Bank of Holly Springs

Fielder's Choice

Seafood, crab hunting, more fun

Despite the rise in COVID19 cases, Thanksgiving was only slightly different for the Burlesons.

As has been our custom for many years, we made a trip to the beach.

I'm not sure when the tradition of heading south in late November began. Pam and I talked last week about many of the wonderful Thanksgiving memories from our road trips to Gulf Shores, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., and occasionally into Florida. Or then there was last year, when just Pam and I took a 30th anniversary plane ride to West Palm Beach, Fla.

It all started due to our children being out of school for the Thanksgiving break, plus the newspaper hitting the press early due to the holiday. And then recently, we started closing The South Reporter office Thursday and Friday, so employees could enjoy the holiday period with families or just take well-deserved breaks from the deadline pressures of our jobs.

This year the Burlesons were back in the Orange Beach/Perdido area, very close to the Florida line.

Pam and I were earlier arrivals on Tuesday afternoon, Nov. 24, while Emma, Erin and Erin's boyfriend Tommy made a stop in Hattiesburg and arrived a bit later that night. Andy and Brooke spent Thanksgiving in New York City.

Pam and I took advantage of the opportunity to go out and enjoy our annual anniversary dinner, this one celebrating 31 years. We chose one of our favorites, Mikee's Seafood. Masks were required on entrance, and restaurant personnel were doing the best they could as far as social distancing.

We started off with some of the finest raw oysters ever, with some cocktail sauce and crackers. Then I had stuffed catfish, with shrimp and crab. It was a good start to a good vacation.

Some of our favorite times as a family during the beach vacations come at breakfast. Pam always cooks ­ anything from pancakes, to eggs, to sausage and bacon, plus breakfast casserole or maybe cinnamon rolls.

Of course, our seafood eating didn't stop after that first night.

We enjoyed a to-go feast from Gulf Shores Steamer.

We dined in for lunch, after some of the crew did some shopping, at DeSoto Seafood Kitchen. Again, COVID precautions were in place. I couldn't refuse the oysters ­ raw and fried.

We closed the trip with a togo order from another one of our favorites, the Shrimp Basket.

We spent a couple of nights catching small crabs on the beach. Our hunts were very successful. Our bucket probably had 10 or 12 in it the first night and more the second.

The first night we didn't miss a single one we saw. A couple were challenging ­ making us run briefly into the ocean water. The next night, I think only one escaped.

A couple of the bigger ones made every effort possible to crawl out of the bucket.

I took a couple of afternoon naps in my beach chair.

Plus, we watched some football, particularly Alabama's win over Auburn, and enjoyed cards and board games. Tabletop curling turned out to be a favorite, and my wife Pam proved to be the MVP.

A fun tradition continues.

Holly Springs South Reporter

P.O. Box 278
Holly Springs, MS 38635
PH: (662) 252-4261
FAX: (662) 252-3388
www.southreporter.com