post their Ten Commandments in schoolrooms and who offer the solution to "just don't look at them" to those who follow another faith or none at all, can't follow their own advice when it comes to school library books they choose to be offended by.  Or more likely, are told to be offended by, as it is often the case that book banners have never actually read the books they want to ban. So this week, take a moment to remember these troubled, perpetually aggrieved souls, who are burdened to go through life persistently outraged by ideas they can't accept.

Blinded by science

As my day job is working as a research scientist, I find it important to live by decisions based on empiric evidence.  Living in the USA, and especially in the Deep South, that's not always easy.  This is, after all, the region of the nation best known for discarding settled science in favor of various flavors of religion.  Alabama still requires disclaimers in school science textbooks that claim the principle of evolution is somehow still unproven.  Many other similar topics are disputed by those who can't or won't accept the scientific method:  climate change, the age, and even the shape of the earth.  Fortunately, these misguided individuals can be refuted by a most infallible authority- the slogan t-shirt.  In my collection, I have multiple shirt that proclaim "science doesn't care what you believe."  That is to say, science is true, whether or not you find it convenient to accept it.  This adage is most apropos throughout and after our most recent global pandemic.  For selfish personal and political reasons, many people chose to blame various parties for the origins of the deadly virus, despite having little or no evidence to support their claims.  Early on in the struggle with the new virus, there was little real evidence to be had that supported anyone's claims.  But that has slowly changed, and today another convincing piece was added to the pile.  The prestigious science journal Cell published a paper with strong evidence that the virus arose from a food market in the Chinese city of Wuhan.  This adds to previous work that suggests the most likely source of the virus was a natural spillover from animals sold as food in the market.  Not an accidental escape from a lab.  Not a deliberate pathogen released to target specific populations.  Not any other fanciful theory concocted without evidence and repeated by those with crackpot political views.  As far as humankind is able to determine at this moment in history, this is the best explanation of the pandemic's origin.  Of course, that's not to say future, better evidence will change things if and when it comes to light.  But that's how science works- more and better data improve our understanding of all things.  And as always, one's personal opinions, or religion, or politics don't matter, because science doesn't care what you believe.

 

#winasone

 The day eagerly anticipated in the Deep South is here at last: College Football Season is fully here.  Sure, there was a "Week 0" game last weekend in Dublin, Ireland.  But with the kickoff tonight of the UAB Blazers vs Alcorn State Braves at Protective Stadium, the season is officially underway.  Second year head coach Trent Dilfer expects an improved Blazer defense this year to support the impressive offense led by quarterback Jacob Zeno.  On a warm late summer evening, the Blazers will work towards getting the season off to a strong start.  While I certainly hope for a good result from the Blazers, I also am looking forward to one of life's guilty pleasures:  stadium food. 

Addendum: UAB won, 41-3. Go Blazers!

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!

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.

Dark and stormy night

 An early morning thunderstorm has left much of central Alabama without power. But a gas stove and a moka pot (and a hand cranked coffee grinder) means life can go on. Here’s to Alabama Power crews as they work on a Memorial Day holiday to set things right. 

STFU

 To mark just-concluded National Book Day, late night host Jimmy Kimmel shared these wise words from real librarians.  As a resident of a twisted, misguided state that seeks to criminalize the actions of librarians - librarians - I am embarrassed for the right-wing nutjobs who see information as a threat to their lives.  I hope some day these sad, sad people at last realize that mere ideas aren't a danger to their well being.

Oh, hail!

 Springtime in central Alabama means strong storms, occasional tornadoes, and the potential for large hail.  Last night, all three were in the forecast, so it was time for me to deploy my vehicle hail protector, or as my wife calls it, the "bounce house".  Since I haven't yet figured out how to fit three cars in our two-car garage, my daily driver Chevy Malibu stays outside.  I have a cover that protects it from damaging UV rays during the weekends when I don't drive the vehicle, but last night more was required.  Thus, Hail Protector.  This is basically a two layer car cover, with a fan that blows air between the layers to create a cushion that protects against falling hailstones.  After some time spent to assemble the device and learn how to efficiently install it, I can now deploy it in about 15 minutes.  So last evening, I had it in place before the expected storms.  It turned out to be a false alarm, and fortunately there was no severe weather in our area.  But should the risk of damaging hail again loom, I will be ready with my bounce house.

Pandemic memories

 In the corner of the entrance to my laboratory building lies a neglected and forgotten relic of the recent worldwide pandemic.  This month, four years ago, the saga of Covid began in this country and would severely test the social structure of the nation.  That first weekend of March 2020, my wife and I were on one of our frequent long weekend trips to New York city to see a Broadway show.  Early news stories at that time had just begun to describe a new viral illness, with cases being detected on the west coast, and mere days before our trip, in upstate New York.  With little concern, we went ahead with the trip and spent several days roaming around Manhattan taking few additional precautions over our normal routines.  We enjoyed being in the audience of a performance of The Lehman Trilogy, viewing what would be virtually the last performance of that wonderful show.  The Monday after that first March weekend, we flew home.  Less than a week later, Broadway closed and the city of New York locked down.  Thus began a public health crisis that would test the nation's resolve and resourcefulness.

Today, happily, the situation is much improved.  The past four years seem to be both a blink of the eye and an eternity.  The anachronistic sign that stands forgotten in a corner of my building is a souvenir of those difficult days as we struggled to deal with this new illness.  What the crisis revealed about society is both heartening and dismaying.  We saw the endless and largely unappreciated dedication of healthcare workers on the front lines of the fight against this new, insidious illness.  We also came to belatedly appreciate the value of the unsung members of society, the grocery store workers, restaurant servers, and all those in constant contact with the public who provide crucial services.  With more disappointment, however, we saw with clear vision the utter and complete moral and intellectual bankruptcy of the Republican party.  From the party leader and nation's president on down to local government, the GOP failed the nation with its endless obstruction of virtually every public health measure from masks to vaccines to social distancing, the vilification of scientists as they struggled valiantly (and sometimes imperfectly) to understand this new pathogen, to the belligerent, cultish adoption of unproven treatments and medications that were mere defiant emblems more than they were useful countermeasures to the disease.  So now, four years later, the nation and the world stands, scarred but hopefully wiser and better prepared for challenges to come.

Imagine, Dragons dancing

 March Madness is upon us.  This weekend, the various conferences concluded their tournaments before Selection Sunday ceremonies Sunday evening.  In the AAC, the UAB Blazers coasted to a comfortable 85-69 victory over the Temple Owls, who fell just short of an amazing Cinderella story tourney performance.  A conference cellar-dweller all season, Temple went on an impressive four-game run to earn a spot in the final game.  But the Owls could not overcome the hot shooting Blazers, who repeated the beatdown they served Temple ten days prior in the regular season.

Under the leadership of alumnus coach Andy Kennedy - the author of UAB's winningest four season stretch in school history - the "Bartow Standard" has returned to UAB.  Blazers once again join the Big Dance, and face San Diego State University (ranked 25 in this week's USA Today rankings) in Spokane, Washington of Friday.  Should the Blazers upset SD State and advance to the second round, they will likely face in-state neighbor Auburn, winners of the SEC Tournament Championship.  Such a matchup would give many Alabama college basketball fans a difficult choice of who to root for.  Let the madness begin!

Cut the cheese

 Despite a dismal reputation (well deserved, in certain respects), Alabama and Birmingham still can boast some admirable qualities.  The city, in fact, is a premiere foodie city.  Many great and award winning restaurants.  A vibrant and growing craft beer community.  And many purveyors of fine food provisions.  A relatively new member of the latter community is Son of a Butcher, a luxury meat, fish and cheese shop.  It was here that I bought a delicious beef tenderloin for a Beef Wellington for dinner last Christmas.  I often stop in to pick up treats from their small but excellently curated cheese selection.  With a dedicated cheese monger on site, one can usually find high quality cheese there that arrive from around the world.  In fact, it is one of the only places in town that I can get some of my favorite- authentic English Stilton.  So in this spirit, SOB last night held one of their regular Parmesan Reggiano cheese crackings.  They do this every couple of months with a new 90 pound wheel of the "King of Cheese".  The wheel opened last night was particularly rare- one of only 100 wheels made each year by the particular Italian cheese maker, and this wheel was one of only six that made it to the USA this year.  Attended with wine, bread, charcuterie and olive oil tastings, the cheese was opened, and generous tasting samples were provided.  A large crowd attended, and one had to be patient to finally obtain a wedge of the precious cheese to purchase.  But I ultimately did, and hurried home in the cold, rainy night with my small block of concentrated Italian goodness.  Thank you to SOB, and the cows of Italy for the tasty treat!

We are the Champions

 A short time ago, the NCAA announced the lineup of the four-team college playoff for this season's National Championship.  The leadup to this revelation was the topic of much discussion.  The playoffs only accommodate the current top four teams in the nation, and strong arguments could be made for at least five teams.  Someone was going to be left out and be very understandably upset.  Turns out the aggrieved team was to be the Florida State Seminoles, who earned an undefeated record and the ACC Championship.  (An interesting personal note: I've met FSU AD Michael Alford, who is a friend of a friend.  I totally sympathize with his feelings right now.)  Ahead of them were the Michigan Wolverines, Washington Huskies, Texas Longhorns, and Alabama Crimson Tide.  Much will be written of the reasoning of the 13 member selection committee, but as they say, the decision of the committee is final.  So on New Years Day, Michigan will play Alabama in the Rose Bowl, then Washington will face Texas in the Sugar Bowl.  Winners of those games will face each other in the National Championship game in Houston on January 8, 2024. 

 The Rose Bowl is of interest to me, due to my connection to both teams.  In the mid 1990s I was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and retain an affinity for the team.  But as I have lived in Alabama for 30 years, I've adopted an alliance with the Crimson Tide.  I don't have a direct connection to the school (much like all those "sidewalk fans" who never were students there), but I've always called myself a "fan-in-law", via members of my extended family who were students in Tuscaloosa.  My wife is the same, even more so.  So for the next couple of weeks, I will be even more isolated than usual.  As a sensible, intelligent political moderate and social liberal in Alabama, I can feel quite lonely at times.  In my daily life, I rarely encounter anyone who shares my views on...well, anything.  You try being a scientist in a conservative state.  So until New Years, I am really on my own.  Once that game is over, I can go back to being a mere political and social outcast.  Go Blue.

Win as one

 

Today was the last home game of the 2023 season for the UAB Blazers.  The Blazers managed to muscle through to a 34-24 win over Temple.  It's been a disappointing season for the 4-7 Blazers, and with one more regular season game to go, they have no prospects of post-season play.  Disappointing, too, for first year coach Trent Dilford, who came into this season with such high hopes and expectations.  But today, Blazer fans appreciate a hard-won victory, and nurture hope for the future.  Go Blazers!