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Archive for the 'things to do' Category

One of the oldest cemeteries in Pinellas County

Kids can be pretty hard to figure.

Take my granddaughter, Caitlyn.  She is eight years old and in the second grade. Now, you’d think a young girl like that would have plenty of fears — the dark, or things that go bump in the night.

Caitlyn reads the inscription on a gravestone

So where do you think she’s been pestering us to take her?  To a cemetery.

We haven’t really been able to figure out where this cemetery thing came from, but she’s really fascinated. So this past weekend her grandfather decided to take her on a field trip.

Since I had written recently about Curlew Methodist Church, that’s where they went — Curlew Methodist has one of the oldest graveyards around here, and there are quite a few gravestones that date back to the 1880s.

Caitlyn loved it.  She enjoyed reading all the inscriptions, and she liked learning about the people who were buried there.  She decided that the Jones family must have been pretty big around here, because so many of them had headstones in the cemetery. And she liked reciting some of the short poems she found on some of the stones.

She wasn’t scared at all.

“The ghosts are only around at night, anyway,” she said.

Caitlyn said she was going to tell all about her cemetery adventure at the next Show and Tell at her school.

Tags: Add new tag, cemeteries, churches, history, north pinellas, Palm Harbor

Curlew church is one of Pinellas County’s oldest

Curlew Methodist Church in Palm Harbor

I’m from New England, a place where communities often stretch back several hundred years. It’s not like that here in North Pinellas County.

The area where I live, made up of Palm Harbor, Dunedin, Tarpon Springs and even much of Clearwater, was little more than orange groves just 20 or 30 years ago. There are many wonderful assets in this region, but the local history is a bit thin.

But that’s not true of everything. A case in point is Curlew United Methodist Church, located in a little corner of Palm Harbor just north of Curlew Road.

Most churches in this area are not very old, but Curlew United Methodist Church was founded 140 years ago, in 1869. John Sutton, a local resident, decided that this part of North Pinellas County, a near-frontier area back then, needed a place of worship. He called together 22 of his friends and neighbors, and he then provided six acres of land for the church and an adjoining cemetery.

Sutton wasn’t done at that point; he also provided logs from the property, which were rafted down to a saw mill in Clearwater, cut into boards, and then rafted back up the coast.

The church members agreed to help build the church, which Sutton named Curlew after the pink birds that flocked nearby. Actually, Sutton thought the birds were curlew birds, but he was incorrect; they actually were pink spoonbills. No matter; the name “Curlew” stuck, and that’s the name of the church today.

About 12 years later, the church was destroyed by fire. The members held their services under a big oak tree on the property for a couple of years, then built a new building. However, that building wasn’t very well put together, and members tore it down in 1902 and built a new one.

That building was remodeled in 1942, and it still stands on the site and serves the members of the congregation, but not as the main church building; that structure was erected in 1969.

The cemetary that Sutton founded surrounds the church on two sides, and its gravestones provide a fascinating record of life and death in North Pinellas County from the late 1800s until the present day.

Today, the Curlew United Methodist Church still counts descendants of John Sutton among its worshippers. It is the oldest church in Pinellas County to still occupy its original site.

Tags: church, Curlew, history, north pinellas, Palm Harbpr

Pinellas County parks: Great places to go

Pinellas County offers some of the finest parks you will find anywhere.

Some, like Fort DeSoto at the southern tip of the county, have beaches that are considered among the best in the country. Others, like John Chestnut Sr. Park, offer plenty of lake frontage.

But Phillippe Park is special, because it offers lots of frontage on Tampa Bay; because it has been a public park since the 1940s, which is pretty much ancient history around here; because it is named after the man who brought the citrus industry to Tampa Bay; and because it has a big Indian mound within its borders.

 I attended a picnic at Phillippe Park this weekend and was reminded of how beautiful it is.

Tampa Bay from the park

There are a number of shelters you can reserve for picnics, and the grounds are kept in immaculate condition by the park rangers. 

There is plenty of parking, and Phillippe Park is a great place for a walk, or just a sit on one of the benches that overlook the water.

If you want to learn more about Pinellas County’s parks, you can click here.

Tags: parks, Phillippe Park, pinellas county, Tampa Bay

St. Paddy’s Day in Palm Harbor

One thing you have to say about Downtown Palm Harbor — for a small downtown area, it seems as though there’s always something going on there.

I went there early in the morning on Saturday to just get a few photos to go with the previous post. When I got there, Florida Avenue was roped off. Hmmmm, I thought — what could this be?

Turns out it was sort of a mini-celebration. Peggy O’Neill’s, the Irish pub, was about to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day.

St. Patrick's Day vendor

The interesting thing about Downtown Palm Harbor is they are always doing something fun that draws people to the area. This weekend its St. Patrick’s Day. Next weekend there is an arts and crafts display. After Thanksgiving there is a really big art program, and on another weekend there is a big motorcycle event.

There aren’t a lot of merchants in Downtown Palm Harbor, but they go the extra mile to make their neighborhood fun.

Tags: Add new tag, Palm Harbor, St. Patrick's Day

Other restaurant reviews

After posting the review of Caposey’s Restaurant, I got to thinking that you might like to see some other reviews of local eateries. I got ‘em — just find a section called “Local Resources” on this page (over to the right) and click on it.  It will take you to the Restaurant Review page over at my website.

Tags: pinellas county, restaurants

Things you didn’t know about waffles

Alain Guillaume serves up some waffles

I thought I knew something about waffles until I met Alain Guillaume at the Clearwater Farmer’s Market. Alain and his wife Patricia are waffle experts.
Waffles are usually listed as “Belgian waffles” on American menus. But since Alain and Patricia are actual real Belgians, I listened carefully when Alain started talking about his own beloved waffles.
Here is what I learned:

• There are actually several different kinds of waffles in Belgium.
• Here, waffles are usually breakfast food; in Belgium, they are sold as snacks by street vendors and bakeries.
• The waffles we often consume in the U.S. are known as Brussels waffles, just one of several kinds of Belgium waffles that vary in shape and taste according to the region of Belgium where they are made.
• Since Alain and Patricia are from the city of Liege, they are partial to the Liege waffle — a small oblong waffle that is sweeter and denser than the more-familiar Brussels waffle.
• Alain and Patricia’s Liege waffles can be served plain (that’s what I had), or they can be served with various toppings — fruit, whipped cream, or even chocolate.

Alain and Patricia are the owners of the Belgian Pearl, a Dunedin-based waffle company that markets products through farmers’ markets, special events of one kind or another and through their website, http://www.thebelgianpearl.com/
They make their own waffle batter from a special recipe that they have developed. I had one of their Liege waffles with a cup of coffee, and it was GREAT!
The waffles from The Belgian Pearl are a find. Check them out!

Tags: farmer's market, Liege waffles

Clearwater farmers’ market

Clearwater farmers' market

Not every community has a farmer’s market, but there seems to be more and more of them springing up. I enjoy them because they are good places to find locally grown, fresh produce, and there’s often several unique vendors who sell all kinds of food items or artsy-crafty products of one kind or another.

The city of Clearwater has been hosting a farmer’s market for a while now, on Wednesday mornings from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. To tell the truth, I haven’t visited the market before because by the time I remember that it’s held on Wednesday mornings, it’s usually Wednesday afternoon.

This time, however, I remembered. I drove down to the location (right in front of City Hall in downtown Clearwater) and rambled around for the better part of an hour, and I had a great time chatting with some of the vendors and taking pictures. Yes, I bought a few things, too.

On this Wednesday (the one right before Thanksgiving) there were the usual fruit-and-vegetable sellers. But there was also a photographer selling some of his prints; a lemonade stand; a man selling honey; and a stand selling Belgian waffles (there will be more on this vendor in the next post). Papa Gino’s Pizza even had a stand which seemed to be hawking its catering services rather than actual pizza slices.

All in all it was a very enjoyable hour and I think you’d enjoy the visit, too. Remember, though, that this is a small farmer’s market; if you go expecting big crowds and scores of vendors, you’ll be disappointed.

Tags: Clearwater, farmer's market, real estate

Get ready for baseball!

If you go back just a half-dozen or so blog entries, you’ll see a picture of me at a Tampa Bay Buccaneers game. If you live in Tampa Bay, you’ve got to love football and the Bucs — there’s just no getting around it. This is definitely a football town, and Florida is a football state, for that matter.

But the truth is, I’m more of a baseball person. If you grow up in New England as I did, the Red Sox are almost a religion. If it’s summer, you’re following the Red Sox; if it’s winter, you’re talking about them.

But since we’ve been in Florida, we’ve done something of a baseball about-face, and now we follow the Devil Rays. And in just a couple of days (Friday to be exact), the season kicks off with picthers and catchers reporting for the beginning of Spring Training.

We’re excited. Not because the Devil Rays are likely to turn into winners (they have finished last in their division in every one of their nine years of existence), but because they are an exciting young team that is fun to watch.

The Rays are really just a bunch of kids — very few veterans and a whole bunch of young rookies. But they are loads of fun to watch and root for, and Tropicana Field is a comfortable and easy-to-get-to place to watch a baseball game. No, it isn’t Fenway Park — it’s sort of an ugly domed stadium with artificial grass. But the parking is pretty easy and the park is always 70 degrees, no matter what the weather is outside. And it never, ever rains.

(A few years ago I sold a condo to one of the young Rays minor leaguers. That was a real thrill!)

The Rays’ first workout is this Saturday at the Raymond A. Namoli Baseball Complex in St. Pete, starting at 9:30 a.m. The entire team is supposed to be on hand by Feb. 21.

This workout period is a good deal if you love baseball. Admission and parking are both free, and refreshments and souvenirs are available. The actual exhibition season starts March 2 with a game against the Yankees in Tampa, but you have to pay to attend those games.

Amyway, maybe we’ll see you at Tropicana Field this summer. It’s another great benefit to living here in Tampa Bay.

Tags: baseball, pinellas county, rays

Maybe doggie dining wasn’t such a great idea after all

Back a few months ago I posted a blog entry about a new Florida state law that allowed restaurants to let diners bring their dogs along. There were a number of restrictions — the local communities had to sign on to the bill, and the restaurants had to have outside dining facilities, for example — but a number of restaurants signed on.

One of the local restaurants was Moon Under Water in St. Petersburg. Plenty of Moon Under Water patrons started bringing their dogs along for lunch and dinner. (The dogs had to stay on the floor, but still…)

Well, things got a little out of hand at Moon Under Water. Lots and lots (and lots) of dog owners started bringing their dogs. People and their dogs lined up out on the sidewalk, waiting for tables. Dogs urinated (and worse) on the sidewalks. Some dog owners were outraged that their dogs had to stay on the floor, so arguments weren’t unusual.

So on Jan. 11, Moon Under Water changed its mind. No doggies allowed anymore.

Tags: dogs, pinellas county, restaurants

Hooray for Florida stone crabs!

If you like seafood, and you live in Florida (or at least visit on a regular basis), this may be one of your favorite times of the year — stone crab season. Between Oct. 15 and May 15, it is legal to harvest stone crabs from Florida’s waters, and they sure are good.

Actually, to be more accurate, it is legal to take stone crab CLAWS — it is not legal to keep the whole stone crab. You can trap the stone crab, pop off the claws if they are of legal size (”pop off” sounds a whole lot better than “tear off”, doesn’t it?) and then return the crab to the water. Stone crabs can regenerate their claws, and many do so four or five times over the span of their lives.

You can’t take females with eggs, and the claws have to be at least 2 3/4 inches across. It is legal to take both claws if they are of legal size, but many experts believe it is better to take just one, since the crab’s chances for survival are much better if one of the claws remains.

Every year at this time, Frenchy’s restaurants on Clearweater Beach (there are four of them) host a big stone crab festival. Frenchy’s Saltwater Cafe and Rockaway Grill (two of the four Frenchy’s restaurants) will have tents set up outside, and the live music will be throbbing and the beer will be flowing.

This will be Frenchy’s 22nd annual Stone Crab Weekend. It runs between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m. today through Sunday. You can learn more at their website, www.frenchysonline.com.

We don’t have a review of any of the Frenchy’s restaurants on our website yet, but I think the stone crab festival will be a good excuse to do one.

Tags: pinellas county, stond crabs