Category: blog
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Florida Keys Cycling: Inside Key Largo’s All Keys Cycles Shop
In a Key Largo bike shop, airless-tire cruisers carry riders to Key West and back, screws stuck in their rubber and smiles on their faces. Amid rising e-bike insurance and staffing struggles, Steve Troeger keeps his rare Alibis rolling south.
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UF Family Weekend in Gainesville Sun: Beyond ‘The Swamp’
On UF Family Weekend, we drove up from Key Largo to see our freshman, Mira—and I spent the day reporting. From a packed bookstore and smoky tailgate to Gator Walk, a Peruvian food truck, and 90,683 fans in The Swamp, the people stole the show.
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Homestead rider Crystal Schnebly finds life lessons in the saddle
Combat medic, police officer, and South Florida rodeo rider Crystal Schnebly says her truest lessons came from the barn. Horses taught her to be present, value small improvements over perfection, redefine toughness as patience and self‑control, embrace career change, and keep showing up—one steady step at a time.
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A Wild Pokémon Has Appeared
Hours before the 30th anniversary Pokémon TCG launch, South Dade big-box stores fill with folding chairs, sleeping fans and quiet calculations. From invite-only Elite Trainer Boxes online to in-store waiting lists at Walmart, Target, Best Buy and GameStop, collectors map Miami like a circuit built on scarcity.
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The Ocean in a Drop: Jessica Bartels’ Deep-Sea Calling
In the Florida Keys, an aquarist and educator builds a life of stewardship the scenic way — after learning what to refuse. BY: NADA KHALAF-JONES Special to The Free Press · ran Sep 3 2026 Story and photos by Nada Khalaf-Jones. As published in the Florida Keys Free Press, Sep 3 2026 (Pursuits / Features).…
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The Discipline of Hope on a Bleaching Reef
Another mass bleaching is slamming Florida Keys corals, pushing already battered elkhorn and staghorn reefs toward collapse. Scientists are racing to rescue surviving genotypes, cross-breed heat-tolerant “corals of the future,” and shield shorelines with living defenses. Their work can only buy time unless we urgently cut climate-warming emissions and keep restoration funded.
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Herlong Mansion: Our Home Base for UF, Twice This Fall
Herlong Mansion in Micanopy has become our home base for the University of Florida. We stayed the night before we moved our daughter Mira into Tolbert Hall in August, and we came back for Family Weekend in September. It’s 15 minutes from campus, and we chose it for the utter love of the place, the…
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DJI Mavic 4 Pro Decapitation in the Florida Keys
I’ve flown DJI drones in the Florida Keys since 2016, passed the FAA Part 107 test, shot real estate, boats, weddings—and then flew a Mavic 4 Pro straight into thin branches at sunset. No alarms, camera decapitated, no help from DJI or Best Buy. Here’s what that taught me about repairs, insurance, and flying anyway.
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Key Largo Listing Cleaning Vendors for Pro Photos
READ THIS FIRST… Window Cleaning Salt air is relentless in the Keys, and cloudy, streaked glass is one of the most common things that dulls an otherwise stunning property photo. Clean windows let in the light, sharpen the view of the water, and give every interior shot that bright, open feel buyers love. Book your…
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Becoming Better As A Photographer – CPP Certification
The Unexpected Journey Behind My CPP Goal Experience is a gift, but it can also be a bit of a trap. When you’ve been doing something for a long time — in my case, photographing life here in the Florida Keys — it’s easy to lean on what’s worked before and stop questioning it. If…
