Good Brands Better. New Brands Known.: Lawton is Four

Little things are big things. Lawton’s healthy checkup records that he is 4 inches taller and 12 pounds heavier. He has a high motor and doesn’t care for the confinements of global pandemic containment. His 4^th birthday on July 5^th was a full day thanks in no small part to his mom. Octonauts are everywhere: a mega Octopod playset in the living room area, yard signs, books, birthday cards to be opened and a Octonaut-themed birthday cake. It is fortunate that Papa studied the franchise before making the trip to Tampa.

Uber brother Greg was an awesome host for this cautious trip to Florida from Saint Louis. Keeping distance was accomplished by being captive in Greg’s car a good deal of the time. It might have been an Octonaut transport (we’ll call Gup X). You know what they say about “best laid plans” and this trip, which I tried my best to micromanage including plans to visit to the NSU Art Museum in Fort Lauderdale to study the work of Ashcan artist William Glackens. Reservations on Southwest Airlines July 4-July 9 are end-points that went rather smoothly. Lots of room on 737 aircrafts to and from Tampa.

Greg’s Gup-X is outfitted with technology that allows me to eavesdrop on the business of Real Estate Lives (Greg is President of the not-for-profit). I also witnessed the sweet guidance of my brother’s fatherly advice to Mia, who at her mother’s urging, was seeking Mr. Greg’s council on on whether or not she should transfer to Monroe Middle School for 8^th Grade. Headed to Fort Lauderdale the scenic way we learn in transit that the museum is closed due to Covid – 19 concerns and to a lesser extent to vandalism by protesters. My bad – I was sure my website research indicated they were “business as usual.” No turning back though. We have non- refundable hotel accommodations.

Greg thrives best in no-structure situations and the plan change results in a side trip to Pahokee, a city located on the shore of Lake Okeechobee in Palm Beach County (population 5,649). Incorporated in 1922, the name means "grassy waters." Local residents refer to Pahokee as "The Muck" which signifies the mineral-rich dark soil ideal for growing sugar cane. We aimlessly are driven by vistas that allow Greg to capture big sky photos of a looming storm over the lake and birds and activity at a sugar cane plantation.

Our road trip is augmented by our shared pull south to visit Key Biscayne and Coral Gables. Reporter Bill Durham from the Islander News engages us at the Key Biscayne Beach Club.

He remembers dad and comments to Greg. “You look like your dad.”

Greg responds quickly that “He was a handsome man.”

“He was more than that” says Bill, matter of factly.

We re-board the Gup-X (Greg’s Volkswagon Passat) after we insist on arranging for a brick to be engraved Jim + Mary Morgan for placement at the beach club entrance. Now we know we have to come back to this site especially as we have learned that the Oasis, a Cuban coffee place and an old favorite on the Key since the 1970s, has recently gone out of business.

Over the duration between 7/4 and 7/9 the Gup-X took us to Downtown Miami, Miami Beach, Coconut Grove and the campus of the University of Miami. All of these places have special meaning for us, “the twin headaches.” We hit the Versailles Restaurant, The World’s Most Famous Cuban Restaurant on Calle Ocho in Miami’s Little Havana and The Columbia, traditional Spanish restaurant in Ybor City. We witnessed a dangerous fireworks display launched from a lot across the street from Greg’s son Wes’ apartment. We caught up with his other son Matt on his front lawn. Greg and Matt are considering a business plan to offer commercial advice on Zoom conferencing. A visit with Greg’s wife Ellen at the West Richardson Place homestead included a delightful dialogue around: framing Ellen’s daughter Lauren’s photography; the collection of local watercolors by artist/neighbor; art by Ashcan School artists Maurice Prendergast and William Glackens; and taking out the trash.

I landed for a night at the Tahitian Inn, now the home of the relocated Pach’s restaurant. My remarkable daughter Lindsey shared some quality time over bagels at Riverwalk with Lawton. Lawton’s mother (my daughter) is amazing. She is managing a two-career household with a firecracker 4 year old. She does everything with grace, without compromising any detail. The exceptions might be in a case where her tolerance is a bit thin for a local resident causing potential consternation on Dale Mabry Highway by not following rules associated with customer pick up at the Chick Fil A.