Copyright AL.com
A little help As the federal government shutdown continues, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey announced the use of $2 million to support food banks in the state, reports AL.com’s Savannah Tryens-Fernandes. The money is coming from the state’s emergency fund. It’ll go to eight food banks that collectively serve every county in an effort to fill some of the gap left by suspension of SNAP, the federal program formerly known as Food Stamps. The state’s Department of Human Resources also will supply food banks with another $3 million and $300 to the caregivers of children enrolled in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. More than 750,000 people in Alabama -- nearly 15% of Alabamians -- use SNAP. The nose always knows The telltale scent of nearly a hundred pounds of marijuana led police to a the considerable discovery in Gadsden, reports AL.com’s Carol Robinson. It was a citizen who caught a whiff of something that smelled illegal and complained to the Gadsden Police Department. Detectives showed up at the undisclosed location with a search warrant and found trash bags full of the wicked weed. The haul weighed 95 pounds and had an estimated street value of more than $100,000. Authorities have not released information regarding any suspects. Closing A drag strip that’s been in operation since 1976 is closing, reports AL.com’s Heather Gann. Joey and Misty Barber have owned Atmore DragStrip since 2022. A statement on the track’s Facebook page said the eighth-mile track will close at the end of the year. The last currently scheduled event is set for Nov. 29. Atmore DragStrip is along Interstate 65 in Escambia County. The owners’ statement pointed to the cost of business and also made references to the politics of trying to please everybody involved. That’s no lady You may have noticed over the past couple days that it’s ladybug season. AL.com’s Nick Patterson reports that ladybugs are swarming, as they tend to do this time of year as temperatures drop. They’re looking for a place to spend the winter, and your home might just be the shelter from the cold they think they’ve been looking for. If you have light-colored siding on your house, they really love to light right there and bask. While ladybugs are native to our neck of the woods, many of the bugs you’re seeing is the native ladybug’s cousin the Asian lady beetle. That version of the ladybug is non-native, introduced to the U.S. reportedly to control pests such as aphids. And it went about as well as it always does when somebody brings in an invasive species to help the environment. The Asian lady beetles are more likely to get into your house. They’re also more likely to bite, although it’s rare and nothing to fear. You can tell the Asian version because it has more spots, is sometimes more orange than bright-red, and has an M-shaped mark on top of its head. By the Numbers $2 million That’s how much Gov. Kay Ivey has awarded HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology for research supporting the agriculture and forestry industries More Alabama News What’s blocking the sunset view at Alabama’s tallest peak? One Alabama attraction could become number one on national rankings Indoor go-kart track coming to Birmingham area in 2026 Priceville has a new police chief; mayor says he’s disappointed One runaway monkey still on the loose in Mississippi Born on This Date In 1916, major league baseball player Jim Tabor of New Hope in Madison County. He’s still tied for the American League record for most RBIs in a single day. On the Fourth of July 1939 he drove in 11 runs in a doubleheader, mostly courtesy of four home runs -- two of them grand slams. In 1936, country music record producer and songwriter Billy Sherrill of Phil Campbell. In 1936, photographer and artist William A. Christenberry, who was born in Tuscaloosa and grew up in Hale County. In 1971, track-and-field long jumper Erick Walder of Mobile. The podcast
