Dateline Florida

By Times Wires
Published January 25, 2008

Vaccination measure passes

All incoming freshmen attending one of Florida's 11 public universities will have to be vaccinated against meningitis and Hepatitis B or sign an opt-out waiver stating that they understand the health risks, under a measure approved Thursday. Previously, the vaccines were required only for students living on campus. The Board of Governors approved the measure after the death last year of a USF student who lived in a sorority house.

Raffle's top prize is a girl's best friend

Looking for an engagement ring for Valentine's Day? The Salvation Army could be the place to look, the Miami Herald reports. For the second time in three years, a diamond ring has been donated to the organization and is up for raffle. A $25 ticket could get you a $2,000 ring in the Feb. 13 raffle. In December, a woman donated the ring to a Salvation Army store in Tamarac. The center stone is a half-carat diamond in a gold vintage setting surrounded by 16 diamond chips.

Top-selling plate belongs to gators

Gators really are everywhere - in Florida, at least. The University of Florida plate outsold every other specialty license plate last year, and was the only one to sell more than 100,000. UF's closest competitor was Florida State University, which sold about 75,000 plates. Not even the Florida Panther plate, with about 85,000 sales, could beat the Gator. Sixty percent of revenues from the $25 plate fee go to scholarships.

The best of the silly

Valley Girl, Rappin' Rodney and the Curly Shuffle: Tune in to the Stuck in the '80s podcast to see which novelty songs of the '80s made the cut. Go to blogs.tampabay.com/80s.

[Last modified January 24, 2008, 23:31:45]