December 6, 2008, Jackson, Ms. Birthday # 71.

I am so fortunate to have reached the age of 71. Many friends and relatives never made it this far along. Ken is not in love with birthdays. He thinks that we should forget them, once you reach the age of eighteen, but not me. I like to celebrate. And today we celebrated my birthday with Andrew and Christina, Kate and Mary Frances and Molly, and of course, Linda Creath. We were a congenial group. This afternoon the ladies and girls attended a baby shower for a friend of Christina. They kindly invited me along. In addition to the ladies there were at least fifteen little girls, all dressed up and looking beautiful. In addition to their charming looks,they were a big help to the hostess, serving the drinks and cake. It was a lovely event and I enjoyed the whole scene, although trying to figure out who was related was not easy. The drink served was a cold coffee cream punch, which was delicious but definitely not lo-cal. But the truth is that I have been to so many showers in my life that I quickly loose patience with the speed of the opening. But I behaved myself and I enjoyed getting to know a few of the ladies of Jackson. They are a very nice group, and certainly have given Andrew and Christina a warm welcome.

I still do not understand why the good folks of Jackson seem inclined to cast disparaging remarks about Jackson. Of course, every one else at home have been surprised when told that they have moved to Jackson. The old images of Mississippi in the sixties has never really been replaced by anything else. Certainly the State suffered huge damage from Katrina, yet New Orleans was the only place that got much coverage on the National press. The Mississippi Coast was devastated and has been rebuilt, and immediately after Katrina the state officials took care of the people, but no one seemed to care about Mississippi and their efforts to feed and house the indigent successfully. Perhaps that was because the Governor was a Republican. I really do not know the answer, but I do know that the good folks of Jackson need to pay attention to the great benefits that come from living in Jackson. All the good folks in Arizona who are running out of water need to move to Mississippi, where they have 52 inches of rain every year. We have enjoyed our time in Jackson and will certainly come back soon!!