To mark my 20th year of being a cartoonist in Mississippi, I thought I’d dig out 20 tales from the past two decades. Some are funny. Some are serious. All tell the story of how I came to fall in love with this sometimes frustrating but always fascinating state we live in.
Soon after arriving in Jackson, I was invited to a literary club luncheon. It was a small gathering in a nice home in a nice neighborhood. There were probably 20 very well dressed ladies who were a bit older than my 28 years. (I didn’t ask ages, of course. That would have been rude.)
It was a very happy affair. Politeness was served along with the snacks and punch.
I set up my projector and stood up in front of the group. I think it was one of my first public speeches (I’ve given hundreds of them since). Anyway, I took a breath and started with this gem of a line, “I wanted to thank you guys for having me here today.”
Silence. Then stares. More silence.
It was like I had farted.
My sin? I realized I had said “you guys” when I was the only guy in the room. No “you” or “y’all.” You guys.
One lady said without a smile, “You ain’t from around here are you?”
I smiled and said, “I’m from Atlanta.”
She said, “Just as I thought, you’re a Yankee.”
I came back with the only response I could, “Sherman burned my town down, too.”
The rest of the presentation went well and was well received. But it was at that moment, I realized that I truly now lived in the deep South.
Coming soon, Drawing the Line, a collection of my favorite cartoons from the past 20 years in Mississippi.