LOVE IN ITS PUREST FORM

Thanksgiving in the air. Mentioned everywhere.

O. Henry was a famous short story writer from long ago. A giant. He said re Thanksgiving…..There is one day that is ours. Thanksgiving Day is the one day that is purely American.

O. Henry’s name brought to mind one of his short stories. One dealing with man’s most sensitive emotion: Love. “The Gift of the Magi.”

I had not thought of the Magi gift story for at least 50 years. Till yesterday. A love story involving Christmas.

The Gift of the Magi involves a young couple very much in love. Della and Jim. Christmas was at hand. Neither had enough money to buy the other a gift.

Each sold their most prized possession.

Della had beautiful hair. She loved it. People commented her on it. She had her hair cut and sold in order to purchase a platinum FOB chain for Jim’s watch.

Unbeknownst, Jim sold his valuable watch in order to buy Della jeweled combs for her hair.

Love in its purest form.

I have only so much blood to give. My orange blood.

I spent yesterday afternoon watching Notre Dame beat Syracuse in football 36-3. Total destruction. Did not expect it. Thought Syracuse might win.

Basketball season has begun. Football and basketball overlap this time of the year. Syracuse played 2 basketball games in the past few days. Lost both. Not even close.

Depression does not accurately describe how I felt. So low, I had to look up to see bottom. Ugh!

Following the game, showered, dressed and was out to meet friends for dinner. Almost decided not to go because of how I felt. Glad I did go, however.

Dinner was with Donna and Terri and Andrea and Joe at Conch Republic. A couple of drinks, good food, excellent company and I felt better.

Oysters and stone crabs! The oysters large and delicious. The stone crabs…..Oh, so good.

On the way home, I made a brief stop at the Chart Room. Not many people. Sat and chatted with John a while. He had just made fresh popcorn. The smell got to be. Enjoyed a small bowel.

Elections still in the air. Reminds me of a Key West election 29 years ago. Captain Tony Tarraceno was running for Mayor. His fourth try. Lost in his previous 3 attempts.

His platform simple: Save as much of the old days and ways as possible.

The New York Times and Wall Street Journal endorsed him. Would you believe!

Captain Tony was of the opinion that it took him so long to win because of 2 factors. One, he kissed mothers instead of babies. Second, he used a certain 4 letter word too often.

The Washington Post interviewed him about his use of the word, its effect on his running, etc. The Captain’s response: “I just hope everybody in Key West who uses that word votes for me. If they do, I’ll win in a landslide.”

Apparently enough did. He won the fourth time.

Anti-Semitism is history’s oldest hatred. A creeping sickness. Like cancer.

It is on the rise world wide. Dramatically in Europe and the United States.

A huge problem in France. France has the largest population of Jews than any European country.

Anti-Semitism’s ugly head evidencing itself in the United States in recent years. Incidents of anti-Semitism up 57 percent in 2017. The new-Nazi party has come out of the darkness. Fearlessly open about their hatred. Reveal it in demonstrations.

A form of neo-Nazism has developed in Israel. Not Israelis against Israelis. Rather, Israelis against Palestinians. Israel’s tendencies against the Palestinians described as “Judeo-Nazi tendencies.”

Netanyahu bears the major responsibility. Molded in the same form as Trump. Authoritarian. Nationalistic. A despot in the making. A war monger. He wants to destroy the Palestinians and engage in a war against Iran.

Netanyahu under investigation in his country as Trump in his.

Netanyahu continues to be reelected so I am not sure how his people feel about him. I wonder how Jews outside Israel feel about his Palestinian and Iranian moves.

Enjoy your Sunday!

 

ANTI-SEMITISM HAS ANOTHER BROTHER

Moving on a step at the time. First with world news.

Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump both facing possible criminal charges. Birds of a feather.

Netanyahu’s wife is reported to be close to indictment.

Netanyahu’s son Yair recently made anti-Semitic comments on Facebook. A prominent neo-Nazi leader referred to Yair as “…..a total bro. Next he is going to call for gassings.” Yair succumbed to political pressure and removed his comments from Facebook.

Prominent families. Affluent and influential. Both screwed up!

The food continues to be excellent at Casa Thornton.

Ever hear of Blue Apron? I had not till last night. Blue provides prepared meals. Sent by mail. Prepared as to ingredients. Food provided and how to fix. Preparation and cooking the responsibility of the purchaser.

The quality of the meal impressed me. The work involving preparation did not. It took Jean and two ladies a half hour of chopping and cooking.

We enjoyed herb crusted rock fish, chicken ragu, greens in oil, and mashed potatoes. Accompanied by fine wine, of course.

Dessert consisted of three different packages of Keebler cookies. Wine accompanying.

Entres and dessert opposite ends of the spectrum.

When do I return to Key West? A minimum two day trip. I am getting all kind of messages from friends there. Stay / go. My decision will be like flipping a coin.

Everyone has water. Dirty water. Boil first rule. Toilets flushing. Water available fifteen miles north to Shark Key.

Gasoline available. No lines.

Power is sketchy. Comes and goes. I have power thanks to my new residence being near the local hospital. Means air conditioning. Impossible to live without in the Keys.

Three problems of concern remain.

Food continues to be limited. The old Publix is open a few hours a day. A limited number of people allowed in at a time. Government officials advising buy a seven day supply. The alternative for those returning is to bring a one week supply with them.

Flats galore on US 1. From debris rudiments remaining. Warning is be prepared to change a flat. I have not changed a flat since law school. Either the car will fall off the jack or I will get a heart attack removing the lug nuts.

Interruption: Re power. I had power. Do not have it now. Anna went to clean. Just called. Ninety five degrees.

Final concern is mosquitoes. I am told they are breeding in the pools. Ergo, many mosquitoes. I was told to return with bug spray. Lots. Also advised some are getting sick from the bites. One person said dengue fever. We had a case or two a few years back. I hope we have not returned to the problem.

Mayor Cates was interviewed on TV yesterday. Key West has a population of 25,000. Twenty thousand left, 5,000 remained. Yesterday residents were permitted to return for the first time. Cates anticipated 8,000 would return the first day. I am anxious to see how the returnees make out today and tomorrow.

Good luck contacting Bank of America. On the phone an hour listening to crappy music waiting for someone to pick up at the other end. A national number. I finally hung up. Both Bank of America branches in Key West closed. It is going to take a few days before my credit card problem is resolved.

Maria, Maria, Maria! She’s on her way! Almost the same track as Irma took at this point. A category 3.

Hope it takes that turn north out into the ocean.

Will I ever leave Birmingham? Nice place. Good company. Excellent food. Excellent wine. Jean is at the store at the moment purchasing another half gallon of Beefeaters.

It is embarrassing being an unexpected house guest this long. Already over a week.

Enjoy your day!

ANTI-SEMITISM ON RISE IN U.S.

The Anti-Defamation League issued a report yesterday. Claims anti-Semitism on the rise in the United States. Statistics provided in support.

In the first quarter of 2017, there have been 541 incidents. An increase of 86 percent over the same period last year.

Viewing 2016 alone, a larger number of incidents occurred over 2015. The leading states were New York, California, and New Jersey. Florida alone saw a 50 percent increase in number of incidents.

The cause? The article suggests Trump. The article accuses Trump of using anti-Semitic memes during the campaign.

2016 saw an overall increase of 34 percent over 2015. One third of the increase occurred in the last two months of 2016.

Spoken words of hatred beget hatred. Mouthing hatred encourages hatred.

Is Trump anti-Semitic? I don’t think so. He is a man with a Jewish daughter, son in law and grandchildren. I sense Trump to be a man who uses any tool to get ahead. Not actually believing what he says. Not thinking or concerned with the impact of his words.

Still makes Trump responsible for his spoken words. He creates problems whenever he opens his mouth.

By the way, anti-Semitism is down in Europe.

Spent yesterday afternoon researching tonight’s podcast show. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. Exciting and revealing. Fast moving. Nine my time. www.blogtalkradio.com/key-west-lou.

Topics will include anti-Semitism, Netanyahu’s wife in the process of being indicted re using state funds for private spending, bomb attack on Monsanto plant in Italy, middle class continuing to collapse in 20 major U.S. cities, reflection on recent power outages in San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles.

Also, a Venezuela update, Trump’s neocon conversion, 900 high school students searched and groped by police, former Trump county chair and Judge arrested for child sex trafficking, United and American Airlines incidents, and more.

Arrived at Aqua early yesterday for Dueling Bartenders. An hour early. Read newspapers till show time.

Tom Luna and Rick Dery singing. Tom a Notary. Married Rick and his spouse this past week. Congratulated a happy Rick re his marriage.

Liz showed up! I had not seen her since her hospitalization. Still  with cane. Looks much better. Face relaxed. The eternal hip pain gone.

We decided to have dinner at Antonia’s. Closed. I forgot it was Taste of Key West. Mangoes was open. As unhappy as I was with my last visit, it was the closest open restaurant.

I must admit, the meal was terrific. I thoroughly enjoyed a shrimp pasta. I will return. Lesson learned, I should not condemn a restaurant based on one poor meal.

Technology amazing! Moving super fast in recent years.

We are testing driverless vehicles. First probably will be marketed by the end of this year or next year. Now comes flying cars. Not driverless. A big move forward, however. Expected to be market ready in three years.

Arkansas should be credited! Tried to squeeze 10 executions into one week. Got most in. Two last night. What a claim to fame!

Actually, disgraceful!

Enjoy your day!

 

 

 

ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL DAY

What a beautiful place Key West is! Waking up mornings especially lovely. Sun, sky and water. Combined. Brightness everywhere. A God is in His Heaven, all is right with the world time.

Key West may be a little spot on the map. A tiny island. It tries to keep up with the times. I noticed something new in the Marriott Beachside parking garage yesterday. Three parking places for electric cars. A power cord hanging on the wall for each spot.

Observed something else that seems to be commonplace of late. Electric cars on the roads.

By electric cars, I am not referring to a regular sized vehicle that uses electricity in place of fossil fuel. The small open air electric cars. Ones that look like golf carts. A bit larger.

I have recently seen two.

The house next to mine is presently rented to vacationers. They have rented an electric cart. Apparently for the length of their stay. Every day I see them coming out of the driveway, driving up to US 1, and proceeding into the Boulevard in Key West. The other day, I observed it turning north on US 1.

There is also another vacationing family out there that has rented an electric cart. I see them riding up and down the Boulevard.

Generally, each car has an extra passenger. One too many. Sitting on someone’s lap or hanging on the back.

Disasters in the making! Dangerous! For other drivers on the road as well as themselves.

It was saturday night at Tavern ‘n Town. Went to enjoy Bobby Nesbitt. No Bobby Nesbitt. Michael Thomas sitting in for him. Another of Key West’s premier singers.

Thomas’ New York, New York outstanding!

I saw something unusual also. Three couples dancing in the bar area by the piano while Thomas sang.

It was a happy group of vacationers at the bar.

Omar Sharif died. Sad. I enjoyed watching him. He loomed large on the movie screen. Dr. Zhivago, Lawrence of Arabia, and Fanny three of his best performances.

I spent yesterday afternoon pondering what  my KONK Life column will be this week. I have to get it out today. I played around on the internet and did some thinking. Came up with nothing. I have about four more hours before I must have a subject. I will. I came across three items that are interesting. Not sufficient for a column information wise. Worthy of sharing, however.

One has to do with Jews. Anti-Semitism. Something which continues to grow world wide.

There was mention in my search of a World News July 30, 2015 article of anti-Semitism. Titled “Where Jews Assaulted in Europe, Anti-Semitism Drops.” Sometimes to a significant degree.

Is this type assault a cure for anti-Semitism? Can it be made to work effectively? At what rate are Jews to be killed to keep anti-Semitism at bay?

The world never learns.

Peggy Noonan had an interesting article in the Wall St. Journal yesterday. Prompted by Donald Trump’s recent comments re immigration. She said illegal immigration is a tragedy. An admission by a nation that it has lost control not only of its borders but of itself.

I close with decapitation. Someone losing his head. Not in the Middle East. In Tampa.

Police problems grow. Not only with blacks. Also with whites. Though more frequently with blacks. Whitewashing has accompanied many of the situations. The police held not responsible.

On June 28, a Tampa detective was driving an unmarked police car. The detective was responding to a robbery call. He hit a 60 year old white man.

He took the man’s head off. Decapitated him.

The detective never stopped. Rendered no aid. Kept going. Did not report the accident to his superiors nor make a record of it. Eleven days after the accident, the man’s blood was found to match droplets of blood on the police vehicle.

The detective is on administrative leave. No charges filed yet. Authorities claiming they are making a detailed investigation.

Two observations.

One is that if the driver of the vehicle was other than a detective, the individual driving the car would have been arrested immediately upon discovery of the blood match.

The other is that there has been little national news re the event. Sounds newsworthy to me. Why has it not received the media attention it deserves?

Enjoy your Sunday!