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| [Dubious Politician Visits Health Food Store] I received a large card in the mail; another political ad, that I would normally throw away. But I looked at this one. On the front is a nice Keysy-palm photo and a photo of the handsome young Representative Curbelo. On the front it states that the card is, “prepared, published and mailed at taxpayer expense.” Wow! I paid for this!
Then I turned it over. Here’s a photo of Curbelo with my good friends, working at the little health food store on Big Pine Key. Under the photo it states, “Representative Curbelo discusses federal regulations with local small business owners.” (none of the ladies pictured is an owner). When I talked with my friends there, they all laughed (they hadn’t seen the card yet). They remembered the photo event and, sure, they gave him permission to take a picture like they would for any tourist or visitor, but didn’t know what it was all about. They didn’t even know who the guy was until he was gone. Contrary to the caption under the photo, he never spoke with the owner at all. She didn’t even know that he came for a photo opportunity pr to speak with her. It’s too bad that he did not take the time to talk with the owner, Rev. Marney Brown, who has been a dedicated small business owner on Big Pine for over 30 years. Maybe the young one could have learned something about small business in the lower Keys. I think that Representative Curbelo needs a little more English education. He obviously knows the noun “representative”, but he most certainly doesn’t know the verb “represent”. He’s got that one all wrong. |
Keys snowman. |
| [“Pearl Harbor Day fades away”] Also I saw no remembrance of the assassination of J F K this past Nov. 22nd. |
When is the Christmas parade with Santa on the fire trucks this year? There never seems to be any public notifications or info about it. What route do they take? |
| [Too Good To Be True Department] A team of very competent lawyers has thoroughly reviewed Florida and U.S. law and concluded that Monroe County and FKAA are illegally demanding easements and electrical service from homeowners for the grinder pumps needed by the disgraceful LPS sewer system.
FKAA has two lawyers on staff and the County has a bunch of its own. They must have known that what they were doing was illegal. How much infrastructure tax will now go to moving the grinder pumps out into the right-of-way where they should have been in the first place? FKAA needs to stop installations right now instead of increasing the damage. And the FKAA and County Boards should be firing those responsible for giving such bad advice to them. |
Reasons to start using pure coconut oil. Link |
| Pigeon Key will be getting a fire protection system at a cost of hundreds of thousands of dollars, but there is still no plan to go off their cesspit. How many millions of our sewer infrastructure tax money was given to the DOT to get the piece of old Seven Mile Bridge repaired so that more tourists can easily get to Pigeon Key and crap in their cesspit? I do not see how that improves seawater quality. But I do see how it is misappropriation of tax money. |
What smoke detectors warn us about. |
| [Crooks] It’s estimated that Volkswagen’s lying about its diesel emissions will cost the auto giant seventy billion Euros—and that’s before the lawsuits! |
I saw this guy in my yard this morning. |
| Why Cubans are dying of rich peoples’ diseases. Cuban health service delivers some impressive results, for a fraction of the amount spent on healthcare in wealthier countries. But it also faces serious problems. Audio |
[Don’t Drink and Shop] On my way home from Springer’s I stopped in Winn Dixie for some junk food. I was perusing some snacks that looked real good when I realized I was in the pet aisle looking at doggie snacks! |
| The guy on TV said that Conway Twitty had 51 number one hits! I find that hard to believe. |
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While I’m on movie cliches, how about flickering fluorescent lights and blood through the shower head or faucets in horror movies? |
| Before drones there was a pretty good business photographing buildings for real estate companies using helicopters. Not any more. |
[Australia’s Robinson Crusoe] On a stifling hot Christmas night in 1803, 23-year-old William Buckley, a young English convict, escapes from the doomed first settlement of Port Phillip Bay in South Eastern Australia, choosing instead to risk the unknown of the hostile Australian wilderness rather than surrender his freedom. Thirty two years later, in 1835, a wild looking white man emerges from the Australian bush with long hair, a beard, dressed in skins and carrying spears. It’s William Buckley, long presumed dead. His account, of living for thirty-two years with an Aboriginal tribe before white colonisation, is a tale of love, violence, mortality and loyalty. It’s one of the greatest survival stories ever told. Link |
| Those who live for tomorrow are happier and live longer according to a recent study. I’m of the opinion that those who live for today have more fun. |
What’s the difference between a machine gun and a sub-machine gun? |
| [Good Vibes Source Found] Nicola Tesla said the earth is a conductor of acoustical resonance. |
The “NUT” all dressed up for the Holidays. Merry and a Blessed Christmas Piners. You rock! |
| [Hijacker Returned] A 38-year-old man stole a boat from a Stock Island marina on Halloween and took it to Cuba. He was returned Tuesday to the United States to face felony firearms charges. A team of U.S. Marshals flew to Havana, Cuba, to take Scott Michael Wegmann into custody at Jose Marti International Airport (I’ll bet there was a fight among the Marshalls about who got to go). Wegmann is the first fugitive who has been returned to the United States by the Cuban government after fleeing to Cuba since diplomatic relations began nearly a year ago. |
The motor on my 25 year old Sears floor drill press died and a replacement motor from Sears costs $327. A new drill press from Sears costs $375. How odd. |
| [Perverts] Subway pitchman Jared Fogel was sentenced last month to more than 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to trading in child pornography and having sex with two underage prostitutes. Also sentenced was the executive director of his Jared Foundation, a nonprofit that Jared started to fight childhood obesity — he received 27 years. |
[Tower vs Dump] You have to be proud of the people who won the fight over the tower. Sugarloaf home owners won. I wish I could say the same for us in Marathon. We tried to keep a Dump out of the neighborhood with all that comes with it – trucks, noise, smells. Traffic. Etc, but the Bubba System won. We would trade fa dump for a Tower in a heartbeat. |
| CheapShots low cost veterinary services will be in the Keys this weekend for the last time in 2015. Dental appointments are available as well as wellness checks and shots. Go to cheapshots.us for schedule or call 305-390-0325 for further info. Link |
[“Healthcare in Cuba”] Doctors earn about $32 a month. Anyone can be a doctor in Cuba. All you have to do is pass the test. That’s why there are so many doctors there. Whatever you want to be, basically it’s just pass the test. The problem is that the school of your choice is probably far away and you lose your housing when you move and no one can afford to pay rent in another city. |
| [Sewers] The Cudjoe Regional sewers are already close to overflowing! In a gravity sewer area of Cudjoe near US1, a plumber making a sewer connection discovered the cleanout at the property line was almost full of water backed up in the sewer pipes! The neighborhood lift station was nearby and he discovered it was nearly full, with all of the floats inverted and all four pumps trying to run, but cutting out at different times (presumably on the thermal overload safety switch). There was no alarm light or sound. He called FKAA and service guys came and looked. They found the alarm wire disconnected, but they were helpless to get the water level down. The 4 sluggish E-One residential pumps were doing all they could, but there was no sign of dropping water level. It had been raining a lot the day before and that is presumed to be the source of water, because very few people are actually connected yet. The E-One cuts out on thermal overload when the pumping resistance is excessive and it is working too hard. This lift station is not that far from the treatment plant. Since this lift station has problems with so few connections, can you imagine how hard those pumps up off Puerto Bella are going to crash? The lift stations tie into the same pipe as the individual grinder pumps AND the master pump stations. The master pump stations are not even operational yet! FKAA’s “grand experiment” has failed already. They spent over a quarter million dollars in outside legal fees defending it from Dump the Pumps’ warnings. Who will be accountable for wasting all our money on this crap that won’t pump crap? Another thing- the lift stations are supposed to have a radio alarm so that FKAA does not have to wait for somebody to call in about the horn and light alarm. Maybe it did not work (they reportedly do not, although they are legally required). My guess is that different FKAA service guys disconnected the alarm wire because they could not resolve the problem. This plumber was the fifth person telling me about lift stations they saw themselves that cannot pump down. Why do you suppose that FKAA management pre-purchased all the E-One pumps that are designed into the system? |
 [Bubba System] Richard Toppino’s appointment to the Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority board has raised questions about how he will avoid conflicts of interest, as his family’s construction companies have had contracts with the public utility. Toppino says not to worry, he won’t favor his family over out-of-town strangers. Uh, huh. |
| [Chronic Drunk Driver] Robert Brendan Owens of Key West, 36, was arrested in October with his fourth drunken driving charge, while on probation that prohibits him from driving, pleaded straight up in court Friday morning and was handed a 2 1/2-year prison sentence. |
 [Mail to Cuba] Cuba and the United States announced Friday they have struck a deal to re-establish direct mail service, which was cut in 1963 at the height of Cold War tensions. Both countries said that they would launch a pilot program to test direct service. They gave no date for the permanent resumption of service, but indicated that it would not be imminent, saying that technical, operational and safety aspects remained under discussion. |
| Mobile phones are like pacifiers for adults. |
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[Leash Law] There is a leash law in Monroe County. Ramrod Key, north side has had loose pit bulls running on the streets in a State and Federally protected area. Complaints fall on deaf ears. Be careful biking or walking in this area. |
| [“$20,000 missing”] I understand that Board Chairman Andy Griffiths will propose at Tuesday’s meeting that the Board reprimand the Superintendent for his mishandling of the HOB daycare center financial fiasco, particularly his failure to notify the Board for almost a year. I strongly urge you to support Chairman Griffiths proposed reprimand. The evidence clearly calls for such a decision. Further, this is not the first time that the Superintendent has failed to timely inform the Board about an important matter; the NMSI contract comes to mind. Hopefully, it will be the last time.
In voting to reprimand the Superintendent, you will send an unambiguous message that he works for you. I believe that your interaction with Superintendent Porter has been other than unambiguous since he took the job. As we all know, Porter is the first appointed superintendent in the history of Monroe County. His predecessors were all elected and thus independent of the Board. You were all accustomed to dealing with a superintendent over whom you had no authority. When Porter came on board, those old habits remained and you have allowed him to act as if he were something other than your employee. It is that treatment, I believe, that has led Porter to think that he does not always need to keep the Board fully informed of his actions or inactions. If you vote to reprimand the Superintendent, it will be incumbent on you to continue behaving vis-à-vis the Superintendent as if he is your employee, which he is. In short, Tuesday’s vote is not a one time event. Rather, it is the beginning of a new relationship between the Board and the Superintendent. ~Dr. Larry Murray, Fiscal Watchdog and Citizen Activist |
 Again this year our local children enjoyed a visit with Santa at the Big Pine Key Moose Lodge. Pictures with Santa, pizza, cookies and soft drinks treated our kids as well as an age appropriate gift for each child. Thanks to all of our Lodge members and to all in the community who donated their time and gifts to make this annual event possible. |
| Joanne Delaney, permit coordinator for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, was one of eight nationwide recipients awarded 2015 Team Member of the Year by NOAA’s National Ocean Service. Link |
Today [Friday] in 1955 Johnny Cash played two shows at Arkansas High School in Swifton. Elvis was the opening act. |
| [“Healthcare in Cuba”] Many people hate to see any good news about Cuba. I’m not really sure why that is, but it’s so yesterday! |
[Gun Control] I do practice gun control every time I carry a gun. I use 2 hands to control the gun, not 1 hand like in the photo. |
| The next meeting of our Big Pine Computer Club is this morning, Saturday, December 12, 10 am at the Senior Center. Hope to see you there. |
 Specials at Springer’s Bar & Grill
Happy Hour Monday thru Saturday 3 – 7 pm Monday – Mexican Monday Thursday – Sandwich Day and Live at 7 pm: Myles Mancuso |
| From Charlotte’s Web to right to try: Florida medical marijuana’s past, present and future. Link |
 [VHF Radio] Know Thy Channel
Channel 16 is reserved for distress and safety calls and for contact calls to other vessels or shore stations. You should always monitor 16 in case a nearby boat needs help and to hear Coast Guard safety messages. Channel 13 is used for vessel bridge-to-bridge communications and is heavily trafficked by commercial ships for inter-ship navigation. Channel 22A is used for safety broadcasts and U.S. Coast Guard communications; after hailing on 16, you’re usually asked to switch to 22A. Channel 9 has been designated as an alternate contact-calling channel between pleasure vessels and to shore stations, but the Coast Guard doesn’t transmit safety messages on 9. Radio checks. 68 is an easy way to conduct a check. Don’t do radio checks on 16, 9, 22 or any other restricted channel. Regular conversations. 68 and 72 are commonly used by the recreational-boating community. Channels 68, 69, 71, 72, and 78A are also considered non-commercial channels. No one else within a 20-mile range can talk on that channel while you’re talking. So keep your VHF communications brief and to the point. |
| [“Healthcare in Cuba”] A couple of days ago Carl Hiaasen did a column in the Miami Herald on his recent visit to Cuba. In the article he relates his conversation with a citizen there whose sister is a cardiologist. She was earning the equivalent of $35 a month. She left Cuba and now is a Dr. in Colombia. Apparently the ‘brain drain’ is alive and well in the peoples’ paradise of modern Cuba. Link |
[Crime] Eduardo Fernandez, 59, of Stock Island, was charged with felony leaving the scene of a crash involving a serious injury. Is he related to the Acevedo crime family? |
| Can someone explain to me why so many Cubans risk their lives crossing the ocean to get into this country if things are so wonderful in their “peaceful island nation.” Why doesn’t someone tell them about all of the “wonderful, free, universal health care” available in Cuba so they don’t waste their time trying to get here? And why aren’t people from the US sneaking into Cuba? That would seem to make more sense since it is so terrible here. Can someone please explain this to me? I must be missing something obvious to other people. |
[Good News] I, Mrs Gloria Donate $ 2,000,000.00 to You, Email Me on – – – (Yeah, sure.) |
| My landlord called 3rd Generation Plumbing out of Marathon to fix a couple of complicated problems in this 1950 house. Not only was the guy, Scott, here early (unheard of here in the Keys), he had all the tools, parts, etc., and he was most innovative in how he fixed everything so quickly. I am so pleased I would most definitely recommend them. |
 [FTR] Pew research has just released a new study that reveals some very “interesting” facts. They report that Muslims are the fastest-growing religious group in the world and will overtake the number of Christians by the end of the century. Pew also found they make up a growing share of the immigrant population in America every year.
In 2002, Muslims comprised 5 percent of the immigrants coming into the US, while in 2012 they made up 10 percent – the equivalent of 100,000 arriving every year. (continued on National Politics page … ) |
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[Movies] Directors better get a new atmospheric image than umbrellas at a funeral. How many movies have been made where it’s raining at a funeral.