SEBRING — Charles P. Cooper already made up his resolution for 2008, and it seemed pretty routine as far as resolutions go. "I only put in my mouth what my wife says I can," the "semi-retired" 67-year-old auto transmission shop owner promised himself. What led to that resolution was not a weight problem or even just the diabetes he was diagnosed with earlier this year. After the cascade of unexpected health problems he had since July, Cooper said his wife was just happy to have him around for Christmas. It went downhill since July, when he said he was diagnosed with diabetes and high cholesterol in one doctor's visit while getting blood work for his angina. In September, doctors determined he needed a quadruple bypass surgery, and that wasn't the end of it. ...more

December 31, 2007

What does "Made in the USA" mean to you? Hopefully, it inspires images of quality and reliability. And well it should. ...more

December 24, 2007

The online discussions I host give me an opportunity to see the financial issues that trouble people the most. Often what I find are people racked with fear. ...more

December 16, 2007

The gunman believed to have killed four people at a megachurch and a missionary training school had been thrown out of the school a few years ago and had been sending it hate mail, police said in court papers Monday. ...more

December 11, 2007

The number of foreign children adopted by Americans has dropped for the third year in a row, a consequence of tougher policies in the two countries - China and Russia - that over the past decade have supplied the most children to U.S. families. ...more

December 7, 2007

No amount of fencing was going to keep Mike Fenton and his friends on the outside looking in. ...more

November 7, 2007

SEBRING — Sandy Lankford wakes up everyday not knowing what's next. "Sometimes you don't know how your day is going to go," said Sandy, who suffers from fibromyalgia, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. "This morning I felt fine, but now I'm in pain. It happens all the time. It's called a flare." Lankford, a former teacher at Bowling Green Elementary School, was forced out of work when she suffered a stroke a few years ago. ...more

October 22, 2007

Despite plans to revitalize the University Area Partnership, the collaborative canceled its first full general membership meeting in almost two years. ...more

October 18, 2007

Few dreams would be realized if they all died with the first rejection. In essence, that thought will be in the minds of Valrico's Michael Cherry and Sarasota's Danny 'The Hammer' Martin on Monday and Tuesday when each will try for a second time to earn a NASCAR 'scholarship' at South Boston Speedway in Virginia. ...more

October 10, 2007

A lousy marriage might literally make you sick. Marital strife and other bad personal relationships can raise your risk for heart disease, researchers reported Monday. ...more

October 9, 2007