TAMPA Crosby, a 17-month-old Labrador, poked his nose into a series of paint cans set in a circle inside Raymond James Stadium. Inside were odors meant to test the dog, the newest canine in the Tampa field office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. ...more

December 10, 2008

contemporary Mediterranean-style home on Gulfwinds Circle. Currie said his storm preparations so far had amounted to bringing in the patio furniture and other odds and ends from outside the home, which sits right on the Gulf. ...more

August 19, 2008

It didn't take much of an imagination as Lisa Shasteen walked through the dust, hanging wires and paint cans in the old Floridan Hotel to sense the strains of a Tommy Dorsey tune, the clinking of cocktail glasses, the alluring aroma of cigarette smoke wafting across the air. ...more

July 24, 2008

I collected some lovely shells on the beach. They may be scallop or clam shells, and I've had them for about 10 years. Can I bake in them or use them for food? ...more

July 9, 2008

Steven Blackwell has been behind bars since June 2, but his house at 4550 39th St. N in St. Petersburg became a headache for firefighters and law enforcement Friday night, authorities say. ...more

June 28, 2008

Like most of you, I read the newspaper almost every day. It's a morning ritual: coffee, newspaper, CNN. My mother insists that, me being a columnist for Highlands Today, I should get a free newspaper out of the deal. "What, they can't throw you a free paper?" she'll say. I explain to her that I'm already getting paid for my weekly column. I know this may be a shock to some of you, that I actually get paid for this stuff. Perhaps I've blown a fantasy out of the water for you, that world famous writers get free newspapers. Let me throw you another curveball. Writers are not exempt from police visits to their home. Wednesday of last week I was sitting inside my house, reading through the newspaper, when the doorbell rang. There were two men outside, one of them holding up a bright shiny police badge. ...more

January 14, 2008

SEBRING — As Jhonson Napoleon stood on a pile of rumble and trash Wednesday afternoon in the Nan-Ces-O-Wee Hotel, he admitted he has a lot of work ahead of him. "This is the biggest renovation project I've ever taken on," said Napoleon, who purchased the hotel Sept. 28. "But I see a diamond in the rough here. I picture what it will be when it's done, and I see a great asset for Sebring." Napoleon, a Haiti native who now lives in Miami, spent Wednesday interviewing contractors, walking them through the building and talking about his future plans. The outside will remain intact but the inside will be gutted and renovated. ...more

October 12, 2007

Charlotte County used to pay to dispose of old motor oil, paint cans and appliances people dropped off for recycling. Now the county gets paid -- about $6,000 a month. ...more

October 8, 2007