I am what is called a transplant…

Okay, I am here…thank you for the cold soda….it has been hot and humid…here in Florida we have 4 seasons- 1) snowbird, 2) love bug, 3) surface of the sun, 4) hurricane…I am what is called a transplant…this is a person who was not born here, but has moved here and refuses to leave…


I started out in Massachusetts…my dad owned a horse farm (over 500 head) in a small town called Mansfield…mom was a teacher in North Attleboro and then Sharon…we then moved to Norton…my world changed…mom was still teaching…dad went to work for Fernandez Supermarkets and then for the Paul Deva State School for the mentally handicapped…Grandma and Grandpa were in Maine…Auntie was in New Hampshire then she moved to Foxboro…New England was my playground…what a great place to grow up…I was taught the country way…it gave me strength

At 18, with new baby in hand, I moved to Millington…Tennessee was very beautiful …my husband had changed into a hardcore drunk…my son came down with whooping cough shortly after we arrived and I was alone…my husband brought home a roommate, Mark…he was from Ohio…my neighbor Sandy, from Texas…what great people…they helped keep me busy and safe from my abusive husband…I learned it was not where you were from that made you a good person

From there I moved to Virginiabeach…this is when I learned what I was made from…I love Virginia…though I will probably never set foot there again…I met so many very fine people and was blessed with 34 out of the 38 children that were entrusted to me…it is also the place that many horrid things happened to me…a bitter/sweet thing…during these many years, I had moved back to Massachusetts a few times…neither place seemed to be me anymore…I went on the road

Booking bands took me all over the country…I learned a deep love for this country and the people in it…every mile spun by…I looked in every town I passed through…nothing seemed to fit…I was blessed again with many wonderful friends and adventures that I will carry forever …

When I arrived here in Florida…I came across the I95 Georgia border…it was crazy…it was wild…I went across a bridge to see a homeless person in couture fashion… I stopped at the first bar to have the owner sign some papers…there was a news story about an iguana being pulled over on suspicion of a DUI…at this point my life was unwinding from a huge horror show…for the first time in ages, I felt like I belonged…I quit booking bands…I got 3 jobs and sent for the kids…I felt safe…life started to slow down…many from my past have tried to come here to hurt me…I was blessed with fabulous friends and governors and the bastards were sent packing…my first license in this state was given under court order…I continued to work hard…I met a nice man…when we met, he had never been married or had children…he was from New York City and had never been to the country…we got married…he got me, the twins and my pit, Cosmo…soon we were looking to buy a house…my parents, I, the twins and assorted animals dragged him out to the country…poor thing…I think he was freaked out for the first few years…I love Florida…alligators knocking on peoples doors…manatees swimming up from behind you…birds of every size and color…year round growing season…flowers and fruit are abundant…being here isn’t just living, it is peace to both my mind and soul…It is here I learned to grow…

When I was diving I got a sinus infection and older Jamaican woman made this for me…I was right as rain the next day…I wrote it down and have used it several times since…it is good for the flu or a cold…without the rum, if you put it over ice, it is an immune booster…

Jamaican Hibiscus Drink

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 8 cups water

• 2 cups dried hibiscus blossoms (Find in Jamaican or Mexican markets; sometimes called sorrel blossoms)

• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

• 1 cup sugar, or to taste

• Jamaican rum (optional)

Preparation:

In a 4 quart stainless steel pot, bring the water to a boil. Add the hibiscus and ginger, simmer for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat, then cover and steep for 4 hours. Strain and sweeten with sugar to taste. Chill and serve over ice, can be served with good rum, the amount according to your taste.

Yield: 2 quarts

Life is good…make time to enjoy it…

Blessed Be