Nafari Vanaski is the news editor for the Norwin Star and the Plum Advance Leader. Her columns appear each Thursday in the Tribune-Review.
Nafari Vanaski can be reached via e-mail or at 412-856-7400 x8669
Vanaski: Pa. not seeing the light on deer-vehicle crashes
By Nafari VanaskiLate last year, I shared the agony involved in shopping for a new car. You know that reputation that used-car salesmen have? Some people who sell their own cars possess a thicker layer of slime. (You know who you are.) …
Shoppers’ greed aids homeless
By Nafari VanaskiMy neighbor and I were headed to our cars at the same time the other morning when she asked me what I had planned for the holiday. I joked that like most others, I didn’t celebrate Thanksgiving anymore and I’d …
Vanaski: Jockeying for Pittsburgh City Council post is insipid
By Nafari VanaskiA few times — mostly after a column that has anything remotely to do with race — I see I’ve missed a call from a blocked number. When I see that, I know I’m in for a doozy of a …
Vanaski: Teens seek approval through social media, find shame
By Nafari VanaskiDear Jolie: You are almost 7 months old as I write this and too young to read it. But one day, you’ll be snooping around on the Internet and you might come across this. I hope you do, because …
Recording vets’ wartime stories — before their histories disappear — is this man’s mission
By Nafari VanaskiMy father, a veteran, kept a journal of his time in Vietnam. The original journal itself took a beating. It had been covered in plastic bags, but also slept on and dragged through dirt and water while being transported from …
When in doubt for Halloween, stick with the mask
By Nafari VanaskiWhen I was a kid, my siblings and I would dress up for Halloween parties at school. We’d wear the costume, but never the mask. …
Hope floats: If voters would only act on Mayor Ravenstahl as they did for giant duck
By Nafari VanaskiA reader called to say she disagreed with my column last week suggesting that Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl should be impeached for neglecting his job. She suggested there might be something wrong with me. “Do you have postpartum depression or …
Vanaski: Impeaching Luke easy — and necessary
By Nafari VanaskiIf you’re a fan, the opening line of the song that closed the heralded “Breaking Bad” TV series might be stuck in your head. If you’re a Pittsburgh resident who voted for Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, it might sound like a …
Duck security on lookout for ‘fowl’ play
By Nafari VanaskiChris Craychee woke up at 4:30 a.m. Wednesday to get ready for work. His shift at Point State Park started at 5:45 a.m. When he got there, he made sure the park lights were on, checked the rope lines and …
Disney tinkering sad affair
By Nafari VanaskiOnce upon a time, Disney parks allowed those with autistic children or disabled group members to bypass lines so they could move about the park and enjoy themselves with as little fuss as possible. But there came evil human beings …
Red flags over cost wisely lead councilman to walk, not run with idea
By Nafari VanaskiWhen I first heard Pittsburgh councilman Corey O’Connor’s proposed legislation to provide brightly colored flags for pedestrians to carry while crossing dangerous intersections, it reminded me of kindergarten for some reason. Between the image of grown adults crossing the street …
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