Recently, I flew with Dan Fordice in his P-51D Mustang Charlotte’s Chariott II and Paul Barnett in his Mustang Rosalie as part of the honor flight in memory of our friend John Mosley. Fourteen warbirds, ranging from C-47s to AT-6 Texans roared across the Central Mississippi skies. I know John smiled from above. Here is one painting I did from the day and my current status of another one.
After 22 years of being able to walk to the Mississippi State Capitol from the office, it is weird having to park. Once I found a space, parked the car and headed toward the big gold eagle. As I was walking from the parking lot, I met up with a man in a suit. He was navigating the construction and the mud, so I figured it was wise to follow him.
He had been here before.
We struck up a conversation. While I was cynical (a habit, I am afraid) about the session, he had great optimism. “I believe in Mississippi and want it to better.” While we were pretty different, we definitely had that in common. “It’s a great state full of talented people.” Once again, we were singing off the same hymnal. He, too, had moved here from another place — Detroit in his case. He also had lived here for a while — 18 years to my 26. I wished him a good day as we went through security and wished him luck. He believes in our state and his heart is pointed at that North Star.
It was inspiring, to be honest. And a reminder that there are good people here working hard to make this place better because they believe in it. And there is a lot of things — and people to believe in.
For example”:
When I went into the rotunda, there were some familiar faces mulling around. It was Chapel Hart, the sensationally talented country group from Hart’s Chapel, Mississippi (right near Popularville). I had seen them on America’s Got Talent and hearing them sing live, I can assure you — they have talent. There was no Auto Tune — just pure, clear harmonies in the echo of the busy Capitol. Chapel Hart’s members are a kind as they are talented. They took time to speak to everyone and pose for selfies (or us-sies).
They are the Mississippi that I love. People with dreams and talent who scratch and claw and don’t listen to the haters and the doubters. Just like the man in the suit who I walked in with.
As frustrating as our state can be — and as maddening as some of our leaders can be — there are so many good people who are working hard to make it better. Yes, there is great need. But there is also great people who are attacking that need. They are using their talents to bring us joy — or to find a solution for systemic problems that keep so many of our fellow Mississippians held prisoner.
I walked back to my car with a little more optimism. A lot goes on at the State Capitol. Sometimes it is for the good.
This morning, as far as I know, Mike Leach is in a hospital room battling for his life. The situation has been described as serious and dire — a fourth-and-long situation. What I know for sure is that he faces a tough battle ahead .
My prayers are with him, his family and his doctors.
Mike Leach has been good for the state of Mississippi. Whoever did the Stepbrothers meme with him and Lane Kiffin nailed it. Their relationship has made that rivalry fun — and more competetitive (if that is possible.) They stood up together and did what was right for this state. They gig each other and that has been entertaining. Leach’s funny rants are always entertaining. And I can’t even begin to mention all he has brought to the game of football in general.
And during a time when there seems to be so much loss and sadness, this is a gut punch. We’ve had so many gut punches lately. Maybe why this is extra hard.
I went to Tennessee, but I am Team Leach this morning. My heart goes out to all my Mississippi State friends. And I’m praying for a Christmas miracle for the Pirate.
Get well, Coach. Mississippi needs you.
🏴☠️
When I’d visit my grandparents, there were two book that I’d always read. One was the book “Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo” by Ted Lawson, who was one of the Doolittle Raiders (and the one most severely injured survivors) and the other was a book about the Flying Tigers. The Flying Tigers were a group of volunteer America pilots who were led by Claire Lee Chennault. They fought the Japanese in China before Pearl Harbor in the Curtis P-40B Warhawk — America’s top fighter at the outset of the war. And while not a match for the Japanese Zero, the Warhawk could hold its own in skilled hands. The Flying Tigers destroyed 296 Japanese aircraft to only 14 losses of their own.
Here are a couple of “paintings” I’ve done in honor of those two books: the P-40B (in American livery) somewhere in the South Pacific and the B-25 over Tokyo.
The Japanese screwed up. Big time.
Sure, they did score a tactical victory by sinking the battleships of the U.S. Pacific Fleet — ships that had only recently been moved out to Hawaii from San Diego as a show of force. But their victory was in many ways their first defeat.
Most importantly, they didn’t get the U.S. aircraft carriers. Our carriers, which would be replace the battleship as the most important capital ship of the war, were out of the harbor. The U.S.S. Enterprise, which would lead a storied career during the war, was delayed by a storm. Fate has a way of turning the tides of war.
There was no third wave. That left the dry docks, the oil tanks and the submarine base untouched. The dry docks would be very busy as the U.S. rose back up from the mud of Pearl Harbor. All the battleships except to the U.S.S. Arizona and U.S.S. Utah (an obsolete target ship) were raised. Of those, all returned to combat except for the U.S.S. Oklahoma. If the oil tanks had been hit, we’d have been out of the war for a year. And the subs? They arguably became one of the most important parts of the Pacific War — they crippled Japan’s economy.
Pearl Harbor led to the Doolittle Raid which freaked the Japanese out so badly they tried to set a trap for the U.S. carriers at the Battle of Midway. We won a huge victory there which turned the tide of the war.
Fate. Decisions. Resilience. So many lessons can be learned from Pearl Harbor. It was the spark that lit the fire that forged our nation. It’s important to remember that in our own lives. When we have our own days that will live in infamy, how will be respond? Will we rise up or give up?
I’d love to visit my dad this holiday season. He’d light up when I came home. I was having a particularly blue and lonely morning this morning, missing my two oldest sons. Then I thought, this will be me someday.
Every year, I do a series of Christmas-themed drawings. This one is inspired by Cades Cove, one of my favorite places in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.
This is part of a month-long series of things I’m grateful for. So far, it has been my wife, my kids and my job. Today, it is the place that has helped shape me.
When I got the call about The Clarion-Ledger cartooning job back in 1996, I initially thought, naw. I had a great job in San Diego, California and enjoyed living there (it’s a great city). I also liked my co-workers. But I prayed about it and mailed in a packet of my work to David Hampton at The Clarion-Ledger.
Twenty-six years later, here I am.
I am not a Mississippian by birth. But Amy and I are from Marietta, Georgia and knew we wanted to start a family. Being 400 miles from them instead of a continent away was a huge selling point. And let’s be honest: San Diego is paradise for weather but Mississippi is paradise for political cartoonists. I’ve had great material to work with. I’ve been named a two-time Pulitzer Finalist while working for a smaller newspaper. That says a lot about the material I’ve had to draw about over the years. If the judges had met Frank Melton, I’d have won four years in a row!
I’m grateful for my crack team of comedy writers in the state Capitol building.
I initially thought I’d do a Deion Sanders — come in for a couple of years and move onto the next big thing. But something happened — I liked it here and loved the people who I worked with. I almost moved to Tulsa (way more money) but stayed here after I got a raise (which was then taken away, but I digress). Amy found a great teaching job and our boys were in fantastic schools where they thrived. That was a big reason why we didn’t go to Tulsa. I also knew the newspaper business was about to struggle; I had better chance of surviving here. And once again, with my parents being elderly, it was better to be closer to Atlanta. I bought a new car and put 50,000 miles in one year when they got sick. I am grateful I was close enough to be able to be with them before they died.
When I took the job here, the main reason was because of the people.
While on my interview, I fell in love with the folks I met. I feel like Mississippi has made me a better person. I’m less naive and it helped honed some of the rough edges off me personally. Mississippi challenges you daily — and can be a source of growth if you allow it. It’s also a land of storytellers who tell our complicated story beautifully through the arts. I love our artistic, musical and writing communities — while I’m probably not a part of any of those groups, I have loved getting to know and interview them. I do a lot of things now — someone asked me what I do and I replied, “I’m a storyteller.” I couldn’t have done that without Mississippi.
I don’t know what the future will bring but I am very grateful for the time I have spent here. I will keep telling stories for as long as I can. And I am grateful for the good, the bad, and the blessings they both have brought.
P.S. A quick shout out to Dan Turner for telling me about the job and for David Hampton for hiring me at the C-L. Mississippi wasn’t on my bingo card growing up, but I feel like I won because it’s on there now.
