My Sunday started off at 7:00 AM and just kept going. I was sleeping so well when Kitty decided she wanted breakfast. She continues to headbutt me until I wake up. Then when she sees I am alive she will walk across my body until I get out of bed. Whomever it was that decided to call a Female Dog a "BITCH" never met this Cat. I finally gave up and went to the kitchen to cook her breakfast.
After my Culinary Duties were done it was time to hit the shower so I could go up to Little Torch Key to show one of my houses. The showing appointment was for 11:00 AM. That took about 45 minutes which is long for a house showing but that is a good thing. It is a sign that the Buyers liked it. The house is very well kept and cute. The yard is amazing with every type of fruit tree that can grow in The Keys climate. It was nice to catch up with my Tenant too. He's a Coast Guard man and a nice guy. He is from Minnesota and this will be his first Christmas in the Florida Keys. I remember my first Holiday Season here being very weird. Things like going out on a Jet Ski in the morning then having Christmas Dinner outside felt very strange the first time. I got used to it and love it now. I'm sure Rick, my Tenant, will too.
After the house showing I decided to take a ride to Big Pine and check out my old neighborhood as well as my old restaurant, No Name Pub. When I first moved to The Keys I lived on Big Pine Key about five blocks from the Pub. It is a neat little restaurant. It has become more of a tourist destination now. When I lived there a little over 20 years ago it was a local Neighborhood Pub. To use a big oxymoron it was a "Classy Dive". Everyone who goes in writes their name and where they are from on a dollar bill and staples it to the wall or ceiling. There must be half a million dollars hung throughout the place. They are most well known for their pizza which is Florida Good but not Boston Good. My Dad always liked No Name Pub so I bought him a sweatshirt to bring up when I go visit for Christmas. The Pub was built and founded by Royal Newman who was a Barroom Celebrity in Big Pine Key. Royal was the town drunk who had been barred from every watering hole on Big Pine Key so he opened his own bar. He would sell the Pub to anyone who wanted to buy it. He'd hold a private note and the first time they were a minute late on a payment he would take it back. He did this about a dozen times before he sold it to Will Ard who was another town drunk but a wealthy town drunk who came in the following day with his Attorney and paid the note in full. After that Royal needed a new place to drink so he built the Sandbar on Little Torch Key but that is another story for another day. Royal has long since passed but his legend will live on Big Pine Key forever.
After lunch I drove out to see my old house on Big Pine then headed South, actually west, (US1 South goes West and US1 North goes East) to Key West. That never made sense to me but then again West Summerland Key is about 12 miles East of Summerland Key and West Indies Drive on Ramrod Key is to the East of Indies Road. It must be tough to be a new Taxi Driver or Pizza Delivery Driver in the Lower Keys. I stopped on my way home to see a house a friend just built in Bay Point in Saddlebunch Key. This was the first time I have seen it completed. Quite the house I must say.
Once back in Key West I stopped in at Pier One to take advantage of their sale on all Christmas items and buy a couple candles for my Mom and her next door neighbor who spends all holidays with my Parents since her husband died about 15 years ago. Pier One is a great store although I am always shocked that nobody knocks entire displays over they are so close together. They definitely cram 25,000 square feet worth of merchandise into a 10,000 square foot store. I got out of there without breaking anything and thought I was done for the day but that turned out to be untrue.
I got home and one string of my Christmas Lights had burned out. I tried every trick I could to get them to work but it just wasn't happening. I had to go shopping again and buy some new lights. As anyone who lives in Key West will tell you we avoid the local Kmart at all cost. I hoped to run into Family Dollar and pick up a box of lights. That is where I buy most of my Holiday items. No such luck. Their shelves were bare. I had to go to the dreaded Kmart. I got there and asked an employee who was stocking shelves where the Christmas Decorations were and he didn't know. I asked three more employees but none of them spoke English. Finally another customer heard me asking and she was kind enough to tell me where I could find my lights. I got them and a few other items and it was time to check out. They only had two registers open the weekend before Christmas at the biggest retail store in Key West. Probably 12 people in each line. Meanwhile there were three Managers behind the Customer service Counter which had no customers in line but not one of them would bother to open another register. Roughly 45 minutes in line and I was finally able to pay for my items and get out alive. The "Happy Ending" is I got out ot Kmart without strangling anyone and my Christmas Lights look great.
By this time I didn't feel like cooking but i didn't feel like going out to eat. I felt like Breakfast for Dinner so I went to IHOP and had an Omelet and Pancakes. Not glamorous, probably not nutritious but it hit the spot. For now my bed is calling me.
Until tomorrow,
Gary
Gary McAdams, P.A.
The Key West Life
Barbara Anderson Realty
305-731-0501
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