Nobody asked me, but -
. . . The Big Paper is on the prowl again, seeking to destroy any public figure it takes a dislike to. Several have fallen victim locally. The smear is usually goes hand in hand with some political aim.
. . . Nothing wrong with boot camps to straighten out juvenile baddies; but there is never - never - a reason to beat up anyone.
. . . How pleasant it was at a recent outing to talk and reminisce about our Northwest Florida days with Penny Janowski, which proves that you can take the girl out of the Panhandle, but you never get the charm out of the girl.
. . . Frank Chevas has the magic touch as a businessman/restaurateur. This magic touch extends to how he treats people and how he "gives back" to the community. Guys like him make life worthwhile.
. . . Our clever friend says - Blessed is the person who is too busy to worry in the daytime and too sleepy to worry at night.
. . . Are three candidates in Belleair Beach running as a ticket? It appears that way. Donna Durante, Marvin Behm and Mike Kelly (the former two both incumbents) have their signs grouped together all over town. The rumbling is that Durante has made a mistake associating herself with a lackluster performer (Behm) and with Kelly, who had a dismal and troubled record as mayor.
. . . Warren Andrews, former Largo mayor, can be seen in TV commercials for a financial firm. Pretty good line-speaking technique.
. . . The one thing unmentioned in all the Cheney-hunting accident brouhaha that should have been mentioned if for no other reason than to be instructive to the uninformed - when a shooting of any kind or description takes place the first thing to do after getting medical aid is to inform law enforcement authorities. Seems like that didn't happen down at the Armstrong ranch.
. . . Hair colorists in DeeCee have got to be growing wealthy. Check C-SPAN coverage of the House and Senate. Unless one of the old timers has a magnificent head of white hair (a la Bobby Byrd, T. Kennedy) the top stuff is sporting the color of a 25-year-old. Even shaky old stuttering Ted Stevens of Alaska has hair which betokens the full bloom of youth.
. . . One wag observed - "If you want to know what's going to be in the Big Paper on Saturday about stuff around here, read the Clearwater Gazette on Thursday." Thank ye kindly, and a tip o' the lid.
. . . One member of the Largo City Commission, already engaged in nepotism, has voted on an issue that affects and could benefit her employer. Will it happen again, when the issue re-surfaces? Will keep you posted.
. . . Largo Public Library has all the bells and whistles - all the extras, excess room - but you check the shelves in vain for a book like Dickens' masterpiece Bleak House or Faulkner's classic As I Lay Dying.
. . . Speaking of the library, the Bookmark Café, a coffee shop there that is a monument to cronyism and taking care of friends, is not open on Saturdays - a heavy usage day. Howcum?
. . . I would like a meaningful definition of "homeless." Are these folks the victims of a hurricane where a home was actually lost, have they suffered some unexpected economic setback that is catastrophic, are they drug addicts, drunks, do they not have parents or a brother, sister, cousin, aunt or uncle who could help or are they just what we used to call bums?
. . . What's up with this "World Baseball Classic"? What nonsense - sounds like a promotional bit for someone to make a buck.
. . . Is the arrival of the "baby boomers" into late adulthood news? To judge from the news, the Katrina/Rita hurricane disasters indicated nothing was learned from the 9/11 event. Seems like the government has drifted into crisis management, jumping from one hummock to another to get across the swamp.