Things To Do In SW Florida

Visit Orlando, the region’s tourism marketing agency, has gotten millions of hotel tax dollars to promote theme parks to Taylor Swift fans, run television ads during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and court international visitors from Canada to Chile.

A pair of Orlando state lawmakers say some of those funds should be spent on more pressing needs  — from expanding mass transit to building affordable housing.

Democrats Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith and Rep. Anna Eskamani argue Visit Orlando has “gobbled up” too much public money under current state law. That law has made the agency one of the country’s best-funded tourism-marketing organizations with an annual budget of more than $100 million.

To succeed, the lawmakers will need to make inroads with a Republican-dominated Legislature that has shown little appetite to shake up the tourist development tax. Visitors pay that tax when they stay in hotels and short-term rentals.

The Democrats have filed several bills to scale back a requirement that at least 40% of hotel tax revenue be used to promote and advertise tourism. Their approach could potentially free up more than $50 million for other public projects. read more

By Courtney Frazer, Bankrate.com

High food prices have American families feeling the pinch — grocery trips cost around 20% more than they did four years ago. Not only are outright costs higher, but shoppers are also dealing with “shrinkflation,” where products shrink in size while maintaining their price point.

There are ways to save other than opting for generic brands or skipping meat. Smartphone apps can help you save on your monthly grocery bill with loyalty programs, cash-back rewards, digital coupons and app-only savings.

Top food savings apps

1. Ibotta

Ibotta is one of the most popular cash-back apps available. It’s known for offering cash-back rewards on everyday purchases at major retailers like Walmart, Costco, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods. The app is simple to use, but you have to plan ahead: Users select offers before shopping and earn rewards by scanning receipts afterward.

Its browser extension enables cash back on online grocery purchases, and partnerships with retailers provide exclusive deals on essential household items. read more

By KELVIN CHAN, Associated Press Business Writer

LONDON (AP) — You’ve heard of burner phones. What about burner email?

So much of the internet now requires that you hand over your email address before you’re able to use any services — from an app you’ve downloaded to signing up for a newsletter or redeeming a special offer online.

But who says you have to give your real email address? Next time you’re asked, consider using an email mask.

There are a growing number of services that give out disguised email addresses and relay any messages to your actual address. Experts say this can be a powerful tool to safeguard privacy and security.

Here are some pointers on the whys and hows of email masking:

Mask on

The idea behind email masking is simple. The masking service gives you a randomized address you can use as a decoy instead of your actual email. It can be a series of unrelated words, or a string of letters and numbers. When someone sends a message to the burner email, it will be automatically routed to your address without anyone knowing. read more

Oakland Park residents Jim and Chris Guld are about to sell their home and travel around the world, living full time aboard a cruise ship called Villa Vie Odyssey.

Will it be exciting? Yes. Expensive? Kind of. Tight?

Well, the Gulds say they’re not worried about feeling cramped inside of a 140-square-foot stateroom for the 15-year option they just purchased. They recently spent 14 years together in a recreational vehicle, hitting each of the lower 48 states.

“We will not be in our room very much,” Chris says. “Every morning I plan to walk up the three decks to the gym where there’s an exercise class. And there’s the buffet where we will eat, and there’s entertainment in the afternoon.”

That might get boring after awhile if not for the port calls. The ship’s itinerary includes stops at 425 ports in more than 140 countries over the 3½-year “Continual World Cruise.” The Gulds plan to get on the ship during its April 20 stop at the Colombian port of Cartagena and stay aboard for at least seven years, and longer if they love it. read more

A UCF faculty member President Trump nominated for NASA chief financial officer sees the moon as a stepping stone to Mars but warns the U.S. needs to fix its space game if it’s going to outplay China.

Trump tapped Greg Autry on Monday for the post. He joined the university in 2024 as associate provost for Space Commercialization and Strategy.

“I have been honored to help move UCF’s incredible space enterprise forward, and I hope to return after my service at NASA,” Autry said in a news release. “Our space agency has a long history of excellence in financial management, and I am looking forward to joining the incredible team at NASA.”

Autry worked with the first Trump administration as part of the White House transition team for NASA. In 2016, he helped lay out NASA’s plans to return to the moon through its Artemis program.

In January during SpaceCom, the commercial space conference in Orlando, Autry discussed his 2024 book, “Red Moon Rising: How America Will Beat China on the Final Frontier,” which he authored along with Peter Navarro, current Trump senior adviser for trade and manufacturing. read more