Wendi's Water Day

New York City had its first snowfall of the year on Saturday.  I might not have known but for the fact that my friend Wendi was visiting from NYC over the week-end and happily reported this as we were driving to Placida/Boca Grande for a day of kayaking and hanging out at the beach.  Yes, it's a tough life here in Southwest Florida, but somebody's got to do it!

Dorrit, Bruce, Wendi, and me

  Back in the fall, Dorrit and I each purchased a Groupon coupon for a Wolverton Trails Kayak tour for two in Placida with O-Sea-D Aquatic Adventures.  It sounded like a fun activity to do with a visitor, and I was right.  We met Vince Molnar (the wet-behind-the-ears, marine biology degree-holding owner of O-Sea-D) at an active boat ramp in Placida bright and early.  Wendi and I had a tandem kayak, which I thought would make the outing easier and more fun for both of us.  (More about that later!)   We launched promptly at 10:00 and headed out for our adventure.  

Vince was a fantastic tour guide.  It's always fun to be on the water, but to be with someone who actually knows something about marine life added a lot to the day.  Our first stop was an osprey nest.   We learned that ospreys mate for life, and that the female osprey generally lays three eggs at a time. It was sounding very Ozzie and Harriet-like until Vince told us that the puniest of the three offspring is harassed and kicked out of the nest by its siblings to fend for itself.  We were all a bit depressed by this fact but we got over it when some dolphins made a guest appearance, one of which actually swam under Bruce's kayak.  It was breakfast time for the dolphins and they were pushing fish towards the shore where it would be easier to feast on them. 

Wendi with a sea hare

With the help of his polarized sunglasses, Vince found some interesting water creatures to show us.  The first was the incredibly disgusting sea hare.  This hermaphroditic member of the mollusk family is sort of like a snail without a shell.  You can't tell from this photo but when you see its "face" (using the term very loosely), a sea hare has two little ear-like things that stick out and look like rabbit ears (hence the name).  Our sea hare was not happy being a part of our show and tell and spit ink to indicate its discontent.  (As I am writing this, I feel my nose wrinkled up in disgust.  This thing was really yucky.)

Next up was the egg casing from a lightening whelk, another member of the mollusk family.  The casing was translucent and kind of funky looking.  (As you can probably gather by this point, Wendi wanted to check everything out up close and personally.)  Vince also found a banded tulip snail for the group.  One tidbit about this creature is that, while it looks innocent enough, it has a sharp "nose" that it uses to inject poison into its prey and adversaries.

We paddled through the Wolverton Trail, which is a narrow swamp "trail" lined by mangroves on either side.  It was recommended that if you were in a tandem kayak, only the person in the back paddle (that would be me).   Wendi and I somehow ended up at the head of the pack and it was apparently quite hilarious to those behind us (particularly Bruce, who said we were doing quite a fine Benny Hill imitation as we crashed into tree limbs and roots with great regularity).   In my defense, I couldn't quite see where we were going.  (I also am fairly klutzy, but my story is that it was hard to see and I'm sticking with it.)   Notwithstanding this slight difficulty, this was my favorite kayak outing so far, and I was sorry when it was over.

Wendi's water day was not over, though.  We had packed a picnic lunch and headed to the beach at Boca Grande.  After lunch, we settled into our chairs to enjoy the sand and sun and no more than five minutes had passed when Wendi decided to go for a swim.  A swim????   The water temperature had to be in the--gasp--high 70's!  Wendi said that the water was a bit cooler than she had expected but that the beautiful weather had caused her to forget that it was January.  (It happens to the best of us.)

Wendi has now returned to New York and winter.  I'll continue to enjoy being able to kayak and bike and enjoy the outdoors even though it is only January.   Next up is kayaking with the manatees.  As I said, it's a tough life but somebody's got to do it!

IYC Lecture Series Hosts PG City Manager Howard Kunik

Did you know that the Punta Gorda's City Council has its own mission statement and that the City has made significant progress towards the development of a 15 mile "ring around the city" for bikers and pedestrians?   These are just two of the interesting tidbits that I learned when City Manager Howard Kunik spoke this week at the Isles Yacht Club's monthly lecture series.

Kunik is one of the most public faces of Punta Gorda, and he is a great spokesman.  I've never had the opportunity to hear him speak before, and he exudes professionalism and competence while maintaining a very likable and approachable demeanor.  Kunik has a Masters in Public Administration from George Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Urban and Environmental Studies from Case Western University.  For some reason, I was surprised to hear that city government in our little town (population approximately 18,000) has such a credentialed manager.

In any event, I learned a lot during Kunik's talk. For instance, the City Council is currently soliciting input from its "stakeholders" on the development of its 2013 strategic plan.  The City Council's current mission statement is to "promote the unique character and environment of Punta Gorda while enhancing property values and advancing the quality of life."   The online questionnaire (which can be found at http://www.ci.punta-gorda.fl.us/index.html) asks for residents' thoughts on what the mission and goals of the City Council should be, how we view the impact of technological, demographic, and economic trends on the City and its ability to accomplish its mission and more.

I was interested to learn that our local government is using "Lean/Six Sigma" analysis to review some of its internal processes.  (IYC member Bob Petersen introduced the concept to Kunik and led  the training on how to implement Six Sigma.)  Back in my lawyer days, Prebon's CEO gave the executive committee an assignment to read a book about Jack Welch, Chairman and CEO of GE, and it talked quite a bit about how GE streamlined processes and reduced inefficiencies through the use of Six Sigma techniques.  In Punta Gorda, modifications have been made as a result of the use of Six Sigma to policies such as how many signatures are required before a memo or purchase order can be issued.

I was intrigued to hear about Punta Gorda's new Citizen's Academy, which is a series of interactive sessions designed to educate PG residents about city government in order to develop future leaders and create a more informed citizen base.  Registrations are being taken now for the summer session, which runs from May 1st - July 31st.  http://www.ci.punta-gorda.fl.us/userdata/publicworks/citizenacademyapp.pdf   The classes, which are limited to around 35 students, go on site tours of city facilities and hear from various department heads about what it takes to run Punta Gorda.  

Kunik talked as well about ongoing development in Punta Gorda (including plans for an additional mooring field behind the Best Western).  As a relatively new resident, I wasn't familiar with some of the areas that were being discussed (or the "marketplace," which has apparently been in the works since Kunik became City Manager in 2005), but the audience was quite interested in hearing about these plans, and Kunik answered all questions that were raised.

I came away from the lecture impressed with both Kunik and our city government's efforts to involve its residents in the process of making Punta Gorda the special place that it is.   I am looking forward to learning more about what's going on in Punta Gorda when I participate in Kunik's City Manager's Bike Tour on March 31st.  The Tour is part of the Pedal & Play in Paradise events that are being sponsored by Team Punta Gorda and IYC (with IYC's share of the proceeds going to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.)    You can register by going to http://www.pedalandplayinparadise.com/ .   Hope to see you there!  

Florida Rep Presents God of Carnage

Back in the fall, I culled through this season's theater offerings from Sarasota to Fort Myers and came up with a list of about 15 shows  that I was  interested in seeing.  When I shared the list with my usual suspects, the Tony Award-Winning God of Carnage at Florida Repertory Theater made the cut, and last week-end's activities included a Sunday matinee performance (permitting me to get home in time to watch the Giants beat the Packers--I was wondering how I was going to work that in!)

Robert Cacioppo, Florida Rep's artistic director, took the stage before the performance started to welcome us and to share Terry Teachout's review of the show in the Wall Street Journal.  "...Having reveled in Matthew Warcus' star-studded 2009 Broadway production, I was curious to see how 'God of Carnage' would hold up when played by less familiar faces, so I flew down to Fort Myer's to check out the Florida Repertory's production.  I'm delighted to report that Florida Rep's staging, directed with hair-trigger precision by Dennis Lee Delaney, is at least as good as the Broadway version, and better in one respect.  The casting is less predictable."   First of all, I want this guy's job.  Second, wow.  With this review in mind, it was showtime.

In God of Carnage, two sets of parents get together to discuss their 11 year old sons' recent schoolyard confrontation.   The meeting is held at the home of Veronica and Michael Novak whose child Henry was injured in the incident.  The objective of the meeting is a bit unclear.  Surprisingly, there are no threats of lawsuits or implications that they are looking for monetary reimbursement.  The Novaks seem to just want the other kid to understand the seriousness of what he's done and to make a proper apology to their son.  Annette and Alan Raleigh, parents of the stick-wielding Benjamin, are apologetic but seem a bit confused about why they're there.  Over the next 90 minutes, they "discuss" everything from their kids to their marriages to the pharmaceutical industry to the situation in Darfur in an increasingly hilarious and farcical manner.

One of the things that I enjoyed most about the play was watching the dynamics of the foursome as mini-alliances were created and broken apart.  Each couple presents a more or less united front at the beginning of the meeting but it becomes clear pretty quickly that neither father thinks that what's happened is such a big deal.   When it is revealed that the reason for the altercation was that Henry wouldn't let Benjamin join his "gang", the men lapse into their own reminiscences about the "gangs" they were in when they were kids, creating a momentary bond.  The Novaks and Annette bond together over their irritation about the constant interruption of phone calls to Alan, a self-important lawyer.  (Need I say more?)  The women of course end up bonding over the shortcomings of their husbands.

As I was watching the performance, I found myself thinking about how the roles would have been played by the big name actors on Broadway, especially James Gandolfini who took on the role of Michael Novak.  Gandolfini is so linked in my mind to his portrayal of Tony Soprano that it was hard to get away from the associations--and that was when I was watching a production that didn't even include him in the cast!  My friend Steph commented after the show that she thought the Novak character was Jackie Gleason-like and that, as his facade dissolved, she was envisioning a "to the moon, Alice!" moment.  I couldn't make an association like that in my mind because I was too caught up in how Gandolfini would have played the character.  This brings me back to the WSJ review.  I don't know if I would use the word "unexpected" with respect to the casting at Florida Rep but I would say that seeing productions without household names permits me to enjoy the show and the acting for what they are.  It's of course always fun to see someone famous, but it's also exciting to discover local actors, particularly in a repertory company setting where you can see their work in a variety of productions.

The bottom line is that Florida Rep's production of God of Carnage was terrific.   The quality, variety, and accessibility of theater in Southwest Florida continues to surprise and impress me.   What a wonderful little corner of the world we have here!  

The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra Brings Us to Germany

The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra is taking concertgoers on a whirlwind international tour this season.  Last Saturday night we made a stop in Germany, with music by Mendelssohn, Bach, and Brahms.  My friend Susan joined me for the concert, and it was a great evening.

We started our night with Katherine Caldwell's pre-concert lecture.  When the CSO has a guest performer, Katherine talks with them a bit before giving some insights into what we will be listening to that evening.   The CSO was performing on its own that evening, though, so she introduced us to Shannon Underwood (orchestra librarian), George Mancini (personnel manager), and Alan Klispie (stage manager).  It was interesting to hear a bit about the process behind the scenes of the concerts, from getting the musicians and music in place for the performances to making sure the stage is set for the show.  (As I listened to Mancini talk about sending contracts out to the musicians, I flashed back on the process of getting securities brokers under contract during my lawyer days at Prebon Yamane.  What a bunch of prima donnas those guys were!)   Then it was showtime!  

The CSO performed Mendelssohn's Overture to a Midsummer Night's Dream, Op. 21 and Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor for the Organ, BMV 565 during the first half of the performance.  I enjoyed Bach's Toccata much more than Mendelssohn's Overture.   The Toccata, which is used in the introduction to Walt Disney's Fantasia, was bold and in my face.  I love the idea that Stokowski took Bach's organ composition and transcribed it into an orchestra work, with the contrabassoon's resonating sounds standing in for the organ.  The CSO embraced the music, and the violins were outstanding.  At the end of the piece, the violins were playing so fast that it reminded me of boxers working a speed bag.  Concertmaster Stewart Kitts was almost levitating above his seat.  As the Toccata came to its close, the audience gave a standing ovation in honor of the music that the CSO had created.

We were treated to Brahms' Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Opus 68 during the second half of the show.  It took Brahms over 14 years to compose his symphony, which consists of four movements.  Again, the violins were showcased, and Stewart Kitts' solos in the second movement were fantastic.  He was truly one with the music, and seemed not to open his eyes during the entire piece.  The fourth movement featured two pizzicato (plucking) sections on the strings, which I always enjoy, and the trombonists who were brought in especially for this performance finally got their opportunity to play.  Again, the audience rose to its feet in appreciation after the CSO had played its final note and Maestro Wada put down his baton.

I loved having the opportunity to introduce Susan to the CSO and Maestro Wada.   She was struck by the Maestro's warmth and connection with both the musicians and the audience.   I happened to watch CBS Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood this week, and there was an interesting segment on charisma.  Of course the segment focused to some extent on politicians given the upcoming elections, but it also talked about charismatic people in other professions and the development by researchers at MIT of a "sociometer" to measure an individual's charisma.  As I watched the show, I thought about Maestro Wada's interactions the previous evening.  Before the concert began, he welcomed the concertgoers to that night's performance by "our" Charlotte Symphony Orchestra and shared that his birthday had fallen during the concert rehearsals and that he had been treated to an orchestral "happy birthday to you."  When he turned to the musicians, you could feel the bond that has developed between conductor and orchestra.  There is no doubt in my mind that if Francis were to wear a sociometer, his charisma rating would be off the chart.  It's just one more reason why Saturday night's performance was wunderbar!  

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

I am an old fashioned reader who physically turns the pages of books and marks passages that I particularly like with a colored flag. I was talking recently with a friend who reads books on his Kindle and, of late, on his iPhone. Not having tried reading in these alternative ways, I don't quite get it, and I particularly don't understand how reading on a small device like a phone can be enjoyable.   I loved what he said, though, which is that when he's reading a good book, he "disappears" into it no matter what the media.  That's a concept I understand and was fortunate to experience recently as I disappeared into Ann Patchett's State of Wonder.

Patchett is one of my favorite authors, and her Bel Canto and Magician's Assistant are high of my list of great reads. Her writing is beautiful, and her character development is unparalleled. In State of Wonder, Patchett drops us into the life of Marina Singh, a doctor working for a pharmaceutical company in Minnesota who has just learned via Aerogram that her colleague and friend Anders Eckman died while on company business in Brazil. When she hears the news, she "understood why people say 'You might want to sit down.' There was inside of her a very modest physical collapse, not a faint but a sort of folding, as if she were an extension ruler and her ankles and knees and hips were all being brought together at closer angles." Marina is eventually persuaded to follow in Anders' footsteps to the Amazon. Dr. Fox, her romantic interest and CEO of the company, believes that Marina is going in order to complete Anders' mission to find out the development status of a remarkable fertility drug from the indomitable Dr. Annick Swenson. In reality, Marina's primary motivation in embarking on the trip is to comply with the request of Anders' wife Karen to find out what happened to her husband.

State of Wonder takes us from Minnesota to Manaus to the Amazon, introducing us to fascinating experiences and characters along the way.  We meet the Bovenders, an Australian couple who house sit for Dr. Swenson and act as sentries guarding against interlopers--including people from the company funding her research--who might interfere with her work.  We meet Easter, a wonderful deaf-mute boy who was taken in as a young child by Dr. Swenson and who becomes Marina's close companion. We meet the Lakashi tribe who stand on the banks of the river with burning branches to greet arrivals to their "village" and who express their happiness and pride with open-handed slaps.  And of course we meet Dr. Swenson, a 72-year old force of nature who has spent much of her adult life commuting between the "real world" teaching ob-gyn residents at Johns Hopkins and the jungle where she works on her research.  Swenson is abrupt, outspoken, and brilliant.   In one of their first conversations, Swenson tells Marina about the "fatal mistake" she made many years earlier of sewing up the head of a young girl that had been inadvertently hit by a machete.  From then on, Swenson's research has been interrupted by tribes people with ills that can't be taken care of by the local witch doctor or mid-wife.  "What would the alternative have been?" Marina asks with respect to the girl.  Swenson is quite clear in her response.  "The question is whether or not you choose to disturb the world around you, or if you choose to let it go on as if you had never arrived.  That is how one respects indigenous people."  Notwithstanding these views, Swenson has become the "go to" person in times of crisis for the tribe and has developed a very special relationship with them that facilitates her research.

As I was reading State of Wonder I realized that I had no idea where the story was going nor, frankly, did I care because I was enjoying the journey so much.  As I neared the end of the book, I thought I had figured it out only for the plot to take an unexpected turn.   State of Wonder is truly a wondrous book that will engross you from the start.  I hope it's not another four years before Patchett publishes her next work.  I, for one, am waiting anxiously.