Baseball

Speaking of walking...walked from downtown to McKechnie Field to watch the Pittsburgh Pirates play the Baltimore Orioles in Spring Training (Grapefruit League) last night.  First, the walk was refreshing, second, the weather was beautiful and, third, even though the Pirates lost, there was a great fireworks display after the game.

March is our biggest month for tourists in this area, for the weather, but also for the baseball fans!  The Pirates have returned to Bradenton for over 40 years now.  And, Sarasota is the new winter home of the Orioles. Avid fans follow their teams and enjoy foot long hot dogs, peanuts, popcorn and singing "Take me out to the Ball Game" an extra month of the year down here.  McKechnie Field now has lights and is available for rent for events too...imagine a wedding at home plate...happened here last year!

And, of course, the icing on the cake for the locals is that these teams bring in revenue for their counties and the teams are active contributors to local events and needs.

Walkable Communities

This morning I attended a very interesting presentation by Dan Burden, the guru of walking/biking communities.  Sarasota and Bradenton have a wealth of water ways and water fronts and water activities.  The livability of our communities depends on the future success of our civic leaders further developing these fine cities into walkable/bikable communities.  Sarasota, St. Armand's and Bradenton Beach have led the way with their wonderful walkability and Bradenton is working hard to develop it's riverfront and downtown.  There are lots of wonderful ideas, including public art and social gathering areas and volunteerism that need the support of the community.

Mr Burden has a wonderful web site http://www.walklive.org/ that I recommend.  This concept embraces many walks of life...public health, social services, transportation, commercial and residential real estate, merchants, store owners and governmental workers...all working in concert to encourage developing our downtowns as destinations and not as cities to  drive through. 

Free! Free! Free!

One thing that continues to amaze me around the Sarasota/Bradenton area is how many things are free.  There are plenty of concerts, plays, movies and other entertainment that cost money too.  But, you can go to free events with good music, free outdoor movies in the park, free art shows, art walks and free car shows on a regular schedule here!  Not to mention the free boat launches, the free beaches, the free parking at the beach, even free parking on the street in downtown Bradenton!  And, of course, how can anyone match the beauty of the free sunsets at Anna Maria Island.  Taking pictures of the beautiful birds, foliage and beaches is one of my favorite "free" things to do!