All about the Everglades

We are a couple of goofy kids cleverly disguised as 40-something adults. We're also hopeless romantics. Good eaters. Seasoned sea captains, as long as it's our 15-foot skiff. Intrepid explorers, unless there are big spiders involved. Expert laughers.... and total failures at taking ourselves seriously. But life wasn't always so. Back when we lived in the real world, Steve ran a large awning company, working 80 hours a week in south Jersey. Karuna, the daughter of Buddhist hippies, spent her life bouncing around Colorado and the West, scraping by with freelance writing, TV and filmmaking gigs. Eventually for both, the days began to seem hectic, superficial and unfulfilling. Disillusioned, we each made our way to the "end of the road" in the Florida Keys, hoping to find a greater meaning. The Keys have a knack for proving that everything happens for a reason. After some years of solo soul searching and lessons learned the hard way, the islands finally brought us together. A life with a true companion, in a peaceful place. We are thankful every day. Our unofficial motto is "be nice." Imagine a world where everyone tried that -- to one another, to all creatures, to the water, the land and the earth. It's a long shot, but a worthy goal. Please feel free to share it. An abbreviated and less-entertaining list of Karuna's writing and/or editing credits: include National Geographic, Discovery Channel, Colorado and Utah state vacation guides, Denver Post, lots of other newspapers and magazines, and most recently a slew of Keys publications.