Here is a panel you missed this morning. We were, I think, both entertaining and thoughtful. It was both theoretic and nostalgic. And almost all of the examples that came out of the panel were tales that started with some dystopian or post-apocalyptic backstory, which I found to be interesting. Just read the description, and imagine you were there:

It led to this quote, from our friend and co-panelist Dr. Brian Brantley, which was spot on:

And I don’t even like zombie films. Or mobster films. I think they’re kind of the same, actually.

I also chaired a panel on politics and sat in on another one where The Yankee presented, and caught a fourth session elsewhere, as well. It was a good day at the conference.

We have friends here in Tampa — Jenni, with whom we ran the Augusta half-Ironman last year and her husband, Gavin, who flies rockets and works for the county. That sounds like he flies rockets for the county, and I think he would appreciate that dangling gerund, so I’ll just leave it as is They took us here:

They took us not knowing we’ve had lunch at one of their cafes for two days in a row. That’s OK. We’re going back there again tomorrow.

The neon side overhead:

Across the street, the local branch of “My bank is more patriotic than your bank.”

Inside the restaurant, I enjoyed the roast pork “a la Cubana.” I even enjoyed the plantains, and I don’t even like plantain. Gavin, meanwhile, ordered the flaming steak. That was a first for me. He said it was delicious:

The restaurant has been around for more than a century, aimed at the working man, but has evolved somewhat over the decades. It is still a family-owned place. The menu is covered in their history. This is one of the best stories I’ve read in a menu (and I always read the stories in a menu):

Outside and around the corner, here are the six generations of that family who poured their lives into the place:

The whole block, it seemed, was dressed up in the style. I wonder what happens to those tiles when the seventh generation comes along.