Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog

60 years ago…

March 29, 1946 – The State Road Department announces that the Platt Street Bridge is Tampa’s busiest, with an average of 21,522 motor vehicles crossing the span every 24 hours.

Courtesy of the Tampa Bay History Center.

Tuesday the Tribune tells us that Legislators will consider a crackdown on Citizen’s Insurance. The article says they are acting after a Tribune report on Sunday. I think they are getting to it after a mention in Sticks of Fire last August.

But I could be wrong.

Have you seen Florida Million yet?  Anyone can purchase a few pixels on the Florida Million site, and half of the dough goes to your choice of 13 charities.  You can even try out a space for free!

Anyway, it’s a pretty neat gimmick, go check it out, and see if you can find the Sticks ad (hint:  it’s in the FREE area).

If you can’t make it to the Friday Extra Concert this Friday, perhaps you should set your TIVO now for Daytime on Wednesday morning.  Your favorite band will appear live on WFLA Channel 8 at 10am (ish.)

Rounding out Florida Heritage Month (March 15–April 15, just to keep you on your toes) is the Bay Area’s Florida Heritage Celebration, April 8-15.

This celebration kicks off on Saturday, April 8 with a Cracker Country afternoon fest in Hillsborough County and ends on Saturday, April 15 with a Heritage Village vintage car show in Pinellas County.  There’s a wide range of activities — both fun and educational — throughout the week.

Visit www.reclaimingourheritage.org for more information.

Gil Thelen is “retiring” as publisher of the Tampa Tribune.  He will now be a consultant for Trib’s online media.  HUH?  I wouldn’t say that the Trib has been on the cutting edge of anything technological, which is why their blogs…  uh…  um… can’t find their blogs… 

Ok, so take that “consultant” gig, along with the odd wording of the press release (notice no comment from Media General’s chairman), and throw in the fact that his resume is stacked with smaller metro newspapers (no mention of online media there, either), and that might lead one to consider that this “retirement” may not have been Gil’s idea.  Seems to me he might be the latest casualty in the newspaper wars.

We can also speculate that this will prompt a shakeup of the entire newspaper, including a makeover of the product.  Which is long overdue.  The oldschool retro look is not really working.  Reading Friday Extra is like reading a phone book.  And rumors abound that Page 2A was slotted for changes soon anyway.

With the ongoing push of the St. Pete Times, obviously the Trib wants to remain pertinent.  In order to do so, they have to do what it takes to get with the program.  That all starts with changing the publisher.

Another great writer has joined us in the Sticks!   I am very pleased to introduce David Lee Roth!  Wait, no - even better than that, it’s Dave Rothacker: 

Greetings Sticks of Fire community. My name is Dave Rothacker. I live, along with my wife and daughter, in New Tampa. If ya’ll are like every other person who I have told that we live in New Tampa, your stomach is beginning to wretch and heave. Sweat beads down your forehead as your face contorts to unnatural positions. As the saliva disappears from your mouth, you choke up a faint, dry crackle…. “but the trafffiiiicccc….”

Well, the traffic is a force to be reckoned with, but there are so many other great people, places and things in the Tampa Bay area that over shadow it. Over at Rothacker Reviews, I talk about the people, places and things in our area that make a positive impression on me. I also am involved with a business management / leadership community and often discuss these types of issues, in addition to writing business book reviews.

I am flattered that Tommy has asked me to contribute to Tampa Bay’s number one Web site and will try to provide a fresh perspective on people, places and things in our community.

Man, oh man.  This site just keeps getting better and better!   Dave already has one popular post in the sticks.  Welcome aboard, Dave!

45 years ago…

March 28, 1961 – In a loser-leaves-Florida “Russian Death Match,” the German tag-team of Kurt and Karl Von Brauner square off against the Russian duo of Boris and Nickoli Volkoff before a capacity crowd at the Fort Homer Hesterly Armory. To the displeasure of the crowd, the much-hated Von Brauners emerge victorious.

Courtesy of the Tampa Bay History Center.

The Tampa Bay Convention and Visitor’s Bureau is in the middle of an online auction.

Items you can bid on include overnight stays at the Don Cesar and other fine resorts and hotels, suite seats for the Devil Rays, even hot air balloon rides.

Proceeds help fund scholarships to students that have completed Hillsborough County Schools Academy of Travel, Tourism and Hospitality.