(And I thought I would add my own insights to my husband's memories...tlm)
1. It must have been the fall of 1991 or the summer of 1992. Lorraine & I were not married, and hadn't even considered the idea. The "Wonders" series of international exhibitions was going strong in Memphis, and the Rhodes clan had attended the previous blockbuster, "Catherine the Great." So, they invited me along to see the "Ottoman Sultans." This was when they had that great Toyota van, with the engine basically underneath the driver & front passenger. The middle-row seats rotated all the way around, so the back of the car could have a little party along the way. Somehow, I got voted to drive...... the entire Rhodes family in my charge..... all the way to Memphis and into downtown to the Convention center. I was scared to death, as I had never before been to Memphis, and now was about to drive all around it. But Melvin sat up in the passenger seat, never seemed worried at all, and actually took a good bit of pleasure at my discomfort. It was a great trip.
2. In August of 1991, just before Jan's father died, I was invited to tag along with the Rhodes family to the balloon races in Corinth, MS. I had never seen a hot air balloon, much less been close to one, and it was a tremendous treat that instilled a desire to one day have my own balloon. That day will come later on. At some point on the trip, we landed at the "mall" in Corinth. This was a rather sad place, as most of the stores had gone out of business. For some reason that escapes me now, all of the girls & I began speaking with an exaggerated Southern drawl and referred to Melvin as "Colonel Daddy." Melvin got quite a kick out of it, and played right along. This carried right on into the local Wal-Mart, where some back-to-school shopping had to be done, as school was beginning the next week. The looks on some of the folk's faces was priceless.
(Not only did Daddy play along, he began calling us the most Southern-sounding names imaginable: Magnolia Blossom, Camellia Bloom, and Sweet Pea. He even called Marcus "Junior". In addition to all of that, Colonel Daddy also walked with a limp...)
3. While Lorraine & I were at Walt Disney World, Melvin & Jan drove down twice during the four months to visit.
On the second trip, as we were nearing the end of our time there, they drove back Lorraine's car and a lot of our stuff. There was a cast-member only store at the Magic Kingdom that sold merchandise at drastically reduced prices. At some point while we were there, they had a life-size Mickey & Minnie that became available. Lorraine bought them. They took up the entire back seat of Lorraine's car on the way home. Melvin loved the looks from people on the road as he would pass them and they would realize that Mickey & Minnie were in the car. (Daddy reported that he did his best Disney wave to everyone he saw along the road.)4. Melvin & I did not do very much by ourselves, but he & I both wanted to see the movie "Castaway" when it came out. So, we loaded up and headed to the theater. I loved it, but he only found it to be mediocre. (Not surprising that a man who lived in a house with a wife and three daughters wouldn't be too impressed by a movie with almost no dialogue - it was probably the longest "quiet time" he had ever had.)
5. For Christmas of 2000, the Rhodes clan took a big family trip to Gatlinburg, TN. We stayed in a fabulous chalet up on top of the mountain. Jan & Melvin got there several hours before the Moseley's arrived, but the met us at the bottom of the mountain to lead us up. It was very cold that week, never getting above freezing. There was snow on the ground, and we were somewhat nervous about heading up those narrow winding roads in the dark. Melvin took off like a bat out of hell, and we had no choice but to keep up. The road had no shoulder, and you had the choice of colliding with a sheer wall of mountain, or an immediate drop of hundreds of feet off the side of the mountain. There were literally cars in the trees on the side of the road that had missed a curve and gone off the mountain. It was more than a little nerve-wracking, but we made it. (Seriously: there were cars suspended in mid-air on trees and utility poles. At least one of the girls was in tears before we were halfway up, and I didn't blame her one bit!)
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