Postcard From The Tuscaloosa "Zoo"

The main reason for doing these postcards during the past few months has been to give everyone who isn't in Tuscaloosa a sense of what's going on town, and a reminder of what it'll be like when school reopens.

It wasn't meant to be a regular coronavirus or construction update, although for next week I'll definitely be checking out the new roadwork on AL-69.

(Note: The Alabama Department of Transportation says the Lurleen Wallace Boulevard improvements are nearing completion, but it won't be completely finished until later this summer. Be still my heart).

So as things gear up, and will hopefully stay that way, we're going to start winding this series down. But before we do I have a confession to make.

I haven't been making these treks alone.

My daughter, who is 2, has often been my backseat driver. Since everything shut down in March she has refused to take naps and this has been a way to make sure she occasionally does.

In the parenting world this is called a "win-win."

Regardless, after I've shot video of Bryant-Denny Stadium, the empty softball stadium (see above) or hit all the bumps along the downtown detours, she often asks to go see the "animals" or "statues" at NorthRiver Yacht Club.

Now you know the real reason why I've had so many updates on the cleanup from the Easter tornado.

She loves animals and the Birmingham Zoo has been closed (it just reopened). Plus, sometimes the dog just isn't as cool as a giant metal sculpture of an elephant.

I initially took these photos during a recent trip when she fell asleep, so she would have them at home. We ended up going back, though.

If that doesn't bring a smile to your face, I offer the following, which was taken by a friend of mine while out looking for Bigfoot:

Keep looking for the little rays of sunshine everyone.

- Christopher Walsh