Blog No. 18 of 2025

Thinking lately that I might want to rename this blog to “Scene Around Florida” since I so often lately am writing about places and happenings a bit north of South Florida. Something to ponder, we’ll see.

Here’s what went down since last Friday when I drove up to Merritt Island for the weekend to spend it with Vance, who had to stay up there for work.

Nick and I drove to Orlando first and visited Elizabeth where we hung out at her apartment and went to the nearby Twistee Ice Cream for a very welcome cold treat after a somewhat stressful work morning. Elizabeth then drove over and spent the night at the townhouse.

Mazen ready to smack one at the baseball field.

On Saturday after watching my great nephew Mazen’s Little League game we went back to the townhouse and hung out. My sister-in-law Kerri and her husband Paul came over and spent the night. We went for a nice dinner at Rusty’s Seafood & Oyster Bar in Port Canaveral. We had such a nice lunch there a few weeks ago we thought they’d like it and they did. It was a really nice visit with them.

Sunday after church we packed up a beach bag and headed back to Kelly Park West where Nick and Vance shot hoops while I walked the trail and walked/jogged the perimeter of the park.

Pretty flowering tree at Kelly Park West.

View at Kelly Park West.

Vance and Nick on the beach at Jetty Park.

Jetty Park fishing pier.

Watching these ships depart from the Jetty Park fishing pier was pretty cool.

After that we went to the beach at Jetty Park where the water was so refreshing and the jetty and fishing pier provided the perfect view. It was such a nice afternoon. We’d worked up an appetite at this point so we checked out River Rocks restaurant in Rockledge which came highly recommended by one of Vance’s co-workers. It didn’t disappoint. Vance and I split the mushroom potstickers and I had a cup of their gumbo, both were excellent. We plan on going there to celebrate our 35th wedding anniversary in a few weeks.

Loved going to Beetlejuice with my niece Elena, here we are waiting for showtime!

I love this neon sign, it made waiting in anticipation for the show to start that much more fun.

The cast takes a bow at show’s end.

One final surprise with neon lights aglow and a final cast member the famous sandworm, making an appearance.

Back in Miami I had a fantastic Tuesday night at the Arsht Center with my niece Elena where we laughed and marveled at the lights, sets, musical numbers and cool costumes of Beetlejuice. It was entertaining too seeing the people decked out in their best Beetlejuice-inspired threads. Beetlejuice ends its run this weekend, if you’ve never seen it you might want to catch it, it’s such a fun show.

On Wednesday night I walked over to MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami) for the opening reception of their latest exhibition “Philip Smith: Magnetic Fields.” It features over 50 works by the Miami artist, all large scale pieces that cover entire walls and mesmerize with colorful textures and patterns. I enjoyed chatting with my friend artist Rosa who was also in attendance and is as productive as ever. She told me about a quilt she recently made and will be submitting for consideration to an out of town gallery show. Good luck Rosa!

Yesterday I spent the day with my cousin’s wife Becky who spent the night on Wednesday and is in town to judge a synchronized swimming competition. We spent the morning at Surfside beach, then went to lunch at Flanigan’s. We then visited my aunt for a bit before I whisked her up to the tri-rail station in Fort Lauderdale.

Nick and his program buds shooting hoops during Family Fun Day at the Sandra DeLucca Developmental Center.

Nick and his buddy Geno at Family Fun Day festivities.

Finally today I spent the morning into the early afternoon at Family Fun Day with Nick and his fellow participants at his program. The staff at the Sandra DeLucca Developmental Center do a great job of hosting this annual event where they welcome families to enjoy time together getting some exercise, playing games, dancing and enjoying lunch which this year was provided by Pollo Tropical.

Then on Sunday, Monica and I are going to the matinee of “Unfold: Immigration Plays” by my playwright friend Ricky J. Martinez at Main Street Players in Miami Lakes. It’s part of their Hispanic Arts Festival. If you haven’t been to this theater which is located on the quaint Main Street in Miami Lakes I encourage to check out their schedule and catch one of their productions. They’ve been around for nearly 50 years, presenting compelling shows ever since.

Here’s a link to my latest article for Artburst Miami on Cleveland Orchestra Miami’s educational programs. Read more great arts and culture stories on the Artburst Miami site and find fun free and cheap stuff to do at South Florida on the Cheap.

I’ll be back next week with more cool stuff, until then have a great weekend and week.