It's a Southern Thing created this funny video about a version of Alexa that not only understands Southern accents, but how Southern folk talk: " The future is here, y'all. And it's available in burlap and reclaimed barn wood." Read the rest

A popular running trail in a North Carolina park became dangerous when vandals set nail traps. One runner was injured, setting off a fairly large clean-up process. Over 40 nails were removed.

Via WYFF NBC 4:

A popular park has reopened after being shut down because a runner impaled his foot on one of dozens of intentionally placed nails, the Asheville Citizen-Times reports.

A search since that incident located dozens of 4-inch galvanized nails, hammered pointed end up into roots and logs along a trail in Sylva’s Pinnacle Park in Jackson County.

Brian Barwatt, an engineer with the North Carolina Department of Transportation and the director of a trail race in Pinnacle Park in March, said whoever hammered the nails left them sticking out one-half to 1 inch, and at an angle.

The nails were found on a popular trail that leads to Black Rock Summit.

As if running wasn't unpleasant enough. Read the rest

One of the things I loved about the two years I lived in Birmingham, AL: Being in a place where people openly and un-ironically fired guns into the air in order to celebrate things. This was something new to me, despite being raised a good country family with high levels of gun ownership. But that was in Kansas. Viva la difference, southern US! For instance, on the 4th of July, 2012, the Birmingham police recorded 1,098 incidents of gunfire (they have a detection system that's able to distinguish between gunshots and fireworks). In 2011, there were only 75 gunshots recorded. In 2010, 495. Which leads me to wonder: Is this random, or is there some factor leading to an increase in celebratory gunfire over the last three years? What social and economic factors affect the number of bullets people are willing to pump into the air?(Via Stan Diel) Read the rest