Denise Brooks doesn’t know it, but she made me very happy Friday afternoon.

I was driving back from the square to our office when I glimpsed Denise seated just inside the front doors of Brooks Hardware, reading a magazine.

Even from the street I could tell. It wasn’t just a magazine, it was our new magazine, South Alabama Living, which was unveiled to advertisers in the first edition Thursday night and made available to the public yesterday.

South Alabama Living is a new quarterly publication with a focus on the people, places and events that make living in South Alabama special. The magazine, printed on glossy magazine stock, is distributed separately from the newspaper.

Frankly, we were awed by the response.

Our staff had no sooner gotten magazines out before we began receiving calls from locations that were already “sold out” of the free magazine. And everywhere we went yesterday, people were telling us what they’d read in it.

All day we got questions like, “Where’d you find the Bigfoot guy?” We heard “ooh’s” over the photographs from New York City of events designed by Andalusia native DeJuan Stroud, “aah’s” over Robert Evers’ photographs of Springdale Estate, alternately known as the Sherff Mansion or Dr. Tomberlin’s house, and the accompanying story excellently documented by contributing writer Shanda Beste.

And then there were chuckles when folks read Bob Brooks’ remembrances of Puddin’ Powell. Don’t miss Puddin’s poem when you pick up your magazine.

It is available from advertisers in the first edition, including (alphabetically) Andalusia Ballet, Andalusia Ford, Andalusia Manor, Andalusia Regional Hospital, Ansley Place, CCB Community Bank, City of Andalusia, Covington Casket, Covington Electric Coop, Covington Metals, David Darby, Harold’s, J.M. Jackson, LBW, Madi’s Place, Massey Automotive, Merle Norman, Oasis Spa and Salon, Robert Evers, Savannah Terrace, Sears, Southern Bone and Joint Specialists, Town and Country, Vicki Popwell and Walker Electric. Additional locations will be added.

The response tells us that our new “baby” is something our readers like. We thank you so much for that.

Also, a huge “thank you” to all who made our preview party at LAAC. If you haven’t seen the photographs, visit South Alabama Living’s Facebook page. We also owe a debt of thanks to the volunteers who hung most of the Andalusia, Then and Now show in time for the preview party.

All of these things remind us what makes South Alabama Living – literally and figuratively – special.