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Spielberg’s Jaws kept moviegoers out of the ocean in 1975. That may have been the start of the shark as pop culture monster, but the new SHARK exhibit at the Fort Lauderdale Museum of Art shows many sides to this fascinating – and terrifying – creature. It gives South Floridians one more reason to take advantage of all that’s in our own backyard as part of a summer ‘staycation.’

This exhibit is varied, interesting, fun, and great for adventurous kids and curious adults.

Our Endless Fascination with Sharks

This multi-media exhibit is guest curated by world famous marine artist Richard Ellis. MOAFL’s latest showcase is presented in conjunction with Nova Southeastern University’s Oceanographic Center. If you enjoy Shark Week or Deadliest Catch, then you’ll love this thrilling collection.

Paintings by Guy Harvey and Others

This event is family-friendly, so bring your kids along for this multi-media adventure. A free app is available via the MOAFL website so that the audience can experience the exhibit before ever going. Famous marine artists such as Guy Harvey and Robert Longo are featured in this exhibition. Also on display are wildlife illustrator Marc Dando’s watercolors. These renowned artists depict the many different species of sharks, including angel sharks, sleeper sharks, and tiger sharks.

Jaws Gallery

Of course, no shark exhibition would be complete without referencing Steven Spielberg’s classic 1975 film Jaws. Original storyboards, film memorabilia, and posters are included in the Jaws gallery and several paintings were donated to the SHARK exhibit by Peter Benchley, the author of the original Jaws novel.

Kids and Conservation Efforts

Nature loving kids will enjoy this exhibit. Also fun for kids and adults are the museum’s shark education stations. Parts of the exhibition also focus on recent advances in shark conservation efforts, as this fearsome fish is rapidly becoming one of the earth’s most vulnerable animals.

If You Go

The Fort Lauderdale Museum of Art is located at 1 East Las Olas Boulevard in the heart of downtown Fort Lauderdale. For more information about this exhibition, please visit their website or call 954-525-5500. Adults are $10; seniors and military is $7; kids 5 and under are free and kids from 6-17 are only $5.

By Marissa Cohen

Photo By Andy Jien

It’s finally time to graduate. No more teachers, no more books, and more recycled presents and green networking ideas for the South Florida grad in your life. They’ve worked hard, studied for countless tests, and paved the way for a bright future. Support their green lifestyle with these meaningful green networking ideas and gifts.

Gifts for High School Grads

This plantable journal is made from 100% recyclable paper and wildflower seeds. When your grad is done planning the future, he or she can plant the journal in the garden and watch flowers grow from their plans. Take advantage of South Florida’s many water sports and treat your grad to snorkeling lessons or a meal at South Florida’s Sublime.

Networking for High School Grads

Checking out a Broward-based Sierra Club group might be fun for just-graduated teens looking to make a difference. Young adults curious about eco-involvement at their future alma matter can search schools and types of networking/school clubs here. Florida schools are all listed here, as are national and international colleges and universities. Your high school grad can also choose from different kinds of eco-based activism and explore the kinds of clubs or groups hosted by each school.

Gifts for College Grads

Gifts for South Florida college grads can vary from a trip to the Keys to a glamour-filled day checking out what’s hot on South Beach.

Networking for College Grads

Networking for South Florida college grads is the next step in building a career they’ll be passionate about. Networking with like-minded people is a key way to create business connections. Direct them to South Florida Green Drinks. SFGD is a thriving network of young professionals who meet once a month in Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, or West Palm Beach. Their mission is simple – to provide a way for green/eco-aware professionals to connect in a laid-back, informal setting. This group would be perfect for the new grad looking to make business connections. The president is internationally recognized public speaker and entrepreneur Marci Zaroff. Zaroff serves on several industry boards, such as the Organic Exchange. She is the recipient of several awards for green business, including the Natural Product Industry’s Socially Responsible Business Award. South Florida Green Drink sponsors include Whole Foods and Aubrey Organics. Click here to find a South Florida Green Drink meetup.

By Marissa Cohen

Photo By Donostweets

Since the start of March, I’ve been on a quest to find the perfect juice recipe, thanks to my new obsession with juicing. Even some of my favorite farmer’s markets were getting a little bit pricy, so when a friend of mine tipped me off about Stiles Farmer’s Market in Pembroke Pines (209 North Hiatus Road) I went over to check it out.

I was delighted. As a Floridian, I’ve started to despair that truly fresh produce will always cost an arm and a leg. Whether I’m going to standard grocery stores or organic health food stores, even most farmers markets seem to cause me to dig a little deeper into my wallet then I’m comfortable. However, Stiles is amazing. It’s tucked away in the Home Depot shopping center on Hiatus just before Pines (if you’re coming from the North), and only a short drive from the Desoto.

Locally Grown

While there were several organic and locally grown veggies and fruits, the majority of their stock seemed to be locally grown, as opposed to organic and locally grown, even though there were a few organic veggies and fruits here and there. Even for those who eat strictly organic produce, Stiles is worth a drive.

Produce and Prices

My personal indicator of whether or not I’ll like a farmer’s market is the price of ginger. In traditional grocery stores, I’ve seen ginger as high as $4 a pound. At Stiles, you can load up a plastic bag with ginger and one pound is only $1. Plus, there were rosemary stalks as big as my forearm. Not to draw a tight comparison, but in traditional grocery stores, herbs may be a low price but they are rarely if ever this large or this fresh.

A Lot For a Little

The veggie glee continued. I purchased huge cucumbers as large as my forearm for a fraction of the cost elsewhere, about three for a dollar.By the time I finally left Stiles, I had a mountain of produce for a mere $25. If I’d gone to a high end organic store, I probably would have spent twice that on vegetables.

Homemade Bread

Plus, on the weekends, Stiles sells homemade bread. There are several different kinds of loaves, from olive to wheat, all at a very reasonable price. Bring cash if you plan on taking the bread home with you.

If You Go

This place is a gem if you’re looking for farmer’s markets with a wide range of produce at reasonable prices. Find them at 209 North Hiatus Road, Pembroke Pines, FL 33026 or call 954-437-4852.

By Marissa Cohen

Photo By Strikkelise

Let your inner explorer out to play with these fun and local South Florida activities.

The Museum of Discovery and Science

Locals know the Fort Lauderdale Museum of Discovery and Science by the 52-foot-tall Great Gravity Clock, which stands in front of the museum. The Museum of Discovery and Science is home to many fantastic exhibits. True, while parts of the museum are geared to children, curious and young at heart adults will also enjoy the many things to see and experience, including the brand new EcoDiscovery Center, which features the Everglades Airboat Adventure and an otter exhibit. The Museum of Discovery and Science is also home to the biggest movie screen in South Florida, the Autonation Imax, a 300-seat, surround-sound theater with a screen that’s five stories high. For more information about the Museum of Discovery and Science, please go here. Adult admission is $13; Senior admission is $12; children from 2-12 are $11.

The Buehler Planetarium and Observatory

Tucked away on the Broward College main campus (formerly the Broward Community College main campus) in Davie, the Buehler Planetarium offers patrons a unique chance to gaze upon the night skies from one of the most advanced planetariums in South Florida. Experience the skies for free on observation nights, which are Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday from 8 to 10 pm. The planetarium also offers a variety of shows, from musical shows to story time for kids. Most of the planetarium events are extremely affordable. To learn more about the Buehler Planetarium, go here or call 954-201-6681.

South Florida Amateur Astronomers’ Association at Markham Park

Every Saturday from dusk to midnight, the South Florida Amateur Astronomers’ Association opens Markham Park’s observatory for an evening of stargazing. Founded in 1965 and incorporated in Florida one year later, the SFAAA makes its home inside Markham Park in Sunrise. This free event is a perfect way to spend an evening. All are welcome and its perfect for the curious. For more information, call 954-384-0442 or visit the South Florida’s Amateur Astronomers’ Association here.

By Marissa Cohen

Photo By osseous

The 42nd Annual Earth Day is almost here! Get ready for some fun family celebrations during the weekend of April 21. Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson founded Earth Day in 1970 at a time of extreme over-consumption. What began 42 years ago as a grassroots celebration has now become an internationally recognized day to honor the environment. Earth Day has become instrumental in many laws, including the passage of the Clean Air Act.

Celebrate sustainability and nature with two local festivals. They’re both on the same day, and both promise to be a blast. Why not be a green party animal and go to both festivals?

Hugh Taylor Birch State Park : Make Earth Day Every Day!

The first Earth Day festival is at Hugh Taylor Birch State Park on Saturday, April 21 from 10 am to 5pm. Be sure to bring little ones for this celebration. They’ll be activities offered for kids by organizations such as the Girl Scouts of America, Trash to Treasure, Camp Live Oak, the fantastic Kids’ Ecology Corps, and Lori’s Beakers and Bugs Company. For adults, they’ll be chances to volunteer (including a sea turtle rescue), ecology-focused workshops, organic and vegan food, and live music. Activities will also include free giveaways and live entertainment, including a drum circle.

Marando Farms: Earth Day Celebration

Come out to Fort Lauderdale’s Marando Farms on Saturday, April 21 from 10am to 2 pm. Kids can enjoy face painting and a bounce house. Adults will enjoy the many varieties of organic food available. There will also be live music and a guest speaker from GMO Free Florida, Trish Sheldon.

If You Go

The Hugh Taylor Birch State Park Make Earth Day Every Day celebration is located at 3109 East Sunrise Blvd in Fort Lauderdale. Go here for more information.

The Earth Day Celebration at Marando Farms is located at 1401 Southwest 1st Ave in Fort Lauderdale. Call Marando Farms at 954-294-2331 or go here.

By Marissa Cohen

Photo By dougww

The 14^th Annual Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival will begin on April 27, 2012 and run until Sunday May 6, 2012. Since it’s the first LGBT film fest in the year, many feel that it sets the tone for all the other LGBT film events. The MGLFF screens its films throughout Miami-Dade County, including Miami Beach and Coral Gables.

Chely Wright Honored On First Night of Festival

On April 27, Chely Wright, country music star and author of the memoir Like Me, will be presented with the Lavender Heart Award, which honors an entertainer who has presented a positive image of the gay community. The recent documentary about Chely’s coming out, Wish Me Away explores public and private moments as Chely comes out,  much to the surprise of her conservative country fan base. It will be screened at the MGLFF on April 28. Chely is also the national spokesperson for the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN).

Films

From CoDependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same to the classic The Celluloid Closet, the MGLFF features a variety of films, including shorts and full-length features. Among them will be Vito about writer and activist Vito Russo, the author of The Celluloid Closet; Seventh Gay Adventists, in which the faith of three people collide with their sexuality; Kermit and the gang hit New York in the 1985 family classic The Muppets Take Manhattan; and two sister-in-laws to be fall for each other in the Swedish comedy Kiss Me. The MGLFF also features many films from around the world, including films from Ireland, Israel, and Africa.

If You Go

The Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival will take place in several main locations: The Colony Theater in Miami Beach, the Coral Gables Art Cinema, the Miami Beach Cinematheque, the Miami Beach Convention Center, Regal Cinemas on South Beach, and The Wolfsonian. For more information about the locations, please go here. For tickets and ticket prices, go here.

By Marissa Cohen

Photo By eschipul

One of the easiest ways to go green is by reusing items and recycling your old stuff. My old high school friend Allie was the queen – I mean the past master – of thrift stores. Once, I watched her find a pair of Michael Kors jeans – retail value of $100 – for a mere five bucks. “Get them. You need these.” They were two sizes too small, but I bought them – and still have them, a proud souvenir of a good thrifting day.

I’ve been to them all: Goodwill, garage stores, and swap parties, but so far nothing has rocked my world harder than Out of the Closet. Billed as “the world’s most fabulous thrift store,” Out of the Closet has many locations spanning California, the new store in Amsterdam, and four right here in South Florida. The two Broward locations are right in the “gayborhood” of Wilton Manors and one located just a few moments away from Wilton Manors in downtown Fort Lauderdale on Sunrise Blvd.

Free HIV/AIDS Tests

Many Out of the Closet locations provide free and confidential AIDS testing and counseling. The tests are conducted in a private section of the store. Several of the South Florida locations offer this free service. For a complete list of the locations that offer free HIV/AIDS tests, please go here. The stores also benefit the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, so when you shop at OftC, your money is going to a very good cause.

Books, Clothes, and More

I’ve been to both the Wilton Manors location and the Sunrise location. The Wilton Manors location is just off Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors, Florida. The Sunrise Blvd location is in a huge freestanding building. It reminded me of a John Waters movie, with just that kind of wacky, kitschy vibe. If you like your thrifting with a bit of flash, check it out. My personal OftC Haul consisted of a half-filled journal, a book with a love letter scribbled on the end pages, and many tee shirts, one featuring Speed Racer (Go, go, Speed Racer, gooo!). There are pride buttons and bracelets aplenty, especially at the Sunrise location, which is bright and airy – a fun place to spend a long weekend looking at interesting and quirky odds and ends.

Pick Up

Out of the Closet will come to your house to collect old stuff, too. (Warning for the shy: the second the massive pink and blue truck pulls into your neighborhood, you will instantly be – just as the truck reads – out of the closet.)

By Marissa Cohen

Photo By anna_logical

Now that spring is finally here, I can’t seem to stay inside. It seems that Florida’s weather is even more delightful than usual, if you don’t mind sudden storms and cozy, breezy days. I’m finally noticing what I haven’t noticed in the 30-something years spent as a born-and-bred-local. There are reasons people come from all over the world to visit Florida.

Recently, I enjoyed a day trip to Batten’s Farm, a favorite farmer’s market that reopened last summer after being closed for several years. Inspired by one nearby farmer’s market make me seek out other local farmer’s markets, most of which are less than a half-hour from the Desoto.

I discovered the Flamingo Road Nursery and Farmer’s Market entirely by accident when I got off 595 on Flamingo and turned south instead of north. On my right hand side, I saw the Flamingo Road Nursery and decided to pull in to explore. There’s nothing like wandering around a new farmer’s market. As I stepped out of my car, and walked to the entrance, I was greeted by the melodic sound of a large waterfall. Immediately to my right was a huge, gorgeous stone water fountain.

Plants and Herbs

The property is large, as are most of the nurseries that border both sides of Flamingo Road, and it’s fun to wander through the Flamingo Road Nursery’s many varieties of plants, arbors, and flowers. Best of all, there’s a very generous herb section as well, lush with flowering chamomile, mint, and other fragrant goodies.

For Kids

The Flamingo Road Nursery has a neat selection of kid-sized gardening tools, from gloves to gardening tools. Does your little one want to learn more about plants? Help them create their own garden.

Organic Grocery

The Flamingo Road Nursery and Farmer’s Market supports local Florida farmers and artisans. There’s a small grocery store featuring organic veggies located toward the back of the large property. Divided into two large rooms, the store has a small grocery and organic section on one side and a lunch counter on the other. Mostly, I had fun exploring the produce section and managed to find a huge quantity of basil at a very reasonable price.

And then, on the way out, I met the cat.

The Flamingo Cat

I’m not sure who he belongs to, but if you go, stay on the look out for a friendly kitty that seems totally at home roaming the grounds. He’s a curious little wanderer, and I spotted him a few times, happily rolling in the grass or pouncing butterflies.

If You Go

The Flamingo Road Nursery and Farmer’s Market is located at 1655 Flamingo Road in Davie. They can be reached at 954-476-7878 or find them on the web, here. They’re open Monday to Sunday, from 8 am to 6 pm.

By Marissa Cohen

Photo By intheburg

When I was a kid, Saturdays in summer meant that it was time to pick strawberries. It meant piling in the car -sometimes with my two cousins – and heading over to Batten’s Farm, located in Davie, Florida. That was in 1992.

Several years ago, Batten’s Farm  closed and it seemed like all the locals went into kind of low-grade mourning.

Goodbye to Berries

One friend of mine actually called me to report that she’d bought strawberries at a regular supermarket. “Nothing like Batten’s,” she sighed into the phone, recounting happy memories of Batten’s strawberries and milkshakes. While I didn’t get misty eyed over store-bought berries, I too found myself getting nostalgic whenever I drove south on Davie Road and passed the old farmstead, the small building shut up tighter than a drum, its white shutters gleaming in the sunlight. With it went the ripe, better-than-in-a-food-store strawberries, the friendly owners, and the barnyard animals in the pen out back. Worst of all? The milkshakes and boiled peanuts that I used to share with my late father were gone too.

Batten’s Reopened in 2011

And last summer, it reopened, thanks in part to the Davie-based non-profit, the North-South Institute, which operates Batten’s as a farmer’s market, with local Broward County farmers selling produce.

Recently, I went to Batten’s and had just as much fun there now as I did when I was a kid.

A New Generation of Local Food and Fun

Some things have changed. The new owners have installed ceiling fans in the building and there’s now a refrigerated section in the back for sodas, boxed foods, and of course, their famous and beloved strawberries.

The milkshakes are back too, just in time for spring.

But the best thing of all? The promise of hanging out for an hour – or all day if I wanted to – slurping a coconut milkshake and hanging out with the barnyard animals. Batten’s is perfect for kids or for a solo walk around the small farm.

If You Go

Batten’s Farm is located at 5151 Davie Road, Davie, 33329. Visit their website, call 954-990-7820, or find them on Facebook.

By Marissa Cohen

Photo By tamburix

Regulars to this site know that I’m a dyed-in-the-wool bookworm. If possible, I like to purchase my books used either from sites like Better World Books or from fun, little out-of-the-way used bookstores. Buying a used book is much greener than buying a brand-new book that’s fresh from the publisher.

And while e-readers are green and perfect for travel in their own way, some of us want to go on vacation with paper books. The publishing world is moving fast – maybe we’re nostalgic, but there’s something so perfect (and green) about a previously owned paperback.

Since we’re all about green tips at the Desoto, I wanted to share one of my favorite used bookstores with you: Second Edition Book Shop located in the Lincoln Park Plaza on Stirling Road in Hollywood. Best of all, Second Edition Book Shop isn’t a chain; its independently owned and operated by Danielle Joy-Whatley.

Independent and Green

The tagline is “Recycled Books. Shared Joy.” And this little bookstore is a joy, indeed.

I’ve been in bookstores that are one big, dust-covered mess. Often that’s what’s come to mind when I think of used bookstores in Florida, but Second Edition is a book lover’s dream. It’s easy to see why Second Edition won the 2009 Broward/Palm Beach New Times for Best Used Bookstore.

For those of us who’ve longed for the type of small, cozy bookstore often found in Portland or San Francisco, check out the Second Edition Book Shop. It’s independently owned and operated, which means that patrons are supporting a small, local business. If you’re sick of the Nook or the Kindle, no worries; you won’t find any flashy signs advertising the latest development in electronics. Looking to unload your gently loved books? Second Edition has a decent trade-back program, and if you’ve got adult paperbacks collecting dust, they’ll take them for store credit.

Cozy

From its hardwood floors and comfortable armchairs to its rows upon rows of books on dark wooden shelves, Second Edition Book Shop is the place to curl up and read for a while. Owner Danielle Joy-Whatley might offer you a lollypop from the bowl on the front counter or make a reading suggestion. There’s a never-ending flow of loyal customers of all ages, from retired folks to kids looking for a good book, all eager to chat about what they last read.

Community Involvement

Second Edition Book Shop often has sidewalk fairs that promote local crafts and food. SEBS also has a thriving Facebook page.

If You Go

Pack up your books and head down to Second Edition Book Shop, located at 6812 Stirling Road in the Lincoln Park Plaza in Hollywood.

By Marissa Cohen

Photo By hannaneh710