MOONSHINE

Posted on by

This blog seems to be getting more interesting. Ladies panties, yesterday. Moonshine, today.

Till I settled in Key West, I had heard of but never seen nor tasted moonshine. Moonshine appears to be a Keys thing just as cockfighting is. A bit here and there. I have probably shared a sip on a couple of occasions over the years.

This morning’s Key West Citizen reports on a “moonshine still” arrest. An apparent moonshiner advertised on Craigslist a moonshine still for sale. $375. Some undercover police authorities contacted him. Not only did he offer to sell the still to them, he also admitted having used it to make moonshine. He still had almost a gallon available.

He was arrested.

I learned something new reading the article. Not that I should not advertise a moonshine still on Craigslist. Rather, the word moonshine derives from those who made the stuff years ago in Appalachia. They worked by the light of the moon to avoid detection.

One of the best things in the Keys is the Marathon Turtle Hospital. Another heartwarming turtle story.

Sapphire is a subadult female turtle. Weighs 129 pounds. Sixteen months ago, she was brought to the hospital. She could not dive and had a breathing problem. She still cannot dive. Weights must be glued on her back to give her the ability. The weights fall off eventually and Sapphire is/would be in trouble.

Sapphire is going on a 2,500 mile plane trip to a new home. To a place called The Living Coast Discovery Center in Chula Vista, California. There she will live in a 21,000 gallon tank of properly temperatured ocean water and be attended to daily.

Sapphire is flying via Fed Ex. Two Marathon Turtle Hospital personnel are accompanying her.

Yesterday was Rosh Hashana. To my Jewish friends and all other friends, I wish a Happy Rosh Hashana!

Which leads me to…..Donna and Terri, where are you?

Went for my back x-ray yesterday morning. No x-ray. Technician out till friday. Have to return friday morning.

My back is considerably better. If I do not use it to any extent. The steroids are terrific. Keep the pain away and make me sleep well.

Yesterday, I decided to walk at Home Depot. Felt no pain so I thought it would be ok. I walked ever so slowly. A 20 minute walk took 40 minutes. At the end, my back and leg were hurting. Pain increased during the day.

What happens when I am off steroids?

Lunched at Harpoon Harry’s. Wednesday lunch there is becoming a habit. The special a turkey dinner. All the trimmings like Thanksgiving. Delicious!

Spent the afternoon writing next week’s KONK Life column. Bank Robbers. An interesting twist on an old time story. From Jesse James to the bank robbers of today.

Ally and I still painting. Actually Ally painting and I observe, comment, and direct. She is doing well. I think she is talented.

Yesterday, Ally learned it is not all painting per se. There is work involved. We have already gotten past keeping the brushes clean. Yesterday, it was the pallet. She had left the paint globs on overnight. She had a difficult time getting the pallet clean. All part of being an artist.

I had a very enjoyable time last night at the Hot Tin Roof. My first drink since sunday. Only one. The doctor said it would be ok. The meal as usual was outstanding.

My waitress was Shanya. A young beauty. She has worked at Hot Tin Roof several months, though last night was the first time we spoke. She is from the Boston area. Of Serbian extraction. That led me into Flora and Albania. Both Serbia and Albania are parts of the former Soviet Republic.

Shanya is in love! Good for her! She soon will be relocating to St. Petersburg to be with her man.

The Hot Tin Roof is perched directly on the Gulf waters. From the second floor location where I was sitting, I could see way out to the horizon. It was 1-2 hours before sunset. The sun shining. A sailboat drifted along the line of the horizon. It was another one of those days. God was in His heaven, all was right with the world. At least in Key West.

Bocce tonight. I have only played once in the past three weeks. It was either my back or shoulder. Tonight, I plan on playing. The steroids will help. I will not be moving around as much as I did walking at Home Depot. I look forward to playing.

Enjoy your day!

 

DINNER WITH STEPHANIE

Posted on by

Always an interesting evening. Dinner with Stephanie Kaple. Last night at the Hot Tin Roof.

She was a few minutes late. She had to park her bicycle at the Pier House and walk over. She came flying through the doors. A sight to behold. A knockout white sundress with multi colored small flowers. Her long hair flowing. She hugged me, kissed me, and kept repeating how sorry she was to be late.

Stephanie impresses me. She is 30 years old. A good two generations behind my 78. The world excites her. She is involved in everything. I am surprised she even had time to have dinner with me.

Stephanie is deeply involved with the homeless. Her vocation in life. They are lucky to have her.

She is also the Key West Shoe Girl. Loves high heeled expensive designer shoes. Last night she was wearing Giuseppe Zanotti shoes. Also, Channel earrings. Stephanie saves and spends her money on designer shoes. They are as important to her as the homeless. Maybe more.

We enjoyed a drink and dinner. Both ordered the snapper. Excellent!

Stephanie started playing bocce about three years ago. She is now captain of her team. I would not have expected less. Her team is relatively new to the sport. The team is in second place. Me and my team are experienced. We have been around the block many times. We continue to play poorly in recent seasons.

I walked Stephanie back to her bicycle after dinner.

Stephanie’s mother reads this blog frequently. I am sure she is reading it today knowing I was out with her daughter last night. Mrs. Kaple, worry not! Stephanie behaved herself.

I lunched yesterday at a place I have not been to in at least 5 years. The Hurricane. An outdoor place on the water. The first road off US 1 after leaving Key West. A pleasant place. I prefer Hogfish and Geiger Key. I do not know why.

Someone told me Joy Art Gallery at the corner of Simonton and Eaton was selling Jack Baron paintings. Jack was a dear friend. I have about a dozen of his works. He died a little over six years ago.

It was noon. The gallery was closed. A sign on the door…..Back in 15 minutes. I returned fifteen minutes later. Still locked. I am going to try to stop by today.

I am ashamed. Thursday April 10 was my Father’s birthday. He would have been 99 had he not passed away last year. I forgot. Belated happy birthday greetings Dad!

I apologize. But I must ask him this question…..How is Mom?

The World Upside Down is still out there selling. I am impressed. If you wish to obtain a copy, the book is available on amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

Enjoy your day!

 

SYRACUSE…..SYRACUSE……SYRACUSE…..SYRACUSE…..

Posted on by

There is much I could lead off with this morning. Like Easter Sunday or Donna and Terri. However, Syracuse dominates!

The 55-39 victory over Marquette tops everything. A real WOW! I am obviously a Syracuse fan. My blood runs orange. I must admit that I shed a tear or two at the end of the game. Players and Coach Boeheim deserved the glory which accompanied the victory.

On to the Final Four!

I must be candid. I have not been impressed with the team this season. Syracuse started well. Began dying in the middle of the season. Experienced a total collapse at the end of the season. March Madness marks a rebirth. I am going to say it. If Syracuse can play as they have defensively the past three games, it will be Syracuse all the way!

I hope my new found confidence does not jinx the team.

Now for Easter.

Happy Easter!

Things change. Such is life. I can recall when everyone dressed for Easter. Women in hats, men in suits. It was the holiday where I was sure my parents would buy me new clothes. People walked the streets showing off their finery. People crammed the churches. No more.

Change is one of the two certainties in life. The other is death.

Lisa is doing a big Easter morning brunch. All kind of goodies I suspect. Immediately preceding will be the egg hunt for the grandkids in the yard. Jake will get himself involved some how.

I could not attend. Business first. On Easter Sunday morning. I had an 8:30 computer/telephone conference with the blog talk radio people. The audio problem is resolved. So I was told. It tested ok this morning. This blog was next on the agenda. The brunch and egg hunt missed. I do not feel bad. I have seen and/or participated in enough of them over the years. Only the grandkids’ excitement is missed. The food I do not care about.

Tonight, Easter Sunday supper. Lisa tells me manicotti and ham. Cheesecake for desert. I am looking forward to the meal!

I stopped my diet at 22 pounds. Have been watching myself since. I keep losing weight. It has been about two months since I ended the diet. Weight loss is up to 33 pounds. I am not sick. Rather, I do not believe so. I am in the midst of my annual physical. Told the doctor and nurse about the weight loss. When I was in to see the Doctor last November I weighed 251. Today 214.  Tomorrow, the second half of my physical. If anything is wrong, it will show up. I attribute additional weight loss to having been a good boy eating wise!

Donna and Terri last night! They refer to themselves as my lesbian wives. A compliment from my perspective.

The ladies are in for one week. Seder time. They now live in Los Angeles. Terri also has a booking in Florida. Tomorrow night and Tuesday evening she sings at the Crest Theatre in Delray Beach. My friends in that area, go see her perform. She will knock your socks off!

Terri’s is an amazing story. Several years ago, she was homeless. Sleeping on a bench in New York City’s Washington Square Park, washing in McDonald’s. Today she is a star! Big time! Happily married to Donna.

Terri and Donna love Louis and Louis loves them.

Dinner was at the Hot Tin Roof. A long slow one. We had much catching up to do.

Afterwards, we stopped at the Chart Room for a drink. A mistake. Except for JJ bartending, I knew no one. The place was packed. All tourists. We sat at the round table.

Several couples vacationing from Michigan were at the Chart Room. Mid 30s to mid 40s. All obviously drunk. One of the guys got out of hand with Donna. He wanted to touch her privates. The southern one. He was persistent. I thought I was going to have to get up and protect Donna’s virginity. I should have known better.

Donna can be a sharp tongued Jewish woman when the occasion requires. Last night did. She put the drunk down quietly and masterfully. I did not have to get my ass kicked.

Enjoy the holiday!

 

A RELIGIOUS CONFRONTATION

Posted on by

 

It is true. What goes around, comes around. Generally to bite the first doer in the ass.

Such is the situation with Boston College and its student body. Over the issue of birth control.

A war has begun. Freedom of religion the issue. I love it! All the makings of big time legal drama.

I was so turned on that I wrote next week’s KONK Life column concerning the topic. Immediately published it on Amazon.Kindle, also. Read it in either place. I believe you will find both the article and the Constitutional issue fascinating.

Did my TV/internet show yesterday morning. The Key West Lou Legal Hour. Enjoyable for me, as always. I hope as enjoyable for you who watched.

The topic garnering the most interest based on post show comments involved banks, Cyprus, and the disparity between the rich and poor. All three tied together.

Last night began once again with the Chart Room. Emily in charge. Sheila there early on. Then left. She is nursing a big time cold.

David and Che were at the bar. We talked extensively about New York City in the late 1970s. They lived in New York at the time. I was a frequent visitor.

Enjoyed the company of a nice couple from Ohio. Pat and Jackie.

I was supposed to have dinner with Dee. She begged off. Too tired. Actually, I was also. It  was convenient for the both of us to say another time.

I grabbed a newspaper and went over to the Wine Galley. Sat at the bar and listened to Larry Smith sing. Ate a light meal.

Michael was at the bar. I had not seen him in quite a while. He is a local contractor. We chatted a bit.

Larry brought Bobbie over to meet me. She is a CPA. Newly moved to Key West and in the process of opening an office here. A charming person. I wish her well.

Later this afternoon, Syracuse basketball. Against Marquette. Whoever wins, goes on to the Final Four! A very big deal!

Once again I am not sure what Syracuse will do. Frankly, the Indiana result surprised me.

Marquette is in the Big East, also. The two teams met once during the regular season. Marquette won by three points.

My concern  is that Marquette has played Syracuse many times over the years and is familiar with Syracuse’s famed zone defense. Other teams such as Indiana were not and that is why in my opinion Syracuse won those games.

We shall see.

My lesbian wives Donna and Terri are in town. They have been here all week. Leave tomorrow. We have not had an opportunity to get together. It is dinner with them tonight at the Hot Tin Roof. I look forward to it..

Enjoy your day!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Posted on by

 

Happy  Thanksgiving!

This morning the turkeys are in the oven, pies cooling, the children watching the Macy Thanksgiving Parade, families getting together. A good day! A thank you God day.

A quick  history of Thanksgiving.

The gathering of Pilgrims and Indians in 1621 is considered the first Thanksgiving. It was not. It was called a “gathering.”

There were no more thanksgivings/gatherings till 1776. George Washington called for a day of thanksgiving. The first time the word was actually used. The Revolution was in full swing. The colonies had separated from Great Britain.

The day was enjoyed. Washington wanted to continue it every year. The politicians of the day said no. Even Thomas Jefferson. It had to do with Pilgrims, Puritans, and satanic beliefs. A hot potato.

There was not another thanksgiving till 1864. Abraham Lincoln was happy with the way the Civil war was going. He had a new general by the name of Ulysses Grant who had won several battles, The Emancipation Proclamation was law. Lincoln decreed the fourth thursday of November was hence forth to be celebrated as a day of thanksgiving.

It so continued till 1941. It became a legal holiday at that time. Thanks to Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

That’s the story.

Lunch yesterday was at Goldman’s Deli with Robert and Ally. Business appeared to be half of what it normally was. I attribute it to the competition of the nearby new Five Guys and the boulevard construction.

The grandkids and I talked about Thanksgiving and Christmas. Had Santa Claus telephoned me yet this year? No, not yet. He’s busy. Soon, however.

Oh, how they believe!

Before going out last night, I had to deliver the turkey from my refrigerator to Lisa. It was heavy! Robert and Ally were excitedly waiting for me. They took the turkey from me to carry inside.

My evening out was Don’s Place. A good  crowd. Including Don, David, Herschel, Stan, Erika, Toni, Bebe, Rob, and others. The holiday spirit was in the air.

I read an article this morning that the second biggest drinking night in the U.S. is Thanksgiving Eve. The first of course is New Year’s Eve.

I stopped at Publix for a few things on the way home. The new one. The place was crowded. I was surprised. Apparently most people had waited till the last minute to shop.

Two Thanksgiving dinners for me today! With Lisa and family at 1. With friends at 6. A heavy day!

Donna emailed me yesterday. She forwarded a You Tube video of Terri made in Dusseldorf,  Germany. Terri recently appeared with the Symphony there.

The video is less than six minutes. Well done. I recommend you take a look at it.

www.youtube.com/watch?=BJsTyKKxu8o&sns=em.

Tomorrow is friday. Friday is The Key West Lou Legal Hour. Please watch. Ten o’clock in the morning my time. Available on TV throughout the Keys and Miami-Dade County. Comcast Channel 87 and U-Verse Channel 19. Available world wide via internet. www.tvchannel19.com.

You will enjoy!

Enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday, also!

 

FAMILY COOK OUT

Posted on by

 

Good morning and happy Sunday!

The streets of Key West are an abomination. Road work every where. Big time construction.

There are three separate roads jobs going on at one time. Each different. Each being done by different contractors. Great planning was obvioiusly involved. I think.

Detours all over. Changes made to timing of street lights. Every where one turns, there is traffic. Long lines of traffic.

The major job involves North Roosevelt Boulevard. A two year effort by the State. The Boulevard is a main road for ingress and egress to and from Key West.

Key West is a small island. 1.5 x 4.0 miles. Perhaps there is no better way to reroute and do the construction. I do not know. What I do know is there  is nothing any of us can do about it. Grin and bear. In due course, we will become accustomed to it and the aggravation will be no more.

Visited with Lisa and family yesterday. First time I had seen them in about ten days. They returned from vacation Friday evening.

Always good to see them. Lisa was her lovely self. A bit more tanned than usual. Corey in good spirits.

Robert and Ally were excited to see me as I was to see them. They seem to have grown big time in a short time. Poor ally. Her baby front teeth seem to have all fallen out at the same time. She has a wide gap while waiting for the premanrnt ones to come in. The space detracts not from her beauty and smile.

The cupboard was really bare. Had to do some grocery shopping. Plus buy some food for a planned cook out later in the day. I still use the old Publix. I know where everything is. It takes less time to shop now that there are two Publix stores in town.

Lisa, Corey, Robert and Ally came over to swim. Robert and Ally have improved so much. Even their diving. Lisa is planning an advanced swim class for them.

We grilled outside. I have this huge grill which is atached to and a part of the house. I rarely use it. Last night we did. It was fun cooking on it.

What happened to Louis and You Tube? It is coming. Everything seems to take longer than planned. Soon I will be up and running on a daily basis.

Sloan is due later in the morning. You Tube is one of the things we will be working on.

Donna and Terri, where are you? Like a Matt Lauer trip.

The two made it to New York. Exhausted. A hard trip for two seniors to make. One driving the truck/van and the other the car. They finally gave in. Conceded the battle. They have hired a moving company to move them from New York City to Los Angeles.

Enjoy your Sunday!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DOCTOR DAY YESTERDAY

Posted on by

I now have pink eye in both eyes

I cannot recall having had pink eye since I was in grammar school.

My prescription for appropriate eye drops not yet filled.

I am doing good! Said with tongue in cheek, of course.

Received a call yesterday afternoon at 2 from Walgreens. My prescribed drops are no longer produced/made. Company went out of business. What to do? We agreed Walgreens would call my doctor and work it out. A couple of hours later I heard from Walgreens and my doctor’s office. Publix has it. Go to Publix. The prescription has been called in.

It was dinner time. I was not eating. I was propped up in bed. Both eyes were running like faucets. A friend had stopped by with left over eye drops for pink eye. I started using them. Decided Publix could wait till this morning.

No Yacht Club dinner as planned last night. I was scheduled to have dinner with Sean and Katherine. I missed their wedding as I was in Europe at the time. Wanted to celebrate the event with them a bit. Last night was the time.

I would have cancelled on my own by late afternoon. Sean saved me the trouble. Sean is a loyal blog reader. He telephoned in the morning saying they would have to cancel. Sean wears contacts and cannot get near any one with pink eye.

I had a noon appointment with the heart doctor. When one thing goes wrong, everything goes wrong.

I am having a good morning. The blog was much longer. When I went to publish, I somehow lost more than half of it. So I am ending here. Note that I experienced a severe chest pain that required nitroglycerene to releive. Doctor ran some tests. Blood pressure 120/75. Stress and echo tests scheduled for next week. I am not concerned. Yet.

Enjoy your day!

CAPTAIN TONY AND MARVIN HAMLISCH IN THE SAME BREATH

Posted on by

I was correct. I have pink eye. Dr. Lefferts confirmed it yesterday morning.

Prescribed drops. She had her office call the prescription into Walgreens to be ready for pick up at noon. I received a recorded message around 11 that it would not be timely ready and they would call to tell me when.

It was six in the evening. No call from Walgreens yet. My eye was no better. Perhaps worse. I drove to Walgreens to see if the prescription was ready. It was not. I was told the drops were rarely used and they did not stock it. The clerk told me he did not know when the prescription would be filled.

I got upset. My problem is today I told him.

I asked to speak to the pharmacist. He tried to be helpful. Said he would call around to other drug stores to see if they had it. I played that game once. A pain in the ass! And not successful.

In the end, the pharmacist screwed around on his computer a while and told me the prescription would be available tomorrow (today) at one.

Not the way to run a business! Especially one that makes Walgreens a ton of money daily.

I spent some time at the Chart Room last night chatting.

Michael bartends at Smokin’ Tuna. He recently turned 40. He was enjoying a bus man’s holiday at the Chart Room.

A few days ago Michael was watching the sunset somewhere at Mallory Square. He saw two people a distance out in the water. They were in the water waving their arms. Obviously in distress. Michael dove in and swam out to them.

It was good that he did.

One of the persons in the water had scrapped his thigh against something. It had to be a hard blow. He had ruprured his artery. Blood was flowing out rapidly.

Michael got the person to shore. He ripped a branch of a tree, took off his tee shirt and wrapped both tightly around the guy’s thigh. Soon the Coast Guard arrived and the injured person was helicoptered to Miami.

Michael does not know who the person was that he saved. The injured person does not know it was Michael. Perhaps they will learn of each other through this blog.

Michael…..A genuine hero!

JJ was bartending. Leslie at the bar aslo.

Captain Tony Days start today and run through Sunday.

Captain Tony can best be described as a son of Key West.

His biggest claim to fame was Catain Tony’s Bar on Greene Street. He ran it for almost 30 years. In addition to being a bar keep, Captain Tony was a charter boat captain, gun runner, gambler, politician and at one time Mayor of Key West. Along the way, he married four times and fathered thirteen children.

Captain Tony ran for Mayor four times before being elected. One of his unsuccessful campaigns was headed up by Jimmy Buffett. Buffet and Captain Tony were obviously close. Buffett wrote a song about Captain Tony. Last Mango in Paris. The opening lines of the song…..I went down to Captain Tony’s / To get out of the heat / Heard a voice call out to me / Son come have a seat.

The girls leave today. Donna and Terri are packed and ready to go. Their ultimate destination is Los Angeles. They are moving there permanently. They came to Key West to get their furniture out of storage. The next stop is New York to get their furniture out of the apartment there. Then onward to Los Angeles.

They rented a huge Budget truck. They are driving the furniture from Kest West to New York and then Los Angeles themselves. Their car hooked on the back.

Crazy! I wish them good luck. They will make it. I told them this morning to record the events of each day. The trip has the makings of a good book.

Marvin Hamlisch died yesterday. I feel the loss of a contemporary. The world, including me, enjoyed his music all our lives.

I was aware Terri knew and was a personal friend of Hamlisch. When I read the news of his death on the internet, I telephoned Donna. She and Terri were at Aqua. Terri was judging a singing contest.

Terri took the loss hard. She got up on the stage and sang one of his songs. What I Did For Love from Chorus Line. With tears running down her face.

May he rest in peace.

That was my yesterday.

Enjoy your today!

YACHT CLUB BARBECUE

Posted on by

The humidity envelops. Swallows a person. Thank God for air conditioning.

Yesterday was Sunday.

I started with an early morning breakfast at Pepe’s. Never ate breakfast there before. Dinner, yes.

Ham and eggs. Delicious. Especially the ham. A ham steak. About a quarter of an inch thick and huge.

It is claimed that Pepe’s is the oldest restaurant in Key West. Key West was the home port of pirates back around the 1700s. The story is that the pirates would meet at Pepe’s to plan their raids.

Then home to work with Sloan. There are too many pictures of my trip. Six hunded. Trying to narrow the number and organize them by location and event is a task. A tedious process. It is taking a lot of time. I want it correct, however.

Spent some time by the pool in the sun. Actually in the pool. The humidity was overbearing. I probably stayed out all of a half hour. I could not take it.

Lisa came over. To escape the humidity. To swim. She chatted a while in the shade of the tiki hut with Donna and Terri.

Last night was barbecuse night at the Yacht Club. Donna, Terri, and me.

We had a couple of drinks at the bar first. Kate Miano came in. Love her! She is the proprietor of the successful Gardens Hotel. Always has a hug and kiss for me. For every one actually. I like to think it is for me only.

Tosh was at the bar. At least two years since I had seen him. He has been away.

Tosh is short for Jon McIntosh. He is an artist of significant stature.

The barbecue was excellent. Especially the beef brisket.

I returned home after dinner. The girls went out. They were heading for the Monkey Bar first. Wherever they were, they must have had a great time. I woke when they came in at four this morning. Theatre people have strange hours.

Enjoy your day!

DATE NIGHT…..LISA AND ME

Posted on by

A terrific Sunday morning! Sun, sky and water magnificent! A God is in His Heaven, all is right with the world morning.

Did a noon visit yesterday with Tammy at Lee Nail’s. Needed a manicure. The place bustling with customers. I was glad I had an appoinment. I think I am the only customer who is not asked to pick out a color upon arriving.

Afterwards visited with Lisa for a while.

Dinner last night was a big deal! A date was daughter Lisa. Just me and her. Tavern ‘N Town. A long slow meal. No pressures or distractions.

Lisa insisted on paying the bill. I let her. A thoughtful end to what had already been a very pleasant evening.

Bobby Nesbitt was performing at Tavern ‘N Town. An added pleasure.

I was home early. Before nine. I had no desire to drive into town. The construction is a pain in the butt.

Donna and Terri were sitting outside. We chatted a bit. They are in the process of moving to Los Angeles. They are in Key West to get their furniture out of storage. Then to New York City to empty their apartment out there. Finally the drive cross country to Los Angeles. They are driving the van themselves. One in the car and one in the van. Unless they decide to hook the car to the back of the van. Going to be a hell of a trip!

Once Donna and Terri are settled in in their new apartment in L.A., they have to hop a plane to Germany. Terri is performing two evenings with a German Symphony.

Sloan will be here at 10:30 this morning. I hope we will be able to conclude our work re the trip pictures.

Tonight is Donna and Terri night. They are my guests at the Yacht Club.

Enjoy your Sunday!