spring break
Key West has finally gotten some great weather after a really cold winter. Actually it was the coldest winter on record. I didn't mind pulling out the sweaters, jackets, and scarves but Don was going crazy. When the temps dip below 70, he is freezing. I have to admit that I was ready for the cold weather to blow out of here. I'm on spring break from school this week so I now have time to do all those things that I don't normally have time for. For instance I am updating the bulletin boards at the bar with pictures of some of our new customers. Someone suggested to Curt that we take down the pictures on the old walls by the bathroom since so many of those people are gone- either dead, in prison, or rehab, or simply moved away. But we all think it is important to remember the early days. Afterall, those are the people who made Don's Place what it is today. We will simply have to find more room to put up more picture boards for the new folks. And we do like our "new folks". They are keeping us going.
I do want to give a shout out to some folks at Conch Republic Seafood. I took 55 of my students on a field trip to the Customs House, Mel Fisher Museum, the African Cemetery, and then lunch at Conch Farm. Graff arranged everything and then he was joined by Adam and Chris who did a fantastic job of serving 55 wild eighth graders. They were so accomodating and easy to deal with. This is the second time I have taken students there for lunch and Graff always does a great job of arranging everything. Alyshia, Nancy's daughter, was busy working in the gift shop so we stopped in to say hey to her.
And just a quick note about neat sites to visit in Key West that don't cost an arm and a leg. The Customs House is free to students but I'm sure visitors must pay. The displays there are incredible. My students loved the Seward Johnson sculptures and had a great time posing with the Mona Lisa, Marilyn Monroe, and American Gothic. Another favorite was the Babar display. The kids are going to write a children's book in May so this was especially interesting and educational for them. I believe Mr. deBrunhoff lives right behind me and I want to tell him how much the kids enjoyed his work but I don't think I should invade his privacy and knock on his door. We also visited the African Cemetery at Higgs Beach (no admission). The students had studied the lives of slaves through various resources so we first went to the Mel Fisher Museum to see the Henrietta Marie display. It is a slave ship discovered just 50 miles off the coast of Key West by Mel Fisher. We ended at the African Cemetery where we learned the symbols of freedom and hope that the African slaves brought with them. I think the kids had a good time and hopefully learned a little something. I would highly recommend all of these places to both locals and tourists alike. It would be an afternoon well spent.
Until next time..... Steph