I can’t wait to introduce to myself to Jeff Bezos when he moves to Miami, since I am an Amazon addict who is truly responsible for making him so rich. I have a new spot for mani/pedis where I feel much safer than the storefronts. Are you ready for a fantasy journey? Friends of mine love to show off their creativity on Halloween and other dress up occasions, and this year they went to a Miami artist, who uses their faces and bodies like a canvas. Yes, Virginia, there will be snow in Miami this holiday season.

I’m An Amazon Addict

By now you have heard that Jeff Bezos, and his fiancé Lauren Sanchez, are moving from Seattle to Miami. While he has told the world that he wants to move closer to his parents who now live in Miami, he will soon be introduced to an Amazon addict who is truly responsible for making him so rich. Moi.

One of the most exciting times of my day is opening the door of our condo unit around 6:30 at night and looking across our private foyer to see an Amazon package waiting for me, sometimes there are many. It’s like receiving presents every night. Eliot tries to remind me that I’m actually paying for the items I order, but I don’t believe him. All I am doing is clicking away. I never use a credit card or see a bill. It’s just automatic and so relaxing.

I never thought I would live to see the day that I would hold my cell phone in my hand, bring up the Amazon app and shop. What a way to make a lady happy. The list of items I buy grows bigger everyday: clothes, fashion accessories, books, housewares, hardware, jewelry, furnishings, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, technology, toys, everything for the kitchen, bathroom, and laundry.  I’m sure I forgot a few categories.

I want to bring Jeff to my condo to show him all of the Amazon plastic bags that I have stored away for reuse or recycling. He really has to do something about that. I also want to show him the view from our apartment which surely beats the one at his Biscayne Bay home valued at $79 million and the neighboring one he bought before that on Indian Creek island for $68 million.  However, size matters. His garage is bigger than our condo unit.

His bank account might be larger too. Hahaha! I remember when he wasn’t so rich at all. Jeff was working alongside my former neighbor, Charles Ardai, who lived directly below us for years in our NYC coop. Jeff and Charles both worked at D.E. Shaw, a financial company. That’s where he got the idea to start Amazon. The year was 1994.

David Shaw, the founder of D.E. Shaw, was very interested in exploring possible opportunities on the Internet. Those were the days when we were all curious about what was coming in the digital world. David asked Jeff to check out retail and Charles was assigned e-commerce. Two weeks after they were given the assignments, Jeff decided that there was a huge market for buying books on the Internet. He was so enthusiastic about what he discovered that he quit D. E. Shaw to set up his own shop. Charles did quite well for himself too. He started Juno, one of the first free email companies. Juno eventually went public. Charles moved his family from our plain vanilla building to a swanky coop on the west side facing Central Park.

I think if Jeff Bezos found out about my lifestyle with his company, he should do the only honorable thing any CEO would do for a major customer, drive over to my condo in an Amazon truck and deliver a few of my orders himself.

Mani/Pedi Anxiety No More  

Every few weeks I get a manicure and pedicure. I have been doing this for 50 years. Every time I sit down to start the process in various nail salons all over New York City and now Miami, I ask myself the same thing, “Why did I put myself in this same position?”

I’m talking about sitting in a non-guarded, store front nail salon filled with women gabbing away without a care in the world. Over the years, a few men have wandered in asking for spare change, or permission to use the bathroom. All of a sudden the salon got dead quiet. All of the women, wearing their finest of jewels, held their breath until the men left the premises.

I would often ask the women who owned the salons to lock the door and only open it when a client showed up for her appointment. They agreed and that would be the routine for a while. Then procedures would get sloppy, and they would forget to lock the door, or they just felt it wasn’t necessary. After all, it was their shop, and they weren’t as fearful as I was.

You can call me unreasonable and senseless, but I feel in today’s world you can’t be too careful. Many pharmacies and independent stores are closing all across America because of robberies. It seems to me that a store full of women with their feet in a hot tub, their hands soaking in a dish, and their purses filled with cash, would be a prime target to steal a few thousand dollars.

Call me crazy, I decided to make a switch. The nail salon I was going to closed because of some dispute among the partners. I finally said to myself here is a chance to make yourself more comfortable during what should be two hours of pure relaxation. It occurred to me that just a few blocks away from my current nail salon was the Standard Hotel and Spa.

40 Island Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139

https://www.standardhotels.com/miami/properties/miami-beach

I walked over to check it out. The nail salon is on the second floor in a bustling spa filled with a full staff of beauty technicians as well as both men and women clients. This is just what I wanted. While it’s costing me a few bucks more for my mani/pedi services, I am more relaxed and can enjoy the beauty treatments.

I realize that trouble can occur anywhere, but at least I feel better about my surroundings.

Miami Fantasy Journeys 

Friends of mine, who live in Miami and New York, really love to show off their creativity on Halloween and other dress up occasions. Robert Armada and Steve Greenberg were so artistic for Halloween this year in Miami that I had a difficult time knowing it was really them. They went all Hollywood.

They credit Ernesto Molina, a Miami artist, who uses their faces and bodies like a canvas. He draws and paints as if he was creating art for a Hollywood movie or Broadway Show. Steve and Robert are never really sure who their characters will be once Ernesto starts the creative process, but they are confident that the end results will be outstanding. It always is.

All the gentlemen have to do is show Ernesto the garments they want to wear and he creates the extraordinary look. The transformation from what they really look like to the fictional character takes about 90 minutes. The guys say the makeover is like a Zen experience because spa type music is being played in the background. They meditate while Ernesto creates.

Watch the  video if you want to check out what really goes on once you are sitting in the chair being transformed into a new personality.

I’ve also included before and after photos so you can think of who you would want to be if you ever tried this yourself.

The average cost for this fun experience is approximately $150.If you ever want to reach Ernesto in Miami here is his Instagram page.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CzKboDRNIVN/?igshid=NHpieTZkaTF0ZHo1

Miami Is Going to See Snow for The Holidays

One of the reasons why Eliot and I moved to Miami was to get away from the snow. We managed that now for eight winters. However, this year you just may see us snow-tubing or making snow angels.  Lucky for us we don’t even have to leave the city of Miami to have some snow fun. Snow Carnival will drop 350 tons of snow on Aventura Mall

International Special Attractions (ISA), a special events company, is producing the snow-filled experience in a humongous pop-up tent in the parking lot at the Aventura Mall from November 23 through January 7, 2024.

Called Snow Carnival, the event requires ISA to drop 350 tons of snow in the tent on the first day and then an additional 50 tons daily to make up for what melts. It is quite a production. Tickets, which let you enjoy the powdery white stuff for an hour, cost $39.99 for adults and $34.99 for kids ages 4-12.

Snow Carnival is expected  to live up to its name with a snow-flurry entrance, a snow-tubing slide known as mini Matterhorn, smaller slides for kids, and an expansive indoor meadow for making snow angels. Other activities include targeted areas for snowball fights, an area for snowman building, an inner tube merry-go-round, and the Holiday Express train ride through the forest.

On the culinary front, there will be family-friendly treats as well as the Yeti Snow Bar, an adults-only bar built inside of an igloo.

ISA says it will be about 60 to 70 degrees inside the tent, so dress accordingly. Kids’ shoes and socks could get wet, so make sure they wear warm clothing or have backup clothes. Also, 300 tickets will be available each hour, so get ready for a crowd.

Snow Carnival. Aventura Mall, 19501 Biscayne Blvd., Aventura; snowcarnival.com.