Things To Do In SW Florida

TALLAHASSEE — Florida had a drop in private-sector employment in October in the wake of hurricanes Helene and Milton, but the state’s unemployment rate remained at 3.3 percent for a seventh consecutive month.

The state Department of Commerce on Friday estimated 369,000 Floridians qualified as out-of-work in October, up 1,000 from September, while private-sector employment fell by 38,200 jobs last month.

The labor force of 11.03 million people decreased by 9,000. Department of Commerce officials attributed the continued shrinking of the labor force — down 31,000 over the past year — to retirements among Baby Boomers and Gen Xers.

The 3.3 percent unemployment rate was up from 3.1 percent in October 2023 but lower than last month’s national rate of 4.1 percent.

Across Florida, the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metropolitan statistical area had the lowest unemployment rate in October at 2.9 percent.

The Panama City and the Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin areas were at 3.2 percent. Among other regions, the Jacksonville and Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford areas were at 3.5 percent. Pensacola was at 3.6 percent. and the Tampa Bay-St. Petersburg-Clearwater area was at 3.8 percent. read more

The moment political ads disappeared, retailers overtook the airwaves with their pitch to the masses: Holiday shopping season is here.

And it’s a frenzy for retailers. Santas made their debut at malls this week. Target shelves are full of “Wicked”-themed merchandise in anticipation of the movie opening this week. And discounts that started in October are in full swing.

Because Thanksgiving is the latest it can be on the calendar this year, the all-important final stretch of the holiday shopping season is six days shorter. The next two weeks — culminating with Black Friday and Cyber Monday — are even more important than in some other years for retailers from Best Buy and Macy’s to smaller local stores.

“Those big-box retailers pave the way for the season,” said Lindsay Koch, director of brand experience and stores for Minnesota apparel brand Waggle. “This year we started our holiday sale earlier than we ever have.”

While retailers and economists expect shoppers to make only modest increases in their holiday budgets, it still could be a record-setting year for holiday sales. The National Retail Federation predicts up to $989 billion, the best haul since 2019. read more

By Kimberly Palmer, NerdWallet

Investing in a few home maintenance projects now could help reduce your costs when the cold weather hits. Not only can you trim your heating expenses, but you can also avoid unexpected emergency repairs later.

“There are a lot of things you can do for free,” says Ethan O’Donnell, deputy editor of FamilyHandyman.com, a website about home improvement projects.

That includes relatively simple steps like clearing the gutters and cleaning air filters in the HVAC system.

There are also bigger investments that can pay off in the long run, like insulating the attic or buying a more energy-efficient water heater. In 2023, U.S. households spent an average of $2,458 on home maintenance, according to Angi, a website that helps homeowners find service providers.

Here are the most cost-effective steps experts suggest you take before the temperature drops:

1. Check for heat loss

Start by walking around your home close to windows and doors with a candle, suggests Angie Hicks, co-founder of Angi. read more

Once was not enough. Winter Park power couple Marc and Sharon Hagle traveled to space on a Blue Origin New Shepard rocket back in 2022. Now they’re set to fly again.

The duo were among the six people announced for Blue Origin’s NS-28 mission, the ninth human spaceflight for Jeff Bezos’ company’s suborbital rocket that launches from west Texas.

Also flying will be science communicator Emily Calandrelli, financial services exec Austin Litteral, who won his seat from a contest run by livestream shopping platform Whatnot, entrepreneur James Russell and investment banking CEO Henry Wolfond.

The Hagles were among the first to purchase spaceflight reservations on Blue Origin competitor Virgin Galactic more than 17 years ago, but have yet to on Richard Branson’s space tourism venture. They finally made it space with Blue Origin on the NS-20 mission on March 31, 2022, the fourth ever flight of New Shepard with humans.

The entire flight took just over 10 minutes, and featured just a few minutes of weightlessness as the rocket’s capsule traversed the Karman line — about 62 miles high — the internationally recognized altitude for someone having gone into space. It then made a parachute-assisted landing just a few miles from the launch site. read more

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER and ANNE D’INNOCENZIO, Associated Press Business Writers

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans stepped up their spending at retailers last month in the latest sign that healthy consumer spending is driving the economy’s steady growth.

Retail sales rose 0.4% from September to October, the Commerce Department said Friday, a solid increase though less than the previous month’s robust 0.8% gain.

A 1.6% jump in sales at auto dealers drove much of the gain. Purchases climbed 2.3% at electronics and appliances stores and 0.7% at restaurants and bars. Though some of October’s rise in retail sales reflected higher prices, it mainly indicated increased purchases.

Friday’s report arrives as retailers are poised to enter the critically important holiday shopping season in less than two weeks. Analysts envision a solid holiday shopping season, though perhaps not as robust as last year’s, with many shoppers under pressure from overall still-high prices despite the easing of inflation. read more