Minutes to Memories

Here’s the picture Korky referred to in a recent comment: Karen working the front table after Hurricane Katrina. She truly was the first face many folks encountered when they came to the Ocean Springs Church of Christ in desperate need of supplies. It couldn’t have been a better first experience for them all. It will be sad to say good-bye to Karen tomorrow at the cemetery.

My day began early on the phone with Karen’s son, David, as we continue to get ready for the funeral. Following that, I spent some good time with our youth minister, Trent. We try to meet every Friday to talk about what’s going on with him, and I really enjoyed our time today. Trent has his heart in the right place, and that is all-important.

After a heavy week, I felt like getting out of the office and doing something different.

I began by getting my oil changed in my car at Eagle Express. They’ve been doing this for me for years now, and being the creature of habit that I am, I never go anywhere else.

After that, I went down to Cox’s Barber Shop for a haircut. This usually makes people laugh, since I basically have no hair anyway. It gets scraggly for me, though, and I feel better when it’s done. I noticed that they outsmarted my theory, however: they’ve been charging eight bucks for a long time now. Since I’m a cheapskate (and don’t think my amount of hair warrants eight bucks anyway), I don’t ever tip. I’ve thought that when they make it nine bucks that I’d start tipping a buck. Oh well. They’re charging ten now. Skip the middle man, you know.

Then I went to Blue’s Barbecue for lunch. I love that place. I had the special of the day: a pork sandwich with a side of tater salad and a fountain drink. Five-and-a-half bucks plus tax. I ran into Debbie from the post office while I was there.

Then I went to the library for a while, one of my favorite places in the world when I need to get away from everything. I haven’t been in the “fun” reading mood for a little while now (since finishing a GREAT book by Anne Tyler, “Saint Maybe”). But after a heavy week, I kind of wanted to read something to escape a bit. I wandered up and down the aisles of fiction, stopping at the classics I recognized, but not wanting anything that deep. I hit the jackpot in the B’s when I noticed Dave Barry had written a novel! I picked it up and carried it around to make sure that was it. I stopped at a Garrison Keillor book about Wobegon, and I stopped at a couple of Anne Lamott novels, and I stopped again at a Jesus book by a professor from Southern Miss – but in the end I was in a Dave Barry sort of mood so I sat down to start reading it. That’s when things got a little more interesting.

A lady came to use one of the computers, and I recognized her right off. She had come to our church one night wearing a clergy collar, although she looked more homeless than anything. I tried to talk to her that night, but she really wasn’t much of a conversationalist. The next day I saw her walking down the side of the road still in that black shirt and clergy collar. Well anyway, today she came in wearing a Confederate soldier cap. I should mention that she is black, just because that added to the sight of her wearing a Confederate soldier cap. Anyhow, she sat down at the computer and put on headphones. While she surfed the Internet and listened to someone or something, she began having a loud conversation. We, of course, could only hear one side, but that was interesting enough. At one point, she loudly proclaimed where she would like to place her foot in somebody's specific body part and what she’d like to do with that foot. At this point, I’m thinking that I don’t need Dave Barry to be entertained. Eventually, she got up and put on her personal headphones with classical music blaring and walked out of the library. This world is an interesting place.

When I got home, I decided today was the day to mow my backyard. I never enjoy this, but today it was sort of relaxing to do something that didn’t involve thinking. When I got a little over halfway done, Heath came outside and offered to help. While he finished mowing, I did the weedeating, and the job went a whole lot faster than normal. After we finished, he and I tossed the football around awhile while he and I and Laura talked. It was very nice.

I had planned on going to watch Ocean Springs play Tylertown in some high school football action tonight, but I’m choosing to rest a bit instead. I need to work on the eulogy for tomorrow and get some sleep. So that is what I will do.