LOVELY REBELLIOUS PRINCESS JASMINE LARRY BLACKBURN’S DAUGHTER

A wonderful evening!

Stopped at the Ocean Grill for a bite to eat. Sat at the bar. Soon after, Larry Blackburn and family arrived.

Larry is well known in Key West. His profession photography. A photographer extraordinaire. Special. He literally captures the world around him.

Larry’s daughter Sydney Blackburn was with him.

To say Sydney is a beauty is to minimize her attractiveness. She is absolutely lovely! Naturally so.

Sydney is only 14 years old. I was surprised. Could pass for 18-20 with ease.

Sydney is appearing at the Waterfront Playhouse thursday and friday. She plays the female lead in Aladdin.

World famous. Aladdin is a Middle East folk tale. It has been seen on Broadway, a national tour, and as a Disney movie.

The beautiful and rebellious Princess Jasmine the female lead role.

I look forward to seeing Sydney in the role.

Key West’s premier videoer is Tim Dahms. He will be videoing Aladdin. Larry is doing the photography and public relations. Campo Bravo the sponsor.

Not to be forgotten is Stephanie Hellstrom, Larry’s wife. She and I chatted quite a while. She operates the Panama Hat Shop on Fleming.

Before going to the Ocean Bar, I stopped at the Chart Room. Shaun doing a great job. He has the Jimmy Buffett story down pat.

Where were you Charlotte? A former Key Wester now living somewhere in a mid Atlantic state, e-mailed me she would be in for the weekend, would we be able to meet? I e-mailed back the Chart Room. Nothing etched in stone. Charlotte generally spends most of her Key West time at the Chart Room.

Not last night. No Charlotte.

I was disappointed.

An interesting couple sat next to me at the bar. Very interesting. Charlie and Rhonda from Charleston, South Carolina.

Not newbies to Key West. Visit often. Charlie an engineer. Repairs train engines. I mentioned that in his other life, Howard Livingston was once CEO of a Chicago plant that made diesel railroad engines.

Charlie and Rhonda were familiar with Howard. They attend his shows frequently. Charlie said they have every CD Howard has made.

Rhonda’s job exciting. She is an ophthalmic technician. Thirty two years. I have bad eyes. Eight surgeries. I totally respect those in medicine who help people continue seeing.

They have been married 33 years. Two children. Their daughter a marine biologist. Their son an Army captain. The son is being deployed to Afghanistan soon.

So much for Charlie and Rhonda’s history. More impressive was our discussion that began with boiled peanuts.

I never heard of boiled peanuts. Roasted yes, boiled no.

Boiled a big deal in the Charleston area. They took me through the whole process. Boiled in the shells. Canned. When time to enjoy arrives, heat the peanuts in the micro.

Delicious!

Charlie is into grit mills also. Another education. His family got the recipe 80 years ago.

The food followed by a Charleston Bloody Mary mix. Special. Add horseradish before serving.

Charlie brings the boiled peanuts, grits and Bloody Mary mix with him when he visits Key West for his Key West friends. He and Rhonda have made many Key West friends over the years.

Charlie too nice. He wanted to rush back to his hotel to get a bag of the goodies for me. He said it would only take 15 minutes. I said no.

The compromise is he is going to leave a bag full for me at the Chart Room bar.

Something struck me about the couple. They are very pro Charleston. Their home town. Proud and big time supporters of the community.

It was a good night! Nice people at both places. Enjoyed myself.

Enjoy your sunday!

WHERE DID $500 MILLION GO?

On January 12, 2010, Haiti was hit with a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. More than 200,000 killed. The island devastated.

People responded. The American Red Cross alone received $500 million from donors.

It is now 2017. Seven years later. Where did the money go? Apparently not for new homes, roads and schools. Such a legacy not evident.

The Red Cross provided shelters to 130,000. New homes, only six. Food and blankets provided by the Red Cross, also.

The Red Cross has refused to provide a list of specific programs it ran, the cost and expenses related to each. Only provided was a pie chart showing percentage of money that went to each pie slice sector.

Haiti’s Prime Minister does not know where the money went.

I am not casting aspersions on the Red Cross. I would not expect  the Red Cross to be experienced in rebuilding a developing country. However, there are experts who do know and could be hired. The money went somewhere. The donors and people of Haiti have a right to know.

Stopped at the Cuban Coffee Queen for lunch yesterday. It had been a while. Cuban cheese toast and a cold Cuban coffee. Read the newspapers. The USA Today and the Wall Street Journal.

Three months ago, I became interested in female genital mutilation. Especially in Europe and Asia. I prepared notes to be used as the basis for a topic involving the mutilation on my podcast show. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou.

I could see a discussion of the topic would take more time than normal. As much as 15 minutes. I put the notes aside for use another date when I had room for it.

Two weeks ago on April 11, I led with the subject on the show. It was interesting. Received many comments.

The USA Today I was reading at the Cuban Coffee Queen took me by surprise. The lead front page article concerned female genital mutilation. USA Today referred to it as “demonic.”

The USA article was primarily devoted to the problem as it exists in the United States. Exists meaning today. Note that I had dwelled on Europe and the Middle East.

Young girls are being mutilated in the United States. The female offspring of Muslim families. By a doctor or woman sworn to secrecy. As are the children.

What surprised in the article was the claim that fundamentalist Christians are also involved. To what degree not indicated.

Fundamentalist doctors available.

The story of a three year old girl was reported. She was taken by her fundamentalist mother to a fundamentalist doctor for the procedure. Clit removal. The mother told the doctor she feared her daughter would masturbate in later life. The deed was done with a swift cut of the scalpel.

Not to be left out, the article suggested some Catholics were believers/followers of the procedure.

Spent part of the afternoon fine tuning last night’s podcast show.

Dear friend, everyone’s friend, Patrick “Patty Cakes” Hayes is in Key West visiting. Bartender some 20 years at Square One, now the Ocean Grill. He retired and left a few years ago.

A good man. The best of the best.

Patrick, where are you? I want to run into you.

Lunch today at Salute’s with Amy Bondurant and her husband David Dunn. New to Key West. Recently bought and renovated a home.

Amy was Ambassador under Clinton and Bush 2 to a European organization. Her husband, a Washington attorney.

We have never met. Today the first time. Not sure how we have come together.

Medical science is amazing! Something new and beneficial everyday. Last friday in the Netherlands, a robotic arm was attached to a man. A mind controlled prosthetic arm. Snaps on to the bone. Clicks on. The wearer controls the arm by thought alone.

Enjoy your day!

 

HERMINE ON ITS WAY?

I continue to learn.

Had I not decided to spend the last end of my life in Key West, I would have known little about hurricanes. Still little. However more than I knew back then.

The hurricane Gaston is out there some where. It will not make US landfall.

However…..Behind Gaston is tropical wave 99L. Tropical wave and with a number new to me. A tropical wave can turn into a tropical depression/storm. A tropical depression/storm can turn into a hurricane.

We have been told tropical wave 99L is behind Gaston. Also behind Puerto Rico. It is some 900 miles away. Presently over or soon to be over Hispaniola. Hispaniola and Puerto Rico part of the Greater Antilles.

Whether 99L turns into a tropical storm or hurricane depends what happens as 99L passes over Hispaniola. Hispaniola’s mountains are 10,000 feet. 99L could break up as it passes over the mountains. Such would be the end of any hurricane danger.

Whatever 99L is after the mountains will determine what will happen as regards the southern US. Could be a heavy wind/rain storm. Or, a hurricane.

If 99L turns into a tropical storm or hurricane, it will receive a new name. Hermine.

Whether wind and rain, tropical storm, or hurricane, it will be over the Keys sunday, monday and tuesday.

Truman Capote died on this day in 1984. Best known for In Cold Blood.

Capote once spent a couple of months in Key West. He booked into David Wolkowsky’s Pier House as it stood at that time. Wolkowsky lived in a trailer next to the Pier House ten feet from the water.

Capote was in a suite. After arriving, he was in Wolkowsky’s trailer having a drink. Wolkowsky’s trailer was very well done. Capote said I want to stay here. Wolkowsky said this is my home. So the conversation went on. Wolkowsky finally relented and gave up his trailer to Capote. Wolkowsky moved into Capote’s suite.

I intended to start my evening at the Back Door with Mark Watson. Closed. Mark never shows up if it is raining. The Back Door is outside.

It was not raining at 5. It had stopped around noon. The sun was out and blazing hot at 5.

Mark just wanted a night off.

I went inside to Aqua’s main bar. Rick Dery bartending. My Joe’s Chicken Shack friends Tim and Todd at the bar. Sat and talked with them. Good guys. One drink only.

Then to Sq. 1. John recently purchased it. Wanted to congratulate John. John not there. Met Ryan. The new bartender. All the employees were new. Recognized none of them

I asked if Jay was cooking. Ryan asked me who Jay was. Guess Jay is gone, too.

Ryan has only been in Key West one month. From Montana.

I enjoyed an appetizer and one drink.

Then home. Before 9. Early to bed.

Disaster!

I fell going up the stairs! Stubbed my toe on the last step. Went flying.

My fault. I was hurrying up the steps and not looking. At my age, I am not supposed to do either. No reason to hurry. No one waiting for me in bed.

At my age, when you fall, you fall hard. My nose. Where the bridge of my glasses rest. Thought I broke my nose. Swollen this morning. A bit bruised. A couple of small cuts. Talked to my doctor. Does not think it is broken. Don’t worry about it.

My wrists and knees hurt. Really bad. My left arm/shoulder, also.

I had a cut on my left foot shin bone. Bled more than a small cut should have.

My major problem after a fall is getting up. Big time difficult!

Whatever, I am alive and well this morning.

The Custom House celebrates its 125th birthday this year. Construction was completed 1891. At the time, housed federal offices. Courts, post office, etc. The building plans used were from a previous federal construction.  The new federal building in Aberdeen, Mississippi completed in 1887.

The William Hackley saga continues. Baby still sick. Fever till 2 in the afternoon. Fever returned in the evening. Matilda’s breasts continue to be a problem. Boil on one broke. Painful.

Hackley called for the doctor in the evening. To check out Baby. The doctor had a bit of a concern. He had just returned from treating a smallpox patient. He was concerned whether he should visit the child.

The doctor finally decided it was ok. He had no knowledge of anyone becoming infected by a doctor who had recently cared for a smallpox victim.

Glad we live today rather than back then.

Bob Saraceno and wife Sue are in town. Will be getting together with them at some point.

Enjoy your day!