The 25th annual Kelley McGillis International Women and Girls’ Flag Football Championship games begin January 25 in Key West. A welcome event every year!

The games have become closely associated with Kelley McGillis. A former top movie star. She was the female lead to Tom Cruise in Top Gun and Harrison Ford in Witness.

Kelley lived many years in Key West. She and her then husband owned three restaurants. Kelley’s on Whitehead is named after her. Kelley now resides on a farm in Pennsylvania.

She returns every year for the flag football event. She is an active participant in peripheral  activities. I do not know whether she still plays the game.

These championship games have grown. Sixty teams will arrive in Key West to participate. Primarily from North America, Latin America and Europe.

Cuba got into the picture in 2005. They now have an active flag football league.

Today is the day! Out of the house! I am ok. Feel fine. Need to shave first. Look like a bum.

I need food! Bad! Publix a definite stop. Tissues a must. Amazing the number of boxes you go through when you have a cold.

I want to go out tonight. I need to go out. Something easy. Like Don’s Place. I miss everyone.

Cold! 58 degrees at 7 this morning! High today 71. Even that number is cold for Key Westers, though better than high 50s. I am glad I have heat. My cold would have turned into pneumonia if not.

Many do not have heat in Key West. Key West is in the sub-tropics. Supposedly always warm. Not true.

You can get along without heat if you have a spouse. Two warm bodies next to each other. I did not put the heat in till after my wife left me.

The Flint, Michigan thing a disgrace. Lead in the water. Should not occur in modern America. Does not happen in the United States of today. But it did!

There will be a lot of blame to go around. Properly so. Thousands of children will develop brain problems in later years because they drank the water. I know about these things. My firm handled a number of lead poisoning cases years ago.

I spoke re the Flint problem on my January 5 blog talk radio show. The #1 topic. Somewhere the same day of the show, I came up with something about the problem. I could not understand why the national media were not dealing with it. It is only this past week they have gotten into it.

Cause and effect always an issue. I was aware that Flint got its water for many years from Detroit. Detroit had been in bankruptcy. Flint was under some kind of manager. The governor had taken over the running of Flint because of its financial problems.

At the time, I said money had to be the problem. The cause. The effect obvious. I thought the trustee in bankruptcy might have raised the cost of water to Detroit water users. Recall how Detroit was turning off water to thousands of homes where people were three months behind on their bills.

I took it another step. Thought that Flint had to drop Detroit water because it was too expensive. The governor appointed manager had to find ways to cut also. He concluded use Flint River water.

I cannot believe the Flint River waters were not tested. It is the way things are done. Another mistake in this scenario?

Big time snowstorm predicted up north. Two to three feet. A lot of snow. Many will be snowed in.

We went through this several times over the years in Utica. Never minded being snowed in. The 2-3 days were family time. Just me, the wife and children. There was a calm involved. Except when the kids were at each other’s throats!

Enjoy your day!