Their weekly calendars are punctuated by such things as organized Bible study meetings and visits to wildlife hospitals. One day Host may arrange for them to go shopping for antiques, and the next she will have them don the roles of Supreme Court justices during a mock trial staged inside the Florida Supreme Court. About the only thing missing from the largely educational itinerary is a tour of such lively Tallahassee nightspots as Cafe Cabernet and Clyde's and Costello's. where lobbyists and lawmakers mingle into the wee hours. Few spouses, for instance, were seen ogling table-side during the bikini contest last week at Clyde's. The dark side of Capitol life has been known to produce easy dalliances that test, and sometimes end, marriages.
Several lawmakers are married to lobbyists they met in Tallahassee.
But spouses can enjoy the nightlife as much as lawmakers and lobbyists do. Simmons, a commercial real estate agent, said she and her husband step out regularly, attending as many as two to three receptions a night. She gets a babysitter for their two young children and uses the opportunity to meet people and network. Host said the small number of spouses who accompany lawmakers to live in Tallahassee during the session tend to have a strong sense of family values. Lobbyists' spouses also get involved.