With the Circus in Town, Expect Flying Clowns, Racing Elephants

By Rich Ray

Since the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus is entertaining crowds at Veterans Memorial Arena through Sunday, now’s a great time to check out this high-flying Jacksonville.com coverage. The latest edition of Community Spotlight, “Elephants World: Life is a Circus – and a River Race,” features circus- related stories by reporters Shauna O’Brien and Dana Cox. Plus, you’ll want to browse through photo galleries and watch the video report from the Elephant River Run, a race between five three-ton elephants to commemorate the upcoming Gate River Run – www.first coastcommunity.com, keyword: fccspotlight.

PHOTO GALLERIES

Recent galleries include Rod Stewart Concert, Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration, Styx in Concert, BCS Florida vs. Ohio State, 18th annual Cat Show, Civil War re-enactment , VyStar Gator Bowl Run, 2007 Gator Bowl, Gator Bowl Parade, Gator Bowl Hall of Fame Luncheon, Jacksonville Barracudas Hockey, Thursday Night Drinking Club – Latitudes, Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi Live, Clay Aiken with the Jacksonville Symphony. www.firstcoast community.com, keyword: photo

ADD YOUR GROUP’S PHOTOS

Groups of all sizes are encouraged to showcase their events in the photo galleries at Jacksonville.com. If you have a digital camera and Web connection, we’ll set your group up with a free account to upload images with ease. Just e-mail me at rich.ray@jacksonville.com and type the words “Our group is ready to start” in the subject line and I’ll send you all the details.

DASH TO THE DESERT

Last week, Jacksonville.com’s Ryan Garfat and the Times-Union’s Jeff Brumley set out on a road trip to Arizona for the Florida-Ohio State showdown in college football’s national championship game. Armed with deodorant and a heap of sophisticated electronic equipment, the pair shared their stories from the road as well their experiences surrounding the Gators’ domination in the desert. Review their blog entries, photos and video reports, and link to related BCS coverage. www.firstcoastcommunity. com, keyword: desertdash.

COMMUNITY COLUMNISTS

To read the full contributions from the community columnists featured below, and to start your own community column, go to www.firstcoast community.com, keyword: fcccolumnists.

MELINDA KURTZO

I’M A LOSER, BABY!

Along with fellow Times-Union employees, Melinda is participating in “Weigh Less, Live Longer,” a six-month health and wellness challenge sponsored by H Magazine and the First Coast YMCAs, and will be working with a personal trainer and nutritionist to lose weight and become healthier. Follow her adventures in weight loss and fitness over the next six months, including her most recent contribution, “Diet Math,” where it dawns on Melinda that she should go over her calorie intake from time to time.

GINNY STIBOLT

ADVENTURES OF A TRANSPLANTED GARDENER

Local gardener and naturalist Ginny is busy adjusting her gardening strategies for the new year. One of her resolutions is to “kill more invasive aliens” that threaten her garden. Read her tips, advice and items on her to-do list for 2007.

ANDY HEFTY

DON’T GET ME STARTED

Andy says he has had enough of celebrities and everything about them starting long ago. But with the endless media saturation about the “beautiful people,” he can’t help but chime in. Read his views on celebrities in “Ask Me If I Really Care.”

KEL KENDRICK

KEL’S TELEVISION JAX

Since the explosive new season of TV’s 24 is underway, Kel offers 24 bits of intel on 24 to celebrate yet another tough day at work for 24′s Jack Bauer.

CASSY FIANO

FROM THE ASHES

Upon her return from her holiday break, Cassy shares her tips for surviving a road trip in “Musings from the Road.”

MARCUS EGER

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION!

Film buff and movie critic Marcus shares his thoughts and views about the Robert DeNiro-directed spy flick, The Good Shepherd.

DAVID GRISSETT

THE TURNTABLE

David reports that blues, funk, rock, indie, folk and bluegrass were all represented well over the past year. Music lovers will want to check out his takes in “The Turntable Top 10 CDs of 2006.”

DEBORAH HANSEN

MUSINGS AT THE KEYBOARD

Deborah writes, “We fool ourselves for long stretches of time, acting as if we are immortal here on earth. Everyone else will die, but somehow we convince ourselves that we’re immune to that image and its stark reality.” Read why 2006 was a reality check for Deborah in her most recent column. Jaguars Journal

In the final edition of this season’s Jaguars Journal, Jaguars players thank fans in an audio podcast and Maurice Jones-Drew talks about why he’s happy the Jaguars picked him in the draft. Watch a video report of Jack Del Rio discussing the future of the team. Fans share their parting thoughts on the season and Jaguars Journal editor Tracy Collins adds her views.

ASK THE PANEL

Straight Talk’s Ask the Panel Web site enables youth to submit questions about sexual topics to a panel of experts. Review answers to recent questions about homosexuality, peer pressure, sexually- transmitted diseases, and more – www.firstcoastcommunity.com, keyword: askthepanel.

SPRING AND SUMMER INTERNSHIPS AVAILABLE

College students looking for valuable work experience in the Florida Times-Union’s New Media Department should give me a call (359-4146) or send me an e-mail message (rich.ray@jacksonville.com) as soon as possible. Although internship positions are unpaid, they are customized for each candidate’s interests and feature flexible schedules and valuable work-related experiences. Students interested in sports, photography, video production, writing, Web design and graphics are welcome to apply.

WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

Want to receive weekly updates about community events via e- mail? If so, subscribe to the free First Coast Community newsletter, which features community happenings, photo and video coverage, special events, local non-profit groups and more. www.firstcoastcommunity.com, keyword: fccnewsletterFirst Coast Community is the community site at Jacksonville.com (www.firstcoastcommunity.com). Rich Ray welcomes your comments and suggestions. Contact Rich by e-mail at rich.ray@jacksonville.com or phone 359-4146.

(c) 2007 Florida Times Union. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.