Mayor Walt Maddox has appointed Susan Snowden as chief financial officer, which went into effect Dec. 15.
Happy Holiday season, DCL readers! For this month, I thought I’d give you an easy one. This slow cooker beef tips in gravy is a flash to prepare and serve. This time of year, I’m always so thankful for my slow cooker. And these cheddar bay biscuits are a perfect compliment to a hearty, seasonal meal. From my family to yours, have a wonderful Christmas.
Bon Appetit!
Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful. – Norman Vincent Peale
Stop a moment and think about everything in your memory that captures Holiday Magic. It might be a song, a scent, or a movie that makes your heart skip a beat and time stand still. I imagine you close your eyes in an effort to hold on to that special feeling that takes you back to your childhood, to a time when the magic was every bit as real as cookies and milk after school.
DCL Weekly: Community Calendar of Events
17 Dec 2018Here’s wishing all our Druid City Living readers a great week, filled with all kinds of outstanding local events. Get out, get involved, and above all: Have fun. And if it seems like our calendar is a little thinner than usual, the holidays are in full swing. Don’t forget that if you’ve got family in town, Holidays on the River and the Tinsel Trail are wonderful ways to spend time.
If you’d like to have your event added to our online weekly calendar, just email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. We’re happy to add anything you’d like to announce.
Enjoy your week, T-Town!
CSP Spotlight: Let Kids Be Kids
17 Dec 2018Life passes us by quick enough as it is. Let your child be a child, regardless of how old they are. To help make sure your child isn’t robbed of their youth, here are several tips you can follow, one for each day of the week to think about.
Nominations Requested for 2019 Druid Arts Awards
16 Dec 2018The Arts Council of Tuscaloosa will honor artists and patrons of the arts at the 23rd Druid Arts Awards on Thursday, March 28, 2019 at the Bama Theatre. A reception honoring the winners and their families will be held at the theatre’s Greensboro Room at 6 p.m. with the awards ceremony at 7 p.m.
DCL Movie Review: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a Wonderful, Creative Visual Feast
15 Dec 2018Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse is no less than the seventh Spider-Man feature film to be released in this millennium. And watching it, you realize how many of those live-action films are basically carbon copies of each other. Spiderverse sets itself apart not just by being animated, but by being a colorful, 124-minute carnival of creative thinking. The filmmakers are clearly having fun playing with the animated form, moving from 2D animation to 3D animation, and mixing up tone and form and texture. Their efforts make you feel as if you’re looking at a living, breathing comic book. When young Spider-Man runs down the street, the thoughts in his head are displayed in thought-bubbles that pass by him like pedestrians. The movie is constantly moving, wonderfully alive, always revealing a new visual trick.
DCL Pet of the Week: Meet Izzy
15 Dec 2018Tuscaloosa’s Government Plaza Gazebo Renamed “Bicentennial Square” on City’s 199th Birthday
14 Dec 2018The city of Tuscaloosa marked its 199th birthday on Thursday, Dec. 13. To mark the date, the gazebo at Government Plaza was officially named Bicentennial Square. A host of officials were on hand for the dedication, including Mayor Walt Maddox, Tuscaloosa 200 co-chairs Tim Parker, Jr., Cathy Randall, and City Councilman Harrison Taylor, and City Council President Cynthia Almond.
Some mornings, I wake up wallowing in self-pity, wanting everyone else in my family to go about their daily business as I continue to lay there. Do I feel this way often? No. But when I do, it is the precursor to impending “bad girl mom” behavior.
Time to dress up our homes, decorate the tree, do a bunch of shopping, and eat some fabulous food. The holidays are here! And for those of you who are hosting this year, that means lots of company. Ready to spruce up your front porch for holiday guests?
Chamber’s Alan Spencer is Retiring
11 Dec 2018The Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama has announced the retirement of Alan Spencer, Vice President for Economic Development and Public Policy.
The City of Tuscaloosa’s signature holiday event, Holidays on the River, is back this year. Once again, the Tuscaloosa Amphitheater has transformed in to a winter wonderland, complete with a 60’ by 100’ outdoor ice-skating rink. Holidays is open until Jan. 21.
Christmas Afloat Date Change: The Stunning Lighted Display on the Black Warrior River Now Set for Dec. 15
11 Dec 2018Christmas Afloat, the lighted holiday boat parade along the Black Warrior River, is returning to Tuscaloosa and Northport on Saturday, Dec. 15 at 5 p.m. with fireworks at 5:45 pm. The event, put on by the “Pirates of the Warrior” boat club, allows boaters to get out on the water in their finest decorated boats, and onlookers can revel in the beautiful holiday designs and the festivity. Because of rain, organizers decided to move the event to the next weekend.
At this time of year we tend to expect “best behavior” from our children. Instead we get tears and tantrums, sulking and defiance. With friends and relatives around, our parenting is on display and our desire to be seen as good parents with perfectly behaved children makes everything harder.
Here’s a check list to help you avoid your worst Christmas nightmare and fill you and your family with festive cheer instead.
DCL Weekly: Community Calendar of Events
10 Dec 2018Here’s wishing all our Druid City Living readers a great week, filled with all kinds of outstanding local events. Get out, get involved, and above all: Have fun.
And remember: If you’d like to have your event added to our online weekly calendar, just email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. We’re happy to add anything you’d like to announce.
Enjoy your week, T-Town!
The Tuscaloosa Community Dancers will present Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker for the 47th time this December, giving life to Clara, Fritz, the Mouse King, the Sugar Plum Fairy, and other beloved characters. The classic ballet will be performed at the Bama Theatre Dec. 13-16.
Avery May as "Tiny Tim" and George Thagard as "Ebenezer Scrooge" in Theatre Tuscaloosa's third annual production of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," running December 10-16 in the Bean-Brown Theatre.
DCL Pet of the Week: Meet Garth
08 Dec 2018Tinsel Trail 2018: Making Spirits Brighter
08 Dec 2018The annual Tinsel Trail is certainly one of the most beautiful, eye-catching, and festive aspects of Tuscaloosa’s holiday celebrations. Hundreds of brightly decorated, live Christmas trees line the Tuscaloosa Riverwalk and the Tuscaloosa Amphitheater.
Druid City Living (DCL) is Tuscaloosa, Alabama's premier community newspaper, covering the great people, places and activities of the area.