Things To Do In SW Florida

Sometimes I visit theme parks with no ride or reason in mind. Recently, I made a loop of Islands of Adventure, a place I’ve been hundreds of times since 1999, and it was a mix of sentimentality and discovery.

Strolling through the park’s Port of Entry, I notice five pieces of colorful glass embedded into the walkway. I imagine they’ve always been there — why would Universal add them later, after all — but I don’t remember them. Are they symbolic, like for the five original lands of IOA?

Or are they just pretty and scene setters? The designs of Central Florida parks are so layered that you can literally walk right past/over them.

It reminded me of another Port of Entry discovery in the early COVID-19 pandemic days. It was so quiet, and that enabled me to first hear the prerecorded jailbreak banter over by the Christmas store. (It’s still rolling.)

Other recent entries in my mental IOA notebook:

• The construction walls were gone again from the former Poseidon’s Fury attraction. Although Universal Orlando filed construction permits recently for that area, no announcement has been made, and I couldn’t spy any action. Visitors can now walk almost up to the front door, and most of the water features were working. The vegetation is under control, too. I took more pictures because one day that view will be gone. (Crumbling big feet with Marvel Super Hero Island in the background is an unusual sight.) read more

Q: I live in an apartment, and my upstairs neighbor gets up to work out every day at 5 a.m. He’s often loud, dropping the weights and waking me up. I’m kind of at my wits’ end. I really don’t want to have to report him to the community, but I also need to get some sleep. What can I do? — Adrian

A: Living in an apartment comes with its own set of challenges, including dealing with noisy neighbors. Sometimes, it might be a barking dog, late-night parties, loud music, or, like in your case, an early-morning workout routine.

While every apartment community has its own rules and guidelines, the steps for addressing noise issues are generally the same.

Communication is always your first step.

Try to have a polite and respectful conversation with your neighbor. They may not be aware that their routine is bothering you, and a simple conversation may resolve the issue. Choose a time when you’re both calm and not in the middle of the problem, perhaps in the evening or on a weekend. Explain how the noise is impacting your sleep and ask if they could take steps to minimize it, like using a mat to cushion the weights or adjusting their routine slightly. Approach the conversation with understanding, and you might be surprised at how willing they are to cooperate. read more

By DAMIAN J. TROISE

NEW YORK (AP) — A resurgence of meme stock interest has prompted the return of a one-stop fund for the volatile and quirky investments.

Related Articles

• 
  Disney World raises prices of annual passes

• 
  Is there an AI bubble? Financial institutions sound a warning

• 
  Fed minutes: Most officials supported further rate cuts as worries about jobs rose

• 
  Staffing shortages cause more US flight delays as government shutdown reaches 8th day

• 
  Ten years after prototype, anti-drunken driving tech ready for rollout

Roundhill Investments is launching a meme ETF, which is an exchange-traded fund consisting solely of meme stocks. Several of those stocks have ridden a wave of meme investment sentiment this year. The move comes two years after the provider of ETFs closed the fund because of slumping interest. The new fund trades under the “MEME” symbol.

Investors have been sporadically turning to meme stocks throughout 2025 in an effort to find bargains amid a very pricey stock market. The S&P 500 has had a busy year setting records. That has made it more difficult for investors to find stocks at lower prices that have potential for growth. read more

Walt Disney World has raised the prices on all levels of its annual passes to its four theme parks, effective immediately.

The Disney Incredi-Pass, the top level of passes, which allows entry for a year without any block-out dates, now sells for $1,629. It has been priced at $1,549 since an increase last October. It’s up 5.2%.

The Disney Sorcerer Pass now costs $1,099, up from $1,079, an increase of 2.7%. This level is designated for Florida residents and Disney Vacation Club members. These passes come with block-out dates during the November-December holiday period.

The new Disney Pirate Pass price is $869, up from $829, a 4.8% increase. This level is for Floridians and features about 50 block-out dates in the next year, including around key holidays and peak periods such as spring break.

Finally, the Disney Pixie Pass now goes for $489, up from $469, a 4.3% increase. This ticket allows theme park entry Mondays through Fridays, although there are block-out dates for some weeks.

Annual passholder receive complimentary parking at the theme parks as well as various degrees of discounts on food and merchandise.  The resort’s park reservations policy, instituted as Disney World reopened from its pandemic shutdown in 2020, remains in place. read more

By KELVIN CHAN and MATT O’BRIEN, AP Technology Writers

LONDON (AP) — Lingering doubts about the economic promise of artificial intelligence technology are starting to get the attention of financial institutions that raised warning flags this week about an AI investment bubble.

Officials at the Bank of England on Wednesday flagged the growing risk that tech stock prices pumped up by the AI boom could burst.

“The risk of a sharp market correction has increased,” the U.K. central bank said.

The head of the International Monetary Fund raised a similar alarm hours after the Bank of England’s report.

Global stock prices have been surging, fired up by “optimism about the productivity-enhancing potential of AI,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said.

But financial conditions could “turn abruptly,” she warned in a speech ahead of the organization’s annual meeting next week in Washington.

FILE – Sam Altman, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, OpenAI, testifies before a Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, May 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, file) ARCHIVO – El logotipo de OpenAI aparece en un teléfono móvil frente a una pantalla de computadora con datos binarios aleatorios, el 9 de marzo de 2023, en Boston. (AP Foto/Michael Dwyer/Archivo) FILE – A sign for a Nvidia building is shown in Santa Clara, Calif., May 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)