I have a bit of a problem. (No, not that one…..no, not that one either…….c’mon now…….) I have shelves full of empty mason jars that have done nothing but gathered dust since we went through our tomatoes and pickles like Sherman went through Atlanta. But hope could be on the way. Pan, my folks, and I are headed to Florida for a long weekend in late April where it seems oranges are darn near ready for mass consumption. So, of course we will be buying a crate or two for a number of uses. One of them, I hope, is either for marmalade or preserves or something similar. When I made the suggestion Pan kind of turned her nose up and I was left wondering if my thoughts of citrus colored cans was little more than a rotten idea.

So, I ask. What do you think I should do with a minimum of one crate of fresh, Florida oranges?

Since Sunday I have been in Tallahassee, Florida. I haven’t visited my alma mater, Florida State, or the town since mid-2005. Even then it was a very focused mission trip with little time to just look around. So this trip was all about catching up and taking it easy. Since I graduated so much has been done to the school aesthetically and politically in terms of growth and expansion. We have gained a medical school, new traffic patterns around the stadium, refurbished dorms, and entirely new area for the greek system of houses  and a host of other “random” buildings. It was a lot of fun walking around and seeing the changes. I don’t think I could be more proud of my college and all it has accomplished. I truly am proud to be a ‘Nole. Coming back was so good for me and catching up with old friends as well as making a few new ones was truly the icing on the cake.

You can see from these pictures that I was able to see Dr. Gayle Seaton, my former Music Theatre professor, as well as Kate Gelabart, another professor, and Sue Songsiridej, the long-time accompanist for the MT program. I also spent quite a bit of time with long-time friend, Samantha, who I first met while living at Indian Oaks and have coincidentally kept up with since 2000.

Tomorrow morning I get back on a plane and head to Anguilla, Mississippi; my new “home”. I can’t wait to return to the delta where the sky seems to go on forever, authentic blues generates from the porches of spread out shacks and the pace is slower than anywhere else in the states. Traveling is good and life is even better.