It pays to have friends up north (i.e., Martin County). Otherwise we would never have found out about the Treasure Coast Wildlife Hospital, which provides short- and long-term care for wounded, sick, or orphaned critters 24 hours a day. More than 100 permanently impaired animals call this 25-year-old place home, including a one-winged bald eagle, a one-eyed pelican, and a six-year-old bobcat named Sophie who doesn't know how to be a bobcat because her mother got hit by a car when Sophie was only a few days old. We think Sophie has a good life right where she is. The dozen or so pelicans here like this place so much, they're raising a family. You'll also see crocodiles, alligators, and a white-tailed deer. Volunteers are available to answer your animal queries, and there's even a small gift shop with critter-related items. (It's hard to leave without a Tshirt, at least.) Visiting hours are Monday through Friday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission is $2, and guided group tours are available.

This is a tough category in a county with such gems as Markham Park in Sunrise and the great beach parks maintained by the state, John U. Lloyd and Hugh Taylor Birch. Our pick is Snyder, an unpretentious city park of 93 acres that offers everything you need in a park, and all on a city budget. Snyder has two freshwater ponds, one with a football field-long swimming beach and weekend lifeguards to protect the kids; canoe and kayak rentals; hiking trails through sometimes dense foliage; paved trails for jogging, bicycling, or Rollerblading; a softball field; basketball courts; and picnic areas. It's clean, it's managed by some of the friendliest city workers you can find, and at twilight it's romantic. Snyder is also cheap. On weekends or holidays you'll pay $2 a person unless you're very young or very old, then it's $1.50. The weekday entrance fee is $1.50 or $1.

This is a tough category in a county with such gems as Markham Park in Sunrise and the great beach parks maintained by the state, John U. Lloyd and Hugh Taylor Birch. Our pick is Snyder, an unpretentious city park of 93 acres that offers everything you need in a park, and all on a city budget. Snyder has two freshwater ponds, one with a football field-long swimming beach and weekend lifeguards to protect the kids; canoe and kayak rentals; hiking trails through sometimes dense foliage; paved trails for jogging, bicycling, or Rollerblading; a softball field; basketball courts; and picnic areas. It's clean, it's managed by some of the friendliest city workers you can find, and at twilight it's romantic. Snyder is also cheap. On weekends or holidays you'll pay $2 a person unless you're very young or very old, then it's $1.50. The weekday entrance fee is $1.50 or $1.

Last year in this space we kind of goofed on Don Bailey, who is now a senior citizen but posed nude on his carpet at the age of 40 and has used the resultant painting to sell his wares ever since. You've seen the signs, where Bailey is propped on his side, wearing a slightly suggestive smile and little else. While giving Bailey his props for having the courage to bare all in his quest to sell rugs, we also noted that the ads were kind of "creepy," and that Bailey looked like a "pasty version of Hugh Beaumont from Leave It to Beaver" in the ads. We figured that Bailey either suffered from a chronic skin condition or hailed from Britain. Well, it looks like our frank comments spurred Bailey to action. He recently renovated the signs using the original portrait, and it seems that the pastiness wasn't a product of Bailey himself -- it was the work of the elements. To our amazement the new, nonweatherworn portrait confirms Bailey's contention that he was a stud in his time. He had a trim, fit physique and wasn't pasty in the least. In fact Bailey was actually reminiscent of the man who'd inspired the ad, Burt Reynolds, back when Reynolds was America's leading male sex symbol. Bailey, we're sorry we ever doubted ye.

Last year in this space we kind of goofed on Don Bailey, who is now a senior citizen but posed nude on his carpet at the age of 40 and has used the resultant painting to sell his wares ever since. You've seen the signs, where Bailey is propped on his side, wearing a slightly suggestive smile and little else. While giving Bailey his props for having the courage to bare all in his quest to sell rugs, we also noted that the ads were kind of "creepy," and that Bailey looked like a "pasty version of Hugh Beaumont from Leave It to Beaver" in the ads. We figured that Bailey either suffered from a chronic skin condition or hailed from Britain. Well, it looks like our frank comments spurred Bailey to action. He recently renovated the signs using the original portrait, and it seems that the pastiness wasn't a product of Bailey himself -- it was the work of the elements. To our amazement the new, nonweatherworn portrait confirms Bailey's contention that he was a stud in his time. He had a trim, fit physique and wasn't pasty in the least. In fact Bailey was actually reminiscent of the man who'd inspired the ad, Burt Reynolds, back when Reynolds was America's leading male sex symbol. Bailey, we're sorry we ever doubted ye.

When was the last time your doctor prescribed laugh therapy? Or spent one-and-one-half to two hours with you on your initial visit? And really listened to more than just the beating of your heart? Robert Willix does. Sure, it'll cost ya -- $375 to $500. (Follow-up visits, usually four to six weeks later, cost $75.) And no, your insurance won't cover it. But think of it this way: You've probably spent hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars on doctors in your insurance plan, and you still don't feel good. Even better, did you notice the M.D. after his name? It's the real thing. Willix used to be a heart surgeon but gave that up two decades ago to practice alternative medicine "in its purest form," he says. But if the Chinese medicine doesn't work, he'll prescribe the drugs.

When was the last time your doctor prescribed laugh therapy? Or spent one-and-one-half to two hours with you on your initial visit? And really listened to more than just the beating of your heart? Robert Willix does. Sure, it'll cost ya -- $375 to $500. (Follow-up visits, usually four to six weeks later, cost $75.) And no, your insurance won't cover it. But think of it this way: You've probably spent hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars on doctors in your insurance plan, and you still don't feel good. Even better, did you notice the M.D. after his name? It's the real thing. Willix used to be a heart surgeon but gave that up two decades ago to practice alternative medicine "in its purest form," he says. But if the Chinese medicine doesn't work, he'll prescribe the drugs.

It's so peaceful here. So serene. So well cared for. Some people, like 78-year-old Malka Lewin, come every day to visit their dearly departed pets and to tend to the décor they've created at the little gravesites: plants, photos, statues. A lot of credit goes to cemetery manager Jim Kovalcik, who has been working here for more than 13 years. This 1400-plot cemetery has been here since 1978; fewer than 300 plots are left. The cost to bury your pet (dog, cat, rabbit, bird, ferret, "whatever fits") ranges from $650 to $800, and that includes the gravesite, a marker, the casket (your choice of three), and time in the viewing room before the burial. Kovalcik performs the graveside memorial service and lowers the casket into the ground, also included in the price. Generally Kovalcik asks if anyone has anything to say; then he concludes the ceremony with a few comforting words, like what grief means and how it always hurts to lose a beloved member of the family.

It's so peaceful here. So serene. So well cared for. Some people, like 78-year-old Malka Lewin, come every day to visit their dearly departed pets and to tend to the décor they've created at the little gravesites: plants, photos, statues. A lot of credit goes to cemetery manager Jim Kovalcik, who has been working here for more than 13 years. This 1400-plot cemetery has been here since 1978; fewer than 300 plots are left. The cost to bury your pet (dog, cat, rabbit, bird, ferret, "whatever fits") ranges from $650 to $800, and that includes the gravesite, a marker, the casket (your choice of three), and time in the viewing room before the burial. Kovalcik performs the graveside memorial service and lowers the casket into the ground, also included in the price. Generally Kovalcik asks if anyone has anything to say; then he concludes the ceremony with a few comforting words, like what grief means and how it always hurts to lose a beloved member of the family.

If you've never done hatha yoga before, instructor Vera Paley is your gal. She specializes in teaching novices (though she teaches intermediate levels too) in a way that's, well, awe-inspiring. Watch Paley do the shoulder stand, the frog, the fish, the spinal twist, and you'll be saying, "Hey, if she can do it, I can too." After all, Paley, our role model for old (whatever that is), turned 80 last year. Maybe that's why her favorite line is, "You're never too old -- or young -- to do yoga." (Some of her newest students are older than she is.) Another favorite line, "You're only as young as your spine is flexible." Meaning: If you can't sit on the floor with your legs stretched out and touch your forehead to your knees, you know whom to call.