Hill Country Living
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By Coulter Fussell
Spring has sprung, the weather is beautiful and I have a terrific head cold. At least that’s what I think is ailing me as it feels just like a head cold, of which I’ve had many. Of course, it could be allergies or The Rona. I’ve never had allergies or The Rona before, so there’s no way I can determine whether it feels familiar to either of those or not. Maybe it’s all three. I guess it doesn’t matter which of these afflictions I have is as there’s nothing I can do about any of them. The bright side is that I have a solid excuse for bad writing, unlike other weeks when I seem to exercise bad writing while in peak health.
I can’t report much from Water Valley this week as I’ve been traveling all over the Southeast for work. One of the stops I made was in the Lowcountry of South Carolina, and you bet I detoured into the little town of Hampton where the infamous Murdaugh case recently went down! I’ve mentioned before that I love to grab the local newspapers from the gas stations on road trips. The first thing I did when I pulled into Hampton for gas was grab an issue of The Hampton County Guardian. There first six pages were nothing but every single, solitary minute detail of the latest Murdaugh happenings. After that, the regular local news trickled in. The paper was also two dollars on account of, I’m sure, people like me driving into town to read about the Murdaugh Murders. I gladly paid it.
It’s not very often anymore that you find a newspaper like the North Mississippi Herald where all the articles are written by local reporters and the features are written by local columnists. I’m always pleased when I come across a newspaper that still functions in that way. And, I must say, last week’s issue of the Herald gave The Hampton County Guardian a run for its money in terms of dramatic content. That was a packed full issue.
My one day of leisure in Water Valley this past week was spent fishing at a lake out on County Road 275. ‘Tis the season for fishing and, man, it was relaxing. I caught one whole bream. What a feast! It didn’t help that a crazed lab was swim-stalking a giant goose around the lake the entire time. It was absolute pandemonium for two hours – maniacal and endless honking and barking. I never could figure out why the goose didn’t just fly off.
I did dig for my own worms before I went fishing and all the rain has summoned those massive Water Valley worms. Y’all know the ones I’m talking about – the ones fatter than jumbo drinking straws and long enough to tie your shoes with (which is a weird image. Apologies.) I think the town could capitalize on our should-be award winning worms. No wonder we caught the World’s Largest Crappie. He was probably baited by the World’s Largest Worm.
Lastly, the Peep bunny cut-out decorations on Main Street are too cute and make me want sugar every time I walk past them. Happy Easter to everyone!
