La Dolce Vita

Yesterday I received the following comment on my post about property taxes here in Florida:

“Don't be depressed, the people like yourself that live the good life in Florida looking at the woman and eating grouper can thank the people of Venazulala al ala for the gas and ass we pay for.” Anonymous

First of all, I dislike anonymous comments and wish that Blogger would do away with that option. Also the comment box has a spell check feature so there is no excuse, except for drunkenness, for the misspelling of Venezuela. However with the al ala written after it, it may have been intentional. Your guess is as good as mine.

I do not pay taxes, I do not own property nor had an income for the past two years. And let me state, for the record, that I would love to be paying taxes, own a home and making an income.

“Don’t be depressed.” The depression that I was writing about was an economic depression. However what depresses me personally is the fact that my children and grandchildren are going through hard times. Because of my current situation, I am unable to help them. As I see it, it will only get worse.

“Live the good life in Florida.” It depends on what you call the good life. It also depends on where you live in Florida. When I first moved to Florida I decided to live on the beach. The cost of housing was higher than in the city but benefits were much greater. The warm salt water in the Gulf of Mexico had a therapeutic effect on my arthritic knees (I could walk without a limp) and the lack of pollen bearing trees helped my allergies (I could breathe in the springtime without taking Claritin D).

Besides the health issues, there were other factors. My place of employment was slightly more than a half mile away. There was a Grocery store, a Liquor store, a Walgreens and several Bars and Restaurants within a half mile (comfortable walking distance) of my residence. Plus with the exception of the Cucaracha Grande (Palmetto Bug) and seasonal Love Bugs, there were very few flying insects.

The drawback of living on the beach is there are very few jobs available outside of the service industry.

For eight years I did live what I considered to be the good life. After being unable to work two years ago, it was no longer the good life.

“Looking at the women.” As far as I know Florida does not have a monopoly on women. They are everywhere. However, if you are referring to women over 55 with sagging breasts, varicose veined legs and pot bellies; The Gulf Coast of Florida seems to excel in this category.

“Eating grouper.” I like Grouper. But I also like Cod, Pompano, Salmon and many other mild tasting fish. In 2000 I could get a Grouper Sandwich (5 ounces with fries and coleslaw) for $5.49. A seven to eight ounce Grouper Filet dinner was just $9.95 with salad and potato.

Last summer I paid $8.95 for a skimpy four ounce sandwich. That’s when marine fuel was under $3 per gallon. Marine fuel is currently more than $4 per gallon and it takes a lot of fuel to find the “happy fishing grounds”.

That brings us to “Venazulala al ala.” As far as I know Venezuela doesn’t set the price on crude oil, OPEC does. The leading producer of crude oil is Saudi Arabia; I believe that Venezuela is fifth or sixth down the line. Besides, Venezuela has given us more good Baseball players than any other OPEC country.

The Beach Bum