Kudos Extended To Main Street Association For A Great Blues Fest
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Hill Country Living
By Coulter Fussell
The first annual Casey Jones Blues Festival took place in downtown Water Valley this past Saturday. I’m glad they didn’t charge admission at the gate because I attended the festival no less than seven separate times in one day. That’s how many times I walked down to Main Street! Come to think of it, one could claim that I actually existed entirely within the Casey Jones Blues Festival all day as my house is less than 100 yards from Main Street.
It really left like I was there the entire time even when I was just sitting in my home. I most especially felt in attendance when Gary Burnside started playing on the stage at the end of Panola Street and the sound waves shook the floorboards under the chair I was sitting in – upstairs in my bedroom on Wood Street. It didn’t bother me any! That’s exciting for a Saturday afternoon in Water Valley!
I also appreciated the quality of the crafts and goods that were sold in the booths lining Main Street. It looked like there might have been a requirement that the goods for sale be some level of homemade and that makes a real difference in the overall festival experience. There was also a large variety of goods. This wasn’t just a festival made up of endless booths selling wooden spoons and birdhouses (and I say that appreciating and owning both wooden spoons and birdhouses!) At the Casey Jones Blues Festival one could get anything from homemade cakes to crocheted Easter eggs to local honeys to tie-dyed overalls to – most interestingly – hand painted fluorescent baby doll arms.
The Kid Zone was active all day. Although the giant Ninja Turtle on top of one of the many bounce houses was unsettling in ways I can’t quite explain here, our town’s kids had an absolute blast. My favorite scene from the Kid Zone was that of an El Charrito waiter riding a pony at the little petting zoo. He was on break, I assume, as he was still wearing his work apron that had a giant handful of paper-covered straws stuck in the side pocket.
He was enjoying some chill, quiet time on a pony as it walked in a slow, small circle for five minutes. The other ponies had tiny little kids riding on them. But that one was carrying a full grown working man. As a former server, I approve this and say it beats an old school restaurant backdoor cigarette break any day.
My only festival day regrets were that I didn’t run the 5k and that my only food purchase all day was a single cup of coffee from Magnolia (the coffee was great!) The variety of local food trucks looked terrific. Next year I plan to run the 5k race on festival day so that I can justify, calorie-wise, sampling a plate from every food truck.
Big thanks to everyone at The Water Valley Main Street Association. I can only imagine how much work it takes to throw a festival, much less a first-time festival. Y’all did a great job and we all look forward to next year!
