Day 198, Monday, December 19

Last night, I had to call Uncle John and Aunt Penny for directions to their house because it’s been so long since I last visited them that I’d forgotten where they live. I’ve not seen them since my Grandpops died in fall of 1992 and it’s been since my sophomore year in college that I’ve visited Mobile. I don’t have many relatives left alive which makes it that much more important for me to try to stay in contact with those I’ve still got! It was really great to pull in last night and reunite with them.
I rolled around Mobile today revisiting old sites. I saw Old Shell Road School where I attended first though 3rd grades. The large oak tree in the playground which I remember playing around is still standing but the school has changed. When I was there it was a poor public school. As a white student, I was the extreme minority in the school. I think that was incredibly healthy and instructive for me as a child. It’s now a magnet school for the arts and is apparently in high demand. One of my interesting memories from that schoool yard is that it's the fisrt place I ever caught a snake. I was looking for blue tailed skinks in the grass along one of the back walls of the school and ended up catching a llittle Midland Brown snake instead. Needless to say, I remember my teacher not being overwhelmingly enthused when I came running in with the snake in my hand to show her!
The house where we lived, 14 North Reed Avenue, has changed a lot. It’s now tan instead of gray. The huge azalea which used to fill our front yard with a carpet of pink flowers is now gone. The magnolia tree Dad and Mom planted is now twinned (what a shame) and is about a foot and a half in diameter at the base. The alley we used to play in which was fully graveled (is that a word?) is now largely grassed over except for the utility truck tracks. Down the alley, the garage behind the house that used to belong to Mr. Diamond is still there. I can’t remember how many times we threw rocks through the upstairs window in that garage. Damn kids!
I visited briefly with Martelle Scott this afternoon. Miss Martelle is a long time family friend from Government Street Presbyterian Church. She’s just celebrated her 82nd birth day and is more energetic than most 60 year olds! She’s a real dynamo! We chatted for a while and arranged dinner plans for tomorrow night. This evening, John and Penny took me to dinner at a seafood restaurant across Mobile Bay. Grilled shrimp, flounder fillet, crab legs, corn on the cob, sweet tea, and corn grits! YUM!