Kamikaze Season in Southshore

Want to get your business in The Southshore Circle?

Let’s Talk!

THE SKINNY

• Your Favorite Bugs Are Back

• Southshore Plumbing Tips

• Side Hustle Season

• Changing Tides

Featured Story

Florida’s Little Kamikaze with Heart

It’s love bug season in Southshore, and your car needs protection

Unfortunately, Southshore, we’ve reached that time of year when your car becomes a target. Love bugs. Florida’s tiny, flying pairs with absolutely no regard for your hood, your windshield, or your sanity. They show up in waves, hover over warm roads, and then commit. Straight into your front end like it’s part of the plan.

And while they may look harmless, they’re doing more damage than you think. Because it’s not the bug. It’s the aftermath. According to Noah, our Southshore Auto Care expert with SDS Auto Detailing, love bug residue is slightly acidic. Mix that with Florida heat, and it can start to break down your vehicle’s paint and clear coat faster than most people realize. Let it sit too long, and it’s not just a cleanup problem. It’s permanent damage.

So why do they even exist? Believe it or not, they actually serve a purpose. Love bugs help break down decaying plant material, recycling nutrients back into the soil. Great for the ecosystem. Terrible for your front bumper.

And here’s the reality. There’s not much you can do to stop them from hitting your car in the first place. If you’re driving through Southshore during peak season, it’s going to happen. But what you do next matters.

Noah says the biggest mistake people make is waiting too long to clean them off. The longer that acidic residue sits, the more it eats into the finish. A quick wash or even a rinse as soon as possible can make a big difference.

If you want to take it a step further, ceramic coating can add a layer of protection that makes cleanup easier and helps prevent long-term damage. And if you’re thinking about it, we know a guy. Noah and the team at SDS Auto Detailing handle that locally.

But even without that, the biggest thing is staying on top of it. Because in Southshore, love bug season shows up whether you’re ready or not. And if you ignore it too long, your paint will remind you.

Plumbing Tips You Can Use with Kuma Plumbing & Drain

Garbage Disposal 101

Hard materials like peach pits, unpopped popcorn kernels, and beef bones act like stones inside your disposal chamber. These items don't grind down. They bounce around until they dent the grinding ring or shatter the impellers. If you hear a loud clanking sound, turn off the power immediately to prevent the motor from burning out while trying to process indestructible debris.

Fibrous vegetables pose a different but equally destructive threat to your kitchen plumbing. Celery stalks, corn husks, and onion skins contain long threads that wrap around the rotating assembly. These fibers create friction that slows the motor and eventually leads to a total jam. You might think the blades can handle a few potato peels, but those starches often turn into a thick paste that glues the components together.

Read More

Monday Money Minute

Everybody’s got a side hustle…where’s yours?

In today’s economy, you’ve gotta be doing a little more than the average bear if you want to get ahead.

Gas feels like a line of credit per gallon, home values feel like they’re tied to a fever dream, college can look more like a payment plan for hope, and for a lot of people, the American dream feels further away than ever.

So today, we’re keeping it simple. We’re talking side hustles. Not the flashy “get rich quick” stuff. The real ones. The ones that won’t make you rich overnight, but can put a few extra dollars in your pocket… and more importantly, give you something you can start building with.

Because that’s the key. It’s not just about making more money. It’s about putting that extra money to work for you. As Warren Buffett put it, if you don’t find a way to make money while you sleep, you’ll work until you die.

So here are three side hustles that actually make sense right now:

1. Sell What You Already Own (and Then Flip More)
Start with what’s sitting around your house. Furniture, tools, baby gear, electronics. There’s money just sitting there. Once you get a feel for what sells, you can start flipping items from Facebook Marketplace, garage sales, or clearance racks. It’s the fastest way to turn stuff into cash.

2. Affiliate Content (Get Paid to Recommend)
This is one of the simplest ways to start making money online. You create content, TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, even short reviews, and recommend products using affiliate links. When someone buys, you get paid.

The key isn’t going broad. It’s going specific. A niche audience that trusts you is worth more than a big audience that doesn’t.

3. Digital Products (Make It Once, Sell It Forever)
This is where things start to scale. Templates, guides, planners, checklists, anything that solves a problem. You create it once, and it can sell over and over again.

It doesn’t need to be perfect. It just needs to be useful. None of these are glamorous. None of them are instant. But they work.

A couple extra hundred dollars a month might not change everything overnight. But invested right, saved consistently, or used to build something bigger, it can absolutely change your trajectory.

Because in today’s economy, standing still is expensive. (The declining value of the dollar and all.)

And even a small step forward is still a step.

Things to do

What’s Washing Up on The Shore This Week

Your Weekly What in the World

The Ocean Current That Could Change Everything

Sometimes the biggest stories aren’t the loudest ones. They’re the ones happening quietly in the background that could eventually impact all of us.

Scientists are raising new concerns about a massive ocean current system called the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC. It’s a key part of how heat moves around the planet, helping regulate weather patterns across North America, Europe, and beyond.

Here’s the problem. New research suggests it may be weakening faster than expected, and potentially heading toward a tipping point. If that happens, the effects wouldn’t stay in the ocean.

We’re talking shifting weather patterns, rising sea levels along parts of the U.S., and disruptions to agriculture and water systems around the world. (Pretty sure I wrote a book about that 😃 ) And yes, that includes Florida.

A weaker system could contribute to rising sea levels along the East Coast and change rainfall patterns, which could impact everything from storm intensity to flooding risk over time. Now to be clear, this isn’t something happening overnight. But it is something scientists are watching much more closely than before. And it’s a reminder of how connected everything really is.

Southshore Spotlight

Ruskin VFW

Ruskin Memorial VFW Post 6287 serves as a hub for veterans and Southshore residents alike, offering support programs, community events, and a place to connect with those who’ve served. From weekly events to outreach efforts helping veterans transition back to civilian life, it’s more than just a post, it’s a community.

Nominate your local hero by emailing us at [email protected]

We Know a Guy…or Girl

Southshore Services

Need a painter? A plumber? Someone brave enough to tackle that lightbulb orbiting 30 feet above your living room? We’ve got you. And the best part, they’re all right here in our community.

Interested in joining the list? Shoot us an email because we can guarantee one thing. If they don’t know you, they’re not gonna call you.

[email protected]

“Keep it Local!”

Foodies Only

Roots Southern BBQ

This local favorite has been popping up around Southshore, serving up authentic Southern-style BBQ with all the staples you’d expect… and then some. From pulled pork to homemade sides and sauces, it’s the kind of spot that leans heavy into flavor and even heavier into that classic Southern hospitality.

If you’ve got a restaurant, food truck, or even a lemonade stand, it could be featured here. Email us at [email protected]

Local Sports

Our area high schools boast state champions and multiple division titleists. Come out and show your support for these teams and for our community.

Got news, events, or press releases that the Southshore needs to know about? Submit them here. (We’ll do our best to add press releases in our regular rotation.) If you’re looking to run an actual ad, go here instead.

Until next time,

Keep It Local.