My friend, author Neil Plakcy, is offering a special discount to Tomatoes for the audiobooks of his first three golden retriever mysteries. I just had the most amazing restaurant experience ever. If you want to enjoy the Miami waters, one of the many boat tours is a great option to owning or renting a boat. And now I have a request.  I need silent auction items for a fundraising event/golf tournament, “Play Fore A Cure” to be held on Monday, May 22nd at The Metropolis Country Club in White Plains, NY.

Love Mysteries and Dogs?

My friend of over 20 years, Hollywood FL author Neil S. Plakcy, is offering The Three Tomatoes audience a special audiobooks sales promotion for the first three of his golden retriever mysteries. They’re perfect for older listeners who like dogs, humor and a touch of family love. The first book, In Dog We Trust, introduces Steve Levitan, a semi-reformed computer hacker who returns to his hometown in Pennsylvania after a divorce and a brief stint as guest of the California penal system. When his next-door neighbor is murdered, he teams up with her golden retriever, Rochester, to sniff out her killer. That’s the beginning of a fifteen-book series with heart—and fur. Rochester has an uncanny knack for digging up clues, whether it’s by knocking things over with his big plumy tail, nosing around the outdoors, or in how he responds to people they meet. He doesn’t talk—but like any good dog daddy, Steve understands what he’s trying to communicate.

Until May 3, this book will be on sale at four retailers for $1.99. Book two, The Kingdom of Dog, is marked down to $2.99, and the third book, Dog Helps Those, has been reduced to $3.99.

Listeners who like to binge will be delighted that there are fifteen books in the series so far, with the 16th coming out in May. Neil reports that he has gotten many emails from readers and listeners who found comfort in his books during the Covid lockdown, and after suffering personal losses. I can testify that you’ll be charmed by Rochester and his antics and satisfied by the solutions to the mysteries.

Here is the Barnes & Noble link for In Dog We Trust 

Here is the Kobo link for In Dog We Trust

Here is the Apple link for In Dog We Trust

Here is the Chirp Books link for In Dog We Trust

By the way, Chirp Books is a great source for discounted audiobooks which can be played through their app on your phone or on a PC or a Mac.

I hope you’ll enjoy this series in print, in e-book format, or as a fun listen.

Gekko: A Unique and Elegant Dining Experience 

After having a magical night celebrating my friend, Ruth Steinik Greenberg’s birthday, at the magnificent Gekko restaurant, a Japanese-inspired steakhouse, I received a special email from the manager. He wanted to know about our experience and told me, the host of the evening, to call him personally to make future reservations. I also had to fill out a survey about our dining experience.  I’m now a VIP and no longer have to go through normal reservation channels.

How’s that for first class service? I truly had no idea what to expect when I chose Gekko to celebrate Ruth’s birthday. Finding a place that Ruth and her husband Howard would like was a tough assignment.  They go everywhere. They easily could be restaurant critics.

I decided to make this a community effort. I emailed several folks in their 30s and 40s to ask for suggestions. They quickly responded with a list of possibilities. The problem was Ruth and Howard had been to every restaurant on the lists that I received back. I carefully examined them a few times. On my last effort to see if I missed something, I noticed Gekko.

It was recommended by Francesca Nabors, one of the much younger gals I know that tends to dine out in fine places. Not too many other folks knew about the restaurant, so I was a little nervous. I called Francesca to double check. She gave me the encouragement to roll the dice.

The four of us, Ruth, Howard, Eliot and myself, entered the restaurant with much trepidation. Too many of the “in spots” we go to tend to treat older folks like second class citizens. They don’t want us to be the face of the restaurant. They want the young sexy crowd with the bare breasted dresses and 10-inch heels to be the calling cards.

That wasn’t the case with Gekko. From the minute we walked in, till we exited, we were treated like royalty. We are now certain that the owners, David Grutman of Groot Hospitality and recording artist Bad Bunny, want to be sure that they get recognized as the most elegant experience in town. The food was most unusual and delicious. The ambience was completely festive and hip. The service was superb! Thank you Francesca Levy Nabors for the recommendation.

Groot Hospitality is a Miami Beach, Florida-based group of top restaurants, bars, cafés, nightlife ventures and hotels. It was officially formed in 2018 by David Grutman. The group is noted for its entirely unique atmospheres of upscale dining, luxe decor, and marquee entertainment.  Their properties include: The Goodtime Hotel, the nightclubs LIV and STORY, the restaurants Gekkō, Komodo, The Key Club, Papi Steak, Strawberry Moon and Swan.

At both the Goodtime Hotel and Swan, Grutman is partners with the multi-hyphenate musician and producer Pharrell Williams – the pair will also open their first resort, Somewhere Else on Atlantis Paradise Island, in 2024. Grutman is also partners with the recording artist and actor Bad Bunny on Gekkō. Multiple other projects are in the pipeline, including an expansion plan that will bring Groot Hospitality to cities worldwide.

Ultimately, Groot Hospitality delivers one-of-a-kind outings across its locations and activations. By further programming the company’s physical spaces with an immersive, 360-degree approach — including a focus on headline performances and social media vignettes.

8 SE 8th Street, Miami.  Get the details: https://gekko.com/

Take Advantage of Miami Water Activities  

There are days I dream about owning a boat. All I want to do is get out on the water and look back at the coastline. There is so much to see that I often wonder why I spend all of my time on land when I am surrounded by water.

One of the best reasons is that it is very expensive to own and/or rent a boat. Unless you have oodles of money that you don’t need to spend on necessities, you get guilty about blowing your dough on luxurious pastime pleasures. Even my richest friends complain about what they spend on their yachts or motorboats every month.  Renting is also costly. You can easily spend $1,500 a pop every time you go for a four hour ride. Here’s a laugh. Many folks want to get back on land after two or three hours. They loved the ride but they just had enough sun, bouncing and sea spray.

I figured if I want to participate in more water activities, I am better off joining all of the Miami tour boats that seem to offer unique experiences at pretty good deals. I’m not saying that we won’t rent our own fabulous motorboat, with a captain, two or three times a year, but certainly not on a regular basis.

For example, what’s wrong with a 90-minute ride for $50? Yes, there are strangers on the boat with you, but you are all there for a good time. The whole idea is to be on the water and get off the land.  Whether you do this privately, or in public transportation, you are being adventurous.

Here is my next choice:

The Vintage Yacht ‘Mizner’s Dream’.  We are going on a boat ride through the Inter Coastal Waterway (ICW) of Miami and Biscayne Bay. The crew will share the history of Miami, its culture and how it’s grown into a world renowned city.

We get to use a Vintage Sightseeing Yacht. The Mizber Dream was built in 1980 for the Boca Raton Hotel as a Passenger Ferry transporting hotel guest to and from their Boca Raton Beach Club. It was designed to look like a 1920’s Passenger Ferry.

The tour departs from Miami Beach Marina and cruises through Biscayne Bay, Port of Miami, up the Miami River, the Mansions of Venetian, Hibiscus, Palm & Star Islands. The boat features A/C and a restroom. Excursions are limited to 25 passengers. You can purchase beer, wine, soda and water.

Duration: 90 minutes. ADULTS:  $49.99.  CHILDREN (under 12):  $34.99

BOOK  https://www.flysobe.com/miami-boat-tour

I Need Silent Auction Items for an Important Cause

On May 22nd, Hunters CMT4B3 Research Foundation will be hosting a fundraising event/Golf Tournament at the Metropolis Country Club in White Plains, N.Y., to fund  research for life-saving treatments for children and young adults with Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease type 4B3. CMT4B3 is a rare degenerative neuromuscular disease similar to Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and Lou Gehrig’s Disease (ALS).

Children with CMT4B3 lose the ability to walk, use of their hands, suffer limb deformities and potentially their sight and/or hearing. Eventually the disease can compromise a patient’s breathing, which can lead to premature death.

We are reaching out to ask if you can donate an item for their raffle/auction for this event. We would greatly appreciate donations of goods or services for the raffle/auction such as gift items, autographed sports and entertainment items, unique individual or group experiences, event tickets, golf foursomes at private country clubs, weekend getaways or destination stays, jewelry, gift certificates, celebrity events, art and wine, the sky’s the limit.

We are looking for silent auction items to help raise funds for the critical research that is so greatly needed to help cure this rare, progressive neuromuscular disease that is threatening the lives of thousands of children around the world.

Most children are left undiagnosed or misdiagnosed due to lack of genetic testing and understanding of the disease by the medical community.

How did I get involved in this?

I met Robin and Billy Schultz at a Murano Beach Club party in Miami. They live in my Miami condo building and have a home in Scarsdale, N.Y. Their grandson Hunter has this rare disease and they have assembled a world-renowned team of researchers, universities (including Universtiy of Miami Hussman Institute of Genetics, which is presently funded over $340,000.00) to find a treatment to stop the progression of the disease.

Hunter is the son of Iris and Brett Schultz. They live in Manhattan. The picture below was taken infront of the Lois Pope Life Center at U of M.

Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) (Pronounced:Shark-O-Marie-Tooth) is a progressive nerve disease named after the three doctors who discovered it in 1886: Jean-Marie Charcot, Pierre Marie and Howard Henry Tooth.

On Monday, May 22nd, Hunters CMT4B3 Research Foundation will be hosting a fundraising event/Golf Tournament at the Metropolis Country Club in White Plains, N.Y. to fund critical research for life-saving eatments.

We need  to support the research at University of Miami Miller School of Medicine to find a treatment for children suffering from CMT4B3. We hope we can count on you to help us find a cure for children with CMT4B3 and related neuromuscular diseases.

If you make a donation, we will send you an In-Kind Donation form along with the an event flyer. To learn more, please visit their website: cmt4b3research.org.

The Schultz family was recently featured on Good Morning America, News 12 Westchester and their research efforts are highlighted in the current issue of The University of Miami Medicine Magazine, “DNA Detectives, a family’s journey to cure a rare genetic disease.

Click here to watch their University of Miami video: Rare Disease (vimeo.com).

Thank you for your consideration as we fight to find a cure for Hunter and other children suffering from related rare neuromuscular diseases.

Lois and Eliot Hess

(917) 822-2591

loisw@hwhpr.com