Bad Outcome at Mallory Square

 

Cudjoe Key, Florida (high 85, low 72)

 

Unfortunately, the gentleman I mentioned in my previous post, died before he got to the hospital.  I imagine he was actually gone before he ever got out of the water. 

Somehow, one of his friends found my blog post and let me know that he passed away.

Eduardo Ortega was a husband, father to three girls, and the best friend of the commenter.  I’ll never forget hearing his wife scream and cry while they were working on him in the ambulance.  It was a sad night.  He was only 49 years old.  How quickly life can change.  He was having a good time with family and friends, he made a mistake and it cost him his life.  R.I.P.  Mr. Ortega.

When I looked down into the water that night and saw the young woman struggling to get out of the water,  I looked around for a life ring.  There weren’t any.  I don’t know if a life ring would have saved Mr. Ortega.  The lack of life rings was mentioned in the newspaper article and I imagine some will be there on the waterfront very soon.  There should be.  There is no fence or anything between the water and the square.  There is a lot of partying going on and I think people fall or jump into the water pretty often. This just happened to be on a night with a full moon and strong currents.

It’s funny, but that same night as we were watching the cat show, I worried one of the cats would fall in.

 

We’ve had a week or so of rainy and windy weather.  There is a front forming off the east coast of Florida which may end up becoming a tropical depression, storm, or hurricane.  It looks like it has moved north past the Keys and we’re hoping for a few days good out on the water.

Hopefully, the seas are going to be flat and the winds will stay down and we will be able to get offshore today.  The plan is to head out to the Atlantic side and out to Looe Key Reef.  Wish us luck for flat calm seas, light winds and good visibility.

 

 

I am a little behind in my blog, but I wanted to share some pictures of Grand Funk Railroad. 

Last Saturday, there was a concert down on the Truman Waterfront.  Our favorite local band, Howard Livingston and the Milemarker 24 Band was going to open for Grand Funk Railroad.  Tickets were $25.  We debated whether or not to go.  Weather was a consideration, since it was going to be held outside.  We weren’t quite sure if there was going to be seating, or you had to stand. The paper said no chairs or coolers were allowed. 

We decided to go down and check out the venue because they have this concert every year and at least we would know for next year.  Last year it was the Doobie Brothers. Who knows who will perform next year.

We parked in town and walked down to the venue.  As we walked over we saw another couple leaving and carrying fold up chairs.  We asked them if they were not allowed to bring chairs inside.  They said chairs were okay, but they left after hearing Howard, because Grand Funk wasn’t their type of music.  Anyway, they gave us their tickets, so we walked right in….free!

Grand Funk was extremely loud and just the kind of concert I avoided when I was young.   I didn’t like them then and I really don’t like that type of music now.   Al was a fan of Grand Funk, but didn’t like having to stand.

We were towards the back and couldn’t see much, but I was able to zoom in and snap a few photos.

 

There are always interesting people in the crowds in Key West.

Al posing in front of Howards trailer in this picture. (he’s trying to suck in his gut)

 

We didn’t stay until the end.  We didn’t have anyplace to sit,  Al doesn’t like standing, and it was way too loud for me. 

It was nice for free!

 

Here are some pics taken during one of our rainy days.

This poor Great White Heron was a tad damp.  He was on the boat ramp.

 

It’s hard to tell where the ramp ends and the ocean begins.

 

The bocce ball courts were flooded.

How about this Rv site?  Can you see the motorhome?

How about now?

 

There is a similar RV site on the open water that is for sale for $379,000 if you’re interested!  

 

Sunsets are usually beautiful here in the Keys.  This is North Roosevelt Blvd in Key West.