I hope you set your clocks forward an hour yesterday. If you didn’t, bad news. You’re late for work. Better get moving.

Hope you had a nice weekend. I relaxed a little, watched a movie, bought a house. You know, the normal things. Here’s a tip from me to you. Make sure your wife (or husband) has the chance to see the house. My wife was out of town, and I kind of bought it without her managing to actually see or be inside the home. Hope she trusts me.

First, I want to apologize. There was a TNA wrestling event in Erie Friday and we just plain missed it. Speaking of wrestling, did you know that Hulk Hogan is like 57 years old. Crazy.

Attorney Joseph Messina of Erie is featured in this story from the Chronicle of Higher Education about college donors.

Timothy Greenfield, 38, of Erie was arrested on rape charges. The victim was a 3-year-old girl. What is the matter with people. I want to use my thoughts to do this to people who commit these sorts of crimes.

Sports

The Gannon women’s basketball team has a chance to capture its second championship in as many weeks Monday, March 15 when it hosts Millersville in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional Championship at the Hammermill Center. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m. The Lady Knights have been ranked No. 1 in three consecutive USA Today ESPN Top 25 polls. The winner advances to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight March 23-26 at the St. Joseph Civic Arena in St. Joseph, Missouri.

Events

On Maple Taste & Tour weekend, 13 area maple syrup producers will open their sugar houses for the public to see how the delicious amber liquid is made, taste free samples, have fun as well as the chance to buy a variety of maple products from syrup to cream to crumb to candy.

This year’s event also will feature the Woodmobile, a traveling exhibit from the Pennsylvania Hardwoods Council. It will be located at Hurry Hill Farm and Maple Museum, which welcomes visitors to the 7th Annual Maple Taste & Tour weekend on Saturday and Sunday, March 20 and 21 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m..

Each producer is different, giving the public to see first-hand various methods of production. Some use wood, some fuel oil or natural gas, and some gather sap by the bucket and some from networks of pipelines in the woods.

For details, visit: http://www.pamaple.org/

Last November, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded The Erie Community Foundation with a $1M grant to assist Erie County nonprofits in their efforts to put county residents back to work. From the federal grant money, ReTool Erie was created. ReTool Erie combines the efforts of The Foundation, Nonprofit Partnership and the Regional Center for Workforce Excellence. ReTool Erie will release applications for grants to help Erie County nonprofits strengthen their workforce development programs. “ReTool Erie” will host public meetings as follows:

• In Erie: March 17th at 9 a.m., Hirt Auditorium, Blasco Library

• In Corry: March 18th at 1 p.m., Corry Higher Education Council
• In Edinboro: March 18th at 4:30 p.m, NW Tri-County Intermediate Unit #5

“At the public meetings, we will announce details of the program and release the applications,” said Amanda Brown Sissem, project officer of ReTool Erie. “Our goal is to find approximately 25 organizations to share the money.” Grants will be coupled with one-to-one coaching and a free training series. Organizations interested in attending a ReTool Erie public meeting should visit www.ErieCommunityFoundation.org to register.

Beginning in May, ReTool Erie will bring in national and regional workforce experts. “Our goal is to train organizations in the best practices to address the broad economic recovery issues present in our region,” Sissem added.

The Erie Community Foundation works to improve the quality of life in our region by evaluating and addressing community issues, by promoting responsible philanthropy and by connecting donors to the critical needs of the community. Presently, The Foundation is home to over 600 charitable endowments operating under the administrative umbrella of a single public charity. For more information, visit www.ErieCommunityFoundation.org or call 814-454-0843.

The Erie Art Museum offers art classes and workshops for children
and adults year-round. Beginning on Monday, March 29, 2010 the Museum
offers classes ranging from Photography for Kids to Precious Metals Jewelry

Classes are available to beginners and more experienced artists and are offered in quarterly sessions lasting three to ten weeks. Professional artists teach all Museum classes. A complete description of available classes is online at www.erieartmuseum.org. Plan to register one week prior to class start.

Beginning Digital Photography
Wednesdays for 6 weeks Starting March 31 from 7 – 9 p.m.

Beginning Acrylic Painting
Tuesdays for 7 weeks Starting March 30 from 5:30 – 7 p.m.

Beginning Ceramics on the Wheel
Tuesdays for 10 weeks Starting April 6 from 6 – 9 p.m.

Beginning Drawing
Thursdays for 6 weeks starting March 30 from 5:30 – 7 p.m.

Advanced Digital Photography
Thursdays for 6 weeks starting April 1 from 7 – 9 p.m.

Intermediate Ceramics on the Wheel
Thursdays for 10 weeks Starting April 8 from 6 – 9 p.m.

Oriental Painting
Mondays for 6 weeks Starting March 29 from 4 – 6 p.m.

New Approaches to Life Drawing
Thursdays for 6 weeks Starting March 30 from 7 – 9 p.m.

Acrylic Finished Clay Tiles
Wednesdays for 3 weeks, April 21, 28 & May 12 from 6:30 – 8:00 p.m.

Painting in Acrylics or Oils
Tuesdays for 7 weeks Starting March 30 from 7:15 – 9:15 p.m.

Precious Metals Jewelry Making
Wednesdays for 7 weeks Starting March 31 from 7–9 p.m.

Watercolor Painting
Thursdays for 6 weeks Starting April 22 from 12 – 3 p.m.

First Fridays
A Preschool Program
Join us the First Friday of every month from 10 – 11 a.m. for a special program for 3-6 year olds and their families. Museum staff lead adults and kids through exploring one of the exhibits using story, song and art making.

Fantastical Art for Kids
Kids experiment with drawing, painting, printmaking and more as we create art around the theme of Fantasy. For kids ages 6 – 10. Wednesdays for 6 weeks Starting March 31 from 4 – 5 p.m.

Photography for Kids
This class will introduce both the foundations of photography and how to discuss works of art. For kids ages 8 – 13. Thursdays for 6 weeks Starting April 8 from 4 – 6 p.m.

Parent Child Clay
Here is a chance for children to learn alongside a parent, grandparent, or adult friend.
Sundays for 7 weeks Starting April 11 from 2:00 – 3:30 p.m.

Clayspace Independent Study
Students gain round-the-clock access to ClaySpace and work independently on their own schedule. This includes use of the wheels, slab roller, extruder, tables, and kilns. Applicants must be knowledgeable in working with clay and studio equipment. Contact the Erie Art Museum for application. Fees start at $50/month for 50 hours or less monthly usage. Independent study students must be Museum members. A one time, refundable security/key deposit of $120 is due at the time of application.

The forecast’s calling for rain this weekend, which on top of all the melting snow means some areas may see some flooding. Be careful driving through standing water. Wow. I sound like my dad.

The annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade will take place on Saturday starting at 2. Catch it on State St. and wear some green. Personally, I’ll be trying to decide whether to have a Guinness or a Jamisons.

Erie City Council President Jim Thompson is calling for Erie Coke to be shut down following their little outburst the other day of coke particles. We agree, of course, but not sure if Mr. Thompson has enough clout statewide to get this done. Why is the DEP sitting on their hands FOR YEARS while this plant spews out poison? In case you missed Jesse’s photos the other day, check them out here.

Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong is back in the news. She’s asking for her trial to be moved out of Erie. She’s accused of being the brains behind the Brian Wells murder. On one hand, this makes a little sense, as this story has been in the news in Erie for 7 or so years. On the other hand. she continues to stall and this thing may never ever go to trial.

James DiNicola has pleaded guilty on charges he sexually assaulted an 11-year-old girl in 2007. He’ll be sentenced in July. Cases like this make me angry and want capital punishment for people like this, but a long time in PMITA prison is a decent punishment.

This weekend’s NCAA Division II Atlantic Sub-Regional, to be hosted by Gannon’s Lady Knights at the Hammermill Center, is expected to create an economic impact of up to $175,000 for the City of Erie and the surrounding region. Joe Holody, director of convention sales and services for VisitErie, said the projected economic boost takes into account factors such as ticket sales and hotel stays by visiting teams and fans. Money spent on meals, entertainment, and other miscellaneous items also will contribute to the total. The winners of those games will advance to play each other at Hammermill Center at 7 p.m. Saturday, March 13. Players, coaches, and other representatives from those three schools will be staying at the Sheraton Erie Bayfront Hotel. In addition, about 20 tournament officials and administrators will be staying at the Courtyard By Marriott, 7792 Peach St. More than 500 ticket packages for Friday’s and Saturday’s games were sold the first day that tickets were made available to the public. If Gannon wins Friday and Saturday, the Lady Knights will host the Atlantic Regional Championship Monday, March 15 at 7 p.m. at Hammermill Center. Tickets for Monday’s game will be $8 for reserved seats, $6 for adult general admission, and $4 for student/senior citizen general admission.

Sports

The Erie BayHawks of the NBA Development League have acquired former NBA player Michael Sweetney.

Events

The 54th annual spring cleanup at Presque Isle State Park will be held April 24 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers are needed to remove debris deposited on the peninsula’s beaches during storms. All ages and organizations can participate. Registration will take place at 9 a.m. at the Cookhouse Pavilion at the Waterworks area. Food and prizes will be provided at noon.

Sister Margaret Ann Pilewski, OSB, announces the opening of the Benedictine Sisters of Erie Spring Art Show on Sunday, March 7 from 10:30 a.m. until noon in the Chapter 57 Gallery at Mount St. Benedict Monastery, 6101 East Lake Road, Erie.

This annual show celebrates Women’s History Month and is an invitational show of Benedictine Sisters, Oblates and friends. It continues through April 11.

Gallery hours are Sundays 10:30 a.m.-noon, and weekdays, 3-5 p.m.

Sister Margaret Ann explains:
“Participants were asked to think in a large format with framed pieces measuring 11” x 14” and larger. So many pieces of beauty surround us and take new meaning when they are enlarged. The two-dimensional works invite us to step back and see with new eyes what has always been before us – God’s beauty.

“This was also an invitation to participants to see their work in a large format and to challenge them to risk seeing their work in this format.”

Sister Margaret Ann is the art coordinator for the Inner-City Neighborhood Art House and the manager of Chapter 57, the fine arts gift shop at Mount St. Benedict. She works in photography, ceramics and stained glass.

Gannon University has been named to the 2009 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service-learning, and civic engagement.

The Corporation for National and Community Service, which administers the annual Honor Roll award, recognized more than 700 colleges and universities for their impact on issues from poverty and homelessness to environmental justice. On campuses across the country, thousands of students joined their faculty to develop innovative programs and projects to meet local needs using the skills gained in their classrooms.

“Congratulations to Gannon University and its students, faculty, and staff for their dedication to service and commitment to improving their local community,” said Patrick Corvington, CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service. “Our nation’s students are a critical part of the equation and vital to our efforts to tackle the most persistent challenges we face. They have achieved impactful results and demonstrated the value of putting knowledge into practice to help renew America through service.”

The Honor Roll includes six colleges and universities that were recognized as Presidential Awardees, with an additional 115 named to the Distinction List and 621 schools, including Gannon, that were named as Honor Roll members. Honorees were chosen based upon a series of factors, including their scope and innovation of service projects, percentage of student participation in service activities, incentives for service, and the extent to which the school offers academic service-learning courses.

“As a University, we are excited and proud that so many of our students have answered the call to service and volunteerism,” said Gretchen Fairley, Gannon’s director of Service-Learning. “They, along with our faculty and staff, continue to make a very positive impact through their dedication and commitment to serving others. Their hard work has benefitted non-profit agencies and organizations and has made a tremendous difference in the lives of so many.”

During the 2008-09 academic year, Gannon University recorded 77,487 hours of community service. That total includes hours contributed by students as well as faculty and staff and represents a nearly 7 percent increase in the number of hours recorded from the prior academic year.

Gannon’s hours include both service-learning – volunteerism which has a direct tie to students’ class work – and community service.

Locally, Gannon serves the community in numerous ways. Some examples include:

• Last June, Gannon student-athletes, cheerleaders, and coaches volunteered when ABC-TV’s hit show “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” came to Erie to build a new home for Clara Ward, founder of the Youth Development & Family Center.
• The Gannon University Social Work Club annually hosts a Christmas Dinner and Wellness Fair that provides a full turkey dinner and clothing to hundreds of local residents who otherwise might not have much to celebrate around the holidays.
• A number of Gannon University faculty volunteered their time last May to help paint over graffiti on several buildings in downtown Erie.
• Hundreds of Gannon students annually volunteer for events like GIVE (Gannon’s Invitation to Volunteer Everywhere) Day and United Way Day of Caring.

In addition, Gannon students, faculty, and staff serve those in need nationally and internationally. Dozens of Gannon students annually devote their spring break to community service. This year, students traveled to New York City, New Orleans, Immokalee, Fla., and San Lucas Tolimán, Guatemala.

In May, at the conclusion of the academic year, Gannon students will travel to Washington, D.C., for a weeklong service trip focusing on poverty, HIV/AIDS, and health care. The group’s work will include volunteering at the Father McKenna Center, a drop-in center for the homeless, and at Food & Friends, an organization that delivers meals to individuals with chronic illnesses.

The Erie Storm of the American Indoor Football Association will open their 2010 campaign at home on Sunday, March 7 at the Tullio Arena in Erie when they host their Northern Division rivals and defending league champions, the Reading Express. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:00 PM.
Tickets for this and all seven scheduled regular-season home games for the Erie Storm can be purchased at the Tullio Arena box office (452-4857) and through all Ticketmaster outlets. All Erie Storm fans in attendance are invited to join us on the field following the game to meet, take pictures with, and get autographs from our players and coaches.

This Sunday’s matinee marks the return of Head Coach Shawn Liotta, who begins his second tour of duty on the Erie sidelines. In the franchise’s first year in Erie in 2008, Liotta led the team to a 10-4 regular-season record and a share of the Northern Division title. Erie was almost unstoppable at the Tullio Arena, winning six of seven, including the franchise’s first victory over Reading, perennially one of the AIFA’s top teams.

The Erie offense will be led by Rod Rutherford (6’2”-230, Pitt), who led the franchise in 2008 to a 7-2 record in his nine starts culminating with all-AIFA recognition and cementing his reputation as one of the league’s most lethal dual-threat quarterbacks, passing and rushing.
Rutherford’s receiving targets are expected to include Darmel Whitfield (5’11”-190, Gannon), who holds the current franchise records for receptions, yardage, and touchdowns, set in 2008, David Dinkins (6’2”-220, Morehead State), a three-time all-league selection and former league MVP in 2006, Trumaine Riley (5’9”-185, Eastern Michigan) who led Erie in receiving and kick returning and was an all-AIFA selection in 2009, and Eugene Baker (6’1”-183, Kent State), who enjoyed a seven-year career in the NFL playing with the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers.

The Erie offensive line, which has the responsibility of ensuring adequate protection and time for the Storm playmakers, will have a decidedly local flavor. Mike Fazio (6’4”-290, Edinboro) will center an improved offensive line, and he will likely be joined by lineman Joe Blanks (6’3”-315, Winston-Salem State) from Cathedral Prep, and fullback Bob Hammer (6’1”-280, Mercyhurst), who prepped at Fort LeBoeuf.. Ron Idoko (6’3”-320, Pitt) is expected to man the other lineman spot although Jamar Foulks (6’3”-340, Mansfield) or Roger Gibson (6’5”-285, Akron) could also see action.
Despite his reputation as an offensive mastermind, Erie Storm Head Coach Shawn Liotta spent a considerable amount of effort during the offseason recruiting elite playmakers on defense. That’s a good thing, as Erie’s defensive unit will be tested right away as it will be asked to contain Reading QB Rob Flowers who led the Express to the AIFA championship and won the league MVP award in 2009, completing 61% of his passes for 3,350 yards and 72 touchdowns with just 13 interceptions, and adding another 13 touchdowns rushing. His two main WR targets return this season, including Carmelo Ocasio (108 catches for 1,254 yards and 26 TD’s in 14 games) and Jeff Willis (86 catches for 1,105 yards and 25 TD’s).
The Storm defense will have significant star power of its own, as there are six players who are expected to suit up for Erie this weekend who have been all-AIFA selections, including both starting linebackers, and three members of the defensive secondary.

The heart of the Erie defense is the linebacker crew, which will be led by Roosevelt Benjamin (6’2”-255, Clarion) and Glenroy Watkins (6’2”-250, Central Florida). Benjamin is the only player in AIFA history to have been named a league All-Star with three different franchises, including Canton, Erie, and Carolina. Watkins was unquestionably the biggest playmaker on the Erie defense during its playoff run in 2008, finishing among the league leaders in total tackles (46), tackles for loss (13.5) and sacks (11.5), all of which remain franchise records.
The defensive secondary will feature two players who made their pro football reputations in Erie, including Sam Reynolds (6’1”-210, Valdosta State), a former all-league selection who returns after missing most of 2009 with a knee injury, and Chris Blackshear (6’0”-180, Central CT State), another perennial all-league selection who returns to Erie after playing with the Carolina Speed in 2009.

Trent Jones (6’2”-237, Indiana-PA), joins the Storm after successful stints in Reading and Johnstown where he has been a three-time all-AIFA selection as a DB and kick returner. Rounding out the group will be Eric Wicks (6’1”-205) who will see time at DB and WR. Wicks was a standout performer at West Virginia including being named to the 2006 All-Big East Team and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy watch list, and finished his career with 187 tackles and 9 interceptions.

Erie’s defense line, the Storm Front, will be anchored in the middle by Phil Tillman (6’2”-330), a previous all-AIFA performer and a major disruptive force to AIFA offenses in 2007-2008 who makes his return to Erie for 2010. Joining him on the line will be Troy Blackwell (6’9”-305, Chattanooga) who starred for three seasons for Wilkes-Barre of af2, and Chris Murphy (6’4”-270) who is expected to make his professional debut following a standout collegiate career in the PSAC with Gannon. Other options to spend time on the Storm defensive line include Michael Harden (6’3”-270, Glenville State) and Jovalle McKenzie (6’3”-255, Indiana-PA).

Nick Terracina (5’8”-185, Youngstown State) will assume the kickoff and field goal responsibilities for the Storm in his pro football debut.
Following its season opener, Erie will stay at home for a second consecutive week when it hosts the Harrisburg Stampede on Sunday, March 14. The Stampede won the season series 2-1 in 2009, with each of the two games in Erie not decided until the games’ final moments and both very physical and hotly-contested affairs.

The Erie Maritime Museum invites you to join us for an afternoon program of information and maritime music on Saturday, March 6, at 2:00 p.m. in the Hirt Auditorium at the Blasco Library. Shake off the wintertime blues and blahs with a lively concert/lecture titled “The Great Lakes Scows of New Zealand”, featuring Tom Kastle.

Like Erie, Auckland, New Zealand, has its own resident tall ship – actually, two of them! Their museum scow Ted Ashby was built in 1993, representative of some 130 scows built in the north of New Zealand between 1883 and 1925. The New Zealand scows’ design was based on the American Great Lakes design, and fittingly, the first one made was christened Lake Erie. Even though these vessels disappeared from our own Great Lakes over 100 years ago, they continued on across the world as the ubiquitous wooden working vessel through the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.

Tom Kastle has spent over two decades on the road and on the water as a singer, tall ship sailor and captain, songwriter, and teller of tales, both personal and those steeped in long tradition. As half of the maritime folk duo “Tom & Chris Kastle”, he toured throughout the United States, as well as Ireland, Scotland, Poland, the Netherlands, and New Zealand, delighting audiences while producing 11 recordings and a soundtrack for PBS (WTTW, Chicago).

After taking most of a year off to captain a tall ship in South Haven, Michigan, Tom has relocated to Madison, Wisconsin, and is about to release his first solo CD, Across the Centerline. His program in Erie follows his participation in this year’s Chicago Maritime Festival (February 22 – 27) at the Chicago History Museum.

Tickets are available in advance at the Erie Maritime Museum Giftshop, or at the door. Adults $7, Seniors and Flagship Niagara League Members $5, Children $3.

The Dobbins Dining Hall on the campus of Behrend was heavily damaged and a gazebo destroyed by fire late Monday night. Luckily, no one was injured in the blaze, though obviously students there will have to get their churros from other dining halls on campus. KC covers this a bit over on her blog and the Daily Collegian has coverage here. If you’d like to see more photos of the fire, they are over on the Behrend Beacon’s flickr site here. As someone who works at a college, that kind of stuff scares me. I’m glad no one was hurt.

A judge has ruled that Erie Renewable Energy’s case against the Greater Erie Industrial Development Corporation can continue. Enough already with the tires to energy plant. Let’s drop it and find something else to bring jobs to our area – something preferably that doesn’t pollute as much as people say this project will.

40 workers at Carrara Steel have been laid off. No word if the workers will be called back or if these are permanent.

The Erie Playhouse’s production of Pride and Prejudice opens this weekend. Should be good show, though a small part of me wished they were putting on Pride and Prejudice and Zombies instead.

Sports

Pardon the No. 1 Gannon women’s basketball team if it’s glad to see Edinboro for the last time. The Lady Knights needed to fend off a tightly-contested battle against the Fighting Scots for the third time this season, before earning a hard-fought 81-67 victory Tuesday night in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Quarterfinal game played at the Hammermill Center.

Events

The Erie Art Museum Contemporary Music Series presents a special concert of the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble on Wednesday March 3, 2010 at 8 p.m.at the Erie Art Museum in the second floor annex. After 35 years, the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble is still serving their special brand of 21st century Griot music to people worldwide. The Chicago Tribune writes the trio is “harmonically provocative and rhythmically seductive,” and they consistently deliver jazz that combines ancestral wisdom, exploratory improvisation, and crack musicianship.

Forever Wild: Celebrating America’s Wilderness, preceded by the 16-min. film Keystone Wilderness will be screened at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center on Friday, March 5 at 6:30 p.m.

Keystone Wilderness is a campaign film highlighting the efforts of Friends of Allegheny Wilderness and our many supporting organizations to protect wilderness in the Allegheny National Forest.

Forever Wild is a 60-min. documentary hosted & narrated by Robert Redford capturing the glory of undeveloped, wild places and the passionate tales of America¹s modern wilderness volunteers who have spent countless hours working to ensure that wild places are preserved for generations to come under the Wilderness Act of 1964. From Colorado, Idaho, Utah, Montana and New Hampshire, these are tales of vision and dedication by Americans who work to preserve a legacy of wilderness. Forever Wild also features the sage insights of long-time wilderness advocate and historian Doug Scott, policy and research manager for Campaign for America¹s Wilderness.

R.S.V.P. — pre-registration is required for this event by calling the Big Green Screen 814-838-4123. There is no charge for admission, but donations to Friends of Allegheny Wilderness will be gratefully accepted. Friends of Allegheny Wilderness is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, so donations are tax-deductible.

Standard movie theatre concessions will be available for purchase at the Big Green Screen.

For more information, check out this flyer. Hope to see you there!

OK, something cool is going on tonight that I hope you’ll check out. There’s a new series of films going on called “Dinner and Movie Night at the Station.” A group is showing films at Union Station, all with a train theme. How awesome is that? Show up early and for $10 you get a buffet dinner. So, for the cost of a movie and bad popcorn at Tinseltown, you can come to Union Station, check out a cool flick (free if you don’t want dinner), nom on some great food and check out a cool flick in a cool space. How great is that? The movie starts at 6:30 p.m. and dinner is served at 5:45. Here’s the schedule for the next few weeks:

March 1: The Station Agent
March 15: Strangers on a Train
March 29: The Train
April 12: The Night of the Hunter
April 26: North by Northwest

Awesome flicks. Thanks to the folks at the Concourse and Logistics Plus for putting this all together. Please go and check this out. If it goes well, hopefully there will be more and more in the future.

The Erie Zoo reopened this weekend. Hopefully that will bring Spring along with it.

The roof at Walker Brothers Buick-Chevrolet on Route 99 collapsed Saturday due to heavy, wet snow. No one was injured, luckily. Guess the snow decided to give a little more, take a little less at Walker Brothers Buick Chevrolet. That line is better if you hum it.

Your new Erie County Public Defender is Daryl Vandeveld. In addition to being an attorney, Mr. Vandeveld served in Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan.

This weekend was also the third anniversary of the opening of Presque Isle Downs and Casino. So far, gamblers have wagered $6.1 billion there. That’s crazy. It will be interesting to see what effect both the upcoming table games will make as well as voters approving gaming in Ohio. I bet a lot of people come to the casino from eastern and northeastern Ohio. Will they come when they can gamble in Cleveland in the future? Magic 8 Ball says ask again later.

North East’s Bella Salon and Day Spa, owned by Darlene Youngs, Cheryl Phillips and Stephanie Hamels, has been named as one of the 200 fastest-growing salons to the SALON TODAY 200, by SALON TODAY magazine, a top business publication for salon and spa owners.

Sports

The Gannon men’s basketball team begins its third consecutive venture into post-season play Tuesday, March 2 when it travels to Indiana (Pa.) for a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Quarterfinal game. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m. IUP is ranked No. 6 in NCAA Division II and No. 2 in the NCAA Division II Atlantic regional rankings. The Crimson Hawks swept the regular-season series, winning 73-66 at the Hammermill Center and 62-49 at home.

Mercyhurst College pounded out 16 hits en route to an 8-2 victory over St. Rose on Sunday afternoon of the Lakers southern swing.

Events

The Erie Art Museum Contemporary Music Series presents a special concert of the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble on Wednesday March 3, 2010 at 8 p.m.at the Erie Art Museum in the second floor annex. After 35 years, the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble is still serving their special brand of 21st century Griot music to people worldwide. The Chicago Tribune writes the trio is “harmonically provocative and rhythmically seductive,” and they consistently deliver jazz that combines ancestral wisdom, exploratory improvisation, and crack musicianship

MARCH 8-31
’Hurst gallery to showcase graduating seniors

Works by senior art majors at Mercyhurst College will be on view in the college’s Cummings Art Gallery March 8-31. The artists will be honored at a reception on Saturday, March 13, from 2 to 5 p.m. The gallery, located in the lobby of the Mary D’Angelo Performing Arts Center, is open Tuesday through Sunday 2-5 p.m. and Thursday 7-9 p.m. For more information, contact gallery director Heather Dana at 824-2092.

MARCH 9
Mercyhurst to honor founder of Mercy Beyond Borders
A Mercy sister who has dedicated her life to making the world a more welcoming place for refugees will receive Mercyhurst College’s Archbishop Oscar Romero Award for 2010 during a visit to Erie on March 9. Marilyn Lacey, RSM, founder and executive director of Mercy Beyond Borders, will deliver a free public lecture on Tuesday, March 9, at 8:15 p.m. in the college’s Walker Recital Hall. Mercyhurst presents the award annually to an individual “living the call of faith and justice in an extraordinary manner.” For more information, contact Dr. Thomas Forsthoefel, 824-2353.

MARCH 11 & 25
MNE slates financial aid workshops
Prospective college students can receive financial aid counseling and complete their FAFSA at workshops held in room 116 of the Michelle and Tom Ridge Health and Safety Building at Mercyhurst North East on Thursdays, March 11 and 25. Call Steve Gregg at 725-6252 to RSVP. Appointments are being scheduled from 4:30 – 8:30 each night. Students and parents (if applicable) will need a copy of their 2009 taxes, income statements and driver’s license or state I.D.

MARCH 14
MNE stages ‘Celtic Charm’ in honor of St. Patrick’s Day

Mercyhurst North East will be filled with Irish spirit as Music Director Patricia Sullivan hosts her annual St. Patrick’s Day concert, featuring the Rev. Bill Sutherland, barbershop chorus Lake Erie Sound, and Irish Step Dancers Rince Na Tiarna, on Sunday, March 14, at 2 p.m. in St. Mary’s Chapel on the MNE campus. Other “Celtic Charm” performers include The Light House Gang, Erie Philharmonic violinist Louis Nicolia and singer Michael Dunlavey with piano accompaniment by Sister Lucille DeStefano, SSJ. Reception to follow the performance. Free and open to the public. Call Patricia Sullivan, 725-6277; or visit northeast.mercyhurst.edu for more details.

MARCH 16
CSI forensics consultant to tell macabre tales
On Tuesday, March 16, at 8:15 p.m. in Walker Recital Hall, Mercyhurst Student Government will welcome Gary Telgenhoff, forensics consultant on the hit TV show “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.” His background as a forensic pathologist and deputy medical examiner leads to an educational, interesting, humorous and macabre presentation that you won’t soon forget. Tickets are free and available first to the Mercyhurst College community and, starting March 9, any remaining tickets will be made available to the public (limit two per person). Call 824-3000.

MARCH 18
MNE offers Easter crafts workshop
Learn to make several hand-woven decorative palms using age-old patterns and techniques at Mercyhurst North East on Thursday, March 18, at 7:30 p.m. Just bring your scissors and your imagination to Miller Hall 112 for the “Create Old World Woven Palms” workshop. The Easter craft will be taught be Lawrence Kozlowski, MNE director of student life, and several MNE students. Call Patricia Sullivan, 725-6277; or visit northeast.mercyhurst.edu for more details.

MARCH 19-21
Mercyhurst students to stage opera favorites
Students in the D’Angelo Department of Music at Mercyhurst College will perform “Opera Pops and Sizzles” the weekend of March 19-21. Brent Weber, assistant professor of voice, directs the program, which features opera’s most famous and beloved arias and ensembles, costumed and staged with a full orchestra directed by Stephen Colantti. Performances are scheduled on Friday and Saturday, March 19-20, at 8 p.m. and Sunday, March 21, at 2 p.m. in Mercyhurst’s Mary D’Angelo Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $15.50 for adults; $12.50 for students and seniors; $7.50 for President’s Cardholders; $5 for youths; and $1 for Mercyhurst students with ID. Call the box office at 824-3000 for tickets, or 824-2394 for more information.

MARCH 20
Mercyhurst’s D’Angelo Music Dept. to host high school students
The D’Angelo Department of Music at Mercyhurst College has invited high school juniors and seniors to an open house on Saturday, March 20. The day will include a variety of lessons and workshops, as well as opportunities to meet with current students and faculty. Those attending will also receive free tickets to the evening performance of “Opera Pops and Sizzles.” For information or to register, contact Krista Lamb at 824-2394 or visit music.mercyhurst.edu.

MARCH 23
Mercyhurst Student Government welcomes actor Raymond Ablack
Canadian actor Raymond Ablack, who played Simba in the stage production of “The Lion King” in Toronto before landing the role of Sav Bhandari in the television series, “Degrassi: The Next Generation,” will speak at Mercyhurst College on Tuesday, March 23, at 8:15 p.m. in the Mary D’Angelo Performing Arts Center. Tickets for this Mercyhurst Student Government-sponsored event are free and available first to the Mercyhurst College community and, starting March 2, to the general public (limit two per person). Call 824-3000.

MARCH 24
MNE celebrates Women’s History Month
Join Mercyhurst North East in honoring the contribution women have made to history, culture and society in the United States at a special presentation on Wednesday, March 24, at 7:30 p.m. in Alex Theatre on the MNE campus. MNE faculty and students will present vignettes, poetry and radio theatre to celebrate Women’s History Month. Call Patricia Sullivan, 725-6277; or visit northeast.mercyhurst.edu for more details.

MARCH 25
‘Hurst recital series to feature Anna Meyer on flute
The Mercyhurst College Faculty Recital Series continues this month with a performance by Anna Meyer on flute. The program, which is free and open to the public, is set for Thursday, March 25, at 8 p.m. in the college’s Walker Recital Hall. Call 824-2394 for more information.

MARCH 28
Mercyhurst stages dance production billed ‘Dis-Ease: A Coming Out’
Mercyhurst College dance faculty Mark and Solveig Santillano (SoMar Dance Works), seven Mercyhurst dance majors and singer-songwriter Davy Sturtevant bring their collective talent to “Dis-Ease: A Coming Out.” The innovative dance production, intended to raise awareness of the often taboo subject of mental illness, will be staged at Mercyhurst College on Sunday, March 28, at 4 p.m. in Walker Recital Hall. The performance is free and open to the public. Sponsored by Mercyhurst College and Stairways Behavioral Health. Call 824-3000.

Mercyhurst art, social work students host annual ‘Empty Bowls’ meal

Students in the Mercyhurst College sociology/social work and art departments will host their annual collaboration, Empty Bowls Meal & Auction, on Sunday, March 28, from 4-6 p.m. in Egan Dining Hall on the Mercyhurst campus. The popular community event, where guests receive a simple meal of soup and bread and take home a handcrafted bowl in remembrance of those whose bowls are too often empty, benefits the Northwest Pennsylvania Second Harvest Food Bank. Cost is $15 per person and includes a take-home bowl ($3 for children/without bowl). Call 216-440-0760 for more information.

Gannon University’s Erie Chamber Orchestra will host its next concert at 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 12 at the University’s Mary, Seat of Wisdom Chapel, 520 Peach St. The concert will be a performance of Peter and the Wolf, a composition written in 1936 by Sergei Prokofiev, regarded as one of the greatest composers of the 20th century. Peter and the Wolf is a children’s story read by a narrator and accompanied by the orchestra. Anthony J. Miceli, assistant professor and chairperson, Gannon communication arts program, will serve as the narrator.

Gannon University’s Erie Chamber Orchestra is conducted and directed by Bruce Morton Wright. All concerts are free and open to the public. For more information, call 814-871-7755 or 814-871-5467.

Gannon University will host its annual Alex Clemente Fundraiser on Friday, March 19. The performance, An American Scrapbook, will begin at 8 p.m. at the University’s Schuster Theatre, 620 Sassafras St.

Tickets are $15. All proceeds from the event will benefit the Clemente Fund for the Performing and Related Arts at Gannon University.

An American Scrapbook is a collection of monologues and songs and is set in a small town around 1820. The play, a melodrama, tells the story of a town and its people and their unique stories. The performance will be directed by Jax Kubiak, technical director, Schuster Theatre, with vocal direction by Shawn Clerkin, assistant professor and director, Gannon University theatre program.

For tickets, contact Gannon University at 814-871-7261.
The current exhibit at Gannon University’s Schuster Gallery, works of art by the Gannon University community, will continue through April 10. The exhibit features photography by Gannon students and other art on campus. Gannon University’s Schuster Gallery is located on the third floor of the University’s Nash Library, 619 Sassafras St., and is open during regular library hours: Sundays: 12:30 p.m. to 12 a.m.; Monday through Thursday: 7:30 a.m. to 12 a.m.; Fridays: 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.; and Saturdays: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more information, call 814-871-5467.

Gannon University’s annual International Night, always a festive and entertaining event, will be held on Saturday, March 27.

International Night will be held in the University’s Hammermill Center, 620 Peach St. The event will feature a dinner buffet, which will include culinary delights from many countries around the world, beginning at 6 p.m., and entertainment and cultural performances beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for senior citizens and active military, and $5 for college students. Children will be admitted free. Tickets can be purchased through Gannon University’s International Student Office and International Student Association by calling 814-871-7030.

Yes, it’s snowing. Be careful out this there morning and be careful on the drive home. Stay home and watch Hulu. That’s what I’ll be doing.

Erie City Council, having solved all the other problems facing Erie, have decided to switch the cell phone driving ban from a primary offense to a secondary one. That basically means they can’t pull you over if they see you talking on your phone – you need to be doing something else. Like brushing your teeth with Jack Daniels. They council will vote next week on a formal change.

Police have busted a marijuana grow op on the east side. They confiscated over 300 plants. The following people were stunned: Snoop Dogg, Towlie, Cheech, Chong, Michael Phelps, and the members of Lambda Lambda Lambda and Omega Mu.

PA Attorney General Tom Corbett was in town yesterday. He’s running for governor on the Republican ticket. He’ll also spend the day here today, though looking at the weather, he may have no choice.

Remember Laramie Torres, the brain trust fugitive who broadcast his whereabouts on Facebook and was captured here in Erie? According to the Mail Tribune in southern Oregon, Torres is fighting his extradition back to Oregon. More here.

Erie Indemnity Company ( ERIE) announced yesterday fourth quarter 2009 earnings of $24.9 million, or $0.43 per diluted share, compared to losses of $6.3 million, or $0.12 per diluted share, from the fourth quarter of 2008. Operating income (excluding net realized gains or losses and impairments on investments and related taxes) increased to $22.6 million, or $0.39 per share, in the fourth quarter of 2009 from $15.0 million, or $0.29 per share, for the same period last year. The key takeaway here: they made money. That’s good news for a lot of people locally.

Sports

The Mercyhurst men’s basketball team had a chance to clinch a post-season bid and guarantee Gannon no better than a fourth-place finish in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division. However, the Golden Knights placed all five starters in double digits and posted a 71-59 victory over their rival Wednesday night at the Hammermill Center.

Events

Michael Pollan – best-selling author of “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” and “In Defense of Food” – will present “The Sun Food Agenda,” a multimedia lecture, on Thursday, Feb. 25 at 6 p.m. in Shafer Auditorium on the Allegheny College campus.

The presentation, which is free and open to the public, is part of Allegheny’s Year of Social Change, a series of activities, workshops and events aimed at inspiring the campus and community to seek a more just and equitable world.

Pollan’s talk will address how industrial agriculture has made food cheap and abundant by replacing the energy of the sun with energy from fossil fuels. But he contends that this achievement has come at a cost, contributing to three of the most critical problems facing society: the energy, climate and health care crises.

In his lecture, Pollan will explore the connection between food and health – personal as well as environmental – and talk about some of the visionaries who are “resolarizing” the food system. He will discuss how the “sun food agenda” – involving change at the level of the farm, the marketplace and the culture – can improve individuals’ health, cut dependence on fossil fuel and help solve the climate crisis.

The Knight Professor of Science and Environmental Journalism at the University of California Berkeley, Pollan has authored several award-winning books. “The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals,” published in 2006, was named one of the 10 best books of the year by both the New York Times and the Washington Post. “In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto,” published in 2008, received the James Beard Award for best food writing.

Pollan’s latest book, “Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual,” provides a set of rules for eating wisely, many drawn from a variety of ethnic or cultural traditions. In 2009 he appeared in the documentary “Food, Inc.” and the PBS documentary “The Botany of Desire.”

A book signing will follow Pollan’s lecture at 7:30 p.m. in the Allegheny College Art Galleries. Books will be available for purchase prior to the lecture.

The big news this morning is that new rules and regulations go into effect for credit cards and credit card companies today. Good news for consumers, as we’ll have some new protections. This post over at Billshrink will help at the bill. This post at ConsumerAction also details the major changes.

There was a story last night on the news about people torqued that they got ripped off at some electronics sale at the Bayfront Convention Center. Folks, those are always rip-offs. $199 laptops and cheaper DVD and Blu-ray players are always too good to be true. You’re always better off to go to Amazon.com and get stuff. Always. Caveat Emptor, peeps.

If you’re a lawyer, you’ll enjoy this legal breakdown of the legal action against Erie County Council member Ebert Beeman. It’s all greek to me. Err, latin. While this type of language makes my head hurt, I’m sure that’s how my wife feels when I talk code.

On October 6, 2009 and again on October 19, 2009, Beeman, proceeding pro se, filed two documents, both entitled “Specific Affidavit of Negative Averment, Opportunity to Cure, and Counterclaim” [7] and [9].

For some 40 Gannon University students and five staff members, spring break week will focus on community service, volunteerism, and education and awareness of social justice issues. Gannon’s Center for Social Concerns will continue its 16-year tradition of offering students the opportunity to participate in alternative spring break service trips. This year, students will travel to Florida, Louisiana, New York City, and Guatemala.

Sports

The No. 2 Gannon women’s basketball team placed four players in double digits for the fourth consecutive game and hit 21-of-26 free throws en route to a 69-48 victory at Indiana (Pa.) Saturday night. The victory was Gannon’s first at IUP’s Memorial Field House since a 52-48 verdict during the 1994-95 campaign. The Lady Knights were 2-7 all-time at IUP prior to Saturday’s game, including a 65-52 loss last season which represented the program’s last regular-season defeat.

Events

Gannon University will celebrate its Catholic identity and tradition by hosting a series of events in observance of National Catholic Colleges Week. The University will host a series of events from Feb. 21-25, beginning with two masses on Sunday, Feb. 21. The Masses will be held at 11 a.m. and 9 p.m. at Gannon’s Mary, Seat of Wisdom Chapel. The 11 a.m. Mass will include the Rite of Sending for candidates for Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). Also, participants in the University’s Little Sibs Weekend will be recognized at the 11 a.m. Mass.

It’s Friday everyone. I’m pumped to come home for the weekend. Living in Cleveland is sure different than living in Erie. I miss Erie. I miss the size. My commute from my temporary home at my parent’s house (go ahead, snicker for a moment. It’s just temporary. And free.) to the university where I work is about 50 minutes depending on traffic. To people here, that’s normal. To people like my father-in-law, it’s completely absurd. He complains that his commute from the mall to GE is long.

We were thinking about having a big post today about this whole Google Fiber thing, but I spoke with a person at the Erie Regional Chamber and they are going to complete a community request this week. That’s awesome news – kudos to the folks there for getting on board with this. I hope other leaders will get on board and present a unified front. We’re the perfect spot for this type of program. If you have a sec today, let one of our elected officials know by emailing them, or tweeting about it, or posting it as your Facebook status. In a comment further down this page, Matthew Cummings of the Chamber says:

“We’re excited about the Google Fiber announcement and the amazing opportunity it presents for communities like ours. We’ll be doing our part as a non-profit community organization and have also shared the information and link with our local government leaders for consideration and (hopefully) follow-up.”

So glad they get it. Let’s spread the word and you, yes, average citizen you, can also help in this process by completing a form right here. Click on “Nominate Your Community.”

The brainiac who was captured this week by police after he posted his wherabouts on Facebook, Laramie Torres, is fighting his extradition back to Oregon, where he’s wanted on rape charges, amongst others. We received a note from a reader out west They have a Facebook site about Torres and his wife (the irony of this is not lost) which you can find here. They say his wife is also wanted on charges and may still be in the Erie area but we haven’t been able to confirm she has outstanding charges.

Marking the first anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Environmental Protection Secretary John Hanger said that a Recovery Act-funded project will increase the energy efficiency of the Shriners Hospital’s heating and lighting systems, saving the hospital more than $60,000 per year. Shriners Hospital received a $250,000 PA Conservation Works grant to improve its lighting, air handling and boiler systems.

Sports

The No. 2 Gannon women’s basketball team placed four players in double digits and earned a hard-fought 80-72 victory Wednesday night at Edinboro. The victory, combined with a 75-56 California (Pa.) victory over Indiana (Pa.), clinched the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division No. 1 seed and home court advantage throughout the PSAC Tournament.

Events

St. Luke’s Church has 4 Lenten fish dinners scheduled for the next 4 Fridays ( Feb 19th, 26th & March 5th & 12th) from 5 to 7pm in the Saint Luke’s cafeteria ( Dine in or take out) This is their biggest fundraiser of the year and they’d really appreciate the help getting the word out. Adults are $8.50 & kids 6 to 12 are $5, under 6 are free.

Every year the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission commemorates the founding of Pennsylvania and celebrates Charter Day by opening all PHMC sites to the public free of charge. This year Charter Day is Sunday, March 14, and the Erie Maritime Museum will be open with free admission for all from Noon until 5:00 p.m.

Members of the Erie Regional Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT PA-3) based in Erie, returned home this week after a 12 day deployment in Port au Prince, Haiti. The PA-3 team, led by Commander, Russell Bieniek, M.D., along with other medical personnel from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ agencies, the HHS National Disaster Medical System and the U.S. Public Health Service provided emergency medical care during the recovery and clean up following the earthquake on January 12th.

Millcreek officials have okayed the plan for the runway extension. Seriously, has this whole thing been taking for. ev. er to get moving? By the time this thing is done, the airports going to have only one flight to Detroit left.

Erie’s Mayor and Police Chief are asking Erie City Council to change the “cell phone ban” ordinance, making it a secondary offense and not have it be the main reason you are pulled over by police.

Tomorrow is the one year anniversary of the death of John Kanzius. Let’s hope his research keeps moving forward and it will save lives.

I’ve added a few new people to our Erie Twitter Guide, including Tap Into Erie and the Erie Regional Chamber.

The Nigerian Ministry of Transport and GE Transportation announced today that the Nigerian Railway Corporation has taken delivery of the first five C25 diesel locomotives — introducing new technology to Nigeria’s rail system. The locomotives will be used for both freight and passenger service. The remaining 20 locomotives will be delivered in the second half of 2010. I wonder if something like this will work for us:

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Sports

The NBA Development League Erie BayHawks have announced the re-acquisition of guard Cedric Jackson. Jackson was on a Gatorade Call-up with the Cleveland Cavaliers for back-to-back ten day contracts.

Roosevelt Benjamin and Glenroy Watkins, both AIFA All-Stars for Erie in 2008, will return to the Tullio Arena to lead theErie Storm defense in 2010. Liotta continues to look for depth at the position due to inevitable injuries, and has extended training camp invitations to Tommie Weatherspoon, a 6’2”-240” linebacker who played collegiately at Temple, Harrison Jones (6’1”-225) who played in 5 games for Erie last season, and three players with local ties, including Ryan Greene (6’2”-230; Edinboro), Jimmy Kokrak (6’2”-245; Mercyhurst), and Jon Molnar (6’2”-230; Slippery Rock).

Events

A $15,000 grant from the Erie Community Foundation will allow Gannon University to develop partnerships with the Erie School District and the Erie Bureau of Police while also helping the University expand its community service efforts.

Gannon University will use the grant to invest in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping software and to train faculty members and students to use it. The grant also will fund related, complementary technology.

GIS software captures, stores, analyzes, manages, and presents data in a way that illustrates patterns, relationships, and trends that otherwise are not readily apparent or easily analyzable. Two faculty members in Gannon’s criminal justice program, Maria Garase, Ph.D., and Clairissa Breen, will develop a pilot program with the Erie City School District and Erie Bureau of Police. The program will allow the district and the bureau to more thoroughly and effectively track, monitor, and map cases of truancy, identified as a concern by district officials.

Though the school district currently tracks truancy, officials ideally would like to move beyond the “raw numbers” of student absences and strategically implement programs that will increase school attendance.

“The technology can help to identify hot spots in which truancy is more prevalent,” said Gretchen Fairley, director of Service-Learning, Gannon University. “By analyzing the relationship between areas with high truancy rates and high crime rates, Gannon can help the school district take its existing prevention programs to the next level.”

Ultimately, the goal of the pilot program will be to use the GIS mapping software to reduce unexcused student absences. Ideally, the pilot program will lead to other collaborative, mutually beneficial projects with the Erie School District and the Erie Bureau of Police, Gannon officials said.

In addition, Gannon hopes to use the GIS software to partner with local non-profit agencies and organizations to generate more advanced research data related to their existing programs, services delivered, and areas served. The technology’s ability to display geographic patterns can help agencies and organizations better serve their constituents.

Specifically, Gannon’s Office of Service-Learning intends to work with the non-profits and government agencies to identify which of their existing projects could benefit from GIS technology and to match faculty members and students with agencies in need of volunteers. Using the software will help Gannon students develop 21st century skills in field research and data analysis while also enhancing the University’s contributions to the local community.

Today is President’s Day. Many schools, government offices, etc are closed today. Is the liquor store open? I guess that’s important depending on how well or not your Valentine’s Day went last night. Me? I went all out, taking my wife to Red Robin and Coldstone and a bag full of Lush for her.

Note to city and county officials, have you met to talk about getting us in Google’s super broadband project? If not, what are you waiting for. There’s a lot more info on Friday’s post.

The Waldameer Blog has awoken from its winter slumber to update with links to two stories about what we’ll see at the park this summer, including the new flying carousel ride set to open in 2011.

The Erie BayHawks and the Community Blood Bank are teaming up to save lives Monday. Their blood drive will be from 11 to 4pm at the Tullio Arena. All donors get a free commemorative T-shirt and a pair of tickets to the upcoming Cleveland Affiliate Night Game on February 26th. Learn more about this event here.

Scary moment for players and parents of the Erie Lions hockey team. They were at a tournament in Pittsburgh when the roof of the Rostraver Ice Arena collapsed due to snow. No one on team was injured.

Folks, a bit of advice. We all like Facebook, sure, but if you’re a child molester on the run from Oregon don’t use Facebook to announce your whereabouts. Laramie Torres is being sought by Oregon officials, amongst others, for 10 counts of first degree rape and 10 counts of first-degree sodomy. Yikes. Keep that stuff on MySpace, dude. Here’s what we imagine that wall thread was like:

Sports

Gannon fans who haven’t attended any of the last three men’s basketball home games have missed quite a bit. George Johnson’s (Arlington, Va./Wakefield) controversial basket as time expired in overtime enabled the Golden Knights to secure a heart-stopping 66-65 victory against Clarion Saturday afternoon at the Hammermill Center, giving the program its third consecutive one-point home victory and moving Gannon to 7-1 in games decided by four points or less this season.

Events

Andrew Lubin, an embedded journalist who has served in Lebanon, Iraq, Guantanamo Bay, Afghanistan and Haiti, will speak at a luncheon presentation on Tuesday, Feb. 23 at noon at Allegheny College. Lubin’s talk, “On the Front Lines with the Marines in Haiti and Afghanistan,” will take place in Quigley Hall auditorium and is open to the public.

The Erie BayHawks and the Community Blood Bank are teaming up to save lives Monday. Their blood drive will be from 11 to 4pm at the Tullio Arena. All donors get a free commemorative T-shirt and a pair of tickets to the upcoming Cleveland Affiliate Night Game on February 26th.

All donors can enter to win a courtside seats for the Cavs game night which will feature: Cavaliers Girls dance team, Cavaliers mascot Moondog and the Scream Team hip hop dance team.

“Saving Lives is a Slam Dunk!” said Dan Desrochers, Director of Marketing at the Community Blood Bank. “We are so grateful for the BayHawks’ support to help the local blood supply.”

All donors are strongly encouraged to donate at the Community Blood Bank, 2646 Peach Street. Community Blood Bank is open from 9a.m. 6p.m. Monday through Friday and until 7:30pm Tuesday night and Saturday 9a.m.-12:30 p.m. Photo ID required.

There will be some familiar faces to Erie football fans among the group of wide receivers expected to join the Erie Storm as they prepare for the upcoming 2010 AIFA campaign, which opens at the Tullio Arena on March 7 against the defending league champion Reading Express.

While Head Coach Shawn Liotta continues to recruit players at WR and other positions in advance of training camp, which begins on February 19 in Edinboro, several notable players have committed to joining the Storm WR corps for 2010, including perennial fan favorites David Dinkins and Darmel Whitfield (Gannon), as well as several others with local ties, such as Denayne Dixon (Edinboro), Jacobe Smith (Gannon), and Trumaine Riley, who was named an AIFA All-Star in Erie in 2009.

“We’re not done putting together our training camp roster and a lot can happen over the course of the season, so we never stop being on the lookout for players. But I think our group of wide receivers is starting to come together real nicely. We’ve got some speed guys and others with great size which you need to have in the indoor game. David Dinkins has played for me for three seasons, he knows our offense inside and out, and he’s a legitimate threat to score any time he touches the ball. Darmel Whitfield was the Freeze’s best wideout and our best receiver in 2008, so we know what he’s capable of. Trumaine Riley stood out to me on film from last year as a reliable receiver and a talented kickoff returner. Denayne Dixon is a local guy who is blessed with great size, and Jacobe Smith had a productive career at Gannon as well, and I’m looking forward to getting a closer look at all of them in the next few weeks.” Commented Liotta.

Dinkins (6’2”-230, Morehead State) continues to be recognized as one of the most electrifying players in the AIFA. As a member of the Erie Freeze, he won a league MVP award as a quarterback. In 2007, he joined the Pittsburgh RiverRats and led the franchise to the playoffs in its inaugural season and was named to the AIFA All-Star team. Dinkins made the successful switch to wide receiver in 2008 when the team moved to Erie, recording 39 receptions and 4 touchdowns receiving. He still holds several franchise records, including longest run from scrimmage, TD passes, and total yards of offense.

Whitfield (5’11”-190) has been an instrumental part of the Erie offense for the past several seasons. In 2008, he led Erie in receiving, recording 61 receptions for 819 yards and 16 touchdowns, all franchise records. In 2009, he moved behind center to take over the quarterback duties for an injury-depleted team and provided an instant spark to the offense, completing 56% of his passes for 916 yards and 20 touchdowns in seven games.

Riley (5’9”-185, Eastern Michigan) returns to Erie for his second professional season. In 2009, he led the AIFA in several special teams categories, including all-purpose yardage (1,460), all-purpose yards per game (122), and kickoff return yardage (22.5 yards per return). Riley led Erie in 2009 in receiving with 57 receptions for 601 yards and 10 touchdown receptions in 12 games.

Dixon (6’3”-251) played his first two college seasons at Gannon before making a name for himself as a highly-regarded tight end at Edinboro where as a senior, he caught 28 passes for 388 yards and 4 touchdowns, and was invited to the Cactus Bowl, the Division II all-star game.

Smith (5’11”-165) was Gannon’s leading receiver as a senior in 2008 and finished his college career totaling 55 receptions for 602 yards.

Happy Friday. Will you be our valentine?

In case you missed the news this week, Google has announced they are looking to start a pilot program offering super super super fast fiber internet connections to 100,000 homes. Hmm, who has 100,000 homes or thereabouts? US. If you’re listening, Jake Rouch and friends, you must make this happen. We’re the perfect community to test this on. Please nominate Erie to be the test city. You can do it here.

Here’s a video from Google about this. Seiously, Barry Grossman, Jake Rouch, Joe Sinnott, let’s make this happen.

Not only would this be a huge publicity win for this area, I think it could legitimately be a tool to bring businesses here, especially tech start-ups. We’ve got that nice technology incubator, and just about every business nowadays needs stable, inexpensive broadband to compete in a global marketplace.

Here’s another local blog post that advocates for this.

Ok, want to know how fast this internet is? Think about the speed you have now, especially download speed. 3mb? 4mb? 5mb? I pay a premium to get 10Mb down in Meadville. Google is saying speeds for this fiber system will be 1 gigabits/second. As in 128Mb/sec. Can you imagine how fast the stupid YouTube videos I watch would come down? Mind blowing. I remember having a 2400buad modem.

Good broadband has been a struggle for us in Erie, especially in the rural communities. There was some discussion for a while that federal stimulus funds would bring broadband to these rural areas, but that hasn’t happened yet. Where are our FIOS and/or UVerse options?

Tom Kidd, of Erie, has been named as the first executive director of the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority. They dole out money given to the county by the casino. For his role, Kidd will earn $62,000.

In yesterday’s post, Dale mentioned budget and hour cuts at Presque Isle and the Tom Ridge Center. Jesse in the comments brought up the fact that the center could bring in more visitors if they showed IMAX movies. A question – does that big green screen setup to play IMAX movies? Even if it’s pretty close, I bet a lot of people would head down there on a Friday or Saturday night to watch a flick on the big screen.

Erie police have ticketed four drivers for talking on their cell phones while driving in the city of Erie. n00bs. You can’t get pulled over for this right? Doesn’t it have to be for something else and if you are on the phone, you get another ticket?

We got a few inches of snow here in Cleveland last night, and man, what babies. I sat on 480 for an hour and a half and it wasn’t even 9pm when schools starting canceling for the day. Seriously – the night before for 3 or 4 inches.

I caught a Welch’s juice commercial last night starring Alton Brown and ine one of the establishing shots, they labeled it as being “Erie County, PA.” Neat. How cool is that? Here’s the spot:

Bad news, Millcreek residents. It’s going to cost you more to get rid of your flushable items. Township supervisors have approved a $10 fee hike. That reminds of this bit from one of my favorite TV shows, Coupling. The original UK version, not the terrible US remake.

Hamot has been designated a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence by the American College of Radiology (ACR). This designation, the first for Hamot, includes the Hamot Imaging Center, Hamot Medical Center, the regional imaging sites (North East, Waterford and Fairview) and the office of Dr. Carol Lyons, Hamot for Breast Health.

Duane “Rick” Prokop, Ph.D., director of graduate programs and associate director of Gannon University’s Dahlkemper School of Business Administration, has accepted a two-year appointment as chairman of the Erie City Mission’s board of directors. The Erie City Mission is a Christian social outreach center offering services to men in need. Under Prokop’s leadership, the Erie City Mission appointed a new executive director and is in the process of planning and constructing a new building to meet the increasing demand for its expanding services.

Sports

The Erie BayHawks game scheduled for today has been postponed due to weather. Othyus Jeffers scored 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as the Iowa Energy defeated the Erie BayHawks 85-82 Tuesday night in Des Moines.

Events

The Erie BayHawks are teaming with the Community Blood Bank of NWPA and WJET-TV to host a blood collection drive, Monday, February 15, from 11 AM to 4 PM at the Tullio Arena. Everyone who donates will receive a pair of tickets to the BayHawks Cavs Affiliate night, February 26 at the Tullio Arena and a custom designed T-Shirt to mark the event. Donors will also be eligible to win a pair of courtside seats for the game. The Cavs affiliate night game will feature the Cavaliers Girls dance team, Cavaliers mascot Moondog and the Scream Team hip hop dance team.

Hope you enjoyed some nice weather this weekend. Looks like we’re due for another bunch of snow Tuesday and Wednesday. It was nice to see what was going on in Pittsburgh and laugh. Amateurs.

I’ll say this about the Super Bowl. People call Peyton Manning an elite QB, and in many aspects he certainly is, but I’ll remind you that Ben Roethlisberger has 2 Super Bowl rings to Manning’s one. Just sayin’.

I saw most of the commercials, but I missed the first quarter. What was your favorite. I think mine was Google’s. Don’t tell anyone, but I may spend a bit of the day today catching up on all the spots over at Hulu.

Over 30 people got sick at a church service in the Warren area this past weekend due to suspected carbon monoxide poisoning. Where is your air circulation now?

Joseph Lumsden of Erie has been arrested in the stabbing death of Gregory Pianka this weekend at the Hi and Dri Pib on W. Lake Road.

Willie Baker, 23, has been sentenced to spend the rest of life in prison for killing Anne Ropelewki. Ropelewski, 86, was beaten and stabbed in her home. Baker is lucky he didn’t get the death penalty.

Sports

The No. 3 Gannon women’s basketball team received 46 points from its three starting guards and took firm control of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division Sunday afternoon with a convincing 72-61 victory at No. 22 California (Pa.).

10th-ranked Colorado College used a three-goal outburst in the second period to turn aside the Mercyhurst College men’s hockey team, 5-3, in front of a crowd of 6,072 on Saturday evening at the World Arena.

Events

On Thursday, February 18th, at 6:30 p.m. at the Hamot Heart Institute, Cardiologist, Dr. Kelly Hayes, will share common risk factors that women should be aware of when it comes to their heart. This presentation is a part of the Hamot for Women Lecture Series. The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served and registration is preferred. To register, please email Stacey.Marks@hamot.org or call 877-4090.

Hi everyone. It’s the weekend. How nice is that? Let’s hope most of the snow that’s expected this weekend stays south. Of course, I’ll be driving in from Cleveland today.

What are you doing this weekend? How helping others by donating some blood. Starting this morning, the first two people who go the Community Blood Bank on Peach Street and mention ErieBlogs.com will get 4 tickets to Peak N Peek. Seriously. That’s a pretty nice value in exchange for a few minutes of your time. Thanks to Dan at the Blood Bank and the Peak for their help with this.

In case you missed it, former Erie Times-News editorial page editor and writer Bryan Oberle has stared blogging here. You can read his first post here. I can’t tell you how excited I am about this.

The Pennsylvania Lottery will celebrate the addition of the Mega Millions® game with a statewide bus tour with stops scheduled at 15 Lottery retail locations starting Saturday, Feb. 6. The tour rolls into the Millcreek Mall on Saturday, February 20 from 2 to 4 p.m. There will be giveaways, including free MegaMillions tickets. Powerball = stunned. Have you played the Mega Millions yet?

Think things are bad here in Erie? Harrisburg, the capital city of our fair commonwealth, is considering filing bankrupcy. I didn’t know a city could declare that. The city is $68 million in the hole. Even with a possible bankrupcy, the city will still raise taxes and sell off assets. The problem is the city hasn’t been paying its bills. Do you think scumbag debt collectors call them night and day?

The Erie County Recycling Program’s (ECRP) Convenience Center will
open on March 6th for the first of sixteen scheduled collection days during 2010. Events scheduled in 2009 collected over 242,000 pounds of materials from 1,298 residents. On average, each participant disposed of 187 pounds of waste materials. The Recycling Convenience Center will be open from 9:00am to 2:00pm the second and fourth Saturdays of each month from March thru October. The ECRP has contracted with ECS&R of Cochranton, PA to provide collection, transportation, and recycling services for the e-waste and hhw materials dropped off at the site. The program is only open to Erie County residents and pre-registration is mandatory before visiting the Convenience Center. To register, residents must call 1-866-815-0016 to secure a timeslot during one of the scheduled events. A $20.00 co-pay will be applied for the first 125 pounds of material collected. An additional fee of $.50 cents per pound will be charged thereafter. Cash, Check, and Credit Cards will be accepted on site.

Sports

Gannon’s Brittany Tabron (Canton, Ohio/Canton Central Catholic) and Tiffany Crocker (Dublin, Ohio/Dublin Coffman) have been named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District 2 teams released Thursday afternoon. Tabron was named to the second team while Crocker landed a spot on the third team.

Events

Hamot for Women will host its 4th Annual Wear Red Event at the Erie Sheraton Bayfront Hotel. This FREE event will focus on heart health awareness geared specifically to women. The program will be held on Friday, February 5, 2010 from 10 a.m. – 3p.m.

Assistant Professor of Political Science Shanna Kirschner will present a talk titled “Islamist Parties and Social Welfare” on Tuesday, Feb. 9 at 6 p.m. in Room 105A of 400 N. Main St. (the former Oddfellows Building) on the Allegheny College campus. The talk, which is free and open to the public, is part of a lecture series on Islam by Kirschner and Assistant Professor of Philosophy and Religious Studies Vika Gardner.

As part of the current exhibit Making It Better: Folk Arts in Pennsylvania Today Losang Samten, a former monk and Tibetan Mandala writer, is installing an intricate sand painting at the Erie Art Museum. Visitors may watch him work Thursday, February 4 and Friday, February 5 from 11am – 5pm. The Museum will host a free Q&A session on Thursday from 5 – 5:30. The Museum will host a free workshop with Losang Samten on Saturday, February 6 from 10 – 11am.

Peter Panepento, writer/facilitator of the popular blog “Outside Erie” and former Erie Times-News reporter, will lead a lunchtime presentation, “Blogging: Successful Guerrilla Marketing,” on Thursday, Feb. 18, from 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., at the Bayfront Convention Center, 1 Sassafras Pier, Erie. Hosted by the Advertising Federation of Northwest Pennsylvania, Panepento’s presentation will cover the power and force behind blogging and its importance in any company or organization’s marketing and communications efforts. Using examples of successful blogs, Panepento will explain how to create blogs that keep people coming back, and also how to use other blogs to your benefit.

Panepento’s “Outside Erie” blog provides a forum for people from inside and outside the Erie region to discuss the community’s future. Panepento covered business, the economy, and local news for the Erie Times-News from 2000 to 2006. Today, in addition to writing “Outside Erie,” he is the web editor for the Chronicle of Philanthropy in Washington, D.C., and a freelance writer with credits in magazines as diverse as Reader’s Digest, Men’s Health, and Computerworld.

The session will begin with lunch at 11:30 a.m., followed by the presentation from 12-1 p.m. and a question and answer period from 1-1:30 p.m. Cost for the presentation, which includes lunch, is $30 for Ad Fed of NWPA members, $40 for non-members. Register online at www.afnwpa.org. Pre-registration is required by Tuesday, Feb. 16.

Got this email today from a reader about tonight’s Erie School Board meeting.

Here ’tis:

At tonight’s Erie School Board meeting, the school board will be announcing the fate of Roosevelt School. As you know, Roosevelt School has been slated for demolition so the School District can build a new school.

A local non-profit group, The Erie Center for Design and Preservation, brought together the school board, Preservation Pennsylvania, and three independent architects to assess to value of renovating the building, rather than destroying yet another building in Erie of historic value. The study found having the building renovated, rather than rebuilt would cost just as much if not less than rebuilding from the ground up.

The details of this study can be found here:
http://www.eriecdp.org/projects.html

Despite all of this, the Erie School Board’s chief architect, Bob Marz, of Roth Marz Construction, will more than likely ignore these findings and have the school demolished anyway.

In May 2009 Architect Bob Marz advised the Erie School District that Roosevelt was not architecturally significant, and, that new construction lasts longer than renovations. When asked to support these two claims, Marz has remained silent in the face of emails, letters, and a direct “order” from the School Board President to respond.

Architect Bob Marz and the Erie School Board has seen fit to plod on towards demolition of four city schools despite the repeated advice of Pulitzer prize winning author, a PA State Agency, three skilled architects, and, the Erie Center for Design and Preservation.

YOUR HELP IS NEEDED
Tomorrow, WEDNESDAY, Feb.3. at 6 pm the School Board will be holding some sort of public presentation/discussion about their construction (and demolition) plans. Anyone who is present at 6PM when the meeting starts will be given 3 minutes to speak to the School Board.
The meeting takes place at the Washington Education Center: 148 West 21st.

Hi folks. Sorry for missing Monday’s post, but I moved Sunday and hadn’t unpacked everything yet. I’m slowly settling in and finding everything, so I’m afraid today has to be quick.

It’s been awhile, but this weekend we updated our Erie Twitter Guide, adding Hamot and the Erie County Historical Society.

Looks like we’re getting some negative national press this week thanks to an local unnamed Burger King employee who spit in a man’s food. Seriously, the food is bad enough, we don’t need extra flavorings. Though the incident happened in November of 2008, the lawsuit is just being filed now by Glenn Goodwin of Cleveland. The spin on the story is that the employee is white and Goodwin is black.

In the interest of full disclosure, I worked at Burger King during high school and some college. Yes, customers made us angry, but we didn’t curse at them, well sometimes, or spit in their food. We did all sorts of stuff to relieve stress. I cleaned tables while another guy stole money from the register. To each his own. The Burger King I worked at, on 8th Street, isn’t even open anymore.

Have you worked in fast food? What’s your favorite horror story? I posted a few classics from my fast food days over on this post.

VisitErie Director of Tourism Development, Emily Beck attended the 2010 American Bus Association (ABA) Marketplace January 15-19 at the National Harbor in Maryland. Beck attended on behalf of Pennsylvania’s Great Lakes Region (PGLR), a four-county marketing partnership of Erie, Crawford, Mercer and Venango counties. ABA’s annual Marketplace centers on prescheduled appointments where Motorcoach and Tour Operator Buyers obtain information and create business relationships with travel industry and service suppliers. A total of 43 prescheduled appointments were held with various motorcoach and tour operators including companies from Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, Virginia, Ohio, Oklahoma, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, New York and Ontario.

Sports

Erie BayHawks forward Alade Aminu has been named to the NBA Development League, East Conference All Star team. Aminu is averaging 13.6 points and 7.2 rebounds per game and has notched 6 double-double games thus far this season.

The nationally-ranked Gannon Lady Knights are shooting to raise $13,000 during their third annual Pink Zone game, to be played at 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13. The Lady Knights will host PSAC rival Clarion at Gannon University’s Hammermill Center. Admission to the women’s game, and to the Gannon men’s basketball game against Clarion to follow, is free. Throughout the women’s game, the names of cancer survivors will be announced. In addition, the Lady Knights will commemorate the occasion by wearing special pink uniforms.

Events

On Friday, February 5th from 10 a.m. – 3p.m., Hamot for Women will host its 4th Annual Wear Red Event at the Erie Sheraton Bayfront Hotel. This free event will focus on heart health awareness geared specifically to women.
There are schedule speakers, attendees can browse vendor tables and get several health screenings on the spot.

On Thursday, February 18th, at 6:30 p.m. at the Hamot Heart Institute, Cardiologist, Dr. Kelly Hayes, will share common risk factors that women should be aware of when it comes to their heart. This presentation is a part of the Hamot for Women Lecture Series. The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served and registration is preferred. To register, please email Stacey.Marks@hamot.org or call 877-4090.

Well, today’s the big day.

If you follow me on Facebook or Twitter, and really, why aren’t you, you already have heard about this. Today is my last day at Allegheny College, where I’ve worked for the last seven and a half years. I think it’s going to be a very hard day. I’ve been fortunate enough to work with very, very talented and hilarious people and I’m going to miss them terribly. There was never a day that I dreaded coming into work.

I’m off to the east side of Cleveland and John Carroll University, where I’ll start Monday as their director of marketing services. It’s a nice step up the career ladder, and it gets me closer to family in that area, which is always key. It’s funny, when I was 18 I couldn’t wait to get away and now, married and with 2 young kids, I want to be closer to family.

What does that mean for this site? Well, to be honest with you, I have no idea. In the short term, I will continue to blog and with the help of our awesome writers, we’ll continue to create great content. After all, we’ve been managing this site from Meadville and Detroit for the last few years so I don’t think it will be a big shift for us. Long term, I’m not sure. Let’s get some radio ads made and go from there.

Anyways, enough of that…

Erie District Attorney Jack Daneri has filed an appeal with the state Supreme Court asking them to re-instate the sentence that Judge William Cunningham handed down to Teri Rhodes last year. No word if the court will hear the appeal and when.

Our condolences to our friends at the Community Blood Bank. They’ve lost their medical director, Mary Ellen Reitz after a brave battle with cancer. Our thoughts go out to her family in this difficult time.

Kudos to you, Cameron Minniefield. You have told police you robbed a Meadville bank this week because you were “sick of being poor.” Thanks for your honesty, I think we all would love to have more money, but robbing banks is probably not the best way to do that.

Congrats to Accuspec Electronics, which was named employer of the year at the Economic Development Corporation of Erie’s awards dinner last night.

A hearing will be held today for Jordan Brown, 12. The hearing is to determine if Brown will be tried as an adult for his role in the shooting death of Kenzie Houk and her unborn child in 2009. Brown was being held at a juvenile center in Erie. PA law says if you are over 10 years old and are charged with criminal homicide, you must be tried as an adult. Was this criminal?

Police have re-filed charges against several women who were employed at the Esquire II Massage Parlor. They were accused of bilking a man out of nearly $48k. This is fine and all, but why won’t anyone in power (we’re looking at you, Jack Daneri) go after these places which are obviously houses of ill repute. Why do we let these places continue to do business but prostitutes on the street are busted? It’s time to let law enforcement do something and give everyone in Erie the happy ending they are looking for.

Dr. Syed Saad Andaleeb has been named distinguished professor of marketing by Penn State’s Office of the President. This rare honor recognizes Andaleeb’s prominent profile as a teacher in the Sam and Irene Black School of Business at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, and as a scholar and researcher within South Asia’s international development community.

I was watching some news clips over at YourErie, and thought that all the news folks in town could learn a bit from this video about how to produce quality local news clips. NSFW language.

GE Transportation and Komatsu announced the delivery of 17 Komatsu 830E-AC mining trucks containing GE240AC™ drive systems to Hindustan Zinc Limited (HZL). The units will be the first AC mining trucks in India.

Gannon University’s respiratory care program recently was given a clean bill of health. The program received a positive evaluation from the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC), an accrediting body in Bedford, Texas. In addition, Gannon University remains on track for its formal, 10-year reaccreditation.

Verizon Wireless announced today it invested more than $185 million in 2009 to enhance its digital network in Pennsylvania. The enhancements included building 78 new cell sites and upgrading equipment on hundreds of existing cell sites to increase coverage and capacity of the company’s voice and 3G high-speed wireless network, including improvements in our area. VZ, I’ll be a customer again when you start offering the iPhone.

Sports

Head Coach Shawn Liotta of the Erie Storm, a team in the American Indoor Football Association, announced today that former Pitt quarterback and AIFA All-Star Rod Rutherford has signed a contract to return to Erie to lead the Storm offense for the upcoming 2010 season.

The Gannon women’s water polo team moved up one spot and is ranked ninth in the latest Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Top 10 poll released Thursday morning.

Events

The local Jefferson Educational Society has a great deal of compelling programming coming up over the next few months. Have a look and if you want to learn more, check out their website here.

According to their site, The Jefferson Educational Society of Erie (JES) is a non-profit institution founded to promote civic enlightenment, and community progress for the Erie Region through the study, research, discussion, of those ideas and events that have influenced the human condition. The Society, therefore, will offer courses, seminars, and lectures which explain the central ideas which have formed the past, assist in exploring the present, and offer guidance to enhance the civic future of the Erie Region.

Sacred Spaces of Erie’s Architecture

Monday, Feb. 1, 8, 15, 22 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Jefferson Educational Society, 3207 State Street, 459-8000

Cost is $50 per person or $75 with a guest

The course will expose participants to the wide variety of religious architecture in NW Pennsylvania and will include ‘field trips’ to some of the diverse sacred spaces in our area. First class will be meeting at the First Presbyterian Church of the Covenant on 7th Street. Michael E. DeSanctis, Ph.D., instructor

China Rising, Threat or Opportunities?

Wednesday, Feb. 3, 10, 17, 24 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Jefferson Educational Society, 3207 State Street, 459-8000

Cost is $50 per person or $75 with a guest

Four separate topics: History, Trade, Taiwan, and North Korea. Edward Chen, Ph.D., instructor

Africa: Continent or State of Mind?

Thursday Feb. 4, 11, 18, 25 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Jefferson Educational Society, 3207 State Street, 459-8000

Cost is $50 per person or $75 with a guest

A survey of the African continent and why it should be of great importance to all Americans. Participants will also be given the opportunity to visit East Africa with Edward Grode, M.Ed., instructor

Short Stories: Rebellious Wives and Dutiful Daughters

Thursday Feb. 4, 11, 18, 25 4:00-6:00 p.m.

Jefferson Educational Society, 3207 State Street, 459-8000

Cost is $50 per person or $75 with a guest

Classic short story masterpieces by American women writers with women as the principal characters. Writers include, among others, Zora Neale Hurston, Mary Wilkins Freeman, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Amy Tan, Cynthia Ozick. Text: The Oxford Book of American Short Stories, (paperback) ed. Joyce Carol Oates. Act, 48 credit Marjorie Podolsky, M.Ed., instructor

Successful Erie Women: Making it in the World of Business and Politics

Thursday, Feb. 4, 11 6:00-8:00 p.m.

Jefferson Educational Society, 3207 State Street, 459-8000

Cost is $25 per person or $40 with a guest

Is it still a man’s world in business and politics? What does it take for a woman to succeed in today’s world? How did Erie’s dynamic women hold their own and compete and succeed? Guest speakers include Judy Lynch, Joyce Savocchio, Lt. Gen. Pat Genung (retired), Susan Breon and others. Corrine Halperin Egan, B.A., instructor

Music Appreciation: The Romantic Era

Tuesday, February 9 & 16 3:30-5:30 p.m.

Jefferson Educational Society, 3207 State Street, 459-8000

Cost is $25 per person or $40 with a guest

By listening to and discussing the masterworks of great Romantic composers such as, Beethoven, Berlioz, Weber, Mendelssohn, Wagner, Mahler, Strauss, etc., participants will gain insights into this music and be able to connect to the ageless, universal appeal of the Romantic period of the musical history. Carolyn Soder, M. Music, Scholar, Paris, France

Personal Transformation through Movement

Monday, February 8 7:00-8:30 p.m.

Jefferson Educational Society, 3207 State Street, 459-8000

Cost is $10 per person or $15 with a guest

A personal journey and powerful initiation of transformation through subconscious directed movement (movement suitable for absolutely anyone no matter what their physical shape). Lecture will explore the impact Transformational Movement has on each participant’s life. – Richard Stadler, Classical Guitarist, Transformational Movement Instructor.

Keeping Our Borders Safe

Friday, February 12 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

Jefferson Educational Society, 3207 State Street, 459-8000

Cost is $15 in advance or $20 at the door (includes lunch)

Global Issues Forum – How do our Border Patrol Agencies seek to identify, disrupt and dismantle international criminal organizations threatening customs, immigration and homeland security? Lev Kubiak, M.A. presenter

History of Baseball

Monday Feb. 15 and 22

6:30-8:30 p.m.

3207 State Street

Cost is $25, 40 with a guest

The origins of Baseball (1840-1900); the corruption in baseball pertaining to the 1919 Black Sox Scandal; Negro Baseball v. White Baseball; Reserve Clause v. Free Agency; and modern baseball and the new stadiums. Gene Dreyfus, MBA., instructor

Humanist Perspective: Being Good Without God

Tuesday Feb. 16 and 23

6:30-8:30 p.m.

3207 State Street

Cost is $25, 40 with a guest

Humanists maintain that morality, values and ethics are not necessarily the result of the influence of religion and that humankind is inherently good. True or False? Gary Sykes, Ph.D. and Reid MacFarlane M.DIV., instructors

Own the Internet

March 18 and 25

6:30-8:30 p.m.

3207 State Street

Cost is $25, 40 with a guest

A personal class to quadruple the value of the Internet to you and your organization. Understand relevant computer & Web history. Know what’s coming, the important trends that are affecting your career, family, and life. Discover online resources you never imagined. Learn how to use social networking, protect your privacy, manage your reputation, market your products or services, and make money. Bring your laptop (optional). David VanAmburg, B.S., instructor

I need some help. Would you be interested in doing a post or two here a week about interesting videos of Erie? I really like our YouTube of the Week posts but no one can do them. Let me know. Thanks!

Someone robbed the First National Bank in Meadville yesterday. It was not me. Speaking of banks, what was the bank at 26th and Legion that’s now a PNC. What bank with branches in Erie had a big 1 as its logo. Not a quiz, I remember a friend of mine’s dad worked there. This like early to mid-80s.

Speaking of Meadville, Raymond Ebbert is facing more charges for his alleged role in the sale of brass markers stolen from the graves of veterans in a Meadville cemetary. Ebbert was facing one charge of “desecration or sale of venerated objects” and the local DA has asked that the charges me increased from 1 to 100. He’ll have a hearing next week. There’s a special corner of hell reserved for people who steal from the graves of veterans. Not cool.

Barry Grossman is refusing to pay a bill for the county’s 911 Center records software. He’s claiming he’s not paying since the software has never worked. Kudos to the vendor, Interact, for shipping and billing for software full of glitches. Dude, you’re getting a Dell.

Speaking of computers, who besides me is psyched to learn about Apple’s long-rumored tablet that’s expected to be announced this afternoon. Oh. Just me. Hmm.

Lucky, a new documentary about lottery winners, is screening this week at Sundance. One of the people featured in the film is from Erie. Buddy spent his winnings on limos and pants. Nice. You can learn more and watch a trailer here. The director, Jeffrey Blitz, also directed Spellbound.

The deal that will let Tops buy Penn Traffic stores including local Quality Markets locations is expected to close Friday. No word on if they’ll remain Quality Markets or become Tops in name.

Hamot has been included on a HealthGrades list of hospitals that have received this year’s Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence Award. To be considered for HealthGrades Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence (DHA-CE), a hospital had to have star ratings in at least 19 of the 26 HealthGrades procedures and diagnoses ratings using MedPAR data. After creating a list of hospitals that met the above criteria, HealthGrades took the following steps to determine the DHA-CE recipients. Distinguished hospitals had 29% lower risk-adjusted inhospital mortality.

Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, has a new addition: Ernie, an 9 lb. certified service dog “employed” full time by Personal Counseling. Ernie is a 1-year-old Affenpinscher and the only therapy dog within the Penn State system. I’m proud of you, and I’m gonna let you finish, but we have a therapy dog AND a therapy cat down here at Allegheny. #justsayin.

Also, when I was in college we did not have therapy dogs. We had Mortal Kombat on the Genesis.

Working out of the deepest economic downturn since the Great Depression, private business leaders across Pennsylvania are showing signs of guarded confidence and recovery as they anticipate economic conditions facing them in 2010. This somewhat encouraging outlook is supported by results released today from the first annual Survey of Pennsylvania Business Leaders commissioned by First Niagara Bank and conducted by the Siena College Research Institute (SRI). Close to one-half, 46%, of these business executives say they expect business conditions for the economy in Pennsylvania to improve in 2010, while 30% expect it to remain the same and another 25% expect it to become worse.

The Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program (PennTAP) and Ben Franklin Technology PArtners of Central and Northern PA (BFTP) announce their sponsorship of the NEW Energy Idea Contest. The grand prize of $35,000 will be awarded to either an entrepreneur or one early-stage, pre-revenue company in the process of developing a new energy or alternative energy related product/process improvement. To qualify, contestants must have a viable, new energy/alternative energy related product or process improvement idea and cannot have received BFTP funding in the past. Additionally, applicants must be located in any one of the 32 counties in the Central and Northern Pennsylvania region. More here.

Sports

Mercyhurst College junior guard Samantha Loadman has been named the ECAC Division II Women’s Basketball Co-Player of the Week, as announced Tuesday, Jan. 26. This honor comes one day after Loadman earned PSAC West Athlete of the Week. Her strong play and efficient shooting have aided the Lakers’ 3-1 start to divisional play, including 2-0 this past week

The Gannon women’s basketball team moved up one spot and is ranked third in the latest USA Today ESPN Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll released Tuesday afternoon. It represents the highest national basketball ranking in school history regardless of gender. The Gannon men’s basketball team was tabbed third nationally on February 8, 1988.

Events

The Rebecca Davis Dance Company will present “Darfur,” a modern dance production designed to raise awareness and funds for victims of genocide, on Saturday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. in Shafer Auditorium on the Allegheny College campus. The performance is free and open to the public.

The Edinboro Film Series in cooperation with the Edinboro University Student Government Association and Roadside Attractions is pleased to announce the Spotlight Event for their spring program:

“MYSTERY TEAM” starring DERRICK comedy’s Donald Glover (“Community”, “30 Rock”), D.C. Pierson, and Dominic Dierkes. Also starring Aubrey Plaza (“Parks and Recreation”, “Funny People”, “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World”), Bobby Moynihan (“Saturday Night Live”), Matt Walsh (“The Hangover”, “Old School”), and Ellie Kemper (“The Office”). Directed by Dan Eckman. Produced by Meggie McFadden.

Guests to be announced. Following the movie there will be a Q&A and comedy performance by the film’s stars as well as a Meet and Greet. Edinboro Film Series director John C. Lyons said “The talent of Mystery Team is a who’s who of upcoming comedians and writers from television and film. It’s going to be a great night of comedy!”

“Sublimely ridiculous…”
– Entertainment Weekly

“Mystery Team” synopsis: At age seven, Oakdale’s Mystery Team was a band of kid detectives dedicated to solving child-sized mysteries (like who put their finger in the pie, and who stole the tricycle), and the town loved them for it. Now they’re eighteen, about to graduate high school, yet still storming the playground to bust little kids, and the town of Oakdale is sick to death of it. When a little girl sees their sign advertising “Mysteries Solved, Ten Cents,” she asks the gang to find out who killed her parents. The Team embarks on a mystery that takes them deep into a violent conspiracy that sees their lives threatened, their friendship strained and tests their claim that they’re “real detectives.” Rated R for crude sexual content, nudity, language and some drug material.

Edinboro Film Series presents:
“Mystery Team” Spotlight Movie Event
Guests to be announced
Monday, February 8, 2010 – 8:30PM doors at 7:30PM
Louis C. Cole Memorial Auditorium
Edinboro University of Pennsylvania

TICKETS FOR THIS EVENT ARE AVAILABLE NOW! $5 for Edinboro University students (with I.D.). $10 for General Admission. Available online at www.edinborotickets.com, at the Help Center in Ross Hall, and at the Door. Questions? Please contact John at 814-732-1048 or email filmseries@edinboro.edu. This film is Rated R.

THE EDINBORO FILM SERIES holds events on the Edinboro University of Pennsylvania campus during the academic year. Their intent is to foster an environment that will attract, stimulate, and educate future filmmakers, actors, artists, and the general public; providing a more comprehensive experience showcasing independent films and their filmmakers; giving those in attendance the opportunity to ask questions and meet the artists. Past events have included the East Coast Premiere of “Danny Roane: First Time Director” with director/actor Andy Dick and director/actor Marshall Cook, “Wristcutters: A Love Story” with director Goran Dukic and actor Shea Whigham, “The Ruins” with director Carter Smith, “Christmas on Mars” starring The Flaming Lips with director Bradley Beesley, and “Special” with director Jeremy Passmore.

For more information go to http://aux.edinboro.edu/filmseries or email filmseries@edinboro.edu.

We had fun at the AdStock event on Saturday. Hopefully, the event raised a ton of money, which will benefit scholarships for local students. Can’t argue with that. Fingers crossed, we bid on $1,000 worth of radio ads. Can you imagine radio ads for our silly website on the radio waves of Erie? Gotta start writing that ad. The most I’ve ever written for a radio ad is one line of a car commercial years ago for Cunningham Chrysler. We did a great series of TV and radio spots for them which were really fun and not loud shouting car price spots. I think my line was “I’m gonna parallel park this bad boy if its the last thing I do,” or something like that.

Actually, we do want to reach more and more people. I’m thankful for all of you that come here, but you’re in the know. We need to spread the word about this site and online community for those people who don’t spend as much time online as we do. Once they get here, I know they’d find it useful and come back every day.

It’s a catch-22. In order to tell more people about this site via advertising requires money. If we have a bigger audience, we can get more for ads. See the struggle here? If I had like 5 more hours a week, I could sell ads but I just don’t. You have no idea how much this bums me out. I think if more people knew about us, they’d dig it, just like you and I do.

Sigh. Anyways…

There was a front page story in yesterday’s paper about Erie becoming a global shipping and logistics hub. I’m for whatever keeps jobs (and makes new ones) here. Jim Berlin, who’s already dominating this very market worldwide from right here in Erie, had a great post and response. He says:

Can we think “boldly” enough? Can we put aside municipal/territorial differences and cooperate as a region? Can we not be only “self-interested” but see that we need to break some eggs to make this omelette?

As an outsider to Erie, I’ve said many times that I think some of the nostalgia here (a nice way of saying “refusal to face reality : ) and a low self esteem syndrome is all that holds Erie back.

I’m hoping this initiative can break through some of that and allows us to create a “new” Erie with as a thriving center of commerce that includes a (once again) vibrant port facility and an intimate connection to the global commerce that we FULLY participate in (and not just but a few local companies who trade globally).

He’s right on here – we do get nostalgic all the time. Heck, we had a post a few weeks ago with over 40 comments about stuff we miss, and I feel like that does hold us back sometimes. We need progressive companies like LogisticsPlus and Lake Erie BioFuels,err HERO SOMETHING, and LECOM to help Erie grow, keep and create jobs and put us back on the map.

Part of the problem that I see is that as Jim mentions we need some cooperation. There are so many local entities trying to bring companies here and grow other ones that I think if we formed, Voltron-style, one big economic development mega-robot, we’d be an unstoppable force. We need to stop thinking about Erie vs. Millcreek vs. Harborcreek vs. Erie County and more like we’re Erie and we’re all in this together.

Congrats to Wegmans for being named, once again, to Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For list. You can read a little bit about them here. This year, they are #3, though they were named #1 in 2005. According to Fortune, Wegmans has never had a layoff. Can you believe that Wegmans on Peach opened in 1993 (or was it ‘94?) Can’t believe its been there 15+ years. I’m getting old.

David Justka, the EMTA bus driver who was in several accidents including one that killed a local doctor, has left his job. Despite those accidents, he was returned to his job through arbitration a few times. EB contributor Dale has a post about this. Why did this take like 4 years to happen?

Sad news this weekend as Douglas Speir was driving the wrong way on I-79 near 26th Street and struck the car of Gerald Goldsmith. His wife, Sandra, was killed. Speir was charged with several crimes, including DUI. Folks, it’s not that hard. Don’t drink and drive. Ever. Seriously. Speir is 23.

Erica Dunston has been charged with homicide and arson in the death of Richard Dunston, her father. Dunston is alleged to have started the fire that killed Richard in March of 2007.

The head of applied forensic sciences at Mercyhurst College, Dennis Dirkmaat, Ph.D., is among two disaster reflief teams deployed to Haiti by Kenyon International Emergency Services, an international disaster management company. One team will be working in Port-au-Prince to remove human remains from the devastated landscape; Dirkmaat will be working with the other group at the morgue in the Dominican Republic to process remains and get them repatriated back to their families. They will also collect medical records and missing persons’ information.

Sports

Brittany Tabron (Canton, Ohio/Canton Central Catholic) recorded her 23rd career double-double and Shanna Thompson (Shaker Heights, Ohio/Shaker Heights) netted a career-high 18 points as the No. 4 Gannon women’s basketball team rolled to a 75-59 victory against Indiana (Pa.) Saturday night at the Hammermill Center.

Senior Nick Vandenbeld scored three goals, including the game-winner, to lead the Mercyhurst College men’s hockey team to a 6-3 victory over Bentley Saturday evening at the Mercyhurst Ice Center.

Thanks to pins from Jarrod King, Phil Moricone and Shawn Fendone the Edinboro wrestling team picked up a 32-9 win at Lock Haven on Saturday night. The victory extended Edinboro’s Eastern Wrestling League streak without a loss to 28, as the 21st-ranked Fighting Scots are now 26-0-2 during that period.

Allegheny distance runner Tony Dipre won the 1,000-meter run and finished second in the mile while teammates Andrew Mahone and Garrett Gleeson ran North Coast Athletic Conference Championship qualifying times at Baldwin-Wallace’s Mid-January Meet on Saturday.

Events

Members of Erie County Council will address area business and community leaders during a legislative luncheon starting at noon Thursday, January 28, at the Manufacturer & Business Association’s Conference Center, 2171 West 38th Street in Erie. Registration begins at 11:45 a.m.

I didn’t do yesterday’s post, so I didn’t have a chance to wish my son Evan a happy birthday! I can’t believe he’s 8. I feel old.

If you’re attending this weekend’s AdStock event, being put on by the Advertising Federation of Northwest PA, be sure to participate in the silent auction for great media, advertising and other service opportunities. All the proceeds benefit local scholarships. One of those items – an advertising package here at ErieBlogs.com.

Peek N Peak has had over 10 feet of natural snow this season so conditions will be perfect for our annual lift ticket giveaway! The Community Blood Bank wants donors and is enticing them with lift tickets on Friday. Peek ‘N Peak Ski Resort has generously donated over $10,000 worth of ski passes to the Community Blood Bank to help save lives in our region. The first 110 donors at the blood bank on Friday get an adult all day weekday lift ticket. The blood bank is open from 9am to 6pm on Friday and no appointments are needed; but photo ID is required.

One quick housekeeping note. The things that our bloggers write here are their opinions. We don’t edit, except for grammar, what they write or tell them what they can and can’t say. I had a few emails from people upset about Dale putting some of his own political opinions in the post yesterday. He can write whatever he likes. He doesn’t speak for me or any other writers here or ErieBlogs, LLC. Don’t like it? Leave a comment, start a blog or write for us. The more the merrier. I’m so thankful that Dale and Emilee are each doing one daily post a week. That takes so much pressure of me you have no idea. I quote Jay-Z: “You don’t like my lyrics, you can press fast forward.”

Barry Grossman has said he favors easing restrictions when it comes to swimming at Presque Isle. That’s fine and all, but if we keep losing jobs, there’s going to be no one left to swim.

Eight large-scale solar projects in Pennsylvania that will create jobs while generating clean energy will receive a substantial boost from $9.5 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding, Governor Edward G. Rendell announced yesterday. Of this money, Edinboro University will receive $474,000 to build a 210 kW roof-mounted solar array at the McComb Fieldhouse. The project will generate electricity that will be used for operation and maintenance work, and will allow the university to market and sell solar renewable energy credits. The project will create 10 skilled labor jobs and be completed in September.

Gannon University’s master’s degree program in community counseling recently was honored as the recipient of the Pennsylvania Counseling Association’s (PCA) Outstanding Counselor Education Program Award. Gannon University was chosen from some 40 eligible counseling and counseling-related programs in Pennsylvania. The program formally was honored at the PCA’s 2009 annual conference.

The Gem City Concert Band is seeking new members for the spring season. The Erie-based band, currently consisting of about 40 members and under the direction of Scott Tomlison of Mercyhurst College, plays such music as overtures, show tunes, traditional concert band pieces, movie scores and marches. The band presents a spring, summer and fall concert at St. John’s Lutheran Church, as well as numerous community performances. Rehearsals are held Tuesdays from 8 to 9:30 p.m. in the lower-level meeting room of St. John’s Lutheran Church, West 23rd and Peach streets. Interested musicians can call 899-8467, e-mail s.readel@verizon.net, or visit www.gemcitybands.org for more information. All instruments are welcome, but the band is in particular need of members who can play percussion, trumpet, alto and tenor sax, oboe and bassoon. Membership is free.

Sports

The Mercyhurst College wrestling team hits the road this weekend for the Super Region I Duals, hosted by Newberry College. The Lakers (2-6) look to snap a four-match losing streak when they match up against regional foes Anderson, Limestone, Belmont Abbey and UNC-Pembroke.

Events

The 2010 Dead of Winter Bellydance Hafla Show! From the dancers who brought you “Summer’s Hottest Hafla”…the Dead of Winter Hafla is the 2nd in a series of fundraisers toward our future Carolena Nericcio workshops! Saturday, 2-20-10 At the Erie Brewerie at Union Station–Restaurant Side. Kids welcome! This family-friendly event takes place in the Brewerie’s Historic Rotunda, the restaurant side of the Brewerie.

Hello, friends. Thanks for visiting today.

The weather yesterday morning was some premium bravo sierra. Icy roads caused a big pile-up on I-79 southbound south of Edinboro. Ice and I are not on good terms right now, thanks to it ripping off my gutters. I’m still upset about that.

Being your resident web experts, we highly recommend you use browsers that aren’t named Internet Explorer. This includes Firefox, Safari, Opera, Camino, or Google’s Chrome. Regular EB commenter and local blogger Nick has a great guide about how to get YourErie.com to work in Chrome. If YourErie was coded by someone who knew something about developing web pages, it would just work, but standards and good code be darned.

Clutch quote from the post:

Now the biggest issue with this solution is that you’ll loose the top navigation on the site, but let’s be honest…if you’re like me you probably just use the site to check the weather and get your real news from a site like ErieBlogs.com right?

Very true, sir. A few months ago, I wrote a blog post about how a few simple changes could be applied to YourErie.com to improve it. If you know someone over there or at NexStar, send it to them. These are simple, easy fixes that would go a long way towards improving the user experience.

I’ll remind you that this is the only media-ish site in town that has a nice, friendly mobile version. Have you tried to get the big site in town to load on your iPhone or Blackberry? Good luck, brah.

Erie County Council will not support wage restorations that Barry Grossman was looking for. They have not yet decided it they will create a new position that Grossman also asked for. How are these actions by the executive bringing or saving jobs in our area? That should be one of the key questions that Council asks everytime someone brings any resolution, plan, program or proposal to them. Will it increase revenue coming in? No? Then the answer is no.

Gannon recently welcomed 10 new students from the U.S. Virgin Islands, all of whom entered the University in the fall 2009 semester. We can safely assume they = stunned once they got a nice blast of Erie winter weather.

Erie-ite and Penn State University English and creative writing professor Eugene Cross has won the annual $5,000 Dzanc Prize from Dzanc Books. Congrats!

Sports

The WPIAL conference, of which McDowell is now a member, has released its football groupings for the next two seasons. The Northern Seven will include Butler, Erie McDowell, North Allegheny, North Hills, Pine-Richland, Seneca Valley, Shaler. Some serious teams there. Good luck, Trojans.

The NBA Development League Erie BayHawks will team with the Erie office of Pennsylvania Careerlink to offer a healthcare job fair during the BayHawks game, January 27 at the Tullio Arena.

The Mercyhurst College women’s hockey team claimed 190 points and all 19 first-place votes to top the USA Today / USA Hockey Magazine Women’s Division I Poll for the 14th-straight week.

The Gannon women’s basketball team remained fourth for the third consecutive week in the latest USA Today ESPN Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll released Tuesday afternoon. It continues to represent the program’s highest national ranking ever and is one shy of the school record regardless of gender.

Events

I bought a new car this past weekend. It was a relatively painless process, thanks to my boy Quinton at Hallman Hyundai. After a long search, I bought a Hyundai Tucson. It’s newly re-designed and full of neat tech-y features that I appreciate.

One of the things I found while searching for a car were walk-around videos produced by dealers showcasing some of their available cars. Some are really great, and unfortunately, some are really strange, like this one.

No offense to Cunningham Chrysler, but these videos are creepy. I think its the monotone computer voice.

Better yet, spend $125 bucks on a Flip or Kodak camera and take a few minutes to really show off a car. I bet it would really help in selling them.

I was up too late last night playing Modern Warfare 2. I’ve never been a big first person shooter game guy, but I’m having some serious fun with this game. I’ve only done a few of the missions, I’m mostly playing online with 12-year-olds who have headsets and use racial insults at each other. I need to not start playing to late at night, but it’s not really a game for the kiddies. Not yet.

EB contributor and local blogger Joel has a post about Fox 66’s new hour-long newscast that started last night. Did you watch it? Do we need an hour long newscast? What’s your take?

Do you know one thing I haven’t watched in about 6 months? Local news. Last fall, we ditched our cable and went strictly online.

It really was more a cost savings thing, as I didn’t want to pay $70 a month for 13 shopping channels and a bunch of other stuff I didn’t watch. We hooked up one of our home computers up to the TV and have been golden ever since.

Between Hulu, NetFlix, iTunes and Amazon Video on Demand, we haven’t really missed any shows. The extra money is nice, but I’ll admit I miss sports. Luckily, there are, um, ways, to watch things like hockey games.

Am I the norm for people in Erie? Probably not, but in 3-4 years, especially if Apple or someone starts offering a modestly priced streaming service, I think you’ll see more and more people moving over to something like this. Consumers should have a choice, and not be forced to pay one carrier due to a monopoly.

Sports

The Kitchener Rangers have been a puzzle to the Erie Otters so far this Ontario Hockey League season, winning their first four meetings with the latest victory a deceptively easy 6-1 verdict in a Martin Luther King Day contest before 2,675 at Tullio Arena Monday evening.

Dear Otters: can you put us on your press release mailing list? We used to get your results via your old site’s RSS feed, which was so easy for us. With your new craptastic site, there isn’t a quick way to get scores. Hint: your Twitter feed is woe-fully underused.

Events

We received a nice note from the folks at Hurry Hill Farms about their recent successes at the PA Farm Show. Congrats!

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For the second year in a row, maple sugar producers from Erie and Crawford Counties boiled the competition from around Pennsylvania and brought home numerous ribbons.

Janet Woods of Hurry Hill Farm in Edinboro again won Premier Exhibitor. The Northwest PA Maple Syrup Producers charming educational exhibit won First Prize in the County/Association Exhibit category.

James Bortles of Linesville in Crawford County won Best Syrup of Show in the one Quart class and also took First in Syrup in Half Gallon in tin or plastic; Janet Woods placed Second in those categories. Bortles and Woods won First and Second respectively in Light Amber in glass in ½ pint or less than quart; Chase Bortles took Fifth.

In Medium Amber in glass, ½ pint or less than quart, Woods placed Second. Winners in the Dark Amber in glass ½ pint or less than a quart were Janet Woods in Fourth, James Bortles in Fifth and Jim Kimball of Wattsburg in Sixth place.

Woods placed Fifth for maple candy in the category of Sugar, small individual pieces not less than ½ lb. and Fourth place for Crystal coated candy.

Gerhard Bilek, Triple Creek Maple Products in Cranesville took First for Sugar, crumb not less than 1/2 pound with Woods taking Fifth.

In the Individual Exhibit category, Woods placed Second; won Second for her Gift Pack, First in Other Uses for Maple Cream Chocolate Drop candy; First in Baked Goods, and Fifth in the Beverages, Salad Dressings, etc category.

To meet sugarmakers around the area, put the Maple Taste & Tour Weekend to be held March 20 and 21 on your calendar. Many producers open their sugarhouses to the public that weekend to show the various methods of making maple syrup. Taste samples, hear how it’s done from the old-fashioned way to modern techniques. It’s good fun in the fresh air. http://www.pamaple.org/

Be sure to stop at the new Hurry Hill Farm Maple Museum in Edinboro with its collection of artifacts, tribute to the classic Newbery medal winning children’s book Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorensen, children’s activities and see how maple syrup is made.

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. day. There are remembrance and celebration events all over town (and will continue on through the week.) In addition, most schools are closed, as is the post office, government offices, banks and liquor stores, I believe.

We hope you had a nice weekend. The weather was pretty much as good as you could ask for considering its mid-January. Everyone must have been out because upper Peach was a mess on Saturday afternoon. On Friday, some nice ice brought down all the gutters on the back of my house, bringing down the soffets and other pieces of my house with it. I was pretty pumped.

A jury has found Joel Atkin guilty for the murder of Jayson Sack. He’ll be sentenced in March.

Thousands of people attended the funeral Sunday for PA State Trooper Paul Richey. Trooper Richey was killen in the line of duty last week in Franklin.

Gerry Weiss had an interesting story in yesterday’s paper about people in Erie receiving assistance in feeding their families.

Sports

The Erie BayHawks beat the Tulsa 66ers 102-97 Sunday night in Tulsa. The BayHawks (10-12) were led by Tolbert with a team-high 25 points, while Aminu finished with a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds. Jackson had 20 points and eight assists, while Manuel added 17 points. John Bryant contributed eight points and 10 rebounds.

The Mercyhurst College men’s hockey team suffered its first series sweep since mid-November as Atlantic Hockey foe Sacred Heart defeated the Lakers, 3-2, Saturday evening at the Milford Ice Pavilion in Milford, Conn.

Less than 24 hours after rallying for a 19-17 win against Buffalo the Edinboro wrestling team did it again, this time opening Eastern Wrestling League action with a 25-13 triumph at Clarion.

The Gannon women’s basketball team continues to pile up the statistics and records during arguably the best season in program history. The fourth-ranked Lady Knights shot 51.7 percent in the second half and pounded Clarion 55-30 on the boards en route to a 77-54 road victory Saturday afternoon.

Laura Magnelli scored a season-high 14 points, while Jill Gregory and Brittney Bell recorded 13 each to lead Allegheny over Kenyon 55-46 in North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) action on Saturday afternoon.

Michael Machuga earned $13,000 this weekend at the Dublin, Ca. Championship. Do you think he could beat me at Wii bowling?

Events

Channel your inner Flower Child for an evening of peace, love and, most of all, fun at “AdStock,” a fundraiser for the Advertising Federation of Northwest Pennsylvania’s Scholarship Fund, on Saturday, Jan. 23, from 7-10 p.m., in the former Director’s Circle Theater on the second floor of the Renaissance Centre, 1001 State St., Erie.

ErieBlogs.com will be supporting this great program by donating some advertising space that will be included in the auction. Pretty sweet, eh?

Groove the night away as DJ Bill Page plays all the favorites from the late 60s and early 70s. Enjoy an open beer and wine bar and delicious food from local restaurants, all included in the ticket price, and take your chances on money and prize raffles, and silent and Chinese auctions. And be sure to dig out that fringed leather vest and bellbottoms–Prizes will be awarded to the best individual and best couple costumes.

Tickets are $15 in advance or $20 at the door (if available) and can be purchased online at www.afnwpa.org. Auction items will be posted on the web site as the event gets closer.

Many local organizations and groups are taking donations and money for those affected by the earthquake in Haiti. Wegmans is taking donations which benefit the American Red Cross relief efforts. Students at Gannon are collecting funds on campus until next week.

Other organizations worth supporting: World Food Program, Mercy Corps, UNICEF and many more. Please post comments with links to more organizations serving that area and we’ll make sure to include them in this and future blogs.

In case you missed our post yesterday, the new indoor football team in Erie will be called the Erie Storm. You can read more about the team and see their new logo at this post.

It’s almost election time, believe it or not. One of the races that is going to garner national attention is the Senate race here in PA. On the Democratic side, Senator Arlen Specter and Rep. Joe Sestak are duking it out in the primary. The two camps have agreed to one debate in May, and the Sestak camp wants there to be debates in six media markets across the state, including Erie. The race in the fall is looking to be Specter versus Pat Toomey (R).

Speaking of politics, new County Executive Barry Grossman wants to create a new position for David Mitchell so “solve problems.” No word if County Council will go for it. After all, many positions were cut.

The jury is now deliberating the Joel Atkin murder trial. We’ll blog when they have a verdict.

Shawn Conrad was been appointed to the Millcreek Township School Board. He was formerly a hockey coach at McDowell High School.

The Erie office of The Berry Company will be closing. The company is restructuring to “launch an innovative new business model developed to help its small business clients generate local leads from multiple sources and platforms.”

From the must be nice department, executives at the now sold Penn Traffic company made over $1 million in bonuses for their part in selling off the chain’s wholesale grocery business. Late last year the company went bankrupt and was eventually sold to the Tops chain. At least jobs will be spared. More here.

The U.S. Small Business Administration reminds homeowners, renters, businesses and non-profit organizations of the deadline to submit disaster loan applications for damage caused by the Millcreek Township fire that occurred on December 6, 2009 in Erie County, Pennsylvania.

Erie County District Attorney Jack Daneri, will be the guest speaker at the Manufacturer & Business Association’s January Eggs ’n’ Issues briefing starting at 8 a.m. Thursday, January 21 at the Association’s Conference Center, 2171 West 38th Street at Pittsburgh Avenue.

Sports

The Gannon women’s water polo team is ranked 10th in the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) preseason poll released Thursday morning.

Events

The next Sigma Xi Science Café is Wednesday, January 20 at 6:30 PM at the BrewErie at Union Station. The topic will be the possibility of life on Mars and other recent discoveries from the Mars expeditions. Here’s more info.

A renowned speaker who has authored four of the top 10 Catholic bestsellers will be at Gannon University on Saturday, Jan. 30 for a guest lecture. The speaker, Matthew Kelly, is the author of the top Catholic bestseller, Perfectly Yourself: 9 Lessons for Enduring Happiness. His lecture, “A Call to Joy,” is free and open to the public and will begin at 7 p.m. in the Yehl Room of Gannon University’s Waldron Campus Center, 124 West 7th St.

Auditions for the 2010 ERIEsistables Dance Team will be held on Saturday, January 23, 2010 at Erie Bayfront Dance at 312 Chestnut Street in Erie. Registration begins at 12:30 p.m. with tryouts starting at 1 p.m. Everybody, from former high school cheerleaders to professional dancers, who are 18 years or older, are invited to tryout to be a part of the ERIEsistables, the dance team that will support the new professional arena football team. The new ownership group announced in December that a new team name will replace the RiverRats to best reflect Erie and its hometown pride.

So, the name for the new football team has been announced. It’s the Storm. What do you think about the logo? Do you like the name?

Here’s a bit about their upcoming schedule. They take the field starting in March.

Head Coach Shawn Liotta of the Erie Storm of the American Indoor Football Association has announced the team’s schedule for the upcoming 2010 season.

The slate includes fourteen games against East Division opponents, seven of which will be played at the Tullio Arena, including the season opener on Sunday afternoon, March 7, when Erie will host the defending AIFA champion and historical division rivals, the Reading Express. Three opponents will be making their inaugural visits to Erie.

For 2010, the East Division of the AIFA will consist of the Erie Storm, Reading Express, Harrisburg Stampede, Baltimore Mariners, Fayetteville Guard, and two new AIFA members, the Richmond Raiders and the New Jersey Revolution. The Storm will play all division teams at least twice, and will play interstate opponents Reading and Harrisburg three times to round out the regular-season schedule.

“Our schedule is always a challenge, and this one is no exception. We’ll need to be sharp right away having to face the defending champs right out of the gate and in two of our first three games. Baltimore and Harrisburg are loaded with proven talent so those games will be tough as well. I haven’t seen Fayetteville myself yet, but that franchise has always been a winner, so I expect nothing less than hard-fought battles with them. But our team is coming together really nicely and I can’t wait to get back to Erie and get this started up again.” commented Liotta.

Following its season opener, Erie will stay at home for a second consecutive week when it hosts the Harrisburg Stampede on Sunday, March 14. The Stampede won the season series 2-1 in 2009, with each of the two games in Erie not decided until the games’ final moments and both very physical and hotly-contested affairs.

After a bye week, the Storm begins a two-game in-state road trip, when it visits Reading on Saturday, March 27, and Harrisburg, on Saturday, April 3.

Following its second bye week, Erie returns home on Friday night, April 16, hosting the Richmond Raiders in their franchise’s first visit to Erie. The Raiders are coached by Mike Siani, who was a wide receiver for the NFL’s Oakland Raiders where he was named to the Pro Bowl in 1973 and won a Super Bowl championship ring in 1977.

On Sunday, April 25, Reading returns to Erie for the teams’ third and final regular-season encounter of the season, before the Storm embark on another two-game road trip, including repeat matchups at Richmond on April 30 and at Harrisburg on May 8.

In the month of May, Erie will welcome two more first-time visitors. On Friday night, May 14, the Storm will host the New Jersey Revolution, a former franchise of the CIFL which sat out last year in preparation for joining the AIFA for the upcoming 2010 season. On Saturday, May 22, the Fayetteville Guard comes calling at the Tullio Arena. The Guard is entering its third year in the AIFA following a successful run in the NIFL. Erie played the Guard for the first time in 2009 in Fayetteville. In 2010, the teams will have a home-and-home series.

The Storm face a grueling end to their regular season with three of their last four games played on the road, including the franchise’s first visit to New Jersey on May 29, Baltimore on June 5, and the longest road trip of the season, to Fayetteville, NC, to end the regular season on June 19.

Erie will close out its home schedule hosting the Baltimore Mariners on Sunday, June 13. The two teams played a memorable game at the Tullio Arena last Mother’s Day which ended on a 41-yard field goal by Joe Lindway as time expired to give Erie its first win of the season.

Season ticket packages and individual game tickets for all Erie Storm games are now on sale at the Tullio Arena box office (452-4857) and at all Ticketmaster outlets.

Erie Fire Chief Tony Pol is asking for your help. If you can, please make an effort to shovel out your local fire hydrant. In case of an emergency, that will make firefighters’ jobs much easier. Did I get that apostrophe in the right place on firefighters?

The man killed at GE this week has been identified as William Huff, 46. Mr. Huff was a crane operator at the plant. Our thoughts go out to his family in this difficult time.

Scary moments this week for Bonnie Holfelder in Fort Lebouf. Her 4-year-old daughter was left on a school bus for several hours. The incident is being investigated by police and the bus driver who missed the fact the child was still on the bus has been suspended. As a parent, this scares the crap out of me.

The trial of Joel Atkin is getting underway this week. You may remember Sack shot and killed Jayson Sack during a dispute last year. The trial should run through the end of the week. We’ll keep you posted on what happens.

The supervisors in Millcreek are asking members of the Millcreek Water Authority to chill and not start legal action against Erie’s Water Works. The problem is some Millcreek residents are paying what city residents pay and some residents are paying way more. The two sides are set to meet this week.

Scottrade is opening a new branch office Monday, Jan. 25, in Erie. The new office at 6839 Peach St., in the Millcreek neighborhood, will be managed by John McComas.

Sports

Erie native Jovon Johnson will play for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers again next season. The two reached a contract agreement, but terms were not made public. Congrats, Jovon!

The Cleveland Indians are warming up the buses for their annual winter Press Tour. Over the course of three days — Tuesday, Jan. 26 through Thursday, Jan. 28 — the Tribe caravan will visit 11 cities in northern Ohio and western Pennsylvania, with players, broadcasters, front-office staff and new manager Manny Acta in tow. The events will raise money for various charities while generating interest in the 2010 season. First-base coach Sandy Alomar Jr., reliever Tony Sipp, outfielder Trevor Crowe and STO broadcaster Matt Underwood will be at a dinner in Erie at the Barber National Institute. Tickets are $8 and are available at the Barber Center, and at the door if they are still available.

Events

In an effort to attract overnight visitors to the Erie region during the winter months, VisitErie has developed “Erie…Not Your Ordinary Hot Spot!” a seasonal overnight package campaign*. This is the second year in a row that VisitErie has run the campaign. The multi-media campaign begins January 10 and continues through March 31 2010.

Each overnight package, in addition to each individual lodging property’s offerings, will include a free $20 gas card, a Presque Isle Downs & Casino Players Club Card and a Millcreek Mall Exclusive Guest Rewards Card…fantastic incentives to encourage visitors to check out Erie in the winter time! Packages include romantic getaways, shopping outings, entertainment excursions along with relaxing getaways at cozy bed & breakfasts or cabins.

The goal of the “Not Your Ordinary Hot Spot!” campaign is to turn day trip visitors into overnight stays by providing lots of incentives and suggestions to stick around and check out Erie’s multi-seasonal attractions. VisitErie is targeting markets in 9 PA counties, 2 counties in Ohio and 8 counties in NY. Visit www.VisitErie.com and click on the special snowflake graphic for a listing of packages. “Erie…Not Your Ordinary Hot Spot!”

I love Erie. I love it because it’s so different now compared to when I grew up, and yet a lot of it is the same. I suppose its like that anywhere.

I was reading through old posts and found a long thread of comments where we were all talking about Loblaws grocery stores. It got me thinking about how much has changed in the last, I don’t know, 15 to 20 years, and yet how much is still the same.

So my question is this: what’s gone that you wish was still here. Here are a few of mine: pepperoni balls and those cool plastic bin tags at Super Duper. The Mill Run at Waldameer. The water park where the St. Jude Church parking lot is now (we weren’t allowed to go there. The water park, not church.) When the humanity on Peach Street ended at Busy Beaver and didn’t carry on all the way to I-90.

What about you?

It was nice to get some decent weather this weekend. Yes, it was cold, but the roads were clear and there wasn’t much snow. We bundled up the kids and did some shopping.

In keeping with your push here to do business locally, I stopped by Custom Audio on W. 26th St. to pick up a DVI cable. It was the same price as Radio Shack and Best Buy, so why not support the local place. I talked for nearly 20 minutes with owner Sondra Lee about HD, streaming video, and expensive A/V cables. I could spend quite a bit of money there.

A power outage at the Cleveland airport left many travelers stuck in Erie yesterday. Sucks if you were trying to get somewhere warmer.

Congrats to Collegiate Academy for winning the Academic Sports League competition held this past weekend.

The retrial of Martin Allen is scheduled to begin today with jury selection. Allen is charged with killing Kevin Imler. Allen was a supervisor at Erie Coke and was already convicted of DUI relating to Imler’s death. Imler was on a bike at the time of the accident. There was a hung jury on Allen’s previous manslaughter trial.

Sports

The Erie BayHawks (7-12) turned the tables on the Fort Wayne Mad Ants (7-11) leading from wire to wire, winning 100 – 70. Alade Aminu had a dominating double-double performance with 30 points and 15 rebounds, adding 3 blocked shots along the way. Offensively the BayHawks featured a balanced scoring attack with four players in double digits including John Bryant with his tenth double-double of season with 18 points and 11 rebounds. The BayHawks will wrap up the three game home stand by once again squaring off with the Mad Ants on Wednesday, January 13, 7 PM tipoff at the Tullio Arena. It’s a Smith’s Hot Dogs, One Buck Wednesday featuring one dollar Smith’s Hot Dogs, beer, popcorn and pop.

Mercyhurst Junior Vicki Bendus scored a goal and added two assists as the Canadian National Women’s Under-22 Team rolled past Switzerland, 9-0, in the gold medal game of the 2010 MLP Cup Saturday afternoon in Ravensburg, Germany.

For the second day in a row the Edinboro men’s basketball team faced an undefeated opponent, and for the second straight day the Fighting Scots came up short. This time around Edinboro appeared poised to knock off undefeated East Stroudsburg in a PSAC crossover contest at McComb Fieldhouse, but two key spurts helped the Warriors claim an 81-73 win and improve to 13-0. The Warriors were among “others receiving votes” in the latest NABC Division II Top 25. Edinboro lost its fourth straight game and is now 6-7.

Eight Lady Knights scored between seven and nine points as the No. 4 Gannon women’s basketball team easily cruised past Mansfield 76-39 in workmanlike fashion Sunday afternoon in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) crossover game at the Hammermill Center.

Events

Channel your inner Flower Child for an evening of peace, love and, most of all, FUN at “AdStock,” a fund-raiser for the Ad Fed of NWPA’s Student Scholarship Fund, on Saturday, Jan. 23, from 7-10 p.m., in the former Director’s Circle Theater on the second floor of the Renaissance Centre, 1001 State St., Erie. Groove the night away as DJ Bill Page plays all the favorites from the late 60s and early 70s. Enjoy an open beer and wine bar and delicious hors d’oeuvres from local restaurants. And take your chances on money and prize raffles, and silent and Chinese auctions (Auction items will be posted as the event gets closer). And be sure to dig out that fringed leather vest and bellbottoms–Prizes will be awarded to the best individual and best couple costumes! Proceeds from the event will benefit the Advertising Federation of Northwest Pennsylvania’s Scholarship Fund. Tickets are $15 in advance or $20 at the door (if available) and can be purchased online here: http://afnwpa.org/AnnouncementRetrieve.aspx?ID=34332. Don’t miss the most far out party of the year! Get your tickets today!

Gannon University will host a series of public events in observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

On Friday, Jan. 15 Gannon University’s Erie Chamber Orchestra will host its annual tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The performance, which will feature the Shiloh Baptist Church Choir and director Fredrick Dixon, will begin at 7:30 p.m. at St. Patrick Church, 130 East 4th St.

Gannon University’s Erie Chamber Orchestra is conducted and directed by Bruce Morton Wright. All concerts are free and open to the public. For more information, call 814-871-7755 or 814-871-5467.

On Sunday, Jan. 17 Gannon will host liturgies at 11 a.m. and 9 p.m. at the University’s Mary, Seat of Wisdom Chapel, 520 Peach St. At both liturgies, a special collection will be taken to benefit the Wiley-Horton Scholarship.

Gannon also will host several events on Martin Luther King Day, Monday, Jan. 18. All are free and open to the public.

* From 9-10:30 a.m., Dr. Parris J. Baker, assistant professor and director, Gannon University social work program, will facilitate an interactive training and simulation titled, “Blessed are the Peacemakers: The Puzzling Pieces of Peacemaking.” The workshop will be held in room 219 of the University’s Waldron Campus Center, 124 West 7th St., and will illustrate social disorganization theory and strategies to address crime, persistent poverty, and community peacemaking. Registration is preferred; RSVPs can be directed to Arlene Montevecchio, director of Gannon’s Center for Social Concerns, at 814-871-7433.
* At 11 a.m., the University and the Student Government Association (SGA) will host a prayer service in the Mary, Seat of Wisdom Chapel.
* At 11:30 a.m., the Martin Luther King Memorial Luncheon will be held in the Waldron Campus Center. Simple sandwiches will be served immediately after the prayer service and prior to the city-wide Memorial March.

More snow. That’s all.

William McMillen, 26, of Cleveland, Ohio was arrested this week for setting a fire in a restroom at Presque Isle Downs and Casino. Dude, you’re supposed to burn your money in the slot machines, not in the bathrooms.

Speaking of gambling, wagering was down last week, perhaps because of the giant snow storm we had. Please go back and read that second bit there in a sarcastic tone. $33.9 million was wagered.

So, the table gaming is now legal in PA, but Big Ed isn’t happy the bill is full of earmarks for hospitals, colleges and more. More here. The table gaming will bring jobs to the local casino, which is good, but with casinos coming online in the future in Ohio as well as casinos already operating in New York, many people will be watching what happens with these table games. Will it have the budget effect many people in Harrisburg are thinking it will? I like blackjack as much as anyone, but I can play it online, with fake money and no smoke online for free. Same excitement. *Shrug*

GE Transportation announced yesterday it has signed an agreement with Cosan to deliver 50 new AC44i locomotives for freight transport starting in 2010 through Rumo, Cosan’s subsidiary for logistics operations. Cosan is the leading grower and processor of sugar cane and one of the largest ethanol and sugar producers in the world. Cosan will use the new locomotives to haul sugar from its processing plants to port on the rail infrastructure provided by its partner America Latina Logistica (ALL). The Model AC44i locomotives will be built by GE Transportation South America, GE Transportation’s affiliate facility located in Contagem, Brazil.

Got word today that Tammy Roche is leaving her job at the Erie Art Museum to become the vice president of marketing, membership and development at the YMCA of Greater Erie. Congrats, Tammy!

The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission’s Pittsburgh Office will open at its new location at 301 5th Avenue, 3rd Floor, Piatt Place, on Monday, Jan. 11. That office serves Erie County, among others. The Pa. Human Relations Commission enforces state anti-discrimination laws and works to promote equal opportunity and diversity in Pennsylvania workplaces, businesses, schools and communities.

Starting yesterday, students attending the Maritime Alternative Education Program will begin assisting Niagara’s first mate and boatswain dress the ships t’gallant yards in the Bayfront Center for Maritime Study’s boatshop. The yards were brought to BCMS by the students after watching Niagara shipwright Bob Arlet bend new white oak frames for one of the ship’s cutters at the Erie Maritime Museum. The yards will be sanded and varnished. The rigging on the yards will be inspected and replaced as needed and then tarred; then sails will be bent on. The students will be learning about the history of the ship as well as the mechanical and physical aspects of the rigging and how all the parts act together to propel the 297 ton vessel. How cool is it that we have such an interesting resource right here in Erie?

Sports

The numbers told the story. Nine steals for Erie, one for Los Angeles. Seven blocks for the BayHawks, two for the D-Fenders. Toss in 44 percent shooting for L.A., and the result was a very business-like 102-89 BayHawks victory. The win marked the first time this season the BayHawks notched back to back wins. New BayHawk, Mike Gansey had one of the better all-around games of the Showcase, finishing with 25 points, 15 rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Good news (?) Browns fans. It looks like Eric Mangini will back to coach this team this year. The team had a nice little winning streak to close out the season.

Events

Come join the fun on Saturday, January 30, 2010, when YEP! (Young Erie Professionals) will host the 2010 Bachelor & Bachelorette Auction at the Hilton Garden Inn. The evening will include silent auctions, hors d’ oeuvres and a cash bar. The Erie area’s most eligible singles will be auctioning themselves for a night on the town – all proceeds from this event will benefit Erie DAWN. Music will be provided by a live DJ. Festivities will begin at 6:30 on Saturday, January 30 at the Hilton Garden Inn, Garden Terrace Atrium, on upper Peach Street in Erie. Tickets are $20 at the door, $15 purchased in advance. Tickets can be ordered by calling 814-868-8622 or by email at yep_eriedawn@yahoo.com.

A ‘storm is coming’ with ‘blizzard’ potential and an adrenaline-‘pulse’ that is going to “punish’ the competition. Erie Professional Football, Inc. announces a community-wide contest to name the new professional arena football team.

The new ownership group announced in December that a new team name will replace the RiverRats to best reflect Erie and its hometown pride. The contenders are:

1. Erie Storm
2. Erie Blizzard
3. The Pulse of Erie
4. The Erie Punishers

You can go vote on their website, but if you don’t feel like it, you can vote here right now. Think those names are lame? Suggest your own in the poll or in the comments below. I like the Erie Zebra Mussels myself. Erie Channel Cats? Erie Lake Effect?

Bill Stafford, ownership group spokesperson elaborated, “The new team’s mantra has been ‘our town, our team’. What better way to successfully introduce the new team than with a team name chosen by the community. It’s the perfect combination – hometown heroes/players … hometown pride … hometown ‘ownership’ of the team by the community with the team being named by the community.”

Anyone can participate by visiting ErieProfessionalFootball.com and casting a vote for our town’s new team name. Or votes can be mailed to Erie Professional Football, Inc. 2047 West 12th Street; Erie, PA 16505. The deadline to vote is January 12. Our town’s team name will be announced Thursday, January 14, 2010.

A reminder about today’s blood drive from Dan at the Blood Bank:

Jim Thompson was just sworn in for Erie City Council Monday and we are
hoping to have a solid turn out for him at a blood drive held in his honor. The blood drive is this Wednesday January 6th from 11-3pm at 626 state Street, Erie City Hall. Mr. Thompson has received over 50 units of blood as part of his brave fight against cancer. We want to make sure that he and all of the patients get the blood they need. Over 20% of all blood collected by the Community Blood Bank is used by cancer patients. The Community Blood Bank is also the ONLY supplier of blood in Erie County so ONLY blood donated to us will help local patients, like Jim Thompson, who need it.

Calamari’s Squid Row is generously donating all the food so donors can grab a quick bite and rollup a sleeve and help save a life locally. Hope to see you there! Thanks.

Please help and donate if you can.

Felix Velasquez, 16, has been sentenced to 5 years in prison. You might remember Velasquez as the person who opened fire at an East High School basketball game last January. One person was hurt in the shooting.

PA State Sen. Jane Earll is part of a group of legislators working on a table games bill compromise. More info about the bill and the work being done is available here.

A man was shot and killed outside a convenience store on Buffalo Road last night. The victim was identified by WJET as Steven Arrington. Police have arrested a 17-year-old suspect.

Speaking of WJET, they’ve announced that their 10pm newscast on Fox 66 will now be an hour long starting Monday, January 18. Since we ditched our cable a few months ago, the one thing I miss is the local news. I guess thats what the Interwebs are for.

The Flagship Niagara League writes us with this bit of news:

Ahoy, Flagship Niagara Fans and Supporters

Would you be interested in a one-day coach trip to Put-in-Bay, Ohio, to see the island from which Oliver Hazard Perry’s fleet launched the Battle of Lake Erie?

The daytrip would coincide with Niagara’s visit to Put-in-Bay in late May. It would be a unique opportunity to see our ship at that historic location.

We’d depart Erie early in the morning so that we could spend most of the day touring the Perry Memorial area, having lunch, seeing related sights and stopping for dinner on the way home.

The cost would be under $100 per person for members. Round-trip bus service, transportation on the island, tour guides and admission would be included. Lunch and dinner would be the responsibility of participants.

Please indicate your interest by emailing your response by January 17 to: paulette@velocity.net.

We’ll follow up with details if there is sufficient interest. Thanks in advance and Don’t Give Up the Ship!

Congrats to Plastikos, who is a finalist for the 14th annual Processor of the Year, hosted by Plastics News. The winner will be announced March 9th 2010 at the Plastics News Executive Forum in Tampa Florida.

A U.S. Coast Guard Master’s License Course Starts This Weekend at the Bayfront Center for Maritime Studies. Whatever your reason may be, a Coast Guard captain’s license is something to be proud of. Less than two percent of all boaters have obtained one. Why are not more boaters United States Coast Guard licensed masters? Probably because the usual procedure to get a license is difficult and can be quite frustrating. Email the center for more information.

Sports

12 weeks and counting! The Mercyhurst College women’s hockey team retained its top-ranking in both national polls after the release of the USA Today / USA Magazine Women’s Division I Hockey Poll Tuesday afternoon by USA Hockey officials.

Brittany Bell scored 10 of her career-high 24 points in overtime to lead Allegheny over Oberlin 80-69 in North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) women’s basketball action on Tuesday night.

The Gannon women’s basketball team moved up two spots and is ranked fourth in the latest USA Today ESPN Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll released Tuesday afternoon. It represents the program’s highest national ranking ever and is one shy of the school record regardless of gender.

Events

Offer Baruch, a former Israeli Counter Terrorism Agency (Shin Bet) agent who has investigated hundreds of terrorist incidents during his career, will address “The Global Fundamental Islamic Terror” when he speaks to intelligence studies students at Mercyhurst College on Thursday. His talk is at 6:30 p.m. in Taylor Little Theatre.

The Erie Art Museum is the first stop on a state-wide tour of folk arts inPennsylvania. Making It Better: Folk Arts in Pennsylvania Today is on view in the Erie Art Museum’s Main Gallery, 411 State Street, from Jan. 15, through April 11, 2010. A public opening reception will be held during Gallery Night on Friday, March 12, 2010 from 7-10 p.m. To learn more about the exhibit, visit www.erieartmuseum.org or www.folkartpa.org.

Teachers of all disciplines and grade levels are invited to an evening of great art, music, and camaraderie during the Erie Art Museum’s annual teacher Cabin Fever Getaway on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2010 from 4-7 p.m. at the Erie Art Museum, 411 State Street. Educators from all disciplines and age levels can earn 3 hours of Act 48 credit.

“We think of it as a way to pamper teachers a bit,” states Kelly Armor, Museum Education Director. “We design the Getaway so they can have fun and get their creative batteries recharged.”

Participants will explore Making It Better: Folk Arts in Pennsylvania Today, and meet artists featured in the exhibit, such as Bosnian ballad singer Mensura Berberovic, stone wall artisan Ken Ely, and Charles Culleiton, sawdust carpet maker.

Registration starts at 3:30 p.m. and the program runs from 4- 7p.m. Teachers are invited to stay for a light supper at Molly Brannigans.

Event sponsors Erie Federal Credit Union and Iadeluca Chiropractic will be giving away special gifts to those in attendance.

Cost is $10 per person in advance or $12 at the door. Contact Jude at the Museum, (814) 459-5477 or email jude@erieartmuseum.org.

The Erie BayHawks continued their roster moves in preparation for their appearances at the annual NBA Development League Showcase by signing guard Booker Woodfox.

In 2009, Woodfox helped Creighton to its first regular-season Missouri Valley Conference crown since 2002 and was named the 2009 Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year. The sharpshooting guard was one of the best shooters in the country and led the league in three-point accuracy (50.9) and three-pointers made (83). His 15.9 scoring average led Creighton and ranked second in MVC.

To make room on the roster the team released guard Martin Zeno.

The team traveled Boise, Idaho to take part in the NBA Development League Showcase with games against the Reno Bighorns, Wednesday January 6 at 12:00 PM and the Los Angles D-fenders, Thursday, January 7, at 3:45 PM. Both games will be broadcast live NBA TV as well as on radio via WFNN 1330 AM and streamed free on the NBA Futurecast link from ErieBayHawks.com.

The party’s over folks. For many of us, it’s back to work. I keep forgetting its 2010. Maybe it’s because I’ve only left the house once this year and that was to go get groceries. It took me an hour to dig my stupid car out. Thanks, lake effect. Seriously, from Friday morning until I write this late in the night on Sunday it just hasn’t stopped snowing (especially down here in Crawford County.) Looks like everyone is having a 2 hour delay this morning.

The snow made a mess of things yesterday, as I-90 was closed from Ohio to New York and even I-79 was closed for a bit. Side roads are a mess, and thanks to some nice winds, the drifts are seriously intense.

I’d like to take a few minutes to talk about this site. Thank you all for a successful 2009. First, thanks to our contributors: Dale, Lory, Emilee, Kristy, Jennifer, Josh, Richard, Joel, Matt, MV and a few others who have contributed to this site. Thanks for all you do.

Thank you to all the readers who visit this site daily. According to our Google Analytics, we had over 200,000 visitors in 2009. Me = stunned. Don’t forget you can get daily headlines via email, follow us at Twitter or be our pal on Facebook.

Would you like to write for this site? Maybe you’d like a weekly column or would like to write one of the daily news posts, please let me know. It’s not hard. In fact, it’s kind of fun.

Thank you to the advertisers who have supported the site this year. They include: Naturally Yours, Ridge Law Firm and the Community Blood Bank. If you’d like to reach 200,000 visitors, let us know. With no overhead like other local news sites, we can give you crazy rates, like crazy insane. We’re in this because we love Erie. Your support means we can reach more people.

A reader wrote in to tell us about the positive experience they had at Direct Bedding and Furniture in Harborcreek on Buffalo Road. In fact, it was so glowing I was sure it was a plant, but I followed up and it was legit. So, if you need some furniture, there you go.

Sports

Sorry, Steeler fans. No repeat for you this year. Even though you beat Miami, wins by Houston and Baltimore will keep the team out of the playoffs. Just one win against Oakland, Kansas City and Cleveland would have got them in.

Cleveland certainly has turned it on late in the season. They beat Jacksonville 23-17. Will Mike Holmgren keep Man-genius? The team finished 5-11, winning their last 4 in a row.

Buffalo beat Indy 30-7, but it means nothing to Indy as they’re now 14-2, have home field advantage and are pretty much going to come out of the AFC and play in the Super Bowl.

Jason Snow hit a free throw with 13 seconds left and Cheyney’s Kevin Presbery missed a 3-point shot as time expired to give Mercyhurst College a 68-67 come-from-behind victory in the second Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference crossover contest.

After winning at Mansfield on Saturday, the Edinboro men’s basketball team had hoped for a sweep of its two-game PSAC crossover swing. The best the Fighting Scots could do was a split, as their shooting turned as cold as the weather outside in the second half in a 65-59 loss at Bloomsburg on Sunday. The loss dropped Edinboro to 6-4, while Bloomsburg is now 6-4, as well.

The Gannon men’s basketball team turned the ball over 26 times and shot below 35 percent for the second consecutive game as the Golden Knights fell 75-54 at East Stroudsburg Sunday afternoon in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) crossover game.

Events

Teri Rhodes, who was sentenced to 9 to 18 years for killing her newborn baby in 2007 while she was a student at Mercyhurt College, has had her sentence overturned by a state Superior Court panel.

The panel said Judge William Cunningham had a “pronounced bias.” The sentence has been remanded, and another judge in Erie County will now have to re-sentence Rhodes, who has been living with her parents in Michigan during the appeal process.

You can read the full legal document here.

What’s your take on this? Fair? Was what Judge Cunningham did right or wrong?

Hi everyone! We hope you’re having a great holiday week. Us? Mike’s been sick, then his kids got sick, so not a lot of fun there. Even Emilee, our intrepid intern, got caught in Buffalo in the massive snowstorm we had Monday. Hope your week is going better. Our daily news posts will pick up Monday, January 4.

Here’s a question on this last day of 2009: what, in your opinion, are the top stories of the year in Erie?

We’re thinking the economy has to be one of the biggest stores, with its impact locally with big layoffs at GE and several other businesses closing. Luckily, some businesses have managed to not only survive but grow in this economy, places like Eriez Magnetics and HERO BX (the artist formerly known as Lake Erie Biofuels.)

There was a big county election this year, which will impact our area for years to come. There’s the ongoing fight in Millcreek about water. There’s the search for a replacement for Jim Barker. There’s the merger of WICU and WSEE news operations.

What do you think?

Merry Christmas. We’re spending the morning with our kids, living vicariously through them, then settling in tonight to watch part one of the Doctor Who Christmas special. What? You’re surprised? We’re total nerds after all – running a big website wasn’t a clue?

Enjoy the day – see you Monday.

- Mike

Courage Wolf says news is slow because it’s 2 days until Christmas.

The three people Edinboro students killed in a car accident in November were all sober, according to test results.

Millcreek Township has approved plans for a new building to be built at Granada to replace the unit that burned down. Let’s hope there are better fire safety items in this building, like sprinklers.

Sports

Browns QB is done for the year. It’s bad when Josh Cribbs has had a better QB rating than Quinn in some games. Cribbs is a wide receiver and returns kicks.

The Canadian Hockey League in association with Home Hardware Stores Limited today announced the rosters for the 2010 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game. Erie Otters forward Andrew Yogan was selected to play for Team Cherry at the game, which will take place at the WFCU Centre in Windsor, ON, on Wednesday January 20, 2010.

Dear Erie Otters: your new website still stinks. Where’s the RSS feed? Better yet, get us on your press release mailing list. The Bayhawks hook us up with news.

Events

Getting closer to the big day, so here are two version of the 12 days of Christmas.

and

and

The Erie BayHawks are keeping busy this holiday season offering a number of options for entertaining the family.

· Saturday, December 26, 7 PM- Tipoff at the Tullio Arena vs. the Iowa Energy – Free BayHawks poster calendar courtesy of CiCi’s Pizza for the first 1000 fans. Fans will also receive a coupon for a free Frustista Freeze courtesy of Taco Bell.

· Sunday, December 27, 2 PM- Tipoff at the Tullio Arena vs. the Iowa Energy – Free rally towel courtesy of the Erie County Recycling Program for the first 1000 fans.

· Monday, December 28, 1:30 – 4:00 PM- at the Tullio Arena BayHawks Fun Day- Basketball clinic, player meet and greet, Dino Jump and more fun activities. Admission is $10 per child, parents get in free.

· Tuesday, December 29, 7 PM- Tipoff at the Tullio Arena vs. Bakersfield Jam – The first game of the BayHawks High School Hoops Showcase, Cathedral Prep vs. Warren High School, is set for a 5:00 PM tipoff. Game tickets are good for admission to both the high school and BayHawks game.

Check out this fun holiday romp from Jimmy Fallon, Horatio Sanz and Julian Casablancas of The Strokes.

Saw Avatar in 3D. Wow. Seriously. Crazy.

Today is the winter solstice, and the shortest amount of daylight we’ll see all year. The good news is that while winter has officially begun, the days get longer from here on out. See, silver lining.

GE got an order for 100 locomotives to be sold in South Africa. 10 of them will be built locally, the rest shipped down there in pieces. Doesn’t sound like any of the workers laid off will be called back, but hopefully its a sign of a warming economy that will lead to more orders and more jobs here.

We received a note over the weekend, for those of you in sunny Florida:

For all the Erie area snowbirds. you can now watch Jennifer Mobilia on Wbbh news 2 ( NBC )in Fort Meyers Fl the vewing area is north to Punta Gorda , Fort Meyers, and south to Naples.

We won’t say who sent it, but Jennifer, we’re guessing your mother loves you.

The Country Fair Express on W. 26th was robbed Friday night. We drive by that all the time but can’t figure out why it’s called a Country Fair Express. It has gas and snacky items, right? Call it what it is: Country Fair. Or, if you want it to be robbed more often, call it Circle K.

While we’re at it, I’d like to pick a bone with Sheetz. Sheetz, you and I are cool. We really are, you’re my goto gas and food destination. Once, I had to visit your store in Meadville at 4 am on Christmas Day to get Motrin for my kid rocking a fever. For that, we’ll always be cool. But something’s been bothering me: cheese. I enjoy your meatball sub. It could use a bit more sauce, but it’s good. If I order a turkey sub or breakfast sandwich, I get american cheese for free. But if I order a meatball sub, I’ve got to pay for any kind of cheese. I’m not going to put american cheese on a meatball sub, but do you see where I’m going here? Why is it free on a turkey sub? On a meatball sub, I’m putting no other expensive condiments on it such as tomatoes. Tomatoes are expensive, dog. By getting a meatball sub, I’m actually saving you some money, so why not give me a break on the cheese. On a turkey or veggie sub, I’m putting all kinds of toppings that motherlover…lettuce, onion, tomatoes, pickles, bacon, kraut, mustard. Profit margins = stunned. That’s all. Carry on.

Cheese break.

The EPA raided the Tonawanda Coke Company last Thursday after management didn’t complete environmental tests that the EPA demanded. The same company owns Erie Coke which has had its own environmental problems and many fines. If they are polluting and not paying fines and not doing tests, can’t these places be shut down? Fines are fine, but the pollution is still going into the air.

Local Judge Michael Joyce is featured in this blog post over at WalletPop.com, talking about how to get caught committing insurance fraud.

Three Days Grace will be playing Erie at the Tullio Arena on February 4. Joining the bill are Chevelle and Flyleaf.

Sports

NFL
Pittsburgh 37 Green Bay 36
New England 17 Buffalo 10
Cleveland 41 Kansas City 34

Pittsburgh still has a glimmer of hope of making the playoffs.

Bad news for those of you who enjoyed catching the Pirates caravan that came to town every year. Erie has been dropped as one of the stops on the annual tour. Thanks, Pirates. You stink anyways and no one cares™. Enjoy another 100 loss season.

Gannon’s Jon Richardson (Warren, Ohio/Warren G. Harding) has been selected to play in the 2010 Valero Cactus Bowl scheduled for Friday, January 8 at Javelina Stadium on the campus of Texas A&M-Kingsville.

Events

Here’s what might be the original mash-up: Bing Crosby and David Bowie singing the Little Drummer Boy.

This first aired in 1977. The Washington Post did a story on it in 2006. They say:

One of the most successful duets in Christmas music history — and surely the weirdest — might never have happened if it weren’t for some last-minute musical surgery. David Bowie thought “The Little Drummer Boy” was all wrong for him. So when the producers of Bing Crosby’s Christmas TV special asked Bowie to sing it in 1977, he refused.

Just hours before he was supposed to go before the cameras, though, a team of composers and writers frantically retooled the song. They added another melody and new lyrics as a counterpoint to all those pah-rumpa-pum-pums and called it “Peace on Earth.” Bowie liked it. More important, Bowie sang it.

Going old school a bit today with John Lennon’s Happy Christmas (War is over.) I guess it still is relevant today.

Sorry I missed yesterday’s music post. I caught Avatar and my mind was jelly after.

Here’s a rockin’ version of Jingle Bells, courtesy of the Reverend Horton Heat. I’ve seen him a few times live, always a blast.

The Erie BayHawks announced their first roster move of the 2009/10 season with the return of former BayHawk guard Cliff Clinkscales.

Clinckscales appeared in 43 regular season games for the BayHawks during the 2008/09 season, averaging 7.3 points and 5.3 assists per game. The BayHawks selected Clinkscales in the ninth round of the 2008/09 D-League draft, following a strong showing at the team’s Erie free agent prospect tryouts.

Clinkscales is expected to join the BayHawks and be in uniform for a weekend series with the Iowa Energy, Saturday and Sunday. Chris “Red” Hughes calls all of the action of both games on Fox Sportsradio 1330 AM the Fan. Fans can also watch the free, live internet stream of the game on NBA Futurecast at; nba.com/dleague.

To make room on the roster the team released guard Zach Sowers.

The BayHawks next home game is set for Saturday, December 26, 7 PM at the Tullio Arena vs. the Iowa Energy, with the first 1000 fans receiving a free BayHawks team poster calendar courtesy of Cici’s Pizza. The home stand with Iowa continues, Sunday December 27, 2pm at the Tullio Arena with the first 1000 fans receiving a rally towel courtesy of the Erie County Recycling program. Tickets are on sale for all BayHawks games, to learn more about special ticket packages contact the BayHawks ticket office at 790-5600 or visit ErieBayHawks.com.

After a 9 month hiatus chef Matthew and Cindy Sarbak have announced the re-opening of Matthew’s Trattoria at Lovell Place. Sarbak’s indicated that while the economy and difficult lease negotiations led to the closing in the spring of 2009, the response of his customers led him and his wife Cindy to re-open the restaurant.

Sarbak said “we were getting 5 or so calls a week at our home asking us when and where we would be serving again. We looked at many other properties in and out of town but in the end, Lovell Place is the most cool and unique space. Lovell Place was designed for us, Lovell Place is the Trattoria’s home.”

Deanna Rosenthal of Altair Management, Lovell Place’s property management firm, indicated that both commercial and residential tenants were anxious for the restaurant to re-open. Rosenthal stated “in the months since Matthew’s closed, we learned how much our tenants and the community missed Matthew’s unique cooking style as well as access to the community’s most attractively fit-out Martini Bar.”

The restaurant had a soft-opening on Friday the 11th for staff training and testing of the new menu. Chef Sarbak has redesigned the menu to feature tapas plates which makes dining affordable and quicker for busy schedules.

The Restaurant is open Monday-Saturday 5:00PM-Midnight (and sometimes later on Friday-Saturday). Nightly drink specials will include SIN (Service Industry Night – not just for servers anymore) $1 off everything and “Twosdays” – 2 shots are better than 1 mixed drink. Reservations are no longer needed but are recommended on weekends for tables of 8 or more. The main dining room will now only be used for banquets.

Rosenthal, closed by saying “Lovell Place, Altair Property Management and Matthew’s Trattoria have worked very hard to freshen up the restaurant and are thrilled to announce the reopening.”

Matthew’s will be hosting an invitation only grand re-opening on Monday the 21st from 5pm-7pm. The public is encouraged to join the party after 7pm. For more information on Matthew’s Trattoria, please call (814) 459-6458 or visit them on the web at www.matthewstrattoria.com

Wow. It’s finally Friday. What a week. Anybody catch Avatar last night? I’m kind of pumped to go today.

Our friend Dan Desrochers at the Community Blood Bank writes to us this morning:

I am sure you’ve heard about Erie City Councilman Jim Thompson’s brave fight with Cancer. A big part of his fight has been receiving blood transfusions. I believe I read that in one run of treatment of the course of weeks he had received over 50 units of blood. All of this blood was provided by the donors who so generously donate blood with the Community Blood Bank. There is going to be a blood drive in Jim Thompson’s honor on Wednesday January 6th in the lobby of City hall (626 State) from 11 to 3pm. This drive is open to the public and everyone is encouraged to come and give blood.

Sad news from our Erie Zoo. Earlier this week, Patches, a polar bear gave birth to a stillborn baby.

Ebert Beeman, elected to Erie County Council this November, was arrested in the city of Erie. See, Ebert shouldn’t be driving because his license is suspended. When stopped, he wouldn’t exit his vehicle and was also charged with resisting arrest. He’s got 4 prior stops for driving without a license. Dude, get a license or get a ride. Beeman, as you’ll remember is quite the character, suing the federal government, among other things, and obviously, having a few scrapes with local law enforcement.

Judge Sean McLaughlin has ruled that drilling for gas and oil in Allegheny National Forest can resume, after the activities were banned earlier this year.

If President Obama signs the spending bill currently before him, our reguin will be receiving money for a bunch of projects. A full list is available here. One such projects is $100,000 in federal funding to support Mercyhurst College’s initiative on behalf of students with Asperger Syndrome, operated through the college’s Learning Differences Program.

The Erie Times-News is reporting that a New Jersey company is going to hire the 100 workers who lost their jobs at Erie Shipbuilding. DonJon Marine – thanks.

Speaking of jobs, Price Chopper, a grocery store chain, is making a $54 million bid for Penn Traffic, who owns Quality Markets and a few other brands. The stores in Erie and Meadville were set to close in January. No word if the stores will remain open or will close while the deal goes through.

Residents and businesses affected by the Millcreek Township fire that occurred on Dec. 6 in Erie County, Pa., can apply for low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration

Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who dominated headlines for a time in 2008’s Presidential campaign, spoke in town last night. Did anyone go? If so, what did you think?

Join me in welcoming William R. Edmondson to Erie. He’s the new vice president for enrollment at Gannon. He’ll be starting in January. Welcome to Erie!

Sports

The Erie BayHawks (2-5) dropped a third straight to the Maine Red Claws (7-1) 96 – 75 at the Tullio Arena last night. The Bayhawks were led by Donell Taylor with a game high 27 points. Cedric Jackson notched a double-double with 12 points and 11 assists on the night. Three BayHawks scored in double figures with Jackie Manuel, Ivan Harris and Alade Aminu all chipping in with 10 point performances.

The Mercyhurst women’s basketball team sailed to its third straight victory, as the Lakers charged out to a 36-19 halftime lead before prevailing 68-58 at Lake Erie Thursday, Dec. 17. Samantha Loadman led four Lakers in double-figures with 14 points, while Amy Achesinski and Jackie Artise each recorded double-doubles and Megan Hoffman had a career-high 12.

Events

I found this years ago and it’s become one of my favorite holiday tunes. I originally found this traditional Spanish carol performed by, wait for it, the Monkees. You laugh, but watch this clip, it’s really good. The song is called “Riu Riu Chiu.”

Here’s a more classical interpretation of the song:

If you watch some other versions, you’ll find some are good, some are bad, such as this one by American Idol-ite David Archuleta.

Apropos, don’t you think, for this start of winter.

I apologize in advance for today’s post. Life is completely out of control right now.

The news in 15 seconds:

Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong’s trail has been delayed again.

Phil Nevin is your new Seawolves manager.

Gov. Rendell has requested assistance for those people affected in the big apartment fire recently.

The PA government is giving half a million dollars towards John Kanzius’ research.

$2.7 million of state money will be going towards the runway project. What is the current status of that? What are the chances this project will ever happen and how much more is it going to cost us?

Nicole Arbaugh has been charged with murdering her boyfriend, Christopher Wickham.

Derrick Feliciano is being charged with raping a 3 year old. WTF, dude. Seriously.

Thanks everyone. Once this week is over, I think I’ll be relaxed – right now life isn’t a whole lot of fun.

Here’s singer-songwriter AM with a nice cover of Vince Guaraldi’s “Christmas Time is Here.” I like this – it’s chill.

Little different tune today, from England’s Laura Marling. I’m a big fan of her acoustic-y folk tracks and if you have a moment, go and find out more about her. She’s 19. Doesn’t sound it though, right?

This summer, I got to spend some time in England and Wales, and had an amazing time. I’d love to go back this time of year and get a whole different experience.

Explore more music by Laura Marling

Here’s last night’s episode of Extreme Makeover Home Edition featuring the Ward family of Erie.

Part 1:

Part 2:

What a weekend.

First, the weather was all crazy, going from a blizzard on Friday to warm enough I didn’t need a coat on Saturday to crazy rain and ice yesterday. I did it up Erie-style though, hitting up the Oakwood for lunch (I know its not called that, but I call it that) and nommed on some of my wife’s reuben and then we hit up Romolo’s for some chocolate-y goodness. Dark chocolate sponge candy. Seriously.

Second, our fair city got a ton of national exposure this weekend. In case you missed it, and of course you didn’t since you follow us regularly, we got a mention on Saturday Night Live. Ok, it probably wasn’t the best mention (watch the video and you’ll see why), but hey, we’ll take it. VisitErie, you should have been ALL over this on Facebook and Twitter yesterday. Yeah, I know it’s Sunday and all, but welcome to the 24/7 connected world. Seltzer = stunned.

Third, last night was our time to shine as the Erie episode of Extreme Makeover Home Edition finally aired. I don’t have cable (traded it for a Mac mini ages ago), so I’ll watch it and post it when its live on Hulu, hopefully tomorrow. ErieBlogs, LLC was glad to donate some local gift certificates to groups working with neighbors and other people in Clara Ward’s neighborhood. We heart Erie.

If you watched the show, what did you think of it? How was Erie portrayed?

Erie County officials are saying a special thank you to local HAZMAT workers by wanting to cut their life insurance policies. Each HAZMAT member gets $250,000 in life insurance coverage. Erie County wants to cut the amount to $50,000. Other county workers like sheriffs have only $50,000 insurance policies.

Erie and Erie-ite Phil Tredway get a mention in this USA Today story about ongoing healthcare negotiations. Tredway is president and CEO of Erie Molded Plastics.

Sports

The Erie BayHawks (2-3) were out gunned by the Maine Red Claws (4-1) 116 – 90 dropping their home opener at the Tullio Arena before a crowd of 5150 on Saturday night.

Five players scored in double-figures, including a career-best 25 points from Heiden Ratner, as the Lakers blew past Washington Adventist, 101-59, in the final game of the Mercyhurst Invitational.

Samantha Blazetic had a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds off the bench as Edinboro cruised to a 101-20 victory over Washington Adventist at the Susan G. Komen Shoot for the Cure Classic.

Grace Moore and Caroline Hourihan each had a double-double, while Katie Landy scored a game-high 22 points to lead Fredonia State over Allegheny 68-60 in non-conference women’s basketball action on Sunday afternoon.

Events

I love the holiday season because I get to chill with family and friends. It seems like we all spend so much time running around with our blinders on trying to get work done or the kids to practice or write a daily blog post that we forget to step back and take a breather. I am perhaps the most guilty of this.

Saturday Night Live poked fun of our fair city last night in this sketch about the PGA losing sponsors and attention following the Tiger Woods’ announcement he’ll sit out this year. The Erie bit is about 4 minutes 40 seconds into this clip.

Fair or foul?

Quick – what are the two most magical words any child can hear during winter? Snow man? No.

Snow day.

There’s nothing more exciting than knowing that you don’t have to go to school that day and you can spend it sledding, throwing snowballs or even sleeping. We used to all meet up at a friend’s house and order a pizza and play. Good times.

Explore more Matt Pond PA at Amazon

Frosty loves ska. Seriously, he does.

I think winter has finally arrived in Erie. We got some pretty decent lake effect snows, though I think New York got it worse than we did.

You those winds we’ve been having, this blog post says they’re as strong as a category 2 hurricane. Johnny Kelly writes:

In a matter of fact, data indicates this storm was as strong as a category 2 hurricane with a minimum central pressure of 976 millibars. Hurricane Ida, which peaked as a Category 2 hurricane in the Caribbean in early November recorded a minimum central pressure of 976 millibars as well.

One additional casualty of the very high winds of the last few days: a Norfolk Southern train that derailed in North East on Wednesday.

Don’t forget to set your DVRs for Sunday night to watch the Extreme Makeover Home Edition that taped in Erie this summer. We’ll post it once it hits Hulu next week.

The 244 businesses on the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue’s tax delinquent list owe the state more than $8 million, Revenue Secretary Stephen H. Stetler said today. 3 Erie business are on the list. They are: Erie Mill and Press Company, who owes $105,783. Klimek Molding Corporation owed $6,477.50. Patrick Herman Incorporated, who does business as Subway of North East, owes the state $30,563.

Officials have determined the cause of the big apartment fire last week – careless smoking. Folks, if you smoke in bed, try not to fall asleep and burn down the building. Flavor country = stunned.

Erica Irwin reports about a judge’s decision to not set aside an arbitrators ruling that could force the city to hire a number of new firefighters. The whole thing kind of confuses me, to be honest.

Edinboro University will be renaming its Meadville campus for Joseph T. Buba, a longtime benefactor of the school who lives in Wisconsin.

Four U.S. Army Cadets at Gannon University are ranked in the top 40 percent of the recently-published National Order of Merit List (OML). They are: Chase S. Burnett, Eric W. Schumacher of Erie, Niall J. “Frank” McGrath and Jonathan T. Cross. Congrats!

Sports

NFL
Cleveland 13 Pittsburgh 6

Two field goals? Seriously?

The Erie SeaWolves are proud to announce that once again, they will partner with the United States Marine Corps for the second annual “FILL A TRUCK AT THE UHT” Toys for Tots event to Jerry Uht Park! THIS SATURDAY, December 12 from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m., the main plaza in front of the Jerry Uht Park front gates will serve as a Toys for Tots drop-off. The Marines will be on hand with tactical vehicles including a 7-ton truck to fill with gifts for needy children in the Erie community and two hmmwv’s. This holiday season, the Marines are in need of toys for 10,000 area youths.

Events

It’s a busy weekend at the Erie Book Store. Today, the store will be featuring Ken Springirth who will be signing copies of his new book Arcade and Attica Railroad (Images of Rail) from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. On Saturday, they will have Berwyn Moore in the store from 2 to 4 p.m. signing copies of O Body Swayed, her collection of poetry.

The first 50 donors at the Community Blood Bank today will receive a poinsettia plant courtesy of Stan’s Garden Center. If you can, please give.

Ugh. My internet provider, Armstrong Cable, has been doing unannounced work on their intertubes for the last two nights, pretty much killing speeds on my end. It felt like I was back on dial-up. Scary. Note to all local service companies – you have no excuse to not be on Twitter or Facebook sharing updates for your customers. Seriously. The days of no-information and hiding behind your big scary corporate walls are over. Even Comcast does customer service on Twitter.

Good news, Millcreek residents. No tax increase for you next year.

While we were all enjoying turkey on Thanksgiving, a pipe burst in the Office of Children and Youth Services. The line break will force the county to make nearly $500,000 in repairs to the plumbing system. Deferred maintenance fail.

The PNC Bank branch in Waterford was robbed yesterday. No one has been arrested yet.

It feels like we just got finished with the whole PA 03 congressional race, but before we know it, it will be election time again. Clayton Grabb of Butler, PA has announced he will seek the seat, currently held by Kathy Dahlkemper. He’s on Facebook.

Kenneth Toglia, owner of “the Dog” on 8th Street was due in court Monday but didn’t show and a warrant has been issued for his arrest. Toglia is facing 134 criminal counts, most for underage drinking. In fairness to Toglia, he recently switched attorneys (well, his attorney was fired by the Public Defenders office) so in the transition he may not have known he was supposed to show up.

Sports

Members of the Erie BayHawks will visit the Country Fair location at West 8th Street and the Bayfront Parkway, Wednesday, December 9, from 4 to 5 PM, to hand out free ticket vouchers in partnership with Country Fair, for the team’s home opener, set for this Saturday, December 12, 7 PM at the Tullio Arena.

Brittany Tabron (Canton, Ohio/Canton Central Catholic) became the third current Lady Knight to reach the 1,000-point plateau as the No. 6 Gannon women’s basketball team rolled to an 86-59 victory over Tiffin Tuesday evening at the Hammermill Center.

The Allegheny College baseball program will host its 2010 College Prospects Camp on January 23 from 10:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. at the David V. Wise Center. The camp, which is open only to high school athletes who plan on playing collegiate baseball, will give baseball players an opportunity to showcase your hitting, pitching and defensive skills while learning from an expert coaching staff and team. Players will also be able to further hone their abilities in the Gators’ state-of-the-art indoor facility prior to the upcoming high school season.

Events

The 2009 yep! gift drive will be held on December 10th from 5:30 – 7:30 at the Fox and Hound. This year we have partnered with Safenet to purchase holiday gifts for those less fortunate in our community.

Dr. James Kurre, associate professor of economics at Penn State Erie, the Behrend College and director of the Economic Research Institute of Erie, will be the guest speaker at the Manufacturer & Business Association’s December Eggs ‘n’ Issues briefing starting at 8 a.m. Tuesday, December 15, at the Association’s Conference Center, 2171 West 38th Street at Pittsburgh Avenue. To register for this briefing, contact Tracy Shepard at 814/833-3200 or 800/815-2660. Cost is $30 for members, $60 for nonmembers.

The NBA Development League Erie BayHawks today joined the Greater Erie County Chapter of the American Red Cross to announce a special effort to raise funds for the local chapters Disaster Relief Fund. The fund is assisting thirty two community residents who were displaced in a weekend fire that destroyed a Millcreek apartment complex.

Anyone making a $10 donation to the Disaster Relief Fund will receive a Main Level ticket voucher for the BayHawks home opener, set for this Saturday, December 12, 7 PM at the Tullio Arena. A family of four can make a $25 donation and receive four Main Level ticket vouchers to the game.

“With the holiday season upon us and winter weather returning to the Erie community we thought this was an opportunity for us to aid the efforts of the local Red Cross chapter in helping these at this difficult time,” said BayHawks president Matt Bresee. “We have all been witness to the generosity of the Erie community and we hope this small effort on our part will go a long way in helping the victims of this fire.”

Donations can be made at the Greater Erie County Chapter of the American Red Cross, 4961 Pittsburgh Avenue (off West Grandview) Wednesday – Friday from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. Everyone who donates will also be entered to win a limited edition, Season of Cheering basketball signed by the entire BayHawks team.

Red Cross volunteers and first responders who battled the blaze will be honored prior to the tipoff of Saturday’s game.

I think we can best sum up the weekend in a few pictures.

Before we get to that, let’s take a quick moment to remember that today is the 68th anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. 2,402 soldiers lost their lives that day.

Snowy weather Saturday caused accidents around the region as people managed to forget what it’s like to drive on slippery and slushy roads. Get used to it.

A big fire Sunday morning on Presque Isle Boulevard has left dozens of people homeless. Luckily, no one was injured though the complex was pretty much destroyed. The American Red Cross is on the case, working with the families. Call the Red Cross at 833-0942 if you were affected or want to donate some money to support the Chapter’s support efforts or if you have other goods for the families.

Flagship Niagara Captain Wesley Heerssen, recently laid off due to continuing state budget issues, has been hired by the Flagship Niagara League, a non-profit. Heerssen, and two other members of the ship’s crew, will stay on thanks to the group. They’ve shifted some budget monies around to pay the salaries. Kudos to you.

Speaking of budget woes, the Blasco Library will be open on Sundays but hours at all the local branches are being cut. Ed Plattella of the Times-News has the details. Call us naive, but can volunteers be counted on to pick up the lack of paid staff? How much of the day to day activities of the branches are being done by volunteers? I’d take a Saturday afternoon here and there if it meant keeping branches available and open. My kids use the library in Erie and Meadville all the time.

A quick, special thank you to Naturally Yours, who is sponsoring this site for the next two weeks. If you are looking for a great holiday gift, especially for the Erie-ite who’s moved away and looking for a taste of home, check out their gift baskets filled with local treats – you can even get Smith’s hot dogs included. How clutch is that?

Sports

Well, Steeler fans, the season’s over. Sorry, it hurts, but it’s true. The defense can’t make stops when it counts and the offense hasn’t been scoring enough points to make up for those lapses. If you want to make the playoffs, let alone defend a championship, then you have to win the games you’re supposed to, including beating Kansas City and Oakland. At 6-6, the only thing the team can do at this point is play spoiler and beat teams like Baltimore at home in a few weeks. Pittsburgh and Cleveland play Thursday night.

NFL
San Diego 30 Cleveland 23
New York Jets 19 Buffalo 13 (Thursday)

The Mercyhurst men’s hockey team posted its sixth consecutive victory, winning 3-1 over visiting UConn Saturday, Dec. 5 at the Mercyhurst Ice Center. The Lakers built a 3-0 lead midway through the game, while the Huskies notched a late goal to avoid the shutout. Three different Lakers scored, and Kevin Noble recorded his first career goal.

Edinboro captured the 67th Annual Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Championships on Saturday at McComb Fieldhouse on the Edinboro campus. It marks the fifth straight PSAC title for head coach Tim Flynn’s squad, tying the PSAC record set by Lock Haven from 1940-42 and 1947-48. Edinboro has now won eight of the last nine and 11 of the last 13 championships.

Craig Devinney nailed a go-ahead jumper with 40 seconds left in overtime and the Allegheny men’s basketball team weathered a final effort by Ohio Wesleyan to pull out a 79-76 win in North Coast Athletic Conference action at the David V. Wise Center on Saturday.

The Urbana men’s basketball team hit 14-of-20 long-range bombs against the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference’s (PSAC) best three-point field goal percentage defense and completed a season sweep of Gannon Saturday afternoon with an 85-59 victory at the Grimes Center.

Events

No holiday season is complete without someone in my family putting the barking dogs doing Jingle Bells on infinite repeat.

Jingle cats = stunned.

Local residents are invited to make submissions of poetry and artwork to the Erie County Poet Laureate 2009-2010 Book Project.

The book project of Poet Laureate Berwyn Moore, an associate professor of English at Gannon University, is an anthology of poems and art tentatively titled Dwelling in Possibility: Voices of Erie County. Poets and artists interested in making submissions must be residents of Erie County.

All submissions are free, and are due by Jan. 8, 2010. Submission guidelines include the following:

• Poetry – Up to three poems per person may be submitted. The submissions should explore poetry’s capacity to shape and define experience, particularly challenging or difficult experiences. Poems must be the author’s original work and may be inspired or informed by personal, familial, cultural, or historical experiences or observations. Poets under the age of 18 must include the signed consent of a parent or legal guardian. Previously published poems will be considered only if the author owns the copyright.
• Art – Up to three works of art, including photography, paintings, sketches, or graphic art, may be submitted. Submissions must depict some aspect of Erie County and/or its residents and cannot be larger than 17” by 11.” All entries must be the original work of the artist; previously published artwork will be considered only if the artist owns the copyright.

Individuals whose work is included in the anthology will receive a complimentary copy. Additional copies may be purchased for $5. All proceeds from the sales will be donated to the Hooked on Books! program at the Neighborhood Art House.

Submissions can be mailed or delivered to:

Berwyn Moore

Gannon University

Erie County Poetry Book Project

Palumbo Academic Center

824 Peach St.

Erie, Pa. 16541

For more information on the Erie County Poet Laureate 2009-2010 Book Project, contact Moore at 814-871-7504 or at moore001@gannon.edu.

Let’s jazz up the holiday tunes with this take on the Nutcracker Suite by Les Brown and His Band of Renown.

Download Nutcracker Suite at Amazon.

I can’t tell you how glad I am the week is almost over. Man alive.

If you see the Times Old Newsies out and about today, please take a moment and give if you can. The money raised by the group goes to the Second Harvest Food Bank. Thank you, newsies, for your work today.

Some good news for GE Transportation – they’ve received an order for 10 locomotives from a company in Brazil.

EmergyCare will partner with Stat MedEvac to run a joint program to cover our area with emergency air support. EmergyCare will provide medical staff on the helicopters and Stat MedEvac will provide the pilots and other support staff. Get to the choppa!

Sen. Arlen Specter is trying to keep five federally funded centers that help predominantly older veterans in rural Pennsylvania open. The Governor’s Veterans Outreach and Assistance Center offices in Harrisburg, Erie, Greensburg, Boyertown and West Pittston help veterans apply for disability compensation, pensions and health care.

Pennsylvania State Police troopers issued 801 traffic citations and placed 21 trucks and 20 drivers out of service during a five-day enforcement effort that focused on traffic violations by commercial vehicle drivers, Commissioner Frank E. Pawlowski announced yesterday. Troop E that covers Erie, Crawford and Warren Counties conducted 43 inspections and handed out 97 citations.

Eriez has been named a finalist in Plant Engineering’s 2009 Product of the Year competition for its environmentally-friendly EcoTowerSort Total Metal Recovery System.

The Lake Erie Consortium for Osteopathic Medical Training (LECOMT) announced today that it has added Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center to its network of affiliated teaching hospitals with accredited residency programs.

Sports

McDowell High School has been cleared to have its football team join WPIAL. They will no longer be in District 10.

The Gannon men’s basketball team plays its first road game of the season Saturday, December 5 at Urbana. Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m. The Blue Knights already own a 73-43 victory over the Golden Knights November 21 at the Hammermill Center.

Edinboro seeks a record-tying fifth straight PSAC wrestling championship this weekend when the Fighting Scots serve as the host for the 67th Annual Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Wrestling Championships on Saturday, December 5. The action gets underway at McComb Fieldhouse at 9:30 a.m. with two rounds of championship matches and two rounds of consolation bouts. The championship finals, including the third and fifth place matches, are slated to start at 6:30 p.m. A total of ten teams will participate in the championship.

I think of all the holiday tunes, “Have yourself a merry little Christmas” is my favorite. It’s chilled out and a bit of a bummer, which is a stark contrast to tunes like Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.

This gets me every time:

“Through the years we all will be together, if the fates allow
Hang a shining star upon the highest bough”

Here’s one version of the song by Chris Martin of Coldplay. Expect a few more versions over the coming weeks.

It’s day 2 of 25 Days of Holiday Music. Today’s selection goes out to my wife, who very much enjoys this song. Happy holidays, dear.

Download Christmas In Hollis at Amazon.

Tickets are now on sale for “American Stars in Concert,” a holiday concert at Allegheny College featuring four stars from past seasons of the TV phenomenon “American Idol.” The concert — starring Gina Glocksen, Alexis Grace, David Hernandez and Michael Sarver in solo, duet and ensemble performances of holiday favorites — will be presented at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 9, in the college’s Shafer Auditorium.

Meadville is one of only 12 stops on the national tour of “American Stars in Concert.”

All four performers were “American Idol” top 10 finalists: Glocksen in season 6, Hernandez in season 7 and Grace and Sarver in season 8. Michael Orland — the pianist, arranger and associate musical director for the TV series — is the musical director for the touring company.

Tickets for the performance, which is part of the college’s 2009-2010 Centerstage arts series, are $15 per person, $12 per child under the age of 12, and $10 for Allegheny College students with ID.

Tickets can be purchased online or by calling the Allegheny College Office of Events at (814) 332-3101. Seating is by general admission.

The Erie Zoo has now closed until March 1. They’ll save nearly $80,000 by closing. Next year is going to be a tough one at the park as the zoo will be losing $200,000 in gaming revenue dollars from Erie County. Animals = bummed.

VisitErie has released hotel tax figures for October of this year. October brought in $40,385, which was down 4% from the same time last year. For fiscal year 2009/10, $219,274 has been collected.

The hearing to determine if Jordan Brown will be put on trial as an adult was postponed yesterday. Brown, 12, is accused of killing his father’s fiancee, who was also pregnant. Brown is being held here in Erie.

Millcreek has received $491,000 of federal stimulus money to reimburse costs of replacing and repairing a roof on the streets department garage and for installation of solar panels on a different garage. Luckily for you Millcreek residents, you’ll be able to view how much energy those panels are generating on the township’s web site.

DC Streetsblog has an interesting look at GE Transportation and their plan to get an Amtrak contract that as of this time doesn’t exist. They write:

Convincing lawmakers to add funding for new Amtrak locomotives may sound like a tall order at a time when the Obama administration is seeking to embrace fiscal austerity, but GE has some influential allies. Pennsylvania Sens. Arlen Specter (D) and Bob Casey (D) joined Rep. Kathy Dahlkemper (D-PA), who represents the Erie area, to introduce legislation in October that would offer a 30 percent tax credit for new locomotive purchases made before 2013.

Sad story from Corry where an 85-year-old man killed himself in the parking lot of the State Police barracks there. Russell Welser Jr. had been living in nearby Wattsburg.

Local blogger and ErieBlogs contributor Joel Natalie has a post about Jared Staszewski, or Erie, who is leading an effort to lobby Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis to hire a general manager for the team. They’ve put up a billboard and are collecting signatures on a petition. Browns fans need to organize something like this.

State Budget Secretary Mary Soderberg has sent a letter to Senate and House appropriations committee chairs urging immediate passage of the Capital Debt Act, House Bill 1418, to allow the commonwealth to resume payments for more than 1,000 ongoing capital projects across the state. Several projects in Erie are on the list waiting for funds, including the Erie Art Museum expansion and Metro Machine’s drydock and shipyard improvements.

HospitalityNet reports that 18 hotel and water parks opened across the country this year. Splash Lagoon of course is one of the such parks across the country and local company American Resort Management operates the Castle Rock Resort in Branson, which opened in 2009.

Sports

The Edinboro wrestling team remained 17th in the NWCA/USA Today Division I Coaches Poll and 19th in the InterMat Division I Top 25 this week.

Edinboro University assistant wrestling coach Kyle Cerminara recently participated in the USA/Russia Dual at Cornell College in Mt. Vernon, Iowa. Cerminara was one of three Team USA wrestlers to post victories, as Russia handed the United States a 4-3 defeat in the senior freestyle meet.

Events

The Energy Roundtable for Northwestern Pennsylvania will tackle renewable energy – including available systems and technologies, as well as site-specific considerations and cost effectiveness – during their next quarterly meeting at 9 a.m. Thursday, December 3, 2009, at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center, 301 Peninsula Drive. To register or for more information, call 814/456-6299, fax 814/459-6058 or e-mail jmiller@nwirc.org. There is no charge for the event.

Playing Riley Finn, Sarah Michelle Gellar’s boyfriend on the hit TV series “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” from 1999 to 2000, may have gotten Marc Blucas noticed in Hollywood, but the former star center for Girard High School’s basketball team was a local standout long before capturing that breakthrough role. Blucas returns to Erie to tell his personal story – “The Dream and the Drive” – on Thursday, Dec. 17, as a guest of the Mercyhurst College Communication Department. His talk, which is free and open to the public, begins at 6:30 p.m. in Walker Recital Hall on the Mercyhurst campus.

Now that it’s finally December, I feel like I can finally start playing christmas and holiday music. Anything earlier than Thanksgiving just didn’t feel right.

So, here are 25 great holiday tunes, one per day.

Download O Holy Night at Amazon.

I saw this Twitter post from ErieBlogs contributor and GlobalErie blogger Dale Hannah this morning and it got me thinking:

We’re lucky to have a thriving arts community as well as great shops like Glass Growers and Relish. I want to support them this holiday season – so let’s make up a directory of artists and stores, where you can buy online as well as offline, and let’s help support local people, businesses and jobs this holiday season.

Jeff McCullor already sent in one to start us off! Thanks, Jeff. He sent in a link to Winking Lizard Pottery, who sells their goods over at Etsy.

You can leave a comment on this post or fill out our contact form and I’ll add them to this page page with all their information.

For many of us, its time to go back to work after a couple of days of turkey, football and hopefully relaxing.

Today is the first day of deer season (with guns, right?). I’m sure you hunters can’t be happy that we have no snow. Or is that a good thing? Can you tell I’ve never been hunting? Most importantly, please don’t shoot yourself and don’t shoot at the people in orange.

Did you go shopping Friday? If so, what was your experience? I hit up the WalMart about 11 am and parked two spots from the door and got in and out with no issues, even picking up the last Lulu kitty in the store. The rest of the shopping will be done at Amazon. Brick and mortar = stunned.

Today is also Cyber Monday, where so-called experts say everyone getting back to work today will spend time buying stuff online. Personally, I think its a bit of a crock – as more and more online stores ran big sales Friday (the aforementioned Amazon included). Have you found any good sales today worth checking out?

Erie native and ErieBlogs contributor David had a nice blog post this weekend, thinking back to movie theaters in Erie.

I loved Cinema World because it was always dimly lit, had this red carpeted interior that must of been hot stuff when it was built in the 70s, and these crazy, curving ramps to get in the theater.

I still think if someone had like $30-50k they could reopen the theater in the West Erie Plaza and make it a great indie and art house. I of course don’t have that kind of dough, but I’d sure frequent it (I’d even volunteer to build the website.)

Sports

NFL
Cincinnati 16 Cleveland 7
Buffalo 31 Miami 14
Baltimore 20 Pittsburgh 17 F OT

Dennis Dixon, Pittsburgh’s 3rd string QB, played about as well as anyone could have hoped, throwing for 1 touchdown and running for another, but a pick in overtime helped the Ravens win.

Events

ArtsErie recently awarded $437,248 in funding to area artists and arts organizations. This funding is provided through ArtsErie Program Support and Project Grants, which are made possible through the Erie Arts Endowment and the ArtsErie United Fund, as well as Program and Project Stream Grants from the Pennsylvania Partners in the Arts, known as PPA Grants. PPA Grants are made possible through the PA Council on the Arts (PCA), a state agency funded by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.

Additional funding opportunities are made possible through the Clarence E. Beyers Music Performance Fund and the Virginia Vieser Arts Education Fund. Both funds are part of the Erie Arts Endowment.

Grant distributions were also made to various sub-funds of the Erie Arts Endowment.

“ArtsErie is pleased to be able to provide support to our member organizations each year, but especially during these challenging economic times,” said Charlotte P. Mashyna, ArtsErie executive director.

Each year ArtsErie distributes thousands of dollars in grants to artists and member organizations throughout the region. Awardees are selected through a competitive process for each grant cycle.

You can get a full list of grant recipients here.

Black Friday can be tough on shoppers so the Community Blood Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania offers the “Anti” Black Friday Experience: No lines, plenty of parking and we never run out of saving lives.

Long after the toys are forgotten, the gift of life will remain. The Community Blood Bank will be open regular hours on Black Friday from 9am to 6pm.

All donors Friday get a coupon for dozen doughnuts generously donated by Krispy Kreme and donors all week are enter to win a table for 8 at the Station Dinner Theatre’s upcoming 20th Annual Christmas Memories show.

We’re so close I can taste it. If you have the day off today, enjoy it. For those of us working, hang in there, we’re almost done. I’m rocking the half day today. Win.

When you’re done reading this amazing post, would you go over here and leave a comment about places to get a meal tomorrow at a restaurant. What’s open tomorrow?

We blogged recently that Penn Traffic, parent company of the Quality Market supermarket chain, has declared bankruptcy. Bad news for employees yesterday – 1,400 of them are losing their jobs. It also looks like the stores will close sometime in January.

Mike Kightlinger jumped into Presque Isle Bay to save his dog, the only problem was that once he was in there he couldn’t get out and firefighters had to come help. Our favorite bit of this story from the Erie Times-news, maybe one of the funniest things I’ve read all week:

“Kightlinger’s wife, Lisa, told the Erie Times-News the 2 of them were walking their dog, named Cat”

Wait a minute. The dog is named Cat? That’s it. Game over.

Sports

Behind three players in double-figures, Mercyhurst withstood a late rally from Roberts Wesleyan to secure a 66-63 victory on Tuesday night. Jeremiah Wise scored a team-high 16 points while Elliot Engelmann and Ryann Bradford each contributed 11 markers.

The Edinboro men’s basketball team overcame a slow start to improve to 2-0 with an 83-74 win over Thiel on Tuesday night at McComb Fieldhouse. Five players scored in double figures for the Fighting Scots as Thiel fell to 1-3.

No. 25 Washington & Jefferson used a 12-1 run to start the second half and break open a 16-point lead that would not relinquish to defeat Allegheny 53-39 in non-conference women’s basketball action on Tuesday night.

The Gannon women’s basketball team is ranked 11th in the first USA Today ESPN Division II Top 25 regular-season coaches poll released Tuesday afternoon. The Lady Knights were tabbed 19th in the preseason edition.

Events

Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate and be with family. I’m looking forward to nom-ing on some bird, but not everyone has an opportunity to be with family this week, for a variety of reasons – or they just don’t want to cook themselves, which is also totally cool.

We received a note from a reader this morning asking where one could get a meal out this Thanksgiving. I’m not sure, so I’m turning to you, people of Erie, to help me and this reader find a place to eat this Thanksgiving.

What’s open, what’s good, and so on. Thanks in advance for your help!

The turkey is so close I can taste it. Must make it through two more days.

Reader Jim sent us some lulz this morning. No offense to the Sight Center, just kind of funny.

In the Her Times section of the newspaper there is an ad stating that The Blind Center (located at 2402 Cherry Street) has changed its name to The Sight Center (same location). Looks like they may have found a cure.

Good news from the Allegheny National Forest where a Corry family was found after getting lost. The family, one man, one woman and a child, were unhurt. Good news.

WJET is reporting that a new “massage” parlor is set to open in Meadville on Friday. The Tokyo Spa has been advertising on a billboard on I-79 for a few weeks now, and I keep driving by the location, strictly to research for this blog, and nothing has been happening. Over, and over, and over I’d drive by. I wonder if they’ll have early bird specials when they open Friday.

CQ Press, from Washington DC, has published a list of the most dangerous cities according to crime and FBI stats. Camden, NJ is your winner, with Erie coming in as the 148th most dangerous city in the US. Pat yourselves on the back, peeps, then give me your wallet.

The “Season of Giving” is in its seventh year at the Community Blood Bank. In anticipation of a seasonal blood shortage the CBB has its
annual holiday promotion up and running with some great gifts for our blood donors! Through the holidays the first 50 donors every Tuesday will get a holiday gift and donors all week can enter to win a great raffle. Last year local businesses donated over $5000 in goods and services to the donors. This Tuesday, the first 50 donors who come in will receive a boxed chocolate angel generously donated by Romolo Chocolates.

Governor Edward G. Rendell announced today $1.2 million in coastal zone management grants to organizations dedicated to protecting and preserving Pennsylvania’s coastal zones along Lake Erie and the Delaware Estuary, saying the investment was important to the regions’ economies. The Lake Erie coastal zone is located within Erie County and includes the shorelines of major tributaries. The zone extends to the middle of the lake, to the boundary with Canada and inland 900 feet within the city of Erie. For a list of local agencies receiving funds, check out the list here.

Sports

Ashley Finnegan recorded a game-high 19 points and Angela Paterson scored 12 of her 14 points in the second half to help Westfield State pull away with a 68-54 victory over the Gators in the final game of the Allegheny Classic.

The Edinboro men’s and women’s basketball teams swept the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division Freshman of the Week honors, with Samantha Blazetic (Eastlake, OH/ Eastlake North) earning the honor in women’s basketball and Anthony Lytle (Altoona, PA/Altoona Area) capturing the men’s award.

Gannon’s Corey Bowers (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake) has been named Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Wrestler of the Week. It marks Gannon’s first Wrestler of the Week honor since it joined the conference last season.

Events

You know, we had a perfectly nice weekend until about 4:15 p.m. yesterday, when the Steelers game ended. We assume you Browns fans are also pretty upset. At least we have turkey (or tofurkey, depending on how you roll) to look forward to this week.

A two week infant was chillin’ in his crib, literally, this weekend in town when the ceiling above collapsed, trapping it in its crib. Luckily, the child is okay.

Looks like Presque Isle Downs isn’t the only casino concerned about gaming coming to Ohio. This story in the Jamestown Post-Journal reports that Seneca Allegany Casino is also similarly concerned, as a good amount of gamblers from Ohio travel to the casino. Do you know if Ohio will allow table gaming or just slots? Seneca Allegany has table games, I believe.

Kevin Flowers had an interesting front-page story in yesterday’s paper about Harry Love and his quest to fix the issues at the 911 center. You know you’re the path to win when your $200,000 computer system sucks and you have to resort to reading off note cards when someone calls 911. That calls for a double face-palm.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has a look at the new movie “The Road,” parts of which were filmed at Presque Isle and Conneaut Lake Park. The movie seems to be getting middling reviews, but it might be cool to check it out to see if you can spot CLP or Presque Isle.

Governor Edward G. Rendell has announced D. Thomas Smith of Erie will be nominated to serve on the State Board of Certified Real Estate Appraisers. This appointment will require state senate confirmation.

Mercyhurst College seniors Katherine Porter and Kirk Shoemaker, cadets in the U.S. Army ROTC, have placed in the top 10 percent of 4,700 cadets in the nation on the ROTC’s 2010 National Order of Merit List (OML).Porter of Corry and Shoemaker of Dover are both intelligence studies majors slated to graduate from Mercyhurst in May.

Sports

Congrats to the McDowell girls soccer team on their 2nd place finish in the state finals this weekend.

NFL
Kansas City 27 Pittsburgh 24
Detroit 38 Cleveland 37
Jacksonville 18 Buffalo 15

The only good news is that both Cincinnati and Baltimore lost. In the next three weeks, the Steelers have Baltimore, Oakland and Cleveland. While the obviously need to win all 3, they must beat the Raiders and Browns if they expect to even make the playoffs this years. Playoffs?

Edinboro’s season came to a crashing halt on Saturday afternoon as the Fighting Scots suffered an amazing 84-63 loss at West Liberty at Russek Field. The loss in the NCAA Division II Super Regional One ended Edinboro’s season at 9-4, while West Liberty moves on to face California(Pa.) in the Super Regional One championship game next Saturday. The Hilltoppers, the top seed in the regional, improved to 11-1. Edinboro was the sixth seed.

Allegheny men’s cross country runners Jeramie Parker and Chris Marker placed eighth and 11th, respectively, to earn All-America honors and lead the Gators to third place at the NCAA Division III Championships, hosted by Baldwin-Wallace on Saturday at Highland Park Golf Course.

Six players scored in double figures to lead the Edinboro men’s basketball team to a 99-83 win over West Virginia Wesleyan in its season opener on Saturday afternoon.

Urbana shot 56 percent from the floor and pounded Gannon 42-29 on the boards as the visiting Blue Knights posted a 73-43 victory Saturday evening during the Golden Knights’ season opener at the Hammermill Center.

Events

Ok, I’ll be honest here. I don’t get the first thing about all this Twilight stuff.

That being said, there is a connection to Erie in the film. Daniel Cudmore, who plays Felix in the film, went to Gannon and played football from 2000-2002.

I’m sure you Twilight-ers know this, but for the rest of us, a big about Felix, from TwilightBlog.net:

Felix is one of the guards of the legendary Volturi. A violent person who is very strict Felix enjoys serving out punishment to people who disobey the Volturi laws. He is one of the members of the guard who attempts to kill Edward Cullen for the crime of exposing the vampire race when Edward believes Bella is lost to him (dead). Edward was found to have not committed but Felix still wishes for Edward’s destruction. Felix is seen as “very big, tall, and thick” much like the size of Emmett Cullen. He has an olive complexion which looks odd combined with his chalky pallor. Short cut hair that is jett completes his physical oddities. Unlike most vampires, especially those in the Volturi, Felix does not have a special ability.

So, while you’re watching the film for the fourth or fifth time this weekend, remember the Erie connection. Guys, Cudmore also played Colossus in X-Men The Last Stand.

We blogged yesterday and you may have heard in other local outlets that the Erie Otters are sponsoring a blood drive, which is great. But…it’s the with Central Blood Bank and not the Community Blood Bank, which is housed here in Erie and is the sole supplier of blood for Erie, Warren and several other counties. Our friend and director of marketing at the Community Blood Bank Dan Desrochers sent over a note explaining more about this:

There have been several media reports crediting the upcoming blood drive with the Erie Otters to the Community Blood Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania.

In fact the drive will be conducted by The Central Blood Bank in Pittsburgh, a direct competitor of the Community Blood Bank. Both organizations initials are CBB so that contributes to the confusion.

The Community Blood Bank of NW PA is the ONLY supplier of blood to local hospitals and serves the following Counties EXCLUSIVELY: Erie, Warren, McKean, Elk, Potter in Pennsylvania; and Chautauqua, Cattaraugus and Allegany counties in New York. The Central Blood Bank supplies Crawford county and regions south of that county.

Blood donation is important. We do it, we promote it here as it saves lives, and we commend the Otters for holding a blood drive. What we don’t understand is why they aren’t working with the local blood collector who exclusively serves our region, therefore making the blood you would donate at the Otters drive help people in Erie, Warren and several New York counties, as opposed to Allegheny and other counties. We’d be interested to hear more from the Otters about this.

Moving on…

Six Giant Eagle stores have been approved by the PLCB to begin selling beer, including the store in Harborcreek. Expect beer sales to begin mid-December. We’ll have a Newcastle, or better yet a Brains.

We got a note from the staff at GoErie.com that they’ve made it through the Google review process and the site is no longer being tagged as malware. Good to see this get resolved.

Open up that wallet every time you open tap as the Erie Water Works will be raising rates by about $1.75 a month.

An impressive 1,257 volunteers picked up 72,763 pieces of trash adding up to 19,395 pounds during the seventh Pennsylvania-Lake Erie International Coastal Cleanup, according to the Department of Environmental Protection. The results of the Sept. 19 regional cleanup were announced yesterday at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center.

The parent company of the Quality Market grocery stores, Penn Traffic, has filed for bankruptcy. They plan to keep the local stores open but does plan to sell the grocery part of its business. There are 4 stores in Erie and 2 in Crawford County. Next time you’re near one, check out the logo and tell me that doesn’t look like a number 2 instead of a Q. We call Two-ality.

Sports

Congrats to Erie native Jovon Johnson for making the Canadian Football League all-star team. He plays in Winnipeg.

The Mercyhurst College women’s volleyball team saw its season end with a 3-1 loss to Lock Haven in the first round of the NCAA Atlantic Region Tournament on Thursday.

The NBA Development League Erie BayHawks will host a FanFest Sunday, November 22, at the Millcreek Mall, 1 – 3 pm. Admission is free and open to the public and fans will have their first opportunity to meet the team, get autographs and take photos with the players.

Events

Gannon University’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) will host a fundraiser for a Gannon coach and alumnus whose husband recently died. The fundraiser, a Talent Show to be performed by Gannon’s student-athletes, will begin at 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 22 in the University’s Hammermill Center, 620 Peach St. The event is open to the general public. Admission is $2 per person and donations will be collected during the event.

Erie County Council passed a budget for 2010. It includes job cuts and, wait for it, tax increases. Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio must sign the bill into law by December 1.

Someone or someones keep vandalizing the grave of Corporal Timothy Lauer in Crawford County. Lauer, killed in Iraq, has had his gravestone painted with white paint and items placed at the gravesite have been removed. What is the matter with people? I’m embarrassed to live here. I’m not a violent man, but if I caught the people doing this, I think something like this might happen.

Having solved the state’s budget issues, the state House voted to enact a law making it cheaper for people to place legal notices in the newspaper. Newspapers are going to miss the revenue, but why aren’t these types of notices placed online? Or are they already? I can’t tell you the last time I read the legal notices of the classifieds.

Speaking of websites, as of late last evening, GoErie.com is still being marked as malicious by Google and several other badware services. We dug around the code and didn’t see anything glaring, so either Google hasn’t purged the bad results or something is hiding pretty well. Check out Chrome’s scary warning screen.

We found a cool story in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review about a group that’s proposing a hiking and biking trail from Erie to Pittsburgh. We like that idea – in fact you could probably just put it right down the middle area of I-79.

Jason Himrod of Erie will spend years in prison on charges of transporting child pornography. Not cool.

Hamot Medical Center has been named one of the nation’s 100 top hospitals for cardiovascular care. Hamot received the recognition from Thomson Reuters, a New York City-based health-care and business-information company. It is the sixth time that Hamot made the list, one of only three in the state to make it that many times. No other hospital has been recognized more times.

This post is full of YouTube awesomeness. I think we’ll wrap it up with “So Your Cat Wants a Massage.”

Sports

The Mercyhurst College women’s hockey team reclaimed its title as the unanimous No. 1-ranked team in the country on Tuesday. The Lakers were awarded 190 points and all 19 first-place votes in the latest USA Today / USA Hockey Women’s Hockey Poll to own all first-place votes in both national polls.

The Erie SeaWolves are proud to announce that once again, they will partner with the United States Marine Corps for the second annual “FILL A TRUCK AT THE UHT” Toys for Tots event to Jerry Uht Park. On Saturday, December 12 from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m., the main plaza in front of the Jerry Uht Park front gates will serve as a Toys for Tots drop-off. The Marines will be on hand with tactical vehicles including a 7-ton truck to fill with gifts for needy children in the Erie community and two hmmwvs. This holiday season, the Marines are in need of toys for 10,000 area youths.

Events

If you run a website or blog, chances are you’ve had to deal with malicious users trying to hack into your site. Locally, we’ve seen some Wordpress blogs get hacked and several other local sites have been attacked or hijacked.

Keeping up with software, patches and code is an essential part of maintaining a website of any size. Speaking of which, if you are running Wordpress, version 2.8.6 is now available, please update your software.

A reader sent us a note this morning saying GoErie.com is being marked as downloading malicious software to your computer.

Here’s the safe surf report from Google:

From the report:

Of the 206 pages we tested on the site over the past 90 days, 12 page(s) resulted in malicious software being downloaded and installed without user consent. The last time Google visited this site was on 2009-11-15, and the last time suspicious content was found on this site was on 2009-11-15.

We can pretty much guarantee that GoErie isn’t doing this stuff on purpose, but some one is serving bad stuff either through an ad placement or a third-party service, if we had to guess.

Searching Google also returned the following screens:

And this when you following the Google link to GoErie:

Click for a larger version.

Hope you had a nice weekend – wasn’t the weather gorgeous. I thought about going fishing, but instead I went to a movie and upgraded some blogging software. I also bought 20 cans of vegetables at Giant Eagle because they were on sale. Seriously.

With that kind of kick-off, this week is going be intense.

Erie County Council continues to tweak the county’s budget, and it looks like additional jobs may be cut. Officials went through each department seeing if there positions that could be cut. They’re doing this to try avoid additional tax increases, but we’re betting on both.

Sports

NFL:
Cincinatti 18 Pittsburgh 12
Tennessee 41 Buffalo 17

Baltimore and Cleveland play on ESPN tonight at 8:30 p.m.

College
Edinboro 31 East Stroudsburg 16
Allegheny 30 Ohio Wesleyan 13

Trevor Harris returned from knee surgery to throw for three touchdowns and Branden Williams made three big plays to lead fifth-seeded Edinboro to a 31-16 upset at fourth-seeded East Stroudsburg on Saturday afternoon in the first round of the Super Regional One. The Fighting Scots are now 9-3, tying the school record for wins in a season, while East Stroudsburg ends the year at 8-4. Edinboro now moves on to play at West Liberty, the top seed in the region, on Saturday, November 21.

The Mercyhurst College men’s basketball team cruised to a 98-64 victory over Penn State Greater Allegheny in the season-opener for both squads. The Lakers used a balanced offensive attack as seven different players scored in double-digits, led by Nnamdi Nnadili and Heiden Ratner, who each deposited 15 markers.

The Gannon volleyball team is one of eight teams selected to participate in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional hosted by California (Pa.) November 19-21. The NCAA announced the 64-team national bracket late Sunday evening.

Events

Here are some great posts from this week, in case you missed them.

Golden Knights and Fighting Scots as BayHawks, Oh My!

Movie Review: 2012

I’m Bored: Ice, Ice Baby

YouTube of the Week: Train Live

Erie County Readies Launch of Recycling Campaign

Although the social, environmental and economic benefits of recycling are well documented, a mere 27 percent of waste is recycled by Erie County residents.

In response, a countywide recycling goal of 40 percent by January 1, 2011 was established as part of the Erie County Solid Waste Plan.

With its ambitious new “Do Your Part” campaign, the Erie County Recycling Program (ECRP) is poised to meet that goal by encouraging county residents to lead by example and increase ongoing recycling efforts in their homes, neighborhoods and businesses.

The campaign will launch the week of November 15 in concert with America Recycles Day—a nationwide initiative led by Keep America Beautiful and the National Recycling Coalition dedicated to encouraging Americans to recycle and to buy recycled products.

“To reach our goal, it will take all Erie County residents doing their part,” said Don Blakesley, Recycling Coordinator at the Erie County Recycling Program. “Each of us needs to make a conscious effort to reduce the amount of trash we throw away and increase the amount we recycle.”

According to Blakesley, the yearlong campaign will include numerous promotions, how-to tips for residents and businesses, as well as continuous tracking of progress on the Erie County Recycling website.

To learn how you can help “Do Your Part”, contact Don Blakesley at (814) 451-6019 or visit the Erie County Recycling Program website at www.eriecountyrecycling.com.

Good morning. We made it through another week.

Former PA Speaker of the House John Perzel may find himself speaker of another house – the big house. He and 10 others have been charged as part of the ongoing “BonusGate” scandal. The Post-Gazette has more.

Having solved all the city’s problems, attracted hundreds of new businesses and saved numerous jobs, Erie City Council has begun crafting a ban on talking on a cell phone while driving, despite a similar bill being considered state wide. Maybe they need to look at the legal bills that we earned. when we tried to do our own smoking ban.

Sad news out of Edinboro where three students were killed in a head-on collision. Police say two of the men were not wearing seatbelts. Sad.

We’ve blogged about this a few times this week – police in Ohio and PA have been searching for David Kromer, who was a person of interest in the death of Carla Westhofen. Her body was dumped in Fairview after officials believed she was killed in Sandusky, Ohio. The story keeps getting stranger now that Kromer has been found. Dead. Officials believe Kromer committed suicide.

Rep. Kathy Dahlkemper has presented $188,000 to My Father’s House. They serve women veterans and help that transition from deployment to civilian life.

Dominic Colelli is your hero of the week. Mr. Colelli, who passed away in January, left over $800,000 to the Dr. Gertrude Barber National Institute. Thank you, sir. Your generosity will help hundreds of children.

Mercyhurst College yesterday kicked off the public phase of its capital campaign with the goal of raising $50 million — more than twice the amount of any campaign goal in the college’s history.

Sports

Yikes, what happened to the Erie Otters web site? Can we please ask the old one come back? There’s so much stuff flying around in different directions we’re confused. Otter management – bring back your RSS feed. We used that to find out scores. Someone needs to start up an Otters blog like Matt Hubert does for the Bayhawks.

The Mercyhurst women’s soccer team has placed three players on the All-PSAC West Team, with all three being named to the first team, as announced Thursday, Nov. 12 by league officials. Taylor Hilinski, Jamie Laturell and Jamie Schroter were all voted among the top four in the division at their respective positions.

The Gannon women’s volleyball team improved one spot and is ranked fourth in the latest NCAA Division II Atlantic regional rankings released Thursday afternoon. The NCAA is expected to make its post-season tournament selections Sunday, November 15 at 9 p.m.

Events

Today is Veteran’s Day. Thank you for your service to this country. I’m able to do stuff like blog my trivial comments here every day because people like my Grandfather fought in WWII and my father-in-law who served in Vietnam. Everyone = grateful.

Erie District Judge Tom Carney has pled guilty on charges of disorderly conduct for his role in a road rage incident where he flashed a gun at another motorist on I-79. He will pay fines, and had several other charges dropped.

A car beloging to David Kromer, suspected of murdering the Sandusky, Ohio woman who was found in Fairview, was found in Sandusky. Kromer was not in the vehicle.

Erie Blogger emeritus Eden was in town this weekend and posted this scathing review of the Bayfront Sheraton. If you’ve stayed there, do you agree with her assessment of the place? I was there for the Advertisting Federation of NW PA awards and it seemed like a nice place, though I think the management of the place was torqued a group of people at our event set off the fire alarm.

The Union City woman who had more than 100 cats, alive and dead, inside her home will face animal cruelty charges. Not related at all, but here’s a Wikipedia page of cats who have college degrees. Seriously.

Wait, better yet, bring back Super Duper. Their pepperoni balls and crazy tags to pick up your groceries were the BOMB.

The Regional Center for Workforce Excellence (RCWE), fiscal agent to the Northwest Pennsylvania Workforce Investment Board (NWPA WIB) has finalized closing procedures and received keys to the Sumner-Nichols Building, 155 West 8th Street, in downtown Erie, Pennsylvania. The first and second floors of the 4-story building will soon house the Pennsylvania CareerLink® – Erie County. The remaining floors of the building will continue to house Erie County Human Services offices.

FundingFactory, the nation’s leading fundraising-through-recycling program, today announces their most recent promotion through their collaboration with Sony Pictures Entertainment and its upcoming animated comedy Planet 51. The film opens in theaters November 20, 2009.

Sports

Area football fans will have an opportunity to watch Edinboro’s first round Super Regional One playoff game at East Stroudsburg live this Saturday. The PA SPORTSfever Network, which televised an eight-game Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference package, including two Edinboro games, this year will broadcast the game throughout the state.

The Gannon swimming and diving teams competed at the Cleveland State quad meet Tuesday afternoon. Both the men and the women defeated John Carroll and Notre Dame (Ohio) College and fell to Cleveland State.

Events

John Elliott, president and CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Erie County (EDCEC), will be the guest speaker at the Manufacturer & Business Association’s November Eggs ’n’ Issues briefing starting at 8 a.m. Tuesday, November 17 at the Association’s Conference Center, 2171 West 38th Street at Pittsburgh Avenue. To register for this briefing, contact Tracy Shepard at 814/833-3200 or 800/815-2660. Cost is $30 for members, $60 for nonmembers.

The Erie ATHENA PowerLink governing body announced today that it is now accepting applications from local woman business owners for the opportunity to receive free business advice for an entire year as part of the ATHENA PowerLink program.

The deadline for applications is Jan. 15 and two women business owners will be selected for 2010. Designed to enrich the vitality of the region’s businesses and stimulate its economy, the ATHENA PowerLink program selects two women business owners and assigns a panel of professionals from different areas of business to work with them toward their business goals free of charge. This year-long mentoring donated by professionals has an estimated value of $37,000 for the two women selected. If selected, there is a nominal application fee of $350 for each woman. 2010 marks the eleventh year the ATHENA PowerLink Advisory Panel has successfully mentored women business owners in Erie.

Selection of women business owners is made by a governing body representing the economic leaders of the Erie area from applications received. Companies are chosen based on their potential to effectively utilize an advisory panel and ATHENA PowerLink’s ability to assist the company’s growth. Panelists are then selected based on the specific needs and growth objectives of the business.

To be considered for ATHENA PowerLink, companies must:

• Be owned (at least 51%) by a woman
• Have been in operation for at least two years
• Have a minimum of two employees
• Generate annual revenues of at least $250,000 if in manufacturing or retail, or $100,000 if in a service business
• Have clearly defined company objectives/goals with explicit reasons for seeking assistance through the program

PNC Financial Services Group, the Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership, DeMarco Wachter Firm and Gannon University Small Business Development Center have partnered to bring the annual program to Erie and invite local women entrepreneurs to participate.

“As a board member of ATHENA International, I have witnessed women business owners who participate in this program experience an 88.5 percent increase in sales, a 37.6 percent increase in business income and a 56.6 percent increase in personal income,” said Linda Stevenson, chair for the Erie ATHENA PowerLink program. “With ATHENA PowerLink in Erie, local women entrepreneurs have greater access to valuable resources that will help them continue to achieve their business objectives. We actively encourage local women business owners to become involved in this program.”

ATHENA PowerLink is a non-profit, volunteer-run organization that provides professional advisory panels to women-owned businesses. It began in Pittsburgh and has since expanded throughout the country. Its focus is to provide women business owners with access to capital, markets, networking and technology.

Colleen Moore Mezler, owner of Moore Research in Erie was one of the two women business owners selected to receive counsel from the ATHENA PowerLink Advisory Panel in 2009. “This is a program I would recommend to any business owner. Without the hands on assistance, I would not have been able to refocus my business and take my operation to the next level. I heartily endorse this worthwhile program,” emphasized Moore.

Jim Dible, president of the Erie Regional Growth Chamber and Partnership, concluded, “The ATHENA PowerLink Program is one of the most dynamic and unique initiatives throughout the Erie community.”

To obtain more information or to apply for the ATHENA PowerLink program, please contact Linda Stevenson at 814-871-1225 or linda.stevenson@pnc.com or download an application at http://www.eriepa.com/athena

The US Marine Corps was founded on this day in 1775. Semper Fi.

Not sure how we missed this over the weekend, but the Philly Examiner had a story about a UFO sighting in Erie this past weekend. They write:

Two witnesses reported a strange mist, described as a stationary vortex, in their backyard. The strange mist extended approximately eight to ten feet from the ground to the top, although the vortex did not actually touch the ground. The object appeared to be floating until it completely vanished.

I want to beleive.

The Freightliner Group in the UK has received two PowerHaul locomotives from GE Transportation. The total order is for 30 units. The locomotives are specially built for the UK, where tracks and things like tunnel clearances are different.

Barry Grossman has started some work on his transition to becoming County Executive. He’ll take office in January. We wish more elected officials were on Facebook. And we hope they’d do stuff like this:

Anytime we can bring up Judy Lynch, it’s a win.

State legislators are working on new laws regarding texting while driving. That’s fine and all, but how about getting the rest of the budget stuff figured out first. Colleges, hospitals, and local food pantries, among others, still are waiting for funds they they try to figure out table gaming.

The death of a woman, whose body was found in Fairview, has been ruled a homicide. Officials posit the woman was killed in Sandusky, Ohio and left in Fairview. Police are on the lookout for David Kromer, 56.

Sports

The Pittsburgh Steelers put a beat-down on the Denver Broncos last night, winning 28-10. They are now 6-2 and tied for first in the division with Cincinnati. As luck would have it, those two teams play next Sunday afternoon. The Browns and Ravens tangle on Monday night.

SeaWolves manager Tom Brookens has been named the Detroit Tigers new first base, outfield and baserunning coach. Congrats, coach!

The Mercyhurst men’s soccer team earned a berth into the NCAA national tournament, as announced Monday, Nov. 9 by the NCAA Division II Men’s Soccer Committee. The Lakers drew the No. 4 seed in the Atlantic Region, and will play at No. 1-seeded Slippery Rock Friday at 5 p.m. in the regional semifinal.

The Edinboro University football team has been selected as one of 24 teams to participate in the NCAA Division II Football Playoffs. The Fighting Scots are the fifth seed in Super Regional One and will play at fourth seeded East Stroudsburg in the first round on Saturday, November 14. Kickoff is set for 12 noon. Both teams enter with 8-3 records.

The Gannon women’s soccer team waited anxiously for almost five minutes into the NCAA Division II Tournament Selection Show Webcast until finally hearing the magic words Monday evening. The Lady Knights are headed to the Big Dance.

Events

The Ortner/Roberts Duo – featuring clarinetist Susanne Ortner-Roberts and jazz pianist Tom Roberts – will perform on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 2 p.m. in Ford Memorial Chapel on the Allegheny College campus. The performance, which is free and open to the public, is part of the Silberman Recital Series at Allegheny.

A formerly homeless Erie man will share his experiences of living on the streets as part of Gannon University’s observance of Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, Nov. 16-20. George Watson will speak to Gannon students during a Global Banquet to begin at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 17 in the Yehl Room of Gannon’s Waldron Campus Center, 124 West 7th St. Open only to Gannon students, the banquet is designed to help them learn more about issues like world hunger and international trade and will include a poverty simulation. Watson is currently the day manager at the Upper Room, a shelter located at St. Paul’s United Church of Christ, 1024 Peach St. He will talk to the Gannon students about how he kept a positive attitude amidst the despair and hopelessness of living on the streets. Hunger and Homelessness Week is designed to bring greater awareness to the social justice issues of hunger and homelessness while also raising money for local and international organizations. Activities are sponsored by Gannon’s Center for Social Concerns and Social Concerns Club. In addition to the Global Banquet, events throughout the week include:

Seriously, was the weather this weekend out of this world or what? It felt like early September, not early November. There’s not a ton of news today, I think everyone was out and about this weekend generally staying out of trouble.

Quick housekeeping note – did you know we have a fan page on Facebook? It’s true. If you haven’t checked it out yet, please do. It’s available at facebook.com/erieblogs. Thanks!

Speaking of the face pages, we saw lots of great feedback on Twitter and Facebook about the Train show this weekend. Hope you enjoyed it. I think it was the OHL finals back in ‘02 – Pat Monahan sang the national anthem. Was that game 7?

Barry Grossman is officially the next Erie County Executive. Good luck, bro. I hope you figure out the 911 stuff pretty quickly after taking office.

Kara Murphy of the Erie Times-News had a nice story this weekend about the growth of local wineries. Want to start learning more about wine? Check out Gary Vaynerchuk’s wine video blog. He’s also got a wine book (and I’m most of the way through Crush It!-about doing business on the web.)

Anybody know a lot about wine? Maybe you own a bar or restaurant and want to have some people in to learn about wine? I’d love to learn more. Drop me a note on our contact page. As someone in his early thirties, I feel wine and scotch are two things I should understand more. Don Draper = stunned.

Sports

NFL:
Cincinatti 17 Baltimore 7
Pittsburgh @ Denver 8:30 p.m. tonight on ESPN

The Browns and Bills both had a bye.

College:
West Chester 45 Mercyhurst 13
Edinboro 28 Millersville 25
Wittenburg 52 Allegheny 10
Gannon 10 Bloomsburg 7 OT
Ohio State 24 Penn State 7
Pittsburgh 37 Syracuse 10

Cory Conacher scored the game-deciding goal on a late penalty shot, and Canisius completed the home-and-home sweep of the Mercyhurst College men’s hockey team with a 4-3 victory Saturday evening at the Buffalo State Sports Arena.

Friday night, Erie beat the Niagara IceDogs 9-3 in Ontario Hockey League action before 3,107 fans at the Tullio Arena, the team’s largest home ice margin since Oct. 26, 2005. It was “home and home sweet home” for the Erie Otters this weekend as they completed a sweep of the Niagara IceDogs with a solid three-period effort and a 6-2 Ontario Hockey League victory before a crowd of 3,040 at the Gatorade Garden City Complex Saturday night. It was Erie’s fourth straight win in St. Catharines.

Events

Rabbi Steve Greenberg will present “Civil Law and Sacred Text,” the 2009 Samuel Schick Lecture, on Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 7 p.m. in the Tippie Alumni Center on the Allegheny College campus. The lecture, which is free and open to the public, will be followed at 8:30 p.m. by a screening and discussion of “And Thou Shalt Love,” a short documentary film about gay Orthodox Jews.

On December 13, 2009, New Blossoms, New Life Foundation will be hosting a candlelight vigil in conjunction with The Compassionate Friends’ Worldwide Candle Lighting™.

This event honors the memory of children who have passed away, regardless of their age.

The Worldwide Candle Lighting is a day where candles will be lit around the world at 7 p.m. local time, so “that their light may always shine.”

The local event will be held at Perry Square in downtown Erie beginning at 6 p.m. with a time of sharing.

During this time, a slideshow of submitted photos of the children will play with accompanying music. The ceremony will start with a non-denominational blessing at 6:50, with the candle lighting starting at 7.

Light snacks and beverages will be served after.

Those who wish to attend are encouraged, but not required, to pre-register at www.newblossomsnewlife.org or by calling (814) 734-1585.

Pre-registration allows for the inclusion of the attendee’s loved one in the slide show, if so desired.

New Blossoms, New Life Foundation was started in memory of Maggie Kovski, who passed away in 2007 at the age of 2.

Here are some great posts from this week. Have a great weekend!

Hauntings of a School

Give Blood, Win Football Tickets

I’m Bored: Mark it Eight, Dude

Local Jefferson Educational Society to hold Global Futures Summit

Gem City Concert Band Performs Sunday

Erie Art Museum Welcomes Ethnic Heritage Ensemble

Thanks for reading this week and for all your positive comments about our re-design. It means a lot to us.

Erie native and University of Buffalo basketball player Sean Smiley is blogging his experiences this season. You can check it out here. We’ll also add it to our blog roll and blog browser. Good luck this season, Sean.

Ballots continue to be counted in many local races, including Erie County Executive. As of late yesterday afternon, Barry Grossman continued to have a slim lead over Mike Kerner. When an official announcement is made about the race, we’ll let you know. We’re also watching Crawford County results to see if Mike wins anything. If there was no one running in a particular race, he wrote himself in. Last time he did that, he almost won.

One thing we didn’t talk much about this week was the fact that this past election day, voters in Ohio approved 4 casinos to be built in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Toledo. It will be interesting to see what effect this will have on Presque Isle Downs. We suspect casinos in Michigan and the Pittsburgh area will also see decreases in revenues. Do you think table gaming will help bring people to Presque Isle Downs or will the current slots and horse racing be enough?

Anthony Williams, 30, has been arrested in Erie on charges including robbery. His victim recognized Williams from somewhere, and realized they both attended Central back in the day and the victim was able to identify Williams from an old Central yearbook. Good thing I’m not in my senior year yearbook from McDowell. Class of 1994 = stunned.

The episode of Extreme Makeover Home Edition that taped in Erie this past summer will finally air December 13 on ABC. For those of us who have ditched cable, it will also be available on Hulu. The episode will run 2 hours.

Governor Edward G. Rendell today said new state investments will allow an Erie County promotional products manufacturer to expand and create additional jobs, and help a Westmoreland County specialty door manufacturer consolidate its Pennsylvania operations. One of the projects approved today was a $460,500 loan to EIDCO Inc., on behalf of Grimm Industries Inc., to acquire and renovate the former Greenbrier
Industries building in Fairview, Erie County. The new facility will be used to produce Little Tikes products.

According to WJET, HERO BX has been awarded a $1,640,250 million grant from the Commonwealth Financing Authority. HERO BX is matching the award amount with its own funds for a total of $3,280,500. The money will be used to complete the company’s expansion project – increasing their yearly output of low-cost, high quality biodiesel, from 45 million gallons to 55 million gallons.

National Fuel Gas Company today announced consolidated earnings for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended September 30, 2009, of $27.0 million or $0.33 per share, and $100.7 million or $1.25 per share, respectively.

As a boy growing up in Erie’s Little Italy, Ron DiVecchio, 75, would rustle up his shoe shine box and walk the few blocks to Rex’s Restaurant at the corner of 16th and Walnut and wait outside for the chance to earn a dime. A single shoe shine bought Ron an eight-cent movie ticket and left a penny for candy and yet another for his piggybank. Life was good. DiVecchio’s story and others like his have been captured by Mercyhurst College students in Dr. Chris Magoc’s Introduction to Public History and Museum Studies class. The stories will be broodcast on cable access starting November 7. Mercyhurst needs to put these on YouTube.

Sports

Erie Otters forward Mike Liambas has been suspended for the remainder of the season by the OHL for a hit he gave last Friday. The Otters released this statement:

As he is a 20-year-old, Mike Liambas’ career in the OHL is over and while the team regrets that this stern response was necessary, as judged by Commissioner David Branch and the league, we respect the decision.

We would be remiss if we did not note in parting that Mike was a popular teammate and an able contributor to the team in his time with Erie. Mike is also an A+ student with an average in the high 90s, and was a selfless contributor to and very involved with local charities in the Erie area in his time with the Otters. He is an exemplary young man and we wish him well in his future endeavours.

More video from the game is here. We hope Ben Fanelli recovers and is able to take the ice again soon.

The Erie Otters are offering some game used jerseys for sale on eBay. You can find them here. All proceeds from this auction will benefit the Erie Otters Education Fund. I’m really happy for you and I’m gonna let you finish, David Shields, but Cory Pecker has the best game worn jersey of all time.

The NBA Development League Erie BayHawks have selected Donell Taylor of the University of Alabama- Birmingham. Undrafted out of college Taylor is a veteran of two seasons with the Washington Wizards. Taylor has spent the past couple of seasons playing in Greece and Belgium.

Gannon’s Kyle Goldcamp (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic) has been named to 2009-10 Erie Bayhawks’ training camp roster released this week.

Events

Learn how to incorporate the popular “Blue Ocean” strategy into your business at a lunch seminar, “Unlocking the Power of Blue Ocean Strategy,” on Friday, Nov. 13. Presented by the Advertising Federation of Northwest Pennsylvania (AFNWPA), the seminar will be held at the Manufacturer & Business Association Conference Center, 2171 West 38th Street, Erie.

The Blue Ocean Strategy is based on the internationally bestselling book by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne, which contends that many businesses are wading in a “bloody red ocean” of competition, price wars and reduced margins. The strategy is structured around the idea that tomorrow’s leading companies will succeed not by battling competitors, but by creating “blue oceans” of uncontested market space ripe for growth, making the competition irrelevant.

In this seminar, Blue Ocean Certified Trainers Dan Monaghan and Amy Pontillo will explain the basic concepts, tools and methodologies behind Blue Ocean Strategy/Value Innovation and the building blocks needed to differentiate your business’s products and services in today’s competitive marketplace.

Cost for the seminar, which includes lunch, is $30 for AFNWPA members, $40 for non-members. Registration will begin at 11:45 a.m., with the lunch and presentation from 12 to 1 p.m.
Please register online by Nov. 10 at www.afnwpa.org.

It’s November and mid-season means it’s time for the Community Blood Bank’s 5th annual Blood Bath promotion. Next week from Monday November 9 through the 14th all donors in Erie County can come in and enter to win a 4 pack of NFL tickets.

Donors declare what team they support (Steelers, Browns or Bills) and one member of each team will be selected to win a 4 pack of tickets to an NFL home game. Here’s what’s up for grabs:

Steelers versus the Raiders Sunday December 6th in Pittsburgh, 4 seats lower levels section 130

Browns versus the Chargers Sunday December 6th in Cleveland, 4 seats lower levels section 130

Bills versus the Dolphins Sunday November 29th in Buffalo, 4 seats lower level section 110

This is the only time of year the blood bank buys the giveaway (No one gives up NFL tickets!) and to celebrate the 5th year they’ve spent a lot of money so these are great seats.

Please go in and donate!

Join the Jefferson Educational Society for a rare gathering of international and local thinkers to explore and discuss the future ideas which will affect our environment, healthcare, government and technology. The three day summit, scheduled for November 11 -13, will explore possible, probable and preferable futures.

Some of world’s best minds are scheduled to speak, including Stephen Porter, Director of the Climate Change Program for the Center for International Environmental Law; William A. Smith, Author; George S. Howard, Chairman, Dept. of Psychology at Notre Dame University; Kevin Fickenscher, EVP of International Healthcare Perot Systems; and E.J. Dionne, Journalist for the Washington Writers Group, whose work appears in more than 100 newspapers in the United States and abroad including the Erie Times-News.

Here’s a quick video from the event’s announcement:

The public is encouraged to come and join the conversation about the future of our community and our world. Following each presentation, there will be a roundtable discussion and debate in a think tank atmosphere. For more information about the event, visit their web site.

The Jefferson Educational Society of Erie is a non-profit institution founded to promote civic enlightenment and community progress for the Erie Region through study, research and discussion. The Society offers courses, seminars and lectures which explain the central ideas which have formed the past, assist in exploring the present, and offer guidance to enhance the civic future of the Erie Region. As an Erie think tank, the Jefferson Educational Society promotes academic knowledge and civic pride through institutional and familial research, the publication of policy papers on public issues and the sponsorship of civic forums. The Jefferson Educational Society’s mission includes a special commitment to strengthening the social and economic growth of the Erie Area minority community as essential to civic progress.

Gem City Concert Band will offer a concert Sunday, November 8 at the Blasco Library’s H.O. Hirt Auditorium. The hour-and-half-long program will begin at 2:00 p.m. The concert is free and open to the public, although a free-will offering will be accepted to benefit Gem City Bands.

The 45-member band, under the direction of Dr. Scott Tomlison, will perform such pieces as James Swearingen’s Blue Ridge Saga, Shostakovich’s Folk Dances, Alfred Reed’s The Hounds of Spring and Clare Grundman’s Kentucky -1800. And in the spirit of Veterans’ Day, the program will also include the Armed Forces Salute to honor those who have and continue to proudly serve our country.

The concert is part of the 09-10 Blasco Library Concert Series and is sponsored by the Erie County Public Library and the Friends of the Library. For more information, visit the Gem City Web site at www.gemcitybands.org or phone 899-8467.

The Erie Art Museum Contemporary Music Series presents a special
workshop and concert by the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble members Kahill El’Zabar and Hamiet Bluiett on Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009 at the Erie Art Museum’s Main Gallery, 411 State Street. The workshop begins at 6:30 p.m. and the concert at 8.

Admission to this workshop and concert is FREE; suggested donation $10.

After 35 years, the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble is still serving their special brand of21st century Griot music to people worldwide. The Chicago Tribune writes the trio is “harmonically provocative and rhythmically seductive,” and they consistently deliver jazz that combines ancestral wisdom, exploratory improvisation, and crack musicianship.

The Ethnic Heritage Ensemble was formed shortly after percussionist El’Zabar graduated from the school of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians in 1976. He teamed up with tenor saxophonist Edward Wilkerson, Jr. to play music that combined contemporary African American musical styles, like jazz, with more traditional African instrumentation and rhythms. The duo would frequently grow to a trio in these first years, adding musicians like saxophonist Light Henry Huff and Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre. In 1988, they added trombonist and conga player Joseph Bowie, who is the leader of the jazz-funk group Defunkt. In 1997, Wilkerson was replaced by Ernest “Khabeer” Dawkins who is the leader of New Horizons Ensemble.

We hope you got to the polls yesterday, but judging from low turnout at polling stations around the area, many of you didn’t, which is a shame seeing as how there were some important races being held.

The race that received the most attention was that of Erie County Executive. It’s a very, very close race that has not been officially called, though Barry Grossman (D) is claiming victory in the race. Once absentee ballots are counted, a winner will be declared, perhaps as early as today. We’ll tweet it as soon as its official.

Erie Mayor Joe Sinnott easily won another term, winning 80% of the vote.

Judge Stephanie Domitrovich won her retention vote, despite members of the Erie County Bar Association not recommending she be retained. Judges Elizabeth Kelly and Michael Dunlavey also were retained. Dan Brabender, running unopposed, will be the new Court of Common Pleas judge.

We blogged about Ebert Beeman last week. Beeman ran on the Republican side despite being disavowed by the local GOP. Despite owing $2 million in taxes, Beeman is your new 6