Online Publication: Scranton Is Nation’s Most Hungover City

Sam Bernardini had the Bog pretty much to himself Wednesday night.

The Scranton was packed with New Year’s Eve revelers the night before, but Bernardini rang in 2014 at home.

“Amateurs go out on New Year’s Eve,” he said, one of four patrons at the bar. Few city watering holes were open, and those that were had far more barstools than customers, suggesting that a study published by Business Insider might have merit.

The online publication ranked Scranton the “Most Hungover City in America” in a list of 25 communities where citizens were likely to be nursing sore heads and queasy stomachs Wednesday morning.

Read more: http://citizensvoice.com/news/online-publication-scranton-is-nation-s-most-hungover-city-1.1610427

Pottstown Polar Bear Plunge, Bonfire, 5K Set For New Year’s Day

Although the National Weather Service is predicting below freezing weather for the first day of 2014, that has not stopped local groups of finding fun ways to ring in the new year.

The 6th Pottstown Polar Bear Club’s celebration and bonfire will begin at 10 a.m. at Riverfront Park.

Residents willing to brave the icy water can dive into the Schuylkill River at 10:30 a.m. then warm up with hotdogs, sauerkraut for $2 as well as hot chocolate and coffee for $1.

Registration for the plunge starts at 9 a.m. at the park and ends at 10 a.m. at which time the bonfire will be lit.

Read more: http://www.pottsmerc.com/general-news/20131227/polar-bear-plunge-bonfire-5k-set-for-new-years-day

Tinseltown: First Night Scranton Returns With Hollywood Theme

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lackawanna County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Scranton will roll out the red carpet to welcome the new year.

First Night Scranton will once again keep the city’s downtown abuzz on New Year’s Eve with live music, family-friendly activities and fireworks, and this time it will do so with Hollywood-style flair.

“It’s our 15th anniversary, so I thought, well, you know what? We’ve got to do something big,” said Paige Balitski, one of the event organizers. “What’s bigger than Hollywood? It’s fun. You can play off of movie stars and films.”

The different activities taking place throughout the night will touch on the Hollywood theme, with musicians set to perform movie themes and love songs and other activities drawing inspiration from films. Costumed characters from popular movies will greet guests, for instance, Ms. Baltiski said.

Read more: http://thetimes-tribune.com/lifestyles/tinseltown-first-night-scranton-returns-with-hollywood-theme-1.1606227

After Brief Uncertainty, Reading Pagoda Fireworks Will Happen On New Year’s Eve

A little more than a week after City Council finalized a deal with the Pagoda Foundation to run the Reading landmark, Mayor Vaughn D. Spencer on Thursday afternoon vetoed the agreement.

His move involves money transfers to the foundation, and the move temporarily put the Pagoda’s New Year’s Eve fireworks show into question over liability issues. But after a meeting of foundation members Thursday evening, Chairman Lee C. Olsen said the fireworks will go on.

The foundation has been running the programs at the Pagoda the last two years without an agreement. The group had been asking the city to approve the pact before the New Year’s Eve fireworks celebration, in which the foundation has a part.

Meanwhile, City Council President Francis C. Acosta said he has called for a special meeting of council early next week to override the mayor’s veto.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article/20131220/NEWS/312209955/1052#.UrR4KfRDsxI

Shots Ring In New Year; 2 Killed, 2 Hurt In Reading

A 1947 topographic map of the Reading, Pennsylvania area. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Reading did not see sunlight in 2013 before police were investigating two killings on city streets.

Two men were also wounded in the separate shootings about 80 minutes apart early Tuesday, police said.

Police identified the dead as Luis Medina, 19, of South Third Street and Najeebie Johnson, 34, of Robeson Street.

The killings marked a rough start to a new year in a city that has seen a resurgence in violent crime.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=440251

Peep Chick Drop And Fireworks To Ring In New Year At SteelStacks

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Northampton County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

New York City may have Carly Rae Jepsen and its huge crystal ball, but Bethlehem has music from the indie rock band for kids Starfish and will drop a 75-pound light-up Peep to ring in the New Year.

“We’re really trying to create a Dick Clark of Bethlehem event,” Matt Pye, vice president of corporate affairs at Just Born, said Sunday, the first day of the city’s annual Peeps Fest.

Now in its fourth year, the annual family-friendly festival is put on by ArtsQuest and candy-maker Just Born. More than 8,000 people attended the festival last year.

This year, Peeps Fest has more interactive activities and the duration of the festival has been condensed from four to two days.

Read more:  http://www.mcall.com/news/local/bethlehem/mc-bethlehem-peeps-fest-20121230,0,7670122.story

Pottstown New Year’s Day Polar Plunge Could Be Coldest Ever

POTTSTOWN — To celebrate the 5th annual New Year’s Day Polar Bear Plunge in Riverfront Park, swimmers will brave what will likely be the coldest water yet in the event’s history.

“If the weathermen are right, this will be the coldest polar bear dive we’ve had in the series,” said Bill Krause, who organizes the event with his wife, Sue.

The swim will commence at 10:30 a.m. when the participants, who will all have to sign a waiver beforehand, will line up and dash into the Schuylkill River.

Running into the freezing river won’t be the only thing going on, however.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20121228/NEWS01/121229427/pottstown-new-year-s-day-polar-plunge-could-be-coldest-ever#full_story

“Twelfth Night Tours” At Pottsgrove Manor

Pottstown, Pennsylvania— Between Friday, November 25th and Sunday, January 8th, 2012, visit Pottsgrove Manor and take in the sights and surroundings of the colonial holiday season.

Visitors can enjoy a guided tour of Pottsgrove Manor, decorated for the winter holidays. Learn about traditional English celebrations of Twelfth Night and how they differed from our modern Christmas celebrations. In coordination with the current exhibit at the museum—“Spirituous Liquors and Healthful Distillations: Alcohol in Colonial America”—this year’s holiday tours will focus especially on the libations that would have been enjoyed by our colonial counterparts during the Yuletide season.

Visitors will also want to stop into Pottsgrove Manor’s museum shop for unique, historically-oriented gifts like locally-made redware pottery and ornaments, handcrafted candles, books, toys, and more.

A donation of $2 per person is suggested for the tour. Tours are offered during regular museum hours.

Regular museum hours are: Tuesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. & Sunday, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. Tours are given on the hour; the last tour of the day begins as 3:00 p.m. Groups of 10 or more should pre-register by calling 610.326.4014. The museum is closed Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.

Pottsgrove Manor, home of John Potts, colonial ironmaster and founder of Pottstown, is located at 100 West King Street near the intersection of King Street and Route 100, just off Route 422, in Pottstown,Pennsylvania.  Pottsgrove Manor is operated by Montgomery County under the direction of the Parks and Heritage Services Department. 

For more information and a full calendar of events, visit us on the web at http://historicsites.montcopa.org/pottsgrovemanor.         

Animal “Mass Die-Offs” Nothing To Panic Over

Image via Wikipedia

Evidently, according to AP Writer Seth Borenstein, the recent conspiracy theories about the blackbirds in Arkansas, crabs in the Chesapeake and red tilapia in Vietnam are internet hype and to be taken with a grain of salt.  These “die-offs” happen in nature all the time. 

With the advent of the internet age and instant access to information, people are more aware now of what happens across the globe at any given moment of the day.  This “access” to information leads some people to speculate outrageous things.  According to scientist and the Federal government, these die-offs are nothing to be alarmed over.

To read the entire article  click here:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40961721/ns/us_news-environment/?gt1=43001

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year to all my readers.  Wishing everybody a safe, healthy and prosperous 2010.