It’s been a Mobile, Alabama kind of past few weeks, and if you live here you may know what I mean…it used to be it was cold one day, hot the next but that has changed to it’s hot half of the day, cold the other half of the day… This happened on Monday, February 12th when the day started muggy and then by afternoon after a few brief rain showers the coolness flowed in and I broke out my famous camo-aviator hat and a thermal shirt…a few people say climate change is just another liberal plot and you know what I’m not going to lock Billy goat horns with anyone before I’ve even taken my vitamins…

I did enjoy Reese’s Senior Bowl on February 6th…it was nice that I live close to the University of South Alabama campus, and getting to and from the several practices before the official game was a breeze. I had a media pass – the one with an M on it that it turns out stands for “Maybe”… but still a useful pass nonetheless…but on the day of the game practically everyone suffered the pain of traffic and parking…I guess next year get there a “lot” earlier than I did. I think the Bowl sold out and it was a great crowd that day with the National team beating the American team 16-7. Overall, a stellar job by the Bowl staff and team who pulled off a major sporting event that most agree was extreme fun and memorable…

From The Department of Sour Grapes…Speaking of media passes, ever since the City of Gulf Shores hired a new public relations contractor in 2001, out of New Orleans (boo) to handle media access, I have not been able to obtain a pass… In years prior I was able to easily get two media passes, one of which included the photo pass allowing access to the stage pits for the first few minutes of each show…I’ve maintained online newspapers, blogs, and the X handle @gulfshores since 2008….the new PR firm requires “significant” pre-event press and apparently other requirements…I was told they are only issuing “about 75 passes”, which seems a low number for an event that lasts 3 or 4 days with five different stages, and was told that I am considered low content… (that could be a new moniker for another blog..).the truth is – and this is not all “sour grapes” … but the lineup could be more exciting….there are so many bigger names one would like to see headlining and none are really there….so I guess it will be a great excuse to “hang out” on the beach and still get to see some pretty good bands but not Pretty Lights…the biggest draws this year are country singer Zach Bryan and someone I caught at a previous Hangout, Lana Del Ray...I recognize a few other names but most of the names I honestly have never heard of… Who would I like to see?….Collective Soul, Hozier, Heart, The Beach Boys, Foo Fighters, Pretty Lights, The Offspring, Seal…but big kudos to Zach Bryan as he seems to be a stand-up human and a great performer…and who doesn’t love Lana?…

Mardi Gras in Mobile concluded yesterday, Fat Tuesday with an estimated “over 200,00” people on the streets of the city under what began as cool skies but soon heated up along with non-stop parades, entertainment and food…I hung out at The Garage for the first part of the afternoon, where for a $5.00 admission one had all day in and out access to the club and bathrooms with no lines, and $4.00 cans of Budweiser… a wise decision on my part…a hundred thanks to some men who were grilling next to the club and who when I asked how much for a hotdog gave me one no charge, and also gave me chicken later….much better than the $12.00 corndog in the Dauphin Street Food Court that I had in my hand later, before I knew the price…what are you going to do, say no?…anyway, I ate it and it was supersized and good…it turns out The Garage is a very good place to stand for throws (in my case sit because I had a barstool on the bar’s property at the edge of the city sidewalk…) boxes full of and sometimes the boxes themselves full of trinkets, moon pies, teddy bears, frisbees, doubloons, and enough beads to fill a two story building came barreling down from the feisty float revelers…at one point I had to check my lip to make sure it wasn’t bleeding…whew so much fun…don’t tell anyone….shhhh…I caught a drag show at B-Bobs and it was worth every dollar bill I either put in hand or gentleman-like tucked in the top of bosoms…love their third floor outdoor bar…I also stopped in Gabriel’s around the corner where three men were fervently discussing Trump and Biden and I thought they sure have you know what’s of steel…I stayed out of that…but in fairness they were not “arguing” just animatedly discussing…after the parades ended, Dauphin Street filled with music and practically everyone dancing in the street…I think I even saw some of the very handsome Sheriff’s Deputies, who were in abundance, tapping their boots and wiggling their butts…

All of Mobile can take a big sigh of relief,  as it appears The Spot of Tea saga is over, at least for now. Talk about all the free publicity in the world and in the end most people didn’t care if rodents may have been seen in the establishment at some point. The owner dressed as a mouse for Mardi Gras and hopefully they will add Chocolate Mouse as a dessert and perhaps a Mouse Cheese and Dip appetizer to the menu…a rowdy group of former employees and others who may have suffered the wrath of the no holds barred owner, cranked up the anti-Spot of Tea rhetoric on Facebook and other platforms, but all it did was give him more publicity and he’s open again after a parking lot showdown with the Mobile County Health Department that could be coming to Netflix soon…it could stand up there with The Crighton Leprechaun and become The Spot of Tea Mouse, with possible sightings from time to time…did you see it, did you see it? Look, there is the mouse!…

It would be remiss of me not to mention today is Valentine’s Day, and for some folk’s Single’s Awareness Day…loves and kisses shout outs to all those posting their loves, and also to the singles who really (we’re not just saying that because we’re single) don’t mind, who enjoy the “freedom” of being single. It takes all kinds, yawl and I just proved it…oh yeah, it’s also Ash Wednesday – happy one for those who celebrate so if you see folks with ashes smudged on their foreheads now you know, if you already didn’t…