The Lost Keys

2005-02-26T16:37:00.000-08:00

So here it is the end of another month, March, 2005 looms ahead. Minor contemplated the possibilities. He observed, analyzed speculated, extrapolated and became depressed. Even the simplest things about life were complicated. He headed to the Perk in a mood as grey as the rainy morning sky. The sun knew better than to come around today. It seemed that it became darker as time ambled toward noon.

Winter in south Florida is only noticeable on a few days each year. This had been one those days. A nippy breeze was coming in from the north, northeast at more than 20 knots. And visibility was quite limited, in more than one way. Minors preoccupation with the future created the circumstance where he grazed his shoulder on a sign, a sign that had been there always. He grumbled to himself. Perfect day to be curmudgeon.

When he first arrived at the Perk the counter seats were all vacant. He took his usual seat at the dogleg in the counter. This location allowed for viewing both the main entrance and the back door. Minor liked to see the flow of humanity. There were the early morning regulars, nose down into newspapers and coffee mugs. No conversation, no interaction, just somber passing of time.

2005-02-24T10:10:00.000-08:00

KEY DREAM:
Minor had a repeated dream the last few nights. They were acid flash back, lucid dreams and he was worried. This had to mean something.

2005-02-23T01:12:00.000-08:00

IT'S NOT THE HEAT, IT'S THE STUPIDITY Big Boy was somewhere where it was both hot and snowing. It was somewhere south of the north border. Minor would have to leave yesterday if he wanted to be there now. That will be difficult to do now.

2005-02-21T23:37:00.000-08:00

Hunter S. Thompson always seemed to have the right answers for everything. Smart assed, acid tongued and completely irrevrent, he will be remembered Minor was thinking.

2005-02-20T11:02:00.000-08:00

What was that captain's name. Hondo, honcho? Minor was stuck. He could picture, but not remember. After Minor took some schrapnal he was sent home by the news bureau working out of Thailand. His memory of that time was limited. He'd been defraggin his mind for several years now and there was little of the war left.

2005-02-20T10:29:00.000-08:00

This picture arrived with a ransom note, but it was obvious Big Boy was in grave danger. Minor knew he had to help is old friend, even if he'd stabbed in the back once a long time ago. This was no time for judgments.

2005-02-20T09:20:00.000-08:00

Minor gets a clue. Meets a guru and now knows what to do. Do you? He's had a lot on his mind this week. And being preoccupied is a cardinal sin of being in the now. My artist friend Maria was agitated when she started talking to Minor on Thursday. She was adament, "When I've been meditating, at least 20 minutes per day, I get in a state if extended consciousness. Then, even when I'm unconscious, I awake. Minor tilted his head slightly, listing 5 degrees to the right. "So when you're asleep you're awake?" "Yes, I can be." "Hmm.

Quit TV for good

2005-02-18T15:40:00.000-08:00

Plenty of time now for other things, like reading, walking and the web.

See more progress on: watch less tv

2005-02-07T07:53:00.000-08:00

COUNTER INTELLIGENCE - It was the second Monday in February and the Perk experienced season surges as out of town folks on top of the local regulars. Minor and the usual suspects were scattered at the counter or took refuge at an in-demand table. At this time of year, If you expect to read a house copy of the local newpaper or the NY Times, bring your own.

2005-02-07T03:45:00.000-08:00

Thursday, January 31 -- 2:00PM-3:00PM
CHASING THE BLACK HORSE: As Minor purused the upcoming events listings he spotted one of paticular note. How Ancient Equine Archetypes Act through Living Horses and Lead Us to the Lost Keys of Paradise (part 1)-The horse is usually associated with the explosive power of the instincts and the ability to travel back and forth between the world of the living and the dead. Yet there seems to be a connection between these animals and aspects of feminine knowledge that were rountinely suppressed or demonized in patriarchal societies. Carl Jung recognized images of black mares as manifestations of feminine wisdom rising from the collective unconscious. Certain archetypal themes are actively resurrecting themselves in modern horse-human relationships, themes that were originally expressed millennia ago. When treated as sentient beings, rather than as slaves or beasts of burden, living horses can lead people to other worlds of creativity and insight. They facilitate dramatic shifts in consciousness that lead us to an expanded vision of our own potential as human beings. In this presentation, Linda will explore the magic that horses bring into people's lives and how they help us reconnect to nature, to the authentic self, to ancestral and feminine wisdom, to the herd, and to the community.

Ballroom West

2005-02-06T13:28:00.000-08:00

ROAD LESS TRAVELED
(Two roads diverged) Noise at the Café was a high level for a Monday morning. (in a yellow wood) Minor was trying to remember the words to Frost's poem. The poem was an artist's anthem. (And sorry I could not travel both) He ordered his usual breakfast comprised of one eggs scrambled, two crisp bacon rashers and a scone toasted with butter on the side. It was cranberry, walnut and lemon. (And be one traveler) A medium to go cup came automatically across the counter and he spun around toward the coffee set up on the sideboard. Silver canisters stood shoulder to shoulder neatly along the wall and in front of the community bulletin board. (long I stood And looked) So many business cards, mini-posters announcing local events and show handbills competed for coffee dispensing citizens' notice. (down one as far as I could. To where it bent in the undergrowth). Click comments to continue this thread.

2005-02-05T12:27:00.000-08:00

THERE ARE NO ACCIDENTS - Sebastian, Florida is about to burst with sprawl. It is in the cross hairs of population pressure from West Palm and Orlando. Minor loved the old town feeling, similar to Key West pre-1980. In particular, Sunday afternoon at Capt. Hiram's Resort. Originally a small house, it had mutated into a hotel, 4 bars, restaurant and a bait'n'gift shop. This is where Minor lost his car keys and his heart in the same reggae and rum drenched afternoon. It looked like it would be one of his "top ten" ever days just before things took a turn south.

2005-02-05T07:43:00.000-08:00

OVERNIGHT DELIVERY

Fedex woke Minor up. This was Saturday and he was sleeping in. The name of the sender was smudged. It was a blurry triplicate copy. He opened it and found a note and another envelope. It was sealed in red wax. The note said: THE LOST KEYS OF FREEMASONRY or The Secret of Hiram Abiff by MANLY P. HALL. That was all the note included. PUBLISHER'S FOREWORD -The steady demand and increasing popularity of this volume, of
which eighteen thousand copies have been printed since it first appeared a few years ago, have brought the present revised and rearranged edition into being. The text can be read with profit by both new and old Mason, for within its pages lies an interpretation of Masonic symbolism which supplements the monitorial instruction usually given in the lodges. The leading Masonic scholars of all times have agreed that the symbols of the Fraternity are susceptible of the most profound interpretation and thus reveal to the truly initiated certain secrets concerning the spiritual realities of life. Freemasonry is therefore more than a mere social organization a few centuries old, and can be regarded as a perpetuation of the philosophical mysteries and initiations of the ancients. This is in keeping with the inner tradition of the Craft, a heritage from pre-Revival days. The present volume will appeal to the thoughtful Mason as an inspiring work, for it satisfies the yearning for further light and leads the initiate to that Sanctum Sanctorum where the mysteries are revealed. The book is a contribution to Masonic idealism, revealing the profounder aspects of our ancient and gentle Fraternity - those unique and distinctive features which have
proved a constant inspiration through the centuries. FOREWORD By REYNOLD E. BLIGHT, 33 degree, K. T.

Minor pondered, not on whether someone meant this for him specifically, but which of his many strange associates would be the messenger of mystery. Click on Comments below to read the entire text:

2005-02-05T04:20:00.000-08:00

CONSPIRACY LEARY - Capt. Doug called and left Minor a message. He seemed perturbed if Minor read Doug's voice right. "They say that the number 13 is an unlucky number. This is almost a worldwide belief. You will usually never see a room numbered 13, or any hotels or motels with a 13th floor But, think about this: 13 original colonies, 13 signers of the Declaration of Independence, 13 stripes on our flag, 13 steps on the Pyramid, 13 letters in the Latin above, 13 letters in "E Pluribus Unum", 13 stars above the Eagle, 13 plumes of feathers on each span of the Eagle's wing, 13 bars on that shield, 13 leaves on the olive branch, 13 fruits, and if you look closely, 13 arrows. And for minorities: the 13th Amendment. I always ask people, Why don't you know this? Your children don't know this and their history teachers don't know this." Otherwise I'm okay I guess. Call me.

2005-02-05T02:52:00.000-08:00

COMPELLED TO CHANGE - Minor had been at the Icehouse. That afternoon he thought about Newtow's Laws as they applied to his life. Newton's first law states that every object will remain at rest or in uniform motion in a straight line unless compelled to change its state by the action of an external force. This is normally taken as the definition of inertia. The key point here is that if there is no net force acting on an object (if all the external forces cancel each other out) then the object will maintain a constant velocity. If that velocity is zero, then the object remains at rest. If an external force is applied, the velocity will change because of the force. "I'm at rest, too," Minor said out loud and then he read on.

The second law explains how the velocity of an object changes when it is subjected to an external force. The law defines a force to be equal to change in momentum (mass times velocity) per change in time. Newton also developed the calculus of mathematics, and the "changes" expressed in the second law are most accurately defined in differential forms. (Calculus can also be used to determine the velocity and location variations experienced by an object subjected to an external force.) For an external applied force, the change in velocity depends on the mass of the object. A force will cause a change in velocity; and likewise, a change in velocity will generate a force. The equation works both ways.

The third law states that for every action (force) in nature there is an equal and opposite reaction. In other words, if object A exerts a force on object B, then object B also exerts an equal force on object A. Notice that the forces are exerted on different objects. The third law can be used to explain the generation of lift by a wing and the production of thrust by a jet engine.

2005-01-31T10:09:00.000-08:00

After his romantic collision in Sedona with Faith May, Minor surveyed the wreckage and reviewed the passionate email love affair that had proceeded it. Here are their letters:

2005-01-31T03:57:00.000-08:00

Last summer,in Sedona, Arizona, Minor was sucked into the Vortex of a mystic woman from a trailer park ashram. They took a screenwriting course at the Zaki Gordon Institute for Independent Filmmaking as part of their romance which began with contact through dharmadate.com .

2005-01-30T03:17:00.000-08:00

On an explosive Florida morning, shards of light fell into the horizon. Minor stopped at Dunkin Donuts and picked up a medium-cream-sugar coffee and headed for the beach. Daybreak walks helped clear his mind. And today his head was overflowing. He found it extremely hard to stay in the present. To be in the "now."

2005-01-23T03:00:00.000-08:00

Boston closed for a week, life never stopped. Car antennae marked the auto graves on every street. National Guard trucks rumbled in the distance on Commonwealth Ave. But some things can't wait. The risk of staying was worse than to venture forth into the snow hurricane. Minor was in a major jam.

2005-01-17T18:21:00.000-08:00

A note from Tim Dorsey, author of many novels including Cadillac Beach. He's one of my favorite Florida writers and one of the inspirations for this blog. He emailed the following note:
Subject: The Lost Keys
Hi Fred,
Thanks for taking the time to write and for the kind words. From editor to PI - must like the more colorful people we offer ... and in Stuart (coincidentally where I put the ending of the new book). Thanks again for your interest. Best regards, Tim Dorsey

Blew Roof Land

2005-01-17T06:44:00.000-08:00

Hurricanes of 2004

Start Here

2005-01-17T06:23:00.000-08:00

The Lost Keys - Background