First, the weather. The cold front is gone. Key West is back to glorious weather. High 70’s by day, low 70’s by night. No air conditioning day or night. No humidity.
The sun is shining brightly this morning on the MTV house across the water from me. The house is multi colored. Yellow the basic color, with blue and pink trim. Really hues. Even the mangrove trees fronting on the water are a special green this morning.
The MTV house is reflecting full size in the water between our homes. A magnificent sight!
My day yesterday started early. A fasting blood test. The steroids screwed up my last one and so we are redoing.
Hemingway, stone crabs and Africa. All in one evening. In one place. The Chart Room.
Someone wrote in chalk on the blackboard at the end of the bar in large letters…..HEMINGWAY WAS NEVER HERE! A Chart Room question often asked. Did Hemingway hang out at the Chart Room? He could not have. Hemingway had been long dead when the Chart Room came into existence in 1965.
Emily was bartending. She lucked out. One of the Pier House guests and his wife had been stone crabbing in the afternoon. They brought Emily several (crushed) and the mustard sauce. Emily dined well!
Africa came into the Chart Room in the form of Amy Culver. Amy has lived in Key West forever. A prominent citizen. She visits Africa 2-3 times a year. Has been doing so for years. She arrived with two friends. One a former American Airlines attendant, the other a Baltimore-Annapolis realtor. I had a fun time chatting with the three. Especially the realtor. I forgot to get their names.
After the two visitors left, Amy remained and we talked alone a while.
Then to the Hot Tin roof for dinner.
The bar unusually busy.
A combination of locals and visitors. The dinning room full.
Many of the guests were power boaters. Power boaters are easy to spot. The women dress a bit more.The men generally in long pants. Two were wearing jackets. No one wears a jacket in Key West. Whatever they were wearing exuded affluence. As it should. Power boating is an expensive sport. Requires big bucks. Only the rich can afford to participate.
The issue of corporate taxes keeps coming up. Many corporations have become technically foreign based in order to avoid U.S. taxes. It was recently disclosed that Pepsi Cola, Fed Ex, and Proctor & Gamble are among those that do so.
What bugs me is that if the rich do not pay their taxes, how is this country run? The answer is obvious. It is run on the backs of the middle class and those of lesser economic status. The middle class has eroded, however. So the responsibility is that of the working poor and those fortunate to be a step up from them on the economic scale. Not right! Not fair! The tax laws must be fixed so those American dollars can come home.
Enjoy your day!