Sandy on Sunday, what a thrill watching the TV.

Governor Christe in NJ is pound the war drum for people to prepare to evacuate.  He ordered the casinos to close by 4PM today but the TV shows some are closing now.  One reporter said that Atlantic City will be ground zero for the land fall of the storm.  Later on a lot of reporters were saying the same thing.

In Conneticut they are busy at Mystic Seaport by adding additional lines to the ships and even moving them away from the docks to give them extra room.  The reporter there said that they expect the waters to rise 4 feet above the ground flooding the histroric village and into the buildings.

Last night there was a blurb in the TV that said in Conneticut the U.S. Navy is using submarines to build up under sea sand walls in Long Island Sound.  The image of a Trident nuclear sub would be doing the work enters one's mind right away.  But if you have ever seen one you would know that is impossible.  They are big, I mean really big.  I saw one coming into port while on a sailboat only half a mile away from us.  Plus these massive subs are not that agile and do not have the capability of building anythng.

But these subs do one thing very well.  They can deliver death from miles away and no one would know where it came from.  I am certain that if the report is true, they are using small submersables and most likely with robot subs known as ROV's.

Fire Island is being evacuated and shortly they are killing the power and gas to the island.  In Long Beach they are evacuating the nursing home and the local hospital 100%.

I went to pick up some chips and dip fixings this morning and the store was a zoo.  People are grabbing cases of bottled water, toilet paper by the arm loads.   You could not find a BBQ lighter anyplace.  I saw one guy actually running, I mean running through the store snatching up whatever he could get his hands on.   It was pure pandemonium. 

In my life I have never seen this town lose water pressure.  We have always had a good flow of water but people will and do panic.

One house not far from me was sand bagging.  I can't say that I blame them much for there was affordable housing put in not far and since then the drainage there has been horrible.  The term affordable housing for that place is laughable for that is what the developers call it.  The starting price for one of the condos is a mere $850,000.

Taking a drive around town some store windows have tape on them already.  Guess they expect the worse.

Nassau Community College has been designated as an emergency shelter and as such classes have been canceled for Monday and Tuesday.

Looking at the webcam from one of the yacht clubs, the bay is a little rough right now, but nothing to worry about.  At this time.

So right now at 1PM, time to sit back and relax.

Maybe later I will go out and grab a few photos.

'till next time.

Going to the local Stop and Shop I found that the panic was in full swing.  People were grabbing anything they could get their hands on.

Forget about getting any bottled water.  Funny thing is that we have never had a water outage in all of the history of the town.

Even the seltzer was gone.

Cold cereal was getting ransacked.

Which requires milk and more milk and yet more milk.  I saw one person with 10 gallons of it .

Even the bagged salad didn't stand a chance against the onslaught.

The end caps on each isle were stripped clean.  Locusts came out in droves.

Yes Sandy is scaring the hell out of people or is it the media making things worse that what they really will be.  I am sure we will get some flooding and trees down, but it will not be the end of the world.  That is still to come....Are you ready for the end of the Mayan long calendar in 12/21/12?

'till next time.

Sandy is crawling up the Atlantic and is expected to make land fall anywhere between South Carolina  and Massachusetts as of this writing.  Listening to the weather forecasters they expect it to hit Long Island Monday or Tuesday.

The panic buying began in earnest on Friday mornng where people were stripping the shelves in the food stores of anything that was not nailed down.  I know someone who works at a Stop and Shop in the office and he told me that it was so bad, that he and several others there had to man the registers.  The parking lot was a zoo as well with the panic.

The storm has yet to hit and already the county executives of both Nassau and Suffolk Counties are singing the song of gloom and doom.  News crews are out in force interveiwing people and they all are in panic mode.  No one is taking this storm in stride.

The media is not helping by calling this "Frankenstorm" which is only instilling more panic.  Then they say that this will be the storm of the century which only adds even more panic.  Seems like every storm is the storm of the century lately.

My feelings on this is that the weather forecasters are told by the sponsors to make the storm to be worse than it really is.  This way they can get people into panic buying therby increasing their profits.  If the media refuses then they can loose their sponsorship and the money it brings in.  But then again that is only a therory.  It does make sense though.

Long Island has been hit with storms for years and with some simple common sense they are not a big deal.  OK, trees will come down, power will be lost and with the over construction local flooding is certain.  But it will not be the end of the world the way the media likes to paint it.

People should do the common sense things like secure light weight objects from flying, maybe have two days worth of food for the trucks will get through, batteries for flash lights in case the power goes out, cell phones charged in case the phones go out and a bottle of wine to sip while enjoing the storm.


'till next time

FantasyFest is in full swing in Key West and from what I have seen in past photos and YouTube videos it is a blast.  It is a one week long plus party and I wish I was there.  It is interesting in how it was started, a party to entice tourist dollars during a slow period just before snow bird season.  I am certain that several places are making out very well with the infusion of money.

One of the things that is unique about FantasyFest and I was able to catch a glimpse from the webcam outside Sloppy Joe's on Wednesday night, was people covered with body paint, women especially.  Here women can wear nothing more than panties (or thong) with their body's covered in paint in some sort of design.  That's right they are topless and you see everything, but covered in paint.

Photo from Google Images

Screen shot from the cam outside Sloppy Joe's

I saw a few with black electrical tape only covering their nipples and no paint.  A few even wet with foot coverings only.

The city did set aside an area where this was allowed which was Duval Street and no other locations.  Now I have a question.  For the most part, and I am talking about the women topless covered with paint, are just that and that is topless.  Would they be as willing to walk down any other street topless sans the paint?  
Say Duval Street, White Head Street or even Plandome Road?

I have no problem with that myself, hey I'm a guy and as a guy I have no problem looking at boobies and if a women wants to bare them for me then it is my civic duty to look.  I know my wife would object.  And here is another thought, I've been to the beach many times, taught scuba classes, sailed and what have you. I have seen quite a few men that really can use a bra. And some of these guys could fit into a C cup.

A guy needing a bra.  Image from Google Images

And some could stand to wear a girdle, I am no exception to that part.  Sitting behind a desk has left it's mark on my middle.

So where is the difference?  A guy that needs a C cup can walk around showing all and it is no big deal, but a woman with say a B cup would only get into trouble.

So I ask again but don't expect an answer, if you were at FantasyFest and was topless and was covered with body paint in public, would you do the same without body paint and with it not being FantasyFest?

'till next time.

This morning I woke up to rain, tons of it. Turning on the TV the weather forecast for today is nothing but rain. Oh how ducky. Plus it is a chilly 55 right now. Yuk.

I went to the computer and looked at the webcam at the Hog's Breath Saloon and see it is a glorious 80. Looking at Mallory Square I see some puffy clouds but no sign of rain. It looks likecitvis going to be a great day in Key West.

I went to the webcam outside of the Lazy Gecko and saw that Rick's was all decorated in a very garish manner. Thinking to myself could it be?

So I did a little research and found that it was that time once again, FantasyFest. And it starts today. Too bad that there are more webcams around Key West so those who are not there like moi, can watch the excitement.

Speaking of webcams, since the "hurricaine that wasn't" the webcams at Cowboy Bill's have been down since. Even the website went down. Only this week the website came back up but not the cams. Even the webcam mounted on Rick's has been down since.

There are a few remote control cams I go to once in a while.  On one of them someone (no not me) grabs control of it and focuses on women tourists and mostly on their cleavage especially with one location.  Mmmmm, yeah baby.  Well recently with the one cam I had and eye full.  The cam was focused on a woman sunbathing and she was topless.  And she was right under the cam.  A word of advice, if you want to sunbath topless, make sure that there are no cams around.

Today in Newsday my wife found an article in how there are several companies here on Long Island that were given state aid to help build there businesses and hire people.  Many of them are in default for not filling vacant spots.  Could there be a spot for me?  I still wish for the Keys but so far, nothing.

Anyway that is about it for now.  I just hope to catch some of the activities of FantasyFest on the cams.

'till next time

It has been an interesting few days.  I finally had an interview with a place near the center of the island.  I would be in a cube farm with 400 other people in their IT Department.  From corner office to a cube, how great is that?  The pay was one third of what I was making.

Might be good as a stop gap but when I looked around, no one looked happy at all.  Plus there were several empty cubes that looked like they had people in them recently.  The looks gave the appearance that they had a house cleaning and fired a bunch of people.  Hard to describe the look, but you know it when you see it.  If it was a house cleaning, was it for the best or did someone have a bug up their butt like my former place?

No good vibes came from there at all.  Even as a stop gap.

The second debate was held here on Long Island on Tuesday.  The whole area near Hofstra was in grid lock for the entire day.  My daughters company was ordered to close no later than 1PM by the secret service for they were in close proximity to Hofstra.  While leaving her job she saw Marine 1 fly overhead.  She saw it descend but not land.  She could not get close enough.  But she did say it was impressive.

We saw Air Force One go overhead one day a few years ago.  That was impressive so I can imagine how she felt seeing Marine 1.

I saw an article on the Sheriff's blog about a 10 foot snake caught at Key West airport.  In the website Mile Zero gave more information.  Some reports from other pages said it was a python while others said it was a red-tailed boa.  I admit I am no snake expert at all so I can not say who is right.  Regardless of what it was, if I saw it in my yard I would introduce it to a few rounds out of a shotgun.

I also learned that boas can be found loose in several of the islands there.  To me that is not a good sign.   So if and when I do move there I would find out more about the firearms laws there and if legal, have a 12 ga at the ready.  If not, a good sharp axe or something similar.

I had a nibble from a recruiter in Miami last week.  A good one.  The right position, the right number and what have you.  But the client wanted some oddball computer language even the recruiter never heard of.  So much for that, but at least it was a good nibble which gives me hope.

I told my wife about it and she said if I get a job in Florida, I am to go solo for at least for six months.  She loves Long Island, I hate it.  Is there a storm on the horizon?

A special thank you goes out to Mayor Gonzo Mays.  As most from the Keys know, she is the honorary mayor of Key West and a celebrity in her own right.  She gave me  an endorsement on LinkedIn.  What a pleasant surprise.  Thank you once again Mayor Mays!



Right now it is a brisk 64 degrees with overcast skies and at the Hog's Breath I see that it is a glorious 82 and by looking at Mallory Square it is partly cloudy and it looks like a few rain clouds in the distance.

Anyway I have a lot to do.

'till next time

Summer is over here on Long Island. The air is filled with the high pitch sounds of leaf blowers form everywhere you turn. We will have to put up with the racket until the end of November.

We removed the air conditioners from the widows last month ans last week the room fans were cleaned and put away. Last night the storm windows were shut to ward off the cold.

Kind of strange. It is in the 50's right now and I dread it. But in the spring I cannot wait for the thermometer to hit 50 and keep climbing. For some reason there is a difference between 50 in the spring and 50 in the fall. The fall is colder.

This week will start the official change of summer clothing to winter clothing. A process I dread as much as house painting. I really hate having to go to winter wear with the bulk. But need to in order to protect myself from the impending cold weather that we are about to have.

Along with the change over comes the boots, gloves and scarves. All signs that we are going to face old man winter and the snow that he brings. I hate snow BTW.

The building we are in has no insulation at all. It is about 100 years old. We thought about tearing down the plaster walls and insulate or even have it blown in. But when we did the math there was no cost advantage. The break point would be ten years down the road. And I know for a fact that we will not be in this building for those 10 years. So where is the savings?

Now with the newest announcement in Newsday that the oil prices here are going to skyrocket makes the desire to head south for warmer climates all the more appealing. Even if we could switch over to gas heat the costs would be outrageous at best. LIPA is no bargain for they charge the highest utility rates in to country. Plus add to that the cost of converting from oil to gas is unthinkable. And once again there is the break point as to when, if ever would we see a savings with everything combined.

And let's not forget the job prospects here in New York are non-existent as well. I went to another job fair last week and like the others a total waste of time and effort. The way I look at it, all it takes is one 'yes' out of the crowd. So it is worth a gamble even though for the most part it is a waste. But I have to keep trying. So off to another, what I like to call, a "cattle call" today.

I did get a nibble from a recruiter in Miami on Thursday for a CTO position and it was an ideal match with one little exception. The prospective employer wanted some weird language that even the recruiter never heard of. So much for that but at least there was a glimmer of hope. I would have been one step closer to where I desire to live.

Anyway, it is time to get on the move.  And it is going to rain today with it being in the high 60's. And it is 82 at the Hog's Breath with clear skies.

'till next time

It is obvious that we are going to have to move out of Nassau County soon.  With the property tax hikes of up to 30% and school taxes jumping close to 12% we will not be able to afford to live here. I most certainly do not want to live in New York any longer.

Part of my job search as an executive is hoping that I could get some sort of relocation assistance.  Right off the bat the image of giving several thousand to someone to move hits ones mind.  But in my case not so.  I ask for some help in relocating, that  is all and here are some options.  And these are not deal breakers, just icing on the cake if you will.

It could be a lead to an apartment that we can live in for a few months until we get a more permanent place to live.  This could include subsidized rent or not.

If the company as one access to an apartment for a few months.  In my past company we had an apartment that we put up various CFO's in rent free until they became established.

Maybe even a partial on renting a truck to move.  I have never used a moving company in my life and would rather pack, load, drive the truck and unload myself.   Not only is that a cost savings, but at least it is done the way I want and not be held hostage to an unregulated industry where people have been ripped off.

Or let's go crazy, all expenses paid with an apartment and a stipend.  Right dream on Bill, dream on.  Yet my last company did just that with each new CFO so it really is not as far fetched as you might think.  But I am not that greedy.

I mean there are options and I am always open to options.  But first I need a lead or two on a new job in the Keys and hope to get an interview then an offer.

Right now in East Egg the temperature is 54 degrees and rain, lots of cold rain.  Looking at the Hog's Breath Saloon, it is a glorious 84.

'till next time.

My research in going to the Keys to live and work is starting to go in the direction that I wish it wouldn't.  So far I am starting to see reasons in not going there.  But it is still early yet.

First I was told by one of my FB friends that it is expensive to live there and that most people need two jobs just to survive.  On the flip side looking at the rents and house prices, we beat the Keys hands down as far as being expensive.  You can't touch a run down shack around here for less than $300K.  And jobs?  There are none here on Long Island unless you want to flip burgers part time.  But for this discussion, score 1 minus.

One of my LinkedIn connections questioned as to why would I want to move there in the first place.  They are looking to move back to the mainland.  They had or have a business running out of their home and sales dropped by 70%.  They also said that during the months of August and September there is no money there.  No one is working at all during that time.  The whole economy in the Keys tanked.  They also said that they have seen computer consultants come and go as fast as you can change your socks so opening a computer consulting business is financial suicide.

Yet here in New York in East Egg and in the surrounding towns I see a lot of vacant stores.  They too are coming and going so fast you need a score card to keep track.  And we have a lot of high end expensive boutique types of stores as well.  Makes you wonder how they can make it if at all.  Even one of the large supermarket chains here is in financial trouble.  But we have a lot of big box stores cropping up all over and they are pushing the small store out.  So I guess we are no different.  But for this, let's score a minus point.

I read an article in an on-line copy of the Keys News.  It echoed what was said in the first set of comments that you need two jobs just to survive in the Keys.  Unless you are retired or are a millionaire.  Heck you practically need to be a millionaire to live here and with the recent announcement in Newsday that property taxes are jumping up by 30% you really need to be a millionaire to live in Nassau County.  But let's score a minus point for now.

I subscribe to a few blogs.  One of them, "My Key West Diary" by ConchScooter showed a downside of Key West that no one likes to talk about.  The homeless.  We have our own fair share here so that is a washout.  But from his post, some of the homeless moved to the Keys to try and make a go of it and start their own businesses only to have them fail.  Next thing you know they not only loose their source of income, but their homes as well only to wind up on the streets.  And I get the feeling that it is quite a few like that.  So let's give that a minus point.


Another blog I subscribe to is that from the Monroe County Sheriff's Office.  OK there is crime in the Keys.  No different than any other place in the United States.  But from is being posted I see only small things, like a few burgleries, a few drug busts, some theft, and an occasional DWI.  No violent crime. 

Yet here on Long Island there are areas where you don't dare drive through in the day time let alone at night.  In a recent news article that made TV the police found a dead child buried in a yard in Farmingdale.  It was a boy of 18 months and the parents never reported him missing.  One of the largest drug busts in the nations history was right here in East Egg as well.  Plus the bodies that they have been finding on the south shore and so far no one has been arrested in it.  There was a murder not far from where I live several years ago where a young girl was stabbed multiple times.  The case is still open.  Those are just a few samples so yes we have violent crime here.  Score the Keys positive point.

In the same issue of the Keys News they echoed what I have been reading in the Monroe County Sheriff's blogs and that is Key West is safe.  Mind you the issue is at least a year old.  So let's score a positive point here.

In a post that I made on FB one of the response was that they could not find work in two years and had to move away from there.  What kind of work did they did was never mentioned.  But for this, let's give a minus point.

Doing some research into the homeless situation there in the Keys I came across an article that mentioned about a family that was made homeless by Wilma.  They lost everything and could not find work in Key West anyplace.  So finally they moved to Marathon where he was able to find work but doing what was never mentioned.  A minus goes here for no work in Key West.

One of my other FB friends who runs a business there told me that is is very rough to survive there.  They never elaborated in how.  So let's give this a minus point.

I spoke on the phone with another FB friend a few months ago.  We had a great conversation for almost an hour.   They told me that there is a crying need for computer consultants there and that there is more work repairing computers for homeowners that what the current consultants can handle.  Looking at what I have found so far, I an nervous about giving this a positive point but will do so anyway.

As part of doing due diligence I posted a survey here in my blog and mentioned about it on FB asking people to take it.  This way I can make a more informed decision if I should say screw it and just move the the Keys and start from scratch.  So far no one responded.  Score a minus point.

I reached out to the Monroe County seat hoping that I could get my questions answered.  So far no one from Monroe County responded and my questions go unanswered.  Score a minus point.

I read that Burmese Pythons were caught in Key Largo.  Looking at the Monroe County website I see mention of the python problem Florida is having.  Yet Monroe county even includes a large section in the mainland as well.  So far I have not read about any pythons south of Key Largo.  But for the fact that pythons have made it to Key Largo, a minus point.

Using Google Streetview I see a lot of newer homes being built on stilts.  Is flooding that bad there?  Even looking at the building codes for Monroe County new residences must be up on stilts and have a specified wind force resistance.  I guess flooding an storms are that bad or can be.  I would think that the bulk of this was because the damage that Wilma caused.  I saw a photo of Roosevelt Blvd under six feet of water during that storm.  A minus point here.

One of my FB friends made a suggestion that I reach out to a particular company there for things are always in flux there.  A positive point goes here.



So far the score is 12 negative reasons in not going to the Keys with only 3 positive.  It really is not shaping up too well for me to leave New York and move to the Keys to start over again.  But right now this is still in the beginning stages.  I am hopeful that things will turn around and that I can find work there as a network engineer / computer consultant.  So I am not giving up the dream just yet.

I long to move there but right now things are so far up in the air.

'till next time

I had a response on Facebook in regard to one of my blog posts that I feel deserves some discussion.  As we all know I am tired of living in New York with all the crap and cold winters so I really yearn to land a computer / network support job in the Keys. And not an entry level one either.

The comment was that I should just move for if I am not there how can I find a job?  The comment has some merit to be sure.  But at the same time there is a major pit fall with it.  I'll explain.

Right now I have been unemployed for seven months with no light at the end of the tunnel.  I send out resume after resume and nothing.  So to move blindly without any resources coming in would be foolish especially with nothing lined up in the Keys.  Especially since I do not have a large cash reserve to provide a cushion.

For me to go down there with no interviews lined up is asking for a disaster.  It is not like the Keys are on the other side of Long Island Sound.  We are talking about a chunk of money to go there blindly just to blindly knock on doors.  And with no income coming in it would be too risky.

If I can line up a few interviews, then going there for them is well worth the risk.  Even to start things off a phone or Skype interview could potentially get the ball rolling.  After that grab a plane, put up with the TSA, hit the interview and hopefully get the right offer.  And from that point, rent a U-Haul and say "good bye New York."  But first I need to get some kind of a response to my resume.  Either from a direct connection or from a someone who passes my name along.

Until then, I can only keep my fingers crossed and keep sending out resumes and tap Facebook and LinkedIn contacts for leads.

With the announcement on Friday that we are looking at some drastic tax hikes here in Nassau County, getting out of New York is more imperative. Property taxes are going up as much as 30% and school taxes as much as 12%. Areas with lower incomes are getting hit the hardest while the wealthier sections are getting less of an increase. But no matter how how slice it up, it is no longer financially feasible to stay on Long Island much longer so landing a job in the Keys is getting to be much more important than before.

'till next time.

Coming up to seven months of unemployment.  So far nothing really on the horizon.  Friday an interview in NYC with a headhunter.  I don't need to go into that again.  But I cannot rule them out for you never know if the right opportunity come through them.

I am not confident at all.

I did get a hit earlier this week but it would entail re-locating to Dallas Tx.  The pay was not there by a long shot and there was no relocation assistance at all.  Not even with help in setting up in an apartment for a few months to get established.

Even if the pay and the relocation was there I still would think hard about it for my heart is in working in the Keys.

I saw an ad at the DRC the other day looking for a tech.  Temping but the pay was entry level.  I am not entry level by far.

I should know by the end of the week if I get the extended unemployment or not.  It is crazy in how the state of New York jerks you around.  Even the unemployment is at poverty level.  I am at the maximum benefit which is $400 per week.  You can't feed a family on that.  A friend of mine who was just let go from the same company I was in lives in NJ.  His salary was below mine and he gets over $600 a week in unemployment in NJ.  Yes it sucks to live in New York.

To make myself a little more competitive I had my hair touched up today to hide the gray.  Something that was mentioned to at the DoL when I went to their workshops.
I need to look younger, but at what cost?  And I am not talking financial here.

Another friend that was in the same company I was in who got the axe before me for her age as well is in another firm under a temporary contract.  She was telling me how bad it was there and she is sending out resumes as well.  She hopes to line something up by the time her contract is up.  I wish her luck.

So far no one has answered my query as to life in the Keys.  I am not pleased at that.  So I reached out to official channels starting with Monroe County.  Maybe then I can get the information that I need to help me make a decision if I should move there or not.  After Monroe County then maybe to each of the towns/cities in the Keys and maybe the chambers of commerce of each.  Someone should be able to answer at least half of my questions.

I yearn to move to the Keys in the worst way.  But I need to be able to support myself and family.  I am sure that a few of the kids will not move and my wife is dead set against it.  So there is a lot on my plate.  Oh how I long to be able to sit back on a beach there and listen to the sounds of the waves and never have to think about shoveling snow.

I have not had the chance to view the webcams there recently but a few seem to be down like Cowboy Bill's and a few of the remote control ones.

Right now it is 71 and overcast with high humidity here.  Looking at the Hog's Breath it is a glorious 86.  Looking at Mallory Square I see a storm brewing up north. 

Anyway back to it.

'till next time