RUNNING OF THE BULLS / LOOK-ALIKE CONTEST

This is the week! Hemingway Days!

Tomorrow, two events I enjoy the most. The Running of the Bulks at 1 and the Look A-Like Contest at 5:30. If you are in Key West, do not miss either event. You will be cheating yourself.

I think my birthday celebrations are concluded. Donna and Terri hosted me at Hogfish for lunch yesterday. Always good company. Love the girls!

Larry and Christine have been away about a month. Recently returned. Stopped by their home for a visit. Very enjoyable. Sat on their back porch overlooking the pool and greenery. An excellent setting to enjoy good conversation.

I started feeling week at lunch. Had ordered fish and chips. Ate the fish. Hogfish, of course. Not the fries. Continued to feel out of sorts.

Was going to skip Larry and Christine. However, I had earlier in the day agreed to stop by. Felt worse while visiting with Larry and Christine.

Went home and laid down. Continued to feel out of it. Weak. What now, I thought.

I have been on a diet for two weeks. Lost 10 pounds so far. Not a bad diet. Just cut everything I ate by 50 percent.

Could my body need more food in spite of the fish?

I went down and had a sandwich and glass of milk. It did not take long before I was A-OK.

Had to be the diet. My body was starving.

A political junkie am I! Trump spoke like an angry man  last night. Portrayed our country in far worse shape than it is. Relied many times on fabrications.

A dark speech. Made by a rabble rouser.

He is building his campaign on sand. He may win. A house built on sand cannot stand, however. The next four years could be a disaster.

Lobster mini season next week. The lobster season is annually headed by a two day season. The 27th and 28th next week. Then a shutdown till August 6th when the season opens for several months.

The mini lobster season is an event. The boats will be out in armada fashion for two days.

Party time!

Finally aware of William Hackley’s wife’s name. Matilda. Next, Baby.

Enjoy your day!

 

WHERE IS MEDIA RE PROTESTORS

Back again!

Normalcy has returned!

First stop yesterday morning was Verizon. The old one in the Winn Dixie Shopping Center. Good people. I know. I have done business with both Verizons in Key West. The other a rip off. Not caring with help once you have bought.

Then to Publix. Out of food again.

I sense a silent raise in prices again. Everything costs $5 or $10. Bill runs up at that rate.

The lead up last week to this week’s Republication Convention was primarily re anticipated protestors/demonstrators. Police officers from all over the country came in to deal with the protestors. Five thousand officers.

How much have you heard since the Convention began monday? Next to nothing. Perhaps nothing. Seems as if the media has blocked out any news re the protestors.

Wrong! Protests part of the news. Especially the past two years. What is happening is selective reporting. The American people being denied the right to know.

I dug into the internet this morning. The protestors are in Cleveland. In large numbers. A few altercations. Nothing of consequence. Some arrested. Two police sustained minor injuries. Urine thrown around.

Some one videoed the street scene. I watched a portion of the video this morning. A street fair. Demonstrators walking around. Booths selling all kinds of things. Delegates walking through the crowds.

Cleveland’s Chief of Police says everything going well, under control. He is correct. By not giving the protestors a national/international stage, Cleveland has discouraged them from demonstrating their causes.

The peace and quiet could end today. If not, such will only cause the protestors to find another venue in the near future to express their positions.

Being stripped of land line telephone, internet and TV tuesday night, I was unable to do my blog talk radio show. Being a political junkie, I wanted to see the Republican Convention. Drove downtown. Stopped at several places. None showing the Convention. All watching baseball games.

I could not win.

Monday night I was at Aqua for the Dueling Bartenders. Tom Luna and Beatrice singing. Magnificent!

Josey at the bar. A terrific new friend recently made. We chatted two hours.

Josey taking a three week trip in September. To her home country Macedonia. A couple of neighboring countries. Then, one whole week in Greece.

I envy her!

The subject matter of next week’s KONK Life column decided. Bagels! Will not be boring! Guaranteed!

Last week’s column was The New Prostitution. Has caused talk. Primarily among women. Those in the 40-60 year old bracket.

No matter how the subject matter is portrayed, to each it was nothing less than prostitution. Nothing justified the prostitution in their opinions. I countered to each the fact that the ladies would graduate debt free, have no long term college loans to pay, etc. Made no difference. Sin is sin. Wrong, wrong. No justification for prostitution.

Interesting. I wish some younger ladies had approached me with their thoughts.

Each woman who sought me out to talk were mothers.

My birthday was July 6. Still being celebrated. Donna and Terri are taking me to lunch at Hogfish today for my birthday.

Enjoy your day!

 

COMCAST DAY 2

I hate Comcast. I have had two days of nothing but aggravation. Finally resolved.

Yesterday afternoon, the cleaning lady came by. You have wires hanging. The pole outside my house 300 feet to the next pole had wires down. Ends still somehow vaguely attached to each pole, the middle part of the downed cable lying for some 250 feet on the ground.

Four phone calls to Comcast. Finally figured how to get a body to talk to. Just say no to everything the machine asks. Eventually, you are told to hold for a technician.

Techs drove me crazy. I tell the cable downed outside caused me to lose my telephone, TV, and computer. No power. The cable issue is consistently ignored.

I even called the Sheriff’s Department later in the afternoon. My concern was not for me getting hooked up again. It was that some kid might get hurt playing with the cable. Sheriff’s Department said they would take care of it right away. Don’t know what they did.

Nine this morning, I was back at the Comcast office. Took pics of the downed cable first. No one wanted to look at the pics. They refused to look at them. Got the usual run around.

Two Comcast trucks showed up at 10 this morning. Fixed the cable. I now have TV, internet and telephone. I was correct. It was the downed cable. Took no genius on my part to come to that conclusion.

One of the comments this morning called me dumb. I assume because I was having trouble with the three items set forth. I am dumb when it comes to machinery. A generational thing. Not ashamed of it. I was smart in life where and when I had to be.

One further point. The repair crew told me the downed cable was dangerous. Not because of current of any kind. However if someone pulled on it and it came down, the cable would strike the person with the force of a 400 pound weight.

Tomorrow back to normal.

Enjoy your day!

PURE FRUSTRATION

Today’s blog late. Going to be limited. Extremely so.

No power to computer and TV all day. Frustration no end.

Started at 6 this morning. Both out. Thought it might be the bill. Paid via the telephone via a machine. No body at the other end.

Three hours later, still no power. Decided to go direct. Went to the Comcast office. Some rude woman told me nothing was wrong with my computer or TV. Her screen showed everything working. I went home. Knowing neither would be working. They were not.

I have been through three Comcast telephone technicians. I am tired. Exasperated.

I will not bore you with the details.

Jennifer is taking care of my home till Anna gets back from Poland. She came in a few minutes ago. Did you see the wire down from the pole in front of your house? I had not.

Looked out the window. From my house to the end of the block. Ends hanging down from poles. Rest of cable lying on ground next to road.

Last call to Comcast was to tell them it probably is their cable giving me the grief. Suggested the cable be fixed.

Each time I conversed, I thought I was talking with someone in East Calcutta. Probably was. Don’t uinderstand if she understood the downed wire had to be taken carfe of immediately. For Louis and for safety.

I called the Sheriff’s Department after finishing with Comcast person #3. I am confident someone will be here forthwith to fix the cable. And hopefully, make my computer and tv operable.

I am abkle to communicate with you via my computer because Jennifer is smarter than me. She has an app called Mobile Hot Spot. Turned her phone on next to my computer. She tells me if will give 24 hours power..

I am going to get the app.

My podcast show tonight. I am not ready. I will be winging it part of the time. Probably will end up the best show I have done.

Final note. When I complain about Comcast, I do so for all their  customers world wide.

Hope you enjoyed your day!

 

 

OUTSTANDING GOLF…..PERHAPS THE BEST EVER

My eyes have never seen a better round of competitive golf. The final day of the British Open. Phil Mickelson and Henrik Stenson battling. Hole by hole. The match one stroke either way. The final three holes decided the event. Stenson won by three strokes.

Both made spectacular shots. Their putting outstanding. I have never seen better putting. Twenty to thirty feet like a one footer. Stenson sunk a 51 footer from off the green.

Viewing the round made for a very pleasant afternoon.

Last night, I started with Schooners. Bar only half full. Enjoyed a drink while watching the natives.

Then to Mark’s. The new hotel across the street. The Mark only has an out door bar. Poolside. A nice area. Packed with couples in the pool and on lounges.

I did not stay. There was no one over 30 years of age.

Walked across the street from Marks to the Waterfront Brewery. A good crowd. No room at the bar. I left.

It was across the street to Pepe’s. Been a year or two since I have eaten there. Sat at the bar. Chatted with the bartender. He used to work at the Chart Room one night a week. Chatted with two guys from Marathon who drove down for the day.

Enjoyed the barbecued chicken. Half a chicken. The meal to order when at Pepe’s.

The back of Pepe’s menu has an historical page. Pepe’s got its start in 1909. Then at 202 Duval. Pepe’s now on Caroline.

The page commented Truman used to stop at the Duval Pepe’s to have coffee and talk with the locals.

The page further made mention that the two popular songs in 1909 were By the Light of the Silvery Moon and Who’s Kissing Her Now. I could not understand how the songs were that old. I hum them on occasion to this day. Danced to both tunes in high school and college.

It was the movies! Both made during my school days. With big time stars. Doris Day in 1953 starred in By the Light of the Silvery Moon. Who’s Kissing Her Now starred June Haver in the 1947 movie. Many vocal artists in the 1950s and 1960s recorded the song. Ray Charles, Ernie Ford, Bobby Darin, Perry Como and Dean Martin.

Fantasy Fest came early this year. Last friday night. This morning’s Citizens’ Voice carries a comment by an individual who claims he saw topless body painted women at 5 in the afternoon on Duval.

William Hackley makes mention in his diary entry of this date in 1855 that Baby is well. God bless!

The Republican Convention begins today. A success or fiasco? Time will tell. Trump’s people indicate its nature will be showbiz.

Trump and Pence were interviewed last night on 60 Minutes. I saw excerpts this morning on TV. Trump looked like an ass and made Pence look equally erratic in the portions I saw.

More police officers killed by a black in Baton Rouge.

These black killings of police had to happen. They were inevitable. I warned two years ago they would come if the killings of blacks continued.

Never forget, every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Violence begets violence. Blacks are saying…..Stop treading on us!

Security will be heavy at the Republican Convention. Likewise at the Democrat Convention. Police officers are coming from as far as California to assist. Who pays for all the security? You. The taxpayer. The federal government gives $50 million to each Convention for security purposes.

Rome burned this day in 64 AD. We are told Nero fiddled while Rome burned. He could not have fiddled. The fiddle did not exist at the time.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

MUCH TO TALK ABOUT

It’s amazing! yesterday, I was tired. Dead tired. Doing the blog an ordeal. Never got to researching this week’s column.

This morning totally different. I am alive! Slept well.

Ergo, I have much to share this morning.

I have decided not to do a KONK Life column for this week. I should have researched it yesterday. Would have written it today. Generally, five hours for research and five hours for writing. Means a ten hour effort today.

Too much in one day. Would also effect the quality of the writing. When tired, I tend to get sloppy. Rewriting takes a long time. So, I am skipping. Playing hooky. Forgive me.

I am cheating at the moment. One eye on the keyboard. The other on the TV set. The British Open. Mickelson and Stenson in a real battle. Yesterday and so far today. Exciting golf.

I mentioned yesterday I was pulling for Mickelson. As big a star as he is, Mickelson has not won in three years. His age the problem. Forty six. In that time, he has been in or close to the lead many times. For three days. Loses his energy on the fourth. This is probably his last shot at winning another major.

William Hackley reports today that Baby is improving. Seems ok, except for some throat sores.

Hackley mentions he paid $12.50 for the Havana goat. The goat that failed to provide milk. $12.50 a lot of money in 1855.

I pushed myself to go out last night. If I stayed home, I would have fallen asleep early. To wake early. I wanted a normal night’s sleep.

Went to Tavern ‘n Town. My usual Saturday night haunt. Bobby Nesbitt time. I sit at a corner of the bar reading the newspaper and eating slowly while humming to Bobby’s singing. Love it!

David Brown is the Dallas police Chief.  He is becoming an American folk hero. Properly so.

He recently said, “We’re asking cops to do too much in this country.” He may be correct. Worthy of thought.

As I think of his words, I am reminded of what we have been putting our troops through in the last 15 years. Multiple deployments. Three and four times.

Hemingway Days begin this week. Two interesting/exciting events.

Nancy Sindelar is an Ernest Hemingway scholar. She is speaking at the Custom House thursday evening. Her topic: People and Places That Influenced Ernest Hemingway.

I am a Hemingway buff. Her talk sounds interesting.

Boat race time, also. One of the events is the Key West Marlin Tournament. Three days. Cash prizes totaling $50,000. Bicardi the sponsor.

Harry Truman loved Key West and Key West has never stopped loving Truman. He enjoyed 175 days in Key West over a period of 11 trips.

Today, an historical day for Truman. Not President long and World War II still ongoing, Truman met Russia’s Joseph Stalin for the first time. At the Potsdam Conference. The two were alone for this first meeting.

Imagine these two guys sizing each other up!

Some politics.

Watched Trump introduce Pence yesterday morning as his VP selection. Trump did not seem to care. He spoke for almost a half hour in introducing Pence. About himself. Rarely Pence. Trump failed to stay on stage while Pence spoke. At the end of Pence’s talk, Trump’s whole family came out. Pence only his tiny wife.

I suspect Trump really does not care about the VP spot. He will be the winner or loser. He is the star. The campaign will be run thusly.

I was not impressed with Pence. He did not seem ready for the big time.

Watched Pence on the Hannity show two nights ago. He worried me. He made it clear that we knew where ISIS was. We should go in and clean them out. The inference: War! War! War!

Reminded me of the square I visited in Milan. Someone pointed out the second floor balcony of a building on the square. Told me Mussolini stood there and announced to his people: War! War! War!

Trump is a prophet. Going to do this and that. A false prophet. Beware.

There has been talk of a small group trying to change the Republican voting process so as to deny Trump the nomination. It appears to have failed.

The last time such was attempted was in 1976. Reagan trying to steal the nomination from Ford. Ford defeated the move. Reagan had to wait 4 more years before he could run for President.

Ford’s floor manager who lead the effort which defeated Reagan was a young Paul Manafort. The same Paul Manafort heading Trump’s election efforts today.

Enjoy your Sunday!

 

 

BABY BETTER

William Hackley reports in his 1855 diary entry of this date that Baby is well. I am thrilled. Wonder how? Yesterday little sustenance. Baby was in trouble. Another question: What is Baby’s name? Hackley keeps referring to the child as Baby.

Lets stay with health for the moment. The war is ongoing between the corporation that owns The Lower Keys Medical Center and Key West citizenry. Nicki Will was CEO of the hospital. She resigned yesterday. I am sure because of the notoriety/conflict. What next?

The third round of the British Open has killed me. My eyes are slits as I type. I got screwed up somehow.

I thought the third round would begin 1;30 this morning. I stayed awake for it. At 1:30, there was a flash it would be 2:00. I continued to remain awake. What I got was an old Barbasol tournament. Not even first class golfers.

Saw another flash on the screen…..4.

I continued to stay awake. Watched old movies on TV.

Four came and so did a rerun of the second round. Not the fresh third one.

I said screw it and went to sleep. Woke at 6.

I sit here writing extremely tired. Guess what is on TV at the moment. The third round of the British Open. It is 10 am. Been running for an hour.

I got the hours wrong. The change in time.

It is going to be a terrific day! I am bushed already.

Yesterday began with the anti-gravity treadmill. Speed still good. Time up by 2 minutes. Two minutes beyond what I used to do. Fantastic! The gravity level remains at 50 percent. Perhaps by the end of this coming week, I will be back to normal re the gravity level.

Lunch as usual at the Cuban Coffee Queen.

Then to Tammy for a manicure.

Tammy is a lovely Asian. Beautiful. Tiny and thin. Generally wears her black hair long and straight. Yesterday, rolled on top of her head in a ball.

Haircut? No, too hot.

I soon understood what she meant by too hot. The air conditioner was on the blink. Second day in a row. They are waiting a new unit to be delivered from Miami.

It was a lousy day to get a manicure. My shirt was soaked a half hour later when Tammy was done.

I thought of women who shower and get dressed for a date. Then stop to get their nails done before meeting the date. They were going to be mad! Another shower would be required before meeting their dates.

I had a good time last night. At the Chart Room. Met up with Frances and Chris Clark. By prearrangement. Frances has had four books published. Her latest titled Frances Watson Clark: Key West. A photographic  history of Key West.

Well done. Buy it. Amazon.com.

Their daughter Katherine was with them. An adult. A professional photographer. Her forte sensitivity. Reflected in her work.

Katherine presently engaged in taking photos of breast cancer victims. Before, during and after surgery. With taste. To show the strength, resourcefulness, etc. of the women involved.

Katherine’s girl friend Melissa was with them. Melissa a photographer, also. She is a sports photographer with the Caroline Panthers. Sounds good.

I forgot Chris. Husbands/fathers always seem to come last. Chris is a retired banker.

The family is from Georgia. Still have a home in Georgia. Also a home in Key West. On Eaton Street.

We plan on having dinner together soon.

A Venezuela update. Two days ago, I reported Venezuelans were out of food. Were eating their pets. Dogs and cats. Sad.

Nicolas Maduro is a poor President. Inept. As I have been saying for three years, the people should revolt. They first ran out of toilet paper. Three years later, still out of toilet paper. Now, food.

Maduro announced yesterday that he was appointing an Army general to be in charge of a new food supply system. Every federal agency is now run by a general.

Last year, Maduro announced a new federal department. Cabinet level. A Director of Happiness, or something like that. Everyone was going to be kumbaya! Did not work. You cannot tell people they are happy if they are not. If they are hungry and cannot wipe their asses.

I question a bit what I have been reading and reporting re the hunger situation. The Wall Street Journal ran a good sized photo yesterday of  Venezuelans crossing a bridge that was the border between Venezuela and Columbia. The border had been opened for 12 hours to permit Venezuelans to cross over into Columbia to buy groceries.

The adults and children looked healthy. Especially the adults. Most, overweight.

Zika. Mosquito bite the cause. Florida Keys concerned. I sometimes think we are the home from whence mosquitoes emanate.

No Zika cases in our area however.

A case in another part of the country was reported yesterday. A first time situation. A woman gave Zika to a male via sex. Supposedly not common.

Enjoy your day!

 

JENNA and ME

Last night lovely! Jenna and I enjoyed dinner together. At Azur. We celebrated my birthday. I was Jenna’s guest.

Jenna and I have been friends eight years. When she first came to Key West. Green. Wet behind the ears. No more. An experienced woman in her field. Television, advertising, modeling. She is at her best when hosting and interviewing on a TV show.

Beautiful! A knockout!

We enjoy each other’s company though 51 years separate us.

Jenna is razor then. Runs 5-7 miles a day. A cheap date. She eats nothing. Orders an appetizer. Finishes only half. Takes the other half home. Her body slim.

She has taken up racing. Recently won her first race. A 5K.

Walked yesterday. Working at good health! Read and napped during the afternoon.

Hemingway Days around the corner. July 22-26.

One of the events scheduled is a poetry reading. Sponsored by the Key West Poetry Guild. Hemingway wrote poetry in his early days. His poems will be read. Blue Heaven. Tuesday July 22 at 5.

Hemingway was familiar with Blue Heaven. A regular of sorts. He refereed local boxing matches there.

No question, I am hooked on William Hackley. His 1855 diary being run on a daily basis by the Key West Citizen.

He and his wife Kate have a new born. Kate not making enough milk. William brought in a goat from Havana. The goat not doing the job. The baby is literally starving.

Kate tried breast fed twice during the night. Not enough. The baby is in trouble.

The British Open got to me right away. The first day Scottish time was 1:30 in the morning our time thursday. I watched the whole thing. Got about two hours sleep.

I did not watch last night. Slept.

Phil Mickelson doing well. Time is passing him by. He is 46. I would like to see him win this big one.

Three years ago, I wrote a KONK Life column on the medical care jailed inmates receive. The best! Better than you and I. And we pay for it. They do not.

The issue of special food has once again arisen. Certain Jewish inmates want kosher foods. Muslims and Seventh Day Adventists whatever their religions permit.

Special dishes cost extra money. Florida, $12.3 million a year. Florida wanted to say no more. everyone eats the same. An intermediate federal court said this week that jails must provide special meals for inmates who claim the same on religious grounds. The court also went on to say that the argument it costs too much money does not fly. Find it! Such was the court order to Florida.

Special religious meals are provided in 35 state jails and throughout the entire federal system.

This week’s KONK Life column The New Prostitution was linked to my Key West Lou website this morning. It also appeared on E-Blast.

What happened in Nice horrible! Eighty plus lives. A terrorist attack by one man.

I fear the attack may decide our Presidential election. Trump claims he is going to protect us. Shouts it loudly and clearly.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

 

 

 

THE NEW PROSTITUTION

Bernie Sanders argued for a free college education in the recent primaries. College is expensive. Tuition a back breaker. Rent a killer. Borrowing resulting in long term debt.

There is a new phenomenon in the country. It has become increasingly popular in recent years. Considered trendy.

It is referred to as the girlfriend experience. Ladies selling their bodies for a fee. The ladies generally college girls or in their 20s. The men rich.

No pimps or street corners involved. The ladies use the internet to make contact.

The ladies sell their bodies in order to pay tuition, student loans, rent and some to afford designer labels.

The girlfriend experience is the new prostitution economy.

The experience is not a meet, quick bang and thank you m’am. More is involved. The men want the perfect short term girl friend. Well groomed, cultured, classy, able to converse about anything. A lady that never brings her personal problems to the relationship.

The time involved may be an evening, a day, a weekend, a trip.

The men are older. Decidedly so. Generally 40 to 60 years. Affluent. Money no object to them.

The wages of sin are pretty good. All over the place. The price generally set forth in the site ad. Anywhere from $400 an hour to $2,000-$5,000 an evening. Some higher.

One young lady in South Africa offers herself for $42,000 an evening. She will travel anywhere. I cannot conceive what she can do for that kind of money.

The lady friend of today is the sugar baby of yesterday. The men, the sugar daddies of yesterday. Interestingly, both labels still apply.

Most arrangements last 1-3 years. A weekly meeting. A set figure in advance. Many contract for $5,000 a month. That is $60,000 a year. One hundred eighty thousand dollars over three years.

The ladies generally have 2-3 sugar daddies they provide service for during the course of a week.

The money earned astronomical. Described as an allowance.

The men seek a cultured sexual relationship with a much younger lady. The ladies view the relationship as a job. They do it for the money. No emotional entanglement involved.

The men view the women as sex objects. Whores. Beneath them. Though the ladies are treated with respect at all times.

Most of the men involved are married. They receive from the younger ladies that which their wives fail to provide.

In addition to the agreed remuneration, there are perks/incidental gifts. Extra cash, shopping sprees, jewelry, travel. Benefits of a high end easy life.

The ladies kiss. A no no in the prostitution trade. Men do not kiss the ladies and the ladies not the men. The relationship of sugar daddy/sugar baby is closer and different. The relationship more than that found in other prostitution situations. Kissing is expected and welcomed.

 

The parties meet via the internet. The leading site is SeekingArrangement.com. More female subscribers than men by a 10-1 ratio. The ladies in their ads set forth their asking price. Men, their net worth.

The ladies are listed free. The men pay $44.95 per month. For an additional $1,200 paid by the man, Seeking Arrangement offers a Diamond Club. The Diamond Club verifies incomes and net worth for the ladies.

Other oft mentioned internet sites are SeekingMillionaire.com and SeekingBillionaire.com.

The feminist movement has mixed feelings. To some, it is empowering. The ladies are entering the work force. The sex industry. Others consider it slutty.

Some maintain the ladies involved are oppressed. Many of the sugar babies have a contrary opinion. They believe those working for $7 an hour are the oppressed ones.

The business world has found a new way of not paying new or entry level employees. They call them interns and make them work for nothing. A sugar baby does not have to tolerate such an experience.

2014 found a large spike as regards the ladies. Especially in southern states. The University of Austin had the greatest growth. Two hundred twenty seven percent.

The top four universities in every area reported were Georgia State University, Kent State University, Arizona State University, and New York University. Number one was New York University.

A top ten listing of cities with the highest density of daddies

showed  Atlanta #1 and Austin #10.

The ladies are sometimes referred to as hidden hos. Websites such as Seeking Arrangement as convenience stores for adulterers. More dignified, a virtual brothel.

I wish to venture a personal opinion.

Prostitution is illegal in the United States, except for Nevada. Whether sexual activity constitutes a crime is dependent on the services provided. If something more than sex is provided, the acts are not viewed as prostitution. The something more such things as house cleaning or companionship. All difficult of proof.

More than 15 nations world wide have legalized prostitution. Included are New Zealand, Austria, Belgium, Columbia, Denmark, Ecuador, Germany, France and the Netherlands.

Sometime in the early 2000s, Germany legalized prostitution. The reason/excuse was to give dignity to the women. Also provide a means by which the ladies had rights, pension plans, and hospitalization coverage.

The real reason was Germany wanted to tax prostitution. They taxed it at every level of government and form of participation. Germany has made a ton of money and continues to do so.

The ladies have not benefited as anticipated. The reason being the influx of immigrants from Europe’s eastern block and North Africa. Too many new prostitutes. Prices for services rendered dropped dramatically. The old story of supply and demand.

The United States has moved swiftly in the past ten years in certain areas. Same sex marriage, transgendered  accepted in the military, marijuana legalized.

Marijuana is not yet legal in every state nor via federal law. It will be in the next 5-10 years.

I see prostitution on the same path as same sex marriage and marijuana approval. Legalization. The government will approve legalization because of the large tax dollars prostitution brings.

Legalization is coming. You can bet on it. In 10 years or less.

FREEDOM AT LAST

Early wednesday morning, six Cuban immigrants safely landed in Key West. At the Southernmost Point.The end of South Street. The place where tourists wait in line to have their picture taken.

The dive boat that took them to safety could be seen behind the Southernmost Point. A warm sight knowing the circumstances. The six could not have landed at a better place.

Now that we have some sort of relationship with Cuba, I no longer can accept returning Cuban refugees who did not land with their feet on American soil. A concept that has outlived its time.

I saw on TV this morning, a Cuban who had just arrived and his father that had been in the U.S. 36 years. Embracing. Crying. The first time in 36 years father and son saw or touched each other.

Yesterday began normally. The anti-gravity treadmill first. I have exceeded my original top speed. Now 4.0 as opposed to 3.5. Miles per hour. Time equal to back when. Gravity still at 50 percent. I need it there or a while yet.

David Wolkowsky has been absent recently. He went to New York City. Ninety six years old and takes a few days off to visit the Big Apple. What a guy!

Followed it up with Ruby at the Cuban Coffee Queen. Ruby is terrific! She remembers your order and name. Similar to a bartender knowing your drink. All the time smiling.

A stop at Walgreens to pick up another prescription. I have 11 prescriptions requiring 13 pills a day to be taken. All doctor prescribed. My heart doctor says it is what is keeping my heart and blood pressure ok. I am “pill controlled” as he puts it.

I could sense it was going to rain last night at dinner time. Decided to stay close to home. Drove over to Hogfish. Sat at the bar. Knew we were going to get hit with a heavy rain. Monsoon type. You could small, taste and feel it coming.

It did. Fortunately, the bar area protected me from getting wet.

My happy birthday with Jenna this evening. My birthday. The last day of celebration. It is dinner at Azur. I am looking forward to Jenna and Azur. Both top of the line.

I am beginning to worry about William Hackley’s baby. He, a fried and what I assume was a nun stayed up all evening with the baby. Baby appeared better at 10 in the morning.

The thought occurs…..The Republican Party holds itself out as the party of family values. So they run a Presidential candidate who has had three wives. If Newt Gingrich is the VP choice, the heads of the Republican ticket will have had six wives.

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…..” The opening phrase in Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities. “Let them eat cake.” Attributed to Marie Antoinette. Questioned by some whether she was the one who actually uttered the words.

They come to mind because it was on this date in 1789 that French revolutionaries stormed the Bastille. The beginning of the French revolution.

Pouring like hell at the moment. I suspect we may have slipped into the rainy season.

Enjoy your day!