Alan’s TTIM Stories #59

“I want to get to Key West and away from it all.”
Ernest Hemingway

After experiencing a cold winter in the north and a stressful news rotation everywhere – it’s time to kick back and think warm weather while sipping a margarita. Staying within the States, you can visit another world in Key West, Florida.

In the heart of Key West is a local watering hole, quality restaurant, a national historic site, literary muse, and some say – a recreated tourist trap, with the spirit of Ernest Hemingway ever present. All describe Sloppy Joe’s Bar. Neon red outlined letters above a 1^st floor awning, light the Key West night inviting you to visit a Duvall Street icon.

When Prohibition ended, Joe Russell turned his speakeasy into a legal establishment. His friend, author Ernest Hemingway, suggested a name after a Havana bar with slippery floors. For years, Hemingway and his friends patronized the bar as a gathering place to spread tall tales of angling prowess and war stories suitable for the substance of novels.  It’s also the place where Hemingway met his future third wife, Martha Gellhorn, in a chance or calculated meeting.

Sloppy Joe’s offers a menu full of comfort food – both American and Caribbean including a local specialty – conch fritters. The bar offers specialty drinks, frozen drinks, and every flavor of margaritas imaginable. To remember the experience, pick up a souvenir t-shirt, tumbler, shot glass, ball cap, or bandana for your dog in the Retail Warehouse (also available online).

To understand Sloppy Joe’s is to catch a glimpse of Key West culture. The town is built on a foundation of independent-minded residents calling the town the Conch Republic. Visitors and residents enjoy a mixture of beaches, mangrove coastlines, offshore coral reefs, historic buildings, pleasant weather (except for the occasional hurricane), Jimmy Buffet music, noted visitors from the past, and a few visitors from the beyond.

Kim Brown Seely wrote: “This place is still a little twisted…that indolent, adventurous spirit still very much in the air.”

The diversity of experiences range from well-groomed merchants catering to well-groomed tourists, to the back street bars with an alcohol mist mixing with the odor of fishy sweat from hours under the sun. Visitors can choose the uptight no-touch museums compared to the daily sunset-watching festival at Mallory Square. A highlight is a visit to the Hemingway House, famous for the polydactyl (six-toed) cats.

And chickens – everywhere, adding color and noise to the Key West vibe. Illegal to harm and illegal to feed. Overpopulation is handled by the relocation of thousands annually with enough of a flock leftover to maintain the famous feathered atmosphere.

Some describe Key West culture as a combination of Caribbean and South Florida. These are a part of the mix. But Key West is its own culture. Attributes and influences contribute to an atmosphere of joy. Everyone who encounters Key West should leave with a spiritual transformation becoming a personality trait – a priority of happiness, robust health, and the ability to enjoy life. Any moment can be a party.

After a plate of conch fritters, remember desert – a piece of authentic yellow Key Lime pie.

Sources:
Sloppy Joes (sloppyjoes.com)
Key West Trolley Tours
Wikipedia
FloridaRambler.com

Photo credit: Licensed under the Creative CommonsAttribution-Share Alike 4.0 International / Johnny White – mileZERO

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Follow announcements of Alan’s TTIM Stories at Facebook.com/alan.vandervoort or Instagram & Threads vandervoort_author, with all available posts at www.alanvandervoort.com. Novels by the author include: Sandhills – A Novel and Key Largo Summer, found at Booklocker.com and other online booksellers.