Tampa Taxi Shots

Keven White Is no Santo Trafficante Jr.

Keven White once referred to himself as part of Tampa's "Black Mafia." Unfortunately, he had a few things backwards. He should 0f modeled himself after the Tampa Don himself - Santo Trafficante Jr.

The Trafficante family ruled the underworld in Tampa Bay for decades. The thing that set him apart from White was that Santo was known in mob parlance as "The Bank." He was the juice. People had to come to him to fulfill their needs. Keven White was dependent on others...bad mistake.

In 1959 the Feds brought Santo Trafficante jr up on federal corruption and illegal gambling charges stemming from a vast bolita operation throughout Florida. They had, what seemed, an airtight case. They had tape recordings of Trafficante offering payoffs to cops. They had a film of him giving money to law enforcement. How could they not get a conviction?

Does this sound familiar? it does, but Keven White did it backwards. He was the one receiving the money. That meant he was needy.

Trafficanate was not convicted in court; Keven White was convicted. White had no juice. Trafficante had the juice.

When you are the "Bank" very few people will testify against you and no jury will convict you (if they know what's good for them). Trafficante was operating from a base of power. This was something Keven White never bothered to develop.

It takes a  lot to be the Teflon Don. Santo was never convicted of anything ever in a court of law. He essentially has no record and would be considered a first offender. 

Remember folks, develop power first and operate from strength. Don't be a pathetic broke ass who is taken down by $5,000. Geeez, how weak.

Mike and Nancy are going to enjoy living in your house after you go to prison. Why? Because they built the juice first. A critical leason in life.

Tampa Nature Trail Closed Due To Toxic Waste From Military

Pam Callahan Memorial park Town & Country

I have enjoyed the Pam Callahan nature trail for years. I never knew that it was once part of an old Army Corp. bombing range and that there were toxic chemical in the ground. That may explain why I got very sick the last time I went when I took these photographs. 


Between 1940 and 1947 it was part of the Drew Field bombing range. According to the Army corps of engineers the surface water and soil sediment now pose a "human health and ecological risk." In fact, test show there may be unexploded ordinance in the park! I never knew that while I was enjoying a very peaceful fall day on the hiking tail.


The trial head in on Memorial Highway but it is not easy to see. Many people live and commute for years and never know it is there. I have never seen anyone else out there. 


You have to park on the side of the road and there is a gate that is locked but you can easily go around it. This seemed to be a maintained trail. It looked freshly mowed. The trail goes strait into the wet lands that are along the bay. One thing you notice is after only a few hundred feet off the main road, you think you are in the middle of nowhere. There is an apartment complex to the right and a major airport nearby, but you still have that isolated feel.degrees, a very nice day. I took a lot of pictures on the 0.7 mile hike out to a plaque the memorializes the lady that the trail is named after. It is posted on a large granite rock and points out that she spearheaded a grass roots efforts to save this part of Tampa from the land developers. She was able to "Fight city hall." Unfortunately she passed away in 1993 and did not live to see this trail named in her honor. I could look around from the end of the trail and still could not believe how close I was to civilization.

Taxi parked at the trail head

 

I noticed fiddler crabs on the path (I am glad I had on hiking boots). I also saw a hawk swoop down, but I did not have my camera ready to take his photo.  There are several side trails that expose hardwood pine areas. I got some photos of some interesting flora. I have no real idea what it is. I am sure there is poison ivy out there. so be careful.

 

If you are driving by and have some time. This is a real peaceful hike. Just watch out for the fiddler crabs!

I have made a new photo album of this shoot. You can go below and see the images of the trail.

Tampa Loses Bid For 2015 Super Bowl To Arizona - That Sucks

Arizona was awarded the 2015 Super Bowl today. This sucks in many ways for cab drivers and local business. There is nothing like a Super Bowl to stimulate a local economy. I have worked two of them, and made big money. I wish it was here every year, but we are not the only location that has good weather.  Tampa has been a player in Super Bowls from the early days of the event. In fact, we have hosted four, including the famous "Black Sunday" game when the Raiders killed the Redskins in 1984.

Al Davis receiving the Lombardi Trophy in Tampa 1984

There is nothing like winning a Super Bowl. Tampa won one once in 2003; that seems like so long ago. The big game has now become an unofficial American holiday. The specticle that surrounds it makes it the biggest sporting event in the world. In 1984 it was not that big. Players used cabs to go to the stadium and the game was on at 1:00 in the afternoon like any other normal game. It is now the most watched event on television and on during prime time. It is so big that advertisers launch campaigns with the now famous "Super Bowl" commercials. 

I expect we will get the game again,in the future. I hope to be long gone from the taxi business by then. I just don't have the energy to keep kicking this dead dog called the cab business in Tampa Florida. The fact that Arizona gets it really reminds me of how poor things are.

I used to go to Arizona twice a year to attend the AZshootout. I have not been able to go since 2007 because there just is not money. I never could have imagined it would have gone on this long. 

We do, however, have the 2012 Republican Convention coming to Tampa. My understanding is that the economic impact is the same as a Super Bowl. So, that will be something that could be of a real help  next August during the slow season for tourism. 

I am just tired of putting my life on hold and waiting for a better day. I need to find a way to make the days better myself without waiting for things to just magically turn around. 

Thanks, but no thanks NFL. 2015 is too far off to even matter at this point. 

 

Lee Roy Selmon - The Greatest

Lee Roy Selmon left the world better then he found it. That is an indisputable fact. It was not just football that made him great, even though without it, we would not have had him as ours.

Lee Roy Selmon was the greatest ever to play in a Tampa Bay Buccaneer uniform. Lee Roy Selmon had the greatest impact on the Tampa community then anyone in recent memory. Lee Roy Selmon leaves a legacy of giving to causes that made us all better. Lee Roy Selmon set an example of how all of us should conduct our affairs. Because of Lee Roy, the bar will be at a mythical height. That is why he will be missed.

He was a mild mannered man. That reflected the wholesome family structure that he grew up in in rural Oklahoma. He was a great football player as a youth, and went on to be the first Tampa Bay Buccaneer inducted into the Hall Of Fame.

He was a beast in the NFL, and one of the only players in football history to have never been called for a personal foul. That reflected his 'gentle giant' nature. He never wanted to hurt anyone. He simply wanted to do his job and make a tackle.

The measure of any man is what they say about him after his passing. The outpouring has been remarkable - what would you have expected. Nobody ever had a bad word to say about Lee Roy Selmon. That is so rare today. Most narcissistic athletes think the world owes them something, and they don't really care about the fans or the community. They are ready to flee for a better contract in any city. We are better for Lee Roy hanging around all these years.

Most people remember his stature as a man, and his humble nature. He did not have to contribute to this community. He could have gone back home to Oklahoma, where he was a hero. He adopted Tampa and we adopted him. All of us are better for him being just who he was.

He was one of those rare people,that when they pass, you wonder how the world will replace him. You can't. All you can hope for is his legacy will inspire others to dream of things they did not think were possible.

When Leroy helped establish the USF football program, they printed a tee shirt that day that said "USF 53 -Notre Dame 0."  The day before he died, it was USF 23 - Notre Dame 20. Dreams really do come true.

Leroy left the world better then he found it.

So long buddy.

The Economic Reality Of Driving A Taxi In Tampa Florida

The St. Petersburg Times ran an article about the state of taxi cab companies and drivers in Hillsborough County. They quoted me (Tim Fasano) in the article because of this blog. I believe the article hit hard on some very real aspects of the current state of cab driving. 

Jack Nicas went all over Tampa talking with taxi drivers and cab company owners. He went to the holding area at the airport, the major hotels downtown, the club party areas on the weekends and he saw first hand what goes on in our work. This is what he saw at Tampa International Airport.

"For hours under the sun in a lot near Tampa International Airport, a harsh course in economics plays out.

Dozens of taxicabs snake into a queue. Men shout and engines start. The line barely budges.

Rene Jeune is up front now, having waited two hours for one customer. Farther back, Jean Bourdeau watches birds fight. He has just $25 in his pocket for five hours of work.

A few men play cards. Others read. Some doze off.

All tell a similar tale: They work 80-hour weeks, yet take home what a waiter earns in tips — about $200 to $300. Some are said to be homeless, sleeping in their cabs and living for their next fare.

This is the taxi business in Hills­borough County." via www.tampabay.com

Unlike waiters, many taxi cab drivers are barely able to survive. This was not the case before the recession. The economy was good then. That is why I stayed with it for so many years. When the Great Recession hit OUR EXPENSES REMAINED THE SAME AND EVEN WENT UP! 

There is no other way to say it-United Cab use to have a call count of over 2,000 on weekdays, and over 3,000 on weekends. There are days now when we don't crack 700, and with 262 cabs, you figure that out. 

We need the meter to be raised so we can recoup what we have lost. In other business (even transportation) they pass the cost off to the customer. However, with taxi leasing companies, the driver is the customer and we bare all burdens and cost. 

You would think that a cab company would want all of its drivers to prosper and be successful. I believe that if they marketed the company to increase the base line of customers over time. The drivers and the company would all share in a cash party. However, when accountants run companies, their shortsightedness becomes contagious, and whatever visionary may be at the helm, he will shortly be converted by a spreadsheet.

 

"In 1967, the manager of the only cab company in town told the Tampa Taxicab Commission his drivers made about $112 per week. Adjusted for inflation, that's $742 in today's dollars.

Drivers were employees then, with health insurance, vacations and bonuses, city records show. But in 1975, the Yellow Cab Co. jumped on a national trend and made its drivers independent contractors. The agreement cost cabbies their benefits but let them keep whatever they made.

At the time, Yellow Cab manager Nick Cambas told the Tampa Times: "This should be the answer to those squawking about the little man not having a chance to make it in business."

Thirty-six years later, the little man still awaits his chance.

Drivers today say the system leaves them poor and at risk. Their predicament is compounded by a lack of choices: Two companies control 87 percent of the county's permits.

via www.tampabay.com

Adjusted earnings have not followed the taxi cab drivers nationwide that work on a lease system. All the major cities (except Las Vegas) use a lease system. Most of their drivers struggle to make a subsistence living. I can deal with being poor but as I get older, it would be nice to have some health insurance or Workman's compensation. If I am injured in a car accident today, I have no coverage. I have no pension or retirement. I have nothing, and I am one of the better drivers with over sixteen years experience.

I thought Obamacare would cover me but it will only cover the employees of the cab company. They call that "a prohibited cost" so they will pass that on to the drivers and raise our leases again forcing us to work 16 hours a day 7 days a week. With the price of gas, where is the tipping point?

When the economy collapsed a few years ago, drivers say they shouldered the burden. Their customers vanished, but the companies prospered. With unemployment rising, more people decided to give taxi driving a try, which meant more revenue for the companies.

"There was no concession on their part," said Tim Fasano, a United Cab driver who blogs about the industry. "Times have never been better for them. They have more drivers than before the recession and they're getting higher leases now."

Yellow and United managers say lease prices increased because they invested in better dispatching technology.

They also dispute drivers' claims of poverty-line earnings and say their business model is not as profitable as depicted. Their overhead and risk is high, they say. Searcy says Gulf Coast can't fill all its cabs and is "barely paying our bills." Yellow Cab co-owner Louie Minardi said Yellow isn't far behind.

But the most recent statement of income for either company on file with the commission show Yellow Cab reported $451,211 in profits for the first half of 2006.

The company filed for bankruptcy just four years earlier.

via www.tampabay.com

 One thing that I will never understand and my experience in life still leaves me with no reference point to make a judgement, is why do so many grown men continue to work under these circumstances? I am one of them but I truly believed that over half these guys would quit when the recession took hold. That does not seem to be the case. They know how many hours they will have to work and that kids at MacDonald's make more money. Are they just a collection of little boys? 

Many of them do come from third world countries so they have adapted to poverty and seem to have a real tolerance for it. They just keep driving every waking minute of their lives. Many  have died and they still keep going. I will never understand that. 

I do want this stated for the record: The old manager of United Cab was fired a few months ago and Rob Searcy and Paul Hinton took over. They have a completely different management style. They are very accessible and Paul keeps his door open at all times so any driver can walk in and state whats on his mind without any fear of reprisal. That could not have happened under the old regime. These new managers are what I call "drivers managers." I have not seen moral this high in years. The new GPS dispatch system has been a blessing. I know many drivers have had issues. I have not. I can't wait to the Fall time of the year because I just may be able to go on the Camping/fishing trip I have wanted too for years. 

Training Day With Justin

 I was really broke and very glad to be able to get back to work. I walked over to the office and was introduced to a man named Justin who would take me out today and train me on how to be a cab driver. He showed me about the taxi meter and how the radio worked before we even pulled out of the parking lot. He said all of this will make more since after we take a few calls and I get to see how all this works. 

     On the way out of the parking lot, we head down an alley where there are some white houses and Justin says he needs to stop and get something. This apparently is his house. How cool is that!? I mean living about 200 feet from the shop would come in handy if you were running late. Justin got out and went inside. I was sitting all alone in the cab and I could hear over the radio "Fist call...second call...486..check 4..and so forth"  I would soon learn what all of that meant. 

    Justin gets back in the cab and I ask him is he owns this house. He says "Somebody own it."  I guess he must be renting.  He told me the owners of them company Nancy and J.C. (actually the managers, United Cab had been sold to a company out of Ft. Lauderdale called Gulf Coast Transportation inc.) owned  the house and he was living there.

     I did not realize it at the time but this underscored a real problem with the taxi business as a whole. Vetrern Drivers end uppennyless. I would soon learn that you can driver for twenty years and not have  a pot to piss in or a window to through it out of. It is even worse, there are no benefits and no retirement. I was not thinking about any of that, I just needed a job and I had decades to go before I retired. 

     Justin lived most of his life in Lousianna and was pretty much a wildcatter all of his life. He told me a story about a parish where the KKK had a hugh influence. There was a sign on the county line that said "Nigger don't let the sun set on your ass." I really hope that was a long time ago. Justin described himself as a "Coon Ass."  That was a compliment to be called that in Lousianna. He told me stories about drinking and gambling and fooling around with another mans wife. This guy really seemed to have lived an adventursome life. Mine seemed rather dull up to this point. 

   We swung by some of the stands so that I would know were they were at. Justin now said it was my turn to work the microphone in a bidding situation.  A stand 23 went second call. That means any cab that is in that zone, not on a stand, or any cab in a surrounding zone can give the dispatcher their location.  After the dispatcher takes all the bids, he will determine who is the closest cab. 

     I nervously gave our location as Kennedy and Himes. The dispatcher took a few more bids and determined that we had won the call. Cool! We now went over to channel two, which is our information channel to find out exactly where we were going.  Justin said we used to do it all on one channel, but other drivers were stealing fares, so they went to the two channel system. The fare was at the Days Inn on north Dale Mabry. 

     We roll into the parking lot up front of the lobby. This guy comes out with a couple suitcases and says he is headed to Dunedun to visit his elderly father who could not pick him up at the airport when he got in late last night. We were on our way. 

     Justin starts heading up Memorial Highway which will connect with US 19 in the heart of Dunedun. We stop at a red light. The guy in the back seat starts looking around and wants to know why he is seeing neighborhoods and red lights and stuff. He says that when his father used to pick him up, they would go over a long bridge over water. 

     "Thats the Courtney Campbell" Justin Says. "That would put another fifteen bucks on your fare sir if I did that" Justin insist. 

     The guy in the back seat starts to get agitated. He says he if from Broyklyn and he knows when he is getting the run around. That is what they do in New York and he is pissed. 

     "Your taking me the long fucking way you asshole" the guy from Brooklyn declars.

     Justin hits the brakes and pops the trunk. "Get the fuck out" he screams at the guy. The guys draw dropped. The guy says no and he and Justin argue back and forth. The guy finally promises to be good if we will just get him to his fathers house. Justin agress and we are now on our merry way.

    On the ride back to the office, Justin says that you don't ever have to take abuse from a passenger under any circumstances. Justin said he had put many a fare out for bad behavior, and he said you can use any profanity they use. I was thinking I was going to enjoy this job.

     Back at the shop part of my training was to sit in and watch the dispatcher do his job so I would have a better understanding of how everything works. The dispatchers name was Tom, but drivers called him Pirate. There was a time when they used handles instead of cab numbers. 

    I was telling Pirate that it had gone pretty good with Justin and that he had lived an interesting life in Louisiana.   Pirate began to laugh.  It seems most of Justin's time in Louisiana was in theLouisiana State Prison! The rest of that must of just been bullshit. 

 

Is The Tampa Theatre Haunted?

 
Did you know the Tampa Theatre is haunted?  I found this out recently when I was at Borders Books and considering that Halloween is Sunday, I have been thinking about ghost and stuff.  In fact, it seems the Tampa Bay area is full of ghost.

According to Haunted Houses.com

"thedesign of this beautiful theater is described as being "an eclectic blend of Italian Renaissance, Greek Revival and "Florida Mediterranean styles." Gargoyles decorate the main lobby, which has a terrazzo floor. The interior is decorated by statues, terra-cottas, copper and brass jugs, detailed tapestries and banners, reproductions of paintings hang on the walls, dozens of gilt-edged mirrors highlight the decorations and atmosphere of the place. The large ceiling of the auditorium is a mass of blue sky and hundreds of twinkling stars. It originally had 10,000 light bulbs."

Foster Fink Finley is said to haunt the place.  He was the long term organist that played from 1930-1965 when he died of a heart attack during a movie showing, in the projection booth!  As with many ghost, it took years before strange manifestations began to occur.

 
People who have walked by the projection booth (which is very small) have heard knocking coming from inside.  Now that would scare the shize out me.  People inside the booth, when trying to leave, cannot get the door open.  It is as if someone is pressing it closed.  At night, people have felt someone tapping them on the shoulder.  They turn around and nobody is there. I'm running man.

It is said that if you leave an object at a specific spot, in the morning it will have moved to another place.  This was confirmed in 1984 during a controlled experiment. Someone may have been in on it.

Anyway, I was taking a man from California to the Tampa Theatre this morning to attend a wedding of of Robert and Yari (their names are on the marque) .  They picked a beautiful palce for their nuptials.  I hope they don't have an unexpected guest.  Woo!

Ice Age Animals And Sharks In Central Florida

I took a fasinating trip to the Mulberry History Museum in Polk county Florida. I had not been to this museum in about 25 years when I went with my parents. It seems there is a lot about Florida that many people don't realize. Yankee and Red Sox fans are not the only things that came down here from the north.

At the end of the last ice age the Wolly Mammoth, saber tooth tiger, and giant ground sloth make Polk coutny home. They came to Florida as the ice advanced over the North American continent in search of vegitation to eat. When the ice began to melt, water coverd Florida again (it used to be the ocean floor) and Polk county became an island or 10,000 years trapping the land animals.

You can dig into the ground today in almost any spot and find bones, sharks teeth, and petrified wood! How cool.

Why Did Dontae Morris Surrender?

Dontae Morris is looking at the death penalty. They don't fool around in Florida. Unfortunately, it will take about ten years for him to exhaust all of his appeals. Then, the needle. We used to have Ole' Sparky. The condemned man would fry like a sausage in a pan. He had NOTHING to gain by turning himself in. Morris would have been better off camping out in the woods. 

The details of the 'third party' surrender are not known at this time.  I suspect a responsible family member convinced him to at least do one honorable thing in his life and give some respect to the grieving families and turn himself in before the funerals Saturday morning. It looks like that is what happened. 

Is Dontae Rashawn Morris A Runaway Slave?

The Florida Sentinel Bulletin thinks so. The Tampa black newspaper the Florida Sentinel Bulletin had an editorial today that hinted that Dontae Rashawn Morris may be a runaway slave. The article was by "The Sole-Man Speaks" and his logic was that every city in the south, including Tampa, has an area of town that most white folks never go into. In Florida it is called the Black Bottom. The best of the best, and the worst of the worst will risefrom these blighted neighborhoods. Unfortunately, it is usually the worst.

Dontae Rashawn Morris was raised in Jacksonville Florida in the worst black bottom there is. He is now suspected of killing two Tampa police officers. The Sentinel cited the incident in Polk County a few years ago when a black man killed a white police officer, and when he was arrested he was shot 68 times by the cops to the point that his body was not recognizable as a human being. That was wrong, but I think it had more to do with the rage of the police and the actions of the suspect himself. Somehow he was innocent in the Sentinels mind.

They say that black fathers are cautioning their sons not to be out at night because they may be killed by the Tampa Police. Fist of all, 70% of all black boys do not have fathers active in their lives, and the police are only looking for Dontae Rashawn Morris. Are you people still slaves? Is that what you really want to be? The last I checked the President of the Untied States and the Attorney General were black. They seem to be doing fine living in this racist country. Are we still living in "Mississippi Burning?"

The Sentinel writes:

"...Dontae Morris is Black. The officers he reputedly shot are white. Not that it matters, but somewhere down the craggy, putrid road of American History, it matters, dearly"

The only thing putrid is Mr. Morris. Clean up your own acts before you start blaming this on the Tampa Police you bastards.

"Our condolences go out to the slain officers' families. Our sadness embraces the accused assailants's mother and father. Our heart breaks to consider that we HAVE STILL NOT OVERCOME."

What they mean is that they have not overcome the white man. I hope it is a black police officer that greases this piece of human shit.

"Negro Man To Wrestle"

From the birth of the promotion in the 1960's, until it’s demise in 1987, Championship Wrestling From Florida was regarded as one of the premiere wrestling territories in the country. Promoted by Clarence “Cowboy” Luttrall, Eddie Graham, and in later years Duke Keomuka and Hiro Matsuda, CWF provided fans with exceptional wrestling action on a nightly basis. Serving such cities as Tampa, Miami Beach, St. Petersburg, Jacksonville, Orlando, and West Palm Beach, CWF drew record crowds to it’s shows because of intelligent booking and well thought out angles, and featured wrestlers who could not only work, but also had tremendous personalities. The stunning roster of wrestling talent that passed through CWF is endless, with main event caliber athletes like Johnny Valentine, Bob Roop, Tim Woods, and Jack Brisco competing in arenas throughout the state. CWF was blessed to have as it’s voice the legendary Gordon Solie, who most consider the greatest wrestling announcer of all time. Bringing credibility and brilliance to CWF, Solie delighted  audiences with his trademark “So Long From The Sunshine State” for over twenty-five years.

Thes events were huge..The National Guard Armory on N Howard would be a full house every Tuesday night.  That was from 1943-1987,  Of cousrse, nobody is from Florida...Right?

Was Eddie Grahm related to "Superstar" Billy Graham.  Does anyone remember "Haystack Calhougn"

The Tampa Hotel...Do You Remember?

Remember this hotel? Many people in Tampa drive by this place every day and never really notice it or know its history or what it was. I looks like the Texas School Book Depository but it was once a luxury hotel.

The Tampa Hotel was once the tallest building in Florida back in the 1920S. It was THE place to stay when you were in Tampa. Like many places, it had its moment, then fell on hard times.

When I moved to Tampa 30 years ago, it was still open. It had a bar on the ground floor with a pool table. My old boss from the Tribune and I would go in and have a beer after work. You could tell by the ornate architecture and art work that it was once spectacular.

By the 1970S it had become a vagrant hotel with weekly rentals to skid row types and prostitutes. It soon closed and has lay-ed fallow ever since. There must be reason. With the condo explosion, I thought this building would be converted. I have no idea why it has sat there over two decades with nothing happening.

Does anyone know why?

From Cracker To Flapper: Tampa's Boom Years 1875-1925

I often ask customers what type of business they are involved in. Belive me, I get a lot on insight doing that. I picked up a guy today on Bayshore who said he was the owner of a non-profit org that was charged with fnding the lost issues of the Tampa Times during a twenty year period when the archives were lost. Many people do not know that the Tampa Times was the first newspaper printed in Florida and one of the last afternoon papers to be prininted.

Reclaiming Our Heritage, Inc. is a nonprofit charged with the mission of locating, preserving, and sharing every surviving article of Southern Florida’s first daily newspaper—The Tampa Daily Times.

  You see, for generations the first 20 years (circa 1893-1912) of this significant 89-year publication have been missing. And yet, across Florida, pieces of this first-mover newspaper have survived in the scrapbooks, letters, and Bibles of "orange blood" pioneer families.

  To further newspaper recovery and preservation efforts, Reclaiming Our Heritage hosts the following boomtown era-themed programs (circa 1875-1925) to help raise public awareness of and appreciation for the project:  During that 50 year period Tampa's population grew from 785 to over 100,000! That is a boom.

  Florida Heritage CELEBRAT!ON is a Bay-wide, week-long festival for all ages heralding Tampa Bay's earliest years of explosive growth with the theme "...from cracker to flapper!" For more, click here.

  HipStory Learning Adventures is co-produced with Big Brothers Big Sisters as a HipStory curriculum (hip stories of our past) that brings alive our region’s boomtown tales for kids. For more, click here.

h² Events (aka, Heritage Happenings) are heritage-themed social gatherings geared around stories of our past—milestones that bring alive our region’s boomtown tales for adults. For more, click here.

Peacocks, Tony Dungy, And Saints vs. Bears

I picked up the guy who owns Geno's Pizza in Clearwater and all points north(none in Tampa). When I dropped him and his wife off in Westchase just after sunrise, I could not get into the driveway because these very large birds were hanging around.

He said they had been hanging around for years and the neighbors must feed them. They were Peacocks. Cool! I had never actually ever seen one. I got out my cell phone to shoot a little video of the birds walking around. It looks interesting. Check it out. Download Peacock.wmv  NOTE the amount of the fare. Sorry Larry. I am sure you got bigger ones but it has been a while since I went north of Columbus.

New Orleans is playing Chicago as I write this. The 1rst quarter just ended. Something odd is happening. The saints have kept the Bears out of the end zone 3 times while the Bears have the momentum I have seen a lot of football to know that the Mo will swing back to the Saints and the Bears will have wished they had found pay-dirt. Even though the Bears are winning 9-0, I think the Saints will prevail. That franchise has never won nothing. Lets go guys, the Bears have squandered  their change.

My heart and soul goes out to Tony Dungy. He is a tremendous man who in spite of personal tragedy has set an example of Christan faith and the knowledge of our security in Jesus Christ. I could not say enough good about the man and I am really pulling for the Colts later today. GO TONY. YOU ROCK MAN!!

Tampa-Bay-Images.com Is Launched

I was in Ybor City today and I got an idea. Tampa Bay is a beautiful place to live and has a rich history. Unfortunately, most of the people who live here are from somewhere else and are not totally aware of our history. I have lived here 30 years and am finding things out all the time. Why not do a web site that showcases our area, as well as, educates people on the history of our city.

For example, here in Ybor I remember when they instaled the streetcars. Personally I thought it was cheesy because Tampa had no history of street cars such as San Francisco. Wrong. During the 1930’s and 1940’s Tampa had a rich history. I have come across vintage photos of the trains.

Ybor itself has a rich history. Look at the arcititecture of the Italian Club. On my walk around Ybor today. It was a little cool but I became very inspired. Even the modern Ybor centro is very special

I have begun a website project called TAMPA-BAY-IMAGES.com. I plan for it to be an exhaustive work. I can tell now that it may take a year or more to get it right.

The site is up. It’s in its infancy. Not even good enough yet to say UNDER CONSTRUCTION. Some of the links are operational such as UT, Ybor, Ybor Centro, and Ballast Point. Check it out. Come back often things are going to change a lot around here.

Many of the people who left complimentary comments have inspired my confidence to attempt this undertaking. I eventually hope it is the most referred to website for Tampa Bay Photographs.

Thanks folks for the vote of confidence.

Sulphur Springs Tower Looms Over Tampa

Have you ever driven by that big water tower you can see from 275 in north Tampa? I have a billion times and I always have wondered what it was all about. Other then being a former pump station for the Sulphur Springs area, Why is it still around?

I believe it must have historical importance. I mean, after all, there are supposedly only 5 signature photo shots of Tampa 1) the spires at UT. 2) The Hillsborough River Rapids. 3) The Gasbarilla festival 4) the street cars of Channel side and 5) THE SULPHUR SPRINGS WATER TOWER.

I’ll be honest with you; I have tried to shoot it before but always found the vantage point I wanted lacking. The thing is surrounded by a fence. The interstate is right up against it. I have ended up far away just to avoid clutter and got a small image of the tower way off in the distance. Not good.

Today, however, I was motivated. I earlier had seen a painting of the Tower on a mural in downtown Tampa. Either the artist was taking liberties with logistics or there had to be a way.

I pulled into the K-mart parking lot at Bird and Florida and headed off on foot. Today I’m going to follow the 3 B’s my grandfather taught about field photography. Be Brief…Be Brilliant…Be Gone! I was soon up against the fence along Bird starring straight at my nemesis. A tree on the inside of the property had hanging palms which made for a great framing device. Bam!! One Shot!! A publishable image!! I could have headed back to the car with something that could have gone into National Geographic. But, I was not done.

I drove over to an old closed down no-tell motel and headed again on foot across Florida to the base of the bridge. The bridge actually has a name…Check it out. It's the James L. Holmes Bridge era 1926. Before long I saw this clearing that lead down the embankment where there it was…THE MONEY SHOT! I climbed down the side with all the litter and mud and empty beer cans (This is not the best neighborhood) before I started shooting I noticed shopping carts on the bottom of the Hillsborough River. It was low tide and there where many of them. I don’t even know what I’m supposed to say about that.

The angle of the sun provided perfect side lighting! This was turning out to be a great day! Side lighting works best with a polarizing filter. The sky came out a deep blue. I was happy.

Before I left I could not help but notice how run down this part of town is. The tropical birds where out flying over the river just like they did 100,000 years ago. This was long before man created this urban scar tissue.

President Kennedy Visits Tampa 5 Days Before His Assasination

Many of us drive by the University of Tampa every day and may never of seen this stature of the late President Kennedy. If we have, we may of wondered why there was a monument here in Tampa.

On November 18, 1963 only 5 days before his assassination JFK made a visit to Tampa! His limousine was unloaded off air force one at Mac-dill Air force Base and his motorcade traveled Thur Tampa.

The route proceeded up Dale Mabry, East on GRAND CENTRAL (Kennedy blvd was once called Grand Central. It was changed after his murder to honor the slain President) Into downtown, north on Franklin past the old Mass Brothers and Kress building, left on Tyler over the Cass Street bridge and ended up at the Armory on Armenia where he gave a speech.

Tony Zappone was a 16 year old high School student who took a series of award winning photos for his school project. He was chosen by the Tampa Tribune, given a press pass, and had access to the president.

The image on the right is haunting to me. Zappone's image is very smiler to the one taken in Dallas at the moment the shots rang out. Who knows, maybe in some alternative universe the assassination happened in Tampa!

As you can see presidents no longer travel in open air convertibles with cheering crowds on the sidewalks. To bad it has to be that way.

The image on the left is Franklin Street today taken from the very spot Zappone was standing. Some of the buildings are still there.

At UT there are several commemorative plaques that surround the statue of JFK and they have quotes from the late president. One of them I believe is relevant to us in light of recent events. It comes from his inaugural address:

"Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty."

I could not add a thing to that.