Book Review: The Wrong Stuff

May 30, 2025Posted inBook Review

As I cruise along I-10, the Florida sun sinking into the horizon, my mind is still buzzing from the thunderous spectacle of SpaceX’s Starship roaring into the sky for its Integrated Flight Test 9 (IFT-9) at Starbase, Texas. The raw power of those 33 Raptor engines, the audacity of Elon Musk’s vision to make humanity multiplanetary—it’s the kind of cutting-edge tech that makes you feel like you’re living in a sci-fi novel. But as the miles roll by, I’ve been diving into The Wrong Stuff: How the Soviet Space Program Crashed and Burned by John Strausbaugh, and let me tell you, this book is the perfect companion for this road trip. It’s a hilarious, jaw-dropping, and utterly human dive into the chaotic history of the Soviet space race, making the past feel as thrilling as the rocket launch I just witnessed.

Florida Turnpike Toll Booth

Buckle Up – Your Daily Commute Is About To Cost You More

May 29, 2025Posted inFlorida News, Florida Travel, Visiting Florida, Working In Florida
Image of Toll booths. Courtesy FDOT
Image Courtesy of FDOT

As I sat sipping my morning coffee and checking emails today, I noticed that my monthly Sun Pass toll statement popped up. Like many Floridians, I have a transponder that automatically charges my account whenever I use one of the Florida toll roads, and my bank account is automatically drafted whenever toll funds need to be replenished. So things are pretty much on autopilot, and honestly, I haven’t paid much attention to that aspect of my finances. I mean, when you’ve got to go, you’ve got to go, right?

Starship Flight 9 Nails Liftoff–Grapples With Landing

Starship Flight 9 Nails Liftoff–Grapples With Landing

May 28, 2025Posted inSpaceX, Starship, Uncategorized
Starship ascents skyward. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN

Starbase, Texas — SpaceX launched its Starship rocket on May 27, 2025, at 6:36 p.m. CDT from its Starbase facility in Texas for the ninth integrated flight test (IFT-9) of the vehicle. The mission, using Ship 35 and Booster 14-2, marked the first reflight of a Super Heavy booster but encountered significant challenges, including the loss of both stages, as SpaceX continues to refine the reusable launch system for lunar and Martian missions.

The objectives of IFT-9 included reusing Booster 14-2, previously flown on Flight 7, deploying eight Starlink mass simulators, testing an in-space Raptor engine relight, and achieving a controlled reentry and splashdown in the Indian Ocean. The mission also aimed to address issues from Flights 7 and 8, which ended in upper stage failures, and to conduct experiments on the booster under off-nominal conditions, such as a higher angle of attack during descent to reduce propellant use.

No Shirt, No Shoes, No Problem: Nudist Camp in Florida Hits the Market

May 28, 2025Posted inFlorida Real Estate
AI generated Image of Nudist Camp

We were browsing Facebook ads recently, and well, we just couldn’t pass this “flash sale” story up! It’s a truly a unique Florida real estate opportunity, to say the least.

If you’ve ever dreamed of ditching your suit and tie for, well, just your birthday suit, now might be your chance! A unique slice of paradise—the Florida Naturist Park aka the Sunshine Beach Club, a thriving nudist community—is officially up for sale, and it’s causing quite the stir in sunny Pasco County, Florida.

Volusia Man Dubbed ‘Sovereign Clown’ Arrested Twice in 10 Days Over Bizarre Legal Claims

May 27, 2025Posted inFlorida News
sovereign citizen license plate
A typical sovereign citizen self-made license plate Photo: OrlDemo /Reddit

They call themselves sovereign citizens. They claim they’re not subject to state or federal laws. And every so often, one of them makes headlines—usually after an encounter with law enforcement. In Florida, these self-proclaimed “freemen” are part of a movement that’s less about organized ideology and more about a tangled mess of internet-fueled legal theories.

moving truck

Sunbelt Surge: Tampa and Orlando In Top Ten Destination For Movers

May 27, 2025Posted inFlorida News

moving truck

Cities Grappling with Rapid Population Growth and Its Consequences

Florida’s central corridor is experiencing unprecedented growth. Tampa and Orlando, two of the state’s major metropolitan areas, have seen significant population increases over the past decade, and according to Penske Truck Rentals, both cities are in the Top 10 moving destinations in the country.

Third Time’s the Charm for Starship IFT-9

Third Time’s the Charm for Starship IFT-9

May 26, 2025Posted inSpaceX, Starship, Uncategorized
Ship 35 and Super Heavy Booster 14-2 being prepared for stacking in preparation for IFT-9. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN

Boca Chica, Texas – SpaceX is set to launch its ninth Starship integrated flight test (IFT-9) no earlier than May 27, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. CT from the Starbase facility in South Texas. This mission, featuring the Block 2 Starship (Ship 35) and a reused Super Heavy Booster (Booster 14-2), aims to address issues from the explosive failures of Flights 7 and 8 while testing new objectives for the reusable launch vehicle. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved license modifications for the flight on May 15, 2025, though the Flight 8 mishap investigation remains ongoing.

OP-ED: Biden’s Health Cover-Up – Why We Should Be Furious

May 26, 2025Posted inEditorials and Opinions

The cover-up of Joe Biden’s obvious physical and cognitive decline during his presidency (2021–2025) isn’t just a political scandal—it’s a betrayal that should have us seething. Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson exposes how Biden’s aides, family, and Democratic allies hid his frailties, ignoring stark warnings like Special Counsel Robert Hur’s February 2024 description of Biden as “a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.” This was as gentle and sanitized description as you could hope for, yet his inner circle, who didn’t want to further point out the obvious comparison to the Trump’s record scandals, could only shrieked that Hur’s words were pejorative, exposing their agility and hypocrisy in dodging the truth about Biden’s decline. The timeless wisdom of Humpty Dumpty and The Emperor’s New Clothes—tales warning of fragility’s fall and the folly of denying plain truth—was cast aside, leaving a shattered president and tattered legacy in its wake.

My Review of Space Oddities by Harry Cliff

May 24, 2025Posted inBook Review

I’ve always been blown away by the idea that the tiniest specks of nature—particles smaller than atoms—could hold the key to understanding the vast, mind-bending mysteries of the universe. So when I picked up Space Oddities: The Mysterious Anomalies Challenging Our Understanding of the Universe by Harry Cliff, a particle physicist at CERN, I was ready for a wild ride. This 288-page gem, published in 2024, dives into how scientists study these microscopic bits to tackle cosmic puzzles like why the universe is expanding weirdly or what dark matter really is. As someone fascinated by space I loved this book, even if it was way beyond my understanding.


Space Oddities is all about those moments when the tiniest things in nature—quarks, neutrinos, muons—start acting strange and hint at massive truths about the universe. Cliff takes us into the world of particle physics, where scientists smash particles together in places like the Large Hadron Collider to see what pops out. These experiments aren’t just cool science; they’re our best shot at cracking mysteries like dark energy, which makes the universe expand faster than it should, or dark matter, this invisible stuff that’s way more common than the atoms we’re made of. I was hooked imagining how a single odd particle could rewrite our story of the cosmos.