I have not done any Christmas shopping yet. I will start today and be finished  tomorrow. Usually I wait to the last minute. This year I am not.

That last comment was intended to bring a smile to your face.

My day yesterday started with an early morning visit to the dentist. I am still in the process. Probably another 4 to 6 months before my implants are complete. Initially, it was to take approximately 4 months. However after we ran into the jawbone problems, time automatically became extended. January 7 will be one year since I first began.

I did a big thing yesterday. After the dentist. I went to the gym! I did not have a scheduled appointment with a trainer. I worked all alone. Brought my boxing gloves with me. Boxed for a while. It is my intention to  box  every day. We shall see.

I started at the Chart Room last night. I just wanted one drink. I had a Syracuse basketball game to watch at the Sports Page Bar. It was just JJ and one customer. The customer turned out to be named Louis also.

Syracuse basketball is big this year! Syracuse won decisively last night on. Beat Bucknell. Syracuse is ranked # 1. Bucknell not ranked. The game went as it was supposed to.

I think Syracuse plays Tulane Thursday night.
My friend Steve showed up. It looks like we will be doing most of the Syracuse games together.

No golf this morning. I think I need another week. Strange. Here I was boxing yesterday, but I do not feel I can handle 18 holes golf. I don’t know.

I noticed that the leader of North Korea who recently died decided to play golf at some point in his life. The first time out, he had 11 holes in one. I need his score keeper!

Most of today will be spent preparing for Friday’s Internet show. One of the main topics will involve the legalization of Christmas as a holiday. You will be surprised! A sneak peek at what I will be sharing with you. Christmas was barred by law in the colonies before and during the Revolutionary war.

Another sneak peek. Christmas observance was considered pagan. Would you believe!

Enjoy your day!

 I am up early this morning. It is 5:30. I have a dental appointment at 8.

My two big events for yesterday were a visit to my internist doctor and a work out at the gym.

I woke with a swelling on the left side of my face. That is why visited the doctor. No problem. She said it appeared to be a blockage in my saliva duct. She prescribed I eat dill pickles and sour balls. The extreme taste of each would cause my body to create more saliva which in turn would push whatever was blocking the saliva duct out.

Dill pickles and sour balls are good if ingested separately and at separate times.. Taken together, a problem. Not like peanut butter and jelly or ham and eggs. A disruptive combination. I suffered a bit.

I still have some swelling this morning.

My gym workout was terrific. Courtney worked with me again. After lifting a few weights, we got into  boxing. This was the first time for the boxing. I have had boxing experience. I was excited.

Dengue fever has been a problem the last couple years. Prior to 2009, dengue fever had  not existed for many years. Then in 2009 after decades of being dengue free, it appeared in Key West. In 2011, there were 66 reported cases.

A detailed report concerning dengue fever appeared in yesterday’s Key West Citizen. The article was by Mark Whiteside. The article advised that 2011 had been dengue free.

There are several reasons for the absence of dengue fever in 2011. There had been a drought 2011. Mosquitoes need water to breed. New Town homes had significant spaces between them. Air conditioners seemed to be more in use.

The biggest reason for my perspective is the Mosquito Control Board that exists here. Absolutely outstanding! They Board advertises constantly to watch properties for pools of water. The Board sprays on a regular basis via helicopter. It also makes personal inspections of the outside of each home to see where water could gather and advising the homeowner to correct the problem.

A major victory! Everyone involved is to be complemented.

I have to move my butt now to get to the dentist timely.

Enjoy your day!

The Christmas Concert last night! At St. Paul’s Church on Duval.

Always terrific! The oldest church in South Florida. Packed to the rafters. Standing room only.

Christmas decorations everywhere. The cream of Key West entertainers singing and playing. The Church lights dimmed. The performance basically by candlelight.

Everyone was excellent. There is always a best of the best, however. There were two performances that were absolutely outstanding. I know the people involved very well. This may have influenced my judgment, but I believe not.

Larry Smith, Christine Cordone and Kathleen Peace performed an unusual number. They combined about 20 Christmas caroles and songs together. The ladies sang in rapid fashion two or three lines from each tune. Larry was on the piano. It had to be difficult for each persn to keep up with the other.

The other performance was by Maj Johnson. Her rendition of  O, Holy Night brought the warmth of Christmas directly to one’s heart.

Last night was the 28th Christmas Concert at St. Paul’s.. The Church is amazing. It’s sits right in the heart of Duval. All the noise of party goers outside. Yet the peace and solitude of God inside.

The present Church was constructed in 1920. Notice I said the present Church. Actually the Church was initially constructed in 1831. However, due to two hurricanes and a fire, the Church has been reconstructed several times.

Today is the last segment of my World War II remembrances. The subject is the G.I. bill.

The G.I. bill  became law one year before World War II ended. 1944. Its purpose was threefold. First, to provide unemployment compensation to returning veterans for one year. Second, to provide cheap low interest loans to returning veterans to buy or build homes. The final provision concerned education. It made it possible for returning veterans to attend college at the government’s expense.

The G.I. bill was a smart move. Especially the education provision. There never would have been enough jobs for the returning veterans. Truman wanted to avoid the pre-depression days that occurred following World War I where returning veterans were living in tents and selling apples on street corners.

Eisenhower continued the G.I. bill tradition when he took office in 1952. Made sure the G.I. bill stayed in place.Eisenhower had a concern  for returning Korean veterans and the possibility there would not be enough jobs for them. He decided that the highway system in the United  States needed work. There was no national highway system. It took forever to go from one part of the country to another. A proper highway system was required. A law was passed creating the establishment of a national interstate highway system. Thousands of jobs resulted immediately.

Sound familiar.

I remember the G.I. bill having done two things.

The home loans. Very important. All of a sudden, city limits were expanded, the suburbs created. Homes sprang up all over the place. New neighborhoods and communities were created. The houses were basically boxes. Nice, but they all looked the same. The key was more the pride of first time ownership rather than esthetics.

The most important part of G.I. bill was the education provision. Returning veterans could go to school and still receive support money. The government paid for everything. As with the housing provision, colleges sprang up all over the place. Abandoned churches, church cellars, abandoned warehouses, homes, were utilized for teaching. Hundreds of new colleges established.

I believe the G.I. bill educational provision was the beginning/conception of the middle class in the United States. Returning veterans obtained  bachelor degrees. Many went on to advanced degrees. Most of these individuals would never have attended college were it not for the G.I. bill. New doctors, lawyers ansd Indian chiefs were created. Within 10 to 15 years, they became a solidly established professional and business community. Were it not for the GI bill, most would never  have moved away from the ethnic ghettos and  mill jobs of their forebearers.

Enjoy your day!

It is Sunday morning. I slept late. Felt good.

I had a business meeting yesterday at 12:30. It took about an hour. Afterwards, I drove over to Lisa’s. No one was home. I sat around a while waiting for them to return. Read the Key West Citizen. They did not return. I went home.

Spent the afternoon watching various college basketball games. Love basketball!

My evening was pre-determined. Syracuse basketball!

The game was scheduled to begin at 6:30. I stopped at the Chart Room first. Sitting  at the end of the bar was Captain Peter. A good man. I enjoyed a drink with the Captain. JJ was bartending.

Capain Peter lives on a boat. A small sailboat. It is moored about 2 miles out in the ocean on the gulf side.  To get to his boat and back to shore, he has a dinghy. A small rubber craft with a motor.

The waves are a bit choppy this time of the year. The waves slap over the dinghy as Peter is traversing those 2 miles. Peter puts on his rain gear before he starts the trip.

His other problem is that when he is going back to his sailboat, it is dark. There are no lights out on the ocean. He has to estimate where the sailboat is. Sometimes he misses it and gets a touch of panic. He tells me that the return trip to Key West is easy. Even if it is dark. The lights of Key West guide him in..

Met an interesting couple at the bar. Dan and Helen. They are locals. I never met them before. They work together in a fish distribution business.

I hustled over to the Sports Page Bar just in time for the game.

Kristin bartending. Love her! Some day we may do a movie and dinner together. Patrick the owner was there. He came over to say hello. A nice guy.

Steve showed up! Steve is a Syracuse graduate who spent a lot of time last season watching Syracuse basketball with me at the Sports Page Bar. I ran into him at lunch he other day at Hogfish. Invited him to join me for Syracuse basketball again this year. I was pleased to see him last night. It is always nice to have some one to talk with as the game progresses.

Steve has a boat. We talked about taking a trip together to a Caribbean island. All of a sudden all my friends who have boats want me to take boat trips to exotic places.

I intend to do it. I just do not know when.

Ran into a hell of a couple from Chicago at the Sports Page Bar. They were just there to have a drink. They ended up watching a bit of the Syracuse game with me. They are Steve and Katie.

Steve is a CPA. I told him that the most important person in my practice/business was my CPA. I had the same one from 1974. I did not make a move without him. Bill Hatfield from Oneida, New York. The best of the best personally and professionally.

Katie works for Discovery Channel.

They have been married 1 1/2 years. Steve has visited Key West four times. This is Katie’s first trip. Unfortunately, they leaving tomorrow I think however a relationship was established. I am sure they are reading this blog this morning.  I hope to see them again when they return. They are the type who will return to Key West.

Almost forgot. Syracuse won by 16 points. 88-72.

I stopped at Don’s Place on the way home. One drink. Chatted with Kurt who was bartending. Don’s annual Christmas party is tonight at the bar at eight. Unfortunately, I will not be able make it. Two of my lady friends are taking me to the annual Christmas concert at St. Paul’s Church. The concert is a big deal. Going with the ladies is big deal. It will be the Cat Lady and Jenna, with me sitting in between.

I have one more story to tell about World War II. I am going to leave it to tomorrow morning. This blog is already too late and too long. Tomorrow morning, I am going to speak briefly about the G.I. bill. It was a boon to returning veterans and also a compelling factor in the development of the middle class. The middle class that no longer exists in this country.

Enjoy your Sunday!

A phenomenal day yesterday weatherwise! The temperature hit 85°. Warm, but not warm. The cool breeze coming in off the ocean kept things comfortable.

Another terrific Key West Lou Legal Hour yesterday morning. Everything seemed of interest to everyone. If any topic drew a bit more comment following the show, it was the two topics concerning the Dubai royal family in London and a 1787 gold coin recently auctioned for $7.4 million.

The Dubai royal family was in London this past week. The number of persons making up the family I do not know. However, the royal family sent one of their aides to a bank to pick up some spending money.Fifty pound notes. Amounted to $3 million American money.  The aide was robbed as he left the bank. He was caught about three hours later. The money was being used by the royal family as pocket money/spending money during their London trip.

The auction involved a rare 1787 gold coin. It brought $7.4 million. A financial institution in New York City, a bank, bought the  coin. The bank’s name was not disclosed.

The point I was making was that the two biggest ripoff generators in recent years affecting the American public were involved. Oil producers and a bank. The royal family requiring $3 million pocket money for a London vacation. A bank with so much extra money that it invests $7.4 million in a rare gold coin.

Something is wrong with the system! The rich get richer. Poor poorer. The incidents reported sort of like spitting in some one’s face.

It was gym time again yesterday. Courtney Aman my trainer. This was my third gym visit. Each session has been more strenuous than the previous one. I could feel it yesterday. Certain parts of my body ached and burned during the process. I can feel it this morning also. However, I am happy with the whole situation. I’m thrilled to be working out! Monday we start with boxing. I am excited. Yes, Louis boxes!

Then to Don’s Place for a glass of water. Don and David there. Chatted briefly with them. Roger sitting outside. Had a drink (diet soda) with Roger.
Book wrote for about three hours later in the afternoon. Slow and steady. The words came easily.

I did something different last night. Instead of running into town to do the Chart Room or hustling over to Hogfish, I went to Geiger Key. First time in four years. It is 5 miles up US one from my home. At the Shell station and Big Kmart grocery store, make a right and drive about 2 miles down a somewhat desolate road. There to the left in the woods sitting on a watery cove is Geiger Key.

The people who own Hogfish purchased Geiger Key about two years ago. I assumed some work had been done. The place previously was pretty run down. Improvements had been made.

I never liked Geiger Key. I can’t tell you why. It was a shack in the middle of nowhere and the people not friendly. Dark. The lighting sucked.

The place has been fixed up. Including better lighting.

The people at Geiger Key have always been interesting. Before and now. They are an entity unto themselves. I knew no one then and knew no one now. These people live on Geiger Key. Are sort of geographically snobbish. Geiger is rather large by the way. The residents live in homes, trailers and some on boats. They know each other. I was a stranger.

I enjoyed my meal. Same quality as Hogfish. Even got to talk to some of the other customers.

Big night tonight! Syracuse/North Carolina State basketball. 6:30. I will be at the Sports Page Bar watching. Syracuse should win. Syracuse is presently ranked # 1 nationally. I know it is early in the season. But # 1 at any time is good.

Bond rallies were a big thing during World War II. The US government raised money by selling bonds. $18.75 bought a person a bond which could be redeemed in 10 years for $25. People bought these bonds like crazy. Not only was it a way to save, it was also showing support for the war effort. My parents had a ton of such bonds. My grand father had many, also. I can recall when I started practicing law in the early 1960s, every time I was retained in an estate matter,  US savings bonds from World War II were part of the estate.

The bond rallies generally involved some famous or prominent person coming to Utica to entertain or talk.
I have a specific recollection of the Andrew Sisters coming to Utica. For those of you who may not know, they were three top notch female singers. Extremely popular during and following the War.

A stage was set up in front of the Savings Bank in Utica. For at least two blocks around, the sidewalks and streets were packed with people listening to the Andrew Sisters singing and promoting the sale of war bonds.

The war effort required metal. All kinds of metal. People were donating any kind of metal they could find in their homes or their businesses.

The Savings Bank of Utica was a proud local bank. In front, it had a huge metal chain. A linked chain. But different. The links were at least 1/2 inch to 1 inch thick. The day the Andrew Sisters were there, the links were removed. The announcement was made that the chain was being donated to the war effort.

That is how it was then.

Enjoy your day!

Can’t believe it! The weather is absolutely outstanding! 80° yesterday.

I thought this morning’s blog would begin…..I NEED A SANTA CLAUS!

I have always made sure Santa Claus visited my home twice. Around dinner time Christmas Eve. Then again when the children were asleep. I did this with my children, my older grandchildren in Utica, and now with my two grandchildren in Key West.

My problem. Reggie, my Santa Claus the past four years, left town. The search for a new Santa Claus became a problem. I could not find one. By yesterday, I was exasperated. Then the telephone rang. It was Santa Claus. Be at Lisa’s house Christmas Eve 6 PM to chat with Robert and Ally. Problem solved.

I blamed Comcast yesterday for my problems. Both computers and TV sets were down. Turns out I was wrong.

Adam is my handyman. I gave him a call. I did not want to wait till this morning to have the Comcast repair man come by. Adam took a look. A rat had eaten through my cable.

Homes in Key West are required to have a five foot crawl space under portions of the house and outer deck. That is where wires cables, and pipes feeding the house are located. That is where my univited guest had dinner.

I had a party to attend last night between five and seven. Never made it. I was not dressed and out on the road until seven. Headed to the Chart Room instead.

It’s amazing! Sometimes the Chart Room in the empty. And then all of a sudden there are 30 people. That is the way it was last night. I enjoyed Sheila, Jean and Emily. John Lucas was there again. Next Saturday his new sports bar JDL’s Big Ten opens. At the former PT’s. Give it a try.

Jean and I sat at the bar quite a while and talked. About everything.

Then to Don’s Place. Kurt, Rob and Bebe there. Also Michelle. Michelle and I sat together and chatted.

This morning The Key West Legal Hourr. 10 AM my time. Worldwide. Watch and listen. Great topics on the front burner this morning!

This afternoon will be my third trip to the gym with a trainer. The last time was Monday. I have felt pain in my arms since then. Pain is good?

Enjoy your day!

I can’t win!

Computers and TVs down since 2 this morning. Comcast does not know why. I have to wait till tomorrow morning for a service person.

Comcast’s service stinks! Comcast does not care.

Their President makes $40 million a year. There are few if any means to make a telephone call to anyone to complain. From the President down. Your only recourse is the recorded message/directions on the telephone. Whoever invented the system should have a telephone shoved up his ass!

I am at Lisa’s late this morning doing this blog. Sorry for the delay in getting it out to you.

I enjoyed yesterday. Spent the day completing and fine tuning tomorrow’s Internet show. Another good one! We live in a crazy world. I merely report and comment on what is happening.

Tomorrow’s topics include a walk back in history to December 16, 1773. The Boston Tea Party. Then Saudi royalty robbed of $3 million in cash pocket money in London, a New York financial institution buying a rare gold piece for $7.4 million, a new census report saying almost half US population poor or low income, the why regarding Sandusky’s attorney waiving the preliminary hearing, the Pledge of Allegiance in Spanish in some California schools, immigration insanity proposed in New Haven of all places, a man sentenced to life in prison released because he was in jail at the time  of the incident for which he received the life sentence, Saudi woman beheaded for sorcery, a Pakistani woman has acid thrown in her face by her husband because she refused to sell two of their children, and more.

Join me. www.konkbroadcasting.com. 10 am my time. Worldwide coverage. The Key West Lou Legal Hour.

Last night started at the Chart Room. Emily bar tending. Gave me a kiss when I arrived and hug and kiss when I left. Captain Peter. Jean Thornton for a brief bit. John Lukas. and others.

John’s new sports page bar opens in about a week. At the old PT’s. John is all excited and tired. Hard work completing the renovation. Will not be for naught. John is a winner and his new bar will be also.

Stopped at Don’s Place next. Not many customers. Had a drink with Jimmy and Joanie. Kurt was supposed to be bar tending. He was not.

My last stop was at the Marriott Tavern ‘n Town. Ate at the bar. I was alone. Grabbed a newspaper in the lobby to read. A small pizza and a drink and I was done.

I am a poor sleeper. Sleep with the TV on so I have something to do when I wake. I woke at 2. No TV. It made for a long night.

Enjoy your day!

Blue Star mothers. Gold Star mothers.

During World War II, any home that had someone in the military hung a flag in the window. The flags were about 12″ x 8″. White. A star in the center.

A blue star meant someone was in the service. A gold star meant that the person in the service had been killed in action.

Gold Star mothers were respected, revered and recognized. During the war and for years thereafter, the Gold Star Mothers, as they became known, joined together and were invited to many events. These Gold Star mothers started to speak out on current events. They felt a force within themselves. They had given the utmost to the war cause. They were entitled to speak out.

Looking back, these Gold Star mothers were the seeds of the women’s movement.

Another great lunch yesterday! Two days in a row. A lucky man am I.

Ann Hedenberg and I enjoyed a two hour lunch. At Hogfish.

Ann has been my friend since the early 1960s. For two years she was a reporter with the Utica newspapers. Then she moved on to Boston and moments of glory. I did not see again from her Utica days till about 10 years ago here in Key West. I was at an event at East Martello and lo and behold who do I see. Ann! She was married. She and her husband were retired and lived in Big Pine.

Since that time, Ann and I get together to sit and chat. It has worked out to be an every three month thing.

Ann look terrific yesterday! I have to comment thusly. In the past several months, she has not been well. Looked it. Good skin color yesterday. Her hair had a vibrancy to it. Her personality was back. God bless, Ann!

Sloan and I worked together for a while at dinner time. A talent. I was having trouble with my Amazon Kindle law blog. An exasperation! Been trying to correct it for three months. I could not resolve the problem. Jenna was up against a brick wall. Amazon themselves could not figure it out. Sloan did.

I had called Kurt earlier in the day. Thought it would be nice to have a couple of drinks with him and then dinner. He never called back till early evening. He was out playing golf. By that time I had already eaten and so there was no get together. In fact, I was in bed reading when he called.
I was correct concerning my bring back the draft comments yesterday. I received a ton of emails in short order. Most understanding of my position.

This is Wednesday. Wednesday is golf day. I’m going to skip one more week of golf. It has been nine weeks since I played. My energy factor has been less than what it should be. I probably could handle it today, but I am going to give it another week.

Enjoy your day!

I slept late this morning. Felt good. Woke to another great Key West morning. Sunshine all over. Blue sky. Water green and moving slowly. It will be another 80° day.

Had a most enjoyable lunch yesterday! With a charming and most intelligent woman. Meredith Eastwood.

Meredith is a loyal blog reader. She reads Key West Lou every day. She also has visited Key West several times in the past. She is seriously considering buying and moving here full time.

Meredith is from Indianapolis. It seems all good people come from Indiana. She has been widowed for many years. Since her son was six years old. He is now a man, married and has two children.

Meredith is a school teacher, risk coordinator at the school, a consuler and tennis coach. She earned two Masters degrees along the way.

We met at Salute’s and enjoyed a delightful couple of hours sitting outside.

Meredith has spent the last seven years writing a book. It is about Key West. However her characters are not real people.They are animals. Primarily cats. The cats all have names similar to Key West persons of note.

The book is probably three books. She has written about 100,000 words.

Meredith is at the fine tuning stage.

I believe that in Meredith I have found a new and long term friend. I shall enjoy communicating with her and eventually having her living here in Key West.

Then it was off to the gym! My second workout with trainer Courtney Aman.

When I arrived, Courtney told me that yesterday’s workout was the easiest one I would have. Good luck! It may have been easy from his perspective. It was difficult from mine. I am sore this morning.

Afterwards, I walked next door to visit with Don. I spent about an hour with him in his office going over some paperwork. Don is a genius businessman.

Last night was Virgilio’s. I rarely go to Virgilio’s. I am always in the front at La Trottatoria. Last night I was to meet friends at Virgilio’s. Gary and Tecia.

I have known them for several years now. They are snowbirds. Gary is a retired deputy sheriff from Oswego County in upstate New York. I did much legal work for and in Oswego County over the years. Never knew Gary and Tecia back then. We met and became friends in Key West. I believe at the Chart Room.

Virgilio’s has a five dollar martini Monday nights.
Gary and Tecia were there with several friends. Some also from the upstate New York area. One of their friends was Gugi. Turns out Gugi is a drag queen at 801!

I spoke with Gugi for a while. He was dressed normally, by the way. Look like everyone else. I could see from his body and the smoothness of his face that when dressed, he was probably one good looking woman! 

Gugi is originally from Chicago. Has worked in Key West for several years. Unfortunately, I do not go to 801. I have only been there twice and that was to the bar downstairs. Gary and Tecia see the shows. They also do the drag queen bingo party Sundays at five upstairs at 801.

Now that I have met Gugi, I will have to see the 801 show.
I spoke briefly with Becha and Erin. The subject of our discussion of course was Kathy. Kathy is still out recovering from two heavy surgeries. Hopefully she will be back next month.

My World War II recollection for today is the draft.

There was a draft prior to World War II. It had been instituted relatively close to the beginning of World War II. People could still volunteer to enter the military. However, there was a lottery system. Every male within a certain age bracket was entered into this lottery system. Numbers were pulled. The “lucky” ones  received a letter from Uncle Sam advising they were in the the service. You had to go.

With Pearl Harbor, many men volunteered to serve. They did not wait to be drafted. However, a significant number did wait to be drafted. I could not understand why. There seemed to be a benefit to waiting. Why, I still do not recall. What I remember is that the adults were always talking about the draft, the implications of being drafted, the implications of volunteering, etc.

The World War II draft issue brings to mind some thoughts I wish to share.

We no longer have a draft in the United States. It was done away with many years ago. We have a volunteer military service.

We are also in three wars at this time. Some of which, if not all of which, may have been unnecessary. Many lives lost and bodies maimed participating in unwarranted encounters.

There is no question that today’s military services are the best United States has ever had. They are professional soldiers. Most in for the long term. Experienced. How could they not be. Some have been redeployed four or five times.

A couple of points I would like to make.

First, I believe if there were a draft, there would be fewer wars. Congressman would be reluctant to support wars with a constituency back home telling them that they were not in favor of the war. Unless a World War II situation, no parent wants a child to fight in a war. The President and Congress would both be subject to heavier  political constraints regarding war if the people of the nation had a greater influence in whether war should be declared.

It is easy to sit in Washington and say we have to go to this country or that country or we need boots on the ground in this country. Not so if those who are doing the actual fighting are generally from a draft program. There would be a severe reluctance on the part of elected officials to engage in wars.

I say bring back the draft.

Second, I am distrustful of a professional military. I have been so for many years. I primarily do not trust the generals.

During the Bush II administration, I always thought the generals were toying with the President. They would agree with him to his face and then go out and do what they wanted. We seemed at that time to be losing civilian control over the military. Do not take my word for it. There are many books and articles written on this specific issue.

I also fear that in times of unrest a professional military might try a take over the government. You say it cannot happen. It only happens in banana countries. It has happened many times in more well developed nations and with well developed governmental structures. In times of upheaval and unrest, the military many times join with the protesters and a new government born. A government wherein the militiary influence is primary and/or significant.

As bad as things are, I do not want a new government. I do not want a military government. I only want a government that works. And I want such a government through the established systems we already have.

I suspect I’m going to get a lot of emails with regard to today’s thoughts.

Enjoy your day!

When I first purchased my Key West home 15 years ago, I joined a health club/gym. It was located on Truman at the back of the Bargain Book Store.

The conversations that went on were off the wall! I always thought that a camera and recording of the events would make for great TV! The Internet then was not as it is now. So it was TV rather than the Internet for viewing purposes.

Until yesterday, the only other place where dialogue was as entertaining was Don’s Place. I’ve always thought that a camera at the end of the bar going out worldwide over the Internet would be a winner.

I discovered a third such place yesterday.

Lee’s Nails. Tammy and her following.

I stopped in at one for a pedicure and manicure. Business was sparse. However those there made for a good mixture.

As I was getting a manicure by Tammy, her husband Ricky was giving a pedicure nearby to some woman. There was also a lovely young Asiatic woman seated to the front of Tammy and I who was getting a manicure.

A Christmas tree stood in Lee Nails. A real one. Big! Covered with lights and balls. Looked terrific!

Somehow a conversation got going concerning the tree. I asked the cost of the tree itself. I assumed something around $70. Ricky said no, over $300! He was referring not only to the tree, but also to the lights and decorations. Which were plentiful.

Tammy had a heart attack! She did not realize her husband had spent so much money.

As the conversation proceeded, Ricky told us that he threw the tree away with all the lights and ornaments on it every year. This did not make sense. Who throws away lights and decorations? Ricky does.

Ricky said that if a person kept the lights and decorations, it would bring bad luck in the new year.

The woman he was giving a pedicure to said she had a boat. She would never bring a banana on the boat because she felt it would bring her bad luck. Ricky came right back and said he would not eat a banana in the morning because he felt it would bring him bad luck all day.

There is more.

The beautiful young Asian girl to the front of me getting a manicure said, I saw a ghost! A real ghost!

She claims she saw Alice. Whoever Alice is. She saw Alice on the second floor at the art house. I do not know what she meant by the art house. However she was very firm that she had seen Alice the ghost. The woman getting a pedicure piped in that she believed in ghosts. Everyone began talking about ghosts.

And so it went.

Love Key West!

I then headed over to Don’s Place. Pro footbal time. Sunday afternoon. The whole world was there. I spent time inside and out talking with people. Had a good time.

Afterwards to Lisa’s for Sunday supper. Christmas was in the air. Ally had made a  Christmas wreath in school. The wreath was hanging on the front door. It was paper colored with crayons. Robert had made a sign welcoming everyone to their home for Christmas. The sign was on a piece of paper and done in crayon also. Both were very proud. Of course, I complimented each on the fine work and told them that Santa Claus would appreciate seeing these things when he arrived at their house on Christmas eve. I was rewarded with big smiles.

Everyone participated in the war effort during World War II. Everyone sacrificed. Sacrifice even came down to what was on the table to eat.

There was not enough meat for both the military and civilians. Meat first went to the fighting forces. That left a limited supply of meat available to the public.

In order to control and be fair in the distribution of meat, rationing stamps were provided. In order to buy meat, a person had to provide the store keeper with a certain number of stamps received from the federal government. Whatever amount of meat the stamps allowed, that was the amount that could be purchased. This stamp thing extended to gasoline also. Car owners were very limited in the amount of gas that could be purchased. Something like 3 or 4 gallons a week. Another reason why people took the bus!

There was very little meat on the table therefore. I do not think the war made that much of a difference with regard to meat consumption in my home. We were poor. Meat would have been unusual in any event.

Rationing stamps obviously were important. There was a way additional stamps could be obtained. Fat was needed for the war effort. I am talking about the drippings that came frying something on the stove. Any kind of fat. My mother used to keep an empty coffee can and put that drippings in the can. When the can was full and hard, I would walk it over to Johnson’s Supermarket a block away. There were no supermarkets back then. Grocery stores were merely called supermarkets.

Mr. Johnson would give me two or three rationing stamps in exchange for the fat. The government encouraged fat savings and the surrender of fat in exchange for stamps. Fat was required for the war effort.

Everyone had a victory garden. My father planted one in a corner of the backyard. We had tomatoes, carrots, peppers and lettuce as I recall. There may have been some other things. This was encouraged by the government also. Again it was because there was not enough food to go around.

I have a busy day ahead of me. A business luncheon. Then Courtney working me out at the gym. Tonight meeting with some friends I have not seen in over a year for drinks.

I know. How can you be drinking and working out at the same time. What can I tell you!

Enjoy your day!