September 29, 2009 by jcollins.

It cost us about 100 extra miles to drive through Memphis and Little Rock instead of going through Oklahoma, but we thought it was worth it. We went straight back to the RV park on Elvis Presley Blvd. Since we have been running so fast the last few weeks, we haven’t sent out any post cards, so we decided to walk over to one of the souvenir shops and pick some up. This time we picked out some with recipe’s from Graceland on them.

As we left the store, we decided to walk by Graceland at night and visit the Heartbreak Hotel across the street. This stuff is so tacky it’s funny. We sat in the bar and watched the 1968 Elvis Comeback television special on the big screen with a handful of other guests, as we ate Elvis’s favorite sandwiches, peanut butter and banana grilled sandwiches. I have to admit, they were pretty good. Of course I can see why he started adding on pounds quickly.

Monday was a day of catching up; laundry, business, school, etc.

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September 7, 2009 by jcollins.

I was walking with my feet right on Beale when I saw this sign at the Daisy Theater. What in the world?

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September 6, 2009 by jcollins.

Back in the 80’s I used to enjoy a rock band by the name of DeGarmo & Key. I had heard that Dana Key was now a pastor in the Memphis area, so we searched out his church and attended it this morning. Dana’s message was on the 23 Psalm. It was pretty interesting as he incorporated a several illustrations from his days in the band. The church meets in what could easily be a country club. After the service we talked to Dana and he told us they actually own the building and they rent it out for events all year long to pay their bills. He said they probably have about 80,000 people through their facility each year. Not only does it pay the bills, but it also gives them an opportunity to share with people who come through. What a brilliant idea.

After church we headed downtown to the Memphis Music & Heritage Festival, a free event that showcases the best of Memphis. There was a lot of different styles of music being played on 4 stages. Here is Mark “Muleman” Massey displaying a little Mississippi Delta Blues.

There were several cooking demonstrations – we made it in time for the fried rice demo, and sampling. Katie wanted to watch the next demo on fried pies, so I went for a walk.

I entered the Memphis Folklore store and listened as an old black man talked baseball. He talked about playing with Dizzy Dean, Satchel Paige and Bob Feller. It didn’t take long for me to realize that the man talking was one of a fast dying breed – a man who played in the Negro League, but never made it to the Majors – Joe Scott. Here was a man talking about stars that I have only read about, so I sat down and listened to the rest of his way too short interview. At the end he invited everyone to visit his booth where he was selling some of his collectables.

Quickly I went across the street to gather Sam, of course he and the girls had their own special treat going on, they were sampling pecan pies. Luckily there was still some left when I got there. Wow was it good, just like mom makes. Now it’s time to head back over to meet Joe Scott. Katie came along to take a photo of Sam, Joe and I. Then Sam and I sat down and talked baseball with Joe.

He shared stories about how Rogers Hornsby taught him to hit. Why Satchel Paige called him “Kid”, all the way up until Satchel passed away. He talked about playing for the Air Force baseball team and being the first black man to ever play in Wrigley Field. We sat and talked for about two hours. He talked about sitting between Johnny Bench and Pete Rose at autograph shows and that he was friends with both, but the two of them never spoke to each other – Joe’s got some thoughts on why that he shared. He considers Bob Feller – a friend that Joe spends time with about 2-3 times per year - to be one of the best pitchers ever, evidently the Hall of Fame agrees with him. He told me about playing against Dizzy Dean. He said Dizzy struck him out the first time and but that he got a triple the second time.

He doesn’t like the way the game has changed. He thinks pitchers should be allowed to throw at batters, he thinks there is too much money in the game today, and although he didn’t come out and say it, he thinks the players are too soft today. He said in his day both teams shared a clubhouse and the pitchers would tell him, I’m going to throw it right through your ears, and they did. Joe said, “I’ve eaten enough dirt to have a garden.” And just to set the record straight, Joe says Larry Doby was not the first black man to play in the American League, he filled me in on the real history. I guess there were a couple of other men the year before who were called up to Kansas City for 10 day contracts. During their time in the Majors they couldn’t make it in their rooms before curfew and didn’t make the club because of it.

Not only did Joe play ball with Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, Jackie Robinson, Monte Irvin, Dave Winfield, Ted Williams, and virtually everyone else from that era of baseball, but he also went to high school with Ralph Metcalfe. Between 1932-34, Metcalfe was the fastest human, he won several Olympics medals at the 1932 and 1936 Olympics in Berlin including one gold as part of the 4×100 relay with Jesse Owens.

Joe told me that he thinks there are only about 5 men left who played in the Negro League, but never got a chance to play in the Majors. Similar to WWII veterans, they are dying fast and unfortunately their stories are dying with them. I wish I had a video camera to record all of his stories, because although he turns 89 next month, his memory was a sharp as a tack. In the end, Sam and I bought a few of his Hall of Famer signed baseballs : Monte Irvin, Bob Gibson & Lou Brock, Ted Williams, Dave Winfield and of course Joe Scott (Joe may not be in the HOF in Cooperstown, but if there’s a generous man HOF, he should be in there).

Posted in Dana Key, The Love of Christ Church, mark massey, joe Scott, Memphis, blues festival, Uncategorized | No Comments »

September 5, 2009 by jcollins.

When we found out that the Delta Fair was going on in Memphis, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to enjoy some fair food and fair craziness. We got there in time to catch the first heat of the Demolition Derby, a wild event where cars bang into each other until they can’t move. The last one moving is the winner.

It was pretty neat, but when they stopped the cars for a several minutes because of an illegal hit (not sure how that’s possible, but evidently there are rules), we left to get to the Banana Derby in time to see.

The Banana Derby may be the entire reason we went to the fair, instead of one of the other plethora of options in Memphis. This contest pits monkeys riding on the backs of dogs against one another. What a site.

The dogs had all been saved from dog shelters. There was one that is retired and no longer races, but when he hears the music he still runs out and goes around the track. After the races you can have your picture taken with the monkeys, or tip them and receive luck for $.25 or a postcard for $1. It’s definitely a gimmick, but they were so cute. Watch your mailbox, you may be the recipient of a monkey distributed postcard.

The heat was starting to get to us, so we visited the expo center, if you are thinking about the expo at the Florida State Fair, divide by about 20. There were booths for all types of things from knives to Memphis State (or is it the University of Memphis now?) shirts. Our personal favorite had bumper stickers and buttons that say, “Is it 2012 yet?” Don’t worry there were the standard hot tub dealers and cooking mixes that we Floridians have come to expect at the fair.

We ran back outside just in time to see the Ostrich Races. The big birds come out of the shoot with jockeys on their back, the jockey’s last about 2 seconds, then fall off. Unfortunately for one jockey his bird also took the opportunity to use the bathroom, the entire length of the race, not to be crude, but it wasn’t liquid. The second race proved to be very similar, without the bathroom activity, the jockeys last about 2 seconds and the birds run to the end of the track. I’m not sure I can recommend the ostrich races if they come to a fair near you.

At this point, we could resist the fair food no more. Two corn dogs later, we remembered why we typically eat before the fair. We didn’t stop with the corn dogs though, we also sampled chicken on a stick – at least we opted for the grilled version instead of fried. The medieval jousting sounded like too much fun to skip, so we headed back to the dirt track to see it. About the time it was suppose to start they announced that the final heat of the Demolition Derby would be getting started in a few minutes. Evidentially the track was too muddy for the jousting so they moved it to the rodeo arena on the other side of the fairground, we decided to stay and watch the final demolition derby. It was exciting, at least until there were only two cars left and it took about 30 more minutes for one to win.

On our way out we stopped at watched aging rocker Eddie Money for a few minutes. There’s just something not right about a 60 year old man singing “Take Me Home Tonight” and ripping his shirt open. Afterwards he said, “I promise I’m going to lose some weight for you guys this year.” Too late for that one, we almost tossed our corn dogs.

One last stop by the food carts for deep fried Oreos and a funnel cake, I guess it’s a good thing someone else is going to be responsible for my health care bills in the future, I could feel my arteries clogging as I ate.

Overall it was a great day as a family at the fair.

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