1614 E Idlewild Av Tampa FL 33610

This property sold at a public auction. Deed still doesn't reflect this at this time but, it is correct. This can be verified by contacting the Hillsborough County Clerk of Circuit Court. Please stop with all the offers to purchase 'as is'. It sold as is for $230,000

Thanksgiving 2015

Yesterday was Thanksgiving and it made me think a lot about family. I am very fortunate to have two wonderful sons. They are very loving, very sensitive, generous, caring human beings. I am extremely proud of both of them and the lives that they have built for themselves. Having said that, I feel the need to explain why that is such an accomplishment. You see, they didn't have the benefit of an extended family. No cousins, no Aunts or Uncles. Not because they didn't exist. Quite the contrary. There were four Aunts and three Uncles. All of which had 2 to 5 children themselves. My youngest brother and myself were both adopted. So, all but one of the Uncles were not raised with us. However, at the age of 15 I found my birth family and discovered that I had in fact known them as a child because I was told they were my 'cousins.' We would play together on the weekends....then, all of a sudden that just stopped. No explanation given. Just never saw them again until there was a death in the extended family and there they were; at the funeral, all grown. From that point on, I tried to be a part of their world, a part of their life. Often times it felt forced and awkward. But, I ignored it. To me, they were my family. I hadn't abandoned them nor they me so, why shouldn't there be a relationship? But, so many years had gone by. They were just enough older than I to be in a different stage of their lives. While I was in high school, they were getting married or were already married, starting families or already had one.. I liked seeing my nieces and nephews. But, it soon became apparent that I was not 'included' in things. Birthday parties would be planned and unless I happened to drop by on the actual day of, I would never have known it. I would ask if a niece could spend the night and be told no. I would ask if I could take them out with us for pizza and the answer was always no. It was like, no matter how hard I tried to build a relationship and be close with this next generation, it just didn't happen. And so, my sons, were never allowed to get to know their cousins. They barely remember the few times they were around them. What slowly became obvious was that, my "life style" choice obviously didn't match theirs. So it was no wonder then, that I was shunned from those family functions. In turn, my children were shunned. Even my youngest brother that I was actually raised with shunned us and my sons. The only time he would have anything to do with them was if he wanted to have company for his wife's nephew when he visited. Or when, after he had adopted a son, he wanted someone to come and play with him since they lived out in the country and there weren't a lot of playmates around. To give you an idea of how he behaved; our adopted mother would of course invite both our families to Christmas or Thanksgiving dinner. Being a single working parent, I often couldn't afford nor did I have the time to cook an entire Thanksgiving or Christmas meal so, we would all meet up at her house on the appointed holiday. My brother and his family would often arrive after we were already there. Sometimes, they didn't even bother to eat so, why they came, I don't know. But, whether we arrived before or after them, the outcome was the same. My brother would literally lie on the couch as if he were sleeping. Then rise, eat and leave without ever engaging in a conversation or saying so much as 'boo' to me. This went on for many a year until I was finally able to do my own holiday. As the years rolled by, my youngest brother's marriage (as well as the marriages of my two other brothers, ended. All my sisters wound up divorced and remarried except for one. I say this only to show that they were hardly in a position to throw stones at me.) My adopted father passed away leaving our mother alone. It seemed she quickly became my responsibility so naturally, during the holidays she was invited to my home. However, it didn't seem that way. In her mind, I was cooking for her and as such, she felt she could invite anyone she wanted to my home to eat. That being said, here come the brother that never spoke to me, in to my home where he again, ignored my sons, ignored me, barely ate and left. Finally, I said no more and told her. She then refused to come at all...instead I had to carry a plate of food to her house where she would eat alone. Fast forward till now. That brother passed away not long after she did. My other two brothers...one is in Nevada and the oldest one right here in Florida. They sort of speak on Facebook. I say sort of because it is never anything to personal. Mostly postings about their beliefs and politics which in a nutshell reconfirm what I've always known, and that it that 'my kind' should have zero rights and privileges and if possible, be eliminated from the earth. With that being said, you can imagine how I felt when my own with a heart of gold, reached out to my oldest brother in the way of a birthday wish in which he jokingly stated that he had missed his birthday but, doubted at his age he would notice and then continued on with what he thought was funny. My brother on the other hand felt it was 'critical humor' and immediately and unceremoniously blocked him on Facebook. No explanation, no warning, nothing. Of course, I called to find out what had happened. He launched into a tirade when I called him about how he felt it was inappropriate humor that he just 'didn't want on his timeline' and how if it were his son, he would have done the same thing. Of course, I laid it on thick that my son was 'hurt' by his actions when in truth, it was I that was hurt. My son, having never really known his Uncle, and going by how the ONE Uncle he did know behaved, imitated him. Whoops. But, as misguided as that was, my brother's behavior was over the top and boarded on being dictatorial. I came away from the conversation feeling like in the long run, he did both my son and I a big favor. We may have gone on for years thinking he was some terrific person when in fact, he is an ass hole. It is amazing to me that I could have two brothers, not raised together and they are both the same in a lot of ways. I am not even going to be surprised by what the third brother ever does. In short, I am very thankful for my two sons and my three grandsons. More importantly, I am thankful that as time marches on, people I have thought of as "family members" are showing me that they are anything but. I am thankful that I don't have to continue this lie anymore and can appreciate the unselfish love of my friends and church and yes, my family of choice.

Can you help find his old war buddies?

Can we help him find his old war buddies? Retired Pfc. John Knowles, who lives in Bonaire, Georgia, served in North Africa and Italy during the war. He shipped overseas in 1942 and spent nearly three years fighting with the 34th Infantry Division, 135th Regiment, 3rd Battalion in I Company. http://bit.ly/HelpJohnKnowles

UPDATE: JOHN KNOWLES BORN DEC 1923 PASSED AWAY APRIL 2019 IN BONAIRE GEORGIA

MERCEDES HIT AT INTERNATIONAL MALL TAMPA FL

MERCEDES HIT AT INTERNATIONAL MALL If you were at International Mall June 7th 2015 and this is your #Mercedes: ‬, this is the car (left) that demolished the full drivers side of your new car. According to one Cedric Britton on Facebook, who was able to take this picture, "she pulled in coming down the wrong way and tried to make it work. She hit it hard enough to push it over in the space. She was gone in less than 30 seconds."

NELDA REEDER GIDDENS

GIDDENS, Nelda Marie Reeder, 87, of Tampa, passed away on Friday, May 31, 2013. Born in Hillsborough County, she
spent her teen years on the family farm in Darby, FL.  She was preceded in death by her loving husband of 55 years,
Roland Giddens, Sr. She is survived by her daughter, Darlene House (Lorissa Pfaff), her son, David Giddens, 2 grandsons;
Daniel (Joyce) and Dane Giddens, and 2 great grandsons; Jullian and Deven Giddens; The family will recive friends between
12:00 - 1:00 pm on Monday, June 3, 2013 at the Garden Of Memories Funeral Home, 4207 E. Lake Ave. Tampa. A graveside service will begin at 1:00 pm at the Garden of Memories Cemetery. Rev. Dr. Kathy Rooke;officiating.  In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made to the Melech Hospice House in her honor. postscript: Daniel and Dane Giddens are the sons of Darlene House.

SPOTLIGHT TODAY MAGAZINE: FREE LARGEST GLBTQ TRADE PUBLICATION

From the largest company in the world creating books for Kings, Queens, FTM/MTF entertainers, androgynous performers, and drag show promoters, comes A GLBTQ trade publication with over 300 contributing writers, a database of 5,260+ entertainers in 32 countries. The Infamous Todd Kachinski Kottmeier has created this trade publication, the largest of its kind in GLBTQ history, about the art of being an illusionist. This is absolutely FREE to all of you to read and 100% of the ads go to supporting the Food Pantries for the Poor Program. As with any project he creates, it cost you the reader, nothing but a place in your heart. Thank you Todd for all you do and continue to do! 

http://issuu.com/toddkachinskikottmeier/docs/spotlight_today_spring_2012

DAMN THAT OBAMACARE

Dear Mr Huckabee:  Because of the healthcare overhaul, 2.5 million more people between the ages of 19 and 25 are now insured.  I guess President Obama personally rammed this pretty far down your throat because even with a gazillion ads running every ten minutes for over a year, it still happened.