Tag: florida

Snapshot #37

I call this one, taken inside a bathroom stall inside the Gulfarium at Ft. Walton Beach, FL, “FYI.”

Best Laid Plans

Studly Doright never sets an alarm. He’s been getting up at the same early hour for the past 40 odd years now unless he’s sick or on vacation. So when I realized he was still in bed at 6:42 this Friday morning I immediately checked to see if he was still breathing.  

Having confirmed that was still among the living I shook him vigorously. “Hey! You’re still in bed.” 

“Mmphm,” he replied.

“You are late for work,” I persisted.

“Not going in today,” he mumbled. 

“Oh.”

“I’m taking you to the beach for your birthday.”

Well, alrighty then!”

So here I am, sitting outside a hotel in Destin, FL. There’s not a beach within a mile.

“I swear,” Studly swears. “I booked us a room at the beach.”

There might be a reason I always book the hotels. Sigh. 

Lady in Green

Lady in Green
By Leslie Noyes

sitting all alone in a bistro at noon, she was beautifully wrinkled, a smile for the ages.

Similarly alone, yet slightly less wrinkled, I claimed a seat in a nearby booth.

Waving my fingertips to catch her attention, I complimented her vibrant style,

Told her that particular shade of green suited her well, that she looked lovely.

She blushed an innocent shade of rose, saying, “Then I will wear it every day.”

We ordered, then discussed the importance of kindness as we munched our separate

Salads. I asked if she’d let me take her picture. There was that blush again.

After wiping a smudge of ranch dressing from the corner of her mouth she nodded permission.

It didn’t occur to me until I’d left the cafe that I should have asked her name.

I shared the picture of my anonymous lunch companion in a snapshot post a few days ago. The more I thought about her, the more I knew she needed her own poem. 

My suggestion to my readers–find someone and tell them they’re lovely. Watching them blossom will make you feel lovely, too.

Peace, people.

Snapshot #29

I came across this in my neighborhood! Let’s call it “A Sign of Hope in a Red State.”


Peace, people!

Pest Control


One night last week I killed a Buick sized roach in my bedroom closet. Now the pest control company, Orkin, and I have this understanding– I pay them a substantial amount of money, and they make sure I don’t see any creepy crawlies inside my home. I assure you, I’m  keeping my end of the bargain.

This post isn’t about my one roach. Roaches aren’t really newsworthy in the Florida panhandle, but I have a friend who recently moved to Oregon and her pest issue is enormous: 

http://www.dailyastorian.com/Local_News/20160719/animal-versus-animal-as-elk-dogs-clash
Elk are taking over her yard, creating divots that she patiently replaces, and generally terrorizing the neighborhood. And they can be aggressive. I worry for her safety. Say what you will about roaches, but I’ve never heard of anyone being trampled to death by one.

In our text chat on Wednesday morning I suggested various remedies:


Granted, the spikes might be ill-advised, and we are animal lovers, after all. My friend did say they’d tried spraying wolf urine around the edges of their lawn with no success. Can you imagine going into the local feed and seed store and ordering thirty gallons of wolf pee? And having that pee fail to do its job?

I don’t guess Orkin handles elk. On the plus side, one isn’t likely to find an elk skittering across the bathroom floor at 2 a.m.


I hope my friend and her husband find an elk solution soon, but I fear nature will have its way in this case. 

Peace, people!

Havana Shopping, Part 2

The Shoppes at Havana Trading Company in Havana, FL, is a fun place to spend a couple of hours. Around every corner one can find something to delight: candles, clothing, tea, antiques, and that’s just for starters.

When I visited yesterday I met Melba Ginsberg, the manager of Melba’s Cafe, and Karyn Burke, the owner of the “Broken Shell Boutique” a purveyor of beachy eclectica. The Broken Shell is just one of many wonderful shops inside The Shoppes at Havana Trading Company.


In her shop Karyn sells everything a displaced beach bum might need: sandals, beach towels, stationery, jewelry, fragrances for body and home, and candles among other things. Mermaids are welcome there, so I felt right at home. 

The vivacious Karyn Burke. She’s a joy!

Obviously I wasn’t the only shopper yesterday, so rather than monopolize Karyn’s time I wandered about The Shoppes and snapped some photos.

i have a hankering for this accordion.
This little three-drawer chest is gorgeous.

I hope these photos make you want to pay a visit to The Shoppes at Havana Trading Company. I’m ready to go back!

Peace, people!

Havana Shopping, Part 1

I discovered a gem of a cafe today– Melba’s Place inside The Shoppes of Havana Trading Company just down the road from Doright Manor in Havana, Florida.


The lovely and loquacious Melba. That’s her as a child in the picture on the wall.

Manager Melba Ginsberg mixes up a mean chicken salad. I had the “Dilly Dally” salad. Oh. My. Goodness. It was so fresh and delicious I darn near swooned. 

I tried a sample of “The Coronation” and found it equally tasty, but I might have a an addiction to dill. I’d start looking for a Dill Anon group, but I’m not ready to give it up.

While I was making a fool of myself inhaling “Dilly Dally” Melba and I visited about her early life in Florida. She was born in South Georgianot far from Havana, but her family moved to the Lake Okeechobee area when she was a child. She grew up in a small town where she was a majorette in the marching band.


Melba told me that when she went to choose an instrument from the band room (everyone had to play an instrument) only the bass drum and baritone remained. Melba isn’t very tall and I giggled imagining her toting around the big bass drum. She chose the baritone, though, which isn’t that much smaller, and played it in concert band.

Melba now finds herself near the place of her birth having returned to the area to be close to her daughter. On a visit here Melba’s daughter fell in so in love with Havana that she opened a business here, The Shoppes at Havana Trading Company.

I took way too many photos of The Shoppes to put into one post, so I’ll continue this later, but check them out online in the meantime. And if you live anywhere near Havana, The Shoppes are well worth a trip. 

If I held my breath just right and chanted in the proper key maybe this link will provide more information. 

@ShoppesHTC
If not, here’s Melba’s card, charmingly posed on my denim covered thigh. This is a fancy blog, don’t you know.



Melba’s cafe features heavenly ice cream, too! I had a scoop of caramel sea salt. So much for my diet. 

Peace, people!