More rain coming after Sunday's record downpour

Mark Brusiloff, of St. Petersburg, throws his cast net Monday near the Pinellas Bayway.

[Scott Keeler | Times]

TAMPA -- Tired of the rain?  It's not over.

The fog that enveloped parts of the Tampa Bay area this morning is just the beginning of a damp Monday following Sunday's record rainfall, weather forecasters say.

In Tampa on Sunday, a record-setting 2.05 inches fell at Tampa International Airport - about four times April's monthly average of 0.41 inches, Reynes said.

The sun is expected to peek through this morning, but the sea breeze will move inland with and bring with it thunderstorm activity, said meteorologist Nick Petro with the National Weather Service in Ruskin.

"I wouldn't be surprised to see some heavy downpours develop," he said.

Despite a soupy morning and afternoon showers, forecasters promise a more pleasant forecast is headed our way.

"We'll get sunshine," he said. "It's coming."

That's quite the departure from the weekend, when a slow-moving front joined heavy, pervasive low-level moisture resulting in a Sunday soaking.

"Basically, we had one of those incidents that covered the entire state," said meteorologist Anthony Reynes. "We haven't had that in a while."

Here's a glance at other area totals on Sunday as projected by the National Weather Service in Ruskin:

Tampa International Airport -  2.05
Sarasota - 1.19
St. Petersburg (Albert Whitted Airport) - 1.33
St. Petersburg- Clearwater Airport - 2.25 inches
Ruskin - 1.41
Winter Haven  - 5.11

-- Casey Cora, Times staff writer

Swobo Merino 6 Panel Beanie

I'm all about wool these days. It's the new polypropylene. Never stinks. Never. All my fancy high-tech fabrics smell like the bottom of a pond when I come in from a ride, but I can ride for days in my old-school wool cycling jersey and wool undershirt and they both smell about as fresh as, well, a lamb, which I can only assume doesn't smell (I live in the city). Recently, I picked up this Swobo cycling hat with fold-down earflaps. It's warm, lightweight, doesn't get stanky and is thin enough to fit comfortably under a helmet. It also looks good to boot. The ear flaps fold away in the heat or can be flipped down when it gets cold -- perfect for SF/Marin foggy to sunny rides.

-- Mathew Honan

Swobo Merino 6 Panel Beanie
(black, black/blue, charcoal)
$35
Available from Skates On Haight

Manufactured by Swobo

Related items previously reviewed on Cool Tools:

Icebreaker Merino Wool Jersey

Headsweats Coolmax Skullcap

Wool Underwear

Herb Savor

Cilantro cravings run deep in our house, but even with just one bundle, there's the persistent annoyance of feeling compelled and rushed to consume before it spoils. For the last six months, this plastic container has helped really stretch out the life of some of our herbs. The goods are housed in a plastic pod that inserts into a water dish, which keeps the stems immersed, and the pod itself creates a nice, moist microclimate for the leaves. I was skeptical at first. However, we did a side-by-side comparison with our usual cilantro wrapped in a paper towel in a plastic bag. While the paper towel cilantro started to wilt after about a week and half, a batch from the same bundle kept for an additional two weeks in the Herb Savor. We've tried parsley (success) and basil (no success). The device only seems to work with stalky herbs. Maintenance is easy: just fill the dish with water every few days. It'll take quite some time before we've made back our money in herb savings. The satisfaction in not having to compost unused herbs is enough for me. It looks super modern perched in the fridge door and makes a great conversation starter when we're hosting dinner parties.

-- Steven Leckart

Herb Savor
$30
Available from Amazon

Manufactured by Prepara

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AeroGarden

Cooking Ingredients

Dick Greco statue to be displayed at plaza renamed for him

TAMPA -- Curtis Hixon has a park. Bill Poe has a plaza and a parking garage. Nick Nuccio has a parkway. Now another former mayor, Dick Greco, will have something in downtown Tampa named after him.

Greco Plaza will be the new name of the covered streetcar stop across from the Tampa Convention Center. It also will be the home of a bronze statue of Greco, who was Tampa's mayor twice, from 1967-1974 and 1995-2003.

The bronze statue by sculptor Steve Dickey, paid for with private donations, portrays Greco relaxing on a bench, where people will be able to sit next to the likeness of the famously chummy mayor. It's expected to be unveiled during a ceremony at the plaza sometime in the next 30 to 45 days.

The plaza, now called the Southern Transportation Plaza, is located between the Marriott Waterside and Embassy Suites hotels, and has connections for the electric streetcar, buses and taxis. Greco, a big booster of the streetcar, chose the location. The board of Hillsborough Area Regional Transit voted today to display the statue and rename the plaza for Greco.

"If you think about Dick's two terms, he had a lot to do with downtown rejuvenation," longtime Greco associate Ron Rotella told the board.

The statue is intended to portray Greco at about 50, roughly halfway between his two terms in office.

"I wish it were a better likeness because the statue, it's a lot better looking than he is," Rotella joked.

-- Mike Brassfield, Times staff writer

TheraTherm Digital Heating Pad

Finally a digital heating pad that can maintain a temperature you set -- not just one of three arbitrary settings. This heating pad has a range from 86 to 166 degrees F that can be adjusted in 2-degree increments. I don't have any particular injury or ailment, other than occasional mild back pain, but I use this unit daily (actually nightly). This is probably not recommended use, but I have developed the habit of sleeping with a heating pad. Instead of running all the time like older units, though, this one has an auto-off function that lets you set it to stay on up to 60 minutes at a time. Also it only turns on the heating coils to bring it up to temp and when it falls below temp. Once it reaches the desired temp, it shuts off. The heat generally continues to rise 2-3 degrees, peaks, then starts to fall, then kicks back on. And so it cycles for the amount of time you program into it (the default is 30 minutes). I prefer 118°, which seems to work best for me. You can also switch the display to a 'monitor mode' and see the actual temp it's reading from the pad instead of what you've set the thermostat to. I have no idea about the "moist" aspect of the heating pad, since I only use it as a dry heating pad. At about $60, it is a bit expensive if you're used to the $20 pads. Also the cord to the controls could be longer and there's no back-light on the controls, so it's harder to use in total darkness. But once it's set at night, I don't have to fiddle with it or remember to turn it off anyway. The pads come in various sizes. The one I have is the 14"x14" blanket pad.

-- Jay Harrison

TheraTherm Digital Heating Pad
$51
Available from Amazon

Manufactured by Chattanooga Group

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Property Foreclosures As Investment For Financial Wellness

Ironically property foreclosures can an investment for your financial wellness if you know how to do it.

Read Full Article Here: http://www.articlesbase.com/finance-articles/property-foreclosures-as-investment-for-financial-wellness-378872.html

Enjoy Playing Your Favorite Game Using the New Set of Poker Play Chips

Have you ever imagined playing your favorite casino game at home with your friends whenever you want? Poker has different version but the poker players agree that the most exciting one is the version for casinos. Now, thanks to the wonderful offer for buy play chips pokerstars of the www.elitechips.com you can have your own box with poker chips for organizing party poker play chips with your friends every evening.

Read Full Article Here: http://www.articlesbase.com/online-gambling-articles/enjoy-playing-your-favorite-game-using-the-new-set-of-poker-play-chips-378869.html

The Most Effective Way To Prevent Yeast Infection

As the old saying goes, "prevention is the best cure." Waiting until you develop a yeast infection to try to solve the problem can be a costly and frustrating experience.

Read Full Article Here: http://www.articlesbase.com/wellness-articles/the-most-effective-way-to-prevent-yeast-infection-378868.html

Half Arsed: Froga Party!!

It was mere moments after Shai announced their release of the Eromenons Toga for men that Kallisto IMed me and told me I had to blog it. Little did she know I already had one leg up on the side of the tub and was shaving in eager anticipation (with Dove's razor of course…payback's a bish!!).



Tired of being the guy wearing the 360 thread count Martha Stewart sheets to all the toga parties on campus, this release couldn't have come at a better time - although, I do look great in Martha, don't get me wrong…in fact, I'd look good in a lot of people, I bet…..but I digress. If you're in the market, this toga is shiny white greatness…equipped with a prim flexi skirt and a prim peplos (the part of the robe that drapes over your shoulder, kind of like a shawl for those of you that wondered…thanks Google!!). They also come with some glitch undies for those of you not willing to shareyour mangina with the world in general.



Now, while historians will have you believe that men in Ancient Greece and Rome favored short hair, some very long and diligent study sessions (*cough* drinking beer *cough*) have led me to the revelation that they actually liked to rock the fro!! I wanted to keep it real, so I went to Boon and grabbed the KAR07 hair to help me adorn my classical look. I love this wild black mess - Medusa, eat your heart out!! Finishing everything off with some metal, I polished up my Byzantine Chain Choker from Essentia and slapped it on, and then got my spikes on with my Insurrection piercings from Primitive Design…and that is how we do!! Now that I've perfected my Froga outfit, I'm only lacking for one thing - yup, you guessed it - concubines and palm frond waving hand servants!! Ladies (and men, if you're so inclined) please send your applications to Lawlessisashamelesshor@gmail.com.

---

Boon – KAR07 Hair (black)
Etchd – Jekyll Tattoo
MR Design – Eyes 3
Primitive Design – Insurrection Piercing Set
Shai – Eromenons Toga
Essentia - Byzantine Chain Choker
Location - The Roman Empire