No matter how many individuals appear in the pages of each edition of Keys Weekly, there are always so many more of our community members who deserve to be recognized. In an effort to shine a spotlight on more of the incredible individuals who live and work in these islands, Keys Weekly is proud to spotlight our Neighbor of the Week feature, dedicated to celebrating a community member with each issue.
This week’s neighbor is Traci Slendak, who works part-time at the gift shop at Castaway Waterfront Restaurant and loves talking with the visitors. She also hosts and takes care of dogs with Rover. She loves to play grandma with the sweetest pups, then give them back. Her husband Rip, who grew up fishing in the Keys, owns a charter fishing business called Riplines out of Marathon.
How long have you been in the Keys and what brought you here? I’m from Tallahassee and my husband is from Fort Lauderdale. We knew each other from FSU in the ’80s. We had not seen one another in 39 years and rediscovered one another on Facebook in 2020. Sparks flew on the phone and we had to see each other again. After just a month together we decided to get married! We both knew we wanted to be back in Florida again, but we lived in Minnesota for about a year.
What do you do for fun in the Keys and why do you love living here? My favorite thing to do here is to open my patio door every morning, feel the temperature and assume I’m in the most perfect weather in the country. I’m happy sitting on my upper deck just taking it all in. I feel very lucky and happy to be here. Occasionally, we go watch the sunset on the bridge with a cup of wine. It’s truly simple living down here.
What would the title of your biography be? “Miss Understood: The life and times of someone trying to figure it all out.”
Which actress would play you in a movie about your life? Someone tall and fun – maybe Allison Janney?
Describe your most bizarre life experience thus far: Aging with back pain. I’ve always been a strong, healthy person and I’ve always loved being active and able. I’m 63 years old. If it wasn’t for lower back pain, I’d feel like I’m 30. I’d play tennis and golf, I’d ride horses, climb rocks and exercise. I’d walk the Old Seven Mile Bridge every day with my husband.
If you were a salad, what type of dressing would you have? Something sweet and nutty. Raspberry walnut vinaigrette on wild greens.
If you won the lottery, what would you spend the money on? I’d buy a piece of land with a bunch of cute little individual cottages, decorate each one in a different theme and invite family and friends to come any time they want. I’d name each cottage after them.
Describe the color green without using its name: I think it looks like grass smells – alive and fresh.
What’s one reasonable change that you’d like to see happen in the Keys? I’d definitely provide more reasonably-priced housing for people that wanted to work here. There’s no getting ahead when all your money goes to rent.
What’s one thing people don’t know about you? I recently counted every home I’ve lived in since birth and it is 23 homes. I grew up in Tallahassee and have lived in Texas, New Jersey, California, Utah, Hawaii and back to Florida.
I’ve visited four continents: Asia, Australia, Europe and of course North America.
Know someone who would be a good Neighbor of the Week? Email keysweeklyjen@gmail.com.
