Saving the art gallery ...

Some days you just go along and everything is fine. Then, one day, someone sends you a note and says, "Hey, you might want to check this out." Lemme tell you. It's a good thing I did.

I went to the City Commission meeting on Tuesday night. I had written my little 3 minute speech. I had a beef, but, I'm working very hard at being diplomatic. It's quite challenging for a big mouth like me, but, I'm getting the hang of it.

I think.

The speech pretty much says it all. It took two minutes and 59 seconds to deliver it to the mayor and four commissioners ...

Tonight you will review a Staff Update on Lanier Parking. Under “unfinished business,” item d.2. on the report, is to “Remodel the Woman’s Club building” to accommodate the parking office. The estimated cost to do this “remodel” is $60,000.

I urge you to consider striking this item from the list. Here are a few reasons why, in no particular order. 

No. 1: I am certain this was NOT what the Woman’s Club had in mind when they deeded the property over to the City in 2011. It has served as a cultural center for nearly 50 years and it is on a path of resurgence to continue to serve as a cultural center, which is evident in the cultural activities that have been held there since July 2012.

No. 2: To remove the kitchen would SEVERLY limit the ability of the Woman’s Club building to serve as a rental facility. Generating revenue is essential to longevity of the building’s use as a cultural space. One of our Big Hairy Audacious Goals is to create a “small,” unique, art-filled space for rentals, including business seminars, art workshops, bridal & baby showers, family reunions and more. Not everyone needs a huge hall that will accommodate 200 people. However, the absence of a kitchen would essentially put the building out of business as a rental.

No. 3: I have been the biggest advocate there is for preservation of the Woman’s Club building since I first identified it as an underused public building, for everything from keeping the jalousie windows to preserving the bead board on the walls. I suspect the Historical Society will support me when I say that to violate the integrity of the building to create an office is a crime against historic preservation. The Woman’s Club was built by none other than Al Hagen, himself, and his wife was the club’s first president. There is historical significance in the building and it would be heartbreaking to see that destroyed to accommodate people paying their parking tickets.

I could go on, but I think you get the drift. 

Of the five options offered for consideration in the report, I was surprised that moving Lanier Parking’s office into the City Hall building wasn’t on that list. City Hall is close to the parking lot, provides ample parking during daytime business hours, the comings and goings of staff and visitors to a parking office would not be disruptive to other activities like they would be for, say, an art gallery, and the fiscal impact could be negligible. The City wouldn’t have to build anything or remodel anything. I don't know everything, but, it seems like a real no brainer to me.  As a taxpayer, it’s my money you’re spending, and I’m all for economically sound choices. Please. Choose wisely. Thank you.

if you build it, they will come

When the 'Public Speaking' part of the meeting closed, I went outside to speak with a friend before heading home. "Unfinished Business" was at the end of the agenda and it was late. We weren't outside two minutes and a man came out and said, "You better get in there. They're talking about your kitchen." My friend and I raced back in and took our seats as one commissioner commented that he was "very opposed to this idea."

One down. Four to go.

The next commissioner said he agreed with the first commissioner. Then, the mayor suggested other ways they might address the issue, which was to reduce parking costs and find a suitable place for the parking office. He was in agreement that the Woman's Club wasn't a suitable place.

Then, our newest commissioner ... well, let me just say I never heard him say he was opposed to using the Woman's Club. He did say he thought it was "important" for the parking office to be close to the parking for the Arts & Entertainment District (with so many bars and restaurants and not yet enough ART). As soon as the city posts the video from the meeting, I want to listen, again, to what he said. I believe this man has an agenda that isn't necessarily in the interest of the tax paying residents.

The last commissioner, the only woman on the panel, agreed that the Woman's Club should be taken off that list. When she spoke, I let out a huge sigh of relief. Four of the five heard my plea.

Now, I don't know if what I said had any influence on their decision. Usually politicians already have their minds made up about agenda items before the meeting even starts. Perhaps they had each decided beforehand that this wasn't a good idea. Regardless, I'm so happy they agreed with me.

And, tonight, Friday, the 13th of February, is the opening of a new show at the gallery with a delightful artist who is also a long time friend. She says she's bringing cupcakes and twinkies.

Hey! I'm ready!

Wilhelmina's 30+ Model Search

One of my Pinterest boards is titled "How To Age Gracefully." The added copy reads: "In our world of scientific discovery, we now know there are things we can do to be fit and healthy until we're a hundred-plus years old. Sadly, our culture doesn't yet embrace the wisdom and beauty of age. I've decided to help change that. That's what this board is all about."

I cannot begin to tell you what a challenge it is to find ways to shape the public's perception of aging. As a "baby boomer," I know I am accompanied by a large number of women who have successful careers, are healthy and physically fit, and who have accomplished many things in their lifetimes. The roles women of our generation have played are varied, to say the least. They have played the roles of wife, mother, professional, public servant, elected official, volunteer and artist, to name just a few, and, in some cases, these women have had more than one career. I'm a good example of that last one. I'm on career number three!

So, there I am with my 'aging gracefully' pin board, trying to find images AND content to convey how cool it really is to be older than 40 (and, it IS cooler!) and an e-mail from Wilhelmina's Model Agency lands in my mailbox touting the "30+ Model Search." I went to the web site to take a look, and decided to vote for Isa A., age 65, pictured here.

She says, when asked "why" she wants the job: "I would love the opportunity to model for Wilhelmina to show all the up-and-coming baby boomers how great it is to be comfortable in one's skin at a later age, and how wonderful it can be to keep reinventing ourselves. We CAN stay healthy, sexy, intelligent, and confident, all with a great attitude."

Her words got my vote as much as her looks did. However, I do have a beef with Wilhelmina's Model Agency. As I paged through the 30 "semi-finalists," it seemed that the majority of them were 30-something. So. I counted. Sixteen are 30-to-39. Seven are 40-to-49. Five are in their fifties. Two, including Isa A., are in their 60s. Isa is the oldest, although I didn't know that when I voted for her. I like her style and she spoke to my generation, which is what I thought this was all about. Clearly, I was wrong.

To put women in their thirties and forties next to women in their fifties and sixties is not a good comparison. They are in two very different life stages. I can hear you out there, asking how the heck I know this! Because .... because, I have been those other ages and I remember very clearly where I was at 34 or 45 ...

Age 34

Age 45

Age 52

Age 60

For one thing, I was still wearing a bikini. Right up to my 55th birthday!

Then menopause arrived, as it is prone to do to women of a "certain age."

And, I'm thinking that this is where the rub comes in.

Hormones dictate so much in the lives of women. As adolescents entering puberty, our hormones are raging and all we can think about is how we look and what boys (and, other girls) think of us.

Around the late 20s and early 30s, we begin to stabilize and become focused on things like career and/or family. And, we pretty much stay stable until sometime in our late 40s and early 50s when we move into the menopause phase. (Which, by the way, is much like adolescence, occurring over a period of years!)

Finally, we get to what I affectionately refer to as the "Fuck You Fifties," because it is here, at this point in life, that we begin to accept ourselves and become truly comfortable in our own skin. And, it's not like we have a choice in the matter! Aging is something all of us must do.




Our mothers aged differently than we are doing. As "boomers," we have had the advantages of good nutrition and medical research, and we have reaped the benefits of multiple fitness programs. Whether you walk, swim, ride a bike, dance or hike, you've got to keep moving! Use it or lose it is really, truly true. Using our bodies is what keeps us youthful, in more ways than one!

I take issue with Wilhelmina's 30+ Model Search. Like the MORE Magazine Beauty Searches of years past, it was all about helping us to like ourselves once we moved past 40 years old. The fifties have been a mish-mash of media trying to adjust to women who won't go away, who still participate in all that life has to offer. Today, 10,000 "baby boomers" reaches 65 every day! EVERY SINGLE DAY for the next 19 years! So we are definitely a force to be reckoned with! (Marketers, pay attention!) And, I truly believe it is up to us to change the perceptions of aging we share in this culture we live in ~ to shape it so that younger women can see that there is so much to look forward to. Life is not over at 30. Or 40. Or 50! It's just beginning.

Like Isa said, "We CAN stay healthy, sexy, intelligent and confident, all with great attitude!" I don't know how to get that message to Wilhelmina's Model Agency unless I can scream it from the rooftops of New York City! Or, maybe, just here on my little blog and on my Pinterest "How To Age Gracefully" pin board. If you share my feelings on this subject, please! Chime in! Share! It's OK to age. It happens to all of us. We're not finished yet. So, don't act like we are!