I hope all of SA’s readers have a blessed and happy Thanksgiving Day.

My wife sells BeautiControl products (for both men and women), and she is placing a big order today before the Christmas rush. If you’re interested in purchasing anything that you see here, please shoot her an email with your name, address, and what you would like to order, and Mrs. Feddie will get in touch with you ASAP. You can also order directly from the website, if you like.

Hands down:

You can view my latest appearance on the “Kenny B. and Charles E. Richardson” radio show from this past Thursday here (fast forward to the 1:12:00 mark until 1:22:00).

Hey sportsfans, sorry for the lack of posting the last three days. I’ve been in a jury trial all week (which is extremely rare for me), and it just ended late this afternoon. The good news is that my clients, who are wonderful folks, prevailed on a $5.5 million dollar claim filed against the estate, and we were able to secure a $175,000 judgment for our side.

Needless to say, it was a good day.

And I have to say, I actually felt like a “real lawyer” over the last three days. I’ve only slept 12 hours since Sunday, but it’s been fun.

Regular blogging should resume tomorrow.

I’ll be on her show this morning at 10:20 a.m.

In case y’all missed it, here are some recent media appearances/interviews of mine that SA readers may find of interest:

Catholic International Radio’s “Heart of the Matter”

Catholic Radio 2.0

“GOP delegates eye Nov. 4 high court effect” (MSNBC)

“Palin Baby Shocker: Does it Matter?” (AOL’s Political Machine)

“Young Republicans and Foreign Policy” (CFR Blog)

Upcoming:

Bill Edwards NewsRadio 1290 WTKS (tomorrow morning-taped)

“One News Now” (American Family Association) (interview is being taped tomorrow)

“The Martha Zoller Show” (Wednesday @ 10:20 a.m.)

I am calling into the Bill Edwards’s Show for an interview at 1:00 p.m., but I am not sure whether it’s live or not.

Oh, and here is Edwards’s home page.

I’ll be on Catholic Radio 2.0 today with Commander Craig discussing the “recently completed GOP Convention.”

Tune in if you can.

Update: And here is the link to the archived version. My interview runs from about the 8:00 mark until 30:00.

I am pleased to announce that my good friends, Kenny Burgamy and Charles E. Richardson, are returning to the morning airwaves here in Macon starting this September.

As many of y’all know, I served as the “legal arm” for the “Kenny B. and Charles E. Richardson show”–and then for the ”Kenny B. and Jami G. show”–back in the day on WMAC 940, and have continued in this capacity since Kenny’s departure over a year ago (primarily backing up Erick Erickson on occasion as a co-host for the talented and affable Ron Frazier). And while I’ve enjoyed the last ten years on WMAC, I will no longer be providing legal or political commentary for the radio station. Kenny asked me yesterday to resume my role as his (and Charles’s) “legal arm,” and I’ve gladly accepted their generous offer.

So, stay tuned Maconites and Central Georgia folks. The gang is back and better than ever.

I’ll be co-hosting with Ron Fraiser on WMAC 940 from 6:00 to 9:00 a.m. EST tomorrow morning. You can listen online at this link.

$8,500 for a stand-up desk? Wow. I thought my (solid) maple wood stand-up desk (stained cherry) was fairly expensive at $850. Apparently, I got quite a deal.

(LvAE)

My new phone (the minute it comes out).

I’ll be co-hosting with Ron Fraiser on WMAC 940 from 6:00 to 9:00 a.m. EST tomorrow morning. You can listen online at this link.

I apologize for the light posting of late. I just got back from my twenty year high school reunion yesterday, and I have an Eleventh Circuit brief due this Friday. Needless to say, things are hectic right now.  I hope to get in a post or two per day for the remainder of this week, and then resume regular blogging next week.

Tybee island, that is.

I may even blog a little between sips of Blanton’s.

The fine folks at Fidelis have asked me to come on board as a contributor to their new blog, and I’ve agreed to do so. As I note in my first post, I suspect that I’ll be cross-posting quite a bit.

I’ll be on the Shane McBryde and Ron Fraiser Morning Show (WMAC 940) just after 7:00 a.m., discussing various and sundry matters. You can tune in here.

MM (my two-year-old daughter): Whatcha dooin’ Dadee?

Me: Stretching.

MM: Why?

Me: Because I’m an old man, and I need to do this.

MM: You old. Like dinosaur. Roar, dinosaur!

Me: Roarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Hey, sportsfans. I apologize if things have been quiet around these parts.  As some of y’all may have heard, Macon got hammered by Mother Nature this past Saturday night.  My family lost power early Sunday morning, and it has yet to be restored. To make matters worse, I have an upper respiratory infection that I am recovering from. Thankfully, my in-laws have graciously allowed us to stay with them for the time being, so besides being a tad inconvenienced, all is well. I hope for normal posting to resume by mid-week.

I’ve had a few requests for the links to my appearance on Hardball that took place during my sabbatical from SA (May 30, 2007). There were two segments, and you can watch them here and here.

I’ve been using Bloglines for as long as I can remember, and I’ve been meaning to ask SA’s readers whether I should switch over to Google Reader or some other blog/feed reader.

What say y’all?

Hey, sportsfans. I’ve been meaning to remind my lawyer and law-student readers that if you would like for me to come to your chapter and preach the Gospel of Originalism, please shoot me an email. I am already on the Federalist Society’s “approved” speaker’s list, so all you have to do is get the folks in D.C. to sign off on it.

I’ve already spoken to the student feddies at UVA, Notre Dame, Washington & Lee, South Carolina, Cumberland, Mississippi College, Georgia State, Mercer, as well as to the lawyer chapters in Montgomery, Alabama and Dallas, Texas. So, if you’re interested in my coming to your chapter, please let me know.

Oh, and if you are interested in reading some reviews of my past speaking gigs, you can do so below the fold. (more…)

I am down 15 pounds since April 11th. I already feel much better physically, and my cravings for junk food have been minimal. We’ll see how things go this week.

Once again, please keep me in your prayers.

I want to thank Feddie for inviting me to join the roster of bloggers at SA.  I have been a long-time reader and look forward to contributing.  I am a lawyer in Alabama.  I recently left public service to return to private practice.  I will be posting about Alabama politics and to avoid my views being attributed to my former employer Feddie has graciously allowed me to post under the pseudonym of “Petigru’s Ghost” in honor of one of my heroes - James Louis Petigru.  Petigru was a South Carolina lawyer before the War Between the States.  He served as a legislator and Attorney General.  He was a renowned trial attorney and considered the Dean of the South Carolina Bar.  He was also a federalist who opposed secession.  However, when South Carolina did secede, he refused to leave his beloved Charleston and South Carolina.  When he died during the war, he was honored by both sides.  He was also a gentlemen and a devoted father. 

In addition to Alabama politics, I will be blogging about legal issues with an occasional reference to other critical matters such as bird dogs, shotguns, fly-rods, bourbon, BBQ, my beloved Crimson Tide and the Anglican Church.  

This past Friday, I checked my high-school-reunion website and learned that our class will hold its 20th year reunion on July 12th; which is about one month earlier than I expected.  And after checking the calendar, I realized that if I planned on dropping a few pounds before the reunion I had better get with the program ASAP.

So, after doing a bit of research, I decided to go with a hybrid plan of sorts. I am starting with the updated Atkins Diet, and then I am going to switch over to the Volumetrics Diet (which has been widely praised by just about everyone). And so far, so good. I’ve dropped 8 pounds since Friday morning, and I did that over the weekend (which for me is no small feat).

It really is amazing when you think about how many carbs are in the food we eat. Consider this. During the first two weeks of Atkins, the goal is to wean you off the bad carbs by dramatically cutting your carb intake on a daily basis to 20 carbs. And guess how many carbs are in just one 12-ounce can of Coca-Cola? 40! Anyway, it will be interesting to see how I do on this plan. In the past, I’ve gotten caught up in the amount of weight I want to lose over the long haul, and have lost sight of the need to simply master the day. I hope to not make that mistake this time.

Anyway, I am posting this to hold myself accountable. My hope is that y’all will pray for me, and ask me how I am doing on the weight-loss front if I haven’t posted about it in a while.

Oh, and before anyone asks: Yes, I am aware that I also need to exercise. On that score, I’ve actually been doing pretty well for quite some time. I’ve been working out three to four times a week for the past two years. My problem isn’t exercising. It’s my crappy eating habits. That’s what I need and hope to change.

Wish me luck! 

I realize that this will come as a shock to SA readers, but for professional and personal reasons I have decided it is time for Southern Appeal to call it quits. In doing so, I cannot even begin to express how much I appreciate the contributions of my co-bloggers and many loyal readers/commenters over the past four years. I have learned so much from each of you, and you have all enriched my life in incalculable ways. Thank you so much for everything.

When I started SA, I never dreamed it would amount to anything. It was just a means for me to vent about political matters during the two years I lived the monastic life of a federal appellate law clerk.  But with my extensive commentary/coverage on Judge William H. Pryor Jr.’s nomination to the Eleventh Circuit, SA’s traffic went up dramatically (thanks in large part to Howard Bashman and NRO), and things have never been the same since then. Indeed, SA’s popularity provided me with a special gift: a soapbox to air my views on issues I care about deeply (e.g., abortion, Darfur). I have not always been the most eloquent or able spokesman, and I have often let my passion/temper get the best of me. But our readers have been gracious in forgiving me for my many shortcomings, and I can only hope and pray that I have done more good than harm over the years.  To those who I have offended, or been less than charitable with in my posts, please forgive me.  I am a work-in-progress; and I pray daily that God with shape me into the person I need to be.

There is much more that I could and probably should say, but right now I just don’t have the words. I know this all “sounds” a little too melodramatic, but as I write this post I am coming to terms with just how much of me is wrapped up in this blog (perhaps too much methinks). In any event, it has been a great run. Thanks for the memories, folks. And God Bless.

Oh, and please have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Administrative note: SA will stay up on the web for the foreseeable future. If there is a kind soul who would be willing to offer free webhosting, so that SA’s archives can remain on the web for an extended period of time, please contact me via email. Also, I will update this post in the near future with a list of my co-bloggers’ other blogging homes, so that you can continue to enjoy their respective talents.

Update: Thank you all for the gracious comments. As promised, here is a list of my co-bloggers’ other blogging quarters and/or websites. I have also established a personal blog that will not contain any commentary, but will instead merely make note of my speaking engagements, radio/television appearances, publications, and the like. I won’t be posting at this blog on a regular basis, so it is probably best to simply subscribe to the feed if you’re interested in getting updates.

Steve Dillard: Steve Dillard

Professor Mike DeBow: Links, Point of Law, Division of Labour

Quin Hillyer: AmSpec Blog

William Watkins: South Carolina Appellate Law Blog 

Patrick Carver: Southron Views

Nathan Hallford: Confirm Them

Major Joel Leggett: Grim’s Hall

Proximo: Dallas Sidebar

Portia: De Novo

Zach Brissett: In Toon With the World

Hunter Baker: AmSpec Blog

Professor Francis Beckwith: FrancisBeckwith.com and Right Reason

Jim Dunn: Do What Now?

Update II: Muchas gracias to Joshua LeBlanc of CyberCatholics for agreeing to host SA’s archives free o’ charge. If you have any webhosting needs, please consider using CyberCatholics.

Have no fear. The fedester will be coming your way this Spring to give y’all some of that sweet Southern-fried originalism that your chapter craves so much.

Details to follow soon.

Scroll down to the “Home resident air complaints” article. 

Those of you who have been following my representation of the Housing Authority in the local appointment controversy may find this editorial of interest.