A DOUBLE PISS DAY

A strange title. Apropos, however.

Yesterday was heart catherization day. My fourth. I am accustomed to the procedure.

Brought a book with me to pass the time away waiting. Crazy Shit Presidents Said. An interesting comment by President Johnson……Making a speech on economics is like pissing down your leg. It seems hot to you, but it never does to anyone else.

Fits President Trump and Speaker Ryan perfectly.

My second encounter with urination involved me personally. Two arm incisions made to perform the procedure. The one in the wrist was for artery entry.

The arteries pump blood rapidly. Much faster than the veins. The artery incision was made in my right wrist. A lot of pressure following the procedure to close the incision. A big bandage. Part of the bandage was a sort of cellophane surrounding the gauze. Cellophane 2 inches wide.

They had been pumping fluids into me for two hours before the procedure and then an hour after. To rid my kidneys of whatever else was pumped into me. Came a time I had to piss.

I was wearing the usual hospital gown. Open in back.

A nurse escorted me to the bathroom. Admonished me not to bend my wrist.

Good luck! I lifted the front of the gown with my left hand. Took hold of my penis with my right. Had to bend the wrist to get at it.

It happened! Opened the incision. Blood spurting. Over me and the gown.

Panicsville by the nurse. Told her I did nothing but go for my penis. Whatever, she laughed. Told the other nurses. They laughed. Even I laughed. I was not concerned.

The wrist was rewrapped. This time a 10 inch splint was placed on my wrist guaranteeing I would not bend it.

The procedure was done at the Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood. Very impressive. A campus of buildings. I was in the Outpatient one. Several stories high. Each floor thousands of feet.

Everyone appeared to enjoy being employed there. I never have seen such a happy group of workers anywhere.

I was instructed to arrive at the hospital at 7:30. Stayed overnight at a hotel. Received a call the afternoon before. Time moved up. Be here at 6:30. Ok. Received another call later. New time, 5:30. I was afraid the front desk would not wake me at 4. I woke at 1 and remained awake till 4.

On the way to Hollywood, stopped at Costco in Homestead. My first Costco visit. I was impressed! Food prices so cheap. Bought a lot. Also saw a computer monitor for sale. Tim Reynolds suggested I get one. I need larger print. No matter how good the glasses, eyes do not function well in old age.

Found one on sale. $50 off. Cost now $150. Bought it. I have not set it up yet. Going to be wild. It is like a huge TV screen.

Still the night before. Did not want to lay around in my room. Went to Billy’s Stone Crab Restaurant. Great stone crabs! Like Joe’s. With a side of hash browns, three gins and a piece of key lime pie.

Another first. Took Uber from the hotel and back. Fantastic! Cheap!

Today a sad day in history. John Kennedy was assassinated this date in 1963. The end of Camelot.

A Key West friend has died. Joan Povel Cornell.

Joan lived through the London blitz. While in Paris following the war, she met her love of 63 years, Woody. An obviously loving couple. Woody especially attentive to Joan.

We saw much of each other 15-20 years ago. Then for whatever reason, rarely. I would run into Joan and Woody in Publix every two years. Always agreed to call each other for dinner. Sadly, never happened.

I knew Joan had been sick the past several years. She and Woody’s name came up at my eye Doctor visit last week. Dr. Douville reminded me that he and I had first met at a sunday brunch at the Cornell’s 18 years earlier.

A good woman gone! A new bright star in the sky! Poor Woody, alone.

Local Alabama Evangelistic ministers supporting Roy Moore. To an extreme. His personal minister said yesterday…..More women are sexual predators than men.

Trump indicated support of Moore yesterday. Proves politics is more important than the election of a pedophile and woman abuser.

Staying with Trump a moment, he is lacking in sympathy. He has no heart.

Haiti suffered a powerful  earthquake in 2010. Haiti before and since, the poorest nation in the Americas. Obama took in 60,000 refugees on temporary residency permits. The 60,000 have become acclimated to the U.S. Hard workers. Some became college educated. Many had children. The children automatically U.S. citizens.

The parents will be deported back to Haiti. What of the children?  The word is most will remain to be raised in American homes.

No reason to return anyone to Haiti after almost 8 years. Typical Trump cruelty.

Irma and me. Heard from the publisher. Irma and Me is available at more that Amazon. It is also available from Barnes and Noble and KoboBooks. Also at the Absolutely Amazing eBooks website.

Consider Irma and Me as a Xmas gift or stocking stuffer.

Driving back from Hollywood yesterday, the trip took me through Marathon south to Cudjoe. Irma still evident. In certain parts, like a war zone.

Enjoy your day!

Tomorrow the turkey!

DISNEY STILL GETS ME

A child at heart. I am glad I still am on occasion.

Last night was one of those times. I enjoyed the children’s favorite Aladdin Jr at the Waterfront Playhouse.

I never would have attended were it not for Larry Blackburn’s daughter Sydney playing the female lead Princess Jasmine and Donna and Terri’s granddaughter Lev performing as the Matron.

Both outstanding. The entire cast outstanding! The show professionally performed.

I stopped at the Chart Room first for a drink. Then Aladdin. Then back to the Chart Room again.

John bartending.

Glad I returned to the Chart Room. Met Tim and Stephanie. Locals, also. Though our paths never crossed before.

Tim works for David Wolkowsky. One of his responsibilities is taking care of Ballast Key.

When Tim mentioned he worked for David, I brought to his attention the KONK Life article I did several years ago about David. Tim surprised me. He had read the article. David had read it. David referred Tim to it.

At the time, David laughingly referred to the article as his obituary. A pang of guilt hit me for a moment. Then I realized such is David’s nature to comment in a joking fashion about some things.

It will be many more years before David has need of an obituary. He is only 98.

To those who may be unfamiliar with David, he is Mr. Key West. The Key West of today would not have been were it not for him. Even to Jimmy Buffett.

Buffett tells how David gave him his first paying job. At the Chart Room, no less. The same chart Room we were in last night. The same Chart Room David constructed as part of the Pier House which he built.

It was after 10 when I left the Chart Room. Had not eaten since breakfast. Stopped at Tavern ‘n Town on the way home. Tavern ‘n Town has added a Happy Hour from 9-11. Perfect for me last night!

Today an historical one in Key West. Uber and Lyft are finally allowed to provide service in Key West.

I read an article yesterday that Key West is the last major market for Uber and Lyft service. Disgraceful. We should have had it two years ago. However, the Key West Commission continues to operate via the Bubba system.

An even better example of the Bubba system in operation is that no new cab licenses have been issued in Key West for 75 years. Called taking care of your own, generation after generation.

Got a manicure thursday at Lee Nails.

No Tammy. I forgot she was taking her two children home to visit the family. Tammy is originally from Vietnam. I recall her telling me the trip would take something like 34 hours. Three or four stopovers included.

Husband Rickie stayed home. Someone had to run the business.

When I telephoned and discovered Tammy had left, I panicked. Who was going to do my nails? You, Rickie? No Mr. Lou, he said. You get a beautiful girl. The prettiest. Nina.

I could not place Nina. When I showed up friday, we met. Loverly! Came to the U.S. two years ago from one of the eastern bloc countries. Loves Key West people and weather.

Nina is 23 years old. A bashful 23.

Tammy had obviously left Nina with marching orders as to how I liked my nails done. Nina did a magnificent job. Especially the buffing.

Yesterday, I wrote about cursive writing. Most do not seem to appreciate handwriting as much as I do. It has to be my age. I learned to hand write when 6. The computer did not enter my life till many many years later. I am less adept with the computer than with handwriting.

My friend Tom in Des Moines believes there is no need for cursive today. Initially intended to speed things up from hand printing, today not needed. The computer is everything.

I mention cursive again this morning because typing on a screen came to be on June 29, 1975 around 10 in the evening. In a small California town.

Prior thereto, man had never hit a key and a letter appeared on a screen.

The mere fact that it happened gave birth to multiple changes in the way we live. The future of business changed, how we communicate with each other changed, etc. The world changed.

The responsible individual was Steve Wozniak.

Ten months later Wozniak and two others formed Apple. The other two, Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne.

Last year, Apples revenue was in excess of $215 billion. Its employees, 116,00 world wide.

Enjoy your day!

GOP SHOOTING

A sad morning.

Sad for the people of the United States.

Republican Congressmen were shot at early this morning while practicing for a baseball game tomorrow morning. Against Democrats. An annual charity fundraiser.

Steve Scalise, the Majority Whip, was shot. In the hip. In surgery at the moment. Several others shot, including two police officers.

I am not a Scalise fan. He is a right wing conservative. However, that does not mean I want him shot. The philosophical battles between my side and his are fought in the halls of Congress and at the ballot box.

One observation. I place part of the blame on the venom and in your face bully type comments spewed by Trump. It invites reaction. In this instance, against Republican Congressmen.

All wrong!

An attack against a Congressman is an attack against me and against you. We are all Americans.

My yesterday a busy one. Running around all day taking care of the mundane.

Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou last night. My podcast. Dwelt on Sessions’ testimony, the Cabinet meeting (the ass kissing one), and Boeing building or planning on building plants in China, Saudi Arabia, and India.

Forbes March edition reported there are 2,043 billionaires in the world. Their combined net worth $7.67 trillion.

Our national debt is three times that amount!

This Qatar thing is having effects. I once again blame Trump for emboldening the Saudis.

Qatar is one of the richest nations in the world. However a financial crisis is looming. The Saudis have shut off Qatar’s outside its borders bank transactions.

Another problem is milk. A problem of more immediate consequence. Milk. Milk is generally imported. Saudi Arabia and several other Arab nations have blockaded Qatar.

Local Qatar entrepreneurs have started a cow paradropping campaign. The Berlin Airlift on a minor scale.

The Key West Citizen carries columns by national columnists several times a week. One appeared today. By the Washington Post’s Kathleen Parker: Wishing for a Trump Tweetectomy.

Right on!

More than any other President, Trump has increased material for use by comedians.

Comedy Central’s Daily Show is opening this weekend the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library. The featured subject: Trump tweets. The Library is at 3 West 57th Street in Manhattan. It will be open friday-sunday. Admission free.

Some 20 years ago, a waitress at Square One had a sister who was afflicted with some rare disease. The sister was in Philadelphia. The waitress walked from Key West to Philadelphia to bring attention to the disease and to raise money to assist in finding a cure.

Impressive!

Another such venture. This one in the water rather than on land.

Three women are paddle boarding from Havana to South Florida. Hopefully, Smathers Beach.

One paddle board. three women. Each will take turns of two hours or less paddling. One of the ladies said, “Our arms are our engines.” Actually, the ladies cup their hands and use their hands to cut the water.

A vessel will lead them.

The trip is anticipated to take 25 hours.

Purpose: To bring two charities to the forefront. Ocean of Hope and Special Olympics 305.

Brave, tough ladies. Not an easy trip. Beside crazy waters and sharks, jelly fish could be the most significant problem. The ladies expect bites. They believe they can mentally as well as physically handle the pain.

Enjoy your day!