Newsdump ~ Molasses Flats

There is pleasure in the pathless woods.
Lord Byron

Why Molasses Flats?... Molasses Flats is part of the name of the Molasses Flats Antique & Gifts, Natchez, Mississippi.
The building was named story goes that there		in the late 1800s. The was an apartment

building at this location. At the turn of the century, the elderly lady who had lived there the longest said to many that "the Flats" were the sweetest place to live. When asked how sweet, she would say "Sweet as molasses." Thus the name Molasses Flats* "stuck" to this site. To this day, we are told, it is still on the old record of deeds at Natchez City Hall.
The minute we saw that name and heard the story, we thought Molasses Flats had to be part of Newsdump. The articles that will appear here will be "slow, easy and sweet."

Open Your Eyes
Akiki Daisy Kabagarama

Don’t let the world pass you by!
There is beauty in all you see.
Appreciate yourself and others.
Find company in nature.
Know your creator.
Clear your face.
Remove the shadows.
Observe, recognize what you see.
Live. Breathe. Appreciate life.
Open your eyes and get your prize.

Shoestring Travels...

      We are shoestring travelers. This means that even when we have the resources, we tend to look for the bargains. Somehow it helps us enjoy our travels when we know we are not overspending. We travel at a slower pace than most, and enjoy the sweetness of the ordinary.
      Our adult travels began when we were a military family and have continued as civilians. We usually, but not always, include a visit with family and friends. And, wherever we go, we try to take advantage of all of the surrounding natural sites of interest. We are not the kind of travelers who seek out the manmade sites and events unless they blend with nature like a waterfront restaurant or an outdoor celebration or festival.

Off The Beaten Path...

      We have been to out-of-the-way places, like a recent trip to Natchez, Vicksburg, and Greenville, Mississippi. Over the years we have been to Baileyville, Ellsworth, Lakin, Oxford, and Seneca, Kansas. Before and after and in between we have been to Doylestown, Lahaska, Martin’s Creek, New Hope, Pennsylvania, and the hamlets that host that state’s covered bridge tour and the Pennsylvania canal ride.
      And, many, many more cities and towns that are little known to the rest of us but well known to those who live there. It is interesting to recall some but not all of the small towns we have stopped in, passed through, stayed for a few minutes, a day and some we stayed for a day and a night. Like Foley, Alabama; Napa Valley, Squaw Valley, Tiburon Bay, and Trukee, California; Mary Ester and Niceville,

FL; Coal Valley, Moline and St. Elmo, Illinois; Brownsburg and Richmond, Indiana; Alta Vista and Mason City, Iowa; Houma, Raceland and Valhalla, Louisiana; Frostburg and Little Orleans, Maryland; Jordan, Minnesota; Crystal Springs and Magnolia, Mississippi; Calhoun and Windsor, Missouri; Beatrice, Nebraska; Bath, East Aurora and Eden, New York; Carson and Virginia Cities, Nevada; Canton and Elyria, Ohio; Altus, Blackwell, Grove and Ponca City, Oklahoma; Moncks Corners and Sumnter, South Carolina;

Galveston, Temple and Texas City, Texas; Mount Royale and Winchester, Virginia; and Paw Paw, West Virginia. I have noticed many states have a Grove in their city and town names. But so far we have discovered that there is only one Mulvane found in Kansas and one Maumelle found in Arkansas.
      We remember standing in Squaw Valley, California, and thought we could actually hear the echoes of the Olympic crowds cheering in this valley. It was akin to the sound inside a seashell.
      In the mid-80s we took trips to the places that were trying to sell time shares. We went because we knew we did not have any resources to buy into any of it, no matter how good it sounded. While we were there, after we heard the sales spiel we did get the time to go to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, and Branson, Missouri while in the area. A couple of years ago, we returned to both Branson and Eureka Springs. Branson had changed with the numerous theaters but Eureka Springs looked the same down to the stores that still needed a touch of paint.
      Back in the late 60s, we went to Ancon, Elle Valle, Santa Clara and an unnamed interior collection of cottages in the Republic of Panama. We have been to Bangkok, Thailand for Christmas, and walked through most of the ceramic mosaic walled and floored, tiled-roofed temples. We stopped at the street

merchants to eat the soups and frogs legs spiced with ancient spices of Marco Polo fame. We completed this vacation with side trips through the floating market and trekked out to Pattya Beach on the Gulf of Siam.
In May 1992, we spent a week at Christiansted and Freddricksted, US Virgin Islands. Through the years we have been to border towns in Canada and Mexico. And we have been to Noel, Missouri, where each year the US Post Office there receives tons of mail to be post marked for Christmas.

A Serious Road Trip...

In 1958, when I was in junior high, our parents took us on our first serious road trip for Easter and spring break from Derby, New York, to Florida. Before that we drove to places close by in Western New York, and to the awesome Niagara Falls in both Niagara Falls, New York and Ontario, and the immediate surrounding towns like Angola, Barcelona, Canandaigua, Dunkirk, East Otto, Geneseo, Ithaca, Pembroke, Silver Creek, and Rochester with its breathtaking lilac festival.
Imagine this trip then compared to now. Five people and their luggage packed into a 1956 Chevy station wagon, without air conditioning. There were no interstates, and very few two-lane and four-lane divided highways. Every road we took went through a city or small town. Occasionally, there was a city with the progressive business by-pass route.

And, we paid cash for everything and took our chances for motel reservations.
      Back then, orange juice was sold at rough-hewn roadside stands. This was before the days of frozen juices. We had had canned juices or fresh squeezed when oranges were inexpensive. Being northerners, we consumed large amounts of OJ. By the third day we were all getting a rash. My mom was a nurse and she realized we were not drinking enough water and we were drinking too much orange juice!
      My sister and I gathered the transparent sacks on the beach, only to find they were a dangerous variety of stingrays. Close call. But we did find lots of pretty seashells and tried to find a starfish. Alas, we bought the required starfish at a souvenir shop to take home.
      You get the picture. But it was a trip none of us ever forgot.
      Our trip to Florida was before Disneyworld, the Walmarts, Kmarts and national food chains. We drove south down through the Blue Ridge Mountains of Kentucky. Once in Florida, we went down the east coast to Miami, and up the gulf coast with a side stop in Orlando. Back then Orlando had the famous Bock Tower surrounded by a lot of marshlands and that was about it. On the east coast of Florida, we marveled at Cypress Gardens, drove our car on the beach at Daytona Beach and ate our first southern fried chicken at a local restaurant. Not too many years later Colonel Sander’s Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise started around the country. For a small town family, it was exciting to be in these places.
      On the east coast, we stayed with friends in Vero Beach and got to the ocean as fast as we could. Afterward we were crunchy with salt on our skin and had to shower. We thought this was counter productive because Lake Erie’s fresh water did not require this. Somewhere between that stop and Miami, we stopped to visit a second or third cousin who never had children and she did not seem to like my sister and me in her house overnight. On the west coast, we visited my aunt and uncle in Tampa, and friends at Newport Richey.
      When on the gulf coast, we stayed in a motel in the Tampa Bay area because my aunt and uncle had a small house. On our way back to Tampa from Newport Richey, we wanted to go to the motel we liked from the night before, but had not made reservations. It was the middle of the week and we presumed they had rooms. We missed a turn and the next thing we knew we saw the sign that read, "Welcome to St. Petersburg." Not being sophisticated travelers, we drove back to Tampa for the night rather than staying and exploring St. Petersburg. But we learned from this.
      My aunt and uncle were expecting us to visit and were watching for our car. But we liked practical jokes. When we got to their neighborhood, my parents wanted to stop at a grocery store for some comfort items and snacks. We asked my mother if we could walk the two blocks to my aunt’s house while they were shopping. Yes.
      We could hardly contain ourselves as we walked into my aunt’s yard. But we did, and we called out to my aunt as we slowly walked up to her as she was hanging laundry in her back yard. She was surprised. We all had a chuckle over this.
      Since this trip, we have been much more fortunate in our resources for our travels. But I am not sure we ever got as much of a thrill from more exotic trips as that first road trip to tropical palm trees and beaches.
      This trip taught us many things about being resourceful. To this day, unless we have a fixed itinerary, we do not make motel reservations. We have learned that off-season, once you are in the area, you can get a good pick of accomodations. Unless it is parents’ week and graduation at the Citadel, Charleston, South Carolina, graduation week at West Point, Annapolis, or any graduation

weekend in any major metro area.
We find good restaurants everywhere, but we go to the local supermarkets, too. Half the time we eat the same foods we do at home and drink bottled water at all times. May sound boring to many, but with ice chests and car refrigerators and the variety of motels and hostels available and the generosity of family and friends, we get out there and see America. Not always the glitzy costly America, but like molasses we take it slow and easy.

Foods To Dream About...

      Speaking of foods in the supermarkets of any locale, we have discovered a treat in Natchez. Springhill Jelly is delicious with some unusual flavors like Mayhaw and Muscadine. Charlie, the man in charge at Grant Fruit, the makers of Springhill Jelly, says these flavors are from grapes that grow along the gulf coast. Of course, they have the usual, blueberry, blackberry, etc. And, in our opinion, their sugar free jellies are the crème de la crème, a cut above the national brands since they do not contain white grape juice or aspartame.
      If this jelly is not in your area at supermarkets or food stores, just call 866-765-2230, ask for Charlie and please, tell him we sent you.
      The best peanut butter in the world to go with this jelly is the Wild Oats brand sold at their stores and through their website. This is the kind of peanut butter that has its natural oil floating on top. Once you work it in, the peanut butter aroma and taste is like none other you have ever eaten.
      Another treat you will not readily find outside of New York state, is Chiavetta’s Italian salad dressing. A regionally renowned Western New York company known for their Chiavetta’s Chicken Bar-B-Que Sauce makes this dressing. The BBQ sauce is vinegar-based and was first used, and continues to be used, for chicken BBQs at upstate New York area festivals and church celebrations. Both the salad dressing (which can also be a marinade) and the BBQ sauce are found throughout New York state and in some national chains. But they can ship it to almost any location. We buy the Italian dressing by the case. Call 716-549-1700, and please, tell them we sent you.
      As if this is not enough to make you hungry, we have to recommend Duke’s Mayonnaise. It is well known in Virginia, and North Carolina, but it is available around the country. If it is not in your local stores ask them to get it. This stuff can be eaten by the spoon, let alone mixed in all mayonnaise-based salads and generously spread on sandwiches.
      Before, during and after you eat any of the above foods, drink some Honest Tea brand bottled tea. You cannot do better than this tea, unless it is your own home-brewed. But for a bottled tea it is excellent and can be found in national stores and at www.honesttea.com.

We Discover The Panhandle of Florida...

Okaloosa Tourist Area on the Emerald Coast

In the fall of 2000, we went to the Emerald Coast of Florida. On that trip, as others over the years, we went through Mississippi and have always enjoyed the laid back lifestyle, from the hanging moss on the trees to the southern architecture. We have been through Jackson and Hattiesburg and many small towns in-between. More about Mississippi later.
Alabama was next. Mobile, the city by the bay, was a pleasant surprise.

After we left the city, as we neared the Florida state line, we took the scenic route near the water’s edge to an obscure waterfront landing and had a relaxed late lunch.

      Ahhh, we thought, this is the life. It does not get better than this.
      We drove through the Pensacola area during rush hour traffic but still made our destination of Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, by early evening. But it did get better. We were star struck kids as we watched our first sunset together over the Gulf of Mexico.
      Over the years we had heard about this part of the country - Ft. Walton

Beach and Panama City - from lifelong friends who were from there or had lived there for a time. Some we had met in the Republic of Panama over thirty years ago. It had been that long ago that this area was first brought to our attention. We were not disappointed, because each place lived up to what we had

heard, and then some.
As a photographer, my sunrises and sunsets and everything in between were spent on several of the umbrella-lined beaches...Destin, Navarre, Okaloosa Island, Seaside, and Pensacola. Each had its own special warmth that drew us to it.
Emerald green it is.

Every morning we made it a point to be out on the Oskaloosa Island pier with the devout fishing enthusiasts. We watched the fishing charters going out and the schools of dolphins swimming in near the shoreline. The cranes are so tame in this part of the country, they walk among the tourists and locals on the beaches, on the grass and just about anywhere they want to be. They appear to be posing for pictures as a matter of course.

It was on this trip that we completed our shell collection that began in 1958, with a starfish from our first trip to Florida, including coral from the Gulf of Siam, Thailand, with additions from California trips. Not to mention shells we discovered in second hand stores and at garage sales.
Oddly, it was on this trip that we learned that the famed pearlized Nautilus shell does not have this finish in its natural state. The shell is

originally a flat white finish with a spiny looking design on the top of the shell in a coffee au lait color. It is the shell handlers who process and "bleach" it for retail sale that in turn bring about its pearlized finish.

We ate at several seaside restaurants for the first five days. After that we did our supermarket shopping. One can eat only so much ocean fish in a week. Reminded me of when we had too much orange juice years back. In Ft. Walton Beach, we dined at the Summerhouse, which was outstanding. And day times we enjoyed the Big City Coffeehouse, a coffee and lunch deli place that had roof top dining, weather permitting. They sold the salads by

the ounce/pound. Two can get a half or whole sandwich with a mixture of salads with the homemade bread, gourmet coffee and teas and still not spend more than $12-14. Our kind of place.

But our most interesting find was the jellyfish. They were different than those of our eastern coast days. Still we had to be very careful of the tentacles that could reach out and sting our bare feet as we walked along the edges of the beach. But they were beautiful to see as they floated toward the shore.

We left the Emerald Coast and our friends with a longing to return!

We Discover Mississippi...

In the spring of 2002, we took a drive to Natchez, a city of southern charm and history. The riverboat flavor is everywhere you look, from the brick church that has the architectural details of a riverboat, to the replica of a riverboat that serves as a riverfront casino.
From our motel that overlooked the river, we saw the city awaken on a Sunday morning. As we drove through the narrow city streets adorned with early azaleas, we saw the tourists in the horse-drawn carriages and the gamblers boarding shuttle busses that took them to the riverboat casino. The restored tourist district had shops with homemade candies and tourist souvenirs.

We saw a father and toddler son taking in the Sunday morning sunshine on the front steps of their historic 200-year-old home. We saw the locals jogging or walking their dogs in the riverside park. As all of this was unfolding for another day the mighty Mississippi River kept rolling along toward the ocean.
The day before Natchez, we went through the famed Vicksburg national park. It was as awesome as Valley Forge. It was very moving to just pause and think, if only

for a couple of hours in modern times, of what the people of that city and the Union and Confederate armies went through during a six-week siege. No modern hospitals and no modern medical technology. No modern food storage and sewage treatment. People hid in caves to survive the battles.
We, as a people, need to be reminded, even on our vacations, what people have endured so that we know what we have. Vicksburg is a beautiful park as a tribute to endurance and sacrifice. We can look back with 20/20 hindsight and say no war is right. But it is a done deal, and it is fitting no matter what the reasons this happened that there is such a tribute to the people from that time in our history. And, as with other Mississippi River cities, added to this national park area is the customary restored downtown riverfront district with a riverboat casino.
On our trip just before Vicksburg, as we crossed from Arkansas into Mississippi, we came to Greenville. They have the customary restored downtown riverfront district with a riverboat casino.

This was not our first time through Greenville, but it was the first time their visitor information center caught our eye. They have the most outstanding center we have ever seen. It is a replica of a riverboat with a gorgeous interior and a very helpful staff.
Pleasant surprises abound when we get off the beaten path and discover America or any country we travel in.**

*Flat is the word used for apartments in Northern cities and the old South.

**WARNING...not all places are safe to just wander around, including out-of-the-way places in foreign countries and some remote rural areas and inner cities of America.