Several people have mentioned how much they love going to Blakeley Park, and how it’s thriving under the leadership of Mike Bunn. While I’ve visited Blakeley Park on several occasions, I’ve never taken full advantage of all it has to offer. We have noticed the many Delta and Mobile Bay tours they offer each week, and try to include many in Tidbits and Best Bets in the newsletter.

Many old-timers who grew up in Baldwin County and the surrounding area have fond memories of hanging around Judge Roy Bean’s place. A proverbial “hole-in-the-wall” on a spit of land between Fairhope and Daphne (actually, in Montrose), it was owned by the late Jack West and was the go-to spot for people to gather with friends, play with the resident goat (Billy) in the backyard, listen to music and perhaps rub elbows with Jimmy Buffet, who oftentimes stopped in unannounced.

Right here in Little Ole’ Fairhope, we have somewhat of a musical legend. His name is Roger Fritz, and for 60 years, he’s been making custom guitars. And not just any guitar, but guitars played by some of the best artists who have ever taken the stage.

Expect the unexpected. It happens often when I sit down to do an interview. In this case, it was with Christie and Darren Costello at their store in West Pensacola. Several people had mentioned that I should do a story on Costello’s Butcher and Deli, so I sought them out. The kicker was they have Wagyu Beef Hot Dogs. Interesting…

On October 28, at the American Legion, Post 199 in Fairhope, there will be a musical celebration to benefit Singing for a Change, Jimmy Buffett’s charitable foundation. I sat down with Claire Powell, the Talent Purchaser for the American Legion’s Concert Series, to learn more.

What do Governor Haley Barbour, author Willie Morris, All-Pro NFL Cornerback Willie Brown, three-time All-SEC sack leader at Ole’ Miss “Gentle” Ben Williams, comedian Jerry Clower, and award-winning small batch bacon king, William E. Stitt have in common? Here’s a hint, they all hail from a small town in Mississippi with a rich history. They all loved Ole’ Miss, too.

As a young boy growing up on the coast, Fairhope resident Don Bates’ favorite spot was the family fish camp in Manchac, Louisiana, built by his grandfather in the 1940s, where he ran his Uncle Charlie’s fishing lines usually tied to an old cypress tree that, more often than not, was also home to an osprey nest. Back when he was young, Bates says, “sighting an osprey was about as common as sighting a unicorn,” due to the threat of extinction posed by DDT usage.

There is a really cool new general store in downtown Mobile called Do Goods Mercantile Company at 202 St. Michael Street! The brainchild of Annie and Christopher Persinger, they will celebrate the store’s first anniversary this month.