Sunday!

A beautiful day in the making! Sun already up. A bit of clouds. Very little breeze. Water moving slowly.

I predicted rain for yesterday. Because the wind was from the south. When I went to bed it had not yet rained. I could not figure it out. Nature here in the keys is a generally reliable and a good determinant.

I was not to be disappointed.

About 11 last night it rained! Big time! Poured! Thunder and lightning! Ba ba boom kind of thunder! And lightning that lit up the sky over the water!

The street in front of my house is still flooded a bit this morning.

It rained!

I did not get to the beach in time to see Beecha complete her swim around Key West. So as of this time I do not know how she did.

I did get to the beach, however. About an hour after the race was over. I went with Lisa, Corey and the grandkids. Fort Zach beach.

My grandkids are terrific in the water. Fish. They tell me their job is to watch me. To make sure I do not stray too far alone. Cute! Love them!

We stayed a couple of hours. Then the sun was getting to us and we left.

The sun really got to me. I went to Lisa’s for a bite and then home to bed. Where I stayed till this morning. For whatever reason, the sun wiped me out yesterday!

Have a peaceful Sunday!

Slept late this morning!

Sun already up and blazing!

Wind from the south. About 15-20 miles an hour. Generally when the wind is from the south, it is going to rain. We shall see. Does not look it at the present time.

Yesterday was a good day! All day!

Lunched at the Yacht Club. Read the papers. Chatted a bit.

Then to Borders to read a while. Ran into Don’s Place’s Kurt who bought a few books. Kurt shaved off his beard. No longer looks like Santa Claus!

Got a call from son in law Corey. He had jsut finished one week of Federal Court jury duty. Sat on a criminal trail. The result was a hung jury. It was interesting to hear Corey describe his experience. I had many questions. Remember, I am a retired attorney. It was interesting to spend the time with Corey discussing his impressions of the trial, the jury system and American justice.

Corey is a good man. Made an excellent juror, I am sure.

Then home for a nap. Enjoy my late afternoon slumbering.

Last night was outstanding! Just a good time all the way around!

I started with dinner at the bar at La Trattoria.

Erin bartending. The crowd good. It was a weekend night. At least one sitting.

I sat next to William. Had run into him before. A CPA here in Key West. Owns a couple of motels, also. On the board of a local bank. Good company, good talk.

Lisa’s friend Greer was there having dinner. She came over to say hello and give me a kiss. Greer is one attractive and smart woman! Has worked for years at Casa Marina where she has a top job. I know her parents well. It was good to see her again.

It must have been Lisa’s night! Her boss Kerry was there also.

Beecha was her usual beautiful self! Love Beecha!

We never know some one till we know them. Sounds like a Yogi Berra statement! Anyhow, there is a swimming race today. Around Key West. 12 miles. This is the third year for the race.

Guess what? Beecha swims in the race. Yes, around the island. Tied once with the male winner. Came in first another time in the women’s division. Beecha told me it will take about 5.5 hours to complete the race.

She does not train. Just goes out and does it. The race ends at Fort Zachery Taylor. I am going to try to be there around noon to cheer Beecha on.

I finally made it to the Key West Art Bar after I left La Trattoria. I have been trying to get there for weeks.

The Art Bar is located in the former Flagler Railroad Station building. Yes, the railroad use to come to Key West at one time. Henry Flagler made it possible. Then the hurricane of 1935 wiped out most of the bridges and tracks and it was never rebuilt. But the station itself remained as an historical site.

It used to be located over on the Atlantic side of the island. Several years ago it was moved near the Gulf side. It was that or be destroyed. A development was going in where it originally stood.

It sits now across the public parking lot and near Half Moon Raw Bar.

A lovely yellow wood structure.

Barbara Grob is the proprietor.

I have known Barbara only briefly over the years. I remember when she opened her first store on Truman. A small art store. She sold paintings and jewelry made by others. And metal geckos made by her! A gecko is a small lizard, from my perspective. She pounded out the geckos in all sizes and got her start in business.

She was successful. Needed a larger store. Moved to White Street. A big store!

It became a gold mine! She eventaully sold it and made some good dollars.

When she was on White Street, she came up with what I consider her signature item. A black tee shirt. For men and women, alike. With white print: Art Slut. The tee shirts did and still sell big time!

Note carefully that the term slut is not applicable to Barbara. She is a lady. It applies only to the genius wording on the tee shirt.

She took a few years off after selling White Street. Last year she reopened her business in the Flagler Train Station.

What a difference a day makes! What a difference Barbara makes!

She is talented, deep thinking, vibrant, etc. She has a store full of Key West items such as paintings, jewlery, ceramics, sculptures and I don’t know what else! Including her Art Slut tee shirts! She has it all! The place reminded me of a smaller Fast Buck Freddies.

There is also an after deck outside the rear of the store. A Wow!

Difficult to describe. I would say the decor is modern elegant Key West with a touch of the ’50s.

There is a bar. She has a beer/wine license. Makes crazy drinks. Like a saki martini!

A pool table! New and just lovely! I used to play in my wayward youth. And free! The only free pool table in Key West.

A movie screen. A free movie one night a week.

Lounging sofas and cocktail tables. Interesting overhanging lights.

She has something going on every evening. Wednesday is Mafia Night. Not sure what it is. But I plan on being there next Wednesday for ancestral reasons!

Barbara sat and talked with me at length. I enjoyed our time together. I look forward to visiting the Art Gallery more often. It is a winner in the making!

It is still beautiful outside. Not a cloud in the sky. However, I am willing to bet it will rain at some point today. Because the wind is blowing from the south! A sure indicator of what is to come! I will let you know tomorrow how good my weather reporting is.

Have a good day! I plan on it!

Hope I make the finish line of Beecha’s 12 mile 5 1/2 hour race around the island!

I stayed up late last night watching the basketball game. Los Angeles decimated Orlando!

An observation. Did Nelson affect the flow of the game? The two teams played even the first quarter. Then Nelson came in as point guard. I immediately sensed the flow of the game for Orlando changed. Was different.

Remember, Nelson has not played for 4 months. To me, it is like Tiger Woods coming back. It takes time. Last night was not the time to throw a new player into the mix. Especially into a mix that had become a winning combination!

Thank you, Coach Louis!

I started my day yesterday with a long walk. Very long. Down on the waterfront. Dante’s. Schooner’s Wharf, The Galleon, etc. It has become harder to walk. The humidity is a bit thicker each day. Soon my walks will be confined to twice around inside the Home Depot. It is air conditioned!

Lunch at the outside bar at the Pier House. It is obvious that Key West is between seasons. There were 3 people on the beach and only a handful at the bar.

Stayed a while after lunch reading the papers.

It was manicure/pedicure time! So off to Lee Nails on Flagler.

I have been going to Lee Nails for years. Started when it was in Duval Square and for the past few years on Flagler where it moved.

It is Vietnamese run. The same cute little lady has taken care of me for years. I have gone through two pregnancies with her. She is absolutely lovely in that quiet Asiatic fashion.

I am ashamed to admit that I know not her name. Even after all these years!

She rarely speaks, except for hello.

Yesterday was different! She was a dynamo! Talking to the customers, watching the help. I figured she was on something or was made a boss.

I was wrong in both respects.

I asked her out right, “What is going on? You are different? They make you boss?”

“No,” she answered. “Me and my husband buy the place yesterday!”

What a change a day makes! What a change ownership makes!

She then proceeded to talk to me. First time ever! The words gushed out! She expressed all her concerns for their new indebtedness, the financial investment, she needs to replace 2 employees who are leaving immediately, etc. Wow, could she talk! She reminded me of my granddaughter Ally. We thought she would never talk. Then when she started, we could not shut her up!

They will make it! Big time! I welcomed her to the American world of capitalism!

Yesterday was a big day for the American way! Anna, who keeps my house tidy and in order, told me that she and her husband had made an offer on a house and were waiting to hear back from the bank today. Anna is from Poland.

After the pleasure of the pedicure, I was off to Publix for some groceries.

Grapes are a problem. Was last year at this time also. There are not many for sale. And those for sale are expensive and of poor qualty! There must be a season to grapes. And this is not it! So I bought extra bananas instead.

That was my day. You already know I stayed in to watch the basketball game last night.

Today is Friday. I will be out on the town tonight.

The sun is just coming up. Gray outside. Turning blue and gold as the sun’s rays increase.

Maybe I will do the beach for a while this afternoon…..

Golf was great yesterday!

I won $21! Had a spectacular back nine!

Groceries are affordable for another week!

Played with two gentlemen. Tom and Yankee Jack.

The weather held out. Never rained. Hot! Like 90 degrees! And humid! Tee shirt wet type humidity! Salt in the eyes!

The humidity knocked me out! I was home and to bed for a couple of hours after the round.

Wednesday night is Bobby Nesbitt time! I was at Aqua to listen to him. And greet friends. It has become a locals meeting place when Bobby plays.

I ran into Mike Fatica at Aqua. I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that he had started a new bath salt business. He initially made his fortune selling hot pepper extracts. Now bath salts. The bath salts are supposedly very soothing.

Mike’s new bath salt products are already available for purchase in some of Key West’s leading stores and hotel gift shops.

I think Mike has another winner here.

He told me that a recent testing showed there is no tub scum, no slippery floor and that the fragrance remains on the body for several hours after the bath. So ladies……run, don’t walk, and make your purchase! The bath salts can also be found at www.islandsalt.com.

I headed over to the Hot Tin Roof for dinner at the bar. Ran into many Key Westers, including Donna and Terri. They start their trip north next Monday.

I am into the risotto at the Hot Tin Roof. Thick and tasty! Its the fat they blend into it. Good tasting! A pleasure to eat! But bad for the waist line!

I am up early this morning. Before six. Pitch black outside. But I can hear the ocean moving through the open window. A nice sound!

Stay healthy!

Yesterday was a simple one.

It rained a couple of times.

Big time around 11 in the morning! For about an hour. Like a monsoon!

Then another shower at 3. Though this one was a normal downpour.

So I ended up spending the day in. Did paperwork all day.

I finally showered around 7 and headed out to Hogfish on Stock Island for dinner. Ate hogfish. What else! And read 3 local news weeklys while sitting at the bar. Quiet at Hogfish just as it had been the night before at La Trattoria.

No one to talk with, except the barmaid. Her name escapes me. Though she was attractive. And what an accent! From England. Loved it!

Then home to bed early.

Thunderstorms off and on during the night. Kept waking me.

This morning golf. Intermittent showers predicted. I can’t tell what the weather is right now as it is still dark outside. Whatever, unless the showers are heavy, we will play! We are men here in Key West!

Have a good day!

The weather continues to be magnificent!

Key West is in the semi tropics. I live in effect on a Caribbean island. How lucky I am!

Yesterday was a quiet one. Did paperwork, read at Borders and then out last night.

I started the evening at the Chart room. Chatted with former Fantasy Fest Queen Mary Lou and her husband. Turns out she and I have some what similar backgrounds in litigation. Me as a lawyer and she as an expert witness. We had an interesting talk.

Spent some time with reporter friend Sean and banker Dan. Good people. Sean knows everything going on in town. So does Dan, except from a different perspective.

I had not been to La Trattoria in a while. So to the bar there for dinner. Glad I went! Without me, business would have been really bad!

The place was empty! A couple at the bar. About 4 tables in use in the whole restaurant.

Concededly this is a slow time in Key West. But not this slow! The impact of the recession is being felt here.

La Trattoria is a good barometer for things economic. It is always busy, even when other restaurants are not.

My good friends Donna and Terri will soon be leaving me and Key West for an extended time. In the next few days they are driving to Chicago and Detroit to visit family and friends. Then to New York City. Terri starts rehearsals June 22 for Finnigan’s Rainbow which opens Labor Day. The show is anticipated to be a success. Will they ever return?

Vandenberg talk continues. It was sunk almost a week ago. People and fish alike are taking a peek.

Reporter Sean was out on the water over the weekend. He snorkled over the Vandenberg. He can dive also. However he had a big head from the night before and was reluctant to put on the tanks.

Sean says the boat sitting there is absolutely beautiful! A sight to behold! Fish are darting in and out. However not as many as he would have expected. It is anticipated it could take up to a year for the various fish to discover and make there new home in and around the Vandenberg.

He saw two divers below him attaching a Conch Republic flag to the boat. Cool was his description!

Enjoy!

Nice day yesterday!

The weather was good. Continues to be good. Water calm. Boats out all over the place.

I had a late breakfast on the deck at the Pier House. A nice spot! Faces the Gulf. People close by swimming. Just a few feet further out, boats moving by. Very pretty!

Sat there after finishing breakfast and read the Sunday papers.

Yesterday was also a special day! Big time! Ally’s 4th birthday!

Dinner and cake last night at Lisa’s. Ally was all excited!

Ally is into pink big time. She was dressed in pink. Her cake was pink. With pink frosting!

Ally loves plants and planting. Enjoys helping her father grow things. So I gave her gardening things for presents.

Most pink, of course! Look hard enough and you can find pink things!

A water pail/bucket. Pink. She went crazy over it. Was outside afterwards watering everything.

A container holding plants. Must be watered every day. Flowers will eventually grow!

Another container, pink again, that she must fill with dirt. Seeds to be planted there after.

Gloves and an apron. Also pink!

And more things of a similar nature.

She loved them all. We will work with her as the days go by on the plantings.

By the way, the grandkids are now better. It took a long time. Almost 3 weeks. It was good to see them running around the house. They were bright and vibrant yesterday! What a difference! A good difference!

Key West is kind to our friends who live in the sea.

Turtle hatching season is upon us. Has been for about a month.

The mother turtle comes up on the beach and lays her eggs. At some point, they hatch. And we have baby turtles. The baby turtles then return to their natural habitat, the ocean.

They make the trip to the water at night. The little ones know which direction to travel by the moon. They follow the light of the moon and it takes them to the water.

So it has always been! Such is nature!

However, man can screw it up.

Much turtle birthing takes place in the Smathers Beach area. Across the street from the beach are located several condiminium complexes. The roadway separating the beach and condos is well lite at night.

The baby turtles were getting confused by the street lighting. So they were traveling into the road and across the street onto the condo properties. Wrong way! Not good! Many were losing their lives.

No problem. The officials of Key West corrected the situation.

The street lights have all been turned off from May 1 to November 1.

It is now dark in the area. Pitch black, in fact! But not to the baby turtles. They see the moon! And know in which direction to travel!

Have a good day!

It’s Sunday!

Love Sundays!

A do nothing day! The Good Book was correct when it said it should be a day of rest!

A busy day yesterday.

Did paperwork in the morning. Then lunch at the bar at the Yacht Club. Read the papers and chatted a bit.

I had a Truman deprivation. I had not been to Borders in a few days. So there I went and continued reading the book on Harry Truman’s life. It is an opus! Like War and Peace! Over 1,100 pages long! I am still in Truman’s high school days. Of that, all I can tell you was that he was a good student and in love with Bess Wallace, whom he subsequently married, from a distance. Even then young men were awkward in their pursuit of the ladies.

Stopped at Lisa’s afterwards to see the grandkids. They have recovered from the walking pneumonia. Finally!

At 3, it was over to the bocci courts. The playoffs were starting. Larry Smith’s team had made the playoffs. I went to lend my support.

I only had time to stay for the first game. Larry’s team lost. The other team was very good. Pros. Their throwing was precise. I susupect they were a number 1 team in their evening slot. Larry’s team was number 5 in the Thursday night games.

There were 2 more games to play. But I could not stay.

I had intended on going into town last night. When I got out of the shower, I could heard Howard Livingston singing on the TV. There he was on Channel 5! And I thought there was a runner on the bottom of the picture reading that Howard would be playing at Boondock’s last night.

So I drove north 30 miles to Big Pine and Booondock’s. Howard is a good friend! Love him dearly!

Howard was not playing! I screwed up. He is playing some Saturday in the future.

Oh, well!

It just so happens I like Boondocks. So I sat at the bar, had a few drinks and a snapper sandwich. And talked with people around me. One good thing about the keys is that every one is friendly. You are never alone!

I also watched part of the Cleveland/Orlando basketball game.

Then I headed home intending to watch the end of the game from my bed.

The weather was perfect last night. I put the top down on the convertible for the drive back. There was little traffic. The stars were out. And although I could not see the ocean, I could taste it.

I caught better than half of the second half of the game from my bed. With 4 minutes to go, Orlando was winning by 14 points. Then it happened again! I fell asleep!

Fortunately, I woke at 3 this morning for a bit and caught the last 2 minutes in a rerun on TV. Orlando won by 13.

Orlando’s Dwight Howard looked fantastic! Scored 40 points. Cleveland’s LeBron James did not have a good night. It was the same old story. He cannot do it alone! He needs team mates who can help him!

Today is special! We are celebrating Ally’s 4th birthday!

Her birthday is really tomorrow. But the party is this afternoon. She knows she is getting 2 days to celebrate it! How smart she is so young! How glad I am she can enjoy a doubleheader!

Enjoy your Sunday!

A nice day in the making! Sun up. A cool breeze. Water moving slowly. Not a sound to be heard.

Every day is a nice day lately. The rainy season is starting. Not much yet. Generally in the evening. Soon it will rain a bit every day. About 10 minutes at 1 in the afternoon. Amazing!

The hurricane season is around the corner. Technically, the season begins June 1. It runs through November 1. 12-13 hurricanes are predicted. 3-4 anticipated to be bad. The predictions and projections are the same every year. Some years they are correct, or close to correct. Others, nothing happens. I like nothing!

We all remain concerned.

Last night began as usual with the Chart Room. Drank with Marty and Captain Peter. The last night with both for a while.

Marty is heading north today for two weeks. To Auburn, NY. His wife has an elderly aunt who is moving in with them. So they are are their way to get her and return her to Florida.

Nice of Marty and his wife. They are being good family. Sad for the aunt. She leaves her whole life behind.

Peter is heading to Mexico for a week. To visit his former wife. A good guy! To reach her he has to fly somewhere and then ride a bus for six hours. The heart once moved is never still!

Marty and I had dinner at the bar at Hot Tin Roof. Again, a good meal and a spectacular view!

Marty was tired and left soon after dinner. I stayed around and watched the basketball game on TV. Los Angeles won. Denver is eliminated. It had to be. Los Angeles has been there before. Denver had not. First time Denver had advanced that far in the play offs. It seems a team needs some experience and seasoning to make it. Carmello Anthony and Denver will be back next year. And probably win!

Bocci is still around! The play offs begin this afternoon.

My team did not make it. We were locked solidly in the cellar. Larry Smith’s team did! And I will be there to cheer them on!

Stay healthy! Enjoy the day!

Yesterday was a lazy one for Louis.

I hung around the house all day. Actually, I laid in bed all day! A little TV, some reading and a lot of napping.

Last night started as usual at the Chart Room. I am beginning to feel like a regular. A distinction!

Had a couple of drinks. Chatted with Marty, Captain Peter, Che and Cindy.

Dinner was at Square One. A long time since I have been there. It was good to talk with owner Michael and batender Patrick again. The food was good. As usual! The crowd good, also. Especially for this time of the year.

Then home to bed to watch the basketball game. And again I fell asleep before it ended! One of these nights I am going to last to catch the last 2 minutes of a game. The best part!

I have been receiving comments to my blog lately from someone who calls himself Boss. Turns out to be Bob Marks. An old friend! One I am ashamed to say I have not seen in years.

Bob was an insurance adjuster in Syracuse, NY way back when I was a young lawyer. We became friends. There were several of us. All insurance adjusters, except for me. A wild bunch! Many the night I did not know how my car made the 50 mile trip back from Syracuse to Utica!

As the years moved on, Bob became increasingly successful in the insurance industry. My recollection is that he was with CNA. He ended up becoming a big time executive with them in San Francisco.

Along the way he met Helen. Helen also worked in the insurance industry. She ended up big time, also! She was in charge of all CNA’s asbestos cases regionally or nationwide. A big job! There were millions of such cases.

Both married. Not each other. Both divorced. Both remarried. This time to each other.

They asked me to be their best man. An honor!

The event occurred some 25 odd years ago.

The wedding took place in Portland, Maine. Helen wanted to be married in the same church her parents had married in during World War II.

So to Portland I went! I had never been there before. Nor to Maine.

The wedding took place in the middle of the winter. Cold!

I had a cold when I left and drove to Maine. I arrived in Portland with the cold and left 24 hours later with pneumonia! Not really, but was it cold!

The cold sticks with me. I recall going to a shopping center for some pills to help my cold. This was during a fuel crisis. There was no heat in the shopping center. Neither in the mall areas nor in the stores. Everyone, including the workers, were bundled in heavy coats, hats, gloves and boots.

It was that cold!

The wedding service itself was lovely!

Picture a small Luthern church. Candlelight. Helen dressed in the same maroon suit her mother had worn when she married. Touching and beautiful. So much in love! And still in love a quarter of a century later!

Afterwards there was a dinner party at some old time reaturant. An historical site. For real. The structure housing the restaurant probably went back to the American Revolution.

And cold! The building consisted of only thin clapboards. No insulation. No double walling. No plaster board. Between me the the elements were only the thin clapboards. With spaces in between some of them! So the wind blew in!

A major storm was raging outside! And I with my bad bad cold was sitting at the head table with my back one foot from the clapboard wall!

I thought I would die that night!

The next morning I felt terrible! So sick! I should have returned to Utica as planned. But wise I was not in those days!

Instead I drove to Boston and hopped a plane to Martinique. I figured the sun would straighten me out!

It did!

I went to a Club Med! I spent my days laying on the warm beach watching the topless beauties all around me! If I died, it would not have mattered. I was already in Heaven!

Those were the days!

Bob and Helen, I am glad we are coming together again after all these years. May we enjoy many more together! And yes, I look forward to your Fall visit to Key West! Where no one is ever cold!