Mitch Traphagen
Observations: Cheers to our new souls!
By Mitch Traphagenmitch@observernews.net
December 31, 2001, was a turning point for making the New Year’s holiday one of my favorites. It was all due to
Observations: The Christmas Butterfly Effect
By Mitch Traphagen mitch@observernews.net The concept of the butterfly effect is that small changes - even the flapping of a butterfly’s wings - may produce big differences ...Humor in remembrance? Surely you can’t be serious
By MITCH TRAPHAGEN Funerals are often described as “celebrations of life” but they rarely live up to that billing. Death is sad and there is just ...Reality as not seen on TV
By MITCH TRAPHAGEN I am seriously behind schedule on a slow journey home to Florida. My goal was to be well into the Intracoastal Waterway in ...
Thawing out a frozen dream
Part of an Observer News Feature Series By MITCH TRAPHAGENmitch@observernews.net Boats are the physical manifestation of dreams. No one needs a boat; but for those who choose ...For Ruskin priest, ‘Happy Christmas’ comes from his heart
Father John McEvoy of St. Anne Catholic Church in Ruskin is celebrating his second Christmas in the new sanctuary. MITCH TRAPHAGEN PHOTOS By ...Cool Change
By MITCH TRAPHAGENmitch@observernews.net If there’s one thing in my life that’s missing, it’s the time that I spend alone sailing on the cool and bright clear ...Helping Hands
By MITCH TRAPHAGEN The circus has moved down the road. All along the way, I’ve heard stories of the southbound cruising fleet crowding bridges and ...Coming in from the cold
Part four of an Observer News feature series By MITCH TRAPHAGEN I had never been so cold in my life — and that is saying ...
Apollo Beach Boat Parade lights up the holidays
MITCH TRAPHAGEN PHOTOS A bit of rain earlier in the day coupled with cool and cloudy weather did not dampen the spirits in Apollo Beach ...Author info
Mitch Traphagen
Mitch Traphagen is a photojournalist, columnist and online editor for the Observer News Publications. He is the recipient of 55 awards of excellence from the Community Papers of Florida for his photography and writing. He has worked for some of the nation’s largest corporations, as Press Secretary for a U.S. Congressman, owned and published a weekly newspaper, and produced a commercial documentary video on sailing. He is a Commodore in the Seven Seas Cruising Association (ssca.org). Mitch is a writer, photographer, sailor and traveler with a bit of a geek thing going on. You can visit his personal website at mitchtraphagen.com