The days of hoping someone was standing outside a polling place handing out those little golf score card pencils, or having to remember to take one with you to the poll, is over. That's how it used to work if you wanted to do a write-in.' [...] 
One of our family's favorite traditions is the "annual pumpkin carving contest". Everyone gathers for dinner, after which the table is cleared and layered with newspaper. Each member is responsible for bringing their own pumpkin and carving utensils. Designs, often sketched out in advance, are closely' [...] 
This afternoon, the unexpected illness of one of my pets took me to the offices of Lehigh Valley Animal Hospital on Old 22, out past Chris's Diner.
I spent two hours this evening at the Allentown President's Council Mayoral & City Council Candidates Night. Normally after that length of time, exposed to the views of eight candidates, I would be editing pages of notes and putting together a long post that would take' [...] 
I have written several posts lately about the burglaries, home invasions, and general increase in crime that have occurred in the western section of the city and county: "Number 10" posted on Sept. 16, and "A Dog And A Gun" on Sept. 9, detailed [...] 
One of my favorite songs from one of my favorite musicals, contains the line, "Don't let it be forgot, that once there was a spot, for one brief shining moment that was known as Camelot".
14th century author Geoffrey Chaucer probably didn't have scandals and prostitution in mind when he wrote about mighty things growing from little acorns. Six hundred years later, one ACORN has sprouted a really big scandal, and a potentially big political problem for Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey.
There was a small story in the police blotter section of Tuesday's Morning Call on page 8 about the latest murder in Allentown; number ten so far this year. The "good news" is that the city's murder rate to date is less than last year's. What' [...] 
The reports of the demise of the Republican Party may have been premature: It seems the patient still has a pretty strong pulse after all.
As I dumped the larger than usual pile of mail on the kitchen table and started to sort it in to stacks of "his", "mine" "bills" and "recycle", the startling headline of a bright orange postcard mailer, which was addressed to my husband, caught my attention: [...] 
The press conference unveiling the plans for the renovation of the former Shanty Restaurant into TC Salon Spa and an unnamed restaurant, was well covered by Tyrone Richardson's story in Saturday's Morning Call. 
Several pieces of information came to me today, from very reliable sources, regarding the financial health of the City of Allentown. I'm going to be deliberately vague about details, but the core issue is clear.
Sitting in the comfort of our living rooms...in our safe, secure, temperature controlled environments, sipping latte's and reading about the interrogation tactics the CIA used on suspected terrorists, it is so easy to pass judgment. The words, Inhuman; Degrading; Un-American, roll easily off the tongue to [...] 
An Additional Thought 8/26/09: In an effort to ensure that as many people as possible were aware of the injustice done to the families of the Pan Am 103 victims, Jane Schultz sent a link to this blog to her extensive network around the world. According [...] 
Carol Aichele was easy to spot in the lobby of the Best Western. She had a look of confidence and determination that immediately set her apart. She's going to need those traits over the next 9 months as she campaigns across the state to be [...] 
Over the weekend, President Obama sounded like he was stepping back from his oft-stated and seemingly entrenched position on a "government option" within his health care reform plan.
There are moments that forever stay in our memory; some of them are markers of life's milestones, some are fleeting seconds in which we capture a glance or an idea. Images from those moments embed themselves in our brain becoming part of a personal photo album' [...] 
There probably isn't one of us who hasn't heard the saying at some time in our life,"You're judged by the company you keep". It's true for teenagers and it's true for political appointees.
The Blue Dog Democrats caved today on the healthcare bill. According to CNN.com, the group presented Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Henry Waxman with a list of ten items they want to see changed in the legislation before it is voted on by the full [...] 
Some things in life are predictable: The earth spins in 24 hour cycles, the sun rises each morning, and Siobhan Bennett always sounds like she's promoting herself even when she's supposedly trying to promote her new organization through a letter targeted to her own email distribution [...] 
American's love winners, and we love lists: Dave Letterman has made himself famous with his "Top Ten" of everything from why he loves New York to ways to know your spouse is having an affair.
Every Independence Day is special; a time to remember what a miracle this country really is. When you think about the process and the people that produced our Declaration Of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights and the fact that those documents still are at the [...] 
I'm headed out of town on business, but didn't want to leave without publicly stating my support for the people of Iran. Watching hundreds of thousands of them pour into the streets, defying the government and their thugs, is a stunning reminder that Freedom Is Not [...] 
Just when we thought that summer meant lazy hazy days and warm soft evenings, we get reminded that it also means an increase in crime. Two homes in my neighborhood were robbed recently; the modus operandi was the same in both cases...the perpetrator crawled in an [...] 
Today marks the last time that Glenn Kranzley will walk in to The Morning Call building on Sixth St., in Allentown, with the ability to influence the opinion of thousands of people across the region. Glenn, like so many others, has been caught in the gathering [...] 
There seems to be a musical theme running through this blog lately, from Country, "Beer for the Horses", to Oldies, "Up On The Roof", to R&B, "On Broadway"....
From the invitation that was forwarded to my mailbox today, it looks like one of The Drifters greatest hits is climbing the charts again in DC. Like the song says..."At night the stars put on a show for free, and darling, you can share it all" [...] 
Even hundreds of years of ago, when kings ruled with life-and-death authority and a laissez-faire attitude, the peasants would eventually get disgusted enough, or hungry enough, that they would take to the streets and storm the castle gates, pitchforks and torches in hand. Sometimes the king [...] 
Memorial Day weekend calls for the obligatory "first picnic of summer". Not wanting to disappoint family and friends, I headed to the Farmer's Market and Wegman's to stock up. Moving at my usual warp speed, I was really looking forward to being able to finally buy [...] 
Where's Elvis when you need him?
The hopes of many moderate Republicans were dashed this afternoon by an announcement that Tom Ridge will not run for Arlen Specter's Senate seat in 2010.
The APD may be on the move, at least the Patrol Division may be. An email written by Nicholas Butterfield, an active member of the Library Area Neighborhood Association, and distributed by the Old Allentown Preservation Association, reads as follows:
A story at the top of Wednesday's The Morning Call's Local Section, titled "Say cheese!", focused on a recent email sent by APD Chief Roger MacLean asking neighborhood and crime watch groups if any of their members would be interested in volunteering to monitor the [...] 
Today Senator Arlen Specter took his moderate marbles and went home to the Democratic Party, leaving the folks he's been playing games with for the past 29 years in the lurch. Speaking for myself as a moderate Republican who has defended Specter many times against' [...] 
Sometimes, especially in these times, it's easier to be negative than positive. There just isn't a lot of good news these days.
Former New Jersey Governor and head of the EPA during Bush 43's first term, Christie Todd Whitman, spent two hours this evening in the Lehigh Valley, charming the supporters of Peg Ferraro, candidate for Northampton County Council, while exhorting the faithful to stay the course and' [...] 
A previous post, titled, "An especially violent night" spoke to the murder and shooting that occurred this past weekend in Allentown. Within that context the points were made that the ongoing violence would never be solved without involvement by private citizens and neighborhood groups. It's a' [...] 
The Allentown Police Department had their hands full this past weekend. In what was described in The Morning Call story as "an especially violent night", two police officers shot and seriously wounded a man who had a gun. According to the report, he became involved [...] 
I'm knocking on wood and throwing salt over my shoulder as I write this: As someone who is self-employed, I have been very fortunate, so far, during this recession, to have been busy. It's not that my family hasn't been affected by the economic slide...my son-in-law' [...] 
The full length version of "Gone With The Wind" is on television tonight. I haven't seen it in years, so I'm taking the night off.
It's not easy being a Republican these days: At a national level Party Chairman Michael Steele just can't seem to articulate his positions without ending up having to apologize to someone. Locally, the Grand Old Party has had a tough time fielding candidates; including three vacant [...] 
While Christians and Jews around the world celebrate two of their most solemn holidays, people of all faiths who knew her, mourn the assassination of Sitara Achikzai, one of only four women legislators to sit on the Kandahar Provincial Council in Afghanistan; provincial councils are [...] 
State Representative Jennifer Mann held a town meeting tonight at the Lehigh County Senior Center. The fifty people who turned out on a very cold spring night were typical of their generation; attentive, polite and well-behaved.
This has been the longest "short break" I've ever taken: Some times you get the bear and some times the bear gets you. The bear's been eating my socks, but I'm finally out of the woods and glad to be back, even if my blogging skills' [...] 
Apologies to Elvis for borrowing the title of one of his songs, but since it's always been a favorite of mine I hope he won't mind. I thought it was an appropriate heading for this post which was supposed to be a report on tonight's' [...] 
A week ago I was sitting with a group of colleagues waiting for a meeting to start. As is the case everywhere these days, the conversation turned to the economy. One person asked if anyone around the table had a spouse or family member who had [...] 
An email from the Allentown City Clerk's Office, which sends out meeting notices and agendas for city council, caught my eye today. I often just scan them, but this one said "KOZ Resolution Update".
From the amount of interest shown, and number of comments posted, in response to a previous story about the conversion of the former Shanty Restaurant into the new location of TC Salon & Day Spa, you would think IBM was relocating their headquarters and a $100 [...] 
For some time, there have been questions regarding the validity of Allentown's budget numbers, numbers which included a supposed surplus that was created by borrowing money; violating every known accounting principle any of us ever learned.
A few thoughts on a few subjects: Observations from the peanut gallery.
Being at the right place at the right time can be more than good luck; for a writer it can be the basis for a good story.
It would be hard to think of where three more volitile issues collide to form an explosive mixture than in the stem cell debate.
The beauty of the $250,000 state grant that Allentown City Council authorized several months ago to lure the very successful TC Salon from South Whitehall Township to Allentown, is that it helped to motivate entrepreneur Frank Shipman to purchase the burned-out, water damaged hulk of [...] 
There's an emergency call out to podiatric surgeons across the country: So many Republicans are limping in to emergency rooms after having shot themselves in the foot, that it's been hard to meet the demand for medical care.
Even after twenty seven years, Billy Joel's song "Allentown" is still mentioned when I tell people where I live. Written during a recession in the early 80's, the song, which was on the Billboard charts for weeks, gave the entire nation a glimpse as to what [...] 
The past few days I've been watching the media frenzy over a NY Post cartoon drawn by Sean Delonas. Several years ago I interviewed Sean and his son Ryan for a magazine story, after the children's book they had written together, "Scuttles Big Wish", was published. [...] 
Not since Ronald Reagan, (pictured here in 1983) has such a powerful communicator addressed a joint session of Congress. President Obama's delivery of his first major speech was flawless; at times soaring and inspirational. Lacking was the substance so many are waiting for.
Last week, I spent time in the vicinity of the "Foreclosure Capital of the Country" as President Obama referred to Ft. Myers, Florida. Some friends had just retired there and we joined them to celebrate. Instead of the few days of downtime I had planned, I [...] 
Fighting freezing cold and wind gusts on Hamilton Street that almost knocked me over, was even more difficult after a week in sunny Florida. But I managed to make my way to the Allentown Brewworks for tonight's kick-off of Allentown Assistant Chief of Police Ron Manescu's [...] 
Every once in a while you get lucky: It's my turn. I have a business opportunity in Florida. Okay, it's not as good as a real, sit-on-the-beach vacation, and even though I'll be working most of the time, at least I'll be warm.
The great thing about a free market economy is that even tough times present opportunities for those who are energetic and savvy enough to seize the moment by creating a new business.
Anyone with a television has heard the financial pundit's warnings; from Suzie Orman to Larry Kudlow, the word is...in this economic downturn, be sure to protect your credit rating. Banks and credit card companies are just looking for an excuse to raise your rate or call' [...] 
Everyone over the age of 40 probably has at least one moment they can point to where a decision they made changed their life, forever; putting them on a path from which there was no return. Those seminal moments are more clear when looked at in [...] 
Feelings of safety and security are hard to come by these days: The economy is teetering on the brink and crime is a concern almost no matter where you live.
I've spent the past three days in Washington DC. I expected the city to show some signs of the two million people who had been there just days before; perhaps some of the barricades would still be up or there might be trash flying around. To' [...]
