HEADDRESS BALL OR TUESDAY TALK

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A major event this evening as part of Fantasy Fest is the Headdress Ball. I have attended several times over the years. Under a big tent, always a fun event.

My blog talk radio show is also this evening. I will not be at the Headdress Ball. I will enjoy what I will be doing, however. Hosting Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou.

Half the show will be dedicated to everyone’s friend, Monsanto. Some items you already know. Some not yet. The discussion will be revealing.

Other topics include the Putin/Berlusconi relationship, why bank systems are being hacked, the Catholic Church’s synod which rejected a more friendly relationship with gays and divorcees, and more.

The show is at 9 my time. Join me for a fast paced one half hour. www.blogtalkradio/key-west-lou.

Fantasy Fest is in full swing. A ton of events this evening. Many risqué. I have already suggested the Headdress Ball, which does not fall into the risque category. There is also Capt. Tony’s Plaid Party. Don’t bring your mother. Also, a relatively new event. I think it started last year. The Men of Labare Whitey Party. It is at Bare Assets. Instead of women stripping, men will be doing it. An evening for the ladies to whoop it up.

My favorite candidate for Queen won. ML was instrumental in helping to raise $235,000 for AIDS Help. ML’s real name is Mary-Lynne Price. Probably only a handful are aware. She is well known in the Key West community as ML.

Last night was dinner at Roostica with Jennifer and Keith. Two great young people. Hard workers.

We all screw up. Whether our fault or some other person’s. President Obama was in New York City last month. He and Michelle were having dinner at a fancy restaurant. When the bill came, Obama attempted to pay with a credit card. His credit card was rejected! The card is seldom used. The President’s residence is Washington and it was being offered in New York City. The company thought a fraud was being perpetrated.

Michelle’s card was good.

Enjoy your day!

 

HARPOON HARRY’S, CHART ROOM & HOT TIN ROOF

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Sorry about getting the blog out so late this morning. I had an early morning appointment with Dr. Lefferts re my back. Steroids obviously worked. Everyone happy. My residual continues to be the swollen ankles. They are down about 50 percent. I am to continue on the water pills till completely down.

Yesterday found me in three of my favorite Key West places. Harpoon Harry’s, the Chart Room, and Hot Tin Roof.

Wednesday lunch at Harpoon Harry’s is becoming a habit. A good one. The wednesday special is turkey. A Thanksgiving type meal. I especially enjoy the gravy. I ask for extra.

Visited with Emily for a while in the early evening at the Chart Room. Just me and her. No other customers. Caught her at an in between slow time.

Dinner at the bar at Hot Tin Roof. A terrific meal! Rib eye. Melted in my mouth! Joseph was good company, as usual. He is a fan. Especially of the KONK Life columns. He particularly enjoyed last week’s Al Qaeda…..The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight.

I slowly downed a snifter of Southern Comfort at the end of the meal. I am not a Southern Comfort drinker at all. However, my Mother was. Her birthday was this past week. She would have been 100. Unfortunately, she died at 75. I drank the Southern Comfort and enjoyed thoughts of the first woman I loved.

In between lunch and dinner, I walked the waterfront. Stopped into Turtle Kral. Looking for Peti. No Peti.

Ran into Guy and ML. Both busily working on ML’s race to be Fantasy Fest Queen. Tension showing. A tough haul running for the position. I am confident ML will win. The Coronation is next friday evening. The day Fantasy Fest begins.

Crashed during the afternoon. Lay on the bed. Next thing I knew three hours had passed. A good sleep.

On tuesday’s blog talk radio show, I commented on monday’s Supreme Court decision re same sex marriage. Gays were all excited. The decision a major step from their perspective. I took the position that their joy was premature. Very premature. Primarily because the Supreme Court avoided rendering a decision that would have made same sex marriage Constitutional throughout the United states.

I warned that those opposed to same sex marriage would be coming out of the woodwork. They would gear up to continue their fight even further. I suggested that 20 years from now it would still be a problem as abortion is.

It only took 24 hours for the fight to go to a new level. Supreme Court Justice Kennedy issued an order first continuing the ban in two States and later in the day issued an order making the stay applicable to only one State.

The fight ain’t over yet!

Bocce tonight.

Enjoy your day!

 

LARRY SMITH TONIGHT AT LA TE DA

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Big night ahead! Larry Smith opens at La Te Da at 9. Everyone will be there. A new gig and a new opening for Larry.

See you there!

My day started yesterday at 5 am. As I explained in yesterday’s blog, I was like four days late in getting my KONK Life column to Guy. Rose early and got it done! A lesson learned. Get it out on time next time.

The column is interesting. It concerns banks and a new game they are playing…..de-risking. I describe it as whorish conduct.

I spent part of the afternoon at Don’s Place watching pro football. Larry was there. We chatted a bit. He asked why I was not at Unity Church in morning. He played. Next week perhaps, I told him.

Aaron stopped by. The Jewish holidays are over. For some reason I cannot fathom, Sy Turret has been on my mind this past week. Of the Jewish faith. He transplanted from New York City to Utica. Sy was a court stenographer. We were close friends for many years. A better person could not be found. Sy has been dead at least 10 years now.

Marty Leshaw is a transplanted New Yorker to South Florida. A court reporter, also. He and Sy were cut from the same bolt of cloth. Typical New Yorkers. Loud, boisterous and friendly. I believe Marty and I became good friends because he reminded me of Sy so much.

I become more impressed with Don as time goes on. He has become a Key West icon. The world can be found at Don’s Place. Many stop in to meet him. He has become Joe of Sloppy Joe’s and Captain Tony. It is his time.

The five days of steroids got rid of my back/leg pain. However, it created another problem.

I have heart problems. Occasionally my ankles swell. Not healthy. Five years ago, Dr. McIvor got the problem under control. I no longer needed water pills. I was proud of my thin ankles. The steroids accumulate sodium in the body. My ankles are big again! It has been a week since I stopped taking the steroids. I am back on water pills. The ankles have yet to budge. Could be a real problem. The last time I had swelling, it took a whole year to correct.

The water pill encourages bathroom activity. I woke in th middle of the night. My bladder needed emptying. I have lived in my Key West home for 16 years. I walk from my bed to the master bathroom at night in the dark. No problem. Till last night. I walked into the door jam instead. Head first!

The King and Queen race will soon come to an end. Please remember to do your thing for my friend ML.

Fantasy Fest itself is around the corner. Eleven days to Goombay.

Enjoy your day!

ML PARTY AT THE GALLEON

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I finally made an ML fundraiser. ML is running for Fantasy Queen. The winner is determined by who raises the most money for AIDS Help. There are several candidates and big money involved.

ML’s party was at the Galleon outside bar. The place was packed!

I got to see JJ. My old friend from the Chart Room. He is now bartending at the Galleon.

Howard Livingston and wife Cindy were in attendance. Howard was performing. Howard and I have been friends for 16 years since first we met at the bar at Mangoes when we both were involved with house remodeling and construction. A nicer person does not exist!

Relatively new found friend Susie was busy working. She is one of ML’s co-chairs. Susie bought and brought a number of my books. The World Upside Down was an auction item. I did some book signing before they were put out.

Met Fiona and her brother Johnny. Fiona was a law office administrator for 20 plus years somewhere on the Jersey Shore. She has retired to Key West. Has an apartment somewhere off Duval behind the Grand. Her brother Johnny is from Chicago. Spends some of his Key West days working at Home Depot.

Key West publisher Guy deBoer and I chatted a while. I like Guy. He works hard. It is the only way.

Guy publishes KONK Life where my weekly newspaper column appears. More importantly, Guy and ML are a couple. For several years.

Met a lot of nice people. Unfortunately and apologetically, I cannot remember all their names.

Though it is obvious, I want everyone to be aware. ML is my choice for Fantasy Fest Queen.

My day started with the x-ray I was supposed to have had wednesday. Purpose to determine if I have any disk impingement which is causing my sciatica type pain.

Then to Don’s Place. I had a meeting. Great atmosphere in which to conduct business. My desk is the Truman corner of the bar. Hemingway had his Sloppy Joe’s. I have Don’s Place.

I spent the afternoon working on tuesday evening’s blog talk radio show. Preparation is everything. I came across an interesting item involving bigotry. The New York Times’ David Brooks commented on the topic recently.

First, Louis’s recollection. There was a time in the 1950s and 1960s, and probably before, when Jews and Gentiles rarely married. A religious thing. Primarily from the Jewish side. A parental no no. I had a law school Catholic friend who married a Jewish lady. They were head over heels in love. The marriage lasted three years. The family pressures were too much.

Now comes Brooks’ item. It involves political bigotry. He wrote that in 1960,  5 percent of Republicans and 4 percent of Democrats said they would be “…..displeased if their children married someone of the opposite party…..By 2010…..numbers had jumped to 49 percent and 33 percent.” No wonder the two parties cannot get along! The dislike/hatred runs deep!  So much for the enlightened era we live in.

I had some time to kill before the ML party. I stopped into the Island Dogs Bar for a drink. First time in several years. A cute place on Front Street. The building sits next to the Pier House parking lot. The Bar is primarily frequented by tourists.

Colorful! Pleasant! I sat and watched happy tourists come and go. The Islands Dog Bar provides them with a a perfect space.

Island Dogs Bar is owned by world famous Jim Croce and Dave Thibault. Dave is Michael and Nancy’s son in law. He has made a huge success of the Island Dogs Bar. They are very proud of him.

I like Michael. In another time, we played golf together He bartends for Don. Nancy was Don’s business manager for years. She is now involved in the Fausto operation.

I like Michael. Love Nancy.

Tonight, Syracuse/Notre Dame at the Meadowlands. Syracuse will lose. Unfortunately. However, that is the way it is. I plan on watching the game at Don’s Place.

I am into my last two days of steroids. What happens when I go off?

Enjoy your day!

 

A MIXTURE

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There is much I wish to share this morning. Ergo, the title A Mixture.

My back! No better. In fact, worse. It started up again yesterday morning. I am taking pills. Gone to a heating pad. Last night, I said screw it! I had been in for several days. I decided to go out and have a few gins. I figured gin would take care of the pain.

After the first two at Don’s Place, the pain was gone. I had one or two more to make sure. Then to Tavern ‘n  Town for dinner. And a couple more medicinal gins. I know. Too much. Especially when driving.

Whatever, I was painless till two this morning. I woke with big time pain. Lower back around to the front. Down the side of my left leg to the knee. My hip was especially sore.

I was not going to drink in the middle of the night. Popped some Motron and got out the heating pad. The heating pad is almost instantaneous relief. However when the pad is turned off, the pain returns equally as fast.

I continue to hurt this morning. I have the heating pad propped between my lower back and the chair. Great! However, I can only take so much. I am beginning to cook my back end!

Don’s Place was not my first stop. It was Bottle Cap. ML is running for Fantasy Feat Queen. I support her. I had not attended one of her fund raising events yet. I decided to do so last night. At Bottle Cap.

There was a fund raiser. Not for ML, however. The Shriners were having a party. I knew no one. Smiled, said hello, and left without even having a drink.

Then to Don’s Place. Two fast pain relievers as previously indicated. Sat with Joanie, Jimmy and John. Stayed quite a while enjoying their company. Michael was bartending.

Football season has arrived. Much of the bar talk concerned football. With a little bocce thrown in. John had picked 12 out of 14 college winners last week. He asked my thoughts for this week. I told him with a 12 out of 14 record, you need no help from me!

Don fixed the air conditioning in the bar. What a relief! Thank you, Donald!

Tavern ‘n Town was quiet. Very few people. I was glad. Last month it was packed every time I went. I sat a the bar, spread out the newspapers and had some more pain killing medicine.

Mike Emerson was entertaining. Great music! I was humming to myself as he was playing. Manager Judy there. She did double duty last night. Played bartender and then returned to the floor as manager. She changes her clothes in between.

I never went out on the back deck this week. I should have. When I stepped outside yesterday, the pool was only about one third full. A leak! The man who fixes pool leaks came. He has been doing it for thirty years. He wears the black diving suit which also keeps him warm. Uses air tanks. The leak was in the deep end and he had to go underwater.

I am refilling the pool now. I am going to have a hell of a water bill this month!

There is a new U.S. Navy vessel in Key West for the weekend. It is the USS Winston S. Churchill. A guided missile destroyer. Over 200 sailors aboard. All will be on liberty in Key West. Enjoy, guys!

I read a front page article in the Key West Citizen this morning that disturbs me. Apparently birds nest in rooftops of commercial buildings in Key West. Probably all over the United States. Probably all over the world.

The law is that if a roof is under repair and a nest is discovered, construction must stop. Most of the birds are a protected species. A mid keys biologist wants Key West to adopt an ordinance requiring the contractor to check first before construction begins.

An example of over government. I was an environmental attorney. Protect water and air. I had no problem with that. However when it came to protecting some species of small animal, fish or vermin, I drew the line. As protection of this nature generally increases the cost of doing business dramatically, I was opposed. Everything in life should be a balance.

Back to Ferguson, Missouri for a moment. I listened to Attorney General Holder’s report to the nation this week. I was not impressed. His office  is examining the situation and the Ferguson police department in general for civil rights violations. There needs to be a federal investigation of the shooting itself. I do not trust the local authorities. On the other hand, I am not sure the federal government has jurisdiction to investigate the shooting as an isolated incident.

The US Post Office announced it is making price cuts. Significant ones. Hopefully to increase business. Fed Ex and UPS are upset. I use Fed Ex. However the price of doing business with them has risen to the point that it is burdensome. US postal authorities have come up with a good idea. A pleasure to see the price of a service/commodity go down instead of up.

I spent more time yesterday researching income inequality. Sounds boring. Not. I am excited and cannot wait to share with you what I have discovered in next week’s KONK Life column.

I said at the beginning this blog would be a mixture. It is. It is also longer than usual. For which I apologize.

Enjoy your day!

ML FANTASY FEST QUEEN

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ML is a candidate for Fantasy Fest Queen. I think she is a winner. A charming woman. She has a good business sense. Beat cancer several years ago. Is well liked. More importantly, she and Guy de Boer are a pair. The thing I like most about ML is that she brings out the best in Guy.

There is an AIDS/ML fundraiser friday night. From 8-11 at th Key West Pub. The theme of the event is the 1970’s. Guests are asked to dress as their favorite 1970’s sitcom character.

A guaranteed fun time for a good cause!

My yesterday began late morning. Needed a few things from K-Mart and Office Max. Decided on an early lunch. Cheeseburger in  my head. Drove to 5 Guys in Winn-Dixie Shopping Plaza. As I was walking in, I saw the ice cream store next door. Opened about a year ago. The hell with the cheeseburger I thought. Time for a chocolate milk shake!

I generally only drink chocolate shakes when on vacation. I overdid them in Greece. especially Santorini. Since no trip this summer, it has been a year since I enjoyed a chocolate shake.

I got one at 2 Scoops. Heaven blessed me! So good!

2 Scoops is small but well decorated and clean inside. Take the kids! A good place for ice cream!

My physical was at 1. Took 2 hours. On top of the 2 hours last week taking all kinds of tests. This was with the good Dr. Jackie Lefferts herself. A thorough physician.

I am going to live.

Got home and reviewed my material for last night’s blog talk radio show. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. The show went well. A bit of Syria, a baby factory story, and much about police officers. Closed with some food stories re cheese and butter products coming into the U.S. from China. A full evening.

Before the show, I had dinner at the my usual tuesday night haunt. Roostica. Two nights in a row. I enjoyed an order of lemoncello wings. You have not tasted wings till you have tried Roostica’s lemoncello ones.

Yesterday was primary day here in Florida. Key West is in Monroe county. Covers the keys all the way up to the mainland and then more.

I sensed driving around yesterday that the primary would be light. Very few supporters on corners holding signs and waving.  The turn out was small. Depending on who is correct, it was either 27, 30 or 33 percent. The results provided no surprises.

What  did surprise me was the Key West Citizen describing many races as close. 55-45 percent is not close.

Guns, guns, guns. No matter how we cut it, we are a gun crazy society. An occurrence yesterday proves it.

The place a driving range in Arizona. A 9 year old girl was being given lessons on using a Uzi. Her instructor was 39 and duly qualified. One of the rounds was too much for the 9 year old to handle. The gun recoiled and kicked back. Shot the instructor in the head. He died.

Trauma to the instructor. Life time trauma for the 9 year old girl.

Enjoy your day!