Day One Summer 2010 What Difference a Week Makes

Farewell to my oasis south

I got off at 10:10 and without drama or fanfare made it to Carthage and found the police station off of 35 by feel not direction and as I walked up there he was. Vince Carter the officer who just a week earlier had stopped me for going 60 in a 45 on the Highway 45 that led to the interstate. He seemed almost glad to see me because he was getting cussed at my a man who said something about if you protect her you are wrong and on and on and finally he left threateningly. I on the other hand was very cordial.

Last Thursday he took forever and I wondered what in the world he was doing and when he finally made it back to the car and I was going to be so late for my 10:00 with my caterpillar expert at MSU, he looked at me with that stern officer look and said,”Sir, your license is suspended.” What I queried. He said you remember getting a ticket in Alabama July of 09. Yes. You never paid the ticket, and they suspended your license. (for more on that day).

And on it went and the end result was he kept my license and told me if I got my reinstatement and brought it to him he would give me back my license and tear up the ticket for driving with a suspended license that will save you some money but the other one will stick!.

After much drama I now had my reinstatement certificate and showed it to him. He asked the clerk to check if my license had been reinstated – she did and said no. I said what and thought worst than that. He read the certificate out loud and he said clearly my driving privileges had been reinstated. I thought Millicent with the beautiful smile and how she had been so kind on both occasions at the Mississippi Department of Public Safety. I even told her the last time that the people of Mississippi were lucky. She did not understand. I said they are lucky because they get to look at you and your beautiful smile. Apparently I flustered her so that she did not reinstate me on the computer – oh well.

Officer now friendly went to the back where I could not even go to the bathroom and came back this time and had her run it again and all was good. He said now he was going to help me on BOTH tickets. God is good. As we were leaving I asked about my license and he said oh yeah. He went to his car and retrieved it and I asked if I could take his picture and he said sure and he stood with his chest poked out with pride and here he is:



Thank you what a difference a week makes.

So this is how my journey of three weeks begins. An auspicious start.

I picked up the trace in Kosciusko after passing the huge Tyson plant outside Carthage and lots of tiny towns with the city limits on both sides of the same pole and stopped at one of my favorite little place with the Rainwater Observatory at French Camp and had lunch at the Council House. I got smart and ordered the small broccoli salad this time the big one is huge and went to get Benita out of the back of the truck – she was good and hot by now and sat her beside me at the lunch table.




She was a hit the four man crew that was bushhogging a plant down the road were fascinated with her. We told snake stories and motorcycle stories (I told them about not having my motorcycle on this trip and I road with my windows down in honor of the only thing I ever loved – Blue2). Two of the guys just had to touch her and Benita cut her eyes up at them. It was great fun to see the interaction and interconnection of all your creatures.



Another customer came by and had to give Benita some love as well. When I said something about the Geometrid - she said we call the inch worms and her hubby said we used to say when one landed on your shirt that meant you were going to get a new one. As if that were not enough a geometrid (inch worm) caterpillar dropped down from a tree overhead and I put her on the table. The boss guy said it was a stick and I said that was the defense and when I prodded her this is was the “stick” did:



She caught Benita’s attention but she was not interested in eating her - maybe she was just enjoying the dance as was I.


Back to work

I also met a granddad with his grandson (he had to go through the whole list of his grandkids to remember his name) and got a shot of them on his vintage Honda Shadow 2001 (it was a 750 not a 1100 like my Blue1).



And an old guy who made a smart remark about my long water bottle (Smart Water that my son says is used to make Crystal Meth) and also said when gas went to 4.00 a gallon he said they could keep the gas and he got a recumbent too.



I stopped in Tupelo for gas and off the trace the temperature seemed to increase to 100.

I drove on gladly back on the trace and off the hot highway interstates to a sleepy little town where I had toured with my motorcycle before. I went into Pucketts a great restaurant and could just taste the Yeungling on tap when she said they were having a private party and I could not order.

So I went across the street and this is how I was greeted:



And there no Yeungling but it was two for one so life was good. And the turnip greens and mashed potatoes with the skins and shrimp gumbo and cornbread were scrumpious. And I met Pat and Connie who went to my trunk across the street to see Benita and Red (my recumbent) and came back with lots of questions about both. They have a solar home in the woods outside the Loretta Lynn exit. I knew they were cool because when I first came up and was telling about being from Mississippi he said the was in Meridian once and asked where they could have some debauchery and the clerk said he did not know what that was but was pretty sure they did not have any of that there.

I made it to my parents in Franklin at 7:45 or so and they were having a pizza and delighted to see me and me them. Mom got the present of a whole crate of laundry and gladly took it on. I got to share with them about my new life (maybe more on that later) and she had my favorite ice cream (Breyers Cherry Vanilla) and two tumblers of that with milk and to bed and good rest after a great first day.