A solo show of photographic images by August Bach is on exhibit through June at Eileen West Gallery in Seaside.

Teresa Cline is showing her artwork at Studio b at Alys Beach.

Susan Lucas’s paintings are on exhibit until July 10 at Gravel Road in Grayton.

If you tire of art gazing, search the faces of those out and about in South Walton — they could be famous.

Drew Brees, quarterback for the New Orleans Saints, was in Pish Posh Patchouli’s at Rosemary Beach buying Custom Scenting for his wife last week.

James Carville was seen riding up on a bike to Jen’s Raw and Juicy Bar in Seaside this past weekend. I hear that Chef Phil McDonald cooked shrimp and grits for him while he was here.

And among the not-yet famous, I ran into Pat Carlyle and Sally Rice this weekend while grocery shopping.

Demetrius Fuller, Lynn Wesson, Gale Culling and Carol Rankin attended Fleming’s wine dinner June 2 and I made new acquaintances of Wendy and Richard Schmutz, and Bill and Betty Fowles of Regatta Bay. Fleming’s hosts the most fun wine dinners!

I tried Fabrice’s brunch on Sunday, and as everything produced by Fabrice, it was delicious.

Debra Adams enjoyed the company of her mom, niece and nephew last week.

Lorre James is excited to see her daughter, grandson, son-in-law and Fleetwood Mac, all in one week. “That is better than Santa!” she said.

Claire Bannerman is a joyful new first-time grandmother. Her daughter, Anne (husband Tim) Flanegan of Atlanta welcome baby Parker Grace Flanegan.

Congrats to Miles and Chelsie Neiman on the birth of their daughter, Adelaide Jane.

And congratulations to the six loggerhead turtles that have nested in South Walton and will be mothers in August.

Cheers to Chandra Hartman, who now has a degree in sustainable design. Chandra and fiancé Eric Marcus have hit the road, traveling west.

Georgeen Newell, Dan Mueller, and Lee and Julie Wilcox are among the “aunts and uncles” having fun sitting with Livvie from Live Oak, Harriet Crommelin and Stephen Marlette’s pup, while they are vacationing in the south of France.

Lane Rees, as chair of the Foundation for Evangelism board, presented the Denman Award at the United Methodist Church’s annual conference in Montgomery this week.

Lynn Nesmith has been touring the Windy City and Jane Soloman is in the Big Apple.

Jessica Maraman has been in DC at the National Advertising Conference. Then, on to the Big Apple.

MaryKathryn Wells was in Destin last week.

Christina Ruckel sends greetings from San Miguel de Allende, where she is busy with new projects for her house, meeting with workmen, craftsmen and artists. American Eagle donated clothing for her to take down for the orphanages around San Miguel. She will also visit with Doug Chism in Ceyla and see Esther Kolko. Christina’s son, Philip, is interning with a metal artist who creates life-size sculptures from old car parts. Philip will also take golf lessons this summer while Christina takes dance classes, and her sweetie, Gary Cook, plays golf. Gary’s mom and sisters arrived on Thursday for a visit.

Kelli Biegler celebrated a birthday June 5.

Happy birthday today to Susan Pittman and T.J. Brooks.

Tomorrow to Wade Berry, Roy Kleindolph, Carol Murphy, and Kim Duke-Layden.

Tuesday to Lynn Wesson.

Wednesday to Georgeen Newell.

And Thursday to Bob Hudson.

Get well wishes go out to Malcolm Patterson and Jane Burns.

Deborah Wheeler is the arts and entertainment reporter for The Walton Sun. She may be reached at (850) 267-4555 or e-mail debbie_wheeler@link.freedom.com. Party Line Talk appears weekly in The Sun. Contributions are encouraged.

 PANAMA CITY — The 125-foot tugboat Red Sea will begin its final voyage today to become an artificial reef off the Panama City coast, the first shallowwater sinking here since 1995.
    The vessel is scheduled to nestle along the sandy bottom in 75 feet of water about 6 miles off shore, said Danny Grizzard of the Florida Aquatic & Marine Institute, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing artificial reefs for divers and fishermen.
    The decommissioned tug, which was discovered as a derelict in the Florida Keys, will leave dock from the St. Andrews Marina about 6:30 a.m. and be towed to become one of many artificial reefs in the area, known as the Wreck Capital of the South, Grizzard said.
    “Next month, it will have been two years since we began working on this project,” Grizzard said Tuesday, noting this will be the first artificial-reef sinking off Panama City since 2003 when two tugboats dropped below the waves.
    The Red Sea itself cost about $75,000 for preparation and cleaning, Grizzard said, and volunteers have put in thousands of hours of in-kind support.
    The Bay County Tourist Development Council voted $40,000 for the project in 2007, and Panama City Dive Center and local shops raised more than $15,000 from $1 fees per boat customer over multiple years, Grizzard said.
    Dan Rowe, TDC executive director, said by providing enhanced fishing and diving venues, the reefs emphasize the crystal clear gulf waters prized by tourists.
    “Having a viable diving community is important to Panama City Beach and its many environmental opportunities,” he said. “We feel that the artificial reef program is very important and should continue.”
    Although some larger vessels are sunk by explosives, the Red Sea has been prepared to sink by opening valves and cutting holes into the hull above the water line, Grizzard said.
    After the wreck settles to the bottom, bait fish will gather within 24 hours, Grizzard said, setting the stage for sporting fish and an entire ecosystem within a year.
    The target coordinates for the site are listed as 30.00.98 North and 85.42.20 West, about 1 mile east of the old Midway site in the vicinity of the USS Strength.
    According to Grizzard, the Panama City Beach area is the most popular drive-to destination in the United States for divers and dive instructors seeking safe areas for student training.
    Thousands of divers visit the area for both training and recreational dives each year, he said.

  SANDESTIN — Chip Temple’s first major fishing tournament experience is one he never will forget.
    An admitted outsider when it comes to fishing’s biggest stages, Temple hooked, battled and helped reel in a 714.7-pound, 121.5-inch blue marlin to help the crew of the Jasper Time shatter the Emerald Coast Blue Marlin Classic record.
    “We fought about 100 runs from her,” said Temple, who battled the marlin for eight hours before the crew finally hauled it on board.
    The crowd spilled down the Baytowne Marina’s pier in anticipation to see the massive fish hoisted up by its tail fin and weighed, a process that took three people. When the weight flashed on the screen, cheers and cries of disbelief erupted from the crowd.
    The marlin beat out the previous record of 692.6 pounds set in 2006 and far outpaced the 566.8-pound average for the tourney winner.
    The record-setting catch cruised to first place and will earn the crew at least $167,000 in prize money. The 67-boat event carried a total purse of $1.3 million.
    The five-man team consisted of owner Mark Wallace, captain Tommy Bradon and mates Ed Gobel, Matthew Pearson and Temple.
    “That’s a once-in-alifetime fish,” Pearson said. “That’s not one you catch every day, that’s for sure. That’s a fish you dream of your whole life. Especially in a tournament and getting to bring it back and show it off to everybody.”
    And show off they did.
    Wallace said the 160-foot Jasper Time, which harbors at the Marabella Yacht Club in Destin, was almost 130 miles into the Gulf of Mexico when they finally hooked the marlin about 1:30 p.m. Friday.
    The crew had started casting at daybreak, and when the big fish bit it was Stockbridge, Ga., native Temple’s turn in the fishing chair. The chair is mounted on the back deck of the boat and the angler hooks into the massive fishing pole.
With Temple, 33, all but locked into his position, he endured an eight-hour battle with the marlin before the crew finally hauled it in about 9:30 p.m. They rode overnight back to Sandestin. “Yeah, I was kind of tired,” Temple said. “But we were all pleased with the effort.”
    The Jasper Time crew reeled in the marlin with just five men on board, which Wallace said was a small group for this kind of event.
    While Temple spent eight hours in the chair physically attached to the 80 Wide fishing reel, one mate tended the line and another stood behind Temple to pivot the chair as needed. Wallace filmed the event and Bradon ran the boat.
    “You don’t have any backup,” Wallace said. “Normally you have at least two anglers and a film man and two crew plus a captain, so we were a little shorthanded.”
    The crew happened upon the marlin at Lloyd’s Ridge deep out to sea, which was where the crew purposefully headed following Thursday’s 7 p.m. start time after satellite reports showed favorable fishing conditions there. A break between blue and green water pushed water currents together, which made for plentiful fishing, Wallace said.
    “We were right where we wanted to be,” Pearson said.
    And when the marlin bit on a tuna line, the lightest gear the team had, Wallace knew the team had a battle on their hands.
    “We knew we were in trouble,” Wallace said. “We saw her way off, and we saw her come out of the water one time; that’s the only time she jumped. And then she just stayed down the rest of the time, so we couldn’t put a lot of heat on her, so we just had to slowly, eight hours later, work her up.”
    The fish latched onto a 200-pound leader with a circle hook, which caught the crew by surprise as they were looking for much lighter tuna with that line. To catch the fish, the team used a naked ballyhoo rig, or a large lure without a skirt attached. Wallace said crews usually need leaders at least twice as heavy to reel in marlin of that size.
    The process of getting the massive fish into the boat would have been laborious even if the crew hadn’t just been wrestling with it for eight hours. After Temple’s fishing acumen helped get the fish up on the back door of the boat, the remaining four crewmembers wrapped a bloodied T-shirt around its bill and hauled it on board, making for a happy but exhausted night’s sleep.
    “They all got together, and a lot of adrenaline and a couple of heave ho’s and pulled it up,” Temple said.

   Consumer spending habits might have changed, but people still are taking vacations. In this third week of tourist season, businesses along the Emerald Coast said the season is off to a good start, even if area unemployment numbers are higher this summer than last.
    “People still want to go on vacation, but they still want a value,” said Santa Rosa County Tourist Development Council executive director Kate Wilkes. “I think Northwest Florida has a lot of advantages … there’s a lot of ways to vacation without spending a fortune.”
    As in previous years, Wilkes said, a lot of visitors from Southeastern states are coming to area beaches because they can get here by driving rather than flying, she said.
    Hotels and resorts are optimistic for the summer but can’t predict exactly how well they will do because of how many people are booking rooms last minute, said Emerald Coast Convention and Visitor Bureau president and CEO Darrell C. Jones.
    Recognizing that people are looking to cut costs wherever they can, many lodgings have reduced prices or created package deals to draw in customers, and it seems to be working so far, he said.
    Nashville, Tenn., residents Sean and Beth Rogers wanted to spend their first real vacation together on the beach, and a friend suggested Destin as a wallet-friendly option with lots to offer.
    “I didn’t want to spend too much on lodging because we wanted to be able to do things,” said Sean Rogers as he and Beth waited to go parasailing for the first time. “The price (for the area) was right.”
    At Dockside Water Sports on Destin Harbor, Dockside manager Jane Wilson said they haven’t really seen a reduction in the number of customers, but people are definitely bargain-hunting.
    Beginning in January, the business started getting calls for rental prices and people often inquired about possible discounts, Wilson said.
    “People are still doing stuff, (but) they let us know the economy is bad,” she said.
    Though the summer season already is going well for High Tide Restaurant and Oyster Bar in Fort Walton Beach, general manger Danny Horgan said they definitely have detected some differences in spending habits.
    “They’re not as frivolous with their money as they have been,” he said.
    Recently, a family of five came into the restaurant for lunch and ordered 10 oysters and a sandwich to share. Others are cutting costs even more, opting to prepare their own lunches and going out for only an evening meal, Horgan said.
    Despite those reductions, the restaurant has already seen a 25 percent increase compared to the same time last year, and Horgan said he anticipates more improvement with the upcoming Fourth of July weekend.
    “The way things are going, I anticipate having a better summer than last summer, definitely,” Horgan said. “I think when (the season) is over with, a lot of people will be pleasantly surprised.”

NICK TOMECEK |DailyNews
Scott Cruce of Loganville, Ga., reacts to being dipped in the Gulf of Mexico on Friday during a parasailing trip out of Dockside Marina in Destin Harbor.

    NICK TOMECEK |DailyNews
Jathan Whitehead, middle, a worker at Dockside Marina, shows Jim Wade, left, of Franklin, Tenn., how to operate a pontoon boat on Friday in Destin Harbor.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/qforma-most-influential-doctors.htm?loc=interstitialskip

To measure this influence, Qforma analyzed doctors’ geographic proximity to other doctors, their publication history, medical partnerships, hospital and academic affiliations, and prescribing history, among other data. Doctors’ names, addresses and practicing status were reviewed by health care data providers Wolters Kluwer Health and SK&A Information Services. This listing includes roughly 6,000 doctors in four specialties: hypertension, high cholesterol, asthma and diabetes. More physicians in other specialties will be added in coming months.

Analyses like this can guide drug companies in their development and marketing of new products. USA TODAY, in publishing Qforma’s list, is making such a list public for the first time.

Influence does not imply a measure of quality of care, nor does this list serve as an endorsement by USA TODAY or Qforma. Readers are encouraged to seek additional information to determine a doctor’s quality.

The consignment furniture of Gulf Breeze is now the new “J. Miller’s Furniture” July 2007

The first consignment furniture in Gulf Breeze opened in 1997 in the Delchamps Shopping Center on HWY. 98 in Gulf Breeze, and moved to the present location at 1149 Gulf Breeze Parkway in January 2000.  Phone# (850)934-6200

9 Mile Road Store opened September 2003 at 319E 9 Mile Rd.  Phone# (850)473-8002

Destin Store opened August 2007 at 874 HWY. 98E in Destin Florida.  Phone# (850)654-8009

Owner: Justin Miller
Age: 34
Status: Married, with 4 children
Facts: Believe it or not, Justin started the 1st store with an old van, very little money, few furniture pieces and high hopes. That makes his accomplishments pretty remarkable especially considering he was only 24 years old.

J. Miller’s Furniture also carries many lines of new furniture and accessories products. Many of these items can be ordered and received by the customer within 2 weeks. Some of the gorgeous brands we carry are: DREXEL, LEXINGTON, KATHY IRELAND BY STANDARD FURNITURE, HOME ELEGANCE, ALBANY, STANLEY CHAIR, HICKORY CHAIR and many more.

How consignment works: Our standards are the very highest. Only the finest in preowned furniture, art and accessories ever make it to our showroom floors. Clients can bring their furniture to any of our locations.

 IRVING, Texas — Thousands of Americans who have generally kept up with their mortgages are still in danger of losing their homes because they made a fateful trade-off in this shaky economy — they let their homeowner association dues slide.
    Many homeowners are learning to their surprise that condo and neighborhood associations that oversee security patrols, mow lawns, plant flowers and clean the community swimming pool might have the right to foreclose when dues aren’t paid. That right often is written into the purchase agreement signed by the homeowner.
    Among those who have been threatened with foreclosure is Lacey Pilat, who lost her job catering lavish corporate parties and nearly lost her twostory house in this Dallas suburb.
    “Basically, our landscaper was foreclosing on the house,” said Steve Pilat, her husband said. “That’s the way we looked at it.”
    These foreclosure actions do not necessarily pit neighbor against neighbor. Many homeowner associations have turned the job of collecting member dues over to outside management companies. And to them, it’s strictly business, not personal.
    Homeowner association boards and their management companies defend the practice, saying maintaining the neighborhood preserves everyone’s property values.
    “We have compassion for those folks. At the same time, we feel for the rest of the homeowners who are paying their dues,” said Andrew Schlegel, executive vice president for Merit Property Management, which manages more than 140,000 California homes in community associations.
    In California, associations can foreclose only after 12 months of missed fees or $1,800 in back dues.
    “No one wants to do this,” Schlegel said. “It’s only coming up when people are completely obstinate about it.”
    In fact, most people end up saving their homes. Homeowner association boards — particularly those that have lost many of their dues-paying members to the housing collapse and the slumping economy — often work with downon-their-luck neighbors to come up with some sort of compromise. That’s what happened with the Pilats.
    Gauging the number of foreclosures nationwide by homeowner association is difficult. But in Texas, foreclosure attempts initiated by homeowner associations in 19 counties are up 30 percent from two years ago, according to Dallas-based Foreclosure Listing Services.
    In the San Antonio area alone, foreclosure actions by homeowner associations jumped to 170 in April from 21 in April 2008, according to RexReport.com.
    In Florida, attorney Bob Tankel, who represents hundreds of homeowner and condo associations, said he has increased his staff from three to 16 in the past 18 months to handle a mounting caseload of 3,500 open collections. About one-fifth of those cases have reached foreclosure, he said.
    In California, Schlegel said more than 6 percent of the homes that his company manages are in some stage of delinquency with regard to membership dues, up from around 1 percent in previous years.
    More than 59 million people live in more than 300,000 association-governed communities nationwide, according to the Community Associations Institute, the nation’s largest group for homeowners and condo boards.
    In many of these foreclosure cases, the homeowner’s name is on the mortgage, and the mortgage is held by a bank or other lender. But the purchase agreement says the homeowner association can haul the homeowner into court and begin foreclosure proceedings for nonpayment of dues.
    If the house is foreclosed on, it is sold off, and the homeowner association takes what it is owed from the proceeds. Proceeds also go to the bank to pay off the mortgage.
    About four months after Pilat lost her job, the management company for the Beacon Hill homeowner association sent her a foreclosure notice in April after several attempts to collect her $450 annual dues, which paid for the mowing of front lawns. The amount she owed snowballed to $1,800 after penalties and fees.
    The management company eventually agreed to let the couple pay the debt over time. The Pilats cut a check for $600 in April that drained their checking account but saved the house. They are slowly paying off the $1,200 debt.
    Pilat had fallen a little behind on the mortgage, too, but the bank was working with her to keep her house.
    The Pilats said their neighbors on the homeowner association board never actually got involved in the dispute over dues; it was handled entirely by the management company. Neither the company nor the homeowner association returned calls for comment.
    The foreclosure actions have renewed long-standing complaints that homeowner associations are often made up of power-drunk residents who enjoy lording it over their neighbors and zealously enforce the rules regarding such things as the height of the grass, the color of the house, the flying of flags and the way the porch is furnished.
    “You have a number of them being run like little totalitarian regimes,” said Texas state Rep. Burt Solomons, who has unsuccessfully tried passing association reforms for years in the Legislature. “Their argument is that if you don’t like it, move.”
    Near Sacramento, Calif., unemployed state employee Pam Spanier was served with a foreclosure notice after falling more than seven months behind on her $115 monthly dues, which pay for Internet access and a golf-cart security patrol. She owes a total of $2,100, including attorney fees and fines. She is still in her home.

    MATT SLOCUM | AP
Lacey Pilat (left) and her husband, Steven Pilat, pose outside their home in Irving, Texas. Thousands of Americans who have more or less kept up with their mortgages are still in danger of losing their homes because they made a fateful trade-off in this shaky economy — they let their homeowner association dues slide.

 Dear Jim: My windows are not the most efficient. Instead of replacing them, I am considering installing rolling shutters for their efficiency, storm protection and security. What design features should I choose?
    — RONNIE M.
    Dear Ronnie: There are many options for making your windows more energy efficient, but rolling shutters also offer the other advantages of security and storm protection you mentioned. We have tornadoes here in Cincinnati, so I am considering installing one over a large glass window. During a storm last fall, a tree branch almost broke the glass while I was sitting near it.
    The actual energy savings from installing rolling shutters depends upon the type of window glass you now have and, to a lesser extent, the types of slat in the shutter. If your house now has doublepane windows, adding the shutters will about double the insulation value of them. With single pane windows, the percentage increase will be even greater.
    An additional energy savings can be realized during summer because the rolling shutters also block the direct heat from the sun’s rays through the windows. The shutters can be lowered to any position to allow in only as much light (and heat) as you desire.
    Rolling shutters are extremely strong and secure because they operate similarly to a rolltop desk. Narrow slats roll up into a box housing above the window. The sides slide in vertical tracks on each side of the window making them very secure and relatively airtight when they are fully closed.
    If you want security and privacy, but also light and ventilation, slightly raise the rolling shutter. The bottom of the shutter will not rise, but the slats will separate slightly exposing the interlocking flanges between them. There are narrow slots in the flanges, which allow some light and fresh air through them.
    Several materials are used for the slats: rollformed metal, plastic or extruded aluminum. All are suitable for most areas. The extruded aluminum are the strongest and most expensive and are often used on large windows. The roll-formed metal ones can be filled with foam insulation for higher efficiency and rigidity. Check your local building codes for required materials and strength.
    An important feature to consider is how the rolling shutter is opened and closed. The various options are a pull strap, a crank handle and an electric motor. Keep in mind, if the shutters are inconvenient to use, you will not close them as often as you should for efficiency or security.
    For most smaller to average size windows, a pull strap is easy to use and inexpensive. Large shutters or ones from heavy gauge aluminum might be easier to operate with a hand crank. Electric motor operators are most convenient, but also more expensive.
    The following companies offer rolling window shutters: AC Shutters, 800-745-5261, www.acshutters.com; Roll-A-Way, 800-683-9505, www.roll-a-way.com; Rollac Shutters, 888-276-5522, www.rollac. com; Titan Security, 866-691-3667, www. titansecurity.com; and Wheatbelt, 800-264-5171, www.rollupshutter.com.
James Dulley is an independent consultant. You may write to him in care of the Northwest Florida Daily News, 6906 Royalgreen Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45244, or access his Web site at www.dulley.com

The new buyer tax credit applies if you are a first time buyer and close between January 1st and December 1st 2009.  However, a bill has just been introduced that would not only raise the tax credit to $15,000, but would also make the credit available on any primary residence purchase, even if not the case of a 1st-time buyer.  The bill would also eliminate the current income ceilings of $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for couples.