Sickles High School students touched up cookie and graham cracker tiles with icing mortar Wednesday as they worked to complete a gingerbread house taller than the teens. ...more

December 4, 2008

Longing for a vacation but can't quite afford it? Get ready for layaway - and some tough questions to go along with it. ...more

November 30, 2008

Nichole Addessi and her boyfriend, Jesse Blankenbiller of Riverview, were at the Westfield Brandon mall by 5 a.m. today with their eyes on two items. "I know it's selfish, but we're shopping for ourselves," Addessi said as the couple stood in a long checkout line at Sears. "We got this great five-piece luggage set at JCPenney for $40, and now we're buying this DVD home theater system for $150." This is their first Black Friday shopping spree as a couple. ...more

November 28, 2008

If you were wondering what people were searching for on Google during one of the biggest shopping days of the year last year, you might be surprised that the lyrics for Survivor song "Eye of the Tiger" was in the top three. We can only surmise that it was the result of heated arguments around the dinner table on Thanksgiving. Here are some of the other search terms. ...more

November 28, 2008

Volunteers are putting up decorations for Werner-Boyce Salt Springs State Park's inaugural Holiday Nights Under the Stars on Dec. 5 and 6. ...more

November 28, 2008

FOR A NICE SLICE There is no way to count with existing technology the numbers of pies, cakes, lasagnas and casseroles we've senselessly massacred because we lacked adequate tools to make the transfer to the plate in a clean and aesthetically pleasing fashion. Maybe that's why we were wowed by the two-in-one serving knife by Kuhn Rikon, which provides a built-in serrated edge to slice through foods. Then, with a twist of the wrist, it can slide under the food to serve it up easily without having to switch between two tools. The 10-inch knife retails about $14, while the 12-inch version goes for $16. Available at specialty and online retailers, including www.factorydirect2you.com (866) 233-6587. ...more

November 23, 2008

Thanksgiving may still be eight days away, but it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas at the Werner-Boyce Salt Springs State Park. ...more

November 19, 2008

Highlands County's schools and homeowners associations are competing for a total of $1,600 in prize money in the annual telephone book recycling contest. ...more

November 11, 2008

They've played half their games with a backup quarterback and with a spare part at right guard, yet the Bucs are still an impressive 5-3 at the midway point of the season. ...more

November 2, 2008

It must go back to the afternoons my sisters, brother and I spent poring over Sears and Penney's catalogues, laboring for hours to decide on the One True Toy we wanted. ...more

November 2, 2008