Letters to the editor with pictures since 0202. Published on Big Pine Key’s garbage days, Tuesdays and Fridays.
[Spoiled Beannie ‘Babies’]Fashion conscious middle schoolers appear to loose their way and their expensive knit caps and it’s causing turmoil with the school administration. I mean get f**ing serious, anyone who caves into their windy brat kid and spends $350 for a knit hat should have their head examined. I remember when I was in middle school and I was ridiculed for wearing Roebuck jeans from Sears. And when I told my mom that I wanted Levi’s she looked at me and said, “Get a job.” |
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| I lived on Big Pine in 1982 and ’83. Worked at the Baltimore Oyster House to begin with and then got a job at WWUS Radio, with a side hustle as a waitress at the restaurant at the Mariner Resort, Peg Legs. This was a nice blast from the past. We are coming down (from Michigan) at the end of Feb. I know I will find it in such a different state! ~Colleen |
[Backup Camera] Color screen plugs into car’s outlet. Camera has magnetic base. Works great, in color too! $135 new, now $50. b33043@outlook.com |
| [Kayak Guides] Thanks Ed for the ad you posted for volunteers to learn how to be Full Moon Kayak Excursion Guides. The class filled up. |
 
[Deer & Wolf] Hope you enjoy these backyard pics we captured up here in Michigan; the deer don’t! |
| [Okay To Shoot Ospreys] Florida pulls Keys’ ospreys from endangered animals list as numbers climb statewide. Link |
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| [Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol] ‘H.R. 420’ is a proposed bill that would regulate marijuana like alcohol. A press release from U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer says that “while the bill number may be a bit tongue in cheek, the issue is very serious. Link |
Construction began on the first lighthouse on Sand Key in 1827. It was completed in 70 days. You can’t even get a permit in 70 days today. |
| [Goodbye Sears, Maybe] Maybe not yet. Chairman Eddie Lampert has submitted a revised bid of more than $5 billion, increasing the chances of Sears remaining in business! This doesn’t mean the department store is out of the clear yet though, as Lampert must win during Sear’s bankruptcy action on Monday (1/14). His is the only bid that will keep Sears open. Furthermore, if Lampert’s bid is chosen during the action, a bankruptcy judge still must approve the deal before it’s finalized. Link |
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| The night Miami shocked the football world with this Orange Bowl classic. Miami 31, Nebraska 30. Link |
[“Holy crows”] The family who created the crows on the cross in the field got it backwards. Christmas is a time of birth not death. By showing the Christian symbol of death the family got it all twisted around. Joy to the world — not torture and death to the world! |
| Why do the taxpayers have to support these non-essential employees? It seems like the government has gotten too big. Don’t you think that it’s about time that the government puts a reign on big government and tells itself to get a life and quit the b.s. We don’t need all the waste. |
DeWalt 18V cordless tool collection |
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| “800,000 non-essential employees“? Is that for real? Talk about a bloated government! If they’re non-essential why aren’t they forced to go to the private sector? |
 [Marijuana Monopoly] Florida has issued only a handful of licenses to sell marijuana since it was legalized (for medical use). In my brain this constitutes a monopoly and someone should sue the state for violating the Sherman Antitrust Act. Those few sellers are going to make billions. Can you imagine the lucky few having all the drug business in Florida! |
| [Wounded Warrior Ride] Deer Ed, this event was an extraordinary success. Over the 14 years that I’ve been a part of this therapeutic and vitally important activity for Combat Wounded Veterans, this year’s Warrior Ride far exceeded everyone’s expectations. We thank you so very much for your advertisement. ~John Donnelly |
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A 1951 lawnmower built by the Indian Motorcycle company. Very cool, but unfortunately not real. This is a custom built art deco lawnmower. Check out the several YouTube videos on how it was built. Video |
| [“Venice FL to start charging entry fee”] Fake news. Officials talked about charging for the beach with parking meters and even an entry fee to Casperson State Park in Venice but decided against it. |
Remember Champale? It was a mix of champagne and beer. Sweet and awful. Kids loved it. |
| [Recession] My wife has started calling my hair ’the economy’. It’s begun showing strong signs of a recession. |
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| [Movies] There are too many blacks in movies these days if compared to the proportion of blacks to the rest of the population. The proportion of Asians and Mexicans is about right. |
I think they should have honored the dead soldiers by allowing the media to film their flag draped caskets coming off the planes. It’s about respect not politics. They were used as political pawns instead of warrior heroes. Those who gave their lives in service deserve more. |
| New park fees in limbo. A plan to impose new entrance fees at Everglades National Park, including waters of Florida Bay, is stranded on the sandbar of a federal government shutdown that dragged on into this week. Before the closure, National Park Service administrators targeted Thursday, Jan. 10, for the launch of a new Everglades National Park rule that would require customers aboard commercial charter-fishing or tour boats in Florida Bay park waters to have individual park entrance passes. Link |
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| [Kookoo] Schizophrenics often suffer from other personality disorders. OCD is pretty common. Carl Jung calls the obsession with order “a defense against internal chaos”. |
[Winn Dixie] Weekly ad. Link |
| [Let There Be Light] I would like to thank all of my neighbors on Little Torch Key. I would like to thank them for all the spot lights and lights in general at night. This attracts the termites to their homes instead of mine. Again, a heart felt thank you. |
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| [Hack Trees Not Computers] Do Russian hackers get life in prison hacking fire wood? Good idea for everywhere. |
The bridges aren’t ‘glued’ to the pilings. They just sit on top of them to allow for movement, expansion and contraction. There are two blocks affixed to the underside of the roadway that stop the span from falling off the columns in a hurricane. |
| [Government Shutdown] It seems the only way to end the shutdown is to stop the paychecks of the other non-essential government workers: Congress. See how fast that works. |
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| [The Wall] Since there’s no money in the budget for a border wall, why not just take it out of Congress’ pension fund. You know, like they did with our social security. |
 [Full Moon Kayak Excursion] Paddle with us Friday, January 19th from 4:30 – 6:30 pm, for a fun, easy going evening paddle along the mangrove shoreline of No Name Key. Watch the sun set in the west as the full moon rises in the east. Sponsored by Big Pine Kayak Adventures, proceeds benefit local wildlife through the Florida Keys Wildlife Society, the official friends group for the Florida Keys National Wildlife Refuges. The $25 donation includes kayak, gear and experienced guide. Please call Captain Bill 305-872-7474 for reservations. Plan to bring a flashlight, drinking water, and arrive ½ hour before launch time. If you are interesting in becoming a volunteer, please call Nancy 305-731-6362. |
| [The Hereafter] Good news for those worried about the hereafter. It seems some scientist believe that aging, and death from aging, is a disease, not a fact of life. Thanks to several billionaires, they are being funded to work on a cure. Once they find the “cure”, people could potentially live forever. The down side of this is that the cure will probably only be available to the very, very rich. I guess if you’re going to live forever, you’ll need lots of money, so that just makes sense |
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