Had the free breakfast at the hotel (courtesy of my "golf" package -- fortunately I don't have to play golf!). After briefly returning to my room I was headed downstairs in the elevator when it stopped on the 4th floor. I looked up - and saw my friend Cheryl, mother of the groom, getting on. Most surprising, that we happened to meet on the elevator. She and husband Steve were going out to eat lunch and then head to the wedding venue to help set up. They drove me to the Ohr-O'Keefe Museum of Art where we had a light lunch together. They headed off to the lodge and left me to explore the museum.
George Ohr was a late 19th/early 20th century potter in Biloxi who produced artistic ceramic work far ahead of the norm for his time (and was also quite a strange person, even weird). In addition to his pottery the museum had exhibits of works by Andy Warhol and Jun Kaneko (huge, ceramic heads) and of Richmond Barthe, a 20th century African-American sculptor born in Mississippi. All were interesting -- and small enough to be well viewed and enjoyed in about an hour. The buildings of the museum, still under construction, were designed by architect Frank Gehry. His "shoo-fly" terraces at the top of the building offer nice views of the Gulf.
After the museum I walked along the beach, including taking the I-110 pedestrian boardwalk which, like the freeway, loops out over the Gulf.
There were some interesting views -- and a lot of wind. Northern Mississippi had some severe weather today, including thunderstorms and tornadoes, and we were getting some leftovers from that.
I continued on down to the Biloxi lighthouse. Made of cast iron it was constructed in 1848. I assume that originally it was located right on the water. Now it is in the median between the east and westbound lanes of Biloxi Beach Boulevard.
On the way back to the hotel I walked through some residential areas and saw many vacant lots, houses for sale, and clear signs of the damage left by Hurricane Katrina.
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