Jackson, Mississippi

Virtute et armis
(By valor and arms)

State Bird: Mockingbird
State Flower: Magnolia
State Shell: Oyster Shell
State Toy: Teddy Bear
State Tree: Magnolia

In 1929 Pine Sol was invented by Harry A. Cole, Sr.

“Mississippi: Come Feel Better About Your Own State” 

MI. is the state abbreviation for Michigan, not Mississippi. 

Driving into the state we were sweating our asses off. I kept checking the weather app on my phone, and it kept saying 80 degrees. I’ve lived in the south for 25 years, but for some reason, I was still expecting to run into this promised cooler weather. That never came, and it wasn’t until we were upstairs in our lovely, cool room at the Fairview Inn that I realized my elementary social studies course had failed me. I had entered Jackson Michigan on my weather app, not Jackson Mississippi. Whoops. 

After a nice cold shower, we ventured out into Jackson to explore the town. Our first stop was a must visit. Saltine offers a wide array of oysters from everything from Oysters Rockefeller to Nashville hot oysters to Bama BBQ oysters and an array of fried oysters. All of which my husband sampled. I also tried fried-green tomatoes for the first time. They serve up theirs with a really interesting crawfish roux. The menu at Saltine goes one to offer very unique fare like a lobster roll, goat cheese grits, and beer ice cream. This restaurant was by far the highlight of Jackson. 

Again, our research is lacking when we venture out into the Fondren area to do some shopping. I believed this to be downtown Jackson, which it is not. I also believed this to be a popular place with lots to do, which it is also not. Every single shop was closed down. It was apocalyptic. Nothing was open, no one was around on a Saturday afternoon. 

Tired and hot, we gave up on Fondren and went back to the Inn. The Library Lounge at the Inn is a spot for the locals, open to the public, not just guests. In 1908, the lounge was a library. But today it provides a unique place for friends to gather and enjoy each other’s company while being surrounded by the culture and history that is Mississippi.  Like the rest of the town, the lounge was not fully operational on Saturdays for some reason and offered only a limited menu. 

We both ordered an Old Fashioned (Dad’s favorite drink) and enjoyed our cocktail on a bench in the garden while we sprinkled Dad among the flowers.

The next morning we slept in and leisurely dressed and ate breakfast. This would turn out to be another colossal mistake. 

The ride home was miserable in the heat. We must have stopped every 20 minutes for water and shade as the Texas summer sun beat down on us. Pulling into Dallas, there was construction. Cars stood still on a brand new blacktop road, their A/Cs presumably blasting frigid air into the faces of drivers while sweat poured down our necks and our helmets became  prisons. 

I thought I might die. Sixteen miles from our house I had to pull over at a gas station. My heart rate was 188, and I could barely see straight. Rawley refused  to call an ambulance but after much pleading, he got me an Uber instead. I couldn’t make it home on my own. He had to go back to the gas station and get my bike. 

I did not ride again for 8 months.  

Our Jackson theme song:

Black Water
The Doobie Brothers

Well, I built me a raft and she’s ready for floatin’
Ol’ Mississippi, she’s callin’ my name
Catfish are jumpin’, that paddle wheel thumpin’
Black water keeps rollin’ on past just the same

Old black water, keep on rollin’
Mississippi moon, won’t you keep on shinin’ on me?
Old black water, keep on rollin’
Mississippi moon, won’t you keep on shinin’ on me?
Old black water, keep on rollin’
Mississippi moon, won’t you keep on shinin’ on me?

Yeah, keep on shinin’ your light
Gonna make everything
Pretty mama, gonna make everything all right
And I ain’t got no worries
‘Cause I ain’t in no hurry at all

Well, if it rains, I don’t care
Don’t make no difference to me
Just take that streetcar that’s goin’ uptown
Yeah, I’d like to hear some funky Dixieland and dance a honky-tonk
And I’ll be buyin’ ev’rybody drinks all ‘roun’

Old black water, keep on rollin’
Mississippi moon, won’t you keep on shinin’ on me?
Old black water, keep on rollin’
Mississippi moon, won’t you keep on shinin’ on me?
Old black water, keep on rollin’
Mississippi moon, won’t you keep on shinin’ on me?

Keep on shinin’ your light
Gonna make everything, everything
Gonna make everything all right
And I ain’t got no worries
‘Cause I ain’t in no hurry at all

I’d like to hear some funky Dixieland
Pretty mama, come and take me by the hand
(By the hand) hand (take me by the hand) pretty mama
Gonna dance with your daddy all night long
I’d like to hear some funky Dixieland
Pretty mama, come and take me by the hand
By the hand, take me by the hand, pretty mama (I wanna honky-tonk, honky-tonk)
Gonna dance with your daddy night long (honky-tonk with you all long)
I’d like to hear some funky Dixieland
Pretty mama, come and take me by the hand
By the hand, take me by the hand, pretty mama (I wanna honky-tonk, honky-tonk)
Gonna dance with you all night long (honky-tonk with you all long)
I’d like to hear some funky Dixieland
Pretty mama, come and take me by the hand
By the hand, take me by the hand, pretty mama (I wanna honky-tonk, honky-tonk)
Gonna dance with you all night long (honky-tonk with you all long)
I’d like to hear some funky Dixieland
Pretty mama, come and take me by the hand
By the hand, take me by the hand, pretty mama (I wanna honky-tonk, honky-tonk)
Gonna dance with you all night long (honky-tonk with you all long)
I’d like to hear some funky Dixieland
Pretty mama, come and take me by the hand
By the hand, take me by the hand, pretty mama (I wanna honky-tonk, honky-tonk)
Gonna dance with you all night long (honky-tonk with you all long)