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MAY 6, 2015
Geocaching offers hidden treasures By Michael Murillo
mmurillo@lakerlutznews.com
If you want to visit the Tampa Bay Geocaching Store in Land O’ Lakes, it’s easy to find. Just go to N 028 13.552 W 082 27.421 And, you’re there. If using a geographic coordinate system to find a local business seems unusual, it is. But if you’re geocaching, it’s actually the best way to find where you’re going. So, as a tribute to the hobby they serve, the store lists its coordinates on its website, along with its traditional address, 4710 Land O’ Lakes Blvd. Geocaching isn’t easy to describe by comparing it to other outdoor activities. Part treasure hunt, part sightseeing trek and part community bonding experience, it’s a game you can play close to home or just about anywhere in the world. “It’s fun to do and gives you a chance to get out of the house, get into nature and see different things,” said Elaine Erickson, owner of the Tampa Bay Geocaching Store. Erickson has found around 1,200 caches from more than a dozen states during the last seven years, and she never tires of the thrill of finding a new one. Participants leave small geocaches (waterproof containers) at random locations across the planet. They’re hidden, but only to people who aren’t geocaching. The goal is to make them available to other players, so they post the coordinates on list sites and mobile phone apps used by those who want to find them. Players then input those coordinates, and after a little snooping, usually find the geocache and the logbook that’s placed inside. The logbook reveals how often the site has been visited and how far people have traveled to find it. And, once you find the geocache, you can record your name in the logbook. There’s also usually a small prize associatSee GEOCACHING, page 9A
PHOTO COURTESY OF ELAINE ERICKSON
Geocaching often takes people to different places. A few years ago, Erickson reached a cache at the tri-state border that connects Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico.
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Those visiting a community open house could learn about the transportation challenges facing Hillsborough County and jot down potential solutions.
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Hillsborough faces huge traffic challenges By B.C. Manion
stance, there are more than 7,000 lane miles of road, as well as 254 bridges and 315 signalized intersections. Go Hillsborough is an initiative aimed at And, of that, “more than 30 percent of engaging the public to find solutions for de- county roads are at or approaching poor teriorating infrastructure and traffic-clogged condition,” according to information on disroads. play. The effort is a collaboration involving Lack of transit is another issue. the Hillsborough County Commission, the “As of today, 58 percent of county resimayors of Tampa, Temple Terrace and dents and 38 percent of our jobs are not Plant City, and the chairman of the board served by transit,” a display says. for the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Paying for improvements won’t be system. cheap, either. Organizers have been making the rounds The county is facing $750 million in to places across Hillsborough County for transportation backlogs. months, inviting the public to help pinpoint So far, feedback has shown that different the problems and weigh in on potential so- parts of the county have different priorities. lutions. For instance, transit ranks as a top prioriOn April 30, they made a stop at St. ty in West Tampa, while new roads ranks as a Timothy Catholic Church in Lutz. top priority in South County. In Northwest At this session, they invited members of Hillsborough, new roads and wider roads the public to look at informational placards are the top priority, while resurfacing ranks throughout the room, to watch a video on a second. continuous loop, to ask questions of people There’s no easy solution for funding imstationed throughout the room and to offer provements, either. their input in writing. Choices include user fees, such as gas At this session, the focus was on making taxes or tolls; charging developers a fair choices. share; and a sales tax. The next series of workshops will focus The next set of meetings will focus on aton finding consensus. tempting to build a community consensus The idea is to invite public participation on which problems to attack and how to in both identifying problems and suggesting pay for them. solutions. In addition to four meetings that are Both the slideshow and placards set up scheduled around the county, there will be a around the room made it clear that the telephone town hall on May 21 from 7 p.m. county has no shortage of problems, when to 8 p.m. Call (877) 229-8493. The Pin numit comes to its transportation network. ber is 11031. For one thing, it’s a big job. For more information, visit In Hillsborough County alone, for in- GoHillsborough.org.
bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
Antonio Medina wanted to give himself the best chance he could to attend the college of his choice, so he applied to several places. “You can be a top candidate but still, it’s really tough to get in. They get more top candidates than they can accept. Sometimes, it comes down to luck,” said Medina, who will be graduating soon from Wiregrass Ranch High. So, he applied to scores of schools, in- Antonio Medina cluding the University of South Florida, the University of Central Florida, the University of Florida, as well as to such colleges as Princeton, Columbia, Penn, Brown, Harvard and Yale. Brown University sent him a letter saying he would likely be accepted, Medina said. “We were so excited about the letter. That was so amazing. We were happy with that,” he said. On the day that the colleges announce their decisions, Medina and his mom, Sandra, were sitting at three computers, waiting. “So, I checked Brown. I got accepted, so I was happy,” Medina said. “We checked Penn and Columbia and Princeton. None of those. “Then I checked Yale and got in. I was super surprised. “I checked Harvard last. I was like, ‘Let’s just see.’ ” And he got into Harvard, too. “I was speechless,” his mom said. “I’m never going to forget that day.” Medina also received full-ride offers from USF, UCF and UF. So, then it was a matter of choosing where he would go. He and his dad, Alfredo, visited Harvard and Yale. Then, Medina made his final choice. “They’re both great schools. You can’t go wrong with either school,” Medina said. “It came down to, which school did I feel better at?” He chose Yale. See GRADUATE, page 9A