Back in Vancouver since a week ago...but first OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI!!!
What a lovely watertower Oxford has...So many stories but here's a quick recap:
July 4th, our last day in Mississippi and hours away from catching a flight outta Memphis to New York, the Mangolds ran a 5k race. Superstars! I was not in fighting form and sadly, took pics from the sidelines haha... Every great team needs a cheerleader!
Tom & Gail peace out pre-racePoor Z, so tired from our last night prowling backroad juke joints, managed to bring it while looking particularly fetching in the pj bottoms my sister got me from Japan.
Hot-cha-chaVictoria and King ran the fun run...
King, Elizabeth and Victoria
Pre-race hobnob
There she goooes....Gail came in #1 for her age group - way to go!!! Amazing.
This lil guy had to be lifted off the starting mat and carried thruout the race...gets a medal for cuteness:: Animal Break ::
T-box and Butternut keeping it real. They love each other.
Zcat with Nellie and Caboose:: Southside Gallery ::
Doing my southern belle at the Southside Gallery, Oxford, MS:: Walkies on the Estate ::Mississippi was, without a doubt, my favourite place we visited on the road trip 2007. A lot of that has to do with seeing Gail and Tom again and meeting Victoria and Caboose and Granite. Too many good times sitting round the table and catching up...IN PERSON! The "Mangold Estate" (haha) is gorgeous and wild. Going for walkies is like strolling thru any of the state parks we checked out on the trip - BUT BETTER. And camping along one of the ponds for 2 nights was dreamy too...lightning bugs and crazy loud frogs and crickets at night, what a hoot!
:: Catch of the Day: BASS! ::We went fishing and within minutes, bada-boom bada-bing, Z catches a bass. Fry that sucker up! Yummm.... (Incidentally, I got 2 bites but lost them...wah waaaah)
Thank you fishy for giving your life
Butternut going to tooooooooown:: Heading to the Delta... ::The day before we had to leave Mississippi, Zandy and I took a short trip from Oxford to the Delta. Oh the Delta! I'd heard and read so many stories about the Delta. We drove thru Clarksdale and the famed crossroads where Robert Johnson supposedly sold his soul to the Devil, at midnite, in exchange for the ability to play the blues like ... the Devil himself. NOT STEVE VAI.
On the way and back we met some great, wonderful, warm people, real Mississippians, so friendly and welcoming. It was a great experience and one I'll remember for the rest of my days.
First stop: Sunny's Country Store, a service station WITH FOOD AND SWEET TEA
Georgia, Ollie's older sister, and Ollie GrantWe were graciously welcomed by Ollie Grant, the prorietress, who served us up a heaping plate of hamburger steak with two sides (brussel sprouts and peas n carrots), the best cornbread EVER, and of course, a Rosemary's Greenpoint Tavern monster-sized styrofoam cup of sweet tea (for Z) and half-sweet, half-unsweet tea (for me). Total cost: $5, sweet tea on the house.
Sweeeeet tea, too sweet for me :)
People passing thru pin their business cards above the counter and according to Ollie, some people take others' down to make room for theirs 
With a sign like that, who could resist?
We spent about 2-3 hours in the country store, drinking sweet tea, meeting Ollie's extended family, taking pictures and learning all about moonshine, Mississippi, the local celebrities and so much more. Ollie gave us a mason jar of her homemade green tomato relish, which we cracked open in New York and ate with spareribs, roast beef and beans. Deelish! I love Ollie. She showed me her sewing machines (domestic and industrial) and sergers and gave me a lesson in different serger stitches. She also wrote down for me her watermelon jelly recipe, which I have yet to try.
And on and on...from the country store we hit the crossroads of Clarksdale (a little disappointing), got stuck in Mississippi "gumbo" (ie: mud), skipped stones in the Mississippi, had a couple beers at a funny little service station in the middle of nowhere, USA where aaaaall the black people hanging out and drinking in the back of the store moved away from us at the picnic table - not right away but one by one haha, and then finally ended up at the Dew Drop Inn in Shelby, MS where we had one of the most memorable nights ever in my life. It was there we met Rip, the bassist for a Clarksdale blues band, who told me how Mississippi has changed so much over the years. He was born and raised in Shelby and has driven the local school bus for years - I think he said 26 years...? He told me about all the different races that ride his bus and how the kids all get along and get by like one united nation. He was really proud of that and made me feel at home, as I sat sandwiched on that corner stool btwn him and Gladys, the singer in his band. He shared his Crown Royal and fruit juice with me and they gave me their phone numbers and email addresses. While Rip was telling me tales of growing up in Mississippi, Gladys and Jackie, the bar manager or owner, were singing along to the classic soul and blues tunes playing over the speakers. We went to a real Mississippi juke joint, where the people were so friendly and welcoming and the music saved my life.
