Belhaven Pothole Gardner

The City Of Jackson has itself quite a dilemma with its water-sewer line breakages and the subsequent repairs and repaving.  A funding plan is now in place with a one percent sales tax now in effect.

The biggest issue is where do you start?  The problem is that because of years of neglect it is now a city wide issue.  How does one decide on which streets and neighborhoods get attention first?  If some of the affluent sections end up at the top of the list, the complaints and protests will come from the other sections of town.

The current "remedy" seems to be fix the pipe breakages first, fill the hole with sand and gravel, then move on to the next one.

The Belhaven area is one of the many neighborhoods that is in desperate need of attention.  Riverside Drive is well known for its issues with Yazoo City.  Add in the water and sewer line breaks and you have yourself quite an obstacle course.  In my opinion, The City has more traffic cones, barrels, and barricades than any other neighborhood in the city.

An enterprising resident of Belhaven and his merry band of gardeners have taken up the task of taking a sad situation and have added humor by planting a variety of flowers and plants on top of the sand and gravel filled holes.

There have been several local news stories on this activity and some of the stories have drawn national attention.

I planned to take the spousal unit out to dinner tonight and i decided on a side trip through Belhaven first.  We crossed the interstate by way of Riverside Drive and boy, that God we had our seat belts on!  Yazoo clay all the way!

We felt like we were on a scavenger hunt of sorts, looking for those orange cones, barrels, and barriers!

Here are some of the pictures from our tour.  I have also included some from the Belhaven Pothole Gardner's Facebook Page.

Notice the "black flamingo"!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I must admit, this turned out to be quite an adventure!  We even came upon one barrel marking a new sinkhole from yet another line breakage.  One friend call us during this adventure and said "you are doing what????"

I wish there was a map of the all of the current "plantings" plotted out for the of the public to use to enjoy this tour.  Eventually the heat, vandals, or God forbid, the City of Jackson, will take their toll on these green oasis plantings.  If you're bored, or just have the time, take the tour.  We had a blast!

A New Pizza King In Town

There is a new sheriff in town, and he goes by the name "Lost Pizza Company".  This restaurant chain was started a few years back by two boys from the Mississippi Delta.  First location is in Indianola, right next door to one of the parent's (Brenda and Thomas Lott) restaurant "Peasoup's ", which is a local icon in its own right.

After branching out with a couple of other locations, the boys have hit the big time with their franchising of their concept.  The chain finally arrived in the Jackson area last year, first with a location in Ridgeland, followed by one in Maywood Mart in Jackson.

On one of my visits to the Ridgeland store, I met a young man named Chris at the counter.  He was from Indianola (I think) and he was training to be the manager at the latest location under construction in Brandon.  We had a nice conversation about Brenda and Thomas and the two boys that started it all.  I promised to come see him in Brandon when they opened.

Well, yesterday, the spousal unit were on our way back home from a Roady trip south, and we decided to stop by their newest location in Brandon. We weren't sure where it was located, but knew it was on Hwy 80.  As we were making out way, in search of Otis (my favorite pie) there it was!  Not hard to find at all, since the parking lot was literally overflowing with cars!

This location has only been open a week. There were so many cars in all the surrounding parking spaces that the Mexican restaurant next door had to have been saying "what the hell?!"  All these cars in the lot, but it ain't rice and beans these people are craving!

Brandon has had two dine in pizza joints for years, a Pizza Hut and a Mazzios, both less than 3 miles down the road.  Those places are old school, and the new "King of Pizza" has arrived!

The restaurant has been so overwhelmed with diners in the first week that they have started assigning you a table before you place your order, to make sure that you have a place to sit.  It works!

We ran into some friends that were there for the first time and we gave them a quick run down.  The first thing to take in is the decor.  The best way to describe it is that it's "old school Delta".  The two boys that started LPC take pride in insuring nothing gets "Lost" in the decorating.  They bring their concept of design to every location, but also include some local feel from the surrounding community.  Even the bathrooms get a touch of "Lost"!

Their primary thing is pizza, of course, but they also have other dishes to compliment their menu.  There is a separate beer bar area with just about any brand you could ask for.

No sooner had we taken our seats, when a young fella walks up to greet and check on us.  We looked at each other, and immediately recognized each other!  It was Chris, from the Ridgeland store!  You could see the excitement in his face.  They have been overwhelmed since the day it opened!

I'll be making a return visit pretty soon, since i didn't have enough time to take in all of the special touches in the decor.  I already have a greeting for them to use when customers enter the building:  "You look Lost! Come on in!"

If you are in the area, please stop by and give them a try, and tell Chris, the that I sent you!

Old Fashioned Beach Trip

In these years of the condo rental, the mega resorts and timeshares, all located in the beach locations of our youth, the spousal unit and I experienced a flash back of sorts to the times of our youth.  After a trip to the Perdido section of Alabama for several days attending a convention, we headed east to Navarre Beach to visit her cousins.

Most of our trip was on U.S. Highway 98.  This was the route most of us took in years past, before traveling east on I-10, then south on I-110.  The bridge to Navarre Beach is an old school two lane bridge over the Intercoastal Waterway.  As you begin your descent down the pass section of the bridge, you are met with signs to slow down to 20 miles per hour.

On the sandy banks of the bridge path, a migratory bird claims this area, and other protected portions of the island as their nesting grown.  We did not see them until out departure.  They resembled bird colonies from every National Geographic special you have ever watched.

The cousins recently relocated here from Shreveport.  They literally lucked out on finding a three story condo the is only about 50 yards from the sand and surf.  The first floor is the garage and storage area, the second floor is the main living area and the third is the bedroom area.  The backyard is literally a canal to the Intercostal Waterway.

The cousin has put out three crab traps, and she had already made a huge pot of gumbo with eight crabs from the trap.  Talk about some fine eating!  The spousal unit went kayaking right before sunset in search of some dolphins, with no luck.












There were no fancy swimming pools on this trip.  You want to get wet? Its off to the beach to get wet!  We loaded up our gear into our beach cart and cousin's beach wagon.  Its about a 50 yard stroll to the end of the street.  You have to wait for traffic to clear before crossing the major thoroughfare to avoid getting run over! Its then a short hike up and over the sand dune to our slice of heaven, if only for a day or two.



There are a few high rise condo units down the road, but this section of beach is sparely populated.  We set up the umbrellas, got out the chairs, then oiled up for the day,  Very few boats pass by in the water, and there is only the occasional flyover of the airplane with trailing advertising banner.

The first day we experienced the "June Grass" blooming effect.  The shoreline was literally covered in a green moss like substance, which was also in the water, making a trip into the surf undesirable, even to pee!  The second day the surf was stirring big time and the green muck from the day before was almost gone!

We watched in amazement as a hot air balloon made its way traveling east, into the wind.  Later, a wind surfer using a parachute and a slalom ski passed us, working his way west.  We all bet that his arms would just about fall off at the end of his journey.

The rest of our afternoon was full of old fashioned conversation and laughter.  Lots of stories were told and shared about the days of our youth.  Oh course, what is said on the beach forever stays on the beach!  Our frozen margaritas and specialty drinks by now were all gone.  Time to pack up and head back to the house.  I have never laughed so hard at two women dragging a little wagon up and over the sand dune and it was lighter than when it first came over the dunes.

We ended the day with a grilling of some burgers and sweet corn.  I promise, there is no finer meal at the beach than when you spend the time to prepare it yourself.  This leads to even more conversation and stories that have to remain "at the beach"!











We looked the visitor calendar over and put our name down for future visits this summer.  Then, we were back on the road to Highway 98, then I-10 and beyond, and already making plans for our next trip!  Thanks to T & T for a great time!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blogging Trivia

At the urging of my two boys, I started this blog three years ago.  They said, Dad, put your stuff in a blog, its too much for Facebook.  I finally said ok, thinking I would write a few, they would read it a few, and that would be the end of it.

Well, thanks to readers like you, I have made over 240 posts with over 27,000 reads.  Funny thing, my boys stopped reading it long ago, and the spousal unit doesn't see the point.  There is no point to it really.  Having been forced into retirement in 2012, I have had a lot of time on my hands.  Through my travels with the spousal unit, I've been able to see and observe some interesting people and sights and feel the urge to share them in this written format.  I'm not much of a story teller, and this venue gives me ability to get it all down, as seen "through my eyes". 

 There are some interesting facts and statistics that come with site.  Most readers are from the U.S., but a surprising number of readers are from over a dozen foreign countries.  I post a link to Facebook and also to Google+.  Most of my posts are read by fewer than 100 people with only eight with over 150.  I'm guessing that I have about 60 regular readers, and to those I am thankful.

The makeup of the reader's device of choice is interesting. I-phones & I-pads are 42%,   Window laptops are 37%, Androids are 9% , Mac's are 6% and the remaining 6 % are Blackberry and other devices.  This show you the power of the Apple.  Personally, I for some reason have always gone against the flow and been an Android guy!

The comments on the blog posts (62) have come from a hand full of people and a few anonymous.  They are for the most part positive.  I've had to remind one or two that these are "through my eyes", so naturally they are written though colored glasses!  I put the warning on the front as a reminder to those that are too sensitive or easily offended to remind them that they are entering strange waters!  My Mom's first comments to me were "OMG! Facebook has slapped a warning on you!" 

I have to admit, for the most part, these things are as I see them.  Some get a little twisted as they pass through this crazy head of mine.  I don't post as many pictures as I used to.  The pictures were intended to be funny, at least to me, till one woman would not go away, she wasn't even a FB friend, so I finally just blocked her.  That felt good, the power of the FB BLOCK!!!


Some people say you can make money at blogging.  Not me, its just a release for things in my head.  Got curious and looked.  Your average readership needs to be over 100 per day.  Those that read must click on the links in the blog, then some of those peeps have to buy something.  No thank you very much!

Here's the deal.  I'll keep writing them, if you'll keep reading them.  Heading back to the beach on Wednesday, so you know there will be something new posted on here!

Rip Tide Warning

When you approach the beach, take notice of the flag color of the day. Green is the all clear, but I've never actually seen one posted. Yellow is a caution for rough seas. Red is a warning and double red is a closure to access to the surf.  Blue and purple means sea life is present.  Nothing worse than a sting from a jelly fish.

These are the basic colors that you will find.  After yesterday several more colors are needed:

1. Rainbow flag- caution for windy days, as you may get hit by a flying umbrella not firmly secured into the sand.

2. White flag with a colored circle - cautionary flag to be on the alert for a wayward frisbee.  Had one come in like a kamikaze and hit a beer can in the beach chair cup holder.  Luckily there was no spillage!

3. Pink flag - Caution, somebody is nearby playing paddle ball.  Some dudes get over zealous  and try to hit their opponent with the ball, which usually means they overshoot and here it comes.

4.  Orange flag with wavy lines - this is a cautionary flag to warn beach goers of flying flotation devices such as boogie boards, noodles, inner tube and rafts.

5.  Black flag with white dots  - caution for air born threats.  Little kiddies tend to throw sand.  Your neighbor may shake the sand off their towel into the wind.  The latest phenomenon is the smell of scented suntan oil coming your way.  Young cutie pies just love to spray sun screen from those canisters of sun screen.  Very little of the contents of those cans make skin contact on the intended user.

I'll  probably have a lot more other cautions as the summer gets into high gear.  Just remember to keep one eye open at all times, as you never know what you will see or encounter at the beach!

Just One More Day

Well, we are waking up to our last day for beaching, for this trip anyway.  Each trip to surf and sand land leaves us with so many fun memories.  The sightings, the people interactions and most definitely  the food!

Staying in a timeshare, you meet people from all over the U.S. and other countries as well. One night at the grilling station, I was there grilling up three racks of ribs and corn on the cob.  These folks had never seen corn grilled with shucks, silks and all.  Some went to their unit and brought down corn to try this out!  Guessing it was gonna get boiled, but not anymore!

On  another night, a different group, all from those northern countries had mistaken me for somebody from Louisiana,  nope, just a Mississippi red neck!  They wanted to know what I knew about New Oleans, told them there wasn't enough hours in the day!  Asked if it would be in their best interest to make an overnight trip?  Absolutely!   Hooked them up with lots of foodie places to try.  They asked about crawfish, and me being me, I replied "do you suck head?"  The guy looked at me and said "man I don't suck the head off of anything!"  This of course led to "how you eat mudbugs"!

We spend some time with our local friends Jenn, Josh, and daughter HDR.  Each trip Jenn takes us to new places for foodie treats and to her favorite beaching spots.  HDR is completing the first grade this year.  She is so ahead of her time!  It's amazing to watch her entertain herself at the beach.  She brings this huge bucket full of her beach stuff for her imagination to run wild with.  She approached son Matthew with two options: option one, help me build a sand castle.  Option two was hit the water and jump the waves.

Matthew went for option one. After a while he barked "wait a minute, all we are doing is digging a hole!  This isn't  a castle!"  HDR responded "well, since you don't like the way I build my sandcastles we now have to go to option two!"  I have never laughed so hard!  I think that was Matthew's best beach day ever!

Each  trip to the sand is a new adventure.  You never know what kind of people you are gonna meet.  First day there was the guy that didn't  like me putting my umbrellas up in front of his chair rentals.  By the end of the day, we were sharing stories over some of my margaritas!

Another day we met a young couple that just graduated from TSUN, others call it Ole Miss, the school of choice of the spousal unit. Taught  them some of our lessons and tricks of beaching and told them about the restaurant scene.  Turns out they were good friends with Matthew's twin from another mother, Brittany.  The two girls husbands had gone to Delta State and played football together and were also at marine boot camp together. This is a very small world that we live in!

Today is our last day for fun in the sun, with rain in the forecast.   I've made up the last batch of Ziparitas for the day.  Supposed to meet up with a couple we met yesterday and share a Rita or two!

Time to get up and going.  Can't wait for today's adventure to begin.  Yesterday's sightings included seeing a dolphin jump completely out of the water, and eighty year old guy face plant into surf sand three times before giving up and returning to his chair.  Then there was the woman in a black bikini carrying a baby in her arms and her tummy all swollen up with another one inside!  I kept waiting for the brunette in the red bikini to walk back by.  If she was a life guard, I was gonna be all in that water flopping around looking to be saved!

Well, time to pack .  Beach time!

Stupid Thangs, at the Beach

Guess I'm getting the list started early this year.  Far too many stupid beach sightings already :

1. Guys, if you have splotches of back hair, shave or wax them before going to the beach.  So uncool!

2.  Wear sun screen.  Too many peeps getting sunburned.

3.  If you're  eighty and trying to get in the water by yourself, bring a walker.  Watching you eat that surf sand three times was painful.  He even refused assistance.


4.  If you must bring beer, make sure to bring cans or plastic bottles.  It's ticket time already here in Destin.

5.  If you want to make your buddy look stupid, make him leap for the paddle ball or dive for the frisbee.  These are indeed funny to watch.  One year a brother jumped high in the air for a football.  His pants hit the sand before he did!

6. When you wade out in the water, make sure you are at least waist deep or wait for the wave.  Otherwise everybody knows your business, which will clear the water faster than yelling :shark "!

7. Bring you some of those ZZTOP cheap sunglasses for wave action.  Already hear it "OMG! Where did my $500 designer shades go??!!"

8.  Feed the birds, and somebody is gonna get bombed!  This time it was the feeder, right square in his forehead while looking up!

9.Take your kid to the shower to rinse the sand off..  Uncool to strip and rinse beach side.  Are you kidding me........

10.  If the elastic or spandex in your suit is shot, sorry babe time for a new one.  Hit the end of season sales for a couple.  Always good to have a spare!

Forgetfulness

I'm  getting ever so close to that milestone in life called 60.  Got cousins that are already there.  Got lots of friends that have hit this milestone too.  Some of us in this category have something in common:  we all have developed a case of "sometimer's disease.

This particular disease kicks in at the most awkward of times.  You are ready, you are set, and you're all about go, but then you can't  remember!

Down here in Destin Florida for a week and you would think it would be carefree and relaxation to the max!  Not so my friends!

I got ready to go out for the day, could not find my room key, had to get another one.  Another trip out the door and I could not find my favorite hat, it was under a pillow on the couch.  In conversation yesterday, I could not remember the name of an favorite restaurant.

Yesterday I walked out front of the condo, looked forward, and WTH???, where did I park?,  oh yeah, over on the side lot because the front lot was full.   This morning, I had those weird feelings come over me,  forgot to take my magic pills yesterday!

I've  caught myself a time or two in restrooms having to feel around and find nothing.  Dang it! Got my drawers on backwards again.  It used to be easier when they put the size tag on the back.  No problem this week, ain't wearing any.  Nothing but swim suits for me all week and commando when its restaurant time!

And wouldn't you know it, i forgot to put my phone on the charger.. But hey, maybe it will also kick in on Saturday and i'll forget its time to go home!

Margarita Cure All

With it being Mother's Day Sunday, the spousal unit took advantage of the day and slept in without being disturbed.  Okay, I can handle this for one day a year.  By the time she was up and moving, I had already prepared our lunch sammaches and loaded the cooler bag with drinks and margaritas.

We arrived at the beach and the first view of the water is always breathtaking, and today was no exception.  With beach cart in hand, loaded down with umbrellas, chairs, anchors and cup spikes, I reached the sand in no time.  Once on the sand it was drag it time.

As I approached the water's edge, I noticed the chair rentals were closer to the water than they had been in past visits.  Since our arrival was later in the day, most of the spots had already been claimed.  I like a little space so I worked my way down the shore line, weaving in and out of the Beachers like driving through an obstacle course.  Finally "Land ho!"

I grabbed one of my umbrella anchors and began the process of boring it into the sand.  Then I here somebody say "hey buddy, I hate to be that guy, but I just spent a bunch of money for this view and I don't want to be looking at the backside of your head".  What the hell???

A short "discussion" began, me, then my new "friend".  I quickly decided that since this was Mother's Day, I would turn compromise and turn on some of my southern charm.  I moved over ten feet.  He continued his version of "I really hate to be that guy".  I replied "everything is fine, now just go back to your book".

He kept on with his banter. "Man, I'm like you, brought my own umbrella and chairs.  I talked to the chair rental guy about spots and he said if I wanted close to the water I needed to rent from him."  I chuckled on that one.

It was now more obvious he was pissed  at his own situation.  I reached into my cooler bag and grabbed one of my Ziparitas and walked over.  I said "man, everything is cool, just go back to reading your book, and here is a margarita for you wife".  A little more conversation, and then the look on his face was priceless.   Other beach goers had just "moved in" to the spot I had vacated!   Holding the laughter in just about killed me!

Couple of hours later the dude hollers out to me "hey buddy!  This margarita is awesome!"  Me and my Ziparitas had just made a new friend.

As they were packing up they both came over to say goodbye.   He was an Auburn guy married to a Bamer fan.  I told him "I guess you learned a lesson today,  never ask the chair rental guy about spots on the beach!"  He said " yeah, that was a $70 mistake.   It's a shame that we are leaving tomorrow because  we sure enjoyed that frozen margarita! "

The power of the Ziparita!

Mom

Everybody has one.  They are all special.  Who else would hold something in for nine months, gain a bunch of weight, gain a stretch mark or two, then do all the diaper changing, nose wiping, carpooling, and be your best friend.  Yep, that would be my mom!

She has had quite a few nicknames come her way.  Most of those names stuck around for a few years, but, the latest one has stuck with her the longest.  This woman is so grand, no other name would do except for Granny!

She has always been there.  Visits to Boy Scout parents night  in the middle of the week at Camp Tallaha, a visit to see me at MSU when I most needed it most.  So thankful for all those single parent vacation trips, even if some were only for a day.  She even found me a date for senior prom when I had all but written it off.

She asked me to take her to see all of Brother Jim's high school football games.  We saw each and every game, all the way through the championship win!

Church needed unleavened bread for communion, Granny was your "go to gal"!

Need some family or town gossip, yep, head straight to Granny!

Thank you Granny, the woman who is the capital   M  O M  !

Used To Be's in the Delta

Guess I've reached that milestone in life where you begin to reflect on years past.  Don't tell my mom because she'll think I'm waiting for the latest list of who's who in the obituary column.  Not me, don't want to find my name on that list!

I'm  a member of a Facebook group, "Remember Growing Up In Belzoni".  Everybody has such fond memories from that town.  I spent the tender years of my early teens there.  Riding bikes to where you needed to go, scouting with Mr. Howell and Mr. Lister, baseball being the major summer thing, and winter treks in the snow to the Indian Mound for a day of sledding.

Heart of the Delta
Reflections of days past in Belzoni have gone full circle.  The town's slogan was and is that it is "The Heart of the Delta".  Years ago, as you would approach the town from either direction on Hwy 49, you would see in the distance the sign, on tall poles that crossed the highway at the Jackson Street intersection.  Mr. Lister worked for MP&L and he was the pole climber that replaced the blown bulbs.  Eventually MDOT had the sign moved to the side of the road, and over time it came into disrepair  and torn down.  The Facebook group is working on the idea of bringing back the sign on the roadside for my generation  to enjoy, but also as a reminder to future generations of what used to be.  I hope they succeed!

Catfishing
In the South, cotton was certainly king.  In the 1970's it began to lose its luster.  A few innovators in Humphreys County came up with the idea of taking marginal crop land and turning it into ponds for the purpose of raising catfish.  The idea caught on, and Humphreys County became known as the "Catfish Capital of the World".  Catfish farming led to feed plants and processing plants.  They even developed an annual event, the Catfish Festival, that is held each spring.

During trips back to the Delta, you knew where you were by a mere glance at the roadside.  Soybean fields had been replaced the fish ponds.  Occasionally,  late at night you could see the glow of the spotlight, where a worker was checking the oxygen levels in the water.

Eventually this industry hit it's peak then gradually began to decline.  Along with cheap foreign imports, the costs of production took its toll on the industry.  The ponds that once we're full of activity were abandoned.  Some of the ponds have been repurposed back into soybean fields now that crop prices have risen.  On a recent ride through the Delta, I noticed crews are in some places removing the levees that were built to hold the water.

Small Town USA
As young people in the Delta grew into adulthood, most followed their dreams and moved on to larger cities and even out of state.  What they left behind and reminisce about now is almost gone.

These towns thrived on mom and pop businesses.  Each had several drug stores, small grocery stores referred to as "Chinamen Stores", clothing stores, hardware stores, and even variety stores like the Ben Franklin five and dime.

Back in the day, very few of these towns were open for business on Sunday, in honor of the "blue laws " of the time that limited what could be sold on that sacred day.  Some communities even had a tradition of closing the stores each Wednesday afternoon so that the shopkeepers could have time to take.care of personal business.

The lifeline in these towns was the rail line that typically cut through the center of town.  Every kid in town owned a penny or two that had been flattened by a passing rail car.   I spent many an afternoon climbing the piles of lime that were delivered by rail in Inverness.

Four Lane Highways 
All of these Delta towns were connected by a system of two lane highways.  Eventually, in its infinite wisdom, the State of Mississippi began a construction project to replace and expand these two lane paths into four lane divided highways.  To achieve this, the project would have to "bypass" the town centers of these communities.  The daily traffic of cars and trucks were to no longer be slowed down by the one traffic light in town.   This and the increasing prices on fuel was the beginning of the end to mom and pop gas stations where you got full service treatment at the pump, along with oil changes and new tires for the car.

The People
Probably the biggest thing one misses from the Delta are it's people.

On road trips through the Delta you knew you were "home" simply by passing an oncoming car on the two lane roads.  A simple wave of the hand meant you had arrived.  My wife once asked me "who was that?"  I would just grin and reply with one word, "Home"!

Conversations were not merely a "hello" or "goodbye ".  Chats would go on for minutes at a time.  How's your "mommanem"?  How much rain did you get?  Wonder who will be having babies after that last power outage?  And on and on it goes.....

They say all this goes away through progress.  Maybe it's time to implement a little de-gress.  Start with that little hand jesture.  I'm all in, what about you?

Common Sense, By Me

There are lots of books out there that can tell you what to do, how to do it, and when.  Some people follow the rules of etiquette, but then there are those that don't know when it's time to come out of the rains.

For those that don't read books, much less follow the rules, there are Bill's rules of common sense:

1.  If you purchase a truck, get ready for that knock, knock on the door.  "Hey buddy, ole pal, can I borrow your and/or your truck?"

2.  If you are going to poot in the car with your spousal unit riding with you, you might as well get your money's worth out of it.  Lock the windows and turn on the heater.  She is gonna get mad at you anyway, might as well have a little fun with it!

3.  The book says never wear white shoes before Easter.  Switch to flip flops.  I get ten months out of the year with them!

4.  If your son is gonna have a girl friend in college, be sure that you read the riot act to him before he gets to campus.  Under no circumstances to you ever cosign a student loan document for a girlfriend, not even if she has your boy's promise ring!

5.  When you see that guy coming that is a know it all about everything and you don't feel like talking to him, go into possum mode.  Your eyeballs probably need the rest anyway.

6.  When you are having a party for an honoree(s), go ahead and distract those guests that are always first in line with something to do.  This will allow you to feed the honorees first.
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7.  If you drive the Natchez Trace with any frequency, what out for a white Kia.  Trying to pass it in a curve, with on coming traffic in eye sight is gonna make your blood pressure go up.  I promise!

8.   If you buy a grill at Home Depot, make sure to give it the parking lot test before you leave.  Roll it through the roughest section of the parking lot to find out if it has any loose screws, nuts, or bolts.  These grills are assembled at the store and the workers are paid by the item.  The more they assemble, the more they get paid. 

9.  If you have stuff you are going to throw away, don't take it to the dump.  Put it on the street for the drive by guy before the garbage truck guy comes.  One or the other will take it off your hands.

10. Caution.  If your spousal unit gets one of those water fountains, get ready.  Sitting outside, and listening to that thing will eventually give you the urge to pee!

11.  When buying a condo for your children to live in at college, have them sign a binding rental agreement for $1.  This will give you the signature of agreement when it come to pets and live in girl friends when its time to evict the pet or pets.

12.  When cleaning out the dryer, have one of those handy grabber sticks nearby.  You never know what will come out of the dryer when son's girl friend used it last!

13.  When driving to a new destination, do not depend on the spousal unit to tell you to turn.  Use a GPS, now found in your smartass phone.  The GPS has saved our marriage, time and time again!

14.  If you children never seem to have time to was their car, volunteer to do it for them.  Wash it in striped patterns, or play tic-tac-toe on the hood, roof, and trunk.  Leave the rest for them.  Gotten a lot of laughs on this one.

15.  When on vacation, be the first in the shower.  You will always have hot water and plenty of towels!

16.  When out to diner and your kids bring along a friend, watch out for the ones that go for the most expensive item on the menu.  When viewing the menu, remind your young guests that they can pick anything on the menu within a dollar limit, especially if you are the one paying for it.

17.  When your children are driving you, and you are on the interstate, and you need to pee, don't tell them "the next exit".  Make sure there is more than one gas station on the blue sign, and it is within sight of the highway exit.  Those "off the road" station restrooms are outside, one seaters, and OMG!  Just ask my spousal unit!

18.  When approaching a major intersection and turning right, using the merge lane, continue moving forward, then gradually "merge" left into traffic.  Its called a "merge" lane, not a "stop, look, and listen" lane for God's sake!

19.  When picking out a washer and dryer, stick with the ones with knobs and buttons.  a Repairman friend of mine had to remind me one time : "not Bill, you're a smart guy.  Haven't you learned by not that moisture and lint and electronics don't mix!"

20.  Don't take social media so seriously.  How many times do we have to read "I can't believe that they defriended me"!

Might have to make a series of these, whatcha think???

The Power of a Frat Boy

Got a cousin on the spousal unit side of the family that is a freshman in college.  The man of her dreams is also a freshmen, but he goes to a different college.  This separation by distance has pulled them closer together far more than you can imagine.

The boy friend suffered a brain bleed over spring break.   This kid's road to recovery has thus far been amazing.  The cousin has been right there with him physically, but most importantly, spiritually, along with her supportive family.  He is now over in Georgia at a specialty physical therapy facility that specializes in his type of recovery  needs.

I have only met this kid a couple of times.  I can typically figure out a person in just a few minutes of conversation and watching  body language.   I immediately recognized that this kid was a winner.  God is testing him right now, but I feel in my heart that this boy will overcome this obstacle and become even a stronger young man, just you wait and see.

I was working on one of my cooler box projects, and I immediately knew where it was going.  The medical bills for this kid are off the charts.  I've  donated coolers before for silent auction.fund raisers.  The results have always been disappointing.   This time the results have to be different.

I suggested that the cooler box be raffled off.  100 tickets at $5 would bring in a nice tidy sum of $500.  This would be more that triple the usual amount raised.  But how???

Leave it up to the girl friend!  She contacted the Fraternity that her boyfriend was a member of.  The challenge was accepted by one of these "Frat Boys".  In a days he put together the raffle, spread the word by mouth and social media.   All this was done in a week, with the winner's name being drawn on Saturday.

The results were unbelievable!   The number of tickets sold were more that double my original estimate.  What was mouth dropping was the response from the donors.  Money was donated over and above the price of the raffle ticket, more than doubling the proceeds!  Wow!  God had to have had a hand in this, no doubt in my mind!

You never know where you faith will take you like my cousin's faith and love for this young man, and the friendship bond between fraternity brother.  I now have a new found respect for a group of young men that I have not yet met.

Never underestimate the power of a "Frat Boy".  These fellas are "Ole Miss"!