Read the story on the Observer’s site (see link below) — and if you’re so motivated, leave a reader comment on the Observer’s site letting them know you appreciate their attention to this story — which will only help those 60,000 some-odd stray cats in Sarasota County! The paper must hear about a gazillion stories of the city every week and I really appreciate them noticing this one and trying to help the little guy!

Here’s the article on the Sarasota Observer website – or check it out in today’s issue of the paper on newsstands now (page 16).

He's famous now!!!

I interviewed three local ShelterBox volunteers — and couldn’t get over the commitment these Sarasotans have made and continue to make to helping disaster victims throughout the world.

John Freeman traveled to the Congo.

Beverly Hill (wearing headband) traveled to England for intensive training.

Alan Monroe (left) unloading ShelterBoxes in Taiwan last year.

To make a donation or learn more about volunteering with ShelterBox, visit shelterboxusa.com, or follow on Facebook (Shelter Box.) and on Twitter (ShelterBoxUS).

Does that process sound backward to anyone else but me?

In their search for a new City Clerk, this language was included in the posting on the City’s website: “Salary is negotiable. Qualified candidates should have demonstrated experience that would justify a six-figure income.” Okay, well, at least we know that the salary to be negotiated is $100,000-plus. And, yes, I know how government works — with their pay scale ranges and all that … but still, something’s on the table, or else they wouldn’t be negotiating any contract at all.

I’ve hired (and fired) and been hired (never fired) more times than I can count, and not once did salary negotiation begin AFTER after hiring someone. After making an initial offer, sure … but after hiring someone and splashing the news all around town? Exactly how much leverage do they expect to have in their negotiations? Maybe none at all?

The new city clerk, and I wish her well and offer congrats, and yes, I’m glad to see a woman, and a black woman, at that level in local government (though I’ll be glad for the day when/if we ever can just laud someone for their experience and not for their being the “first” of some group to break the erstwhile all-white/all-male bastions of higher up government positions). But here’s my advice to Nadalini: she should hold the City up for every dime on and even off the table. She’s got ‘em on the ropes … they’ve got zero leverage — what are they going to do … fire her? — especially after all the “first woman/first black” write-ups they’ve been getting from the press? I’d like to know what precisely is on the table for negotiation? A range of $10,000? Five weeks of paid vacation instead of three? A government auto? I don’t know — I wish the local reporting covered that, and I just haven’t had time to investigate it myself. If anyone knows — feel free to add some input in the comment section of this blog.

I’m sure the city would say this is just business as usual, everybody does it, yada, yada, yada. Color me stupid if you want, but how about doing business unusually?… by that I mean, how about doing business intelligently and with forethought. Even if hiring first, negotiating second, is de rigueur among government types … why not break the mold and think for ourselves as city leaders? The formula should be simple: search, interview, determine the best candidate, express an initial interest in hiring subject to salary and benefits discussion, if the candidate is interested too, then you move on to negotiate salary and benefits, and, then, if the negotiations end up with the candidate you want at the price you can afford, you then offer the job, they accept or don’t accept, and you hire or don’t hire.

Look, I know this is a very small matter in a big world of big matters. But it’s stuff like this — multiplied times a gazillion — that creates inefficiencies, irrelevant time-wasters, and inflated costs in our government.
I know — I’m just a simple taxpayer, so what do I know? — but in my book: negotiate first; hire second.

One more photo to tug at the hearts of potential adopters!

But what I lament is the idea that people just don’t write old-fashioned letters anymore. We’re losing something — an archive of loves, loves lost, travels, penmanship, the ability to coherently write down our thoughts without the benefit of the backspace button or cut and paste rearranging of our thoughts.

How can you express real longing in an email?

I’ve written letters where tears plopped down from my eyes and blotched the ink on the page below, rendering a word or two or maybe several scattered over two or three lines — unreadable. But yet, so readable, right? Pretty hard to misread the emotion behind a tear-stained letter.

And, I’ve been known to literally seal (some of) my letters with a bright red lipsticked kiss, even spritz them with Chanel No. 5.

I doodle cat drawings and smiley faces and send my letters addressed to people I love with big bold color addresses on the front and call men things like “Joe–Master of the Universe-Smith” and “Simon-chef extraordinaire Jarault” — stuff like that. Women, obviously, get less flirtation in my envelope-addressing, but I write them all the same. Just don’t girlify their envelopes up like I do the guys’.

But I write to women friends as much as I do to men. And I still write to three college professors — one of whom maddens me (and I mean that affectionately!) by only corresponding via email and not giving me his home mailing address so I can stalk him in an appropriately literary fashion. I can’t write him at the university any longer because he’s long since retired. He’s the one who taught me about Shakespeare and yet I can’t write to him because he’s an email kinda guy now.

Ah, the vagaries of corresponding.

Didn’t Kevin Costner do a movie about delivering the mail in some future world — The Postman or something like that? Guess I’ll have to watch that.

In the meantime, I’ll continue my love affair with letters … and with the people who deliver them … and oh, yeah, particularly with the people who write me back!

Stray kitty in front of his carport box and blanket home ... but he wants a REAL home!!

So, I’m making one last appeal to everyone I know — look at this adorable little stray kitten — I call him “Little Boy” — who has taken up residence in my carport — and see if you can find room in your heart, bank account, and home to take the little fella in before I have to make arrangements with a rescue center and/or the county.

He's ultra sweet and loving ... and looks like a Holstein Cow!

But, of course, I love him already and REALLY want to find a good, reliable, happy, home where he’ll be loved and cared for. I’m hoping somebody will step up to the plate. Leave a blog comment below if you’d like to adopt this kitty. If you think you know people — good people who would care well for a cat permanently — then by all means, please forward a link to this blog post as well.

And yes, I know there are bigger, much bigger problems in this world, in our community, and in our own individual lives, than the life of this one little creature — but one thing I know for sure: he wants to be loved. Just like we all do. He wants to be safe and secure and know he has a home — just like we all do. Maybe we can make it happen in Sarasota — one cat at a time.

I spent one afternoon at my Mom’s house — clearing an area of weeds and vines, laying down a supposedly-weed/grass-stopping fabric, and then topping it with pretty stones (gravel) I’d bought for her as one of her Christmas presents. It wasn’t really hard work, and it was actually fun. I find it really gratifying to work on a project and complete it and I especially enjoy improving home and yard … even though in this case, it was my Mum’s. Wish I’d taken a picture of the before … but at least here’s one of the after.

A few days later, if you were reading my blog,

you read about the fun I had on Super Bowl Sunday … . where my rhapsodic postings were only slightly alcohol-driven and probably more lust-driven than they should have been. (Hey, I’m human!)

Two days later, I had a bundle of fun writing letters … yup, that’s me, slightly louche one day; old-fashioned letter-lover the next.

The next bit of fun came on Valentine’s Day, when I was wooed and wined over dinner. Um, that’s it for the dish on that particular bit o’ fun.

A week later, I met my good friend Kim Cartlidge (geez, hope she doesn’t mind appearing on my blog!) for drinks and a real girl gabfest. It was a chilly night, but intrepid funsters that we are, we sat outside in the brisk air, conveniently near a heat lamp. It was one of those gabfests that cement friendships and even when the topics were occasionally heavy, we laughed an awful lot. If you don’t know her work already, you can get a glimpse at her Sarasota Magazine blog by clicking here.

So, okay, not 28 days of fun — but in a crazy-busy month, I did take some time to stop and have some fun … and more importantly, I’ve already planned and confirmed six bona fide fun events for April (my birthday month).

But that still leaves me with March … so guess I better get busy and finagle some fun.

Nominate your fave biz(y) person “to watch” online at http://www.biz941.com/Misc/People-To-Watch-Nomination.asp. (and no, I’m not talking ’bout me — I’m bizarre(y), not biz(y)!

Nobody I’ve contacted seems to want him. Not sure what to do next … . It’s also creating a bit of havoc inside because my three cats know he’s out there and are a bit on edge and watch him through the windows and sniff at the door, etc.

I’m enough of a crazy cat woman with three.

The Amendment would establish “that before a local government may adopt a new comprehensive land use plan, or a mend a comprehensive land use plan, the proposed plan or amendment shall be subject to vote of hte electors of the local government by referendum, following preparing by the local planning agency, consideration by the governing body and notice.”

Maybe I’m missing something … but I can’t see how this could be a bad thing — isn’t that what democracy is all about? Would it really be so bad to allow voters to participate in land use planning? And, honestly, I can’t think that such a thing would muck things up any worse than officials do already? Do I really need to remind myself of the quarter-million plus $$$$ frittered away in 2008 on consultant fees for roundabouts that went thataway?

However, I don’t see how it would be a good thing either because … really … even if we voters vote on something around here, it’s not all that likely that our governing bodies will pay attention to the outcome of the vote, will they? (Baseball stadium issue, anyone?) And if they do pay attention, they’ll figure out how to use smoke and mirrors to circumvent public opinion anyway. Am I wrong?

I think I’d fall on the side of voting FOR this Amendment. I’d welcome any reader feedback on the pro or con side.

Read more about Pro-Amendment 4 thinking … read more about Anti-Amendment 4 thinking.