ANOTHER BOCCE PARTY

Bocce parties are like bowling banquets. Only less formal and more fun.

Last night was our small five team competitive group’s get together. Always an enjoyable evening.

The thought occurred last night that I have known many at the party for years. Some as many as 15 years. We are the same kids today that we were back then. As far as bocce is concerned, none of us grew up. Perpetual youth.

Awards were given. Larry Smith’s team came in first. Clare got the best cheerleader/most improved award. Don the screw up award for a shot that lost our team first place in the 5 team group and #2 in the thursday night league.

David played his part last night. Excellent as usual.

I sat with Tom, Nicky, Dan, Betty, Jennifer and Larry Smith most of the evening. Tom and Nicky and Dan and Betty return home in a few days. Not to return till october.

Stopped at Lori’s for a haircut at noon. My appointment was for yesterday. The girl put it in the book for next thursday. I try again today.

The foul up was no problem. The Cuban Coffee Queen is around the corner. I stopped in for lunch.

A doctor’s appointment at 1. To check the area where things were cut off my head and face two weeks ago.

My KONK Life column this week has to do with bees. Bees as used in warfare. As far back as cave man days.

The column published wednesday. This morning it appears in KONK E-Blast. It was also linked to my Key West Lou website. .keywestlou.com.

The last two weeks, Guy deBoer has run in E-Blast a pic of me taken 4 years ago in Greece. On Amorogos, my favorite place. The photo reminds me of how relaxed and laid back I was when there.

Back to younger days? A recent study indicates pot smoking today is highest in the over 55 group. The study contained a picture of grandma lighting up.

Enjoy your day!

 

ROBERT / SUNSET KEY

Today’s Key West Citizen gives rise to my first two comments this morning.

My grandson Robert just turned 12 years old. He is in the sixth grade at Montessori. A piece of his art work is on the front page of today’s Citizen in the upper left corner under Weather.

My first reaction to the painting was Robert paints much better than that.

I read the caption underneath. Robert Malcom….. Montessori Charter School….. First grade. My Robert? Robert is not in the first grade.

Did some quick digging. Turns out the painting is by my Robert. Done by him when he was in the first grade and published by the Citizen at that time. Something like six years ago.

The Citizen appears to recycle these paintings. They rerun them over the years.

A small painting in a small corner by a small person. Would it not be better if the Citizen ran the children’s current art work? A small thing to ask for the small people.

Staying with the Citizen, I learned something interesting from its Today In History section.

I always thought Sunset Key got its beginnings many years ago as a garbage dump. I was wrong. The Citizen set forth the correct story this morning.

In 1965, Key West’s main shipping channel was dredged. What to do with the fill? 1.1 million cubic yards of the fill were dumped where Sunset Key sits today. Created a 30 acre island. Which years later become the beautiful Sunset Key.

Spent yesterday afternoon writing this week’s KONK Life column. To Bee or Not To Bee. Not Shakespeare. Rather, the story of bees in warfare. Hits the stands wednesday.

Last night, Tavern ‘n Town. Expected an all alone evening. Had my newspapers.

Turned out to be a lovely evening. Most enjoyable. A not alone one. Victoria sat next to me at the bar. Never met her before. However, we engaged in an evening of interesting fun filled chatter.

Victoria is a local. Works for PayChex. Has worked for PayChex a long time. She was celebrating her birthday.

We talked of Greece (where she has visited), travel, and Key West relationships.

A good evening.

News! Tropic Cinema will soon be showing first run movies. A big deal for Tropic Cinema.

How does the song go? The weather outside is frightful…..

Not here in Key West. Sunny all day. Temperatures in the mid to high 80s. Even humidity. The humidity showed up about a week ago. It will probably remain. Key West’s summer has begun.

Enjoy your day!

BOCCE PLAYOFFS

It was festival time yesterday at the bocce courts. Playoffs! Tents covering players from the blazing sun. Food and drink. Lots of spectators. Even babies.

We played the #1 team from monday night. We were #3 from the thursday night league. Got our asses whipped in the first game. 16-4. We were competitive in the second. Lost 16-15.

We are done.

The team that beat us will probably go on to win the whole thing. Three times. They were good. No question about it. Precision shooting. Missed only one blast.

Joe Quartarone e mailed me. He is an officer in the national bocce organization. He made inquiry of the Key West league via my blog. He wanted to know among other things numbers. How many players, teams, etc. I told him 56 teams, over 500 players.

He wrote back excitedly. Key West has one of the biggest leagues in the country. He is going to visit, etc.

Watched the Preakness at Don’s Place. For some reason, it did not excite me this year.

Probably because I was anxious to get over to the Firehouse Museum. A birthday party. 102 years old. A mamey tree. Purportedly the grandfather of all mamey trees in the United States. DNA proven.

The tree is on the side of the Museum. Majestic. 54 feet tall.

About 200 at the party when I arrived.

The tree’s fruit is used to make ice cream. There was free ice cream. Tried it. Delicious!

During the course of the afternoon before going to the Museum, I asked many if they had ever heard of a mamey tree. No one knew what I was talking about. Guess I asked the wrong people. The 200 at the Museum knew.

While at Don’s Place, Clare and Stan introduced me to Clare’s new boss. John Cary. He is the new President of Dion Oil LLC. Dion’s is now owned by Uphoff Ventures. Uphoff purchased the business from the Dion family several months ago.

Don’t let the oil in the name of the business fool you. Dion’s is best known for its chicken. The absolute best!

Cary a nice guy. Intelligent. He should do well in caring for and expanding Dion’s.

I was home before 8. Wanted to watch the Lyndon Johnson movie on HBO. All the Way. I was disappointed.

Johnson was portrayed in too dramatic a fashion, nutty, and intense.

Johnson was a hard driving individual. However to portray him as a man who did not want to get out of bed when things got tough was an insult to the man and his true history.

Spent yesterday morning researching this week’s KONK Life column. I will write the column this afternoon. To Bee or Not To Bee. Not Shakesperian. It is the story of bees as used in warfare. From centuries before the birth of Christ to present day.

How many movies have we seen of wagon trains? Going west. Did you ever give thought to how long a trip took. I never did.

Read something this morning that evidences the time factor. On this day in 1843, what has been described as the Great Emigration began. A covered wagon trip from Independence, Missouri to Oregon. One thousand settlers and 1,000 cattle.

Five months.

A quiet Sunday ahead. I have nothing planned.

Enjoy your Sunday!

 

DANCE CARD FULL

Generally, I many times have no idea of what I am going to do. Today, I know exactly into the evening.

I slept late. It is 10ish and I am just starting the blog. Then research for this week’s KONK Life column. About bees. Bees in warfare. Titled: To Bee or Not To Bee. Love the title!

Bocce. Playoffs today. My team ended up third. All alone. Without playing thursday night. Rained out. Six teams tied for third. One, us. We had beat the other five earlier in the season. Gave us third place alone.

The team plays at 3. I will be there to cheer them on. Spoke with Don yesterday. We are playing monday’s #1 team. Tough!

When the game is over, we will all head to Don’s Place. Win or lose. For the Preakness.

Not done yet.

After Don’s, going to a birthday party. At the Firehouse Museum on Grinnell. One block from Don’s place. The mamey tree 102nd birthday party.

The mamey tree in question lives on the Firehouse Museum property.

What is a mamey tree? I did not know till this morning. A tree common to Central and South America. Some in Florida and rest of U.S. Grows 60-70 feet tall. Bears different colored fruit in the shape of a football.

The father of all mamey trees in the U.S. is the one planted at the Firehouse Museum. DNA substantiated.

The fruit is made into ice cream, milk shakes and smoothies. I will try the ice cream tonight for the first time.

The party is 6-8 pm.

My yesterday began with the anti-gravity treadmill. Jenny encouraged me to move on. I increased the speed. Though not by much.

I am a creature of habit, as mentioned many times. Which means I ended up at the Cuban Coffee Queen again for lunch. Cuban cheese toast and Cuban coffee. Plus, the newspapers. I sat an hour or two reading.

Then home. Early afternoon. Tired. The increased speed on the treadmill? Not sure. Whatever, I took a two hour nap.

Last night, a premier event. Dinner with Jenna at Michael’s. Jenna and I had not seen each other in three months. It was catch up time.

I mentioned in yesterday’s blog that the Oklahoma Senate had this week passed a bill making abortion a felony. A felony for the doctor performing the abortion. It reached the Governor yesterday. The governor vetoed the bill.

Words of wisdom from Aristotle: “There is only one way to avoid criticism: Do nothing, say nothing and be nothing.”

Trump will never avoid criticism.

Enjoy your day!