How's Work?

Work is great. I am really enjoying the people and the work environment. It is very relaxed and unstructured. That is good and bad for me. For those of you at the MGRC, sorry but we get to wear blue jeans on Fridays and get off at 4:30 everyday, but there is no Sandi - so I proof read everything four million times because no one looks at your work before it goes out the door! For those of you that don't know Sandi, she is God's gift to the MGRC. She proofs and formats everything before it goes at the door in Macon. It makes you feel much, much better knowing she is going to read word for word everything in the document to make sure it is correct. Amazing - is all I have to say about that.

Working with the City of Jackson has been the adventure I assumed it would be. The process is slow and down-right difficult at times. However, the staff I have been working with are willing and able to help, which makes it much easier.

As for Jackson's section of Hwy 80 - if they think this is bad, they need to tour Macon's. It is run-down and has a great deal of disinvestment, but it is really something that can be turned around. We are going to develop a full economic development plan including engineering plans and specs for infrastructure for the area. It is going to start with code enforcement as we inventory each building and its use and condition along the 8 mile project area. It will be a lot of fun and I hope, Laura Mathis, a "Plan with a Purpose, not a Plan just to Plan."

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!!!

Yep, that's right, we got snow last night!! Here are a few pictures from when it was still falling and some from this morning.

Birthday Dinner

Andrew decided that he would cook dinner tonight rather than us going out for my birthday. He did all the shopping and cooking! We had steaks, baked sweet potatoes, and a yummy salad with dried cranberries, blue cheese, and honey sesame sticks! It was steak-house quality. Andrew said that the salad would have made Jimbo proud. Andrew's Uncle Jim makes some of the best salads - he should be helping restaurants develop their new salad combination. Andrew was right it was a Jimbo salad. And the best part was that I didn't have to do anything. It was a wonderful birthday gift and dinner!!

Go Jackets!!

Here are a few pictures from the weekend that all the Tech Fans came out for a visit. It was an awesome game and we really enjoyed Starkville. However, the highlight of the game was cruising up in our VW Routan...and no none of us owned it...we rented. Oh and did I mention that we almost got it stuck in the grass field we parked in?!? That would have been too much!

A Birthday Visit from the Grandparents

We were honored to have Grandmomma and Granddaddy come spend a couple of days with us last week. Andrew and I really enjoyed their visit and having company from home. While Andrew was working, the rest of us did a little (or in my case, a lot) of Christmas shopping and took in the sites around Jackson. Then on Friday, we ventured over to Vicksburg. It was pouring down rain so no pictures, but I am sure that we will visit Vicksburg again and I will get pictures of the Yazoo River joining the Mississippi - which was about the coolest thing about the whole town. It is in many ways run-down, but there are some neat spots still. It is really sad when you are overlooking a massive, beautiful river and some shot-gun homes that are in need of a bulldozer (to put it bluntly). But all in all, it was a great weekend and we had a blast!

Chicken-on-a-Stick

Sounds interesting, huh?? Well everyone told us to go to the State Fair for the food and most importantly the Chicken-on-a-Stick. We had even heard that people went to the Fair for lunch during the week - even more interesting right?? Given Andrew's love for those toss-you-upside-down and spin-you-around rides and my love for funnel cakes, we decided to give it a try. I should mention that we had no plans to go to the Fair until I heard that because of the rainy weather we had during the week of the Fair that it was going to be extended for an extra day, Monday (and Andrew was off) and it would be $2 day. So parking, admission, and rides were all $2 each...not bad for the Fair...and my cheap self.

So we ventured to the Fair this past Monday. It was a beautiful day and because we were at the Fair by 1pm there wasn't much of a crowd! Once inside our first order of business was to get a Chicken-on-a-Stick. So we scoped out the food trailers and I spot a Penn's (it's the local fast-food catfish place here that also serves good Chicken-on-a-Stick). Off I go to Penn's while Andrew is debating if he wanted a corn dog or something else. In the end he heads over to Penn's with me and we order 2 Chicken-on-a-Sticks, a side of Fried Dill Pickles, and a large diet coke. Well, the guy's face was a little odd when we ordered all of this, but I figured it was because he just wanted us to hurry up. Nope, I was wrong, it was because we ended up with a ton of food - I am sure he was actually wondering where I was going to stuff a Chicken-on-a-Stick and half an order of Dill Pickles. I am also sure that our faces displayed our shock at the amount of food when he placed it on the counter - because it was not what we were expecting.

We had assumed that the Chicken-on-a-Stick was going to be a thin slice of chicken grilled or fried on a stick....WRONG! It was hunks of chicken breast, 4 or 5 of them, plus onion petals, and dill pickles, all battered and deep fried!! The batter was amazing and the chicken was super moist and we know now why everyone raves about the Chicken-on-a-Stick from Penn's. But as we are working our way through this amazing new food find, I began to wonder how am I going to finish this foot-long, deep fried treat and still manage to ride the scrambler. Needless to say, I didn't finish mine nor did Andrew and we had to take a walk around the midway before our tummy's said we could try to ride something.

We managed to ride all the rides we had selected - of course Andrew rode several on his own because my weak stomach can barely handle the scrambler. But all in all it was a great day and we now know to order a single Chicken-on-a-Stick if we want a side dish!! Until now, we would drive past Penn's to get to all the other fast food joints, but now we will be pulling in for a heart attack to go a little more often.

A Tour of Jackson

I decided to go for a little drive around town today and take pictures so that y'all can take a tour of Jackson through the blog. Disclaimer...I was driving while taking these pictures, so they are not the best and no person or car was harmed.

There are pictures of the Reservoir, UMC, St. Andrew's, and the State Capital building...enjoy!

John-John

So for any of you that are wondering how our nephew, John, is doing, I figured I would share some recent photos. He is sporting his swim trunks and stylish hat (Uncle Andrew said it was girly, so MB - Andrew is on the look out for a new swim hat for John). Word is that John loved the pool and now has awesome splashing skills that he uses in the bath tub!!

Now his CC and Mac Daddy (don't ask how they came up with those names, but those are my parents for you) bought him a Halloween outfit last Halloween while eating at Cracker Barrel. As you can see it is a pumpkin - perfect for his round belly (picture coming later)!! His pumpkin cap is not nearly as cool as mine from many years ago!!

Now this is what I call "Little Gray" - I love trains and have loved them since a very young age. I also loved overalls and really didn't care to wear much else since they were like Granddaddy (big John). Anyway, I couldn't help but get little John a pair of conductor overalls. As you can see, he is cute as a button in them...now I will be buying him a new pair each fall until he decides they aren't cool anymore. Oh and yes, that is Dad (Mac Daddy) teaching him how to play - go figure right!

Okay so moving to my favorite! Here is John-John sporting his smile while viewing classic muscle cars at the Cruisin' the Coast event in OS. Now most of you are saying, "Oh isn't he so cute. Look at those eyes and that red hair." But below is the real John, check out that belly - man, what a hunk of loving! Andrew and I have decided that rather than dressing him as a pumpkin for Halloween, he would be a classic plumber with a pair of jorts (jean shorts) and a wife beater (a white tank-top) and no shoes. Or may be that is what happens when you are born in Alabama (lower Alabama in fact), live in Mississippi and have family in Georgia!! But no matter what - we love our little chunky monkey!!

Ready for Company...

The house is ready for company and so are we. We finally got everything moved and Sister put her finishing touches on things.

We are thrilled to have Steven, Adam and Katherine, and Gary and Lindley coming for a visit this weekend. And more excited about finally making it to a Tech game, nevermind the fact that it is in Mississippi and we are going to be rolling in a mini-van!!

GO JACKETS!!

Rain, Rain Go Away

According to the local news, this is day 14 for rain. Yep, that's right...we have had rain every day for 14 days. No we are not flooding like Atlanta - sorry folks in Atlanta, that really stinks...but it is more like Seattle than Jackson. I have seen blue skies once in the past week and that was for a short time yesterday around lunch. Otherwise it is gray and raining or foggy. So rain, rain go away - come again once I start working...

Sharp Objects

It seems as though I can no longer use sharp objects without injuring myself or destroying something else. It all started last Monday when I was trimming the overgrown bushes in our front yard. I was using the electric hedge trimmers and had gotten well over half way through the project - I must say the bushes were looking really nice when I finished with them. But as I working to trim the top of a bush that was up to the roof, I apparently lost track of the electric cord. All the sudden, the trimmers stopped and I was left holding the trimmer in my left hand and the cord in my right and they were no longer attached to each other. There was no big flash or shock, but I made a clean cut right through that sucker. Now according to Dad I did a much better job that Mom when she saws through the cords - my "new" end was only a foot or so from the old one...she usually gets it in the middle of the cord. No worries I have already bought a new end plug for the cord, now I just have to get Andrew to repair the damages...but he has learned his lesson...McGinnis girls need battery powered hedge trimmers.

Then on Thursday, I was working quickly to get some sweet potato fries in the oven before Andrew got home since the Tech game would be coming on soon and he got off work sooner than expected. I got that massive potato peeled and was well on my way to having it cut into fries when I noticed a "bad" spot on the side that really needed to be removed. I pick the stupid thing up and hold it with one had while carefully working my santoku knife around the spot...well of course, as my luck would have it, the knife slips and my index finger catches it. So now I have a fairly deep cut on my index finger that was pouring out blood and even I was beginning to feel a little sick. So I applied pressure, held it above my heart, and called Andrew. When he arrived he wasn't exactly sure what to think about it - apparently it is different treating family, if it is a stranger in the hospital, you stitch it up and let them go about their business. So long story short, we didn't go to the hospital but rather cleaned and wrapped it and let it go...

So I haven't been able to do any more trimming in the yard and have been banned from using knives until my finger heals...needless to say, my ability to use sharp objects is now in question.

Mississippi...It's Like Coming Home

My first trip to Jackson was the weekend after Match Day when we started the house search. I really didn't know what to expect but knew that it was going to be home at some point, so I best just accept what I found. It has nearing midnight as we crossed into Mississippi from Alabama on I-20 in the rain on that first trip out when I noticed the state line sign that said "Welcome to Mississippi - It's Like Coming Home." I remember laughing and thinking, sure thing Mississippi, we'll see if you ever feel like home.

Well, much to my surprise, I really liked the area. So on the second trip out, I read the sign again, and thought - okay well maybe you will be home, it isn't so bad. Now that I have moved all my belongs, own a home, have a purple car tag with a lighthouse (yes, most people in Mississippi knows that the coast is only a fraction of the State, but they are proud because it is the economic engine of this place!!), and paid some taxes here - I can call Mississippi home. And I finally understand what the state line sign along I-20 means - it is like coming home.
So even though the sign changed about two trips ago (it now says, "The Birthplace of Southern Music" - or something to that effect), I have finally made it home - at least to my temporary home for the next four years.

And We're Off...

So I am going to give this whole blogging thing a try...we will see how it goes.

In case you didn't know, Andrew and I have moved to Jackson for his residency. He has decided to do Med/Peds - it is joint program with Internal Medicine and Pediatrics - so he will be both an internist for the folks over 17/18 and a pediatrician for the little ones. I'm still working on the details of my job, but soon enough it will all come together.

Although Andrew has been living in our new house since June, I have been living and working in Macon. His folks have been so nice to let me live with them for the past couple of months, so it hasn't been too bad since I get to hang out with the dogs, watch all the HGTV I want at night, and enjoy the magic pantry that seems to refills itself.

But the good news for Andrew and me - my last day in Macon is next Friday. I am packing up the car and heading to Jackson on Saturday!!! Finally, we get to be together again!!