"The Pyramid" (and four other Kurt Wallander mysteries), by Henning Mankell (The New Press, $26.95) ...more

December 21, 2008

SEBRING — Every day, Paul Travers can look outside his window and see a long line of semi-trucks lined up at the red light located to the north of the UPS store where he works. "It seems like the commercial vehicle traffic has really increased over the last few weeks," said Travers. "It has to be more dangerous. With the amount of red lights that are on (U.S. 27), I would definitely say that there could be problems." With this in mind, the Florida Highway Patrol's "Operation Safe Ride," a two-day campaign that took place last weekend, focused on reducing deaths and injuries on Florida roadways where hazardous traffic violations by drivers of commercial vehicles are prevalent. ...more

November 3, 2007

Lately, I've been up close and personal with an inordinate number of Florida wildlife. Some of those encounters have been pleasant, some not. And that got me to thinking about why we react as we do to "all creatures great and small," including people. I've spent many mornings admiring the beautiful sandhill cranes, storks, and ibis that are tame as pets around here. I've watched a bald eagle swoop low overhead then soar to its nest atop a dead tree. ...more

October 21, 2007