This was the tenth consecutive year that I have gone to the candlelight vigil at Graceland. You might think that I have some sort of ritual that I go through before I leave, but it really varies from year to year. There have been years when it was vital that I purchase tires before I left. This year, I decided to get a haircut. I’ve eaten at home before I left, stopped for fast food on the way and eaten Mexican food in Jackson before I left. This year, it was a trip to Krystal before the haircut. Lots of people ask if I “dress up” for the vigil. For the past several years, I’ve worn a bowling style shirt that my wife made for me but this year, I just wore a polo shirt. Each year has its own style, its own flow and routine. I try to be as open as I can to the possibilities for each year. I hope I learn and experience something new and different. This year was no disappointment.
My friend Nick went with me this year. Nick has been with me before. He went on the infamous 2009 trip that we can’t share as many details about. Yes, you have to ask to find out about that trip. Because he had been before, we were able to focus on the people. This is the real reason I go every year. We did a tour of the gift shops first. After we had purchased shirts and caps, we were exiting the main gift shop. There was a lady handing out Elvis fans and buttons. While we were getting these, there was a lady sitting on a park bench very near us who is best described as having a fit. I’m not sure who she was angry at. I think it was her husband/boyfriend but it might have been the fan/button lady. She wasn’t getting what she wanted and she was letting everyone know. Few people were paying attention to her. The mentally unstable are par for the course at Graceland.
Like later, when we were entering the first gift shop next to the Elvis impersonators performance tent. There was a young guy that smiled at me and said hi. He wanted to talk and he was the kind of person I was looking for. It turns out that he has performed a few minutes earlier. He told me he was born in Memphis. I asked where he lives now. He said he lived in Lakeland. His name was Doug. Doug introduced me to an attractive girl from Brazil. She had also sung earlier. I talked with her briefly but Doug was the one that got all of the attention. Doug asked if I had a copy of the schedule for the performers at the Elvis tent. I said no and that was all it took for Doug to go on a search. He led me into the gift shop where he knew he could get a schedule of course they didn’t have one but they told him another shop that did have them. I told him I would get one there. Doug told the girl that he had a gift shop. He was talking about Boulevard Souvenirs, the low rent, independent gift shop that is always a fun stop. It sounded like he works there. Just being around him for a short period of time, it might be a stretch to call anything that he does work but he was a really nice kid.
Earlier in the day, I took a picture for some old ladies from Arizona that were posing in front of a guitar statue. This was our first encounter with normal people. I think it was their first trip to Graceland and they were spending the whole week. You can usually spot the first timers. They are about the only ones that will pose in front of a statue of a guitar. Maybe they weren’t so normal after all.
The weather was beautiful. I’ve never been to Graceland when it has been that nice. Most years, I spend a lot more time in the gift shops just to cool off. This year, I didn’t go into any of the gift shops more than once. It was just really nice to be outside. We spent a huge amount of time at the Elvis tent. I don’t know what it was, but it took a while to get into the groove of talking to people and taking pictures. I’ve gotten to a point where I don’t take as many pictures. I’ve gotten used to seeing old men with hair dyed deep black with huge belt buckles. Each one is unique, but I’d rather talk to them than take their picture. Their stories can be freakier than their pictures. And the fan club members are as entertaining as the performers and people that dress like Elvis. I saw a lady wearing a shirt for the Elvis’ Angels Fan Club. I decided to try and find out more about them. Their club is based in Shreveport, Louisiana but this lady was from Huntsville, Alabama. A lady from Shreveport was sitting with her. They were Graceland and Candlelight vigil regulars. They told me about all of the connections between Shreveport and Elvis, especially about the Louisiana Hayride where Elvis got his start. The Huntsville lady’s husband came up. He looked like Martin Landau in wrap around sunglasses. Later they danced while one of the performers was singing. Later in the day, Huntsville lady brought me an application to join the Elvis’ Angels Fan Club. It’s $12 a year and might be worth joining.