March 2008 Archives
That's the inscription on the back, along with a date stamp of August 26, 1941.
And, as I continue to rummage through the boxes of old photos, I'm constantly amazed at how many people there are in our family! This photo was taken in the 1990's at Ezells Fish Camp in Lavaca, Alabama. Delicious fish, great fried dill pickles, and perfect slaw. I could eat that slaw and dill pickles all day. Oh, and, of course, they have huge glasses for the sweet tea.
WIlliam Sylvester Skinner, Joseph Gustavus Watts, William Lauren Skinner, William Skinner Watts, Annie Townsend Skinner Watts, Clark Etheldred Watts, Barvel Haddox Watts
Photo taken in 1934. This was found in an envelope with the names of all those in the photo listed. Let this be a reminder to you, IF YOU HAVE PHOTOS, BE SURE TO INCLUDE THE NAMES OF PEOPLE IN THEM!
Went to Thomasville, Alabama on Wednesday (we took a different route than my normal path down Highway 5 through Brent and Marion by going down I-65 through Maplesville and on through Selma and Orville, Alabama). Beautiful drive, but haven't gone that way in years.
Met with the Ala-Tom RC&D folks to discuss the website for Southwest Alabama Regional Tourism (alabamasfrontporches.com). We had a great productive meeting and I've downloaded all the files and started working on revamping the site. First, I corrected a few glaring problems--like setting appropriate fonts and resizing photos. I'm looking forward to getting into the real meat of the subject in the coming weeks as the folks down south send me information to fill in the site. We're starting with 5 attractions in each county (11 total counties) and we'll work our way through that in the next two months. Once we've completed that, we're going to create some Black Belt Driving Tours and some other information about festivals in Southwest Alabama. Should be fun.
The whole point is to get folks who are traveling through to stop and also to encourage travelers to come and visit Alabama's Front Porches and learn about Southwest Alabama.
Met with the Ala-Tom RC&D folks to discuss the website for Southwest Alabama Regional Tourism (alabamasfrontporches.com). We had a great productive meeting and I've downloaded all the files and started working on revamping the site. First, I corrected a few glaring problems--like setting appropriate fonts and resizing photos. I'm looking forward to getting into the real meat of the subject in the coming weeks as the folks down south send me information to fill in the site. We're starting with 5 attractions in each county (11 total counties) and we'll work our way through that in the next two months. Once we've completed that, we're going to create some Black Belt Driving Tours and some other information about festivals in Southwest Alabama. Should be fun.
The whole point is to get folks who are traveling through to stop and also to encourage travelers to come and visit Alabama's Front Porches and learn about Southwest Alabama.
How exciting. I got my new scanner hooked up today. I should be working, but I just couldn't resist taking a few minutes to play with it (it is, by the way, great so far).Before and after retouching. This needs a good bit more retouching, but this was a fun start. Inscription on the back: Daddy and Phebe (Lollar's Birmingham Jan 5, 1939) (My mother's father and youngest sister.)
If it has been a few weeks since you looked at the Your Town Alabama blog, you should really take a peek again. I've added several dozen entries in the last three weeks (almost one entry every day). Good stuff, I think. I've noticed a significant increase in the number of hits the website is getting on a daily basis as a result of the blog, so overall I'm very pleased.
And in other news, I'm off tomorrow to visit the folks in Thomasville to discuss Alabama's Front Porches. This isn't my site design (actually, it is the old State Tourism Department's website design that was borrowed for use in the Black Belt). The site design works okay, but needs some work. There are some coding issues that need to be addressed. Keywords need to be modified to tighten the tourism focus to the Black Belt and the counties that this project concentrates on.
The content is in need of some work as well. That's where I come in. I'm working with the University of Alabama and Ala-Tom RC&D to provide some additional content--and content direction. We'll be meeting tomorrow to get some organizational discussions moving forward. This is a pretty big project, and really important, too. Having grown up so near there with sisters who still live there makes me want to do all I can to make it a better place--and to show other people what a wonderful place it already is!
And in other news, I'm off tomorrow to visit the folks in Thomasville to discuss Alabama's Front Porches. This isn't my site design (actually, it is the old State Tourism Department's website design that was borrowed for use in the Black Belt). The site design works okay, but needs some work. There are some coding issues that need to be addressed. Keywords need to be modified to tighten the tourism focus to the Black Belt and the counties that this project concentrates on.
The content is in need of some work as well. That's where I come in. I'm working with the University of Alabama and Ala-Tom RC&D to provide some additional content--and content direction. We'll be meeting tomorrow to get some organizational discussions moving forward. This is a pretty big project, and really important, too. Having grown up so near there with sisters who still live there makes me want to do all I can to make it a better place--and to show other people what a wonderful place it already is!
I found this to be really interesting. Wish we had done it with my dad. It would be great to do it for others. There are so many stories out there and they are disappearing so quickly. (Ann has taken to noting how many WWII vets are listed in the obits each day--and there are ALWAYS several. So many amazing stories disappearing every day.
http://www.al.com/news/birminghamnews
http://www.al.com/news/birminghamnews
An Alabaster man is passionate about preserving World War II veterans' stories for future generations.
Three years ago, Jeff Beabout took his camcorder to the home of a veteran who shared how he trained as an infantry officer, survived combat, returned to marry his sweetheart and became a lawyer.
Wow. It's been 4 months since I started typing things into this little box. I've found it to be enjoyable, for the most part. I haven't really had much trouble coming up with something to say--even when that something has been basically nothing!
The other day, I was talking to a friend who got me to thinking a little more about exactly what I was doing. And, in a large part, I guess what I'm doing is taking the daily conversations that I had with my Mom and putting them on the internet for all to read (or for the few who actually visit to read).
I talked to Mama almost every day for the last 3-4 years of her life. To get a better understanding of just how much Mama meant to me, read my Mother's Day Tribute to Mama. Those are conversations that I'll always treasure, not so much for their content as, like this blog, they were more random thoughts and day-to-day happenings than anything else. We talked a lot about food. I'd tell her what we had for dinner and she'd tell me about a book she was reading. Nothing dramatic, just life. I miss that.
So, really in large part, this blog has become my outlet for talking about life's little things, from the newsletter that I'm finishing up or a meeting I had to what we had for dinner (which, by the way, was fabulous).
The other thing that the blog has allowed me to do is share old photos and memories with my broader family. It's amazing to me just how much my friends, many who I do work for, mean to me. I look back at the last 8 years of my life (when I started working for myself--yes, I've worked for myself longer than I worked for anyone else) and realize that so many of the people that I consider friends now started out as business clients. I think I'm lucky that many of the folks I do work for have come to consider me a bit more than someone who works with them.
In terms of sharing things--like old photos--I bought a new scanner last week, so I'm really looking forward to getting it set up and moving. Lots and lots of photos to scan.
The other day, I was talking to a friend who got me to thinking a little more about exactly what I was doing. And, in a large part, I guess what I'm doing is taking the daily conversations that I had with my Mom and putting them on the internet for all to read (or for the few who actually visit to read).
I talked to Mama almost every day for the last 3-4 years of her life. To get a better understanding of just how much Mama meant to me, read my Mother's Day Tribute to Mama. Those are conversations that I'll always treasure, not so much for their content as, like this blog, they were more random thoughts and day-to-day happenings than anything else. We talked a lot about food. I'd tell her what we had for dinner and she'd tell me about a book she was reading. Nothing dramatic, just life. I miss that.
So, really in large part, this blog has become my outlet for talking about life's little things, from the newsletter that I'm finishing up or a meeting I had to what we had for dinner (which, by the way, was fabulous).
The other thing that the blog has allowed me to do is share old photos and memories with my broader family. It's amazing to me just how much my friends, many who I do work for, mean to me. I look back at the last 8 years of my life (when I started working for myself--yes, I've worked for myself longer than I worked for anyone else) and realize that so many of the people that I consider friends now started out as business clients. I think I'm lucky that many of the folks I do work for have come to consider me a bit more than someone who works with them.
In terms of sharing things--like old photos--I bought a new scanner last week, so I'm really looking forward to getting it set up and moving. Lots and lots of photos to scan.
Ann took the cat to the vet yesterday. It spent the night and we'll pick it up today. It had not been spayed, so we're especially thankful we caught it. (No need for 4-6 kittens.) Otherwise, it appears in good health--no feline leukemia or any other problems that the vet noted. Gave it all her shots and dewormed her, too. She'll be back this afternoon. Ann's taken to calling her "Thing." She's beautiful and sweet and extremely loving.
She just needs a good home with someone who will love her and give her the attention she needs. She's calmed down a good bit since the first night and the vet says that spaying her will calm her down more.
She just needs a good home with someone who will love her and give her the attention she needs. She's calmed down a good bit since the first night and the vet says that spaying her will calm her down more.
Well, I've been making pizzas for about 5 years now, with a lot more pizzas made in the last two years. I'm still working on getting the dough and the toppings perfect (I've gotten the dough to a place where I feel pretty comfortable serving it to anyone, though). I'm always tinkering with the proportions of different types of flour, but have a pretty good handle on what needs to go in to make it good. Lately, I've been tinkering with the oven temperature and the time. I'm not completely set on either yet. Some suggest a really high oven temperature, and that seems to work better. Lower oven temps seem to make the dough a bit tender and fluffy.
As to toppings, those are up to your imagination. I'm convinced that fresh mozzarella is almost always better (unless you use the smoked mozzarella like I used in my Three Mushroom Pizza the other day. Red and yellow peppers (I've been getting mounds of these from Grow Alabama lately) add lots of color and flavor. This pizza had the fresh mozzarella, Parmesan, and feta along with red and yellow peppers, red onion, garlic and olive oil.
Not my best, but very tasty.
We've been watching this cat for the past two weeks. It acted like a stray cat, so we had planned to trap it and have it spayed and then release it. Turns out it is clearly someone's pet. We're trying to find out who that could be. Must have gotten out accidentally a couple of weeks ago. It is EXTREMELY friendly and pretty talkative. It appears to have already been spayed.
I made a tasty shrimp and pasta dish tonight.
It included the following:
3/4 lb fresh peeled and deveined shrimp
1 lemon
1 garlic clove, minced
large pinch Italian seasoning
red pepper flakes
freshly ground black pepper
salt
olive oil
2 shallots
2 garlic cloves
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup sliced sundried tomatoes
splash white wine
olive oil
3/4 pound small asparagus
1/3 lb cooked small penne pasta
In a bowl, combine juice and zest of one lemon, 1 tablespoon olive oil, Italian herbs, pepper flakes, minced garlic clove and salt and pepper to taste. Toss shrimp and let marinade for about 30 minutes.
Saute garlic and shallots until soft and golden (about 3 minutes). Add yellow bell pepper. Saute for 5 minutes. Add asparagus and cook for 1-2 minutes. Set aside.
Saute shrimp until done. (I used a cast iron skillet to really sear the shrimp a bit.) Add remaining marinade and let come to boil.
Toss vegetables and shrimp with pasta. Serve with fresh bread. Serves 2 to 3.
It included the following:
3/4 lb fresh peeled and deveined shrimp
1 lemon
1 garlic clove, minced
large pinch Italian seasoning
red pepper flakes
freshly ground black pepper
salt
olive oil
2 shallots
2 garlic cloves
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup sliced sundried tomatoes
splash white wine
olive oil
3/4 pound small asparagus
1/3 lb cooked small penne pasta
In a bowl, combine juice and zest of one lemon, 1 tablespoon olive oil, Italian herbs, pepper flakes, minced garlic clove and salt and pepper to taste. Toss shrimp and let marinade for about 30 minutes.Saute garlic and shallots until soft and golden (about 3 minutes). Add yellow bell pepper. Saute for 5 minutes. Add asparagus and cook for 1-2 minutes. Set aside.
Saute shrimp until done. (I used a cast iron skillet to really sear the shrimp a bit.) Add remaining marinade and let come to boil.
Toss vegetables and shrimp with pasta. Serve with fresh bread. Serves 2 to 3.
I've been busier with newsletters this month even more so than usual. I've completed the Alzheimer's of Central Alabama Spring 2008 newsletter (complete with a redesign), the April 2008 issue of the Sierra Club's Alabama Sierran, the Birmingham Chapter of the American Institute of Architects Birmingham Chapters March newsletter, a Your Town Alabama newsletter and CGH Insurance Group's newsletter. Who knows, I may be forgetting a newsletter.
Some of these go out via mail (about 9,500 of them) and about another 1,000-1,200 go out via email. (Both of the mailed newsletters do get posted on the respective websites, so they get additional views as well.)
Anyway, I was adding up the number of people these go out to collectively and I realized that, probably for the first time, I've hit the 10,000 person mark for newsletter communications. It just seems pretty cool to me. No real significance to it, really, but I find it secretly pleasing.
Some of these go out via mail (about 9,500 of them) and about another 1,000-1,200 go out via email. (Both of the mailed newsletters do get posted on the respective websites, so they get additional views as well.)
Anyway, I was adding up the number of people these go out to collectively and I realized that, probably for the first time, I've hit the 10,000 person mark for newsletter communications. It just seems pretty cool to me. No real significance to it, really, but I find it secretly pleasing.
The more newsletters I do, the more I enjoy doing them. I've gotten really fast at putting together the Alabama Sierran, though a large part of that comes from constantly looking over information that can go into it and having an idea of what I want to put into it before it comes due. I get more and more submissions for this monthly newsletter (now in year three of production). When we started putting this newsletter together, there were a few pieces devoted to local issues, but much of the information was pulled from national sources--or in the very least from other state sources.
Now, the Sierra Club members seem to have really bought into the concept of the state newsletter and submit everything from articles about some controversial project to photos from their outings.
Wow. I really hate to brag, but last night I made one of my finest pizzas ever. The dough was, as always, my sourdough mix with a bit of whole wheat and a little bit of Italian 00 flour tossed in. There is a recipe for it in a previous entry: www.joewatts.com/blog/2007/12/recipes.html.
But the best part of this pizza was what was on top:
French horn mushrooms (about 6) sliced
Golden oyster mushrooms (about 8) sliced
Portabella mushroom (about 1/4 of one) diced large
3 shallots, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
italian seasoning, salt and black pepper to taste
Saute the shallots and garlic in 1 tablespoon of butter and a little olive oil for 2 minutes, then add the mushrooms. Saute until golden and soft.
Brush crust with a little olive oil and prebake the crust for about 6 minutes at 425 degrees. Remove from oven. Turn oven to 475.
Sprinkle shredded Mozzarella cheese to cover crust. Top with mushrooms evenly. Sprinkle with about 4 ounces of smoked mozzarella cheese and 2 ounces crumbled goat cheese.
Bake for about 8-10 minutes.
But the best part of this pizza was what was on top:
French horn mushrooms (about 6) sliced
Golden oyster mushrooms (about 8) sliced
Portabella mushroom (about 1/4 of one) diced large
3 shallots, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
italian seasoning, salt and black pepper to taste
Saute the shallots and garlic in 1 tablespoon of butter and a little olive oil for 2 minutes, then add the mushrooms. Saute until golden and soft.
Brush crust with a little olive oil and prebake the crust for about 6 minutes at 425 degrees. Remove from oven. Turn oven to 475.
Sprinkle shredded Mozzarella cheese to cover crust. Top with mushrooms evenly. Sprinkle with about 4 ounces of smoked mozzarella cheese and 2 ounces crumbled goat cheese.
Bake for about 8-10 minutes.
I'm just getting started working on a new site. I didn't develop the look of the site, but they need help with updating it, examining the design and structure and determining what sort of direction they need to go in to improve the site for visitors. I'm particularly excited about this project because it is a part of the Black Belt in Alabama.
I've worked with many of these people on different projects (from Your Town Alabama and Scenic Byways, to Alabama Communities of Excellence and the Alabama Association of RC&D's). But, I haven't had the chance to do much work in the Black Belt where I grew up. I've made a trip to Thomasville, AL so far, and have several more trips to Clarke County scheduled. Should be fun. In the meantime, check out their site (prior to my working on it) at www.alabamasfrontporches.com. It has some driving tours, a listing of some restaurants and some activities to do while in the Black Belt. We'll be working on many more. Right now, it isn't that well developed and it has some issues related to how things have been updated (photos placed in at the wrong size and people not familiar with html making changes to code), but we'll be working on that in the coming months as well as developing substantially more interesting and significant tours and descriptions of the many wonderful places in the Black Belt of Southwestern Alabama.
I just picked up an interesting new book on community tourism: Destination Branding for Small Cities: The Essentials for Successful Place Branding by Bill Baker. (if you buy it through this link, I'll get a bit of money from Amazon.com) I'm looking forward to reading it in more depth and getting some fresh ideas. I'm hoping that this book and a few others I've ordered will help me better work with the Alabama's Front Porches folks and do an even better job of coaching them into a stronger identity.
I've worked with many of these people on different projects (from Your Town Alabama and Scenic Byways, to Alabama Communities of Excellence and the Alabama Association of RC&D's). But, I haven't had the chance to do much work in the Black Belt where I grew up. I've made a trip to Thomasville, AL so far, and have several more trips to Clarke County scheduled. Should be fun. In the meantime, check out their site (prior to my working on it) at www.alabamasfrontporches.com. It has some driving tours, a listing of some restaurants and some activities to do while in the Black Belt. We'll be working on many more. Right now, it isn't that well developed and it has some issues related to how things have been updated (photos placed in at the wrong size and people not familiar with html making changes to code), but we'll be working on that in the coming months as well as developing substantially more interesting and significant tours and descriptions of the many wonderful places in the Black Belt of Southwestern Alabama.
I just picked up an interesting new book on community tourism: Destination Branding for Small Cities: The Essentials for Successful Place Branding by Bill Baker. (if you buy it through this link, I'll get a bit of money from Amazon.com) I'm looking forward to reading it in more depth and getting some fresh ideas. I'm hoping that this book and a few others I've ordered will help me better work with the Alabama's Front Porches folks and do an even better job of coaching them into a stronger identity.
My friend Ben Burford recently went to Brazil for an extended vacation. He's started a blog: www.davisdenny.com/bensblog/.
An excerpt: "You know that in order to go to Hell, you have to go through Atlanta. That was true for us. Through Atlanta, to Miami for the first mini-leg of the journey."
An excerpt: "You know that in order to go to Hell, you have to go through Atlanta. That was true for us. Through Atlanta, to Miami for the first mini-leg of the journey."
Just wrapped up a newsletter for ALZCA. I've been doing their newsletter for about 4 years now, and have always wanted to redesign it--I picked it up from their previous designer who moved away. I've made small changes to the newsletter each issue, but haven't ever done a redesign on it until now. I think it turned out pretty good. Clean, simple, and easy to read with ample white space and useful information.
Vance Holder and I spent several weeks working on this--glad to finally get it ready to go to press. You can access the full newsletter as a pdf here:
f3_alzcaspring08.pdf
The above two pieces are the nearly complete invitations for the Garden Art Party, a really great event held each year (this year is April 12, 2008). All the art used is created by Alzheimer's patients and is auctioned off along with a host of other art. (www.alzca.org)Have put a good bit of energy in getting this invitation completed, but I'm happy with the results. Below is one of the options rejected before we came up with the above option--I came up with several additional options, but this was my favorite of the ones we didn't go with. (The option below only includes the front panel.)
Above is a photo of the house Mama lived in all her life and the house that my five sisters and I grew up in. (this photo was taken last week--the same time as the photo of daffodils below)
This is the last photo I have of Mama, taken Christmas 2006 after everyone was gone home but Ann and me. We stayed and visited and watched Mama do her crossword--no one stopped her from completing her crossword every day. She firmly believed in exercise--both body and mind-and would do those crosswords every day as religiously as she would do her morning exercises in bed before getting up. I wish I had her tenacity.
Here's a link to the first photo of Mama that I know of: Mama as a child.
Here are some additional photos I have of Mama, taken between 2001 and 2006. www.joewatts.com/mama/
From a recent trip to Octagon. I've planted hundreds of the daffodils, but none of the snowdrops in Birmingham, yet. I think I'll try to change that once it is time to dig bulbs again.
I've never been much of a reader of poetry, other than infrequently, but for some reason while going to the grocery store this morning (by far the best time to go appears to be 7:30 a.m. on Sunday morning--but I should not have skipped the coffee to get there early) I heard e. e. cummings on NPR and had to come home and find more.
may my heart always be open to little
birds who are the secrets of living
whatever they sing is better than to know
and if men should not hear them men are old
may my mind stroll about hungry
and fearless and thirsty and supple
and even if it's sunday may i be wrong
for whenever men are right they are not young
and may myself do nothing usefully
and love yourself so more than truly
there's never been quite such a fool who could fail
pulling all the sky over him with one smile
e.e. cummings
To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best night
and day to make you like everybody else means to fight the hardest
battle any human being can fight and never stop fighting.
e.e. cummings
may my heart always be open to little
birds who are the secrets of living
whatever they sing is better than to know
and if men should not hear them men are old
may my mind stroll about hungry
and fearless and thirsty and supple
and even if it's sunday may i be wrong
for whenever men are right they are not young
and may myself do nothing usefully
and love yourself so more than truly
there's never been quite such a fool who could fail
pulling all the sky over him with one smile
e.e. cummings
To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best night
and day to make you like everybody else means to fight the hardest
battle any human being can fight and never stop fighting.
e.e. cummings
One of my favorite projects, Your Town Alabama, has a blog now. I'm trying to add information to it on a weekly or more frequent basis, so keep checking it if you want to learn more about Alabama's small towns and communities. www.yourtownalabama.org/blog
The Blog does seem to be helping, as I've noticed a significant increase in traffic since posting the blog. Hopefully, this will continue and provide more people in Alabama with the information that they need to make our state a better place to live.
The Blog does seem to be helping, as I've noticed a significant increase in traffic since posting the blog. Hopefully, this will continue and provide more people in Alabama with the information that they need to make our state a better place to live.
