A MIRACLE…..A BABY MIRACLE

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This is a Christmas story that has nothing to do with Christmas. It represents a Jesus like miracle, however.

Twenty two years ago, twin girls were born prematurely in a Massachusetts hospital. Twelve weeks premature. Each weighed 2.2 pounds.

Their parents named them Kryrie and Brielle.

They were placed in separate incubators.

Kyrie did well. Gained weight, etc. Brielle went the other way. Lost weight. Cried constantly. It was obvious Brielle was not going to make it. Death inevitable.

Nurse Gayle had been taking care of the babies in ICU. She needed to do something more for Brielle. What?

At the time, European hospitals in similar situations were placing the twins  into one incubator together. Next to each other. In some instances, the dying twin survived.

Such was not permitted in Massachusetts hospitals at the time. Specifically against the rules.

Gayle disregarded the rules and placed the dying Brielle next to Kryrie in Kryrie’s incubator. Both were placed on their stomachs. Immediately and without assistance, Kryrie’s arm lifted over her sister’s back and remained there. In a holding pattern.

Brielle immediately stopped crying. She improved from that moment on. Survived, of course.

The twins are 22 years old today. Lovely. Live vibrant lives.

God is good! He works in strange ways.

Picked up my second new set of eye glasses at the optician’s late yesterday. Wore a pair last night. From 4-6 feet forward, I could see nothing. Blur!!!

I was in the Chart Room. Told John to turn the lights up. He said they are as high as they go. Took off the glasses, the room was bright. Could not read the labels across the bar. Took off the glasses, could read them all. The TV was on 30 feet away in the corner where Jimmy Buffett used to play. Glasses on, could not read the print on the screen. Glasses off, no problem.

I don’t believe it! It is back to the optician and doctor tuesday. It has been six weeks and I still do not have new glasses I can see with.

The Chart Room last night. Quiet. Only me and three others. Strange because Christmas tourists are filling Key West. Driving was difficult because of the crowds as I drove to the Chart Room.

Met an interesting couple. Brian and Justine Anderson from just outside Houston. Brian and Justine were married in Key West in 2014. Return yearly. Had been coming down several years previous to their marriage also.

They love Key West!

Brian a college professor. He is Chairman of the English Department at a Houston area college. Justine on the staff at Macey’s. Sells furniture and mattresses.

She gave me a quick mattress education. I am unhappy with my soft mattress on the new adjustable bed I recently acquired. I wake with a sore back every morning.

Sounds like all of a sudden nothing satisfies me. Not true, even though I am presently having eye glass and mattress problems. The problems are genuine.

Brian is Dr. Brian Anderson. He too writes a blog. I read it this morning for the first time.The Virtual Cocktail Napkin. dbanderson.blogspot.com.

Perfectly composed blogs. On the intellectual side. As would be expected from a Ph.D degreed English major.

Brian, please send me your e-mail at louispetrone@gmail.com. I would like to communicate with you.

A local biggie tonight. Larry Smith’s annual Christmas show! Titled Holiday Jazz Concert. The Studios of Key West at 8. See you there!

Syracuse/St. Bonaventure tonight. Will miss the game due to Larry’s show.

Syracuse could lose. St. Bonaventure rated by CBS as the best college basketball team in New York.

A study recently released states Florida has the fourth worst credit strength in the United States. Based on average credit score, credit card background, auto and mortgage delinquencies.

I am not surprised. Especially with the large number of mortgage defaults since 2008. Florida is either #1 or 2 re mortgage defaults/foreclosures nationwide.

Don’t be mislead by Trump’s comments re the major corporations that have announced in the last 24 hours that they are going to pay $1,000 bonuses to their employees because of the tax bill recently passed.

Most of the corporations have earning in excess of $40 billion a year. They can afford to pay out $200 million to impress Trump, to place themselves in a favorable position regarding acquiring government contracts in 2018.

Friend Tim Reynolds just called. He lives in Tampa now. He called to tell me he just bought a sailboat. I will be sailing in the near future!

Irma and Me sales continue to excite me. Much more than I expected. Especially at this early stage.

Join the crowd. Buy the book. You will enjoy. The story of how Irma chased me from my Key West home to Pompano to Atlanta and finally to Birmingham. I began to feel like a black cloud was over me.

Irma and Me is available through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and KoboBooks.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

 

TWEAK NOTHING

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Redoing South Roosevelt Boulevard on the stove top. Things heating up.

The Florida Department of Transportation wants to redo the Boulevard. One item, reducing from 4 lanes to 2. Ridiculous!

I fear the City Commission might support the move.

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

A public meeting was held last night at Sheraton Suites. Called a Workshop. To hear from the citizens what they thought. Standing room only. Except for state and some local officials, most attending were opposed to doing anything. Bullshit was up front. The state and local officials saying the intent was to merely tweak the Boulevard.

The attempt is based on a 1999 study. Updated 2014 to pay more attention to bicycle riders.

The age of the study bugs me. Seventeen years to get to this the last step. A very unpopular one. An attempt to foist an unneeded plan upon us.

Another idiotic consideration is that a center turn lane is required. No one is going to turn towards the ocean side. Nothing there but sand and water. The other side does not have enough construction to warrant a center lane. The entire Boulevard does not have sufficient traffic to require one.

My fear is that eventually the 4-2 lanes thing is going to become a fait accompli. Nothing like a public servant with allocated monies to see that the dollars are spent. Regardless of need.

Did my podcast show last night. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. Enjoyed doing it. Russian hacking and robots/artificial intelligence two items discussed.

Rex Tillerson is Trump’s designee to be Secretary of State. I got into him a bit. Not as to his qualifications. As to his hypocrisy. Texas hypocrisy.

Tillerson is CEO of ExxonMobile. World’s biggest oil and gas company. Fifteenth richest corporation in the world.

Fracking produces gas. ExxonMobile is the largest natural gas producer in the U.S. Tillerson obviously a major supporter of fracking.

Tillerson and wife live in Bartonville, Texas. On an 83 acre horse farm worth $5 million.

Tillerson is opposed to anything having to do with fracking near his home.

A fracking company wanted to erect a 160 foot water tower near the properties of Tillerson and his affluent neighbors. Tillerson and his wife joined in bringing a lawsuit to stop construction of the water tower around February 2014. Prior thereto, Tillerson appeared at a public hearing and said the water tower would ruin the view from his outdoor patio.

When the media picked up that Tillerson and his wife were involved in an anti-fracking lawsuit, the news spread. Two months later in April 2014, Tillerson and his wife withdrew from the lawsuit.

Tillerson’s position interesting. Fracking ok anywhere, except near his home.

Self-serving and hypocritical.

Lighted Boat Parade tonight. Finally. High winds cancelled the parade saturday night.

Christmas and Larry Smith go hand in hand. Every Yuletide Season, Larry does a Christmas show. This year saturday night at The Studios of Key West. 8pm. Called Christmas with Larry. A jazz Christmas show.

I have not missed one of Larry’s Christmas shows for I don’t recall how many years. That long. I will be there. You should. The show is worth seeing.

Today, a sad one in the history of the United States.  Several years ago, 20 first graders and 6 school employees were shot to death by a gun wielding nut at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, Connecticut.

If anything should have changed attitudes re gun control, the 20 little ones killed should have. For shame! It did not and has not.

We are a screwed up country.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

 

BEST OF THE BEST

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Larry Smith out did himself last night. The show he put together at The Studios of Key West his best yet. There were some 200 people in attendance. Many dancing in the aisles at the end of the show.

With 24 performers entertaining, it is hard to point out that one or the other was the best. They were all good! No, spectacular!

I noticed the crowd consisted primarily of seniors. I being one of them. Many of the faces familiar. We were people who have followed Larry and his music for 20 some odd years here in Key West.

I enjoyed myself.

Big sports today! The Kentucky Derby and the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight.

I have not followed the horses this year. Ergo, I know nothing of those running. The race is at 6:24 this evening. I shall be watching from the comfort of my home.

The fight is a major event! The battle has been described as the fight of the century and the super bowl of boxing. The gate is predicted to be more than $400 million. The fighters will each walk away with $100 million pay days.

The fight begins late. Very late for a guy who is generally in bed asleep before 10 most evenings. Fight time is between 11 and midnight. The actual time depending on the undercard.

My initial reaction was to ignore the fight and go to sleep. I ran into Don last night. He has bought the fight for TV. It will be aired at Don’s Place. No charge. I spell out the no charge thing since some places in Key West are charging $100. The Marriott Beachside being one.

My plan is to stay up late and watch the fight at Don’s. Hope I make it!

One observation. A lot of puff for the fight. Like it is the best of the best. I cannot agree.

I recall fights over my lifetime that were equal to if not better than tonight’s. The three Tony Zale/Rocky Graziano middleweight championship fights in the late 1940s. Several Joe Louis battles. Don’t forget Sugar Ray Robinson.

Fights after World war II and before the advent of television were on the radio. Same procedure for the producers as today. Except instead of pay TV, there was pay radio. Which was not available in homes.We used to go down to the lobby of the Stanley Theater in Utica to listen to the fights. The lobby was large and always packed. The Stanley never charged.

We had a boxing champion in the family. Sort of. My Uncle Frank’s brother Bushy Graham was bantamweight champion some time in the late 1920s or in the early 1930s. He also fought one or two times for the featherweight championship.

Boxing was big for Italians from 1920 forward as it provided them a chance for the better life. If they were successful, of course.

Enjoy your day!

LARRY SMITH FRIDAY NIGHT

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My good friend Larry Smith has a terrific show planned for friday evening. The location is The Studios of Key West. The time 8 o’clock. The event is a history of Larry’s music, vision and friends. More than 24 musical friends are appearing with him. A guaranteed good time! Hope to see you there!

Physiotherapy yesterday morning. It’s getting easier. Still leaves me dead tired after one hour.

Around 5 yesterday afternoon, it rained. Big time! Like a monsoon or tropical storm. A very strong wind from the northwest. My palm trees were blowing every which way. The rain coming in sideways and loudly crashing into my windows facing the water.

This morning is black. A wind, though not as strong as last night. Rain is predicted for a while this morning. It is predicted all night this evening starting at 8.

I had a good time last night doing my blog talk radio show. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou.

I touched briefly on Baltimore. The media had it covered. There was another police story I thought worth telling. Kinloch, St. Louis County, Missouri. Kinloch is five miles from Ferguson. Population 300.

A mature motherly appearing short black woman had won the election for Mayor with 76 percent of the vote. She had been certified by the County Board of Elections. She went to her office for the first time. The entrance to City Hall was blocked by 24 police officers.

With a population of 300, I cannot believe Kinloch has that many police officers. They had to have come from adjoining communities also. The Mayor never got in. The pictures on the internet and TV showed her standing alone in front of the 24 police officers. David and Goliath.

The police and some with them told the newly elected Mayor she was going to be impeached, fraud had been involved in her election, etc. Amazing! She got 50-60 votes in winning. Understandable with only 300 residents, including children. Fraud?

This happened last week. I have not been able to ascertain the final outcome. When I do, I will share it with you.

Baltimore last night was considerably quieter than the evening before. There were a few disturbances and arrests. No buildings burned down. Everyone on TV this morning is suggesting the worst is over.

I look at it another way. Last night could very well have been the calm before another storm. Those who rioted might have strategically withdrawn to asses the situation and plan their next moves.

I hope I am wrong.

Last night’s blog talk radio show was structured to close with the story of the Oregon bakery owners who last year refused to bake a wedding cake for a same sex marriage. I spent too much time regarding Baltimore and Kinloch and never got to it.

Worth telling, however.

What I intended to share was a determination by the State re the issue. Oregon forbids discrimination by private businesses. It is illegal for a private business to refuse service based on sexual orientation. The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries recently fined the couple $135,000. An expensive lesson!

I have to move. I have a manicure appointment this morning.

It is now raining. Just like last night.

Enjoy your day!

 

GREAT SEA BATTLE TONIGHT

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The Conch Republic Celebration continues. Tonight…..The Great Sea Battle. One of the best experiences Key West provides.

The battle will take place off the Ocean Key deck. Pirate ships, Coast Guard vessels, Conch bi-planes and Navy Jets participating.

Conch Air Force members will drop rolls of toilet paper as bombs from the bi-planes. You have not seen anything till you see the toilet paper unfurl as it falls.

Conch Republic pirate ships will shot at the Coast Guard vessels using hoses of sea water. The opposing ships will toss ammunition at each other. Wet Cuban bread, lettuce heads, ripe tomatoes, etc.

A fun time!

The event raises a point of interest. The pirate wenches are attired in bikinis. Bikinis by their very nature are skimpy and revealing. Even more so when wet. Will those certain puritanical Key Westers complain as they did with Fantasy Fest?

Physiotherapy yesterday. Tiring. As bad as when I tried to climb the volcano on Santorini.

I have had physio over the years for very ailments/fractures. None affected me energy wise. What I am presently doing does. Big time! I am wiped out after one hour.

I suspect learning to balance by standing on one foot contributes. First with my eyes open. Then closed. My feet on soft squishy plastic that makes it even more difficult.

It may very well be because I am not physically fit. I let my self go over the years.

Bocce last night. We won 2, lost 1. Should have won 3. The result still ok, however.

My friend Larry Smith. One off Key West’s finest musicians. An entertainer! Larry is performing next friday evening, May 1, at The Studios of Key West. The show’s marque  reads…..Larry Smith…..His Music-His Visions-His Friends.

Sort of a history of Larry’s musical exploits. A walk down memory lane.

More than two dozen performers will join him. Among them, Kathleen Peace, Peter Diamond, Skipper Kripitz, and Larry’s very talented wife Christine.

Reunion time, also! It has been several years since Jenna Stauffer and Larry have appeared together. Back when, they co-hosted an internet show. Jenna will be co-hosting the Studios event with Larry.

I plan on attending. You should also.

This week’s newspaper column Drought and Water Profiteering published wednesday in KONK Life. It appears archived as of yesterday on my Key West Lou Facebook page. Read it. An eye opener as to certain greedy groups who are and will be benefitting from water shortages. You should know who they are.

Enjoy your day!