Mood Vane » South Florida Nature

My Awesome Weekend in the Florida Keys

admin — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 15:00:30 +0000

Last weekend, we went to the Florida Keys. We crashed at a house down near Looe Key with good friends Russ and Jess, who came all the way from Los Angeles to see us. Then other awesome people, my friends Todd and Stacey and Evie the Evil One, came down to visit with us on Saturday!

Russ, jess, court and chris

Good thing that I had a birthday to persuade them to come out because they are fun with a capital “F”.

We cruised down on Friday afternoon and took a long break at the Islamorada Tiki Bar , which I will never overlook again, for a few cold drinks and some seafood. Our weekend was perfect, but if I could have changed one thing about it I would have left earlier on Friday afternoon so that we could have gone in the water and bobbed around with some frozen drinks in the little roped off swimming area.
Check out the awesome sandy grounds and warm water right behind me. By the time we got to the house we were driving through a Big Fish-style torrential downpour and found ourselves without power for the first hour. Finally, Chris touched his leatherman to the side of the electrical box to open it and voila the power came right on. The next morning, we were up and out on the boat. It was too choppy to go out to Looe Key for snorkeling, so we went on a shallow reef off of Little Palm island. Normally, I am too afraid to go into open water and I usually spend the entire weekend getting sunburned on the boat, but Chris worked me through phobias and I jumped off the boat into his arms for a big hug and then snorkeled the rest of the day away as if I were just another normal person. It was spectacular! We saw all kinds of fish and even a big old ray sleeping on the bottom. I swan close to it, but not too close because I did not want to get gored by that animal.

russ, jess and chris on the way to the reef

Todd and Stacey brought their munchkin Evie into our vacation, and she upped the cute factor by like 10 whole points, which doesn’t sound like a lot but it’s pretty good considering that we were doing all right on our own. I snorkeled without overwhelming fear for a whole hour before I went back to that boat and chilled with Todd and Evie. We urged everyone to come back so that we’d have plenty of time to chill at picnic island, but the group in the water was determined to see a shark. After they finally thought they saw one, they came back and we went to picnic island, where you eat lunch, drink beer and sit around in 3 feet of warm water. It’s so awesome.

Chillin and Grillin minus the grillin at picnic island

On Saturday night, we went down to Key West for a bit o’ fun and had drinks at the Hog’s Breath Saloon and made up alternate identities for ourselves with strong accents and embodied them, which annoyed the group standing next to us that was trying to enjoy the tunes of Chris Cook. Then, we went to Garden of Eden, a clothing-optional rooftop bar, where we got some interesting visuals and the guys mentally sized themselves up against the competition. It’s the rooftop on the third floor of The Bull bar.

the keys are rad

I can’t believe it’s over. I want to do it again.

I Love The Lauderdale Evening Sky, But What The Heck Was That?

admin — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 02:36:59 +0000

Lovely sunset over Lauderdale

Yestereve (Tuesday), I was attempting to enjoy the lovely sunset over Fort Lauderdale — the colors nearly penetrated my tough-to-touch senses and the stillness tried to move me — when something strange happened. A strange bright streak came into the sky. I like to watch plane traffic from my balcony, but I don’t usually see something like this, and I don’t think it was a bird:

What the heck is that?

Did anyone else notice this curious fiery-looking object in the evening sky?

Florida’s Big Dig – All The Detes on The Intracoastal Waterway

admin — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 21:17:57 +0000

I don’t know about you, but I’m so there. $5 to walk through the beautiful Bonnet House grounds and listen to a lecture about the digging of the Intracoastal Waterway by author Bill Crawford. Don’t know about you, but I’m so there.

The Bonnet House

Lauderdale Beach Bike Ride and Beer at Blue Fish

admin — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 02:33:14 +0000

lauderdale-beach

Sweet Bronco and I swindled apathy and laziness out of their evil plans to confine us to the couch all weekend and took a pleasure ride (bike) on Fort Lauderdale beach. We cruised along A1A toward Hugh Taylor Birch State Park, where we planned to enjoy nature along the park’s bike paths.

sweet-bronco-at-hugh-taylor-birch

We arrived 8 minutes before the park closed and told the guard at the gate that we were going to turn around, but then I said to Sweet Bronco, “make a run for it.” The guard casually looked out the window and said, “The rangers in there will kick you out.” He didn’t realize that we were only kidding. We hung a big fat U-ey (how do you spell that?) and headed west on Sunrise Blvd. Of course, we could let the exercise be untainted by a stopoff at some watering hole or another for beer and greasy food. As we could not decide where to go that was west of the Intracoastal, we turned back around to wet our tongues at Blue Fish.

courtney-enjoying-beer at blue fish! Yum!

We scarfed fish sticks, mozzarella and chugged some big huge beers before trying not to barf as we peddled back home.

sweet-bronco-at-hugh-taylor-birch

[gallery]

Peaceful Moments at Colee Hammock Park

admin — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 23:21:37 +0000

On Sunday, Misha and I decided to go to a late lunch/early dinner at Sushi Rock on Las Olas Boulevard. We arrived slightly before the restaurant’s opening hour of 4:30 p.m., so we strolled across the street to check out the New River at Colee Hammock Park. Colee Hammock is a very special park not only because it’s located in one of Fort Lauderdale’s most beautiful areas — just a few blocks of off Las Olas among the beautiful older homes in that area — but because it’s a historical site.

History is Tops at Colee Hammock Park off of Las Olas Boulevard.

Colee Hammock Park is the site of The Cooley Massacre, an incident in which local Native Americans attacked and murdered the women and children at the settlement while the men were away tending to a shipwreck. The attack, as the story goes, was a response to William Cooley’s failure, as the area’s judge and justice of the peace, to obtain a conviction for the murderers of Creek Indian Chief Alibama. That massacre occurred during the years of the Second Seminole War, the ongoing conflict between Florida’s Native American population and the U.S. Government, which wanted the indians west of the Mississippi River.

Snowy Egrets at Colee Hammock Park

Today, Colee Hammock Park is peaceful and beautiful, a prime spot for a picnic or a first kiss. And, the park has plenty of benches and single seats to cup your little bum. What’s great about the single-person benches, Misha and I agreed, is that there’s no where for French guys to sit down and hit on you. We loves it…except for that whole massacre bit!

This Moodvane post fueled by Intown 411.

An Afternoon at the Bonnet House on Lauderdale Beach

admin — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 22:43:34 +0000

Grand view of the Caribbean plantation style Bonnet House - east looking west

I always thought that I was all good on Lauderdale history because I knew my Frank Stranahan from my Napolean Bonaparte Broward, but it goes much deeper than that. Today, I visited the Bonnet House on Fort Lauderdale beach, and I was amazed by the estate that the Birch and Bartlett families built here in the 1920s. And really, there is so much to learn about this town. So, let’s get this thing started, bada bing bada boom.

Another entrance to the courtyard at bottom house - facing west.

The gossip-style version of this story follows: Hugh Taylor Birch gave the 35-acre Bonnet House grounds to his daughter Helen Birch when she married Frederic Clay Bartlett (his second marriage!) in 1919. They started building the house in 1920. Helen died from breast cancer in 1925, and Fred pretty much stayed away, back in his hometown of Chicago, for several years. Bartlett married Evelyn Fortune Lilly (his third marriage! sound the alarms!) in 1931, and they spent their winters entertaining, painting (him) and composing (her), collecting shells on the beach and embellishing the property at the Bonnet House. Frederic passed away in 1953, and Evelyn donated the property to Florida Trust for Historic Preservation in 1983. According to the estate’s website, The National Trust for Historic Preservation listed the Bonnet House, with its 35 acres of beach front property, as one of “America’s 11 Most Endangered Places”.

Courtyard at the Bonnet House

What I knew about the Bonnet House was that it was there. What I didn’t know about the Bonnet House was that it is awesome. The families that lived here (Bartlett and Birch) weren’t your up-by-the-bootstraps downtown-living Stranahan type folks, not that there’s anything wrong with that, but rather a clan of Palm Beach-caliber rich folks who liked to exhibit their wealth, style and artistic talents and tastes through their home decor, lifestyle and actions. Did Frederic Clay Bartlett design his own home and create elaborate murals, entryways and furniture? Yup. Did the Bartletts have monkeys, parrots, doggies and a mule? Yes. Did they collect and ultimately donate such high-end artwork as George Seurat’s A Sunday on La Grande Jatte and Vincent Van Gogh’s The Bedroom to The Art Institute of Chicago? Why yes they did.

The grounds aren’t something to shake a stick at either, although in this preserved natural South Florida beachfront you wouldn’t have trouble finding a stick to shake.

A gift from the Seminoles - the Chickee bridge, which the Bartletts would cross on the way to the beach across the street

A hip and happening volunteer named Dino took Jeremy and I around the estate’s amazing grounds — complete with a Seminole Chickee Hut, a desert garden, a fresh water slough and a mangrove swamp canal (that connects to the Intracoastal). I don’t know what I was more taken with, the palm tree lined fresh water slough or our grounds tour guide Dino. He was awesome(!) and he’s pictured below.

Dino is rad, but he better move fast before the strangler fig gets him

We took part of the inside tour, where we saw the Bamboo Bar (turns out that, yes, Evelyn Fortune Bartlett was a girl after my own heart) where Evelyn entertained friends before dinner, the kitchen, the breakfast room with much of the estate’s original china, and a sitting room with a fireplace. We didn’t see Fred’s painting studio or Evelyn’s music room, but those are just of the few reasons why we need to go back some time soon. Below the orchid shed. Located in that same building is Evelyn’s Bamboo Bar, a rad little room where she entertained guests before dinner. (We couldn’t take pictures inside. Darn. Guess you’ll have to visit if you want to see for yourself.)

That's the outside of Evelyn's Bamboo Bar, right outside the orchid shed. It's rad.

The other reason to go to the Bonnet House is because the tour guides, like Dino, are amazing. You can really tell how much they admire the place as they go into every detail and nuance. They’re not just making something out of nothing; the Bartletts intentionally designed the home to be a rock star pad, decking it out with collectibles and architectural touches that reflected their culture and taste. I miss you Dino!

Court, supercutie volunteer tour guide Dino and Jeremy at Bonnet House

For information on visiting Bonnet House, go to the visitor page at Bonnethouse.org.
Photo Gallery from my Bonnet House visit below:

This Moodvane post fueled by Intown 411.

DNC and the Cane

admin — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 03:23:09 +0000

All that Inkpen can say about Michelle Obama is that she has a Sigourney Weaverian intensity of presence. At least that’s all that she can tell because she’s live blogging 3 minutes of the DNC from Kim’s Alley Bar. Yes, Kim’s Alley Bar. Despite all of the shortcomings of the relentlessly coming modern world (and it’s slow thighs) with it’s $4 gallon gasoline, wifi at Kim’s is just too cool. All that Inkpen can say about the Gustav is that she hopes we don’t eat debris. She’s done with canes. Oh, and hello there moodvane reader(s). Inkpen moved to a new apt and she has yet to install wifi in her home, so it’s been few and far between on the update front.

Go Heat Lightning! Low quality video of a lightning show on Fort Lauderdale Beach!

admin — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 15:16:20 +0000

Inkpen hung out with her mom, The Little One, two weeks ago and they enjoyed the following natural fireworks show. The video is very low quality, but the conversation is just delightful. A short time after we took this video, the storm was upon us, a loud thunder clap rang right overhead and we had to run inside.

Sweet Bronco’s Too Coo’ For Schoo’

admin — Thu, 15 May 2008 16:40:45 +0000

Yesterday, while assessing the surf at his own personal Waimea, Fort Lauderdale Beach, Sweet Bronco posed for this photograph and said:

“If I’m going to get wet, I might as well not hang out with these posers.”

It was funny. I think he went up and surfed at Pompano or Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, where it was “going off.”

Fort Lauderdale Beach Weekend

admin — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 22:49:32 +0000

As a part of my lifelong attempt to make peace with and enjoy the recreational offerings of the ocean, I spent the weekend at the beach. While walking off a week’s worth of LaSpada’s Italian Specials (heavy on the sweet peppers for a good time), I walked by this adorable couple(those figures in the water). When I passed them, the girl was lining up piles seaweed on either side of her man, who was kicking it on a beach towel. By the time I got back to their spot with my camera, she had created a sort of aisle that stretched from the sidewalk to the water’s edge, beyond which the two frolicked in the big blue. I hope they are a happy pair headed for more beautiful things and not just a couple of creative codependent cuties!

I planned on swimming this weekend, but there was an alarming amount or garbage on the beach and in the water at the north end of the public beach, one mile north of Sunrise. True, I am the sort of paranoid pam who can’t enjoy a round of barefoot beach frisbee for fear of taking a hypodermic needle through a foot arch, but the amount of waste on the beach would have deterred any sane person from entering. There was a piece of garbage in the water or on the sand at least every every ten feet, including plastic bags, cylinders, fishing lures and light bulbs.