Diane White
From a tiny Ghost shrimp to baby birds and Petunia the dolphin, the OLLI Outdoors SIG went on the “floating classroom” Eco Tour with Tampa Bay Watch. The science-based tour was packed in a diversity of species to study up close.
Our crew on the private chartered boat tour was biologist Dakoeta, intern Rebecca, and Captain Mo. Our missions were to record marine life in area 6, identify dolphins, and visit the birds nesting on Bird Island. Arriving at our first stop, Dakoaeta and Rebecca cast a fisheries trawl net and carefully went through the haul, identifying species from the spot marked as area 6. One of our members … Read more
Recently I went with a few friends to hike and take photographs at Circle B Bar Reserve near Lakeland. It was a LONG drive there but well worth it. It is a very large park of more than 2,000 acres. We hiked four and a half miles and saw not even a quarter of the park. We took Marsh Rabbit Run (where we were stopped by a large alligator blocking the trail) and Alligator Alley which was my favorite. The large trees shading Alligator Alley are lovely. 
In the category of Dubious Military Distinctions, I like to think I hold the world’s record for the shortest flight in a KC-135A/B between two different airports. (The KC-135 is an aircraft that refuels other planes in midair.) My “world record” flight took place in 1968 between St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport (KPIE) and MacDill Air Force Base (KMCF) in Tampa, Florida.
Rescuing the historic Deutscher-Americaner Club
When I retired to Tampa, I was introduced to several local experiences. One of the most notable was Gasparilla, a series of several events throughout the year, but mostly the annual invasion and parade on the last Saturday of January.
In 1992 I was a member of the Friends of the Hillsborough Library. My first project was to see that all the art in the libraries of Hillsborough County was repaired, reframed, and in good shape. My second project was to get the Board to buy art for the new libraries from the Gasparilla Festival of Arts Show in Tampa in March. The Friends had ten thousand dollars sitting in a CD for emergencies. I finally convinced them that the money could be earned and replaced, but the new libraries needed art. We had a few holdouts but, eventually, we all agreed to buy art each year. It gives me great pleasure to see new art in the local libraries that I visit.
Tampa’s bid to host the 2012 Olympics was the first time a Florida city entered a bid for an Olympiad. The story starts with a decision by FASTA, the Future Air & Surface Transportation Alliance to go forward with a Florida global airport project. Future global airports will have foot prints larger by a factor of 15 than the typical international airport. Tampa International, for example, is less than 7 square miles, is land locked and is air space limited. It is a great “20th Century“ airport.