Showing posts with label Miami. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Miami. Show all posts

Sunday, November 27, 2016

'Cuba si! Castro no!' But now, it's "Cuba si, Fidel Castro no more!" Observations on a day that so many people in South Florida thought might never come in their lifetimes





I grew-up in South Florida in the 1970's hearing people say one thing more than anything else that ever made an impression on ever-observant me.
It was a phrase that many people said with conviction, borne of bitter and heartbreaking personal experience -of having their or their family's life torn upside-down.
Or ruined.

But for others, like many Democrats and liberal politicians or news reporters I came to personally know in 1970's and 1980's Miami while involved with Dade County and national Democratic Party officials and campaigns at a very high ;level, it was said it out of cautious political expediency. The unspoken reason was clear - they knew they MUST at all times be sensitive to the concerns of so many people concentrated in one area who felt this particular pain and sentiment so deeply in their heart and their head, lest those pols become eviscerated come election-time.
That phrase, of course, was 'Cuba si! Castro no!' 

 But now, today, it's "Cuba si, Castro no more!"

 But this morning's news about the death of the Cuban dictator Fidel Castro came far too late for so many childhood friends of mine's parents and grandparents, too late for so many of my own former teachers, coaches, teammates, employers, barbers, auto mechanics, and neighbors in North Miami Beach I knew, admired and was influenced by in ways large and small.

 People who desperately hoped, no prayed, that a day like today would someday come while they were still alive and could, perhaps, get at least one last chance to return to visit or live in the land of their birth, with some measure of happiness and satisfaction. 
But to no avail.
The Communist tyrant Fidel Castro and his bureaucracy of fear and destruction always lived to fight and rule for another day, another year.

 Another year of not being able to walk the streets, sidewalks, neighborhoods, beaches or open spaces of their youth, ones that they could still so clearly see in their heads when they closed their eyes, but which, increasingly, may've only existed as memories, never to be seen again in person.

 And today was a fateful day that my own father never saw before he died almost five years ago this Christmas, who worked for so long with so many wonderful Cuban-born men and women I came to know, trust and respect over the years since my family first moved to Miami in August of 1968.
People who, while brave on the outside, always deeply felt a hole in their soul that people not in their unique situation could never hope to fully understand or explain away.
As so many told me in their own words, how can it be a "phantom pain" when you know that Cuba is still there, so close by?

 Yes, it's that geographic proximity that burned, that element that made even recounting happy memories back in Cuba soon turn into tears.
How many hundreds and hundreds of times have I witnessed that?
Too, too many.... 































: Fidel Castro is dead https://t.co/dK2h8YLgX3">https://t.co/dK2h8YLgX3</p>— Lizette Alvarez (@LizetteNYT) https://twitter.com/LizetteNYT/status/802717605446504449">November 27, 2016

https://t.co/vRmOLOq8qv">pic.twitter.com/vRmOLOq8qv</a>— James Taranto (@jamestaranto) https://twitter.com/jamestaranto/status/802696943558426624">November 27, 2016


https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cubans?src=hash">#Cubans react to death of Fidel Castro in streets of Little Havana. https://twitter.com/hashtag/FidelCastro?src=hash">#FidelCastro https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cuba?src=hash">#Cuba</a> https://twitter.com/hashtag/Miami?src=hash">#Miami https://t.co/ma7CcxKgH3">https://t.co/ma7CcxKgH3</p>— MaryAnn Martinez (@maryannreports) https://twitter.com/maryannreports/status/802520357794181120">November 26, 2016


https://t.co/n5XRSH9QOj">pic.twitter.com/n5XRSH9QOj</a>— Kyra Gurney (@KyraGurney) https://twitter.com/KyraGurney/status/802556887132729345">November 26, 2016






</p>— Jennine Capó Crucet (@crucet) https://twitter.com/crucet/status/802639249250091008">November 26, 2016



SVT (Sveriges Television) Sweden

De firar Castros bortgång

Carina Bergfeldt, USA-korrespondent på plats i Little Havana, Miami, Florida
Publicerad:26 november 2016 12.00
Uppdaterad:26 november 2016 12.27
http://www.svt.se/nyheter/utrikes/de-firar-castros-bortgang






kl 18 och kl 19.30. https://t.co/w5mcZkUj8w">pic.twitter.com/w5mcZkUj8w</a>— Carina Bergfeldt (@carinabergfeldt) https://twitter.com/carinabergfeldt/status/802542046816780288">November 26, 2016

: New admin + the world must seize this opportunity 2 redouble their commitment 2 the people of https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cuba?src=hash">#Cuba</a> https://t.co/Ydw9N02oyI">https://t.co/Ydw9N02oyI</p>— Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (@RosLehtinen) https://twitter.com/RosLehtinen/status/802657042594865154">November 26, 2016




used MIG-29 combat pilots to kill unarmed civilians https://twitter.com/hashtag/Brotherstotherescue?src=hash">#Brotherstotherescue back in 1996. https://twitter.com/hashtag/cuba?src=hash">#cuba</a>— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/802547948043108352">November 26, 2016


https://t.co/Tm0JoCcT3P">pic.twitter.com/Tm0JoCcT3P</a>— Casey Michel (@cjcmichel) https://twitter.com/cjcmichel/status/802525988076650496">November 26, 2016


</p>— HallandaleBeachBlog (@hbbtruth) https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/status/802468735483310081">November 26, 2016


</p>— Doug Hanks (@doug_hanks) https://twitter.com/doug_hanks/status/802567527276642305">November 26, 2016






https://t.co/9gAebeawTn">https://t.co/9gAebeawTn</p>— SalenaZito (@SalenaZito) https://twitter.com/SalenaZito/status/802345096427503617">November 26, 2016

https://t.co/X38h2C4ZLu">https://t.co/X38h2C4ZLu</p>— George Bennett (@gbennettpost) https://twitter.com/gbennettpost/status/802498245037420545">November 26, 2016

. He looked old then, I'm surprised he lasted so long. Evil man, good riddance.— Richard Brookhiser (@RBrookhiser) https://twitter.com/RBrookhiser/status/802538215106351104">November 26, 2016


... https://twitter.com/JanHelin">@JanHelin&mdash; HallandaleBeachBlog (@hbbtruth) https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/status/802477270195720192">November 26, 2016




</p>— MariaElena Fernandez (@writerchica) https://twitter.com/writerchica/status/802402837321789440">November 26, 2016

https://twitter.com/hashtag/Welcome?src=hash">#Welcome, Carina! Head to https://twitter.com/VersaillesMiami">@VersaillesMiami, interview https://twitter.com/GlennaOn10">@GlennaOn10. Can explain it all in a way https://twitter.com/hashtag/Sweden?src=hash">#Sweden understands. :-)— HallandaleBeachBlog (@hbbtruth) https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/status/802466372710232064">November 26, 2016





https://twitter.com/JanHelin">@JanHelin The scene in https://twitter.com/hashtag/Miami?src=hash">#Miami LIVE as it celebrates the death of the Cuban tyrant, https://twitter.com/hashtag/FidelCastro?src=hash">#FidelCastro: https://t.co/AeQhgmrQHi">https://t.co/AeQhgmrQHi</p>— HallandaleBeachBlog (@hbbtruth) https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/status/802409924827475968">November 26, 2016
https://twitter.com/GlennaOn10">@GlennaOn10 https://twitter.com/WPLGLocal10">@WPLGLocal10 Or was it https://twitter.com/hashtag/Miami?src=hash">#Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado? Tired... not used to pulling all-niters any more! :-)— HallandaleBeachBlog (@hbbtruth) https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/status/802459773048332288">November 26, 2016


is capturing outside https://twitter.com/VersaillesMiami">@VersaillesMiami live on https://twitter.com/WPLGLocal10">@WPLGLocal10 right now is truly compelling https://t.co/GDaFSqZXVn">https://t.co/GDaFSqZXVn</p>— Billy Corben (@BillyCorben) https://twitter.com/BillyCorben/status/802433125775212544">November 26, 2016


</p>— MariaElena Fernandez (@writerchica) https://twitter.com/writerchica/status/802391476185350144">November 26, 2016

People outside of https://twitter.com/hashtag/SoFL?src=hash">#SoFL</a> might think you are exaggerating via pots & pans theme. Nope! We know it's the truth!  :-)— HallandaleBeachBlog (@hbbtruth) https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/status/802393190380736512">November 26, 2016


</p>— HallandaleBeachBlog (@hbbtruth) https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/status/802460197952307201">November 26, 2016


</p>— HallandaleBeachBlog (@hbbtruth) https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/status/802461624011542528">November 26, 2016
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Saturday, November 12, 2016

Thoughts re #Entrepreneurs #Startups #Disrupt and ideas in South Florida and elsewhere: Bailey Roubos of Drone Hub Media and Rachel Zietz of Gladiator Lacrosse; online marketing of luxury real estate in Miami and South Florida

Thoughts re #Entrepreneurs #Startups #Disrupt and ideas in South Florida and elsewhere: Bailey Roubos of Drone Hub Media and Rachel Zietz of Gladiator Lacrosse; online marketing of luxury real estate in Miami and South Florida




For those of you who have asked since I tweeted my curious tweets of October 24th, above, no, I can't yet reveal the identity of the very successful New Jersey entrepreneur with interests on both U.S. coasts who recently visited Hollywood, and who spent many hours over several days asking me LOTS of pointed questions about the current Hollywood, Aventura and Hallandale Beach scene.
That includes questions about what I really thought about the local business environment, its general direction and any stories I'd heard about the amount of govt. red tape around here.

 As you might imagine, given what I have seen and shared with you here on the blog over the past nine years, and in many cases, tried to forget because it was so awful, I had to stifle the urge to laugh, since what he wanted was useful information and quality context.

 In this case, that even took the form of several personal tours of the area from State Road 441 to State Road A1A and everything in between, usually once a day, pointing out what was good, what was bad what was that rare great, and why that was necessarily the case.

 That also necessarily meant my pointing out the area's economic, transportation and Quality of Life problems that local politicians and bureaucrats have largely failed to solve or rectify, no matter what economic development consultants they hire to write a report and give some possible solutions.

 FYI: I highly recommend Chocolada, especially for breakfast!
I'd honestly forgotten how great it was finish off a terrific breakfast by dunking delicious cookies in coffee that tasted just right! Scrumptious!
Chocolada Bakery & Cafe, 1923 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood Florida (954) 920-6400 

http://www.hollywoodchocolada.com/
Last week, via my growing Twitter feed, @hbbtruth, https://twitter.com/hbbtruth 
I wrote that I'd been spending some quality time conversing with a fascinating forward-thinking entrepreneur who was from Ontario -with some Hoosier roots- whose firm aims high, goes even higher!
Yes, coincidentally, just in time for "the season," the annual invasion into southeastern Broward County of tens of thousands of Canadians, 99% from Quebec and Ontario, who find our South Florida sand, surf and sunshine hard to resist at this time of the year.

 Well, that entrepreneur of whom I spoke is Bailey Roubos, co-founder of Drone Hub Media, a full service media company specializing in Aerial Cinematography, who was in Miami for what I can only describe as some fascinating projects, some of which I should be able to discuss with you in greater detail in the future.
Including the one that made my jaw drop upon hearing about it.






An early coup for Bailey and #DroneHub, mentioned in this Toronto Star story last year,
concerned a beautiful Luxury Cottage in Muskoka, Ontario, an amazing property on Lake Joseph that seemed almost tailor-made to have his company wow people around the world with the amazing views of the intangible qualities the property and area had to offer. 
To me, it looks like luxury AND peace of mind meets serene location. 
I'm ready to visit!


 Dan Cooper Group - Luxury Muskoka Cottage. Uploaded June 29, 2015

 Toronto Star
The high-flying new world of real estate. Some realtors take to the skies with drones to showcase special homes and woo buyers.
By SUSAN PIGG, Business Reporter
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
https://www.thestar.com/business/2015/09/23/the-high-flying-new-world-of-real-estate.html

Now for most of us in chaotic, traffic-gridlocked South Florida, that amazing property on an Ontario lake seems like a slice-of-heaven. But as Bailey explained to me, and as the record shows in the video they did below, marketing luxury real estate to someone who'd live in and is attracted to the lifestyle of Miami requires a different kind of vibe than someone who wants to live on a lake in Ontario. 
And trust me, Bailey knows all about what helps his clients sell luxury in a very competitive Miami real estate market, where he who hesitates... loses.

Miami's Finest in Luxury - Julian Johnston - Million Dollar Listing. 
Uploaded December 22, 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LF_20ichV7I















Bailey Roubos, co-founder, Drone Hub, a full service media company specializing in Aerial Cinematography. @BRoubos, https://twitter.com/broubos

Canada (905) 246 - 8203
USA (605) 789 - 1383
Mailing Address: 6466 Brock Street, Niagara Falls, Ontario Canada, L2J 1W2
Talking to someone as friendly, curious and genuinely creative as Bailey Roubos, who thinks so much outside-of-the-box, you can't help but notice that when you listen to him speak about his work/ideas, #tech #innovation, no matter how well-informed you think you are, you'll find yourself soon absorbing information and insight from him like a waterfall.
But I like that, since I'm the same way about subjects I'm passionate about.

My biggest regret of many conversations this week with him is that I didn't think to video-record it as the ideas flowed! 
I could have kicked myself for not having done so.
Next time I talk to him, trust me, I'll be sure to have cameras rolling so I can share his many ideas & insight with you here.

Some of you reading this in Florida know from personal conversations we've had and many more of you elsewhere via emails, that I've been planning for quite some time to start using my YouTube Channel in more creative and productive ways, and, to be MUCH more pro-active about using it on matters involving technology and innovation.

Maybe the most important lesson of my meeting Bailey Roubos is... #JustDoIt!
In the future, my plan is to interview and video-record interesting people I know and meet who are doing interesting things, whether in South Florida or elsewhere on my travels, for people to enjoy via my YouTube Channel and here on the blog.

 -----

 Emon Reiser's recent article about the just-completed deal between South Florida teenager Rachel Zietz's Gladiator Lacrosse company and DICK's Sporting Goods caught  my eye, and not just because the latter is one of my favorite retailers, or because I love watching high-quality lacrosse. 
(Or because DICK's is now located in nearby Aventura.)

 Somewhere in storage, I still have some DVDs in a box of recent NCAA Men's and Women's Lacrosse title matches, as well as of matches involving the Florida Gators and Northwestern Wildcats Women's Lacrosse teams. Over the past dozen years, I've become a big fan of what head coach Kelly Amonte Hiller has done with Northwestern's dynamic program after watching lots of Wildcat games on The Big Ten Channel over the years. 
(And I used to live in beautiful Evanston, home of NU, as well as in next-door Wilmette.)

 Plus, for years I always watched the ACC Championship for both Men and Women on TV and taped the matches for my three nieces in suburban Maryland.
All three nieces played (or are playing) both Youth League as well as high school field hockey and lacrosse at a high level in the best and most-competitive state for it, Maryland.
The youngest one of them actually played for the varsity as a freshman and scored a goal in the 2016 Maryland State Girls Lacrosse championship, which her team won.
A team called the... Gladiators. 
Yes, the Glenelg Gladiators.

South Florida Business Journal
Teen CEO seals deal with Dick's Sporting Goods
Emon Reiser, Digital Producer - South Florida Business Journal
Nov 1, 2016, 5:00pm EDT
http://www.bizjournals.com/bizwomen/news/latest-news/2016/11/teen-ceo-seals-deal-with-dicks-sporting-goods.html

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