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by Ellis Anderson This month - A sailboat built for serious circumnavigation takes a break in Bay St. Louis after six years in the Caribbean.  photo courtesy Les and Sarah Villa
So how did a couple who were living in a desert with no previous boating experience come to buy the Wilde Mathilde and then call her home while they cruised the Caribbean for six years? Leslie and Sarah Villa were living in Tucson, Arizona, where “Les,” a diesel mechanic, owned and operated a mobile service that repaired semi- trucks. Sarah was working for a local International truck dealership and also keeping books for her husband.  photo courtesy Sarah Villa Sometime around 2006, Sarah read a story about a couple who bought a sailboat and sailed around the world. She was intrigued enough to start researching and reading about cruising. The more she learned and shared with Les, the more appealing the idea seemed. The couple decided to work for another two years, then sell the business and retire. In the meantime, Sarah shopped online for the perfect boat. She immersed herself in the boating world, absorbing everything she could about sailboats and sailing. When she found the Joshua in Norfolk, Virginia (where it had been sitting up for six years), she and a friend flew out to inspect it. She called home to Les with a report and he said, “If you think this is the boat, let’s do it.” The couple soon sold their house and all belongings that wouldn’t fit into their pickup truck. Then they headed east for Norfolk and their new floating home. For the next ten months, they lived aboard the Wilde Mathilde, getting her back into cruising shape. They signed up for boating courses (at the end of one, Sarah was offered a job as a course teacher). They also sailed the boat to Miami and the Bahamas, back to Norfolk and eventually back down to Miami again, where they planned to set off for Panama. Yet when it came time for the long passage, the weather turned sour. Even with a seasoned sailor friend crewing, it was a trying, rough voyage. When asked how long the crossing took, Sarah doesn’t hesitate: Seven days and twenty hours. For the next several years, they cruised the Caribbean, moving between exotic ports-of-call like the San Blas Islands, Panama, Columbia, Belize and Guatemala. Les says that they make a great team. “I can fix anything and she can do anything.” It also turned out that Sarah is a natural navigator with superb skills she’s had a chance to hone while traveling.  Diving from the mast, photo courtesy Sarah Villa With some of the storms the couple had to face over the years, the double-ended Joshua boat turned out to be a great choice.
Les tells this breath-taking story: “Once when we were coming back up from Panama to Guatemala, it was late at night and the wind was howling 60 – 70 knots. The seas were probably a good twenty at the time. I saw Sarah was getting ready to come up on deck, so jumped down to stop her. I didn’t want her to see how bad it was out there. She had this awful look on her face and I could see that she was shaking. She honestly thought it was the end for us.” “I said, ‘This boat loves this kind of weather. You searched all over for a boat that could take these kind of seas. Look, we’re sitting down here talking and she’s just going along. This is a really good boat and she’s going to protect us.’ After that, Sarah lay down and went back to sleep.” Although the Villas both enjoyed the laid-back cruising lifestyle, it turned out to be a little too sedate for them both (at least between the rare stormy passages). When Sarah was offered a job at Stennis Space Center, they brought the Wilde Mathilde back to the states, moved off the boat and into a house in Diamondhead. Les found his skills in high demand and is currently working at Rocking C Truck and Trailer in Gulfport. For now, the couple is content visiting the Wilde Mathilde in the Bay St. Louis harbor on weekends, where they can bike around Old Town and enjoy the restaurants. Both Les and Sarah claim to be addicted to the scones at Serious Bread Bakery, just a block away. Will they take Wilde Mathilde out again? The couple’s not sure. “The cruising life is just something we wanted to try, “ says Les. “ We don’t know what our next adventure will be. But when Sarah says let’s go to this – whatever it is - I say O.K.” by Philip L. Levin, MD This Month - The Arts Alive! festival returns to Old Town Bay St. Louis in March. Learn how you can be part of this dynamic event that will get your creative muses buzzing! 
 Dozens of artists will show work, demonstrate technique and share their creative process with customers at shops and galleries throughout Old Town. A juried art show offers cash prizes. With a singer-songwriter competition, a culinary contest and a literary event - ArtsAlive! brings out the creative muse in crowds all day long. The event has been produced by The Arts, Hancock County for more than a decade, but in 2014, the organization launched a completely fresh concept, winning over participating artists, Old Town merchants and festival goers who came from as far away as North Carolina. According to Cynthia Mahner, president of The Arts, “ArtsAlive! exposes our community to art and fosters creativity in children and adults throughout the coast community. And it gives professionals and aspiring artists, writers, chefs, and musicians a place to showcase their talents." “It’s also more engaging than a typical art show, since you get to see artists creating and competing. It’s a very exciting day for both artists and the public." Last year over $4,000 in prize money was awarded in the various competitions and more than 100 writers, songwriters, chefs and visual artists participated. This year two-dozen local businesses will sponsor artists along the streets of Bay St. Louis. Many of the restaurants, such as the Bay Town Inn, Trapani’s Eatery, and the Cypress Café will have painters demonstrating in their front yards. Jewelers, potters, needlepointers, and even furniture makers will be out in front of various businesses, providing a unique opportunity to meet artists at their work and see how they create their masterpieces.  The Juried Art show reception in 2014  A few of the Aspiring Writers winners 2014 The Singer-Songwriter showcase will be sponsored again this year through the Mockingbird café. Live performances occur all afternoon, with a finalist sing-off showdown in the evening. Four hundred dollars cash prizes ensure high quality singers, with a good time for all listeners. The Literary Showcase will partner with Bay Books to give writers a chance to shine, including a bevy of local authors signing their books through the day along Main Street. The Aspiring Writers contest promotes writing for students, with a big participation from the grade school and high school levels. Last year’s “Flash Fiction” contest with cash prizes was a big success, and will be repeated again this year. For more excitement, Bay Books will be adding a poetry contest this year. In the Culinary Showcase, amateur chefs will bring their strongest contenders to the Sweets of the South competition during ArtsAlive! 2015, with cash prizes awarded to the top three winners. Members of the public even get to sample the candies, cakes and pies to help select a People’s Choice Award. Even acting will be represented, with members of the Bay St. Louis Little Theatre presenting a short performance on the Courthouse lawn. Those interested in participating should sign up immediately. Please go to www.artsalivegulfcoast.com for complete information and entry forms. Entry deadline for the juried art show is February 28, 2015.  Audience cheering on competing singer-songwriters at the Mockingbird Cafe in 2014 by Lisa Monti This month - The Cleaver crew enjoys lunch at the new Ricky's location in the Depot District.  Chef Rickey Peters On opening day January 7, Rickey’s Off the Tracks’ kitchen and wait staff didn’t miss a beat serving a full house of customers who started arriving even before the official 11 a.m. opening. Rickey Peters, who had previous restaurants in Waveland and Bay St. Louis, started the new year with a new menu in a new location at the corner of Hancock and Blaize, across from the duck pond in the Depot District. First-day service was smooth and the food got high marks though Rickey’s is still a work in progress, said co-owner Kevin Jordan. “We’re getting the kinks worked out,” he said post-opening. “All the little things are coming together.” One addition right off the bat: the addition of veggie plates to fill in the vegetarian gap on the menu. The opening day lunch crowd included eleven of us from the Cleaver. Selections varied among the salads sandwiches and other offerings. Gumbo was heavily favored on my end of the table. I enjoyed my generous portion too, and next time I’ll try a sandwich on the delicious-looking bread. Here’s Cathy Lawson’s take: I love a good gumbo! And I can say the inaugural gumbo Carol McKellar and I had today was wonderful. I know I should have ordered something different to allow a broad review, but when I saw the words "Gumbo Ya Ya" I was weak. And I also followed Carol's lead and ordered potato salad with the gumbo. All I can say is my bowl was empty. Rich roux. Lots of meat and seafood in it. Laissez les bons temps rouler! I'll get the shrimp étouffée tomorrow! Ellis Anderson gave high marks to the roasted turkey and boudin sandwich, which featured a thick spread of boudin. I've never seen it on any menu before, so had to try it. Then I couldn't figure out why I hadn't seen it on any menu before - the combination was a match made in a heavenly kitchen. The étouffée is built around a seafood stock that marries savory layers of flavor - I'd put it up against some of the best restaurants in New Orleans. Jordan said the new meatloaf hamburger, made with fresh ground chuck and dressed, has become a new favorite. It tops the list among the Cubano (roast pork, ham, Swiss), Portofino (ham, Genoa salami, provolone, olive salad), Cochon de Lait (tender roast pork) and other sandwich choices. Along the gumbo lines are crawfish étouffée and alligator jambalaya. There’s more to come from Rickey’s. “We’re hoping to do some deliveries in the Bay-Waveland area and to start our patio addition soon. Once we get that done we’ll add some traditional Rickey’s entrees.” Hours are 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday and 11 a.m. until closing on Saturday. Call ahead at 228-344-3201.   The Turkey and Boudin sandwich - different and to die for.   Bacon lovers will swoon over the BLT at the new Rickeys.   The Cleaver crew enjoys the opening day of Rickeys by Susie Veglia This month - how the magnificent white pelicans and a good friend can make our hearts soar. photos by B.R. Hawkins  photo by B. R. Hawkins
 White Pelicans, and an intake of breath. Disbelieving, Lhasa Boy gets it. Quietly we steal our way out to the tip of the sandbar. The tide is out impossibly far, and the water so blue, transparent, still, holding the rhythm of their radiant whiteness in an endless sunset. In another world, there is no reason to take flight. They behold us through the endless distance without ever really looking. An abyss between us, they continue their restful bobbing in primordial isolation. The moment ends, and we return to our walk. I lament the absence of our muse, but see her from a distance some time later – lens, Betty Ruth, and pelicans fused in one captured moment, not long before the great storm. Not long before we were all shattered for a long, long time, both communities scattered. Not long before this peaceful moment became even more precious and rare, after a wrathful sea reached into both worlds. Lhasa Boy has long since passed, but Betty Ruth has returned, her gift the captured spirit of that day, unshattered. White Pelicans in flight video by Ellis Anderson
This month - A look at how Carnival came to the Coast - and how it's become a much beloved family tradition. - by Karen Fineran photos from the Scafidi Collection at the Hancock County Historical Society 
 by Ellis Anderson This month - a visit at one of the most distinguished homes on the Mississippi coast - "Tranquility," the home of architect Fred Wagner. 
As one draws closer, the home that stands at the end of this dreamy corridor seems to materialize from the past. While it was built in 1979 and isn’t a historic house, it’s well on its way to being one of the most beloved examples of fine architecture on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Driving up the oak alley, climbing the steps to the veranda and knocking on the tall front door impresses on a visitor the stately dignity of the house. Yet, when Fred Wagner opens the door and offers a heartfelt welcome, even a child would feel instantly relaxed and at home. Inside, doorways open from the wide front hall, offering glimpses into the varied characters of the rooms. Each of the ground floor rooms even has a different type of flooring – a device Wagner used to further accentuate the personalities of the rooms. When Wagner designed the house for his own family in 1979, he had already established a career as a noted coast architect. A native New Orleanian, he had graduated from Tulane University and in 1954, married Virginia Seal from Bay St. Louis. The young family lived in New Orleans until their oldest child, Lisa, was about five, when the couple decided they’d rather raise their family “in the country,” on the coast. They purchased an old Victorian house close to the beach on property dotted with oaks and magnolias. When Camille raked the coast with 200 mph winds in 1969, Fred, Virginia and their two children rode it out in their old house, taking refuge beneath the dining room table while the walls shook. Ten years later, the couple decided to forgo a complete restoration on their old, structurally unsound house and build on the same lot. The old house was carefully dismantled, as Wagner planned on reusing its heart-pine beams, stained glass and moldings in the new home. Although Fred had been trained as a modern architect, he appreciates the skills and the design of historic houses. He decided to build his own home in the classic tradition that was so evident in “the Bay,” so he designed a very unpretentious house with cottage proportions. But he also wanted it to be able to withstand the most ferocious of storms. So although the house appears to be a simple, framed Creole cottage, it’s built on a commercial grade foundation. “The footings, the columns, the beams and the floor slab – which is five inches thick – are made from reinforced concrete,” says Wagner. Other upgrades include using two by six lumber to build the exterior walls (instead of the normal two by fours) and the roof is fortified with extensive cross bracing.   Hurricane Katrina tested Tranquility and after the storm had passed, it was the only beach house standing south of the railroad tracks. The storm had taken a heavy toll however, crashing through the first floor and wrecking havoc. The couple began a full restoration soon after the storm and by spring of 2007, were back in their home. “It seemed like an overwhelming challenge,” said Wagner. “At first we weren’t sure we could even restore the house. It was a joint decision to try. It’s not exactly like it was before, yet there’s a sense of place.” Evidence of the storm’s fury can be seen in the scarring of the fabulous cypress paneling in the formal dining room. Yet, one thing that hasn’t changed is the fluid floor plan, with wide doorways that invite movement from room to room. “Virginia loved to entertain and this house has a way of putting people at ease when they visit,” says Wagner. “I designed it to encourage an easy flow of people, so that nobody got stuck in a corner when we had large groups.” The floor plan features a dining room and kitchen off one side of the wide center hall, with a living room and master bedroom on the other. The center hall opens up to living area in back that spans the width of the house. Glass doors create a transparent wall, inviting in the lush yard. A staircase on each end of the room leads to additional bedrooms upstairs. The cypress-paneled dining room is special to Wagner. His father’s insurance clients included the Louisiana Cypress Lumber Company in Ponchatoula, and since he often went along on business trips, he learned to love the intoxicating, pungent odor of milled cypress. Many years later, Wagner spotted some of the most beautiful cypress he’d ever seen at the mill of an architectural client. Although he didn’t know at the time what he’d do with the wood, Wagner accepted payment for his services in lumber. Later, when Tranquility was under construction, Wagner created paneling, molding and a mantle out of the lumber, making for an unforgettable dining room. “There has been much conversation and laughter and clinking of glasses in this room,” Wagner says, leading the way into the adjoining kitchen. The kitchen too was created as an entertainment area, as well as an efficient workplace. Wagner designed it so that the comings and goings of guests wouldn’t disrupt the work of the cook. A small breakfast table sits near the French windows that open up to a screened porch facing the beach. One can almost see Virginia, who passed away in 2011, preparing some of her famous hors d’oeuvres at the kitchen island.  Virginia’s lively spirit still permeates every room in the house, especially the formal living room, where a spectacular portrait of her hangs. The original was painted by famed New Orleans artist, Hal Carney. Carney was known for his brilliantly abbreviated portraits, which managed to catch the very essence of his subject’s personality. This one is no exception. Virginia was in her early fifties when Wagner approached Hal Carney about the commission. Carney at first refused, saying that he didn’t do portraits of women because “they always want to look prettier than they are.” Yet Fred insisted that he wanted a portrait of his wife “as she is.” He finally persuaded the artist to take on the project. Carney did a masterful job. Even a viewer who never knew Virginia would understand that she was a forthright, confident woman who possessed great powers of perception and enormous energy. There’s tenderness and compassion and laughter in her face as well. A single bare foot and her expressive hands speak to someone who could work tirelessly, yet find time to relax with friends and family. The original portrait was lost in Katrina and no trace of it was ever found. However, slides of Hal Carney’s work were discovered, including the portrait of Virgina. The Wagners were eventually able to have the image printed on canvas. Even on close examination, it’s difficult to tell that it’s not an original painting.  Wagner calls the adjoining master bedroom his favorite room in the house. Two sets of French doors lead to another screened porch, a place Wagner frequently enjoys. It seems to reflect Wagner’s personality since a contemporary Eames chair flanks a poster bed that speaks to the best of mid-1800’s antiques. The original Mallard bed was destroyed by Katrina. A master craftsman in St. Francisville was able to recreate an exact copy based on drawings and pictures Wagner had made of the bed before the storm. Like Virginia’s portrait, there is no enjoyment lost in the fact that it’s a reproduction and not an original. The master bathroom features a whimsical counterpoint to the classic house. While traveling in Mexico with friends, one couple purchased a hand-painted tile wall mural of a peacock. The mural never was installed, so Wagner asked to purchase it as he planned his own bathroom. “It’s been a delight all these years to bathe with a peacock,” Wagner says, laughing. The expansive tiled living area across the back of the house echoes the inviting natural views of the front porch. Wagner calls it the “summer” living room, while the more formal living room with it’s fireplace is his winter retreat. When guests need to head for their own homes, the house doesn’t make it easy to go. The front porch is flanked on both sides by large screened rooms, each beckoning and begging one to stay a bit longer. The oak alley acts as a living telescope; looking though it, the line where the blue water of the sound meets the sky is both magnified and sharpened. Why would someone want to leave this magical place for the world beyond the oaks? Fred Wagner sits in the porch swing, taking in the view so very familiar to him. He’s been able to mesh the natural environment with the built environment graciously, seamlessly and unforgettably – the ultimate goal of fine architecture. The expression in his eyes is one of peace and of course, tranquility.  Fred had this swing crafted to duplicate on that had been in his family for generations. In the little video snippet below, he demonstrates how it easily transforms from a swing to a cradle. Al Lawson - On Design  Welcome to the New Year! Get excited! Embrace the moment! Inhale the preciousness of the present! There is nothing as important and real as where you are right now. So don’t wait. Put a new pillow on your sofa. Reupholster the chair you’ve been waiting to change. Buy flowers every week and put them in a pitcher or a vase on your kitchen counter. Find a candle or fragrance diffuser that makes you smile when you walk in a room. Throw a gorgeous piece of fabric over the back of one of your chairs. Buy a painting from a local artist that gives you goose bumps. Remember “Beauty will save the world” according to the Russian writer Fyodor Dostoevsky. Start the renovation of your world now!  |
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