On my most recent day trip to Lake Worth, I discovered Publix has given its supermarket an Art Deco flare, in keeping with many of the historic homes in that city.
Even the loading dock has decorative elements. Notice the Key West style home in the rear at left. I love the colors of our subtropical environment.
This block of shops once housed a Church of Religious Science that was a source of great support and friendship during my early time in South Florida in the 1980s.
Facing toward City Hall are the great trees in which I often observed a large flock of parrots make their evening stop.
I noticed this shop door on the main street; do people really need to be coached to experience gratitude?
I enjoyed seeing this Christmas village in one shop window. It reminded me of the one I inherited from my mother and grandmother. I gave it away some time ago, when it back pain made it too challenging to put up each year.
Murals seem to be cropping up everywhere. I caught the next two in Lantana, slightly south of Lake Worth. One is on a Greek restaurant on U.S. 1.
The patriotic mural, declaring Freedom Is Not Free, was on the side of a municipal recreation center building.
Wednesday, December 31, 2014
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Gluing Fabric Is Much Easier than Upholstering Doors
Upholstering the old-fashioned closet doors in my living area proved a big task, covered here.
For the bedroom doors, I tried a much easier, efficient, and economical process: I created panels and hot-glued them to the 7.5-foot panels.
Burlap has a nice heavy texture and it is easy to create straight lines, even without a proper fabric cutting table, which I don't have.
Just pull a thread. If the fabric is loomed straight, you end up with straight lines. This is relatively easy with a coarse weave, but it takes a bit more time than writing the sentence.
The fabric panels create a more modern, plain feel that I like. The slight bubbles in the top photo are less noticeable on the tall door as a whole. Moreover, the closet is in a narrow alcove, so one really doesn't often step back to view them as I have here.
This bottom photo shows an uncovered door. I have only this one left to do.
I steam-ironed the burlap, and I used a loose stitch around the edges to create a neat edge line.
I would not recommend this in a child's room or for anyone who is rough. I slide the doors gently on the tracks, using only the handles or the raised edges.
For the bedroom doors, I tried a much easier, efficient, and economical process: I created panels and hot-glued them to the 7.5-foot panels.
Burlap has a nice heavy texture and it is easy to create straight lines, even without a proper fabric cutting table, which I don't have.
Just pull a thread. If the fabric is loomed straight, you end up with straight lines. This is relatively easy with a coarse weave, but it takes a bit more time than writing the sentence.
This bottom photo shows an uncovered door. I have only this one left to do.
I steam-ironed the burlap, and I used a loose stitch around the edges to create a neat edge line.
I would not recommend this in a child's room or for anyone who is rough. I slide the doors gently on the tracks, using only the handles or the raised edges.
Labels:
DIY crafts,
home decorating
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Semi-Retirement, The Fork in the Road, and Choosing Truth over Comfort
Recently I have realized that I have saved enough to revert back to being an adjunct professor. I enjoy working on the Fashion After 50 website; I have additional online teaching possibilities that I don't fully use.
But I like comfort. I like the extras that working full-time allows, even when the restrictions -- no vacations except a week (five days) after every four-month term, have to punch a time clock like a kid on her first job, responsibilities that crowd out my creative work and make it more challenging to exercise -- cramp the possibilities of growing fully into who I am.
As so often is the case, a serendipitous nudge seems to point in a certain direction.
Writes Alice Gardner, in her wonderful little book, Life Beyond Belief, Everyday Living as Spiritual Practice:
"If there was one factor most responsible for the continued awakening of those who seek the truth, it would have to be that of consistently choosing to seek truth over the comforts that appear to be available along the way.
"Each stage of development that we move through has its own kind of comforts inherent in it and we may be tempted to settle for those comforts instead of some far-away-sounding spiritual destination that mind isn't even sure exists. (p. 129)
"By what means can we avoid these kinds of diversions?
"There is, of course, not a method, but only a cultivating of an awareness of our deepest intentions and a willingness to look inside ourselves to find our own most authentic responses to each moment.
"If there was anything that might be called a method to deal with how to make the little decisions in life without compromising truth for comfort, it would be to unearth this internal navigation system [that each person has] and be true to it and to ourselves in all of the little day-to-day decisions that come along, as well as the occasional major decisions." (p. 130)
That seems to be an answer of sorts, and I have a timeline for easing back into adjunct work in a way that will cause, hopefully, the least financial disruption to my goals.
Saturday, October 04, 2014
Venice, Florida, Flea Market with Unusual Architecture
On a recent trip to Venice, Florida, I spotted this beguiling dome-roofed flea market.
Whimsically painted in turquoise and aqua, it looks like a fun place to stop.
I love the remnants of kitschy Old Florida, fast vanishing from our landscape of strip malls, parking lots, and neat subdivision homes where dogs are not allowed.
The dome stretches behind the front structure a good way. The sky the day I took these photos was miraculous.
Whimsically painted in turquoise and aqua, it looks like a fun place to stop.
I love the remnants of kitschy Old Florida, fast vanishing from our landscape of strip malls, parking lots, and neat subdivision homes where dogs are not allowed.
The dome stretches behind the front structure a good way. The sky the day I took these photos was miraculous.
Labels:
Florida architecture,
South Florida
Fish Depot: From the Ocean to You
Fish Depot in Boynton Beach is the best fish market in South Florida. I drive up from Fort Lauderdale with my cooler.
By the time I get there, the selection may be depleted as you see here.
You might think that this old-fashioned method of refrigeration wouldn't be as good as coolers. But that is far from the truth. People like me come from all over to Fish Depot on Federal Highway (U.S. 1).
When I lived closer, I often saw fishermen driving up with a boat on a tow to offload whatever they didn't want for personal use at the back door of Fish Depot, shown here.
If I recall right, the unusual structure once housed a neighborhood bar, way back in the early 1980s.
I like the whimsical windmill design. Kitschy structures like this once dotted South Florida, calling out to tourists making their way South on U.S. 1.
Most have fallen to wreckers and been replaced by trim subdivision housing.
Besides having the best fish, Fish Depot has this cool mural to hide the dumpster.
Why do I love living in South Florida? Let me count the ways.
By the time I get there, the selection may be depleted as you see here.
You might think that this old-fashioned method of refrigeration wouldn't be as good as coolers. But that is far from the truth. People like me come from all over to Fish Depot on Federal Highway (U.S. 1).
When I lived closer, I often saw fishermen driving up with a boat on a tow to offload whatever they didn't want for personal use at the back door of Fish Depot, shown here.
If I recall right, the unusual structure once housed a neighborhood bar, way back in the early 1980s.
I like the whimsical windmill design. Kitschy structures like this once dotted South Florida, calling out to tourists making their way South on U.S. 1.
Most have fallen to wreckers and been replaced by trim subdivision housing.
Besides having the best fish, Fish Depot has this cool mural to hide the dumpster.
Why do I love living in South Florida? Let me count the ways.
Labels:
Florida,
Florida architecture,
food,
murals
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Banish You Guys, A Scourge on the Language
The ugly, low-class phrase you guys has become the most common way to address listeners.
I have heard people with master’s degrees address a group of educators – all with advanced degrees – as you guys.

I have heard highly-paid business professionals of mixed gender, all in suits, addressed as you guys.
Game show announcers and media commentators with seven- and eight-figure incomes call listeners you guys.
Some of my students are so baffled by this turn of events that when I ask them not to use you guys in formal speeches, they ask, “What should we call a group of people then?”
They were surprised that the English language already has a perfectly good word for addressing a group of people: you.
Once known to every elementary school child that you was both a singular and plural form of address, this has become obscure, esoteric knowledge.
Decades ago, the Modern Language Association and the American Psychological Association acted on research that demonstrated gender-exclusive language has a constrictive effect on people’s abilities to imagine non-gendered roles and characteristics for women.
This is especially true for young children who take what they hear literally. If doctors are referred to as he and nurses as she, they assume those are the roles they must fill.
Gender-inclusive language became preferred.
Women were often told that when a word such as mankind was used, of course it included them. I am pretty sure that if the convention had been to refer to all people as "whitekind," only ignorant racists would argue that people of color should simply know that of course the word included them.
Today the word guys is freighted with traditionally masculine attributes such as watching football, drinking beer, and ogling women. So it is even more offensive to call any group you guys when it may include people born male who choose not to self-present as traditionally masculine.
I am on a one-woman crusade to stop this scourge on the English language.
I have asked colleagues to please stop referring to a group that contains me as you guys as I am not now, have never been, and have no intention of becoming a guy.
I quietly suggested to a department assistant director who supervises a small group of women, all highly accomplished and most with master’s degrees, that it is disrespectful to refer to them as you guys, as she often does as meetings.
I have edited my own speech so that this phrase, as catchy as the flu, does not disgrace my own address.
I penalize student speakers – just a little, just a reminder – who use this phrase in formal speeches.
There is a perfectly good, simple word in the English language for addressing any group of males, or females, or both, or any mixture of males, females, hermaphrodites, transgenders, bisexuals, and the coming generations of cyborgs, chimeras and clones – and that word is YOU.
It is sufficient.
I have heard people with master’s degrees address a group of educators – all with advanced degrees – as you guys.

I have heard highly-paid business professionals of mixed gender, all in suits, addressed as you guys.
Game show announcers and media commentators with seven- and eight-figure incomes call listeners you guys.
Some of my students are so baffled by this turn of events that when I ask them not to use you guys in formal speeches, they ask, “What should we call a group of people then?”
They were surprised that the English language already has a perfectly good word for addressing a group of people: you.
Once known to every elementary school child that you was both a singular and plural form of address, this has become obscure, esoteric knowledge.
Decades ago, the Modern Language Association and the American Psychological Association acted on research that demonstrated gender-exclusive language has a constrictive effect on people’s abilities to imagine non-gendered roles and characteristics for women.
This is especially true for young children who take what they hear literally. If doctors are referred to as he and nurses as she, they assume those are the roles they must fill.
Gender-inclusive language became preferred.
Women were often told that when a word such as mankind was used, of course it included them. I am pretty sure that if the convention had been to refer to all people as "whitekind," only ignorant racists would argue that people of color should simply know that of course the word included them.
Today the word guys is freighted with traditionally masculine attributes such as watching football, drinking beer, and ogling women. So it is even more offensive to call any group you guys when it may include people born male who choose not to self-present as traditionally masculine.
I am on a one-woman crusade to stop this scourge on the English language.
I have asked colleagues to please stop referring to a group that contains me as you guys as I am not now, have never been, and have no intention of becoming a guy.
I quietly suggested to a department assistant director who supervises a small group of women, all highly accomplished and most with master’s degrees, that it is disrespectful to refer to them as you guys, as she often does as meetings.
I have edited my own speech so that this phrase, as catchy as the flu, does not disgrace my own address.
I penalize student speakers – just a little, just a reminder – who use this phrase in formal speeches.
There is a perfectly good, simple word in the English language for addressing any group of males, or females, or both, or any mixture of males, females, hermaphrodites, transgenders, bisexuals, and the coming generations of cyborgs, chimeras and clones – and that word is YOU.
It is sufficient.
Labels:
popular culture
Sunday, May 04, 2014
Catfish Dewey's: Neighborhood Joint with Great Service, Lots of Carbs, Less Flavor
If you are a vacationer who wants to visit a seafood restaurant where the locals go, add Catfish Dewey's to your Fort Lauderdale things-to-do list.
You will need a rented car or plan for a taxi ride that, in my experience, could easily be $30 or more.
No local restaurant has been able to equal the fried oyster po' boy at King Neptune in Port Salerno, but I keep trying.
My first choice was the 15th Street Fisheries. On this sunny South Florida Sunday, I could think of worse things to do than eat on the water.
The parking lot at the marina is small, and the line for valet parking was long.
So I turned around. I don't like crowds when I eat. I headed along to Catfish Dewey's restaurant in Oakland Park.
I figured it would be a family restaurant; all-you-can-eat catfish usually is, and I had plenty enough of that in Georgia. I don't bother with AYCE menus, because my appetite is small. Quality matters more than quantity.
The first dish was conch fritters that arrived along with my iced tea. These were perfect -- warm and tasy. Conch can be tediously rubbery. The serving was generous, probably around eight. I couldn't finish my portion.
The coleslaw arrived next, piled high -- so high, I had trouble forking it up from the small, shallow side bowl. It lacked seasoning, but I give this Florida restaurant props for the generous portions.
Some eateries skimp on the slaw, and I can't understand that. Cabbage is cheap.
The owner of an Italian restaurant once told a friend that one secret of his success was generous portions of spaghetti. "It's cheap," the restauranteur explained, and diners love you for it.
Catfish Dewey's subscribes to this philosophy.
My waitress -- and I'm sorry I didn't pay attention to her name because she deserves a shout-out -- was solicitous without being obtrusive.
This is not the kind of restaurant where the server introduces herself and acts as if you are going to be BFF from then on. You are more likely to hear, "What can I get you, hon?"
She kept my tea full, got the tartar sauce I asked for promptly, and delivered the check in a timely way without even having to catch her eye.
The oyster sandwich and old-fashioned southern greens I got (kale, I think) were also generous. There were seven or eight juicy plump oysters on the roll, lightly battered and fried exactly as the menu promises.
I prefer more seasoning on everything, so I dumped a lot of Louisiana hot sauce on them before dipping them in the tartar sauce, also not spicy enough for me. I skipped the huge role.
The greens were not the most flavorful I've ever had -- low in salt and not enough bacon or pork fat or whatever it is that makes this dish often taste so good.
Catfish Dewey's is a large dining hall with rustic red-check tablecloths and wood floor. Plenty of people were eating when I arrived toward 3 p.m.
I prefer to eat when the crowds are light, so my timing was excellent. There are always cars parked out front when I drive past, but there is more parking in the rear. Cars in the parking lot is a sign of a potentially good restaurant. I have tried a few restaurants whose parking lots are empty; invariably, people were avoiding them for good reasons.
Many Americans like restaurants with plentiful if somewhat bland servings. I cannot fault Catfish Dewey's as a seafood Florida restaurant that is easy on the pocketbook and has good service. Even though I prefer spicier food, Catfish Dewey's is an experience worth recommending among Fort Lauderdale things-to-do.
Thursday, January 02, 2014
DIY: Casters for A Small Pantry Cabinet; Saving An Insulated Wheeled Bag from Extinction for $0
I love a little pantry cabinet that I picked up for $40 in a thrift shop nine years ago. It is a perfect space saving idea for my small kitchen.
The problem is that the swing-out shelf doors need three inches of empty space on either side, making it hard to find the right spot for it.
The pantry slides into the folding-shelves by leaving the bottom two shelves up.
I also bought the folding shelves in a thrift shop. I stack two, instead of using a baker's rack for open storage. This gives me six shelves instead of the typical three or four on a baker's rack. The shelves are narrower, making storage more accessible and a better fit in a galley kitchen.
As the photo shows, the doors will not open, however.
That's why I installed casters on the bottom.
As long as I had it upside down, I put three screws into the backing which was coming loose along that bottom edge.
With casters, I can slide the cabinet forward when I need to access my canned goods, tea, and other dry goods. Then I can slide it back into its nook.
Unfortunately, the wheels made the pantry just a tad too high so that the top shelf would no longer fold down. Simple fix: I shoved some sliders under the bottom of the shelves. Sliders are intended for putting under furniture when moving them. Now the height is perfect.
Installing the casters was easy peasy, so I moved onto to fixing an insulated food bag with a saggy bottom.
This project required some creative problem-solving.
The bag cost less than $20 and was designed to fold into a narrow profile for storage. It has toted a lot of weight it was never meant to carry over the past decade.
I picked up some scrap molding at Home Depot.
The boards are shown along the back of the freezer bag along the pull-up handle. Right below that handle, there was another break where two boards meet but had no support. You can see how I cleverly used two curtain rod brackets to provide stability. They are just below and to the side of each wheel.
I placed the curtain bracket edges toward the bag--see close-up photo. Knowing me, I would rip into a bare shin with one of those if the edges faced out. I used a washer under each screw to compensate for the slightly raised bracket edges. See photo.
I had hoped the scrap molding wood could support the bag's bottom. This wasn't feasible. The original bottom was two wood sections with nothing but quilted bag between them and an interior square cardboard panel.
No wonder this poor bag was sagging!
Neither scrap strip was wide enough to screw into both of the original wood sections, yet they were too long to use in the other direction.
Instead, I used two shim strips that I had on hand. I inserted them under the torn vinyl cover and screwed them into the existing wood construction.
I sealed the opening with a hot glue gun and added a piece of heavy duty laminate. I took the photo on close-up setting so it looks a lot messier than it is.
Remember, this is on the bottom of the bag toward the pavement, where no one can see it.
___________________________________________
With the main repairs completed, the scrap molding came in handy to stabilize the inside. I hot-glued the strips into place.
The bag has a fold-down bottom for the expanded dimensions; this covers the wood under-floor.
The bag no longer folds, but it hasn't been used in the slim-line configuration for years. Plus, I can probably get a few more years' use out of this handy bag -- and all the things I used to fix it (except my time) with FREE. Free is good!
The problem is that the swing-out shelf doors need three inches of empty space on either side, making it hard to find the right spot for it.
The pantry slides into the folding-shelves by leaving the bottom two shelves up.
I also bought the folding shelves in a thrift shop. I stack two, instead of using a baker's rack for open storage. This gives me six shelves instead of the typical three or four on a baker's rack. The shelves are narrower, making storage more accessible and a better fit in a galley kitchen.
As the photo shows, the doors will not open, however.
That's why I installed casters on the bottom.
As long as I had it upside down, I put three screws into the backing which was coming loose along that bottom edge.
With casters, I can slide the cabinet forward when I need to access my canned goods, tea, and other dry goods. Then I can slide it back into its nook.
Unfortunately, the wheels made the pantry just a tad too high so that the top shelf would no longer fold down. Simple fix: I shoved some sliders under the bottom of the shelves. Sliders are intended for putting under furniture when moving them. Now the height is perfect.
Installing the casters was easy peasy, so I moved onto to fixing an insulated food bag with a saggy bottom.
This project required some creative problem-solving.
The bag cost less than $20 and was designed to fold into a narrow profile for storage. It has toted a lot of weight it was never meant to carry over the past decade.
I picked up some scrap molding at Home Depot.
The boards are shown along the back of the freezer bag along the pull-up handle. Right below that handle, there was another break where two boards meet but had no support. You can see how I cleverly used two curtain rod brackets to provide stability. They are just below and to the side of each wheel.
I placed the curtain bracket edges toward the bag--see close-up photo. Knowing me, I would rip into a bare shin with one of those if the edges faced out. I used a washer under each screw to compensate for the slightly raised bracket edges. See photo.
I had hoped the scrap molding wood could support the bag's bottom. This wasn't feasible. The original bottom was two wood sections with nothing but quilted bag between them and an interior square cardboard panel.
No wonder this poor bag was sagging!
Neither scrap strip was wide enough to screw into both of the original wood sections, yet they were too long to use in the other direction.
Instead, I used two shim strips that I had on hand. I inserted them under the torn vinyl cover and screwed them into the existing wood construction.
I sealed the opening with a hot glue gun and added a piece of heavy duty laminate. I took the photo on close-up setting so it looks a lot messier than it is.
Remember, this is on the bottom of the bag toward the pavement, where no one can see it.
With the main repairs completed, the scrap molding came in handy to stabilize the inside. I hot-glued the strips into place.
The bag has a fold-down bottom for the expanded dimensions; this covers the wood under-floor.
The bag no longer folds, but it hasn't been used in the slim-line configuration for years. Plus, I can probably get a few more years' use out of this handy bag -- and all the things I used to fix it (except my time) with FREE. Free is good!
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Jupiter to Stuart: Discovering Wild Places As Old Florida Vanishes
It is hard to find places with a vista uninterrupted by development in South Florida, like this birding sanctuary in Jensen Beach.
It is right off U.S. 1. No one was there on this hot September Saturday.
One of my favorite things-to-do on a beautiful blue-sky day is drive north to discover things I've never seen or that have changed since last I saw them.
My first September in South Florida, 1982, I was surprised every time I went outdoors the palm trees and heat.
I traveled from New York State on Labor Day weekend, 1982, accompanied by the annual snowbird migration; it seemed as if every fifth car on that great flyover route, I-95, had a northern license plate.
I would soon learn that September can be one of the hottest months of summer, the autumnal equinox that ushers in Fall notwithstanding.
There is a shaded picnic hut for bird watchers well down the trail; I doubt you can see the tiny speck in this this photo.
In this direction, you may see some high-rise condominiums just on the horizon line.
The first time I saw this area, it was so undeveloped, one followed foot trails between the sea grape bushes -- particularly nice one left -- and scrub palmetto to the ocean. We emerged from the dark canopy to the stunning vista of sky so blue it hurt the eyes and sand as white as salt.
L'Ombre, my Doberman Pinscher, mistook the sand for snow. He threw up a snoutful and chomped down to eat some, as he did with snow.
But Mother Nature had played a cruel trick on him and was about to pay another.
He ran to the ocean to get the sand out of his mouth, only to be confronted with another thing he had never before encountered -- salt water. Poor doggie.
But he loved the beach and to swim in the ocean, something none of my other dogs ever did. They feared the water and hated the hot sand on their feet.
The next set of photos is from a detailed mural with sections in relief, in an arcade leading to a small hole-in-the-wall bar and little gift shops. I think this is Port Salerno, but I'm not sure.
The first photo blends trompe l'oiel with a real potted plant. Other depictions are a sailfish, a popular sport fishing catch; underwater scene with mermaid, and a school of fishes under the gift shop window.
In an art gallery just around the corner from the arcade, I found beautiful art that captures the South Florida ambiance I love. Some of the photos turned out darker and more shadowed than I could rememdy.
This mermaid sculpture is a lovely piece for home that would need to be larger than mine to accommodate it.
The charming watercolor depict the insouciance of a Florida that is decades gone and never to return.
On the way home, I took a wrong turn and wound up in an area that seemed deserted -- even of cars. It is unnerving to think about being stranded miles from anywhere on a road for which I don't know the name and could only be sure that I was driving generally East.
Assuming there is cell phone coverage -- and I wasn't -- how would I tell the tow-truck to find me on a road off the Kanner Highway with a sign pointing toward I-95?
At first, the fields had cows grazing; after a mile two there was what you see in the photo.
I like knowing there are still wild places in Florida -- even though this looks like second growth -- but I don't necessarily want to live or be stranded in such a place.
It is right off U.S. 1. No one was there on this hot September Saturday.
One of my favorite things-to-do on a beautiful blue-sky day is drive north to discover things I've never seen or that have changed since last I saw them.
My first September in South Florida, 1982, I was surprised every time I went outdoors the palm trees and heat.
I traveled from New York State on Labor Day weekend, 1982, accompanied by the annual snowbird migration; it seemed as if every fifth car on that great flyover route, I-95, had a northern license plate.
I would soon learn that September can be one of the hottest months of summer, the autumnal equinox that ushers in Fall notwithstanding.
There is a shaded picnic hut for bird watchers well down the trail; I doubt you can see the tiny speck in this this photo.
In this direction, you may see some high-rise condominiums just on the horizon line.
The first time I saw this area, it was so undeveloped, one followed foot trails between the sea grape bushes -- particularly nice one left -- and scrub palmetto to the ocean. We emerged from the dark canopy to the stunning vista of sky so blue it hurt the eyes and sand as white as salt.
L'Ombre, my Doberman Pinscher, mistook the sand for snow. He threw up a snoutful and chomped down to eat some, as he did with snow.
But Mother Nature had played a cruel trick on him and was about to pay another.
He ran to the ocean to get the sand out of his mouth, only to be confronted with another thing he had never before encountered -- salt water. Poor doggie.
But he loved the beach and to swim in the ocean, something none of my other dogs ever did. They feared the water and hated the hot sand on their feet.
The next set of photos is from a detailed mural with sections in relief, in an arcade leading to a small hole-in-the-wall bar and little gift shops. I think this is Port Salerno, but I'm not sure.
The first photo blends trompe l'oiel with a real potted plant. Other depictions are a sailfish, a popular sport fishing catch; underwater scene with mermaid, and a school of fishes under the gift shop window.
In an art gallery just around the corner from the arcade, I found beautiful art that captures the South Florida ambiance I love. Some of the photos turned out darker and more shadowed than I could rememdy.
This mermaid sculpture is a lovely piece for home that would need to be larger than mine to accommodate it.
The charming watercolor depict the insouciance of a Florida that is decades gone and never to return.
On the way home, I took a wrong turn and wound up in an area that seemed deserted -- even of cars. It is unnerving to think about being stranded miles from anywhere on a road for which I don't know the name and could only be sure that I was driving generally East.
Assuming there is cell phone coverage -- and I wasn't -- how would I tell the tow-truck to find me on a road off the Kanner Highway with a sign pointing toward I-95?
At first, the fields had cows grazing; after a mile two there was what you see in the photo.
I like knowing there are still wild places in Florida -- even though this looks like second growth -- but I don't necessarily want to live or be stranded in such a place.
Labels:
Jensen Beach,
murals,
palm trees,
South Florida,
Stuart,
things-to-do
Wednesday, September 04, 2013
Warehouse with Artistic Mural Captures Eye of the Hurricane
Even our warehouses are better in Fort Lauderdale.
This ordinary gray cinderblock warehouse is probably will not be on any tourists' list of things-to-do in Fort Lauderdale.
Located on a street parallel to Dixie Highway, the muralist made the best of the dull gray exterior by using it for an eye-of-the-hurricane scene.
I like the energy of the storm and the way the palm trees are shown bending in the wind.
So far, we've escaped any hurricanes, but I learned this morning on the Weather Channel, that 49% of all hurricanes hit the East Coast USA in September. And 82% come in September or October.
I remember some doozies late in the season. Wilma, for one, had schools closed in November. Tropical Storm Irene, later upgraded to hurricane, knocked down our fence and closed roads.
Going back to the Eighties, I remember the time a tanker washed up in the back yard of Palm Beach socialite Molly Wilmot. She fed the Venezuelan crew finger sandwiches and adopted their cat. If you are intrigued, you can read her 2002 New York Times obituary here.
This ordinary gray cinderblock warehouse is probably will not be on any tourists' list of things-to-do in Fort Lauderdale.
Located on a street parallel to Dixie Highway, the muralist made the best of the dull gray exterior by using it for an eye-of-the-hurricane scene.
I like the energy of the storm and the way the palm trees are shown bending in the wind.
So far, we've escaped any hurricanes, but I learned this morning on the Weather Channel, that 49% of all hurricanes hit the East Coast USA in September. And 82% come in September or October.
I remember some doozies late in the season. Wilma, for one, had schools closed in November. Tropical Storm Irene, later upgraded to hurricane, knocked down our fence and closed roads.
Going back to the Eighties, I remember the time a tanker washed up in the back yard of Palm Beach socialite Molly Wilmot. She fed the Venezuelan crew finger sandwiches and adopted their cat. If you are intrigued, you can read her 2002 New York Times obituary here.
Wednesday, August 07, 2013
Customer Service Lacking When US Postal Services Charges But Doesn't Deliver
The first time the U.S. Postal Service shrugged off a confirmation tracking claim, I figured it was an anomaly best forgotten. Today I learned USPS Priority Mail is a scam. The customer service philosophy, "We don't guarantee anything."
Case in point: On July 31, I sent an Priority Mail envelope from Fort Lauderdale to Tampa .
Today is August 7. The tracking information at USPS.com shows it was scheduled for Aug. 3 delivery, and there is no updates since then. The recipient contacted me yesterday to let me know the packet was long overdue.
What does the USPS say about this? "We don't make any guarantees." And there is no refund.
I could drive to Tampa and back with time to spare.
Four or five years ago, I sent a $90 textbook using Media Mail with a tracking confirmation number. It was not only delivered to the wrong address; it was delivered to the wrong city to an address that had no resemblance to that of the addressee.
What did USPS customer service say? The equivalent of, "Well will you lookee that?"
"Are you going to do anything about it?"
"What can we do?" they shrugged.
I'm not a legal scholar, but isn't there a law against tampering with mail that is not your own? Perhaps the mail carrier could go up to the door and ask for the package back.
What about that sign in the Post Office that says 2-day Priority Mail with the price. I looked and looked and I couldn't find anything that said, "No guarantees."
Isn't that sign an implied contract?
USPS fraud is occurring, it would seem, every day with no help for those of us who are dumb enough to believe what the signs say.
Case in point: On July 31, I sent an Priority Mail envelope from Fort Lauderdale to Tampa .
Today is August 7. The tracking information at USPS.com shows it was scheduled for Aug. 3 delivery, and there is no updates since then. The recipient contacted me yesterday to let me know the packet was long overdue.
What does the USPS say about this? "We don't make any guarantees." And there is no refund.
I could drive to Tampa and back with time to spare.
Four or five years ago, I sent a $90 textbook using Media Mail with a tracking confirmation number. It was not only delivered to the wrong address; it was delivered to the wrong city to an address that had no resemblance to that of the addressee.
What did USPS customer service say? The equivalent of, "Well will you lookee that?"
"Are you going to do anything about it?"
"What can we do?" they shrugged.
I'm not a legal scholar, but isn't there a law against tampering with mail that is not your own? Perhaps the mail carrier could go up to the door and ask for the package back.
What about that sign in the Post Office that says 2-day Priority Mail with the price. I looked and looked and I couldn't find anything that said, "No guarantees."
Isn't that sign an implied contract?
USPS fraud is occurring, it would seem, every day with no help for those of us who are dumb enough to believe what the signs say.
Labels:
customer service,
priority mail scam,
USPS fraud
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Ernie's Barbecue: An Institution Best Avoided If Ketchup Is Not Your Idea of Good Sauce
Ernie's Barbecue has become a Fort Lauderdale institution of local popular culture during its half-century-plus in operation. Somehow, I strayed onto websites that suggested it was the top ribs joint in town and should be high on the Fort Lauderdale things-to-do and restaurants to sample list.
I don't look for ambiance in a barbecue restaurant. Ernie's has some Florida murals, an interesting floor that may be terrazzo and looks like it needs a thorough cleaning, and the ever-present TV screens of the sports bar.
The first sign that this would not be a meal to remember in a good way was the menu description of the ribs threatening it would be "smothered" in sauce.
I've come to favor Memphis and St. Louis spice rubs. But I've got nothing against a good sauce, either. I've sampled some of the best in Georgia, can whip up my own with a complex layering of flavors that includes the subtlety of leeks, and I'm not against Bone-Sucking Sauce in a jar in a pinch.
Ernie's sauce was all but inedible. Lumps of diced onions that had not been cooked thoroughly enough to dissolve floated in a mixture of catsup and vinegar. I couldn't scrape enough of it off the ribs fast enough.
Slaw was served in a tiny cup. C'mon folks, cabbage is cheap. Why be stingy?
The Bahama bread was okay. On the plus side, real butter was served, and the ice tea was strong and flavorful.
The waitress was indifferent, and the barkeep could barely pry his eyes off the TV long enough to summon her.
Like the fast-food restaurants that litter the American landscape, Ernie's is another example of Americans insensate palates. That it has such a long history proves the bankruptcy of popular culture food preferences. You can find plenty of poor reviews along with the raves; I recommend trusting the former.
Ernie's is located at 1843 S Federal Hwy (US 1), just slightly south of 17th Street with its Causeway, on the West side of Federal.
I don't look for ambiance in a barbecue restaurant. Ernie's has some Florida murals, an interesting floor that may be terrazzo and looks like it needs a thorough cleaning, and the ever-present TV screens of the sports bar.
The first sign that this would not be a meal to remember in a good way was the menu description of the ribs threatening it would be "smothered" in sauce.
I've come to favor Memphis and St. Louis spice rubs. But I've got nothing against a good sauce, either. I've sampled some of the best in Georgia, can whip up my own with a complex layering of flavors that includes the subtlety of leeks, and I'm not against Bone-Sucking Sauce in a jar in a pinch.
Ernie's sauce was all but inedible. Lumps of diced onions that had not been cooked thoroughly enough to dissolve floated in a mixture of catsup and vinegar. I couldn't scrape enough of it off the ribs fast enough.
Slaw was served in a tiny cup. C'mon folks, cabbage is cheap. Why be stingy?
The Bahama bread was okay. On the plus side, real butter was served, and the ice tea was strong and flavorful.
The waitress was indifferent, and the barkeep could barely pry his eyes off the TV long enough to summon her.
Like the fast-food restaurants that litter the American landscape, Ernie's is another example of Americans insensate palates. That it has such a long history proves the bankruptcy of popular culture food preferences. You can find plenty of poor reviews along with the raves; I recommend trusting the former.
Ernie's is located at 1843 S Federal Hwy (US 1), just slightly south of 17th Street with its Causeway, on the West side of Federal.
Friday, May 31, 2013
Storage Wars Barry Weiss: An Old Smoothie With A Great Tan and a Fast Quip
I watch Storage Wars (A & E) for one reason – Barry Weiss.
The millionaire produce broker and collector looks like he’s having the time of his life buying the contents of abandoned storage lockers.
Most of the regulars on Storage Wars own resale stores, but according to Wikipedia, this is just a hobby for Weiss.
Tanned and silver-haired, Weiss is a smooth-talking quick-witted Man of the World in the style of George Hamilton, and Cary Grant, and with just a touch of swashbuckling Douglas Fairbanks.
One of his priceless remarks as one shop owner snapped up several lockers, “He’s bidding like he makes a living doing this.”
Barry showed up for the 2013 Fall premiere with two attractive blonds young enough to be his daughters: the Auction Angels.
“Barry must have a new shipment of Cialis,” quipped Brandy, a show regular with her husband Jarrod.
The director, a personal friend of Weiss who asked him to join the project when the show was in the planning stage -- used the Charlie’s Angels theme intercut with the familiar silhouette images from the popular Seventies show, and ended with the women -- and Barry -- shaking their manes like high-priced fashion models. Or Hollywood babes.
Barry Weiss is popular with female fans, young and old (Wikipedia). And why not? Weiss has found fame in his 60s for being himself. Who wouldn’t like that.
When Barry lost only a few hundred dollars for the purchase of one locker, he said, “I’ll count that as a win.”
It’s easy to believe he has lost as much at the gaming tables in Vegas.
When he won a storage locker with a quilt draped over the contents, he quipped, “I’ve paid more than that to peek under the blanket.”
I’d certainly let him unbuckle my swash.
Barry Weiss deserves his own show; he’s a heck of a lot more fun and less pompous that Doctor Pill, er I mean Phil.
The millionaire produce broker and collector looks like he’s having the time of his life buying the contents of abandoned storage lockers.
Most of the regulars on Storage Wars own resale stores, but according to Wikipedia, this is just a hobby for Weiss.
Tanned and silver-haired, Weiss is a smooth-talking quick-witted Man of the World in the style of George Hamilton, and Cary Grant, and with just a touch of swashbuckling Douglas Fairbanks.
One of his priceless remarks as one shop owner snapped up several lockers, “He’s bidding like he makes a living doing this.”
Barry showed up for the 2013 Fall premiere with two attractive blonds young enough to be his daughters: the Auction Angels.
“Barry must have a new shipment of Cialis,” quipped Brandy, a show regular with her husband Jarrod.
The director, a personal friend of Weiss who asked him to join the project when the show was in the planning stage -- used the Charlie’s Angels theme intercut with the familiar silhouette images from the popular Seventies show, and ended with the women -- and Barry -- shaking their manes like high-priced fashion models. Or Hollywood babes.
Barry Weiss is popular with female fans, young and old (Wikipedia). And why not? Weiss has found fame in his 60s for being himself. Who wouldn’t like that.
When Barry lost only a few hundred dollars for the purchase of one locker, he said, “I’ll count that as a win.”
It’s easy to believe he has lost as much at the gaming tables in Vegas.
When he won a storage locker with a quilt draped over the contents, he quipped, “I’ve paid more than that to peek under the blanket.”
I’d certainly let him unbuckle my swash.
Barry Weiss deserves his own show; he’s a heck of a lot more fun and less pompous that Doctor Pill, er I mean Phil.
Labels:
American popular culture,
Barry Weiss,
Storage Wars,
style,
TV
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Upholstered Door: Challenging DIY Project Saves Money But Burns Time
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The doors had old-fashioned panels out-of-keeping with my own contemporary-eclectic tastes that tend to mid-century modern and Art Deco.
I considered a number of upholstery fabrics, including reed matting that was too expensive and grass wallpaper. I have used the latter on an old cedar trunk, and I don’t have the room to tackle that messy project in my apartment.
I settled on polished burlap for an early texture effect and the relatively cheap price at online fabric store. I also snagged a 2-pound box of round-headed brass look upholstery tacks for $20. At Jo-Ann Fabrics, 75 cost $21.
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My second step was padding the inset panels. I want a single upholstered panel for a sleek look.
I used two layers of polyester padding, fitting it into place with hot glue. That used up one of the 72"x90" rolls I bought at Jo-Ann Fabrics for about $15.
Right away, I came up against how hard it is to measure and cut large panels of cloth straight when I don’t have a large table for laying out fabric.
I also could see that a single door would easily use up two or more rolls of polyester batting. I wasn't even sure that four layers of batting would be enough.
I decided that old mattress pads would provide more opaque and firmer padding. I couldn’t find any at three local thrift shops. A white quilt for $4.50 might work in a pinch, but it had more loft than I want.
A king mattress pad that I’m not using anymore is taking up space in a closet – and who doesn’t need more space? – so padding problem solved at zero cost.
Total price for two bi-fold doors (second project not pictured) is $80.
Recycle – repurpose – reuse!
As I looked at the doors while cutting away the elastic edge of the mattress pad, I could see that the interior level of the panels was even deeper than the outer edge. So I cut some additional layers of batting to even out the depth. I secured these with a spray craft glue.
I was concerned that the batting was too porous for this, but it worked fine.
I measured the mattress padding strip, but that is not a guarantee when I am on the floor rolling the strip as I go. Plus, the edge of the mattress quilt was not completely straight either.
To cut plumb burlap panels, I used the technique of pulling a thread to create a runner or ladder down the fabric. When you pull a thread, do this carefully. You don’t want it to break, because you won’t be able to pick it up again.
The next step was nailing on, with upholstery decorative tacks, the final layer. If you live in a condo apartment, you have to wait for a reasonable time of day for this – because the nailing is going to go for hours and hours.
By the time I had one six-foot edge done, my knees and back hurt. I suggest you not tackle this if you have arthritis without a good-size, stable work table out in a garage.
I also learned that it is better to space the tacks. Photos of upholstered furniture show the tacks in a row. After placing 10 of them – three to anchor the top and seven down the side – I realized I would spend the rest of my life on the project if I continued.
If you are not practiced at tacks, you may find it challenging to place a tight row so it is perfectly straight. I was worried about how the final product would look.
I went to 2-inch gaps. These work out to about 1.75-inches in between, as the hobnail tops also take up space.
Leaving spaces between the tacks is more forgiving than creating a line of tacks, as you see in the corners of the finished door, last photo.
By the time I was done with one 6-foot length, I was dreading having to complete the rest of the job. I still have three 6-foot lengths to complete – plus a matching door next to this one that has to be done.
The final challenge: I am not strong enough to lift the door into its holders.
This project gave me a realistic perspective about tackling the super-tall bi-fold closet doors in the bedroom.
Then project is too expensive in terms of time and effort.
Labels:
creativity,
DIY crafts,
upholstered door
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