OLYMPIC— SIZED SACRIFICES

WHAT LOCAL ATHLETES GAVE UP IN QUEST FOR THE GOLD


Jim Millns remembers going to the grocery store, being so hungry, but having no money. He and his roommate once scraped up enough for a box of corn flakes, but they did not have enough to buy milk, so they ate their cereal with Kool-Aid. For a time, this was what he lived off of — corn flakes and Kool-Aid […]

Ghostly flowers are appearing in trees




Every year, in proximity to the rainy season, a rare, leafless root system that grows on trees in Southwest Florida sloughs produces white flowers. The socalled ghost orchid is a wild, endangered species that relies on the giant sphinx moth, with its more than 6-inch long proboscis or “flying tongue” for pollination. There may be roughly a thousand ghosts, found […]

Getting religion — again




Beginning last week, I undertook a ceremony so American — so dangerously appealing, so garishly colorful and so costly — that little else can bear comparison except the world’s other major religions. The Jews have their mitzvahs. The Christians have their confirmations. The Shia Muslims have their Sehras. But those who have signed on as Americans, per se, have a […]

75 years later, the lessons of Guernica




Seventy-five years ago, the Spanish town of Guernica was bombed into rubble. The brutal act propelled one of the world’s greatest artists into a three-week painting frenzy. Pablo Picasso’s “Guernica” starkly depicts the horrors of war, etched into the faces of the people and the animals on the 20-by-30-foot canvas. It would not prove to be the worst attack during […]

Patients need drug options, not limitations




Imagine being sick with a life-threatening disease. Most of us would want access to as many medicines as possible — including the full range of proven treatment options. But under the Affordable Care Act, some people may see their drug choices severely restricted. A draft regulation proposed by the Department of Health and Human Services would require insurers participating in […]

Fish on — and off




The rod tip bent toward the water as I leaned back against the pull of this monster of the deep. Thoughts of “Old Man and The Sea” had me thinking I could have a long fight on my hands. What was on the end of my line? Will the line break as this denizen of the deep used every muscle […]

Fun, sometimes flirty jars for your tobacco

KOVELS: ANTIQUES


Why would a tobacco jar from the 19th century be shaped like a lady in a long, full dress? Tobacco jars were made in many unexpected shapes, and there are many figural tobacco-jar collectors today. Most jars were made from 1850 to 1900 in Bohemia and nearby countries. They were made of majolica, bisque, pottery, wood, even bronze. Most common […]

Groups file suit against corps over river




Frustrated over a lack of progress at the negotiating table, environmentalists filed suit Monday in federal court to force the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to clean up the Caloosahatchee River by letting the river flow. A coalition of groups led by the Florida Wildlife Federation, the Conservancy of Southwest Florida and the Environmental Confederation of Southwest Florida filed suit […]

THIS WEEK ON WGCU-TV



THURSDAY, JULY 26, 10 P.M. Biofuel Revolution A quiet revolution is fomenting, with its epicenter here in Southwest Florida, where a handful of entrepreneurial pioneers are on a quest to develop renewable biofuels as alternatives to fossil fuels. It is a revolution that could create tens of thousands of jobs, have a profound impact on the national economy, change the […]

Planning for a parrot

Even ‘easy’ species can be high-maintenance pets


After years of dreaming, planning and preparing, I moved onto a small piece of country property where I could have more — and more kinds — of animals than were previously allowed in my old suburban neighborhood. My horses live with me now, and I have added more pet chickens. Goats? Maybe. But one kind of pet I haven’t had […]