TOP OF THE WEEK:

As Tom Jackson, that golden-penned scribe of the Tampa Tribune, pointed out a few months back, you can be one of two things – a tweeter, blogger or whatever like us or an elected official, which we are not, although we used to play one on TV. But you can’t be both. Jackson used runaway politician Mike Fasano as an example. Same holds true for civic activist/ journalist - a role a mean-spirited, old person in Clearwater has been unsuccessfully trying to play for several decades. You just can’t have it both ways and maintain credibility as Fasano and the mean-spirited, old Clearwater person have proven time and again.

Around the Bay:

1. Apparently former St. Petersburg mayor and Times whipping boy Bill Foster is not the only person who refuses to bow at the altar of the mighty Rays. St. Petersburg City Council members wisely voted down the corporate giveaway negotiated by current mayor Rick Kriseman. Their idea of work shopping possible stadium locations is a good one. Meanwhile, there are no cities lining up at the door to offer the Rays a new home – advantage St. Pete, not the Rays.

2. In the immortal words of Lawrence Peter Berra, it isn’t over until it’s over. But for the handful of folks who still think the Belleview Biltmore can live on in its current configuration, it’s over. Demolition will begin in early spring.

3. The head of the DMV, Julie Jones, has been appointed to head up the troubled Florida Department of Corrections (DOC). That is akin to a headline announcing that Capt. Smith of the Titanic has been appointed captain of the Queen Elizabeth. Shouldn’t she get the DMV straightened out before she takes on a new challenge?

4. You’ve lived in Clearwater a long time if you remember when all directions of traffic stopped at the same time at Cleveland and Ft. Harrison so pedestrians could walk in any direction – even diagonally.

The Diamond, the Media and Other Stuff –

5. Some supposed hot prospects are headed the Rays way in the recent Wil Myers trade. Two things - we’re so not sure Rene Rivera is an upgrade or even a wash for defensive minded Ryan Hanigan. Rivera has never caught 100 games in a season in his career. He is, however, three years younger (31). Second, there have been whispers that the young Myers is not the most coachable player in the game – something the Rays can do without.

6. Our Rants and Raves focus group (comprised of three old, cranky people) says the latest sign of the end of civilization, as we know it, is legalized pot dealers in Colorado promoting bags of grass as stocking stuffers. What could possibly go wrong with that idea? (Margin of error 50 percent more or less).

7. The recent John Winter Memorial Teddy Bear Drive by Channel 8 reminds us how much we miss that guy - Chris Thomas too. They were two of the best.

8. In a related note, the announcement that Jennifer Leigh would step into the very large shoes of Gayle Sierens on Channel 8’s 11 p.m. newscast was no surprise. Leigh has distinguished herself anchoring Channel 8’s 7 p.m. newscast. She, like Gayle, brings just the right touch of serious professionalism along with the occasional light touch. Leigh should do well.

9. Both coordinators out the door at USF and unless things significantly improve in 2015, head football coach Willie Taggart will be receiving some lovely parting gifts this time next year.

10. Turns out the Wall Street Journal article regarding a change in direction for Budweiser advertising was misinterpreted as meaning they would scale back their use of the famous Clydesdales in their Christmas and Super Bowl campaigns. Not true – nor was the rumor that Bud’s sales dropped 50 per cent within a day of the misinterpreted article. Some things, certainly the beloved Clydesdales, are sacred.

IN CLOSING:

Okay, we’re approaching the first of the year and your annual lose weight, get in shape exercise (pun intended). Instead of trying the same old thing, do yourself a favor and make a resolution to read three books in the first quarter of the year – and, of course, follow the advice. They are local author Dr. Don Ardell’s 14 Days to a Wellness Lifestyle; William Duffy’s Sugar Blues and the product of four New Orleans authors – Sugar Busters. Read one or more of the three previously? Then add Robert Atkins’ New Diet Revolution – a somewhat controversial book but a program that works for weight loss and health improvement. All the new-fangled books on the shelves are, in one fashion or the other, copies of these four groundbreakers. Here’s to a new you in 2015!

Merry Christmas!