Tampa Taxi Shots

Pasco County wants to increase nude tourism for the local economy

As a photographer of Playboy style nudes, I am all for the expanse of naturalist travel to Florida. When you are doing this type of photogrpahy you must be in an area that is safe from prying eyes and trouble. That is why the pool at a nudist resort is ideal for taking it off. 

The people at the pool won't even give it a second thought and your model can feel very relaxed in this environment. When in Rome, do as the Roman's do. Unless you have a backyard swimming pool with a privacy fence, I reccomend the nudist colony.

Unfortunatly, not everyone lives in Florida and can get there in minutes. Sorry. There are some advantages to living in Tampa Bay. Anyway, you can now see my model from the front. She does look good coming or going I think. Nice girl with a lot of energy and works hard to get the right shot. 

Flugtag In Tampa Bay Only United States Event In 2011

I have no idea why 100,000 people showed up for an evnt called Flugtag produced by Red Bull. I guess there is not much to do in Tampa during October when the weather is getting cooler. Flugtag is German for "flying days." That's the problem; nobody flies. All they do is crash off the end of a pier into the water without ever getting airborne. Red Bull says their product "gives you wings." Yea. Seems like a waste of time.

This was the only United States event this year. There were teams from all over the world at this event willing to launch their crafts off a diving board for five seconds. Some of them took months to build their flying machines. The wind was gusting today up to 20MPH; I was hoping some of these planes would catch big air and take off. That did not happen.

It really does not matter to Red Bull. As long as they can draw these crowds, they will continue to sell hugh amounts of energy drinks that people have been brainwased by advertisers to buy. they have convinced an entire generation that they are out of energy, and need the Red Bull product.

I don't know how the people got down to the Convention Center becasue we got very few calls at United Cab today. I did not even put 100 miles on the cab. I was hoping to make money. That really sucked.

They should go save the whales or something or "Occupy Wall Street."

Pasco County Florida Nude Resorts And Bigfoot

Model I shot at a Pasco Nude Resort

One of the major industries in Pasco County Florida is nudism. Pasco County is located north of Tampa and has a great climate, and year round sunshine. It is perfect for the international nude culture that has been established here.

People from all over the world come into Tampa International Airport and take a cab to one of the popular nude resorts in Pasco. Lucky me. Tourism is vital to Florida (The tourist capital of the world) and I am honored to take tourist anywhere they want to go.

I have been wanting to work a particular Bigfoot research area in Pasco which has had many skunk ape sightings. I just have not had the time to get up there. Today, I had the best reason ever. I got paid to go up there because my fare went there. I dropped them off after going onto the resort property to the luxury hotel. People everywhere were walking around naked, swimming,  playing tennis, and volleyball naked. They were just hanging out naked. Temps were in the nineties today, so why not. I would have joined them if I did not have something else to do!

This video below was shot south of SR 52 in rural Pasco county that has little population. I was hoping the only population I would see would be the big hairy guys, the skunk apes.

Borders Books Is Closing...I Take My Coffee Black

The meter is running and the taxi is in park. Normally I’d be outside of a strip club or message parlor, this time it’s a book store. I’m waiting for my passenger to return. 

The large poster declaring 20% - 40% off looms over my cab parked outside of Borders Books on N Dale Mabry which is closing as soon as they sell all their stuff. This well publicized sale has brought customers to this store in record amounts. The idling of my engine cuts through the conversations of happy patrons leaving with newly prized possessions. 

It’s just after sunset. I’d normally be home drinking beer at this hour - a well ingrained habit since the economy fell apart like a two dollar watch.  Habits are hard to change as you get older. 
I turn the radio down as a motorist asks if I can move up a bit. In over fifteen years of coming to this store I’ve never seen it this busy. I guess I’m not the only one that read the newspaper article about the store closing.

Then it hits me - Why does Tampa (whose economy is supposedly tied to tourism) have so many people that read books. We are not supposed to be Boston? 

I think back over the last decade or so. I have spent a lot of time in Borders. Coffee, reading, chess, browsing, music, liberal lap toppers, this place had it all, a great way to kill a Sunday afternoon and relax. You could have a bit of a repose from the ‘real world’ as books took you to other places and experiences that you one day planed to get around too, one of these days. 

The Seattle’s Best Café. Yes, that was the first thing you saw as you walked in the door. Get your espresso and stare at twenty thousand square feet of wonder, knowledge and entertainment. In the next couple of hours, you would walk out smarter and more at peace with yourself then when you walked in. All of this augmented by a fresh cup of Joe (I take my mine black). 

Coffee in a book store is Popcorn at the movies. Would in not be a shame if one day all things are by Amazon or Kindle? To me it would be like going to a prostitute for love or eating steak with a balloon on your tongue. You would still get the same knowledge and nutrition - so what’s your problem? 

I do think it is a problem.

In the future they say you will just take a pill for everything you need or pick you kids out of a test tube (I prefer the old fashion way).

I once met Jack Harris at a book signing here. I once saw happy kids at Harry Potter night with expressions on their faces not seen since the family trip to Disney World. Do we really want all this to just go away?  It is just all about the discount? What ever happened to smelling the roses? 

Anyway, my fare comes back to the taxi and tells me there were at least eighty people in line with all the cash registers ringing. You hear that Borders….You finally figured out how to get Amazons money.  Perhaps there is hope for Western Civilization. 

So Ho District In Tampa On New Years Eve

These stills are from a video I took of the party action in the Hyde Park area of Tampa called So Ho. This is where all the beautiful young people go to be seen. It use to be on New Years eve, I would concentrate on Ybor City, no need anymore. It was like shooting fish in a barrel after Midnight. Just swoop in with your taxi, and people would pile in. Many of the rides were good, and all you had to do was go back and pick up again. This went on until well after the bars closed. You can see my new dispatch BlackBerry mounted on the driver side dashboard.

I'm glad Don worked the overnight shift. He is perhaps our best dispatcher and he can get the calls out, and seems to understand this new system that is being installed. Since we are partially on voice - we need him now. 

With my BlackBerry, I no longer need to go to channel two (information channel). It sends me a detailed text with all the important information about the call, like name and address. At this point, it is not transmitting the phone numbers. In the age we live in, I believe that is a critical piece of information which is helpful for the taxi driver in finding his fare. In public places, you may need to call them out. 

You can see that the taxi cabs were wall to wall that night. This images shows two United Cabs abreast going down Howard Ave. All the drivers were picking up that night. 

A Drunken Chick

                                                                     
      This night was going like any other weekend night; people were out partying and acting like fools. That’s the good part.  Unfortunatly, there comes that moment, late in the night, when the fares will turn the tables and try to make a fool out of the cab driver.  Alcohol combined with frustration can be a naughty combination, in more ways then one.  That is something you will soon learn as a cab driver at night. It was around 4:00 a.m. and the bars were closed when I got a call on the south side to pick up a female. This could be bad.  Unescorted females, at this hour, can be very bad news.

      I pull into the driveway and this glassy eyed woman gets into the backseat (I hate it when they want to ride upfront).

      “Take me to Deleon and Howard.”  She says.

       “No problem” I tell her.

       “Do you know where that’s fucking at?”  She says.

       With drunken chicks you can always count on the F word.

      I pull out of the driveway and head down to the end of the street and begin to turn south towards the Hyde Park area.  This should be a simple drive, just straight down Manhattan and dump her out.        

      “Where the fuck are you going?"  She demands to know.

      “I’m taking you home; you do live in Hyde Park right?”

      “All you fucking cab drivers want to take me the long way.”  She claims.

      I stop the cab and look back at her. This is the moment when I try to decide if I’m even going to take her another foot or tell her to get out. She looks really wasted.

      “Look miss, you are a little drunk, so just let me take you home.”  I tell her.

     “What makes you think I’ve been drinking?”  She says with slurred speech.

      She continues to demand that I head in the opposite direction.

      “Fine, let’s go your way.”  Now, I’m getting a little pissed.We head off in the WRONG direction, as per her instructions.  She just sits there quietly and says nothing. Then, the silence is broken.

      “Do you have any jams in this car?”

      I tell her I do, and ask her what channel she wants to listen to.  I am thinking it is the local Hip-Hop station.  Gee, how did I know that?  We continue now all the way down to Gandy. This is starting to get ridiculous.  If we go any further, we will soon be on the Air force Base. She now looks around and wonders where we are at.  She really does not know.

      I turn the radio down and tell her that if she is good, I will take her home.  The meter now has $10 on it (that’s what it would have been if we had gone the right way) and I tell her that is all I will charge her if she just lets me get her home safely.  She remains quit the rest of the way.

      We arrive at her house.  I am so happy.  I always feel uncomfortable around people who have lost control of their faculties.  She opens the door and gets out. She wads something up and throws it at me. It is a ten dollar bill.  No tip, no thank you, no nothing.

      “Fuck you asshole” she says as she walks away.

      Man, I love my job. 

Another Week, Another TV Blackout for NFL - TheStreet

the Tampa Tribune pointed Bucs fans to mascot-appropriate pirated live streams from ATDHE.net, Justin TV, BlipTV and Ustream. They don't have the expressed written consent of the NFL, whose representatives say they'll "vigorously protect our product" though cease-and-desist letters and takedown notices, but loyal, frugal fans are using the option anyway. Plus, with the NFL's free broadcasts shown in HD and a game from another market replacing the blacked-out hometown matchup, borderline fans are still offered a crisp view of NFL action for the double-digit cost of an HD antenna.

via www.thestreet.com

The NFL may try to force these alternative networks to cease and desist from shown the Tampa Bay Bucs in the Tampa market, but they have brought this on themselves. The internet, direct TV, digital this and that, people can find other ways to see an NFL game other than paying $25 to park and $10 for a paper cup of beer. Free markets folks. The NFL is literally pricing themselves out of fans.

The Black Cat And Obamanomics

 I got a call to pick up a fare named’ Mark’ this morning, just before sunrise. Mark is one of those guys that you look forward to picking up; he is smart, witty, interesting and gay - literally. He lives on a street north of Tampa in an older neighborhood which ten years ago was pretty much urban scare tissue. Then, a phenomenon happened. Mark, and many like him, began to move into the area, and with their flare for decorating and remodeling, the area was soon being re-gentrified into a marvelous and quant place to live.

Mark has a cat (I love cats). It is solid black (reminds me of a cat I had long ago named Amos).  The cat is usually involved in some kind of antics when I show up. This morning, he was just sitting in the yard near the driveway looking at me as I pulled in. His pale blue eyes lit up like demon eyes as I entered the driveway, the one true pointer that I was indeed at the right place. For time immortal people have acquainted cats with strange bewitching abilities. I think it has more to do with their female characteristics. Face it; you have cat women, not cat man.

Cats don’t need you, they can do fine on their own, they feign attention when they want something, they treat you like a servant, they are aloof and always looking for the next bigger and better deal, they don’t respond to auditory commands, and seem to prefer that you are not around, but will give you just enough love to keep you wanting more. I find all of these qualities to be female in origin. Again, I love cats. 

Mark hops in and tells me where he is going. He works at the hospital now, and no longer cuts hair. As he puts it, even the recession has taken its toll on hair cuts. He needed a steady gig and had some nursing experience. The steady pay check is important to him right now. Times were much better three years ago, and I remember him back then. 

Mark had taken advantage of the easy financing that was available a few years ago.  He, at one point, had over five houses that he had mortgages on, and was fixing them up and flipping them. His plan worked for some time and he made a profit on every house he sold. I should have bought one of them. I walked into a mortgage company office back then to pick up a fare (I had five bucks in my pocket) and they wanted to give me an ARM. How cool is that? 

“Sorry,” I said. 

“I don’t like packing my stuff up and moving six months later“. 

Perhaps I could have found a way to hold onto the property. Who knows?

Anyway, Mark got caught short - way short. He was holding the bag (many bags) when the economy fell apart like a two dollar watch and his life went down the drain like liquid Plummer. He says he is alright about this, and he knows who to blame. There is a villain and this man did him in like a back ally mugger…George Bush.  

Mark is convinced that “W” ruined his life. Like many fares I pick up, who are embroiled in domestic issues, the blaming is immense. Humans simply wont live what Socrates called “the examined life,” Instead, opting for “a life of quite desperation” seems more functional…some more quite, some more functional than others. 

The fact that he was done in by his own poor decisions is a concept that is anathema to this man. Was it Bush that forced him to take out those mortgages? I don’t think so. I think many people did enough to do themselves in. Mark also holds onto the mantra I hear often…”It took eight years to mess things up; it will take another eight to un-mess them.”  Really?  Is that right?

We were told the current occupant of the White House is a genius. Keith Olberman claims Obama has the highest IQ ever recorded (next to his, I imagine). My question to all my fares that hold onto this concept is this:

What can a moron do in eight years that a genius can’t undo in five minutes?  I am just trying to follow your logic. Because now I am hearing from the “unexhausted” Obama supporters that it is going to take time for the economy to get better with natural market forces needed to play out. Hummmmmmm.

Was that not the Republican plan all along?  Seems the horse is being changed in midstream. 

To be fair Obama has done this:

1) Bailed out the Banks (he did not have too because only the account holders money is insured)

2) Bailed out Wall Street (he did not have too…what was it Marcus Aurelius said that if Gordon Gekko has what you want, you do business with him). Politics is indeed a practical profession.

3) Bailed out GM.  They are now making a profit and millions of jobs were saved. How cool is that?

I am not sure John McCain would have done any of this stuff.

A floor was put under the economy and total collapse was avoided. However, none of this was George Bush holding a gun to your head so YOU would perform irrationally. 

Notice how cats will never blame anyone for anything. They just go with the flow, adapt, hunt and move on. That is what I, you, and America need to do. It’s time to turn the page and right our own destiny without ever mentioning George Bush again. 

Is Cheap Bar In Tampa Padding Credit Cards?

Cheap bar and restaurant in south Tampa will pad your credit card with extra charges and wait for you to complain. That is the claim made by the "Bubba The Love Sponge" show this morning. Bubba has an employee named 25 cent (a black guy) that went to the club and all kinds of extra charges were added, including the tip (there is a belief among servers that black people don't tip). This seems to be standard policy stated by the owner Tommy Ortiz on the radio show. If you don't catch it, you pay. If you are black, they will add the tip on top of the meal (he denied this). Overcharging credit cards is criminal. If I did that in my taxi cab, I would not only be fired...I would go to jail. Tommy Ortiz needs to be very careful. Look at all the important people and lawyers that go into his restaurant. None of them have complained? Who knows.

Do You Like Watching People Screw?

 Well, you can watch all day long and night at the Fantasyland Video store in Drew Park. If you don't mind all the swingers, fags, drunks, crackhead, jerks, perverts, voyeurs, idiots, dirtbags, undercover cops and taxi drivers, this is your place. Glory holes and everything goes. Word of this place has spread faster than AIDS in the '80's. Just go by and look. The parking lot is overflowing and people are everywhere. I don't care, I make money picking up here and taking fine ass girls here who want to screw strangers, or people they met on the internet.

The image here is the 'pool room.' I think you are a step ahead of me. Your right. People do it on the tables. Its just not the eight ball that is going in the hole. Cum on by, and join the fun. The most fun in Tampa since the Led Zeplin Concert.

Happy 4th Of July!

There are two big reasons I love this county. 

ONE: we are to free to express our way in the manner that we choose without fear of reprisal from the government. 

TWO: after looking at this picture, I seem to have forgotten what the other thing was...Does it matter! 

When I go to Clearwater Beach which is still free of the Gulf oil spill, I can only think how fortunate I was to have been born in the United States Of America. 

Happy Forth Of July folks.  I hope you enjoy your barbecues and cold beer.  

It would not be the Forth Of July without a bikini contest at Sheppards Beach Resort on Clearwater Beach.

 

St Pete Pandhandlers Flood Into Tampa - Are They Begging, Or 'Flying A Sign?'

 St. Petersburg, in my opinion, has illegally outlawed free speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of expression, in short, civil liberties by banning guys from standing on street corners 'flying a sign.' This is a great country we live in.  At least it used to be. St. Pete does not think so. There is, however, a real danger to doing this.  Let me explain.

In this great country a person with ambition and skill can rise as far as his dreams will take him. But what if his dreams are not to be an astronaut or a CEO or a doctor, or whatever people think you should be. Hell, what if he wants to be A TAXI DRIVER. What if he just wants to 'hang out' and drink beer with his buddies and go no further than that.  In this country that should be his God given right. Sadly, people don't think so. 

The problem with banning anything is that you move just a little closer to the banning of political expressing, and that is where the danger lies. That is why we uphold the rights of Larry Flint and Joe Redner.  That's right - porn is free expression.  If you ban it someone will come along and say they find a cable channel or a political party to be objectionable. Do we ban this stuff as well? 

Hell, we live in a country now where you can't even go into a bar and light up a smoke....WTF?

So when you see the guy on the side of the road and you give him a couple of bucks, you better believe it will go to fast food, a cheap motel, a quart bottle of beer (several) and a pack of cigs. 

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Little Manatee River State Park

 I got a ride down south and took advantage of that to check out Little Manatee River State Park.  There is a network of hiking trails that span the entire park. Most of them are horse trails that you can spot form the main road that circles thru the park.  I found a nice one that traversed a sand pine and palmetto area. I parked the taxi on the side of the road and was on my way. 

It is very hot right now in Florida and the heat was getting to me. I'm glad some clouds rolled in that lowered the temperature somewhat. Many of these trails criss cross each other, and even with the trail map they give you, getting lost is easy. 

The trail I was on had a sign about a lake up ahead. I never found the lake, but I did get a nice view of the sand scrub and pine trees.  I was getting tired so I headed back...It is very hot with high humidity and you must bring lots of water or sports drink with you.  I always start cramping when I need water. Sometimes its just nice to feel and hear the solitude of the woods.  There is something very peaceful about doing this. It helps calm me down. 

 

The park is one of Florida's best kept secrets.  The Little Manatee River is one of the most scenic in the State. Canoe rentals are availbe and there is no better way to spend several hours than an easy canoe trip to the bay and back. The park also has some great camping areas.  What I liked about it was the privacy you have at each site.  The trees are thick enough that you cannot see the campers that are next to you. So you can chill out at your campfire at night and not have to look at RV's and strangers. 

 

WUSF 89.7 Smooth Jazz After Dark

WUSF 89.7 Tampa Florida plays smooth classic jazz between 4 - 5 am. It can be slow during that period and this music helps keep me in a good move. This morning is slow with a 100 degree heat index. I am waiting for time calls going to the airport

In The Florida Jungle

Followers of this blog know that I like to hike in the remote areas of Central Florida and bring my video camera with me in case I encounter the Florida Skunkape or Bigfoot. I like the exercise and the fresh air. For over the last year it has been a hobby of mine.

It has been a good hobby. My YouTube Channel called fasanotampa has over 347 subscribers and a Blogger blog I started is getting steady traffic. However, it is getting difficult to try and make daily post for eight different blogs when Tampa Taxi Shots has been my longest running and most successful blog ever. I just need to consolidate and make this the Official Tim Fasano Blog or website. 

I don't know if you have a YouTube channel or not but you have to admit the flaming that goes on is beyond the pale. I have really lost my interest especially that someone has started a blog just to bash the videos I, and a few others, put up. Crazy if you ask me. 

Everyone has their own interest, and I have mine. This is a commercial site. Like I get paid to do this blog. I get a monthly check from advertisers and that pays for my blog. Simple, I got my reasons for this. 

We are going into the Memorial Day Weekend which is significant in Bigfoot History. Memorial day 1996 was the day of the famous bigfoot sighting in Washington State which was featured in the Hisotry Channel special Bigfoot Where Legend Meets Science with Dr. Jeff Meldrum.  Here this interview of him on Coast To Coast AM Radio.

Tim Fasano Takes A Walk On Florida Trail

Somebody told me to take a hike.  so I did!  It sounded like a good idea, so I went up to the Florida Trail portion of the Green Swamp in Polk county on Super Bowl Sunday.  It was really nice.  The cool air felt good on my face.

 

BUSCH GARDENS IS AN EYESORE

Busch Gardens could have been a major theme park in America.  Unfortunately, they have let the area go down and the blight is keeping tourist away.  The area around it has become an eyesore. Why is that?  Have any of the politicians ever driven up Busch blvd and seen the filth and low-end industries that litter this area.  You would never find liquor stores and payday loan places anywhere near Disney World. 

Wecome To Tampa...I Think

There is four feet of snow anywhere up north, a Super Bowl around the corner, 80* weather and Tampa is a ghost town at this moment.  Why?  This is a fun place, a very fun place to come and party, play golf, go the beach, fish, boat, go to museums, theme parks, whore houses, dance clubs, massage parlors, a full casino with black jack (Hit me), theaters, art and so much to do, your head will spin. 

Why are people still up north and not down here piling in my cab.  Is it just the economy?  Are the stay-cations the current rage?  If you still have a job, why hold back?  Treat yourself to the Tampa Bay area.  I will even drive you around and show you where you can have a good time.  so if you are coming to Tampa and can pay the taxi rates, let me know.  If you are coming here for the Super Bowl, then contact me and I'll intro you to the two chicks above. (I wonder if this guy got layed...Na)

Ybor Obama Niggas' Beat White Boys Ass

I see these fights all the time in Ybor and around town.  I have been jumped, beaten, put in hospital by blacks who hate my fucking guts because I am white.  See how much they LOVE this white guy for no other reason then he is white.  Than ask yourself why you want to vote for a guy who was a member of church that hates white people, who has a militant wife who hates white people, and is supported by those that hate white people, while he blows smoke up your ass and Bullshits America the whole way.  See what the cab driver sees every night.

A New Gym In Tampa

There is a new fitness center opening in Tampa called Anytime Fitness. They are a national chain and are located at 2905 W. Kennedy blvd. They will be direct competition to Joe Redner's Extreme fitness.

I stopped by Friday and they were loading the exercise equipment off the truck. Everything was brand new unlike Joe Redner's place that always had old equipment and reclaimed odds and ends..nothing ever matched. I heard he bought the stuff from gyms that went out of business.

Members at Anytime Fitness in Tampa will have 24 hour access and they offer monthly pay with no contracts. Don't we all have enough contracts with cell phones and wireless Internet and all that stuff. The gym is big and airy. I  like it. I just joined. Since I live three blocks from the gym...there are no more excuses.

Ben T Davis Beach

Aren't you glad you live on the West Coast of Florida? When the traffic is as thick as a brick because of the NCAA tournament both Men and Women, Good Friday, Baseball and poor road construction, you always have a fall-back position. This time of year, I like to go to the beach and take some photos, get some sun and just walk around and enjoy one of the treasures we have in the Tampa Bay area. Great beaches are certainly one of them. Look at all these people on the beach in March!

Tampa City Pools Close While St. Pete Pools Thrive

I wanted to start getting some exercise today. Jimmy Connors once said the best exercise is the one you'll do - that is why I went lap swimming. To bad I could not do that effectively in Tampa.

Tampa keeps cutting back pool services and, as a result, fewer and fewer use the pools and they continue cutting back. That is not what they do in St. Pete.

Over there they have the North Shore facility with two of the biggest swim teams in the county using the pool. The St. Pete Masters swim team is the best in the America. None of this is going on in Tampa.

I read today that they are scaling back the Bobby Hicks pool in south Tampa. Why? It is a Long Course pool. Do you know how much in demand LONG COURSE POOLS are. Tampa does not get it and that is what happens when you have people in charge who don't have a clue. All of use know people that do the triathlon and would like to have a year round pool to use. The people in St. Pete do.

The North Shore pool is opened 365 days a year...it is set up for lap/fitness swimmers. It is clean with all the amenities you want with locker rooms and all the lanes with lane lines and pace clocks. And the finest looking female lifeguards you will ever see. They all wear the same blue Bay Watch style one piece French cut suits. I stare, I mean, I swear they must of been hired because of their looks.

Well, back to my work out. This photo was before a 4x100 free set with a 20 second rest interval.

Coffee And Cigars

I love cigars. I love Tampa. Our great city has always been the cigar capital of the world. The Cuban tobacco used to be shipped here and immigrant workers (legal) hand rolled them for mass consumption. There is now a move in Congress that if it goes through, will eliminate the cigar trade. This movement shows a fundamental lack of understanding of basic economics.

The reason you want to tax things such as alcohol and tobacco are not to discourage the use of these items, as if it were some kind of "sin tax." You tax them because there is an extreme "elasticity of the demand curve" on such items. That is a fancy way of saying that the breaking point at which people will stop using those products is almost nonexistent. Almost. That is the key word. Everyting has a breaking point...even cigars.

What Congress wants to do is raise the tax on cigars to were an additonal charge of up to $1 - $10 per stick. What! That is right about a 2,000 percent increase in the tax. This is being done to fund an expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program, known as S-CHIP. I am all for expanding S-CHIP, but the President said he will veto any increase over 5 billion, plus, nobody will buy cigars at those prices. There are other ways. There is a way that Florida could take care of its own. The best way is to take a broad, visionary look at the future of Florida.

The answer is full casinos. Not bingo and low level poker.

Florida is the tourist capital of the world. There is no doubt about that. These people are looking to have some fun. I mean fun. That is why I support the business that Joe Redner owns because we don't want to send a message to the world that we are some back water, hick town that closes the sidewalks at night. I know someone is going to say it depends on the mores of the society. True. You did not have to move here as most people now are transplants.

Our beaches and Gulf Hotels could rival or exceed Mississippi or Alabama. It would be hugh and we could Begin to fund projects that we need with money of people from out of State! Florida would succeed when other  communities didn't  because they were cannibalizing off their own communities. Now how cool is that. And we would be using the "elasticity of the demand curve" to our advantage. Smart. Very Smart.

I stopped by Starbucks on South Howard this morning to get some Joe, and seems Misty is still out and in need of your support. Many people in Hyde Park knew her and and they are rallying for her. Keep up the good work.

Do You Know Where Fred Howard Park Beach Is At?

The newspaper just had a map of the most popular beaches in the Tampa Bay area, and one of them was Fred Howard Park Beach. Personally, I had never heard of it. I have now. It is almost to Tarpon springs and one of those out of the way Florida treasures that is vanishing.

Click to enlarge!

The Egg Platter Is Closed

Does anyone know why the Egg Platter is closed. I pulled into the parking lot on West Gandy blvd and the place was shut up. not even a notice on the door. A sign said "Closed"..I used to love this place.

It was a greasy spoon and the servings were large. There was nothing Fancy about the place, no pretension, and that is what I think most people liked about the place. I loved it because the food was fast, good, somewhat cheap, and the portions were out of control.

Word on the street is that either a CVS pharmacy is going in or a Super Wall Mart is coming into South  Tampa. I have no real idea...I was hoping someone would. Let me know.

We are now running out of places to eat on the south side...just what we need another pharmacy...Grrrr!

Teacup The Cat And Haslams Bookstore

I hope you are having a happy mothers day. Motherhood is a very important function in human development. If you ever go to Haslams Bookstore in St. Pete, you may of meet "Teacup" the cat. She is very friendly and roams the store, always stopping for people to pet and scratch her neck. She seems to hang out in the History section.

What I understand was one day her mother showed up at the store one day when she was pregnant. They felt sorry for her and let her in and gave her a home. She had her litter and they found home for all the little kitties from patrons of the store. Teacup stayed behind as the official greeter for the bookstore. So be kind to mothers because everyone has a loving story about them.

My mother passed away ten years ago. She lived a long life and hope somewhat happy. She gave birth to me, I am grateful for that. She taught me to be nice to people and respect others. My mother was very kind to animals and gave a lot of money to the SPCA and other animal groups that help all the little kitties and doggies. I guess that is why I was thinking about the cat today. Cats are my favorite pet.

Picnic Island A Great Place For Locals And A New Website Design

Picnic Island remains one of Tampa's hidden treasures. I went to this beach today to relax, swim and get some sun. I wore my thong (just kidding!).

The water was still a little to cold for my taste, so I waded around and splashed myself. The public areas is off of the parking lot on the south end. It you want more privacy and to get away from the "Kiddies" take any of the fishing off roads before you get to the parking lot. These area are more secluded but beware there are not lifeguards on duty. So if you get in trouble, you are on your own.

At the very south end of the Island there is a hiking trail that literally cuts through the Mangrove bushes. Today was low tide when I was there, so you could hike out to the East end of the island where many of the fisherman and crabbers like to go. If the the tide is high you literal will be in knee deep water trying to get out there. It is worth it if you really want more seclusion. There were guys out there fishing. I really don't know what is there that you can't catch on the other side of the island.

One of the best parts of this experience is there are no tourist at this beach!

I have redesigned my glamour website Tim Fasano.com by changing servers. My old server Homestead was using an old version of FrontPage that they never updated. After three years, I still had to "Click and paist" all images. That is really a barbaric way of doing web design. The new software has cells and allows me to atuomaticlly update. Hell, I can even enter the time for post and it will do all the work. Beware...my site contains EXTREME FEMALE NUDITY!  that I had the pleasure of taking myself. If you love beautiful nake women go to my site. If not, you have been warned.

Demolition Derby In K-Mart Parking Lot!

I don't have a category for weird. If I did, this would be under it. Yesterday these people yellow taped off the parking lot of the K-Mart at the intersection of Columbus and Dale Mabry. They said they were holding a "Car Show."

Not much was going on until this tow truck showed up and delivered this little red car. After they unloaded it people began hitting it with baseball bats, sledge hammers and cinder blocks. What did that little red car ever do to them to make them so angry? They did manage to bust out the windows and put some dents in it. If you have ever tried to do this type of thing, you know how hard it is to demolish a car.

Larry and I were sitting there watching all of this because this is our #23 stand. We really did not think much of it. The people involved said they would clean up their own mess.

This morning the little red car was still there. If you look at it, however, they must of used a Monster truck to roll over it. How else could it of sustained that kind of damage. Notice they did just left their mess in the parking lot. Where were the police when this was going  on?

Check out this new Taxi Blog that I have just added: A night in the life of a Fredericton cabby...Further evidence that cab drivers are cool and have it going on!!!

Sound Exchange..One Of Tampa's Treasures

There is a place in north Tampa that if you have not discovered it-you should. The SOUND EXCHANGE is one of those eclectic, alternative music stores you always wished your city has. Tampa does.

I Have been able to build a tremendous Smooth Jazz collection of Cd's at a fraction of the retail cost. They specialize in used and out of print stuff. However, even their new stuff is below retail.

There are real treasures to be found. If you know the type of music you like and have some time to browse, you will find the gems within the store. Take today, for instance. I did not have alot of time but I was able to find Russ Freeman and the Rippentions Black Diamond CD. I had lost it years ago ago and found it today for $7.99, a square value. I also found an out of print  A-HA CD "Hunting High and Low". How cool is that. The record contains the awesome Mid-Eighties hit The sun Always Shines On TV.

What a way to end the work day. Go home with some cool music for less than 20 bucks!

Just another solid tip from the Taxi man who gets around town so you don't have to!

Where Are The Topless Beaches?

With the 4Th of July weekend upon us I thought I would address a subject often presented to me by tourist: Topless and Clothing optional beaches. This is a common question I get from Euros about the Tampa Bay Area. They don't understand why in this part of America this is not a common thing.

As far as that goes, we have actually gone backward. There were more 20 years ago. North lido Beach in Sarasota was one for years.

In addition, my blog is getting Google searches for nude/topless beaches. Let me see if I can help.

On Siesta Key in Sarasota thongs are legal (see pic). On the north end away from the Lifeguard stands you can go topless if you are discrete.

There is a website called Topfreedom.com that analysis all the Florida beaches and claims that part of Ft. Desoto and Treasure Island women go topless and that it is catching on in  this area (I need to go to the beach more often!).

One place where I'm surprised it has not become common is Sheppard's Beach Club in Clearwater. I once shot a bikini contest sponsored by Joe Redner and his gym Extreme Fitness. All the girls wore thongs-not just the ones on stage. I truly believe that what will happen is that a few will start and then many will follow and local politicians will realize it can't be stopped and that will be it.

And ya know what folks? That will only increase tourism and us cab drivers will then make more money. At least I will because I know where all the nooks and crannies are where you can do this and not be caught.  It comes in handy in photography.

Amscot Nation

This things are springing up all over Tampa. To the rest of society that has bank accounts and credit cards, they may wonder just what is Amscot?

Amscot provides financial services to people who do not have traditional relationships with banks. They provide check cashing, loans, money orders, debit cards, insurance, tax refunds and other stuff. They also have FDIC insured savings accounts provided by their sub-contractor NETSPEND.

The business is a success and they make a ton of money. You may have even seen their high rise building in the Westshore district that is clearly visible from the interstate.

Why do I know all of this and why is it important? That is because many of the people in Tampa who use cabs have falling between the cracks and use Amscot.

Banks don't want them. Society may not want them but they represent a growing underclass in Tampa that votes and we may one day have to deal with them.

That is when they realize that the current mayor has not been their friend and has done nothing to solve the housing problem we have in this city. I drive all over the town and all I ever see is economic activity designed to make the rich richer including Amscot.

It is true what Bob Lassiter once said that every dime in the pocket of the poorest in the community will find its way into the pocket of the richest among us.