One: Picayune, Mississippi, Jan. 14, 2016

It's a new year and a fresh start. It's time to put last year's fail behind us and get optimistic for the future. That's probably a good message to subscribe to every morning you open your eyes.

Anyway, I got sent to Mississippi on assignment and on my way back to the hotel I came across a Norfolk Southern Dash-9 switching cars at a siding in Picayune, Mississippi. I was struck how I used to look at these diesels as the newest, coolest things on the block. I was equally struck by how I wasn't surprised at all that a Dash 9 would be doing the work I remember GP-40-2s doing not too long ago and RS-3s doing when I was just a kid in Massachusetts. As my father used to say: "Time waits for no one."

This part of Mississippi butts up against Louisiana. While I was out roaming the back roads in this area I bought a quart of boiled peanuts and a Dr. Pepper from a roadside stand. I love my peanuts, so I was willing to try a few boiled ones. I can't say I loved them. The taste was fine but there was something about the texture. It was like eating boiled peas or Lima beans, which makes sense when you think about it.

The woman who sold me the peanuts gave me a plastic bag and a few sheets from a paper towel. It didn't take me long to figure out why I'd need the paper towel. Boiled peanuts are soggy and dripping with oil. They are harder to eat while driving than regular peanuts too because you have to dig them out of the shell with your teeth. While I won't be buying boiled peanuts again, I am glad a tried them. Trying new things is part of traveling and a big part of that is trying the local cuisine... even if it comes in a Ziploc bag.