We open this week with yet another dining suggestion (see back story in Jan. 1 RANTS). Journey to West Hillsborough and Lois in Tampa (the closest location) and treat yourself to a great Cobb Salad at Zaxby’s. Their cookie milkshake will help offset the good effect of eating a salad. Recent good news, there will finally be a Zaxby’s in Pinellas – on Ulmerton Road, we’re told.

Solid idea from the PSTA

We are quick to admit we are not the biggest booster of the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA). Their ill-fated Greenlight campaign and its related misinformation schemes were beyond the pale. But now, PSTA is the father of an incredibly good (we might even say great) idea. Under the plan, already run on an experimental basis with good success, transit riders will be able to get a lift from the bus stop closest to their home for right around a dollar. The “final mile” will be provided by Lyft, Uber, a taxi company or, for the disabled, one of the county’s wheelchair transport companies. The plan eliminates a long walk for the elderly and disabled from their home to the bus stop – often a disincentive for potential riders. It seems to have promise. We’ll keep an eye on it.

Tampa Bay, politics and stuff:

1. A recent snippet from that little wordsmith of cuteness, Daniel Ruth: “the Cold War between the Oval Office fabulists and the purveyors of facts will never thaw”. We assume by purveyor of facts he’s referring to his own paper along with The Washington Post and The New York Times. And we assume he wrote that with a straight face.

2. Quote of the Week: “A judge who likes every outcome he reaches is very likely a bad judge” – America’s next Supreme Court Justice, Judge Neil Gorsuch.

3. By the way, nice pick Mr. President, even the far left is searching for bullets to fire and can find none.

4. Two really good people passed away in the last ten days. First, we note the passing of longtime acquaintance Fred Brown at age 89. An area businessman for decades, Rotarian and traveler, Fred saw one of his fondest wishes come true last fall when his beloved Chicago Cubs finally won the World Series for the only time in his life. Second, Pinellas County lost a dedicated jurist and civic leader with the passing of Skip Schafer. Skip succumbed to cancer at age 69.

5. You’ve lived in Clearwater a long time if you purchased books at the original Sandy Book Store on Court Street at Osceola.

The diamond, the media and other stuff:

6. A few weeks back (RANTS – Jan. 15), we reported that most observers felt the Rays left money on the table in the Drew Smyly trade. Now, most of those same experts are saying the Rays got the best of the Dodgers in the Logan Forsythe trade which netted uber-prospect Jose De Leon.

7. Our first pre-season baseball predictions: a team that made the playoffs last year that won’t in ‘17 – Toronto Blue Jays who are losing a huge part of their lineup - and the team that missed the playoffs that won’t this year – the St. Louis Cards who have missed the playoffs two years in a row just once in this century – and have added a guy who wins wherever he plays – Dexter Fowler. Our official predictions will come at the end of spring training from the nearly world famous Achmed Walled (pronounced wall-ED).

8. The football situation in San Francisco is getting more and more bizarre. John Lynch is a great guy but a GM - probably not. And Kyle Shanahan seems to be taking the coaching post pretty much because he missed out on the job he really wanted – Denver. Wish he would have waited another year for a better opportunity than the crazy farm on the left coast.

9. ESPN’s dropping of The Sports Reporters is pretty much a mercy killing. It had grown old and tired – much like Pardon the Interruption which should be next on the chopping block.

10. Memo to Ashton Kutcher: Contact us when you find meaningful work.

Baseball – five guys we’d want to talk to if we owned a MLB franchise

So we cashed a really, really big lottery ticket and rather than invest it wisely, we decide to buy a major league baseball team. Here are five guys we would try to persuade to come manage our team. First call would be to Bruce Bochy, a future Hall of Famer who has done a lot with a little managing the Giants. Once Bruce turned us down, next call to Buck Showalter who wins everywhere he goes – again like Bochy, usually with less than overwhelming talent. Third call goes to Terry Francona, just a solid baseball man, who could just as easily be the first or second call. Then, hello KC is Ned Yost home? His run with the ordinary talent on the Royals has been impressive. Surely, one of those four would say yes; if not the next long distance call would also be to Missouri and the steady Mike Matheny of the Cards. Note that three of the five were major league catchers. Francona and Showalter were both first basemen/outfielders, but we will overlook that.

SNEAK PEEK AT NEXT WEEK – THE ART OF SELECTIVE REPORTING