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As we strong-arm another shipping box to collapse it for recycling each week, you may be surprised that for the city of Coral Springs residences, those boxes are not being recycled.

For many years, recycling benefited our local governments’ coffers, by returning surpluses from selling our recycled material on the wholesale market back to the community.

Until a couple of years ago, our recycled waste was often transported to another country where the sorting and processing occur. According to a Yale School of Environment analysis, China’s plastic imports dropped 99% from 2018 to 2019. Overall, China used to take 60% of recycled material, until the import market was shut down by regulation. This triggered a change in the economics of recycling.

The wholesale price of recycled materials dropped while the industry adjusted. According to Dawn McCormick, from Waste Management Inc. of Florida, the average price of a bale of recycled materials dropped almost 75% in value. This resulted in local contracts for recycling starting to cost cities money to operate, versus generating a profit. Due to the changing economics, many cities in Broward stopped recycling. This included Coral Springs, which saved the taxpayers $300,000.

As the commodity prices increased recently, the cities have revisited the decision. In a recent commission vote, the city of Coral Springs, which had stopped curbside recycling, decided to restart. Which is great news to local recycling advocates.

One metric that many residents may not be aware of is the contamination rate. This is the rate at which non-recyclable waste is included in your recycling. This includes batteries that start fires (like the one in a Pembroke Pines facility), plastic films that clog up recycling sorting machines, plastic toys/furniture, clothing, and more. In Broward County, the rate is 25-40%, and the latest Coral Springs rate before the program was halted was 36.5%!

This high contamination rate is due to a phenomenon referred to as “wish-cycling.” According to McCormick, a lot of folks hope that more things can be curbside recycled, which increases the cost to process it and decreases the value. She said the mantra for successful recycling is, “When in doubt, throw it out (in the garbage).” This will ensure that we get the most out of recycling and help fund our local city programs.

So, let’s all do our part and make our local recycling programs successful. Remember to sort carefully, and decrease that contamination rate.

So Hallowe’en is around the corner and you’ve decided to fight evil this year by being a vampire hunter. Where do you start?

John Loper of Antiques & More in Coral Springs had an idea rolling around in his head in 2016, but it wasn’t until COVID-19 showed up that he was able to really start digging into what a vampire hunting kit would require, how to make it with high-quality antiques and reproductions and look authentic.

Fast forward to 2021, and Loper has put together many kits of varying sizes containing everything one might think of, and some surprises too! He took one of his works and sold it through Sotheby’s Auction House in New York. Other interested parties are the Royal Armouries in Leeds and Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Pictured is one of his larger kits, which is made of a velvet-lined wooden chest with a padlock and key, containing two removable gilt metal sconces — in case you are hunting at night, obviously.

Also included are two replica pistols, a pocket Bible, a strand of rosary beads, six wooden stakes and a mallet, seven crucifixes including one with a carved bone handle, one silvered pendant, and 33 glass vials. Everything a want-to-be vampire hunter will need. The vials could be used for holy water, or garlic (Does garlic salt count? Do you want to take the chance?), or any number of potions that the many vampire legends claim will drive out, stun, injure, or perhaps even kill one of these children of the night.

Other kits contain mirrors, 19th-century documents from funeral parlors, and more curios and religious artifacts. So if you want to be the Winchester brothers (from CW’s “Supernatural”) this Halloween, you know where to get the gear.

Don’t look now, but winter is approaching. It may not seem that way here in South Florida right now, but there is nothing stopping it and winter will be here whether we want it or not. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your point of view, the only way we know that winter has arrived here is by the plethora of out-of-state license plates on the automobiles of the “snowbirds,” the change in the color of women’s shoes from white to black or brown, and the desire to replace the white wines of summer with red.

While the red wines are usually more costly than the white wines, as it is said, “You get what you pay for.” My advice is to stock up on red wines now before the winter price increases or any other maladies that may befall Northern California.

Daou Family 2019 Pessimist ($30). A strange name but not a strange wine. The back label explains that it is a wine “that never disappoints.” That motto says a great deal, but does its name meet its character and quality? As a wine columnist, being a perpetual pessimist goes with the job, but this wine made that job easy: It is excellent. This wine can easily change a hard-core pessimist into a pussycat optimist.

At the first sip, you know that you are in for something very interesting, and very enjoyable. Everything about this wine is concentrated and very obvious. This dark ruby red, full-bodied wine displays the traditional cabernet aromas of cassis, plum, and oak with a hint of clove. Black cherry and cassis, in glorious amounts, firmly reside in the flavor along with a velvety mouthfeel, a sure sign of a better cab — and that is exactly what this wine is, a better cab and a fine starting place if you are a cabernet sauvignon newcomer.

Daou Family 2018 Bodyguard ($50). Since I grew up in Brooklyn, New York, to me a bodyguard is a big, burly guy with a broken nose and cauliflower ears who makes offers that “it’s best not to refuse.” Therefore, a wine so named definitely intrigued me. I will start by saying that no threats, bullying, or strong-arm tactics are needed for this wine, as it will capture and hold you with the first sip.

This wine is a blend of often not-seen varieties: 59% petite verdot and 41% petite sirah. The aroma is a fruit basket alive with the scents of blackberry, raspberry, pomegranate, chocolate, licorice, and cocoa. These fruit aromas and even more carry over to the flavor and then explode in the finish. Words cannot do justice to this wine, and I believe that it is one of the most interesting red wines that I have sampled in a long time. And remember, this wine was made by “the family.”

Hamel Family 2018 Isthmus ($90). The Hamel family, with all of their red wine experience, do full justice to the cabernet sauvignon grapes and from them have produced a very fine and, if I may, an exceptional example of the variety. The wine is full-bodied with a deep, almost violet color. This very dark wine is a true child of California, stressing fruit flavors over the usually austere and stiff character of the grape variety.

The aroma showcases black fruits, cedar spice, and vanilla. These carry over to the flavor, where they mingle with a cherry and plum element and the very discernable flavors of chocolate mint. This wine has a wonderful softness about it and reflects many of the flavors and aromas that are found only in well-aged wines. This is a wine that I believe rides the fine line between a California cabernet sauvignon and a French Bordeaux, and it is a pleasure to drink.

Eczema is a dry rash and skin condition in any stage of life, but it can be very common in infancy. Also known as atopic dermatitis, its root cause is unknown, but those with at least one first-degree relative with eczema, asthma, or hay fever are predisposed to having drier skin.

Wendy Sue Swanson, MD, MBE, FAAP, a pediatric specialist and chief medical officer at SpoonfulONE, says one in five children have dry skin classified as eczema. It can appear as small, dry flakes or develop into cracks in the skin that may lead to bleeding. Pediatricians call it the “itch that rashes,” and if unchecked, eczema can be persistent, recurring, and long-lasting.

When the skin breaks down, cracks and fissures form, causing the body to become an entry point that consumes everything in the environment. “The skin is the largest organ in the body and serves as protection from the outside world,” says Dr. Swanson. “What we know from data over the last 20 years is that when an infant is first introduced to food through the skin, the immune system reacts to it as an irritant, versus when the child begins to eat solid foods at the four-to-six-month mark.” By that time, the immune system is more comfortable and recognizes harmful substances, but due to cracks, rashes, and the intake of food through the skin during the early months of infancy, babies are prone to eczema.

Food Diversity

“A child with eczema is 600 times more likely to develop a lifelong food allergy,” says Swanson. “Studies show that the tummy is dominant to the skin, so that is why it is so important to introduce a diversity of foods as early and as often as possible to help develop the immune system.”

Swanson continues, “When solid foods are consumed through the stomach and not the skin, the immune system becomes more comfortable, normalizing intake rather than overreacting to it. The immune system is unique in that it needs to be ‘taught’ protection, and that only happens with food diversity.”

The skin provides security from outside elements, but through food diversity, the immune system “learns” how to react and protect. “How babies are fed early in life can be life-changing, so a diversity of foods is highly recommended,” Swanson commented. “Introducing new foods is not the risk, it’s the delay in introducing the foods that is the risk.”

According to Swanson, 8% of American children have a food allergy, which equals six million kids, or two in every classroom. A diverse diet in infancy protects against the development of allergies. “The more diverse a diet is at infancy through toddlerhood, the less likely he or she will develop food allergies,” says Swanson.

“Peanuts, eggs, and milk are the most common allergens in infancy, and parents need to understand they can help their child avoid a food allergy by getting proper foods and nutrients into the stomach to refortify the skin’s barrier.”

Establishing good food diversity is essential to a baby’s well-being. Formulas are not recommended after 12 months, but breastfeeding and/or formula can be sufficient up to the four-to-six-month period. Usually, from six to 12 months, a baby should become accustomed to a standard solid diet.

Breastfeeding

If a mother breastfeeds her baby exclusively during the first three months, the chances of the child getting a food allergy will not decrease, but breastfeeding does decrease the risk of eczema because the nutrients in a mother’s milk provide a baby’s skin with an extra level of protection. Developing a firm, protective skin barrier is important to deter eczema, and this can be done if parents recognize the importance of various food groups.

Solid Food Diet

The best way to get proteins and nutrients into a baby is through the stomach. “All the things Mommy consumes goes into her breast milk, but not all of it contains the necessary proteins needed to fortify a baby’s immune system,” Swanson commented. “Breastfeeding is great, and it can reduce the risk of eczema, but the USDA has made it clear that by four to six months, parents should be introducing allergens such as fish, shellfish, peanuts, wheat, eggs, and so forth into a baby’s diet.”

During pregnancy, a woman will eat many different types of foods, and the diversity of what she eats is what feeds her baby. A diverse diet of foods introduces more allergens and that is important in a baby’s early life — particularly if a child has eczema. The more proteins in the body, the more stabilized and healthier the baby will be.

In a coup for the Boca Raton Museum of Art and South Florida, the Boca museum will be the first stop of a world tour of the exhibit “Machu Picchu and the Golden Empires of Peru,” opening to the public on Oct. 16.

Presented by Cityneon with support from the Government of Peru and the Peruvian Ministry of Culture, and in partnership with Inkaterra Asociación, the collection is on loan from Museo Larco in Lima, Peru, and Museo de Sitio Manuel Chávez Ballón in Aguas Calientes, Peru.

It is the first time many of these objects have been seen outside of Peru.

“As we get closer to launching the premiere engagement of this exhibit, our team is truly excited to share this world-class production with South Floridians,” said Anthony Tann, president of World Heritage Exhibitions.

The immersive and interactive exhibit features the history, artifacts, and culture of ancient Andean cultures and the Inca people, and many of the 192 priceless artifacts on display are from royal tombs, including spectacular objects that belonged to noble Andean lords, such as a fully intact gold attire of a Chimú emperor dating back to 1300 A.D.

In part of the exhibit, visitors will be guided by a mythical Andean hero, Ai Apaec, and gain an understanding of the forces of nature that led to his death and subsequent rebirth.

Historians consider the ancient Andean civilizations of Peru as one of the six “pristine” cradles of civilization in the world, on par with those in Egypt, Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley (present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan), China, and Mexico.

Rivaled only by ancient Egypt in longevity and by the Roman Empire in engineering, Andean societies dominated a substantial segment of South America for more than 3,000 years, straight through the reign of the Incan Empire.

The Inca civilization, the last and largest empire in the pre-Colombian Americas, flourished without written language, the wheel, money, steel, iron, or draft animals, and it was the last great society to emerge in that era.

The exhibit, which highlights both the Incan cultures (1438–1533) and earlier Andean empires dating back thousands of years to the Chavín empire in 900 BCE, will inhabit two floors of the museum and feature an immersive, virtual reality experience designed to recreate the ancient spiritual mountaintop empires that existed 7,000 feet up in the clouds of the Andean Mountains.

Subsequent to the Chavín empire, five additional empires flourished in Peru, ending in 1533 with the Incas’ reign. The Incas, who ruled for 100 years, were the last chapter in thousands of years of ancient Andean civilizations.

Nestled in a cloud forest, the Inca Empire’s enduring symbol of architectural prowess is protected by twin sacred mountaintops and is invisible from below. For the exhibit, the ancient city has been recreated complete with sounds of jaguars and macaws and other sounds of the Amazon’s rainforest.

In 2020, during the unprecedented closure of the site during the COVID-19 pandemic, the first-ever virtual reality expedition of Machu Picchu was shot using state-of-the-art drone virtual reality technology.

Titled “Machu Picchu and the Spirit of the Condor,” the virtual reality experience features the grand Inca emperor Pachacuti, who infuses viewers with the spirit of the condor and flies with them across the ancient landscape.

Viewers will encounter the city’s ancient inhabitants and experience some of its most iconic locations, from the Temple of the Sun to the heights of Huayna Picchu.

“It is an honor to be the home of the world premiere of ‘Machu Picchu and the Golden Empires of Peru’ and a privilege to work with such esteemed partners to bring this exhibition to our community,” said Irvin Lippman, executive director of the Boca Raton Museum of Art at the exhibit announcement last May.

“We look forward to introducing South Florida and the world to the wonders of Machu Picchu and the power and beauty of the Inca civilization for what promises to be a memorable exhibit,” he said.

People who complain that South Florida doesn’t have a change of seasons don’t fish the annual fall mullet run.

For local anglers, nothing signals that fall has arrived like the mullet run. That’s when schools of silver and black mullet migrate south along the Atlantic coast while being feasted on by a host of predators such as snook, tarpon, jacks, sharks, Spanish mackerel, and bluefish.

October is the prime time to fish the mullet run, both offshore and inshore. One of the attractions of the run is that anglers never know what they might catch from one cast to the next. Another attraction is that they don’t need live mullet to catch gamefish. Half of a mullet and a variety of lures such as topwater plugs and soft-plastic baitfish and shrimp imitations can be just as, if not more, effective.

Schools of mullet can appear suddenly and then disappear. Sometimes they linger inshore for several days before moving on. As Capt. Chris Murray of Stuart, who fishes offshore as well as in the Indian and St. Lucie rivers, said, “They come in in droves, and then they’ll pause and then there’ll be another drove.”

“They could be here for several weeks or a month,” added Capt. Mark Nichols of Stuart. “It just depends on whether the weather pushes them south.”

Murray usually cast-nets several dozen mullet wherever he sees the baitfish pushing water. After catching bait, he recommended that you cruise around until you spot another mullet school, then closely watch to see what the baitfish are doing and what’s feeding on them.

Tarpon often jump completely out of the water, then come crashing back into the middle of the school. Snook like to hang below the school and suck in mullet with an audible pop. Jacks will charge into the school and send mullet flying.

Murray likes to fish live mullet on a 7-foot light- to medium-action spinning rod with a 4000-size reel spooled with 20-pound braided line. He usually attaches a 40-pound fluorocarbon leader tied to a 3/0 Owner Mutu Light circle hook. He clips an indicator float to the leader, which allows him and his anglers to keep track of the bait.

“I vary my leaders. I like to actually start lighter,” Murray said. “Normally I rig up two that are 25-pound, two that are 30, two that are 40. When I know what kind of fish are there and what kind of heat I have to put on them, normally 40. If they’re small snook, 25 or 30 is fine.”

When drifting or slow-trolling, he hooks a mullet through the upper lip and has his angler cast it to the edge of a submerged oyster bar, which snook, tarpon, and other species use as ambush spots. Murray then has the angler open the bail of the reel and slowly let out the line.

Fishing in the St. Lucie River with Murray and Anthony Javarone, it wasn’t long before our mullet got nervous, then violent splashes appeared by the baits. Whatever went after my mullet missed, but a big fish nailed Javarone’s bait.

Following Murray’s instruction to let the fish swim for a few seconds before closing the bail and reeling the line tight, Javarone was hooked up to what turned out to be a 15-pound jack. The fish took Javarone from one end of Murray’s bay boat to the other before it finally tired. With a gloved hand, Murray lifted the jack out of the water by the tail, let Javarone pose with it for some photos, then released it to resume its mullet-marauding ways.

Big jacks also feed on schools of mullet traveling along the beaches and in and out of inlets. Tarpon and Spanish mackerel will crash into a mullet school, then they and snook, bluefish, and jacks lurking underneath gobble up the stunned and maimed mullet. That’s when fishing a mullet head on the bottom can be extremely effective.

Fishing around the rocks at the mouth of St. Lucie Inlet, Capt. Greg Snyder of Stuart uses a DOA plastic shrimp to catch snook ranging from under the minimum size limit of 28 inches to over the maximum size limit of 32 inches. He fishes the shrimp on a spinning outfit with 30-pound braided line and a 40-pound fluorocarbon leader.

“They use the rocks as a trap,” said Snyder of the snook. “The bait hits the rocks and gets confused and the snook take advantage of it.”

The key is to let the shrimp drift with the current and to be aware of any taps or hesitation in the drift, because that means a snook has taken the lure.

“Let the tide do the work and keep in contact with the shrimp,” Snyder said, “because you need to be able to set the hook when they eat.”

Why would a snook eat a shrimp when mullet are abundant? I posed that question to Nichols, the founder of DOA Lures.

“The first of the mullet run, the fish are all over the mullet,” Nichols said. “But after three weeks of eating mullet, they’re ready for something different.

“I think it’s just easy for them to eat a shrimp,” he added. “They have to work hard to catch a mullet. It doesn’t take anything for them to catch a shrimp.”

And when the mullet are running, it usually doesn’t take anything for anglers to catch a variety of gamefish.

Many students are anxious this school year, and the COVID situation makes things even more tense. A lot of students were not in school last year and did classes virtually. This school year, they wonder: Mask or no mask? Is it safe? Is it uncomfortable?

In addition, there are the usual anxieties: Will my best friend still want to be my friend? Will I have nice teachers? Will I remember how to multiply fractions or read articles in Spanish?

If we adults feel stress and strain, so do young people. As a teacher and counselor, even before COVID, the number of tweens and teens with migraines, irritable bowel syndrome, and other stress-related symptoms disheartened me. One teen had hands that trembled as if she had Parkinson’s. Another developed sensitivity to socks and underwear and couldn’t attend school. The parents took her to an allergist, who determined there were no allergies, but rather an emotional reaction to school.

Students often told me they were terrified of getting a “B” as they were supposed to bring home “A”s. There would be severe repercussions if they brought home anything less. This was especially true with gifted students. And there were parents who would email within minutes of any quiz posted if there were a grade lower than expected.

Young people are especially sensitive. They will be devastated if their best friend makes friends with a new student, or someone decides not to speak to them for a day. As parents, there are things we can do to make life easier for our children and alleviate some of their angst.

Do not minimize their anxiety. Young people cringe at the thought “these are the best years of your life.” No, they are not. Any adult who believes middle school is the best of times has a poor memory. You are too short or too tall. Your skin breaks out. You are overweight and never get picked for teams. You are the only girl who doesn’t need a bra. You hate your braces. Your nose has suddenly grown. Your once-pretty hair is now frizzy. You question your gender identity. Your family doesn’t have the means to get you the latest styles. You cannot comprehend chemistry.

To be told that these are the best of times makes most teens think, “Please, that can’t be true.” Many of these young people are feeling unhappy, frightened, and unworthy. To be told that they should be happy, should appreciate being young and “free,” makes them feel angry and more anxious: “What is wrong with me?”

Parents can do things to help. First, find where students can get encouragement. For example, a student is dyslexic and feels bad. His handwriting is illegible and his reading needs improvement. Get him help with the reading, either an after-school program, a tutor, or with programs he can work on, like Study Island. Reading is vital for all subjects, but don’t overdo it. Half an hour a day can help. Don’t do more or they will resent it. If you use a tutor, make sure they are not doing the student’s work, but showing how to do the work.

Equally important: Find an activity where the student gets “positive strokes,” like sports, music, karate, art, astronomy, or chess. They gain confidence; there is something they are good at. They will make like-minded friends. This is a win-win situation, especially important for introverts.

Be warned, however, that often young people will try several things before finding one that fits. Don’t see this as them “quitting,” but rather trying things out. That is normal, and hopefully they will find something and stick with it.

One young man was so shy he didn’t speak with anyone in class. His breakthrough came when he mentioned he had six dogs. A club I sponsored, “Builders’ Club,” raised money for charities. He was encouraged to join. He raised money for the Humane Society and in this endeavor had to speak to people. He became president of the club and came out of his shell. He is now in college and is outgoing and friendly.

The greatest gift a parent can give a child having any type of difficulties, academic or social, is to listen and commiserate. Do not dismiss their unhappiness. Let them know you are there for them. But don’t immediately try to fix it. Instead, when they come home with a problem or a situation, listen. When they have finished expressing their feelings, and you have allowed them to vent without jumping in, ask, “What do you think you can do about this?” Allow them to think aloud and present various scenarios. Ask them “Which idea sounds best to you?” and “If that doesn’t work, what else might you do?” This is powerful. It allows people to “try on” different approaches and gives them the correct idea: They have the means to fix things, to meet life’s challenges.

To do this means that time is set aside in your day to allow them to share with you while you listen with undivided attention. In our house, it was dinner. No matter what, we ate as a family and heard the events of the day. “What went well? Was there a problem?” “What did you learn today?” “What happened that made you happy?” Perhaps cook or do the dishes together.

I used to pick up my son from school. On the walk home, our time to talk was stopping for pizza or a treat. With my daughter, Saturday mornings were our “girl time.” We had brunch out and she shared stories about friends, gymnastic class, and why she loved her music teacher.

There will be times when your child might tell you, “My teacher is still not calling on me,” “Johnny is bullying me,” or “Sandra called me fat,” which may require parent intervention. But these should be the rare times.

For most incidents and daily angst, encourage them to think through ways to alleviate situations. This is a great practice not just for dealing with school, but for dealing with life.

Parkland resident Thelma Fail celebrated her 102nd birthday on Sept. 24. Life was different when she was born in 1919.

When Fail was a child growing up in Florida, there was no air conditioning and people stayed cool with outings to the beach for the ocean breeze, using trees for shade, sitting on their porches, or cooling down with fans.

Much of Broward County was considered uninhabitable because of the Everglades. At that time, Wiles Road was a two-lane road with a canal, farms dotted the landscape, and residents rode horses up and down State Road 7 and Wiles Road.

Fail moved to what is now Parkland in 1978 and currently lives in the same house she lived in with her third husband, Willis Fail, who passed away in 2001.

The year Fail was born, life expectancy for women was only 56. The world was recovering from World War I, the Treaty of Versailles was signed, and Europe was under reconstruction. Refugees were returning home and being resettled, and the Spanish flu pandemic was wreaking havoc around the world. The 19th Amendment to the Constitution, giving women the right to vote, was passed by Congress in June of that year, and sheep were grazing on the White House lawn in Washington, DC.

One of the most tumultuous years in American history, that decade saw race riots, anarchist bombings, the Red Scare, and the stock market crash of 1929. The year 1919 saw the end of the Progressive Era, the beginning of anti-immigration laws, an attempt to “return to normalcy,” and the approach of the decadent Roaring ’20s.

Over her 102 years, Fail saw it all — another world war, another global outbreak (this time of COVID-19), social justice protests by Black Lives Matter, refugees (this time Afghan) being resettled, and instead of sheep on the White House lawn, there were extremists and insurrectionists.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Of course, technology has evolved during Fail’s lifetime — things such as television, computers and the internet, smartphones, microwaves, digital cameras, men and women in space, and social media.

Fail spent many years in Winter Haven, FL, where she worked at the local Publix for more than 25 years and retired from there.

“She’s a wonderful Christian woman,” says daughter-in-law Lynn Yoos, a firefighter/paramedic with Palm Beach County Fire Rescue. “She always had advice and knowledge of her life to share with you when you needed it. She was always there for her family.

“To this day, Thelma is so loving and sweet and still a fabulous cook,” Yoos says. “Thelma would cook Christmas and Thanksgiving dinners, and you knew you would have the most wonderful food. To this day she still bakes and makes her famous brownies.

“She created a real feeling of love and family,” Yoos remembers. “She always made her guests feel important and special.”

Carol Fail, Thelma’s daughter-in-law, lives next door to Thelma. She remembers her throwing dinners and parties for friends and family. “She was a great planner. Everyone always got along with one another,” she says.

“We love her to death,” says Carol Fail.

“We all want her to know we say, ‘Thanks, Mom, we love you.’”

Coral Springs collage artist Janet Gold emerged as a street artist (with permission) during last spring’s COVID-19 quarantine.

Busy working in her Tamarac studio and applying for grants and other opportunities, her trajectory changed when she was selected for her first Collage as Street Art residency through Kolaj magazine.

The premise of the residency is to bring collage to street art in the manner of Banksy, Keith Haring, Basquiat, and Shepard Fairey.

Not an underground artist, Gold has been a board member of Fort Lauderdale’s Art in Public Places, the Coral Springs Museum of Art, and the National Association of Women Artists/Florida Chapter.

The prolific artist, who twice won the South Florida Cultural Consortium Fellowship (1999 and 2008) and who has had her work on exhibit at both the Coral Springs and the Boca Raton museums of art, was thrilled to be accepted as one of 15 collage artists from around the world.

“I’m not your typical street artist,” says Gold, the former first lady of Coral Springs (her husband, Roy Gold, was mayor of that city from 2010 to 2012).

“I had to pick an issue to bring to the streets,” Gold says.  “This is a different audience and different venue than my museum-quality collages.”

“In this project-driven collage residency, artists delve into the history, methods, and major artists of the ‘street art’ movement with an emphasis on collage,” says Christopher Kurts of Kolaj Magazine.

“Participants put these methods into practice, taking their collage art out into the streets while documenting the entire process, which will be published in a Kolaj Street Krewe book later this year.”

Not comfortable tagging her city at night, in the dark, dressed in black, Gold sought and got permission from five venues in and around Broward County to display the results of her residency, a project she calls “EVERYBODY’S EVERYTHING.”

The title refers to the theme of gender fluidity, and Gold’s large figurative collages depict mixed-and-matched body parts showcasing her take on the social movement.

Using images she cuts from vintage fashion magazines, she reimagines the stories they tell.

In August 2020, Gold installed her works under the moniker “Criminal Collage with Permission,” at the Coral Springs Museum of Art, the Art Gallery 21 in Wilton Manors, the Cook and the Cork restaurant in Coral Springs, and the Girls’ Club and FATVillage, both in Fort Lauderdale.

“Janet’s work is very interesting, especially considering that it is collaged work created to be a mural on a building’s exterior,” says FATVillage’s founder, Doug McCraw. “By employing different anatomical photos to compose multiple aspects of gender and identity, Janet’s created a contemporary commentary on her subject matter.

“She has a very experienced composition aesthetic and a wonderful way of expressing herself through her art.”

At the Cook and the Cork restaurant, Gold’s collage depicts a female model’s head with long dark hair abruptly juxtaposed with a second woman’s torso and exposed breasts, partially covered by that model’s long blonde hair. A large feminine hand holding a lit cigarette dominates the foreground, while a pair of androgenous legs in mid-stride, clad in jeans and black-and-white Converse completes the image.

The high-fashion images are at once edgy and provocative and highlight the artist’s perspective that we all exist in each other.

Constance Ruppender of Art Gallery 21, who exhibited Gold’s past works in a one-woman show at her gallery, says, “I admire Janet as an artist, and as a doer. She doesn’t just make art. She puts her creations out to the universe with an open heart and inspires others.”

For Gold, who has been in museums and galleries and the recipient of a number of grants, winning the Kolaj residency is the icing on the cake. And while she will be retiring her tag name, we’re sure we’ll see a lot more work by Janet Gold in the future.

Unfortunately, for too many people, there is still a stigma associated with mental illness. It’s a shame and it must change. No one chooses to have anxiety or depression or to have a child diagnosed as bipolar. Of course, no one chooses to have cancer either.

Instead of exploring why there is a stigma, I have started an organization, the Mental Wellness Networking Alliance (MWNA), that is committed to “Break the Stigma” for as far as we can reach.

I began the organization with other community leaders shortly after we lost our second teenager in a week, only one year and one month after the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Both of our local teenagers experienced unspeakable trauma that day. When I heard about Calvin Desir losing his life, I committed to do something different in my capacity as a concerned dad, as a local leader, and as the son of Marcia Brook, in order to save lives.

You see, I tragically lost my mom, Marcia, to suicide when I was only 23 and she was 58. My family was devastated. We had no idea my mother was ill. She visited me in May 1987 in New Orleans when I graduated from Tulane with an MBA. She seemed a little sad at times, but I thought her emotions were more involved with her pride and love than with any mental illness. However, this article is not about me or my loss. Rather, this is about us. Too many groups of people suffer with mental health challenges in silence. Suicide disproportionally affects numerous populations, including veterans, teenagers, young Black males, and others.

What can you do to help prevent suicide during the month of September, Suicide Prevention Awareness Month? You can reach out to a loved one whom you sense has been going through some difficult times and be present for that person. You can share 2-1-1 as a great resource to help those in crisis, as well as the Suicide Prevention Hotline at (800) 227-TALK.

You also can join me and others, including several mental health professionals, at our next MWNA meeting on Sept. 14 at Keller Williams, 3301 N. University Drive, for dialogue, connection, and education. On Sept. 23, MWNA is joining forces with the Veterans Networking Alliance to raise money to help with education, advocacy, and treatment. The event will be at the Coral Springs Museum of Art, and you can email me for tickets at scott@scottjbrookpa.com or find us on Facebook.

If you or someone you know needs help, please seek it. At MWNA, our vision is that we live in a world where mental wellness is equally as vital as physical wellness. An injury above the shoulders should not be treated as any less of an injury worthy of care than an injury below the shoulders. We all want mental wellness. Discussing mental illness and seeking care should not be taboo.

#BREAKTHESTIGMA