July-August 2015

NEWS & PREVIEWS

ontheGulf

Rauschenberg Gallery Shows

‘Artist’s Artist’

The Bob Rauschenberg Gallery at Florida SouthWestern State summer show, ‘Theo Wujcik: Artists’ Artist’ combines the late artist’s final group of large-scale paintings (the so-called ‘Blue Chip’ Series) with work in a variety of media created with fellow artist Bob Rauschenberg as his primary subject.

Representing the culmination of exchanges originating in the 1970’s between Wujcik and Rauschenberg, ‘RAUSCHENBERG (Blue Chip Series)’ was completed 2014 in Wujcik’s final months of life, while battling cancer. The last portrait of Rauschenberg in a small series of editioned prints, silverpoint drawings and paintings included in this exhibition, this ‘Blue Chip’ series canvas is featured alongside Wujcik’s brightlycolored interpretations of Jim Rosenquist, Takashi Murakami, Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons and numerous other artistcolleagues and friends.

Theo Wujcik moved from Detroit, Michigan to Tampa, Florida in 1970 – the same year that Bob Rauschenberg

relocated his life and studio to Captiva Island. Wujcik was a celebrated artist and Lithography Master Printer, and taught Art at the University of South Florida. Like Bob Rauschenberg, Wujcik’s original works are represented in the Permanent Collections of major institutions including the Museum of Modern Art and Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, the Chicago Art Institute, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art and The National Gallery of Art in Washington DC. They have

Wujcik’s ‘Blue Chip Series’ were completed during the final months of his life.

been featured in exhibitions worldwide - including both solo and group shows at the Bob Rauschenberg Gallery at FSW.

‘Theo Wujcik: Artist’s Artist’ is on view at the Bob Rauschenberg Gallery thru August 8. The gallery is located on the campus of Florida SouthWestern State College at 8099 College Pkwy. In Fort Myers. Gallery hours are Mon-Fri 10am-4pm & Sat 11am-3pm. For information, call 489-9313.

Giants of The Everglades at Marco Island Museum

The Marco Island Historical Museum is hosting ‘Giants of the Everglades,’ a photography exhibit featuring the work of fine art, wildlife and nature photographer Dennis Goodman, thru August 1.

Most of Goodman’s subjects come from the Florida Everglades. He has been credited with capturing some of the greatest images of the natural environment found in the Southwest Florida region. The Marco Island Historical Museum is located at 180 S.

The Marco Island Historical Museum is hosting an exhibition of wildlife photographs by Dennis Goodman thru August 1.

Heathwood. The museum is open Tue-Sat from 9am-4pm. Admission is free. Call 642-1440 for information.

Alliance for the Arts Showcases College Art Students

Alliance for the Arts presents ‘Portfolio,’ an exhibition of works created by graduate and undergraduate artists from throughout Southwest Florida in a wide variety of mediums. The exhibit opens July 3 with a reception from 5-7pm and will be on view thru July 31. The reception and exhibit are free.

Mixed media paintings by Clewiston artist Joshua Martinez will be featured in the Member Gallery during the ‘Portfolio’ exhibit. The 21 year old, who was diagnosed with Autism at the age of 2, is a painter of unique vision.

The Alliance for the Arts campus is located at 10091 McGregor Blvd. in Fort Myers.

Galleries are open Mon-Fri from 9am-5pm & Sat from 9am1pm.

For information, call 939-2787.

MangoMania Hits Cape Coral

MangoMania, the summer family festival and celebration of Pine Island’s mangoes and other tropical fruits is scheduled for Saturday, July 18, from 10am6pm & Sunday, July 19, from 10am-4pm. Children under 10 admitted free.

Festivities include contests, games and activities for children and adults, such as a Precision Mango Toss, Mango Pie Eating, Mango Hat Parade, Mango Hat Decorating, World’s Largest Mango Contest, Mango Juggling, World’s Longest Mango Throw, and free mango tasting, as well as face painting, climbing towers, and more. There will also be live music and entertainment throughout the day.

There will also be contests to decide the best:

• Mango Bread

• Mango Salsa/Relish/Chutney

• Mango Cookies/Desserts

• Mango Preserves/Jams/Jellies

• Mango Smoothies

• Mango Dressings/Marinate

Local restaurants will compete for Best:

• Mango Appetizer

• Mango Entree

• Mango Dessert

Mango-Mania is celebrated at the German-American Social Club, 2101 Pine Island Rd, in Cape Coral. Call 283-0888 for information.

Gallery Owners Open Second Space

Gallery on Fifth owners, Leeza and Olga Arkhangelskaya are opening a new contemporary art gallery in Naples. The new gallery is called East West Fine Art. Leeza, the new Gallery’s Director, promises “a variety of modern art that still has a story to tell. Art needs to be relatable and emotional.”

The new gallery name speaks to the owners’ heritage as Russian Americans and the nationalities of the artists they represent. East West Fine Art will display paintings, sculpture, glass, digital art, photography, art furniture, and special exhibitions of haute couture dolls and clothing.

East West Fine Art will be open by appointment on July 13, and will be open to the public on October 1. The Gallery will have its grand opening in January 2016.

East West Fine Art is located in the Bigham Galleria at 2425 Tamiami Trail N, #102 in Naples. For information, call 220-7503.

MangoMania celebrates Pine Island’s tropical fruits the weekend of July 18 &19.

The work of college art students are on view in the exhibit, ‘Portfolio,’ at the Alliance for the Arts in Fort Myers.

Gallery on Fifth at Mercato will continue to display classically trained Russian and international artists. The gallery is located at 5130 Strada Pl. in Naples. The gallery is open Mon-Sat 10am9pm & Sun 12-6pm. Call 8219459 for information.

W ANTED

ArtFest Fort Myers Opens T-Shirt/Poster Design Competition

ArtFest Fort Myers, Southwest Florida’s premier fine art festival, has announced their Poster/T-shirt Competition for the February 2016 festival. This competition is open to all professional artists, not

just those applying to participate in ArtFest Fort Myers 2016. The artist whose work is selected for the Poster/T-shirt will be featured in a broad range of mediums.

Submissions for this contest must represent original artwork, in a theme that reflects Southwest Florida. Entries are being accepted through August 17. Images can be submitted via email. For more information, call 768-3602.

Calling All Poets

The Alliance for the Arts is issuing a call to poets who would like to see one of their original works included in the 3rd annual ‘Broadsides: Poetry off the Shelf’ event on January 28, 2016. Selected poems will be compiled into an anthology and given to visual artists who will each choose one to work with. The finished pieces will then be printed, exhibited and sold during the event and afterwards. Finished broadsides will consist of a graphic

illustration germane to the featured poem printed on one side of an 11” x 17” sheet of paper.

Broadsides are a form of written communication, typically designed to be posted in a public place. Traditionally, broadsides contain a mixture of text and images. From the 1600s to the early 20th century, this visual medium was used to convey information, issue proclamations, make revolutionary statements, or publish the lyrics to poetry and songs. Our Declaration of Independence was first printed as a broadside.

To be eligible for entry, poets must be able to attend the Broadside Event on January 28, 2016. Poets chosen to participate will be notified in early October, 2015. Call 939-2787 for information.

Vocal Group Seeks Singers

Symphonic Chorale of Southwest Florida is holding

Leeza&OlgaArkhangelskaya, owners of Gallery on Fifth, are opening a second gallery, East West Fine Art.

auditions for all voice parts for their fifth season. Auditions are August 29, during the day andAugust 31, during the evening, at the Lamb of God Church, located at 19691 Cypress View Dr. in Cape Coral.

Rehearsals are held Tuesday evenings beginning in September. Call 560-5695 for information.

Dancers, Singers, Actors Needed

TheatreZone Artistic Director

Mark Danni and Steffanie Pearce, Atistic Director of the Gulfshore Opera have announced auditions for Brigadoon, the Tony-award winning Broadway musical. The production is a joint collaboration between both non-profit arts organizations.

Brigadoon auditions are by appointment only and will be held Saturday August 29, from 10am-3pm, at the First Presbyterian Church. located at 9751 Bonita Beach Rd. in Bonita Springs. They are seeking trained

actors, singers and dancers, from ages 16-65 to fill principal and chorus roles comprised of Equity and non-Equity performers, including three sword dancers who perform a traditional celebratory wedding dance and the daring Sword Dance & Reel in a kilted tartan.

“Our staging includes Scottish dancing (similar to American square dancing), so we are looking for a cast that can move!” adds choreographer Karen Molnar.

First rehearsal is November 9. Performances are scheuled for November 20 at the Charlotte Performing Arts Center in Charlotte, November 21 at the First Christian Church in Fort Myers, and a third performance at a location in Collier County yet to be determined.

Four Equity actor contracts and several non-AEA contracts are available.

To audition for a role, actors are asked to prepare 32 bars of a song and have a contrasting selection ready. Auditioners are

asked to bring sheet music in the correct key. An accompanist will be provided. Auditioners should be prepared to dance, and are asked to bring a picture and resume stapled together.

For information, call 888-9663352.

Artists & Arts Groups

Needed for Family Fest

The Alliance for the Arts is accepting applications for the free family festival, ‘Fall for the Arts’ 2015. This 13th annual free family festival, on October 17, from 10am-3pm offers artists and cultural organizations the opportunity to engage directly with families from across Southwest Florida. Artists can demonstrate their talents and sell their work, and organizations can promote their upcoming seasons. ‘Fall for the Arts’ features live performances throughout the day, as well as games, arts & crafts, face painting and food.

Registration must be

completed by August 1 to ensure inclusion in event marketing materials. There is a fee that includes a covered 10’ x 10’ vendor space, 6’ table and 2 chairs.

The Alliance for the Arts campus is located at 10091 McGregor Blvd. in Fort Myers. For information, call 939-2787.

Actors Needed

The Naples Players will hold auditions for their production of the musical, Something’s Afoot on August 1 at noon. Appointments are necessary. Call 434-7340 by 4pm July 31 to schedule an audition time.

Date: August 15 Time: 2:00 p.m. Event:

The Naples Players will also host auditions for their production of Spinning Into Butter on Augsy 15 at 2pm. No appointment necessary. Auditions will be held at the Sugden Community Theatre, located at 701 5th Ave. S. in Naples. Call 263-7990 for information.

GUIDE

FLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY OFFICE OF CONTINUING EDUCATION

www.fgcu.edu/ced 239-425-3272

Fort Myers –Atrium Executive Center : 8695 College Parkway • Suite 1181 • Fort Myers 239-425-3270

Naples Center: 1010 5th Avenue South • Naples 239-434-4737

Punta Gorda – Herald Court Centre : 117 Herald Court • Suite 211 • Punta Gorda 941-505-0130

www.fgcu.edu/hcc

Continuing Education creates and delivers lifelong learning — personal enrichment, professional development, and training — for the citizens of Southwest Florida. Continuing Education addresses the needs of the community by offering non-credit educational programming: personal enrichment single lectures and short courses for adults, seniors and retirees; private, public, and nonprofit sector on-site training and organizational solutions; and, open enrollment skills enhancement, certification, training workshops, and online and mobile education solutions for working professionals.

FLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY RENAISSANCE ACADEMY

www.fgcu.edu/racademy 239-425-3272

Fort Myers –Atrium Executive Center : 8695 College Parkway • Suite 1181 • Fort Myers 239-425-3270

Naples Center: 1010 5th Avenue South • Naples 239-434-4737

Punta Gorda – Herald Court Centre : 117 Herald Court • Suite 211 • Punta Gorda 941-505-0130

www.fgcu.edu/hcc

Explore a world of ideas and nurture your creativity with non-credit courses, workshops, lectures, and adventures for the mind, body, and spirit offered through the Renaissance Academy Adult Lifelong Learning Program. The Academy is Southwest Florida’s premier lifelong learning program for adults, seniors, and retirees. Single lectures, short courses, day trips, computer classes, film series, life enrichment, and travel abroad are just some of the programs we offer. There are no exams or grades, just learning for the joy of learning with your friends, neighbors, and peers.

FLORIDA SOUTHWESTERN STATE COLLEGE

www.FSW.edu

800-749-2322 • 800-955-8771

Thomas Edison Campus (Lee County) : 8099 College Parkway • Fort Myers 239-489-9300

Charlotte County Campus : 26300 Airport Road • Punta Gorda 941-637-5629

Collier County Campus : 7505 Grand Lely Drive •Naples 239-732-3700

Hendry/Glades Center :1092 E. Cowboy Way • LaBelle 863-674-0408

Florida SouthWestern State College is Southwest Florida's largest institution of higher education, serving over 21,200 students annually. FSW offers a variety of academic programs, two- and four-year degrees, professional certifications, and affordable tuition. Our vibrant student life is filled with intercollegiate athletics, on-campus housing, and student clubs and activities.

HODGES UNIVERSITY

www.hodges.edu

Naples Campus : 2655 Northbrooke Drive • Naples 800-466-8017

Fort Myers Campus : 4501 Colonial Boulevard • Fort Myers 800-466-0019

For 25 years, Hodges University, a private, non-profit institution, has offered associate, bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in a variety of disciplines and delivery options. With campuses located in Naples and Fort Myers, the university uses its local roots and global reach to provide transformational, learner-driven educational opportunities for its students.

SOUTHERN TECHNICAL COLLEGE

www.southerntech.edu 877-346-5401

Auburndale Campus : 298 Havendale Boulevard

Auburndale

Bonita Springs Campus : 24311 Walden Center Drive

Brandon Campus : 608 East Bloomingdale Avenue

Fort Myers Campus • 1685 Medical Lane

Suite101

Brandon

Fort Myers

Mount Dora Campus • 2799 Old US Highway 441

Orlando Campus

1485 Florida Mall Avenue

Port Charlotte Campus • 950 Tamiami Trail

Sanford Campus

2910 S. Orlando Drive

Mount Dora

Orlando

#109

Tampa Campus •3910 Riga Boulevard • Tampa

Bonita Springs

Port Charlotte

At Southern Technical College, our career training programs are designed to help you reach your career goals! STC is the right place for students who want quality career training in the growing fields of Allied Health, Business, Design, Education, Information Technology, Legal Studies, Nursing and Technical Trades. Financial Aid is available for those who qualify. Contact an admissions representative at your local campus to schedule a personal campus tour.

TheShaman

By Frankie Patman Maguire

Emily followed Baggesogo up the red dirt trail,clutching her wad of francs in one sweaty hand.With the other,she fondled the pocket where she had tucked Snuggybunny.The jungle seemed to taunt her.It pressed in as though it would swallow her into its dank green gullet,only to open again onto sunfilled compounds,where grannies too old to work the fields puttered around pots of yams.She had never ventured this far beyond the perimeter of the mission compound without an adult.And she had never done anything so forbidden as to consult a shaman.Fear and anger pumped her spindly legs over roots and rocks.Fear that her father,lying a continent away in a Paris hospital bed,would die. Anger that she had been left behind in the care of the other missionary families.

The missionaries prayed fervently for her father,gathering after dinner to sing hymns and read scripture and petition their heavenly father for Brother Gordon’s healing.Her mother’s best friend,whom Emily called Aunt Sue,sang with a passion that embarrassed Emily,throwing her head back and swaying like a palm branch.“Our sweet Lord Jesus is so good,honey”she said to Emily,trapping her with her earnest blue eyes.“He’s got your daddy in the palm of his mighty hand,and everything’s going to be all right.He promises us in his Word,‘All things work together for good to those who love God,to those who are the called according to his purpose.’”

Emily cringed.She knew she had not been called.Every night,clutching Snuggybunny,she lay awake sending silent pleas through the mosquito netting and out into the heavens,begging for the personal relationship with Jesus she had been told she could have if only she invited him into her heart.She quieted her thoughts,listening for the

still,small voice that would be God’s.She watched her heart for even the feeblest flame of joy,and she parsed the moments of the day,looking for any sign that God had chosen her.Only the insects answered,droning their million-year-old liturgy of wings and legs in praise of the generation that would follow them.

Emily pictured her tall,laughing father lying mute and immobile on the stretcher,as the thundering medevac helicopter sucked him and her mother into its belly.She could no longer bring him his morning cup of coffee with the extra lump of sugar from his Specially Especially Emily, or surprise him with a gecko or a stag beetle or a vase of flowers she had picked and arranged herself.She could not offer him the stories she had written and watch his black eyebrows and boomerang lips perform their peculiar pas de deux as he pored over them.She could not even pray for him.Her stomach tightened like a vise, fastening her to his absence.

It was Baggesogo who had suggested the shaman.The girls had carried their lunches to a shaded spot along the fence that enclosed the mission school.They squeezed onto a small stool,just wide enough for one buttock each,and opened their leaf-wrapped packets of fish cakes.

“You know,you can find out what is going to happen to your father,”Baggesogo said.“My mother’s uncle knows how to talk to the spirits.He can tell you if your father will live.”

“How can he do that?”Emily challenged.“Why would anybody ever make a mistake if they could just ask the spirits what was going to happen?”

“Sometimes our ancestors speak through the tarantula,”Baggesogo explained,pinching off a piece of the white cake.“The men in our tribe who have powerful magic can ask the tarantula what

they want to know.If it answers them,they know the spirits have spoken.”

“And what happens if it doesn’t answer?”

Baggesogo shrugged.“Then we aren’t meant to know that.”

Emily chewed her fish cake and breathed in the faint sweet scent of fermenting cocoa that wafted from her friend’s school uniform.This was the taste and smell of her life,what had cocooned her as a baby,wrapped in a pagne on Mama Efosi’s back.Aunts and uncles,mothers and fathers and ancestors,dancing and grieving,feasting and toiling,birthing and sleeping,all immediate,all as much a part of one another as the two sides of a paper.This was what she wanted to believe – this place her father had brought her to be born and to live.If her parents’god had no use for her,perhaps the spirits of Baggesogo’s people would welcome her as one of their own.Perhaps they would speak to her.

“We’ll go see him on Saturday,”Baggesogo said. “You’ll need to bring money as a gift.”

And so Emily had emptied her piggy bank and told Aunt Sue she would be at Baggesogo’s compound to practice for the school musical.Her tongue had tripped over the lie,but Aunt Sue didn’t notice.

The jungle thinned and then abruptly parted around a broad field,planted with neat mounds of pineapple,manioc,and yam.Beyond the field lay the mud brick walls and thatched roof of the shaman’s home.Tangled gris-gris hung menacingly from spikes that bristled across the fields and along the path,and crouched like spiders on the roof.Emily averted her eyes and stared at the backs of Baggesogo’s feet, watching her flip-flops suction the dirt and then come loose with a resounding slap.

In the middle of the compound,two old men sat on a bench in the shade of a spreading tree,sharing a gourd of palm wine.Baggesogo greeted them and asked her uncle if he was well.He nodded at her perfunctorily and glowered at Emily.

“Why is this white girl here?”he growled.Emily cowered behind Baggesogo,holding her hand.

“Baba,this girl is Emily,my friend,”Baggesogo answered.“Her father is very sick,and they’ve taken him away for white man’s medicine.”

“I know about her father,”he cut in.“What is that to me?”

“We wish to consult the tarantula,”Baggesogo replied.“We want to know if her father will live.”

“I have money,”Emily interjected,and held out her handful of bills.

The old man regarded her,working his grizzled jaw.

“And why do you want to know this?”he said at last.“Do you not think there is sorrow enough when death arrives,that you must run to meet it? If the fight is tomorrow,then why should you clench your fist today?”

“I don’t know,”Emily blurted.The tree loomed over her accusingly,and she felt herself small and alone.“If my father dies,they’ll take me away.Where else would I go?”Her voice trembled against the tears swelling her eyes.

The shaman leaned over and whispered into the ear of his white-haired companion,who nodded gravely and then whispered something back.

“Come then.We will consult the tarantula,”he told the girls,rising and picking up his cane.From his house,he collected a packet of leaves and a large metal basin,and then the four of them entered the forest on a narrow trail.

The old men stopped beside a tidy hole dug into the ground by the spider near the roots of a large tree.The shaman removed the packet of leaves,each one patterned with notches,and scattered them over the opening of the hole.He covered the hole with the pot.

“Now we wait,”he said.He led them away to a nearby clearing where a felled tree had been cut into crude block seats.Emily sat on the hard seat until it seemed her bones would crack.She watched ants make their tortuous way over the forest floor.She silently concocted tales for Snuggybunny.

At long last,the two men rose.“Wait here,”the shaman instructed.“We will go read the leaves now.”

The vise clamping Emily’s stomach tightened. She felt faint and wondered if she had forgotten to breathe.The minutes crawled by on the backs of the ants.

A twig snapped,and Emily looked up to see the old men limping back to the clearing like tattered sigils from a crusade.

“The tarantula says that your father will live,”the shaman announced.“But the day will come when you will learn the truth of the proverb:‘The tears of the orphan run inside.’”He scowled and shook his cane at them.“Now go home to your people and make yourself useful,both of you.”

The girls leaped up and raced down the path. The shadows on the fields had lengthened,and the insects had begun to chant.Their paean reverberated through the trees,calling into life the great legions that would wriggle and crawl and march forever beneath the canopy of leaves.Emily felt it like a drumbeat in her blood,beating a rhythm to the tears that ran already inside her. •

C HILDREN ’ S –F IRST P LACE

TommyTheLeaf

By Nancy Leake

“Hey,m ov e over,stop tickling me!”Tommy said to a few other leaves that grew on the same branch.

“We’re not tickling you,Tommy”said one of them.“It’s just the warm wind blowing us around making us touch each other.”

It was a warm July afternoon and the leaves had been out on the trees since early April,just like they do every year.Tommy had been one of the very last buds to unfurl into a leaf,so he was a bit smaller than most.He knew he had an important job to do, providing shade for the park.There was a swing set under his tree,and all the hundreds of leaves shaded the children that came to swing.A little later in the day,when the sun moved westward,Tommy and the other leaves shaded a park bench.An elderly couple came every afternoon to sit and feed the birds.

The leaves looked forward to all the activity below each day,and soon September rolled around.They began to change into beautiful colors of red and gold,and all the people came to admire them and take pictures of their magnificent colors.By October many of the leaves were falling from the tree.

“Hey,where are they going?”asked Tommy.

Old Leaf explained to Tommy that it was time to leave the tree;they were no longer needed to shade the park.All the children were in school now,and the elderly couple would be staying home,sitting by the fireplace.

“Oh no,not me! I’m not letting go.I’m staying right here to wait for next summer!”

Old Leaf tried to explain that they had to drop off and next spring new buds would make new leaves to shade the park.He explained nothing stays the same,life moves along;we grow up and move on.But Tommy was stubborn and would not let go so he was the last and only leaf left on the tree.He

became very lonely,but he was afraid to fall like the others had done.Tommy’s stem clung tightly to the branch with all its might.Finally,North Wind came blowing by and pushed Tommy loose.Tommy cried out in fear,but North Wind gave him a gentle glide down.Before Tommy even reached the ground he was laughing and enjoying the ride.

“Oh,that was so much fun! Can we do it again?”

But North Wind said,“No,Tommy,each leaf only gets to fall one time.”

He found lots of the other leaves on the ground where he landed,so he was happy to be surrounded with his friends.The next day,park maintenance men came and raked up most of the fallen leaves and left them in a big pile.Several boys walking home from school made a game of jumping into them,sending leaves flying in all directions! Tommy and his friends having as much fun as the boys,whooshing up each time a boy flopped down into the pile.

Later,the leaves snuggled around the base of the tree and fell sound asleep.Early the next morning,a leaf sweeper came and sucked them up and drove them to the landfill.They each got another thrilling ride when the big sweeper truck dumped them out and sent them scattering to the ground.North Wind came by again and picked up Tommy and carried him to the fence,letting him gently float to the ground.No sooner had he landed when a soft paw reached out and pulled him over to a broken fence post.It was a mother cat making a warm bed for her new litter of kittens.She had scooped leaves and grass into a little hole under the broken fence post and hid her kittens there.

Tommy was very happy being part of keeping the kittens warm and well cared for.He watched them grow and play and saw how mother cat taught

gulfcoastwritersassociation 20 15 Contest WINNERS

them to hunt.He remembered what Old Leaf had told him about nothing staying the same and how frightened he had been leaving his branch.But this was even better than hanging on the tree! The kittens grew older and stronger and soon set off on their own.Poor Tommy was feeling lonely again and wondered what would become of him.Winter was setting in and snow began to fall, closing up the little hole that had been the kittens’ home.Just as Tommy was beginning to feel sorry for himself,something fast and furry squeezed inside the tiny opening! It was a small field mouse that curled into a little ball,gave a big sigh and fell sound asleep for the winter.Tommy was delighted to have a companion,even one that would hibernate until spring.

Sure enough,spring came and the little mouse began to stir and stretch,waking Tommy too.The mouse was hungry and began scratching around,tossing grass and leaves out of the hole.Tommy got tossed out too and was surprised at what a warm spring day it was.A robin lit beside him,snatching up Tommy and a twig and flew into a tree on Farmer Smith’s farm.She was finishing making her nest and already had laid three pretty eggs.

“Wow,this is great! I’m back in a tree again!” Tommy announced to the new spring leaves.They were happy to share their tree with him and listen to all of his adventures.When the baby birds hatched and got big enough to learn to fly,one of them accidently knocked Tommy out of the nest.Only this time when he fell,he wasn’t afraid.He floated down on the breeze,laughing as it tickled his edges.Just like before, he landed gently under the tree.

He wasn’t on the ground long before Farmer Smith came with his pitch fork,gathering up straw and old leaves and grass to stuff his scarecrow.Tommy found himself peeking out of the scarecrow’s plaid shirt. Farmer Smith put the scarecrow in his garden to keep crows and other birds from eating his seeds and plants. Tommy had a great summer watching the garden grow and helping keep the birds away.He could see all the trees and watch the leaves turn colors when fall came. He saw the leaves fall,too,and knew they were having fun floating down.Then one chilly afternoon Farmer Smith moved the scarecrow to his front porch.He placed carved pumpkins around its feet.Some had funny faces and some had scary faces.Tommy watched as kids came to the door that night calling “Trick or Treat.”Farmer Smith gave each child some candy and they thanked him and went on their merry way.

“This is the best Halloween I have ever seen! What could be better than this?”thought Tommy.

A few days later,Farmer Smith carried the scarecrow to the barn and propped it up in a corner.This was to be

Tommy’s home for the winter,surrounded by loving farm animals like big horses and little mice and spiders.

Tommy looked around and said,“Big Leaf was right when he said nothing stays the same.I shouldn’t have been afraid to let go and fall from my branch.Look at all the fun and adventures I would have missed!”

Wise Old Barn Owl replied,“That’s right,Tommy. Just because things change and are different doesn’t mean it won’t be as good.Life is full of changes.Let’s enjoy today and wait and see what new things come our way tomorrow.”

Tommy snuggled into the scarecrow’s plaid shirt, knowing he had lots of good company all winter long. The words that Wise Old Barn Owl had spoken made him happy,and he couldn’t wait to find out what great new adventures were yet to come. •

“It’saBoy”

By Dan Reed England

said the crinkled cellophane trying to contain the crumbling Dutch Masters coronas The best money could buy at the hospital gift shop Stored in the tall antique humidor along with flaking

“It’s a Girl”cheroots old pesos and Canadian coins paper thin pennies placed on railroad tracks buttons,toys,tarnished pocket knives from long dead relatives And the Christmas present, cuff links for Grandpa (a man with no French cuff shirts)

Wearing freshly washed khakis with hints of stains from high pressure grease California clay soaked by diesel fuel The box unwrapped with care and love by sunbeaten scarred hands

Nine presidents ago

Now slowly placed in the French cuffs of the freshly rented tux

As his scrubbed and polished baby boy takes a wife

P OETRY –S ECOND P LACE

“SmokeandFire”

By Eva Pollack

According to the Rand McNally mileage calculator,I am 5,219.4 miles from home.In fact,it seems much farther.The world I live in now is unfamiliar in many ways….in most ways,really.

The home of my heart is found up on Lazy Mountain.The 160 acres of wooded land is where I grew up with my brothers and sisters.Our little house was heated with wood … always.There is something very comforting about the crackling of a wood fire,the smoky fragrance and the dancing f lames in the open grate.In my younger days,I loved sitting with my back to the fire on cold winter nights,always mindful of shooting sparks.We kids we knew our job was to stomp out any stray meteor that made it as far as the braided rug on the living room floor - very important!

Anyone who relies on wood as a primary source of heat knows it isn’t a casual commitment.

Too bad there isn’t a way to calculate the endless hours my father and our family spent on the pursuit and processing of firewood.

Even before the snow flew,we spent weekends stockpiling spruce and birch.As a child,I knew the difference between the two types of wood:spruce is light,quick to burn,great for starting fires.Birch is like a long haul-trucker;a couple of the dense rounds will last all night once you turn the damper down.Back then if someone had handed me a few chunks of birch and told me to get a fire started,I would have given them a look— one that said “You really don’t know much about starting fires,do you.”

Growing up on a homestead equipped me with practical tools … ones that aren’t as handy living in Florida.

Keeping a bountiful supply of split wood stacked in the basement was a number one priority in the winter for our family,and we all knew it. Thankfully,we were blessed with the land,the tools

and the kid power to keep the home fires burning round the clock in the winter months.

Before our family left Pennsylvania for Alaska in 1958,my father bought a John Deere dozer.It was a hugely expensive investment back then,but without it,harvesting trees from the far reaches of the woods would have been impossible.The nickname “putt-putt”got attached to it because of its distinctive sound.

Fifty-five years later,it is still “putt-putting” across the property.Dad is gone,but his dozer is still plowing snow and bringing in the firewood.

My brothers all learned to operate it as kids and now grandkids and great grandkids proudly sit on the much-repaired seat and take their turn in figuring out how “putt-put”shifts … the cranky old thing.

On a typical winter Saturday of our childhood,my three brothers would go with Dad to the woods to winch in deadfalls.Girls never got to go along,and I’m not completely sure why.It may have been that it was awfully cold and Dad was trying to spare us.

Once the trees were cut up,split and ready to toss down the hatch into the basement,we girls would “get”to come out and help.

Usually the north wind was blowing,and being outside wasn’t our first choice,or second or third. We had no choice in the matter—Dad called it “Time to pick up sticks!”He and my older brother split the wood and we younger ones ran it to the hatch:that part was fun.Helping put in the wood gave us a sense of purpose,discipline and an appreciation for our land.

As a young girl,I remember waking in the dark to the sound of Dad in the basement splitting wood.The ring of the sledge hammer against the splitting maul is a distinct and beautiful sound if you don’t want to step out of a warm bed into a cold house.

gulfcoastwritersassociation 2015 Contest WINNERS

Our father uncomplainingly got up in the wee hours of the morning to bring the banked coals back to life,to take the chill out of the air.Because of his daily sacrifice,when we woke,we could stand over the grate in the kitchen and feel the warm air rising from the barrel stove below onto our toes above.

I’m not sure about the rest of my siblings,but I pride myself on being able to get a fire started, whether it be a campfire or in a stove,and keep it going.It isn’t a skill I use much anymore,but it’s there if I need it.

A family joke that we all share is about Mom and her tendency to burn about anything in the Franklin stove in the living room,just to “get some heat out it.”

This included plastics,which do not smell as lovely as spruce or birch when burned.During her 80 years she started several chimney fires by burning paper garbage in the living room stove.The loud rumbling sound of fire gone amuck in the chimney was unforgettable.It gave me a healthy respect for the danger of a runaway fire.Luckily,Mom’s chimney fires never spread to the roof or caused any lasting damage.

My older sister,who attended the University of Alaska at Fairbanks,remembers the family driving 300 miles from the mountain to visit her at school. She knew we had arrived by the smell of wood smoke on our clothes that reached her even before we showed up at her dorm room.It was our calling card.The scent of smoke permeated our house and everything in it including us.

After Mom and Dad died in 2010,I gathered some favorite childhood books from home.Opening them wide I could smell faint traces of wood smoke still lingering between the pages.

Fifty-two hundred miles away in southwest Florida I think about this missing piece in my lifethe wood heat of my childhood and the nostalgia and family memories it represents.Not only am I living without crackling fires,but am also faced with my first ever Christmas without snow.

I asked one native Floridian what folks do down here at Christmas surrounded by palm trees and green grass.“We go to the beach!”was her happy answer.

Each summer when I return to the mountain,my younger brother Daniel builds a giant “welcome home” bonfire out of logs.We joke about it being so big,townspeople in the valley below will see it and wonder.

As my family gathers around,we laugh and share memories under the midnight sun.

And when the fire finally burns down to coals, l walk away.Around my shoulders rests a blanket of comforting wood smoke.

I know I am home. •

F ICTION –F IRST P LACE

Billie Hurts

By Jim Marcotte

Hi Sis.

I know we haven't talked in a long time but I need to have you listen to me a bit.Please don't hang up,just listen.I guess you know Earl's gone.I know you didn't like him,it's OK you didn't come to the funeral or visit me in the hospital or nothin'. I know you had your reasons,really it's okay...

Sure,all right,I’ll slow down.I need to talk to you 'cause Billie hurts.She hurts all the time and I don't know what to do.Miss Rosa said,“You always telling me how smart your sister the doctor is,so why don't you call her.Maybe she can figure out somethin'.”

So here I am,callin' you.

No,no,wait.I don't want nothin' from you, really,please let me talk to you.I'm sure you heard about my Billie.I guess I know you did 'cause I heard you said I shouldn't be allowed,that Earl and I wasn't fit to have her.

No,I know you did but it's OK.I guess lots of people said stuff like that,but they were wrong. She turned out to be a good girl,I didn't screw her up.We gave her a good home… mostly.

What,wait… you mean how’d we get her?

We got Billie when she was six months old. The county had her in the system since someone didn’t want to keep her,so we got to adopt her.We had no idea who her parents were,so I used to pretend that they were royalty,or famous maybe,and that God sent her to us to be raised like a princess should.She was always beautiful,a big-boned strong girl with black,black hair.She was perfect, never sick and never whiny.We were so happy back then,just the three of us,Earl and me and our Billie.Hard to believe that was years ago now.

We named her Billie,but I always liked to call her

gulfcoastwritersassociation

2015 Contest WINNERS

Billie Jo,even Billie Jo McAlister on account of some dumb song Earl used to sing to her.She followed me everywhere when she was little,in and out,up and down the stairs,to the bathroom,everywhere.Earl used to say she didn't even know he was alive.'Course now he ain't, but that's a different story.He used to say she would follow me off a bridge if I’d a jumped,and he would sing this song he remembered about Billie Jo McAlister jumpin' off the Tallahassee Bridge.I don't think he had it right,I remember hearin' it a long time ago,but we didn't care.He sing it and we'd laugh and laugh,and Billie would dance around the living room,and we'd laugh some more.I'd even get up and dance around with her.

It was so funny.I sure miss that Earl sometimes.

Old Miss Rosa,she comes over from across the hall.I sure like her.She's all shrunk up and bent over, and her hair is almost all gone.She goes out to the beauty parlor every month to have it done,but I can't ever see what they did,there ain't nothin' there.I guess she likes it though,so good for her.You go,girl,I always tell her.She always brings something for Billie and me to eat,feeds Billie herself and then she waits for me to eat mine.“Billie's had enough now,”she says.“You eat some,an’I’m gonna wait right here till you do 'cause I know you’ll give it to Billie.Look at you,you are nothin’ but skin and bones,now eat.”She tries to puff herself all up when she talks to me like that,but it don't work very well.It makes me laugh,then she starts laughin’, but that starts her coughin' bad and she has to go.And then I give the rest of my food to Billie.

The doctor said she probably got a ruptured disk in her back,between the five and six or something like that is what he said.It's screwin' up her spine cord.He said she’s too old for them to operate on without some kind of money or insurance or somethin' because there ain’t no money available in some free program… I guess I don't know what that has to do with it.She ain't old at all.But she can hardly move her head.I can barely get her up to go pee she hurts so bad.Sometimes she will pee where she’s layin’,so I get her all cleaned up an' don’t say nothin' about it ‘cause I know she can't help it.We sit with her head on a pillow an' I tell her about all the good times we used to have.Even after that night with Earl,once they let me come home,we used to go down to the park,walk down by the lakeme in my wheelchair and Billie walkin' beside me.We was quite the pair let me tell you.

Yeah,that was one bad night,all right.

That was the night Earl put me in the wheelchair. He'd been drinkin’hard and was all mad about somthin’.It didn’t take much to set him off.We started pushin’at each other and Billie was hiding downstairs like she always did when Earl got mad.He’d get awful mean an’she always stayed clear.I almost got away from him,but the rug by the door slipped out from under me

and down I went.Damn Earl come up behind me and kicked me in the back with them big ol' work boots he always wore,and kept kickin’me - then somethin’ broke in my back and I went down for good that time. I must’a been screamin' pretty loud ‘cause Billie come runnin’through that door full tilt,lit right into Earl and knocked him flat.She was always a big girl,even when she was little.Well,I guess she was never really ‘little’ but she was still my baby girl.She was all over him with everything she had.He got her off a couple of times but he’d started chokin’,and she kept jumpin’back on him givin' him more.She hurt him pretty bad.I never knew that girl could be so mean.Somethin’in his throat swelled up… they said he suff’cated.I couldn't do nothin’to help on account of my legs wouldn't move. They still don't work right,never will I guess.At least I can crawl a little but it hurts.All the time.That must’a been when Billie hurt her neck,too,but you never would’ve known it.She come over and lay right down with me ‘til the police came.

We left Earl lay there.Turns out there weren't nothin' we could’a done for him anyway.The cops, they took Billie down and put her in the back of a cop car,but she cried and fussed and tore up that car until they let her come back up with me.They was gonna take her away and then Miss Rosa,she lit into them cops,she said “You ain't takin’that girl nowhere,what's the matter with you,he was goin' to kill her and she stopped him.That girl’s comin’with me,”she said,“an’ I don’t give a rat’s ass about no ‘proper department.’”

I don't remember much after that,but I do remember Miss Rosa goin' over and spittin' on dead Earl.No account son bitch piece of shit she called him.You leave that girl alone,she said,and they did. Let Billie stay at her place,them cops just shrugged their shoulders and said the county people would be comin’back for her.They never did,you know.I don't know what to do.Sometimes we sit on the floor and I hold her head,that seems to help some.

No,I don't expect you to have the answer,I know you're a thousand miles away… but I guess I thought,maybe… I don't know what.I don't have no money,an' of course no insurance or nothin',ain't that a laugh.She saved me you know.She hurts and I hate it,I can’t let her keep hurtin'.Me neither.

I wish you could see her.She’s got the most beautiful brown eyes,I wish you could’a seen her before… all this.She was such a beautiful girl,such a happy girl.

Best dog anyone could ever have.

Well,here comes Miss Rosa,I better go.I just wanted to talk with you one more time before… It's been so long,I wish we'd gotten along better,that would’ve made me happy.

You take care,Sis.

Love you. •

whatGoeson

July

1

WEDNESDAY

•Open Stage Blues Jam: Buckingham Blues Bar, 5641 Buckingham Rd, FtMyers. 8-11p.Musicians welcome. Free.693-7111.

2

EVENTS & ACTIVITIES

THURSDAY

•Deb & The Dynamics: Blues band. Bert’s Bar & Grill,4271 Pine Island Rd, Matlacha. 7:30p. 2823232.

3

FRIDAY

•Art Reception: Alliance for the Arts, 10091 McGregor Blvd, Ft Myers. 5-7p. Free. 939-2787.

•Art Reception: Arts for ACT Gallery, 2265 1st St, Ft Myers, 6-9p. Free. 3375050.

•Art Reception: Unit A, 1922 Evans Ave, Ft Myers. 6-10p. Free. 340-6467.

•Art Walk: Receptions, exhibits, demos, live music at severalgalleries & studios. Downtown Ft Myers’ historic River District. 6-10p.Free. 855732-3836.

•Marty Stokes & The Captiva Band: Bert’s Bar & Grill,4271 Pine Island Rd, Matlacha. 7:30p. 282-3232.

4

SATURDAY

•4th of Fireworks: City Pier, 12th Ave. 9p. Free.

•4th of July Parade: Downtown Naples,Broad Ave S down 3rdSt S to 5thAve S to 8thSt S. 10a12p. Free.

•Fort Myers Miracle vs St

Lucie Mets: Hammond Stadium, 14400 Six Mile CypressPkwy, Ft Myers. 6p. Fireworks following game. 800-338-9467.

5 SUNDAY

•Fort Myers Miracle vs St

Lucie Mets: Hammond Stadium, 14400 Six MileCypress Pkwy, Ft Myers. 4p. 800-338-9467.

•Open Stage Blues Jam: Buckingham Blues Bar, 5641 Buckingham Rd, FtMyers. 3-6p. Musicians welcome. Free. 693-7111.

•Sundays at The Pits: Solid Rock concert.Six Bends Harley-Davidson Top Rocker Field,9501 Thunder Rd, Fort Myers.14p. Free. 275-4647.

6 MONDAY

Lucie Mets: Hammond

Stadium, 14400 Six MileCypress Pkwy, Ft Myers. 7p. 800-3389467.

7 TUESDAY

•Art Reception: Harbour View Gallery: 5789 Cape Harbour Dr, #104, Cape Coral. 6-8p.Free. 5405789.

•Art Talk: Artist Oliver Dominguez. Davis Art Center, 2301 1st St, Ft Myers. 7p. 333-1933.

8 WEDNESDAY

•Chocolat: Naples Film Fest Summer Series, film & discussion. Silverspot Cinema, Mercato, 9118 Strada Pl, Naples. 7p. 7753456.

•Open Stage Blues Jam: Buckingham Blues Bar, 5641 Buckingham Rd, FtMyers. 8-11p.Musicians welcome. Free.693-7111.

9 THURSDAY

•Art Reception: Naples Arts Association, The von Liebig Art Center, 585 Park St S, Naples. 5:307:30p. 262-6517.

•Deb & The Dynamics: Blues band. Bert’s Bar & Grill,4271 Pine Island Rd, Matlacha. 7:30p. 282-3232.

•Evening on Fifth: Live music, dancing, art demos &exhibits, dining, shopping along 5th Ave S, Naples. 6:30-9:30p. Free.692-8436.

10

FRIDAY

•Art Reception: Center for the Arts Bonita Springs, 26100 Old 41 Rd, Bonita Springs.6-8p. Free. 4958989.

•Fort Myers Miracle vs Clearwater Threshers: Hammond Stadium, 14400 Six MileCypress Pkwy, Ft Myers. 7p. 800-338-9467.

•Mike Imbasciani & The Bluez Rockerz: Bert’s Bar & Grill,4271 Pine Island Rd, Matlacha. 7:30p. 2823232.

•River City Brass Ensemble: Concert.Shell Point, Village Church, 15101 Shell Pt Blvd, Ft Myers. 7:30p. 454-2067.

11

SATURDAY

•Fort Myers Miracle vs Clearwater Threshers: Hammond Stadium, 14400 Six MileCypress Pkwy, Ft Myers. 6p. 800-338-9467.

•Mark Telesca Band: Concert. Buckingham Blues Bar, 5641 Buckingham Rd, Ft Myers. 9p-12a. 693-7111.

12

SUNDAY

•American Idol –Live!: BB Mann Performing Arts Hall, 13350 Edison Pkwy, Ft Myers. 7:30p. 481-4849.

•Fort Myers Miracle vs Clearwater Threshers: Hammond Stadium, 14400 Six MileCypress Pkwy, Ft Myers. 4p. 800-338-9467.

•Insider with Jeff Walker: Blues band. Bert’s Bar & Grill,4271 Pine Island Rd, Matlacha. 7:30p. 282-3232.

•Open Stage Blues Jam: Buckingham Blues Bar, 5641 Buckingham Rd, FtMyers. 3-6p. Musicians welcome. Free. 693-7111.

•Sundays at The Pits: Lazy Daze Duo concert. Six Bends Harley-Davidson Top Rocker Field,9501 Thunder Rd, Fort Myers.14p. Free. 275-4647.

13

506 S 1st St, Immokalee. 4-7p. Free. 800-218-0007.

•Music Walk: Live music & dancing at several cafes, clubs &galleries. Downtown Ft Myers’ historic River District. 6-10p. Free. 855-732-3836.

•The Reverend Billy C Wirtz: Concert. Buckingham Blues Bar, 5641 Buckingham Rd, Ft Myers. 9p-12a. 693-7111.

18

MONDAY

•Fort Myers Miracle vs Clearwater Threshers: Hammond Stadium, 14400 Six MileCypress Pkwy, Ft Myers. 7p. 800-338-9467.

15

WEDNESDAY

•Open Stage Blues Jam: Buckingham Blues Bar, 5641 Buckingham Rd, FtMyers. 8-11p.Musicians welcome. Free.693-7111.

16 THURSDAY

•Deb & The Dynamics: Blues band. Bert’s Bar & Grill,4271 Pine Island Rd, Matlacha. 7:30p. 282-3232.

17 FRIDAY

•Brit Floyd – Space & Time: Concert. BB Mann Performing Arts Hall, 13350 Edison Pkwy, Ft Myers. 8p. 481-4849.

•Corvette Car Show: Seminole Casino Resort,

SATURDAY

•Gulf Coast Writers Association Meeting: Speaker: Jeremy Pilarski. Zion LutheranChurch, 7401 Winkler Rd, Ft Myers. 10a-12p. Free. 2474515.

•MangoMania: Food fest, contests, live music, arts & crafts, kids’ activities, mango Queenparade. Pine Island. 11a-6p. Free. 2830888.

•SummerJazz on the Gulf: Danny Sinoff Band. Free waterfront concert on Watkins Lawn. Naples Beach Hotel, 851 Gulf Shore Blvd N, Naples. 6:30-9:30p. 261-2222.

•The Reverend Billy C Wirtz: Concert.

Buckingham Blues Bar, 5641 Buckingham Rd, Ft Myers. 9p-12a. 693-7111.

19 SUNDAY

•Fort Myers Miracle vs Jupiter Hammerheads: Hammond Stadium, 14400 Six MileCypress

The River City Brass perform in concert at the Shell Point retirement community in Fort Myers on July 10. For information, call 454-2067.

what Goes on

28 FRIDAY

•Art Reception: Cape Coral Arts Studio, Rubicond Park, 4533 Coronado Pkwy, Cape Coral. 5-7p. Free.574-0802.

•Fort Myers Miracle vs Bradenton Marauders: Hammond Stadium, 14400 SixMile Cypress Pkwy, Ft Myers. 7p. 800-338-9467.

•WWE Live! – Road to Wrestlemania: Germain Arena, 11000 Everblades Pkwy, Estero. 7:30p. 9487825.

29 SATURDAY

•Auditions: TheatreZone’s Brigadoon. First Presbyterian Church, 9751 Bonita Beach Rd, Bonita Springs. 10a-3p. 888-9663352.

•Auditions: Symphonic Chorale of SWFL. Lamb of God Church, 19691 Cypress View Dr, Ft Myers. Daytime. 560-5695.

•Fort Myers Miracle vs Bradenton Marauders: Hammond Stadium, 14400 SixMile Cypress Pkwy, Ft Myers. 6p. 800-338-9467.

31 MONDAY

•Auditions: Symphonic Chorale of SWFL. Lamb of God Church, 19691 Cypress View Dr, Ft Myers. Evenings. 560-5695.

•Open Stage Blues Jam: Buckingham Blues Bar, 5641 Buckingham Rd, FtMyers. 3-6p. Musicians welcome. Free. 693-7111.

ongoing theater

•A Killer Act: Fri & Sat thru Aug 29.Murder

Mystery Dinner Train, 2805 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 275-8487.

•A Moroccan Affair: Sun, Wed & Thu Jul 1 - Sep

13.Murder Mystery Dinner

Train,2805 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 275-8487.

•A Scrooged Up Murder: Sun, Wed-Sat Nov 27 - Dec

24.Murder Mystery Dinner Train, 2805 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 275-8487.

•Alice in Wonderland: Jul 24-26. The Naples Players KidzAct. Sugden Theater, 701 5th Ave S, Naples. 263-7990.

•Church Basement Ladies: Thru Jul 4. Broadway

Palm Dinner Theatre, 1380 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 278-4422.

•Disney’s Aladdin Jr: Fri & Sat Jul 17 - Aug 9.

Broadway Palm Children’s Theatre, 1380 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 278-4422.

•Don’t Cry for Me: Fri & Sat Sep 4 - Nov 21.Murder

Mystery Dinner Train, 2805 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 275-8487.

•Footloose: Jul 9 - Aug 15.

Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre, 1380Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 278-4422.

•Happy: Aug 14-29.

Laboratory Theater of Florida,1634Woodford Ave, Ft Myers. 218-0481.

•I’ll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers:Jul 1025. Laboratory Theater of Florida,1634Woodford Ave, Ft Myers. 218-0481.

•Legally Blonde - The

Musical: Jul 8 - Aug 9.

The Naples Players. Sugden Theater, 701 5th Ave S, Naples. 263-7990.

•Legally Blonde - The

Musical: Aug 14-16. The Naples Players KidzAct. Sugden Theater, 701 5th Ave S, Naples. 263-7990.

•Out of Order: ThruAug 1.

Off Broadway Palm Theatre, 1380 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 278-4422.

•Speak Easy of Murder: Sun, Wed & Thu Sep 16Nov 26.Murder Mystery Dinner Train,2805 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 275-8487.

THEATERS

•BIG ARTS Herb Strauss Theater: 2200 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel. 395-0900.

•Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre: Jul 9 - Aug 15: Footloose.1380 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers.278-4422.

•Broadway Palm Children’s Theatre: Jul 17 - Aug 9: Disney’s Aladdin Jr. 1380 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 278-4422.

•FGCU TheatreLab: FGCU Arts Complex, 10501 FGCU Blvd S, Ft Myers. 590-7268.

•Florida Repertory Theatre: ArcadeTheatre, 2267 1st St, Ft Myers. 332-4488.

•Murder Mystery Train: Colonial Station, Colonial Blvd & Metro Pkwy.

ThruJun 12 - Aug 29: A

Killer Act;Jul 1 - Sep 13:

A Moroccan Affairl. WedSun evenings. 275-8487.

•Off Broadway Palm Theatre: Thru Aug 1: Out of Order. 1380 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 278-4422.

•The Laboratory Theater of Florida: Jul 10-25:I’ll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers; Aug 14-29: Happy.1634Woodford Ave, Ft Myers. 218-0481.

•Theatre Conspiracy: Foulds Theatre, Alliance for the Arts, 10091 McGregor Blvd, Ft Myers. 936-3239.

•TheatreZone: G & L Theatre, Community School of Naples, 13275 Livingston Rd, Naples. 888-966-3352.

•Venice Theatre: 140 W. Tampa Ave, Venice. 941488-1115.

exhibitions

•Alliance for the Arts: 10091 McGregor Blvd, Ft Myers. Jul 3-31: Portfolio; Aug 7-29: Dog Days.MonFri 9a-5p & Sat 9a-1p. Free. 939-2787.

•Art Bar: 1416 Dean St, Ft Myers. 292-8072.

•Art Council of Southwest Florida Co-Op Gallery: Coconut Point Mall, 8074 Mediterranean Dr, Estero. Thu & Sat 10a-6p, Fri 11a7p, Sun 12-5p. Free. 2673049.

•Art League of Fort Myers: 1451 Monroe St, Ft Myers. Jul 3-31: Fireworks. Free open painting Wed 9:3012p. Mon-Fri, 11a-3p & 69p 1st Fri of month. Free. 275-3970.

•Arts For ACT Gallery: 2265 First St, Ft Myers. Jul: Themed Exhibit - Tiny Art, National Identity, Anything Goes with a

Feather; Aug: Joe LeMay. Mon-Sat 11a-4:30p, 1st & 3rd Fri 11a-10p. Call for Sat hrs. Free. 337-5050.

•Arts of the Inland Gallery: Keiser U at the Forum, 9100 Forum Corporate Pkwy, Ft Myers. Mon-Thu 8a-8p, Fri 8a-5p, Sat 9a1p. Free. 277-1336.

•Baker Museum: ArtisNaples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd, Naples. Thru Jul 26: Weegee, Street Photographer; thru Jul 26: Student Exhibition; thru Jul 26: Jan Yoors;Tue-Sat 10a-4p & Sun 12-4p. 5971900.

•Beth Sistrunk Fine Art: 5760 Shirley St, # 15, Naples. Tue & Thu 1-4p. Free. 293-4904.

•Bert’s Pine Bay Gallery: 4332 Pine Island Rd, Matlacha. Sun & Mon 10a5p, Tue-Sat 10a-7p. Free. 283-1335.

•BIG ARTS: 900 Dunlop Rd, Sanibel. Mon-Sat 9a4p. Free. 395-0900.

•Bob Rauschenberg Gallery: Florida SouthWestern State College, 8099 College Pkwy SW, Ft Myers. Thru Aug 8: Theo WujcikArtist’s Artist.Mon-Fri 10a-4p & Sat 11a-3p. Free. 489-9313.

•Cape Coral Art League: 516 Cultural Park Blvd, Cape Coral.Oct: Color Our World,Nov 5: Happy Hour,Dec 10: Celebration. Mon-Thu 11a-4p. Free. 7725657.

4533 Coronado Pkwy in Rubicond Park, Cape

Co ra l. Aug 28 - Sept 24:

Aq uarium 2015.Mon-Fri

9a-4:30p. Free. 5740802.

•Cape Coral Library: 921 39th Terrace & SW 9th Ct, Cape Coral. Jul 1-31:

Wildlife Sculpture & Paintings by Joel Loepper. 9a-5p. Free. 533-4500.

•Centers for the Arts of Bonita Springs: 26100 Old 41 Rd, Bonita Springs. Thru Jul 2: Macro-Macro; Jul 10-30: All Outdoors; Aug 7-27: It’s Hit, It’s Cold It’s Color. Mon-Fri 10a-4p & Sat 1-5p. Free. 4958989.

•Clark Art Studio: Mercato, 9155 Strada Place, #5155, Naples. Mon-Sat 11a-9p & Sun 1-9p. 616-260-1533.

•Clyde Butcher’s Big Cypress Gallery: 52388 Tamiami Tr MM 54.5, Ochopee. Daily 10a-5p. Free. 695-2428.

•Clyde Butcher’s Venice Gallery & Studio: 237 Warfield Ave, Venice. Mar 21: Open House. Tue-Fri 10a-4:30p. Free. 486-0811.

•East West Fine Art: Bigham Galleria, 2425 Tamiami Tr N, #102, Naples. Mon-Fri 11a-4p & Sat 11a-2p.220-7503.

•Emily James Gallery: 720 5th Ave Sm # 111, Naples. Mon-Wed 12-5p & Thu-Sat 12-9p. 777-3283

•Englewood Art Center: Ringling College of Art & Design, 350 S. MaCall Rd, Englewood. Tue 9a-9p & Wed-Sat 9a4p. Free. 941-474-5548.

•Florida Gulf Coast University Art Galleries:

10501 FGCU Blvd S., Ft Myers. Main Gallery –Aug 18 - Sep 24: FGCU Faculty Exhibit. Main Gallery in Arts Complex, ArtLab in Library. Mon-Fri, 10a-4p & Thu 10a-7p. Free. 5907199.

•Fort Myers Beach Art Association: 3030 Shell Mound, Ft Myers Beach. Wed & Thu 9a-12p. Free. 463-3909.

•Gallerie du Soleil: 393 Broad Ave S, Naples. MonSat, 10a-6p & Sun 12-5p. Free. 417-3450.

•Gallery on Fifth: Mercato, 9115 Strada Pl, #5130, Naples. Jul 3-24: Spring in Tavria; Aug 7-28: Go Ultramodern. Mon-Sat, 10a-6p & Sun 12-5p. Free. 821-9459.

•Gardner Colby Gallery: 386 & 365 Broad Ave S, Naples. Mon-Sat 10a-5:30p & Sun 12-5p. Free. 4037787.

•Grand Illusion Gallery: 2443 First St, Ft Myers. Mon & Fri 10a-5p & Sat 11a-3p, 1st Fri of month 10a-10p. 461-7245.

•Guess-Fisher Gallery: 1187 8th St S, Naples. Mon-Thu 12-5p, Fr & Sat 12-9p, Sun 1-5p. Free. 263-3417.

•Harbour View Gallery: 5789 Cape Harbour Dr, #104, Cape Coral.Jul: Debbie Bonkoski, Marie Cahill;Aug: Patrick Dwyer, Sandy O’Grady.Daily 11a8p. Free. 540-5789.

•Harmon-Meek Gallery: 599 9th St N, #309, Naples. Mon-Fri 10a-5p. 261-2637.

•Hirdie-Girdie Art Gallery: 2490 Library Way,

Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre in Fort Myers presents ‘Footloose’ July 9-August 15. Call 278-4422 for information.

Sanibel. Oct-May Mon-Sat 10a-5p. Free. 395-0027.

•Howl Gallery/Tattoo: 4160 Cleveland Ave, Ft. Myers. Jul: SWFL LIves!; Aug: The Meowl Show.Mon-Thu

11a-8p, Fri & Sat 1210p,1st Sat of month 711p.Free. 332-0161.

•HW Gallery: 1305 Third St S, Naples. Daily 10a-5p. Free. 263-6640.

•Immokalee Pioneer

Museum: 1215 Roberts Ave, Immokalee. Mon-Fri 9a-4p.TheWay We

Worked: Immokalee, Ranch & Garden.Free. 658-2466.

•Island Visions: 4643 Pine Island Rd, Matlacha. Daily10a-5p. 282-0452.

•Jo-Ann Sanborn Sunshine Studios of Marco Island: The Esplanade, 760 N Collier Blvd, #102, Marco Island. Wed-Fri 10a5p & Sat 10a-2p. 404-9179

•Kathleen Bradford

Studio/Gallery: 4259

Bonita Beach Rd, Bonita Springs.Tue-Sat 11a-5p. By appt. Free. 776-6844.

•Longboat Key Art Center: Ringling College of Art & Design, 6860 Longboat Key Dr S, Longboat Key. 11a-4p. Free. 941-3832345.

•Lovegrove Gallery & Garden: 4637 Pine Island Rd NW, Matlacha.Daily 10a-5p.Free. 283-6453.

•Marco Island Center for the Arts: 1010 Winterberry Dr, Marco Island. Tue-Sat 9a-4p. Free. 394-4221.

•Marco Island Historical Museum: 180 S Heathwood Dr, Marco Island. Thru

Aug 1: Giants of the Everglades, Amateur Wildlife Photo Contest Winners. Tue-Sat 9a-4p. Free. 642-1440.

•Marianne Friedland Gallery: 359 Broad Ave S, Naples. Mon-Sat 10-5p. Free. 262-3484.

•Museum of the Everglades: 105 W Bwy,Everglades City. Thru Aug 29: Everglades City School

Exhibit. Tue-Fri 9a-5p & Sat 9a-4p. Free. 6950008.

•Museum of the Islands: 5728 Sesame, Pine Island Center. 283-1525.

•Naples Botanical Garden: 4820 Bayshore Dr, Naples. Thru Jul 5: Unearthed –Dinosaurs in the Garden. Daily 8a-3p, closed Sep 1430. 643-7275.

•Naples Depot Museum: 1051 Fifth Ave S, Naples. Thru Jul 31: Sights of Paradise. Mon-Sat 9a-4p. Free. 262-6525.

•Phil Fisher Gallery: 810 12th Ave S, Naples. MonThu 11a-5p, Fri & Sat 11a9p. Free. 403-8393.

•Rene Miville Gallery:

Franklin Shops, 2200 1st St, 2nd fl, Ft Myers. MonSat 10a-8p & Sun 12-7p. 333-3130.

•Rick Moore Fine Art Gallery: The Village on Venetian Bay, 4230 Gulf Shore Blvd N, Naples. Free. 434-6464.

•Ringling College of Art + Design Galleries: Ringling College of Art + Design, 2700 N. Tamiami Tr, Sarasota. Selby Gallery –Jul 10 – Aug 5: Defining Abstraction; Basch Gallery – thru Aug 14: David Budd Large Scale Paintings; thru Aug 21: Thompson Gallery – PH–shion Photography 2014. Sep-Apr Mon-Sat 10a-4p; May-Aug Mon-Fri 10a-4p. Free. 941-3597563.

•Ringling Museum of Art: 5401 Bay Shore Rd, Sarasota. 5401 Bay Shore Rd, Sarasota. Thru Sep 13: Trenton Doyle Hancock; Jul 10 - Sep 13: Builder Levy: Appalachia USA; Aug 14 - Oct 25: FSU –Painting Faculty.Ongoing: New Acquisitions, 20th CenturyAbstract Art, Asian & Cypriot Art. Gardens of Ringling Guided Tour: Thu 10:30a. Circus Museum –Jun 3Sep 14: From the Four Corners of the Globe;Sep 11 - Nov 30: Clowns.Daily

10a-5p, Thu 10a-8p. 941359-5700.

•Rookery Bay Environmental Learning Center: 300 Tower Rd, Naples. Mon-Sat 9a-4p. 530-5940.

•Rosen Gallery & Studios: North Line Plaza, 2172 J & C Blvd, N Naples. Mon-Sat, 12-6p. Free. 8211061.

•Sheldon Fine Art: 460 Fifth Ave S, Naples. 10a10p. Free. 649-6255.

•Sidney & Berne Davis Arts Center: 2301 First St, Ft Myers. Jul 3-23: Oliver Dominguez – Hats of Time, SWFL Crafts Guild – Fun and Funktional; Aug 7-27: Portrait of a Pilgrim by Michael George.Mon-Fri 10a-5p & 6-9p & 1st Fri of month. Free. 337-1933.

•SWFL Museum of History: 2031 Jackson St, Ft Myers. Tue-Sat 10a-5p. 321-7430.

•Space 39 Art Bar & Lounge: 39 Patio de Leon, Ft Myers. Tue-Sat 5:30close.Free. 204-9949.

•Sweet Art Gallery: 2054 Trade Center Way, Naples. Mon-Fri 11a-4p & Sat by appt. Free. 597-2110.

•The Lady from Haiti: 110 10th St N, Naples. Mon-Sat 10:30a-5p. 649-8607.

•The von Liebig Art Center: Naples Art Association. 585 Park St, Naples.Thru

Jul 17: Camera USA 2015: National Photography Exhibition. Members Gallery: Pictures in Process 2015: Photography;Jul 27 - Sep

4: Gareth Rockliffe: The Great American Coastline; Members Gallery:Olde Naples: Works from the Legacy Collection.Mon-Fri

9a-4p. 262-6517

•Tincture Gallery: 1412 Dean St, #100, Ft Myers. Daily 10a-9p. Free. 4724557.

•Tower Gallery: 751 Tarpon Bay Rd, Sanibel. Daily 10a-9p. Free. 340-6467.

•Trudy Labell Fine Art: Bingham Galleria,2425 Tamiami Trail N, #102, Naples. Mon-Fri 11a-4p & Sat 11a-2p. Free. 434-7778.

•Two Newts Gallery: 2502 2nd St, #104, Ft Myers.

Tue-Fri 10a-6p, Sat 10a-4p, Sun 12-4p. 332-2300.

•Union Artists Studios: Alliance of the Arts, 10051 McGregor Blvd, #202, Edwards Bldg, Ft Myers. Free. 826-3861.

•Unit A: 1922 Evans Ave, Ft Myers. Art by Marcus Jansen. Receptions 1st Fri of month 6-10p. By appt. Free. 240-1053.

•Vallez Studio: Crayton Cove, 784 12th Ave S, Naples. Free. 262-0381.

•Veron Ennis Modern Art: 10051 McGregor Blvd, # 201, Ft Myers. Sat 9a-1p & by appt. Free.849-7772.

•Visual Arts Center: 210

Maud St, Punta Gorda. Thru Jul 16: America

Celebrates; thru Aug 13: Starving Artist Sale; Jul 20 – Aug 13: Surf, Sand and Shells.Mon-Fri, 9a-4p & Sat 10a-2p. Free. 951639-8810.

•Watson MacRae Gallery: 2340 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel. Thru Jul 1: Summer Salon.Mon-Sat 10:30a-5p. Free. 472-3386.

attractions

•Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum: Seminole Tribe of Florida Museum. Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation, 34725 W. Boundary Rd., Clewiston. Daily 9a-5p. 877-902-1113.

•Babcock Wilderness Adventures: 8000 State Rd 31,Punta Gorda. TueSat. Reserve for tours. 800-500-5583.

•Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum: 3075 SanibelCaptiva Rd, Sanibel. Raymond Burr Memorial Exhibit,Deep-Sea Mollusks, Henry DomkeNature Photographer. World Record-Sized Shells. Open Daily 10a-5p. 3952233.

•Baker Museum: ArtisNaples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd, Naples. Thru Jul 26: Weegee, Street Photographer; thru Jul 26: Student Exhibition; thru Jul 26: Jan Yoors;Tue-Sat

Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers hosts a Faculty Exhibition August 18-September 24. For information, call 590-7199.

One of the themes of the July exhibition at the Arts for ACTGallery in Fort Myers is ‘Feathers.’ Call 337-5050 for information.

what Goes on

10a-4p & Sun 12-4p. 5971900.

•Burroughs Home & Gardens: 2505 First St, Ft Myers. Living history tours daily 11a & 1p, 5-9p. 3370706.

•Calusa Nature Center & Planetarium: 3450 Ortiz Ave, Ft Myers. Museum, butterfly aviary, trails, live animal shows daily, Planetarium shows, WedSat. Bluegrass concerts 2nd & 4th Thu 12-4p. 10a5p & Sun, 11a-5p. 2753435.

•Cape Coral Historical Museum: 544 Cultural Park Blvd, Cape Coral. Wed, Thu & Sun 1-4p. 7727037.

• C h i l d r e n ’ s M u s e u m o f

N a p l e s : North Collier Park, 15080 Livingston Rd, Naples. Special hours for children on autistic spectrum 2nd Sat of month 8-9a & Sensory Night, 4th Tue of month 5-8p. Register. 5140084.

•Collier County Museum: 3301 Tamiami Tr E, Naples. Educational programs, Wed, 2pm. Mon-Sat 9a-4p. free. 774-8476.

•Conservancy of SWFL: 1495 Smith Preserve Way off Goodlette Frank Rd. 9:30a-4:30p. 430-2466.

•Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary: 375 Sanctuary Rd W, Naples. Blair Audubon Center, Boardwalk Exploration & Exhibits. Daily 7a-5:30p. 348-9151.

•CREW: Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed. 23998

Corkscrew Rd, Estero. Marsh Hiking Trails, 4600 Corkscrew Rd, Immokalee. Trails open sunrise-sunset. 657-2253.

•CROW: Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife. 3883 Sanibel-Captiva Rd, Sanibel. Healing Winds Visitor Education Center. Wonders of Wildlife: Nature presentations MonFri 11a. Tue-Sun 10a-4p. 472-3644.

•’Ding’ Darling National Wildlife Refuge: 1 Wildlife Dr, Sanibel. Sat-Thu 7a-7p. Education Center: Sunrise to sunset. Wildlife Dr closed Sat.472-1100.

•Edison & Ford Winter Estates: 2350 McGregor Blvd, Ft Myers. Thru May 15: Art in the Gardens. Daily 9a-5:30p. 334-7419.

•Everglades Wonder Gardens: 27180 Old 41 Rd, BonitaSprings.Botanical

gardens, animals, art gallery. Daily 9a-4p. 9922591.

•Holocaust Museum & Education Center of SWFL: Sandalwood Square, 4760 Tamiami Tr N, # 107, Naples. Tue-Sun 1-4p. Guided Tours: 1:30p. 2639200.

•Imaginarium Science Center: 2000 Cranford St, Ft Myers. Mon-Sat 10a-5p & Sun 12-5p. 321-7420.

•Immokalee Pioneer Museum at Roberts Ranch: 1215 Roberts Ave, Immokalee. Thru Jun 5:TheWay We Worked: Immokalee, Ranch & Garden.Mon-Fri 9a-4p. Free. 658-2466.

•Marco Island Historical Museum: 180 S Heathwood Dr, Marco Island. Thru Aug 1: Giants of the Everglades, Amateur Wildlife Photo Contest Winners. Tue-Sat 9a-4p. Free. 642-1440.

•Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium: 1600 Ken Thompson Pkwy, Sarasota. Eco-boat tours daily. Immersion Cinema. Daily, 10a-5p. 941-388-4441.

•Museum of the Everglades: 105 W Bwy,Everglades City. Thru Aug 29: Everglades City School Exhibit. Tue-Fri 9a-5p & Sat 9a-4p. Free. 6950008.

Guided Tour: Thu 10:30a. Circus Museum –Jun 3Sep 14: From the Four Corners of the Globe;Sep 11 - Nov 30: Clowns.Daily 10a-5p, Thu 10a-8p. 941359-5700.

•Rookery Bay National Research Reserve: Environmental Center, 300 Tower Rd, Naples. Daily programs: 11a & 2p. Guided kayak trips Tue & Th 10a & 1p. Mon-Sat 9a-4p. 5305940.

•Sanibel Historical Museum & Village: 950 Dunlop Rd, Sanibel. Wed-Sat, 10a-4p. 472-4648.

•Seminole Casino Resort: 506 S 1st St, Immokalee. Jul 18: Corvette Car Show. 800-218-0007.

•Shell Factory & Nature Park: 2787 N Tamiami Trail, N Ft Myers. Shell exhibits, Animal exhibits, petting farm, Christmas House, Natural History Exhibit, Money Museum, water games, video arcade, miniature golf, playgrounds, Soaring Eagle Zip Line. Daily 10a-5p. 9952141.

•Museum of the Islands: 5728 Sesame, Pine Island Center. 283-1525.

•Naples Botanical Garden: 4820 Bayshore Dr, Naples. Thru Jul 5: Unearthed –Dinosaurs in the Garden. Daily 9a-5p, Tue8a-5p. Jul 6 - Sep 13 8a-3p, closed Sep 14-30. 6437275.

•Naples Depot Museum: 1051 Fifth Ave S, Naples. Thru Jul 31: Sights of Paradise. Mon-Sat 9a-4p. Free. 262-6525.

•Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens: 1590 GoodletteFrank Rd, Naples. Daily 9a-5p. 262-5409.

•Palm Cottage Museum & Norris Gardens: Naples Historical Society, 137 12th Ave. S, Naples. Walking tours of Naples Historic District: Wed 10a; Guided garden tours: 1st & 3rd Thu of month 10a. Tours: Tue-Sat 1-4p. Free. 2618164.

•Ringling Museum of Art: 5401 Bay Shore Rd, Sarasota. 5401 Bay Shore Rd, Sarasota. Thru Sep 13: Trenton Doyle Hancock; Jul 10 - Sep 13: Builder Levy: Appalachia USA; Aug 14 - Oct 25: FSU –Painting Faculty.Ongoing: New Acquisitions, 20th CenturyAbstract Art, Asian & Cypriot Art. Gardens of Ringling

•SWFL Historical Society: 10091 McGregor Blvd, Ft Myers. Wed 9a-12p & 4-7p, Sat 9a-12p. Free. 9394044.

•SWFL Museum of History: 2031 Jackson St, Ft Myers. Tue-Sat 10a-5p. 321-7430.

•The Butterfly Estates: 1815 Fowler St, Ft Myers. Sun & Tue-Thu 10a-5p, Sat 10a7p. 690-2359.

•Williams Academy Black History Museum: Clemente Park, 1936 Henderson Ave, Ft Myers. 332-8778.

parks

•Bonita Beach Park: 27954 Hickory Blvd., Bonita Springs. 533-7444.

• B o w d i t c h P o i n t R e g i o n a l Park: 50 Estero Blvd, Ft Mye rs Beach. 463-3764.

•Bunche Beach: 18201 John Morris Rd, Ft Myers. 70 7-6794.

• C a l o o s a h a t c h e e R e g i o n a l Park: 18500 North River Rd, Alva. 693-2690.

• C o l l i e r - S e m i n o l e S t a t e Park: US 41 (Tamiami Tr S), Naples. Guided walks: Sat 10a. Hiking trail, self-guided boardwalk nature trail, exhibits, camping, fishing, boating canoeing. 394-3397.

•Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park: 11135 Gulfshore Dr, Naples.

The Gallery on Fifth in Naples hosts the exhibit, ‘Spring in Tavria’ July 3-24. For information, call 821-9459.

The Marco Island Historical Museum hosts the photography exhibit, ‘Giants of The Everglades’ thru August 1. Call 642-1440 for information.

•

Wine& Dine SWFLDININGGUIDE

BERT'S BAR & SEAFOOD GRILL : 4271 Pine Island Rd, Matlacha. 282-3232. D AILYFROM 11 AM

Million dollar waterfront view and quality food at reasonable prices. Casual dining on the dock. Featuring grouper, Gulf shrimp and certified angus burgers. Live entertainment. 'All-U-Can-Eat' Fish Fry Wed & Fri 4-9pm. www.bertsbar.com

BROADWAY PALM DINNER

THEATRE: 1380 Colonial Blvd, Ft. Myers. 278-4422. WED-SUN

5:30 PM D INNER & 7 PM S HOW, WITH SELECTED CHILDREN’S MATINEES

11:45AM LUNCH & 1:15PM SHOW

Southwest Florida's premier Dinner Theatre, is a great destination for those looking for quality entertainment and a delicious buffet at a great price. www.broadwaypalm.com

EL GAUCHO INCA : 4383 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 275-7504.

M ON -T HU 11:30 AM -9 PM , F RI 11:30 AM -10 PM , S AT 12-10 PM , SUN 12-8PM. Highest quality and freshest foods, always prepared to your desired taste. Three-country cuisine style and professional service with a personal touch. Special occasions, rehearsal dinners, business meetings, company parties, and more. www.elgauchoinca.com

FOGG CAFÉ : Naples Botanical Garden, 4820 Bayshore Dr, Naples. 643-7275. DAILY 9AM-5PM. Unique and creative food using local, sustainable and seasonal products including items from the Garden itself. Menus are changed seasonally, focusing on high quality. In addition to incorporating an exciting garden-to-table inspired menu, Fogg Café offers some of the most beautiful dining views in the area. www.naplesgarden.org

IL POMODORO : 9861 Gladiolos Dr, Ft Myers. 985-0080. LUNCH:

Be ach, fishing, picnic areas. 597-6196.

•Estero Park: 9200 Co rk screw Palms Blvd, Estero. 248-1609.

•Everglades National Park: Gulf Coast Visitor Center,815 Oyster Bar Ln.Everglades City. 9a4:30p. 695-3311.

MON-FRI 11AM-2PM, DINNER: MONSAT 4:30-9PM. Quaint and colorful family-owned restaurant specializing in home-cooked Italian cuisine and fine wine. From chicken, veal and seafood to pizza and pasta, they use only the freshest ingredients and flavors worthy of anyone's grandmother. Daily specials. Catering available. Located around the corner from the Health Park Medical Center. www.ilpomodororestaurant.com

INDIA PALACE : 11605 Cleveland Ave, #20, Ft Myers. 939-2323. LUNCH: TUE-SUN 11:30AM-2:30PM, DINNER: TUE-SUN 5-10PM. Aromatic curries, vibrant vegetarian dishes and wondrous meats and seafood await you at this family-owned and operated restaurant. Experience fresh, classic Southern Indian cuisine with careful spicing and flashes of creativity for conservative diners as well as more inspired interpretations of well-known recipes. Lunch buffet. Full liquor bar. Available for private parties. www.indiapalacefortmyers.com

MURDER MYSTERY TRAIN

DINNERTHEATER: 2805 Colonial Blvd, Ft Myers. 275-8487. WED-SAT 5:45PM & SUN 4:45PM.A unique dining experience. Enjoy a fun murder mystery show while the chef prepares your five course dinner on board. Train takes you on a 3 1/2 hour, 40 mile round trip journey across the Caloosahatchee River. Special holiday events. www.semgulf.com

THE HUTat the Peace Tropical Gardens : 5150 Buckingham Rd, Ft Myers. 225-0907. T UE -S UN 11:30 AM - CLOSE . Extraordinary dining experience at Florida’s most exceptional entertainment destination. Enjoy our stunning surroundings as you delight in allnew menus from a quick meal to an evening of casual paradise dining. www.hutrestaurant.com

Park: 17980 Palm Beach Blvd, Alva. 693-2690. •

Site State Park: US Hwy 41 & Corkscrew Rd, Estero. 992-0311.

•Lakes Regional Park: 7 330 Gladiolus Dr, Ft Myers. Guided walks: 1st

119 Bay Rd, Ft Myers Beach. 707-3015.

•Myakka River State Park: 13207 SR 72, Sarasota. Canoeing, camping, wildlife tours by air-boat & tram, scenic drive, guided walks. 361-6511.

• N o r t h C o l l i e r R e g i o n a l Park: 15000 Livingston Rd, Naples. 252-4060.

•North Ft Myers Park: 2021 N Tamiami Tr, N Ft Myers. Yoga: Wed 6p. 652-4512.

• Rutenberg Park EcoLiving Center: ‘FloridaFriendly’ Garden/Landscape Wo rkshops: Wed 10:30a. Free. 533-7515.

• S i x M i l e C y p r e s s S l o u g h Preserve: 7791 Penzance Blvd, Ft Myers. Free. 533-7550.

•Veterans Park: 55 Homestead Rd, Lehigh Acres. 369-1521.

• W a - K e - H a t c h e e P a r k : 16730 Bass Rd, Ft Myer s. Flow Yoga & Mat Pilates: Mon-Thu 9a; Yo ga & Meditation: Tue 4:30p; Tai chi: Wed 1p; Laughter Yoga: Wed 6:30p. Classes free. 4322154.

live music & comedy

•Americana Community Music Association Listening Room: All Faiths Unitarian Congregation, 2756 McGregor Blvd, Ft Myers. 691-4069

•Art Bar: 1416 Dean St, Ft Myers. 292-8072.

•Bert’s Bar & Grill: 4271 Pine Island Rd, Matlacha.Live Tue-Sun. Thu: Deb & The Dynamics 7:30p; Jul 3: Marty Stokes; Jul 10, 24, 31 7:30p: Mike Imasciani & The Bluez Rockerz; Jul 11: Insider with Jeff Walker 7:30p, Jul 12: Yankee Jack 3p; Jul 19 & 26: Gary & Kerri 3p. Calypso music afternoons. 282-3232.

Ft Myers. Live music ThuSat. 226-1133.

•Cottage Bar: 1270 Estero Blvd, Ft Myers Beach. Live music nightly. 7655440.

•Freds Food, Fun & Spirits!: 2700 Immokalee Rd ., Naples. Live music Wed-Sun. 431-7928.

•Hotel Indigo: 1520

Broadway, Ft Myers. Wed: Open Mic. 337-3446.

•Howl Gallery/Tattoo Dive

Bar: 4160 Cleveland Ave, Ft. Myers.Mon-Thu 11a-8p, Fri & Sat 12-10p,1st Sat of month 7-11p.332-0161.

•Laugh-In Comedy

Cafe: 8595 College Pkwy, Ft Myers. Live comedy Fri & Sat. 479-5233.

•Matanzas on the Bay: 414 Crescent St, Ft Myers Beach. Live music nitely 6-9p. 463-3838

•Old Naples Comedy Club: 1100 6th Ave S, Naples. Comics Sat nites. 4552844.

•Paradise Tiki Hut: 1502 Miramar St, Cape Coral. Live music nightly. 5421988.

•Parrot Key Caribbean Grill: 2500 Main St, Ft Myers Beach. Live music nightly 7-10p.463-3257.

•Red Rock Saloon: 2278 First St, Ft Myers. Live music Tue, Fri, Sat. 6898667.

•Reserve Cigar & Wine Bar: 10950 S. Cleveland Ave, Ft Myers. Live music Fri & Sat. 210-0300.

•RJ’s Bar & Grill: 1475 N. Tamiami Tr, N.Ft Myers. Live music nightly. 9979600.

•Roadhouse Cafe: 15660 San Carlos Blvd, Ft Myers. Live music. 4154375.

•Seminole Casino Resort: 506 S 1st St, Immokalee. 800-218-0007.

•Sneaky Pete’s: 3465 Bonita Beach Rd, Bonita Springs. Live music nightly. 498-8887.

•Space 39 Art Bar & Lounge: 39 Patio de Leon, Ft Myers. Live music Wed-Sat 8:30-11p. 2049949.

Live music Tue, Fri, Sun. 542-0123.

•The Veranda: 2122 Second St, Ft Myers. Piano Bar Tue-Sat 6:30-9:30p. 3322065.

•World of Beer: Bell Tower Shops, 13499 S Cleveland Ave, Ft Myers. Live music Thu-Sat. 437-2411.

•Yabo: 16230 Summerlin Rd, Ft Myers. Live music. 225-9226.

FARMERS MARKETS

FRIDAY

•Bayfront Farmers Market: 465 Bayfront Pl, Naples. 4-8p. 293-9703.

•Bonita Springs Fresh Food Market: SWFL Performing Arts Center, 11515 Bonita Beach Rd SE, Bonita Springs. Oct-Mar9a-1p. 389-6901.

•Friendly Farmers Market: Golden Gate Community Center, 4701 Golden Gate Pkwy, Naples. 3-7p. 786942-8300.

•Government Complex Farmers Market: 3335 US 41 E, Naples. 11a-2p.

•Shoppes at Vanderbilt Farmers Market: Collection at Vanderbilt, 2355 Vanderbilt Beach Rd, Naples. 12-4p. 273-2350.

SATURDAY

•Alliance for the Arts’ GreenMarket: 10091 McGregor Blvd., Ft Myers. 9a-1p. 939-2787.

•Bonita Springs Farmers Market: The Promenade Shoppes, 26811 South Bay Dr,Bonita Springs. 7a-12p. 495-8464.

•Bonita Springs Lions Market: Naples Fort Myers Greyhound Track parking lot,10601 SE Bonita Beach Rd, Bonita Springs. Saturdays 7am-12:30pm. 992-4011.

•Friendly Farmers Market: Golden Gate Community Center, 4701 Golden Gate Pkwy, Naples. 9a-3p. 786942-8300.

•

•Lynn Hall Park: 950 Estero Blvd, Ft Myers Beach. 229-7356.

•Manatee Park: 10901 Palm Beach Blvd, Ft Myers. 8a-dusk. 6905030.

s e r v e :

•

•Buckingham Blues Bar: 5641 Buckingham Rd., Ft Myers. Open blues jams Wed 8-11p & Sun 3-6p, free. Jul 11: Marc Telesca; Jul 17 & 17: Reve Billy Wirtz; Aug 8: Toots Lorraine. 693-7111.

•Buddha Bar & Grill: 12701 McGregor Blvd, Ft Myers. Live music Wed-Sun. 4828565.

•City Tavern: 2206 Bay St,

•Teri-Tini’s: 7050 Crystal Dr, Ft Myers. Live music nitely 7:30-11pm. 2775475.

•The Dek Bar: 4704 SE 15 Ave, Cape Coral. Live music nightly. 542-3745.

•The Hut at the Peace Tropical Gardens: 5150 Buckingham Rd, Ft Myers. 225-0907.

•The Joint at Cape Harbour : 5785 Cape Harbour Dr, Cape Coral.

•Third Street Farmer’s Market: 1220 Third St S, Naples. 7:30-11:30a. 6496707

SUNDAY

•North Naples Green Market: Ole Towne Center, 8020 Grand Lely Dr, Naples. 12-4p. 594-9358.

•Pine Island Tropical Fruit Market: Stringfellow Rd & Ficus Tree Ln, Bokeelia. 10a-3p.

•Sanibel Island Farmers Market: Sanibel City Hall, 800 Dunlop Road, Sanibel. 8a-1p. 691-9249.