Actor in a Leading Role: Mickey Rourke
A very common occurrence in Tampa, that being the busted electric driver’s side window (the girl driving the car has the door open because the window won’t roll down due to an electrical failure)...........more
With 165 parks and beaches within the city limits of Tampa, there are plenty of opportunities to enjoy the temperate climate, sea air and sand between your toes. You’re not likely to miss a meal with the multitude of fine dining options before or after enjoying the exciting nightlife or fun attractions............more
Thousands of boaters might have to settle for fewer fishing spots after Hillsborough County Public Works officials issue a stern warning against boaters going under the dilapidated Friendship Trail Bridge..........more
This morning I ventured to the Hillsborough County Commission meeting to see what action the commissioners would take about extending the Upper Tampa Bay Trail seven miles and extending it to the Suncoast Trail. Don't hold your breath, folks........more
Last month, Hillsborough County's public affairs television producers taped an interview with former state Sen. Les Miller for a 30-minute program on blacks in politics..........more
Zach Deputy and Tribal Style
Ten of the dogs seized from a breeder in North Carolina are now available for adoption at the 
Kathy Lovelace lost her job and was about to lose her house, too. But then she made a seemingly simple request of the bank: Show me the original mortgage paperwork.........more
Why would a Republican congressman potentially on track to be speaker of the House leave Washington for one of the lowest-profile posts in Tallahassee? Ask Adam Putnam, a political wunderkind elected in 2001 at 26 who stepped off the leadership path and launched a bid this month for state agriculture commissioner........more
United Citizens Action Network (U-CAN), a citizen-led government watchdog group, is calling for the investigation of Hillsborough County Commissioner Al Higginbotham and his aide, Jess Johnson, for their actions relating to the County Charter..........more
Since moving to Tampa, Florida five-and-a-half years ago, I've played tour guide to numerous family and friends seeking inexpensive family vacations. It's been a fun adventure to be a hometown tourist..........more
Hillsborough County Judge John Conrad today dismissed two misdemeanor charges Tampa police lodged against Walsh Ian Nichols when he refused orders to take off his Batman mask........more
The FBI has opened an investigation into the office of former Hillsborough Supervisor of Elections Buddy Johnson, hauling away documents related to a blistering audit that revealed Johnson had overspent his budget by almost $1 million..........more
Tampa Bay Water's 15-billion-gallon reservoir is about a month from being drained dry, a sign of just how dire the region's drought has become...........here
Help Random Pixels, Write Them
Just weeks into his presidency, President Barack Obama has moved right past the should-we-drill-offshore question and plunged into a new debate about how best to tap resources on the Outer Continental Shelf...........more
The Studio @ 620 welcomes WMNF as they present a screening of the documentary film When I Came Home , followed by a discussion with journalist Aaron Glantz, author of The War Comes Home..........more
Keep Hillsborough County Beautiful is coordinating the event locallyand expects about 2,000 volunteers to participate during the countywide cleanup on April 19. Check-in will be at 8:30 a.m., and the cleanupwill take place from 9 a.m. to noon..........more
Eva from Silver Creek 78250 makes chicken and yellow rice inspired by Ybor City's Columbia restaurant.
The mayor, who has said she is considering a race but has not announced a decision, runs in a statistical tie with U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek and slightly behind U.S. Rep. Ron Klein. She places ahead of State Sen. Dan Gelber in a Democratic primary.......more
His real name is George N. Shaw, 50, of 11321 N. 50th St., Tampa, but he had a penchant for wearing clothing reminiscent of the famed Spanish swordsman during eight heists, police say.........more
Part of Tampa Bay was closed to boat traffic for several hours on Friday after nearly 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel spilled into the bay after a Thursday-night marine collision.........more
Babalu's Val Prieto is taking Random Pixels to court for some satirical comments RP made about Babalu writers this week so I thought it would be a good opportunity for the South Florida blogging community to rally around and support one of our own..........here
With the endowment out of the picture - or at least relegated to a proper secondary supporting role, those who oppose the eventual and certain expansion of light rail throughout Hillsborough County will now have to find some other fake yard stick to judge by. For the rest of us, and those politicians who aren't run out of office, Tampa City takes rightful and proper stewardship over the best thing Tampa has ever done for itself in decades..........more
"I don't think he's helped any national Republican ambitions he may have by stepping up to the plate and batting for the other team. … There's a difference between working in a bipartisan way for the common good and switching sides and putting on the other team's jersey," said veteran Republican consultant Alex Castellanos........more
Commissioners say they won't be satisfied until they get a detailed accounting of where Johnson spent the money meant to run his office. "I want to know how those taxpayer dollars were spent," Commissioner Kevin Beckner said. "The taxpayers deserve to know and we need to know to bring closure to this.".........more
Tampa City Councilwoman Mary Mulhern has an itch for a little civic green-thumbing. Mulhern has organized a community meeting for the hundreds of people she says have contacted her since she raised the idea of the city doing more community gardening.........more
A homeless man who spent the coldest night in six years wrapped in black garbage bags and huddled in a tent froze to death in Pompano Beach.........more
A rapist convicted of murdering his girlfriend's teenage daughter 26 years ago is scheduled to be executed Wednesday night if no judges agree to reconsider his protestations of innocence........here
When it comes to authentic Mexican food, I may have hit the goldmine moving to Tampa.........more
The Paint Your Heart Out Tampa Steering Committee is seeking qualified homes to paint for the upcoming 21st annual Paint Your Heart Out Tampa event scheduled for Saturday, April 25, 2009........more
Imagine a picturesque rural area lined with orange orchards, fields and the Green Swamp. Now add a 220-foot pile of trash that occupies 1,069 acres in the middle of that scene. It makes for a very unpleasant picture. But that’s exactly the scene that Angelo’s Aggregate Materials wants to bring to rural Pasco County.........more
Incredibly, four of the seven commissioners — Jim Norman, Ken Hagan, Kevin White & Al Higginbotham — see the solution to our housing glut as MORE housing. And all the new strip malls and office buildings sitting around vacant? Yep, they want to see MORE of that commercial stuff built, too. And fast..........more
A local Tampa Bay newspaper distributed a copy of the New Testament along with its Saturday edition this past weekend as part of a national effort to deliver scriptures using a newspaper’s circulation........more
People Magazine featured Dr. Neil Shaw, chief medical officer and internal medicine specialist of Florida Veterinary Specialists (FVS), in their latest issue as a "Hero in Hard Times."..........more
God made the earth, He owns it, and He sustains it. We are simply caretakers of this beautiful planet. As such, we should handle it carefully and respectfully, not unnecessarily destroying it or contaminating it. We should do our best to be good stewards of our beautiful home.......more
Big Cat Rescue is an educational sanctuary is home to more than 100 exotic cats including newly rescued cougar, Sophia.
