It's a most wonderful time of the year! We hope to see you at the Lighted Boat Parade

Yes, we DO have some of the best beaches anywhere and we're glad the interns noticed

So now that the weather is a little cooler and the sun isn't beating down as hard and the snowbirds haven't arrived yet, the beaches are a terrific place to be. Those facts weren't lost on the folks at the Tampa Bay Times. The editors sent out some of their interns to write about the beaches. Imagine? Well, several of our favorite nearby beaches made the cut. Here's a first-rate article that tells what the folks who live here already know: we have some darned fine beaches in St. Pete Beach, Pass-a-Grille, Fort de Soto Park, and Shell Key. Technology being what it is today, they even took a drone along and got some beautiful video and photos of our favorite beaches. Enjoy!

Bruno Falkenstein's mission is to protect those sea turtle nests along St. Pete Beach

By now Bruno Falkenstein is a legend in Pass-a-Grille but it's always nice to see another write-up about his efforts to protect the sea turtles that nest along the beach. The latest is a feature in the Beach Beacon about him and the organization he created awhile back called the Sea Turtle Trackers. The photo above is from an earlier article from WUSF News. Bruno has been diligently trekking up and down the beach for years seeing to it that the turtles are safe and the nests are marked and not disturbed. Everybody in Pass-a-Grille knows Bruno, and if they just moved here they're going to get to know him pretty quickly. All the best to Bruno and the Sea Turtle Trackers.

Pass-a-Grille gets a little Grace and Times' Laura Riley likes it a lot. Better try it out.

So Laura Riley, the Tampa Bay Times food critic, had positively glowing things to say about Tierra Verde's Lisa Masterson and Marlin Kaplan (previously of Cleveland) and their brand new Pass-a-Grille restaurant called Grace. Laura is pretty discerning, so we're intrigued and can't wait to go try out. It's in the space that the Italian restaurant Su Ottavo and also where Vida de Cafe was, so it has plenty of space. The photos of dishes that accompany the review look scrumptious. It'll probably be worth the trip, even over all that seemingly unending construction work on Pass-a-Grille Way. (Hey, eventually it'll be over. We heard January, so that's not that far away). Anyway, check out the review and we'll see you at Grace.

Always great to see the TripAdvisor reviews but sometimes they confuse us

We love that TripAdvisor readers are always doing reviews of one of our favorite places, Pass-a-Grille but sometimes the reviews cause us to do a double take. Latest example, there's a recent review that waxes eloquently about the most appealing aspect of the beach: "Beautiful, clear green, warm waters and a variety of shells for keepsakes make this a lovely place for a lovely day," it said. The review rightly mentioned the ongoing road construction work, and suggested parking near The Hurricane. What struck us as a bit strange, though, was the headline. It said: "Aloha, Pass-a-Grille." Maybe we're making too much of this but nowhere in the review was there any reference to Hawaii. Nor would such a reference be appropriate. Pass-a-Grille is nothing like Hawaii. So the headline threw us for a loop. Still, it's nice to see the kind words about one of the most wonderful places around.

It's still important to learn about the place where you live. What are you doing?

Those who read us regularly know that we never pass up a chance to tell a little bit about our community history. We believe that knowing what came before in the place where you live is essential. So when we spotted the latest in the series that The Gabber has been running about the history of the beaches, especially Pass-a-Grille, we couldn't resist. This is the first  Pass-a-Grille Yacht Club. It was built in 1934. Click over to the article to learn more. And do everything you can to learn about our area's history. If you're already doing that, share with us what you're doing.  You can write in the comments below.

Holiday wishes from our family to yours: Have a very happy and safe Fourth of July

We want to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very happy and safe Fourth of July. This is always a very special time of the year, made more so by the wonderful people who live in our community.

It gladdens our heart to see our friends and neighbors coming together celebrate our nation's humble beginnings. We love flags, and red, white, and blue bunting, and all the crazy get-ups people put on to help celebrate. Some of the are quite clever and quite stunning.

It's a time that families come together and enjoy each other and delicious food. Our wish for you is that you avail yourself of the opportunity to look around and reflect, if only for a moment, on the great gifts this country offers us all, and the special gifts our our friends and family. Accompanying this post is a photo from last year's festivities from The Gabber. That reminds us about the nice article detailing Gulfport's holiday plans. There's also a photograph of fireworks from a previous year's celebration. It's from the Tampa Bay Times, which also had a nice article highlighting all the fireworks displays in the Tampa Bay area.

We're sure they're going to be spectacular no matter where they are. We know a lot of people who are happy to stay right in Gulfport and enjoy the festivities close to home. From our family to yours, have a happy and safe Fourth of July.

Metro Tampa Bay magazine features an amazing restored 1925 Pass-a-Grille home

We've always had a special place in our heart for Pass-a-Grille, that quiet little beach community nestled comfortably between the Gulf of Mexico and Boca Ciega Bay at the far southern end of St. Pete Beach. And, of course, we just love anything having to do with the history of our area. So when you combine the two, it's impossible to ignore. That's why we just had to tell  you about the fascinating article by Mary Lou Janson in Metro Tampa Bay magazine. It's accompanied by stunning photographs by Amy Lamb. It's the story of a loving renovation of a 1925 house designed by the man who designed the Don Cesar resort hotel. You really need to click on the link and read the story and click through all the beautiful photographs. You'll have even more reason to love Pass-a-Grille, and you'll probably learn a little bit about the community we live in.

It's nice to be noticed in out-of-town papers. It reminds us how truly fortunate we are.

Did you happen to see the nice write-up in the Palm Beach Post about what wonderful place St. Pete Beach (and especially Pass-a-Grille) is to visit? Probably not, unless you're a news junkie or you had a reason to be hanging out in Palm Beach on Friday. We're always happy when the out-of-town media discover parts of our local community, and the joys they hold. Serves to remind us just how truly fortunate we are. The article was by Jan Tuckwood, who is evidently spending the summer driving along the Gulf of Mexico visiting little towns and writing about them. (Great work if you can get it.) What's more, Ms. Tuckwood seems to be going in style in a 15-year-old yellow Benz roadster. Has as "road trip" written all over it. (Not literally.) The article mentions The Don, and TradeWinds (shown above), and the Postcard Inn and Guy Harvey's Outpost, which seemed to be the writer's favorite (worth the four-hour drive) restaurant. The article was short on details but that's okay. We live here. :-)

"Best beach ever!! From the lips of a beach bum ..." Pass-a-Grille is known and loved

Sometimes we're torn about running articles like this about one of our favorite beaches, Pass-a-Grille. There are so many, we'd be running nothing else. Also, there's the blabbermouth factor. We don't want to be that person. We don't want to be the one responsible for telling the world about what a wonderful place Pass-a-Grille is and, thus, spoiling it for the rest of us. On the other hand, TripAdvisor has already beat us to the title anyway. They've been telling everybody for years about our beautiful little secret. Well, not actually, them but the TripAdvisor users, like Jessica R, whose recent review we're quoting. Listen to this: "From the lips of a beach bum, it just doesn't get much better than Pass-A-Grille. The pictures speak better than any review I could write. Download the Parking Spot app, it'll make parking so much more easier to keep up with."

Cathy Salustri suggests books to read this summer, including some cool local authors

Did you happen to see the amazing and talented Cathy Salustri's list of great books to add to your summer reading list? Cathy, of course, in addition to teaching classes on Florida and local history at Eckerd College's OLLI program, is also the arts and entertainment editor of Creative Loafing, author of BackRoads to Paradise: A Journey to Rediscover Old Florida, and a Gulfport resident. But this isn't about Cathy. It's about her recommended reading list.

She had some pretty good ideas, including Unreliable, Eckerd prof turned novelist Lee Irby, new book, (we featured him on April 22), and Jack Davis's The Gulf: The Making of an American Sea, a non-fiction endeavor that's as riveting as they come. (By the way, Jack is speaking at the Gulfport Historical Society tomorrow (Friday) night from 6:30 to 9 p.m.)

But what caught our eye was a mention way down at the bottom of the list about the superb Wendy Wax and her fifth novel in the Ten Beach Road series. The latest one is One Good Thing, and it came out in April, perfect timing for a beach read. The series started with three accomplished women, strangers who end up co-owning a ramshackle cottage at Ten Beach Road in Pass-a-Grille. The series has found a cadre of dedicated fans and is a USA Today bestseller. Wendy is a native of St. Petersburg and a devotee of Pass-a-Grille. If you haven't had the pleasure, you really ought to treat yourself to this series. And read it down on Pass-a-Grille beach. Why not?

Anybody know who's in the picture? We love to learn about our community's past

It's always fun to explore the past and our friends at The Gabber have been doing that once a month this year to help celebrate the 60th anniversary of St. Pete Beach as well as the 100th anniversary of the building that houses the Gulf Beaches History Museum. The picture above accompanied a recent article about Frank T. Hurley, Jr. (in the picture), who worked as a reporter for the Evening Independent and the St. Petersburg Times after a stint in the military during World War II. Junior wrote a couple of books about Pass-a-Grille history. They're still in print and you can get them at the museum gift shop. If this piques your interest at all, we suggest you read The Gabber article, then hot foot it down to the museum to get those books.

In the olden days, before television and the Internet, people were building community

About 90 years ago, some enterprising people living out on Pass-a-Grille got together and created the first school on the island. There's a story about it in The Gabber from Lynn Taylor. The Sunshine School had a casual atmosphere. Classes were frequently held outside on picnic tables or over on the beach. It built a community spirit. We often mention various people who are active in fostering a community spirit today. It's nice to know they're building on a time-tested tradition.

The Seahorse gets a nice write-up in TripAdvisor, and we can understand why

We noticed with delight that one of our favorite restaurants in Pass-a-Grille just got a great review in TripAdvisor. The Seahorse on Pass-a-Grille Way has been serving delicious breakfasts and lunches since 1938. and the reviewer, who apparently is a regular visitor to Pass-a-Grille said the place hasn't changed in the last 30 years, and that's one of the things they liked about it. Poking around on the TripAdvisor site, we spotted another reviewer from Tennessee who drew the distinction between Pass-a-Grille and "the more bustling St. Pete Beach" and noted that that was "a good thing, to my way of thinking." Low key is one of the reason we like Pass-a-Grille, and The Seahorse.

"Gussie" Busch compound in Pass-a-Grille is up for sale again! Price tag: $6.5 million

We saw on the news that the Gussie Busch house in Pass-a-Grille is up for sale again. No Buschs have lived there for a very long time and these days it's known as Bird of Paradise Resort but locals who've been around any length of time know it as the compound once owned by August "Gussie" Busch, who built the beer brewing company started by his grandfather. Story on Fox 13 said the place rents out for $3,500 to $5,000 a night. So, if you're in the market for a slightly used. famous 1950s bayside compound consisting of three houses and lots of amenities, this may be your place. Price tag: $6.5 million. Make 'em an offer.

A nice write-up in Quebec English weekly newspaper presents our area in a good light

Our Canadian friends are paying attention. Did you see the nice write-up in The Suburban, Quebec's largest English weekly newspaper? Writer Mike Cohen has lots of positive things to say about our whole area, all the way up the Clearwater. He absolutely gushed about the Salvador Dali Museum, loved the Great Explorations Children's Museum, and Sunken Gardens. He apparently got out to our beloved Fort De Soto Park and Egmont Key, and mentioned Topwater Kayak Outpost. He stayed at the Beach House Suites (pictured above) and dined at the fabulous Maritana Grille at the Don CeSar. He described Pass-a-Grille as "a quaint, laid back beach town where you can park your car and walk to the beach, boutiques, ice cream shop, outdoor art market, restaurants, tennis courts and fishing piers." All true. It's among the reasons we love living here.

Thank you TBT columnist Ernest Hooper for mentioning some of our favorite things

It gave us great delight that Tampa Bay Times columnist Ernest Hooper made several mentions about our community in his 2016 edition of "You haven't lived in Tampa Bay until ... " feature. Most prominent, with a picture and all, was the recently reopened Goody Goody old-time hamburger place Tampa's Hyde Park. And, to be sure, the secret sauce is worth the trip. But eventually Mr. Hooper got down to some of our favorites. "You haven't lived in Tampa Bay until you've fished from the Sunshine Skyway Bridge Pier." Or "you haven't lived in Tampa Bay until you've imbibed on a Famous Margarita from the VIP Lounge on Treasure Island. Or, and this may be our favorite,  "you haven't lived in Tampa Bay until you've searched for life's true meaning while walking the sandy beaches of Pass-a-Grille." Good choices, Ernest Hooper. That's all we're saying.

What an example to set for us all! Bartender donates his tips to assist military veterans

What an amazing community we live in. Such kind and giving people for neighbors. Did you see the story on TV about Ian O'Connell, who works as a bartender at Sea Critters in Pass-a-Grille? He was donating all his tips at Christmas to veterans who need assistance. “I’m an accidental fundraiser,” O’Connell told Channel 8 News. “I didn’t know I was going to be but I like helping the veterans out. I didn’t serve [the country] and I didn’t do anything for my freedoms that I enjoy every day ... this is just my way of giving back. ” Here's a link to the story on the Channel 8 site.

If you're at Pass-a-Grille at sunset, chances are you're going to see this fun beach ritual

Some things just feel like they've always been that way and always ought to be that way. One of those things out at Pass-a-Grille is the tradition of ringing the bell at sunset. Though it seems as if it has been forever, actually the ritual has been going on for about two decades, so there are those around who remember before the ringing of the bell. Still, there are many for whom the sunset bell and life n Pass-a-Grille are synonymous. We noted with delight Helen J. Simon's recent feature in The Gabber about the bell and the people who look after it. Nice read. 

The Thrift Shop on Pass-a-Grille Beach is a great place for people who love discoveries

Thrift Shop cashier Evelyn Kurz (left) and shopper Jane Sheppard.

If you've ever been to The Thrift Shop of Pass-a-Grille Beach Community Church, you know what a treasure it is in the community. It's a shoppers' paradise, full of an eclectic collection of castoffs that is certain to delight anyone who loves to shop, and especially anyone who loves to discover hidden treasures. If you love garage sales and flea markets, this is your place. The Gabber had an article about the shop opening this season, it's 58th year. It's a good read and if you haven't been it's a good introduction. But you should go. You can visit the Thrift Shop website here.