Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog

The tough economy is getting to everyone.  We are all trying to keep costs to a minimum, and come up with money-saving ideas.  Of course, as goes your economy, so goes the entire economy, including non-profits.  For instance, you did not buy enough Girl Scout Cookies last season:

While your support and enthusiasm drives us to provide outstanding service to girls, we’ve been notified that we’ll receive approximately $45,000 less than we budgeted from our United Ways, and our cookie program came in approximately $300,000 under budget. We also know the mileage reimbursement rate will increase again shortly and we can expect that other expenses will follow. We must now identify tangible ways to reduce expenses to make up for the known shortfalls.

After careful consideration and a cost-savings analysis, Girl Scouts of West Central Florida will be closing the service center and branch offices one day a week resulting in most full-time staff moving to a four-day work week.

A four day work week!!!?  From the Girl Scouts!!?!!??

“Thank God it’s Thursday!!”  … just doesn’t sound right.  But it is…

CEO Jody Johnston says the organization expects to save about $200 each day the office is closed, and employees will save about 20% on fuel costs by driving one less day per week. 

It’s not perfect, of course.  Many workers have had to alter their families’ schedules for the switch.  Parents had to make arrangements for their kids’ summer programs, and come August, school routines will be different, too.  Still, the Girl Scouts are working with each employee individually to make sure these types of concerns are addressed.

Along with the logistics of such a change, staffers are not yet used to getting up so early, and find themselves a bit tired by the end of the day.  They expect that it is simply a matter of getting used to it. 

Some are still getting used to the idea of NOT working on Friday.  Chief Marketing Officer Kristin Whitaker says she found herself thinking about work, and has even been checking email from home those days.

But she also notes that a three-day weekend is nice, and that she finally has the time for personal business, such as making those doctor appointments she has been putting off.  The commute is more pleasant now, too.  “Traffic is better since we aren’t on the road for rush hour.”

It seems there is not much of a down side, and the two managers I talked to are quite optimistic.

Interesting that of all the places that you would think of testing this, the Girl Scouts of West Central Florida (GSWCF) just don’t come to mind.  Yet they are the ones moving setting the pace.  Pretty cool.

Oh, and all of this doesn’t mean you can get away without buying Girl Scout Cookies in January, either.

After the jump, find a list of other organizations discussing the option, and the email Q&A with GSWCF CEO Jody Johnston.

(more…)

According to a new report released by the Corporation for National and Community Service, 60.8 million Americans volunteered in their communities in 2007.  That represents an average of 26.2 percent of Americans age 16 and older.

The study also reported the percentages of individual states as well as metro areas, and those findings are highlighted on the Volunteering in America website.

The number of volunteers from the State of Florida is below the national average, and ranks only third from the bottom of the list:

• Volunteer Rate Ranking: 49th within the 50 states and Washington D.C.
• Average Volunteer Rate: 20.0%
• Volunteer Hours Ranking: 45th within the 50 states and Washington D.C.
• Average Volunteer Hours per Resident: 29.3 hours

Most of those (32.4%) volunteer with religious organizations.

Floridian cities make up the bottom of the metro rankings too:

• #50 - Miami - 14.5% volunteered.
• #46 - Orlando - 19.7% volunteered.
• #45 - Jacksonville - 20.7% volunteered.
• #40 - Tampa - 24.8% volunteered.

Sure, Tampa Bay ranks higher than the rest of the state, and is above average for Florida, but we can certainly do better.

Here are the numbers for the Tampa, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) (Major cities included in this MSA include Tampa, FL; St. Petersburg, FL; and Clearwater, FL):

• Volunteer Rate Ranking: 40th within the 50 large cities
• Average Volunteer Rate: 24.8%
• Volunteer Hours Ranking: 29th within the 50 large cities
• Average Volunteer Hours per Resident: 34.8 hours

So what about you?  Do you donate your time to any worthy causes?  Fill out the poll, and tell us about some worthy causes in the comments:

 Loading ...

This is rich.

The St. Pete Times theater performing arts critic rips the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center for putting on popular shows instead of being edgy and taking some “artistic risks.”

[Forever Plaid] is being produced for the sixth time in 15 years at the Jaeb Theater. Why is it being brought back when there is so much great theater that hasn’t been done here?

He’s itching for some Stephen Sondheim, which is perfectly fine.  But then he suggests you are a bunch of brainless dweebs:

… Sondheim can be challenging, and it is not a sure-fire hit at the box office, … but instead, the Jaeb has played to the lowest common denominator… 

It’s as if TBPAC is trying to appeal to those who never go to the theater.

Yeah, that’s you - the “lowest common denominator.”

David Jenkins does a great job in responding to Fleming, and suggests that the local newspaper not only doesn’t help with encouraging edgy, artistic performances

And don’t even get me started on the irony that the newspapers generally bend over backwards to write story after story on Spamalot! or The Lion King, but we fight tooth and nail to get any mention at all for a show like the Beijing Modern Dance Company or the Turtle Island String Quartet or a South American adult-oriented puppet troupe coming in to do Romeo and Juliet in Spanish with marionettes.

, but that they should maybe take a look at their own journalism industry for a great example of pandering to build an audience:

… hard news old school shows just didn’t pull the numbers, but hide a camera in a house where a guy is going to go try to pick up an underage girl and they’re through the roof. People are voting with their remote, and the market follows…

David’s a classy guy.  I would have put an image of a TBT* cover in the piece, perhaps with an observation that “It’s as if The St. Pete Times is trying to appeal to those who never read a newspaper.”

Freakin’ hilarious.

Great Job, David!  Best of luck with your upcoming production of Tim Robbins’ Embedded, coming soon to the Tampa Bay Performing Art Center.

Disclosure:  Sticks of Fire is a proud sponsor of Jobsite Theater.

Instead of just shaking your head, a new program allows you to report litterbugs - at least in Eastern Hillsborough County:

Keep Hillsborough County Beautiful, a nonprofit organization aimed at keeping the county free of litter, has started a pilot program in the Mango, Seffner and Thonotosassa areas called Trash Troopers.

The program works like this: Residents who see someone, say, toss a drink can out of his car can call a hot line and leave information about what they saw, when the littering happened and any identifying information, such as a license plate number.

The organization will send letters to offending motorists informing them that someone in their vehicle was spotted littering and that littering is illegal. A trash bag or pocket ashtray will also be provided.

We hope Keep Hillsborough County Beautiful (be friends with KHCB on myspace!) can keep the program going, and expand it to the rest of the county.

For now, if you see someone out east tossing trash somewhere outside a garbage can, don’t confront the violators. Simply turn the violator’s information into Keep Hillsborough County Beautiful (KHCB) via their contact page, or download the online report (doc), call the Trash Trooper Litter Hotline 1-877-Y-LITTER or 1-877-954-8837, fax the report to 813.960.5044, or send e-mail to KHCB3@yahoo.com,

Litterbugs suck.

Florida singer/songwriter/guitarist Danny Roberts has worked with Tom Petty, Derek Trucks, Billy Joe Royal, Robert Nix, Denny Cordell, Phil Seymour and many more fantastic musicians. He also played in JGLB, and in other bands with current and former JGLB guys like Ray Blade, Rob Stoney, “Count” Arthur Basie, Will Perish and Johnny G Lyon.

Danny is recovering from injuries sustained in a serious car accident. Please join us Sunday July 13 at 5 PM at Skipper’s Smokehouse for a great concert to help out our bro Dan-Bob:

Danny and Tom Petty worked together in “Mudcrutch” for 2 ½ years, from 1972-74. Danny wasn’t just a sideman, he wrote and sang lead on many of the band’s songs. Danny was with the band on their famous trip to L.A. An excellent bio can be found at http://www.thoseguys.com/bio_danny.html.

At the other end of his resume, Danny also played with JGLB, and in other bands with guys that were in our band. We’ve been fans of Danny since the 70’s, when he played in the hottest band (The Bad News Boys) in the hottest club in Lakeland (The Lakeland Lounge, which was actually in Hillsborough County, just across the county line).

Danny was in a bad car wreck recently. Although he was seriously injured, he’s recovering rapidly. A bunch of us are hooking up to help out a brother in need, if you will.

The performers are a mix of Danny’s old Lakeland buddies, guys he played with in Tampa, and guys who just wanna help out.

Take Five is Danny’s Lakeland buddies. They’re Allman Bros-esque, featuring two outstanding drummers. Guitarist Larry Berwald and drummer Johnny Rhodes played in “Fat Chance,” one of Florida’s top bands in the early to mid 70’s. Rhodes also played with Danny Roberts in a notable early 70’s Florida rock band, “Power.”

Tampa guys is us, Johnny G Lyon & JGLB (or Johnny G Lyon Band). We played with Danny in “The Purple Gang” in 1984, and Danny did a stint with JGLB in 1997.

Guys who just wanna help out: our buddy Damon Fowler. A few years ago, Damon was in a car wreck, and received a lot of support when he needed it from the musician community. As a result he’s happy to help out in situations like this. He’ll be jamming with both Take Five and JGLB.

Also playing: Charlie Souza of St Pete also played in Mudcrutch after Danny left. He’s with “The New Rascals” now, and he’s also been working with Danny on a project called “The Mudbreakers.”

“Count” Arthur Basie, now living in Tampa, is originally from Lakeland. He’s a versatile veteran of the bay area music scene, having played in JGLB among many other bands, including “Perfect Stranger” with Danny Roberts in 1976.

For more information about the show, head to downtownwestevents.com.  I encourage you to come help take are of your local musicians and have a good time while doing it.

Charity Dinner, part 5

Without much thought, I agreed that my husband and I would put on a charity dinner for the Boy Scouts.  Then I panicked.  Then I freaked out.  Then I formulated a plan.

The Noho Bistro was kind enough to donate space for the dinner. Publix and La Cense Beef donated food for the cause, and Vintage Wine Cellars donated the wine. Now we can create a great dinner to raise money for the Boy Scouts.

Greg designed a soup and entrée course, a celeriac root and roasted chile soup with cilantro oil and cardamom crème fresh and a pan roasted petit sirloin with tomato gazpacho coulis, zucchini and fennel “pappardelle”, and orange-almond-mint gremolata.  While NoHo chef and co-owner Jessica left us with a homemade cherry sorbet and Mexican chocolate cookies for dessert. Divine does not explain that sorbet nor the cookies.

NoHo chef and co-owner Tina ensured everything went to the tables perfectly, with help from our friends, Fred Stolz and Joe Prince.  They all received a standing ovation, and even stuck around to help clean the place up at the end of the night.

My FOH crew was made up of volunteers also. Carol Gualdiero and Sally Martin (Greg’s cousins) and our neighbor and friend, Marianne Santilli all volunteered to give up their Friday nights.

The celebrities? Gil Gerard (Buck Rogers), Michael Winslow (Police Academy, think the beat box man), Mark Goddard (Lost In Space) and Erin Gray (Buck Rogers) were just a few. Everyone was very, very gracious and thankful. Okay, one had too much to drink and had to be reminded by Greg to maintain his composure, while another kept groping my neighbor, but hey, it’s Hollywood!

Tommy has allowed me to list all of the donating businesses on Sticks Of Fire to the right. Please visit their sites and their stores. These are the kinds of businesses we need to support in Tampa. Ya know, for the Boy Scouts.

Thanks again, to everyone.

Charity Dinner, part 4

Without much thought, I agreed that my husband and I would put on a charity dinner for the Boy Scouts.  Then I panicked.  Then I freaked out.  Then I formulated a plan.

The Noho Bistro was kind enough to donate space for the dinner. Publix and La Cense Beef donated food for the cause, but we are still going to need some wine.

I have to admit it. So far, everyone I had approached simply “handed over the keys,” but not so with wine. I thought this would have been the easy one. That’s until I walked into Vintage Wine Cellars.

I had never been to Vintage Wine before. I knew of it and had wanted to go because I had heard how wonderful their selection was, from every day wine, weekend wine, to wine for special occasions, they had it. Not to mention an awesome selection of microbrews. I found quite a few bottles that I needed to have, all within my under $15 budget (I’m not a wealthy woman). I poked around a bit and ooed and ahhed over some very luxury selections that I promised I would buy as soon as I had my Maserati.

Michael (a.k.a The Wine Guru on Channel 8’s DayTime) greeted me. I explained the dinner and asked for his recommendation. I had succumbed to the fact that I would have to buy the wine.

“I was an Eagle Scout.” Michael stated. “I’m going to give you the wine.”

I looked at him a little strangely, I’m sure, because I was just taken back by the fact that this man would just give me 12 bottles of vino based on my story. For all he knew, I was pulling a scam for free wine.

“Are you sure?’ I meagerly asked.

“Yes. It’s for the Boy Scouts.” He replied.

I now had it all. The venue, the food, the wine, and the staff - all through the goodness of others.

The dinner itself will be a breeze, right?

Stay tuned.

To be continued…

Charity Dinner, part 3

Without much thought, I agreed that my husband and I would put on a charity dinner for the Boy Scouts.  Then I panicked.  Then I freaked out.  Then I formulated a plan.

I would beg and plead with everyone I knew in the food industry. I suspected I would have to trade my soul for the help, but I was willing, it’s for the Boy Scouts after all.

The Noho Bistro was kind enough to donate space for the dinner.  Now I need some food to cook.

I’ve been buying La Cense Beef for a while now. It’s beef that tastes like beef. New York Strips that are robust with deep flavor and Ribeyes that are fork tender. Awhile back I did a column for the Tribune all about glorious beef and where to buy it. Through this, I met Laura Baddish, La Cense Beefs PR rep. She and I hit it off instantly. We spent a good three hours just chit chatting over coffee while she was down for the Rum Festival (one of her clients was being represented). During our conversation, I mentioned the Boy Scout dinner. Without a hitch she asked, “Would you like La Cense to donate the beef for the Boy Scouts?”

I could have kissed her. Like clock work, Laura had 30 individually packaged petit sirloins at my doorstep the night before the dinner.

***

My husband spends the majority of his life in grocery stores (it’s a Personal Chef thing). Together, we have shopped at just about every grocery store in Tampa. One store, hands down, is the friendliest, the cleanest, the most efficient, and offers a great selection. Because of this, he shops at this store whenever possible.

Enter Publix Store #0582 at the corner of Habana and Hillsborough Ave.

Just to give you a glimpse as to how fantastic the people are at this store, the Produce Manager; David, takes his personal, company mandated break at the same time every morning just to take a customer (a little old lady who can not drive) to the hospital just down the road, so that she can visit with her terminally ill husband.

Okay, I know. You’re a little stunned. I was too. I didn’t even know people like that still existed! (And yes ladies, he has a girlfriend.)

Now top on that this store has amazing produce, an extremely helpful deli and bakery, a very fresh seafood counter, a great meat case selection, cashiers who smile and actually speak to you, managers who are helpful and visible at all times and the 15+ rows of everything else one may ever need. Have a special order item? No biggie, they handle it with a smile. Need a suggestion? Ask anyone. I have witnessed on several occasions, stock boys and girls, helping customers choose the right product. Yeah, they actually know and CARE what they are selling.

When I approached David about the charity dinner, with out a hick up he responded, “I’m sure Alex (the store manager) would be fine with it. It’s for the Boy Scouts.” James, the Assistant Store Manager came over. “Oh, I’m sure it will be fine. It’s for the Boy Scouts, right?”

Sure enough, Alex had no problem. “I’ll leave a message for David, what ever you need.”  These guys were so easy going about it that I wasn’t really sure they had even agreed.

Venue?  Check.

Food?  Check.

This is just going too well.  But I still need some wine.

To be continued…