500,000 viewers/week makes a difficult economic case for any venue, even with second-tier actors and digital effects.

In Pennsylvania, accidental elk and deer kills are supposed to be reported to the Game Commission, who track their populations, as soon as possible. If the time of death can be reasonably verified and the carcass retrieved soon enough, butchers who have volunteered for such purpose will dress the meat and deliver it…

Sometimes people purchase things on sale in anticipation of using them later. Sometimes those people tragically cease to be, and whoever has to sort through their stuff donates it to thrift stores to sell.

It’s television/movies, so most of the actors are much younger, and rather prettier, than the world-weary crew described in the books. In some cases it’s practical; the oldest active actress in SAG or Equity still wouldn’t be as old as Avasarala is described—but they haven’t used makeup to age Ms. Aghdashloo, either.…

Kilauea has been erupting continuously for 35 years. Most of the time lava is flowing through underground tubes out to sea, creating new land and a big cloud of steam. Every few years, like now, a more intense phase occurs involving some new vents and above-ground lava flows that sometimes invade inhabited areas. As…

Was the groundhog black? It is Carroll County, after all. Years ago when I lived in Howard County, a yearling black bear wandered over from western Maryland one spring, and the local tv channels broke into programming to show it ambling up US 29 through Columbia towards Ellicott City, generally minding its own…

Apropos of knives, in 2014 at Franklin Regional High School in Murrysville, PA, a student armed with two >8-in knives slashed and stabbed 20 students and a security guard before being subdued by an administrator and another student. Several of the victims were critically injured; the most serious case was hospitalized…

Because existing buildings and space constraints prevented the most desirable configuration of ramps, in the relatively recent reconstruction of where I-70/I-79 intersects US 19 in Washington, PA, northbound and southbound 19 traffic run on the respective left side opposite the US convention, but that’s controlled by…

You may not have known the word for it, Andrew, but you’ve probably been doing it for much of your adult life.

The USDA does have a Water & Waste Disposal Loan and Grant Program to help low-density “rural” communities (there can be upscale parts as long as the density and income across the area meet the requirements) extend public water supplies and sewers, and it seems that at least part of this area qualifies to apply (I…

Well, I’m an oldster, but an engineer, and I can do math. Youtube TV has all the stations I watch routinely and far fewer stations I don’t watch at all compared to my previous FiOS package. I can have six sub-accounts, each with its own unlimited-capacity DVR, and can watch three simultaneous streams, which is fine…

One, not everyone lives in an air-conditioned palace and in summer towels may smell like mildew after a single use even when hung on a rod or line to dry. Second, every one is entitled to pick and choose on which occasions one must tolerate a significant other’s obnoxious acquaintances, as long as one does not beg off…

While Pennsylvania does have a state income tax, it does not tax income from Social Security, IRAs, 401(k) and 403(b) accounts, or pensions for those over 60.

The 4WD system was part-time with a lockable center differential, not for use on dry pavement, so it really was more like an off-roader. With the 2nd-row three-seat bench it could seat 8, but without too much cargo volume behind the 3rd row, like some current crossovers.

It actually had 3 conventional doors until a left-side rear door was added for the ‘96 model year.

Is this a phenomenon related to the springtime snow melt, and only exists for a few weeks a year; something that happens every heavy rain; or a perpetual feature?

Self-checkout lanes aren’t always express lanes; some stores have both regular and express lanes with self checkout. Generally there’s a difference in the configuration, like a full length conveyor belt on the regular lane, but unless the lane is signed with an item limit, I assume it’s fair game for everyone. Except…

T-tops preceded Targas by almost two decades, being patented by automobile designer Gordon Buehrig in the late ‘40s. Since this has a single full-width panel without the center bar, it is technically a Targa, unlike the similar-appearing Suzuki X-90, which had a t-top. But Subaru couldn’t actually call it a Targa,…

With that much torque, you didn’t need more than 4 ratios in a turnpike cruiser. Few people yet cared about fuel economy in giant cars, and manufacturers measuring dicks by how many forward gears could be stuffed in the hump was a few years away. Among others, Corollas and Tacomas, most Subarus, and Mazda3i’s from…

Some present-day midsize cars that I would prefer not to drive in favor of a good-condition 1996 Taurus: 2018 Accord, 2018 Camry, 2018 Altima, 2018 Legacy, 2018 Optima.