TRAVIS McGEE

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What a spectacular morning! Everything perfect! No breeze, water still, no clouds, blue sky, sun reflecting brightly on the MTV house across the water. As I am accustomed to saying, it is a God is in His Heaven day and all is right with the world. Unfortunately, only my world in tiny Key West.

I think I am well read. More precisely, I thought I was well read.

A couple of months ago, Travis McGee came up as well as the author John D. MacDonald. I did not know who either was. My education had been neglected. I soon learned from the voluminous e mails that came in who Travis McGee was. A popular character  in a series of Travis McGee novels written by John D. MacDonald.

In this weekend’s mail, I received a hardbound copy of one of the Travis McGee books. The Deep Blue Glory. I will start reading it today.

My benefactors are Dan and Karen from the Pittsburg area. Snowboards. I mentioned them around Fantasy Fest time. They chastised me a bit re Travis McGee. They must have mentioned it to their daughter. She brought the book down when she visited Key West. For whatever reason, it never made it into my hands.

Be prepared for some Travis McGee comments.

My only time out of the house yesterday was to visit the Chalk Festival next to the Coast Guard vessel Ingham. I thought I was a good chalker when young. No way compared to what I saw yesterday. Outstanding work! Each and every drawing. The festival a big deal. Some artists traveled from Europe to participate.

I do not know if you picked up on it. I have not been going out as much lately. The reason is I am on a diet. I have been on so many. I start and rarely finish. I did not want to embarrass myself again.

I have just concluded four weeks of dieting. Fifteen pounds! Wowie!

Lisa and the grandchildren dropped off the turkey yesterday. It sits in my extra refrigerator in the garage till wednesday evening. Robert and Ally were excited. Their emotions are catching.

Syracuse played Iowa in the consolation basketball game in Madison Square Garden friday. Syracuse won 66 or 68 to 63. I did not watch. I forgot.

Syracuse plays Loyola tomorrow night. I will watch around my blog talk radio show.

I believe tomorrow night’s blog talk radio show will be unusually good. The topics. I am going to do a dissertation on beheading. I will compare the Saudi Arabia method to that used by ISIS and the reason for each. Informative, but gruesome.

Plus, the story of a 12 year old Cleveland black boy. He was playing with a pistol bebe gun in a children’s playground. Some one called 911 and reported it. However did say he thought the gun was fake. The police arrived. A rookie police officer shot the boy dead.

You can find me at 9 tomorrow evening on the internet with the blog talk radio show. www.blogtalkradio.com/key-west-lou.

On this day in history in 1963, John Kennedy’s killer Lee Harvey Oswald was shot to death by Jack Ruby. I saw it live at the time on television.

The police were transporting Oswald somewhere else. They were walking him out of an underground area to the sidewalk. The tunnelway was crowded with all sort of spectators. I recall thinking at the time how stupid! Someone is going to kill Oswald. Someone did. Ruby. He walked right up to Oswald and shot him.

I mention particularly this episode in history because I find it similar to Ferguson. Stupid police work!

Enjoy your day!

 

BEATLES’ GEORGE HARRISON

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Several years ago in Griffith Park in Los Angeles, a memorial pine tree was planted. Dedicated to George Harrison of Beatles fame. The tree recently died. Killed ironically by beetles.

I have mentioned repeatedly on my radio show the drought problems world wide. A severe drought area is Southern California. The drought has weakened vegetation such as the pine trees. Thereby making pine trees such as the one dedicated to George Harrison susceptible to a beetle onslaught.

It was the gym first thing yesterday morning. Me and Albert. The exercise does not get easier.

Albert and I have some interesting conversations while he is brutalizing me. Yesterday it was the privatization of jails. Albert brought it up based in a television show he had watched the night before.

I have a bit knowledgeable concerning the situation. I did a television show on it two years ago. Jail privatization is not a solution. One reason is dishonesty. Man’s desire for easy gain reaches the highest levels.

A particular county in Pennsylvania had privatized its jails. Two Family Court Judges started sentencing high school kids to 4 to 14 days in jail. For minor stuff. Like talking back to a teacher. One was a girl student with straight A’s. Her four days in jail screwed her up mentally.

The increase in sentencing by the two Judges was noted. An investigation ensued.

Turned out the two Judges were on the take. The jail operators were paying them a stipend for each child sent by them to their jail. Both Judges are now doing long term sentences in jail themselves.

Just one reason I am opposed to privatization of jails.

Music again. Yesterday, it was Frank Sinatra at the gym. The whole hour. His singing made it easier for me to accept what was being done.

I took a late afternoon walk. In the heat and humidity. Parked the car at Square One and walked down Duval to the Southernmost Complex and the Reach. Two of the prettiest spots in Key West.

My return trip found me at the outside bar at La Te Da. I needed water. The water was followed by a drink. I was comfortable. The people at the bar interesting. I decided to have an early dinner.

Normally, I enjoy the lacquered duck. Outstanding! I did not want a full meal, however. I opted for a cheeseburger instead. Turned out to be just as heavy. Though good!

Heard from my friend Anna yesterday. She was in Kusadasi, Turkey. Apparently a short boat ride from where ever she was staying in Greece.

I must write my column for KONK Life today.

Enjoy your day!

 

SHEEP AND YACHTS REVISITED

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What a vacation!

Yesterday, I explored. Took the bus to Aigiali. The bus was expensive this time. 2.5 euros each way. A bargain! I was the only one on the bus both ways.

Aigiali was one of the earliest settlements on Amorgos. Came into being around 500 B.C. A beach town. Old, yet more modern than Kapatola. I spent a couple of hours walking around. Sat at a couple of outdoor cafes talking with the natives.

I learned a lot. Discovered I was wrong regarding some things.

I have been of the opinion that lamb was really goat when served in restaurants. The underlying reason being that I have seen hundreds of goats, but not one sheep.

Turns out I have not visited the right places.

The reason I have been seeing goats all over the place is that they are not penned in. They are permitted to roam freely. Sheep on the other hand are penned/fenced in. Sheep have a value and cannot be permitted to wander off.

I have yet to see a sheep. However, I believe the gentlemen who told me about them. If it is advertised as lamb, it generally is lamb I was told. They were a bit offended to think I thought a Greek might pass off goat as lamb.

I was wrong. We live and learn.

Dined again last night at Mythos. Enjoyed a special Greek lamb dish. The owner Vangelis insisted I order it. Was it lamb? I think so. However, I do not know if I ever will be certain.

I enjoyed the dako salad again. Bean bread, diced tomatoes, and crumbled feta covered with a light olive oil. Just as tasty as the night before.

Drank cappuccinos with some locals afterwards. The yacht issue came up. There seems to be a yacht every evening in port. The real big ones. Each evening a different one. Drugs, I inquired. Learned something new again. I was told the economy is very bad in Turkey. So, what is new? Perhaps the worst ever.

Yacht rentals are big business in the summer months. People do not have the cash flow they once did. The yachts were not renting. The rental price dropped dramatically in the search for business. It worked. People are now renting yachts and their crews for their summer vacation. Cheap. Offers a different vacation at a cut rate price.

So much for my druggie thought.

The Greek Isles are not like Key West. Key West is flat. Here every island has several high mountains. Most taller than Santorini’s volcano that I could not climb. The tops of the mountains are unusual. They are huge gray rock formations. Comparable to the top of a glacier covered Alp. Rock instead of ice.

The locals are always trying to figure out a way to attract tourists. That is their econmy. Same as with Key West.

A few years ago someone came up with the idea of rock climbing. Put the mountain tops to good use. Rock climbing is now big time.

I was sitting in a bar when the issue came up. The owner showed me a video of rock climbing on Amorgos. Real big time! Scary! Definitely not for me.

The wind came back last night. Cold! Cold this morning when I walked. If I have been told correctly, last night began another three day phase of cold wind over the island.

Two ladies and a little girl showed up at my apartment this morning. Amwericans. They heard there was another American on the island and wanted to meet me. We had coffee and chatted a while. We are going to become good friends.

Rita is formerly from Los Angeles. She and her husband live on Amorgos full time. Rita runs a dress shop here in Katapola. Her husband is a contractor.

Jean was with Rita. Cousins. Jean brought along her young granddaughter Sofia.

Jean is a physician’s assistant in urology at the Veteran’s Hospital in Washington, DC. She is visiting. Her husband is an attorney. A Syracuse law graduate, also. Once an unsure Catholic, he now is a Deacon. Very much into his religious work and the Catholic Church. I told Rita I had deep concerns about the path the Catholic Church has been taking. She says her husband would enjoy talking with me. And I said, I with him. We exchanged e mails.

Enjoy your day!

A QUIET DAY IN ANOTHER PARADISE

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Yesterday…..

Not all days are exciting and new. The thrill of discovery not always there. Some are quiet and laid back. My yesterday was.

Did my duty for God and country. The blog! At Spyros’s internet store. Spyros runs a pleasant operation. A clean updated store. Five relatively new computers. His personality helpful. The store is located on a lovely narrow walkway. Attractive stores within my view. I work looking out the window. Immediately across is the international book store. American newspapers expensive. Generally a week old.

Lunched at Mythos. An octopus salad. Octopus, lettuce and tomatoes in a light oil sauce. I do not know how Greeks would survive without oil. If olive trees ever get sick, Greek restaurants are in trouble!

The octopus was cooked. Delicious. Tender. The texture of sponge cake.

I walked after the lunch. A downer! I learned that my 3 mile walk from the day before was really 1 1/2 miles. Still better than nothing. I will get to 3 miles on this trip. I am committed.

Actually, I got to 2 miles yesterday. In the evening after dinner I walked a half mile. It was a half mile.

I keep referring to one of my favorite restaurants without naming it. I finally learned the name last night when I had dinner there. The Mouragio Restaurant. Dimitris is the owner and cook. A few days ago, I mentioned he wears crocs, also. Black ones. Unusual since Greece is not croc country.

Stuffed vines and mousaka for dinner. The place was empty when I arrived. When I left, there was not a table to be had. Mostly local customers. The two items for dinner, bread, a large bottle of water and one ozou. They charge for bread in Greece. Cost: 13 euros. About $17 American money.

Kapatola is empty. The festival guests have left. It is like Key West after a big weekend of some celebration or other.

Turkey is represented here by several sailboats and a very large vessel. The flags tell me the country of origin.

There was an exceptionally large power boat. One hundred feet plus. A yacht. Bearing a Turkish flag.

I paid attention to the yacht. There were three 30ish fellows on board. Dressed very casually. Drinking beer.

I suspected at the time that they were too young to have such a magnificent vessel. The boat probably cost $20-$30 million. They were either captaining the boat to wherever the owner might be or were drug dealers. It takes big money to own a boat like that.

After dinner, I walked by the yacht again. A magnificent table had been set on the rear deck of the boat. White table clothe and several types of fancy glassware. The three guys were sitting down having dinner. One was puffing a cigar. The three were being waited on by what was obviously the boat’s waitress/servant. A lady dressed in a white blouse and black pants.

My vote is they were drug dealers.

I loaded six novels in my tablet before leaving Key West two weeks ago. Yesterday, I finished the sixth and last one. I love reading so it did not bother me.

I want to briefly review the books with you. I do so in the order they impressed me.

Eisenhower in War and Peace by Jean Edward Smith was by far the best. As mentioned a few days ago, the author exposed Eisenhower’s warts. If you think about it, every President has had them.

Then Paris by Edward Rutherford. Two years ago I read another Rutherford novel. It was entitled New York. Loved it!

Rutherford writes in a strange style. He takes a person and traces the lineage/descendants from the start of the community to present day. That is how he tells about the city. The personal interrelationships keep you glued to the book.

The next was Burt Bacharach’s Anyone Who Had A Heart. His autobiography. Loved it! His ups and downs. Told in some places with humor, in other sadness. No punches pulled. He was once married to Angie Dickinson. They had an autistic child. A sad story. Autism was not a known disease/problem back then. So the daughter was never effectively treated. When she could be treated, it was too late. She committed suicide.

Thomas Jefferson – The Art of Power by Jon Meahcam. I am a history freak. The facts were interesting. I learned much. However, the writing style encumbered me. The sentences were too long. Sometime 5-6lines, compounded, etc. For me, not smooth reading.

The book was obviously the work of a scholar. It reminded me of a legal brief or educational treatise. Everything documented.

Meacham is a popular media person. He was editor of some big time weekly magazine till about two years ago. Now he is most frequently seen on MSNBC’s Morning Joe.

I had a hard time enjoying the book.

Next was Best Kept Secret by Jeffrey Arthur. Strange, but I cannot recall anything about it. Obviously the book made an impression on me (said with tongue in cheek).

The last novel was No Easy Day by Mark Owen. Do not bother reading it. Boring.

I selected the book because the author was one of the super duper Seals in on the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden. He was on the steps in back of the Seal who actually shot Bin Laden in the head.

The Bin Laden story came at the end of the book and was quite short. Most of the book was dedicated to what it took to be a Seal and the category above which required even more from an individual. Seal training was not my interest. Bin Laden’s demise was.

The cold wind is gone. I was up at 7 this morning sitting on the terrace. Glorious. Me, the sea and a mountain. I enjoyed a cup of coffee and just sat taking it in. The only sound was the water rushing towards shore. No other. Not even a bird.

Around 8 in the morning, the locals and some visitors walked by the terrace on their way to the beach. The path is immediately to my left. The same people swim every morning. All ages. Not for long. It is their exercise time.

I have yet to put my feet into the Aegean Sea.

The salt must be heavy in the water. Everyone seems to be floating on their backs with ease.

I am into cookies. They looked good in the bakery I frequent. I enjoyed them for breakfast yesterday morning.

I found another bakery last night. I bought their cookies this morning. Good! Like you would not believe! Texture and taste outstanding! I ate the whole dozen in one sitting. I do not feel guilty. This is only the second time on this trip that I have pigged out. Actually, I am eating less than normal. I even believe I may have lost a pound or two. My pants are more difficult to keep up.

Enjoy your day!