The Post-Gazette has, on Sundays, been running a feature called “The Cutting Edge”, where they post snippets from Pittsburgh-related blogs. (Yes, I still get 90% of my news on dead trees. Portable, useful for stuffing shipping boxes, and doesn’t require me to pay some silly “hotspot” to read it.) It has sunk to new lows. You may recall that Chinese newspaper that accidentally recycled a story from The Onion?. Scroll down this week’s Cutting Edge and find “One of America’s great newspapers” doing the same thing. I’d like to hope they’re just adding it in as a bit of comic belief, but the lack of framing text makes me think someone there is just plain asleep at the switch.

Not to worry, though. They’re a “manufacturer” according to state law, and thus aren’t required to pay property taxes. With all that money they’re saving, I’m sure they can put it towards finding, you know, real news to report on once in a while.

It’s over.

I’m calm enough now to actually write about it; I was a hyperactive wreck last night for about an hour after the game finished.

So after the dust has settled, a new day begins in Pittsburgh with the Pens failing to capture Lord Stanley’s Cup.

And you know what? That’s ok.

C’mon, raise your hands - who among you thought the Penguins were finished after Game 2? I’ll admit I was seriously concerned: no goals in nearly 135 minutes? A powerhouse, cloying defense that attracted the puck like a magnet pulls on iron?

Yeah, I think even the most diehard of us were freaked out. (more…)

I believe other Metblog cities have done it, so I’m taking a cue from them and introducing you to the village of Farmington.  The idea struck me when I was on the road this weekend (camping and running events for work) and I thought it would be a fun idea.  I tend to travel to Farmington quite a bit (and live there over the summer), so if nothing else, it may provide some inspiration for you to come visit.

 For me, the quickest way to Farmington is to hop on the Turnpike to New Stanton and then take 119, which turns into 40.  But it is also accessible via 381, which also makes for a nice trip through Ohiopyle and the opportunity to stop at Falling Water, or even 281, which will put you through Confluence.

 Farmington is south of Uniontown, up on the mountain, and home to Nemacolin Woodlands.  Other points of interest (which are at least near, and I believe in the same township of Wharton) are Jumonville, The Summit Inn, the Stone House, Fort Necessity National Battlefield and Laurel Caverns.  Summertime also brings a giant flea market worth checking out.  I want to say it’s the first weekend of each month, but I’m not positive on that.

 Driving up 40 will take you up a winding mountain highway.  On the way up there are two pull-offs, one for Lick Hollow picnic area (which is rarely, if ever open, a sign eternally proclaiming “closed for season”) and one which provides a scenic overlook of Uniontown.  The scenic overlook, as well as a pull-off on the way down with a spring are both home to geocaches.  And even though I generally try not to encourage the park-and-grab variety, these two are worth it, both providing very interesting locations to visit and beautiful and unique scenery.

More after the jump, including eateries and entertainment!

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I’ve been a fan of Survivor since its first season, and I’m always excited when I see contestants from Pittsburgh, and it seems that Survivor is a magnet for those of us from the burgh. And imagine my surprise when during the second hour of the American Gladiator’s premiere (I can’t quite decide, but I’m pretty sure it’s a game show), they announce that John was from Pittsburgh!

John is an amputee and a Paralympic athlete, having competed in the 1996 games.

John was awesome to watch, and a great competitor, so much more than I ever could be, but sadly, he didn’t win the eliminator, but it was amazing and so heartwarming to see the entire stadium cheer for him to finish and give him an awesome standing ovation.

American Gladiator’s page (NBC)
Picture via BuzzerBlog

Hockey is a pretty big deal in this town - well, it’s a big deal as long as the Penguins are winning. Ok, maybe it’s a big deal all the time, but people like me (that is, people who don’t like sports) don’t notice it unless the Penguins are winning. So, the Pens are doing well this year, eh? I guess that’s cool, if you’re into it.

Anyway, the Pittsburgh area has a hockey team that interests me way more than the Penguins interest me, except this more interesting team doesn’t exist except in a movie and it’s not spending millions of dollars on a new rink or whatever.

Ladies and gentlemen: the Monroeville Zombies!

Kevin Smith, the director of Zack and Miri Make a Porno, is a bit of a geek, which typically includes being a fan of zombies and zombie movies. Monroeville Mall was the location of the original Dawn of the Dead. Aside from that, Smith’s new movie was filmed in Pittsburgh, creating a perfect little package of Pittsburgh/nerdy/zombie/Kevin Smithy references.

The movie opens on October 31st. Duh.

Two down, two to go as the Penguins made my weekend that much cheerier, despite all the rain. Hammering the Flyers - in more ways than one - was one of many highlights to a great Mother’s Day weekend.

As I’d predicted earlier last week, the Pens relied not only on Malkin (Game 1 - 2 goals) and Crosby (Game 2 - 2 points) but also their other offensive threats to elevate Penguins play; players who bear “marquee” names such as Talbot, Staal, Dupuis, Roberts, Kennedy…heck, the list pretty much includes the whole team. It may not have the rhinestone name glitter of the Red Wings’ roster, but just like our hometown, the Pens are all blue-collar, get-it-done players. And that’s what matters in this series.

(Congrats, by the way, to the Penguins for the impressive seven straight playoff wins at home!)

You know the Penguins making an impact when my own wife knows who Maxime Talbot, Tyler Kennedy, and Pascal Dupuis are. That’s saying a lot for the team-spirited play the Penguins have been exhibiting since Game 1, Round 1. The Flyers have quite the challenge ahead of them - keeping Malkin and Crosby down isn’t going to cut it, as they’ve shown in the past two games. And now that they’re missing Timonen and possibly Coburn…

If the Pens can keep up their physical play as well as scoring when Hatcher keeps going to the box, the ‘burgh boys may well sneak one (if not both!) game out of the Wachovia Center in Philly. The Penguins are only halfway there, but at least they can see the end of the series.

The Flyers need a telescope and a way to curve time.

It’s not over yet, fans. But it’s getting close. Is it Tuesday yet?

Roberts for Prez 08, courtesy of daveynin

Yep, that’s right. The “City of Brotherly Love” is anything but, when it comes to NHL hockey. One of the longest anti-social rivalries between teams in the modern NHL, this series is going to have it all: goals, goaltending, grit, fights and fan-smack.

Considering the Flyer’s ‘theme’ for this year has been “Vengeance,” paraded around town with gigantic bilboards of Riley Cote and his raised fists, it appears to all that the Broad Street Bullies never really left.

So Friday at 7:30 we’ve got Game One of the Intrastate Beatdown. Let’s look more in-depth at what the Flyers are going to have to face - and what the Pens have to look forward to, after the jump. (more…)

Thank you, Penguins!

Thank you, Pens fans!

The last three days have been fantastic for me and my Penguins-crazed family in more ways than one.

Shall I count them?

Two wins over the hated Rangers, a furious and awesome comeback in Game One, a stonewalling shutout by Fleury in Game Two, and an Avery beatdown to segue into the next two games in New York. (The best view of the fight is at 1:15 in the video clip.)

What more could a Pens fan ask for?

Being at the game.

Well, ok, so I didn’t get that far.

Still, in watching the game from the comfort of my living room, surround sound on full blast, it felt like I was right there amongst the crowd at the Mellon Arena yesterday afternoon. The energy was electric, the noise awesome, and the outcome outstanding.

And I was thrilled to see my prediction come true. In the waning seconds of Game Two, Sean Avery did his usual annoying play and roughly tapped Fleury on the back as he moved to the front of the crease. As play wound down, Fleury did as any goalie would do defending his turf and slapped Avery in the back of the legs. Avery turned and tried to spear Fleury and was met with the fury of Hal Gill’s fists as they came flying out of his gloves. The shining moment? As Avery hit the boards, Laraque had skated over and grabbed him just as Gill led with a right.

Make note, New York: don’t mess with the Penguins.

The hockey world sat up and took notice after last night’s shutdown of the New York trapping game. The Pens didn’t just defend against it, they practically broke it. Transitions in the center were plentiful, the energy was 100% from start to finish, and the press into the Ranger’s zone was relentless. In this game, the Penguins proved that Ottawa wasn’t a fluke.

These guys want the Cup. And you know what? Every game they play, I think the reality is that much closer.

Now the quest to find a good location to watch Game Three on Tuesday. If any of you have suggestions to pass onto your fellow fans, please do so below. Until then, keep them towels waving!

It’s Towel Time!, courtesy of Sgt. Pepperedjane

Ok, Penguins Nation, it’s been decided.

After Joffrey Lupul’s game winner in OT last night over here in Washington, the stage has finally been set for a standard playoff rematch for our beloved Penguins. Next up? The New York Rangers.

You may commence booing and hissing. I’ll wait, since I’ll join you.

Ok. Feel better?

So, are we looking at another Ottawa-style rollover? Probably not. This’ll be a hard-fought series, in my opinion, but won’t go to seven games. And I’m confident - like all of you, no doubt - that our Penguins shall triumph over the Blue Shirts of Broadway.

So let’s look at the nitty-gritty, shall we?

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We old folks remember things like typewriters, card catalogs and music stores - artifacts of a hard copy era, where people relied exclusively on the paper and plastic recordings of things.

The passage of that era is a gradual slough of analog into digital, and certainly not something that happens in an instant. One indicator of this fundamental evolution of media distribution is that Paul Mawhinney’s gigantic record collection is likely going to be the last of its kind.

When Rasputina’s new album came out, I clicked a link and downloaded it to my computer. I’ve been doing it this for long enough that I haven’t bought a physical copy of music in at least four years. If you think I’m in the minority, think again - the iTunes Music Store, which exists only in the digital aether, is now the number 2 largest music seller.

Paul can retire, now that the collection has been sold to a “gentleman from Ireland.” It seems only fitting that the largest compendium of hard-copy music recordings found its next owner via a site that also has no physical component - it sold for $3,002,150 on eBay.