I just heard a good one today that made me laugh. It came from Dan Williams, Director of the Men's Chorus that I sing in. My group, The Gospel Messengers, will be singing in concert next Friday night with the Swanee Quintet. The Swannee Quintet is a revered, classic black gospel group that has been around for over 50 years, so it is an honor for us to be singing on the same program with them.

Dan, who grew up in Mississippi, said when he heard we'd be on the same program with the group, "You're picking high cotton, now." Never having picked cotton, or even been to Mississippi, that's a regional expression I never heard. But, it's easy to understand. If you were picking cotton out in the blazing sun in Mississippi during the summer, dragging a ten foot sack down the rows, it would be a lot easier on your back if you were "picking high cotton."

Jerry