Anne Money Buck

This exclusive interview appeared in Coffeehouse Digest   http://www.coffeehousedigest.com

The Lady’s Captain Brews a Great Cup

Anne Money Buck

On a beautiful fall afternoon in the Belle of the South, Savannah, Georgia, I sat down to lunch and an interview with tugboat captain Michael Groover. Michael’s name may not be familiar, but his white hair and beard, reminiscent of Santa Claus, is a familiar site to millions of Food Network viewers. Michael is the husband of the Queen of Southern Cuisine, Paula Deen.

For decades, people have flocked to Paula’s famous Lady & Sons restaurant in the heart of Savannah to partake of the best of southern home cooking dished out by Paula and her two sons. A long time single mother, Paula married Michael two years ago, and Michael, the jolly, unassuming tugboat captain; the average “Joe”; was thrust into a world of celebrity surrounding Paula.

The interview, which was scheduled to take about an hour, went on for 3 hours; partly due to the down-home ease of talking with Michael and partly due to his extreme popularity. Fans came over to the table every 5 or 10 minutes asking to take pictures with him and asking for his autograph. With all the southern charm you would expect, when asked if they could take his picture, Michael replied,” I’ll be mad if you don’t.”  When I asked Michael how he deals with all this new- found celebrity, he quickly replied, “Wherever we go we’re treated like family, which is really a neat feeling.”

Michael has spent most of his life working on boats and he still does today. When those large freighters come down the Savannah River, tugboats go out and lead them through the narrow and tricky harbor. As a tugboat captain and docking pilot, Michael knows he must always be at the ready, no matter what the hour. Through the years, he came to rely on coffee to stay alert. Since so many of the ships passing through are from other countries, Michael has tasted coffees from around the world and states, “I think I know how a good cup of coffee should taste”. 

Working with local roasters Hayden Banks and Rande Duke who, like himself, believe in fair trade coffees, Michael put together a group of like-minded people.  They buy their coffee beans through a fair trade co-op that supports 6000 Columbian coffee growers and their families. The growers in this co-op receive more money per pound of coffee. This has resulted in self-sufficiency for the growers and no need for reliance on government subsidies.

Combining the best coffee beans with the proper roasting techniques is what makes a great cup of coffee. The philosophy of Captain Michael’s coffee is to roast in small batches at lower temperatures to give the coffees the best flavor possible. Unlike some of the giants of the coffee industry, you won’t find Captain Michael’s coffees to be bitter or bland. The combination of great beans roasted properly assures that every cup of their coffee is flavorful and smooth.

November of 2006 saw the debut of Captain Michael’s first coffee blend, Full Steam Ahead. It combines a medium roasted Columbian with a French roasted Columbian to bring out the full body of the bean. This year, eight new coffees will hit the market including Captain Michael’s “ 1^st Mate’s Flavored Coffees”. Both in life and in the coffee business, Michael’s first mate is Paula Deen and she selected these coffees to represent some of her favorite flavors.  Among them are Pralines & Cream and Georgia Pecan.

The next time you whip up that fabulous Key Lime Pie recipe of Paula’s, be sure to serve it along side Captain Michael’s coffee. It’s southern hospitality at its finest, and it’s tastiest too!

(sidebar)    Captain Michael’s coffees are currently available for purchase on Paula’s web site, www.ladyandsons.com and at www.savannahcoffee.com  and  www.smithfieldcollection.com. When visiting Savannah, you can purchase Captain Michael’s coffees at The Lady & Sons and Uncle Bubba’s restaurants and through many of the local specialty shops around Savannah.  Plans are currently underway to expand their marketing reach so you may be finding them in your local markets before too long.

BIO: Anne Money Buck is a freelance writer living in Largo, Florida with her husband and neurotic Border Collie. She has a nationally syndicated humor column, is an amateur gourmet chef and writes on food, travel, pets and timely subjects with interest to a wide variety of readers.      http://www.tampabaystart.com/BuckingTheSystem         www.annemoneybuck.com

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A SOUTH PACIFIC PARADISE IN CENTRAL FLORIDA
Anne Money Buck

Published: www.tampabaystart.com  for Loew's Hotel Corp.

Imagine being greeted by gorgeous women in grass skirts and coconut bras; muscular men in loin cloths blowing on huge conch shells; tiki torches lighting up the evening sky, and you sipping on a Pina Colada. This hidden tropical location isn’t on the other side of the world, its just 75 minutes east of Tampa, Florida.

Ever since that overgrown rodent took over the city of Orlando, there has been an over-the-top, pumped up, thrill riding, theme park feel to the town. We were hoping for something a bit more subdued this trip, and when we stepped into Loew’s Royal Pacific Resort, we got just that!

The Royal Pacific Resort in Orlando is in the center of "theme park world", with Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure just a stones throw away, and the big mouse’s house a few miles down the road. Once you enter this resort, you would never know there are roller coasters screaming down the track just across the small lagoon on the south side of the property.

The moment you walk onto the bamboo bridge into the lobby, you experience sights and sounds that instantly let you know you have left the stress of your daily life behind. Usually hotels attached to theme parks have one goal in mind---get them to the park to spend money. That’s not the case here at Loew’s Royal Pacific where the mood is laid back yet the service is first rate.

Everyone is treated like royalty at this hotel, including your four legged friends. The resort advertises that they love pets and their staff certainly follows through with this. We travel with our dog and cat and upon check-in they each were presented with a gift bag complete with food bowl, place mat, treats and a special pet room service menu.

The guest rooms are decorated in a sophisticated south seas style. Our room had a king size bed with a comfortable pillow top mattress and down pillows. Giving the room a mini suite feel was the full size sofa bed, work table with two chairs, bureau with six deep drawers, color TV and a mini bar. The large bathroom has a granite counter and full size tub/shower. The wall separating the bath and bedroom area is inlaid with a beautiful Indonesian hand carved wood partition. Additional amenities include a full size closet, safe, hair dryer, iron and ironing board.

Surrounded by tropic plants you will find the pool which is a large lagoon with a sandy beach at one end. It is no deeper than 4 feet, making it perfect for a game of volleyball. At 12,000 square feet this is the largest pool in the City of Orlando, and although a very popular place for both children and adults, it never feels crowded.

The restaurants are a step above most hotel restaurants. Even the Grand Master of chefs, Emeril Lagasse, has put his mark on this resort with his trendy Tchoup Chop restaurant. The other restaurants include The Islands Dining Room, Jakes American Bar, Bula Bar and Grill and The Orchid Lounge which serves a continental breakfast each morning. Our taste buds were whisked off to the South Seas as we dined on Tempura Teriyaki Mahi Mahi and Tasmanian Salmon. Even the mundane sandwich became a tropical feast with the Hoisin-Cilantro Marinated Chicken Breast and Pacific Cole Slaw Sandwich with Yuca Fries.

Loew’s has once again proven that when it comes to class and style at an affordable price, they know how to get the job done. The Royal Pacific Resort definitely lives up to its 4 star rating. 

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The following article was published in Texas Family Life Magazine

Master Planned Communities—Don’t Call Them Sub-Divisions!

Anne Money Buck

Although they have been around since the 1960s, master planned communities have been a hot topic in the media recently. Many people think this is just a fancy name for a sub-division, but there are great differences between a sub-division and a master planned community.

A sub-division is a grouping of homes. A master planned community is a grouping of homes; and that is where the similarity ends. Unlike a sub-division, which has little more than homes in it, a master planned community is almost a city unto itself.

Master planned communities also encompass far more land than a sub-division and they  incorporate extensive recreational amenities such as lakes, golf courses, parks, bike and horse paths, jogging, walking and hiking trails, fitness centers, swimming pools, health spas and more.

Unlike sub-divisions, built with the hopes that shopping, restaurants and recreational facilities will follow, master planned communities developers work with city officials to include all these amenities in the initial stages before ever starting the construction phase.

Due to the massive size of a master planned community, most projects are simply too large to be completed by one developer. Most communities have a group of individual builders and developers working together to develop 'localized' sections of the community. Using a 'multi-developer' concept creates a wide variety of building styles, floor plans, lots sizes, landscaping styles, and pricing options. 

Chris Fiscelli, writing for the Reason Public Policy Institute, refers to Master-Planned Communities as "suburbia's response to the boring, cookie-cutter, detached globs of housing that still make up much of America's suburban nation." 

Master planned communities are a successful attempt to bring people together again in a friendly, neighborly living arrangement. Just as in the days of the old neighborhoods, you can walk your children to school, stop to chat with a neighbor and pick up some groceries on your walk back home. This sense of community seems to be what is lacking in most of today’s standard sub-divisions, and the developers of master planned communities have spent countless hours and public money to come up with ways to put the “community” back into them.

In addition to the neighborly feeling, master planned communities have many options for residents interested in staying fit and healthy. 

Master planned community developers from all parts of the country realize the need for active-family and active-retirement communities. According to surveys conducted in the late 1990’s by American LIVES, Inc. and Inter Communications Inc., homebuyers willingly pay premium prices for master planned communities offering amenities and convenience. Buyers look for a community with an emphasis on the natural environment, walking and biking paths, sidewalks, small neighborhood parks, swimming pools and community fitness facilities.

Sports parks with soccer and baseball fields are a common site at many of the master planned communities, as are golf courses. Equestrian trails are also popular in many parts of the country. Planned activities abound and well-qualified recreation directors make sure that all residents stay informed about the events taking place through community through newsletters and intranets.

Many of the communities offer state-of-the-art fitness equipment, group exercise classes, weight training equipment, Jazzercise, yoga, Pilates and Kickboxing. These communities often feature multiple swimming pools, such as ones for general recreation, lap pools and toddler pools as well as hot tubs and Jacuzzis.

Understanding their residents’ needs and meeting those needs is foremost in planned communities and one of those many amenities to consider is childcare facilities. In addition to privately owned facilities within the communities, many offer on-site childcare so that mom or dad can take an exercise class or cool off in the pool, knowing that the little ones are safe. Schools are also something that the developers consider and you will find most planned communities have schools within walking distance within the community itself.

As more master planned communities create neighborhoods featuring the many amenities that today’s homebuyers are looking for, there are sure to be communities offering exactly what your family needs. Whether you are looking for an eco-friendly community, one with equestrian riding trails, or a community where block parties and neighborhood backyard BBQ’s are the norm, there should be a master planned communities to suit your family and enrich your lives.  

The neighborly camaraderie in a planned community is one of the things that many residents enjoy. The neighborhoods of old, where everyone knew each other and shared similar interests, is something that has been missing in communities. For years, it has been impossible to find everything a family wanted in the way of amenities and still find that “old fashioned” neighborhood feeling. Now, you can find all that and more in a master planned community. After walking your children to school, you can get in a great workout, jump in the pool to cool off, pick up some groceries for dinner or stop by a friend’s house for coffee--all without ever getting in your car.

If this sounds like the ideal situation for you and your family, consider a master planned community. It will be able to meet your needs by creating a home and neighborhood where the “welcome” mat is always out.

Anne Money Buck is a freelance writer living in Largo, Florida with her husband and neurotic Border Collie. She has a nationally syndicated humor column, is an amateur gourmet chef and writes on food, travel, pets and timely subjects with interest to a wide variety of readers.      http://www.tampabaystart.com/BuckingTheSystem         www.annemoneybuck.com

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Downsize Your Staff and Upsize Your Bottom Line

Anne Money Buck

Published: St. Petersburg Times

Stop for a moment and look at your company’s bottom line for last year. Was it what you hoped for? How can you make it grow? You need to sell more product, but at what cost? Look over your department expenditures for that same year. If you have an in-house advertising and marketing department or, if you hire a large advertising firm to do your work, you may be able to do a little shuffling and get back a huge return.

We all know the products with the highest name recognition have the largest advertising budgets and ad campaigns. That’s why their products cost so much---they must pay the piper sooner or later! Maybe its time for you to see just how much you are paying your "piper" and what you are getting in return.

Depending on the size of your company, you may only need one Advertising/Marketing Director who then works with a group of highly talented and qualified freelance writers, designers, artists, etc. If you are a small to mid-size company, this is all you need to get the job done. It’s not the size of the department that counts—it’s the size of the talent. What "book of knowledge" says that great talent must dwell under your roof or under the roof of a huge, overpriced ad agency? Most freelancers began in a large agency and left when they realized they could go on their own, charge the client less due to lower overhead and give the client a better product.

A successful business owner knows to employ the most talented people in each one of the fields necessary to the company. They also know that talented people don't have to be on the company payroll. Freelancers are used on a project by project basis. The money saved by not paying exorbitant salaries, insurance premiums and giving major perks, can go into further product development and sales.

The days of the full staff on board are over. Today’s economy makes us work leaner and smarter. By dumping that huge agency and going with freelancers, the "less is more" philosophy will definitely improve your bottom line.

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5 Steps to a More Efficient Kitchen                         

Anne Money Buck

Published: www.countryalmanacmag.com

Have you ever wondered how a restaurant chef can put out so many meals so quickly? Of course they have a staff to help them, but more than that; they have efficient kitchens that make their job so much easier.

Unfortunately, most of us don’t have a commercial kitchen in our homes, but here are five easy ways to make your own kitchen more efficient. If you are remodeling your home soon, keep these tips in mind for incorporating into your new design. For the rest of us who have to live with our current kitchen, these tips can help get you out of the kitchen faster and enjoy it more while you are cooking.

Cutting Board. Always use a cutting board. It will keep your knives sharp much longer and there are many materials available today to choose from for your cutting board. Whatever type of board you choose, the placement is very important to an efficient kitchen. Your cutting board belongs next to your stove or cooktop. You can chop your foods and slide them right into your pot without ever taking a step. It seems simple, doesn’t it~~~but where is your board right now? In a drawer? In the cabinet? Across the room acting as a coaster for your coffeepot? Get it out now and put it next to the stove!

Dishwasher. Put your silverware and towels in drawers closest to your dishwasher. Your glasses and  plates should be stored in the cabinets nearest your dishwasher so you don’t have to walk across the room balancing plates and cups every time you empty the dishwasher. This will save you steps, time and broken china.

Cooking Utensils. You just put all your silverware in a drawer next to the dishwasher. Now take all your cooking utensils; knives, spatulas, wooden spoons, tongs, etc. and put them in a drawer next to your cooktop. This is where you will be using them, so why should they be halfway across the room? 

Pots and Pans. It may seem like common sense, but once again, its not something everyone does. Put heavy pots and pans in lower cabinets or deep pot drawers near the cook top and oven. Are you still storing your pots and pans in upper cabinets? How many more times do they have to topple out on to the floor or your toes before you try a new place? Do it today!

Spices. Get those spices out of the pantry on the other side of the room and put them in the nearest cabinet or drawer by the cooktop. If you are running out of drawer or cabinet space, just find a nice tray or basket to put them in and leave them on the counter next to the cooktop. Just like the cutting board and cooking utensils, this is where you will use them so it only makes sense that they should be stored here.

Try these five simple steps and see for yourself how much easier and faster you can get that next meal on the table.

 Anne Money Buck~727-588-1315   Anne@annemoneybuck.com