Mississippi and Alabama

It's been a wonderful day! We backtracked from Biloxi to Pass Christian and then back again and to Ocean Springs. All these towns are pet friendly, and Luci is a perfect traveler.  Whoever taught her to walk on a leash so well (whoever had her before me)  did a great job.  She was warmly welcomed in the few stores we went into and Maison de Lu (house of Lucy, really!) where I had soup and luscious lemon pie with raspberry sauce on top.

Then tonight she was welcomed into The Shrimp Basket here in Evergreen, delicious dinner of shrimp and catfish and slaw with steamed shrimp.  When I walked in, the hostess said, "She's a service dog, right?  Say yes."

Early this morning, we walked for an hour on the Biloxi beach, then spent another hour at the Bark Park where Luci got to romp with a dog named Max.  His owner was a young man, about forty, who's already had two heart attacks.  "I'm also bipolar," he said.  "And so is Max.  It's good for us both to hang out with you two, helping us learn to socialize." 

There's a wonderful bakery/book store overlooking the beach in Pass Christian.

For the hour it took us to drive to Ocean Springs, I listened to a delightful program on Mississippi Public Broadcasting by a man who calls himself The Gestalt Gardener.  

http://gestaltgardener.mpbonline.org

Sunrise in Biloxi

Mississippi Gulf Coast Travelogue

I. Biloxi Thursday Night

This is such a beautiful stretch of the South, Highway 90 right along the coast line, a short dip down from Interstate 10.  Ever since my 1967 trip to San Antonio, it's been the highlight of the southern route between Georgia and Texas. (I will take the northern route back, the one that includes The Natchez Trace.)

Like everywhere else in my married days, however, we didn't stop; we just looked from the car.  We didn't walk on the beach or explore, we did what Will called his dad's "Operation Haul-Ass" style of travel: drive the whole 1100 in 24 hours, maybe grab a motel if there was a game on he wanted to watch.  (It doesn't take years of therapy to explain why I later chose Traveling Solo--or traveling with fun, compatible traveling companions.) 

I have loved Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, for the past 25 years when I first went there with Minnesota Bob.  He took his time, bought great food, went to local museums, always on the lookout for learning about the history and culture of places we visited. (Unlike me, Bob did great pre-travel planning and discovered Breaux Bridge.) 

I took Kate and Carlene there, separate trips, and Kate danced Saturday morning zydeco.  Mike and I had hummingbird cake in a bakery where the banjo players jammed and danced at a big Cajun food restaurant--then wended our way down the coast and visited Mandeville and Covington.  Betty and I didn't go as far west as Breaux Bridge on her 70th birthday trip, but we sat  in a little gazebo on the Mandeville edge of the lake, across the causeway to New Orleans.  

To revisit all kinds of personal history, I always feel compelled to stop in all these places on solo travels. 

2. Present Day

Breaux Bridge seemed changed, the bakery and art gallery gone, the antique store still welcoming but less intriguing than before. 

After the storms, Mandeville and Covington were forever changed from sleepy little towns to traffic filled cities with high-rise hotels, malls, and chain stores. Thousands of displaced people relocated to these towns after the hurricanes. 

The coast itself has been modernized with walkways and steep concrete steps, but the sight of the beach, walkers, gulls and kites always makes me happy.  The countless grand houses flattened by  the storms have been rebuilt or replaced.  Bay St. Louis to Ocean Springs is still a beautiful drive. I didn't discover Ocean Springs until a couple of trips ago, a charming town just east of Biloxi where I'm staying tonight. 

It's extremely difficult--I discovered yesterday--to get down the steep steps onto the beach.  I did find handrails at one spot in Gulfport, so Luci and I walked to the water's edge and back.  This is the only photo of that venture:

3. Traveling with A Dog

Beaumont to Baton Rouge was tricky.  Dogs are not allowed within 300 feet of the Visitor Center restrooms and it's too hot to leave a dog in the car.  The only way to make that equation work is to have a human traveling companion  to hold on to the dog while you go inside the bathroom. 

A woman outside the Mississippi Welcome Center said, "Oh, you have your baby too!  My husband has mine!"

At first, I was a little envious.  She had a sweet, jolly, helpful husband, someone to walk around with her dog!  

In a few minutes, however, I saw said husband.  A paunchy grumpy-looking man held the dog's leash and stood staring into the distance.  He was wearing a red Trump cap.

My envy evaporated. The slight snags in my day suddenly diminished imagining a day in that particular truck, leash holding notwithstanding. 

4. A Good Ending

I'm spoiled by San Antonio.  Luci is welcome almost anywhere I go except indoor restaurants.  We have enjoyed water-bowl-provided meals together on patios.  The clerks in our favorite stores call out her name when we walk in!  So I was surprised when I had phone trouble yesterday that the AT&T store (in spite of my being stranded for a while without a working phone) wouldn't allow Luci to come inside.  

San Antonio is, I now see,  extraordinarily pet friendly.

Last night I was having second thoughts about traveling with a dog.  I was tired and hungry after eating only fast food and snacks.  I took a chance.  I asked the manager of a Waffle House on the beach if he would let Luci come inside.

"Of course! She's a support dog, right?" --wink wink.

"That she is tonight," I said. 

When I left, he said, "Just walk in like you own the place and nobody will say anything.  Just say she's a  support dog.  Go to Ocean Springs tomorrow.  They love dogs there!"

That Waffle House meal--and their hospitality--made it the best meal I'm likely to have on this road trip!  

Luci--the best-behaved dog ever--sat quietly at my feet while I scarfed eggs and grits and waffles. 

My hopes returned--for a good Day Three, a stop in Ocean Springs.  I will not let one challenging day make me forget: "All dogs are support dogs; some just free-lance."  

This chalked sign on a neighborhood sidewalk where I walked Luci (Beaumont yesterday morning)--was one of the hidden treasures of the trip so far and coincided with some more--but those stories would take two or three more pages!) 

Beaumont, Texas

It's a night for Luci to show off her inner guardian.  Other humans are checking into our motel and she is busy barking from inside the security of room 106.  She rarely barks at home, but this is different.  This time we are in danger of outsiders unpacking their cars!  She does not wish to see them up close and personal, just to let them know She is Here in case they try to join us. 

Shush! I tell her, and she reverts to an irresistible quiet growl.  

We had a beautiful day for driving, but I had been up since four cleaning the house and was tired, so we stopped earlier than planned, fell asleep early watching art classes.  

So I'm up in the middle of the night, planning our day tomorrow--a stop in Breaux Bridge, then heading for Mississippi coastal towns and a walk on the beach.  

But first--a few hours of sleep.

The Big Run

I have been in training for this upcoming car trip for months.  The last time I tried it with my old knee, I had to turn around and come home.  Then when I tried to go to Colorado with Will's family in December, I fell in Lubbock and got a concussion, broke my glasses, and looked like a walking Halloween mask for weeks.  So my confidence was deflated.

I am excited about heading out tomorrow, Luci in her red seat in the back, taking our time, meandering, and making it all the way to Georgia whenever we get there!

Betty's granddaughter Claire is marrying Xander on the first of October--which is why I scheduled the trip at this particular time.  I'll enjoy taking some candid wedding shots (as requested by Betty) but it's a good thing she has a professional photographer and videographer to do the official pictures.   

Yesterday I was stressed, trying to decide whether to fly or drive.  Finally, I decided to drive--my favorite way of getting to there from here.  But this trip won't be a solo trip; I'll have a sweet little dog as my traveling companion.  

After months of twice-weekly physical therapy, new shoes, massages, and meds when I need them, I feel ready.  

The U.S. and The Holocaust of PBS

This powerful series is--as are all Ken Burns' documentaries--gripping and horrifying to watch.  The stories are monumentally heartbreaking.

Over and over, I see similarities between that era and our own rising anti-Semitism, racism, excessive control, banning of books that don't comport with the views of those who want to decide what children learn, a widely held espousal of eugenics, greed and murderous hate.

We may have long deluded ourselves that such a Holocaust can't happen here, yet just this week we have seen pictures of Q Anon followers saluting Trump, their arms held out exactly like followers of Hitler's. We've seen thugs in the capitol trying to take back the government for their leader who lost the election.  We've heard about refugees from Venezuela being lied to and flown to other states.

The three part series exposes many things I didn't know--for example, Charles and Anne Morrow Lindberg's sympathies for the Nazis.  Anne Morrow Lindbergh, whose book Gift From the Sea inspired American readers, believed that Hitler was "a great man." 

A week filled up with goodness

It's been a good week sprinkled with surprises. 

An afternoon visit and dinner with my Helotes family on Wednesday....

       1.

Elena's new passion for violin.  Although she's only had one in-person lesson, she spends hours watching You Tube violin tutorials and FaceTiming with her cousin Audrey who plays viola.

Her mom brought out her violin from high school and they played a duet of "Mary Had A. Little Lamb."

It's wonderful to see the intense pleasure on a child's face learning something new.  

       2.

On Thursday, Joy brought lunch for a not-long-enough visit on her way to book group. I should have taken a picture of Joy--she looked so beautiful--but I did take one of the bouquet she brought: 

       3.

On Friday,  while rushing around doing errands to get ready for my trip, Kate called and invited me to stop by for her delicious chicken salad, and I couldn't say no. 

       4.

On the way, I went to Bird Bakery to get cookies and bread.  A stranger said, "Put up your money.  This is on me." 

"I do this," he said.  "It makes me happy.  Last night I bought dinner for a family and the man said, 'Nobody has ever bought me dinner before.'"

"You're going around spreading sunshine," I told him. 

       5.

Then errands galore--all the things that have to be done, washed, packed, or fixed before a trip--I was standing the kitchen wondering, "What's for dinner?"

At that exact moment, Jan called and said, "I made enough dinner for two, come on over."  So I did--salmon patties and beans and corn and salad.  Yummy!

       6.

We visited our neighbors when we took our evening walk around the block.  It was Curran's birthday and they offered us a basket of fruit and candy he'd gotten for his birthday--since they are off to Sedona. 

I don't need meals on wheels on weeks with so many friends who are bringers, inviters and givers of good food!  

       7.

The generosity of friends continued with Freda taking Luci on a long walk this morning.  She left me a book I planned to read when I return, but already I'm already engrossed in it. 

The Lincoln Highway by Amos Towles. 

       8.

September 16th, Curran's birthday, was also the 77th wedding anniversary of my parents. Bob and Jocelyn ordered and delivered and set up the recumbent bike she wanted.  A month past her 97th birthday, it's so wonderful that she's as healthy and active as ever! 

She told another woman at the beauty shop, "I think it's fun getting old.  Nobody can tell you what to do!" 

Cujo the Chihuahua

Flea markets and yard sales are the best places to find storytellers.  All you have to do is pause beside the tables heavy with things nobody needs any more, even you.  Figurines, old boots, casserole dishes, record albums, tools, torn books, and whatnot.

Juan was selling figurines, shirts, tackle boxes and an array of things I didn't have a chance to see because Juan was so taken with Luci poking around under his table.  "I like little dogs," he said....

To make a very long story short: 

Juan and his wife had lost a baby back when the movie Cujo came out.  "I didn't like dogs back then," he said, especially in the house--even though I am a Hispanic man.  But she was so sad I gave in when one of our neighbors got a litter of chihuahuas.  They looked like baby rats they were so little."

"But my wife fell in love with the boy who was the most trouble already.  She named him after Cujo, the St. Bernard in the movie.  We traveled a lot and took that little dog with us and he was he best dog ever.  All the people at the motels loved Cujo and never charged us extra. He was smart and he followed my wife around everywhere she went.  He was the son we never had, and he lasted us 19 years!"

Juan's story was filled with details about Cujo--dead now for nine years.  "My wife says she can't ever get another dog and go through losing him."

I didn't buy anything from his table, just a succulent in a ceramic turtle for Elena from the plant lady at another table. 

But his story touched me and reminded me of Tony and Ivan--and the many dogs who went with us in the car and hopped out and played in the creeks of the Hill Country.  Tony lived 11 years, Ivan nearly 20.   But their memories "lasted us"  a lifetime, just like little Cujo. 

La Otra Mirado

Masterpiece channel on Amazon Prime, La Otra Mirado is set in 1920, Spain.

I'm watching Season 1, loving it--all about a group of teachers and girls in a boarding school in Seville.   (So glad there are two seasons.) If you can't travel to Spain right now, or back in time, let Spain come to you.  A traditional school with conventional values about what women can do, think, and be (before women could vote there) is challenged by a non-conformist new teacher who dares to wear trousers and more....

In one early scene, the backdrop in a classroom is a map of the United States and a discussion about women "over there" who have recently won the right to vote.

3 Fun

Fun is unique to the fun-haver. For me, there's almost always a component of learning something new or having the pieces of some puzzle click into place. 

For the last few weeks I've had so much fun watching videos on making handmade books and learning to play with watercolors.  The operative word is play.  

Here's my first accordion book and tags:

One of the guest teachers in the Handmade Book Club is Andrea Chebeleu, owner of an art supply store in  San Jose, California, A Work of Heart.  She's is a wonderful teacher for beginners like me or for anyone who has a stash of art supplies and wants to learn more ways to use them.

Both Carolyn and I were up all night, she not feeling well, me with a flare of sciatica.  She texted me at four  to cancel our rodeo outing and I happened to be up knowing I'd have to cancel too.  So I'm spending the day with Andrea in a class I signed up for called "Watch Learn Play."  (If you're interested, I'll send you a link.)

The way it works: You pay $25 a month and have access to so many videos there's no way you can watch them all in a month.  (You can cancel any time.). 

One of my middle of the night videos was a fascinating class on using Derwent Inktense blocks.  I went right away to check out the price on Amazon, then realized I had already bought a tin of these a couple of years ago.  Intensely pigmented blocks of color, they can be used interchangeably with watercolors.  Just like watercolors, they run and move on the page; when they are dry, they are permanent.  

She also taught me how to construct three-dimensional houses out of gel prints and painted papers, how to use permanent pens with watercolors, simple book binding methods, and so many other things I want to try.  

At the moment, I'm watching a Masterpiece series and hoping to catch up on my sleep (having been up almost all night)--but as soon as the sciatica gets better, I will play with colors and have as much fun as it's possible to have on a September Sunday! 

2 Fun

Yesterday, I heard a voice behind me in the Target line: "Ask her, Mommie, ask her!" 

When I turned around, I saw a very tiny girl, about two, reaching toward Luci.

"You ask her," her mama said.

"Can I pet her?" she asked me.  

Then she lunged toward Luci and poor pup didn't know quite what to do with a human that small.  An unusual move for Luci, she backed away. 

"What?  She doesn't like petting?" the girl asked me.

Her mama showed her how to reach out more gently, palm down.  "She likes you, Honey, but it takes her a little bit to get used to you." 

****

Just before that, a wiry older man--about my age--approached.  He was wearing all black and a gold cross.  

"I love this dog," he said squatting on the floor like a much younger man, petting Luci.  When we parted he said, "God bless you, Luci, and give you a long life."

****

In the parking lot, a woman called out, "What kind of dog is that?"

I said the usual, "She's a mutt."

"Well, she is beautiful," she said walking toward us.  "She could be in a movie."

Luci is oblivious to whether or not she's beautiful, but she liked this woman--a lifelong dog rescuer.  "My husband and I have rescued 237 dogs since we've been together," she told me.  "We find them abandoned and we take them home and try to find families for them, and when we can't, we keep them."

Of course, I told her the story of Janet and how she found Luci at SNIPSA in January, 2021 and knew she was My Dog.  "She likes her so much," I told the dog rescuer, "that she wants me to write her into my will as Luci's mama in case Luci outlives me."

"No," Maria said.  "Put me."

****

Iyana at another store said of her rescue: "I adopted her when she was a baby and they told me she wouldn't grow much, but she's gotten huge, forty pounds and still not grown.  She has a big quiet soul, she's  peaceful, rarely barks.  She loves everything and everybody, but she hates water.  I recently found out she's some famous German dog called a yag terrier."

**** 

Everyone wants Luci to be a certain breed of mix thereof: a Pomeranian, a Corgi, a Sheltie, a miniature Collie mixed with Dachshund.  Luci doesn't give a hoot what she is. 

But she's famous in her own little world of streets and stores.  When we walk into our favorite pet-friendly stores, one or more of the clerks  always calls out, "Hey, Luci!"

It's fun--to see how a ten pound dog can bring smiles to the faces of so many strangers! 

Fun

Nellie told me about a book she's reading called The Power of Fun/How to Feel Alive Again. 

One of the questions posed in the book was something like this:

Recall times when you've had fun.

Nellie called me because I was honored to be in one of her memories of fun: a meal we put together and shared on a balcony in Florence.  Of all the meals we shared together in Italy, we both remembered this dinner of cherry tomatoes and cheeses and breads on that balcony.  

I also recalled a meal we had outdoors in one of the villages of the Cinque Terre at the edge of water, boats of many colors, tourists and locals drinking wine, laughing, eating whatever.  Part of the novelty for me was drinking wine!  Most of the fun part was being with Nellie and both of us being in the moment in a beautiful environment, the complete absence of stress or obligations.  

It got me thinking about fun.  How often do we actually experience playful joyful times we'd call fun?

Until I actually read the book, I'm not sure what the author (Catherine Price) would say about fun, but I'm guessing it has to do with novelty, the right companion, pure play, and/or learning.

I asked another friend and she told me about an ex who taught her to walk on three-foot stilts! 

Fun energizes and invigorates us.  It makes us lose track of time.  And it opens our eyes and senses: Hey, look at that!  Hey, look what I can do!  Wow, this is exhilarating!  

And so I'm asking you:  When was the last time you had pure unadulterated fun?  Maybe you could make a list of the ten most fun things you've done this year--as I'm going to do.

If it involves another person, maybe you could call them--as Nellie did me--and make their day by recalling a really really fun thing you did together! 

Back in the saddle again?

These two Pritchett girls inspire me to get back in the saddle again...

My saddle, however, is not on the back of a horse but on four wheels.  It's been so long since I've taken a cross country car trip, but if my present upturn in the leg department continues, I'm considering driving to Georgia and save my flight for another trip.

I'm tentatively excited, knocking on wood and crossing my fingers.  If it works, it will be wonderful to take a back roads trip again! Supportive walking shoes, twice-weekly physical therapy, and  Gabi massages have helped  tremendously, and I'm yearning for some road trip days to Georgia with Luci later this month. 

Yesterday, Janet came for a visit and Luci was overjoyed.  As soon as I mentioned that "Janet's coming," Luci sat vigil at the window for half an hour.  

Later in the day, we went to Good Goods, a store we like on Austin Highway.  I met a new friend there who said, "Luci is Canine Perfection!" She's from Mississippi and told me about some places in the Mississippi Delta I hadn't heard about.  I took it as a sign; it's time to roll! 

Carolyn and I are going to a rodeo on Sunday morning at the Rose Palace. This will be the first time Carolyn and Will have seen each other since he was a little boy!  

Here are my two Helotes cowgirls: Elena and Bonnie

Riding Saturday in the Bandera parade.

Bonnie's team won their rodeo event on Sunday

"Joy chose you...."

For the record, I find lifelong obedience a bit creepy.   Saying the word "obey" was pro forma in 1967 and I hadn't grown up enough to question it.  We can all see how that worked out!  But that was then, this is now.  

You'd think that one of the twins, at some point in her life, would have questioned mama's advice and put on an orange scarf or painted her nails purple, maybe even changed her hairstyle, in defiance.  But no, they were very clear about it: "Every day for our entire lives."

They were a bit dour; otherwise, I might have satisfied my curiosity with a longer interview.  I was curious about Mama.  Did she rule with an iron hand and threaten them in some way?  Or was it an offhand comment when they were five never meant to last 85 years? 

It's chilling to think that anyone would give up freedom of expression because of a vow made decades ago.   

Anyway, I have to delete that post and start all over.  With a poem Jan sent me by Donna Ashworth:

JOY

Joy does not arrive with a fanfare,

on a red carpet strewn with the flowers of a perfect life.

Joy sneaks in, as you pour a cup of coffee,

watching the sun hit your favourite tree, just right.

And you usher joy away,

because you are not ready for it.

Your house is not as it must be,

for such a distinguished guest.

But joy cares nothing for your messy home,

or your bank-balance,

or your waistline, you see.

Joy is supposed to slither through the cracks of your imperfect life,

that’s how joy works.

You cannot invite her, you can only be ready when she appears.

And hug her with meaning,

because in this very moment,

joy chose you.

Donna Ashworth