Good morning. Today isn't just MLK Day, it's also his actual birthday. You know what a great present would be? Not saying anything all day that one might have to follow up on by explaining at length why the thing one just said wasn't racist.
FRIDAY, JAN. 12:
A 20-year-old Port Richey man revealed himself as the winner of that $451 million lottery jackpot, proving unequivocally that God is a cat and you're a lizard who has wandered into the kitchen of His universe.
Favorite South Tampa breakfast joint Pach's Place is reportedly moving from its longtime location to the Tahitian Inn on Dale Mabry. Brunch at home: still less than $2 a plate.
SATURDAY, JAN. 13:
Reviewed data indicates that Tampa's murder rate for 2017 was the highest in more than a decade. Not exactly what they meant when they talked about getting the city on the same level as America's major metropolises.
SUNDAY, JAN. 14:
One person died and 14 more were injured after a shuttle boat ferrying folks from New Port Richey to a casino ship caught fire. There's a pretty good, very callous joke about the nature of gambling to be had here, but let's not. Let's instead recognize everybody who helped others out of the chilly water and opened their homes to traumatized strangers in the immediate aftermath of the catastrophe, embodying the essence of community. Thank you all.
And finally, in non-Florida news that sounds exactly like Florida news, some parents in the St. Louis area were outraged by a survey distributed to sixth-grade students that included questions about drug use and gender identity, because some parents are woefully, dangerously out of touch with the world their children inhabit. "I wasn't done avoiding that," said most of them, in one way or another.
This article appears in Jan 11-18, 2018.