In my personal opinion, New Year's Eve is grossly, grossly overrated and generally disappointing. It's pretty much just St. Patrick's Day on December 31st.

Never Forget
Sunday, 18 December 2011 09:08
Written by Rob Rogers

I am extremely proud of our fighting men and women, thankful for their sacrifices and happy they are coming home from Iraq. When it comes to our leaders, namely the Bush White House (Cheney, Rove, etc.) and congress, I am not thankful or proud. It is sad and horrific that we have wasted so many lives, not to mention all the money, resources and global goodwill, on a war based on fictional threats to our homeland security. It is unforgivable that our leaders took us into that war. The other part that is unforgivable to me is the apathy of the American people. Sure, now we have protesters on Wall St., but where are the massive anti-war protests of the '60s? We swore we would never forget the lessons of Vietnam. So much for that.

Cracking your knuckles does not cause arthritis. It's just something that elementary school teachers tell students to keep them from cracking their knuckles in class.

And there is no Santa Claus. Merry Christmas.

No matter what changes and improvements are made to the major East End intersection of Penn Avenue and Fifth Avenue, some people insist on blowing through that intersection after the light has turned red. Even when the other direction already has a green. It's a dangerous intersection. Over the many years of which I have been a resident of the East End, I have seen numerous accidents at that intersection. I've narrowly avoided at least one while the car in front of me got absolutely hammered by a car going through a red light. I just don't understand it.

DAVE: Have you heard yet that the head football coach at Pitt Todd Graham resigned and took the coaching job at Arizona State? He notified his players by text message. He's gone.

JIM: I tried to tell people that Todd Graham was a douchebag.

DAVE: Wanny is the only coach who actually wants to coach at Pitt.

JIM: Well then, why not? Hell, they are still paying him anyway, right? And there's precedent. they went back to Johnny Majors.

DAVE: Johnny Majors took Pitt . . . Back to the Future!

Except he was as mediocre as the rest of the bunch.

I don't like Christmas cards with sparkles. Once they come into your home, they keep showing up for months.

"That's the scourge of addiction . . . "

Do you remember this charming couple and their wacky escapades?


Heroin drove ex-teacher to steal school computers, rob bank
Friday, December 09, 2011
By Paula Reed Ward, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A former school teacher accused of stealing 22 computers from Pittsburgh's Creative and Performing Arts high school pleaded guilty today to robbery, burglary and criminal conspiracy.

Philicia Barbieri, 25, was arrested April 15 after she and her former boyfriend, Alvin Carter III, robbed the Fifth Third Bank in East Liberty. She later confessed to also stealing 22 laptop computers from CAPA, as well as a 42-inch flat-screen television and Nintendo Wii from a neighbor in her Shadyside apartment building.

Mr. Carter also pleaded guilty today to the robbery at the bank.

Ms. Barbieri's defense attorney, Patrick J. Thomassey, said all of the crimes were driven by the couple's heroin addiction.

According to information presented, Mr. Carter, 28, entered the bank without a mask, approached a teller with whom he'd been banking for months, and handed her a note demanding cash and threatening to shoot her.

Ms. Barbieri was waiting for him outside.

They were arrested a short time later.

"That's the scourge of addiction," Mr. Thomassey said. "It's completely ruined her life."

Ms. Barbieri has been receiving in-patient treatment and is continuing that until sentencing. Mr. Carter has been in the Allegheny County Jail since his arrest but will now be released to an inpatient drug treatment program. She has surrendered her teaching certificate.

Neither defendant has a criminal record, and they will both be sentenced by Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey A. Manning on March 7.

Mr. Blondie and the Philadelphia Jingle Ball . . .

JIM: Did I tell you that I won tickets for my wife and kids to go to the Jingle Ball, a concert put on by the local pop music radio station in Philly (it's a long story). They get to ride in a pink limo to and from the concert and are going to get to meet someone named Joe Jonas (I think he is one of the Jonas brothers, if that means anything).

My wife asked them if I can ride down in the limo too and they said yes. So now I get to ride to the concert in the pink Sweet & Sassy limo and then figure out how to entertain myself for 5-6 hours while they're at the concert. I will probably end up hanging out at McFadden's, the bar at Citizens Bank Park, or maybe checking out the Turf Club, an off-track betting place similar to Ladbroke's in Pittsburgh. But 6 hours is a long time for me to be hanging in a bar these days. The things we do for our kids...

I haven't forgotten about you, my pretty.

Franco Harris reinstated as chairman of Pittsburgh Promise
Wednesday, December 07, 2011
By Ed Blazina, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The board of the Pittsburgh Promise scholarship program today gave board member Franco Harris a vote of confidence and passed a motion for him to return as board chairman.

Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl had criticized Mr. Harris last month for his support for his college football coach, Joe Paterno, after Mr. Paterno was fired by Penn State University in the wake of a sex scandal there centered around a former assistant coach. The mayor said Mr. Harris' support for his coach showed "no regard whatsoever" for the alleged victims of sexual abuse.

Mr. Harris stepped down as chairman of the Pittsburgh Promise board during a Nov. 17 meeting but remained a board member. David Malone, president and CEO of Gateway Financial Services was named acting chairman.

Today, at the continuation of that meeting, members voted for Mr. Harris to return to chairmanship of the board.

In a news release, Mr. Malone said Mr. Harris' personal opinion on the Penn State situation shouldn't negate the work he has done for Pittsburgh Promise.

"The board acknowledges that Franco's service to The Pittsburgh Promise has been exemplary and we appreciate and applaud his significant contributions to the success of this nationally recognized program," Mr. Malone said in the release.

Mr. Ravenstahl couldn't be reached for comment on Mr. Harris continuing as chairman.

Under the program, Pittsburgh high school students who maintain a minimum grade-point average can obtain college scholarship money donated by area businesses, foundations and organizations.

December 3 . . .

Today is December 3, a day that will live in infamy in the life of this quiet observer. It was a beautiful, sunny Saturday, much like today. It changed my life forever. And time has yet to show whether it was for the better or the worse.

Have you ever gone to godaddy.com to see the "unrated content" of Danica Patrick? I haven't, but I wonder how many people (read: guys) have.