A BUSY MONDAY

I left for Miami at 7 yesterday morning and returned at 10:30 last night. A busy day. The Volkswagen was in need of a 10,000 mile check up.

After dropping the car of at DEEL Volkswagen on Bird Ave., I had four hours to kill. I was directed to Meeker Center, a 10 minute walk. Meeker is a first class lovely three story shopping mall. All the big stores. Like Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, and Tiffany. Lovely restaurants here and there.

Meeker was an interesting experience.

Attire. I was dressed Key West style. Shorts, shirt and crocs. No one wore shorts. Forget crocs. I was a stranger in my own country. Men wore long pants, some jackets. The women all dressed neatly and attractively. The six inch heels blew me out. I discovered flats are also in this year for women.

I looked out of place.

I rarely get off the rock, as we say. As I walked through Nordstrom, it struck me I have purchased new clothes rarely the past 10 years. Not needed if you live in Key West. It is a new tee shirt or two and an occasional pair of shorts.

I was taken by the sport shirts, then shoes and finally sport jackets. The tee shirts started at $98. Sport shirts were in the $150 range. Beautiful shirts! Shoes! Wild! I can not even wear leather shoes in Key West. Yet I spent at least an hour looking at them. From $200 to $600.

I used to visit Tiffany frequently on business trips to New York City. Generally to look, not to buy. I got to do it again yesterday.

I was wearing a three day beard.

People fell all over me trying to take care of me. I suspect they thought I was a rich eccentric.

From the heights of affluence to reality. I stopped at a Walmart on the way home. Bought some tee shirts, sport shirts and shorts. All for much less than one sport shirt at Nordstrom would have cost.

Walmart will soon have a store on nearby Rockland Key. It will sell groceries also. I walked around the food section checking out prices. Walmart had everything. Prices very low. Key West’s Publix and Winn Dixie will not be able to compete. They will have to lower prices to do so.

On the way back to Key West, I stopped at the Islamorada Fish Company for stone crabs. Broke my diet. They were delicious! The best!

Everyone was dressed like me.

Monday’s E-Blast carried an article re the Waterfront brewery remodeling. The property is city owned. It is being remodeled for the two tenants who will be occupying. A brewery and restaurant.

My concern is with over costs/over runs. Everything Key West does construction wise, involves the taxpayers getting hit with additional costs for alleged unexpected problems. The brewery thus far has run into two. An additional cost of $64,000. Not much, but more.

Over costs seem to occur on every type construction Key West is involved in. Sometimes in the millions. I never ran into this situation in other areas. Key Wet calls them unexpected. I call them a series of screw ups by the city in not properly investigating and/or discovering the work initially.

Key West never seems to learn.

My blog talk radio show tonight. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. Nine my time. Join me for a hard hitting half hour. I rip the scabs off!

Tonight’s topics will include more on the California water drought. More than merely running out of water. Who are the real culprits and the unaware pain that occurs.

Also, Florida climate change and Governor Scott, more on police quotas, Greece soon to leave the Eurounion, the euro falling against the dollar meaning cheap European vacations this summer, and a tiny country most have never heard of that is making a ton of money as the new place to wash dirty money.

The show can be found on the internet at www.blogtalkradio.com/key-west-lou.

Enjoy your day!

UP EARLY

Today’s blog a minimal one. I am up early. I will be driving to Miami for the Volkswagen’s 20,000 mile check up.

I am not looking forward to the trip. It is up to Miami and back in the same day.

Sunday by day was spent writing this week’s KONK Life column. Drought and Water Profiteering. It publishes wednesday. Very revealing.

Spent a couple of hours at Louie’s Backyard watching the view and chatting with those around me.

Dinner was at La Te Da’s outside bar. Duck.

Enjoy your day.

ELIEZAIRE

I was having dinner at the Hot Tin Roof last night. A gentleman at a nearby table kept smiling at me. He looked familiar. I could not place him. He finally came over.

It was Eliezaire!

I know Eliezaire from my Yacht Club days. He was part of the Yacht Club staff. It was good to see him again.

We know someone for many years and yet know little about the person. Such it was with Eliezaire. As we talked, I learned he worked only one night a week at the Yacht Club and has been doing so for 10 years. His primary job is at Ocean Key. He has been an engineer at Ocean Key for 18 years. An excellent track record! Originally from Haiti.

Eliezaire was having dinner with his family. I went to his table to meet them. His lovely wife Erica and his three daughters. His son was not with them. Eliezaire and Erica’s daughters absolutely beautiful! Two were excited to meet. The third apprehensive. Like….Who is this guy?

I finally caught up with Jean Thornton. She was at the bar with Eddie. We exchanged big hugs. A mutual admiration society.

Jean had mentioned in Facebook yesterday that she was in her cow costume riding over to the Cow Key Bridge Run at 8:30. The race was not till noon. She was there early because she was working the event, in addition to later participating.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions. I never made the race. It suddenly became too much work to go out early in the day to walk 300 feet.

This morning’s Key West Citizen has an excellent article and photos of the event. More than 1,000 participated. Most cow look alikes. Ingenious costumes. Dogs participating also.

An utter here, an utter there run.

The Seven Mile Bridge Marathon was yesterday, also. It had 1,500 participants. The Cow Key Bridge event is only in its second year. A 1,000 turn out is excellent. It also shows how crazy Key West is! Any excuse for fun. We are all children at heart.

Stopped at the Chart Room before dinner. Chatted with Vic and a couple from Virginia.

My day was spent at home researching this week’s KONK Life column. It concerns the California water drought. Interesting. Tons of material. One portion will have to do with those who are and will be making big dollars off the suffering of others. It seems to have become the American way.

The bocce rankings are in the paper. We are still in third place. This week’s two losses did not alter our standing. Other near competitors lost also, which kept us in third place.

Key West is into the Conch Republic Celebration. Two of today’s events include a musical breakfast this morning at Smokin’ Tuna and a Conch Cruiser Show at Schooner Wharf this afternoon. Never a dull moment in Key West!

Enjoy your Sunday!