A Different Kind of Blues

Whether you are visiting or a fortunate one like yours truly who lives on Marco full time, one should never lose sight over the fact of how much of a blessing it is to reside here and Naples proper. We have warm weather and sunshine most of the time, the best beaches, year-round boating and all kinds of endless water sports to enjoy and if you love fishing…doing it in the Ten Thousand Islands is a world class experience.

So why are people walking around out here so grumpy? Those of you that know me see I try to keep a negatively positive attitude, I’m the kind of person that if I’m having a really nice day or heaven forbid a drama-less week, I know it is only a matter of time before I’m standing in front of a flaming off-the-rails human train wreck who just walked in the door to ruin my perfect Nirvana.

Geeze! Chill out! Your watch needs a new battery or you broke your chain or a prong… it’s all replaceable and repairable. The Apocalypse hasn’t arrived because of it, at least not in my world.                 

I have come to realize not everybody walking around is having a good day, but even so, one should treat other folks the way they want to be treated! (It only took me 60 years to figure that one out!) We can all have multiple reasons to be grumpy, irritable and just plain mean. Personally, in case you haven’t noticed, as I age disgracefully, I can be a bit perturbed by even the littlest thing. My latest thing is the obstacle course one has to maneuver through on the way to work before my first cup of Joe, which consists of a mob of people, walking, running,  peddling or walking along side bicycles, pushing or pulling tandem baby carriages, riding mopeds, motorized skateboards, and I just barely avoided hitting that single wheel board zipping along (whatever the heck that is?) and then don’t forget the beloved golf and electric carts in and on Collier Boulevard. 

Everyone moving along in every direction wearing lackadaisical grins on their faces oblivious to the fast-paced tons of bone crushing steel vehicles they share the road with. (I know this is paradise and all but honestly, how many of these joy seekers end up in urgent care each day? Last I heard we have a six-mile-long beach to gallivant up, down, back and forth safely on - I’m told its very nice. I suppose I could seek therapy for this pet peeve; one thing is for sure I could never see myself ever joining that happy crowd of destination unknown death wishers). I just find it hard to fathom that so many other non-grinners are also exasperated with what I just described and members of “the going to work blues club” while living in paradise.

On that note, I found some blues that can make some of you ladies feel a lot happier. At the shop the blues have recently become my favorite color. I mean every shade of blue from sky blue to Caribbean Sea blue, Ink blue and especially aquamarine blue.

I have dedicated nearly a whole showcase to the blues; there are many gemstones both precious and semi-precious that fill every spectrum of the color blue. Aquamarine is my favorite, especially the deeper blue variety known as Santa Maria Mined Aquamarine, a bit more expensive than the more common pale blue South American Aqua.

The blues don’t end there. Brilliant blue zircon and even some fancy tourmaline such as the greenish blue seafoam is breathtaking. On the inexpensive side of the blues you have blue topaz that comes in every shade of blue; sky blue, Swiss blue and the color of the night sky London blue. Next you have Larimar, an exclusive turquoise-like colored stone that can only be mined in the Dominican Republic. Those of you with exquisite taste and a large bank account there is the option of precious blue sapphire, the most expensive color being the cornflower blue sapphire mined in Sri Lanka near India - the darker shades tend to come from Australian mines and are a tad more reasonably priced in smaller sizes and will prevent you getting “The Blues” that occur from emptying your bank account. 

The most magnificent blue water colors can be found heading down A1A to Key West. I have several Aquamarines loose in many different carat sizes and set in rings, earrings and pendants that match the Gulf color. The Santa Maria aquamarines are more like the color of the ink blue Mediterranean Sea that surrounds my other beloved island, Mallorca, Spain. This color brings me joy and makes me smile every time I see it.      

Getting these kinds of blues helps chase whatever blues you may have every time you are complimented on the intensity of their sea-like qualities while wearing them.