Nave, Coconut Grove. We went for Miami Spice and had a most delicious, memorable meal. We started with raw oysters, then I had a Pressed Watermelon Salad with feta and pesto, a Pork Belly entree and a yummy dessert drizzled in chocolate.

• Perry’s Steak House, Coral Gables. I’d heard about Perry’s famous Pork Chop, but hadn’t experienced it until we went, with a friend, for Miami Spice. It was all that and a side of applesauce! Carved tableside, this brontosaurus beauty is cured, roasted, slow-smoked and carmelized. I could’ve done without the applesauce, but if you want a bargain, go for their Friday lunch Special where the Pork Chop is only $17.

• Mamey, Coral Gables. One of my three Birthday Lunches, my friends really didn’t let me order, since they knew exactly what to get. The White Truffle and Brie Grilled Cheese with honey was to die for but my favorite was the Ghee Roasted Plantains! I’m not sure I could identify the different components, but it was an explosion of flavor in my mouth.

• Fiolas, Coral Gables. I actually ate here several times this year, as the food and service are always on-pointe. Their Prix-Fixe menu has gone up considerably (from $29.99 to $36) but it’s still a good deal. On my last fore with my daughter, her fiance and baby Phoenix, the Steak Tartare was divine, and my daughter’s Cobia Ceviche, with chickpeas and Leche de Tigre was delicious. In general, I love the raw fish appetizers, the steak and all the desserts, but especially the Tiramisu.

• M’Italia, South Miami. I ate here twice this year- once for 1/2 off bottles of wine on Monday and once for a Birthday dinner. Both times I got the Whipped Ricotta Toast with Grilled Sourdough bread, honey and red pepper flakes. I also really like Mama’s Meatballs and highly recommend these dishes. They also have outdoor dining, under the twinkling lights and palm trees.

• Postcard Inn, Islamorada. We love the Postcard Inn, home to the famous Tiki Bar, not just because the food is good, but because it makes for easy docking of our boat, ‘Bout Time! This particular lunch was memorable. I got the Burger and Fries, Zeke got the Ceviche with Tostones. Both were delicious and you can’t beat that view!

• Azucar, Little Havana. I’d heard about this Cuban Ice Cream shop for a long time, but finally got to visit on a walking tour of Little Havana with my mom. The Miami flavors are so fun (Burn in Hell, Fidel!). We got the Abuela Maria, a creamy concoction with cookies and guava; it was spectacular! You must visit this neighborhood gem if you haven’t been.

• Island Grill, Islamorada. Island Grill is where the famous Tuna Nachos were invented, but they had been closed since Hurricane Irma, which is why they tasted all the sweeter, crunchier and yummier, when they finally re-opened bigger and better this year. I also really liked the seared tuna I had during a Girl’s Weekend and there’s plenty of outdoor seating, on the sand, to keep you germ-free.

• Shivers, Homestead. This is a frequent lunch stop for us when we go down to the Keys. Down and dirty, at picnic tables, you can smell the smoke wafting when you walk in and will go home smelling like a smokehouse, but the food is so darned good, you won’t mind. The Ribs, Beef Brisket and Smoked Chicken are all delicious. As a purist, I usually go with the Baked Beans and Cole Slaw sides, but the Jalapeno Cheese Grits, Fried Okra, Sweet Potato and Cornbread Souffle are all delicious. The only thing I’ve found I don’t like are the Collard Greens, which are a bit on the sweet side for me. They also do take-out.

• Gustaves, Coral Gables. We stopped at this new French restaurant on Miracle Mile for lunch after a trip to the Coral Gables Farmer’s Market. It has a pretty interior, friendly, French (is this a contradiction of terms?) service and delicious food. My husband got French Onion Soup and a Caesar Salad. I went with a Croissant Egg Sandwich, which came with delicious potato slices and a little salad with vinaigrette. Tres bien!

• Ruth Chris, Coral Gables. We came here twice this year- once for our anniversary and once for Zeke’s birthday. Both times were great. Ruth Chris has consistently good service and delicious food, especially their Steak (I like the Petite Filet) and Sides, like Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Creamed Spinach and Cremini Mushrooms. For those with a sweet tooth, the Creme Brulee is quite nice and they always make celebrations special . We will be back in 2022.

Honorable Mention

Sea Siam, Pinecrest. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Sea Siam, because it was the restaurant in Miami we ate at the most, to meet friends Brooks and Sharon. We always sat at the bar and ordered the same appetizer- Steamed Shrimp Dumplings with spicy mayo and extra sliced scallions- delicious. Entrees varied. I favored Crispy Duck, Brooks usually got Ginger Fish and Sharon liked the SuSa Sushi roll (off menu); Zeke’s order varied between Sushi and Thai, depending on his mood. The waitress Frances, knew what wine we liked and had a chilled glass waiting for us when we sat down; it was like a Cheers in Palmetto Bay, running into people you know. It was also a place we felt safe, during this time of Covid. We will probably be back, but it won’t be the same without our friends.

As you might have noticed from my list, I didn’t stray too far from my zip code while eating out. This didn’t seem to be the year to try the latest and greatest new restaurant on South Beach (which will probably be closed next year!). No, this was a year to hunker down, batten down the hatches and stay close to home. Maybe 2022 will be different, but, as of now I don’t think so.

Happy New Year to all my Foodie in Miami readers! See you next year!

Up Next: Appliance Gremlins have invaded my home.

I noticed.

I said, sarcasm intended.

She brushed that aside to tell me that she believed our house was encroaching on her property five feet. Luckily Zeke, who had come home early so we could take a walk, was walking out the door at precisely that moment.

You should talk to my husband about this. He’s a zoning attorney.

I said, with perfect timing.

Zeke walked out, talked to her and her contractor. He explained he recently looked at our survey and didn’t think she was correct, but would check. She had severe eyebrows and wasn’t in the least bit friendly.

Well, it’s mostly shrubbery.

she said dismissively, about the part of our property encroaching on hers.

I tried to make small talk with and told her, I understood from my former neighbor Maggie that she was building the house for her parents.

That’s one of the options.

she said.

Making it sound like it wasn’t an option at all. The other options, I guess, were her moving in or flipping it. I’m praying for her flipping it, as I already don’t like this woman. After our walk, I raced upstairs to find the survey for our house. Eureka! Then raced down to show it to Zeke, as I am hopeless at reading plans, blueprints or surveys.

Actually, not only are we not encrouching on her property, she’s six inches into ours!

said Zeke.

I have to admit I did a happy dance in the kitchen. And then had a celebratory glass of wine. Zeke texted her this message (they’d exchanged phone numbers) and then… crickets. All night until the next morning, when she finally replied. All work ceased (thankfully) next door for the next couple days.

Unfortunately, Zeke found another survey that showed we were encroaching on her property by four feet in one area, tapering off eventually to zero. She had two surveys that showed were weren’t encroaching, one that said we were. At this writing, I’m not sure where we stand as they’ve just been exchanging phone messages and haven’t actually talked.

On better news, my Big Mini (an oxymoron) has finally been shipped from Europe and is heading my way as we speak. I am hoping to have it by the time we visit Disney next month. Liam (middle grandchild in Colorado) has started walking, right before he turns one; we’ll be seeing them at the end of this month for his first birthday.

A.J. came over the other day to make Sweet Potato Casserole (a family favorite) and Pecan Pie at my house. I was making my Party Potatoes and as we both were in the kitchen, cooking with the wonderful smells and with the baby crawling around, I thought about how Thanksgiving really is my favorite holiday. It’s all about food, family and gratitude. I saw Wyatt after school. He was proud of his Thanksgiving hat he’d made at school and I struggled to get a photo of him and his baby brother before they left, but Phoenix is a wiggle worm!

As I walked them to the car, I discovered a yellow construction paper from school. It had a turkey body in the middle and feathers, where Wyatt wrote what he was grateful for. Mom, Dad and then Eric, Elliot, Gabriel and Gale. There was not a beloved Gigi in sight!

Child, you cut me to the quick.

from Wizard of Oz

A.J. saw me with the paper in my hand and a shocked look on my face. She grabbed the paper.

No Mom. You will not shame him for this!

she said.

O.K. She was right, but what a difference a year makes. I expected this when he was 14 or 15, but 5? I could only imagine he was sitting around with his little friends, scribbling names on the feathers and they all decided to be thankful for each other. I knew peer pressure would rear its ugly head, but Kindergarten seems a little early to be making an appearance. He hadn’t even put his baby brother whom he adores, on a feather, but Phoenix is admittedly a hard name to spell.

He came over to say goodbye, giving me a big hug.

I love you Gigi!

said Wyatt.

So this will have to be enough. I am grateful for many things this Thanksgiving. I’m grateful to have gotten to the age of 62 intact and healthy. That I survived COVID as did my entire family. That my Mini is on its way, that I have a roof over my head (even if it’s encroaching into my neighbor’s yard), plenty of food on the table and a family to celebrate the holiday with.

Wherever you are and whatever you do, I hope you have a very Happy Thanksgiving from Foodie in Miami. Calories don’t count on Thanksgiving. You can start the diet tomorrow!

Two weeks ago, I was babysitting Liam when I got a phone call I was supposed to be playing tennis in my last match at Coral Reef park. Then, after arranging a trip for my Book Club to the psychic town of Cassadega (with much back and forth on dates) I agreed to a trip to Maine with my son and daughter-in-law on the same weekend! I re-booked Cassadega with my sister Kelley for next week, only to discover it’s on the same day as my End-of-the-Year Tennis Luncheon I already R.S.V.P.’d yes to! And finally, a Yelp event to cook with 2 Korean Girls I signed up for this Thursday is the same night as my Book Club meeting so I had to cancel. AAAHHH! I’m pissing people off left and right and disappointing myself as well. I’m not usually this flaky, I swear!

I attribute it to 2020 and the year when time and calendars meant absolutely nothing. I had nothing on the schedule but: eat, drink, watch Netflix, sleep and repeat, with some walks and puzzle-making thrown in for good measure. No trips, no appointments, no people to see, or places to be. Meetings were all virtual, via Zoom, requiring only a quick trip to my den. It’s thrown me off my game, this last year of Pandemic living; usually an organized person, I’ve become a total flake of late.

Another thing I thought would never happen to me, has happened. I’ve started thinking seriously about selling our house.

When a former Book Club member put her house on the market, a house I’d been in and loved for its airy feel, I was interested in going to look at it and possibly make an offer. After spending a lot of money on our house in 2019, my husband and I decided we were staying put for a while, to reap the benefits of our investment. But after renting our condo in the Keys for the last three months and having to spend every weekend doing deferred yard work, it made me start thinking. Is this the way I want to spend my weekends? And, the rest of my life?

Also, our house is large, with three roofs, four air conditioners and 32 palm trees in the yard. There is ALWAYS something leaking, breaking and/or falling; upkeep is non-stop and our FPL bill is through the (leaking) roof. When we bought this house, the year after we got married, it was after a year of searching for houses to be “ours”. It was the last house I was looking at to buy, before we were going to start building onto my grandmother’s house in Coral Gables. It worked for us, mostly because it had a large upstairs bedroom area with it’s own bathroom that was the perfect space for my 16 year-old son to get away from all of us.

Although that son moved to Tallahassee that Fall, he would periodically move back, as did my oldest son Brad and daughter A.J. Let’s just say that room has basically never been empty, including a recent two-week stint with Christopher, Courtney and Liam as they searched for a house of their own. It is now finally unoccupied, but also in need of repair with bubbling plaster, broken closet doors and a bathroom in desperate need of updating.

The other thing that happened with our house is that while all the kids have moved out- into apartments, condos or houses of their own- there is still a feeling of ownership and territorialism associated with former bedrooms. One actually stayed locked for months after the resident moved out, so no one could invade said personal space. So, while we got this house in 2005 to be “our” house, with “our” family the way it was at that time, it is now time to get “our house” for “our” present family. A family that looks completely different sixteen years later.

The Book Club lady’s house didn’t work for us because: #1 There was no garage (and we have a lot of junk) and #2 It was two stories. If we are buying a house to fit our needs as we get older, two-story is not the way we want to go. So, here we embark on a new chapter of our life, but not any time too soon. That house that was for sale right down the street from us, simply got my wheels turning in a different direction. I do not want to be a servant to my house.

I have to say, however, that I have loved living in this house, with its Coconut Grovey feel and funky, Frank Lloyd Wright-ish architecture. When I wake up and look out my bedroom window at the palm trees and our pool, I feel like I’m on vacation, even fifteen years later. And it certainly was a comfortable spot to shelter-in-place last year. We spent a lot of time, energy and brain-storming fixing up this house, which totally didn’t make sense flow-wise when we moved in, into a home we finally felt satisfied with.

But even so, I’m not terribly emotionally attached to this house. It’s definitely served its purpose for us and I love the neighborhood we’re in, but I can also see letting it go. I would hope someone else would move in and appreciate it’s charms and quirks, but also realize it may be considered a tear-down.

So, I guess you could say I’m conflicted. I used to say there’s so much junk in this house you’d have to pull me out, feet-first but now… We’ll see.

“Just a little bit of green, clouds my eyes to what I’ve seen. Just a little bit of green, When I see you with someone new. And knowing that there’s nothing I can do.”

Elvis Presley

I’ve written past articles on things to do to save the earth, like using reusable bags and water bottles and having a compost bin in the kitchen and a rain barrel in the backyard. There are also ways to recycle leftovers, which helps save the earth and hard earned money. The leftover pork tenderloin I made last Sunday was made into shredded bar-b-que pork sandwiches last night and leftover chicken, whether from rotisserie or homemade, can be used in a wide variety of dishes, from quesadillas to pasta.

Food waste is a major problem in our country. An average of one pound of food per person a day is wasted in the USA. That equates to 103 million tons or 30-40% of the food supply each year, according to the USDA. While we may think of ways to reuse meat, cooked vegetables are a bit trickier. I’ve recently discovered a recipe of smashed potatoes and I love making them because they are #1 Easy and #2 A way to use leftover potatoes that transforms them.

Smashed Potatoes are best made with small to medium potatoes (like red or fingerlings) with a soft outer skin. It also doesn’t matter if you’ve tossed the potatoes with butter, olive oil or herbs. Rosemary or thyme are welcome herbs with potatoes, but I recently had tiny red potatoes tossed with butter and dill and they worked fine. You can also sprinkle the herbs (like parsley or chives) on the smashed potatoes after you bake them, as these herbs may burn at the high heat.

Once made, these are a great side dish with meat, poultry, pork, fish or eggs but can also be totally transformed and made into delicious appetizers.

To do this, follow the recipe and then top the smashed potatoes with a plop of creamy sour cream and either a spoonful of caviar, a slice of smoked salmon or a bit of olive tapenade for an elegant appetizer. You could also serve these with ranch or blue cheese dressing as a dip on the side, for a more rustic appetizer. Either way, they are delicious!

Smashed Potatoes from Gimme some Oven

• 1 1/2 pounds small potatoes
• Olive Oil
• Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Put parchment paper or foil on a baking sheet and brush parchment paper with olive oil.

1. Boil the potatoes. Put potatoes in pot, cover with water, 1 inch above the potatoes. Add 1 Tablespoon salt to water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium and cook 10 to 15 minutes, until a fork can be easily inserted. Drain water from potatoes.
2. Place drained potatoes on the parchment paper and smash potatoes until flattened. Some do this with a potato masher but I feel it works best with the bottom of a drinking glass.
3. Spray (or brush) potatoes with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
4. Bake 20-30 minutes until crispy and golden.
5. Remove and serve or top with toppings for appetizers.

Up Next: The Best Guacamole.

After driving home from the Keys in the rain, my bags in the trunk felt a bit damp. As I opened up the trunk to see what was going on, I was greeted with a good inch of water inside. I pulled out tons of ruined Bed, Bath and Beyond coupons, my reusable shopping bags and gym clothes, all soaked. I dried out my trunk with three rounds of towels. Obviously, there was a leak in my convertible roof, but I wasn’t going to take it in anytime soon, so I spent the following morning clearing out our garage to squeeze in my Mini Cooper.

I’ve had to cancel my Book Club Meeting, which I was hosting outside, twice due to the weather. Then, with the incessant rain, our roof started leaking in not one, but three different locations- the dining room, family room and living room. We have pots and pans stationed around the house and are awaiting our contractor to take a look if it ever stops raining.

On top of that Emma’s cat Eloise has started peeing all over the house. She started peeing in litter-box like containers (baskets, boxes) but now she’s just peeing on anything that is rectangular in shape, including my stove top. When I spied the puddle on my stove top one morning, I thought at first it was another place our roof was leaking, but upon further inspection, it was cat pee. Gross!

And Rachel spotted a rat in our hallway. The one job this cat has to do, she’s failing at! I’ve heard rats have become more aggressive during the Pandemic due to lack of food, but I think it was more the rain that drove this one inside. If it knew any better about what’s going on in our house, it would abandon ship!

My favorite outlet during the Pandemic has been writing and posting my Foodie in Miami blog, but my liquid-damaged laptop has grown progressively slower and slower, making it impossible to write. The Computer guy at the store told me it will cost almost as much to service my laptop as a new computer would cost, with no guarantee it would even resolve the issue. Apparently, liquid damage is pretty serious and it tends to keep corroding the insides of the computer. So I need to buy a new laptop. That was an expensive glass of vino.

Financially-wise, I hadn’t felt the pinch of the pandemic much, until this week. I have two real estate investments that weren’t giving distributions, but I figured that wasn’t too problematic. Then our partner on a store on Miracle Mile (that’s been vacant for more than a year) said we needed to kick in money to cover the rent. My other investment is a hotel in Orlando. Of course it occurred to me it wouldn’t be doing well during this time, but I thought the company would be ok, since they have hotels all over the world. Then I got an e-mail with the ominous heading “Capital Call.” I wasn’t quite sure what a Capital Call was, but knew it wasn’t good.

“As usual,” said the e-mail, “it is you, our investors, who will pull us through this crisis.” Great! In the same batch of e-mails, I got notice that our condo in the Keys is socking us with a big assessment to repave the driveways. Assessing us in the middle of a Pandemic with portfolios plunging? Brilliant! Along with the constant plink, plink, plink of rain drops hitting me this week, has been a ka-ching, ka-ching of money flowing out of my wallet, with no end in sight.

To cheer myself up, from the endless rain and deluge of Bad News, I made myself a little sundae, with vanilla ice cream and a fig, caramel topping. I took one bite and promptly pulled the crown off my back tooth. I just had it reattached about three months ago! I really thought things couldn’t get worse, as I headed out for my “free” hot dog at Riviera, when I flushed the toilet and it overflowed, creating my own personal shit show. While mopping up the mess, with Clorox and Fabulouso, I felt a bit like Job. It’s been that kind of week.

On the plus side of this week, I made my first trip to Trader Joe’s since the beginning of the Coronavirus lock-down. I went on a Monday at 11 am, probably not the best time to go, FYI. While the parking lot seem emptier than usual, there was a line out front, under tents outside. There were little circles to indicate where to stand to social distance and a sign that read: 1) Mask Up/Sanitize 2) Leave Your Bags at Home 3) Plan and Stock Up 4) Social Distance. They were limiting the amount of customers, which is good, but when I entered, the produce section had a lot of people clustered together, not moving. I tried to grab what I could, holding my breath, and then tackled the rest of the store.

The shelves in Trader Joe’s were well stocked and there were arrows indicating the direction of traffic flow. Some customers, like the attractive yoga-clad woman cheerfully pushing her cart down the aisle, apparently didn’t know what the arrows were there for.

“Uh, you’re going the wrong way,” I said, as I passed her, definitely not six feet apart and pointed to the arrow on the floor.

She smiled, nodded and kept going the wrong way. I felt like the Coronavirus police, apparently not an effective one. I got food for my Book Club party, as well as items I always get at Trader Joe’s (wine, cheese, nuts) and checked out $250 poorer.

On the bright side of things, I finally got my hair cut and colored this week! Yipee! If a mani-pedi can make you feel like a new woman, a haircut and color can give you a new outlook on life, which is even better. My hairdresser stopped working briefly when shelter-in-place began, but people started calling for appointments, she resumed working and hasn’t stopped since. I didn’t know this information, or I would’ve been there sooner, but it’s great to finally feel like myself again.

Other shafts of light peeking through the grey skies: I got my first gardenia of the Spring last week. Gardenias always remind me of my Elementary School of Epiphany and the month of May, as we had a nun (Sister Grace) who would keep gardenias in a vase on her desk, in front of a statue of Mary. They smell delicious!

Also, my son Christopher and his wife Courtney drove down from Tallahassee to visit. I was supposed to fly to see them last month, but obviously the flight and trip was cancelled. I hadn’t seen them since December and they had some exciting news to share. We stopped by my Mom’s house on the way to the Keys and Christopher showed my Mom the ultrasound of the baby they’re expecting in November. Sex unknown.

My Mom seemed happy to hear the news, if a little non-plussed. “Well, I figured you had baby-fever, with all the photos you’ve been posting of your niece.” It will be her fourth great-grandchild.

We stopped at Robert is Here to pick up some mangos. They are only doing drive-thru, since the fruit stand is too small to social distance. You tell the first person your order and drive to the second person to pay and pick up. Kind of like McDonalds, but healthier.

We ate lunch at Skipper’s in Key Largo. This restaurant, in the Holiday Inn where the famous African Queen is located, is open at 50% capacity. They didn’t have their full menu and there wasn’t live music, but it was a nice change to be able to sit outside, by the water and have lunch. We saw a bunch of nurse sharks swimming in the canal and their conch chowder got two thumbs up from Courtney and I.

Friday night we got take-out at Num Thai restaurant, which is now open for dine-in business in Key Largo. Shrimp Pad Thai, sushi, steamed dumplings, soup and salad were the items we enjoyed for dinner. Saturday, Chris and Courtney went out on the boat to the Sandbar, as I stayed in and read, watched TV and went paddle boarding. Chris cooked rib eye steaks on the grill Saturday night and I made baked potatoes, a salad and garlic bread.

Sunday morning, we made a big breakfast with scrambled eggs, bacon, English muffins, coffee and fruit salad. It reminded me of how my Mom would make us a big breakfast on the weekends, when we had a condo in Buttonwood Bay. On the way home, we stopped at Hole-in-the-Wall for lunch. Chris ordered at the bar (behind plexiglass) and the server delivered wings, fish dip and fish tacos. I had a Freedom Tower beer; it hit the spot. There were quite a few people inside eating. Diners are required to wear a mask to their table and to the rest rooms, but can take it off while seated at the table.

My son Christopher wore a mask to order at the Hole, but, other than that, he’s an anti-masker. I give up with fighting with him about this, as it is as pointless as our heated political discussions. Meanwhile, I’ve realized that masks, as part of our daily apparel, are here to stay. Since I’m not wild about the blue surgical masks, I ordered a few fabric ones online. I told the Publix cashier yesterday with the cute sunflower mask: “I like your mask.” It’s the new “I like your shoes” compliment. I suppose masks are a way of expressing our individuality, with college logos, sports teams, favorite flowers, animals and activities represented. For us ladies, this is also a good time to perfect that smokey eye, since lips aren’t visible. “My eyes are up here, officer.”

My sister Kelley told me that she heard, if you can blow a match out with a mask on, it’s not doing it’s job.

“So, you mean, I basically have to feel like I’m suffocating for it to be effective?”

“Yes,” she answered. “Or fog up your glasses.”

Lauren has decided on Georgetown to get her Masters of Law, so that’s exciting news. It was her first choice of law schools she applied to; she’s studying for the Florida Bar now. She’s not sure if classes this Fall in D.C. will be online, in person, or a combination of the two. Emma celebrated her 22nd birthday Sunday in Tallahassee, but we’re going out to dinner to celebrate some more. She starts work at My Tribe, a boutique for kids and teens, this week. Little victories, I’ll take them.

As for me and cooking, I’ve kind of gone on strike. I did cook an Asian Chicken soup Monday, adapted from Forks over Knives and I made the dinner I was going to serve my Book Club (roast chicken, smashed potatoes, radicchio salad and French bread) Tuesday night. Someone in my Book Club wanted to know why I insisted on having dinner outside. “Does it have to be outside? Well, I guess y’all are still worried…”

Yes, we all are worried. Maybe, not as much, but still. There was news this week that if we’d shut the country down just a week earlier, we could’ve saved thousands of lives. And the U.S. just passed the grim marker of 100,000 deaths, which some people are saying is an undercount of the real toll. A tennis teammate’s father, who was a well-respected and philanthropic doctor, died last week of Coronavirus, leaving behind his wife, four daughters and nine grandchildren. Tragic, especially if it was preventable.

We’ve finished doing all the puzzles my friend’s mother lent me and I’ve finished all the episodes of Dead to Me, so can the Pandemic be over now? We are now watching what seems to be the new must-see Netflix show, Schitt’s Creek. I watched an episode of Marie Kwondo while down in the Keys, so got inspired to organize my t-shirt drawer on one of our many rainy days. The concept of items that “spark joy” really does makes sense, the more you try it. So, farewell, old non-joyful t-shirts, hello, clean and organized drawers.

The U.M. Hurricane Football Season is likely to be on for this Fall, but without fans and I just found out my favorite neighbor is moving. Her 90-year old husband Bernie, the love of her life, died last month (not of Corona) in their cute, little house next to ours. She says the house was so much about the two of them, it makes her sad to be there alone. I will miss her.

Travel this summer is apparently going to feature R.V.’s and Road Trips. I don’t have an R.V., but have always thought it would be neat to be able to take one across the United States. The advantage to an R.V. is that everything is self-contained (bathroom, kitchen), with minimum contact with the outside word. Which is probably a good thing, since it’s been reported to avoid Public Restrooms, as flushing the toilet aerosols droplets, possibly spreading the dreaded CV into the air as you breathe.

I do have my Mini Cooper, however, so I’m able to take Road Trips. Just as soon as I get that top fixed-

“Ring the bells that still can ring

Forget your perfect offering

There is a crack, a crack in everything

That’s how the light gets in.”

Leonard Cohen

Up Next: Spring Meals to Savor.