There is something about the turn of the calendar to a fresh month that feels invigorating. October to November is one of those moments, when this feeling of ‘I must write a blog post’ seems to take hold. This post serves as a brief catch-up for all my faithful readers. It’s been a bit of an up and down year on the writing front, but there have been a few highlights.
Back in June, I received an email from the grandson of Lou Ballato, one of the early linchpins in my love of tennis, and whose signature racquets hang on our wall in Quonnie. It was a follow-up to a piece I published in November 2021 in this blog, entitled “A Collage of Tennis Racquets Keeps Fun Sports Memories Close”
It was so great to connect with him and share in our mutual admiration of his fun and beloved grandfather. I’ve relayed our email conversation to several of my Belle Haven cronies, and to be chatting about Lou again made us all very happy. Thanks, John, for taking the time to let me know how you and your family enjoyed reading my recollections of Lou.
In early August, the Florida Magazine Association held the 2022 Charlie Awards, an annual celebration of statewide magazine editing and writing. Incredibly, for the second year in a row, an article I had written for Naples Illustrated magazine concerning the current status of Florida panthers, won the Silver Award in the category of Service Writing in the 20,000 plus consumer circulation division. I was thrilled. Here’s a link to the article, entitled Felines of the Floridian Forest. This kind of work is exactly why I studied journalism in college. Hat tip to my wonderful editor, Christina Cush, who took her pencil to my work and made the articles even stronger. Much appreciated!
The investigation and exploration of a myriad of topics, and of the broader world, continues to make my life interesting. Engagement with people I might not meet in my everyday life has enriched my understanding of the struggles and triumphs of their lives, mostly on the professional level, but also on a personal level. I find the work of others very inspiring, and I enjoy taking all those life experience threads and incorporating them in my writing.
I look forward to creating more content in the coming months.