A trip back in time. .

My friend Sheila and I went to the Annual Gifford Lane Art Stroll today.  Gifford Lane is a throwback to Coconut Grove in the early 60's.  The houses on the street are all small wood cottages, surrounded by huge shade trees and overgrown shrubs. You can't exactly call it landscaping, it's more like Nature made the decisions as to what went where and the homeowners came along for the ride.

We went for the art, but the atmosphere of this quiet little street in Center Grove, particularly during Art Stroll,  is simply marvelous.  At one point, we were invited into a home where the owner had her art on display throughout this typical 60's cottage which is exactly as it must have looked then, sans air conditioning, (that was only for the wealthy in those days), and today's inevitable computer and printer on the owner's desk.  For a donation to some local charity, I can't remember which at the moment, Sheila and I each enjoyed a frosty "cucumber & gin" drink, that was ladled out of a huge glass bowl and was absolutely wonderful.  That's me gratefully drinking up in the back yard of the house. (For you guys reading this up North, welcome to South Florida. . it's 80 degrees and getting hot here today.)

As usual, dogs were everywhere, all getting along wonderfully.  Do you have to guess what I had for lunch?  I have to either give up going to art shows or get help for my arepa addiction.

For those of us who remember Coconut Grove as a bucolic, artsy little village, Gifford Lane is truly a trip back in time.  Today the Grove is super sophisticated with multi-million dollar condos going up everywhere you look along Bayshore Drive with its coveted view of Biscayne Bay.  I guess it's a sign of age, but it is fun to remember.
#    #    #    #

Informality is the order of the day.

Drinking up my Gin and Cucumbers!

Only in The Grove. . the line under Medical Marijuana jars reads "I guess you could put other stuff in them!"