This is the big weekend for football fans and casual viewers alike. Tomorrow, the Pittsburgh Steelers take on the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII. You can take our Super Bowl poll here and tell us who you want to win. If President Obama would vote in our poll, we know he’d vote for the Steelers.
If you’re hoping for a break in the cold temperatures, keep hoping. Temperatures will remain in the 20’s for the next week except for a “spike” of 36 degrees on Sunday. Don’t you wish you were going to Tampa for the Superbowl?
Weird story out of Millcreek. McDowell Intermediate High School teacher Robert Henninger has lost his job at the school after allegedly cutting a student in the stomach during a class demonstration. Not much more is known about incident, if it was an accident or what. Mike had him for class when he was at McDowell and he didn’t seem like a violent guy.
Local businessman Waydell Johnson has announced he will run for Erie City Council. He will run on the Democratic side.
The City of Erie and Erie Firefighters have reached a new 4 year contract. The contract includes both future and retroactive wage increases and firefighter contributions to health care.
The Pennsylvania State Insurance Department is reporting that the number of residents without health insurance is now more than 1 million. Crawford County has one of the state’s highest levels of uninsured individuals while Erie County ranked in the top for having the most individuals insured.
National Fuel announced that it will be reducing the residential cost for natural gas by 8%. The lower prices go into effect on Sunday, so you should see an immediate, albeit small, decrease in your next bill.
At the request of the state-appointed mediator, the negotiating teams for the Iroquois School District and the Iroquois Education Association have agreed to submit a mediators proposal to their respective memberships for a vote. You can read more about the negotiations at this site. The District has agreed to extend the date to the earlier of the start of a work stoppage or Monday, February 9, 2009.
Erieite and freelance writer Stephanie Mannino had her article “How Companies Can Stay Competitive” published in the Cooperator a publication on co-ops and condos.
Lord Corporation announced the successful testing of its Magneto-Rheological (MR) active shock absorbers which are used for military vehicles. This same technology has been used for commercial automobiles. First introduced on the 2002 Corvette, the system now appears on more than 400,000 automobiles in more than a dozen models from a wide range of manufacturers including Audi, Ferrari, GM, Holden and Honda.
Sports
Andrew Yogan enjoyed a career night with two goals and four assists to lead the Erie Otters to a 8-2 win over the Oshawa Generals in an Ontario Hockey League game played Friday night in front of 3,879 at the Tullio Arena. Shawn Szydlowski added three goals and an assist in the Otters win while Zack Torquato, Justin Hodgman and Luke Gazdic rounded out the scoring. Erie ended a three-game home losing streak with their second straight win to improve to 25-23-2-0 on the season. Tonight the Otters play against the Guelph Storm. Get your tickets here.
The Erie BayHawks won against the Anaheim Arsenal 103-93 last night. Tonight they play against host Bakersfield Jam. The BayHawks are on the road until February 4th before returning to the Tullio to play the Idaho Stampede. Get your tickets here.
Erie native and Illinois University senior Chelsea Gordon will miss the rest of the 2008-09 womens basketball season after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her right knee on Sunday in the Fighting Illini’s win over Indiana. The injury effectively ends the 6-0 forward’s UI career after three years as a starter. Gordon played in 116 career games – tied for the sixth most in school history – made 83 starts, scored 680 points (5.9 ppg), pulled down 360 rebounds (3.1 rpg) and made 69 three-pointers in her career, the 12th most in school history. Gordon was named the team’s Best Defensive Player after the both the 2006-07 and 2007-08 seasons. She was also named to the FIU Thanksgiving Classic All-Tournament Team last season after helping Illinois to the tournament crown.
The Edinboro wheelchair basketball team improved to 5-11 on Friday morning with a 43-17 win over the University of Illinois’ women’s team at McComb Fieldhouse. The game was the first of a four-game set against the men’s and women’s teams from Illinois.
Events
The Main Street Grille and Brewing Co located in Garrettsville, Oh. (between Cleveland and Youngstown) will hold a beer festival on Saturday. In addition to beer from Main Street and other Ohio breweries, there will be a large representation of Erie area breweries including the Blue Canoe Brewery in Titusville, Brewerie at Union Station and the Erie Brewing in Erie, and the Voodoo Brewery in Meadville. Saturday’s festival will have two separate two-hour sessions, beginning at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. The cost is $20 in advance and $30 at the door. Participants will receive a 5-ounce sampling glass. For reservations or more details, call 330-527-3663 or online.
Cats is an award-winning musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber based on “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats” by T. S. Eliot. Since opening in London in 1981, the show has been performed around the world in numerous productions and has been translated into more than 20 languages. The show opens at the Erie PlayHouse and runs through February 15.
There will be a new sail training class for anyone looking to become a volunteer on Brig Niagara for the upcoming season. There is no cost for this class. The orientation will take place on January 31st, 2009 here at the museum at 0830. The sail training sessions will begin February 7 and continue until April 18th. We will meet from 0830 until 1230 every other Saturday. If you are interested let me know. If you know anyone who might be interested please let them know. I can be contacted at wisabatini@state.pa.us, 814-452-2744 ext 210,
Saturday, January 31 from 6 – 8 p.m. is the Erie Bluffs Night Hike. Those interested in attending should meet at Tom Ridge Environmental Center at 5:30 p.m. before proceeding to the Erie Bluffs for a guided tour. For more information call (814) 833-7424 or email.
Upcoming Erie Concerts and Shows:
Feb. 3: Harlem Globetrotters (tickets)
Feb. 13: The Temptations, Warner Theatre (tickets)
Feb. 19: Jerry Seinfeld, Warner Theatre (tickets)
Feb. 22: Rain (Beatles Cover Band), Warner Theatre (tickets)
March 7: Motley Crue w/ Hinder, Last Vegas, Theory of a Deadman, Tullio Arena (tickets)
March 22: New Kids on the Block, Tullio Arena (tickets on sale 1/24)
March 29: Comedian Lewis Black, Warner Theatre (tickets)
View this past Sunday’s comprehensive events list to see a list of events for the week and months ahead. If you would like your event posted here, please contact us via our online form.
