Post on 25-Jun-2018
transcript
January 2016
Email: editor@plantcityguide.com (813) 610-7336
The Bruton Memorial Library will host
a program featuring bestselling Florida
author Tim Dorsey on Saturday,
January 23 at 2:00 pm.
Dorsey’s humorous crime novels have
earned not only wide-spread acclaim
but has placed him on the New York
Times best-seller list multiple times.
His lead character, Serge A. Storms,
has created a huge fan following. Serge
is a smart yet certifiable anti-hero who
loves Florida. The character’s vast
knowledge of his home state is
matched only by the creative ways he
kills off all the criminals he comes
across.
Book signing to follow. Books and
other Serge Storm items will be
available for purchase. For more
information call (813) 757-9215 or visit
www.plantcitygov.com/library
Planes, Trains and Automobiles
Returns to Plant City Airport
The sixth annual Planes, Trains &
Automobiles event will take place at
the Plant City Airport on Saturday,
February 27 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00
p.m. at the Plant City Airport, 4007
Airport Road, just west of Sydney
Road. Admission is free. Parking is
$5.
It’s a chance to see real airplanes,
remote control planes, model trains in
operation and on exhibit, and classic
and exotic car displays. Antique
railroad maintenance equipment, train
artifacts and memorabilia will be on
site for guests to explore.
The highlight is the free plane rides
for children ages 8 to 17 sponsored by
the Experimental Aircraft
Association's Young Eagles program.
The first 150 will get to fly, though
EAA members say they may extend.
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 2 ~
Just a Thought… By: Christine Wynne-Andrade Editor
Well, another year has come to a close,
and there seems to be that let down
feeling. After that joyous excitement of
getting our holiday decorations out
right after Thanksgiving, comes the
dread of putting them all away now for
another year. I must say our downtown
area was very festive and we should be
thankful to live in this community.
The start of a new year is a time for
resolving to eat less, exercise more,
work harder, give more, get your
financial situation in order, make a
long-delayed life change. Why do we
make such resolutions?
The simplest explanation is that our
highest aspirations for ourselves often
conflict with our daily desires.
Resolutions are designed to give our
aspirations the upper hand. In the terms
of modern social science, human beings
engage in fast, automatic, short-term
thinking, and also in slower, more
deliberative, long-term thinking. When
we make New Year’s resolutions,
we’re taking advantage of a “temporal
landmark” that helps us to strengthen
our best intentions. Good luck to
everyone who has set some resolutions.
Don’t hesitate to drop me a line at
editor@plantcityguide.com.
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Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 4 ~
Spotlight on Entertainment
The Sequel to “Red Velvet Cake
War” And, yes, once again it’s set in
Texas! This deliriously funny
Southern-fried farce finds the
Verdeen cousins of Sweetgum,
Texas - Gaynelle, Peaches and
Jimmie Wyvette—teetering on the
brink of disaster again.
Gaynelle, frustrated and frazzled
from working too many two-bit jobs,
stubbornly refuses to face the fact
she’s turning the Big 5-0. In a
misguided effort to lift her cousin’s
spirits, Peaches, a sassy, morturarial
cosmetologist who’s stuck in a
romantic dry gulch, is determined to
throw Gaynelle a surprise birthday
party she doesn’t even want.
Jimmie Wyvette, riding high on the
success of her new wedding gown
boutique for big gals—Wide Bride—
reluctantly agrees to help Peaches
surprise Gaynelle. But it turns out the
surprise is on them when, in a
startling twist, the party plans shift to
a hastily thrown-together family
funeral instead.
The hilarity escalates when Peaches’
recently declared dead husband
unexpectedly returns and his
romantic links to each of the cousins
is revealed. And the hits just keep on
coming as a Cajun bounty hunter
who’s tracking Peaches’ husband
crashes the funeral and a jilted bride
holds the Verdeens hostage with a
loaded paintball gun. All the while,
the cousins struggle to avoid their
bitter Aunt LaMerle who’s hell-
bent on cracking the ranks of the elite
Daughters of the Nation of Texas and
exacting revenge on the Verdeen girls
before the dirt hits the casket. As the
outrageous complications of this
ferociously funny Jones-Hope-Wooten
comedy explode into chaos, you’ll find
yourself hoping your next family
celebration—be it birthday, wedding
or funeral—is even half this much fun!
Cast members will bring the story to
life at 8:00 p.m. on January 29, 30,
February 5 and 6 and on January 31
and February 7 at a 2:00 p.m. matinee.
Tickets are $16 for adults, $14 for
students and senior citizens and $12
for members or group advance sales.
Reservations are recommended and
can be purchased in advance online at
PCEShows.com by calling Frances
Hardee at 813-754-4929. Tickets are
generally available at the door as well.
The Plant City Entertainment
Community Theater is located at 101
North Thomas Street.
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 6 ~
Florida State Fair
The annual Florida State Fair is a salute
to the state's best in the agriculture and
equestrian industry including an
abundance of shows, music, rides and
food for 12 consecutive days February 4
- 15. Excitement is in the air all over the
fairgrounds with plenty of free
entertainment included with admission.
Make sure to plan your day in advance
to enjoy all the sights, sounds, and tastes
the state fair has to offer.
Fairgoers can enjoy a spacious midway
that provides more than 100 rides and
games and there is nothing like fair food
— cotton candy, ice cream, and things
fried that you never thought of frying –
think fried Oreo cookies or chocolate
covered bacon! Exhibitors come from
all over the state to continue the tradition
of showing off their handiwork, children
participating in 4H and FFA are eager to
show their skills and animals, and a visit
to the Florida State Fair isn't complete
without stepping back in time in Cracker
Country — a rustic turn-of-the-century
village.
Free concerts at the fair include
“Country Gold” February 9 & 10 at
2:00pm, “Lazy Bonez” February 6 at
3:00pm “Beatlemania Live” February 6
at 7:00pm, and “Colt Ford” February 15
at 6:00pm.
Gates open daily at 10:00 a.m. Monday
through Thursday, and at 9:00 a.m.
Friday through Sunday. Cracker Country
is open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00
p.m.
4800 U.S. Highway 301 North
Tampa, Florida 33610
Adult Admission - Ages 12 and over
Monday - Friday $11 / $9 Advance
Saturday - Sunday $13 / $9 Advance
Child Admission - Ages 6-11 years
Monday - Friday $6 / $5 Advance
Saturday - Sunday $7 / $5 Advance
Ages 5 and under admitted free.
Senior (55+)
Admission $9 Advance Purchase $7
Senior tickets are good only on Senior
Days: February 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 2016
All other days would require and
Adult Admission ticket.
RIDES AND MORE RIDES!
Any Day Ride Armband
$35 Advance Purchase $30 Good on
any one day of the fair during
Midway hours of operation
Weekday Ride Armband
$25 Advance Purchase $20
Unlimited Midway Rides! Good only
on February 4, 8, 9, 10, 11, 2016
Free Parking!
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 9 ~
Local Flavor
Restaurant Marrakesh in Epcot’s Morocco
Fragrant spices, soulful tagines, and
Moroccan delicacies such as roast
lamb, shish kebab, couscous and
brochette of chicken were a few of the
many reasons I recently visited
Restaurant Marrakesh in Epcot’s
Morocco.
My husband and I took advantage of
the Candlelight Processional Dining
Package last month. The dining
package included guaranteed seating at
the very popular Candlelight
Processional, plus a delicious lunch or
dinner at one of Epcot’s full-service
restaurants, all of which included an
appetizer, entrée, dessert and non-
alcoholic beverage.
Moroccan cuisine is one of the most
alluring and exciting in the world. A
country where so many cultures have
left their marks: Carthaginians,
Romans, Phoenicians, Byzantines,
Moors, Spaniard, Jews, Berbers and
French created a true fusion of cultures.
Morocco was a hub where travelers,
merchants, fishermen and farmers
gathered to buy, sell, and trade herbs
and spices, and the earth’s and sea’s
bounty. Restaurant Marrakesh’s cuisine
reflects these influences.
Set in the splendor of a sultan's palace,
authentic architecture and touches like
stained-glass chandeliers bathe diners
in a warm, dim glow, all while
intricate, hand laid tile mosaics evoke
timeless majesty.
Guests can select an à la carte favorite,
or partake in a culinary adventure with
the Marrakesh Feast, which features
everything from Harira soup and an
assortment of hearty meats to
Moroccan pastries and more. Children
can also choose from kid-friendly fare
like chicken tenders, pasta and
hamburgers.Guests 21 years of age and
older can order such specialties as the
Casablanca Sunset, the Sahara Splash
and the Marrakesh Express.
While dining, we were treated to live
traditional Moroccan music. A belly
dancer entertained guests with spirited
movements to the live music.
Please note: Reservations are highly
recommended and can be made up to
180 days prior to your visit. Call (407)
939-3463.
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 10 ~
Water Please By: Anthony Andrade
Most of the time when my wife and I
dine out, we each request a glass of
water with lemon. A cold glass of
refreshing water comes at no charge, and
quite frankly, we take for granted this
simple request.
Such a request in other parts of the world
is an entirely different matter.
According to the World Health
Organization, 1.1 billion people don’t
have access to clean, safe drinking
water. That is about one in eight people
on this planet. As a consequence, an
average of 1.6 million people die every
year from water borne diseases, 90% of
whom are children under the age of five.
Another 8 million people (mostly
women and children) become visually
impaired from Trachoma, a water born
bacterial infection that can lead to
blindness. Trachoma is the world’s
leading cause of preventable blindness of
infectious origin. If left untreated,
repeated trachoma infections can cause
severe scarring of the inside of the eyelid
and can cause the eyelashes to scratch
the cornea, permanently damaging the
cornea which leads to irreversible
blindness.
One may ask “what can I do?” This
obviously does not occur in Plant City.
There is a way to help, as there is a local
resident who had made the pursuit of
clean/safe water for all people his life’s
mission.
Howard Fox is a 27 year old advocate
and missionary who travels to the
poorest and most remote regions of
Africa to help provide clean and safe
drinking water to villagers.
Howard graduated from the
University of South Florida with a
degree in mechanical engineering in
2012. A few years after college,
Howard gave up a high paying
engineering job, to work with
Overland Missions in their water
projects division to drill new wells
and to repair old wells in rural
Zambia. He does this not only to
eliminate the death, disease and
blindness that plague undeveloped
regions, but also to bring the
opportunity for a better life to women
and children. He felt that there was
something more for him out there and
he could make a difference.
Overland Missions exists to bring the
gospel in remote areas to people who
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 11 ~
have never heard about Jesus. One of
Overland’s humanitarian aid efforts in
is the water projects.
You may ask what role safe and clean
drinking water has specifically to do
with women and children. Beyond the
obvious health effects that
disproportionately affect women and
children, clean and safe water from new
village wells can free women and
children from the bondage of having to
haul water long distances.
You see in areas that do not have wells,
villagers must travel several miles each
day to a lake or river to bring back
enough fetid water back to their village
to survive. Water hauling is typically
the responsibility of women and
children so much so that many children
cannot attend school because collecting
drinking water is deemed a more
critical endeavor.
According to the World Health
Organization, women and children in
Africa walk an average of 3.7 miles
each day to collect water. This is time
that is not spent working, caring for
family members or attending school.
Mr. Fox is currently raising funds to
travel back to Africa to continue his
well drilling and well repair work. His
goal is to drill at least 4 new wells per
month and repair at least 8 broken hand
pumps per month.
His next trip will be in March where he
will be working in Zambia. He hopes to
raise enough funds to stay at least 12
months and up to 18 months. Make no
mistake about it, this is no year-long
vacation. While in Africa, the team
stays in rustic camps and works long
days drilling new wells and repairing
ones that have broken. A typical well
can provide clean water for 250-600
people.
This is something to think about the
next time you are at a restaurant and
request a glass of “water please.”
If you would like to help, you can
contact Howard at (813) 454-7836 or
visit his website at
www.howardfox.me. His Facebook
page is
facebook.com/missionaryhowardfox
If you would like more information on
Overland Missions, visit
www.overlandmissions.com.
For more information on the clean
water crisis, visit www.water.org.
Water.org is an international nonprofit
organization that has positively
transformed millions of lives around
the world by providing access to safe
water and sanitation. Founded by Gary
White and Matt Damon, Water.org
pioneers innovative, sustainable
solutions to the global water crisis,
giving women hope, children health
and communities a future.
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 12 ~
Making Cents
How to Pay Off $10,000 in Debt This Year
Are you tired of paying credit card bills
for things you no longer own? Do you
wish you had an extra $200 in spending
cash rather than a car payment?
If you are frustrated, remember that
it doesn’t have to be that way — 2016
can be the year you climb out of the
debt hole once and for all.
Here are three steps to achieving that
goal.
Step 1: Get it in writing
You can use an Excel spreadsheet or
simple pen and paper. However you do
it, write down each debt you owe along
with its minimum payment and interest
rate. If you have a credit card with a
promotional rate or a mortgage with an
adjustable rate, make a note of when
those rates will change.
Your list should include all of the
following, if you have them:
Credit cards
Mortgage
Home equity loans
Vehicle loans
Student loans
Personal loans
Loans from family members
Payment plans for the doctor,
veterinarian, mechanic, etc.
401(k) loans
Once you have all the debts written
down, total them up. Now it’s time to
bring that number down to zero.
Step 2: Create your debt repayment
plan
This is much easier than it sounds.
While you can use calculators and
spreadsheets, there’s no reason to get
that involved. You can instantly create
a debt repayment plan by going back
through the list you created in Step 1
and numbering the debts in the order
you would like them gone.
There are two theories when it comes
to ordering debts.
Theory 1. Order the debts by interest
rate, starting with the highest rate and
working your way down. This method
may save the most money overall.
Theory 2. Order the debts by their
balance, starting with the smallest
balance and working your way up. This
method may help you quickly see
progress and stay motivated.
Step 3: Pyramid your payments
Now you need to put your plan into
action. This involves something we call
pyramiding. You may see others use
the terms “snowball” or “avalanche.”
Essentially, it’s about focusing all your
money on one debt and then building
upon minimum payments as you knock
out balances.
Go back to your list and review all the
minimum payments due on your debts.
Now compare those amounts with the
numbers in your budget.
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 13 ~
If you’re paying more than the
minimums, reduce payments on all
debts except whatever is No. 1 on your
list. For example, let’s say all your debt
is on three credit cards. Each has a $25
minimum payment, but you’ve been
paying $100 a month on each one.
To start your pyramid, drop the
payment on each of two cards to $25
and add the remaining $75 to the third
card’s payment. As a result, you’ll
make $25 minimum payments on two
cards and one $250 payment
($100+$75+$75) on the last card.
When that last card is paid off, take the
$250 and add it to the second card on
your list. Now, you’re making one $275
payment and one $25 payment.
When card No. 2 is paid off, combine
the $275 with the $25 minimum you’ve
been paying and make $300 payments
until you finish off your debt.
So why bother with the pyramid? If
you’re going to be paying $300 in debt
payments every month, does it really
matter how you structure the payments?
The real benefit of pyramiding is
psychological. It gives you a game plan
to follow and helps you see results
more quickly.
Rather than spending years paying
small amounts without any apparent
significant progress, you’re heaping all
your money on a single debt and
watching it disappear.
The secret to making this system work
is to look for any and all extra cash you
can redirect to your debt. Adding a
couple hundred dollars to your
payments each month will have you
out of debt in no time.
And that brings us to our final point.:
Reaching the $10,000 mark
You may be looking at the headline of
this article and thinking there’s no way
you could possibly pay off $10,000 in
debt this year. True, if you live on a
$20,000 income, you’re probably not
going to be able to pay off $10,000.
However, for many middle-class
families, it’s probably doable.
To pay off $10,000 in debt, you need
to pay off about $833 a month, and
you’re probably already paying a big
chunk of that. Granted, some of that
money is going to interest, but you’re
paying down the principal (your debt)
as well. Pull up your account
statements to learn exactly how much
of your monthly payment goes to
principal and how much is being eaten
by interest.
Then subtract the total of your current
monthly principal payments from
$833. For example, if you’re currently
paying $333 toward your principal
each month, you’d need to come up
with an extra $500 each month to reach
$10,000 for the year.
Between saving money and earning
money, there are plenty of ways to
come up with an extra $500 a month to
put toward your debt pyramid and hit a
$10,000 payoff for 2016. You can get a
second job, have a few garage sales, or
provide a service like babysitting, yard
mowing, etc.
For a free financial planning session
and assistance with budgeting, contact
Christine Wynne at
editor@plantcityguide.com.
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 14 ~
Michael Lasser to Give Talk on
American Railroad Songs and Social History
Michael Lasser, a nationally recognized
public speaker and social critic, will give
a talk on American railroad songs and
social history at the Friends of the
Bruton Memorial Library meeting on
Thursday, January 21, 2016, at 7:00
P.M. as part of the Friends public
program series; admission is free. The
talk will be given at the Bruton
Memorial Library at 302 W. McLendon
Street in downtown Plant City.
Michael Lasser has appeared at
museums, universities, libraries, and
historical societies throughout the
country; his talks are a mix of substance
and entertainment, serious purpose and
lighthearted irreverence. After all, he
says, “I’m talking about popular songs,
not the future of the Republic.”
The January 21st program in Plant City is
entitled “Hear That Lonesome Whistle;
What Railroad Songs Tell Us About
America”. Lasser stresses that with their
particular combination of power and
grace, railroads affected American
attitudes and behavior in the decades
after the Civil War and into the 20th
Century. He points out that the railroads
changed our sense of speed and distance
and gave us a larger sense of mobility
and opportunity.
Lasser’s talk picks up with the time
period leading into the Civil War and
over the decades covers those
distinctively American songs that follow
trains as they crisscross the vast nation.
Lasser is a lecturer, writer, broadcaster,
critic, and teacher. He is the author of
America’s Songs: From the 1890s to
the Post-War Years, and with Philip
Furia co-authored of the recent book,
America’s Songs: The Stories Behind
the Songs of Broadway, Hollywood,
and Tin Pan Alley. Since 1980 he has
been the host of the nationally
syndicated public radio show,
Fascinatin’ Rhythm, winner of a 1994
Peabody Award.
A graduate of Dartmouth College,
Lasser is the former theatre critic for
The Rochester Democrat &
Chronicle, and for 30 years has
spoken at institutions across the
country. In 2010 he was named a
Thomas P. Johnson Distinguished
Visiting Scholar at Rollins College, in
Winter Park, Florida.
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 15 ~
Museum Musings
Mel Fisher Maritime Museum By: Anthony Andrade
I grew up in South Tampa in an era
when it was common for the
neighborhood kids to play “Pirates”
and hunt for buried treasure. This was
long before Johnny Depp romanticized
pirating in the “Pirates of the
Caribbean” films. Of course, movies
such as “Treasure Island” had already
influenced our young minds into
believing we could discover a buried
treasure chest.
Mel and Dolores Fisher grew up a
generation or so ahead of me, but
unlike me and most other kids, they
never stopped searching for buried
treasure. Many Guide readers may be
familiar with Mel Fisher, who is the
most celebrated and famous treasure
hunter in the world. Mel Fisher did
what many have not - he realized his
dream during his lifetime.
Every day he insisted, "Today's the
Day" which was his mantra as he
searched tirelessly for treasure. With
the help of family, friends and
investors, he searched sixteen years
before discovering the mother of all
shipwrecks on July 20, 1985. Mel
Fisher’s dream was realized when he
found the wreck of the Spanish galleon
Nuestra Señora de Atocha, which sank
in 1622. The estimated $450 million
cache recovered, known as "The
Atocha Motherlode," included 40 tons
of gold and silver and some 100,000
Spanish silver coins known as "Pieces
of Eight", gold coins, Columbian
emeralds, golden and silver artifacts
and 1000 silver bars. Large as it was,
this was only roughly half of the
treasure that went down with the
Atocha. The remainder has yet to be
found.
Mel Fisher’s exploits, trials,
tribulations and tragedies are well
known and memorialized in various
books, National Geographic specials
and at the Mel Fisher Maritime
Museum in Key West. My wife and I
recently toured the museum, which is
well worth the nominal $15 admission
for adults and $5 for children. For two
hours, we not only traveled back in
time to the 1600’s, but also to my
childhood treasure hunting fantasies.
The Mel Fisher story is well
documented at the museum; however,
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 16 ~
there is also a treasure chest of displays
of less well known facts about Mel
Fisher and his wife Dolores. Both
started out as chicken farmers, but had
much bigger dreams. They married in
1953 and quickly revolutionized the
diving industry. They were pioneers in
the diving industry long before they
were famous treasure hunters. They
opened Mel’s Aqua Shop, the first dive
shop on the west coast, in the shed
behind the chicken farm. They trained
over 65,000 people to dive using
SCUBA. They took part in many
adventures that included everything from
dredging for gold in the rivers of
California to crossing the Panama Canal
to go treasure hunting at Silver Shoals.
For Mel it was never really about the
money. As a kid, he read “Treasure
Island” and would be possessed his
whole life by the dreams of diving and
finding sunken treasure.
In 1959, Dolores made her own mark on
the diving industry when she set the
underwater endurance world record
inside a 10-foot deep porpoise tank. She
stayed in that tank for 55 hours and 37
minutes. Her adventurous spirit and love
of SCUBA inspired women around the
country to try this new and exciting
sport.
In 1963, Deo and Mel would embark on
the biggest adventure of their lives. They
moved their four children across the
country to Florida to begin treasure
hunting. After a couple of successful
seasons on the Treasure Coast, the
family moved to the Keys where they
would begin a hunt that would last the
rest of their lives, and would define their
place in history as the world’s greatest
treasure hunters.
The museum also has several
historical exhibits and a conservation
lab. The Mel Fisher Maritime
Heritage Society operates a two
thousand square foot conservation
laboratory that specializes in
conserving underwater archaeological
artifacts. All the artifacts that are
either recovered from archaeological
expeditions or are donated are
conserved on the premises
A behind the scene tour of the
conservation lab is offered twice a day
Monday through Friday. Visitors can
see a working lab with a collection
that contains approximately 100,000
artifacts. The objects range from
cannons, cross bows and other
weaponry, to tools, ship's rigging,
hardware, navigational instruments,
personal items, galley utensils,
shackles, trade goods and coin chests.
For more information visit
www.melfisher.org
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 17 ~
Social Scene
Strawberry Classic Car Show
January 15 – 4:00 p.m.
Historic Downtown
Plant City Local Harvest Farmer’s
Market
Thursdays from 4:00pm - 8:00pm
McCall Park
Planes, Trains & Automobiles
February 27 from 10:00 - 3:00
Plant City Airport, 4007 Airport
Rd., Plant City 33566
Tim Dorsey Book Signing: On
Saturday, January 23, Tampa based
fiction writer Tim Dorsey will be at
the library from 2:00-3:00 p.m. to
read from and talk about his
upcoming book. Tim Dorsey is a
well-known Florida author and former
journalist with the Tampa Tribune.
Mr. Dorsey writes wacky, irreverent
Florida based fiction, with a loveable
main character named Serge Storms,
who is involved in many Florida
based adventures and homicides.
There will be a chance for patrons to
have their books signed afterwards.
Mr. Dorsey will also have
merchandise for sale, including books.
Tim Dorsey’s new book, “Coconut
Cowboy,” will be released on January
26, 2016.
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 18 ~
Library Corner
English Classes: On Tuesdays, January
5, 12, 19 and 26 there will be a
beginning English Conversation Corner
group held from 7:00-8:00 p.m. This
class is in conjunction with the
Hillsborough Literacy Council. For
questions about the class, please call the
Hillsborough Literacy Council at 813-
273-3650.
Computer Classes: will be held from
10:30-11:30 a.m. on Wednesday
January 6, 13, 20 and 27. Pre-
registration for classes is not required.
Did you unwrap a tablet or E-reader for
Christmas? On Wednesday, January 6,
there will be a class on E-books and E-
readers. On Wednesday, January 13,
there will be a class on Cloud
Computing 101. On Wednesday,
January 20, there will be a class on
Introduction to the Internet. On
Wednesday, January 27, there will be a
class on Internet Searching.
Afternoon Book Club: On Tuesday,
January 12, there will be an Afternoon
Book Discussion held from 1:00-2:00
p.m. The book “Astonish Me,” by
Maggie Shipstead will be discussed.
This book follows the life of Joan, a
former ballerina, and her reunion with a
former lover years later. Joan’s son
Harry follows her into ballet, and also
comes into contact with her former
lover, revealing explosive secrets.
Copies of the book are available prior.
Knitting class Knit 1, Purl 2: will be
held on Wednesday, January 13 and
27, from 2:00-3:30 p.m. Beginners as
well as experienced knitters are
welcome to attend, and the library has
a small amount of yarn and knitting
needles that may be utilized during the
class.
Evening Book Club: On Tuesday,
January 19, there will be an Evening
Book Discussion held from 7:30-8:30
p.m. The book “Half Broke Horses,”
by Jeanette Walls will be discussed.
The book is about a young girl’s
upbringing, and the book is both
fiction and semi-autobiographical. It is
about a young girl, who at the age of 6
is helping her father to break horses.
Copies of the book will be available to
check out prior to the discussion.
Astronomy Program: On Tuesday,
January 19, there will be a program on
Astronomy conducted by Tampa
resident Craig MacDougal from 6:30-
8:00 p.m. There will be a short
presentation, and then patrons will be
able to go outside and view the night
sky by telescope. This program was a
spectacular success last year. Don’t
miss this educational and fun program,
suitable for the whole family.
Tim Dorsey Book Signing: On
Saturday, January 23, Tampa based
fiction writer Tim Dorsey will be at the
library from 2:00-3:00 p.m. to read
from and talk about his upcoming
book. Tim Dorsey is a well-known
Florida author and former journalist
with the Tampa Tribune.
All programs are free and open to the
public unless otherwise noted.
Plant City Dining & Entertainment Guide
January 2016 ~ Page 19 ~
Library Corner
Infant to Pre-K
Motion Commotion: Tuesdays January
5th, 12
th, 19
th & 26
th at 10:00 a.m. Move
to the rhythm, dance to the beat! Shake
and shimmy, tap those feet! This 30-
minute program that incorporates
music, literacy, and fitness. For
children ages 18 months to 5 years.
Babytime: Thursdays, January 7th, 14
th,
21st & 28
th at 10:00 a.m. Early literacy
begins at birth. Bond with your baby
through stories, bouncy rhymes and
songs in this 20-minute lapsit program
that introduces early literacy skills and
encourages language development.
For children ages 0 to 18 months.
Storytime: Thursdays, January 7th, 14
th,
21st & 28
th at 11:00 a.m. Stories,
action rhymes, songs and interactive
activities make up this engaging 30-
minute program that highlights early
literacy skills and encourages reading
readiness and social interaction. For
children ages 18 months to 5 years.
Elementary
Family Game Zone: Monday, January
4th from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. The whole
family is invited to play board games,
including, Connect Four, Scrabble
Slam, Candyland, and many more! For
grades K - 5.
Crafternoon: Monday, January 11th
from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. Get creative at
the library with Crafternoon
and join us in making a holiday craft to
take home! For grades Pre-K to 5.
Family Movie Matinee: Monday,
January 25th at 3:00 p.m. Join us for
popcorn and a movie at the library!
Children are welcome to bring a
blanket to lie on. Fun for the whole
family! This movie is rated PG. For
more information about the movie,
please call the Library at 813-757-
9215 or visit our library event calendar
at plantcitygov.com/library.
Teens
Teen Game Zone!: Tuesdays, January
5th, 12
th, and 19
th from 4:30 – 5:30 p.m.
Come play Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360
Kinect and PlayStation at the library
on our large projection screens. Bring
your friends and get in the zone! For
grades 6 - 12.
Teen Book Club: The Righmatist:
Tuesday, January 26th from 4:30 –
5:30 p.m. Join us for our monthly
Teen Book Club. We read and talk
about books selected by teens like
you! We will be discussing The
Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson.
Come join the discussion and help
select future books for the group to
read. Copies of the book are available
at Bruton Memorial Library for check
out. For grades 6 - 12.
Read with Bonnie the Therapy Dog:
Wednesdays, January 6th, 13
th, 20
th &
27th from 4:00 PM – 5:00 p.m. Bonnie
loves to snuggle up with anyone who
wants to share a book and some pats
on the head. You can find her on the
couch in the children’s area. Reading
with Bonnie can help children improve
reading. For all ages.