KILLER WHALES DON’T KILL

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The front page of yesterday’s Key West Citizen had a photo of some whales. A brief article described them as killer whales and indicated they were discovered about 30 miles offshore of Key West.

A question entered my mind. Who do killer whales kill? I did a bit of research

Killer whales kill no one, except for seals and fish to feed themselves. There is no recorded instance of any human fatality involving killer whales. There have been situations however where those in captivity have turned on their keepers and killed them.

Turns out killer whales are good people, so to speak. They live in groups. Known  as pods. They live their entire lives within the group. Do not go out of it even for sex. Killer whale society is matriarchal. The mother/grandmother rules the roost. Females live to 80-90 years of age. The males only 40-50 years of age.

I learned much more. I plan on sharing additional information during the Key West Lou Legal Hour tomorrow morning.

I was up early yesterday. Had chores to perform. The cleaners, post office, and optician. The optician to tighten up two pairs of glasses.

The optician’s door was closed and locked. A phone number on the window. I called. The optician said she did not feel like working yesterday, might do two hours today and did not know about friday.

I stopped at Don’s Place on the way home to see if he was there. As I was leaving, someone was behind me. As we walked to our cars, he told me he had called his employer and told him he would not be in yesterday. It was too nice to work, he said. This was before the rain storm.

There must be something in the air or water in Key West. Two people who did not feel like working and did not. Typical Key West.

Stopped at the Plantation Coffee House. Enjoyed the coffee and morning papers. Diane working.

Theo her husband is an artist. He is painting up a storm. Every time I visit, there are new works on the walls. The place is turning into an art gallery. A lovely one.

Rained again yesterday. I do not know where all the rain is coming from. Torrential. Went on for a while. Streets flooded again.

I was driving north on Fogarty. It had not rained yet. All of a sudden, I saw this dark gray wall four blocks ahead. It was coming straight at me. It was the rain! It hit like a ton of bricks.

Florida’s Governor Scott signed a bill into law yesterday. A much needed one. An anti-texting law. No texting and driving from this point forward.

The Key West Citizen does a Day in Key West History. One of yesterday’s entries  set forth that Sloppy Joe’s had its grand opening on Duval on this day back when. Sloppy Joe’s advertised the grand opening. Its ad stated…..Free Dancing!

My Tuesday night blog talk radio show was a total screw up. We switched to Skype and everything became confused. I thought I was not on the air. I telephoned Sloan while the computer was still on. I said a bad word. The whole world heard me. The show had been broadcasting correctly. I heard from Italy, Indonesia, Key West, and Iowa that they heard me say a naughty.

I still have the Skype problem. Sloan and I worked on it with the blog talk radio people for two hours at dinner time. Still screwed up. I finally called computer guru Tim Reynolds and asked if he knew what to do. He will hopefully have an answer this evening.

On my way into town last night, I stopped at Don’s Place. Chatted a bit with Don, Hershel, David, Tom, and Joanie.

Then to the Chart Room. Not many people. Emily, Peter and I. Plus, two tourists. Don showed up. He never goes to the Chart Room unless he is with me. He came to find me.

Don and I had dinner at Hot Tin Roof. Lite fare. We shared shataki, mashed potatoes and a shrimp cocktail.

Please watch my tv/internet show tomorrow morning at 10. The Key West Lou Legal Hour. I have a terrific show prepared! Comcast Channel 87, U-Verse Channel 19, and www.weyw19.com.

Haircut time this morning. I have to hustle.

Enjoy your day!

NO BLOG TALK RADIO SHOW

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This mechanized world can be a pain in the butt!

I have my blog talk radio show down to a science. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. Works well  every week. I decided to expand a bit. I wanted to be able to do the show from where I might be in the world. Greece, China, where ever.

After some investigatory work, the solution was Skype. The audio portion.

Sloan and I worked on it. Thought we had it. Sunday morning spent 1.5 hours with the Skype people making sure we were doing it correctly. We were. No problem.

Tonight, the show would not broadcast. I tried the Skype way first. No success. Then went back to the old way with a telephone. Again, no success. I suspect it is the Skype involvement that is screwing things up. Or maybe my ineptitude.

I called an end to my attempts at what would have been 10 minutes into the show. During that time, I had Sloan on my cell phone. We were trying to figure things out. I uttered a few well chosen cuss words.

I suspect the archive portion of the show might have been recording. There is where most of my audience is. They will get an earful!

We now have another conference call with the blog talk people tomorrow night and a test run.

Sad the show could not go forward. The material was terrific. All because we live in a crazy topsy turvy time.

The topics for the show included Senator McCain and Syria, Catholic hypocrisy, Myrtle Beach’s attack on thongs, my prediction of what will occur next in the Jodi Aria saga, Prague love trains, an 87 year old grandfather who sky dived to bring attention to his grandson who might need a lung transplant, a post Rubygate trial Silvio Berlusconi update, and  horsemeat’s popularity.

There is a benefit/advantage derived. I can still use the research on friday’s tv/internet show. Which means I am half way home in my preparation for friday’s show.

Dinner tonight was alone at Hogfish. Me and the newspapers. I ate a Philly cheese steak sandwich. First time at Hogfish. Absolutely delicious! Out of sight! Recommended!

Today’s Key West Citizen headline article was on hurricanes. The experts say  an “…..active season expected.” The season starts in a few days. June 1.

Three reasons were given. There is no El Nino this year, increased rainfall in western Africa, and warmer Caribbean sea temperatures.

All of this does not mean Key West will definitely be hit. The article suggested a greater number of hurricanes, noting it is problematic what areas will be affected.

To those less knowledgeable, most of the hurricanes that hit the Florida keys get started in the ocean waters off the western coast of Africa. We follow them across the ocean hoping they will not pass over Key West.

There is no certainty till the last minute specifically where a hurricane will hit. Hurricanes are fickle and unpredictable. Much like women. They do what they want when they want.

The weather today was unusual. It poured big time non stop with booming thunder and lightning. It was ok by me. We needed the water. A storm like this also cleans things up a bit.

I have always enjoyed seashore storms. When my children were young, we vacationed at the Jersey Shore every summer. I loved the rainy days. The feel, the smell. You could taste the salt air.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

HURRICANE SEASON ALMOST HERE

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What a beautiful morning! The kind that tells us to worry not, a good day is ahead.

This morning’s Key West Citizen had an article on hurricanes. Specifically about shelters available on the mainland for Keys people.

What struck me as interesting was the mention that hurricane season starts June 1 and runs through November 30. When I purchased my Key West home 15 years ago, the hurricane season started  August 1 and ended October 31.

In 15 years, the starting date has moved up 2 months and the closing date extended 1 month.

The reason simple. Hurricanes have come earlier and later over the years.

June 1 we will start worrying. We do every year. The dread is always there. The question. Will it happen this year?

You never know.

I do not walk enough. Not even close. Yesterday, I decided to. I picked the right day. It was 92 degrees! I did walk. In home Depot.

Spent yesterday afternoon working on last night’s blog talk radio show. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou.

Enjoyed an early dinner alone at Hogfish. Me and the newspapers. A lobster role.

Last night’s blog talk radio show was wild and wooly. I may have stepped on some toes.

Normally, I receive 0-3 calls after the show commenting on something I said. Last night there appeared to be a deluge.

Two issues hit sensitive spots and/or interested listeners.

The first involved Oklahoma’s Senator Tom Coburn. No one was on his side. The Senator said yesterday that he was opposed to federal aid for Oklahoma if there were not corresponding federal budget cuts. I stated Coburn was speaking for his ideology rather than his constituents. Not proper, I thought.

The other topic involved the new Vermont death law. Suicide is permissible by those suffering and dying. A doctor may now prescribe the drug to cause death and teach the sick person how to administer it to himself or herself.

I was opposed to the new law. I stood almost alone. I received telephone calls from those approving of death in such a manner. There are many Hemlock SSociety supporters out there.

I look forward to this evening. I am having dinner with Keith and Jen. We are going to Bobby’s new pizza/pasta restaurant on Stock Island.

Enjoy your day!

KEY LARGO TO KEY WEST MARATHON…..WHEW!

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I left home after the Preakness yesterday to go to dinner. There were runners, police cars and people all over. Obviously a marathon. This took place around 7.

As I drove along the beach, I noticed the end of the marathon was Higgs Beach. A big blue tent, a tastey barbecue smell, music and tons of people!

I drove home around 10. Dark outside. Pitch black. There were still runners. In town and out of town. All the way up to Key Haven where I turned off US 1. I suspect some were further  up US 1 still running in.

The runners could not be missed. They all wore blinking lights around their necks. By 10, the pace was slower. Some were walking.

I figured it had to be a long run. I found out this morning how long. From Key Largo to Key West. Wow! One hundred miles, give or take.

The marathon was the Coast Guard Run To Remember. To honor fallen Coast Guardsmen. There were 90 runners entered. That number included some family members of fallen guardsmen.

The Boston Marathon is 26 point something miles. This run was four times longer!

Sloan worked with me yesterday morning. I am in the process of mastering my tablet. We also added apps and subscribed to the New York Times and Key West Citizen.

I am from that generation that is not mechanically inclined. I have to be taught everything in steps. Repeatedly before I grasp what ever it is.

It tires me out!

Tuesday, Sloan starts showing me how to add pictures to this blog. Finally! It will be a major achievement!

Mid afternoon I was upstairs sleeping. Heard noise. Kids yelling, a woman’s voice, a dog barking. It was Lisa and family. They had come to swim. Jake still does not like the water. I doubt he ever will.

I stayed home to watch the Preakness. From the comfort of my bed. My favorite place. I hope the bed is with me in my next life.

I was disappointed Orb lost. I thought he got boxed in and could not get to the front. From news reports this morning, it appears he just did not have it yesterday. Oxbow did. Ran a good race!

Felt like a change of venue for dinner. I wanted to be outside with an ocean view. It was the Southernmost Beach Bar. I sat, enjoyed the scenery and people, had a couple of drinks and a cheeseburger. A perfect evening!

The Beach Bar is the picture on my website. The picture at the top of this blog. That is where I was last night! Sat at the bar.

During the week, a dead crocodile was found in Lower Matecumbe Key. Nine feet long.

Turns out crocs are an endangered species. It is illegal to kill them in the State of Florida. Back in the 1970s there were about 300. Since protected, the croc group is estimated to have grown to between 1,500 and 3,000.

That is 1,500 to 3,000 too many.

There is now an investigation to find out who did the croc in. Whoever did will be arrested, etc.

Sometimes, I do not understand the law. There is no worthy reason why Florida should want crocs running around. They are dangerous. The only reason justifying their protection is that the species was dying out. So what?

Crocs are nasty. Let one of them snap off a person’s arm or chomp on a youngster playing in the backyard. People will be aroused. They would clamor for better protection. They would ask how could the State have permitted this too happen? The cry would be rid us of the crocs!

The problem is it will have been too late. Too late for the person with a missing arm or the maimed child.

Enjoy your Sunday!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

KEY WEST RETURNS TO NORMAL

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The wind and rain two days ago was something. Yesterday some streets remained flooded.  As long as two blocks.

It was more than an average storm. The Key West Citizen reported front page yesterday that 7 inches of rain fell. A lot of rain in a 6 hour period!

I visited Lisa after my tv/internet show. We talked about the previous day’s storm. Jake did not like the rain. Nor the wet grass following the rain. Ties into his dislike for the ocean and my pool, It is obvious Jake is not a water lover. The family tried to give Jake a bath last week. In the tub. He jumped out and ran through the house streaming water and suds behind him.

The Key West Lou Legal Hour went well yesterday morning. I was wound up. There was a lot of interesting material to share.

Two topics were especially well received.

One had to do with the American public being ripped off by the government, drug companies, and big business. The other concerned the Catholic Church and my thoughts as to the areas where the Church was overreaching.

I thought the rip off would make for intersting reading, also. I used the material in writing next week’s KONK Life column.

The Key West Lou Legal Hour is You Tubed. Take a look if you have a few minutes. Go to You Tube and enter Key West Lou Legal Hour.

Spent some time at the Plantation Coffee House after the show. Diane running the shop. Read the newspapers while sipping away.

The Chart Room was my first stop last night. Enjoyed Emily, Sheila, Sean and Katherine. Emily was beat from the big crowd in the Chart Room the night before. Sean and Katherine shared parts of their Hawaii trip from which they had just returned.

Everyone in town is talking about Mark Watson’s performance in Deathtrap at the Waterfront Playhouse. Local newspapers are praising his acting.

I like Mark. A fine human being. Besides acting, his Key West efforts  include being a drag queen, singing, and bartending.

Everyone loves Mark! That’s the kind of guy he is.

I am glad I went to see Deathtrap. Mark was superb! The show runs through next week. I recommend you see it.

I am going to a First Communion party at noon. At Sole’s.

My housekeeper Anna’s daughter Julie is making her First Communion.

Congrats to Julie!

I cannot wait to attend the party. Anna is Polish. She told me they will be serving home made perogies. I love perogies!

Enjoy your Saturday!

GREAT SEA BATTLE

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The Great Sea Battle is tonight! At 7. The waters off Ocean Key House. The Conch Republic and the military forces of the United States. Do not miss it!

The Coast Guard cutter will not be there. Sequestration. There is a replacement. Conch Republic officials have kept the replacement secret. We will find out this evening.

The Key West Lou Legal Hour this morning at 10. An eye opener as I get behind the scenes a bit. Available on television and the internet. Television from Key West through Miami-Dade County on Comcast Channel 87 and U-Verse Channel 19. On the internet world wide. www.weyw19.com

Join me. I guarantee you will enjoy the show.

Yesterday began with a haircut. I thought my beard trim of the day before was well done. Lori did not. She shaped the beard up. Oh, well. A barber I am not.

Then took a walk along Duval. I was downtown and thought I should put the time to good use.

Lunch was at Blossoms. My usual Cuban toast sandwich. Read the Key West Citizen. On page 2 there was a picture of Tennessee Williams standing on the front porch of his home. Williams lived in Key West for more than 30 years. His home was on Duncan Street. Lisa lives on Duncan Street. One block away.

Spent the afternoon fine tuning today’s TV/internet show.

Bocce last night. A disaster. We lost all three games. No one was on, except perhaps Keith who played the first game. It is beginning to look more and more certain that we will not be making the playoffs.

I have a heart doctor appointment at 3 this afternoon. To get the results of my electrocardiogram test.

My friend Anna lives well. She slept in Courmeyeur, Italy last night. In the heart of the Alps. This morning she is driving to Chamonix, France to shop at a fruit and vegetable market. Followed by lunch in Geneva, Switzerland.

What a life!

Enjoy your day!

QUEEN ELIZABETH VISITS KEY WEST

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Yesterday I made mention of the Key West Citizen’s joke/make believe newspaper published each April Fools Day. I reflected on the total smoking ban instituted for Key West 20 years ago. A joke at the time.

Yesterday was April Fools Day and the Key West Citizen did it again! Published a newspaper replete with bogus yet humourous stories. The best one from my perspective was the front page article that British Airways had instituted a direct flight London to Key West three times a week.

The first British Airways jet had landed the day before to fanfare, water streaming, etc. Queen Elizabeth was on the flight. She intended to spend a few days in Key West to encourage tourism between London and Key West.

Convincing! Great imagination! The Key West Citizen is to be complimented.

My afternoon was busy. Not a minute to spare. I was on the go from one to five.

Started with Dr. Jackie Lefferts at 1. The second half of my annual physical. The pushing and prodding portion. A review of my blood results, etc. from the week before.

Two whole hours!

The good doctor said I was in the best shape she had seen in the six years I have been her patient. I hope her observation does not jinx me. I worry about these things.

Then to Lee Nails for a manicure with Tammy. A charmer!

Needed food. Publix was my next stop. The new Publix. We have two Publix stores in Key West at the present time.

The new Publix was too big for me. I could not find anyting. Ergo, I continued shopping at the old one. Till yesterday.

The past few weeks at the old store have been a pain. Too few check out counters open, too few baggers, only one person working the cold cut counter where three had been stationed, the employees less than friendly. I noticed the change. I asked around. Turns out the old store has a new manager. He is tough. Trying to shake things up. Many have quit. Those remaining do not care.

I care about the service I get. So it was off to the new store yesterday where things are normal. The manager there is apparently more tolerant. I will learn where everything is and how to make my way around the place.

There is a lesson to be learned by the new manager. Key West and its people dance to their own tune. Different from anywhere else. Key Westers have to be handled with kid gloves. They are a proud and hard working people. At the same time, a sensitive group. Step on them and they will leave you. That is the way it is.

The Chart Room last night. Me and Peter. We again solved many of the world’s problems. Banks were a major part of the conversation.

I was in the mood for wings. Headed over to Kelley’s. The best wings on the island.

I had not been to Kelley’s in a while. I ordered wings. They were different. Smaller and not as good. Not bad, but no where entitled to the title of best in Key West. I will have to find another wing place. This does not mean I am not deserting Kelley’s. Their food and personnel are still top quality. I merely do not like the new wings and shall order something else the next time I am there.

My blog talk radio show tonight at 9. Join me. I guarantee you will enjoy the show. A quick half hour of interesting chatter.

Tuesday Talk With Key West Lou this evening will include thoughts on wealth disparity, Boston College and birth control, and the Final Four. Plus anything you might wish to discuss. I take telephone calls.

The show can be found at www.blogtalkradio.com/key-west-lou.

Enjoy your day!

 

TRICYCLES / TRIKES

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The streets of Old Town are fraught with danger. Tourists crossing streets without looking, crossing against the light, the trains and buses. One of the worst problems involves bicycles and now tricycles.

Bikes are rented all over Old Town. Key West is one of the best places in the world to ride a bike and enjoy scenery and serenity. Key West provides bike paths on many streets. Some streets are without.

Bicyclists appear to be under he impression that they are the only ones on the street. They forget there is automobile traffic. The bikes travel not on the bike paths and not to the left side. Generally down the middle of the road. Red lights and stop signs are ignored. It is as if they do not exist. Turns are made without signaling.

Driving a car can be a pressure packed experience.

Florida laws state that bikes are to be treated the same as motor vehicles. Bikes must follow the same rules of the road as autos.

Bicyclists do not.

The vacationing society is becoming older. Baby boomers are vacationing. Those older, also. A bike can be a difficult thing to maneuver as one ages. A wobbly ride as opposed to a smooth one. Ergo, the tricycle business has boomed. A tricycle is a three wheeled bike. Also known as a trike.

The tricycles are even a worse danger. They are wider than an ordinary bicycle. Especially the back wheels. More for a car to hit!

I have written this dissertation not because I do not like bicycles and tricycles. I own two bikes. Ride them often. I write because accidents are occurring and more will occur. Simply because bicycle riders are not careful in the operation of their bikes.

Riding a bicycle/tricycle and driving a car have become sad events waiting to happen on the streets of Old Town.

Cold! Very cold during the night and this morning. Fiftys during the evening. Fifty seven at the moment. The high today is projected in the low 60s.

The cold front will have moved out friday and the temperature for friday and the weekend will be in the mid 70s.

Technically, this cold front is not a normal one. Key West cold fronts generally come off the ocean. This one from the northeast U.S. Whenever the weather is extremely cold up north, it stretches down to the Florida keys. We feel the impact. Our temps drop. Though no where near what it does in the north country.

Visited Jake yesterday. He was outside chasing tiny lizards/geckos. What a happy life!

Did Dante’s for lunch. An outdoor restaurant/bar on the water front. I ate at one of the bars. There were heaters overhead so the cold was not a problem.

Afterwards worked on last night’s blog talk radio show. Tuesday Talk With Key West Lou.

Sloan came over and worked with me a while.

The blog talk radio show last night was a good one. Discussed at length two topics. The Cyprus bank situation and the U.S. Supreme Court same sex marriage issue.

For the second week in a row, a screw up occurred. No one could hear me!

I do not know the source of the problem. Those who called in could hear me as they waited. Everyone else, nothing.

Frustrating!

The show is archived and available 24 hours a day. Even though I was not heard at the time of the broadcast, for whatever reason the archive recording was not affected.  Ninety per cent of my listeners tune into the archive and will be able to hear it at any time. Not all was lost.

I have been in communication with the blog talk people. An Allan is supposed to call me to work the problem out.

I apologize to those who could not hear me last night. Disappointing to all of us. Please return next week.

The Key West Citizen reported this morning that the lobster and stone crab fishermen are complaining that this has been one of the worse seasons ever. One fisherman claimed it has been the worst in 40 years.

We Key Westers have been aware of the situation. Fishing friends frequent the Chart Room and Hogfish. May next year be better!

I must go out on the town this evening! I have been in 2-3 nights in a row. Need to have a couple of drinks and enjoy the company of others.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

HAPPY PASSOVER!

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Happy Passover one and all!

This evening my Jewish friends sit down to a special meal. One that recalls the suffering of their people. An interesting evening. A special one. Clothe in warmth and tradition.

I have been favored over the years with having been invited to many Passover seters. The correct word. However, I am not sure I spelled it correctly. If not, my apologies.

Donna and Terri are back in Key West. For Passover. Donna is a tough Jewish Mom. She requires all her children to be with her for Passover. Donna has flown in from Los Angeles. A daughter lives here in Key West. Her three sons Boston, Detroit and I am not sure where else. Tonight Passover will be celebrated at the daughter’s home in Key West.

Jake continues to be the center of attention. He has only been with Lisa and family about two weeks. They are inseparable. Jake is fortunate. He has found a good and loving home. In return he expresses his love for all the family. Me, too. Sometimes.

There seems to be a story a day with Jake. Jake is tiny. From the top of his head to his paws no more than 18 inches. He weighs just under 10 pounds. He fears not! Especially big dogs!

He is very territorial. If a dog walks by, he is at the door on hind legs barking like crazy. Regardless of the dog’s size. The neighbors across the street have two tinier dogs. They bark all the time. Jake does not seem to like them. He returns the barking.

Frankie the Plumber and Lisa are neighbors. Their backyards abutt. All that separates the two yards is a chain link fence.

Frankie has a monstrous dog. Big enough for my grandkids to ride!

Frankie’s dog and Jake are best of friends. No barking. They get up to the fence and rub noses. If one walks one way, the other follows. I find it amazing that Jake does not consider Frankie’s pet a danger or intruder.

I made a mistake yesterday afternoon. Late in the afternoon. I was on my way to Lisa’s for Sunday dinner. I ran into the traffic leaving Boca Chica. Took forever to reach Key West.

After dinner, I stopped at the Chart Room. Sheila was there. It appeared she was waiting for me. She handed me a bag of tomatoes. Sheila has a green thumb. She raises vegetables on her third floor terrace. I look forward to enjoying the tomatoes.

JJ bartending. He introduced me to Andras. In all the time I have been in Key west, this was the first we met.

Andras is around 50. Originally from Argentina, he has lived in Key West many years. He presently waits tables at Antonia’s and Rooftop. He has to be an excellent waiter. Both are top shelf establishments.

At one time, JJ and Andras were roommates. Andras introduced JJ to his now wife.

Key Westers are known as one human family. I break it down further to one family.

Men and women share apartments, condos, homes. Rent is high. Sharing a necessity. The men and women live as brother and sister. Sex  not involved. A very common Key West arrangement.

Mary bartends the Chart Room monday evenings. She has a roommate. You guessed it! Andras! A small world.

JJ told me the Chart Room will be 45 years old June 15. The Pier House is planning a party. A big one! Sounds like a fun time ahead.

I watched the Indiana/Temple game yesterday. The winner is scheduled to meet Syracuse later this week in the Sweet Sixteen. Temple beat Syracuse earlier this season when Syracuse was ranked #3 nationally. A good team.

An excellent game! Temple almost won. They lost the in the last two minutes. The score was 58-52. So it is Indiana for Syracuse in a few days.

Indiana is a #1 seed. Syracuse a #4. It should be an interesting game.

I make no predictions. I thought we would have been out of the tournament by now. It has been a topsy turvy Syracuse year.

What pisses me off are the media commentaries through the weekend and this morning. Every team gets talked about. But Syracuse. It is as if Syracuse does not exist. It is assumed Indiana will beat Syracuse, I suspect.

It is always this way with media reporting and Syracuse. We are the long lost brother and no one seems to care.

I hope Syracuse surprises every one! Beware of sleeping dogs!

Every one I have run into this weekend that had an opportunity to meet the Robinsons were impressed. All saw them as down to earth warm hearted people. All mentioned that the Robinsons appeared to be taken with Key West. Some suspected they might buy here.

For an island that was home to Ernest Hemingway, Tennessee Williams, John Hershey, and other notable writers of all type works, the Robinsons would be a welcome addition.

I spent a bit of yesterday working on tuesday night’s blog talk radio show. Tuesday Talk With Key West Lou. Join me at 9 for what should be an interesting time. One of the topics will be Cyprus and banks. The banks in this instance best described as whores. Interesting chatter awaits. www.blogtalkradio.com/key-west-lou.

Long winded today. Sorry. I had much to share.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

GLORY OF CUBA

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The loss of an hour will bother me for a few days…..such is my nature!

Key West’s daily local newspaper is the Key West Citizen. It regularly prints on page 2 Today in Key West History. Yesterday, it mentioned that in 1896 Juana Borrero Pierra, poetess, Cuban patriot and painter, died in Key West at the age of 18.

My curiosity was aroused. Eighteen? I had never heard of her.

I did some research. Her story is a must to be told.

Juana was Cuban by birth. A writer. A poet. She wrote her first poem at 4. Her first published poem was at 14 in the literary magazine La Habana.

Cubans had desired independence from Spain for years. Minor rebellions would start up and stop. In 1895, Cuban rebels were on the move once again. The fight for independence was reignited.

Juana and her family had to leave Cuba immediately following the failure of the insurgency. They were part of the rebel group.

They fled to Key West.

Juana wrote five volumes of poems. One poem was Los Proscriptos. The poem described her last night in Cuba. Most of her other poems described the pain and loneliness of exile.

Juana’s works became popular with Cuban exiles in the late 1950s and early 1960s who were forced to flee Castro’s Cuba.

Juana died of typhoid fever at the age of 18. She was buried in the Key West Cemetery. Her final resting place became lost, so to speak. It could not be recalled specifically where within the cemetery she was buried. Her place of rest was finally discovered in 1972. Her remains were exhumed and buried in a special vault. The caption on the vault reads Glory of Cuba.

As mentioned yesterday, the reaction to my TV/internet show as to why Obama is so hated were well received. I wrote my thoughts up for publication in next week’s KONK Life. Yesterday people were still talking to me about my Obama dissertation. I decided therefore to publish next week’s KONK Life article immediately on Amazon Kindle. Which I did.

Syracuse lost again! Decimated by Georgetown! By around 20 points.

The second half was especially discouraging. Georgetown made Syracuse look like it had never played the game before yesterday.

I have been saying off and on this season, that Syracuse was not the same quality team as in previous years. I am sorry to say it appears I was correct. I hope I am made to look like an ass and Syracuse wins the Final Four!

Georgetown looked great! Like a #1 seed for March Madness.

There was a touching moment at the end of the game. John Thompson, Jr. sought out and found Jim Boeheim. They embraced. Better said, Big John engulfed little Jim in a bear hug!

Two giants who were there at the beginning of the Big East more than thirty years ago. The end of an era that these two greats helped make successful.

The word has always been that Thompson and Boeheim disliked each other. Vehemently. Not yesterday. If animosity existed, it was wiped away by that embrace and the look on their faces. Two old war horses who had been there and done it.

I watched the game at the Big Ten Sports Pub. I arrived just as the game was to start. Two men were sitting near the door. One asked if I was Key West Lou. They were Gordon from Cape Cod and Charles from Oregon.

Gordon told me he reads my blog every day. He and Charles had come to the Sports Pub to meet me. An honor. I was a bit impolite, however. The game was starting. I said my hellos and thank yous and went to a chair at the bar to watch the game.

I figured I would spend half time with them. It never happened. They left soon after we had our brief conversation.

I would like to sit and chat with Gordon and Charles a bit. Share a drink or two. They are visiting Key West for a month. I am sure Gordon is reading the blog this morning. Gordon, please stop by the Chart Room and visit with me. I am generally there every evening from 5:30 to 7, except thursday when I play bocce. I will not be there tonight, however, I am having sunday dinner with Lisa and the family.

My car was parked in the lot next to the Big Ten Sports Pub. When I left after the game, I noticed five roosters nearby running around and under a pick up truck. Only roosters. No hens. I thought this strange. Roosters are always seen cock a doddling and chasing after hens. The thought occurred…..these roosters must be gay!

I am going to the movies this afternoon. Playing grandfather. There is a remake of the Wizard of Oz. I am going with Robert and Ally and Lisa and Corey.

Enjoy your sunday!