Mississippi on the Mall

Mississippi on the Mall,

underneath the shadow of

the Lincoln Memorial.

The Mississippi Society, a nonprofit organization in DC that promotes Mississippi's interests in the capital, hosted the 21st annual "Mississippi on the Mall" next to the Lincoln Memorial in late June. I had heard from a friend that the states have their own societies that have special events during summer and that I should go to one. This particular event included fried catfish, hush puppies, cole slaw, and a blues/rock band. Another friend really wanted to go to this event, and I thought it might be a good opportunity for me to network with some people who might be able to get me a job. From what I was able to glean from the internet, it looked as though the event would be full of bigwigs from Mississippi who are working in DC, so maybe I could meet a lobbyist or something who could help me out. As it turned out, I didn't meet anyone new who was older than me. It was mostly a reunion for all the Ole Miss undergrads who were working this summer as unpaid interns around town. There were some non-college age folk, but they didn't stay around long once they ate their catfish and hush puppies. There were also some non-Ole-Miss college undergrads. Every Mississippi university, including my alma mater Mississippi College, had a table set up where we could get regalia for our schools and sign up for alumni network stuff. Therefore, I could see who came from Mississippi State or Southern Miss according to who was carrying which hand-fans. Still, it looked less like "Mississippi on the Mall" and more like "Oxford on the Mall." Every girl was wearing a summer sundress and at least an inch of makeup. Girls can be quite pretty in these dresses, assuming they are already naturally pretty, but I've never seen women dress like this on a regular basis outside of Oxford. A couple years ago I went to the Double Decker Festival, an art festival in Oxford just down the street from Ole Miss, and I distinctly remember thinking, "I have never seen this many 18-to-25-year-old girls in dresses on a Saturday summer afternoon." Just as St Andrews doesn't represent real Scotland, Oxford doesn't represent real Mississippi. There was fried catfish and hush puppies, which I always love, but the beer was so frothy that every time I poured a cup at least half of my drink was foam. Considering the cost of admission, there was very little bang for the buck. The only part of the event that might have been worth the price tag was a venue underneath the shadow of the Lincoln Memorial, but even then I think the event was way overpriced.

George McConnell & the Nonchalants