And a Very Merry Christmas to You!

I am sitting in my sun room, which seems an obvious place in Florida, where the outside temperature is 84 degrees, and I'm wearing shorts and flip-flops.

 As a replaced northerner, the traditional trappings of the holiday still seem foreign to me.  Palm tree trunks wrapped in white lights.  Oh, yes, beautiful--but palm trees?  Friends chatting about jumping into their pools after turkey and dressing.  Waiting on pumpkin pie so they can trek to the beach.  

And yet there is such familiarity.  People are in a lighter mood, and there is an air of expectation riding on the air.  Holiday homes are the same as in northern climes.  One would be hard-pressed walking into a greenery-draped, twinkly-treed home, to tell the difference.  Perhaps there isn't one, after all.


During this season of high expectations and happy wishes, we humans who celebrate this particular holiday, appear of one mind wherever we may be.  We long for a perfect celebration, all the while remembering nostalgic Christmases long gone but somehow very much alive and active in our memories.  

Certain smells, sounds, conversations bring those old days streaming into our consciousness in great detail.  We find ourselves trying, with every fiber of nostalgia in us, to recreate them perhaps a little more for ourselves than for our loved ones.


So I look out my window at palm trees and lush plantings, at folks strolling by in all manner of tropical dress, at kids not in snowsuits but shorts and tees, at convertibles with their tops down, letting in the glorious sunshine. And I am certain most of these people are trying to find holiday cheer, longing for this Christmas to be as fun-filled as in Christmases past.  Doing exactly the same things with the same thoughts as I had in my winter-chilled home of yesterday.

Have a wonderful and peaceful and joyous Christmas wherever you may be.  I wish that for you and for us all.

A Life Lesson Relearned

This past Friday evening my husband and I attended The Follies, a musical, produced every two years.  It was performed by owners of the Sea Towers Condos in Madeira Beach, Florida.  We had been invited by our dear friends of more that twenty years, Ed and Michele Elliott.

Be sure to hear the song sung at the LA production of la Cage at the bottom of this post...

I would be less than honest that we went with mixed feelings.  The condo complex, a huge one with literally thousands of residents, is a fifty-five years or older one with many people in their eighties and even older.  Even though Michele, who is a terrific pianist, was playing and Ed was the narrator--a job tailor made for him--we did not expect much in the way of entertainment.

As the production began, it was evident that the musical offerings were uneven.  Some were quite good.  Some not so much.  But something happened as we sat there listening.  There was a spirit alive in the room that became more evident as the evening went on.  These people were singing their hearts out and having a wonderful time.  It was infectious, and soon we were having fun!

Ed Elliott in Kilt

The finale, though, was the pièce de résistance.  The company chose the song The Best of Times written by Jerry Herman from La Cage aux Folles, and it was perfect!  I was touched in a way I wouldn't have thought possible.  Here were these performers, many in the most golden of their golden years, belting out a song of endless possibilities.  Of joy and hopefulness.  Of looking ever forward and embracing the future.  What are the lyrics one may ask?  I've included a You Tube video of an LA performance here and hope you will appreciate their message as well.

As we listen, let's salute the Sea Tower citizens and all others who approach and live these golden days with verve, vigor and vitality!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Here it is.  Holiday time again!   Many of you know that I lived in London for ten years.  It was a marvelous experience, and I love everything about the country, the freedom, the culture, the generosity of the Brits. 

It was, though, an odd feeling of an entire country not celebrating Thanksgiving.  After all, their beginnings were not steeped in felling trees for log cabins, constructing rustic and rudimentary villages and depending on the original inhabitants to teach them about corn and farming. Actually, at that time, the British government was the very reason why such an endeavor was occurring in this new world, but that's a story for the history books.  

Our Thanksgiving dinner in London then was held in the evening, after everyone came home from work.  The American community gathered in friends' homes for the traditional dinner.  In the early days of our time there, Harrods was the only place where canned pumpkin or fresh cranberries  (or any cranberries at all) could be procured.  Today they're both a staple in the supermarkets all year.

Always around our holiday table were some dear British friends and Canadian ones, too, who celebrate Thanksgiving on a different day in November.  The requisite jokes, "If you'd paid that tax on tea..." and so on were bandied about, all adding to the fun.  It is lovely remembering those days, those friends, those times. 

So, you ask, "How will you spend your Thanksgiving in Florida this year?"  The answer is simple--and surprising.  We will be with two of our three sons, one son's girlfriend and two dear friends from London, also living half of the year very close by in Florida and with whom we spent every Thanksgiving in Blighty!

And so the circle goes on and on, much to all our delight.  What a life!

Happy Thanksgiving to you all in the United States and around the world.



 

Not Another New Year-Already?

Wow!  Can you believe it?  Not another new year already.  Didn't 2011 just get here?

Alas, the passing of time trumps all our wishes of holding onto cherished memories and people, too.  That trite but  true axiom is particularly poignant to me this year, as we will be spending more of our time in Florida and less in St. Louis, which is home.

While this decision was about ten years in the making, I find myself approaching it with two minds, as the ancient Greeks were fond of saying. 

 The anticipation of spending more time in the Tampa Bay area is, for us, undeniably appealing.  And being right in the heart of a city again suits us after years living in the heart of London.  Our beach condo also is and will continue to be a respite from that very city as well.

Tampa Skyline at Night

Sounds like a fantastic plan, right?  It would be except for that pesky "other mind" insinuating itself into the place where true and highly valued friends are. 

Good friends and cherished relatives.  That is decidedly the downside of such a decision.  Yes, of course, we will be back frequently, but it cannot be exactly the same ever again.  There is an invisible chasm, a pulling ever so slightly away, and that's the truth of it. 

What is one to do?  I don't know the answer to that question.  I only know what probably will happen from our experiences in other times and other places.  Those friends who have been so cherished will remain so no matter how far away we are in distance.  We will continue exactly where we left off in a previous time.  And with some others, not so much.  The human experience, after all...

So, off we go to Tampa.  New experiences.  New friends.  New milieu.  And old and dear friends and family never forgotten, never not concerned about and never devalued.  It is the fabric of life in this modern world.

Happy New Year, Dear Readers.  I wish you all the very best of everything in this coming year. 

  

One-Year Anniversary of Gulf Capping...and Spills Continue Around the Globe

Just one year ago, on July 15, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill brought to us by BP and Transocean, was successfully capped after pouring 4.9 million barrels of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico.


Gulf Coast fishermen try to save an oil-drenched pelican.

One year later-more of the same.

 (Photo:Ho New/Reuters)

One year later impacts of the spill continue to affect the health of Gulf Coast residents, the safety of the region’s seafood and the economies of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.

 $20 billion was set aside by BP for those whose lives and livelihoods were most impacted.  So far less than $5 billion has been handed out, and BP, citing the area’s “robust recovery,” says that should be sufficient.

Four big leaks have been reported in just the past two weeks:

An Exxon Mobil pipeline burst beneath the Yellowstone River, flooding the pristine waterway with more than 42,000 gallons of crude oil. While the line was reportedly shut down within seven minutes, the leak continued for more than an hour.

A pair of undersea leaks in the ConocoPhillips oilfield—Penglai 19-3, China’s largest—spilled up to 7,000 barrels of oil into Bohai Bay, spreading over more than 325 square miles. Slicks seven miles long and 500 yards wide were reported.

An explosion and oil spill at the Pengrowth Energy Facility near Swan Hills, Alberta, dumped 1,000 barrels of oil into nearby Judy Creek, which flows into the Freeman River, a tributary of the Athabasca River.

A New Hampshire company—Sprague Energy—leaked up to 100 barrels of oil into the Piscataqua River via a “small hole” in a delivery pipe. Company officials admitted a pinhole resulted in a “spraying” of fuel for up to two hours.

This is a tragic reminder of how little has changed since the Deepwater Horizon spill of April 20, 2010.

One Pelican at a Time:  A Story of the Gulf Oil Spill

Needed now more than ever before!

A Manatee Reprise

We were having dinner on  our balcony this evening when we noticed something large and dark swimming in the bay.  It swam very close to the boat in the picture and then headed to the docks under our balcony. 

It was, of course, a manatee.  A very large manatee.  It grazed all around the docks at its own pace and eventually swam to the center of the bay and disappeared. 

These are the most laid back of creatures.  They remind me of gentle hippos, a contradiction in terms I know, swimming in the Ewaso Ngiro River in the Samburu National Park, Kenya.

These are the creatures called sirenians after the centuries-old belief that sailors mistook them for mermaids.  Singing mermaids, actually, called sirens.

I was reminded of all this as we watched this mammal make its way around the bay.  Slowly, peacefully, quietly.  What a perfect way to spend an evening in Florida.

Manatee Alert!

Manatees are gentle and slow moving mammals.  They are wonderful, caring parents to their young.  And they are in danger.

Twenty five percent of all manatee fatalities are related to boat encounters.  Since manatees stay close to the surface where they must breathe, boat propellers harm them regularly.

Save the Manatee Club does amazing work in aid of these animals. Take a look at their homepage, and support this worthwhile cause.


The closest relatives of the manatee are the elephant and hyrax. Manatees can be found in shallow, slow-moving rivers, estuaries, saltwater bays, canals, and coastal areas — particularly where sea grass beds or freshwater vegetation flourish.

Manatees are a migratory species. Within the United States, they are concentrated in Florida in the winter.

Many of the Florida manatees make their home in the waters around Homosassa, which is about forty five minutes north of Tampa.

And What a Book Nook it Was!

Wow.  What a day it was at Book Nook by the Bay.  Lots of kids, lots of music, lots of sunshine! 

Book Nook at The Pier (St. Petersburg, Florida)

I want to thank Emily Stehle of The Pier Aquarium.  It was a marvelous day, a perfect Saturday. Everyone was out enjoying sea and sun. 

Many thanks to those who bought copies of One Pelican at a Time:  A Story of the Gulf Oil Spill.   It is gratifying to see the interest in Pelican, Britt and Bella.  The book, in hard cover and soft cover, may be purchased in the gift shop at the Aquarium.

Emily has agreed to do a guest post on this blog, so watch for it in the next weeks.  She will tell what exciting things are ahead for the aquarium and its new location at John's Pass, Madeira Beach.

Thanks again, St. Petersburg!

Clearwater Beach--A Promise to World Ocean Day

My family and I are spending two weeks  at our home on Clearwater Beach, Florida.  It is paradise with with problems.  Problems that are mounting because of human intervention.

Clearwater Beach, Florida

Those of us who call this piece of paradise home, worry about trash on the beach.  We are concerned about the amount of litter, particularly clear plastic bags at the water's edge, ready for the tide to take them into the gulf.  There, sea turtles think they are jelly fish, eat them and die. 

We are concerned for the manatees that shelter in our bay to have and raise their young.  Too many people in too many boats go too fast, and many manatees are wounded or killed by propellers of boats.

We residents worry about the dolphins, pelicans and other seabirds trying to live and survive in a hostile environment of our making.  What can reasonable people do? 

As an educator, I am convinced that education is the answer.  Children, and sometimes their parents, need to be enlightened about the danger and damage such thoughtless actions cause.  In fact, the theme this year of World Oceans Day is:  Youth:  the Next Wave for Change.

We must share this planet and have to be respectful of all life.  As we get close to Oceans Day , let us not only give thought but action to helping preserve the oceans and all that call it home.

Clearwater Beach, Florida at Sunset

Book Nook by the Bay--One Pelican at a Time Reading & Signing in Aid of World Oceans Day!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JUNE 4 BOOK NOOK CELEBRATES OCEANS DAY
Guests include Author Nancy Stewart and freeFall Theatre Company

St. Peterburg, FL (May 18, 2011) – One Pelican at a Time: A Story of the Gulf Oil Spill written by part-time Clearwater Beach resident Nancy Stewart will help The Pier Aquarium observe World Oceans Day at the June 4 Book Nook by the Bay.

The book, published by Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc. in February, has been on Amazon's Bestseller List for Children’s Books for ten weeks and has been nominated for a Global eBook Award. It is the first book for children written about the aftermath of the April 20, 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

One Pelican at a Time is a story of two children, Bella and Britt, who love living by the beach. They find oil washing to shore from a gulf spill and want to help but don't know what to do. When a "friend," the old crooked beak pelican shows up covered in oil, the girls get help from the bird sanctuary.

The pelican is saved, and the girls learn how they can help save the gulf...one pelican at a time.

Ms. Stewart, a former elementary school teacher and university professor of education, is a full-time writer of children's books. Two other Bella books, Bella Saves the Beach and Sea Turtle Summer are also published by Guardian Angel Publishing. She has traveled extensively throughout the world and is the U.S. chair of a charity in Lamu, Kenya that places girls in intermediate schools to allow them to further their education.

freeFall Theater Company will present a sing-along of the book, Over the Ocean in a Coral Reef written by Marianne Berkes. The counting and rhyming story was arranged to the traditional folk song, Over in the Meadow, and the troupe will first sing - and then teach it, to the audience of youngsters and their parents.

The book has won seven awards since its release including PMA Benjamin Franklin Silver Award, Marion Ridgeway Honor Book Award, National Parenting Publications Gold Award, Learning magazine's 2006 Teachers' Choice Award, Bank Street College of Education Best Books for 2005 and the Blue Hen Award (Delaware) for best picture book.

June 4 Schedule
10:30am Fresh Fish Theater: The freeFall Theatre Company's singalong of Over the Ocean in a Coral Reef. Featured Creature is the Brown Pelican.

11:30am Reading of One Pelican at a Time: A Story of the Gulf Oil Spill and book signing by Author Nancy Stewart. The aquarium's museum store will have copies of the book for sale.

Book Nook Partner Organization: Big Brothers Big Sisters of Pinellas County. Say the "secret" password and the little brother/little sister receives free admission with a paid adult admission
(2-for-1, one paid adult/one free child).

The Book Nook by the Bay is a literary event featuring Fresh Fish Theater and craft activity, Featured Creature facts, suggested reading by Youth Services Coordinator Beth Lindsay from the St. Petersburg Public Library System, the aquarium's marine science library and, of course, the reading of books. It is offered the first Saturday of each month and is free with a paid aquarium admission.

The Don CeSar's Beach House Suites is a sponsor of Book Nook by the Bay.

About The Pier Aquarium

Established in 1988, The Pier Aquarium is a private, non-profit aquarium and marine education center located in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida at The Pier. It showcases 17 tanks of live fish and other marine life and educational exhibits on the first and second floors and an outdoor marine laboratory and teaching unit, the Roy G. Harrell, Jr. Education Station, located on the Pier approach.

Its mission is to enhance the public’s understanding of the value and fragility of the local and global marine environment through research, education and personal experiences. The Pier Aquarium serves as the "public face” for the St. Petersburg Ocean Team’s research, innovation and technology. The Ocean Team is a consortium of 13 marine science and oceanographic institutions and environmental research agencies in the Southeast and one of the top such industry clusters in the nation.

More than 85,500 visitors, including 27,000 who participate in our scheduled educational programs, come to The Pier Aquarium annually to attend our Saturday programs, the annual Spa Beach Splash free marine discovery day and Summer Marine Adventures summer camp. Volunteers contribute more than 4,600 hours each year.

The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Reprise

Many thought and hoped the oil spill of April, 2010 was past us, was history. Alas, it is not.

My publisher, Lynda Burch of Guardian Angel Publishing, emailed me from Santa Rosa Island, Pensacola Beach, Florida, where she and her husband spend some time each winter.  With her permission, the following is what Lynda saw and photographed very recently:

 Santa Rosa Island, Pensacola Beach, Florida

                        February, 2011

"It is definitely not over, and BP says they are pulling out- 1/2 the claims have been denied and what about what is still going to happen?

I can't let my guests or my grandchildren in those floating contaminants. Skin is the most absorbent organ a human body has. I didn't see any warning signs, anyone testing the water, anyone interested in cleaning it up.

The little silvery fish (2-3 inches, part of the food chain) were washed up on the shore dead. The gulls and pelicans were out there in it. The dolphins were also out about another 1000 yards.

Lots of people on the beach didn't even know what the black and brown slimy stuff floating on edge of the surf was. I did email the local TV station but probably should have called them instead. It was very disturbing for such a beautiful day."

Because it's out of the news, there seems to be no immediacy about the spill anymore.  If this travesty is not addressed continuously and with utmost vigor and vigilance, it will still be an unmitigated disaster.  From my research on the gulf devastation, I think a quote from Sir Winston Churchill during World War II is in order:  "Now this is not the end.  It is not even the beginning of the end.  It is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."

It is Lynda's and my great hope that this kind of accident never occurs    again.  We adults, along with our children and grandchildren, need to     "take a stand on the sand" and see that it does not.  And if it does, God forbid, this time strong oversight should occur within the US government and any parties that caused it.