Breaking News

Local Commentaries

Big Julie wuz one of a kind

I was standing in the checkout line at a Country Fair in Erie when I heard the big tough man’s voice behind me. He was on the phone. “You tell doze guys I’m gonna take care-a dem poysinally when I get back.” He added profanity for emphasis. I hadn’t heard an accent like that – delivered in a threatening, gravelly voice – in over 50 years. But I didn’t have to dig too deep for the memory. The big tough guy with the rough-neighborhood New York accent was unforgettable. His name was Big Julie. Whadda a package he was. I was a stewardess based at New York’s Kennedy ...

We hear the words, “I don’t vote because it won’t count.” Every United States citizen has the right to vote to preserve our democracy, and has a right to feel that their vote counts. How your vote for president counts is decided by the way the state legislature translates actual vote tallies into electoral votes. Electoral votes are apportioned to each state by population -- Pennsylvania has 19 electoral votes. Each state’s legislature can decide how its electoral votes are cast in the presidential election. Some states, including this one, declare all their Electoral College ...

What are your Goliaths

First, of all, I hope that you are familiar with the account of David and Goliath from the Bible. Our guest preacher used it as his scriptural reference Sunday. In case it is unfamiliar I will give some of my history with it as well as something from the Bible. I missed the book of the Bible that he said the story was in, but I knew the story. I was able to look it up on the Internet. The account is in I Samuel 17 in case you want to read it. Goliath was a giant who wanted to throw his weight around and pester the Israelites. For forty days he appeared to taunt them. He was a ...

Rounding Third: Spring brought an unwelcome surprise

In fact, Spring started a little early for us, and brought an untimely gift. Whoop-de-doo. We have ants. And we have been struggling. Occasionally in April or May, we have had a small platoon of the little black critters. Nothing we couldn’t deal with easily. We’d buy an 8-pack of ant traps, punch the holes open, and scatter a few around the kitchen and laundry room. In a few days, the annual invasion would be gone and we’d be back to business as usual. The laundry room is particularly important because that’s where Finian’s food dishes are, along with his sack of dry food ...

View from Hickory Heights: A great way to spend your money!

“A little reminder that in a few years you won’t remember how much that trip cost, but you will remember the moments you experienced.” Learning and Exploring Through Play Now, years later I realize what a wise move I made taking the grandchildren to New York City. First, I took the girls. I planned the whole trip through a group from Sheffield. Tom and Sue did many trips but the only ones I participated in were the New York City adventures. Now that I think about it, I also went with them on a cruise that boarded in Boston. That was my first trip after I lost my husband. It was ...

Budget season offers hope for a new energy future

We know Pennsylvania’s budget season doesn’t quite get the same buzz as other seasons of the year. But this year, there’s reason to get excited about the state budget. Pennsylvanians have a real opportunity to see dramatic new investments in our commonwealth’s energy economy. Gov. Josh Shapiro’s proposed budget includes a plan to jumpstart economic growth through the energy sector, following federal commitments of up to $2 billion for clean hydrogen production and industrial decarbonization. While there may be differences in the details, one thing is clear: Democrats and ...