Mississippi Book Festival and A Fall

Our OLLI group 

This was my first trip to the Mississippi Book Festival at the capitol building in Jackson and surrounding grounds and streets. Anything outdoors in August generally holds little interest for me, but after hearing it widely publicized on Mississippi Public Broadcasting and the online news publication Mississppi Today by writer/cartoonist Marshall Ramsey, I chose to go with a group of OLLI friends from Hattiesburg on Aug. 19. Even with all the advance information and recommendations, I was still amazed and overwhelmed at the wealth of information and offerings we found there--something for everyone's interest, prompting us to make long lists of books to read later. 

Linda and I in the hallway planning our day

Virginia Magee Butler, panelist on author biographers

We studied the festival guide to plan which panel discussions and author talks we wanted to attend and the locations for each. The presentation on Civil Rights was especially meaningful, moderated by Pamela D. C. Junior, the recently retired curator of the Two Mississippi Museums, and featured three authors, Devery S. Anderson, A Slow, Calculated Lynching: The Story of Clyde Kennard, Kathleen W. Wickham, James Meredith: Breaking the Barrier, and Alvin Hall, Driving the Green Book: A Road Trip Through the Living History of Black Resistance. 

My good friend Virginia Magee Butler, author of Becoming Ezra Jack Keats, was a panelist featuring author biographers.

For Food Pavillion, Food Trucks, Authors Alley, and Booksellers Row, we had to leave the building and face the 100-degree heat. Walking on the sidewalk after getting a book signed, I stumbled on a little curb (walking into a small bit of shade behind a monument for a rest before continuing up the steps into the building). Falling happens so fast and I can only think I am being as careful as possible, but obviously this is not true. Help came quickly after the first person asked, "Are you okay?" I was taken by a vehicle to an ambulance, then to Baptist Hospital, where the cut above the eye and bruises to my face were addressed and a CT was done. There is a fracture of the cheekbone which will heal without intervention, and the cut was glued shut.  I saw my opthalmalogist in Hattiesburg and spent about a week at home in my recliner with pain medication keeping me fairly comfortable, and feeling is gradually returning to my face and teeth. This event has been quite troubling and humbling, prompting lots of introspection. Lying on a stretcher in an ambulance at any age is tough, but at 87, it is especially sobering. Friends and family have been loving and attentive, and I hate like everything to cause such drama and worry.  

The cats were quite pleased to find me in the recliner so much and took turns keeping me company. Rahrah's ultrasound after her surgery does not show any more stones forming in her bladder and I'm hoping the new recommended food will be good for both of them. Although it is still being ignored, I bought a 32" tall scratching post from Chewy that I'm hoping Rahrah will find more attractive than the door facings. It took Elizabeth a month to like her cat tree.

Rahrah's turn on my lap