Poor animals Regarding "Save the turkey" by Tony Black of Tampa (Letters, Nov. 23): I also purchase healthy foods, such as vegetables, fruits and grains, which I give to my hens. In return, I collect their eggs. However, I have no problem chopping their heads when it is time and throwing them under the broiler. ...more

November 26, 2009

Motorists may be giving thanks this week for lower gas prices — at least if annual trends hold up. ...more

November 23, 2009

A day of giving thanks, which means so much to so many people, was a day of service to volunteers in Avon Park and Sebring. ...more

November 28, 2008

Thanksgiving 2008 might seem like a good time to join Scrooge's "Bah Humbug" choir. ...more

November 27, 2008

The spirit of Thanksgiving is about giving thanks for what we have, not what we had. ...more

November 24, 2008

Giving thanks On this grandest day of giving thanks, I dwelled for a moment as I removed the plastic casing that envelopes my Tampa Tribune. As usual, I glanced the headlines on page 1, but held off reading the body of the articles to sift through the other sections. My morning ritual takes me directly to the Bay Life section to check out my horoscope, strictly for the entertainment value as intended, and take note of other items of interest. It's my way of immediately avoiding the harsh realities of the world. Then, the sports section becomes a quick reference for the previous day's winners and losers. As I finish each section they eventually are placed aside to be discarded in the recycle bin. There are news items I may cut and save for future reference. ...more

December 5, 2007

With the price of gasoline at more than $3 a gallon, Pasco County residents were giving thanks Friday that they have more local shopping centers to choose from this year. ...more

November 24, 2007

Thanksgiving is a special day for giving thanks for the blessings we have received all year long. It is arguably one of the very few that has not gone completely commercial and a day that most will, after not praying or talking to God on a regular basis, at least thank Him for the the meal and blessings He has bestowed upon us. I am thankful for being able to get up this morning and walk outside and pick up this morning's Tampa Tribune and Highlands Today and read my column. And to the hundreds and hundreds who enjoy reading what I have written, I give you my thanks. I give thanks to God for giving me the good fortune to have such a wonderful wife for the past 25 years and five months. I'm thankful for our children and grandchildren and pray for their good health and happiness. I, and so should you, give Him thanks for our wonderful nation. We should pray that the United States will survive and win the war against terrorism, and regardless of who is going to be the presidential nominees, we will still have the best country on earth. ...more

November 22, 2007

Back in the days when man first ventured out of the caves and celebrated the occasion by giving thanks to the Great Spirit the people vowed that the preparation time for their holidays would be limited to some reasonable amount of time. Like perhaps the cycle of one moon, which many eons later was called a month and many eons after that they were given a name: As in October which is what the moon cycle before the one when thanks was given to the Great Spirit and out of which our country's first displaced inhabitants evolved. And many eons after that first giving of thanks the Great Spirit returned the recognition of his people by rewarding them with a special gift of his own. A man-child. The appearance of this gift held such significance for the people that they name a day after it. They called it Christmas. Now when the two things are considered – limiting preparations to no more than on a lunar cycle and the acceptance of the gift of the Great Spirit – it would appear that the preparations for Christmas should occur at the earliest around the time that the feast of thanksgiving is celebrated. And for many years this is how it came to pass. ...more

October 20, 2007