The Best Birthday Present I've Ever Received!

... AND It wasn't even my birthday!

 My "little" brother Brandt turned the big 2-4 in September!  My wonderful momma decided to fly Brandty out to Birmingham which allowed he and I to play all weekend!

I gave him a crash course in Birmingham 101! I was a complete dork and captured every single moment... If you get tired looking at all these pics, just imagine how we felt by the third day!

1. Thursday... Just fresh off the plane, I whisked Brandt to the Bottletree for some brewskis and vegan cuisine.

2. Thursday... Brandt got to meet some friends (human and canine) at the local dog park.

Brandt at the table with my friends Melissa, Mary and Jeff.

                                      

                                        

3. Thursday night... Brandt and I drove around and checked out a beautiful view of Birmingham, and picked up some late night (decaf) coffee.. Then lights out early.

4. Friday AM... Brandt and I woke up early and ate at the Pancake House in Five Points.

                                      

and then hiked at Ruffner Mountain just northeast of Birmingham. At Ruffner Mountain we were able to check out an old abandoned quarry and a very high point that overlooks the city. Brandt took care of me and lead the hike with a hiking stick he would swing in front of his face to knock down all the spider webs. Brandt now believes me when I say that Alabama has a LOT of creepy crawlies... it seems like even more than Houston!

5. Friday AM... a random turn on the way home from Ruffner and drove through an old historic neighborhood of Norwood that had once seen better days.

6. Friday... We then went to lunch a V Richards with Erik who just got off work (it was noon and Erik had gone into work at 6am on Friday)


7. Friday... Brandt and I went through the Civil Rights Museum in the historic african american part of B'ham. Its amazing and surprising how much took place in Birmingham concerning the civil rights movement. Due to so much violence in this city, Birmingham was called "Bomingham" in the 1950's and 60's. This museum is a must see!

In front of 16th Street Baptist church where 4 children died when it was bombed in the 60's.


8. Friday... Brandt and I swung by the University of Alabama Birmingham campus to visit my friend Mary who D.J.s for UAB's online radio station. This was Brandt's radio debut and he was a complete hit!

9. Friday PM... We braved the storm and made it back downtown to the beautiful Alabama theatre. That weekend there was the Moving Picture Festival. We watched the documentary called "The Best Worst Movie." Basically its about an Italian producer who makes a movie in America called "Troll 2" (despite that the creatures in the movie were not even trolls and there was never a Troll 1). This movie was made in the 80's and is ranked the lowest score on the movie website rottentomatoes.com, but now it has a cult following.

We had an awesome time!

10. Friday PM... After our film, we stopped by my friend Leslie's kiddie-themed party.

With my friend Leslie

11. Saturday morning... Erik, Brandt, and I swung by the Greek festival that was being held at the Greek Orthodox Church downtown for some lunch.

12. Saturday... We then went over to the Lyric Theatre and had a little tour. The Lyric Theatre is older than the Alabama Theatre, and once had the Marx Brothers and vaudeville shows back in the 1920s. During the depression the theatre began to suffer. It has remained unused since the 80s, and a group of people are training to raise money to renovate it.

This is a picture of the front of the old curtain. If you can read it carefully, it is an advertising for Asbestos, which would make the audience feel more at ease since back then theatres were fire-traps. The theatre was built in 1914.

13. Saturday... We watched another documentary at the Film Festival. We were not too impressed, but it was near the Civil Rights museum. So after the film we walked over to the park and church.

The boys in front of monument in Linn Park across from the Civil Rights Museum.

14. Saturday PM... We went to an indie concert at the Bottletree. Erik and I had not heard of the bands, but Brandt seemed to be a fan and persuaded us.

15. Sunday AM.. Brandt and I went to our neighborhood restaurant for brunch. Then we decided to go for a walk that ended up taking us (me, Brandt, and Kirby) about 1 and a half hours to complete. Kirby was exhausted... and our arms burned:)

Brandt left later Saturday afternoon. We had a GREAT weekend filled with so much activity. I am looking forward to Brandt's birthday present next year!