We continue our weekly dining suggestion (see back story in Jan. 1 Rants). This week a breakfast or lunch suggestion – try Benedicts on Belcher Road just north of N.E. Coachman Rd. As the name suggests, there are several varieties of Eggs Benedict, multiple quiches and omelets that the plates barely hold. A second location is on Bayshore Blvd. in Dunedin.

The restaurant landscape is changing

We are sad to report that one of the restaurants featured in our weekly 2017 feature has closed. We learned this as we attempted to dine there with another couple last weekend. Cheddars on Roosevelt Boulevard had a simple sign in the window saying that due to rising costs and changing tastes, they were shuttering the establishment. Further research by one of our Rants focus group members shows this is a national trend. Folks, particularly the younger generations, are becoming more eat at home types either cooking or ordering in. And it’s having a very negative effect on casual establishments like Cheddars, Outback and Chili’s to name a few. Sales are down and more and more casual restaurants are waving the white flag - sad to see.

Tampa Bay, politics and stuff:

1. Not all news is bleak for Cheddars devotees. Their Pinellas Park location remains open on Park Blvd.

2. Okay, everybody who thought John Morgan had noble motives in his push for medical pot raise their hands. It’s now apparent that Florida’s king of ambulance chasers also wants to be the king of legalized pot in the Sunshine State.

3. One of our oldest friends (dating back to third grade) shared this with us recently. "The only thing worse than bad governance is an electorate that looks the other way." Remind us just when it was that we last witnessed good governance in our nation?

4. We know it’s early, but it’s hard to imagine a better qualified candidate for Florida Attorney General than former Hillsborough County Circuit Judge Ashley Moody.

5. You’ve lived in the bay area a long time if you exceeded your clothes budget just a bit at one of the classy Wolf Brothers clothing stores.

The diamond, the media and other stuff:

6. This week we focus on our own media – TBRR. Last week’s rants went nearly 900 words – a rather verbose record, but there was a lot of territory to cover. This week, a leaner, meaner 800 words.

7. From the publication that begs the question “what kind of twisted mind comes up with this stuff”, the 5:05 Newsletter, this gem: Police in states where marijuana is legal are struggling to find a system to determine if someone is too high to drive. So far, the best method is to hand them a breathalyzer and see if they inhale.

8. Jimmy Piersall passed away at age 86 last week. To term him colorful would be an understatement. On the event of his 100^th career homer, he ran the bases facing backward. The shot was hit off another baseball notable who died this year – Dallas Green. We have to imagine that if the two faced off again, the old school Green drilled him.

9. Oddest baseball story of the year – Miami Marlins reliever Junichi Tazawa’s rehab assignment has been delayed because his Japanese interpreter quit and the Marlins were worried he might become confused in his rehab efforts. Perhaps if you take a six-figure job in America, you might want to pick up a copy of Rosetta Stone?

10. Summer begins next week and here are five great summer songs for your music device: Robin Ward’s The Most Wonderful Summer; Summer in the City by the Lovin’ Spoonful; the Beach Boy’s Do It Again; Ron Dante’s Summer Medley and Dancing, Shagging on the Boulevard by Alabama. Happy summer!

A “what if” involving the Cubs, Rays, White Sox and Yanks

A piece by ESPN’s Andrew Marchand a few weeks back got us to thinking “what if?” In 2012, Joe Girardi had an opportunity to manage his hometown Cubs and, of course, eventually passed. His GM, Brian Cashman, promised not to stand in his way even though Girardi had a couple years left on his Yankee contract. All Cashman asked was not to be blindsided at the last minute and to be allowed to start looking for a replacement. The Cubs hired Dale Sveum and then Rick Renteria who did a bang up job but was dumped when the Cubs had a chance to sign Joe Madden. But if the Cubs had signed Girardi, they might have made it to the Promised Land a year or two earlier. And the Yanks might have made a run at Madden and the Rays might have gone after a very talented third base coach in San Diego (Renteria). And the White Sox, now headed by Renteria, – who knows? Kevin Cash maybe?

SNEAK PEEK AT NEXT WEEK: THE PRICE OF PINELLAS POLITICS IS GOING UP