All I know is optimism on starting a new day ahead of the game quickly faded today. For once in my life, the nighttime version of Josh was considerate to the morning Josh and set his alarm. It was beautiful. Maybe it is age, but I wanted to get an early start to my day […]
Continue ReadingOpinion
SHOW ME THE MAUNEY: Athletes sacrifice break for sports
While most high school students in the area are working on their tans or enjoying other spring break rituals, many area student-athletes are spending their week off the usual way — practicing and conditioning for the sport they love. The break affects teams and sports differently. Some have practices or conditioning earlier or later than […]
Continue ReadingPERMACULTURE LIVING: Sustainable practices critical to our prolonged prosperity
There are two major taproots from which permaculture emerged. In 1979, an Australian ecology teacher and one of his graduate students coined and open copyrighted the term permaculture by combining the words “permanent” and “agriculture.” If you do an Internet search for either Bill Mollison or David Holmgren, you’ll find a vast body of information […]
Continue ReadingCorny Strawberry Festival challenge accepted
When I decided to participate in the fried corn eating contest at this year’s Florida Strawberry Festival, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I’ve been fascinated with competitive eating since I was a preteen. I remember the first time I saw the famous Nathan’s Coney Island hotdog eating contest, and in 2001, witnessed Japan’s Takeru […]
Continue ReadingLIFE LESSONS FROM THE FIELD: There’s no place like home
In 1939, a film was released by MGM that became an American classic. It introduced the amazing world of Technicolor characters — yet the story of “The Wizard of Oz” is best summed up with these words, “There’s no place like home.” After 20-plus years of serving our nation in the U.S. Army, these words […]
Continue ReadingSHOW ME THE MAUNEY: Classic opens eyes to new sport
As I drove down Cowart Road Saturday to arrive at the DI Polo Complex, I still wasn’t sure what to expect. I’ve covered a wide variety of sports in my still young career, from lacrosse and rugby to Le Mans racing, but the game of polo was still foreign to me. Rows of exotic cars […]
Continue ReadingSHOW ME THE MAUNEY: The true meaning of ‘student athlete’
We’ve all heard the stereotypes. Some popular ones include the derogatory phrases “meatheads” and “dumb jocks.” Athletes across the globe defy these misconceptions every day, and Plant City area athletes certainly are doing their part of squashing these stereotypes. The more I cover local high school sports teams, the more I take note of the […]
Continue ReadingOBSERVED: Grandparents set shining example
Years ago, my wife, Jess, and I found one of those online surveys. It displayed several images and asked the question: Which of these best depicts love? One was a couple walking hand-in-hand on the beach. Another was of a husband and wife on their wedding day. Still another was of a romantic candlelit dinner […]
Continue ReadingSHOW ME THE MAUNEY: Signing Day hoopla a slippery slope
We’re more than a week removed from National Signing Day, but some story lines are still at the forefront of sports media. Signing Day is just the beginning of a continuous high school football recruiting process where players, including several local players, will ink with colleges in the coming weeks, mostly with smaller schools. While […]
Continue ReadingPAJAMA MAMA: Planting seeds of virtue in your children
Silence is golden — until you have children. Then, silence means trouble is lurking. As a stay-at-home mom, I always am looking for inexpensive activities to engage my children, and, of course, keep them from tearing the walls of our home down to the studs. A few weeks ago, I was scouring the aisles of […]
Continue Reading
