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Apr

17

2017

Celebrating Retirement With Flare In Tunica, Mississippi

 Celebrating Retirement With Flare In Tunica, Mississippi

Angie, my longtime friend, and I were celebrating our recent retirement with a Creedence Clearwater Revisited concert at Gold Strike—one of the eight casinos in Tunica, Mississippi. We may be a pair of little old ladies in training, but we know how to have fun. Starting with the drive.

We had the music streaming—loudly—all the way to Tunica, with the pair of us belting out everything from “Under My Thumb” by The Rolling Stones to the Eagles’ “Life in the Fast Lane.” Along the road I thought of Abraham Lincoln’s quote, which happens to be a bumper sticker on the back of my Cadillac, “And in the end it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”

Cruisin’ for perusin’

Tunica Florist We turned down the radio and rolled down the car windows for some northern Mississippi air and to get a feel for historic, downtown Tunica. This Main Street  community proved to be a charming spot with a handful of specialty shops and antiques that Angie and I couldn’t resist exploring.

 After we parked—and still humming to our favorite tunes—we swung open the car doors and shopped the stores at the Delta Mini Mall, and picked up some  decorating inspiration along with a few trinkets at Tunica Marketplace and Florist. At Twelve Fifty-One Apparel, we browsed through their collection of stylish  clothing and shiny bling!

 We next stopped in the Blue & White Restaurant, a real icon around town, for fried dill pickles, fried green tomatoes and two cold Cokes. I was excited to  learn this place was established long before we were born—good Southern food and Southern hospitality never go out of style, thank goodness.

Back in the car, Angie and I sang at the top of our lungs to Steppenwolf’s “Born to be Wild,” as we intentionally drove past our destination. With no rush to check in, we went right on up to the Gateway to the Blues Museum. It goes without saying, but Angie and I are pretty big fans of music, so learning about the birth of the blues was right up our ally!

Twilight merriment

By the time Angie and I arrived at the casinos, the sun started to meet the horizon and the twinkling lights glistened on signs and casino walls as if beckoning all fun-seekers to partake in this MississippiConcert Girls Dancing treasure. We settled into our room and then hustled up to kick back with cocktails before the concert.

Tequila sunrises in hand, we lingered at the bar, which was filled with music and people in vacation mode. We met a few friendly people, listened to pre-show music and sang along with a few favorite tunes.

The concert started with hoots and hollers, woo-hoos and hands in the air—some from those like us, who’d grown up with the music. In honor of our big retirement, we purchased seats close to the stage. The first dramatic stroke of the guitar stirred up energy in the crowd like electricity. We knew every word to every song and sang them like we owned them.

Angie and I practically danced our way out of the venue and back to the casino floor for some wee-hour entertainment. Even if we weren’t usually night owls, the concert and the crowd had us revved up.

Of course, the slot machines never sleep so we had plenty of company as we worked to plump up our wallets. I gave a new blinking box a lucky rub, whispered a little good luck mantra and bet the max. Nothing. Nothing again. Suddenly the sound of musical clinking coins resonated from this wonderful contraption as the numbers rose from $50, $100, $150, to finally, $175! I won $175! Angie heard me holler and came running over to give me a high-five. That was a darn good night for two retired ladies out painting the town.

Tranquility to the max

 Not so early the next morning, we took breakfast outside, and sipped our coffees and nibbled on pastries.

 As a way to wind down from our “wild” night, we called and scheduled a luxurious spa treatment at the newest spa in town, which happened to be right next-door at Horseshoe  Casino Hotel. It was the final touch to nourish our free-spirited souls.

 In the celebration mindset, we went all out at The Spa at Horseshoe with The River Stone option. It started with a salt scrub that left my skin feeling healthy, glowing and  relaxed, followed by a delightful “Deeper than Deep Hot Stone Massage” that brought a warm comfort, which nearly put me into a dreamy sleep.

 Our Tunica trip went down in the books as a blast, and one we’ll do again in a heartbeat. Especially now that we have all the time in the world.

 Celebrate anything in Tunica.

One Comment
Posted by Judy Scholz on

I’m looking for a place to retire in Tunica Mississippi, I’m 75. I need a pool for therapy.

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