INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY

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Friday again! Time for my TV/internet show. The Key West Lou Legal Hour. Ten this morning my time.

I was going to open with my thoughts on why many hate Obama. I have moved that topic to #2. The opening topic will involve International Women’s Day. Which is today.

Key West has a very limited need at best for such a holiday. Everyone is equal in Key West. A recent study named the four places in America where women earned more than men. Key West was one of them.

The celebration of the holiday in Europe and Asia is interesting. The history of the day likewise.

You can enjoy Louis’ comments regarding International Women’s Day and many other topics by viewing Comcast Channel 87 and U-Verse Channel 19. Television viewing available from Key West northward through Miami-Dade County. The show is also available worldwide via the internet. www.tvchannel19.com.

It was Hogfish for lunch yesterday. I was playing bocce in the evening. When I play, there is no time for dinner. I try to have a larger lunch than normal to compensate.

Debra was hosting. We have become friends. She has worked in television and radio. A very knowledgable person.

It was cool even at lunch time. Hogfish had their overhead heaters on.

Bocce!

First time I played this season. I did good and bad.

We lost the first game decisively. We were behind in the second 14-6. Ended up losing 16-14. We had a run! I believe I blew the opportunity to win with my first shot at the end. I threw an Alice. I was way short.

I left early. I do not know the result of the last game.

Frankie played. First time since his big time heart surgery. He was my partner in the second game.

Frankie is a bit thin. He could use another 20 pounds. He appeared energetic. I worried about him. He was chasing the balls, bending over to pick them up, blasting, and so forth. I told him I would do it. He did it for me back when I was having heart problems. Frankie said no. There was nothing I could do.

My dear friend Pati came over to say hello and chastise me. She is more my liberal than I. Way to the left. She disagreed with recent environmental comments I have made. She will be on me for the next month!

I am going to have a be good to Louis day. After the show, a manicure and pedicure with Tammy! I sometimes think I should have been a woman. Women’s bodies get better attention than a man’s.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

BABE RUTH, JOE DI MAGGIO AND PAUL MC CARTNEY

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An interesting and lively TV/internet show tomorrow morning. How can in not be if the topics include the likes of Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio and Paul McCartney!

The Key West Lou Legal Hour will start with my thoughts as to why many Americans dislike/hate President Obama. In addition to other topics previously mentioned this week, I will touch on Maryland being in the process of abolishing the death penalty, how a 1/4 ounce bat has stopped a major highway construction project, the IRS, first US Marine troops in Vietnam, and Italy’s Berlusconi being convicted yesterday of illegal publication of a wiretap.

Join me for a fast moving and informative hour.

The show is available via television on Comcast Channel 87 and U-Verse Channel 19 from Key West through all of Miami-Dade County. It is available worldwide via the internet. www.tvchannel19.com.

Ten in the morning my time.

I spent the first part of my yesterday working on tomorrow’s show. I was tired afterwards. I lay down on the bed for a few minutes. Woke three hours later. Guess I was tired!

The Chart Room early last night. Around 5. Me, Peter, and Emily. I had time for one drink only. Syracuse basketball awaited.

I mentioned to Peter I saw a gigantic black helicopter with all kinds of guns set down at the Key West Airport the day before. Peter said he had seen several from his perch at Fort Zachery Taylor beach where he spends his days.

While the conversation was going on, I was leafing through the Key West Citizen. Low and behold, there was a picture of one of the helicopters and an accompanying short story. Marine helicopters. Six of them. In Key West for training exercises.

Peter mentioned that at the same time he saw the helicopters, there were what he thought were Navy Seals at the Fort Zach beach. Running up and down the beach doing early morning exercises. He also viewed many rubber rafts just off shore occupied by what he thought were Navy Seals.

I hurried over to the Big Ten Sports Pub. Syracuse and De Paul playing. The game was at 6. I have never watched a Syracuse game at that time. When the mighty fall, all sorts of embarassments are heaped upon them!

Syracuse easily won. About time. Three straight losses leading up to last night’s game. There is only one game left in the regular Big East season for Syracuse. Georgetown on saturday. A must win for Syracuse. To avenge the drubbing two weeks ago and place Syracuse in position for a better seeding in the big tournament to come. March Madness in two weeks!

It is spring break time. About a dozen Georgetown students came in to watch Georgetown play. Georgetown was playing at 7. Most were young ladies. They must have arrived yesterday. All were pale.

They were anxious for Syracuse to lose to De Paul and then to Georgetown again on saturday. They consider Syracuse Georgetown’s #1 rival. Correct they were. Syracuse considers Georgetown in a similar vein.

I stopped at Don’s Place on the way home.

For those of you who are Larry Smith fans, his Dad died yesterday. Larry and Christine are off to Pennsylvania this morning to be with family.

I am beginning to get tired of the cold weather. Another cold front came in around 2 in the afternoon. The temperature dropped in minutes from 75 to 65 degrees. Got down to 61 during the evening. I turned on the heat. Today will be in the mid 60s.

This type cold weather should have been experienced by Key West in December and January. It did not. March is supposed to be sunshine all the time.

Bocce tonight. The Weather Channel says it will be 60 degrees while we are playing. The bocce courts are situated 300 feet off the Atlantic. The cold ocean breeze will add a chill factor.

I know. I should not complain. No one is playing bocce up north.

Enjoy your day!

TUESDAY TALK WITH KEY WEST LOU

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Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou is my blog talk radio show. Tuesday at 9 on the internet.

I did the blog talk radio show last night. That is not what I wish to share.

Statistics are maintained by some one out in the internet world or by the site itself. I receive weekly stats regarding my tuesday night talk show.

The numbers received yesterday blew my mind! Just under 1,800 people listened to the show last week! A WOW!

I have been doing the show 6-7 weeks. The first week I had an audience of 8. In less than two months, that audience has increased to almost 1,800. Dramatic!

The show is received two ways. The show can be listened to live on tuesday evening. It is also archived, if that is the correct word. It is thereafter run for seven consecutive days 2-4 times a day on several different sites. With a click of the button, a person can hear the show whenever they want.

Most of my listeners are from the archived repeat show.

I thank each one of you. Whether on tuesday at 9 or during the week. I was becoming disillusioned with the early numbers. I am reenergized.

My yesterday began with the dentist. Again. I think we have it, however. One more visit should do it. I know, I keep saying it. It has been roughly two years since I started the process. I cannot wait for it to end.

Then another father/daughter sit down with Lisa.

The weather turned yesterday. Warm. Back to shorts and a tee shirt. I walked a bit. The hot sun felt good. I sat by the pool in the sun for an hour reading. I am still trying to get through the Ulysses Grant book. Lengthwise, it reminds me of War and Peace.

I was wide awake after the blog talk radio show last night. I stayed up till midnight working on my friday TV/internet show, the Key West Lou Legal Hour. Came up with goodies like Tehran and its rat problem (comparable to South Florida’s python problem), UN members  drunk at budget meetings, certain toilet paper religiously offensive, and Budweiser’s answer to the claim it has been watering its beer.

Syracuse basketball tonight. De Paul. At 6. I anticipate Syracuse will win. I hope. I do not know any more. I will be at the Big Ten Sports Pub watching.

Some things happen fortuitously. Some coincidentally. Yesterday, I wrote regarding Medicare and hospital cleanliness. Too many nasty bugs in hospitals attacking patients.

This morning, one of the major news items involves hospital cleanliness.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced/warned of a new superbug. An untreatable bacteria. A nightmare bacteria. Resilient to most antibiotics. The bacteria has a high mortality rate.

The short name for the bacteria is CRE.

CRE is an infection which occurs post admission.

So far CRE has only been detected in hospitals and nursing homes. Nowhere outside these two facilities.

Terri White! My Terri White! Reborn in Key West. Terri is doing a performance at San Francisco’s premier night club, Live at the Razz. The show is March 13. Readers and friends in the San Francisco/Bay area, catch her show. She is the best!

Enjoy your day!

 

NOSOCOMIAL

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It’s a word! For real! Refers to an infection acquired in a hospital setting. A post admission complication or problem. The hospital is regarded as at fault.

Permit me to share how I learned about  nosocomial.

Charles Kurault was a famous television commentator and writer. He is now dead. Kurault visited Key West frequently. He was especially fond of Schooner Wharf. He claimed it was the center of the universe.

I do not wish to beconsidered a copy cat. However, that is how I feel about the Chart Room. It is the center of universe. I meet everyone from everywhere. In the process, I learn much from them.

Last night, I met Bill and Kati from Skaneateles. A small upstate New York community sitting on one of the Finger Lakes. Bill is involved in business in some fashion. Kati a nurse.

Kati is a nurse at St. Joseph Hospital in Syracuse. My son was born there in 1959.

Kati does not work as a nurse per se. Her responsibility has to do with hospital acquired infections and their prevention. Along the way, she mentioned Medicare a couple of times. My curiosity was piqued.

The internet is my world. This morning I looked up hospital acquired infections. That is where I first became aware of the term nosocomial. Sounds like it might have come out of the Chart Room after several drinks. It did not.

My Kati inspired research indicated the following.

Everything is about money.

Several years ago Medicare said it would no longer pay for infections acquired in a hospital setting after admission. Things like a staph infection. Medicare’s position was that the problem was hospital caused and the hospital should bear responsibility. Not quite true, but that is how Medicare viewed the situation.

Nor could the hospital charge the patient. The hospital was and is required to eat the charges. What Medicare was actually saying was that the hospitals should keep themselves clean.

Most insurance companies have adopted Medicare’s position.

After doing the digging reflected, I was better able to understand Kati’s job and the necessity for such a position.

The type of infections not payable include urinary tract infections, surgical site infections, bloodstream problems and pneumonia.

Is the Medicare inspired program working? Are hospitals overcoming the problem? It was thought by affecting the hospitals’ pocket books, they would clean up their act.

Hospitals are putting out the effort. The results are not there, however.

A recent New England Journal of Medicine article indicated that non payment had no measurable effect on infection rates in hospitals.

So much for nosocomial.

See what came out of my meeting with Kati at the Chart Room last night!

Enjoy your day! I am not certain of mine. I start with the dentist.

 

 

 

NO DUVAL CRAWL FOR ME

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There is a Key West tradition known as the Duval Crawl. You start drinking at one end of Duval, continue to the other end, stopping at as many bars as you can on the way.

I have never done the Duval Crawl. One reason is I could never drink that much. The other is I do not drink beer. Can you imagine me stopping at 10 or more bars and having a gin at each one?

I was invited yesterday afternoon to join two lady friends for a Duval Crawl. It was 2 pm. They were at La Te Da. La Te Da is located at the Atlantic end of Duval. I declined.

I received a call from them this morning. They had a wonderful time! Ended up at the outdoor Cuban restaurant at Mallory Square dancing. Following which they attended the sunset. The sunset is at the Gulf end of Duval. Their Duval Crawl lasted all of 4.5 hours. Not bad. They both felt good. This morning, not even a little hangover between them.

I intended to be up early yesterday morning. Number one on my agenda was grocery shopping. The cupboard was beyond bare.

I did not make it. I got engrossed in the Sunday talk shows and stayed in bed till one in the afternoon.

My first stop early afternoon was the Plantation Coffee House. I enjoy reading newspapers. Sundays are the best time because there is so much of them. I sipped coffee and read for more than an hour.

At that point, it was Publix time.

The worst time to grocery shop is sunday afternoon at Publix. It is the high traffic time. The aisles are crowded with carts and stockers. Most of the cart drivers do not know what they are doing. They would never pass a cart driving test. They go in every direction and park their carts in the worst places. The stockers are a similar pain. Why Publix has them stocking the shelves on a busy sunday afternoon, I do not know.

It was cold yesterday and last night. As anticipated! 65 was the day high. Last night it dipped into the high 50s. Today it will be in the mid 60s at best. Cold for Key West! The natives wear winter jackets. So do the tourists, if they have one with them.

I have learned something in the eight years I have been living alone. When it is cold, you need a body next to you in bed. Not for sex! To keep warm!

Enjoy your day!

 

 

 

KEY WEST SPORT FIGURES

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Key West has sent forth some prominent sport figures.

One is Boog Powell. One of the ball fields in town bears his name.

Powell played on the 1966 and 1970 Baltimore Orioles World Series championship teams. He was voted MVP in 1970. Powell is known for his first base playing abilities. Later in his career, he was moved to the outfield following which he became a designated hitter.

Boog Powell graduated from the Key West High School. He refers to Key West as his hometown.

Another is David Robinson.

A 6’7″ giant who graduated from Annapolis where he played basketball. Did his stint in the US Navy. Then went on to play his entire career with the San Antonio Spurs professional basketball team.

David Robinson was born in Key West.

Finally, Sergio Sanchez.

Sergio is a Conch. Born and raised in Key West. He pitched for the Key West High School team somewhere back in the 1960s. He was the team’s star pitcher.

In his senior year, Key West and North Miami High School met in the finals of Florida State baseball. The winning team would be State champs.

Sergio pitched for Key West. Steve Carleton for North Miami. Serge and his team won 2-1. Serge recalls the day as the day he beat Steve Carleton.

Serge went on to college and then served two tours of duty in Vietnam. He volunteered for the second tour. He spent his career thereafter as a math teacher in Key West schools. Serge was respected by students and parents alike.

Carleton went on to professional baseball. A successful career. He is a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

Staying with sports a bit longer, Syracuse lost to Louisville yesterday. By 5 points. A few weeks back, Syracuse beat Louisville by 2 points.

It was a good game. Syracuse had its weak moments and that is why the team lost. The loss was the third in a row for Syracuse.

Though hope springs eternal, my gut feeling is that this is not nor will it be a Syracuse year.

Such is life.

The game was at noon. I watched it from the comfort of my bed. Afterwards, I began prepping for my Tuesday night blog talk radio show. Tuesday Talk With Key West Lou.

Last night was big time pleasant. I was out with Dee.

We hit the Chart Room first. Ordered our drinks and opted to leave. Too crowded and too much noise. We walked out drinks over to the Wine Galley. I knew Larry Smith would be playing. The Wine Galley is generally a quiet mellow place.

Larry interrupted his singing to offer his condolences on Syracuse’s loss. He later came over and talked with us. Turns out he and Dee know each other well. Some 20 years. From Larry’s days at La Te Da and hers at Aids Help.

Bill from some where up north was at the Wine Galley. He came over. His son graduated from Syracuse. Bill is a die hard Syracuse fan. We conversed sadly. Commiserated might be the better term.

Dinner was at Hot Tin Roof. Excellent as usual.

Duval was strange last night. Basically deserted. The cold. Around 64 degrees. Tourists were inside the bars and restaurants keeping warm.

Cold outside this morning. Inside, also. Around 62 degrees at the moment. The high today is projected at 66. Long pants time again.

The first thing I am going to do this morning after showering, is go to Publix. The refrigerator is really empty. I could not even enjoy my usual breakfast this morning.

Enjoy your Sunday!

 

TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES

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My friday morning TV/internet show takes quite a bit of time to put together. Some time is devoted to preparation each day. Then the Wednesday or thursday before, several hours.

I enjoy the research. I enjoy putting the show together. I enjoy doing the show.

However problems arise which can be frustrating.

I was 4 minutes into the show yesterday. All of a sudden Jenna burst into the studio. You’re not on….. something’s wrong, she exclaimed.

I sat and waited. Four minutes later Krystal said everything was ok and start the show anew. Which I did.

It was a good show. Many interesting topics. Especially Berlusconi’s wednesday exploits. He knocked Germany’s Merkel. Publically told the whole world she had a “…fat ass” and would probably be a poor sex partner. He did not state the last part as delicately as I have.

The next thing I learn is that a Naples court has issued bench charges against Berlusconi for allegedly paying a 50,000 euro bribe to a politician from another party.

And you thought American politics was rough!

Anyhow…..I do not know if anyone could understand yesterday’s show. I have been told by some who tried to listen that my voice was coming over in a loud screech. So much for the technical difficulty having been resolved.

I apologize. Hopefully it will not happen again.

Key West weather sucks today. It did last night, also. It will till tuesday. It is cold!!! Sixty two degrees at the moment. Longs pants days. Sweater or a sweat shirt underneath a jacket.

Almost like being up north!

Not really.

After my failed show yesterday, I visited Lisa. It was time for another father/daughter talk. We seem to be having many lately.

Last night the Chart Room and Wine Galley.

Chart Room packed with tourists. To cold to be out on the street. I sat at the end of the bar. First talked with Don from Cleveland, then Peter and Don, then Peter alone, then new friend Lynn, then Lynn and Ollie. In between I exchanged a few words with the lovely Emily.

I was hungry. Walked over to the Wine Galley. Had a light meal and enjoyed Larry Smith’s singing. Larry undoubtedly a Key West talent.

Today, Syracuse basketball once again. For sure. Syracuse and Louisville go at it at noon. I am going to watch the game from the comfort and warmth of my bed.

Enjoy your day!

COLD FRONT HITS KEY WEST

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It started yesterday afternoon. A cold front came in. A damp one. It will be with us through monday. High 60s by day, very low 60s by night.

Get out the long johns!

The Key West Lou Legal Hour this morning. Great TV and internet viewing. Topics like Burlusconi saying Germany’s Merkel had a fat ass, the Oreo and Walmart, Bud Beer allegedly watered down, Exxon winning again in court, the Keystone Pipe Line, use and abuse of 911, a lawyer locked in jail, and more.

The show is at 10 this morning my time. It can be viewed on TV on Comcast Channel 87 and U-Verse Channel 19 from Key West through Miami-Dade County. It is also available world wide on the internet. www.tvchannel19.com.

My yesterday began with a visit to Lori for a haircut. She trimmed my beard a bit, also. All five chairs in her beauty parlor were filled. Another sign Key West is experiencing a very good season.

Then to the dentist. For only a five minute adjustment. Or so I thought. I spent 1.5 hours in the chair. No pain. All mechanical. I have another appointment scheduled for tuesday. When will it end?

The diet ended a month ago. However, I have been watching what I eat. As a result, I have lost an additional  4-5 pounds. The effort has been to avoid fats. Blew it yesterday at lunch time!

I have been dying for a Cuban cheese toast with tomato. All that delicious melted butter. Cuban bread made from pork lard. What a marriage of ingredients!

I did it! Magnificent! It had been four months since my last one. If I am to maintain my present body shape, it will have to be four months before I have another.

Bocce last night. Turned into a weather disaster. The cold front moved in dramatically just as we were to start playing. It rained. Lightly, then heavy. You could see the water starting to pool on the clay courts.

The rain was cold. The dampness ate through to the bone. About 15 of us were huddled under a tree with room for five before the games were called.

Everyone went to Don’s Place. Where else? It is like a private club.

I was hungry. Did not eat prior to leaving for bocce. Decided on Hogfish. The rain had stopped.

Hogfish packed also. Another sign the season is upon us.

I grapped a newspaper and sat at the corner of the bar. The lobster bisque is the best. I ordered a bowl to warm up. It was lobster night for me. I followed the bisque up with a lobster roll.

I knew no one. I spoke with no one. I was content with the newspaper.

Again, please watch my show this morning. You will be entertained!

Enjoy your day!

 

 

 

 

 

OUTBACK RIP OFF

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I generally eat at Outback once a week. I have always considered Outback good food at a good price. Last night I discovered the food is still good. However, the price is not. Outback has raised  prices regarding certain items. Perhaps deviously.

I generally order a prime rib. The middle priced cut. Like $16.95. Two vegetables or sides came with it at no additional charge. I always ordered steamed vegetables and a baked potato.

Last night, the steamed veggies and potato cost me an extra $7.95. An $8 increase basically. I was required to order them seperately. What previously had cost $16.95 was now $25. A thirty per cent jump in one shot.

Outback had a new menu. Items had been moved around. I discovered the change/increase before ordering. Was I to beat on the young waitress? I ordered and paid. However Outback has lost me as a regular customer.

Previous to Outback, I had been at Don’s Place and the Chart Room.

The remnants of Wednesday golf were still at Don’s. Don, Tom and Boomer. Hershel, also. We chatted. Bocce primarily. Bocce season is upon us once more. We play tonight. It will be my first time in the new season. I missed last week because of the grandkids and Wizard of Oz.

The Chart Room walls were splitting. So many people! No question. It is the height of the season.

I talked with Peter and Emily.

I spent the afternoon writing next week’s KONK Life column. The Resignation of Pope Benedict XVI. Written from my perspective. Suggesting the whys involved. My premise was to the effect that the Catholic Church is presently facing its own hell.

Sequester/sequestration is all over the news. When does it actually go into effect? Today at midnight? Tomorrow at midnight?

Neither.

I researched the question. Turns out the answer is two pronged. It involves the President signing and a fixed time for his signature.

Sequestration goes into effect when the President signs a document so stating. The President is required by law to sign the document no later than 11:59 friday evening.

Interesting.

The Republican and Democratic leaders are meeting with the President tomorrow during the day. Last minute again. Even if they agree to something, I assume it will have to be approved by the House of Representatives and the Senate. Can’t be done prior to 11:59 friday night. Most of them are not in Washington. They are home. Our legislators only work three days a week. Tuesday through thursday.

A contemporary died yesterday. Van Cliburn. He was 78. I am 77.

No one had heard of Van Cliburn till he won the 1958 Moscow Competition for concert pianists. He was 23 at the time. A big deal winning. The U.S. and Russia were at each other’s throats. It was surprising an American won.

Van Cliburn received a ticker tape parade up Broadway when he returned home to the United States. Though his modus operandi was conservative piano playing, he acquired rock star status world wide.

I sometimes think I am losing it mentally. In yesterday’s blog, I said Syracuse was playing Connecticut last night. Syracuse did not play Connecticut. They did not play anyone. There was no game scheduled.

Tomorrow the Key West Lou Legal Hour. My TV/internet show. Ten in the morning my time. Join me. As usual, it will be terrific. Such modesty! But it is good!

Another crazy week. I shall be hitting on sequestration and the Pope, of course. Plus the hot air balloon accident in Egypt, Michelle Obama, the results of the Italian election, the Walmart employee who ate one bag of Oreos and has been charged with a felony, E. Howard Hunt’s death bed confession, the claim Budweiser being watered down, and more.

Please join me.

The show is available on television from Key West north through Miami-Dade County on Comcast Channel 87 and U-Verse Channel 19. Also on the internet world wide. www.tvchannel19.com.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

 

 

BEER WATERED DOWN

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It is all over TV and the internet this morning! It is the news of the day. Even pushed sequestration aside.

The report is that several lawsuits have been filed recently against Anheuser-Busch alleging the Company has been watering down certain of its beers since 2008. In other words, what was in the bottle was not as potent as the alcohol content on the label.

The news definitely will be of interest to Key Westers. My sense has always been that Anheuser-Busch’s Budweiser was the beer of choice in Key West. Budweiser is one of the brands it is claimed was watered down.

The topic of choice today on the golf course, at Don’s place and the Chart Room, will be the claim Bud is watered down.

It was blog talk radio time last night. The Tuesday Talk With Key West Lou show.

The numbers post show indicate a definite increase in listeners. Still the call ins are not there. I had only one last night.There is an old song that has a line…..all alone by the telephone. Please, do not make me an old maid!

I had planned on writing a bit this morning re Key West weather. It has been absolutely perfect the past few days. Hovering around 85 degrees. Even hit 87 two days ago.

Not this morning. Raining a steady drizzle and damp. It is rare for Key West to feel damp, rain or no rain.

Strange weather this year.

I spent yesterday afternoon researching. I got tired after a while. Went outside and laid on a lounge for about an hour. I have not been getting enough sun lately. I am beginning to look pale. Like tourists their first day in Key West.

Syracuse basketball again tonight. We play Connecticut. Connecticut beat us two weeks ago. They should not have. But did. I suspect Syracuse will win tonight. The team has to make up for that defeat and the beating Georgetown gave them over the weekend.

We shall see. I will be at John Lukas’ Big Ten Sports Bar watching the game.

Enjoy your day!