Editor's Picks category, Page 230
For area florists, Valentine’s Day bouquets bloom from hours of work
Days before the big day, the back rooms at Linda Brown’s Floral in Donegal were bursting with boxes of colorful flowers, sorted individually into cases by size and type. “We cut and condition all those flowers in a flower preservative that makes them last, and they have to have those...
Thousands apply, but fewer than 250 qualify for Gov. Wolf’s marijuana pardon
When announcing the marijuana pardon project earlier this year, Gov. Tom Wolf said it had the potential to help thousands of Pennsylvanians clear their records. But it has fallen well short of that goal. More than 3,500 applications were sent in for the program, aimed at wiping out low-level marijuana...
Tickets going fast for The Westmoreland’s jazz series concertsVideo
Tickets went fast for the first date in the Winter and Spring Jazz Concert Series at The Westmoreland Museum of American Art. Events manager Darrah Resnick expects the remaining three shows to sell out just as quickly. “It’s probably good to get tickets now,” she said. Sam Brooks, a Pittsburgh-based...
5 years after Parkland shooting, families cope through good works
PARKLAND, Fla. — After a gunman murdered 14 students and three staff members at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School five years ago Tuesday, their families were left with a burning question: How do we go on with our lives while honoring our loved one’s memory? Most have answered by...
Pittsburgh Pop podcast: Talking Super Bowl commercials, local ‘Next Level Chef’ contestant, Warren Beatty’s ‘Dick Tracy’ reduxVideo
In this episode of the “Pittsburgh Pop” podcast, host Tim Benz and TV Talk columnist Rob Owen discuss Pittsburgh pop culture news of the moment, including the return of Pittsburgh native Michael Keaton in “The Flash” trailer and how a Munhall woman competing on Fox’s “Next Level Chef” got sent...
NerdWallet: Family budgeting tips that actually work
When Tom Snyder coaches people in his church about how to budget, he starts by encouraging them to track their spending. “If we don’t track, we don’t know when to stop spending,” he says. The retired engineer and financial coach in Grand Rapids, Michigan, adds that it’s easy to be...
Preview a portion of Universal Orlando Resort’s Epic UniverseVideo
UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. – Universal Orlando Resort is building its fourth theme park, Epic Universe, to join Universal Studios Florida, Universal’s Islands of Adventure and water park Volcano Bay. Although Universal executives have yet to share many details about this fourth park, one section under construction already displays a similar...
U2 returning to stage in Las Vegas, minus one of quartet
NEW YORK — U2 is returning to the concert stage later this year for the first time since 2019 but without one of the original quartet, as drummer Larry Mullen Jr. is on the injured list. The band offered a hint about its reemergence on the biggest stage possible —...
Pregnant Rihanna soars in Super Bowl halftime performanceVideo
Rihanna was above it all. She began and ended the Super Bowl 57 halftime show hovering high above the field at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. The performance delivered on fan expectations but it included a major surprise — the singer is pregnant with her second child. She wore...
Super Bowl ads use nostalgia, star power and light laughsVideo
NEW YORK — Advertisers bet big that viewers were turning to the Super Bowl for a comforting escape, and delivered a series of advertisements that relied on familiar celebrity faces, light humor, and plenty of cuddly dogs. This wasn’t a year for edgy humor or experimentation. After the global pandemic,...
Fast love: 4 couples share their speedy romance stories
In life and love, the length of a couple’s engagement holds no hard and fast rules. The average engagement length for U.S. couples is 16 months, according to a study presented by the Knot in 2021, an increase in duration from 14 months in 2019. Retired co-pastors Lisa and Gary...
Leon Ford shares story of ‘moving forward’ despite adversity with students from 9 local high schools
Leon Ford wheeled himself in front of a group of high school students on Friday and told them his story. “I was pulled over by the police. I was shot multiple times. I’m paralyzed. I was 19.” A Pittsburgh police officer shot Ford during a 2012 traffic stop in Highland...
Steelers fans rooting for Chiefs, unless there’s money involved
Though Pittsburgh has bragging rights when it comes to pro sports championships, the speculation has it the Steel City has a deep-rooted resentment of all things Philadelphia because Philly is a bigger and, arguably, more influential city. Whether that’s on the mark or not, for whatever reason, a lot of...
‘Borg’ drinking trend gains popularity on TikTok
A new TikTok trend that promises a hangover-free drinking spree appears to be gaining in popularity, particularly on college campuses. The borg — short for “blackout rage gallon” — is an alcoholic drink made by filling a one-gallon jug about halfway with water and then adding up to a fifth...
Here’s how to legally bet on the Super Bowl
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Sports betting is now legal in two-thirds of the country, and more Americans than ever before have an opportunity to place a legal bet on Sunday’s Super Bowl. With sports betting ads blitzing the airwaves with come-ons and promotions, things might be a bit confusing, especially...
A look back at Steelers’ 8 Super Bowl appearances
The Steelers have appeared in eight Super Bowls, winning six Lombardi Trophies, four of them within a six-year period. Here is a look back at a collection of Associated Press and Tribune-Review archival photos. Steelers running back Franco Harris gains yardage on his way to setting a new...
Be my Valentine: Cancer Bridges hosts dinner for cancer patients, loved ones
When Naomi Howard was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009, she wanted to give up. It was listening to the loving words of her Valentine that she took to heart. “I said, ‘If you won’t fight for yourself, please fight for me,’” said her husband of 42 years, John Howard....
Ex-Steelers tight end Vance McDonald’s Ligonier-area retreat lists for $5.5 millionVideo
When former Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Vance McDonald and his wife, Kendi, were hunting for a place to live and also to serve visitors as a spiritual retreat, they thought they’d found a little piece of heaven on earth in Ligonier Township. “Kendi and I are both Christians, and we...
Super Bowl ads keep it light by using nostalgia and stars
NEW YORK — Super Bowl ads are more than just breaks between gameplay during the biggest sporting event of the year: they offer a glimpse of the country’s zeitgeist, along with how major industries are faring. This year, crypto ads and automakers are advertising less since those industries are facing...
Unexploded artillery shell from Civil War found in Gettysburg
Gettysburg National Military Park officials discovered an unexploded artillery shell this week at the Central Pennsylvania historic site during a rehabilitation process of the park. The unexploded ordnance shell was found on Feb. 8 within the Little Round Top area of the park, said officials, and it dates back to...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County: Feb. 10-12
More sculpture “More Is More,” a juried exhibit of the Pittsburgh Society of Sculptors, is showing through March 10 in the Harlan Gallery in the Seton Hill University Art Center, 201 W. Otterman St., Greensburg. Featured pieces include floor and wall artwork, installations and works on pedestal, with a variety...
Lori Falce: Politics, tribalism and cheering for the Philadelphia Eagles
This is one of those times when it’s really hard to practice what I preach. Politically, I am all about middle ground and doing what’s in the common good. When it comes to sports, I am the radical fringe that doesn’t just want to win. I want to wage war...
Local lawmakers join ‘battle’ to bring back Bushy Run reenactments
Local lawmakers are pressing the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission for more transparency and a possible reversal of its decision to end Bushy Run’s annual battle reenactment. As a result of her and other lawmakers’ actions, state Sen. Kim Ward, R-Hempfield, is hopeful that PHMC’s “no force-on-force” policy will at...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Feb. 10-12
It’s Super Bowl weekend! Even though the Steelers are not in the big game this year, there are plenty of super things going on in Pittsburgh this weekend. ‘Dracula’ Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s much anticipated premiere of Michael Pink’s “Dracula” opens Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the Benedum Center. There are...
Greensburg Salem biology teacher in running for STEM award; online voting ends soon
Today is the final day to vote online for Greensburg Salem High School biology teacher Andrea Redinger, who is in the running for Women in STEM Mentor of the Year honors at Thiel College. Redinger, a 20-year veteran of the Greensburg Salem faculty, is competing against two other instructors from...
