Lifestyles category, Page 62
No, holiday tips are not mandatory — especially if your finances have changed. Here’s what etiquette experts say
Ah, the holiday season. It arrives each winter, bringing feelings of gratitude, merriment, generosity — and financial anxiety. The cost of gifts and gatherings isn’t the only subject that weighs on people’s minds this time of year. Holiday tipping can be stressful, too, with individuals, couples, and families deciding which...
6 favorite conifers and the cones they produce
In much of the country, much of the landscape goes barren from fall through spring. Evergreens are typically the workhorse plants that carry us through. But not all evergreens are created equal. A subset called conifers provide not only year-round greenery but ornamental cones that command attention, feed birds (and...
34 hours on America’s most scenic train. Is it as dreamy as it sounds?
There are certainly more efficient ways to get from Los Angeles to Seattle than sitting in a metal box for 34 hours. But Amtrak’s Coast Starlight train wasn’t designed for people who are in a rush. Perhaps you’ve come across this train on Instagram, YouTube or TikTok, where people rave...
Murrysville cooking instructor publishes cookbook
Patty Irrgang of Murrysville has worked as an independent fashion designer and as a space manager in the University of Pittsburgh’s academic provost office. She also has spent nearly a half-century providing the food while tailgating at Pitt football games. During that time, she built up quite a recipe repertoire....
Beery Christmas and Hoppy New Year: 10 festive beers to stuff in your holiday stocking
Candy canes are fun. Gift cards are useful. But nothing festively stuffs a stocking — or brightens a Hanukkah or Kwanzaa for that matter — quite like a beer tasting of the season. Holiday beers come in an array of styles: light and dark; elaborate and blessedly simple; sweet, tart...
Sharing a roof, and money, with adult kids
When Amanda Claypool was 28, she left a government contracting job in Washington, D.C., and moved back to her parents’ house in upstate New York while she figured out her next step. Then the pandemic struck, and her temporary return lasted longer than she’d planned. Living with her parents for...
Out & About: Pitt-Greensburg alumni make merry at holiday gathering
Ugly sweaters were the garment of choice at the Pitt-Greensburg Alumni Association’s Merry Mingle, held Dec. 2 in Millstein Library at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg. Alumna Kim McLeod poked fun at cross-state rival Penn State by wearing the tinsel-embellished likeness of former football coach Joe Paterno. Lee Garsteck...
Faces of the Valley: Vandergrift native opens neighborhood butcher shop in Lawrenceville
Having grown up in Vandergrift, Steve Dawson understands the heartbeat of a small town. Now, he is bringing that neighborhood vibe to an already-bustling area with his recently opened butcher concept in Lawrenceville. After years working as a corporate geologist, Dawson left his profession to pursue his passion for butchering,...
Out & About: Westmoreland Society chooses new work for museum collection
The permanent collection of The Westmoreland Museum of American Art is richer, following the 35th Annual Westmoreland Society Dinner on Dec. 2 in the Greensburg institution. As is their custom, members were presented with a choice of artworks to acquire. This year’s choice was between two pieces by Pakistani-American artist...
Out & About: Westmoreland Hospital Auxiliary hosts annual Christmas auction
Linda Assard welcomed a steady stream of guests to her elegantly decorated Hempfield home on Dec. 1, for the Westmoreland Hospital Christmas Auction. Inside the door, they added to a basket overflowing with books destined for siblings of babies born in the Greensburg hospital’s Family Additions Maternity Center. Books for...
Malls’ best days may be long gone, but memories remain strong, particularly at Christmastime
There was a time when holiday gift buying involved — and in many cases required — a pilgrimage to the nearest mall. Many malls are still there, but shoppers aren’t crowding into them like they once did. And while going to the mall isn’t the experience it once was, nostalgic...
Pricey pants from 1857 go for $114K, raise Levi’s questions
RENO, Nev. — Pulled from a sunken trunk at an 1857 shipwreck off the coast of North Carolina, work pants that auction officials describe as the oldest known pair of jeans in the world have sold for $114,000. The white, heavy-duty miner’s pants with a five-button fly were among 270...
Amazon will tip your delivery driver if you ‘thank’ them through Alexa
Amazon customers with Alexa-enabled devices can send a dose of goodwill to their delivery driver through a program the company announced this week. And the gratitude won’t cost the customer anything. Customers can use the device to say “Alexa, thank my driver” to have an appreciative message — and $5...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County this weekend: Dec. 9-11
Cookies galore The annual Christmas Cookie Tour is set for 5 to 8 p.m. today in downtown Irwin. Local businesses, churches and restaurants will be open to offer cookie samples, while supplies last. The family-friendly festivities will include horse and carriage rides, Christmas karaoke, kids’ cookie decorating and a visit...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Dec. 9-11Video
Pop culture, vinyl records, artisan gift wares and holiday music take the stage this weekend in the Pittsburgh area. Comics and more Doors open at 10 a.m. Friday for Steel City Con, Pittsburgh’s premier comic book and pop culture convention, at the Monroeville Convention Center, 209 Mall Blvd. The convention...
Jewish Americans confront antisemitism with resolve, worry
NEW YORK — Jewish Americans are closely following the recent upsurge in antisemitic rhetoric and actions with a mix of anxiety and resolve — along with a yearning that a broader swath of Americans, including leaders across the political spectrum, speak out against anti-Jewish hatred. New Yorker Rizy Horowitz, who...
7 no-regret New Year’s resolution parties
Some people call them resolutions, others goals, and there are even those who may refer to them as a little pointless. But regardless of semantics, New Year’s fill-in-the-blanks offer an opportunity for a clean slate. In celebration of new beginnings and shaking the dust off another year in the rearview,...
Speaker series highlights Westmoreland County’s ‘hidden treasures’
There are people who go about their work quietly, making positive differences in the community without getting much public recognition. The Westmoreland Diversity Coalition intends to shine a light on some of those people, and their diverse backgrounds, through its new Hidden Treasures Speaker Series. Maria LaVelle, CEO of Pheple...
Wiz Khalifa to make W.Pa. stops to push his medical marijuana products
Rapper Wiz Khalifa is making another mark on the Pittsburgh area — his medical marijuana products will be available at Trulieve locations statewide starting Monday. Khalifa, a graduate of Allderdice High School in Squirrel Hill, will be back in his old neighborhood at the Trulieve location there, as well as...
It’s time to hop on the butter board bandwagon
All you need to make the easiest appetizer of the season is already in your fridge. It’s an idea so simple that it’s hard to believe nobody has thought of it before. Butter boards are without question the best way to welcome guests to a party with low effort and...
Easy homemade treats are sweet dreams for holidays
How do you put those visions of sugarplums dancing in your family’s heads when you are pulled in a hundred different directions? You want the holiday you had as a kid — all special moments, amazing smells and once-a-year bites. But now you know that your mom making that happen...
5 things to consider when picking a live Christmas tree
The Christmas tree tends to be the centerpiece when the halls are decked for the holidays. The question can be whether to go with a live or artificial tree. Here are two things to consider when making the choice: Shopping for a live tree is a great way to make...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County this weekend: Dec. 2-4
Holiday greens and gifts Hours for Greensburg Garden Center’s annual Gifts & Greens Sale are 3-7 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday at the Greensburg Garden & Civic Center, 951 Old Salem Road. Holiday merchandise includes trees of various sizes individually decorated by Garden Center members, along with aromatic...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Dec. 2-4
Holiday music and shopping — along with the ghostly appearance of William Shakespeare — are among events on tap this weekend in Pittsburgh. Shakespeare’s ghost Premiere performances of Pittsburgh playwright Nathan Wagner’s “Perdita” will be at 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. Friday in the New Hazlett Theater, 6 Allegheny Square...
The mind behind the Rubik’s Cube celebrates a lasting puzzle
NEW YORK — If you’ve ever had trouble solving a Rubik’s Cube, a good piece of advice is to break it down into steps. It’s worth a shot: That advice is from the man who invented it. “Problem solving is a very basic activity of the human mind and if...
