LIVIN' THE DREAM

     Many of the people we have visited are former Miamians.  They left South Florida and never looked back.   Most settled in small towns where folks know each other and the parking is free.

 

Artists Sarah Gottfried and Alan Dillman built their home outside of Saluda, NC. 

Sarah with Grove guys


 

 Its details and fine woodwork are rarely seen in houses today.  

Woodcarving is one of many country traditions. 

 One of the hardest projects is creating a "ball in cage" from a single piece of wood.

Alan carved this one from a tree stump outside his house.



   Reluctantly we headed down the mountains for the long trip home.   I amused myself by taking pictures of cigarettes at rest stops.  

Afterwards, listening to NPR, we learned that they still kill almost a million people in this country every year.   Secondhand smoke snuffs out 40,000 annually.

We broke up the trip with stops in Savannah and St. Augustine.   Both are good examples of what Miami has constantly failed to do, preserve its past.

Peddling along Savannah's popular riverfront. 
   Parks are all over Georgia's coastal city.   When comparing park space in our country's fifty biggest cities,  Miami comes in last.  If our town were able to double its park space, it would still be last.  
   Savannah has these moss-draped plazas every four blocks. They are referred to as "the jewels of the city".  Our Coconut Grove neighborhood was designed with this in mind.  Unfortunately, there is no plaza, only four empty lots where Plaza Street meets Palmetto Avenue.

 

 Water fun in Savannah.  
       Almost every city we visited had fountains for kids to enjoy.   
    But not Miami.   When Grove parents suggested this at a meeting with Miami Commissioner Marc Sarnoff last June, he muttered, "We won't be building any fountains".   
   
     Two hours from here we'll be seeing a "Welcome to Florida!" sign.  An hour later we'll be camping in St. Augustine.  Even it has a place to get wet, the fabled Fountain of Youth.