Business Before Brushstrokes

Morning - Finish Business Calls Before Heading Out

The painting behind the desk may get a compliment on a video call, but the budget still needs to be discussed.

From a home office on La Gorce Island, this business owner works through a list of questions before the afternoon can go anywhere.

A quiet room helps when a client wants to talk through a decision, especially when “one quick query” comes with several follow-ups.

Between calls, they review a proposal and send notes someone else needs to keep things moving.

An afternoon at The Bass is on the calendar, which gives the morning a deadline.

The last email gets one more read before it goes out; enthusiasm for an exhibition is no excuse for sending the wrong attachment.

Midday - Review Artwork and Placement With an Art Adviser

By lunch, the conversation has moved from what belongs in the proposal to what belongs on the wall.

An art adviser visits the house to discuss a possible addition to the collection, bringing images and measurements for them to review together.

They consider how the piece would sit alongside work already in the room, then step back to see the space from the doorway.

In a home with generous windows and strong daylight, a piece hung deserves as much thought as how it looks in a photo.

The collector may love something immediately, but living with it means seeing it during breakfast, between calls, and every time they walk past with the laundry.

For now, taking measurements and asking questions is enough; an empty wall can survive another week.

Afternoon - Explore the Current Exhibitions at The Bass

At The Bass on Collins Avenue, someone else already decided what goes on the walls.

That leaves the collector free to wander through the current exhibitions during an open afternoon, allotting more time to whatever catches their attention.

A piece that seemed unremarkable from across the room might deserve a closer look, while another takes a few minutes—and a glance at the wall text—to make sense.

There’s no need to decide whether any of it would fit above the sofa.

Part of the pleasure is encountering work they might never choose for their own collection and appreciating it anyway.

By the time they head back to La Gorce Island, they have a few ideas to think about and something more interesting than work to discuss over dinner.

Evening - Have Friends Over for Dinner and a Look at the Collection

A friend pauses in front of a painting on the way to the table, and dinner begins a few minutes later than planned.

The homeowner explains where they found it, which brings up another piece, then a story about the trip when they bought that one.

Someone offers a completely different reading of the image, and the chatter becomes much better than a polite round of compliments.

Once everyone sits down, talk moves between the museum visit, family news, and whether anyone has tried the restaurant suggested in the group chat.

Having friends over gives the collection a place in everyday life, with people talking around it instead of treating each room as an exhibition.

Eventually, the plates need clearing, even if one guest still has a question about the sculpture.

Mom’s First Wipeout

Early Morning - Confirm the Lesson and Pack for the Beach

Her teenager wants to know whether she’s really getting on a surfboard.

She confirms that she is, then checks the instructor’s message about conditions and the agreed meeting point on the North Beach oceanfront.

Living on La Gorce Island means Biscayne Bay is close by, but this lesson means leaving the island for the Atlantic side of Miami Beach.

With the location settled, she packs towels, sunscreen, water, and dry clothes while her teenager handles their own beach bag.

It’s a morning off together, with enough room in the schedule to work around the instructor’s guidance.

She’s happy to be a beginner, but she would appreciate everyone remembering that when the photos come out.

Morning - Learn the Surfing Basics Beside Her Teenager 

Standing up looks much more manageable while the board is still on the sand.

The instructor walks them through where to place their hands and feet, how to move into position, and the safety basics they’ll need in the water.

Mother and teenager practice beside each other, each discovering that remembering the steps and doing them smoothly are separate achievements.

She asks for another demo rather than pretending she understood everything the first time.

That gives her teenager permission to ask questions, too, without either of them having to be the confident one.

By the time they’re ready to enter the water, they have a shared task and considerably less interest in who looks cool doing it.

Midday - Practice Catching Waves With the Instructor 

Her first attempt ends before she has much chance to admire it.

With the instructor choosing suitable waves and guiding each attempt, she works on her timing while her teenager takes a turn nearby.

They take breaks to listen, catch their breath, and work out which part needs another try.

A brief moment on her feet earns a cheer, even if the ride would barely fill a video clip.

When her teenager manages a better attempt, she’s pleased enough to forget that they were keeping an unofficial score.

They finish according to the conditions and the lesson plan, with the modest satisfaction of having learned something neither could do that morning.

Afternoon - Head Home and Compare the Day’s Best Attempts 

The wet towels make it home, but nobody volunteers to deal with them immediately.

Back on La Gorce Island, boards and waves give way to showers, dry clothes, and hunger.

Over something to eat, they compare the iconic moments along with whatever made it onto the phone.

Her teenager’s version of one fall sounds more dramatic than hers, so they review the footage.

She lets the joke run because she has a successful attempt saved, too, however brief.

Before they unpack the beach bag, they’re already discussing another lesson—and this time, her teenager doesn’t need to ask whether she’ll join in.

Sir Never-Misses-An-Encore  

Morning - Work Through a Favorite Piece at the Piano

There’s one passage he’d rather skip, which is a fairly good reason to start there.

At the piano in his La Gorce Island home, this semi-retired resident slows the music down and works through the notes that keep catching up with him.

Without a full workday waiting, he can attend to this piece instead of squeezing in ten minutes before a meeting.

He repeats a few bars, adjusts the fingering, and tries to carry that improvement into the next section.

Some mornings, progress is simply reaching the difficult part without bracing for it.

When he finally plays the whole piece, the familiar melody makes all that repetition worthwhile—even if tomorrow requires another face-to-face with the same notes.

Midday - Listen to the Artist Playing That Evening

Tonight’s concert becomes the soundtrack while he preps lunch.

He has tickets to a scheduled show at Miami Beach Bandshell, so he puts on a recording by the artist and listens beyond the songs he already knows.

One track sends him looking for another performance, and lunch takes a little longer than expected.

He’s curious how the music will sound live, particularly the passages where the musicians leave room to surprise each other.

Before getting too absorbed, he checks the event details and confirms plans with his concert buddy.

The Bandshell is off the island in North Beach, so he's allotted time to get there rather than treating the ticket time as the moment to find his shoes.

Afternoon - Play a Few Songs With a Friend at Home

The friend coming over knows the house rule: requests are welcome, but results may vary.

They settle near the piano with a few familiar songs, choosing music they can enjoy without turning the afternoon into a rehearsal.

He plays while his friend follows along, occasionally singing a line to remind him of the next section.

A missed chord interrupts one song, then starts a conversation about where they first heard it.

That’s how the visit unfolds, with a little playing and plenty of stories between pieces.

Before his friend leaves, they try one favorite again, this time making it to the end without stopping to debate the lyrics.

Evening - Catch a Scheduled Show at Miami Beach Bandshell

By evening, he’s ready to let someone else handle the difficult passages.

At Miami Beach Bandshell on Collins Avenue, he joins his concert companion for the show they’ve planned around.

The open-air venue gives the night a different atmosphere from listening at home, with the audience responding to each change in the music.

A song he played over lunch sounds different in person, and he focuses on the details that never quite reached him through his speakers.

During the ride back to La Gorce Island, he and his friend compare favorite moments and agree to disagree about the best number.

The piano will be waiting in the morning, along with at least one musical idea he’ll probably attempt.

THE BIGGER PICTURE OF LIFE ON LA GORCE ISLAND

What do these three different routines tell us about La Gorce Island? 

A house on La Gorce Island gives you plenty of room to make plans, but someone still has to make them.

With no café downstairs or shopping street around the corner, much of the day begins with deciding whom to see and where to go.

It's a no-brainer for someone who enjoys having a say in how busy life gets.

You can invite friends into your own space, head out into Miami Beach, or leave an afternoon open without feeling obliged to fill it.

The catch is that a residential island offers fewer casual encounters on the way to something else.

Friendships may need a phone call, a visit, or a date everyone finally agrees to put on the calendar.

That effort matters when privacy is such a large part of what brought you to try island living.

That said, you can love the separation and still want company by Thursday.

Fortunately, living on La Gorce Island leaves room for both if you’re willing to get beyond the gates when the mood strikes.

Those trips come with ordinary considerations—traffic, parking, and the occasional debate over whether dinner out is worth the drive.

Back at home, generous space brings upkeep, too, and tropical gardens don’t maintain themselves because of the lovely view.

These are parts of the address to consider more than the island's Instagrammable potential.

Over time, the pleasure of living on La Gorce depends on how well the house fits the life you build around it.

The weekend-at-home answer becomes much more convincing once you have people you want to invite over and reasons you’re happy to come back.