Jewels of the Emerald Coast

Friends are like jewels that bedeck our lives with sparkling conversation, glistening moments of happiness and enduring love. Much to our joy they are sprinkled about the country and we love to stop and visit, share a meal, exchange hugs and pass on new stories strewn with laughter.

We had not seen Evette Tanguay since the Pterodactyl Roost in Miami in 2001. She now lives in a nice home on a small lake in Panama City where we passed an afternoon with her and Jay reminiscing about their times in Puerto Rico, Mobile and Washington, D.C. when her husband, Joe, was Jay’s boss.

A friend of hers is on a vegan diet. When Evette learned that Chris was as well, she immediately called her friend. She and Chris shared the benefits of their vegan diet experiences and hoped that a similar commitment on Evette’s part would ease her arthritis pain.

The following day we again headed to Panama City for a visit with Chan Lipscom who had chartered Jay’s sailboat many years ago. Lana Williamson, his wife, is a photographer and he buys fixer-upper houses, renovates then sells them. One he bought last year, in a business district, was a perfect location for Lana’s photography studio. Months of renovation later, half of it houses a reception area and two separate portrait studios and the other half a hair salon. The idea is that portrait customers would get their hair and makeup done there prior to their photo session. During our tour he related the trials of the project but it all turned out so beautifully, who would know!

This is the building they renovated for Lana’s studio.

Lana joined us for lunch at a nearby waterfront restaurant where Jay got his meat fix for the week. Then Chan took us to another home he was renovating that was just about ready to put on the market. He said it was in pretty good shape when he bought it (read he didn’t have to empty the contents into a dumpster) so, painting, refinishing floors and upgrading the bathroom and kitchen was all that was needed. All in all, our visit with them was an interesting and enjoyable experience.

Jay, Chris, Lana and Chan in front of the studio.

Late in the afternoon, we said our goodbyes and headed to Grayton Beach and a rendezvous with Karen (pronounced car-en) Kolenberg, a friend of Chris’ from Maryland who moved to Freeport a few years ago. She and her boyfriend, Duane, were at an art festival kick-off party and had invited us along. We found them at an outdoor café listening to two musicians who took turns playing their own compositions; the man, a Cal Ripkin look-alike, played humorous country songs on guitar, and the woman, sad and soulful songs on an electric keyboard. At dusk we drove a short distance to the silky, white quartz sandy beach of the Emerald Coast to enjoy the soft breezes and sunset. Due to the recent heavy rains a dune pond had broken through the sand and a channel of brown water co-mingled with that of the clear, blue-green ocean. Workers were busy stretching an orange, floating oil barrier across the newly created channel to protect the pond from the impending Deepwater Horizon oil slick creeping toward the coast. Two heron waded through the shallow water, waiting patiently for their evening meal to blunder within striking distance, their silhouettes dark against the orange sky. Although we are boat people and not necessarily beach lovers, we understand why so many people are attracted to this area during their retirement years. It truly is a paradise.

Duane and Karen on the beach.

Sunday was Mother’s Day and Karen and Duane had invited us for brunch and a day at the Art Quest Festival in Seaside, a planned beach community of quaint, early 1900 Floridian style homes and condos painted in soft shades of yellow, blue, green and white. It was the 23^rd year of the festival and it attracted nationally accomplished artisans of all types from pottery to bronze sculpture to paintings in all mediums. Chris was inspired by the technique of capturing beach scenes by an exhibiting photographer. It was a subject matter that she had not been drawn to previously but now has some fresh ideas to try out.

Chris standing next to a painting she liked.

It became a six foot tall, 3-dimensional work of art because of the amount of paint the artist used.

We returned to Karen’s home and hopped on Duane’s jet boat for a cruise up the nearby river to a waterfront biker bar that hosts live music on Sunday afternoons. We arrived too late for the entertainment but enjoyed a nice boat ride on a gloriously beautiful day.