Meet the new feline biographer. .

I don't think I have to mention that I love animals, but I have a new "animal job" that is turning out to be a winner.  In my rush to start my new life as a North Carolinnean, I volunteered at the local Humane Society.  Since I really wasn't interested in cleaning dog and cat poop from cages, I ended up in the Humane Society office, entering data in the computer.  Not exactly what I had in mind.

On a whim I mentioned to one of the staff that I am a professional writer, and asked if they needed help with the "descriptions" that show up on the website for dogs and cats looking for adoption.  Turns out that they have someone who does the dogs, but don't have anyone for the cats!

Guess who is the official cat describer these days!  I told my rescue cats, Wasabi and Ginger, about it and they fully approve.  Now I work every Monday afternoon at the local center with a volunteer photographer, to take notes on each kitty's personality, looks, and hopefully, adoptability.  By the way, I don't get to name the cats, that's done before I start work, but I do get to pet them, talk to them, and most of all, make them sound irresistible if you are looking to adopt.

Here's a few samples. . .sorry I can't seem to copy the photos of the kitties, but take my word for it, they are adorable.

Evelynn

Humane Society of Charlotte

Little Evelyn is technically described as a "dilute calico". In person, she is a delicious little pale gray and white kitty with almond shaped topaz-colored eyes and a winning way. At 11 weeks of age, Evelyn shows all the signs of becoming someone's very loving cat. Be prepared to want to give her a hug the minute you meet her.

• Sex: Female
• Size: S
• Age: 0 years 2 months
• Color: Grey/Buff
• Breed: Domestic Shorthair

Shimmer

Humane Society of Charlotte

Two year old Shimmer is an elegant young lady with shimmering green eyes and a truly handsome striped tabby coat. She's a bit shy when she first meets you, waiting for you to make the first show of affection, but warms up very quickly once she gets to know you. There's a quiet, calmness about Shimmer that you will find enchanting and a wonderful addition to your home. If you are interested in meeting Shimmer, please visit her at Huntersville HSC Petco Adoption Center today!

• Sex: Female
• Size: S
• Age: 2 years 1 months
• Color: Brown/
• Breed: Domestic Shorthair

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Could you have just met your match?

Come meet this fabulous feline today!

Great birthday.. . don't ask the number!

Forget about the number, it was a terrific 3-day birthday celebration, thanks to advance planning by daughter Andrea.  Although it was meant to be all about "Leaf Peeping" in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Mother Nature intervened and the usual October blaze of color in those parts was mostly still very green.  But the views were still gorgeous.

We headed for Ashville early Wednesday morning with a full schedule of events and dinner reservations, the best of which was at the elegant Grove Park Inn where I celebrated with a great martini and my beloved raw oysters.  The last time I was in Ashville was also for my birthday about 30 years ago when the ex and I went every year to see the leaves change with our friends, Mimi and Ed Gadinsky.  Lunch on Thursday at Pisgah View Ranch, the place where we always stayed, was a nostalgic memory of days gone by, including visits there when Andrea was a youngster and a teen-ager, spending the summers at Camp Pinewood and Camp Blue Star in the area.

Thanks to Facebook, the Internet, and my iPhone, I was touched by the many "Happy birthday" messages from friends as far away as Alice in Colorado, Faith in Philadelphia, and Dolores in New Jersey, not to mention my much missed friends in Miami.  Looking forward to seeing them next month when I journey back that way around Thanksgiving.

We arrived back in Charlotte on Friday afternoon to find the best gift of all. . .a hand made birthday card from my delicious six year old great-grandson, Grayson.  I think he had a little help from his Mommy, Amy, but I'm having it framed as one more memory of a wonderful birthday.
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No caption needed.

The best daughter in the world.

My birthday martini. . .yum!

My beautiful flowers from Paul

My birthday card from Grayson

Back to the 70's. . . tennis, anyone???

I was watching the Today Show this morning when Steve Carell came on to talk about his new film,   "Battle of the Sexes", the story of tennis great Billie Jean King's match with tennis crazy Bobby Riggs.  Forty years ago, on September 20th, 1973, 30,000 people gathered in the Houston Astrodome, another 90 million watched on black and white TV, as Billie Jean answered Rigg's sexist rants about the superiority of men over women on the tennis court, by running him ragged for three sets.

Don't know if any of you remember that Women's Professional Tennis is those days came under the heading of The Virginia Slims.  Women were not yet considered "good enough" to be part of the national tennis organization.  I knew that well because my public relations firm was hired to do publicity for the Slims when they held court on Key Biscayne.  That's when I got to meet and talk with Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, and most importantly, Billie Jean King.  (And yes, I actually played tennis in those days, although certainly not in the class of those remarkable ladies.)

I remember watching the much ballyhooed "Battle of The Sexes" on my television and feeling triumphant at Billie Jean's big win.  It was a win for all women in our minds at that time and she was a true hero.

Daughter Andrea was my partner in those days and we both remember working for Virginia Slims and the many remarkable women that graced the courts.  You can be sure we will be seeing the movie as soon as it comes to Charlotte.
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Billie Jean & Bobby cross racquets before the match!

On the road again. . .

Hello, North Carolina.  Goodbye Florida.

I guess I can consider myself a true Carolinean.  Got my new drivers license last week and on Monday, got my new license plates.  Wow!

Have been so concerned about my friends and family still in my ex-state due to Irma, that I haven't really had a chance to concentrate on my new lifestyle.  Plan to get started on that asap.  For those who knew that the closing on my condo was scheduled for today, the 15th, the buyer's been granted an extension to next Friday, the 22nd.  More of Irma's doing, but keeping my fingers crossed that the sale still goes through.  Grove Isle's landscaping and the Club itself, suffered lots of damage, but the condo buildings emerged unscathed, thank goodness, and we even all have power and air-conditioning back.  No TV, apparently, since the cable across the bridge was destroyed, but Comcast is promising to fix things shortly.

Checked in on damage to all my old stamping grounds. .  Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardens, The Kampong, Vizcaya. . all suffered damage to the trees and plants, but the buildings came through well.  My friend Dianne, who's a docent at Zoo Miami, says they will stay closed until the major damage to their foliage and some of the animal areas has been cleaned up.  The animals all came through without incident.

Grandson Adam, his wife Amy, and great-grandson Grayson, are back in their Jacksonville home, safe and sound.  Grayson just lost his first tooth!  Major event in a 6 year old's life!

Hopefully, the northeast can say No way, Jose, to the hurricane of that name still out there, and we can get back to a more normal lifestyle.

  Bye for now. . .
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I'm back! Let's talk about stress. . .

Moving, they say, is the second most stressful thing you can experience. Thirty years of stuff accounts for a helluva lot of stress, I'm here to tell you. But here's the good news.  The OCD side of my brain made it imperative that every box be unpacked and every picture and painting hung.

The fact that my cats, Wasabi and Ginger, kept looking at me like "When are we going back home,Mom?", didn't help the situation, but now, exactly three weeks to the day after arriving in my new Charlotte, NC apartment, I am actually starting to feel at home.

Wasabi, trying out my new desk.

There is no Publix in the area, but I can find my way to Harris Teeter Market without getting lost. (I keep calling it Harris Tweeter, to my daughter Andrea's great amusement.)  I bought myself a Garmin GPS for my car and promptly returned it to Best Buy because I couldn't even attach it to my dashboard, much less figure out how to program it.  Thanks to Google Maps on my iPhone, I'm not doing too badly, thank you, although without the ocean to let me know where East is, I have absolutely no idea what direction I am heading.

Yes, I miss Miami, and all my friends, but as those who know me well will understand, I'm a great one for moving on. . this time to a whole new life in a whole new place.  I'm already looking into volunteering at the Mint Museum and am planning to help out at the Charlotte Center For Abandoned Animals where there need help bottle feeding some 50 rescued kittens. That's right up my alley!

I'll continue to write the monthly blog for the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and probably be doing writing for Andrea's marketing firm.  And I'll continue Musing, so don't count me out, cause I'm still very much here!
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Ginger, surveying the new surroundings. 

Moving on. . .

Tomorrow's "moving day", guys. . .it's goodbye to Grove Isle and thirty wonderful years in this remarkable place, and hello to my new digs in Charlotte, North Carolina, close to my daughter, Andrea.

Sunday night my dear friends Virginia Jacko and Gill Freeman hosted a fabulous farewell party for me that was very touching and gave me a chance to say goodby to a whole host of friends and neigbors.  I've made a mental list of the things I will truly miss about my life since arriving in Miami from Mt. Vernon, NY, with a five year old daughter, in 1957.

. . .the view of the sun rising over Biscayne Bay when I wake up in the morning
. . .volunteering as a tram guide at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden every Friday morning
. . ."Wine Down Fridays" at the Dog Park every week. . I represent the cat owners of Grove Isle
. . . the great friends I have made here at Grove Isle and throughout my pr career in Miami
..... my dear new love, Paul. . .not so new, it's more than three years now.

To you, my blog friends, I'll most definitely keep on blogging.  Give me a little time, (probably at least a month) to get unpacked.

So, bye for now. . .like what's his name always says. ..I'll be back!
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Back from the beautiful Blue Danube.. .

Well it isn't exactly blue, but it is definitely beautiful.  Paul and I just returned from our second Viking River Cruise, this one starting in Prague, Czech Republic, and ending in Budapest, Hungary.

After three days in Prague at the Art Nouveau Palace Hotel, we headed via bus to Passau, Germany to pick up our ship, the Viking Hermod, and start our 6 day cruise down the Danube.  One night in Prague we went on an evening tour to a restaurant/winery where I unexpectedly learned to dance the polka, (take look at the attached video) and we met some of the couples we were to spend time with throughout the cruise. Meeting and making interesting new friends is a wonderful part of this kind of trip.

I made good use of my heavy duty sneakers for most of the trip because this part of Europe still believes in cobblestones and lots of steps.  Pretty shoes are definitely a no-no if you want to make it through the week.  There were many highlights, some of which are pictured below.  My return, after some twenty-one years, to Hungary, the country of my Mother's family, was nostalgic, to say the least.  The magnificent Dohany Street Synagogue, the second largest synagogue in the world, had just reopened for the first time after the Fall of the Iron Curtain when my sister Fran and I visited there in 1966.  Today it is an awesome sight, totally restored and very beautiful.

All in all, it was a great trip and we really enjoyed the ship.  There is something about having the river, right outside your cabin's glass wall of doors when you wake up in the morning, that is very special. I highly recommend it!

View of  the Danube from our cabin

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Off on a tour of Prague on our first day of trip

Paul dancing the minuet on ship at night. Who
knew he had such talent!

Church in Prague.  We saw lots of beautiful churches
on this trip. Oddly enough, the area is almost atheistic
since the Communist days.

View of the Danube approaching Durstein

Drinking "melange". . kind of a delishViennese latte

The Great Synagogue on Dohany Street in Budapest

Communing with a Golden Eagle in Budapest

As he sits on my head!
 

Our guide and the really funny owner of winery we visited in Durnstein

Incredible view of Budapest as we sail into port late at night.

Attending the Mozart concert in Vienna with our friend Robert, a real life composer

Hat's off in Bratislava



We snuck into a rehearsal of a kid's show at the great concert hall in Linz

The Danube from Melk Abbey

Some of our favorite dinner companions, Arnie and Lin Sonsteby
and Dottie and Harry Winn

Heroes Square in Budapest

The incredible Mozart Concert  we attended

Interior of the Great Synagogue in Budapest

No, I'm not standing in a hole. . Adam, in back of me, is 6'8", and I'm 4'11".
Off to lunch with Adam, Jodie, Jennifer and Charlie Robert,at the 
Black Camel in Vienna.

Dancing in Prague.  I think I'll keep my day job.  (That's me
in the purple shirt and white pants, in case you don't recognize my moves.)

Last day of a great trip.

Nashville + Navy = Reunion Time

Just spent five days in Nashville accompanying Paul to a reunion of his fellow Navy cryptologists.  Nashville is definitely a music city and a visit on Saturday evening to the Grand Ole Opry was definitely a highlight of the trip.  The program takes place over a 2 1/2 hour period and is divided into four sections with each "hosted" by a well known country singer followed by two equally popular solo singers or groups doing two numbers each.  I didn't necessarily recognize the names of all the various entertainers who were all great, but I sure could sing along with all the songs!  The big name for the evening was the final entertainer, Ronnie Millsap.  That was one name I knew, although I had no idea he is blind and plays a mean piano as he sings.

While Nashville is not exactly a gourmet restaurant town, a bunch of us made it "downtown" to lunch at Rippy's one day for their famous barbecue and plenty of country music, then walked across Broadway to Tootsie's for more music and something to wash it all down.



Memories!

Speaking of liquid refreshment, we signed up for a tour of the Jack Daniel Distillery preceded by lunch at Miss Bobo's Boarding House.  Miss Bobo's excellent chef makes liberal use of what is smilingly referred to as "the local product", because oddly enough, Nashville is located in a dry county.  I had seconds on the delicious apple slices sautéed in "the product" that accompanied my fried okra, fried chicken and some kind of pork.  No wonder I gained three pounds on the trip. And oh yes, the tour of the Distillery was really interesting with an adorable young guide showing us the ropes.

Enjoyed meeting many of Paul's Navy mates who knew him best as their Master Chief during his 22 years in the service.  Lots of "war stories" and reminiscences.  It was truly a fun trip and I was honored to be invited.
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Hangin" out with Elvis.

Paul says hello to Jack.

Music at lunch at Rippy's

Ronnie Millsap at the Grand Ole Opry

 

What an exciting morning!

My friend Virginia Jacko is truly amazing.  As the President and CEO of the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind, she presided over the celebration this morning marking the "topping off" of the new Lighthouse Learning Center for Children, a 4-story structure adjacent to the organization's existing building.  The event was attended by many of the major donors who have made the new building possible, as well as officials from the Miami Dade School Board and the County Commission.

Lunch was served and I sat at one of the long tables with Julie and Francois, Virginia's daughter and son-in-law, as well as the Miami Fire Chief, a really friendly gentleman, and Jorge Munilla, the head of MCM Construction, the incredible builders of the structure that is scheduled to be completed in a record 11 months, in time for the opening of the fall school semester on August 16th..  The Miami Lighthouse Band played and a raffle, with fabulous gifts donated by various businesses, went to multiple tables of the building's construction workers who were also invited to the event and were having a great time.

The Lighthouse's innovative Pre-K program that brings together in the school room both sighted and visually impaired youngsters, is slated to occupy the new building's 4th floor.  The first three floors are for much needed parking space.  The program is the first of its kind in the nation and has just been awarded a grant by The Children's Trust to conduct a longitudinal research study of these early learners in order to determine the outcome of the inclusive Lighthouse program.

My volunteering at the Miami Lighthouse includes writing a monthly blog that goes to several thousand e-mail addresses.  It helps to raise money for the facility and its one of the most satisfying things I get to do, and as most of you know, I do a lot of volunteering these days.  This morning made me really proud to be associated with this remarkable place.
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Miami Lighthouse Band serenades guests

Alberto Carvalho, Superintendent of Miami Dade
Public Schools

Virginia with Julie & Francois and Eva (the delicious dog)

Racing is not my thing. . .

It's Sunday morning and I was watching TV when CBS came on with Mo Roca interviewing  Mario Andretti, considered the greatest race car driver of all time with shelves full of trophies and awards.  He's 77 now, has a head of white hair, and still looks great. As they talked about the fact that he is still involved in the racing world, with two sons who are successful drivers, it took me back about 40 years to the time when my PR firm represented the  Miami International Auto Show.

The show arrived annually to the Miami Beach Convention Center and it was part of my job to get as much publicity in the Miami Herald and other local publications as possible.  The star attraction at this particular year's show was the appearance of Mario Andretti who was at the height of his career at the time.  I had arranged for an interview at the Herald with Ed Pope, one of the best known sports reporters in the nation, and a great coup for me to have pulled off.  Andretti was staying at the Coconut Grove Hotel (I still lived up in North Miami at the time), and to my horror, I was informed that I needed to drive there and pick him up to take him to the interview.

I was driving a four door Mercedes sedan in those days, and was definitely not a nominee for "driver of the year".  I told myself I could do this.  All I had to do was get him to the Herald safely. . big deal. . .so what if he is the king of the racing world.  I've been driving since I was 16.  (My stomach is now feeling very queasy.)

I arrive at the Coconut Grove Hotel, ease up the steep circular drive, and find Mario waiting for my arrival.  He hops in the visitor's side, I introduce myself, and we start down the other side of the drive.  Did I mention that the hotel was located on what passes for a hill in Miami and the driveway was very steep?  And I was more than slightly nervous? Bottom line, I started out too fast and when we hit the bottom of the driveway we literally bounced into the air before settling onto the street.  Mario looked horrified, actually he looked scared, and I wanted to die, but I got us to the Herald without any further incident. 

The interview went great.  He drove my car back to the hotel.
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I remember. . . .

I read in the newspaper the other day that Playboy magazine is bringing back nude women.  Apparently people weren't buying the magazine once they did away with their signature nude layouts and there was no rush to buy it for the articles.  Circulation had dropped drastically from the 7.1 million of its heyday in the early 70's.

The article reminded me of my brush with Playboy in that period when I represented a very successful Miami-based artist by the name of Tony Scornavacca.  Tony had done a series of paintings of elegant and sexy young Renaissance men that he thought would go great in the magazine.  He hired my public relations services to try to sell Playboy on publishing them as he realized they would go way up in price if they did.

Playboy, in the 70's, was the hottest place you could possibly be published and not an easy task to accomplish.  My deal with Tony was a really terrific fee in the thousands if I accomplished it, and nothing if I couldn't.  And boy, did I try.  I used every contact I had in the publishing world and pulled every trick I could think of.  No deal. 

When I realized it was not going to happen I showed up at Tony's studio/gallery one afternoon to make my apologies.  He was sitting at his easel apparently painting as I explained how I had tried and tried and how sorry I was that I didn't get his elegant paintings printed in Playboy, and there was no reason to pay me for my work.  He was very understanding and kind and told me that he knew I had really tried.

When I went up to him to say goodbye, I suddenly realized that the subject he was painting, the whole time I was talking, was me!  It was Tony's way of thanking me for my efforts.

He was an incredible artist who died much too young.  I guess I have Playboy to thank for this painting that hangs on my bedroom wall.  
 

And yes, I had long hair worn on top of my head in those days!

New York, New York. . .it's a helluva crazy town!

You know who's home.

Once upon a time I was a true New Yorker, actually living and working in that amazing city.  But I've been a Floridian since arriving in Miami in 1957 with a five year old daughter, so occasional trips back north are always an adventure.

Which brings me to my holiday trip to that wild and crazy city for New Year's.  Paul and I flew into JFK on the 29th for four days of fun that included tickets to "Front Page", an extraordinary Broadway show that featured Nathan Lane, John Slattery and John Goodman.  We also ventured on the subway down to visit One World Trade Center.  The view from the 103rd floor was breathtaking.  We visited the awe-inspiring Memorial Museum on our last trip to the city.  Sad, sad, sad.

When I say wild and crazy, I'm talking about 5th Avenue, especially anywhere near Trump Tower.  Forgeddaboutit.  Barriers everywhere.  Police inspecting your handbag before allowing you to walk down the street.  The Christmas lights on the buildings along 5th were fantastic but the crush of human beings was almost unbearable.  We found ourselves taking side streets to gain a little space, until the day of New Year's Eve when those crosstown streets, all the way up to Central Park, were closed off to traffic and it was not possible to get around by cab or Uber and we had to hoof it back to our hotel.

It's a good thing I wasn't planning to do a big shop at Tiffany's.  Located next door to The Donald's building, it is literally impossible to approach without pushing through hordes of tourists camping out in front of his building. 

Yes, New York is amazing, but to be truthful, I'm happy to be back in Miami.  Hope you all had a great holiday.
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View of Central Park from our hotel room.
Great fireworks on New Year's Eve!

On the subway to One World Trade Center



Fabulous Christmas tree at The Met



Our favorite spot, the bar at our hotel.  I'll drink to that!

Tiffany, all lit up