I know I've mentioned more than once about the lack of color in the landscape here. The storm stripped most of the green from the plants, and turned everything in sight the same sort of greyish-brown. This has bothered some people a lot more than me ... being colorblind a lot of things look that way to me already. (At this point I hear some folks saying "Wait a minute! Aren't you an artist?!?! How can you be colorblind?!!!" which of course has been the running joke of my life. First, tubes of paint have the colors written on them, and second, I don't think anyone should let a birth defect stand in the way of what they really want to do.) My neighbors and I have rejoiced at every new green leaf appearing on anything. Often, the green seems to take on a jewel-like intensity, mainly due to the lack of color around it. Recently, though, I was unexpectedly treated to a vast array of colors -- both literal and figurative -- as the New Old Time Chautauqua came to town.
It was a gorgeous day, one in which life here in Waveland/Bay St. Louis seemed to be getting back to normal. By "normal" I mean (and, back me up here residents) more things to do on any given day than you could possibly attend. (Life in these towns has, for me, been characterised by a packed social schedule made up of festivals, city events, Second Saturday gatherings, friend's dinner parties, book signings, parades, crawfish boils, school parties, Church functions ... well, you get the idea. Heather and I have often laughed that we've never been so busy until we moved to this small town in Mississippi! A popular local saying goes "If you know about a party, you're invited!" Much of this was lost in the storm. Granted, there have been parades, and Second Saturday gatherings, but it's hard to entertain when you've lost your house, or have been shoveling mud out of what remains of it.)
On this particular Saturday morning, Heather and I went down to the beach and painted a big tiki on a 55-gallon trash can. (No, not graffiti, it's sponsored by the city. People decorate 55-gallon drums and then they are placed all along the beach to prevent littering. Sometimes it even works.), and then met my parents for lunch. We decided to forgo the following party on Coleman Avenue (and had to skip the Crawfish festival in Biloxi entirely!) and instead went to Rickey's, a famous local eatery that used to be right over our back fence, got washed away too, and has now reopened. On the way I saw some jugglers out in the yard of the Train Depot, and thought, "Oh yeah, there's some other party thing up here today" but didn't think much more about it.
The guys from 'Seinfeld'
Entering Ricky's, I noticed a poster for The New Old Time Chautauqua Jambalaya Vaudeville tour. I thought it sounded a lot like the Little Rascals' "International Silverstream Submarine Band" and so I looked closer. Appearing in my little town was a traveling show made up of a bunch of different acts including THE FLYING KARAMAZOV BROTHERS!!! I was a bit flabbergasted, but put it together in my mind. "Oh Yeah! Jugglers! Hey wait!" I thought, "those are those guys from that 'Seinfeld' episode where the acrobats steal his crested jacket that he swiped from the snooty 'must wear a jacket' club!" So after a fine bowl of gumbo, we headed back to the train depot.
And that's when I saw the colors, the instruments, the costumes, the counter cultural fashion sensibility that wasn't seen around here very often before the storm. It was exciting, thrilling, invigorating.
For a couple of hours we were able to forget our troubles and revel in a "Magical Mystery Tour meets old time traveling show/costume party" atmosphere. I don't want to describe the whole show for you, but everything was fantastic (in a very literal sense of the word). From the brass band exuberance of the Fighting Instruments of the Karma Chamber Band/Orchestra (and if you've never seen a female trombone player marching in a red, orange, and yellow ensemble including tights and a hoop skirt cage upholstered with polka dot material, brother, you haven't lived!) to the songs of 91-year-old folk singer Faith Petric (who was great, despite the fact that "American Idol" won't let you audition if you're over 30) they gave their all to entertain us.
From the amazing magic tricks of Joey Pipia, to the Kung-fu-movie-meets-acrobatic-juggling-live-action-slow-motion-boy-band-weirdness that is Nanda (really, these guys you've just got to see to believe!!!) they literally bled to make us forget our sorrows. (OK, Joey Pipia didn't, and just one of the guys in Nanda did, unintentionally, but the thought was appreciated.) We were amazed and tickled by the colorful recycled fashions of "haute couture" (old tents, garment bags, life vests, air mattresses, and Frito wrappers made into stunningly attractive high fashion garments). We were able to take our minds off of trying to juggle insurance agents, contractors and FEMA representatives, as we watched amazing real jugglers like "Noodlini," Nanda and the all time masters -- the Flying Karamazov Brothers -- toss bowling pins around like we toss discarded crawfish shells.
And the 'Spoon Man' too!
I've seen the FKB before on TV, in the aforementioned "Seinfeld" episode, as well as lots of Showtime specials, but to see them up close, in person, makes you understand how great they are at what they do, including the impressive feat of playing "Hand Jive" on drums with bowling pins that you're juggling! We were even treated to a performance by Artis the Spoon Man (yes, that spoon man, who some of you might remember from the Soundgarden song of the same name). This caliph of cutlery takes spoons into another plane of existence, and made them gallop like horses and chatter like castanets, all while shaking and moving in a sort of martial arts/free form dance.
The whole show brought a lump to my throat and tears to my eyes. I was so touched, and honored that these performers, who have played all over the world, on stage and screen, would take time out of their lives and schedules to come down here and perform for us. Perhaps the most telling example was magician Michael Alan Kaufman's performance. He did a trick with a red box, a hat and a "Cabin-ette." I won't go into the whole thing, but I'd swear under oath that this amazing man made that red box disappear and rematerialize inside a hat 10 feet away. It struck me at that moment that he was able to make me (someone who is still trying to figure out how his house disappeared ... let alone how to make one reappear) totally forget my troubles and sit in astonishment and awe, marvelling at how he made a little red box magically relocate.
Thank you so much, to all of the performers, to all of the donors who made it possible and to Joanne Murayama for putting it all together. I cannot tell you what a difference you made to my morale, nor thank you enough for the color you added to my life one fine spring day.
P.S. Sorry about the gnats.
Housing boom on the horizon
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Ah the gnats. If you visit The Bay during gnat season, you'll never forget them.
J. Scott Anderrson, Austin, Texas (Sent May 2, 2006 2:29:02 PM)
Yes, the Gnats have had a taste of me too!!!
Leslie, Memphis (Sent May 2, 2006 5:56:15 PM)
Of course they have Leslie! They LOVE Memphis Barbeque!
Steven Harper, Waveland/Pearlington MS (Sent May 3, 2006 8:34:24 AM)
"The Magical Mystery Tour"....I like that....but some of the younger folks probably don't know what ya mean man! LOL!!!...IF ONLY WE COULD obtain a "Yellow Submarine"....I volanteer for "Nowhere Man"...no wait ...i wanna be John
andy,ms (Sent May 3, 2006 10:16:20 AM)
I'm glad you all are getting some kind of relief from what you have to see every day down there. Ya'll are the salt of the earth. I'm telling you, people on the Coast are hard workers, but they are smart enough to know that they sometimes have to take a break to just laugh and forget. It will still be there in the morning. Like Scarlet said, "After all, tomorrow's another day." Here's hoping you have many more opportunities to laugh.
Jane, Southern Mississippi (Sent May 4, 2006 1:15:13 AM)
Hmmmm seems like Mississippi has the equivilent of the Maine "state bird", which is the black fly. We are being devoured by them right now, and they make me quite miserable. Maybe I'll take some gnats and send you some flies? Just because its different....
and Oh yeah... I guess I show my age when I said I've not heard of any of these groups you've mentioned, Steve, but they sound like they provided the necessary distracting influence for which they were provided. In that, they are world-class entertainers!
Stephanie Umbro, maine (Sent May 4, 2006 10:50:23 AM)
The gnats. I did forget them. They weren't a memorable part of any great late night CYO car trips out to Joe's Bayou, or of early morning runs on the beach. Shoot. It took all of about 5 minutes for them to make me remember, once the wind died down when we were working in the Bay. Funny how you let the little nuisances fall away when you are saving up the good times in your heart!
Thank God also for the performers who brought a welcome vacation to everyone in the area! Seems like the Bay was always about celebrating life...I think that attitude is what pulls people through in the tough times...finding the joy and holding on tight to it! Many thanks to The New Old Time Chautauqua Jambalaya Vaudeville tour for sharing their particular brand of delight with the people of the coast!
Laurie, CO (Sent May 4, 2006 11:03:50 AM)
Steve, I'm a regular reader and appreciate your entries and insights into the process of recovery. Thanks for the things you share. You folks (and others who have suffered from disasters) are in our congregation's prayers every week.
Bev, Kansas (Sent May 6, 2006 6:49:43 PM)
hey, on da gnat subject....Skin SO Soft....works better than anything i have found...and iwasn't even worryed about soft skin...but gnats and skeeters don't like it!
andy,booneville ms. (Sent May 7, 2006 10:34:31 PM)
Just wait till the love bugs are back.
Jane, Southern Mississippi (Sent May 9, 2006 10:46:32 PM)
They don't bite, but it won't be long till the love bugs are back. Yuck.
Jane, Southern Mississippi (Sent May 10, 2006 9:14:20 PM)
love bug....wasn't that a movie....about a volkswagon?...Jane?
andy,ms (Sent May 13, 2006 8:56:56 AM)
Hi there, I worked in a gallery on the beach, Bay Crafts. Loved to say, "May I offer you some wine?"
Just started reading this, page. It's fantastic!
M.E. Howard, MS (Sent May 19, 2006 8:54:01 PM)
what kinda wine ya got M.E. Howard?....I might take a "little dranken"....if ya ain't stingy
andy,ms (Sent May 25, 2006 11:38:26 PM)
No Hell....I might take a whole hornfull....if it's free!!!
andy,ms (Sent May 28, 2006 4:41:58 PM)
In the back of the lot on which my mother built her retirement home in BSL there stood the remnants of a fireplace. It was all that remained of the convent home that stood on the property when Hurricane Camille came to town. Mother brought love again to that lot, beginning with the first gathering of our family there in tents and campers to be together and start buliding memories. Now, all that stands is the physical foundation of that home that supported our loving family and memories. But, like that old fireplace, it will call others to enjoy the splendor of a sunset or an early morning storm or waterspout just the way it always has. Bay St Louis will be back... someday.
Mary, New Port Richey, FL (Sent May 31, 2006 7:41:28 PM)
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