Belles of Montebello Place

Cheers, y'all from the gals in my neighborhood, Nedy, Dee, Yvonne and Billie. Billie called one Saturday morning and asked if I could come over for an impromptu luncheon. You betcha! (said I.) We live in a wonderful neighborhood with caring, generous neighbors. We cover the gamut of races, religions, politics and ethnicity but (surprise!!!) we get along.

We periodically have gatherings on the green across the street from our houses. Everyone brings food to share and the beverage of their choice. The last one we did was a Halloween costume cocktail party! What a hoot! Most of the women showed up in some kind of costume and some of the men did as well. Nedy organized the party and had a bunch of us come to her house for cookies and punch to plan the event and make decorations!

Some people may find all this togetherness a little much and prefer their privacy. That's OK, but if there is another hurricane season like we had in 04 and 05, I want to be with my Montebello neighbors through it! In '04, Bob and I were returning from Maine and heard about the storm. We stopped in St. Augustine on our way and it was like a ghost town. That was a really scary warning. After a nearly sleepless night Bob insisted that he wanted to be home. I guess he thought we could protect our house if anything happened. We stopped in a Winn Dixie on the way out of St. Augustine, bought a few (very few) supplies, gassed up and hit the road. We were driving south and saw the near standstill traffic driving north. What is wrong with this picture???? Well, we got home, stopped at the cash machine (They tell you to have cash 'cause the power could be out. What they don't mention is that the stores probably won't be open either!)

I digress...after the storm, Billie and some of the other neighbors pulled all the food out of their freezers and had a huge barbecue in their driveway. Anybody who stopped by got a burger, some ribs or whatever. It was incredible. A lot of screen enclosures got blown apart and trees were down. All the neighbors pitched in to remove the debris.

Anyway, in this season of thanksgiving, blessings and thoughtfulness, I'm so grateful for the folks in my neighborhood.

Book Worms Take a Road Trip

My book group is made up of five women. It's a closed group because five is the number that best fits into most standard sedan-style cars.
And, although we all love to read, we also like to do
other things. Recently we decided to take a road trip to
Epcot Center at the suggestion of the sister of one of our
members. The plan was to take in Epcot for the day,
enjoy the "Candlelight Dinner" package and go to the concert at the end of the day, followed by the end of the day fireworks.

It's a two hour ride to Epcot from where we live so we left at 7:30 a.m. TS and KL (I promised them I wouldn't use their
names) hardly slept a wink they were so excited! TS, who is
always late (we call her the late Mrs. S) was sitting in her
garage when JB pulled up in her Chrysler whatever (I don't
know much about cars and I don't care much about cars
as long as they don't look too hideous, don't break
down and get me from point A to B.)

We arrived at our hotel in Lake Buena vista by 9:30 a.m. without incident or getting lost (JB has a GPS but that's another blog entry...) It was my job to check in since I'd booked the hotel with AAA and pre-paid it with my credit card (yeah points). I told the "girls" to stay with the car while I checked in. Although I had told the AAA travel agent that we were interested in all staying in one room, she didn't think it would be a good idea for us to all show up at the counter. Our reservation did say 5 people, by the way. Our room was ready and we moved in. We had enough provisions to survive a hurricane!

We hopped on the bus and spent the next 12 hours walking "around the world" as my granddaughter said on her first visit to Epcot. We had purchased the candlelight dinner package and, alas, were sadly disappointed that we were unable to get the restaurant of our choice. We settled on Chinese food and realized it was among the few remaining choices because people don't typically pay a lot of money for Chinese food. Unfortunately this Chinese food was extremely disappointing so perhaps those "in the know" realized this.

The concert was very nice and done in typical Disney style. Our ticket entitled us to preferred standing room to view the fireworks. We were getting pretty tired by fireworks time, which were amazing, and we still had to find our bus back to the hotel. We did although we had a bit of a wait. We didn't talk much on the way back. But upon entering our room, we managed to get a second wind and enjoy our snacks, apple-tinis, exchange gifts with one another and laugh a good bit. JB made a toast to our road trip ...may this not be our last!

We are already thinking about our next trip.

On the way home we talked about a book
that several of us had read Still Alice a story
about a woman with early onset Alzheimer's

disease.

Here we are: me, MA, JB, TS and KL.

We are "BFFs"!

Bob's Big Birthday Bash

Bob had a big birthday December 12th. So, I planned a big birthday bash. Martin Downs Sports Resort provided the food, Publix did the BD cake and Joe Renta of Show Time Entertainment did an awesome job as DJ. (See below!) Who knew "old folks" could dance like that!!!!

Betty Boop, Stained Glass and Stuff

Hi - someone got an e-mail from me and sent me a note to cease and desist. I apologize. I don't know who he is and I did not deliberately send him one, many or any e-mails. Sometimes I share these postings with Facebook and I haven't a clue how they could 'screw' up who sees these items I post. If you don't like what I post, A) don't read my blog, B) let me know, C) let your ISP know that you are receiving e-mails from someone you don't know and you couldn't care less about hearing from. I hope I've handled this issue!

Now, more important matters. The Stuart Branch of AAUW (look it up if you don't know what AAUW is... you know Google, don't you??? ) had a meeting today at the picturesque Dolphin Restaurant in Jensen Beach/Sewall's Point. The place was decorated for the holidays and the staff couldn't have been more helpful. The featured speaker was Margie Murphy. If you have read this blog, you will recall me making references to Margie back in October when I first met her. Well, Margie came loaded with stained glass pieces to educate, elucidate and sell. And, she didn't do too bad! A number of the women bought pieces, including me. Who knows where it might go from here. Anyway, I NOW have a picture of Margie's wonderful Betty Boop piece and here it is (See above).

AAUW also took in 100 pounds of food for House of Hope and over $600 in miscellaneous contributions for SafeSpace (for battered women) and House of Hope. Way to go ladies!!! Our community is awesome!

Read Anything Good Lately?

A member of my book group picked Smoke Screen by Sandra Brown as our opening book for the 'season'. (Remember, I live in Florida where the seasons correspond to the travels of snow birds.) I got into reading SB and found I liked her style. She writes murder mysteries but her style is not totally predictable and her stories don't always occur in the same place.

Then I read Still Alice, a heartbreaking story of a woman who develops early onset Alzheimer's Disease at age 50! Scary stuff!!! The author, Lisa Genova, holds a Harvard PhD in neuroscience and is an online columnist for the National Alzheimer's Association.

My husband gave me a book with the suggestion that I might like it, it's brief. It's Mitch Albom's for one more day. Humm...it looks very interesting. This is a library book so it'll be my next read.

When that's done I'll read The Color of Lightning by Paulette Jiles. My husband and I will be her escort for BookMania, an event held annually (since forever!) at the Blake Library in Stuart. This year BookMania will be held Saturday, January 23rd at the Blake, of course. Check out the Martin County Library System's website (www.library.martin.fl.us) for more details about the program, authors and the schedule. Books will be available to buy or bring your already purchased books for the author to sign and personalize. Oh, BookMania is FREE. Is that awesome or what!!!!

If you love rubbing shoulders with authors, and love your cocktails as well, spring for the $75 to attend the Library Foundation's Signature Event (www.libraryfoundationmc.org) the night before (Jan. 22nd) also at the Blake. The theme for the 'pre' event is Hot Havana Nights!

Let me hear what you love to read! I need suggestions!

Apres - Black Friday

You'll be in for a treat, and I don't mean just your nails and skin, when you visit Soho Nails and Skin Care on Federal Highway in Stuart in the Regency Square shopping center (see my October 13th blog). Daniel is preparing to decorate the salon for the holidays and will have it ready in time for business Saturday, November 28th. I can't wait to see what he does! Robin said the color scheme will be different from last year. (I wonder if he'll come to MY house?)

Meanwhile, if you shopped until you dropped today, you MUST get a Chinese food massage at 'Soho'. Pair it with a fabulous pedicure while reclining in their comfortable massaging chairs, sipping iced tea. Then talk to Robin about scheduling a collagen facial -- it's currently on special for under $50!! Get rid of those stress lines! 'Tis the season!!

This Time - I Don't Think I Can Fix It

I usually start by writing my title before I put down content. I don't quite know what to call what's about to emerge...today. I feel very sad. Two people I'm close to are ill. One is my step-daughter who has an as yet undiagnosed condition that might be neurological. I worry about her children (the grandchildren I've come to think of as "my" grandchildren), I worry about her and I worry about her husband. I also worry about my husband, her father. I don't like to see him sad and worried so I try to take it on myself. [You know, fixing the WORLD, is a kind of woman thing!]

The second is my friend Carol. Although I've known Carol for several (18 - 20 years?) we have only recently gotten to know each other well. She discovered a lump about a week ago and the doctors discovered breast cancer! She will know what her treatment options are on December 1st.

I feel powerless, small and vulnerable when I can't "fix" problems somehow. I'm struggling with what to say to these women or how to help them.

Thanks for "listening".

You CAN do it too!

I was invited to a party the other night. You know the drill: call the host say you're coming, ask what you can bring, host says "nothing" and you show up with a bottle of wine. This time was different... the host said "Do NOT bring wine, bring a can of food to donate to a food bank." What a concept!!!! People who can afford to throw parties for 40+ of their closest friends don't NEED more wine or more cheese canapies.

I sincerely hope there are more people left in the US of A who truly care about other people, are grateful for the plenty they have and are willing to part with a $1.49 can of soup on behalf of someone (they will never know) who has fallen on hard times.

Take a moment for a small act of kindness. I know you CAN!

Women Empowering Women

On the right are Belinda Sorenson of Shear Vanity hair salon and Robin Sabo of Soho Skin Care. They were among the more than 30 vendors exhibiting their products and services at the first Women Empowering Women conference held by the Power Lunch Bunch (www.powerlunchbunch.com).

More than 300 women of all ages attended this event which featured some pretty powerful keynote speakers, namely Kim Marcille discussing success strategies for women and business and Rebecca Carswell who talked about the power of interpretation.

The Treasure Coast seems to be a magnet for entrepreneurial women and, per many of them, women helping women.

Night Owls Converge on Hobe Sound Library

It was the first Tuesday so it must be time for another After Hours at the Library. The Library Night Owls brought their magic south this month to the Hobe Sound Library. Harry and the Natives provided the goodies and libations. Music was provided by Certified DJ and the guest speaker was the Honorable Darren Steele. Judge Steele spoke with great ardor about the significance of literacy, libraries.

and books. Commissioner Hayes attended as well as a number of members of the Hobe Sound Chamber of Commerce - thanks to Jennifer Ferrari. (Way to go!)

Keep your calendar clear for the next After Hours, the first Tuesday in December (December 1st) at the Hoke Library in Jensen Beach. There will be loads of surprises.

Happy Halloween!!!

I was a cross between Lucy and Loretta Young (for those who remember her). That was me last night at the Stuart "Meet Me at the USO" costume ball. The event was the conclusion of historic preservation month. About 100 people enjoyed the party held at the Stuart Rec Center which had been transformed into a 40's style big band ballroom complete with potted palms. The outdoor area leading to the river was set up to handle overflow diners and was decorated with a jeep and young sentries making it feel like a scene from South Pacific. The Dreamers played the music of the era. And the food, provided by The Harborage Yacht Club & Marina harkened back to simpler times.

A special guest who knew this era well made an appearance. Carmelita Pope who is most recently known for her promotion of PAM cooking spray and probably less known (today) for playing Stella opposite Marlon Brando on Broadway. I met her and she confirmed that she and Marlon were BFFs in "the day". She claims to be the only person still living who remembers what he was like at age 15!

I was home before the witching hour. (My tootsies couldn't take any more standing in those shoes!!!)

Halloween Memories!!!

Watching all the 20 and 30 somethings "dress up" for Halloween takes me on a L O N G walk down memory lane. Perhaps this photo will give you an idea. The toga/gown was made from old curtains and that really was my own hair. Ahhh, memories!

I'll have some more up-to-date photos of Halloween events after tonight. Keep up with me!

Kudos - contacts and peeves!

I spent Friday evening and a chunk of Saturday at the Woman's Club holiday bazaar on behalf of the Council on Aging. Thank you to everyone who showed up supporting the event and buying the cards created from art done by the Adult Day Club clients. I love working with Krista, the volunteer coordinator.

And, just to let you know how small the world is, in case you didn't know, I met the owner of the local Atlanta Bread Co. that does volunteer appreciation coffees for COA volunteers a couple of times a year. I love going to their store/restaurant to hold informal meetings. Great spot, easy parking, good coffee (and food) and they leave you alone.

I dropped off some post cards at Wine Styles tonight and had a brief chat with Dennis. He suggested that maybe I needed to add a little spice to this blog, although he liked what I wrote.

I am peeved by people who don't acknowledge things that have been done for them or on their behalf. (No one I've written about qualifies in this category, I should add.) Maybe this is an age thing. IF it is, THEY need to get over it! If anyone wants support for their business or cause, they should recognize people who help them. They don't need to be patronizing, they don't need to write formal notes. An e-mail or a phone call will do, but they absolutely should recognize people who help their efforts. Everyone is human and I'll give a pass once, but after being "dissed" the second time...I'm gone.

To Dye or Not to Dye

I probably started dying my hair in my early 20s, when it started to get gray. Yuk, I thought. On various occasions I've been blond, brown, dark brown, auburn and even red. I've had low lights and high lights. My hair has been long, mostly during my 20s and short by varying degrees the rest of my life so far ;)

I was motivated by different circumstances and people to color my hair. The first time I 'highlighted' my hair, they called it streaking in those days, it was a little longer than chin length and the stylist used a bathing cap and a crochet hook. I wasn't sure I'd ever go through with this again it was so painful and my hair was really, really blond and also really, really dry. Years went by and I experimented with shampoo in the shower color treatments with no peroxide. Later I moved to other non-peroxide treatments then to permanent hair colors and that led me to my red experience. I was so horrified by the color of my hair I ran out to the drug store before my hair had dried and got another box of a darker color to cover the red. Gradually I realized that I really didn't have the talent for coloring my own hair so I stopped. However, about this same time I found myself single and in my mid 30s so gray hair wasn't a good option. I started asking women with decent looking hair who they went to. The next phase was almost as interesting as the first. I went to a fellow in my neighborhood (at the time I lived on E. 44th St. between 1st and 2nd Avenues in NYC). He did fabulous hair cuts but he turned my hair red also. He was very distressed by his error but wouldn't re-do it for several days. I guess he was afraid of it all falling out! (So was I!) I guess it wasn't THAT red because no one at work commented.

I graduated from him to a woman colorist in a high end salon who was into astrology. I loved going to see her because it was a cross between therapy and transformation and she did a great job on my hair. Then one day she was gone! I didn't see this coming. It was really terrible. Another woman I 'knew' suggested a place in Trump Tower that she went to. This was a one-stop house of beauty. They had a coat check room, had you change into a very nice smock, brought you a beverage and spent as much time on you as money could legally buy. I liked it and I can't tell you why I stopped going but I imagine it was probably the cost.

When I moved to the west side, I found a small salon with peppy, perky staff - no coat check woman from South America and no beverages. I followed the colorist from that location to their next location a little further away but still on the west side. One day I showed up and she refused to color my hair!!! She refused! So, I left. Now I don't know what to do. So, while trying to decide, I did nothing for several years until I was "outplaced" from my job and needed to re-enter the job market as a younger-looking version of myself. I found yet another stylist who did low-lights on me. After I was hired on I think it was day one or two, I attended a meeting. I was the youngest person there (and I was about 45, I believe). Everyone had gray hair, including the women in the room! I stopped coloring it yet again.

When I moved to Florida my second or third stylist said I should color my hair. She convinced me that I knew what I looked like gray and I could always return to it. I took the bait and went through an array of colors until last May when I said - stop this! My hair is healthy and white and wash and wear styled. So, for today, I am not coloring my hair.

Kudos, Confessions and Connections

Thank you to everyone who stopped by Macy's last Saturday and paid $5 to any charity! The Treasure Coast Mall Macy's had a peculiar set up. They have four entrances and at each one there were four charities vying for the attention and five bucks of every patron who walked through the doors. I admit, we created a gauntlet for the unwitting customer to cross. Some made it, many (thankfully) did not. ;)

After a while, things slowed down and we all startd talking with each other and visiting each other's tables. One man told the people he corraled about each of the charities, who we served and why they should spend the five dollars. It was quite interesting to observe and be a part of.

I confess, I didn't bring in much for the Council on Aging, but I promise (you saw it here) that I'll make it up to them this coming weekend.

Speaking of the COA, we will have a table at the Stuart Woman's Club's annual holiday bazaar at the Woman's Club on East Ocean Avenue. The bazaar will run from 6-8 Friday and 9-2 Saturday. There will be crafts, jewelry and food products for sale. Friday night is the kickoff and there is a $10 charge for admission - kind of a preview with wine and hors d'oeuvres. Wine Styles (ta da) will be serving the wine.

Oh, the COA table will offer note cards made from art created by the adult day club clients. There are cards with a 'holiday' theme and generic cards. And, they are really inexpensive $7 for 8 cards (and envelopes). So for people who still remember how to communicate using cursive script or even printing, stop by and see us. Remember, I made a promise (see above) and you can help me but only if I see you or hear from you!

I will leave you with this parting piece of information. If you click on my followers, you will discover things about them. Especially click on Larry if you are "into" social networking, blogging, making money using the internet or anything related. He is an amazing resource.

Now it's time for me to go read some fun stuff so I'll sign off!

Sheila

Here's to a Life Lesson Well Learned!

There were plenty of nay-sayers. “You’ll get no support!” was among the phrases tossed at Evelyn Clark when she announced her plans to open a Wine Styles franchise in Palm City, FL. Well, Evelyn is definitely someone who believes in her maker, herself and trusts what she’s learned over the years as an account executive in corporate America.

Evelyn and her husband Dennis came to Florida from the mid-west where they had transformed another franchise operation from 37th in the state to one of the top 5! And, after being downsized, right-sized, outsourced and outplaced for the last time, her attitude is “What have I got to lose?”

I had lunch with Evelyn at the Harborage Yacht Club & Marina in Stuart to talk about how she got interested in wine and ultimately opened a wine store. She told me about how she had held wine tastings in her home. She’d do research and select the wines and share her findings with her friends. This led to 12 of them having dinners to more than 150 people getting together for dinner and wine events. She told me that as an account exec she frequently had to wine and dine her clients. Being the type of woman she is, she would consult with the chef and determine what types of wines to select. Mistakes were not an option.

With this personal interest in wine established Evelyn investigated Wine Styles and visited the one in Wellington. She was impressed by what she saw and last October she and Dennis took the plunge and opened in Palm City. This year at the “by invitation” celebration party for wine club members, 200 people attended. It seems to me this place is on its way!

Besides wine for purchase, a wine bar and a wine club, Wine Styles offers entertainment and light hors d’oeuvres on the weekends and space for parties and special events. I should add that this is not your papa’s package store! This store is elegantly furnished and the wine is organized by style rather than by country of origin. The wine racks are color coded to depict a particular style from light and fruity to hearty and robust.

But, I go on too long. See for yourself. Visit Evelyn and Dennis at Wine Styles, 2951 SW High Meadows Avenue in Palm City or check out their website: www.winestyles.net/palmcity
Have questions? Call them at: 772-223-1221

What Motivates Volunteerism?

I read an editorial in the Stuart News this morning written by Aileen Pruitt on volunteerism and it got my thinking juices flowing. Why do people volunteer? Why should people volunteer? If you volunteer does that take a paying job away from somebody else? If you volunteer one time they keep calling you to come back, don’t they? Hummmm….

I started volunteering at age 16. My sister and I were “Volunteens”* for the Red Cross in our home town in Ohio. We got to wear uniforms that mimicked candy-stripers uniforms only in blue and white and little caps with a red cross on the front. We felt very important. Our “job” was to assist the aids with setting up the lunch room in a nursing home for the ambulatory residents. We served them coffee and tea and cleared the tables when they finished. After a week or two of ‘waitressing’ we asked if there was anything else we could do. We started wheeling some of the patients back to their rooms and chatting with them. Soon we were visiting with several of them, reading to them and doing small sewing projects. My sister told me recently that one of the women asked her to write to her son every week. One of the nurses later told her the woman’s son was dead. Shirley kept on writing the letters. One of the women must have picked up my interest in travel and gave me old copies of Arizona Highways.

I still remember this first experience and how I felt, the sights, sounds and smells of the facility. But most importantly, I remember how it made me feel – good! It started me on a journey to give back. For me this has not been a uniform effort and my methods have varied. I don’t believe there are any rules of how it should be done. You know the expression “just do it”. Well there you are. Just do it.

*The Red Cross no longer has ‘volunteens’. They now have other activities for teens.

Historic Preservation

Marty Baum's family has been in Florida since before Potsdam (Stuart's original name)existed as a town. Why his family's presence here predates I95, DDT, the Army Corps of Engineers, air conditioning and animal control. And today a gathering of women from the Stuart Branch of AAUW had the pleasure of hearing what life was like in 1883just a bit south of Martin County as Marty "became" his great-grandfather, Capt. Hannibal D. Pierce.

Marty had the good fortune to have a great-grandfather who was not only an enduring pioneer in the jungle that Florida was in the 1800s but a journalist. Detailed records have prevailed and many books are now available. Marty mentioned several including the Barefoot Mailman. For a complete list of historic books on Florida check Stuart Heritage's website bookstore or please call them.

Marty is a research consultant on Florida History, the Indian River, Lake Worth, Biscayne Bay, the US Life Saving Service and the Florida Houses of Refuge. He does lectures in period costume. For more information or to reach him, e-mail him at: indianrivguy@bellsouth.net

Meanwhile, Martin County has declared this Historic Preservation Month. The month is half over but there are still two weeks worth of lectures at the Palm City Library on Wednesday evenings and Stuart Heritage is doing tours on Thursday - call for reservations on the tram. And, to finish off the event, the Historic Preservation Board is holding a costume ball entitled: Meet Me at the USO at the Flagler Recreation Center. For more information go to www.martin.fl.us

See you soon!
Sheila

I'm Learning!!

Good Morning Everyone,
My computer is in a good mood so I am too! And, I found a new way to display photos. And, just as importantly, a cold front is coming our way. If you live in the northern states you would look at a cold front as a 'bad' thing. However, some of us (me) down here are a little weary of 90+ degrees. Moving on...

It is Historic Preservation Month and there are loads of things going on in Martin County to celebrate our heritage. I'll be writing more about this a little later. Meanwhile, if you can't wait, check out the Stuart Heritage website for more information.

Later...
Sheila

Have an Ahhhhhhhh Moment

I never thought of myself as a “high maintenance” female. On the other hand, I’ve liked having manicures since I started going weekly on my way home from my low impact aerobics class in New York, a LONG time ago. It was part of my usual Saturday morning ritual and I looked forward to it. The thing about nail salons is that it’s where you interact with other women, walk out feeling great and it doesn’t matter what size you wear, what color your hair, what age you are. You can improve something about yourself with very little effort. I believe it has taken the place of the weekly beauty parlor visit for baby-boomer and younger women.

I don’t get my nails done every week but I go often enough – I’m thinking of a line from a play I saw at Lincoln Center ages ago – The House of Blue Leaves by John Guare, the woman in the story, named Bananas, is mentally ill and she says something like how can she go see the Pope with her nails all chipped! So weird! So New York! Anyway, after moving to Florida I had a period of not having my nails done then I went from one place to another until a friend introduced me to of Soho Nails and Skin Care. I love the place!

Some of you ‘locals' might remember it as Fingers and Toes when Jessica and Julie ran it. When they moved back to Massachusetts to be nearer their family, a fellow named Daniel bought the salon and gave it the name Soho Nails. Daniel and his wife Helen run the salon, have exquisite taste and run a seriously class operation. Every time I walk in I must look around to see what changes Daniel has made since my last visit. You feel like you’re in a spa without the spa prices! They book events at their spa/salon for groups of about 20 women, provide hors d’oeuvres and wine, mahjong tables and tables for cards. Viola! You have an instant girls’ night out!

After several months in business they added an esthetician, Robin Sabo. Robin does a wonderful job with totally natural products. She does power facials for people in a hurry, back treatments during the summer or anytime you want one. She also sells the products she compounds herself.

Been on your feet too long? Get a Chinese foot massage from Abbie. Ahhhhh…..

They are located in the Regency Shopping Strip next to the movie theatre. (That’s the shopping strip where you can find Steinmart and Too Jays.) Their phone number is 772-286-5777. Appointments are recommended.

Much more to come!
Sheila

Follow, follow, follow...

Hello Everyone,
To my friends, many thanks for the supportive e-mails. You are the best!!! I know some of you are afraid to take the plunge and sign up on blogspot so you can comment without being identified. So I am devoting this post to how to sign up!

First, it will ask you to select a 'user name' - you do not need to use your own name, unless you want me to know it's you. Of course you will need to enter a password as well. Make it one you will remember but the universe will not be able to figure out! (Duh.) You do not need to create your own blog, but you can if you want.
I hope this helps. If not, send me an e-mail. Oh, there is no charge to sign up.

By the way, once you establish yourself, you can follow ANY blog on blogspot.

Now a little bit of feedback to e-mails I have received.

Yes, the Ashley Restaurant is closed. Something like the rent got too high. The owners might be thinking of moving to another location but that is yet to be established. Meanwhile, the owner of the building is looking for another tenant. Stay tuned to that.

And re King Neptune. Alas I confess! Some friends, Caron and Scott, stayed in our house while Bob and I were up north one December some years back. She and her husband discovered King Neptune and said they really liked it. It took Margie Murphy to finally get me there. Funny thing, Dwight Wilson who owns the place is also a physical therapist and I went to him after my shoulder surgery about 5 years ago. Still never got to King Neptune! But now I have!!

Speaking of Margie! She is supposed to forward me a photo of one of her pieces. I really not good at keeping secrets (mostly I am but sometimes....) anyway the piece is of Betty Boop fishing. Keep looking. As soon as I get it I will post it.

I hope to hear from all of you soon!
Sheila

I am SO BUSY!!

Hi Everyone,
I'm working on my next piece and will be writing it "off line" before posting it. I must run spell check.

There is so much to tell and share!

Just to keep you up-to-date on my calendar, October 11 at 2 p.m. there will be a FREE (how about that!) film at the Blake Library in Stuart. The film will be Pants on Fire by Colin Campbell. This is the story of a pathological liar who leaves his Nebraska home for LA to become a movie star! The Friends of the Blake Library will provide coffee and cookies (free also!) In this heat what better place to be than at a movie! There will be six of these shown as part of the Southern Circuit Independent Filmmakers tour series 2009-2010.

You're busy ... I know, I know.
So while you're at the Treasure Coast Mall on Saturday, October 17th, stop by Macy's and for a whopping $5 you can make a difference to the beneficiaries of Meals on Wheels (and the House of Hope, will be there too). Well, to be honest you might need to spend $10 to help both causes, BUT you will get two chances then to win $500 to spend at that Macy's store plus coupons for 20% off on just about anything you buy. This is Macy's Shop for a Cause Day. I'll be there about 6 p.m.

You're busy, so good bye for now!
More later...

You Mean Martin County Has a 'History'?

Chris Sawicki’s name is mentioned quite a lot in Stuart Florida. Chris has been the executive director of Stuart Heritage for more than a dozen years. That’s the museum in downtown Stuart that looks like a feed store (‘cause it once was just so).

Chris studied textiles in her college days and is an expert at id-ing when a piece of fabric was probably made. She parlayed this knowledge into quilt collecting and has amassed a collection of more than 100 (and that’s probably too low a number) quilts representing more genres of quilting, styles and periods than the average person knows about!

If you asked me what her passion is I’d be hard pressed to tell you. She loves quilts, her dogs, all rescue critters) and Stuart’s history which she can recite from memory. She conducts tours twice weekly throughout much of the year – and, by the way, they’re free BUT, if you’re worth your salt, you’ll make a donation to the museum if you like your experience. After all, you’ll want it to still be up and running when you bring your next set of visitors to town.

You can find Chris at Stuart Heritage, 161 SW Flagler Ave., Stuart, FL, 33494
The telephone number is: 772-220-4600
Or go to the Stuart Heritage website (created by her very talented, rocket scientist husband - yup, for real). http://www.stuartheritage.org

Meet Margie Murphy

Margie was sitting by the pool in her complex and chatting with a neighbor about her stained glass classes and the work she'd done. The neighbor was so impressed that she told Margie to call me to see if she could speak at an AAUW luncheon.

Margie called me and I agreed to meet her and see her work. I am so glad I did! First I got to have lunch at a place I'd never tried (despite the fact that it has been in business since before I arrived in FL!) We had lunch at King Neptune in Port Salerno. If you love seafood, this place is for you. I had a delicious conch chowder and Margie had a seafood bisque. Anyway, that's not what this is about...

While we were lunching she pointed out several pieces of stained glass that she had designed and created hanging in King Neptune. Her works range from smaller pieces to pieces as big - no bigger - than she is and she's just a little thing.

So let me tell you a little about Margie. [From her brochure so I get the facts right!] She's been creating stained glass works of art for 35 years. Margie is from upstate New York and served as an apprentice under Stanley Worden, Chief Designer and Executor of Windows for Henry Keck Studios. Mr. Keck worked with Tiffany Studios before starting his own business.

Margie's clients have ranged from churches and businesses to residences in North America and Europe. In 1980 she was commissioned to create fourteen stained glass windows for the Winter Olymics in Lake Placid, NY. She is also a past artist in residence at the Fish House Art Center in Port Salerno.

To see her work, take a trip to Port Salerno, FL and visit King Neptune (as I said earlier, if you like seafood, you'll thank me) and check out the stained glass pieces hanging there. Then, take a walk around the Fish House Art Center; just a short walk toward the water from King Neptune. You won't even have to move your car. Margie created a piece with seahorses in it standing on the bar in the back of the art center.

If you are interested in classes, or custom work, contact Margie by e-mail at: floridadickens@gmail.com or by telephone at: 772-341-5237.

More later...
Sheila

All About Bette Lee

I realize that I promised to write about Stephanie next. Well, she's on a trip at a quilting event in South Carolina and then she'll be in Texas somewhere. So her piece will have to wait.

Meanwhile, let me tell you about another interesting, talented woman and how I came to meet her.

As program chair for Stuart AAUW, I make loads of phone calls each year to search out interesting speakers for our branch meetings. After doing this job for a number of years, on and off, and being ID’d as the point person for program on the branch’s website, I now get calls.

About a year ago I got a call from Bette Lee Crosby. Turns out Bette Lee had written a book Girl Child, her first effort and an award winning novel at that. Bette Lee and I had a wonderful phone chat followed up with lunch at the now defunct Ashley Restaurant :-( I read Girl Child and thoroughly enjoyed it. I loved her feisty main character, a southern woman who over came adversity. Bette Lee has now written another novel Cracks in the Sidewalk. Check out her website www.betteleecrosby.com to learn more about Bette Lee and the awards she's won.

Conduit - Sheila

Stephanie Kimura calls me a "conduit" so I guess that's what I should call my blog. Besides 'six degrees of separation' is already taken. I guess most of my adult life I've been connecting people and never gave it much thought that is until Stephanie and I had a l o n g talk in Office Depot one Saturday. I'd been thinking about creating a blog for more than a year but somehow just couldn't get it together to get started. Then it hit me! There are so many talented people I meet or learn about that I believe I should share them with all of you.

I live in South Florida so a lot of the people I introduce you to will be from Florida but that is not the total extent of my universe - the world is my universe.

So, let me first introduce myself...

I’m married to a wonderful, remarkable man named Bob. He and I are a lot like bookends. We’re both Sagittarius’s and had both spent more than half of our lives living in New York before we met. He’s from Maine, I’m originally from Ohio. New York is right in the middle, more or less.

When Bob got the golden parachute handed to him, he wanted to retire to a place with a temperate climate and where he could play golf whenever he wanted. So, in April of 1997 we did our real estate tour of Florida and among the places we visited he brought me to Stuart where a number of his colleagues had retired. Spin the clock forward it’s now September, 1997 and the ax fell. He took the package and said sayonara. I put my co-op on the market and sold it in a day (much to my cat Emily’s relief – she hated having strangers peering at her while she pretended to be napping in her dresser drawer.) We packed up our books, our clothes, our art and not much else and headed south.

We took a long weekend in October and bought a townhouse. We also found a decorator who helped us put it together since we didn’t have a stick of furniture. Faye was interesting to work with. She had a very colorful staff!

When all was said and done, it’s now 1998, what’s girl to do with all this time on her hands????? Well, she can get a job, (or not). I chose to play tennis for a while. Later it was golf even though Bob told me he’d never play with me even if I got as good as Nancy Lopez! Can you imagine?! Well, in this life I won’t get that good and anyway, now I’m doing this.

That's it about me for now. I must tell you about Stephanie!

Till next time...