Suzuki DF 140's

[snoozer]

Sorry Randle,
I am told what an insensitive pig I am a lot, so it must be true.

I am from Cape May NJ, and used to fish in the bay. The wave sets are different down here, it is roughter than I thought it would be. The flare on this V-20 keeps me dryer than I thought I would be. So I am plesantly surprised.

I do have too much weight aft in the boat; I looked today. It is due for some yard time and maintaince. I'll see what I can do.

On the Keys: This place is not for everyone. I have been here four years and I have seen them come and seen them go. It is very expensive to live here if you must work. Rents are high and prices higher. Insurance is untouchable for wind or water damage. Everone needs two jobs to stay even. Wages are low and so are the brows of the people who can afford to buy a house here now (this can't include me as I live on a boat).
But the water is clear most of the year, the reef is still full of fish, temp is warm. Let me recap; clear water, fish, warm, yep that's it. I am a very lucky sob, and I know it.
I guess that is bragging a bit, But anyone can come on down and try it. Any job that there is up north, there is one like it here.

[THEFERMANATOR]

The rampant drug use is the major reason my dad left there years back. He worked at the JEEP dealer in KEY WEST and the guys down there would do lines of coke right out in the open on top of there tool boxes while working on COP cars with the cops STANDING RIGHT THERE! Then there was the high costs(the conch card helped with that a little), and then the massive GAY PRIDE PARADES was a real deal killer for an old time FLORIDA CRACKER that had grown up in old time FLORIDA(where the elite wore white robes). Couldn't take it for but 6 months before we left. He moved up to NAPLES area, and I went back with my mom for my senior year of high school.

[snoozer]

Well then, there is that too.
Drugs are a big problem here. The easy going way of the place fosters that. If you can pass a drug test, and show up on time, you can have any job you want here. Good help is hard to find and in demand, but I suppose that is everywhere these days.

We hardly ever go to Key West any more, they call it Key weird for a reason. Marathon has always been more into fishing, and now into diving. It is a better fit for me.
After the hurricanes, couple years back, and the high prices of homes, about 20% of the population packed up and left.

I spent a few years in Clearwater before I made the move here. Too much traffic, too many people. But living on an island is not for everyone.

[randlemanboater]

The grass is always greener..........until you cross the fence.

You guys are destroying my idea of the Keys, in my mind it is just like it was on "Flipper".

I plan on getting down there for a visit in the next few years.....and maybe in 9 years (when I retire) I will do like my retired Uncle does, rent a house in So. Fla. for a month each January.

[THEFERMANATOR]

If your going to go down, skip GAY DAYS. And when you go into KEY WEST, think of it as MARDI GRAS in a sense. From the sevin mile bridge east it isn't that bad, and ISLAMORADA is pretty much a fishermans haven. But KEY WEST has gone to the flambouyant types, where the boys like boys and girls like girls. The girl girl part can be amusing at times, but not for the entire family. I did notice that they have halted alot of the same sex displays except for GAY DAYS.

[snoozer]

Theferm's got it just about right.

Key West would be perfect for a Bi-sexual honeymoon. Not much for families anymore. Diving and fishing is OK. There is some good food in places, but the prices are way too much. Room rates are way too much.

They have toned things down a little, lately. In the past I have seen some God-awlful displays in other Gay towns, as well as Key West. P-town on Cape Cod is probably worse, and the weather up there is deffenetly worse. The Gay's have more disposable income, so the prices of everything goes up when they come to town. But they bring a lot of investment also, and for the population, they do not need as many schools. The schools here are some of the best in Florida. High property taxes + few families = good schools. Florida is not known for a stellar education system.

The reefs and clear water, oh yes and warmth too, is why I am here. And I am probably on my way to somewhere else in the future. But for now, It is a cool place to call home.