#row your boat to the Panama canal and leave

[hum-suffer]

If you think, in any capacity, that I'm lying, you and I are done.

[keywestlou]

DEMOCRACY'S NEXT STEP?

Jair Bolsonaro is Brazil’s recently elected President.

An authoritarian.

Trump evidences similar tendencies. Trump can take us to Bolsonaro’s ways. Not there yet. He is a step behind Bolsonaro.

Bolsonaro won with Evangelical support. He is frequently compared to Philippine President Duterte.

A few Bolsonaro quotes let you know the man.

“I am in favor of dictatorship, a regime of exception.”

Killing “…..some 30,000…..if some innocent people are going to die, fine, in any war innocents die.”

“I would not employ a woman with the same salary of a man.”

“I’ll give carte blanche for the police to kill.”

“We are going to gun down all those Workers Party supporters.” The Workers Party his opposition. He spoke these words at a rally while mimicking shooting a rifle.

Beto O’Rourke and Ted Cruz in a battle in Texas. Respectfully, I consider Cruz political slime. Trump suggested Cruz’s father was involved in the Kennedy assassination. He also insulted Cruz’s wife. Today, Cruz’s head is up Trump’s ass.

A relatively recent happening solidified my thinking of Cruz. Cruz said O’Rourke was illegally funding the caravan. A Trump type  statement. Not true.

The actual facts. Asylum seekers already processed and awaiting a decision are sheltered in churches in the Texas border area. Not part of the caravan. The caravan still 1,000 miles and one month away.

One of O’Rourke’s staff offices used prepaid cards to buy baby wipes, diapers, water, fruit and granola bars for those awaiting decision re their asylum requests. Less than $300 involved. If more, if $3,000, not a crime and most certainly not funding the caravan.

Which brings me to Trump’s way of thinking re the migration caravan. The President should read/recall certain Biblical quotes.

Matthew 25:38: “I was a stranger and you welcomed me.”

Proverbs 14:31: “Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.”

Last night’s first stop was the Chart Room. Packed. Locals and tourists.

Met Lorne Davidson again. Met him last year at the Chart Room. From northern Florida. He was with Diane. Met her before, also. A friend of Sheila’s.

Steve, Cindy, and David at the bar. Good Key Westers all! Love them! We enjoyed good conversation.

The three are oracles of wisdom when it comes to Key West. They have been here a long time. Last night, Steve and I engaged in a long talk about the Key West of the 1970’s and 1980’s.

The most important and exciting thing I learned from Steve last night concerns his sister Sam who lives in Seattle. Reads this blog everyday.  Lived in Key West for 2 years at one time.

Love you, Sam! Keep reading! Look forward to meeting you when next you visit Steve and Cindy.

A long talk with Paul and Stephanie. From Detroit. They have been visiting Key West since 2006. Now own three time shares at Banyon Court. One week three different times of the year.

Paul is a tool and die maker. Stephanie a dental assistant. They have a son 22 who is completing college.

Enjoyed my time with them.

Then to the Blue Macaw. Basically empty. Second night in a row. The rain could be the reason. Blue Macaw is an outside restaurant and bar.

A big parade sunday afternoon. The Super Boat Parade. Signifying the beginning of Super Boat Race Week. The boats magnificent. Huge power boats. Multi-million dollars in cost. The races a rich man’s sport.

My lesbian wives Donna and Terri celebrated their tenth anniversary yesterday. Married for real! Loving congratulations!

They were leaving for Tampa when I spoke with them. Terri’s cancer checkup scheduled.

People are confused as to why I call them my lesbian wives. One person recently told me she thought I was actually married to the two.

The true story is that when Donna and Terri were to be married, I was supposed to be Best Man. The day before, I had a pain, went into the hospital, and lost 25 percent of my colon.

Missed the wedding. For some reason, I mentioned at the time I considered them my lesbian wives and the label took hold.

The Turtle Hospital in Marathon a wonder. Top professional full time care. Turtles with strange maladies flown from all over the world to the Hospital.

The Hospital’s motto: Rescue, Rehab, Release. They do!

A little World War II history.

Roosevelt was unhappy with Japan. Japan had invaded Indochina. He wanted them to not only stop the war, but get out also. To evidence his seriousness, he seized all Japanese assets in the U.S. and closed the Panama Canal to Japanese vessels. Roosevelt also cut off all oil supplies to Japan. A death knell for the island nation.

Japan was led by a tough group at the time. Tojo and his followers. They were offended by Roosevelt’s actions. They gave the order to bomb Pearl Harbor.

An interesting fact is that the order was given on November 3, 1941. Thirty four days before Pearl Harbor was actually bombed.

The order to bomb was known as Top Secret Order No. 1.

My question is why did we not know of the imminent bombing of Pearl Harbor. I assume the U.S. had intelligence people. Thirty four days and no one knew.

Difficult to understand.

In an hour and a half, it will be 12 noon. I will be glued to the TV set. Syracuse playing Wake Forest.

For the first time in 20 yeas, Syracuse has a decent team. It has been a long time. The team 6-2 so far this season.

Enjoy your day!

DEMOCRACY’S NEXT STEP? was originally published on Key West Lou

[sherryandbelle-blog]

Sherry and Belle: Chapter 13

Trevor slowly stepped onto one of the life rafts hanging off of the side of the fishing boat, stopping Sherry as she attempted to follow, "You should leave your bag on the boat, your phone, too." he stated, pointing at the belongings she was carrying. "Fine..." The woman hesitantly turned to Matthews, handing the old fisherman her purse, before nervously sitting down on the shaky raft, catching a glimpse of Alex leaning over the opposite edge of the boat as the raft was slowly lowered into the water. Sherry stared at the thick rope tied to both the raft and boat as Trevor steadily rowed them directly into open waters, causing the inflated raft to violently rock and sway. "Once we're far enough away from Mathews' boat, we'll have to hop out-" "Hop out!? I don't even 'ave a life jacket!" "It's for the best..." The man casually clicked the plastic oars back into their holders, before wrapping his arms around Sherry, and bracing himself. A huge wave rushed under the life raft, suddenly forcing it upward, "There. Alex- well, Avidor will guide the raft the rest of the way." "Avidor?" the woman asked as she noticed the waters around them were now calm. "It's Alex's real name, if you're going to the palace, you'll need to memorize that." Trevor stated, followed by several minutes of silence as the two stared down at the enormous shadow beneath them, which easily dwarfed the miniscule raft bobbing at the water's surface. "So... what ARE ya guys?" Sherry watched as Trevor let out a dramatic sigh, keeping his gaze focused on the ocean as he took a breath, "We're just large, aquatic reptiles with a whole race that has an obnoxious superiority complex. The palace is build into the Pacific ocean floor, which means Avidor will have to swim some distance to get you there, and we'll, unfortunately, have to ride in his mouth the whole way there..." "...Wh-what?..." "Yeah... and despite how agile our race is at ocean travel, it'll take the entire day, so we'll get there at around eleven at night.". A wide area of water around the raft abruptly sunk down, pulling large waves of salt water straight at the raft, "Time to get out." Trevor stated as he quickly pulled the unsuspecting woman into the swirling waters with him. Powerful waves smashed into the two from all sides, while a powerful current sucked them under, causing Trevor's grip on Sherry to slip. The woman shut her eyes and quickly thrusted herself up toward the surface, wincing as she inhaled stinging salt water, rather than the cold air she was expecting. After a few more extra upward strokes, her arms touched the frigid air, and she broke through the churning water, taking a deep breath, before realizing that she was the only one at the surface. "TREVOR!!!" Sherry called out, {"Hmm, their kind sure do love the waters, but 'e vowed never ta leave 'is human form unless absolutely necessary, a real shame too, 'is kind 're terrible at swimmin' with our form. It's quite a spectacle ta see, though!"} "No... TREVOR!!!" she continued to shout as she bobbed around on the surface. "Shoot..." The woman shuddered as she stared down at the foamy abyss underneath her, before a massive, dark figure came into view, as soon as she realized that the huge creature was advancing toward the surface, she began feverishly paddling away. The water exploded directly behind her, causing a heavy wave to crash down on her, "Hey! You're being WAY to reckless! Human bodies are incredibly delicate, you have to move around them a LOT slower than what you're doing now." Sherry heard Trevor shout as she reached the surface again, "Oh! Avidor!! There!!". The woman slowly wiped the grimy salt water out of her eyes, opening them to see an enormous, somewhat draconic being staring at her with its head half out of the water; she sighed in relief as she spotted Trevor calmly sitting on its rugged snout. Sherry hesitantly swam toward the creature, glancing up at Trevor for reassurance, "It's just Alex, you've known each other for awhile, right?" "O-okay..." she reached for the man's hand, then rushed up the dark creature's face. The waterlogged woman took a few moments to catch her breath, before sitting back up, looking around at Avidor, "So, can he still talk when he's..." "I AM RIGHT HERE, YOU DO NOT HAVE-" "Avidor stop!!!" Trevor shouted as he and Sherry were nearly flung off of his head. He carefully closed his mouth, sinking down into the water slightly, "So... we still need to get into his mouth." the man nervously laughed as Sherry stared at him with an astonished look of terror.                                                ●●● Sherry lightly kicked her feet as she sat in complete darkness, "Sorry this is taking awhile, we can't exactly cut through the Panama Canal to get there any faster, and Avidor can't swim too close to any shores." Trevor apologized as the woman heard sounds of him rustling through a small, waterproof bag. "Here." He said, flicking on a small flashlight, then leaning against Avidor's large, blunt teeth again, "Do you have any food in there, or a watch?" Trevor nodded, tossing her a plastic bag full of trail mix, before checking his watch. "Little after ten at night." He stated, getting into a balled up position, and closing his eyes; Sherry nibbled on some cashews and chocolate as she looked around Avidor's lit up mouth, which was a pale white, with a light pink tongue that he had been holding away from his passengers. Both Trevor and Sherry jolted awake as a booming roar echoed throughout the water, "We're here." the man nervously stated as he backed away from the front of Avidor's mouth, "I'll see you when you return to the surface!" as he yelled that, the large creatures mouth opened, causing Sherry to tumble out of it, and gently onto a rough, stone floor. "EIRIK!!!" Avidor roared in a deep, booming voice, before giving the small human a nod, and turning toward a large, water filled hole in the craggy floor. As he dove in, Sherry finally got a clear look at what he was; he towered well over the height of a two story house, walked on all fours, and had a long, horizontally flat tail, similar to a crocodile's. The woman looked around at the widely carved out cave, the floor seemed to be carved out by water to a point, until the natural carving turned to deep claw marks. She flinched as the watery entrance exploded behind her, she turned to see two more towering creatues, except about half the size of Avidor; the woman silently watched as they walked over to the side of the cavern opposite to her, and slowly began stretching. "MAN... WHAT A DISAPPOINTING HUNT." One flatly stated to the other, "YEAH, BUT DID CATCH AVIDOR'S SCENT!?" the other one looked around, freezing as its eyes hit the human off to the side, "GUNNVOR, THAT DOES NOT NECESSARILY-" "SNORRE. LOOK." a chill ran up Sherry's spine as both of them stared at her in disbelief. "WHAT 'IS' THAT!?" Snorre scoffed in disgust as the two towering reptiles surrounded Sherry, "THE MORE PERPLEXING QUESTION IS HOW IT GOT DOWN HERE, IT LOOKS LIKE A LAND BASED ORGANISM, AND A POORLY ADAPTED ONE AT THAT." the slightly softer spoken creature stated in a blunt, yet curious tone. The woman shrieked in horror as the other monster suddenly attempted to snap down on her, which Gunnvor narrowly stopped by fiercely body slamming them, causing the ground to quake as the two began viciously biting and clawing at each other. A sudden, stunning roar caused the two to freeze, "WHAT 'ARE' YOU TWO DOING!?" a larger one of their kind stormed forward, a low hiss steadily rumbling out of its partially open mouth. "GUNNVOR IS HOGGING THE SMALL BEING!" "WHAT SMALL-" The bigger creature's bright yellow eyes locked onto the terrified human, before it rolled its eyes with an annoyed snarl. "DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS?" The gentler creature asked as it sit next to the woman; the other let out another scoff, before walking deeper into the dark cave with its head held low to the scraped ground. "THAT... IS A HUMAN. AVIDOR MUST HAVE LEFT HER HERE." "HER!?" The smaller reptile brought its face close to Sherry, examining her excitedly. "YES. THAT ONE IN PARTICULAR WAS WHY BELETHOR REFUSED TO COME HOME... HOW IS YOUR LEG, MS. AUTUMN?" The woman stared at the larger creature in shock, before abruptly shrinking back, "Eirik!?". "YEAH, AND I AM GOING TO TAKE YOU BACK, YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN BROUGHT DOWN HERE-" "Wait!" Sherry stumbled back as the huge reptile brought his face near her, "I wanted ta see Belle again!!" the remark caused Eirik to grind his teeth together as he quickly pulled his head away from the human. "BELLE? LIKE BELETHOR-" "THAT IS ABSURD!!" The annoyed creature stood tall, glancing over his shoulder, then lowered himself back to Sherry's level, "Fine, but we'll have to make it quick, the Queen would kill you without a second thought if she found you." Eirik whispered, and without warning, he forcefully slid the human into his mouth, and began walking. He held his large teeth partially open, allowing the woman to see where he was walking; she heard the smaller reptile following him closely. Once they walked deeper into the carved out hallway, the area seemed to light up with greenish blue light, "Where's the light comin' from?" Sherry asked with a sense of astonishment as the carved hallway opened up to an enormous, stone foyer. She felt an annoyed snort rush past her from Eirik's throat, "GUGH-AH, AGH-UR 'ER KETHIN." he carefully said, "...WHAT?" the other reptile nervously shrinked back as the Eirik slowly tumbled the human out of his mouth, and onto his lifted, scaly paw. "I SAID 'GUNNVOR, ANSWER HER QUESTION." The male reiterated as Sherry stared up in amazement at the tall foyer ceiling, and the dense, glowing moss clinging to it. "HEHEH, I THINK SHE ALREADY FIGURED IT OUT FOR HERSELF!" Gunnvor let out a hoarse chuckle as Eirik rolled his eyes, placing the woman back into his mouth, and continued walking toward another passageway. "Wait... why are ya bein' nice ta me now? Ya tried ta get yer mirages t' eat me!" Sherry shouted in realization, "BUT MIRAGES ONLY EAT FISH, ANYTHING ELSE WOULD SICKEN THEM. ARE YOU SURE HE-" "Of course I'm sure! It took a chomp outta my leg!" the woman watched as Gunnvor gave Eirik a shocked stare. He gave an annoyed sigh, placing Sherry on the back of his lifted paw again, "I DO NOT DECIDE WHAT I DO, BUT I TAKE EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO ENJOY IT. I HAD TO MAKE AN EXAMPLE, TO SHOW BELETHOR WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU DISOBEY THE QUEEN'S DESIRES. I WOULD NOT FATALLY WOUND MY STUDENT'S-" the massive reptile suddenly pressed his mouth to his paw, carefully concealing the human. "HEY EIRIK, DID YOU INJURE YOUR LITTLE PAW WHILE KISSING AT THE QUEEN'S FEET!? HAHAHA!!!" Another giant reptile mocked as it waltzed by, causing Eirik to let out a ground quaking growl. The three sat in silence as the unknown giant rounded a corner a decent distance away, before continuing their conversation, "I HAD TO SHOW BELETHOR THAT IF HE STAYED ON THE SURFACE AGAINST HIS MOTHER'S WISHES, SHE WOULD DESTROY EVERYTHING." the male continued. "Why does she want 'im down 'ere so much, is she growin' old 'r somethin'?" "MALES COULD NEVER BE LEADERS, FEMALES ARE BORN NATURALLY LARGER AND STRONGER TO MALES, THAT IS WHY THEY ONLY RUN THE EIGHT BRANCHES OF GOVERNMENT UNDER THE QUEEN." Gunnvor explained. "BELETHOR WILL BE A PART OF ONE OF THE BRANCHES, AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, HE WILL BE HEAVILY RELIED ON TO PRODUCE THE NEXT GENERATION OF ROYALS ONCE THE TIME COMES, DUE TO HIM INHERITING THE BEST GENES ON THE QUEEN, AND OF HIS FATHER." Eirik finished the explanation, lifting Sherry back toward his mouth, before snapping his teeth together, snarling viciously. "TAKE SHERRY!!!" He roared, tumbling the human off of his paw, who Gunnvor quickly snatched up in her mouth, and sprinted away with as the entire palace shuttered and echoed with the sounds of feral hisses and screeches of pain. "WHAT HAVE YOU BROUGHT HERE!? EIRIK!!!" A piercing exclamation roared throughout the hallways, shortly before Gunnvor slid to a stop as several larger reptiles lunged in front of her. She let out an annoyed hiss, quickly turning down another hall, only to be stopped again, and surrounded, "WHAT IS THAT?" one of the reptiles demanded, causing the smaller female to shrink down in terror. "MY QUEEN! THESE TWO WERE FOUND TO HAVE A TINY SURFACE CREATURE IN THEIR POSSESSION; IT REEKS OF AVIDOR." One of the reptiles that seemed to be chief of guard reported as he led Eirik, Gunnvor, and the rest of the guards into a barely lit throne room. "IS THAT IT?" A decently larger reptile laying on a low, wide pedestal pointed to the red haired human shakily holding onto one on the guard's snouts, "YES. THEY WERE HEADING TOWARD BELETHOR'S HOLDING CHAMBER WHILE THESE TWO WERE INFORMING IT OF OUR WAYS." the chief turned and snarled at Eirik and Gunnvor, before looking back at the queen. "THEN PERHAPS THIS IS THE LITTLE CREATURE MY SON WAS SO OBSESSED OVER... WE CAN EXECUTE IT IN THE MORNING." The queen scoffed, shooing the visitors away, "Hey!? Ya can't just sentence me without knowin' why I'm 'ere!!" Sherry shouted at the relaxed reptile, causing her to perk up in surprise. "WAIT, WAIT... BRING THAT THING BACK." The guard the human was clinging to lightly nodded, walking over and placing her on the queen's pedestal, before leaving the room with the rest of the reptiles. "SUCH A MINISCULE SPECIMEN TO BE MOUTHING OFF TO SUCH A GRAND BEING." The queen stared at Sherry with an amused grin, "NOT EVEN MY FIERCEST SOLDIERS ARE BRAVE ENOUGH TO ADDRESS ME IN YOUR MANNER... I CAN NOT QUITE FIGURE OUT WHAT YOU ARE, THOUGH." "Human.". "HEH. I FIGURED THAT MUCH." "I'm a woman, if that's what ye're askin'." "AND THAT ACCENT! SO ROUNDED AND FOREIGN, I SUPPOSE IT HAS BEEN AWHILE SINCE OUR KINDS HAVE INTERACTED. HEH, ANYWAY, WHY ARE YOU HERE?" The queen's amused gaze steadily wilted away into a stare of annoyance. "I just wanted ta see if Belle made it home alright." "BELLE!? HOW DARE YOU SLANDER-" "He called himself that!!" Sherry shouted, cutting off the queen, and seemingly annoying her further. "WELL, HE IS FINE, BUT DO NOT EXPECT HIM TO LEAVE THIS PLACE AGAIN." The reptile turned her head toward the door, as if about to call someone in, "Why not though!? Ya only need 'im fer breedin' purposes, why not let 'im stay at the surface, and call 'im back down whenever ya need 'im?" the queen's large teeth were fully revealed as she prepared a fierce retort, before the feral expression eased as she appeared to fall into thought. Several long moments passed as the royal leader slowly stared between the human, and her throne room's doorway, {Wonder if the guys 're doin' alright, well, I s'ppose the girls, too.} Sherry thought as she sat down on the surprisingly warm stone. {Perhaps the palace's built on a vent 'r somethin', they ARE reptiles, after all-} "SIGURD!!!" The queen suddenly roared, causing a reptile to peek inside, "BRING BELETHOR AND EIRIK INTO THE THRONE ROOM, AND QUICKLY!" she ordered, before staring back down at the tiny human relaxing on her throne. "THE NEXT GENERATION OF ROYALS WILL BE PRODUCED IN SIX YEARS TIME, UNTIL THEN, HE IS FREE TO ROAM THE SURFACE, AND AFTER THAT... WE WILL SEE..." Sherry smiled thankfully at the massive reptile, then stood as two others slowly walked into the dark room; one seemed particularly shocked to see the red headed human standing next to the queen.