The Friday 5ive- August Florida Edition

The Friday 5ive is a blog post about five things that caught my attention during the week.
Last weekend we were at our home in Longboat Key Florida for a relaxing four days, and although it rained at some point each day, we still had fun.


1) Our landscaper is doing a terrific job at the house, Leo, Edgar and their crew are keeping the place looking great. We have lots of pretty flowers blooming right now, it was such a lovely sight to see.

2) A few weeks ago we went to see a Beatles tribute band and had a fantastic time, so we tried our luck with a Neil Diamond tribute at the Longboat Key Club. Tim McCaig performed lots of Neil Diamond hits, including songs from The Jazz Singer, one of my husband's favorite movies. He sounded a lot like Neil Diamond, and had the crowd up and dancing all night.

3) Our first stop in Longboat Key is dinner at the Dry Dock Waterfront Grill, and we had our traditional bottle of Cakebread Cellars Chardonnay. We also had a dinner at Euphemia Haye, which has such a beautiful dining room with pretty white lights inside.

4) I have two favorite reading spots in Longboat Key. When the sun is shining, I walk two miles down the beach to the Longboat Key Club and sit under an umbrella by the Gulf of Mexico. The sound of the waves is so soothing. If the weather is iffy, I pull out the big pool chair and read while I float around our pool. It's very peaceful and quiet, an antidote to the craziness of New York City.

5) While in Florida, I read Susan Wigg's latest novel, The Oysterville Sewing Circle, about a young  fashion designer who ends up leaving New York City with the two young children of her best friend in tow. She goes back home to Oysterville, Washington to try and pick up the pieces of their shattered lives and ends up helping women who are touched by domestic violence. It was a good read, and I'll post a review next week.

I started Jenna Bush Hager's newest Today Show Read With Jenna Book Club pick, Patsy, by Nicole Dennis-Benn. Patsy is a Jamaican woman who leaves her home and young daughter behind to try and make it in New York City and reconnect with the woman she loves. It's much more difficult than she thought it would be, and her daughter is so unhappy to be left behind. The writing is just exquisite, and I'm torn between wanting to see how it ends and not wanting to leave this book.

I hope you had a good week, there will be more exciting bookish things coming up in next week's edition.