King of Soup, it’s not all that bad. I agree that Tampa ain’t so hot, but Pinellas county is nice enough, and it’s certainly not unreasonable to live over here and commute to Tampa. The trip to downtown from here is only about half an hour, unless you’re being silly and doing it between 6 - 9a or 4 - 7p. We’re cheap to live in too, and honestly, of all of Florida’s metro areas, this is the only one for me.
And I think it’d be great if we could all get together while you’re in town.
I meant no offense, Bambi. I should have been more temperate in my remarks. I do stand by my advice to check out the neighborhoods at night before deciding where to live.
You’re absolutely right about Pinellas county, though.
Close. I’m in Brandon, which is quickly turning into Suburbia. I’m thinking about moving to Plant City, Thonotosassa, Seffner, or someplace like that. I grew up in Ruskin on a 120x120 corner lot with lots of trees. I miss it; I need land!
Me too. Ok, who’s in charge of this DopeFest? I’ll volunteer to coordinate if y’all can agree on a place to get together. Anyone who’s interested, drop me an e-mail, addy’s in my profile. Put something about SDMB or DopeFest in the subject so’s I won’t think it’s spam.
Hey, my late mother used to teach at UT! :mad:
OK, Harvard it ain’t. It is a small private college with no graduate schools. In terms of both academic standards and physical plant, it’s better than it used to be. An aging multi-millionaire – I forget his name – moved to Tampa a few years ago and decided he was going to make UT “his school.” He’s endowed a lot of new buildings, including a business school, a student union – and nice new dorms. Aurora won’t have any trouble getting a room. It’s not a big campus, but it has a very nice feel. The main building, “Plant Hall,” is a converted upper-crust hotel built in the 1890s by railroad magnate H.B. Plant, build of red brick in the style of a Moorish palace, with onion domes. It’s a well-known city landmark.
Now, I admit it’s not in the best of locations. To the west and north are some rather impoverished neighborhoods, and to the east is the downtown business district which is hardly a neighborhood at all. (It’s all office buildings, no residential, and so it’s mostly dead after 5 p.m.) But it is close to the Franklin Street Mall shopping area, the Tampa Theater (an independent artsy cinema that was originally a live-performance theater – the inside is just incredibly beautiful and ornate!), the Performing Arts Center (you can catch Broadway shows when they go on tour), the Tampa Museum of Art (small, but worth a visit just for its collection of ancient Greek art), the Old Hyde Park Village shopping area, the SoHo (South Howard) arts-and-shopping district . . . and the Seven Seas full-nude bar on Kennedy and MacDill. (But Mons Venus and 2001 on Dale Mabry are ever so much classier! 
)
Tampa is also gifted with an exciting community radio station: WMNF 88.5FM, “Not a member of the Big Brother Broadcasting Network!” Not many towns have a station like that. And we have two daily newspapers – the Tampa Tribune and the St. Petersburg Times, each of which circulates in the other’s county – a rare thing, nowadays.
Going further afield – if you have time, visit some places in Pinellas County, across Tampa Bay. St. Petersburg has the Salvador Dali Museum. The waterfront district of Gulfport has lots of nice little shops and art galleries. And there’s lots of cool beaches on the west shore of the county.
I’m in! 
hey! I suggest the dopefest be at my restaurant, wherever I end up working by that time - currently I work at Ruby Tuesday, but I may have a new job(hope to Og) by that time, the invitation stands… as a server, it’s hard for me to get a sat off, especially if I’m at a new place…
K, here’s the deal. According to the e-mail I got, NinetyWt and Aurora will be in town Friday the 25th day and evening and Saturday the 26th in the morning. I would love to go to the Dalí with the the two of you in the afternoon – very familiar with the area, as it is more or less on the campus of my university, and it doesn’t take more than an hour or so. I’ll even drive so you don’t get all misplaced in St Pete.
I’m thinking we might be able to get together for dinner on Friday night, but I’m not sure what anyone else might have in mind. My e-mail’s in my profile, and so’s Ninety’s, I’m sure we can work something out.
Dan, dinner would probably be Friday evening, like I told you ten minutes ago. The poor dears have a 12 hour drive back on Saturday.
straps on white helmet
licks bus window
has moment of lucidity
duh… well, same thing applies for Friday nights, punkass
Now, now, you boys don’t get to tusslin’… you KNOW momma don’t 'low no horseplay in the house. Get out in the yard … do I hafta turn the hose pipe on y’all ??
Bambi what a sweet offer to take us to the museum, I accept. Should we look for later-supper-Festing-places closer to St. Pete, or Tampa? I’m holding up on my hotel reservations waiting on that.
Aurora and I should be thru at the Uni about 4 or 5, then prolly check in before going to the Museum, if that’s ok with you. I dont’ know how long that will take, I have the feeling she could spend DAYS there, but then again, if she comes down to go to school she can go anytime she likes.
SO as far as a gathering up time, looks like 7ish or so. Is it time to close this thread, and start one in MPSIMS for :drumroll: TampaDope '05?
so far:
brainglutton
Dan Turk
Bambi
Shib do you think you could make it? I would so like to meet you and Mrs. Shib.
Yay! I’m exicted already !!
Yes, ma’am. Sorry, ma’am.
Well, if Dan’s working and we go visit him, it’ll be in St Petersburg. He works in a decent-sized Ruby Tuesday in a mall near home. But, I don’t want to speak for BG and Shibb. BG is in Tampa and Shibb in Oldsmar (I think) which means they may want to go somewhere more centrally-located.
As to the museum: It closes at 5:30 on weekdays, 'cept Thursdays, so you may need to finish up at UT a little earlier, say 3:30, so we can get to the Dalí by 4ish. That’ll leave dinner time to about 6, if I’m adding right. What we could do is swing by Tuesday’s to say hi to brother and then meet up with Shibb and BG and maybe others later? I don’t know exactly, but we can work it out.
I’d love to go, but I have to work on Friday nights.
Sorry!
Carm what time do you go in? Maybe you could make the museum? Or - we can come by your work place and annoy your boss!
And Lakeland has the added attraction of: ME!
Wow, this got off the ground while my back was turned. I live in NW Tampa now, but work in Pinellas (I’m doing it backwards, I know), so I can be wherever. Personally I’m not too wild about Ruby Tuesdays (sorry Dan), and would recommend maybe someplace on the water if you can find it, maybe something in Passe Grille or St. Pete Beach? Maybe even Gulfport, do the galleries there stay open late? Just missing “First Friday” in downtown St. Pete by a weekend. But in the end I can be flexible and meet you all wherever, either for dinner or after. I might be able to drag Bluesman out with me depending on which shift rotation he’s on, but I think Lucretia will be away in Sacramento by then.
Well, I’m at my teaching job from 7AM-4PM; then I work at Publix from 6-11PM.
Kinda sad when a teacher with almost 9 years experience and a Master’s works at Publix on the weekends, but the earned during the school year is my "mad money." During the summer the helps with the bills (we don’t get paid over the summer).
:rolleyes:
We can all go to Publix and eat at the deli.
One of my earliest jobs was bagging groceries at Publix. We worked some insane hours for schoolkids, like 12-16 hours on Saturdays. Do they still do that?
On a side note, it’s appalling how poorly paid Florida’s school teachers are. And the cure for getting more school teachers, a la our governor: train more teachers. How about increasing teacher’s pay? That’d work, too.
I vote for Publix Deli.
I’ll take a whole Publix Ultimate on wheat, extra mayo and onions, kthxbye.
That’s what I’m thinking too. Anything you can think of offhand? I’m not very familiar with the beaches, as I’m not too fond of seawater, but I’m sure we can think of somewhere, probably around 7p or so.
Just want to point out that, if NinetyWt has gotten what she needs from this thread, then we should start a new one devoted to a TB Area Dope. If someone has the energy and a good thread title then go ahead and start one up. I’m probably away from the board for most of the weekend but if I don’t see a thread I’ll start one on Monday. Also I might be down near Treasure Island this weekend so I’ll see if I can scout us a good dinner location… do the south Pinellas beaches not work for anyone, or anyone have an alternate suggestion?
Gratiuitous MPSIMS thread. You guys pick a place for dinner.