officially the worst period on record. Australia is the driest inhabited continent on Earth, but until recently that was never a huge problem for the 90 percent of us who live in coastal cities and towns. We always had thought of dry spells as the farmers' problem. ...more

January 9, 2009

The year 2009 has dawned. In the nation's capital, Barack Obama and Congress will soon begin trying to pull the nation out of a severe recession. We just hope they don't do anything to delay the recovery that would happen on its own, absent major interference from the political sector. In Tallahassee, state lawmakers will soon tackle a $2.3 billion budget shortfall. Here's hoping they don't try to solve that problem with taxes that invariably fail to raise the amounts of revenue their supporters claim. ...more

January 3, 2009

100-YARD DROUGHT The University of South Florida has not had a 100-yard rusher in 14 consecutive games, dating to the 11th game of last season, when Mike Ford rushed for a career-high 140 yards. ...more

December 17, 2008

GIRLS SOCCER Springstead sophomore Ashley Walker helps snap a scoreless deadlock with an assist to freshman forward Kim Smith and adds a 24-yard free kick with two minutes left to seal Lady Eagles' shutout win at Central, 2-0. ...more

November 25, 2008

Councilman Karl Nurse put in plants native to Florida and no longer needs to water the yard at an apartment building he owns. ...more

November 25, 2008

The area has not escaped the threat of another drought. In fact, it is expected to become reality again by the end of the winter. ...more

November 21, 2008

The city council will continue exploring the potential for urban gardening on some of the city's vacant lots, but not everyone agrees on the benefits. ...more

November 19, 2008

Watching Steven Stamkos fly around the Forum ice on Tuesday, it looked like the rookie was ready to break out and show the NHL he can be a factor. ...more

November 19, 2008

Ellen Moore scored another two goals, and Plant advanced into the final of the Lady Wildcat Soccer Invitational with a 2-0 win against host Wharton on Wednesday afternoon. There, they will face Newsome, which won its second shootout of the tournament, 3-2, against Alonso after the teams played to a 0-0 tie in regulation. ...more

November 6, 2008

The Lightning threw money around this summer like an Ivy League grad with a new credit card, in hopes of creating a high-octane group of forwards. ...more

October 21, 2008