Peyton's Really Nice Fish!

Chris Neese of Holcomb, Mississippi is so proud of his son Peyton in getting this really nice fish recently.  Chris is raising his son right in our great wild Mississippi outdoors.  Good job young man!  Way to go!

A Couple Of Big Sows!

Michael Macko's son is shown here with a couple of big hogs (sows) that were killed in Holmes County, MS recently.  I can relate to this picture while killing a 180 lbs. sow and a smaller one running at a deer camp in Holmes County.  They are running wild in the Delta and north Mississippi.  When I shot my first sow a few years ago there were at least 12 eating in a field.  It was three big ones and the rest were smaller and I aimed for the head while she was eating and dropped her in her tracks and reloaded and shot another one running.  I was actually deer hunting when they came out to feed.  We do have a wild hog epidemic in Mississippi where they are doing a lot of damage to the landscape and you can hunt hogs year-round.  It was an awesome hunt and I have a picture of me with my hog taking up the whole tailgate.  I took it to a processor in town and enjoyed the meat for a full year.  My congrats to Michael and his son on a job well done in our great wild Mississippi outdoors.  I'm thinking it's barbeque time!

A Fair Catch

Ricky Hull of Laurel, Mississippi made a fair catch in the last three mornings fishing.  The cat has its eyes on the prize (fish)!  Watch out!

Ricky and his son teamed up and caught 125 fish and should have the freezer full by now.  My congrats to Ricky and his son on a fine mess of fish in our great wild and wonderful Mississippi outdoors!

Wiggle Worm Will & Celebration

Yesterday, I was invited to a "Baby Reveal" celebration party to find out what the sex of the new baby that my Granddaughter will be having in October.  It will be another "boy" and my fourth Great Grandson!  We had a very nice cookout at my daughter Debra's home in Raymond, MS with family/friends attending with hamburgers, hot dogs, chips, fruit and dip with all the trimmings!  It was an exciting time for everyone and we all had a great time.  Also, got to see my Grandson Ethan who's home from his deployment to Africa with his wife, Caitlynn.  He will be re-enlisting again to serve our country in the Air Force and has been stationed at Pope Field, NC since 2012.  My Grandson, Stephen was also there.  Here are some pictures that were taken of the celebration.  

"Will" was all over the place!  I had my hands full and what fun!

Wally the family dog!

Grandsons, Michael "Ethan" home from the Air Force with Stephen (photobombing) and Ethan's wife Caitlynn.  (Blue/pink necklaces were worn by all the attendees).

 "Will" with a faint kiss on the cheek from his Great Gran Gran!

Granddaughter Lucy Ann with her first son, William David "Will".

Blue smoke bomb reveals Great Grandson Number Four!

Congratulations Lucy!

Daytime Yote Action

Mike Neal of Coila, Mississippi killed this healthy looking yote yesterday morning while it was headed towards where some buzzards were gathered.  Good riddance to all the coyotes in our wild Mississippi outdoors!

Happy "11th" Birthday, Tidus David

Today, my Great Grandson Tidus David is 11 years old.  I haven't seen him since these pictures (shown below) were taken because he lives in Montana now.  I'm wishing him the very best birthday yet and I love and miss him so much!  

Tidus David Barnhart

A picture of Tidus David with his Great Gran Gran almost 10 years ago.  Have a Blessed one, my dear Great Grandson!  I'm sending you lots of love and hugs from Mississippi to Montana!  xoxo

A Guest Post On Hurricane Preparedness

The Atlantic hurricane season will be slightly above-average this year according to the Colorado State University (CSU) hurricane researchers.  As of today, we have a potential tropical depression that may form within the next 48 hours and a hurricane with 5 days named, Alberto in the Gulf of Mexico.

Hurricane Preparedness

Hurricane season can cause widespread damage and leave your business with lost revenues and extra expenses.  While the most comprehensive [and most expensive] insurance policies can cover most, if not all damages associated with natural disasters, if we’re being honest with ourselves, the majority of small business owners can’t afford to go all-in on their coverage; not to mention that storms can still cause an elongated or permanent loss of clientele. So, with lessons learned in the aftermath of Hurricanes Harvey and Maria, here are some tips to keep your small business not just surviving, but thriving this hurricane season (June 1 – November 30).

  1. Create a plan and practice with your team - Plan, prepare, and practice! This is essentially the foundation for your business continuity and lessens the impact of a hurricane. While technology typically affords many of us advanced warnings of natural disasters, if there is no contingency plan in place there is not much that can be done to keep your business operating as normal.  Assemble a team of key personnel to organize planning:  run drills and conduct training to include identifying critical equipment, file storage, & relocation of essential supplies.  Lastly, develop evacuation procedures including routes & exits.

  

  2. Backup Data – Information technology is crucial to sustaining your business and keeping competitive.  Run backups regularly and ensure that they are performed in a timely manner. Secure data and proprietary information with a safe & dependable off-site storage facility.

  3. Make a survival kit - Include flashlights, batteries, personal documents such as ID cards and badges, a 2-week supply of water and non-perishable foods for everyone, and a first aid kit. That said, don’t pack too much as the emergency survival kit should be easy to carry and with ease of mobility.

  4. Purchase a generator – Power outages can affect every industry, from hospitality including hotels & restaurants to food warehouses and data centers. We all think lights off when we hear “power outage” but for businesses, a power outage can cause the loss of thousands in spoiled food, possible deaths due to extreme heat (as recently seen in Florida nursing homes), and for data centers the loss of power can exceed $100 million as experienced by Delta Airlines in the summer of 2016. Backup power generators allow you to keep access to vital resources for continued business productivity. Heating and cooling, refrigeration, and yes lighting are all necessities and without power to keep these resources businesses run the risk of extreme loss. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), almost 40 percent of small businesses never reopen their doors after a disaster.

Don’t wait until it’s too late to take action and protect your business and your team. Plan ahead and practice with your staff so that everyone is prepared and ready in the event of a natural disaster. An emergency action plan does not guarantee the worst-case scenario won’t arise but it can increase your company’s odds of survival. As once stated by Stephen King, “There is no harm in hoping for the best as long as you are prepared for the worst.”  Contact Industrial Motor Power Corporation today for backup/emergency power.

Some More May Flowers With Raindrops!

Enjoy!

Meet Ms. Yelp!

This may be my favorite footage ever! A great segment of a hen turkey yelping, clucking and purring. Ohio youth season 2009 with a member of Beyond The Backyard. We didn't get the gobbler you hear in the background. Sit back, relax and enjoy the sounds of spring.

Chris Wells

His Boy Had A Good Day!

Jay Pastis of Tupelo, Mississippi said his boy had a good day!  I would say so myself.  Dad is raising him right in our great wild and wonderful Mississippi outdoors!  Congratulations to this young fisherman!

Look what's for Supper!

This Little Guy Had Fun!

Dustin McLeod of Escatawpa, Mississippi took his son fishing recently.

It looks like they both made a nice haul of catfish and had lots of fun catching them.  

Dustin is raising his son right in our great wild and wonderful Mississippi outdoors!  Congratulations to both fishermen!

M/V Jeffrey G Hits Bridges Yesterday!

I got word from a friend that a barge hit the bridges going southbound yesterday afternoon.  I took off to the Mississippi River but saw no action except for some tugboats out in the river.  I found out that the M/V Jeffery G with a 30-barge tow struck the old U.S. 80 bridge around 2:00 with a grain barge carrying corn sinking.  

It struck pier 4 which is on the Louisiana side of the bridge.  The railroad bridge was closed while a bridge engineer examined the pier and reopened it.  The 30 barges in the tow broke free and one of them sank following the collision.  The other barges were corralled with help from Ergon Marine.  The Sheriff said that there is no danger to the public and no hazardous material involved.  The M/V Jeffrey G is part of the Marquette Transportation Company's river fleet with a homeport of St. Louis, Missouri. 

The American Queen slipping past the sunken barge for an early Vicksburg landing.  Photo by Paul Ingram

Photo by Paul Ingram

Video by Paul Ingram

I took this picture of the American Queen this afternoon while looking down towards the Children's Art Park At Catfish Row.  Her passengers enjoyed a beautiful warm day of touring our historic civil war town of Vicksburg:  The Key To The South!

Sunday - May 20, 2018 pictures of the torn up barge by Paul Ingram.

Barge pushed to the west bank on Lousiana side.  The bridge pier won this one!

Gonna Whoop Somebody!

Two Riverboats @ Riverfront Today

We are so fortunate to have three to four riverboats to show up at our riverfront every week.  Today, the American Duchess and America came for a full day of touring our historic civil war town.  This past Sunday the Queen of the Mississippi was moored here.  

Pictures of both American Duchess and America was taken looking down at the Children's Art Park at Catfish Row.  You can also see the Vicksburg Riverfront Murals on the floodwall as well. 

I drove to the waterfront and was able to get both riverboats in the picture.  Friday the American Queen will be back with her passengers to take a tour of our beautiful city of Vicksburg, MS.   

River Level: 34.36 feet - Change: -0.68 foot - Flood Stage: 43 feet

An Official Fisherman

Shannon Davis of Madison, MS said his daughter got this monster fish recently and she says it's a 5 pounder.  Dad said he's not sure about that but, that story officially makes her a fisherman.  

My congrats to his daughter on a job well done in our great wild and wonderful Mississippi outdoors!  I'm sure she's hooked for life...as it should be.