A HEMINGWAY STORY…..

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Hemingway’s personal experiences are just as interesting as his novels.

Hemingway was a lover. A ladies man. Enjoyed his sexual adventures.

He was into  his second marriage. Pauline Pfeiffer, the wife. They were married 13 years. Ten of those years spent in Key West.

The marriage proved healthy for Hemingway’s writings. Most of his best works were written during his marriage to Pauline.

Pauline’s father wealthy. Pauline enjoyed inherited wealth. Provided Hemingway with a comfortable life style.

The home on Whitehead was bought during the marriage. Primarily with Pauline’s dollars. The home stands to this day. Now, a museum. The Hemingway House.

The gardens were to the front of the house. Hemingway had constructed a boxing ring. He was a boxing enthusiast.

Hemingway was off to Spain as a war correspondent during the Spanish Civil War. He met and fell in love with Martha Gellhorn there, she also a war journalist.

Word got back to Pauline in Key West that husband Ernest was seriously screwing around. Pissed her off big time!

Pauline had the boxing ring torn down and replaced it with a $20,000 swimming pool. A lot of money for a pool in those days. Had Hemingway billed for it. The pool was lovely. Its setting in the gardens perfect. The sunlight equally perfect. The water glistened.

When Hemingway returned home, he became angered when he found out how much the pool cost. He and Pauline had words. Hemingway took a penny out of his pocket and flung it on the ground saying, “Pauline, you’ve spent all but my last penny, so might as well have that.”

The penny has become part of Hemingway House folklore. There is a 1934 penny imbedded in the concrete at the foot of the pool. Whether the same penny, I do not know.

Pauline and Hemingway in due course divorced. Martha became wife number three.

Hemingway drew on life experiences for his books. He and Pauline had two sons. Pauline’s labor was extremely difficult for one. Legend has it Hemingway used Pauline’s suffering as the basis for Catherine’s death in A Farewell To Arms.

My podcast show last night. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. A mix of Trump and local Key West stories. The show did not include the Hemingway one just shared. Key West has a slew of tales to be told.

The United States is getting better in dealing with natural disasters. Better not enough, however. More time and money must be spent planning how to react before a disaster even occurs.

New Orleans’ Katrina should have taught us a lot. Turns out, not enough.

Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico. FEMA immediately saw the need for food. FEMA contracted with an Atlanta firm for 30 million meals, clearly spelling out time was of the essence. Delivery had to be as soon as possible. Only 50,000 were delivered.

The Atlanta firm was Tribate Contracting LLC. A one employee firm. The sole employee the owner Tiffany Brown. Brown had no experience in large scale disaster relief.

The contract was for $156 million.

It was Brown’s responsibility to find and contract with vendors to prepare and get the food to Puerto Rico. She was only intended as a run through. A conduit. She would be paid handsomely for her company’s services in that regard.

Brown hired a wedding caterer with a staff of 11 to prepare and freeze dry meals.

FEMA cancelled its contract with Brown’s company.

In the meantime, many in Puerto Rico were going without food.

Italy’s former Prime Minister and political force Silvio Berlusconi is back in the news. He has not been heard from in recent years after being convicted of tax fraud and sexual involvement with a 17 year old girl.

Due to the convictions, Berlusconi can no longer hold public office. Nothing bars him from being a political leader/force, however.

A national election is scheduled for March 4.

Berlusconi now 81 years old.

Immigration the issue. Everywhere!

In  the past few years, African Muslims seeking a way to Sweden have moved through Italy. Many remained in Italy. Six hundred thousand.

In my several trips to northern Italy in recent years, I have become familiar with the problem. Seen it first hand. Novara where my friend Anna lives appears to be a black community rather than a white one. Anna and her friends are not happy about it.

The homeless are not well taken care of at all. They sit on formerly prosperous streets, their backs against the walls, day and night. They are everywhere. Black prostitutes openly working the neighborhoods day and night.

Berlusconi says he will immediately deport the 600,000 immigrants.

Sounds like Trump.

My travels took me to Portofino. Expensive! I was paying $20 for a glass of gin.

Two places have impressed me beauty wise in my travels. Santorini and the bay at Portofino.

Berlusconi has a home in Portofino. On the water, of course. Huge. Magnificent. The shrubbery and flower beds alone have to cost a ton  of money to keep up.

Berlusconi and Putin are, if you will excuse the description, asshole buddies. Putin had a summer home built in Portofino right next to Berlusconi’s.

Evidence the relationship is close one. Several years ago and prior to Putin constructing his Portofino home, Putin allowed his teenage daughter to spend the summer at Berlusconi’s Portofino home.

What a world!

Enjoy your day!

 

 

 

 

SCHOOL GRADUATION RATE DISGUSTING

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This morning with us facing a crashing market and Trump issues all over the place, I deem what is occurring with the local education system more important.

I learned yesterday that the Monroe County School District graduation rate for 2016-7 was 79.2 percent.

Disgusting!

Parents, the community and the School Board should consider the number unacceptable. And do something about it!

The problem has to have existed for a number of years. To the School Board I say what is happening in the classroom is more important than housing. Get your priorities straight! The kids come first!

School officials say there is cause for celebration. The percentage is a bit higher and close to the State’s. The State graduation level also sucks. 82.3 percent.

I have a selfish interest. Robert and Ally shortly will be attending the Key West High School. Thus far they have been educated by Montessori. I am impressed at the degree of knowledge they have acquired. I do not want it to stop when they enter high school.

The Dow dropped 665 points friday and 1,100 plus yesterday. Wow!

Trump keeps taking credit for the market. I felt the market’s meteoric rise could not continue. At 82, I have seen similar markets in my life time. I said and wrote last year that the market could not sustain itself. There would be a crash. I thought it might occur by the end of last year or early this year.

I spoke of an impending crash last week in one of my Key West Lou Live Videos. Suggested it could occur anytime. If not the immediate future, sometime into the year.

My reasoning simple. What goes up, must come down. Especially a market that moves with abnormal swiftness. Everyone getting rich thinking there is no end to the success.

I referred to Trump at the time as the Herbert Hoover of 2018. So certain I was that the market would take a dive.

It began friday. Continued yesterday. Probably will continue today. The European and Asian markets went down during the night. Our misfortune affects the world.

The market corrects itself. No one knows precisely why. The market is like a person in certain respects. If it gets too rich, it regurgitates. Pukes. That is what it is doing now. It will continue till the market feels it has reached a price correction.

To place the market’s meteoric rise in proper perspective, lets look at a couple of numbers.

The market rose 1,900 points in the first 18 days of this year. Since Trump’s election, the market has risen 8,300 points. Mind boggling increases. Not normal. Shades of 1929.

Since Trump took credit for the market’s rise, I am curious to see how he handles its nose dive.

Pelosi’s fault? Democrats? The FBI’s?

A term rarely heard. Part of market jargon. The dead cat bounce.

Market lingo for a recovery after a market decline based on fundamentals. Some people buy in at a time referred to as dips. Investing for a quick profit. Makes everything look peachy and wonderful when it is not. The market is moves upward a bit. After the quick profit is taken, the market goes back down.

Last night a quiet one for me. Dueling Bartenders at Aqua and dinner at the outside bar at La Te Da.

Tom Luna missing last night. Bobby Nesbitt sitting in for him. Not a band substitute.

Aqua Idol tonight! Lynda Frechette’s baby. A fund raiser for the Waterfront Playhouse. Great singing! Big crowd! Fun!

My podcast tonight. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. So many things to talk about. I have notes covering 23 topics. I am lucky if I get 10 in.

Join me tonight at 9. The show’s following grows weekly. Amazing! I even have national sponsors! www.blogtalkradio.com/key-west-lou.

Enjoy your day!

 

LOST REEF ADVENTURES

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Yesterday being sunday, I decided to breakfast out. Went to one of my favorite haunts. Harpoon Harry’s. No room at the inn. People standing outside waiting to get in.

Walked one block to the Gulf. Enjoyed breakfast at Turtle Kraals. Sat outside. Excellent view of marina boats.

I have written about Turtle Kraals and the area it is situated several times over the years. At one time, it was the heart of Key West’s thriving turtle industry.

The industry long gone. A few old buildings remain. Turtle Kraals may be one of them. There is a much smaller building about 50 feet away. A one story wood structure. Now a turtle museum operated by the Mel Fisher Museum.

I took a walk after breakfast. Not far. Across the street. To Lost Reef Adventures. Sloan’s partner of many years Nick owns the place.

Lost Reef Adventures is a full service dive shop. Sits plum in the middle of the Historic Seaport. Snorkeling, scuba and a sunset cruise daily. Also, a one day scuba course is available for those interested.

Lost Reef Adventures has been in business for 30 years. Operators and staff safety conscious reliable locals.

Then to Publix. Out of food again. Purchased more diet food. Loss now 18 pounds.

Publix was packed. It was obvious most were last minute shoppers preparing for Super Bowl. Moving fast through the store.

Publix must have anticipated a large demand for already cooked chicken wings. All kinds were packaged and ready for sale.

Yesterday’s Super Bowl can only be described as a great game. Thinking about it, most of them are. The Eagles finally won. 41-33.

The Eagles always a small step behind. Making them that much better. It showed in the final score.

Tom Brady continues to amaze me. Forty yeas old and going strong. Said he will be back next year.

The Eagles quarterback was the team’s back up one till December when the starting quarterback was injured and out for the season. He was a Tom Brady yesterday. Voted MVP.

Good for him!

I mentioned last week or the week before that a political party that runs candidates like Alabama’s Roy Moore is doing a disservice to the country. Every nut will think he is qualified to run.

Several are running. One is Arthur Jones of Illinois. The district he is running in contains a part of Chicago.

He has no opposition. Filing for the Republican primary passed in December.

Jones is openly anti-Semitic, a racist, supporter of the radical left, and a neo-Nazi. He denies the Holocaust. Claims it is an international extortion racket.

Jones will lose. The district is overwhelmingly Democrat. Some day however, these nuts will begin winning. Then more problems for our country.

Crazies believe it is ok to run for office. Trump’s election the reason. He is not the most stable of individuals. His policies lacking. Their belief being if Trump can be elected President, I can be elected to Congress!

God help us!

Speaking of Trump, he did it again! Lied!

Trump claims his State of the Union address drew the highest number of viewers in history. False. The First State of the Union speeches by Obama, Bush 2, and Clinton drew more.

Trump concerns me for a number of reasons. In addition to his frequent misrepresentations. The most recent is his belief that the country needs something to happen to unify it. To me, that means war. Pearl Harbor and 9/11 the best unifiers ever.

In recent days, Trump has also said North Korea needs a “bloody nose.” Do unity and giving North Korea a bloody nose go hand in hand? Is Trump getting ready to bomb North Korea?

Enjoy your day!

 

WHO IS THE FAIREST OF THEM ALL?

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The woman who uttered the words while looking in a mirror…..Who is the fairest of them all? The Wicked Queen. Snow White, the response.

So began Walt Disney’s great film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The animated movie made its film debut this day in 1938.

An instant hit! Quickly grossed $8 million. Big bucks in 1938. The $8 million represented the most money made by a film up to that time.

I saw the movie in 1938. My mother took me. I was 3 years old. We watched it at the Rialto Theater in Utica. Two movies were shown in those days for the price of one ticket. I recall the other film, also. Gunga Din.

The seven dwarfs blew me away. The Wicked Witch scared me at the beginning of the film. A mean looking woman.

Of all the dwarfs, Dopey received the most accolades. Charlie Chaplin said that Walt Disney “created in him one of the greatest comediennes of all time.”

Watched Syracuse go down to defeat yesterday. Lost to Virginia 59-44.

I hurt when Syracuse loses. I especially hurt this year for Jim Boeheim. A class act. In his last years as a coach.

I know Boeheim personally. We initially came together because of the University. I was a heavy contributor. It was sort of a requirement that he play golf with me once or twice a year. His club in Syracuse, mine in Utica.

At first, I was embarrassed. Boeheim was a 2 handicap. Me, a 35 plus. He never complained. Spent time in the woods helping me look for my ball, etc. Even took the time on occasion to recommend a change in swing or grip. Teaching as he does with his players during a game.

Unfortunately, I was a hopeless cause.

Tavern ‘n Town for dinner last night. I had planned on a quick one. Turned into 3 hours.

Sat at the bar next to Jill and Steve.

Vacationing from the Point Pleasant area in New Jersey. Both avid fisherman, especially Steve. They have a 62 foot custom made fisherman. Steve understood what I meant when I said he considered fishing a battle of man against nature.

Jill can only be described as an enthusiastic conversationalist. She kept me glued to my seat.

Jill has been involved with Johnson and Johnson for 25 years as part of its vision care division. Contact lenses and contact solution. She is a top sales performer.

Steve, a demolition contractor. I did not have the opportunity to talk with Steve that much. I would have been interested in what he did as a demolition contractor. A wrecking company? I worked for one the summer between high school and college. The hardest job I ever had! I started at 7 in the morning and was exhausted by 7:05. A bit of an exaggeration. Believe you get the point, however.

If I had any thought of not going to college, that job remedied it.

An Irma update. Debris removal continues to be a problem. Irma hit September 10. It has taken that long and will take longer to collect the trees, shrubbery, busted up homes, trailers, etc. piled on roadsides.

The Lower Keys of concern. Upper Sugarloaf, Lower Sugarloaf, Ramrod, and Summerland Keys completed. A final pass will be made this coming week to Cudjoe, Little Torch, Big Pine, and No Name Keys.

Other problems still exist. Some remain without housing. Families still living in tents. Food and water in short supply. FEMA rebuilding money coming in slowly.

Harry Truman. Harry Truman loved Key West and Key West loves Harry Truman. He spent 175 days covering 11 separate trips enjoying Key West. The Admiral’s quarters where he stayed renamed the Harry Truman Little White House.

The first time Truman visited Key West he had a bad cold he could not get rid of. His doctor recommended a “heart starter bourbon drink.” The prescription, bourbon and orange juice. Between the bourbon and sun, Truman recovered quickly.

Presidents Day Weekend around the corner. Friday to sunday February 16-18. Part of the celebration includes a bourbon and barbecue cook off.

Super Bowl today! Game time 6:30 on NBC. Love it!

I have been invited to several parties. Normally, I would watch the game a Don’s Place. I have already decided I will watch the game alone at home. The reason being my diet. I would drink a bit too much and definitely eat too much were I out.

I started with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs which opened in movie houses this date in 1938. I close with another art form. the written word. On this day in 1826, James Fenimore Cooper’s The Last of the Mohicans was published.

Cooper was born, raised and spent most of his life in what is Cooperstown, NY. The Home of the Baseball Hall of Fame, also.

His home stands to this day. Known as the James Fenimore Cooper House, aka James Fenimore Cooper Museum.

Cooperstown is a mere 40 miles from Utica. I have visited theHouse many times. Professionally and socially.

The House sits on a modest hill overlooking lovely Otsego Lake. The House can only be described as magnificent! Cooper’s father built it.

He was a man of means. His son never really worked, other than his writings. He considered himself a gentleman’s farmer which meant servitude was not part of his life style.

Cooperstown when the father Cooper built it and during the years his son lived there was the frontier. Initially, nothing west of Cooperstown.

The frontier life and Indians making up The Last of the Mohicans accordingly familiar to Cooper when he began writing the book.

Enjoy your Sunday! Enjoy the Super Bowl!

 

 

AYN RAND…..DIFFERENT

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Ayn Rand considered absolutely brilliant by some. Crazy by others. Some initially overwhelmed by her only to later become disillusioned.

I am in the later group. First, amazed. Considered her thoughts brilliant.  Then realized the nut she was.

Ayn Rand’s birthday was yesterday. She was born February 2, 1905. Died March 6, 1982.

To many, she was and is considered a philosopher. To others, a writer.

Two of her novels initially captured my thought process. I was a young attorney when I first read The Fountainhead. What a book! Its message that individual rights were the ultimate. Societal collectivism be damned.

Wow!

Rand’s message was that society had forgotten “I” and replaced it with “we.” She fictionalized a society where totalitarian collectivism had triumphed. Her hero, an individual true and true who fought the onslaught.

Many questions were left unanswered in my mind after reading The Fountainhead. They were answered when I read her second successful novel, Atlas Shrugged.

Rand believed in laissez-faire capitalism. An economic system in which transactions between private parties are free from government intervention such as regulation, privilege, tariffs, and subsidies.

The true Republican/Conservative in thought. And in action. She supported Barry Goldwater for President in 1964.

Her individualistic philosophy is best typified by her own words: An individual should “exist for his own sake, neither sacrificing himself to others nor sacrificing others to himself.”

None of this is mentally imposing. Easy to comprehend. I must concede a movie helped. Atlas shrugged starring Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal. Their unusual love affair formed the basis for what Rand perceived as the individual vs. collective society war.

Rand thought much of herself. She claimed her greatest influence was Aristotle. Followed by Thomas Aquinas. She said if a history of philosophy were written, the three top philosophers would be Aristotle, Aquinas, and Rand. Signifying how high she held her own thought process.

My disillusionment came two years after reading The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. I became aware that Rand was publishing a weekly newspaper in New York City. I subscribed to it.

The woman was absolutely mad! Her columns represnted her thought process carried to the ultimate. No frills. The woman was not stable. Wacky an excellent description. Dangerous, another.

Such was the end of my acceptance of Rand’s philosophy.

In spite of my change in thinking, I still recommend The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged for reading. An experience!

Spent last night at the Chart Room. Quiet. John bartending. Chatted with Christina.

Second time I met Christina. Sheila introduced her to me a month ago at the Chart Room. Christina is on the staff at the Custom House. She and Sheila worked together at the Custom House one time.

The conversation pleasant. The evening pleasant.

This afternoon Syracuse/Virginia. Virginia #2 in the country. Syracuse will probably lose. On the other hand, Syracuse is in for a good game. Overdue. You never know. Hope springs eternal.

The Republican “memo” a dud. Its anticipation full of sound and fury. In the end, signified nothing.

The Republican Congress worries me. They serve the Party rather than the people.

Partially responsible is Trump’s magnetic personality. He is a Pied Piper. Most Republicans blindly follow him.

Yesterday morning, the employment numbers were announced. Two hundred thousand more jobs. Big!

It was also announced interest rates would be going up.

By the end of the day, the market closed 665 points down. The sixth largest one day decline in history.

A crack in the dyke? A tiny one, I suspect. The market will be up monday. Money to be made by buying the stocks that went down. I ask however if there is a message in the 665 point drop. An indication of that which is to come.

Justice is confusing these days. Trump responsible for a good share of the confusion.

California legalized marijuana. Now, California is moving through the court system to vacate thousands of felony and misdemeanor marijuana convictions dating back to 1975.

At the same time that Attorney General Sessions’ Justice Department is gearing up to seek more marijuana prosecutions.

Both actions amazing!

I close with a bit of Florida Keys information.

I never knew how many Keys there were. Merely assumed a lot. In case you have an interest, there are over 1,700 islands. Few populated. Most small. Only 43 connected by bridges.

Enjoy your day!

 

GROUNDHOG DAY…..IT’S ALL ABOUT SEX

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Key West is buried with chickens. All over the place.

Several years ago, I wrote an article in KONK Life about the chicken problem. One of the items covered was the rooster’s cock-a-doodle do.

Up to that time, I always thought the rooster cock-a-doodle-do’d to wake people from their long night’s sleep. No.

The rooster screech announces to the hens he wants to get laid. His sex call. He’s looking.

Place what I have just shared into practice. The next time you hear a rooster cock-a-doodle-doing, watch closely. The hens all run in the opposite direction.

Today is Groundhog Day. February 2 has been Groundhog Day since 1887. The first and most popular place to watch if the groundhog will remain or scurry back to his burrow is Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.

What a name for a town.

The groundhog hibernates from the Fall to sometime in March. He does not come out on February 2 voluntarily. He is prodded out so Groundhog Day can occur.

The fable is if the groundhog comes out of his hole and sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter. The groundhog’s shadow scares him and he runs back to his burrow.

If no shadow, there will be an early spring.

A crock. Not true. Whenever the groundhog comes out, whether February 2 or March, he is looking for a female. He has slept the winter away and wants female companionship. Sex!

Man creates stories that last hundreds of years. After a while, fiction becomes truth. The fairy tale replaces truth.

Punxsutawney is not the only community celebrating Groundhog Day. There are others. Some form of rodent involved. Groundhogs are not native to every area.

Other places celebrating the day have named their groundhogs/rodents uniquely. Birmingham Bill, Staten Island Chuck, Canada’s Shubenacadie Sam, and New Jersey’s Milltown Mel.

Punxsutawney’s is named Phil. Phil since 1887.

The groundhog leaving his burrow has already taken place this morning in Punxsutawney and New Jersey. Phil saw his shadow and returned to his burrow signifying six more weeks of winter. Milltown Mel did not, thereby signifying an early spring.

Geiger Key for lunch yesterday. A while since I had been there. The place was packed!

Sat at the bar and looked at all the happy faces around me. Actually looked at the food they were eating. And enjoying!

Something snapped in my mind. Screw the diet! I did and ate! So good! The best, mashed potatoes covered with gravy. Ate last night, also.

A wonderful day! On top of which, I lost a pound!

The Chart Room first last night.

Enjoyed a few gins and popcorn. Delicious popcorn at the Chart Room.

John bartending.

Met Richard and Mary from Chicago. They have been coming to Key West one week a year for 30 years. Richard is retired from UPS. Mary an attorney and still practicing. Specializes in real estate and estate planning.

Mary’s lawyer background interesting. She is the last of her family’s law firm. Started more than 100 years ago in 1913. No family member to take her place when she retires.

John told me seated at the round table were vacationing women from Syracuse. Before I had an opportunity to talk with them, they were up and leaving. I shouted a Syracuse and Utica. They turned. We exchanged pleasantries including a little Syracuse basketball and they were off.

The bartenders were waiting for me when I arrived later in the evening at the Chart Room. They had a copy of yesterday’s KONK Life. There I was! The whole of the front page. Standing with a row of shrimp boats behind me. The announcement of Irma and Me at the bottom of the page.

Inside on page 8 was another photo and a brief article titled: Petrone Writes Again!

Such drama!

Age takes its toll. The older I get, the worse pictures come out. Wrinkles, jowls, eyelids that only open half way, and no hair.

One of the comments this morning was from Anonymous. Wrote Congrats on KONK Life and Shayna Punim.

Shayna Punim? Googled it. Means a beautiful face. Thank you, anonymous for being so generous.

My thanks also to KONK Life owner Guy de Boer for running the photos and article.

A closing observation. Trump tells us the economy is good. He should make a trip to Los Angeles and tell it to the homeless. LA’s homeless has surged 75 percent in the past six years. From 32,000 to 55,000.

Homeless all over the city. The lawn in front of City Hall and across the street from the Los Angeles Police Department a homeless day camp. Tent cities abound. Even in the best of neighborhoods. Two hundred twenty two at last count. Three out of 4 live in cars, campers, tents and leantos.

Enjoy your day!

 

WE’VE MET THE ENEMY, AND IT’S US

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KONK Life is a local once a week publication. It has an ancillary publication. E-Blast. E-Blast publishes daily on the internet. Solely on the internet.

This morning’s E-Blast had an interesting Letter to the Editor. By Key West local Roger C. Kostmayer. A man seasoned by years, knowledgeable and frank.

The letter titled Listen to Pogo. Pogo being the famous comic strip philosopher.

Kostmayer began with two factual happenings. One that the U.S. is under attack from without by Russia and from within by Congressional Republicans. The other is that the attack has resulted in a self imposed crisis.

He concludes with a famous Pogo observation…..We’ve met the enemy, and it’s us.

Spent most of yesterday afternoon working on Growing Up Italian. My grandparents were met with a difficult world in their early years here. The anti-Italian sentiment significant.

I enjoyed a 30 minute happy interruption while working on the book. Jean Thornton called. She was taking a walk in Birmingham and decided she would like to talk with me. Just pass the time of day.

That’s Jean!

It was cold in Birmingham. High 40’s or low 50’s as we were talking. She told me the evenings were in the 20’s. And I complain when it is in the 60’s!

Jean is on a diet also. Weight Watchers. Walking part of the routine.

We covered a multitude of items. Every Key West tidbit I tried to share, Jean already knew. She has her finger on the pulse of Key West constantly.

Jean and Joe will soon be off for a three week stay in Hawaii. Return home for a few weeks. Then the big one as she describes it. A month somewhere in Europe.

I could have been out with a lovely woman last night. Instead, I declined. Wanted to watch the Syracuse/Georgia Tech game at home.

I should have gone out. Could not get the game on TV. Later in the evening, the sports news reported Syracuse lost 46-41. Not a good year!

I spent the evening reading How to Win a Fight with a Conservative by Daniel Kurtzman.

Page 179 contains a brief passage titled: The Koch Brothers, GOP Corporate Overlords. The passage concludes: “…..Republicans from every state will line up at their door to grovel at their feet and ask for campaign contributions, a practice known throughout political circles as “sucking Koch.”

I initially considered leaving the quotation out as it appeared tasteless.

Turtles are taking a beating in this cold weather. Florida waters unusually cold this year. The Marathon Turtle Hospital and similar Florida facilities bursting at the seams. An overflow. Turtles everywhere.

Marathon recently took in several more turtles. From North Florida waters. The turtles described as cold stunned. Last year, Marathon flew up to Cape Cod and returned with a large number of Cape Cod turtles that were suffering from the cold waters there.

Cold water slows a turtle’s metabolism. Making the turtles vulnerable to infections and illnesses. One of the problems associated with exposure to cold waters are tumors. Some bug/virus creates the tumors in the turtles.

The hospital stay for cold stunned turtles is generally one year. Tumor resolution the primary reason for the long stay

One of the best loved men in Key West is Joseph Lyles. Affiliated for many years with the Hot Tin Roof. His most recent position as Manager.

Joseph had back problems. Underwent an operation to correct the problems. The result not good. Still has back problems, needs a cane to get about, and cannot move swiftly.

So much for continuing as a restaurant manager.

Joseph has been reemployed. At the Casa Marina. As a concierge.

Go, Joseph! All of Key West is happy for you.

Guy de Boer just telephoned. Did you see it? What? This week’s KONK Life is out. You and Irma and Me are on the front page!

As soon as I finish the blog, I will go out and get a copy.

This morning’s Key West Citizen in its Keys History section had a piece of information regarding Ernest Hemingway. On this day in 1935, Hemingway and two friends went fishing on Hemingway’s boat. All three caught a sailfish.

An unusual occurrence.

Enjoy your day!