A remarkable morning. . .

Our book club recently read "The Lady In Gold"by Anne Marie O'Connor, the story of the famous painting by Gustav Klimt of Adele Bloch-Bauer, a wealthy socialite in Vienna, Austria in the early 1900's, that was stolen by the Nazis in their plundering of all art owned by Jewish families during the pre-war period. The painting was renamed "The Lady in Gold" because Hitler did not want anyone to know that this remarkable protrait was that of a Jewish woman.

Long after the war, and after many years of negotiating with the Austrian government, the painting was finally returned to Block-Bauer's grand-daughter, Marie Altmann, now in her 90's and living in the United States. Altmann believed that the painting belonged in a museum and it currently hangs in the Neue Galerie on Fifth Avenue & 85th Street in New York City.

I tell you this because I recently spent four days in Connecticut visiting a childhood friend of mine and I was determined to get into the city and see the famous painting in person, along with an exhibition of .the art of the burgeoning Modernists of the 1930's that Hitler called "Entartete Kunst ". . . ."Degenerate Art".

I felt very adventurous as I took the train by myself from Stamford into NYC's Grand Central Station early last Thursday morning. As we rolled through Mt. Vernon, the city in Westchester County where I grew up, I flashed on the many mornings I took this very train to my job as the assistant editor in a publishing firm. I was in my early 20's then. If you haven't noticed, I am slightly older now.

The entire exhibit was absolutely wonderful. Starting with the magnificent life size portrait of Bloch-
Bauer that dominates an entire wall. Equally fascinating was the "Degenerate Art" exhibition by artists like Paul Klee, Egon Schiele, Oskar Kokoschka and Marcel Breuer. The current exhibit only runs through June 30th, but if you are in the city before then, I highly recommend it. Housed in a circa 1914 mansion, I found it totally fascinating and I think you will as well.
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Photo captions: (1) "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer - The Lady In Gold"
(2) Neue Galerie's brochure on the "Degenerate Art" exhibit

A visit to the wild and wonderful Wynwood. . .

Remember when Miami was considered a city of old people sitting around waiting to die?  Take a Friday Night Gallery Walk in Wynwood and I guarantee you, you'll come away thinking there's a new law in town against anyone over 30.

My friend Sheila and I ventured out to Wynwood last night for the express purpose of visiting a particular gallery where a former art teacher of ours was showing.  Neither of us were aware that it was the Third Friday Gallery Walk Night. What an incredible evening!

For starters, we misread the address we were looking for and found ourselves in the most fabulous gallery either of us have ever had the pleasure of visiting. And we"ve both done plenty of galleries in our time. Art Fusion Center, on the corner of North Miami Ave. and 36th Street,  is run by a charming and extremely talented young man named William Braemer.  The Gallery features artists from all over the world and the work is uniformly stunning. We ended up spending close to an hour in this gallery alone.

From the Art Fusion Center we marched onward, on foot,  as the streets got more and more crowded.  We ended up in the much acclaimed Wynwood Walls area where we feasted on arepas (my addiction redux!) from one of the dozens of food trucks that lined the street, and admired the brilliantly painted walls and doors that surround the open area. Take a look at some of the photos, this is "graffiti" raised to high art.  (And don't miss the selfie of Sheila and me, after partaking of champagne, wine and beer at various galleries we visited.)

By 9pm the streets were so crowded that it was  becoming more and more difficult to walk.  The young people were just getting started when Sheila and I looked at each other and siliently agreed it was time for us older guys to head for home.

It's an experience, people, and I highly recommend it.  Wear comfortable shoes and be ready for one wild and crazy evening.  Miami is truly an exciting place these days.
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Dr. Ruth and sex after 80. . .

My friend Ellen asked me if I'd like to join her today at the uber luxurious new Palace, in Coral Gables, to have lunch and hear a talk by the sexologist, Dr. Ruth.  I haven't heard that name in years.  "My God," I said.  "Is  she still alive?  She must be 102!"

Dr. Ruth is very much alive, and as lively and funny as ever.  And by the way, she's only 87.

The Palace is Miami's new hot place to live for wealthy seniors who want the services of fine food three meals a day, all kinds of entertainment, classes, spa services, you name it.  It is in the center of Coral Gables "Miracle Mile" area, accessible to everything and very elegant.  Ellen had an invitation for two and asked me to join her. It was a blast.

Dr. Ruth pulls no punches when it come to sex and seniors.  She's a  believer. 
 
"Got a partner and one of you has lost interest?  Let's make a deal!  I'll do this for you if you'll do that!"

"Don't have a partner?  Invest in a good vibrator."

I haven't laughed so much in a long time.  Although the audience was 90% women, there were a number of men in attendance which made it all the more interesting when we got to the questions at the end of her talk. What really cracked everyone up was when she prefaced the question period with, "If it makes you more comfortable, you can say your question is for "a friend".

Dr. Ruth is truly a piece of work and the morning was an absolute delight, followed by a fabulous buffet lunch.  The Palace is not my cup of tea at the moment, I'll stick with Grove Isle, but they definitely know how to entertain.  If you get a chance to hear Dr. Ruth, I highly recommend her.

Thanks, Ellen.  It was a really fun morning.
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Photo caption:  Dr. Ruth the way you may remember her, and Dr. Ruth today

 

It's not such a "Small World" anymore. . .

Just got back from three days at Disney World and I can tell you that 25 years later, nothing looks the same!  For one thing, that cute little Magic Kingdom with the ultra modern, super convenient  monorail that took you where ever you wanted to go????  Forgeddabout it.  You need a road map and an app on your iPhone to find your way around Mickey's much expanded world these days.

One afternoon we had a Back Stage Safari tour booked in the Animal Kingdom, a park that didn't exist the last time I visited. To my surprise, it took a 20 minute bus ride from the Comtemporary Hotel where we were staying, just to get to that park's front entrance.  The tour was fabulous, taking Benard and me "back of the house" to the food storage areas and the veterinary offices, including the operating room with a table large enough to handle surgery on a full grown lion or hippo.We also got up close and personal with a white rhino as she was munching on some dried up twigs which the keeper told us is her version of Lays Potato Chips.

Disney World is totally digitalized these days. . .all our plans and reservations, especially dinner reservations,  were made well ahead of time on line, and were available to us by clicking on the Mickey app on my cell phone.  Without reservations, you could starve to death, the wait lines are so horrendous for walk-ins.

In the mail, prior to our leaving home, came our personalized "bracelets", (see photo of mine), that must be worn at all times while at DisneyWorld. There are no keys to the hotel room, you simply hold the Mickey side of the bracelet to the door handle, a green light goes on, and welcome home!  You also need the bracelet to authenicate your FastPass reservations for everything but the kitchen sink.  That included the fingerprint of your digital finger.  My fingerprint refused to recognize me several times which I found upsetting but the very nice Disney "cast member" at those various ride entrances, (we were told they are not called employees, perish forbid), all reassured me that I was who I thought I was, and they had other ways to prove it. That was definitely comforting.

The only thing missing during our three day visit was a couple of kids.  Couldn't help but remember my first visit to DisneyWorld in October of 1971 for the opening of the park.  Daughter Andrea was a senior at the University of Florida and she drove over from Gainsville with Steve Litwin, the son of our dear friends, Elmer and Janice Litwin, to meet the four of us plus Steve's little sister Sharon, at the park.  Both Andrea and Steve are grandparents these days and Sharon has grown children of her own.  Wow!  Time passes, but Mickey and Minnie looked exactly the same.  Wish I knew their secret.

If you get a chance to go, I highly recommend it. . .just be sure to wear comfortable shoes!  And don't forget your "bracelet".
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Photo caption:  Resting up on a handy dragon after an exhausting day in the Animal Kingdom.

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You can't win 'em all. . .

I was invited to spend yesterday afternoon at Gulfstream Race Track.  It was a gorgeous day and those in the know told me that "the track was fast."  I believe that's a good thing.  My method of betting, however, apparently leaves much to be desired.  At least when it comes to picking a winner.

My choices tend to go thusly: In the second race there was a horse named Big Gus.  My friend Faith's son is named Gus so, of course, I bet on him.  Big Gus actually pulled it off, so I was literally off to the races.  Races 3 through 5 were not so beneficial. Don't ask why I chose my picks. . once I thought the jockey was cute, another time I swear the horse looked at me.  Race 6 was an obvious choice.  There was a horse named "Run Anna Run".  My grand-niece Ana Muniz Leen is a great runner these days.  And guess what!  Anna, the horse, ran like the wind and crossed the finish line first.  (She/he was also the favorite in the race, but that's beside the point.

The 8th race was the last race of the day for us.  I insisted on staying because a horse named "Joanie's Image" was running in that race.  So what if he/she (I think the horses are all male, even if they have female names) was posted at 40 to 1, then 50 to 1, and finally at 70 to 1.  Not very good odds, I was told, accompanied by a pitying look.  I didn't care.  I bet $2 on my namesake to Show.  Even I didn't expect this horse to win.  If you were expecting an upset, forgeddaboutit.  But he did come in 4th so I almost won.  Almost, apparently, doesn't quite make it at the track.

I don't think I have a big future as a gambler, or for that matter, as a picker of winners.  But it was a lovely way to spend a Saturday afternoon.  I recommend it.  Especially if someone else is doing the betting for you.
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Bad way to start the day. . . .

I'm feeling slightly passe this morning.  The Today Show was on the TV and there was lots of excitement about an upcoming musical guest that in all truth I've never paid much attention to.  Rap is not my thing, as I've mentioned in the past.

My head jerked up when I heard "Mr. 305" and they introduced Pitbull to lots of screaming and excited yelling.  OMG!  He looks familiar, and I don't mean from TV.  305 is my area code and I remembered vaguely that Pitbull comes from Miami and was brought up in the Hialeah area.

What I didn't realize is that the very well dressed, bald young man I've seen several times in the bar at the Club here in Grove Isle where I live, is very, very famous.  My friend Sheila always says hello to him and he always responds in a most friendly manner. Who knew he's got the #1 song on the charts, I think it's called "Timber", pronounced "Timbah", and he sang it this morning while lots of very sexy girls wearing tank tops that I swear read "I'm Going Down" shimmied around him.  Even the Today Show female anchors were going crazy! 

No, I am not stuck in the Sinatra era, musicwise, but I have to admit Pitbull and his rapper like have passed me by.  I did stop and watch him perform and he is good.  What amazed me was that every young woman in the audience, and there were crowds of them on the outdoor plaza, knew every word of the song.  I guess we used to know every word that our favorite singers sang, but this was the first time I ever heard these lyrics, that's for sure.

I think I'll pay more attention the next time I see Mr. 305 in the bar.  Or maybe I'll just watch CNN in the morning from now on, so I don't have to start my day on such an age-revealing note.
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Oh what a beautiful morning. . . .

Like the lyric from the long ago song from the show "Oklahoma" : "Oh what a  beautiful morning, oh what a beautiful day".  I found myself humming that as I walked around our island this morning.  The waters of Biscayne Bay were like glass and the sun was just starting to break through the clouds.

To make it even more perfect, my favorite bird, the blue-black anhinga, was drying his wings on one of the poles that mark the deep water passageway out of Grove Isle.  I had to whip out my iphone and take his picture with the Key Biscayne bridge and the towers of downtown Miami shimmering in the background.

Usually I do my morning walk with two friends and we are so busy talking that we don't take time to really drink in the natural beauty of our surroundings.  This morning I was walking alone, with even my earphones left home.   Sometimes it's not a bad idea to take time out and simply enjoy the beauty of the morning.   This special place called Miami where we live.

It was so calm and peaceful that I decided I wanted to share it with all of you.  What a lovely way to start the day.
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