Welcome to Downtown Fort Walton Beach
This blog is no longer active!
Check out the latest at :
www.downtownfwb.com
https://www.facebook.com/DowntownFWB
Check out the latest at :
www.downtownfwb.com
https://www.facebook.com/DowntownFWB
Monday, January 31, 2011
On The Move in Downtown Fort Walton
Things are changing quickly downtown.
Welcome to The Fountain Square:
Mission Statement: The goal of the Northwest Florida Arts Association is to bring a fresh venue to the artists of Northwest Florida to network, collaborate, teach, and exhibit their work. We hope to enrich our community by providing opportunities for creative and personal growth to artists in all media types. Also, we hope to educate the public regarding art in all its forms as well as encourage the public to join us in classes, demostrations, workshops, and lectures on a variety of art topics.
See their website for future classes including:
Photo Shop
Photography
Mosaics
Painting
Sculpture
and More
Best Bet is proud to be giving people an opportunity to use less gas while having a blast. Ebikes are the shiggity! So get yours now and join the Ebike Club!www.bestbetbikes.com
Piper is back downtown painting and making jewelry in her old location now "Northwest Florida Arts Association" Art Lair. Her work will be featured at Carolina Cigars and Artesano.
Watch for upcoming classes to be announced soon!
Email: pipergaffrey@gmail.com
Welcome Liz Fashions
Next Door to Hugs and Hissyfits!
OPEN NOW
Few businesses closed their doors after the BP Oil Invasion others have expanded their businesses.
Look for their new storefronts on Miracle Strip Parkway!
Be apart of the changes!
Space available @ The Fountain Square
Bar, Retail, Office and More!
Call Piper Gaffrey 850-259-1854
pipergaffrey@gmail.com
ALL YOU CAN EAT AND DRINK $45 FOR SUPERBOWL
ALL YOU CAN EAT AND DRINK $45 FOR SUPERBOWL
$19 FOR ALL YOU CAN EAT
RESERVE YOUR TABLE TODAY
850-244-6666
Bring Fokker's food to your friend's house for Superbowl and they will never forget to invite you to a party. Trays of wings, meatballs, mostaccioli, or just bring pizza!!!!
Order ahead so it is ready when you are!!!
Call us today to find out how reasonable it is!!
850-244-6666
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Okaloosa County will come out of recession faster than the rest of U.S., economist says
January 26, 2011 7:11 PM
Daily News
OKALOOSA ISLAND — The United States may be slow to recover from the recession, but a local economist projects Okaloosa County will experience what would normally be 10 years of growth in the next two years.
Rick Harper, interim director of the Office of Economic Development and Engagement at the University of West Florida, was one of the guest speakers Wednesday at the Economic Development Council of Okaloosa County’s annual Military-Community Sustainability Forum. The forum is designed to provide an avenue for community and military leaders to share their plans and address issues that affect them.
“I expect this to be a year of unprecedented growth for Okaloosa County,” Harper said. “If you simply look at the jobs that we’re expecting, just the positive shot to the local economy that results from the BRAC relocations, from the announced arrival of Vision Airlines serving over 20 destinations, that’s about a 10 percent bump in direct employment in the area.
“We’re going to be growing rapidly and the challenge once again as we look back to the last decade is going to be how do we manage that growth effectively and how to turn it to the benefit of those who live in the community and meet our missions?” he added.
Harper said Vision Airlines will have a huge impact on the tourism market in Okaloosa and South Walton County.
Southwest and Delta airlines provided a 7.9 percent increase in tourism for Panama City after last year’s opening of Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport, which added 1,100 new seats flying into Bay County every day. Harper said Vision Airlines’ increase is more than four times that amount.
“The economic future is bright. It’s happening in 2011 and it’s going to put us back on the path we should have been on if not for the oil spill,” Harper said.
Wednesday’s forum also included a panel discussion that featured some of the top commanders at Eglin Air Force Base, Hurlburt Field and Naval Air Station Whiting Field.
Construction of the cantonment south of Crestview for the Army 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) is ahead of schedule.
“A lot of people ask me when 7th Special Forces is going to get here,” said Lt. Col. Martin Schmidt with the Special Forces. “When are we coming? Really, we’re here.”
Schmidt said 103 soldiers of the 1,887 in the group already have been assigned to Eglin. Between 70 and 80 soldiers will arrive in April, and starting May 1 between 90 and 150 soldiers and their families a week will be relocated to the area. That will continue until the move is completed Sept. 15.
Schmidt said the 7th Special Forces Group will add a fourth battalion in the near future. That will mean a total of 2,247 troops and 6,000 dependents in the region.
Marine Col. Arthur Tomassetti, vice commander of the 33rd Fighter Wing, also gave an update on the delayed F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. At the same event last year, Tomassetti said the first two fighters were expected at Eglin last fall.
Tomassetti said Eglin now expects to have 10 to 14 fighter jets on base and be ready to fly by the end of the year.
“We’ve got the right people on our team to deal with those changes and handle them,” Tomassetti said. “Things will be a little different than what we thought they’d be, but that’s OK because we’re still going to do it smart, we’re still going to do it safe and we’re still going to do it right.”
Naval Air Station Whiting Field also is getting new aircraft. It is replacing its aging T-34C Turbo Men-tor fleet with 150 Beechcraft T-6 Texan IIs. Capt. Pete Hall said Whiting Field already has 54 of the planes and will receive about one a week for close to two years.
“We needed this aircraft and it’s coming to us one at a time,” Hall said.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Massage by Wendy @ Run With It
Wendy Ballasch, BS, LMT Lic.# MA31025
Massage should be a necessity and not a luxury
(850)543-4756
www.therapeutichealingmassages.com
majicfngers73@yahoo.com
13+ Years experience
Deep Tissue – Sports – Relaxation – Chair Massage
2004 Olympics – Ironman – Gulf Coast Triathlon
Located inside Run With It
142 Miracle Strip Pkwy SE
Ft. Walton Beach, FL 32548
$75 – 90 Minute Massage
$50 – 60 Minute Massage
$30 – 30 Minute Massage
$10 Extra for Hot Stone Massage
$15 – 15 Minute Sports Massage
$10 – Paraffin Treatment for Hands
$15 – Paraffin Treatment for Feet
Tuesday Night Special
15 Minute Sports Massage for $10
*Discounts available for teachers, law enforcement, fire fighters, EMS, and military
Northwest Florida Arts Association
January 2011
NORTHWEST FLORIDA ARTS ASSOCIATION
Welcome to the January newsletter. We’ve been busy since our last newsletter. The Art Lair is no longer at the Santa Rosa Mall. Happy to say, we have found a new permanent space at Fountain Square in downtown Fort Walton Beach. Instead of opening only weekends, we will now also be opened during the week. Hours will be posted on the website soon. If you would like to volunteer at the Art Lair, please email me.
The first gallery show is “Stealing Picasso.” Artwork is due on Saturday, February 12 and the show opens Friday, February 18. Find the entire year’s gallery show schedule in this newsletter and on the website. The class/workshop schedule is still being posted on
the website. The last page of this newsletter has a list of the schedule so far. If you have any ideas, or would like to teach, a future class or workshop, please email me at nwflaa@gmail.com.
We’ve also added a pay pal option to the site so classes, etc. can be paid for on the website. You don’t need to have a pay pal account to use this option.
Welcome to new members: Megan Long, Angel
Agagas, Charles McCanty, and Piper Gaffrey.
Until next time....
Holly
PO Box 5811
Navarre, FL 32566
nwflaa.com
nwflaa@gmail.com
BOOK CLUB SELECTION
The Private Lives of the Impressionists
by Sue Roe
Paperback, 368pp
Barnes & Noble – $12.34
Brief Synopsis –”In a vivid and moving narrative, biographer Sue
Roe shows the Impressionists in the studios of Paris, rural lanes
of Montmartre and rowdy riverside bars as Paris underwent Baron Haussmann's spectacular transformation. For more than twenty years they lived and worked together as a group, struggling to rebuild their lives after the Franco-Prussian War and supporting one another through shocked public reactions to unfamiliar canvases depicting laundresses, dancers, spring blossoms and boating scenes.”
Barnes & Noble has an online coupon for 10% off a single
purchase. Use code BNEBATE
2011 Gallery Shows
Stealing Picasso
Opening Reception - Friday, February 18, 2011 - 6pm - 8pm
Drop Off Work - Saturday, February 12, 2011 - 10am -1pm
____________________
Retro Photo
(Only open to Pin-Hole Camera Workshop participants.)
Opening Reception - Friday, March 18, 2011 - 6pm-8pm
Drop Off Work - Tuesday, March 15, 2011
____________________
Kite Show
Opening Reception - Friday, April 15, 2011 - 6pm - 8pm
Drop Off Work - Saturday, April 9, 2011 - 10am - 1pm
____________________
Stuck in Monochrome
Opening Reception - Friday, May 13, 2011 - 6pm - 8pm
Drop Off Work - Saturday, May 7, 2011 - 10am - 1pm
____________________
Survivor Photography Winner's Show
Opening Reception - Friday, June 17, 2011 - 6pm - 8pm
____________________
Can You Dig It?
Opening Reception - Friday, July 15, 2011 - 6pm - 8pm
Drop Off Work - Saturday, July 9, 2011 - 10am - 1pm
____________________
Technomania
Opening Reception - Friday, August 12, 2011 - 6pm - 8pm
Drop Off Work - Saturday, August 6, 2011 - 10am - 1pm
____________________
Clowns, Clowns, & More Clowns!
Opening Reception - Friday, September 9, 2011
Drop Off Work - Saturday, September 2, 2011 - 10am - 1pm
____________________
Graffiti
Opening Reception - Friday, October 7, 2011 - 6pm - 8pm
Drop Off Work - Saturday, October 1, 2011 - 10am - 1pm
____________________
In Your Dreams
Opening Reception - Friday, November 4, 2011 - 6pm - 8pm
Drop Off Work - Saturday, October 29, 2011 - 10am - 1pm
____________________
Video Rewind
Opening Reception - Friday, December 9, 2011 - 6pm - 8pm
Drop Off Work - Saturday, December 3, 2011 - 10am-1pm
Download Rules and Entry Forms at nwflaa.com
Workshops & Classes
February
Photoshop
Pinhole Camera
March
Bird Bath Mosaic
Web Design
Cartooning
Let’s Make Puppets
Time Traveling Artist
April
Photoshop
Let’s Make Kites
Pen & Ink
Making of Yin
________________
Book Group
Book Group will meet, at the Art Lair, on the last Thursday of
the month at 6pm unless there is a conflict in the schedule.
_________________
Life Drawing
We would like to start life drawing classes at night. If anyone is interested or knows anyone who would be interested in modeling, please email nwflaa@gmail.com.
__________________________
Survivor Photography
Survivor Photography is a photography competition based on the Survivor TV show premise. Each week, two photographers get voted out of t h e c omp e t i t i o n . T h e application deadline is March
10, 2011. The rules and entry form will be posted this week on
the website.
_____________________
Classes
Right now, all of our classes and workshops are on the
weekend. Would anyone be interested in having classes at
night? During the weekday?
Let us know.
Members Meeting
Member’s Meetings will resume in March. We plan to
have a speaker and cater each meeting. Ideas for speakers or
demonstrations, please email us at nwflaa@gmail.com.
______________________
Membership Renewal
For those of you who joined in November 2009, December
2009, and January 2010, you probably have already received
your reminder postcards. It is t i m e t o r e - n e w y o u r
membership. You can renew your membership online or
through the mail. February renewal postcards will be sent
out this week.
http://nwflaa.com/public_files/january_2011.pdf
Thursday, January 20, 2011
"Passage" a photo exhibition by Jennifer Diaz
We would like to invite you to an exhibit at the Full Circle Gallery. Photographer Jennifer Diaz presents her solo show “Passage” held February 12 - April 10, 2011 at Full Circle Gallery in Fort Walton Beach, FL. The opening reception is on Saturday, February 12th from 6:00pm-9:00pm. “Passage” features a photo collection reflecting the artist’s view of the simple details in a complex world.
Jennifer Diaz’s exhibition focuses o...n the passage of time in relation to simple items often overlooked, due to life’s distractions. Her focus on minute details along with the method in which she chooses to frame her subject matter, gives her audience a micro and fragmented view. This leaves viewers wondering and imagining what makes up the rest of the scene. Jennifer’s work also shows us the beauty of change resulting from natural decomposition. Example pieces include: a water droplet falling from an aged faucet and an air conditioner slowly consumed by the progressive growth of petals and vines. The intrigue of Jennifer’s work lies in her perception of mundane and, some might say, unsightly objects. Jennifer says of her work, “I shine a light on natural beauty and detailed complexity that others may not be able to see.”
While Jennifer’s works are derived from her personal experiences of growing up in Miami, caring for her ailing grandfather, and most recently her travels as a member of the United States Air Force, they are also open to individual interpretation. SHOTS FOR A GOOD CAUSE!
Monday, January 10, 2011
Greetings from Gaia's Garden
Garden Greetings,
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Where does time go? It seems like it was just yesterday when I sent out the December newsletter. I have had family in for the holidays and I have lost all track of time. It was great to see the grandkids again … I’m liking the ability to visit them whenever I feel I need to and not worry about someone watching the shop, etc. The gardens at home are still a mess but we are slowly working on each area. We are in the process of getting the pond liner in the ground so that we can determine where we will put the gazebo so we can install the pavers. I am excited about my vision … it’s the hard work that I dread a little bit BUT it’s soooo worth it! Still planning on Spring to provide garden tours and classes.
I just got a care package from our foreign exchange student we had last year … it’s all sorts of candy … licorice, Milka chocolate, and gummy animals. What I love about European sweets is that they are made with actual S-U-G-A-R and not high-fructose corn syrup, which isn’t all that great because it’s cane sugar, but so much better than corn sweetner. If you are concerned with where your food comes from and what may be in it Gaia’s Natural Foods (GNF) provides the health-conscious consumer safe, beneficial, and healthy foods grown locally. MEMBERSHIP is OPEN! We have a plethora of offerings … pastured eggs (chicken and duck), dairy products (dairy and goat), grass-fed, free-range meats (beef, lamb, pork, and goat), pastured poultry (chicken and turkey), and local honey. We have access to organic bulk goods, natural household cleaners and personal care items as well. We continue to make local farm visits to keep the bounty coming. Membership is $50.00 per year to enjoy wholesale pricing on GNF’s offerings. Why settle for a preselected box when you can custom order the products you love.
I’m getting the knack of preparing different recipes with our local produce, to the point that I am pondering the idea of writing a local foods cookbook with tidbits of information on sustainable living along with recipes. I was standing in the kitchen with a pile of turnip and rutabaga roots wondering what I could make to take to our monthly local foods potluck and movie (2nd Tuesday of the month at Fountain Square in FWB). So I thought, “Well people substitute turnips for potatoes when mashing.” so they should taste good in a milk base of some sort. Then my little brain thought why don’t I make a milk roux (gravy) and make them like scalloped potatoes but use the turnip and rutabaga instead. I got busy making the dish and took it to my meeting. It could go either way - they’d totally hate it and I wouldn’t ever make it again or they’d like it. To my delight, they were such a hit I brought an empty dish home! Another time I sat with leftover turkey from the roasted pastured turkey we had when the kids where here and fresh goat cheese. Again my little brain thought to brown the turkey in a butter garlic sauce and serve over spinach fettuccini – delicious! I plan on making it for this month’s local foods potluck on Tuesday! Along with some mustard greens that I have learned I like as long as the leaves are torn/cut up well. So I’m experimenting and experiencing the ultimate in local food cooking from canning and freezing while there is abundance to growing seasonal crops myself to making up dishes with what is available in our area.
As I’ve written before, we have closed our physical store location … BUT hope to entice you to our online store for your shopping needs … we offer an eclectic mix of items that will surprise you! We have many ordinary and not so ordinary gift items for the gardener as well as non-gardeners alike. Be sure to bookmark our website: www.gaiasgarden-n-gallery.com and check back often as we are revamping it to make it more informative, easier to shop, and have better access to up- to-date information on issues we feel are very important to us and our planet.
January Gardening Tips*:
DECIDUOUS FRUITS. Blueberries Need Acidic Soil: Of all the fruit plants, only one has to have a very acidic soil. Have your soil tested if you are planning to grow blueberries. If it’s not in the 4.5 to 5.2 pH range you may not be able to grow this crop. Soil test kits are available in our online so that you can check your soil pH on your own. If you’d rather we also have soil test kits that can be mailed off to UF, for a small fee, for a complete soil analysis and recommendation for your planting area.
Adjust the soil pH to the acid level with soil sulfur as recommended by the soil test.
Spread the sulfur over the soil and till it in 4 to 6 inches. The sulfur takes several months to make the pH change, but the blueberries can be planted while it adjusts the acidity.
Have the soil pH-tested in 3 or 4 months. If needed, reapply the sulfur.
Use an acid-loving fertilizer to help keep the soil acid. There are often sold as azalea-camellia fertilizers.
Some soils have the ability to resist pH change. These may not be good blueberry areas.
HERBS & VEGETABLES. Quick Cold Protection: Most cool season vegetables are tolerant to frost and light freezes, but what to do when heavy freezes are forecast? What about warm season crops that are still producing? A little protection may be all that is needed. Below are some ways to save your plantings.
Cover rows with newspaper then add a layer of plastic.
Spread sheets or blankets over the crops. They have to touch the ground to be effective.
Break open a bale of have and scatter it over the crops to keep out the cold.
Turn off all water. Irrigation is used by professionals, but home gardeners cannot provide enough water uniformly over plants to take advantage of this technique.
Build a tent over especially cold sensitive plants and add outdoor approved electric light as a heat source.
CITRUS. Quick Control of Winter Damage: Home gardeners are much luckier than grove owners. They can wait until the cold warnings are sounded to protect their trees from possible freezes. Most citrus trees are quite cold tolerant until temperatures drop into the upper 20s Fahrenheit. Then some protection is needed. Only lemons and limes will need protection when temperatures are expected to drop to 30 degrees. Just a mound of soil may be all that is needed to protect the budded area of the tree and lower trunk. The soil provides insulation that prevents the cold from reaching the trunk.
Use any available soil in the landscape.
Form a foot high or higher mound around the base of the tree.
Create the mound a day or two before the cold if possible.
Leave the mound in place until all threats of cold are over.
Unfortunately, mounds of soil do not protect the upper portions of the tree. Any part of the tree could be damaged. But if you protect the base where the graft union is located, a damaged tree can regrow limbs of the desirable variety so you won’t have to plant another tree.
*Taken from Month-by-Month Gardening in Florida.
January Green Ideas:
CARS – When buying a new car, make sure that it’s better for the environment than the last one. And even ask yourself whether you need a new car at all.
CHOOSE THE SMALLEST CAR AND ENGINE – that will meet your everyday needs. Look for the car with lowest emissions in your chosen category, and save money on both fuel and tax.
BUY AN ELECTRIC CAR – If you charge it from a renewable electricity supply, it will produce 97% fewer emissions that a gas-powered counterpart. Small electric cars average the equivalent of 600 mpg, but their battery technology limits the range to around 50 miles with today’s ability.
BEST OF BOTH WORLDS – Try a hybrid car for a balance between efficiency and range. Hybrids are powered by an electric battery at low speeds and gas at higher speeds. The battery is recharged using the kinetic energy produced when you apply the brakes or travel downhill.
WHATEVER CAR YOU CHOOSE – make a pledge to use it less and share it more.
THE LEASE BAD OPTION – Strictly speaking, there’s no such thing as a “green car” – even the most efficient model takes a great deal of resources and energy to make and requires an environmentally damaging infrastructure of roads and parking lots. The Norwegian government feels so strongly about this that they have banned advertisements that focus on cars’ green credentials, pointing out that “cars cannot do anything good for the environment except less damage than others.”
Did you know?
- Minimize add-ons such as global positioning systems (GPS) – they can add to your car’s weight and/or sap its battery, both of which lead to reduced fuel efficiency.
- You can save a ton of CO2 every year if your new car is just 2 mpg gallon more efficient than your current one.
- Large SUVs take 50% more energy to manufacture and produce around 80% more CO2 per mile than the average car.
- Choose a model with manual transmission if you follow the principles of eco-driving, manual models tend to be more fuel efficient than automatics.
- A stop-start system, which switches off your car’s engine whenever you stop and uses electricity from the battery to move forward again, can increase mpg by up to 15%.
- Hybrid and electric cars attract income tax breaks in the US and are exempt from the congestion charge in London.
*Taken from Yarrow, Joanna (2008). How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint. Duncan Baird Publishers: London
Happy Gardening!
Gaia's Garden'n Gallery & Gaia’s Natural Foods
125 Scottsdale Court * Mary Esther FL 32569
850.863.4040 PH & FAX
www.gaiasgarden-n-gallery.com * info@gaiasgarden-n-gallery.com
125 Scottsdale Court * Mary Esther FL 32569
850.863.4040 PH & FAX
www.gaiasgarden-n-gallery.com * info@gaiasgarden-n-gallery.com
You are receiving this notice because you either signed up for our newsletter or we felt you'd like to be informed of our progress as we travel this new venture. If you wish to stop receiving notices from us please reply to this newsletter and type "REMOVE" in the subject line and we will remove you from our list. Thank you.
LADIES NIGHT
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Sunday, January 2, 2011
"GROWING LOCAL - The Truth About YOUR Food"
Hello EAT LOCAL friends!...new year, new traditions...
Let's continue our monthly tradition of gathering together to share food and watch another great film!!!
The film this month will be "No Impact Man" Colin Beavan decides to completely eliminate his personal impact on the environment for the next year. No problem – at least for Colin – but he and his family live in Manhattan. So when his espresso-guzzling, retail-worshipping wife Michelle and their two-year-old daughter are dragged into the fray, the No Impact Project has an unforeseen impact of its own. TUESDAY, January 11 @ Artesano Jewelry and Gallery Fountain Square, DWNT FWB EAT LOCAL 5PM * MOVIE 6:30
We will hang out and eat yummy food from 5:00-6:00ish, then together clean up and and get ready for the movie which will start promptly at 6:30.
Remember, this is a POTLUCK - so, please bring a food (with serving utensils) or beverage to share featuring local/regional foods.
And it would be
great if you could bring plates and cups for your own use, Remember the idea is to reduce your impact!
Here's a reminder on our food guidelines:The main portion of any dish should be from local or regional ingredients grown or harvested in Florida, Georgia, or Alabama. For example, zucchini bread should be made with zucchini that's as local as possible. But the flour, eggs, and other ingredients could be from anywhere, though if you can get them local--or organic—all the better. Any meat should be from organic or free-range animals. And yes, harvested can include wild plants, nuts, fish or game.
Here is a list of what's available in town:
Gaia's Natural Foods
http://www.gaiasgarden-n-gallery.comand don't forget about...
Seaside Farmer's Market!!THIS (and every) SATURDAY
9am - 1:00pm
- chicken and duck eggs
- whole chicken
- milk, cream, butter
- honey
- kiwis
- greens, kale, napa cabbage, mixed salad greens
- sweet potatoes
- turnips
(just to name a few...)
Palafox Market, Downtown Pensacola www.palafoxmarket.com
Saturdays 8-2
Ever'man Natural Foods
315 W. Garden St
Pensacola
www.everman.org
Palafox Market, Downtown Pensacola www.palafoxmarket.com
Saturdays 8-2
Ever'man Natural Foods
315 W. Garden St
Pensacola
www.everman.org
come see what everyone has this weekend!!!
Feel free to forward this to anyone who has the passion for eating locally...
And as always, we encourage you to walk, ride your bike, or carpool to the potluck!
And as always, we encourage you to walk, ride your bike, or carpool to the potluck!
If anyone has
any questions, needs directions, or just wants to say hello please don't hesitate to call!
Looking forward to it!
Thanks you,
Nikki Lyons and Jon Via
Artesano Jewels
850-244-5922
artesanojewels@yahoo.com