Alabama, The Only State In The Country Where You Can Drown Standing Up

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The caption was a snip of conversation I heard yesterday morning at the Birmingham edition of The Color Run. It had the ring of truth.

Readers may recall that I shot the first stop on the tour in St. Louis a couple of weeks ago. Well, it was pouring down rain at Barber Motorsports Park outside of B'ham where the run was held. Virginia, Mrs. C and I drove out to see and shoot the spectacle. No rain delays, just go for it.

This was way different than the one back home. No dry, dusty color hanging in the air, just streams of colored mud. What fools these mortals be.

Downtown Birmingham: Bon Ton Hatters & Shoe Repair

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Downtown Birmingham is pretty quiet on a Sunday. The few restaurants that are open get a rush after church services, and there some fabulous examples of religious architecture still in use (unlike some Arch dominated cities we could think of). But Virginia knows lots of the characters.

Meet Jimmy Callis, proprietor of Bon Ton Hatters & Shoe Repair. He has lived right upstairs for 12 years but was down in the shop getting some work done yesterday. Although the place was closed, Virginia knows him and he invited us in.

Jimmy is a man of strong opinions. He lives above his place of business because gasoline is too expensive and rents in the area are way too high. He told me that the old building down the street has been converted into fancy apartments and they want the better part of a thousand dollars a month for a one-bedroom. Jimmy, I prayed silently, don't you ever go to New York City.

Birmingham has been an unexpected delight. Remember the Color Run I shot in STL a couple of weeks ago? Birmingham's is this morning. Virginia and I will be out breathing the powdered pigment.

Wham B'ham!

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Hey, here we are in Birmingham, Alabama, visiting Virginia. Of course, it's late as I write this so just some first shots. Above, red neck haute cuisine at a superb restaurant where we ate last night, Little Savannah. Below, segregation lives on, at least in a limited form. Birmingham used to be a major steel producing city, the "Pittsburgh of the South." It is watched over by a giant statue of Vulcan, the Roman god of the forge. The statue was first exhibited in St. Louis at the 1904 World's Fair before coming back here. Bottom, the guardian of Charlotte Woodson Antiques, run by Virginia's friend, Dinah Toro.

More tomorrow.

People Watching

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It's monthly theme day on City Daily Photo, now on Facebook after the demise of the portal. The topic is people watching.

I met these two at the Festival of Nations. Such a sweet face, such tender eyes, such a beautiful girlfriend for that hat. Wonder what she thinks about it, not to mention what motivated him to wear it. Maybe he thinks that kind of thing is cool.

We're getting periods of heavy rain from the dregs of Hurricane Isaac but not as bad as first predicted. Doesn't look like flights will be canceled (all fingers crossed) and our long weekend trip will proceed. We'll get to a place this afternoon we've never been before. Gods of the air willing, there will be a report tomorrow.

Just A Color Exercise

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Short of time as I write this Thursday night. Have to post something so it might as well be this.  These were taken on the day after yesterday's shots and there is a change of costume.

Tomorrow is supposed to be a travel day, flying out of town for our Labor Day long weekend. It's another undisclosed destination for now. None of you would guess where we're going except the one of you who already knows. Like they said at the beginning of Monty Python, and now for something completely different. However, the zombie remains of Hurricane Isaac are supposed to pass right over our fair city on Saturday and may inundate us, a summer's worth of rain in a day and a half. This might or might not work out.

May Your Scimitar Blade Be Dull

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Actually, I had no idea which  side of a scimitar blade was the sharp one so I looked it up. It's the outside of the curve so no worries, mate. This act at the Festival of Nations was a big hit, particularly with the owners of Y chromosomes. They were fabulous, though, a combination of grace and athleticism. I wasn't crazy about the group ululation at the end but I must confess I feel like doing it myself every time if flip past the Republican Convention on TV this week.

There is a shaky hand-held video of the sword dance at the bottom. I may post some more of this tomorrow.

 

The Return of Gratuitous Cuteness

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Lots of families attended the Festival on Nations so lots of children running around.  These are some random shots in the crowd. The kids in the top four pictures were taking an Indian dance lesson. Nice to hear a sitar and tabla in a St. Louis city park, even if it was recorded and played through huge loudspeakers.