Afternoon View - Sunrise Drawbridge

When I used to live here it would piss me off to have to wait in hot baking traffic just so some billionaire could move his yacht though one of the drawbridges. Now I just wonder what the inside of the yacht looks like.

Morning View - Fort Lauderdale Beach

Morning View - Fort Lauderdale Beach

High winds and rough surf have the water closed for swimming for the third day since I arrived. Otherwise, the weather is sublime.

Afternoon View - Lauderdale Intracoastal

Morning View - Fort Lauderdale Beach

The "no swimming" red flags are out due to the high winds. I'm told the other flag means "dangerous marine life." Jellyfish, I presume, because the sharks are always there.

Morning View - Fort Lauderdale Beach

I'll be in Fort Lauderdale for the next five days to hang with Father Tony and do some oceanside blogging from his high-rise balcony in between trips to South Beach for Winter Party events. Tough life.

FLORIDA: Cops Capture Suspect In Murders Of Wilton Manors Gay Couple

Florida police have captured a man driving the stolen vehicle of the Wilton Manors gay couple they suspect he murdered on Christmas weekend.

Peter Serge Avsenew, 26, was captured near Dundee, Fl., miles away from where police said he murdered Kevin Mark Powell and Stephen Adams on Sunday. The couple was found dead in their home by police. Avsenew, who is from Hollywood, was spotted by cops in Powell's black 2003 Saturn Vue.

Police have not yet revealed how the victims died and have not speculated publicly on what relationship the suspect may have had with them. The victims had been together for 29 years.

UPDATE: Avsenew has an extensive criminal history. At the time of his capture, he was already wanted on a probation violation in the Keys.

Across the state, Avsenew has been taken into custody more than a dozen times since 2003, state records show. He has been convicted of vehicle theft, robbery, grand theft and engaging in fraud through bounced checks. He also has pleaded no contest to marijuana possession, loitering, possession of drug paraphernalia, criminal mischief and resisting an officer without violence. Avsenew also relies on about eight different aliases, including the name Peter Avsenen, according to the state Department of Corrections.

According to Avsenew's Facebook page, he has a newborn son. Below a recent posting of the boy's photo, a woman with the same last name (probably the suspect's mother) warns: "Peter, Look at these pictures does this baby deserve anything but the best? then think before you do anything stupid."

(Tipped by JMG reader Greg)

FLORIDA: Gay Couple Found Murdered In Their Wilton Manors Home

South Florida Gay News reports that a gay couple was found murdered in their Wilton Manors home this weekend.

The two men whose bodies were found inside their rented home at 2513 NE 8th Avenue in Wilton Manors were domestic partners Kevin Mark Powell, 47, and Steve Adams, 52, former residents of Hollywood, Florida. Their bodies were discovered by the sister of one of the victims, who had called police when her brother had not arrived to her home for the holidays. Kevin Powell had been very ill with Diabetes and she was doing a wellness check. Powell, whose hobby was arts and crafts, had once been featured on the Home and Garden channel after creating a home for his dogs within his home, including pet sized lighting and furniture.

Wilton Manors police are seeking the couple's missing car. JMG readers who may have information about the couple should call detectives at 954-390-2150.

SLIDESHOW: Fort Lauderdale JMG Readers

We had a fantastic group of guys show up for our JMG readers meet-up in Fort Lauderdale/Wilton Manors. Thanks to everybody for coming out! I'll add some more photos from Father Tony's camera shortly. Man, I look tired after a week at Island House. Yikes.

Morning View - Fort Lauderdale Beach

FORT LAUDERDALE: JMG Reader Meet-Up At Georgie's Alibi, Tomorrow At 9PM

Just a reminder that we'll be having our Fort Lauderdale JMG reader meet-up at Georgie's Alibi in Wilton Manors tomorrow night at 9PM. My apologies that this one is on a weeknight, but anything else doesn't work with Xmas falling over the weekend. I'm looking forward to meeting lots of you tomorrow!

FORT LAUDERDALE: JMG Reader Meet-Up At Georgie's Alibi On Dec. 21st At 9PM

We'll be having our Fort Lauderdale JMG reader meet-up at Georgie's Alibi in Wilton Manors on Tuesday, December 21st at 9PM. Apologies that this one isn't on a weekend night, but that doesn't work out during Xmas week. I'm looking forward to seeing lots of you there!

Morning View - Lauderdale Marina

It's looks like a lovely day, but in the freak show standard of my vacations, the record-breaking wind chill in Fort Lauderdale this morning is 25 degrees. Which is colder than NYC was when I left yesterday. And it feels waaay colder than 25 on Father Tony's 17th-floor oceanside balcony. But it's supposed to be back in the 70's in Key West by Thursday. It better be.

Afternoon View - Fort Lauderdale Beach

I'm in Florida for the next two weeks and tomorrow Father Tony and I will spin his tiny convertible down the Overseas Highway for a week of poolside blogging at Key West's fabulous Island House. There will be a JMG reader meet-up in Fort Lauderdale upon our return (details to follow) and then I'm off to spend Xmas in Orlando with the bio-fam. Postings will be relatively light tomorrow and may be heavily influenced by frozen cocktails thereafter.

Photo Of The Day - Mark Foley

The ostensible purpose of this post is to pimp my beloved Father Tony's South Florida Gay News profile of the good Mark Foley, who is a Fort Lauderdale park ranger and environmentalist and should not be confused with disgraced former Rep. Mark Foley, who also lives in South Florida. But to be truthful, I just wanted to post this photo of my favorite bartender at the Ramrod, where Mark moonlights on weekends.

WILTON MANORS: Massive Gay Resort Announced For Fort Lauderdale Area

Wilton Manors, the very gay small town just north of Fort Lauderdale, is slated to get a massive new resort.

New York-based G Worldwide plans to break ground on a 700,000 square-foot resort at an estimated cost of $80 million in Wilton Manors. The luxury resort, scheduled for completion in 2011, will bring over 500 new jobs to the area and is the first in a series of projects for the company catering to the LGBT community. David Holzapfel, COO of G Worldwide, is enthusiastic about the project. “The reason we chose Wilton Manors for our first project is because we felt that South Florida is a wonderful location.” Holzapfel likes the community of Wilton Manors, stating that the company has already garnered a great deal of support for the project. The resort will feature numerous lavish amenities. “We will have a fitness center, spa, nightclub, and a variety of dining options, all on property,” Holzapfel says. In addition, the resort also plans to offer a rooftop lounge and garden, as well as an art gallery and banquet center. The property, located at 1224 NE 24th Street, will only be a short walk from the Wilton Drive entertainment district, offering visitors an array of shopping and nightlife options. G Resort Wilton Manors also plans on attracting 25 major events to the resort, including conferences that will ultimately generate revenue for local businesses.

The resort will feature 172 all-suite rooms, including a number of 3000 square-foot penthouse triplex suites. It'll be interesting to see if Wilton Manors' bustling gay business environment can support such a behemoth, particularly in this economy. (I seem to recall a similar gay condo project, Wilton Station, having problems selling their units several years ago.) And some are concerned that such a big resort will crush some of local gay guesthouses. But who knows, every time I go back it seems like there are a dozen new gay businesses on Wilton Drive.

Jo-Vanni Update

I've had a couple more phone conversations with Jo-Vanni today. He reports that his interview with CNN this morning "went pretty well," but that they gave him no indication when it will air. (I've emailed my contact at CNN to ask.) And they apparently will show him on camera.

In the meantime, I've got Father Tony working in Fort Lauderdale to put together a support team for Jo-Vanni. As I'm sure you all realize, there may be some pretty nasty people out to get him in some way or another. We've got a connection to one of South Florida's sharpest LGBT legal minds, but want to also make sure he's getting good advice on handling the deluge of media inquiries. And of course, the kid just needs some good old social support. None of us can be 100% confident we're getting the full story here, but until we know otherwise, we need to close ranks behind this kid and block any attempts by the Christian right to hurt him. South Florida readers, I welcome your emailed suggestions.

Weekend Mix - DJ Herbie James

Kick off your weekend with a gorgeous progressive vocal house mix by Fort Lauderdale's DJ Herbie James. Setlist. Website. Podcasts. Upcoming gigs: Fridays & Saturdays @ Ramrod. I was in the room kinda losing my mind (in a great way) when Herbie laid this down for us.

PREVIOUSLY ON JMG: DJ David Knapp. DJ Dave Huge. DJ Corey Craig.

JMG: The Father Tony Interview

This weekend I was in Fort Lauderdale where I spoke on a panel at the Gay & Lesbian Literary Arts Festival at the wonderful Stonewall Library & Archives. I'll post a slideshow about the event later today. My beloved Father Tony was a fabulous host and even submitted to my unreasonable demand that we tour pretty much every gay bar in Wilton Manors. (And there are maaaany.) Today he repays me for that "disco death march" with an interview in South Florida Gay News in which he recounts our meeting five years ago and tells a few stories on me. I usually say "I hope I don't took like too much of a tool" when I link to interviews with me, but for this one, that ship has sailed.

Afternoon View - North Over Birch Park