Now Brian Burnette says he knows why they call it the century plant. For the first time since he moved into his house in 1963 on West Plymouth Street in Tampa, his ordinarily boring-looking plant is anything but that. About two weeks ago after some heavy rains, he noticed a stalk sprouting in the middle that eventually shot 30 to 40 feet toward the sky. Then the vibrant blooms came. ...more

July 11, 2009

I'll never forget my first. She was a petite, green-eyed beauty with a heart-shaped face and hair the color of a summer storm. She was a bit aloof, maybe even a tad stand-offish, but no more so than you would expect after being the repeated target of a suction-cup-tipped projectile fired from a plastic gun. ...more

March 27, 2009

Their job is to put out fires. But there have been times during the past four years that members of the Seffner-Mango Volunteer Fire Rescue Association felt like lighting a fire beneath Hillsborough County officials to get their permanent fire station constructed sooner. ...more

February 7, 2009

Working Vacation Always Ends Up Being Work I need to apologize to you and my editor for not submitting my column last week as I had planned, but the best made plans of man oft go awry, and my plans certainly did not happen as I had thought they would. ...more

July 17, 2008

Plans are on track to build a $2.5 million station to replace one decertified by the county in 2005. ...more

January 26, 2008