A MIRACLE…..A BABY MIRACLE

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This is a Christmas story that has nothing to do with Christmas. It represents a Jesus like miracle, however.

Twenty two years ago, twin girls were born prematurely in a Massachusetts hospital. Twelve weeks premature. Each weighed 2.2 pounds.

Their parents named them Kryrie and Brielle.

They were placed in separate incubators.

Kyrie did well. Gained weight, etc. Brielle went the other way. Lost weight. Cried constantly. It was obvious Brielle was not going to make it. Death inevitable.

Nurse Gayle had been taking care of the babies in ICU. She needed to do something more for Brielle. What?

At the time, European hospitals in similar situations were placing the twins  into one incubator together. Next to each other. In some instances, the dying twin survived.

Such was not permitted in Massachusetts hospitals at the time. Specifically against the rules.

Gayle disregarded the rules and placed the dying Brielle next to Kryrie in Kryrie’s incubator. Both were placed on their stomachs. Immediately and without assistance, Kryrie’s arm lifted over her sister’s back and remained there. In a holding pattern.

Brielle immediately stopped crying. She improved from that moment on. Survived, of course.

The twins are 22 years old today. Lovely. Live vibrant lives.

God is good! He works in strange ways.

Picked up my second new set of eye glasses at the optician’s late yesterday. Wore a pair last night. From 4-6 feet forward, I could see nothing. Blur!!!

I was in the Chart Room. Told John to turn the lights up. He said they are as high as they go. Took off the glasses, the room was bright. Could not read the labels across the bar. Took off the glasses, could read them all. The TV was on 30 feet away in the corner where Jimmy Buffett used to play. Glasses on, could not read the print on the screen. Glasses off, no problem.

I don’t believe it! It is back to the optician and doctor tuesday. It has been six weeks and I still do not have new glasses I can see with.

The Chart Room last night. Quiet. Only me and three others. Strange because Christmas tourists are filling Key West. Driving was difficult because of the crowds as I drove to the Chart Room.

Met an interesting couple. Brian and Justine Anderson from just outside Houston. Brian and Justine were married in Key West in 2014. Return yearly. Had been coming down several years previous to their marriage also.

They love Key West!

Brian a college professor. He is Chairman of the English Department at a Houston area college. Justine on the staff at Macey’s. Sells furniture and mattresses.

She gave me a quick mattress education. I am unhappy with my soft mattress on the new adjustable bed I recently acquired. I wake with a sore back every morning.

Sounds like all of a sudden nothing satisfies me. Not true, even though I am presently having eye glass and mattress problems. The problems are genuine.

Brian is Dr. Brian Anderson. He too writes a blog. I read it this morning for the first time.The Virtual Cocktail Napkin. dbanderson.blogspot.com.

Perfectly composed blogs. On the intellectual side. As would be expected from a Ph.D degreed English major.

Brian, please send me your e-mail at louispetrone@gmail.com. I would like to communicate with you.

A local biggie tonight. Larry Smith’s annual Christmas show! Titled Holiday Jazz Concert. The Studios of Key West at 8. See you there!

Syracuse/St. Bonaventure tonight. Will miss the game due to Larry’s show.

Syracuse could lose. St. Bonaventure rated by CBS as the best college basketball team in New York.

A study recently released states Florida has the fourth worst credit strength in the United States. Based on average credit score, credit card background, auto and mortgage delinquencies.

I am not surprised. Especially with the large number of mortgage defaults since 2008. Florida is either #1 or 2 re mortgage defaults/foreclosures nationwide.

Don’t be mislead by Trump’s comments re the major corporations that have announced in the last 24 hours that they are going to pay $1,000 bonuses to their employees because of the tax bill recently passed.

Most of the corporations have earning in excess of $40 billion a year. They can afford to pay out $200 million to impress Trump, to place themselves in a favorable position regarding acquiring government contracts in 2018.

Friend Tim Reynolds just called. He lives in Tampa now. He called to tell me he just bought a sailboat. I will be sailing in the near future!

Irma and Me sales continue to excite me. Much more than I expected. Especially at this early stage.

Join the crowd. Buy the book. You will enjoy. The story of how Irma chased me from my Key West home to Pompano to Atlanta and finally to Birmingham. I began to feel like a black cloud was over me.

Irma and Me is available through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and KoboBooks.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

 

SYRACUSE BASKETBALL RETURNS

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Syracuse basketball is back! Love it!

Already won one game. Play St. Bonaventure tonight. These early games mean little. The big guys play the little guys in warm up games.

Soon Syracuse will be off to a tournament in the Bahamas. There they play against other competent teams. The tournament provides an early look at the quality of the team.

The Boeheim penalty phase begins with the ACC games. Boeheim is prohibited from coaching the first nine games. He has an appeal pending that may minimize the penalty.

It was back to the treadmill yesterday. The Anti-Gravity Treadmill. I was away a week. It felt good to be on the machine again. There were no problems. My shoulder/ribs held up.

Won something to do with the treadmill. The AlterG “PT of the Month” award.

Jenny is my physiotherapist. She mentioned that AlterG, the manufacturer of the anti-gravity treadmill, had a contest. Needed a letter from the patient as to why using the machine, what was expected to be accomplished, etc.

The competition a national one.

Jenny asked me to participate with her. I agreed. Told her to worry not. We would win.

I wrote about my inability to climb to the top of the Santorini volcano. Actually, a funny story.

The story did it. We won. Won what? A couple of tee shirts and something else. Plus, AlterG will be carrying my submission in its next blog. Together with pics of Jenny and me.

After the treadmill, I was off to Publix. In desperate need of groceries. Surprisingly, Publix was packed. Unusual for a monday.

Yesterday afternoon was spent preparing for tonight’s blog talk radio show. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. Nine my time. Join me. www.blogtalkradio.com/key-west-lou.

Topics touched upon will include Hillary’s Wall St. comments, the Paris/Bataclan attack, federal government’s fining several major pharmaceuticals for wrongdoing, Germany’s immigration problems causing a member of Parliament to call for compulsory labor, some parts of this week’s KONK Life column including sexual pursuits of Caesar, Columbus, and Ben Franklin. Betsy Ross too, if I have time. Hers one of the most surprising.

Dinner last night at Goldman’s Deli. Desired a pastrami on rye sandwich.

I made a mistake yesterday. I stated voting age was 21. It is not. It is 18 and has been so for many years thanks to the 26th Amendment. What can I say? Sorry. Sometimes I get things wrong. I spend 30-35 hours a week researching and writing. I try to be accurate. Mistakes occur, however.

I thank the reader who brought the error to my attention.

Certain things are not within my job description. Running the country one. I must comment. I am extremely unhappy with Obama’s attitude and decision re taking on ISIS further. Brings to mind the late 1930s when many closed their eyes to German aggression hoping it would go away.

ISIS is not going away. They have to be destroyed. I am with those who think we will be fighting them on U.S. soil if we do not do more. Significantly more.

One of Key West’s loveliest ladies is Holly. Peter Diamond’s Holly. At the Gardens sunday night, she took me aside. She had an article she wanted me to read. Thought it was worthy of comment. Had to do with an unusual amount of seagrass running up onto Atlantic beaches the length of the U.S. She said she would get the article to me.

Her comments made me recall a recent news story that the upper end of Smathers Beach had seagrass out a distance into the ocean.

Researched the situation. The seagrass is called Sargassum. Also known as beach wrack. It is decaying seaweed. Smells like rotten eggs.

Interestingly, seabirds, crabs and certain type insects feed off the seaweed.

Its origination unknown. Some suspect the 2010 Horizon oil spill. The chemicals put into the water at the time.

The creatures that suffer the most are baby turtles. The hatchlings. They cannot reach the water. Confusion big time! Most die.

I am repetitive in the following regard: Key West loves Harry Truman and Harry Truman loved Key West. On this day in 1946, Truman arrived in Key West for his first vacation here. Glad he enjoyed Key West. He returned ten times more. His total time in Key West 175 days

Enjoy your day!