Mama and the Chain Gang is by far the most beloved story in my book, The Cracker Queen–A Memoir of a Jagged, Joyful Life. As both reader favorite and the one I adore to read aloud, it seemed ceremonially correct to begin the Front Porch Views Podcast with this tale.
After you listen, you might enjoy some of this background…
-How could we afford to own a Cadillac? We couldn’t–we had it only because Daddy had won it in a poker game.
-On another occasion, he won the services of a Santa Claus who arrived at our house that December stinkin’ drunk.
-At its heart, this story pays homage to my Mama and two things that were important to her: cigarettes and loving those on the margins.