Let’s do lunch – this phrase forks up to a whole new level of food at The Bistro tucked inside Marion Technical Institute, 1614 SE Ft. King Street, Ocala. The Bistro, a hands on experience in cooking and serving to…
Florida Books – five fall favorites
School has started. You know what that means. In the morning, after the macaroni munchkins are gone, you may even have a few minutes to yourself. And the weather is trying to turn towards fall. Cooler days suggest that outdoor…
Kennedy Space Center Rocks
On assignment as a reporter, I drove right up to the rocket garden at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex east of Titusville. The rockets are permanently grounded, a garden of huge slim needles pointing to space. Has your heart ever…
Bioluminescent Kayak Tours -Only in Summer
We stood around the canoe launch site at Haulover Canal on Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. Our guide held up a two-bladed paddle and explained techniques. Dig this way, the kayak goes that way. You know the drill. She joked…
A Declaration of Cultural Diversity
We believe these truths to be self evident – cultural diversity makes us strong, celebrating our heritage keeps the past alive for future generations and when the Greeks are cooking, just show up. Amen. Cultural Diversity Alive and Well in…
Farmers markets on a Saturday morning
What are you doing Saturday morning? Here’s an idea – let’s go to the Fernandina Farmers Market, held every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. I like those hours. You don’t have to get up early to get the…
Turtle Walk with Grandchildren & More
When I go to book presentations and signings for “50 Great Walks in Florida” the most asked question is: “What is your favorite walk?” Each one is different. I love them all. As proof, I’d do them all again in…
Rain Barrel Makes a Difference
The rain came down in buckets. Lightening crashed nearby. Thunder boomed. My dogs and cats suddenly decided they ALL needed to be on the bed with me. We huddled together. Outside the house my three rain barrels – two in…
Five Fun Things to Do in April
Ah, spring. Open the windows. Let in fresh air. Inhale. Find fun things to do. Makes you restless, doesn’t it? Have I got a cure for you – five fun events for April all happening in places from my book…
Rainbow Springs State Park has Azaleas
Yes, all the azaleas are blooming! That’s the good news from Rainbow Springs State Park in Dunnellon. Rejoice. Do not hesitate. Pack up the kids, the family dog and its leash. Alert your neighbors, get together and carpool or caravan.…
Empty Bowls Filled with Love and Soup
I walked up the wide stairway then down a long hallway looking for the right room number. I heard my destination before arriving. Laughter spilled out of an open doorway of the ceramics studio at Central Florida Community College in…
Seeing Sandhill Cranes at Paynes Prairie
The air is alive with noise. All around us on Paynes Prairie near Gainesville it sounds like a thousand squeaky doors swinging open and shut on their hinges – creak, creak, creak. Noise surrounds us. We can’t see the noisemakers…
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings in Cross Creek
She often started her day on the front porch. A small manual typewriter awaited her words. But I like to imagine Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings ignored the typewriter at first. I picture her comfortable in her chair at the big round…
Pumpkin Pie from Scratch is a Winner
We thought it was cool to raise one eyebrow really high and cock your head to one side, like your face was saying “WHAT? YOU EXPECT ME TO BELIEVE THAT?????” I’d practice in front of a mirror but both eyebrows…
Milkweed Crisis in the Backyard
Holy cow! I’ve got a crisis! In my backyard the monarch caterpillars have chomped through all the leaves on the milkweed plants and they are still hungry. The very last milkweed has five, count them FIVE caterpillars and only TWO…
Civil War Reenactors Storm Fort Clinch
The Confederates held Fort Clinch in Fernandina Beach when the Civil War started. Union troops took it over when General Robert E. Lee ordered a withdrawal a year later. That was 146 years ago. The fort still keeps changing hands,…
Lessons Learned from Stranded Starfish
Note: This is a true story Starfish were the last thing on my mind as I began my beach walk. My footsteps made no sound on the fog-shrouded beach. I searched the sand for telltale signs of tracks leading out…
Wading trip – Get Wet and Wild in Punta Gorda
What’ in a wading trip? Get wet, get happy, learn new things. Are we fourth graders on a field trip? Heck no. We are adults at the annual Florida Outdoor Writers Association Conference held last week in Punta Gorda –…
Liberty Bell Museum Rings True in Melbourne
The Liberty Bell Museum is pointed out by a small arrow on a city map. Hummm, I thought the Liberty Bell was in Philadelphia and I am in Melbourne, Florida. What’s up? Curiosity got the better of me. I’m glad…
Reduce Global Warming – Do These 10 Things Now
Reduce global warming -Here are 10 things you can do right now to and oh yes, save money on gas and food. This list was first developed for Vacation Bible School this summer at Fort King Presbyterian Church in Ocala.…
Grandma Rie’s Bodacious Biscotti
Grandma Rie’s bodacious biscotti started in childhood. Back in the dinosaur days before computer games and cell phones, most kids played outside, riding bikes, playing baseball, doing anything to stay out of the house until dinnertime. But not Maria Muscalo.…
Photographs of Life Moments at Villa Lucia
Photographs. As a reporter it used to get to me when people said “a picture is worth a 1000 words”, hey, I was the one writing those words! Why should the photographers have all the fun?But sometimes they do. This…
Alachua County Forever Opens Sweetwater Preserve
Alachua County Forever opened its fifth property to the public on July 19, 2008, with a vine cutting at Sweetwater Preserve. Two reasons to cheer – new trails to walk plus another piece of natural Florida saved from concrete and…
Rain Barrels in Florida capture water
Rain barrels in Florida are an investment in a valuable resource – water Having rain barrels in Florida seem like such good things to do, and why not? I watched rain sleeting…
Florida lighthouses have great views
Florida lighthouses have great views but it takes effort to get to the view. I earned this T-shirt pictured above the old-fashioned way – by actually doing what it says – climbing 203 stairs to the top of Ponce de…