Mississippi vs. Missippi

March 24th-Pascagoula, MS

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Oh my Mississippi…or should I say "Missippi" just like the locals taught me.

Pascagoula is a small coastal town in the heart of the South. We played at the Celtic Irish Pub (probably the only bar in town because this place was packed). Just about everyone we met said "I was born in the hospital half a block that a way and now I live just half a mile this a way" Besides the occasional ignorant bigot that called the boys fags, or referred to Byrons' ethnicity in a less than nice manner, or the creepy old men and their confusing pick-up lines, "Hey how are your lucky charms?"…[awkward silence] "I bet they're delicious!" [more awkward silence] 

Geez worst pick up line ever….

But besides that I met a girl Erin who shared her experience with me about Hurricane Katrina. 96% of Pascagoula was underwater and most people lost everything they owned with only 2 hours notice for evacuation. She didn't have enough time to pack up anything and when she was finally able to return to her home, she just fell on her knees and sobbed because she had lost literally everything. She had to re-located to Atlanta for 5 years until the economy got back to normal and she was able to move back and get a job in Pascaoula again. Her story  brought back memories of my trip to New Orleans 18 months after the hurricane when the majority of the city was still devastated by the storm. Boats were still wrecked on top of houses, the amusement park was vacant and thrashed, and folks were still living in little FEMA trailers waiting for simple supplies like soap and toilet paper on a daily basis. Talking with Erin was a good reminder of the need to be grateful for everything we have.

In the end, we actually had a pretty good time. A lot of people were very open to our music and even danced around a bit. One guy bought our CD before we even played because he had to get home, but ran in from the parking lot after listening to the first song and told us how much he like it. It was silly. We'll definitely stop in at the Celtic Pub again someday. 

Peace Missippi.