During the last few weeks after planting our garden, it looked manicured. The tomatoes had grown from small seedlings into bushy plants that required cages to keep them upright. Watching our garden … more

Attend enough Sunday sermons, and you’ll hear the story of the pot roast. A young woman is preparing a pot roast one day. Before placing it in the pan, she cuts off both ends. “Why did you do that?” her husband asks. “Because … more

Let’s clean out the notebook... • It has been a wild few days on the political front, and I need to be cloned to write all I need to. One afternoon I wrote four stories and I covered two … more

The start of high school football season generates a buzz across Walker County. There’s really nothing like it. As a way to usher in the beginning of the high school football season, the Daily Mountain Eagle has organized the inaugural Walker … more

The South is a strange and wonderful place, but there are times when I question my decision to stay here. Some years, the months of July and August are so brutal it seems there’s not enough mercury … more

In one of many memorable scenes from “Cars,” Mater shows his new friend, Lightning McQueen, that he is the world’s best backwards driver. “Ain’t no need to watch where I'm goin’; just need to know where I’ve been,” he says as he … more

Let’s clean out the notebook, political edition ... • It seems amazing, but we are now a month out from the Aug. 15 primaries for the U.S. Senate race, as well as the countywide referendum on the proposed 1-cent sales tax. I would have … more

As a career coach working with older jobseekers, I hear the same things over and over. “I’m afraid that no one will hire me.” Or, “I’m afraid I can’t do that job.” Another favorite thing I hear is, “I’m afraid I’m too old to … more

“Konbanwa” means good evening in Japanese. I learned that phrase Tuesday night on the 32nd floor of the Regions Harbert Plaza at The City Club of Birmingham. Andrea and I were there for an event honoring the delegation that had traveled from … more

A week ago, I didn’t see any connection between professional wrestling and politics. I know better now. I’ve been binge-watching “GLOW,” the Netflix series about professional women wrestlers of the 1980s. I tuned in because I’m a … more