Is all-natural farm manure right for your garden? Could be. But manure is one of those rare things that is better when it is NOT so fresh, as I remind the reader who e-mailed me this question: ...more

December 20, 2009

LAND O' LAKES - Six students at Pine View Elementary School in Land O' Lakes were bitten by ticks this month, according to the Pasco County school district. Assistant Superintendent David Scanga thought the children might have picked up the ticks on the playground, so after the school discovered the problem, the campus was sprayed to get rid of the parasites. ...more

December 17, 2009

It has been said that recognition of a problem is half of the solution. Forty percent of the tax in our country is paid by 1 percent of the people. Likely about 49 percent of the population pay more than their pro-rata share, 35 percent pay their pro-rata share and 15 percent are strictly parasites (not temporarily recession caused unemployed). ...more

December 5, 2009

Two dozen dogs, seized as part of a hoarding investigation in Tennessee, have been moved to the SPCA Tampa Bay for care and adoption. ...more

November 17, 2009

Dear Mr. HandyPerson, I read your column regularly and find many sensible solutions to problems. However, in your column on discouraging raccoons, you left out fox urine as a deterrent. ...more

March 22, 2009

Animal control officers have seized five horses and a goat from a Sarasota County woman who has been cited numerous times for failing to take care of her pets. ...more

November 6, 2008

If you're looking for inspiration in this time of uncertainty at home and abroad, look no further than to a bird barely bigger than a box of Easter Peeps. ...more

October 25, 2008

Jim Gries's letter about Social Security is unnecessary fear mongering. Social Security is simply an income transfer program. Workers today pay a tax to support retirees and disabled people. In exchange, workers get the promise that when they retire, a new generation of workers will support them. As Gries notes, the program has a substantial surplus. By law, that surplus is invested in bonds issued by the U.S. government. ...more

August 7, 2008

OPEC and the oil futures parasites may have inadvertently resuscitated downtown Sebrings across the United States. Sensible medical doctors could serve patients from offices within their homes. Grocers might stroll from nearby residences to send fairly priced products from their markets. ...more

June 26, 2008

One of the pygmy killer whales found stranded on Monday in south Florida underwent an MRI test today at Axcess Diagnostics in Sarasota. ...more

June 18, 2008