Hi ya'll from Mississippi

This has been an exciting couple of weeks. Everyone at Waverley is counting the minutes until the last morning tour Saturday morning. Of course, the mansion is open everyday of the year, but not with these pilgrimage crowds.

We’ve been in a dead zone. No internet or cell phone service in the campground. We drive to Columbus or Melanie’s to check email and make phone calls. You don’t realized you are hooked until you start having withdrawals.

There has been some kind of excitement during each tour. Melanie had an allergic reaction and became violently ill ten minutes before the first tour. Steve sat in the kitchen with her as she lay on the kitchen floor in her mother’s 40 year old pilgrimage dress. Steve tried to get her out of it but she was a dish rag. The both of us finally got her changed and home. Steve babysat and the rest of us covered her part of the tour. She recovered that night and figured out she is allergic to her hair dye. Isn’t that weird? Then a woman fell off the front porch and broke her ankle. We had to call an ambulance for her (caution, lawsuits may occur). You never know what people are going to do. Melanie’s niece saw the woman taking a picture while she was walking down the stairs, not paying attention to anything. One day there was a terrible storm with tornado warnings with lightening and thunderstorms. The tourists were stuck in the house so we had to entertain them with stories. Then the lights went out. Melanie, with her wonderful sense of humor, said “Let’s give ghost tours.” One day it was so cold we wore pants under our dresses. Of course, who would notice? We’ve had nice people, rude people, small children, school field trips, and lots of senior citizens on tour busses. People have come in from all over the world, but my favorite couple was from Franklin, Tennessee.

We tell stories of Colonial Young that built the mansion and his family, masked balls at the mansion, the civil war, and the Snow family’s restoration of the home. The antiques that furnish the mansion are incredible. Our tours depend on people’s interest. Some just want history and some just want to know about the antiques, and some just want to talk about the gardens (five acres of formal gardens).

I have only worked the pilgrimage tours, which are four hours a day three days a week, but it has been exhausting. We’ve spent our spare time just hanging out at the campground or with Melanie. Sara and Keith did get to come for a couple of days and seemed to have a good time. Sara loved the azaleas and Melanie filled her room with fresh cuttings in vases. Melanie spoiled them.

We spent one whole day installing an antenna on Melanie roof for her TV only to figure out her rabbit ears worked better. So, we uninstalled it. Steve was so tired. We’ve run errands for Melanie’s father, Mr. Robert, and for Melanie. We’ve helped to cook food for Waverley. Mr. Robert likes to feed all of the tour guides after each Pilgrimage tour. The West Point Air Force Base spouses volunteer each year to help at all of the houses. Some tours we will have six or seven volunteers. One lady told me sixty people volunteered from the Air Force Base this year. There are about 15 different tours for Pilgrimage. Most of these homes are not open the rest of the year.

We’re going fishing today on Mr. Robert’s pond. It’s supposed to have all kinds of fish, including some rather large catfish. I’m hoping to have fish for dinner. We’ll see. I could go on and on about all of this. I’ve been here two weeks and there’s so much to tell. Maybe I’ll start blogging some of the Waverley stories we tell. They’re fascinating.

Until next time, this is Diana the Traveler signing off.