Bonzo Lamberson-Murphy is a 9-month-old Miniature Schnauzer. Her daddy gave her to her mommy for her birthday last year, and she’s the best present ever!

She is a lovely little girl that enjoys socializing both with other dogs and people, chasing her toys and cuddling (she would do it constantly, if possible.)

The words “travel” and “Orlando” have pretty much grown to be synonymous with one another. Most often, though, one thinks about incoming travel versus outgoing. But those of us who live in the Orlando/Central Florida are usually looking to escape the hustle-and-bustle of the tourist-flooded city, even if we rarely spend time on International Drive or the Downtown Disney area. So once you’ve gotten over the hurdle of where to GO on your vacation, the next big step is where to STAY.

TripKick.com is a new site that launched today, actually, and goes beyond the service that sites like TripAdvisor provide, and focus on the more detailed things hotel-goers are interested in. Things like elevator noise, exterior doors closing and opening, noise coming from the bar, crappy views from the room, and late night parties at the pool are all things that could easily ruin a trip. TripKick aims to help eliminate these things before you ever leave your house.

Since the site is in its infancy it’s somewhat limited with its capabilities. However, in the cities–the main US metropolises–where information is available consumers can look for specific, targeted information on rooms and can even get down to things such as room views, whether the hotel allows pets, or if the room has a golf view.

The site also maintains a blog at http://blog.tripkick.com/, which is always useful tool; you can engage and interact with other users, and obtain information you might not normally get on the website. I’m really looking forward to seeing how well TripKick is accepted, and even more how consumers use it.

If at at point you use this site to plan your vacation, make sure and let us know how it turns out!

I don’t know how else to say this, but please … Share the Road.

If you see this sign, and you need further instruction, it means back off the cicylists who have no where else to ride, but on the street with you. Trust me, if there are bike lanes we’ll be in them, but if you’ve been around Central Florida, bike lanes are few and far between.

You’d think with gas prices soaring and the obesity epidemic that cities would do more to encourage alternative transportation, but it doesn’t seem that’ll be the case here any time soon. So, from an avid rider, thanks in advance for sharing the road, see you out there!

For more than 20 years, Central Florida charities have benefited from Charity Challenge, an athletic event where teams from apartment complexes and the hospitality industry compete in childhood games such as tug-o-war, canoe relay and basketball hot shots, all in the name of philanthropy.

If you’re looking for a reason to spend your Saturday outdoors, head down to Charity Challenge XXIII, Saturday, May 17, 2008, and cheer on the teams as they compete. Afterall, it’s for a great cause, Charity Challenge has raised more than $3 million for local charities … $300,000 in 2007, alone!

Charity Challenge
Citrus Bowl – Downtown Orlando
Saturday, May 17, 2008
9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Remember reading something you liked somewhere on “Pulse” but you can’t specifically recall where it’s located? No worries! We’ve just added a search widget so you can find exactly what you’re looking for, without having to waste a lot of time.

To use the search widget–located in the upper right-hand of the rightrail of each page–simply type your keyword into the box and wait for the results. That’s it!

Let us know if there are other features you’d like us to consider adding to “Pulse of Central Florida.” It’s all about our readers, baby!

Just when you think living in Central Florida is boring and nearly everything’s predictable, along comes a little surprise to renew your interest. Recently while at a residence located in the Winter Park area, I discovered a family–or perhaps just a gang of friends–of owls living in a Birds of Paradise plant. Yes…I said owls! They’re definitely in a well-hidden place, but look closely and you can see them:

In doing a little research about this encounter at TheOwlPages.com, I believe the owls I saw are the Eastern Screech Owl, although according to the information on the site these creatures are primarily nocturnal.

If you’ve seen wild animals lurking around the Central Florida area we’d love to hear your story or see your photos. E-mail them to us by clicking here. You’re also welcome to leave a comment in this post.

If you look closely the Central Florida and Orlando areas have some interesting artwork and architecture. This particular piece has held my interest for quite some time:

(Location: Saint James Catholic Cathedral in downtown Orlando.)

If you’re like me and you wait until the last minute to purchase a gift [for any occasion] then you probably often find yourself irritated with…well, yourself! And with Mother’s Day only two days away, you certainly want to make sure you’ve got all your bases covered — a Mother’s Day without a gift is not something you want to risk, if you know what I mean.

My mother doesn’t live here in Orlando but if she did I’d certainly take advantage of the great offer that arrived in my e-mail earlier this morning. The flyer explains it all:

After all, what mother doesn’t like to be pampered? So visit FreshFaceSkin.com now to set your mother’s appointment! Heck, you don’t even have to leave the comfort of your own home!

This is Maxwell Osburn.

Maxwell is a 9-year-old DSH tabby cat with a cute pink nose, pink pads, and pretty green eyes! He has a luggage fetish – here he is after he hopped into his mother’s overnight bag and made himself comfortable…while she was packing for a trip. As you can see, there’s not much room for anything else with him inside.

Maxwell’s “big boned” at a whopping 20-ish pounds but, still a kitty to his parents!

Well, you’ve read all the doom and gloom about the housing market being in the toilet, but all that press just leaves me wondering, is it all bad?

The answer is No! There are some fantastic deals out there, including this gem For Sale by some of my dearest friends:

More details about this little beauty can be found here.

However, if the market still has you a little gun-shy, here are a few of my favorite local resources for stalking the rental market.

In no particular order,
Craigslist … Weed through the crap; focus on the areas you like; and know that if it looks too good to be true, it probably is.
Olde Town Brokers … Especially strong if your focus is Downtown or Thornton Park.
Sutton and Sutton … A College Park staple.
Orlando Rentals … I’m still new to this site, but it looks promising.

Whatever you decide, Buy or Rent smart! And hit me up if you have any great resources for a lifetime renter!