Malt Shoppe Memories Cruise

Yes, that's Uncle Jesse (John Stamos) playing guitar with Mike Love of the Beach Boys. The Beach Boys today had only two of the original members (Mike Love and Bruce Johnston), but were supplemented by John Stamos (of Full House fame) and John Cowsill (the youngest of The Cowsill Family who recorded Hair and The Rain, The Park, and Other Things in the late 60's) who both played drums during the two shows I attended on the Carnival ship Inspiration. I've posted a number of other pictures on my Face Book page (John David Wild) under Rock & Roll Concert in the photo albums.

The gentlemen on the left is Ernest Evans, who turned 70 this month. You know him as Chubby Checker, who was given that last name by Dick Clark's wife, when she compared his Chubby first name (given him as a youth by an earlier employer) to Fats Domino. Fats Domino, Chubby Checker - a star was born doing a dance considered obscene in those days - the Twist. We had several opportunities to meet him, and listen to his story - a truly decent man who made his mark in music for my generation.

Another favorite was Lou Christie, who recorded Two Faces Have I, Lightnin' Strikes (probably his best known) and Rhapsody In The Rain. That last one was restricted on American Forces Network as the lyric went "and in my car, our love went much too far" and referenced another lyric "the windshield wipers seemed to say...together, together" - pretty racy stuff for that time. Lou, among several others on the ship, wasn't hitting those high notes quite as I remembered, but then again neither can I.

The cruise went from Tampa to Freeport, Bahamas, and back. Freeport wasn't that hot a town, but the action was all on the ship anyway. Poodle skirts and leather jackets, t-shirts rolled up with cigarette packages stuffed up the sleeve, and saddle oxford shoes were legion on the decks. Even Little Anthony (of Little Anthony and the Imperials fame) was performing renewal of vow marriages onboard. When not singing, he's an ordained minister. Sadly, Jay Black (as in Jay and the Americans) had canceled due to a heart attack several weeks before the cruise. Like our WW II veterans, these guys are Rock & Roll's greatest generation and will not be with us forever, but the music will go on, and on, and on........

It's Just Lunch?

Up near the gate, there was an exhibit for the non-profit Lions, Tigers and Bears, Inc., which rescues animals no longer wanted by their owners. They brought along a Siberian Tiger for "show and tell", and the tiger was taking it easy. When I snapped this picture, he wasn't showing a lot of energy although it was a cool day in far eastern Manatee County. He apparently was not aware that mere yards away, a petting zoo was a veritable smorgasbord of tasty treats, including this goat. I'm sure the goat was happy the tiger was in a cage. Tonight, the tiger will go home to DeSoto County, and the goat will bed down at the petting zoo. It's said that good fences (and strong cages) make good neighbors, but County lines are even better should the tiger have been interested in asking the goat out for dinner.

Pumpkin Festival, part deux

Today was spent "out east" of I-75, where SR 70 meets County Road 675. We found Hunsader Farms Pumpkin Festival, where all number of activities were taking place. It was almost a County Fair, and better than most I've ever attended. I saw no fewer that four venues where live music (Both Kinds - Country and Western) was performed, and over 100 craft booths offered great gift ideas. We found a Christmas gift for Caitlin's unborn son, Cole, who arrives sometime after Thanksgiving. We walked away with lots of neat foodstuffs, and while there I sampled a hot pretzel and fresh squeezed lemonade.

The crowd was large, but fit well within the confines of the farm, and parking was efficient and worth the $5 charge, if only for the opportunity the slide the Corvette through corners of dirt paths (where vegetables probably grew just weeks ago). We got there so early that we didn't pay at the gate (nobody there at opening to collect the $8.00 fee people were paying as we were leaving around noon. Readers know how I love a bargain, so I was even happier on the way out once I saw what I saved by coming early.

A little history of the place - back in 1967, three Hunsader brothers decided to leave frigid Wisconsin and their dairy farm to try their luck raising vegetables in the Florida sunshine. You don't have to get up at dawn to milk vegetables, so it made sense to them at the time, and by 1990, the operation had grown and was handed down to their sons, who gave the property the name Hunsader Farms. The family wanted to show the farm heritage, and opened a barn style Farm Market in 1990, adding a petting zoo in 1991, and the Pumpkin Festival followed the next year. This year would be the 19th running of that event, and we saw a Pioneer Trades Village, a fellow carving wood sculptures with a chain saw, pony rides, hayrides, and a corn maze for adults, with a hay bale maze for toddlers and young people.

It was a great day weather wise, cool but sunny and not a hint of rain. Although it was supposed to be a Corvette Club event, we never saw another member and suspect they all went to the car show in Clearwater - they missed a neat County Fair experience, and we didn't even purchase a pumpkin. We'll definitely go back sometime, as I'm sure I missed a lot of stuff, but the good news is that I intentionally missed the deep fried Twinkies, the deep friend Butter, the deep friend Elephant Ears, and other entrees that feature the sound effects of your arteries slamming shut. An event like this can be a real challenge for a guy on a diet.

Corvette Club trip to Hunsader Farms

Hey, who knew that peppers came in all different colors? Seeing is believing, however, and this shot (taken with my phone) demonstrates how pretty a pepper can be. Sure, we all knew about green peppers, and of course red peppers, and I'd even see yellow peppers from time to time. My wife has seen even orange peppers - these are all "bell peppers", by the way.

My wife had never seen purple peppers, and my wife is much better at this food thing than I shall ever be. She watches the Food Network and other cooking channels on cable, and is always willing to try something new in the kitchen. So, at the price of two for a dollar, we now have a new color palate for a salad, and of course with Ranch dressing, we can also serve them cold as snacks.

I just thought this picture was far more interesting than another Corvette picture - which by the way we missed anybody else who was "meeting up" at the Publix just west of I-75, so we were a club trip of ourselves, and had a great time. Elizabeth said "let's go and find some produce" so without others present, we did just that.......and more. As it turned out, Hunsader Farms was the "Home of the Pumpkin Festival" and this weekend there was also a walk to support a charity for Down's Syndrome. We're from West St. Louis County, where Rombach's is the local pumpkin farm - Hunsaders is Rombachs on steroids, and then some.

I'll be talking about what more we saw, but this picture was just perfect and merited it's own blog entry. I'm a pepper, she's a pepper, wouldn't you want to be a pepper too.

For Beverly

I got an email today, from a friend up in Canada, who noted I had not done anything on my blog for a good 20 days, which I suppose is most unlike me. Beverly and John live in Nova Scotia and have a home at Cedars Tennis Resort, but reside in/on Cape Breton Island, and like so many seasonal residents of our island here in Florida, tend to stay in touch over the Internet. So, this one's for you, Beverly, and hello to all other readers who may have noticed my absence.

I'm OK, and just very busy - hardly have time to sit in my easy chair with my best buddy Ripley (as shown here). They told me it was my turn in the barrel, so I'm now President of the local Kiwanis Club, and will be until September 30th, 2012, when I hand off the reigns to another Kiwanian. I've been Club Secretary now since 2005, and had that job pretty well figured out, but now I wear several hats. In addition, I'm involved in our BIG fundraising project, the St. Jude Gourmet Luncheon, which has morphed into the Kiwanis Foundation Lawn Party, supporting our scholarship program AND St. Jude Children's Hospital. Am busy selling raffle tickets, for $100, to win either a 2012 Volkswagen Jetta, or $20,000 CASH. I've set a personal goal to sell one hundred tickets, and with 30 days left I'm perhaps narrowing the gap between where I am and halfway home. Friends know where to find me, so if interested, I'd be VERY happy to help sell you a one in 400 chance to win. Second prize is $2,000, and there are additional prizes down the line.

Next Sunday we meet in our new church, at 6400 GMD. My wife went inside for choir practice two nights ago, and says it's still got a lot of finish work to do. That included carpeting yet to be laid, so whatever sound they had Wednesday will be a lot different come Sunday with square footage of carpet and fabric seated and backed chairs present. I'll try to remember to take my camera, which will follow up on earlier blogs about the church. Tomorrow we plan to go to the pumpkin patch with the Corvette Club, which will be my first outing with them since the Corvette Weekend several weeks ago up Orlando way. That was a great time, and I had a lot of fun. Elizabeth went north that same week to visit Caitlin, who is expecting our first grandchild (a boy) after Thanksgiving. I posted some pictures of him on FaceBook, until Caitlin asked me not to - he was the "bump" in the pictures.

Besides Kiwanis, I remain active in the many issues that come before me as a Planning & Zoning Commissioner on the island, and yesterday testified in favor of passing an ordinance to allow dogs on our beach, with the proper regulations and restrictions. Dogs become family, and dog owners are responsible people who pick up after their dogs, but our island is one where "I'd like to help you out, which way did you come in" has sadly been the norm and is only slowly changing now that people realize NIMBY is selfishness personified. P&Z is also dealing with cell phone towers, and trying to find a happy compromise while looking to the fact our present ordinances governing telecommunications haven't been reviewed in over ten years. Technology marches on, and we must stay current. Retirement doesn't mean come here to play dead, it means to find ways to maximize your lifestyle, without doing harm to others. Of course, stealth to one person is "in your face" to another.I did manage to wear my stealth bomber jacket to the hearing, and nobody noticed it - so eventually an answer will come, after platoons of lawyers have fought over the field and dollars have been thrown down the appropriate ratholes.

So, a busy Fall season for me, and now you're all caught up. Thank you, Bev - when you get back to Florida, you and John have to come visit the new house in Winding Oaks. That goes for my other friends as well. I'll try to post more often, and thanks for reading Walk on the Wild side.

The Women of Wildwood - a Pictorial

While I was traipsing through the corridors of an art museum today, trying to improve my mind, my wife was eleven hundred miles away swilling coffee with the old neighborhood girls. This is not to say the ladies are old, it's just that they live in our old neighborhood. Elizabeth was up to visit my very pregnant daughter and to attend a baby shower, plus assorted shopping for items not easily found in Florida (for some reason Christopher and Banks has no stores in this area, and the proximity to Kohl's requires a good half hour drive from our island).

That's the problem living on an island with no bridges that connect directly with the mainland, so you have to go over a bridge at either end which can be up for boat traffic to pass, thus adding ten minutes to each transit. And, an island with zoning so draconian that no fast food, or significant goods and services can locate there. We have one grocery store, one filling station, one viable dry cleaner, etc. Logically, you could see how easy it would be to transit the bay (and the Inter-coastal) at 53rd Avenue, which turns into SR 70, but logic doesn't work here on LBK. Nor did it really work in the Peoples Democratic Republik of Wildwood, where the local anti growth activists have slowly but surely starved out free enterprise through zoning.

Well, at least the girls have found a coffee ship.

Art Appreciation 101

On Monday this week, in the absence of my wife and no longer armed with a Corvette weekend to occupy my time, I did some scouting of things cultural. Now, you say "You John, doing something cultural?" Yes, I know I tend to spell 'Kulture with a K', but this town literally is crawling with highbrow things to do, so I decided to throw myself into a brand new pond in my old age.

Besides, on Mondays it's open for Free Admission, as a stipulation in the Ringling Last Will and Testament, granting free access to the people of Florida when he donated these works of art. That guy standing next to the painting is a docent, who guides people through all 21 galleries of the John and Mabel Ringling Museum of Art. For a docent, he was pretty decent and didn't talk down to us even as he could have - instead he educated us as to periods of art, and the artists that Ringling collected. And those were artists I actually had heard of, being a liberal arts graduate and all around bon vivant.

Velazquez, Van Dyck, Gainsborough, and perhaps most well known Rubens (he's that guy that paints all those BBW's). Then there was the courtyard, which was full of early twentieth-century bronze and stone casts of Classical, Renaissance and Baroque sculptures. Now, I really did learn some stuff, like how early paintings had to show halos around the heads of religious luminaries since the people were generally uneducated but venerated religious icons. How early painters had difficulty in painting people to proper scale in still life tableaus and how it took perhaps two hundred years from the Classical to the Renaissance period to develop a more realistic depth of field to separate background from foreground.

I am, last but not least, a student of background, which probably explains that third "art appreciation" photo showing what had to be the most exciting object d'art in the place. Too bad I didn't get her name, but then again she didn't hear the shutter trip, so my best lines went unused. If you want to know more, I'd suggest www.Ringling.org as an appropriate link. The John & Mabel Ringling Museum of Art is The State Art Museum of Florida, under the auspices of The Florida State University. As you'll recall from earlier blogs, both my daughter and my money went to Florida State.