Whites Creek Valley Natural Area

South of confluence in southern Somerset County is a beautiful and remote destination known as the Whites Creek Valley Natural Area. The Whites Creek watershed drains part of the southern slope of Mount Davis, and the creek flows northwest to the Casselman River. Preserved by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, the 85-acre parcel is one mile …

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A Sailing Odyssey, Part II: Peril on the Seas

It is said that no two trips to the North Channel are ever the same. With a maiden voyage behind me, though, I felt confident about my second trip, which I would undertake with three college classmates, all 60 years old. I put the boat in the water early, eager to push the engine a …

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Pittsburgh’s Gentleman Scholar

I wasn’t sure when i knocked on the door that I was really at the right house. I thought I had the correct address, but it had been a long trip. I took the passenger ferry to Martha’s Vineyard and then rode my bicycle 10 miles out to West Tisbury. And then I had to hunt …

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Three Years to Forget

In my view we can take 2020, 2021, and 2022 and stick them where the sun don’t shine. I know, I know, I need to keep matters in perspective. Those three years weren’t actually as bad as, say, the Black Death (200 million dead), the Great Depression, World War II (120 million dead). They weren’t …

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Poem Ending With a Line from Tomas Tranströmer (via Robin Robertson)

Oh to be veeringalong Baum Boulevardto the beatus via north,where the squalls of Mercer vanish for a minute, horizon a violet knife-cut, curtainof snow throbbingat the grade’s bottom—none of which you’ll know, my dear,no matter how loudthe ringing tambourines of ice.

A Sailing Odyssey, Part I

When I was a boy during summers in northern Michigan, there was one adventure that dwarfed all others: sailing to the North Channel. It was a distant, mythic place of pristine beauty and wrecked boats where intrepid sailors matched their skills with the forces of nature — where islands had rattlesnakes, fish were huge, and …

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A Sailing Odyssey, The Conclusion

Killarney was our eastern apogee, where we spent the rainy day in the Killarney Mountain Lodge, had drinks by the fire and I taught the guys to play bridge. From there we started the long trek back, exploring the North Channel’s most beautiful places by day and playing bridge in the cozy cabin each night. …

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Unemployment Drops, Jobs Growth Slows

November unemployment in southwestern Pennsylvania fell to a level the region hasn’t seen in almost 50 years. But stagnant job growth and a dip in the labor force continued to challenge local employers, according to recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In the seven-county Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area, 4.0 percent of workers …

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Final Thoughts on Cuba and Ukraine

“Never in history has Russia made such stupid decisions.” — Russian General Leonid Ivashov What can we learn from the Cuban Missile Crisis way back in 1962 that might be useful in navigating Vladimir Putin’s nuclear threats today? Here are some thoughts. Previously in this series: Too Who Blinked, Pt VI Don’t panic Although the …

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What About Aesthetics?

The latest iteration of the Carnegie International dropped in the era of the pandemic. What would it say about our world situation as reflected in the work of contemporary artists? How would it fit within the historic framework of the exhibition that has been instrumental in shaping the character of the Carnegie Museum of Art? …

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Remembering Roberto Clemente

When you are seven, everyone on your team is a hero. Some may be greater than others, but they all are heroes. And not just the players.  I do not know if the Pirates have a traveling secretary today. If they do, I do not know who it is. I do not know what a …

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Arkus, Diana, Talotta, McCullough, DeLuca, Samet, Coraluppi, Baer, Shea, Rust, Kernick, Henne, Silvestre, Fennell, Celli

Jane Arkus, 93As an advertising executive, Arkus helped to create the iconic “chipped-chopped ham” ads for Islay’s. She joined Lando in 1951 as a copywriter and when the firm merged with Burson-Marsteller, she became its senior creative director. As a marketing consultant, Arkus worked to develop the Downtown Cultural District, WQED and the Urban League …

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Spotlight on Nonprofits, Pt. IV

Catherine Qureshi, Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy Equity and inclusivity are at the core of our work. Throughout the past 26 years, we’ve completed more than 22 improvement projects that enhance the experience of every park visitor who explores Pittsburgh’s incredible green spaces. However, our work extends far beyond capital projects. Year after year, we offer hundreds …

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Who Blinked?

As we noted last week, several days into the Cuban Missile Crisis, President Kennedy began to receive almost bizarre letters from Nikita Khrushchev – long, disjointed missives that seemed to be almost steam-of-conscious ramblings. One letter offered to remove the missiles if the US would promise publicly not to invade Cuba. But very shortly after …

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Spotlight on Nonprofits, Pt. III

Wendy Pardee, The Children’s Institute of Pittsburgh This year, we are proud to celebrate our 120th anniversary. What started in 1902 as a home to help a young boy injured in an industrial accident has grown into an amazing place that serves more than 6,000 children across Western Pennsylvania each year. While our services have …

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A Final Chat with Franco

My wife and I were at a party Friday night at the History Center, and after a cocktail, chit chat and getting our picture taken with Santa, we were going to check out the John Kane painting exhibit before the seated dinner.  As we were making our escape from the crowd, however, I saw Franco …

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Remembering a Steelers Season to Forget. CARD-PITT

The fresh snow and twinkling lights had Pittsburghers in the holiday spirit, but alone in his hotel room John Grigas had spiraled into a dark place. He had played 19 games in his professional football career. His teams had lost all 19. With his soul suffering and his body battered, could he drag himself through …

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The Khrushchev Conundrum

“President Kennedy will] make a fuss, make more of a fuss, and then agree.” — Nikita Khrushchev, predicting how JFK would respond to the Soviet missiles in Cuba. Previously in this series:Too Close For Comfort, Pt IV We’ve walked through the actual events of the Cuban Missile Crisis, so let’s now look at the negotiations …

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Spotlight on Nonprofits, Pt. II

Patrice Matamoros, Junior Achievement of Western PA JA BizTown is officially the “tiniest town” in western PA! Junior Achievement of Western PA (JA) has developed a simulated city with over 19 storefronts, City Hall, and a town center. This school year, over 8,800 students from 4th-6th grade will utilize JA BizTown to learn how a …

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What Do I Know? Dr. Robert M. Friedlander

“My mother’s father was born in 1905 in Pinsk, in the old Soviet Union. He was Jewish and had witnessed pogroms against his people, during which half of his family lost their lives. In fact, his father and some of his brothers were killed right in front of him. So, when he was 15, my …

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Too Close for Comfort

“This was not only the most dangerous moment of the Cold War, it was the most dangerous moment in human history.” — Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. Last week we watched as the captain and political officer of a Soviet B-59 submarine agreed to launch a nuclear-tipped torpedo at the US Navy ships that had located it. …

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Spotlight on Nonprofits

Rachel Petrucelli, UPMC Children’s Hospital Foundation Working in the nonprofit sector — specifically at UPMC Children’s Hospital Foundation — has enabled me to draw on my own lived experience to ease the burdens many children and families face here in our community. As the mom of a daughter with complex medical and behavioral health needs, I …

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