By Rubin E. Grant Bob Cissell might be 90 years old, but he has the heart of a child. Perhaps, that’s why the quirky, funny Christmas village at his home in Mountain Brook, on 4125 Brook Way, appeals to kids and adults alike. This is the third consecutive year Cissell has decorated his yard as part of the Wacky Tacky Light Tour, which runs Tuesday-Thursday this week. The bus … [Read more...]
Rebel’s Basselin, Springs’ Underwood Claim State Championships: Future Teammate Denies Briarwood’s Mathias Three-Peat in Boys State Swim Meet
By Rubin E. Grant If not for his future college teammate, Briarwood Christian senior Mason Mathias would be a three-time state swimming champion. Mathias finished second in both the boys Class 6A-7A 200-yard freestyle and 500-yard freestyle behind Daphne junior Drew Jordan in the Alabama High School Athletic Association State Swimming and Diving Championships, held Saturday … [Read more...]
Maestro’s Ball Goes Free and Virtual This Year
The Alabama Symphony Orchestra is hosting its 2020 Maestro’s Ball as a virtual New Year’s Eve event that is free and open to the public. The concert will begin at 7 p.m., Dec. 31., and include a variety of music played by the orchestra and conducted by Music Director Carlos Izcaray and Principal POPS! Conductor Chris Confessore, in addition to a performance by the Youth … [Read more...]
‘Turn Our Pain Into a Purpose’: New Software Allows Users to Connect About Life’s Challenges
By Rubin E. Grant Three years ago, James Morgan and his wife, Caitie, experienced a parent’s worst nightmare: the death of a child. The Mountain Brook couple had gone to the Alabama-LSU football game Nov. 4, 2017, at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, and since the game ended late, they spent the night at a friend’s house. They had left their young daughter, Caroline Grace, … [Read more...]
Murphy’s Law: A Double Batch Christmas
By Sue Murphy There’s a sign in my laundry room that says, “Today, I will try to live in the moment, unless it’s unpleasant and then I will eat a cookie.” I’ve eaten a lot of cookies this year. But now, me lovelies, it is officially cookie season, when it would be positively (negatively?) unsociable to leave a macaroon just sitting there on your plate. My must-do Christmas … [Read more...]