St. Petersburg Times Online: Seniority

Time to hibernate, in Florida style
It was, as Florida winters go, a mild one. And now that April is on the way out, spring is almost gone and summer -- at least for Floridians -- is bearing down on us. And we all know it will be long, and hot.

Of elephants and dust bunnies
The hat lady's bonnets were legendary. On the wide brims were the finest feathers or flowers. One Easter she wore a spectacular creation that included a life-size bird nestled among fine plumes.

Forget fads, go for nutritional changes
With 30-billion to 40-billion fat cells at birth, our bodies have an almost endless supply of fat storage. These "storage houses" were essential for our very physically active ancestors to help them store fat that could be used when they were unable to find food.

Showing their colors after 50
Jewel Rogers is the Queen Mother of a local chapter of the Red Hat Society. Tall and slender, vivacious and witty, she was dressed in an elegant and graceful purple pant suit on the day we met in the club house at Point Brittany in St. Petersburg, where she lives.

He steers folks toward safer driving
Albert Toth has been a volunteer instructor for the AARP 55 Alive/Mature Driving Course since 1993.

A daughter turns 40; it's Mom who freaks out
My older daughter is about to turn 40! It just hit me, full frontal impact. I remember when I turned 40, knowing I was no longer a thirtysomething and that I was well and truly middle-aged.

Take charge when you downsize your life
There was one thing that tugged at my heartstrings. The five-piece antique dining set had been in my family for many years.

Briefly
Fitness event to stress importance of exercise

For the Scotts, serving is a tradition
PORT RICHEY -- Lelia Smith Scott, 77, has spent her life teaching right from wrong to children and others in the Pine Hill community where she was born.

May days: History, tomatoes, good book
Remember in elementary school how May Day, the first of May, always meant your class performing, after weeks of practice, in the special program held outside and featuring the marvelous Maypole? Depending on its size, from five to 25 children wove different-colored ribbons or crepe paper around the Maypole to a chorus sung by the children not lucky enough to get to do the actual winding.

Volunteer moves full steam ahead
SUN CITY CENTER -- Steering a 600-passenger ferry boat at Disney World was a piece of cake for Aubrey 'Jerry" Engle, 82, of Sun City Center. After all, the retired U.S. Navy captain commanded warships in World War II, the Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War, so handling large vessels was not complicated work for him.