Not in Vermont.

2-6-18 KEY WEST, FLORIDA: We’re on a trip to soak up a little warm, and we found the eighties today. We flew from EWR to EYW, arriving at midday, and taxiing to the Margaritaville Resort where there was no room for us until 4 PM. The resort is on the water at the western end of the last of the Keys, Key West. The resort is huge, with hundreds of rooms. We had lunch on the waterfront with Lynn, Helaine, Marc, Paul and Bill, all of whom had rooms already. Not having a room, Judy and I explored the neighborhood.

We walked south on Whitehead St. past Truman’s Little Whitehouse, seeing attractive older houses, one an arboretum, one a B & B, all lavishly landscaped. We turned the corner and went to Duvall St., which is all bars, restaurants, tee shops, but no tea shoppes, and souvenir spaces. It all treads the line between honky-tonk and sleazy. Nearer the water there are some old brick buildings, perhaps originally warehouses, now used commercially as malls and shops.

At sunset there was a reception for my college class, celebrating our eightieth birthday. There are about 140 people here. While we chatted, a massive cruise ship that had been moored here left, giving us a view of the ocean.


That massive thing at the end of the dock that looks like a skyscraper that has fallen on its side , is a gigantic cruise ship, able to carry thousands. It totally blocks the ocean view of many of the guests of the Margaritaville Resort. It left the dock a little after dark. The Margaritaville is an equally gigantic resort that is the center of our gathering.

Our room wasn't ready for a few hours after we arrived, so we walked around the neighborhood at saw several old houses on Whitehead St. Some with historic markers, some re-purposed as B & B's, and one was Truman's Little Whitehouse. We were pleased to see that there appeared to be no damage from the hurricane.

Here's another with a blue ceiling on the upper gallery. We have seen that before, and in other houses here, it discourages ghosts from hanging around your house and causing mischief because the ghosts are fooled by the blue ceiling into thinking that there is no ceiling, but open sky. This, somehow, is an anathema to the loose spirits.

Here's another one with a white ceiling. They don't care a fig about ghosts, and that might be a fig tree in the front yard.

One of a number of roosters we saw, all this same breed, and all talking to the neighborhood.

Duval St., a block to the east is lined with souvenir shops, tee shirt shops, bars, and restaurants and crowds.