A Day of Riding and One of Rest

The weatherman said the storm was a-comin! Severe thunderstorms, wind, large hail, tornados! Ted and I took off in the morning from Crestview, Florida headed to north central Mississippi where my brother and family live. We knew we could get there before the storm hit if we were quick and with a bit of luck. We headed west on I-10 until Mobile, Alabama. It was there that I made the wrong turn and ended up beside the battleship Alabama. After a u-turn we headed north up 98 toward Hattiesburg. The sky was overcast and there was lots of traffic. We hit the bump in the road right outside Hattiesburg on 49 heading toward Jackson. Our speed was minimal but we still bottomed out. After a check of the nether regions we continued north. In Jackson we missed our turn and did another u-turn. I-55 out of Jackson was wonderful. Traffic continued to thin out the further we got out of town until we were only a few on the road. Looking for a bathroom/stretch break we took an exit out in the country. This is where I learned two important lessons about Mississippi: (1) a sign announcing a town can consist of two or more houses, and (2) the blacktop is really "browntop" which is the same color as the dirt. It started with Ted needing a stretch and me needing, well, something else. He says we will take the next exit. We did. The town of Goodman consisted of two houses. No gas stations or convenience stores. We continued down the road looking for a place for a u-turn. The GPS suggested that we take a left and showed a little turn around. Ted takes the turn from the "browntop" onto a dirt road that slants at an angle and runs down a hill. When I hit the dirt I'm surprised. The color hasn't changed at all, just the road surface. At the bottom of the hill we make a u-turn and start back up the hill. If I didn't need a bathroom before, I really do now. We find our way back to I-55 a little smarter. We didn't stop until we laid our eyes on the object of our desires. Still no rain, wind, hail, or tornados. We made our way to my brother's place without incident. As we turned off Route 82 to turn into his dirt driveway, I felt like an old hand at this Wing dirt bike riding.

My brother took us to a restaurant Saturday night that served the best catfish I've ever eaten. You'll find this little gem in McCarley, Mississippi. All y'all need to stop in here.


The wings are tucked into the garage for the storm that may be coming. It never came to this area. Thank goodness!