Changes coming for our 9th season

When I had taken a break from the Grapevine last year, I would joke with people and tell them, "There's actually a whole world outside of 33133!" because I was out and about enjoying all that Miami had to offer, in the past I was always in Coconut Grove at one event or other and didn't venture out to the rest of the county.

Now, as the Grapevine starts it's 9th year (we'll be 8 on May 8), I'd like to make some changes. I know this guy who refers to his blog years as seasons, sort of like tv seasons, so basically, if I do the same, in our 9th season, we'll be retooling a bit.

Now I am going to start covering all of Miami's events in the Grapevine. I go all over the place and I write the stories for the Huffington Post or the Examiner or other publications and I thought why not just consolidate it all right here in the Grapevine. For one thing, as the Grove becomes more office oriented, there is less and less going on here, it's been harder and harder for me to find news. And truth be told, I see all of you out and out at other venues and why not share these events with other Grovites? I've run into you guys in New York and New Orleans, so it's not like we are all so insulated here and not doing other things.

This weekend there was so much going on in Miami from the Ultra Music Fest and Sony Tennis Tourney to the Taste of Brickell and more. Last weekend I was at the St. Patrick's Day events in Coral Gables and the weekend before at the Chocolate Festival at Pinecrest Gardens. I would like to cover a lot of arts and culture in the Grapevine now.

In the past year I've been at Comic Cons and the Flugtag event in downtown Miami and Art Basel and the tomato fights at Tobacco Road and so much more. And all these years I have received press releases, invitations and requests from some many event organizers asking me to share the news in the Grapevine, but I was strict on keeping all the news I published in 33133, but now I am going to expand.

I'll keep the name Coconut Grove Grapevine and the focus is still on Coconut Grove news and events, but I will be sharing other things going on. I mean after all, wouldn't many of you have attended the Taste of Brickell if you had known about it? It's a few miles up the road and it really is something cool to attend. So was the Flugtag (I was right up there taking pictures on the flight ramp and even in the water below the flying machines, you can see the story here in the Examiner).

I also did a story a while back about the Donut Gallery's anniversary in Key Biscayne and took a tour of Miami Marine Stadium. These will now be part of the new Grapevine.

I attended the New Orleans Comic Con and interviewed Kevin Eastman, creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, this story appeared all over, but not in the Grapevine. My New York Comic Con pictures made it all over, but not here.

I found a great new restaurant down south this weekend and I would like to share that with you, but I also have great news about a new restaurant ready to open in the Grove. So I'll cover it all, putting the Grove first, but still expanding my horizons. It will make it a lot easier for me to get news and basically I would like to focus on arts and culture. I'd like to do more of a magazine style blog now.

I'm sure you'll enjoy it. The Grapevine is basically for us in Coconut Grove but I'll share news too, about what is going on outside the Grove. Things I think you'll be interested in.