Harps

A dozen young harpists were playing their hearts out at a prime corner

of Naples' Fifth Avenue South.

Carols

Sometimes parents are more enthusiastic about having their children
sing carols in public than their kids are.

Naples Miscellany

Now for five photos that I keep lining up for posting and then replace with something else.

A restaurant in the shape of a ship has sat empty on Route 41 in Bonita Springs for a decade.

It was about to be auctioned off this spring, but the auction was called off

when someone showed interest in buying it.

So far, nothing is happening.

The owner of this Porsche will probably be in there visiting his financial advisor for a while.

Please be seated.

Tarpon Cove and marina.

Another day in Paradise.  Life is good.

Shirley

Shirley Kelley works both in paint and clay.  She has studios in Naples and in

a Montana cabin.  Her style is contemporary and

is influenced by the earth.

Hertz

The biggest business story in years down here was Hertz' 2013 decision to relocate its global headquarters from New Jersey to southwest Florida.  In a region based on
seasonal tourism and retirement living, the prospect of adding
Hertz' 700 full-time,  year-round,  highly paid jobs is exciting.

Construction crews are racing to construct a sleek glass $70 million building in Estero,
to be completed a year from now.  The goal is to attain a gold LEED certification for the building,
the second highest rating of environmental friendliness.

Update:  Hertz decided to relocate after merging with an Oklahoma-based car rental company. OK-based employees didn't want to move to NJ and NJ-based employees didn't want to go to OK, so Hertz needed a neutral location. Most HQ employees were given the opportunity to move to SWFL with the company. Those who declined get generous severance payments. Florida is Hertz' biggest car rental market, so they are moving to where their customers are. And, Hertz got tax incentives, but I have seen analyses that the incentives are offset over time with employee spending, etc. 

Connecticut in Florida

The national champion Connecticut women's basketball team came to southwest Florida

last weekend for a tournament.  They slaughtered the competition.

During every break in play, Coach Auriemma pushed his team to fix mistakes.
Geno is not a complacent guy.

Some UConn fans are over the top.

Saundra

Saundra sells silk flowers and floral arrangements.  She also offers decorating services

for local Naples businesses.  I found her working on

a Christmas tree for a country club.

On the first day of each month, City Daily Photo bloggers show photographs illustrating

a theme.  For December, the theme is "worker."

To see other interpretations,

click here.