The Year in Review: September 2006
December 31, 2006, 8:33 am
Filed under:
9/11,
9/11 Experiences,
AL,
Artwalk,
B'ham social events,
Birmingham Alabama,
Birmingham, AL,
Blogging,
Bottletree Cafe,
Catalyst,
Cities,
city stages,
Commentary,
Man or Astroman?,
music,
music venues,
New York,
New York City,
News Media (as source & subject),
The Year in Review,
urban reversi Showing some life in the city center
The Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival and Artwalk 2006 made people aware of the level of traffic that could one day be visible on a consistent basis sometime soon. This image from Artwalk gives the best example of what it could be like. We put together a list of the movies that were taking part in Sidewalk’s competition, something we’re looking forward to either doing again next year or seeing the organization take on.
Looking back
Bets and I moved here on Artwalk weekend in 2004, meaning it was time to be somewhat reflective on how things are going here in the Magic City. We also got reminiscent about what happened to our nation five years ago along the eastern seaboard.
Man or Astroman? Decided to make Birmingham, Alabama one of two locations for a “reunion tour” this September. The show at Bottletree was a lot of fun; weird since I remember unloading them in Savannah 12 years ago for their SCAD show, but fun. Artwalk provided a larger showcase for Urban Reversi, celebrating its second year the following week with a trip to New York.
And it’s still my kind of town… to a point
A good portion of the month was spent talking about my hometown. There are about four or five posts related to New York from the fall. Here’s one of the first ones I did. There are more, but it makes more sense to move through the week and find them than for me to post them here.
Can the music stay alive?
Catalyst announced their support of City Stages’ plan to raise $1 million to eliminate its debt and provide a base for its future. The conversation also seems to include making suggestions for how to improve the festival. Many will be watching this summer to see what will happen.
We’ll see if we can’t get the rest of the year up during the course of the day.
Happy New Year!
Cheers.
See also:
The Year in Review: January and a little December ‘05 too
The Year in Review: February 2006
The Year in Review: March 2006
The Year in Review: April 2006
The Year in Review: May 2006
The Year in Review: June 2006
The Year in Review: July 2006
The Year in Review: August 2006
So what else is going on in the Magic City during Sidewalk?
September 23, 2006, 4:11 pm
Filed under:
AL,
B'ham social events,
Birmingham, AL,
Germania Park,
large-scale urban game,
Movies,
music venues,
Photographs,
Random shots,
Sidewalk,
Spivey's,
urban reversi 
There are other things going on this evening in Birmingham. There’s still time to catch the We Love West End Day festivities at Germania Park (Pearson Avenue and 30th Street, SW) in western Birmingham. Tek Neek Band is headlining. These first two are images of dance and step teams performing earlier in the day at the festival.
(more…)
Yes, there are more movies to talk about (and festivals)
September 22, 2006, 6:55 am
Filed under:
AL,
art,
B'ham social events,
Batman,
Birmingham Alabama,
Birmingham Jaycees,
Birmingham, AL,
Independent Film,
large-scale urban game,
Movies,
New York,
Sidewalk,
street festivals,
technology,
urban reversi We’ve already mentioned all the cinematic options available to locals and visitors (hello!) alike in town this weekend. Well, there are two more things to point out this morning. First of all, it luckily did not get cold until late last night, so those that were able to make it out to Movies by Moonlight enjoyed great weather and a great treat: Napoleon Dynamite. The winner of the viewer’s choice vote was announced as well; this film will be shown in October as the last feature of this year’s series. And the winner was quite appropriate indeed when you think about it…The Empire Strikes Back! Early reports are saying that costumes will be encouraged, just in time for Halloween. The Birmingham Jaycees will also have a table at next month’s event, giving away two tickets to the return of their Haunted House in Lakeview. The house will provide funds to do community service activities through 2007 and the end of 2006 for the civic organization.
“Dynamite’s” producer is also brought this year’s opening film for Sidewalk to fruition. If you have a chance to get a ticket and can’t get in to see Batman Begins at McWane, check out The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang tonight at the Alabama Theatre. (Don’t forget Urban Reversi tomorrow morning! They’re meeting at the Harbert Center) They had a great time running the game last weekend in Williamsburg.
You might also want to check out the competitive film slate using the button off to the left.
You many also notice a venue along 3rd Avenue North that has a slightly more localized flare. The Cakewalk Film Festival makes its appearance this weekend in downtown Birmingham. This festival also hopes to do more to help local filmmakers, as is Sidewalk’s primary goal. We’ll have to wait and see what the effect of having two festivals at the same time will have on downtown… wait a sec… we’ll actually have four festivals going on at the same time. Let’s not forget about the Greek Festival on Southside and the Taste of 4th Avenue Jazz Festival primarily located at the Carver Theater. It’s getting more like NYC all the time (better to have too many options than too few).
A visit to the House that Ruth built, after lunch.
Cheers.
Blogging from NYC, with games galore in Brooklyn
September 16, 2006, 10:37 am
Filed under:
AL,
Birmingham Alabama,
Birmingham, AL,
Brooklyn,
Catalyst,
conflux2006,
large-scale urban game,
New York,
New York City,
News Media (as source & subject),
other cities,
people,
TechBirmingham,
The Birmingham News,
urban issues,
urban reversi,
Williamsburg/Greenpoint The idea of taking a vacation, for whatever reason, still does not appeal to me greatly (though the more I’m talking with others, the more I’m realizing they need to happen with more frequency). So why be surprised that I’m blogging from my home in the Bronx.
I bet you’re also wondering just what exactly can he possibly talk about today, when he’s no where near the Magic City. Well…
apparently, Curtis Palmer of TechBirmingham and members of the UAB Game Development team aren’t home either. They’re up here taking part in Conflux, a conference that provides an opportunity to take a closer look at cities, in Brooklyn today. They’re running Urban Reversi in Williamsburg today, beginning at 12 p.m., EDT, (meaning that the game started approximately 30 minutes ago. This is the game that we wrote about this time last week that recently received financial support from a grant awarded to TechBirmingham and Catalyst.
Those in town may want to go and check out the game until 5 p.m. local time today; the starting point is the McCaig-Welles Gallery, 129 Roebling Street. Or click here and view the game in progress (after scrolling down the screen.) The conference runs through tomorrow, but today, there will be several people learning about what the Magic City has to offer. I hope they do a good job (hopefully I’ll see them later on today). Click here to learn more about today’s game. Williamsburg alone should mean that the group will be taking back some great ideas about things they want in Birmingham. They’ll also probably have some additional changes made to the game when it’s run during the Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival next weekend.
You may also be interested in today’s Birmingham News, as they published a story about plans for Ruffner Mountain. The board, including myself, are extremely excited about the possibility of seeing these fine institutions associated with our center’s expansion plans.
2 schools eye Ruffner land for new facilities, The Birmingham News, Spetember 16, 2006.
While the visit is more for family, I’ve already been ordered to look at it as an opportunity for relaxation, something that I have not been able to do in recent months. I’ll see what I can do about images later on today or tomorrow.
Enjoy the day,
Cheers.
Filed under: 9/11, 9/11 Experiences, AL, Artwalk, B'ham social events, Birmingham Alabama, Birmingham, AL, Blogging, Bottletree Cafe, Catalyst, Cities, city stages, Commentary, Man or Astroman?, music, music venues, New York, New York City, News Media (as source & subject), The Year in Review, urban reversi
Showing some life in the city center
The Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival and Artwalk 2006 made people aware of the level of traffic that could one day be visible on a consistent basis sometime soon. This image from Artwalk gives the best example of what it could be like. We put together a list of the movies that were taking part in Sidewalk’s competition, something we’re looking forward to either doing again next year or seeing the organization take on.
Looking back
Bets and I moved here on Artwalk weekend in 2004, meaning it was time to be somewhat reflective on how things are going here in the Magic City. We also got reminiscent about what happened to our nation five years ago along the eastern seaboard.
Man or Astroman? Decided to make Birmingham, Alabama one of two locations for a “reunion tour” this September. The show at Bottletree was a lot of fun; weird since I remember unloading them in Savannah 12 years ago for their SCAD show, but fun. Artwalk provided a larger showcase for Urban Reversi, celebrating its second year the following week with a trip to New York.
And it’s still my kind of town… to a point
A good portion of the month was spent talking about my hometown. There are about four or five posts related to New York from the fall. Here’s one of the first ones I did. There are more, but it makes more sense to move through the week and find them than for me to post them here.
Can the music stay alive?
Catalyst announced their support of City Stages’ plan to raise $1 million to eliminate its debt and provide a base for its future. The conversation also seems to include making suggestions for how to improve the festival. Many will be watching this summer to see what will happen.
We’ll see if we can’t get the rest of the year up during the course of the day.
Happy New Year!
Cheers.
See also:
The Year in Review: January and a little December ‘05 too
The Year in Review: February 2006
The Year in Review: March 2006
The Year in Review: April 2006
The Year in Review: May 2006
The Year in Review: June 2006
The Year in Review: July 2006
The Year in Review: August 2006