Eat, Drink, Play, Repeat

While working on one of our shows, All Mixed Up I have gotten to know our celebrity host Chef Ralph Pagano quite well over the months.  I have observed him through the planning stages to the opening of his newest venture - Alba Seaside Italian at Sole on the Ocean in Sunny Isles FL.

So, I have been spending a lot of time there the past weeks, literally every weekend and then some, doing photography, tasting drinks and food....I know its a rough job being friends with a chef....bringing family and friends to dine, and really the same word that escapes everyones lips upon their first taste of either a signature cocktail like the Ginny Rogers, or their first bite of, well anything is the only word I can choose to sum up the entire experience.

Wow.

Not my literary best I concur, and will not win me any food journalism accolades. I should be using others such as, divine, exquisit, epicurean mastery....but lets be honest people, this isn't food and wine magazine, its just little old me and I am going off of the real life reactions of every person I have brought in there to try it for the first time including myself, just WOW.

The view is one of a kind, nothing but aquamarine crystal blue seas during daylight hours.  Poolside and beachside dining by day, upscale casual elegance with a bit of gangster whimsy and homage to the great Sophia Loren (a personal idol of yours truly,  to look like her at ANY age would be a dream) by night.

Then again a place can be as beautiful as they come but it's the food that makes it or breaks it baby, and Alba does more then deliver the goods.  They own the goods. 

Comfort Food is an over used phrase for sure, and completely relative to most people, but Chef Ralph Pagano takes comfort food to a level I have never seen here in Florida.  I know I sound biased but I am a Northern East coast Italian food snob who has been disappointed with the food options in Florida for years now.  

I have brought friends from Los Angeles, my family (the mother is the toughest critic of them all) a columbian couple who have seen and tried every single restaurant in south Florida and most recently our celebrity host from LA Julie Moran, and every single one of them starts by uttering...."Wow".  See its back to that word - in encompasses all there is to say about Alba Seaside.  

You have NEVER had mussels cooked to perfection like this I am willing to put money on it.

Yes I work for Oysters, not a bad gig

The biggest compliment is that every single person I have brought there, immediately starts planning when and how they can return.  It could be Chef Pagano's dynamic personality and infectious enthusiasm as he brings the bingo wheel over at the end of each meal to explain the game of chance, "The Vinny D Split". You have to go and find out, I can't give away everything all at once, what fun is that?

It could be the special attention from the staff and manager that we always receive, although even though I am a friend I have noticed that kind of personal attention and service is lavished on all clientele - which probably accounts for the repeat business. It could be the food, every dish hitting the mark of perfectly cooked and executed.  Have you ever had Lobster cooked the correct way?  I have now, twice...at Alba.

My guess is it is combination of all of the above and more.  There is always something new to discover and it keeps bringing people back again, and again.

Personally its just fun for me to walk into a place and have everybody know your name ....yes you get the reference, I mean come on...who doesn't love being treated as one of the insiders?  Shooting photos for Alba means I am constantly being fed oysters, mussels, stone crabs and being sent home with top shelf wine.  Membership has it's privileges.

Alba.  Check it out.  Once you are in, you can't leave.  You won't want to.

Check out Alba Seaside Italian on Facebook for events, and specials such as WTF -something I can't wait to attend!

And if you have any problems getting in - let me know. 

I know a guy.  ;-)

Very Important Ducks

Just a few rubber duckies

One of the perks of my job is getting to meet and work with great organizations in the area.  Last summer Designing Spaces did a makeover for Kids In Distress so I got to know and become friends with some of the girls who work there.  Well after they jumped into our project last week where we made over Joy Stewarts home....you can see that story in....
 The Huffington Post    (she says all casual like it wasn't one of the bigger hits of my career)....I got to hang out with them again.

Thats a lot of ducks

So yesterday they had their annual fundraising event the Duck Derby, and luckily for me it happens on the New River right in front of my building!  Just the view alone would have been cool, but the girls at KID put me and my family and a few friends down on the list for their V.I.D. tent.....making us Very Important Ducks!

It was a blast.  Food, drink (the alcoholic kind of course), music, a petting zoo, games and a couple thousand rubber duckies released into the water.  Now while the monkey and the lady bug are still a tad young to appreciate it, its just fun to get outside around other families and enjoy the beautiful South Florida winter day.

The monkey man is pretty mobile these days and climbing stairs is his new favorite thing.  Lucky for us there are several levels of stairs in front of The Broward Center of Performing Arts that he could climb again, and again.....and again.

A few of my snaps from the day.

Follow me Zia - for the 5th time

Well come on.....

Ms. Prim just chilling by the river

Next up today - the Kite Festival at Haulover beach in Miami!  I do like South Florida in the winter.

and then there were 2

In recognition of the fact that I can't start every blog post admonishing myself for neglecting my blog and all of the events in my life for 2012 this will be the last time.....probably.....well we shall see.

Aside from not following the growth and magical moments of my little monkey's life in the past year, honestly I am not sure there is a more photographed child, but I also completely disregarded announcing the arrival of his sister.

Bad Zia

Yes we had a new arrival last year, exactly 1 year and 1 week after Chase Kalman was born, on October 31st 2012 we were graced with the arrival of Alexandra Primrose - who hence forward will be referred to by the name she has been called since she was an hour old.  Primrose.  Or Prim, or my lady bug. 

Sadly Ms. Prim and I didn't get the immediate boding experience as my monkey and I did  After yet ANOTHER long, grueling and dare I admit far worse labor for my sister - I swear I don't know how she did it, it was determined - far to late in my opinion, that the big girls shoulders were turned wrong and she was trapped - so in the blink of an eye we were cleared out and sis was whisked into surgery for the emergency C-Section, without me.  The result of that was that I could only view her through the glass of the nursery and was unable to hold her until much later in the day.  Then, as I now live in my own apartment and have a job, unlike when Chase arrived and we all lived together so he actually slept in my room for the first week, my visits with Ms. prim were few and brief her first few weeks.

Well none of that matters, because now I am in love all over again.

Alexandra Primrose 1 week old

Ms. Prim and her Zia on Zia's 40th birthday.  She is already a pro at dining out 6 weeks old.

My Beautiful sister and her family

So now we have what they call "Irish Twins" in the family.  1 year and 1 week apart. It's not easy I will tell you that and I am amazed at my sisters strength in the face of sleep deprivation, she is 7 years younger then me - but still.  Currently we have 2 teething children, one running all over and beginning to talk, and one who will be soon trying to crawl.  Chaos is a tame word for it at times, but the joy they bring far outweighs anything else.   Easy for Zia to say as she gets to go home to her bed, bubble bath and bottle of wine but I try not to rub that in.

The best part is that they will grow up together, so close in age that they will be each others companions, playmates and friends.  I am sure we have a lot of fighting and crying ahead of us as well, but for now- Chase loves to hug and kiss his little sister and watching him, which she does constantly, makes Prim smile.

and then there were 2

And so a lifelong adventure begins......

A Story of Joy

OVER A YEAR!  I have been so busy writing and being a publicist (and photographer) again that I have negelected my own blog in favor of others for work.

Bad Amanda.

So I decided to get back in the groove by sharing my blog post from my company blog.  Its a back story of an incredible makeover Designing Spaces just completed. 

A Story of Joy

It’s a sad story with a happy ending in the making, for Joy Stewart and her grandchildren.  One day in December, Broward County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Edward Ragauskas went to Detective Lisa Sokol for help.  He had found Joy Stewart living in a home with no heat, running water, electricity or food with her four grandchildren.  Grandchildren who had health issues due to being born to a crack addicted mother who had abandoned them in New York.

Detective Sokol and Deputy Ragauskas put out a call for help to their fellow Broward County Sherriff’s Deputies and the word quickly spread.  Food, clothes and toys were donated; money was collected to turn utilities back on.  Huge name national stores such as Wal-Mart, Brand Smart and Home Depot donated things like a water heater, refrigerator, food, clothes and toys. A very Merry Christmas for sure; however the state of the home the family was living in was not fit for habitation and as the holiday spirit of charity started to dwindle, the good deputies of the BSO were at a loss what to do next.

At that time the local branch of the national non-for-profit Rebuilding Together® stepped in and with them they brought the producers of the locally produced national hit home improvement show Designing Spaces™, airing on Lifetime.  After taking one look at the state of Stewart’s family dwelling, the Dream Team at Designing Spaces decided to tackle the single largest makeover they have to date.  With the help of Rebuilding Together, the Broward County Sherriff’s Office and the local emergency shelter Kids In Distress, where Joy’s grandchildren had been housed until she was able to bring them home, Designing Spaces is redoing and furnishing the entire house room by room.

It’s a story that is not over yet; but one that shows the magic that can happen when a community comes together and helps create Joy.

# # #

While I can't take any credit for the photo - which is fine - I can take credit for the press that attended and covered it!!

Check out the following link to see the heartwarming reveal coverage live.
And I promise to start posting more of my work, thoughts and photos once more - for those of you who are interested!

CBS 4 Miami Piece
Sun-Sentinel Florida

Oh yeah I am now a tweeter so TWEET with ME!


Follow @PRShutterbug

39 things I am thankful for

Another birthday has passed.  39 years on this planet and a lot of things have been going through my mind these days.  Obviously the last few weeks have been filled with a lot of loss.  I lost my job.  My beautiful girl Asher and then finally my Auntie E.  That in itself would be enough to make anyone stop to think, but then add the losses of the last 3 years.  My Uncle Steve.  My business.  My home. My life in California, all of my money and in a sense my independence.  Moving back "home" at this age was a huge pride swallowing event in my life.  Add all those together and it's no wonder that I have started losing other important things.  My sense of humor.  My joy in life. My confidence in myself....I could go on, and honestly for the past few years I have gone on and on and on in my head, to my family to those around me who - even with my not so pleasent personality at times - have still stuck by me and love me regardless.  As I lay in bed sick over the weekend, mourning my aunt, the nearing end of my 30's, missing my dog, an interesting thing happened to me.  I sat up yesterday, sick and all, looked around and decided that the chapter of loss is offically OVER in my life.  Done.  It's time to close that book!

Now I can't control life.  Bad thngs still happen, and with an alarming regularity, to all of us.  The only thing in the world I have any control over is how I view things.  I used to be a positive, upbeat, downright hyper-active spaz in love with life.  I have been the opposite of that for to long.  I have spent to much time dwelling on my mistakes, the things I don't have and the uncomfortable situations in my life, and not enough, well if I am being honest here, ANY time focusing on the things I do have.

I can't change my entire way of thinking over night, but as with anything - you can't get anywhere different without taking the very first step.  So I have decided, for every year I have been blessed to continue to breathe in and out and live, I will find something to be thankful for in my life.  Here we go.

1. My home.  I never in a million years saw myself at 39 still single and back living at home, but reality...I am SO lucky hat I had a home to come back to and a family who took me in with no questions asked.

2.  My Mother Elaine.  Yes a lot of the time living with my mom is like living with a teenage sister.  She borrows my things without asking, still can't figure anything computer oriented out becasue she knows I will do it for her - and we fight and call each other names.  However, she is taking care of me and supporting me, and our whole family in every way possible, and she never once makes me feel bad about it.   I'm so blessed that 39 years ago she had me.

3.  My step-mother Vicki.  I am so lucky that she married my dad, and helped raise me.  My childhood and life has always been filled with chaos and she has always been the calm port in whatever storm I have found myself in.

4.  My Siblings, Francesca, Kathleen and Sean.  I could write pages and pages on the things they have done for me and brought to my life and how they have helped me. I am so so unbelievably blessed to have every single one of them and the relationships we have.

5. CHASE!  My beautiful perfect nephew.  I am so thankful that my sister and I live near each other so I can share in the experience of watching him grow.

6. Putting my dog to sleep.  Yes I know that sounds bizarre, but I have been thinking about it.  So many horrible things COULD have happened to her like getting hit by a car etc, but didn't.  I had 12 wonderful years with her, and I was blessed to be there and hold her and give her a peaceful departure from this earth.  It's something you never forget and I am thankful I was able to do it.

So While I am on the - spin a bad thing into a good thing role...

7.  Living with my grandmother as she slowly slips into dementia.  I won't lie - this one is a really hard one, but how many people get to say they got to spend so much time with a grandparent in their final years.  Its one of the hardest things I have ever lived through, now, but I know someday I will be grateful for the time I got to spend with her.  (this is something I have to tell my self daily from now on, as I try not to lose patience, a trait I am lacking in)

8. Failing at and losing my business.  Another tough one, I have spent YEARS beating myself up about it but the experiences and benefits while I had it probably outweigh the bad.  Most importantly Failure - means you tried for something.  I would rather try and fail then live a life never trying for anything.

9.  Being diagnosed allergic to Gluten.  Ok not eating bread, pasta or pizza (hmmm I'm getting hunrgy now) SUCKS - however....it's better then the year plus I spent sick not knowing why.  Finding out now probably saved me from a whole host of worse health problems in the future.

10. My kitty cat's.  Pagoda is a little bastard, Lucy is a little fatty and at this very moment trying to climb up the Christmas tree,  but they bring joy to the entire house.  I guess I am a cat person now. 

11. Old Friends.  I mean what else can you say about people who know everything about you and love you anyway?  I'm REALLY thankful I have so many people from different times in my life I stay in touch with and am able to share my life with

12.  Facebook.  I know I know - but how else in todays day and age of being busy and living so far from so many of your friends can you stay in touch?  And Facebook on your birthday makes you feel pretty damn loved!

13.  New Friends.  No matter how old you get you always have the opportunity to make new friends, share experiences and the person you are and sometimes they even feel like friends you have known your whole life.  I have been fortunate to make a few of them since moving to Florida.

14. Losing my life in California and moving to Florida. Another one that has taken me some time to get to a positive place about - but if I hadn't moved I wouldn't have met some of the special people who are now in my life, wouldn't have been here for the birth of my nephew, wouldn't have...well the list goes on and on.

15. Puff Dragon Boat Racing team.  A sport I had never heard of with a group of people I would have never met any other way. Joining my team and the experiences we have shared have changed my life here in Florida, for the better.  My teammates are a constant source of inspiration to me.

16. My big linebacker shoulders.  They were hell in the 80's/90's time of shoulder pads but they make me strong.  Able to do so many things.

17.  On that note.  My Body.  While I have had a love hate relationship with the 20lbs that throughout my life I have lost and gained and lost and gained and...well you get it.  I may not have the body of a supermodel, but I have all 10 fingers, toes all my limbs etc.  Yes I have some achy joints and jacked up back but reality is my body serves me well, it is strong - gets stronger when I work it and gives me the ability to do and try any sport or activity I want.  I need to learn to appreciate it for all the things it continues to allow me to do.

18.  Living on the water.  For the last 16 plus years I have lived within a bike ride or walk to the ocean.  I mean how lucky am I?

19.  My creativity.  I may not be the best at, or can make a living at any of my hobbies, but am pretty passable at jewelry making, photography and dare I say writing?  Comes in handy for giving my family Christmas presents when I am broke.

20.  Being broke and in debt.  Yikes - this one was hard but I realized recently that I have not been a financially responsible person most of my life.  So the experience I am going through now, well lets just say it is serving to teach me better money management so when I DO make a lot of money in the future I will be able to handle it better.  (Fingers crossed)  Also makes me appreciate the little things so much more

Wow - only 20 so far.... I doubt anyone has read this far but this is for me so we plow on....

21. Being Single.  I don't always love this one, but in reality I can do whatever I want, go wherever I like and flirt with whomever I chose without having to worry about anyone else.  (I am totally willing to change that all when/if I meet the right person), but for now I will enjoy my situation instead of feel bad about it.

22.  My brain.  I'm no Rhodes scholar for sure, but I am more then smart enough to get by, to learn new things and learn from my mistakes (in theory).  I got half of my dad's engineering brain and half of my mom's creative brain.  Not to shabby.  Although without spellcheck - I would be lost.

23.  My parents getting a divorce.  I am thankful they did for so many reasons, but mostly because it means I was lucky enough to grow up with a large extended family that just keeps growing and growing.

24. Knowing how to change a flat tire.  Granted I had to teach myself on the fly on the side of 95 in my aunt and uncles car  - but its a skill I'll always have.  Now if I could only learn to drive stick shift.

25. Being a Godmother.  My Chole and her triplet siblings Mia and Harry  - not to mention their mother my oldest friend Jen are a huge blessings.

26. Sunsets.  Its funny what you take for granted.  15 years on the west coast - you get them all the time, but here on the east its harder and even more special to see a glorious technicolor sky.

27. Big Puffy Clouds.  You don't see them quite as often in Los Angeles, but here laying back and looking at the clouds and the shapes they make can be done almost daily.

28. Getting to witness my nephew being born.  Terrifying.  Messy.  Exhausting.  But one of the most awe inspiring moments I have ever been blessed to be a part of.  Watching my sisters strength and that beautiful boy emerging from her body. 

29. Cooking and Food.  mmm mmmm mmm. In particular sushi, fish tacos and my new love Pumpkin cheesecake. 

30.  My travels.  I may not have much of an opportunity to travel these days, but I sure have been to some incredible places, met amazing people seen things that take my breath away. 

Last 9....so many things

31.  My mothers friends here in Florida.  With a few exceptions, she has met some wonderful people who have become a part of our family and are supportive of us in so many ways.

32.  Flowers.  I think being raised by a woman who was a florist and always has to be surrounded by fresh flowers, its another thing I have taken for granted, but they do bring beauty and joy.  There really is nothing like getting a delivery of flowers.

33. The people in my life who have passed on.  I miss them terribly.  If there is such a thing as guardian angels - then I feel a lot better knowing they are up there on my side.

34.  My education.  I didn't appreciate it while I was in it but I was blessed to go to some pretty amazing schools.  So many people are not as lucky as I was.

35. Yoga.  When I do it, it helps my mind, my body and my soul.  I guess there is a reason its been around for so long.

36. My sister Kathleen's fiance Leo - soon to be my brother in law.  It feels wonderful to know your sister has found a partner who will always be there for her and take care of her no matter what.  I know he will.

37.  Laughter.  It is natures anti-depressant and my new year resolution is to do it WAY MORE OFTEN.

38.  My eyes.  Because I am lucky enough to see, really see all the beauty that is around me if I use them.

And finally

39.  Another year of being here.  Having the ability to live, to change, to grow and experience everything, the good, the bad  the really really bad and the wonderful. 

Here's to my last year in my 30's. 

"your 20's are for making mistakes, your 30's are for learning the lessons....." 

Wearing Grief

Grief may be a thing we all have in common - but it looks different on everyone. We all have our own way of wearing it.  There are 5 stages of grief.  Everyone handles them differently, but there are always 5.

It isn't just death we have to grieve, its the life after the death.  Its the loss, it's the change it's going on living without the ones you love.

I am blessed that I was born to two parents who divorced.  Yes I know that sounds weird, but if they hadn't they wouldn't have both remarried, given me my amazing siblings, incredible step-parents and a vast circle of friends, extended family and loved ones with whom I grew up secure in the knowledge that they loved me. Family isn't always determined by blood, genes or legal documents.

The flip side of the coin is when you have so many loved ones, you have so many to lose.  I actually have some friends - god bless them - who have not yet been to a funeral or buried a loved one.  Either they are fortunate to have not lost family or close friends or were to young when they lost grandparents or someone in their family, to young to remember.

I have not been so lucky.

Last night I was snuggling with my beautiful perfect nephew, he was asleep on my chest.  His parents were out for a well needed few hour break and I was getting my fill of "baby smell".  You know that smell newborns have that has some sort of intoxicating quality to the ones who love them?  Mom came in to kiss us goodnight, and I turned back on the TV.  It was a blissful moment of peace.  Moments later I heard my mom crying out my name as she came into my room sobbing with the news.  Life went from serene and contented straight to anguish and pain in the time it took for me to hit pause.  I realized it's always been that way.  Whether it's a prolonged illness or a sudden accident, every moment of my life when I get the news it hits out of the clear blue sky - ripping apart everything in seconds. Then one of the 5 stages of grief begins and you begin to wear it in your way.


45 plus years ago at a fraternity party at Villanova my dad introduced my mom to Evelyn Porecca, a young woman dating one of his fraternity brothers whom dad thought may get along with his artistic / fraternity loathing fiance.  He was right, and they became best friends from that day on. More then that - they became family.  Mom was an only child and Ev was so much like a sister to her and such a part of our lives that she was my Auntie E from the get go.  I honestly think I was several years old before I realized she was not in fact blood family, but it didn't matter.  She was my Auntie E and I was her "baby girl". Last night mom picked up her messages to find my "Uncle Jim" letting us know that the previous afternoon at 3:45 - the precise time I was arguing with mom in Publix - rather childishly - that no I didn't want brisket for my birthday dinner on Sunday - my Auntie E had passed away, just several hours after she had been admitted to the hospital for what they thought was Pneumonia.  Just like that her lungs gave out on her - and she was gone.


I just did a search on the Internet - and there is no obituary up for her yet, which doesn't surprise me as she was the writer, so really I don't know who would write it for her.  She was a columnist for the Washington Post for this past decade (maybe more) with the byline "Teacher Says"  and an educator most her her life, writer, published author - she also has been battling cancer for the past 25+years.  Fight, Survive, Live - repeat.  It was her existence for decades - so much so that it didn't dawn on me that she one day wouldn't go through the entire cycle again. 


As I sit here and think back on my life, the last time I spoke with her.  The last time I saw her on a trip she and uncle Jim took to Los Angeles.  The first time I ever came to Florida to visit her when I was 10.  Her loud crazy infectious laugh.  Her wrist full of dozens and dozens of gold bangles (which I coveted since childhood) that made her jingle and sparkle when she used her hands to talk - an Italian trait we share.  Her stories, her exotic smelling perfumes and her persistance my whole life that I should be writing at all times.  She encouraged me as a child to write.  To write in journals, to write stories to write about the feelings I had that upset me.  Always a teacher, always a writer and most importantly always a fighter.

I will miss her dreadfully, and I know my mother is heartbroken. She lost one of her oldest friends, and life will never be quite the same.  I feel terrible that it takes death for me to remember to appreciate life.  I know Auntie E would be right pissed at me if I didn't appreciate what I have and every moment I am given.  So in honor of her that's my birthday resolution.  I know it won't always be easy but it's my plan. To do my best not to wear my grief, instead to take a page from her book and to wear life.  She always wore it with such style.

Dedicated to Evelyn Porecca Vuko.
December 7, 2011
Rest in Peace my dearest Auntie E

The Gay Life

When I was young, my upbringing was slightly different then my friends.  I was raised by Gay men, which in the early 70's was akin to be raised by wolves (albeit fabulous wolves) except there was a lot of tulle and ribbons.  Mom was a single working mom who was moving into the world she would occupy the rest of my life - the world of interiors, design, parties and flowers so who do you think her partners and friends were?  She tells me stories of how they cooed and oohed and dressed me up in elaborate get-ups, like their very own living doll, and would prop me up and say "Isn't she divine?"
No wonder that for the rest of my life I would always seek advice and fashion counsel from gay men.  Of course when it came to the messy bits, like poopy diaper or strained peas all over my cherubic little face - well they didn't like that part.  Mom came home once to 2 of her besties washing me off by holding me up in the sink and just spraying down my chubby little bottom with the spray attachment on the faucet while trying to hold their nose and not gag.  Gay men in the 70's who were out and proud had not yet evolved to the idea of having children themselves - as sadly it was not a situation society was ready to allow.  So the unpleasant and smelly part of babies was not fun - and "darling can you take her, I would just die if anything got on my silk shirt"

As I grew up - having gay men as "brothers" or "uncles" or just close friends in the family was something that was so everyday normal to me I never felt the need to address it or explain it until I had friends over in grade school who were baffled at to who these scantily clad man were, wearing more jewelry then their provincial Lily Pulitzer wearing mothers even owned and flitting around our chic black (yes black) pool floating gardenias in it because it was elegant.  When I would look at my friends alarmed big eyes I would turn to my current uncle of the moment - try and see what was so odd about them , shrug my shoulders and move on.  I didn't see the problem, never did, and for a young girl who was unnaturally obsessed with angst over body image and trying to fit in,  this was one area of my life that was glaringly odd yet didn't bother me in the slightest.

I got cooler presents then my friends (box full of feathers anyone), witnessed crazy fun parties unlike any of my other Main Line of Philadelphia friends parents threw ( I did wonder why NONE of my friends parents mixed socially with mine until I witnessed a party at one of their houses and was so bored I wanted to drown myself in my shasta). Parties at my house tended to be elaborate, many times costumes and inevitably ended up with drunk people in the pool, with very little clothing on.  It was pretty awesome to spy on.

I learned about art, and fashion, textile and flowers.  Then sadly I also learned, to young about the cruelty of  people who were anti-gay, and was educated all to personally about the devastation of AIDS.  I was the only person in my high school that I knew who lost a close close friend to AIDS.  I still remember our last Christmas with him and gained new-found respect for my stepfather who was from an even older generation, one that didn't accept or acknowledge homosexuality.  He accepted and loved Michael and as a doctor sat me down and educated me on the realities of AIDS.  You will NOT catch it by hugging the person you love etc and told me not to be scared and to treat him with all the love and respect I ever had for him as he is the same person and we wouldn't shun him if he had Cancer would we?

So in my life I have always had gay men and then when I became an adult gay women as a regular everyday part of my life without ever giving it much thought.  I love the fact that now a days my generation finds no reason to make someones sexual orientation an issue. Well ok maybe just the people I surround myself with, I know there is a whole country of small minded bigots still roaming around.  Sad.  I feel sorry for them.

So I know why I love gay men and why one of my best friends today is one, but I never understood why they loved me so much until last night.

Last night my bestie took me as his date to a very swanky fundraiser for GLAD at one of the most amazing estates (complete with yacht) in our tony neighborhood.  I really should have taken pictures but I found juggling my beautiful clutch purse, a glass of wine AND trying to balance on a twisted ankle was far to much for me to handle.  iPhone camera or wine?  If you know me you know what I chose.

When some of my new friends were gushing over how fabulous I was and how much they loved me, I naturally assumed it was my witty and charming personality filled with funny anecdotes as well as my ability to listen to them talk about themselves and tell them how fabulous they are (note when you are a straight women surrounded by gay men - you need to do this and you will get a lot of compliments and love in return)  But no, I was wrong, while they did adore my self deprecating humour, what I found made me so popular - the veritable straight girl belle of the gay ball was something I never would have expected.  It was - wait for it......my breasts.

WHAT?

Seriously?  My boobs, my girls, the amazing cleavage they were presenting and then when the boys found out that they were REAL?!?! WELL!!! (In South Florida finding a girl with real boobs of my size is a little like finding a pearl in an oyster...OK a slight exaggeration but you get the point).  So for the rest of the night as the liquor flowed I continued my education on the dating/mating rituals of gay men - not for the shy girls, it's all in the details, and was treated to constant glowing praise of a part of my body that I was blessed with and have absolutely no hand in.  Well not true - being 10 plus pounds overweight at the moment only increases their - well attributes.  The best part is that they very sincerely made me feel beautiful, their compliments were not sexual in nature, from a straight guy it would be downright pervy they were an honest appreciate for a women's body part that some (not all) gay men have sincere envy over.  Who knew?

That's what I love about life in general - you think you know all there is to on a subject, being surrounded by gay men my whole life I was feeling rather self-important in my knowledge and then a curve ball comes out of left field and you learn something new.  Something fabulous in my mind!  Oh yeah and last night I learned something else (well many things but some are not fit for a PG blog) and that is that all the best looking men in Fort Lauderdale are in fact Gay.

Sigh

"Quit waiting for Prince Charming - he's already living with Mr. Right"

"Is the viking helmet to much?"

"No darling you look fabulous"