Beach, Baby!

It was finally time to make our way towards our summer volunteer position in Yellowstone, and since we had some time before we needed to be there, we chose the southern route taking in a little of the Gulf Coast.  We dubbed this our “Walmart tour” because we planned to spend our nights in Walmart parking lots along the way.  Our first one was spent in Perry, FL, where right across from
the store is a shopping center containing C & J Supreme Buffet (sorry, no website).  We had eaten at this Chinese buffet a couple of years ago, and though it may not look like much on the outside, the interior is nicely decorated and the food was still as good as we remembered.

 

We pretty much stayed along the coast taking U.S. Route 98 through the panhandle.  The drive was uneventful and lovely with plenty of views of the water, palm trees, and lots of birds!  In Destin we even spotted a floating general store and bait shop called Destin Ice & Tackle (DestinIce).   Just pull your boat up to the barge!

  Continuing west we stopped in D’Iberville, MS to meet up with our friend, Kay.  She and her husband, Jim, had been our inspirations to venture into the world of camp- ground hosting.  We had met them at Mammoth Campground 4 years ago and were lucky enough to work with them for a month the following year.  Though they did not return to Yellowstone, we have stayed in touch and unfortunately Jim passed away unexpectedly last year.  She and her granddaughters met us after church in the Walmart parking lot, and we all headed to Ruby Tuesday for lunch. Erin couldn’t stay long but Elissa, whom we had met in Yellowstone when she visited, joined us for lunch and a picture.  We all parted company but 20 min. later Kay called to say her plans had changed so she returned for a longer visit…a definite plus for all of us!
 

The next day’s drive only took us about 30 miles to Pass Christian, MS (pronounced: pass kris-chee-ANN), a town that was nearly destroyed by Hurricane Katrina but was well on its way to recovery when we stopped there a few years ago.  There’s a large pullout parking area right at the beach, and though it was overcast and the
water too cold to get in, I still enjoyed just hanging out, watching the waves and the antics of the birds.  After about an hour, the wind started to pick up and the temperature dropped so I changed clothes and took Abby for a walk on the beach.  Our plan was to spend the night at Walmart and then return to the beach for a few hours the next day, but unfortunately the weather did not cooperate so the next morning we decided to move on down the road to Walker, LA.

       So what’s in Walker?  A Walmart, of course, but more importantly it’s only a short drive to visit my friends in the Baton Rouge Chorus!  I met up with Emily, Wendy, and Annette for a bite to eat beforehand, but Annette had to leave early for a pre-chorus meeting so missed out on the selfie!  I got to participate in the

entire rehearsal, and it was almost like stepping right “back into the old routine” (my SA friends will smile at that reference J).  The chorus is working hard for their upcoming show in July, and one of the songs they’re polishing up is “When I’m Gone (Cups)” from the movie Pitch Perfect.  Molly started the rhythm while Cate directed, and then half the chorus

joined Molly at the table keeping rhythm with the cups while we sang, then we traded spots.  I know with a few more rehearsals I’d be able to get that cups sequence down pat! The real pro at this is Tolly's granddaughter, Jada, who will turn 10 next month and is one of the chorus' newest members.  From what I hear she has been very patiently teaching the others.  Though a few gals were missing, it was still so great seeing everyone again.  We ended the evening in a circle with hands joined in fellowship singing "How We Sang Today"...and oh, how we sang!