MICHAEL’S CONTINUING SAGA

The old hymn…..Onward Christian soldiers. Michael appears to have moved to the tune. Though not with God on his side. In and out quickly. Did not hang around. In less than two days, did a number on northern Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, and Virginia. Now over the Atlantic, 185 miles east-northeast of Norfolk.

The Panhandle pure devastation. Comments include unprecedented damage, a war zone, communities obliterated, an Air Force Base wiped out, catastrophic, looks like an atomic bomb dropped, cars and boats piled up like rubbish.

Keeps going. Entire blocks empty, houses on them smashed by storm surge and wind, washed out to sea.

First responders going in. Difficult work. The war zone description repeated frequently.

Michael maintained hurricane intensity 200 miles inland. Unusual.

Though Michael far out to sea, Virginia still experiencing dangerous wind gusts.

Michael gone. Recovery help required big time. I do not hear of FEMA’s involvement. Sure they must be there. Tell us. I am concerned Trump will fail the Panhandle as he did Puerto Rico. It all comes down to money. Soon I suspect we will hear there is not enough money. Then what?

Sad stories. Every one of them. One of the worst, 11 year old Sarah Radrey. Staying with her grandparents in Georgia. A car port crashed through the roof and killed her.

God help Sarah, her parents, and her grandparents. Tragedy of the worst kind!

Stopped into the Chart Room first last night. John working. Had not seen him in a week.

The room was packed! Tight standing room only. Forget getting a seat. Highly unusual this time of year. Off season.

Met two nice people. Lisa and Bob. Celebrating their 26th wedding anniversary.

Lisa and Bob from River Edge, New Jersey. Bob affiliated with the New York City Carpenters Union. Lisa works for a podiatrist.

Two grown sons. Twenty four and twenty two.

Their third visit to Key West. Second time at the Pier House. First time stayed at the Ocean Key across the street.

We talked of many things. A bit of politics. Lisa and I on opposite sides of the fence. She watches FOX News!

Liked them. Hope to see them again the next time they return.

David showed up somewhere along the evening. Always good to see David. I enjoy his company.

Then to the Blue Macaw. Enjoyed a drink, brie and good company. Andrea, Joe, John, Doug, Mary, Donna, and Terri.

I was anxious to talk with Doug. He is a tour guide at the Hemingway House.

I have been into ghosts the past few days. First, South Carolina’s Gray Man. Yesterday, Key West’s Angel of Mercy Maria Gutsens.                      .

Researching for more ghost tales yesterday, I came across an article claiming Ernest Hemingway and his second wife Pauline were making nocturnal visits to the Hemingway House.

Hard to believe! Doug would know.

Doug said no to Ernest, maybe to Pauline, but suggested Asa Tift as the real ghost. Asa was a wrecker/salvager in Key West’s early days. A self made tycoon. Built the Hemingway House for he and his family.

I could find nothing to substantiate the Asa story. Did come across more re the Hemingways.

Ghost appearances are technically referred to as manifestations. Many manifestations at the Hemingway House.

Hemingway writing in his loft work room, seen walking around the house, and standing on the veranda occasionally waving at passersby.

Pauline standing at the top of the central staircase looking to the loft watching her husband working and out the window her children playing outside. Occasionally standing at night by the gate smoking a cigarette.

One manifestation is hearing the typewriter clicking in the early morning. Supposedly, Hemingway writing. Could not be true. Hemingway did not type his works. He hand wrote them with a pencil. Then either Pauline or his sister would type them up.

My home bound trip from the Blue Macaw evenings takes me right by the Hemingway House. I shall be looking manifestations.

Key West’s humorous weather man at it again. He predicts this evening at 78 degrees and partly cloudy. Follows it up with…..Stars play peek-a-boo.

Traffic is reaching the breaking point on US 1. The only way in and out of Key West. The only highway through 140 miles of the Keys. Traffic especially heavy the past two years. A recent study attributes the increase to tourists. Claim tourists jam the highway.

Merely sharing. I have no comment.

Another study suggests two major medical problems. The first obviously the flu. The other too many C-sections. The number world wide has doubled from 2000 to 2015. The increase in the U.S. up as much as 30 percent in certain years. China up as much as 62 percent.

The message most of the C-sections not required. Medical problems for mother and child increasing as a result.

DOW doing well. Two days ago, down more than 800 points. Yesterday, more than 500. Today?

Trump’s lack of character evident with the Jamal Khashoggi situation. Trump says U.S. economy more important. We have a $110 billion agreement with Saudi Arabia for planes, etc. Trump says Khashoggi not even a citizen. Correct. He is a legal U.S. resident however and writes for the Washington Post.

News this morning says the $110 billion agreement mostly a holdover from the Obama administration. Actually, letters of intent. Not binding. Saudi Arabia has never purchased anything pursuant to the agreement.

Tonight, I dine! Andrea cooking. Joe making pina coladas. Andrea’s food preparation dining without question. Joe’s pina coladas fun.

Enjoy your day!

 

DISGUSTING PERFORMANCE

Yesterday’s Senate Committee Hearing was a perfect example of how inept our government has become. Four witnesses. All major figures. All bad. All unresponsive. Two terribly so.

An example of how our country is falling apart at the seams. Responsibility forgotten. A nation cannot survive unless everyone pulls together when it comes to basics.

Answer questions asked, unless there is a legal reason not to do so. There was none yesterday.

Today, Comey. He will be more responsive. Many say this is Comey’s day. I disagree. It is America’s day.

Rained like hell yesterday! Flooding all over!

This morning’s Key West Citizen has excellent photos of the flooding at Front and Duval Streets and Simonton and United.

Supposed to be rainy through the weekend. This afternoon and tonight heavy again. Then moderating off.

Wind warnings for this afternoon. Forty mile per hour winds. Not the time for boating.

Key West Pride week begins today. Runs through sunday.

Several days of festivities. The parade sunday afternoon. Always spectacular! Runs from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic.

Key West is one happy family. Gays and straights intermingle. No one concerned. No one even thinks about a different sex preference.

Key West has had a gay mayor. Even a gay elected leader of the Chamber of Commerce. He was known as the Gay Master. Made BD/SM gear.

A gay master bd/sm manufacturer as head of the Chamber of Commerce would never have flown in Utica. People too uptight.

I mentioned Qatar and Iran yesterday. How Saudi Arabia and several other Arab states are on their backs. I attributed the move to Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia two weeks ago. From my perspective, emboldened the Saudis.

Trump lacking in background knowledge and basic common sense the cause. He did the embolding.

No mention in yesterday and today’s papers re the ISIS attack in Iran and Saudi Arabia’s blockading and threatening little Qatar with invasion.

Was my Trump observation wrong? Or, have the Senate hearings re Russia, etc. blocked out all other significant news?

I read somewhere that people don’t change, they reveal who they really are. We are seeing it with Trump. Many of us knew he was unstable. It is more evident now that he has taken office.

A great religious figure died this date in 632 AD. Muhammad. One of the most influential figures in history. Today Islam is the world’s second largest religion.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

MOLASSES FLOODS BOSTON STREETS

Key West is accustomed to street flooding.

If a rain fall is heavy and it is high tide, the sewers cannot take the rain water. Intersections become lakes. Some as deep as two to three feet.

Hurricanes are no stranger to street flooding. Wilma comes to mind. Six and a half feet of water. Not just pouring over the streets. Into homes. Level six and a half feet, also.

On this date in 1919, Boston experienced a significant flooding. Twenty one killed. Dozens of horses, also.

Not water, however. Molasses.

The U.S. Industrial Alcohol Building contained a 58 foot high tank. The tank holding 2.5 million gallons of crude molasses. The tank exploded. Flowed  into and flooded the streets.

Took two weeks to clean the streets. Not bad. It took one to two years to clean up the Wilma mess. I refer specifically to home damage.

Spent yesterday afternoon quietly reading. Stories involving U.S. forces in Europe during World War II.

Then at 4, the Syracuse/Boston college game. Syracuse won 96-81. Interesting since Boston College decisively defeated Syracuse in a game New Year’s Day.

Syracuse’s fabled zone defense was working yesterday. Made Boston College look terrible.

As Boeheim continues to say, Syracuse wins if it plays its special defense hard. If not, Syracuse loses.

What Syracuse needs is consistency. The big post season tournament is slipping away.

Dinner last night at Berlin’s. Decided on beef. A filet mignon. As good as any I have enjoyed at a New York City steak house.

The local community college has steadily grown during my many Key West years. First, a two year community school. Now a four year institution. Presently offering a bachelor’s degree in a certain business area. This summer, a four year nursing degree.

No more a community college. The Florida Keys Community College needed a new name consistent with its movement to four year degrees.

The front page of this morning’s Key West Citizen announces such. Beginning this summer, the name will change. To The College of the Florida Keys.

Congratulations to The College of the Florida Keys. Congratulations to the administrators and faculty who worked hard to make it so.

I have many times criticized the Key West City Commission. Bunglers. Know not what they do. Inept.

Today’s Key West Citizen editorial takes on the Commission and its many shortcomings. Its sins itemized.

The editorial titled: Why Doesn’t the Commission Listen?

The editorial one of the best written in the many years I have read the Citizen. It publicly admonishes the Commission to shape up.

I doubt it will help. Commission members are hard headed. Several times I have engaged one or another with a question, complaint, etc. In each instance, the reason for the particular Commission action was supported by a non-nonsensical reason.

They cannot see. Thinkers they are not.

William Healey continues to suggest a concern re a Florida Indian uprising in 1856.

He mentions several travelers came down to Key West from the Miami River and corroborated the news he had received one day earlier that the Indians might wage war again. He mentions ten Indians also arrived.

Ernest Hemingway’s grandson will appear at the San Carlos on January 26. John Hemingway will discuss Pamplona and running with the bulls. The setting of his grandfather’s The Sun Also Rises.

Ernest Hemingway never ran. His World War I leg injuries prevented his participation. His grandson John not so affected. John has made the run 16 times. Never gored!

John’s appearance is sponsored by the very active Key West Art and Historical Society.

Enjoy your Sunday!

 

INTERSECTION WATERWAYS

Happy Sunday!

No relief from the weather. Rain and wind continue. Ocean a blanket of white caps.

Yesterday afternoon it rained extremely heavy. Monsoon type rain.

South wind is rare. About a half dozen times a year. I saw it for the second time this week yesterday. Guaranteed rain!

Key West is at sea level. Flooding a problem. Especially at high tide.

I knew downtown would have flooding all over the place. For certain at some intersections. Like the intersection of Duval and Front. Another, Eaton and White. Sometimes as much as three feet. I recall once seeing some college students swimming in the Eaton/White intersection. Many times a kayak or two on Duval.

Driving difficult. Impossible to enter some streets. Decided not to go downtown last night. For fear my Volkswagen would float away or some salt water get in the engine.

Opted instead for an early movie at the Regal in the Sears Shopping Center. Four o’clock. Saw Revenant with Leonardo DiCaprio. Excellent movie. A bit gruesome. DiCaprio deserves an Academy Award for his performance.

Everyone must have had the same idea. Rainy. Go to a movie. The line to the ticket window ran all the way to the back street. Fortunately, the rain stopped during my 20 minute wait to get a ticket.

Senior citizen time. All contemporaries. No one young.

Got out at 6:30. Choice was to eat at Outback or go home. Tried Outback. Packed. Fortunately, I saw a couple leave a booth in  the bar and grabbed it.

Spent my afternoon reading and snoozing.

In December, there were two school bomb threats the same morning. One at Key West High School. The other at Marathon High School.

The police have made an arrest. A 15 year old female student at the Marathon High School. She did not make the calls. However, she is being charged as an accomplice. She provided telephone information to the male who actually made the calls.

The sadness of it all. She never met the man she provided the information to in person. Only over the internet.

We live in strange times.

Enjoy your Sunday!