Rock, Paper, Scissors

October 17, 2018





Kathy and Jack





Rock, Paper, Scissors

There was a little more than a week between the time I returned from Austin until the real beginning of what is the rollercoaster that we jump on each fall season here in Key West as Fantasy Fest kicks off and things jump in to high gear. You might think this would be a good time to relax and take it easy in anticipation of all the craziness that is coming, but that is just not my style. There is too much stuff going on and too many things to do to keep us occupied.











The first thing that I had to deal with on my return was a brief scare from Hurricane Michael, which formed south of Cuba and made its way north into the Gulf of Mexico. We were very fortunate as, the Keys were barely brushed by the outlying feeder bands which created a lot of wind and some cool rough surf conditions here, but no real damage. Sadly that cannot be said for our friends in the Florida panhandle who got slammed with a very strong Category 4 storm that devastated many small beachfront communities. Knowing what it is like to experience and have to recover from a catastrophic storm, our hearts go out to all those impacted by this storm. Our good fortune is sadly once again someone else’s misery.









It did make for some fun walks along White Street Pier and Higgs Beach and Kathy and I took Jack down to watch the wind and waves a few times a day while we were getting blasted. He really was energized by the activity and there were plenty of people out enjoying the surf. We even saw surfers at Higgs Beach, which is an exceedingly rare sight. There were plenty of kite boarders enjoying the action as well as the wind was whipping.







It calmed down enough so that Books and Books did not have to cancel or postpone their reading and booksigning with noted author Kwame Alexander. Alexander has written 21 books, mostly for young adult readers and his book “The Crossover” won the coveted Newberry Award as that year’s most distinguished contribution to children’s literature.

Kwame Alexander







Since many of his books have a basis or setting around sports, I wanted to check him out as a potential panelist for the 2020 Key West Literary Seminar, which will focus on sports in literature. He was fantastic and performed to a packed house along with a talented musician friend, Randy Preston in a musical/literature evening of entertainment. The best news is that he has already tentatively agreed to come back in 2020 for the seminar.

Randy Preston







As Fantasy Fest gets closer, things are starting to pick up in town. In anticipation of the increase in business, my new favorite bar, General Horseplay, which has been open for a couple of months, has finally completed the renovation of their outdoor courtyard area and they hosted a grand opening party of sorts by hosting their first ever Rock, Paper, Scissors tournament. It is just the sort of wacky event that the now shuttered Porch once offered which is not surprising as many of the same principals are involved.







There were close to twenty entrants in the event, which was hosted by my buddy Landon, who is damn hysterical. Strangely enough, bar owner and friend Chris Schultz won the single elimination tourney, there was no home field advantage either, he legitimately won every round to capture the first championship. It was a fun night and great to see the bar already doing well.

Livi



Scott and Chaka

Kristyn and Landon

I conclude this blog entry with some pretty tragic news, an acquaintance of mine, Kelsey Quayle was murdered in a random shooting as she was driving in Atlanta. She had recently moved there in search of better opportunities to pursue her modeling career. I only met her a few times at various race tracks as she was one of the UFD girls who represented the sponsor of my favorite driver, James Hinchcliffe. She was always sweet and kind and I got to know her a little at the track and we became friends on facebook. She had moved on from UFD to even bigger and better modeling gigs and it was fun watching her success and progression as she pursued her career. Sadly it was all cut short in a senseless, random tragedy. Our deepest sympathy to all of Kelsey’s family and friends. Another beautiful soul gone way too soon.

Mario Andretti and Kelsey



Kelsey



https://kwamealexander.com/