Some things just don't change. Here I am 45 years later still
braiding my baby sister Beth's hair. She has been visiting from Alaska.
Being the baby, Bethie spent a lot of time saying "wait for me!".
Beth is a chatty whirlwind and she teaches me patience
and compassion.
It was very nice to see her.

This year seems to be slipping by. Perhaps it only seems that way
because we are so busy. When our good friend Linda was visiting,
we took a trip to St Petersburg on the west coast of Florida.


St Pete was a beautiful city. Everywhere we went we met
friendly, like-minded people.

I had my heart set on an outsider art festival there sponsored
by Creative Clay. What a fantastic organization. It is a cultural art
center that makes art accessible for everyone no matter their
age, gender,ability or race. Having worked with people with
disabilities years ago I have a special place in my heart for them and
was blown away at what an empowering special space they
had created. There should be one in every town and city across
the country. It was an idea conceived by one person and is
a testimonial to how one person can make such a difference.

The art show was great too! Full of colorful, quirky works of art.
My favorite was Theresa Disney.
Check it out. Not only is her work fabulous she is a wonderful spirit.

We spent the rest of the day searching out and enjoying art.
One of our stops was the Dali Museum. Midge and Linda had
trouble drinking coffee with their mustaches.

We ended our trip with a stop at Fort DeSoto Park.
It is the most beautiful place I have seen in Florida.
A dip in the warm gulf at such a exquisite spot was
a perfect ending to our west coast trip.