Sunday has once again come and gone.

It was a good day.

I did basically nothing!

I watched Meet the Press. Hillary Clinton for the whole hour! Interesting! She is a dynamic figure!

Then Lisa and the family came over. It was swim time.

In the pool and in the ocean. Robert and Ally were terrific! They are fish! Take after their father Corey who dives for a living as an archeologist at Mel Fisher Museum.

Lisa laid out a couple of big bath towels on the deck. She made some sandwiches and cut up some fruit. We had a picnic sitting there on the towels!

After they left, I spent the rest of the afternoon in bed watching TV and snoozing.

Last night I had dinner at Lisa’s. Read the Sunday papers afterwards. Articulated with Robert and Ally.

And then home to an early bed.

Truly a day of rest!

Required by the mind and body on occasion!

Yesterday it was for me!

It is a glorious Sunday morning! Bright sun, moving water, little humidity.

I slept late again. It is getting to be a habit.

Marty is up in Hallendale for the weekend. He just telephoned me. “Where is the blog? It’s after 9!” Actually, he woke me!

I went to the Shrimp Shack for lunch. Fish and chips. Great fish! Large chunks, lightly deep fried! And the fries were a wow! Big and salty!

I know. A bit of a cholestrol trip!

All the shrimp boats were in. And I mean all of them! It had to be the weather. There was no room to park another boat. Nor was there an ability to see open water beyond the boats. That is how packed it was!

The Shrimp Shack is also a fresh fish market. Fish markets have tons of old newspapers to wrap the fish in. I forgot to buy a newspaper. So I walked around till I found a stack of old newspapers.

The newspaper I selected was several days old. The main article had to do with the 40th anniversary of man setting foot on the moon.

The most spectacular thing I have seen or experienced in my life!

I remember the evening well.

It was later in the evening. We were all glued to the TV.

My four children were between 5 and 10 years of age. They were sleeping as the landing approached. I woke them and herded them into the family room.

My sense was this was a monumental moment! I wanted them to be a part of it! To share it! To be able to tell their children some day that they were there, so to speak!

I explained to them what was about to occur.

They are all adults today with children of their own. None remember that evening.

I tried!

I do remember, however. The fact that we were able to fly to the moon and actually have two men walk on its surface that evening excited the hell out of me! On top of which the whole thing was being transmitted electronically back to earth as it happened!

A big night! A proud one for all Americans at the time. And still a proud moment for us!

Last night I skipped the Chart room and stopped into Don’s Place.

Don was there! I had not seen him in 5 weeks.

And I am happy to say there was a beer sitting in front of him! He’s back!

My bocci partner Jules and her husband Jim were there also. Plus their Tampa friend Maria. Sitting on the same stools I had left them on the night before. Do not get the wrong impression. I am sure they went home and about in between.

I chatted with Maria for a while. A lovely person! Personally and appearance wise.

Maria is 41. She is a special education teacher back in Tampa. Loves her job! It was easy to see how good she must be at it.

Afterwards, I decided it was time to do the Duval crawl and see the Hemingway look alikes.

The tourist end of Duval was blocked off from traffic. Had been that way all day. Will be that way all day today, also.

It was a street party! Stands selling all kinds of things from food to jewelry. Tons of people milling about.

And Hemingway look alikes up the ass! That is the only way I can describe it. All white bearded and beer bellied!

A sight to see!

I stayed a while. Drank a bit too much. Never ate. A big head this morning!

But it was a good time!

Enjoy Sunday! For whatever reason, I consider it the best day of the week! Part of it is Meet the Press, the Sunday papers and Sunday dinner with Lisa, Corey and the grandkids!

Slept late this morning.

Woke to big time thunder. Loud and continuous. It’s going to rain soon.

Very humid this morning. I have the window open so I can see the water and the lone palm tree. The hot air is blowing in.

Yesterday can best be described as a pleasant one.

I lunched at the Paradise Cafe. Cuban toast with melted cheese and tomato. Read the papers.

Then to Borders for a couple of hours. I am into a book about the last 30 days of World War II. I keep drifting from the Truman book. Too long. Like War and Peace. Someday I will finish it, however.

Lisa, Corey and the grandkids came over around 5. Thanks to Robert I now have bloodied sheets!

Robert and Ally love to jump up and down on my bed and roll around. Robert had scrapped his knee earlier in the day. The band aid came off. So did the blood. All over my white blanket and light blue sheets! How am I going to explain that one to the cleaning lady?

The Chart Room was busy again last night. The Golden Girls were in. Jane and Debbie. Che, Marty, David and Sean also. Great conversations, back and forth. A person could never write the dialogue I hear there every night.

Every one has been reminding me that I left out one of the “regulars” who has a name plate and hole on the bar rail. May I be forgiven!

He is Panamah Peat. Yes, I spelled his first name correctly. It has an h at the end.

Panamah is still alive. He makes jewelry. Occasionally he works at Mel Fisher Museum, also.

I have never met him. He apparently does not frequent the Chart Room as much as he once did.

Marty and I had dinner at the bar at Square One. It was good to see Patticakes and Michael and other friends. A great meal, also! It was supplement my iron intake time last night. A steak and spinach!

On my way home I decided to stop at Don’s place. Don returned Wednesday from a month long vacation at some lake in Indiana. I had not seen him yet.

He was not there. Means he is not drinking.

Don gives up alcohol consumption for the whole month of his summer vacation every year. It is dry out time, as he desccribes it. I am assuming he is continuing the healthy life for a few days longer. Worry not, he will return!

My bocci partner Jules was there with her husband Jim. Also, Jules’ childhood friend Maria who is visiting from Tampa. Kurt was bartending. Good people! I enjoyed the company of all!

The night got even better after I fell asleep. I woke in the middle of the night. The TV was on. And so was Mamma Mia!

I loved that movie! Meryl Streep was terrific! It was a happy film!

I caught the last 15 minutes of it!

I worked hard on some paper work this week. I plan on a Louis weekend. Yesterday is a reflection of what today and tomorrow will be. I may go onto Duval to see all the Hemingway look alikes walking around. Tomorrow there is an art show at Green Parrot. Who knows! What ever the mood and the moment direct!

This being retired can be difficult!

Enjoy your day!

Good morning!

I slept a bit late. Good!

The sun is up. A slight breeze. The water creeping along.

Another great Key West day in the making!

I had a late lunch yesterday at Hogfish. It was quiet at the time. A cool breeze was blowing in. I took my time and read the newspapers.

The Chart Room was crowded again last night. Marty, David, Che, Sean, Captain Peter and many more. The conversations are wild! I sometime wish I could record them to report later on word for word. The Chart Room and its guests would probably make a good plot for a TV series.

Thursday night has become Maine lobster time at Kelley’s Restaurant. Marty, Che and I hit the outside bar for dinner. A great meal and a good time!

This is Hemingway Look Alike Weekend in Key West! There will be Hemingways everywhere! The contest is an annual big time event. Although island wide, the primary action is at Sloppy Joe’s.

Enjoy your day!

I was correct in the prediction of my golf game yesterday.

I sucked!

I had not played in 3 weeks. I was really bad on the front nine. No swing! I was lucky to get passed the ladies’ tee on my drives!

Then things started turning on the back. The swing returned. I started striking the ball well. Well enough to win $2 overall!

I played with Larry, Yankee and Randy. No one was really a big winner or loser. It was that kind of day.

The Chart Room was a bit busy last night. Marty, Captain Peter, Dan and Che.

The big item of discussion was Che and the moose.

Che had killed the moose the night before!

Chart Room walls and ceilings are full of all kinds of novelities and writings. Most if not all of which contribute to the folklore of the room.

Last year at Fantasy Fest, some one brought in a plastic inflated moose head. And hung it on the wall!

It did not belong. It was out of place. But, there it stayed.

Che loves the Chart Room. He is one of its oldest attendees. He considers himself the room’s protector as well as keeper of its folklore.

Apparently the plastric moose head has been bugging Che.

Two nights ago he took the bartender’s fruit knife and went over and stabbed the moose head!

The moose head is no more! Che was strutting last night! Proud of his accomplishment!

Only in Key West, my friends! Only in Key West!

It’s 5 am. I am up early.

Very dark outside.

I can hear the water.

Strange weather yesterday. There was a storm around noon. Lasted a couple of hours.

It was almost like a hurricane. Dark, thunder, lightning, wind. And rain!

The storm was not predicted.

Summer is the rainy season in Key West. Normally it rains for about 10 minutes every afternoon around 1 o’clock. Not this summer. Either it does not rain at all for several days or we get a storm. Storm times are not predictable. It will rain in the morning. Sometimes at dinner time. There is no pattern this year.

A scientist I am not, but I think it all has to do with global warming!

I had a very pleasant evening. Kate Miano had a small dinner party to which she invited me. Good company! Good food!

Her Italian extraction was evident. Pasta with meatballs and red sauce. She cooked the sauce herself. Made the meatballs also. Her mother taught her well.

Kate is reigning Queen of Fantasy Fest. She had her cohort Captain Timothy, the reigning King, at dinner also. Bob was there. Celeste also. Celeste is a partner in Mama’s Flowers. Her partner Danya did the florals for my daughters Lori and Lisa’s weddings several years ago. Good people!

The wine flowed. Second helpings of pasta were in order. And ice cream for desert!

I will have to run 5 miles this morning! Only joking! Run I do not!

However, I do play golf. And today is Wednesday. So I will be teeing off at 9 this morning. That will be exercise enough!

I have not played in 3 weeks. So my poor game excuse is already out there!

Enjoy your day!

Yesterday was another great Key West day!

Perfect weather! Happy people!

I met Marty and Mick Barnes at the outside bar at Southernmost yesterday afternoon. Marty you know. Mick is a Key West lawyer. Perhaps the best litigator in the keys. He recently obtained an $8 million result for a client after 2 trials and at least one appeal.

We chatted and enjoyed the ambiance. The setting at Southernmost is perfect. The pool was full with frolicking vacationers. The laid back atmosphere was contagious.

Driving home, I had the radio on. The station was playing a rerun of a Frank Mc Court interview made a few years ago. Mc Court is a widely respected author. Wrote Angela’s Ashes which won a Pulitizer Prize. He died last week.

Mc Court was talking about his never having gone to high school, but receiving a college degree. An intersting tale.

Mc Court was born into abject poverty. Born in 1930 in Brooklyn, the depression wreaked havoc on his family. His father took all of them back to his roots. Ireland! Mc Court’s Dad thought things would be easier there. They were not. The depression was worse. And the family was stuck there!

Mc Court did grammar school. Never high school. He had to work to help the family. To survive.

At 19, he returned to the United States. He did manual labor. Like loading and unloading ships at the New York docks.

He had a thirst for knowledge. Became a big time reader. He consumed Henry James and Dostoyevsky. Heavy stuff!

He decided he wanted to go to college. However he never went to high school. He figured it would take 5 years of night school to get his high school diploma. He did not have the time!

So he visited the admissions office at NYU. The admissions clerk was concerned he had not attended high school. A commotion was developing. The Dean of Admissions went to the counter to see what was going on. Mc Court explained to her he wanted to go to college. She said you have to go to high school first. He said I do not have the time. She asked what qualified him. He said I read. She asked what. He said Henry James and Dostoyevsky.

The end result was that Mc Court was conditionally admitted to NYU as a freshman conditioned on his maintaining a B average his first year. He did and subsequently was awarded his college degree. Without ever having attended high school!

Mc Court spent the next 30 years in high schools. As a creative writing teacher. He said the first time he ever set foot in a high school was the day he went to work as a high school teacher after obtaining his college degree.

An interesting success story!

Last night started at the Chart Room, as usual. I looked at the holes in the bar and pondered. I probably will every time I am there from now on.

Marty and I decided to eat at the bar at La Trattoria. Kathy’s night to bar tend. We like Kathy!

The bar was packed. Many interesting local people.

Paul Toppino was there with a lovely young lady. Paul always is with a lovely young lady! But this one was special. He introduced me. It was his daughter.

Paul is a Key West icon. His family is deeply imbedded in the roots of Key West.

Paul’s grandfather built US 1. All of it! He became enamoured with Key West and stayed and raised a family here. Paul is son of the son. Paul and his brothers are engaged in all sort of construction work now in the Key West area.

A good person. I am proud to call him friend.

Across the bar was Jean Thornton. What a woman!

In 1996 Jean and her girl friend Debbie Sexton were in Key West on vacation. They did the Mel Fisher Museum. Met Mel Fisher himself. An exciting thing, since Mel was originally from Indiana as Thornton was.

Jean and Debbie decided they wanted to dive and search for gold. Mel explained they first had to be cetified as divers. Also he explained how they could invest in his diving program and if gold was discovered, share in it.

The ladies did their training and became certified. They made their respective investments. And out they went on one of Mel’s ships. Their first day of diving produced nothing. They earned a second day by swabbinbg the boat’s deck and the like.

On the second day, Jean and Debbie found a 21 link gold money/wedding chain. A big find! These two school teachers in their 40s literally struck gold!

The big day was July 8, 1996.

Jean and Debbie have ever since been known as the Golden Girls!

Jean came over to chat. She brought Debbie with her. Jean is becoming a friend. Debbie I met for the first time.

All in all, it was quite a day and quite an evening!

Just when I think I have learned all there is to know about Key West, something new pops up!

I was at the Gardens last night. Sunday is music time from 5 to 7:30.

Met Ray at the bar. A local. Also a resevoir of Key West lore.

The Chart Room entered our conversation. He told me that the ashes of some Chart Room regulars rest in the bar at the Chart Room. He claimed that holes were drilled in the bar and the ashes placed therein.

I rushed over to the Chart Room. Fortunately, Che was there. I would label Che as the Chart Room historian. He probably is the oldest customer still around. Still living would be a more apt description.

I repeated Ray’s story to Che. Che says, “He’s right!” Che was surprised I did not know.

The Chart Room has been part of the Pier House for many many years. Like forever. When the Pier House was remodeled 2 years ago at a cost estimated in excess of $40 million, the Chart Room was left untouched. It is still the same small beat up room it has always been!

History lives in the Chart Room!

And last night I was made aware to what degree!

Che proceeded to give me an education.

There are several small name plates on the wood bar rail. Each has a small drilled hole above it. About 1/2 inch in diameter.

The name plates are only first names or some nick name representing the person. The holes were all drilled before any one died.

These individiuals were obviously cremated as they passed on. A small portion of their ashes fill the holes and are sealed. Che described the quanity of ashes as a “dime bag.” The remaining portion of ashes were either scattered over the ocean or sit in a urn in someone’s home.

One of the plates has 3 initials. M is the first. F is the last. I forget the middle initial. It is Mel Fisher’s. The man who struck gold when he discovered a sunken Spanish galleon off the coast of Key West some 25 years ago. $400 million in sunken gold!

Another plate is labeled Whistle Pants. I never heard of Whistle Pants before last night.

Whistle Pants’ real name was James Cox, Sr. Cox was a banker from Chicago who retired to Key West. Lore has it he used to sit in the corner seat of the bar at the Chart Room from 1 pm to closing every day.

Why the name Whistle Pants? Cox invented pants that whistled! For real! A whistle was located in a pocket and every time a leg moved, a whistle sound came forth. Cox sold the pants and the concept to some company and made a small killing! Apparently the company did not as I am not aware of whistling pants ever being for sale nation wide.

Then there is a plate named Bob. Bob I knew. My friend Bob Smith. Bob died about 4 years ago. In fact, it was Bob who first introduced me to the Chart Room and the group there. He was proud to be one of the regulars visiting the Chart Room every day at cocktail time.

You will recall that about a month ago I was at the Chart Room for a party honoring Geoff Chapman. Chapman died 3 years ago. I never knew him. He appears to have been very popular and well liked in Key West. He was General of the Conch Republic Army. Chapman’s plate is labeled Goeff.

There are only 2 plates whose holes remain unfilled. Which means there are two living members of this unique club. Jim Cox, Jr. and Che.

Young Cox is son of Whistle Pants. He is in his 40s. He does not live in Key West.

The other is Che.

Che considers himself the keeper of tradition and lore in the Chart Room. And he is! He is also its historian! Che is proud that when his time comes, he will still live on in the Chart Room when his ashes are depositied in his hole.

Che became very excited last night when I told him I was going to write about this facet of the Chart Room in today’s blog. His excitement was not one of pleasure. It was one of concern. He was afraid I would screw up the story. He wanted it to be historically correct. The subject matter demanded correctness. He even made me take notes.

Che, I hope I did you and the Chart Room properly! If I erred somewhere, it is minute and will not take away from the solemnity of that reported.

And Che, I hope it is many years before your ashes lie within that bar rail! Your friends can wait for you!

Strange day yesterday! But a good one!

A Louis day!

I slept late. Always good.

I had a haircut appointment at 11. Lori is on a month’s vacation. So her partner did my hair.

My hair is cut short. Very short. Shorter than a crew cut. A step away from being totally bald.

Lori’s partner almost went that final step! I walked out of the hair shop a cross between a bald headed Bruce Willis and some one in a concentration camp!

I stopped at Lisa’s. The grandkids were having lunch. So I had lunch with them. Robert and Ally are now 5 and 4 respectively and converse well. Always interesting!

The family had been to a yard sale earlier. Robert is a Space Wars freak. There was a big black helmet for sale. The helmet talked in the gruff way those bad guys did. All one had to do was press a button.

Robert got excited when he saw it! The people running the yard sale ended up selling it to Robert for $.25! Nice people. Thrilled Robert no end!

He had to scare me with it while I was having lunch!

I then went home for a while to watch the British Open on TV. Go Watson!

My past week had been rough. I decided to screw off over the weekend. Be nice to Louis!

So I opted for a manicure and pedicure. It was time for both.

I fell asleep during the pedicure.

When I returned home, Lisa, Corey and the grandkids came over to swim. My grandchildren are fish in the water!

Speaking of fish, another shark has been spotted! A whale shark. About 25 feet long. It is sitting off Marathon in the low water. The experts say the shark is there because of the the change in tides. Whale sharks feed off small fish. Just open their mouths and gulp them in. There is a spot off Marathon where the little ones move through by the thousands.

It has been suggested that whale sharks can be dangerous. Son in law Corey says no! They are only interested in tiny fish. He has observed many in his dives and he claims they were of no concern. Each basically ignorred the other and went about their own businesses.

My heart could not handle it!

After they left, I sat down to watch some TV. It was Saturday night. I am always out on Saturday night. Not last night! For some reason, I decided to stay in. Made myself a small dinner. Had a drink with it. And then off to bed for a good night’s sleep.

The British Open is on already. Watching it is how I will spend this Sunday morning.

Enjoy your Sunday, also!

Yesterday was my son John’s 50th birthday! Happy birthday son!

I remember when he was born 50 years ago. We were living in Syracuse. It was the summer before my senior year in law school.

John was to be our first born.

His mother got the pains and we were off and running to the hospital. However, she did not want to go directly. We had to make a stop. She said she was hungry. Actually, she was scared.

We stopped on Erie Boulevard at a greasy burger joint. She had a cheeseburger and chocolate shake. She ate in the car.

Obviously she did not keep the goodies down long. It was a first time effort and who knew.

We arrived at the hospital and my wife was taken from me. In those days, husbands were not permitted to remain with their laboring wives. A barbaric thing in retrospect.

I was left waiting on the first floor and his mother was taken to the fourth floor to do her thing.

Many hours later John was born. When the nurse showed him to me, his head was pointed. Really! Iasked her about it. No problem she said. It was the forceps. And she took her hand and pushed his forehead down into normal position.

John was beautiful. I was proud of him!

His mother did not look as good. I felt bad for her.

I stayed a while and then left. I had to go to work. I was a milk man. In those days, people had milk delivered to there homes. It was not purchased in a store. And the milk came in glass bottles. Only quart size. The cream was on top. It had to be shaken to blend into the body of milk below it.

I drove a truck loaded with cases of milk. Drove standing up. I was at the dock at the usual starting time that morning. 4:15. Loading my truck. And telling everyone about my son!

We named our son John after my father. My father is still with us and 95 years old. Yesterday, on grandson John’s 50th birthday, my father fell. Broke his nose and wrist.

He’s OK, except for the discomfort. He was returned home last night and we talked. There is a birthday party for John today and my father’s concern was that he would be unable to shake hands with guests. Love the man!

Have a good day!