Just Dessert Please — And Hold the Homelessness!

I’m going to be a celebrity (as if!) judge at the 4th annual Family Promise of Sarasota “Just Desserts” event on Friday, March 23 at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. And all the proceeds benefit the nonprofit’s work to help homeless families regain self-sufficiency. Open to the public — the $50 entry donation gets you access to an extravaganza of desserts created and donated by local chefs. Come on by and say Hi!

For more information and/or ticket purchase, visit www.familypromisesarasota.org.

Learn more about this great organization by clicking on the link below to read a Sarasota Herald-Tribune article. Just scroll past the first story on Belize. http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20120321/ARTICLE/120329924?p=all&tc=pgall&tc=ar

Men, Women, & Relationships — A Discussion

I’m speaking at the Women’s Resource Center of Sarasota panel discussion on “Men, Women, & Relationships” — March 22 5-7 p.m. FREE! and open to the public; preregistration required.

5th Annual Frances Kraaymes Lecture, March 22, 5-7pm: The Conversation Continues: Men, Women, & Relationships —
Forever a Work in Progress.

Join an illuminating guest panel featuring Margaret Callihan – Chairman, President, CEO of Suntrust Bank; Kelly M Kirshner – Former Commissioner – District 3 and Mayor of Sarasota; Dr. Rev. Bruce Wismer – Co -Pastor, Pine Shores Presbyterian Church; Dr. Karen Hamad – Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, First Physicians Group; Art Mahoney – Chairman of the Board of the Independent Transport Network

Moderated by Dr. Willa Bernhard, a researcher and writer for Women on the Web, (www.wowowow.com) former psychotherapist and educator in New York. Call 366-1700 to register. Or visit www.thewomensresourcecenter.org.

March Birds Herald Sing

Several nights, I’ve slipped quietly from the house to stand in the yard and listen. My eyes wide and searching what I call the “forest” of oaks, practically holding my breath, and unable to resist smiling; but for the life of me …
Read the rest of this week’s Sense and the City column in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune TICKET today

WSLR Community Radio — Raising Funds & Looking for New Members!

Sunday night, March 18, I’m going to be sitting in on the Louisiana Gumbo Show from 7 to 9 p.m., helping them raise funds for WSLR LPFM 96.5 radio. WSLR is a community radio station that airs programming on local politics, health and wellness, sustainable living … oh, and did I mention GREAT music? The station also hosts lecture series and concerts and community days … if you’re not familiar with WSLR, I invite you to check it out at www.wslr.org. Or stream the programs live by clicking on www.wslr.org.

If you want to support the programming, I invite you to call in from 7-9 p.m., on Sunday night and make a pledge — anything from $10 or $15 on up. There are some cool “rewards” for pledging — read about them by clicking here. — everything form free Ben & Jerry’s ice cream to massage to free cd’s to cabin rentals to concert passes and architectural services. To call in and make a donation, 894.6469 or 954.8636. If you want to make a comment or ask a question ON AIR, use 954.8636. I’ll be happy to take questions and make up answers!

Women Make Great Entrepreneurs!

My Sarasota Herald-Tribune Sense & the City column this week profiles Flori Roberts, co-founder of Smart Cover Cosmetics and an honoree this year for Girls Inc of Sarasota County’s She Knows Where She’s Going award. Roberts is a fascinating, charming woman — the kind you’d like for your best friend. Click here to read Flori Roberts Serial Entrepreneur

Spring Break When You’re No Spring Chicken!

Ahhh, spring break. For the college-age set, those words signal a week of carefree bliss at the beach. It seems a tad unfair that once you grow up and leave college behind, spring break is expected to be a thing of the past. So, with that in mind, here are my top three picks for taking a well-deserved mini-break — just a few hours out of your month — guaranteed to restore your sanity and give you the glowing equivalent of a week of fun in the sun … without the sunburn.

Click here to read my suggestions — everything from Nautical Nights at Sarasota Architectural Salvage to benefit Mote Marine, Family Promise of Sarasota’s Just Desserts, and getting some meditation mojo from none other than Gary Halperin.Take a Break for Spring!

Reinvent Yourself at Renaissance Luncheon

I doubt there’s a woman alive who hasn’t wanted – or needed — to reinvent herself at some point in her life. While we don’t have to go as far as Madonna (the boy toys, coffee table sex books and faux British accent), a refresher every decade or so or whenever a major life transition occurs … get ideas for your own reinvention in this week’s Sense and the City column — Reinvent Yourself at Renaissance Luncheon — in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Event features Gail Sheehy, emceed by Michael Saunders, and put on by the Women’s Resource Center of Sarasota County.

Awakening

Who’s to say the effort to be real isn’t the beginning of wings?

I love these lines that I read this morning in The Book of Awakening by Mark Nepo. I know some will scoff — but that’s my desire — to be unmitigatedly real. Is that possible? I think so — despite the unreality of our world — the ubiquitous reality shows, the faux-politicians, the obsessive acquisitiveness — I think there’s a movement in our culture to become awake, to rouse from our slumber and realize ourselves and each other. Well, it’s a bit early in the day for all that, isn’t it?

There are a few books that have profoundly influenced my interior — and exterior — life and how I live. Walden, of course. Letters to a Young Poet. The Teachings of the Compassionate Buddha. Machiavelli’s Prince. And, I’m beginning to think (and I’m only 78 pages into this nearly 500-page tome), Nepo’s book is going to infiltrate my system just as those others did. I highly recommend it.

Love Books? Buy ‘Em Local at Circle Books

Watch this great “City Business” (from Sarasota government) clip about Circle Books on St. Armands Circle. I was there just a few weeks ago, looking for a specific book but couldn’t remember the author’s name and of course, with just a couple of words from me about what the book was about … the booksellers knew what I wanted and led me to it (The Art of Fielding, by the way).

But watch this video for a GAZILLION reasons why you should buy your books at local bookshops as opposed to over the Internet or at the big boxes.

http://sarasota.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=68&clip_id=4671

Ringling’s Town Hall: Inspirations in Creativity

In today’s Sense and the City column in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune I write about what I learned by going to the Ringling College Library Association’s Town Hall lecture with General Stanley McChrystal. And I give a shout out to Ringling alumnus Brandon Oldenburg whose short film “The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore,” has been nominated for an Academy Award. The film is a “love letter to books” — sounds like my kinda flick.

Click here to read my column or look for it in today’s TICKET section. Town Hall: Inspirations in Creativity.

Click on the image below to watch The Fantastic Flying Books …