Seminole War Reenactment

Every winter the Seminoles create a

reenactment of the Seminole War.

This is the first time I've gone to it.

I had so much fun photographing...

the costumes are wonderful, and the

faces are just marvelous: filled with

character! Had so much fun!

For those of you who don't know about

the Seminole War:

The war happened because the slaves

that escaped were running to South

West Georgia and Florida and joining

up with the Indians. They had been doing

this for generations. Eventually, the

plantation owners got upset. They wanted

their slaves back.

The government sent in the army.

By that time, the slaves

had families...and some of those families

were mixed blood. The soldiers were

taking children and anyone who looked

black. This didn't go well with the Seminole.

They fought back.

There were two wars. Together they lasted

longer than the Vietnam war and cost more.

More military were killed than Indians.

Eventually, the majority of the Seminole joined

the trail of tears, but some of them never

signed the peace treaty and hid in the Everglades.

I believe the Seminole signed the Peace Treaty

in the 1980's...yes, I said 1980's.

I don't think the Micousukee have ever signed

a peace treaty. They have an embassy in Miami!

We never actually won the war. It finally came

to an end because the Seminole were tired of

fighting. It just kind of ended...no big hooray.

We were entertained by several

Indian Dances

A beautiful costume that flowed

with the dance she was doing

What this young man could do with

hoops was amazing!

Everyone was in awe. He moved them over

under and around his body so fast that I

could hardly keep track. Magic!

The United States Soldiers

Everyone who joined in this reenactment

had wonderful faces filled with character.

I could have spent the day just

photographing their faces!

Frontiersmen

The crowd that came to see the event

glad we got there early!

Whites fighting

I hesitate to call them Americans

because, in reality, the Indians were

the Americans....

Indians fighting

...and the Seminoles won.

47th Wedding Anniversary

It's hard to believe 47 years have

already gone by...I feel like we have

just begun to know each other and

accept each other for who we are.

Clyde and I sharing a milk shake

to celebrate our anniversary

Congratulations to Angelica Fiorentino!!!

Clyde & I joined Lee and her family in Miami

to celebrate the graduation of Angelica from

the University of Miami in Law.

We are so proud of Angelica. She has

accomplished so much in her life...she could

write a book! We are very excited for her

life with this new path in front of her and

so glad we could join with her in this celebration.

CONGRATULATIONS ANGELICA!!!!

It is such a joy to see

Angelica and all the other graduates...to

see the future of our country march

down the isle, grab the diploma and

then explode into their own future!

WONDERFUL!

Angelica with a smile that matches

her future.

Tony, Angelica, Lee, Nic

and their dad, Frank

Grand kids - Kayla & Robbie

Kayla and Robbie at Epcot

Kayla and her awards

This year Kayla has won numerous

awards with her photography

This is the most recent award she

won during the school season.

Robbie was honored by having his art (behind him) chosen

to be hung at the Venice Community Art Center

Webegone - Our New Boat

Clyde and I decided we needed a larger boat.

We spent over a year looking for one that would

fill our needs and finally found it in a 28 foot

Ranger Tug. It's cute and has most of

the comforts of home.

We named the boat Webegone, because

we hope we be gone a lot in the boat!

The boat arrives all gift wrapped!

The unveiling...

Webegone

Me, waxing the stainless

Clyde checking out the generator

Me, relaxing in cockpit

Clyde relaxing in the cockpit

And so, we try to spend as many days

as possible on the boat watching the

afternoon thunderstorms build and

admiring the beauty & power of nature...

...and watch the thunderstorms roll over....

This thunderstorm was combined with a

sunset, which caused the mist of the rain

to appear pink.

More from my trip to visit mom

After Jackie flew back to Florida I

stayed for a few extra days to visit

with mom.

Mom and me

my hand and moms

Mom enjoying the view from the

tenth floor of Channing House

Filoli Gardens

Years ago my sister Cheri took mom and I to

Filoli Gardens. I never forgot the beauty of

it all. As I visit mom, she only stays awake

until lunch. After lunch she sleeps until

almost dinner time. So, one afternoon I decided

to remember Cheri and mom by

returning to Filoli.

For anyone who would like to visit this

wonderful place it is located in the hills of

Woodside California. The home and gardens

were given to the National Trust for

Historic Preservation in 1975. It is now a

non-profit that is open from spring-fall. I think

they have a special event at Christmas.

For more info:

www.filoli.org

86 Canada Rd

Woodside, Calif. 94062

(650) 364-8300

As far as I'm concerned, this place is like walking

through the gardens of heaven...with my sister

by my side...

Guest House

sorry...I didn't get a photograph of the house

I was too wrapped up in the garden!

The Wisteria was magnificent!

I realize that these red flowers are so bright

that they look fake...but I didn't do anything

to them to make them look this way. They

were such a bright red I couldn't believe it!

The joy of meandering around a lush green

garden filled with flowers fills my heart with

peace and gratitude for being alive on this

beautiful planet.

After my walk, I found a place where people

seldom walk. I laid down, and just absorbed

the beauty of it all. I must have fallen asleep.

I woke with a start. It was unusually quiet.

As it turned out, the place had closed! If I

had a sleeping bag with me, I would have stayed!