With the possibility of half a million parade goers in town for the annual Gasparilla Pirate Festival on Saturday, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and Tampa Police Department will have eyes on the ground and in the air for this weekend’s Gasparilla events. Law enforcement will be conducting plenty of traffic stops for possible DUI’s and advise you to take plenty of time to get where you need to go. Add the over 100,000 parade goes to the crowd expected for the Tampa Bay Lighting game that night, parking will be at a premium. For a little help for parking maps and more, click here.

When the parade is over and all those beads are cluttering up Bayshore Blvd, picking them up can help you get 50% off your admission to the Florida Aquarium on an adult ticket. Keeping them out the Bay as well is crucial, so here’s the deal. Get a five gallon bucket, fill it up and get the details on how to turn them in here. Those beads are recycled through the MacDonald Training Center, a nonprofit organization that helps adults with disabilities prepare for the workforce through vocational training, employment pathways, residential supports and life-enrichment opportunities. Workers will sanitize and repackage the beads for reuse at future events. Funds raised support the Center’s career and education programs. For what you need to know on a Bead-Free Bay, just click here.

Tampa City Council postponed a vote on a curfew for teens yesterday. Council members want to look at creating programs and events instead. The proposal had passed the first reading last month, and would require those under 16 to be off the street by 11 pm Sunday through Thursday, and by midnight, Friday and Saturday.

It’s National Blood Donor Month, with the lack of donations causing a critical blood shortage. Senior VP for Corporate Communications and Public Relations Susan Forbes spoke with Ann Kelly on the need for blood and plasma donations. The podcast is live here, and for additional information and to host your own blood drive, go to oneblood.org.

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