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Category: Colorful Boats    Title:  Florida Straits    By:  Richard Shaffett
It’s a big day on the island: Race Day. People have been working on their boats for months, painting, repairing, rigging, and now the big day is finally here. Skies are clear and the wind is right, as excitement builds. Who will win? Afterwards, everyone will meet and discuss the race over some lively island music, with food and drinks on the house. A table by the sea for you and me. A place to enjoy some delicious island food and a tall cool drink, or to just relax at the beach. Let the wind and the waves take your cares away as you spend a long lazy afternoon under the thatch roof of Mañana Cabana. The tide has gone out. Leaving the boats beached. It is time to go ashore for supplies and some rest. Meanwhile the sun beats down as the clouds build. Making a living from the sea is picturesque but demanding. Such is the harmony of life in the islands. Out by the island’s rowing club, it’s too rough to go out. The wind is up and there are whitecaps out on the bay. The boats are secured and the oars are in the shed along with a couple of surfboards. It looks like a big squall is coming, but it will probably be calm again tomorrow. These are weathered veterans of the Florida Straits. One is an old fishing boat which has brought in much of the sea’s bounty through sheer hard work, through fair weather and foul. The other one carried refugees on a dangerous voyage to freedom and a better life. Each of them has incredible stories to tell that would rival any novel. It’s morning at a fisherman’s simple home. The boats are hauled out because it’s too rough. There’s some weather blowing in. For now, the windows are open, curtains billowing and the smell of breakfast is in the air. The palm fronds rustle and birds sing. But soon the shutters will be closed and ran will tap on the tin roof. It’s all part of the rhythm of island life.

Colors of the tropics and old boats

On a trip to Key West there were these boats. The cabin cruiser was a Cuban refugee boat onshore by the road. It was a powerful symbol of the desire for freedom that people would risk their lives on the open sea in such a small craft. The other one was an old open fishing boat in the marina parking lot in Key West. It had obviously worked hard all its life out in the Gulf Stream. I put them together, added some nautical items and a coconut palm to create this Florida Keys scene.