Florida

Books I read in 2025

~ MaryG ~ 12 Comments

In 2011, I started keeping a list of books I’ve read in my phone’s notepad, so I could remember them.

Here is my list for 2025 in the order I read them:

“Night Watch” by Jayne Anne Phillips (c2023)

“The Last Train to Key West” by Chanel Cleeton (c2020)

“Florida” by Lauren Groff (c2018)

“The Frozen River” by Ariel Lawhon (c2023)

“Intermezzo” by Sally Rooney (c2024)

“Small Things Like These” by Claire Keegan (c2021)

“Foster” by Claire Keegan (c2010)

“James” by Percival Everett (c2024)

“How to Lose Your Mother: A Daughter’s Memoir” by Molly Jong-Fast (c2025)

“Savannah Blues” by Mary Kay Andrews (c2002)

“The Director” by Daniel Kehlmann (c2025) 

“Tom Lake” by Ann Patchett (c2023)

“The Covenant of Water” by Abraham Verghese (c2023)

“A Visit from the Goon Squad” by Jennifer Egan (c2010)

“The Candy House” by Jennifer Egan  (c2022)

“The Summer Before the War” by Helen Simonson (c2016)

“Ordinary Human Failings” by Megan Nolan (c2024)

“Heart the Lover” (c2025) by Lily King 

Many of these selections I read for my book group, which I absolutely love. We have such good discussions! Three of the four other women in my book club read way more than I do, so it’s sometimes hard to find something that none of them has read before. So this is how we choose our books:

We rotate the job of picking the book. When it’s your turn, you circulate three titles that interest you and the others rank them 1-3. Usually a clear winner emerges without much math needed.

Looking back on the list, I think Florida by Lauren Groff was my favorite. I’m not usually a short stories person, but this collection really blew me away. I read it before heading to Key West for the first time in February. If you’ve spent any amount of time in the Sunshine State, at least one of the characters will resonate with you. There’s a grain of truth in all the “Florida Man” jokes and memes (that’s why they’re funny) and this book goes deep into the truly fascinating and unique characters that seem to be made possible only in that flat, sticky, hot, beautiful, bizarre one-of-a-kind American state.

I read several books by contemporary Irish women authors this year (both before and after my big 60th birthday trip to Ireland in June). Sally Rooney, Claire Keegan, and Megan Nolan are all great. Several of their novels have been adapted for film and TV. I especially recommend “Ordinary Human Failings” by Megan Nolan. I’ve never read a more aptly titled book. Here’s the quote where she uses the exact words. It’s early on in the book.

On one of his first mornings a memo had been sent around from Edward to the desks of the entire editorial staff, which read:

A REMINDER! Reasonable excuses for lateness/missing meetings/not doing something I told you to do etc, include: Bereavement (parent only). Serious illness (life-threatening, your own). Reasonable excuses do NOT INCLUDE ordinary human failings such as hangovers, broken hearts, etc etc etc.

I think it’s the “etc etc etc” that makes this line so good. The story is all about the etceteras.

Watercolor Class Week 6: lessons learned

~ MaryG ~ 5 Comments

Each of the primary colors has a complementary color that you really want to avoid mixing with, at least for sunsets. If you put wet complementary colors near each other or layer them, you’re going to get brown. 💩

Red & Green = Brown

Blue & Orange = Brown

Yellow & Purple = Brown

That’s why my blue/violet to orange sunset sky ended up looking like a fried egg, especially from a distance,

The teacher said you can’t go directly from blue/purple to orange. You need some pink to transition.

She suggested using Alizarin crimson (not cadmium red) to make pink. It has blue undertones.

I tried again to get Key West sunset vibes, but without an ugly brown ring.

I’m not happy with the result. I really wanted a nice blended smooth gradient. The teacher said I painted “into it” too much. I need to try again, wetting the paper in both directions with my largest flat brush and then dragging the wet paint across in one direction only – end to end. In fact go off the paper with the brush.

Rather than masking, I could use a paper towel to lift out a circular moon or sun. (You can hold the paper towel in a round bunch and rotate the watercolor paper to create the circle.) And again, avoid complementary colors that will bleed into each other and make brown.

There are two classes left in this session and I need to decide what to do. I’ve been enjoying the class, but I’m not 100% sure that watercolors are my thing. But perhaps I should re-register and give it a bit longer.

One of the women who keeps re-registering is a very good watercolorist. She creates beautiful paintings of natural subjects like oyster shells and winter trees, and I can see that the teacher gives her good advice. Is that what I aspire to?

I am curious about both acrylic and oil painting, but those are more of an investment, and not as easy to whip out and work on at home.

Maybe I should take another drawing class and also re-up for one more 8-week session of watercolors. Maybe after that, I’ll feel confident enough in my drawing and color skills, to try working with real paint on an actual canvas.

Charcoal pencil sketch of a pug (like Horace from Poldark)

On the other hand, 8 more sessions of watercolors is a lot, if I decide I’m not that into it.

***********************************

Update: Third and final try on this silly Key West sunset! Water colors are hard.

Key West vibe re: politics

~ MaryG ~ 5 Comments

During the American Civil War, Key West remained under Union control despite Florida joining the Confederacy. Its strategic deep-water port and existing naval base made it a crucial Union stronghold for blockading Confederate shipping in the Gulf of Mexico. Apparently some Key West residents didn’t like that and left the island permanently. (Good riddance assholes!)

Today, there is a big and thriving LGBTQ 🏳️‍🌈 community here. Along with all the artists, this makes for little to no open MAGA support. I have not seen one Trump hat or shirt on anyone. It’s great. There are also no Trump lawn signs or boats flying the obnoxious flag.

There is just one seedy store on Duval street, that carries the offensive paraphernalia. And because I am a leftist Boston MASShole, I had to stop and Flip the Bird to this particular retailer.

Other than this one tacky store, the coast is clear for MAGA haters to come to Key West.

Not so much for Kansas City fans though…I’ve only seen Eagles shirts. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say Key West is rooting strongly for Philly in the Superbowl.

Go birds 🦅

Related posts:

Bucket list booking: Key West

It’s all vibes

A time-honored tradition

~ MaryG ~ 5 Comments

It’s that time of year when Bostonians who don’t ski set their sights on the Sunshine State.

These are some of the rituals:

Get a pedicure

Pack sandals in your carryon so you can change shoes on the plane

Pray your flight won’t be canceled due to incoming snow

Leave your winter coat in the car and dash into the terminal coatless and freezing

Sit on the plane and nervously watch the wings get de-iced

Pray this bird gets airborne

Lift off – ah

Watch dirty, grey old Boston recede from view and mind

Touchdown in the Land of the Mouse.

😎

1973
1978

Related:

Photo digitization project

Bucket list booking: Key West

~ MaryG ~ 19 Comments

As I’ve mentioned before, I appreciate the state of Florida, mainly for its warm weather, beautiful beaches, and easy access (numerous cheap, nonstop flights) from New England.

The obvious drawback for me (and many liberal New England types) is the politics there. It’s truly a red state now. (It didn’t used to be.) I know people that despise the whole idea of Florida so much that they actually flinch in disgust when it’s mentioned!

But after one delicious Cosmo and a beautiful Florida sunset on a balmy night in February (when it’s snowing and 20 degrees at home), Florida seems pretty fucking great.

I have been to many places in south and central Florida, including some of the Keys, but I’ve never made it all the way down to Key West—the southernmost point in the US. It’s been on my bucket list for awhile now, primarily for the vibes.

Having worked in the arts for many years, I had many gay male friends and co-workers and they always loved Key West. (A good sign) Also, Ernest Hemingway lived and wrote many of his most famous books there. And I’m currently watching Bloodline, with the amazing Ben Mendelsohn, Sam Shepherd and Sissy Spacek, which was shot there. Then of course, there’s the pie. I love Key Lime pie and I’m assuming they have some great places to get it in (on?) Key West. My understanding is that there’s also a heavy Cuban influence there and while I have no desire to visit actual Cuba, I do like the idea of experiencing some of its culture on Key West.

What I didn’t realize before I booked the flights is how tiny it is! It’s only four miles long by two miles wide. That’s like one-tenth of a Nantucket. Teensy! Hopefully we don’t get bored there for a whole week. Please send any Key West recommendations you may have.

So as the United States descends into fascism this winter, I’m going to practice total avoidance and have me some delicious Key Lime pie.

Final note: I did check their voting records and they went Harris, according to ChatGPT. So, I will feel slightly better about spending my money there. It’s a blue bubble area.

Do people think ChatGPT is reliable for questions like this?

Florida

~ MaryG ~ 16 Comments

I’ve spent more time in Florida than any other state outside New England. I like Florida. I love the beaches. I like the theme parks. I love all the outdoor dining. I like the diversity. I love the winter weather. I like how easy it is to get there from Boston with many cheap, nonstop flights daily.

We have close friends and family in Orlando, the Palm Beach area and Naples. They have been through many hurricanes and they don’t typically get too concerned. Therefore, I did not immediately change my travel plans when a very late season hurricane (Nicole) was forecast in November 2022. We were scheduled to look at condos with a realtor and she would’ve been highly inconvenienced if we cancelled. (We were actually thinking of purchasing a second home down there at the time.)

Hurricane Nicole hit on Election Day in November 2022. (Governor Ron DeSantis was overwhelmingly reelected—possibly a bad sign for this Massachusetts liberal.) We were told we had to evacuate our hotel because it was in “Zone B” – a barrier island. I never even got to try the pool. We left and checked into another hotel outside of Zone B.

The hurricane itself wasn’t too bad where we were, but I had a bad reaction to the extreme barometric pressure change. It caused a problem with my inner ear and triggered vertigo. Not fun. I sat in my hotel room with a barf bucket in my lap waiting for the moment we could go to the airport.

After that trip, I decided I would never again visit Florida during hurricane season and really didn’t want to own a condo there. (Renting is fine.)

But I still like Florida.

Hurricane Milton looks horrific. I’m scared for the state. I hope it’s not as bad as they’re saying it will be.

Here we are at my nephew’s wedding on Longboat Key (which looks to be in extreme danger from Hurricane Milton). It was just one of many, many good times I’ve had in the quirky, beautiful, unique state of Florida.

Long live Judy Blume

~ MaryG ~ 11 Comments

Do you remember your favorite book from childhood?

I remember having “Pat the Bunny” as a very young child.

This favorite book for babies was first published in 1940.

Books by Dr. Seuss and his protégé P.D. Eastman (“Go Dog Go”) were good for both learning to read and being read to. Horton was particularly fascinating, perched on that nest while lazy Mayzie flew off to Palm Beach!

As I got older, nothing beat Judy Blume for real talk about real things that I actually cared about. “Deenie” was a favorite and of course, “Are you there God? It’s me, Margaret?”

Book banners like to target Judy Blume books, which is all the more reason to keep buying them, reading them, and giving them to your kids and grandkids.

Florida resident and bookstore owner Judy Blume tells us how she really feels about her governor.

Sunny Orlando

~ MaryG ~ 9 Comments
Daily writing prompt
What is your favorite type of weather?
View all responses

Sun makes all the difference, right? Cold and gray is so much worse than cold and sunny. I know one family that left Seattle (including a tenured academic position) after 10+ years, due to the infrequency of sunny days. I’ve never been to Seattle, but that does sound rough.

New England winters are LONG. It’s best to break it up with a trip south, if possible. For years, Orlando (Florida) was our top family destination for school vacation weeks. My sister-in-law lives there, so we’ve been many times. Don’t knock Orlando ‘til you’ve tried it. They’ve got something for everyone.

It wasn’t always hot when we went to Orlando in February (or even in April), but it was always sunny.

Related posts:

Summer is our Glory in New England

Grandparents

~ MaryG ~ 3 Comments
Daily writing prompt
What were your parents doing at your age?
View all responses

When my parents were my age, they were new grandparents to my daughter. They only have two grandchildren and she was their first. They were thrilled to have a granddaughter and helped me out a lot. My mother would visit and babysit at least once a week. I was lucky that they lived within an hours drive.

Outside of being grandparents, they were big travelers. They went on many trips to countries around the world including China, Japan, Russia and all over Europe. I have some beautiful gifts from places they traveled to.

All families have issues (mine included), but I know I’ve been extremely privileged to have two responsible, caring parents who are still alive and well and married to each other! How many GenXers can say that? I know I got really lucky in the parent department.

They’ll be celebrating their 85th and 90th birthdays this summer, as well as their 62nd wedding anniversary.

Here we are on the beach in Florida five years ago. I’m looking forward to visiting them in Florida next week. It’ll be my first trip down to see them in their “snowbird” locale since the pandemic. I feel so lucky that I get another chance to make this trip.