June 2009
2 posts
Island Hopping
Already a week into the 2009 Hurricane season and so far all is quiet. So let’s take the opportunity to island hop a bit for a few tales from the tropics.
The tropical mega-mogul Jimmy Buffett is keeping busy. Jimmy and pal Mac McAnally will be playing at a benefit for wounded soldiers tonight in Washington D.C. After that Jimmy only has a little time to squeeze in some fishing and surfing...
May 2009
4 posts
Tryin' to Reason With Hurricane Season
Ahoy Mates! It’s been nearly a month since the last post so we are overdue to set sail again - Just in time for the start of 2009 Hurricane season! There are plenty of interesting stories connected to hurricanes and I even have several of my own. Like making it out of Puerto Rico only a day before Hurricane Hugo stuck back in 1989, and being chased out of Key West ahead of Hurricane Michelle....
Manatees, Topless Bicyclists, Sinkin’ Ships, and...
My how time flies when you are waiting for spring in Minnesota. An awful lot has been happening down island since the last post so we best set sail right away. Here’s a sampler platter that should have something for everyone!
Manatees - Biologists rescued a pregnant manatee on Wednesday from the Tarpon Basin in Key Largo. In fact, two years ago biologists were unable to rescue two years...
March 2009
2 posts
Drunken Sailors
Ahoy Mates and welcome to what I dare say will be the most controversial, or at least most bawdy installment of the blog thus far. This entry has nothing to do with the Keys, but has everything to do with salty seafaring men like the pirates and scoundrels who have frequented the Keys. This entry may seem a bit long winded, but a search for the truth often requires extra effort. Which probably...
February 2009
2 posts
Down Island Happenings
My how time flies when you’re stuck dealing with January in Minnesota. So now that we’ve put that nasty month astern let’s put our brains in a better latitude and think down island shall we? There have been lots of interesting happenings in the Keys lately including celebrity sightings this past week in Key West - so let’s sail again! Early in the week it had been reported that none other than...
January 2009
2 posts
Happy New Year
Yeah, yeah I know it has been nearly sixty days since my last post and I have no excuse other than the usual Holiday season busy-ness. So we’ll just put all that astern and hope I can post more frequently in the new year. As you may or may not know, I am a Hemingway fan, and have about as much interest in his colorful life as I do in his writing. So as we chart a new course into 2009 the...
November 2008
4 posts
One For The Birds
Ever wonder what happens to some of the wildlife during Hurricane Season? Here’s an interesting story about birds in the Bahamas. I have also included some great first hand Rasta knowledge that my buddy Doug Hendrix shared in response to my recent post about the new Reggae Museum in Jamaica. Cool Runnings Mon!
Patrick
Ó Brien
Bahamian flamingos gone missing? Hurricane Ike slammed...
Sail on Captain Tony
By now I suspect most of you have heard of the passing last week of a true legend - Captain Tony Tarracino of Key West. There are plenty of articles and stories on the internet that you can read about him, and I wanted to share a funny personal story about one of Key West’s most colorful characters.
Captain Tony arrived in Key West from New Jersey in 1948. Ten years later, he purchased a bar on...
October 2008
2 posts
Reggae Update and PSA from KW
Well another lag in posting but not nearly as long as the last. Here’s a few tropical tidbits for your enjoyment from down island way - updates on reggae music and a Public Service Announcement for anyone thinking about heading to Key West for Fantasy Fest.
Enjoy Life!
Patrick Ó Brien
Being a big Bob Marley (and reggae in general) fan it is great to see the impact his music still has today....
September 2008
2 posts
And Now For Something Completely Different
Finally back after a long break of not posting. Perhaps prompted by a good story to share, running in to our friend Sue Hegarty on the bus coming home from the state Fair, (which thanks to a questionable driver, was wilder than many of the Fair attractions) or just by the end of summer. I am still wondering where summer went, but it’s pretty much gone like that goofy Brett Favre rumpus. When I...
June 2008
1 post
May 2008
4 posts
Archive
February 15The Deep Freeze We have all heard of the micro season - the Dog-Days of summer. But here’s a little known fictional factoid that you may not be familiar with. Right now we are exactly halfway round the calendar from the Dog-Days and deep into the midst of the - Freeze My Ass Off Days! But don’t despair. As our overly perky weather geek informed us today - we will gain 90 minutes of...
First Post
Testing this out.