Here it is April 1 already and that means two weeks from Saturday is the big Arts Festival on Cedar Key.  The Seafood Festival in October and our Arts Festival are the two major events on the island during the year.

It's sponsored by our Chamber of Commerce and this is the flyer for this year.  Isn't it colorful and cute?  I just love that dog dozing there and we're a pet friendly island, so it's perfect.  This is also the drawing chosen for the front of the Arts Festival tee-shirts for this year.

And this past Saturday Ray and I volunteered two hours to be downtown in front of City Hall selling tee-shirts and postcards for the Chamber of Commerce.

We met some really nice tourists and sold a fair amount of tee-shirts.  It was sunny but strong winds kept threatening to blow away everything on the table.

So if you're going to be in the area of Cedar Key April 18 and 19 do hop on over to our island and join us in the celebration.  Our vacation rental, Chez Soleil, has been rented for quite awhile. (Some people book a year ahead for the Festivals)  However, if you visit our Chamber website you'll see a whole listing of other accomodations.

I'm hoping the weekend will be a success and maybe I'll see you along 2nd Street.

See you here next time................

. . . . . . . COME TO THOSE WHO WAIT!

There were two things that I wanted when we moved to the island four years ago (no, no, not a pharmacy, or a movie theater or big time shopping)......a knitting group AND a downtown coffee shop.  The knitting group was formed a few weeks ago and meets every Monday afternoon at the library.

And the coffee shop.......my wish was granted!  KONA JOE'S opened on Dock Street downtown about two weeks ago and I'm one happy camper! 

So Ray and I dropped in on Monday and Kona Joe's exceeds my expectations!  Owned and operated by the very friendly couple, Edie and Joe, it's located adjacent to the Big Dock and the location and view is spectacular.  I admit it........I'm a coffee diva, so I was thrilled to discover the superb coffee at Kona Joe's.

But they offer way more than just coffee.......homemade pastries and sandwiches and Ray and I had lunch there.  He got the Philly Cheese Steak, which he said was delicious and I got a wonderful Greek Salad.

You can sit inside, but why would you want to?  Look at this view from their outdoor deck.......you can see all the way to the Crystal River Power Plant.

I've always felt that Cedar Key is truly paradise.......but now I feel paradise got even better.  To be able to sit outside overlooking the water, the Big Dock, the sky above with pelicans swooping and diving......it doesn't get any better than that.  And here's one happy customer, with my coffee in hand.

And after the month poor Ray had with his surgery, he was quite happy to be able to relax at this gorgeous spot over lunch.......complete with his wound vac and tubing.

And how could you resist stretching out on one of these Adirondack chairs with an ice-cream (YES....they also have ice-cream cones!) or sipping some coffee, staring out at the Gulf and getting lost in time.

So all of you that visit here at Island Writer and also visit us on Cedar Key........the next time you're on our island DO make sure you stop by KONA JOE'S on Dock Street to see Edie and Joe!  And tell them Terri sent you.  Because with great prices, great food and coffee and a great view......I know without a doubt, they have a winner here!

See you here next time..................

It was four years on Tuesday that we moved to Cedar Key.  I guess that old saying is true, "Time flies when you're having fun."  Because it doesn't seem possible that I've lived on this slice of paradise for four years.

Four years and I have to say.....we've never looked back.  I've never once regretted moving to such a small town and having to drive 50 minutes for a pharmacy, the doctor, major food shopping or one hour to Gainesville for larger stores like Pet Smart or the Mall.  I still say it's been a fair trade-off to escape the hustle and bustle of traffic lights, crowds, noise, more asphalt than trees.

I love popping downtown to the Post Office knowing I'll bump into people to chat with, wave at and I love that feeling of belonging.  Sense of place has always been important to me.  From the first time I ever visited Cedar Key, I knew it had a good "feel" to it.  Mother Nature had a lot to do with that.  It's difficult not to feel laid back and serene surrounded by water and wildlife.  But the people themselves have contributed to that feeling of belonging. 

Just before I moved here, I'd joined a knitting group in Port Richey.  Held one evening a week at Books A Million.  I really enjoyed that and welcomed the advice and assistance of knitters more proficient that I was, so that was my one disappointment when I moved here.  However, I put an ad into the local paper hoping to form a group here on the island.  It didn't happen, but I continued on with my own knitting and the huge help via telephone of my good friend and expert knitter, Alice, who lives in Salem.

Needless to say, I was delighted to see a notice in the local paper recently that a knitting group was forming.  They would be meeting every Monday afternoon at the Cedar Key Library.  It only took four years and of course, I was there.

There were only 5 of us for the first gathering, but I'm hoping the group will grow.  We did get a bit of knitting done, looked over each other's projects, but the socializing was just as fun.  Chatting about books we'd recently read or want to read.  Exchanging ideas.  That's as much fun as the knitting itself.  So I'm really hoping this group will grow and continue.  Just another reason for me to love my little island.

So here I am four years later and even more convinced that relocating to this little town was a very wise decision.

See you here next time........................