Key West Trip

[AJ_Gil]

The trip to Key West was great and just what we needed.
We stayed at the Angelina Guest House where we've become friends with the couple that owns it. The Angelina began as one of the most notorious brothels in Key West and the owners got behind it naming all the rooms after famous hookers. It's about 6 blocks from the heart of the old town clubbing district and reasonable. It has a heated grotto pool that you can use all night if you don't get too noisy which is cool too.
The bands we saw were all great and set the tone for the weekend. Most bars have the acoustic Jimmie Buffet thing going on which we find boring as hell so our friends at Angelina steered us to a 5:30pm soundcheck with a blues band called "Jason Ricci & the New Blood" at the Green Parrot. Man, were they good and with a new CD release I'm sure are headed to a national spotlight. GREAT way to get started!!!!!
Another great spot right up the street is Key Wests only country bar Cowboy Bills. The place rocks with great country-rock bands and (of course) the nightly sexy bull riding contest. We ended up there both nights and had a ball. Everytime I hit a country bar I'm amazed as it seems like every hot chick in the area is there from the Roundup in Davie to Cowboy Bills. Really good for these old eyeballs
The Magnum ran great and we have found 2 cool free parks spaced just right for rest room stops, stretch the legs and a couple of cold ones. Annes Park on the south end of Islemorada and Veterans Park on the south end of the 7 mile bridge (right as you get off on the left).
We picked up a couple of subs in Marathon (right before the bridge) and had a nice lunch at Veterans Park. We left Ft. Laud at 8:30 which had us pulling up at the Angelina at 2:30 when the room was ready.
Key West is the perfect place IMHO to drop off the face of the earth. Every time we go we meet more and more middle aged folks that discovered the place and just never went home (including the owners of the Angelina). There was 4 couples staying at the Angelina from Tennessee that rented Harleys in Ft. Lauderdale and drove down. Nice ride but those guys looked scary pulling out. Couldn't have paid me to ride with them but h*ll.......if they made it what a trip LOL!!!!
The only bummer was the drive through psychotic Miami (in both directions...ugh) and the construction right before coming into Key Largo.

I has several close encounters with traffic cops as I do like to zip along in the Mag. I was sure this was the trip where I was gonna get popped. I was on 75 coming back running about 85 past Sheridan thinking "wow I'm going to make it" when I blow past a trooper, he pulls out, coming up behind me with all the goodies flashing, I'm sitting there going &*(^%#@! but not doing anything to indicate guilt until he gets to me. He pulls right by us and pops a black Charger ahead of us WHEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We got home to a stack of bills, lawyer B.S., a broken kitchen faucet (and 2 trips to Home Depot because the moron in plumbing sold me the wrong s**t). The wife & I looked at each other and briefly discusssed tossing a match in the house and heading back.

Sanity returned (I guess) and I'm writing from my desk at work.
I'll try to get everything up to speed and post some pictures tonight

[ko4000]

Good to hear you enjoyed yourself Gil.. I am in need of one of those weekend get aways myself..