BigPineKey.com – Letters to the editor with pictures since 2002. Published on Big Pine Key’s garbage days, Tuesdays and Fridays.

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Published on Tuesdays and Fridays.
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[New Web Site] Here’s your million-dollar idea for 2026: Start a website called ‘OlderFans’. People asking each other how they slept last night, what medications they’re on, what body part hurts today and what small task they did that made it hurt. It could be the Venture Out of websites. I’d start it but my wrist hurts.

[Rude People] I was brought up by parents who taught me to say hello to any stranger that came to our house. This applied to people you met in public.
Example of bad manners: While riding a bicycle you pass a couple also on bicycles going the opposite direction. You see them, they see you, you say good morning, they look away… without any greeting whatsoever!

[January Blood Drives] January is National Blood Donor Month to honor donors and to highlight that blood is an essential medicine with no substitute that’s crucial for surgeries, cancer treatments and emergencies. Donations drop after the holidays and demand doesn’t. As a thank you to those who donate life saving blood, this month’s donor gift is an eGift Card plus a long-sleeved t-shirt. To find a drive near you, click the link below. Thank you to those who donate life saving blood. Link

[Cute Frog] I never thought I’d see a cute frog, but I’ve got to admit I’ve seen cute tree frogs.

Journalism is supposed to investigate wrongdoing, follow the money, and hold those in power accountable. It’s not supposed to protect politicians or bureaucrats by discrediting the people who expose problems. We don’t have any investigative journalists in the Keys, but if we did, we’d be learning new things. Or should I say ‘learing’ new things?!? hahaha

[Report on Tourism] I hadn’t been out to US1 for some time and when I did I thought I drove into the Twilite Zone and landed in Miami during rush hour for all the traffic.

[Friday Joke] What was Dr. Frankenstein’s New Year’s resolution? To make new friends!

The last three pennies ever minted by the U.S. government sold at auction on Dec. 11 for $800,000. The winning bidder also received the three dies that struck those coins. “I’ve been going to coin auctions for 40 years, and I’ve never seen anything like this,” said John Kraljevich of Stack’s Bowers Galleries, where the auction was held. The penny was introduced in 1793 and at that time could buy a biscuit or piece of candy. “I think for a lot of people, the ending of production of cents for circulation is an item of nostalgia,” Kraljevich said.

[We Are Doomed] A website to destroy all websites. Link

[Woman Overboard] Coast Guard searching for woman who went overboard from cruise ship off Cuba yesterday. The woman went into the water as the ship, the Neiuw Statendam, was sailing about 40 miles northeast of the Sabana-Camagüey archipelago off Cuba’s northern coast, the Coast Guard said in a statement. The search is being conducted by the crew of the Cutter William Trump and a MH-60 helicopter crew based in Air Station Clearwater, according to the Coast Guard. Holland America said in a statement that the ship’s captain and crew began searching for the woman immediately upon hearing she went overboard. Link

[Mythic Discovery Within the Inner Reaches of Outer Space] Joseph Campbell Meets George Lucas – Part I. Joseph Campbell (1904-1987) was a world-renowned mythologist who helped modern society understand the true power that storytelling has in our culture and within our personal lives. He studied and identified the universal themes and archetypes that are present in mythical storytelling across history and across the world. His seminal work, The Hero With a Thousand Faces, outlined what Campbell called the Hero’s Journey, a motif of adventure and personal transformation that is used in nearly every culture’s mythical framework. George Lucas was an avid admirer of Campbell’s writings, and used them as a direct reference in his creation of Star Wars. The two didn’t meet face to face until after Lucas had already finished his original trilogy of films. Link

[Tragic Fire] Switzerland resort fire likely started by sparklers in champagne bottles. 40 people were killed and 119 injured, with some in hospital still unidentified due to ‘horrific’ injuries. Video

[Tourist Report] 2025 is in the books and 2026 has started off with a bang. During the week between Christmas and New Years (Hell Week) the highway was packed with a constant flow of traffic, the hotels were full, the Restaurants packed and the stores were crowded. It was a great start off for the New Year. If tradition holds true, we should expect for it to slow down a little for the next two weeks and then begin a steady climb throughout our season.

[Diddler Alert] A few days ago, I found that a grown man had been texting my twelve-year-old son on his “kid-safe” Gabb phone. The man got my son’s number through a children’s book chat on an app called GroupMe. Thankfully my wife and I discovered the situation and intervened before anything bad happened; but still it was sickening to discover that on Christmas morning, while our family was unwrapping presents next to the tree, some creep had been texting my son: “What did you get? Send pictures.” Link

[Public Domain Day] 2026 in Literature read 20 of the best books entering the public domain in 2026. Around the world, people celebrate Public Domain Day on January 1, the day in which copyright expires on some older works and they enter the public domain in many different countries. In the U.S. Constitution, copyright terms were meant to be very limited in order to “promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts.” The first copyright act, written in 1790 by the founding fathers themselves, set the term to be up to twenty-eight years. Link

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[Friday Joke] Knock, knock! Who’s there? Wren. Wren who? Wren will these New Year’s jokes ever end?

The current Coconut Telegraph was published on 1/2/26 at 10:28 am.

[Two Bedroom Duplex on Canal For Rent] Big Pine Key. 2 bedrooms. One bath. Unfurnished ½ Duplex on clean boating canal going to Pine Channel and coral reef. Beautiful, vaulted ceilings. Tiled floors throughout. 1500 square feet. Stainless steel stove & refrigerator, laundry room. Central A/C. Ground level. Back Porch. Port Pine Heights subdivision. Quiet neighborhood. No smokers or dogs. $2000 a month. Available now. First $2000, last $2000 and $1000 security deposit. $5000 total to move in. Utilities not included. Craigslist: Link

[House For Rent] Big Pine Key. 3 bedrooms. 2 full bathrooms. House on stilts over full concrete slab. Bay window in Kitchen plus a pantry. Stainless steel appliances. Plenty of kitchen cabinets and granite counter tops. Dining area/living room. Big front porch. Large, locked storage room downstairs. Covered parking for two vehicles. Central air conditioning plus heat. Back two bedrooms have additional mini-split A/Cs. Very bright and clean and in a quite neighborhood. Laundry area in hallway. Electric bill is about $165 a month. No smokers or dogs. 1100 square feet. $3000 a month. First, last and $1000 security. 1125 square feet. $7000 total to move in, utilities not included.
See it on Craigslist: Link