Music from Fayettenam: Cait Cuneo

Chances are you've already heard some rumblings of Cait Cuneo, especially if you're in Connellsville or have watched KDKA recently. Her debut, Violet, came out back in December. The music is great, so you should listen to it, especially if you're into stuff a little more on the soulful side.



She writes all of her own music, which I'm a fan of. You can buy that music in Atkins or online on iTunes or her Bandcamp page.
For more on Cait, check out this video from her CD release show in Pittsburgh.

The Nam on Facebook: Yolanda

This is an old one I had saved and forgotten about, but here ya go! Meet Yolanda, an ill-fated Barbie at a Geibel dance.

Yolanda's caption reads, "She went hog wild. Curiously, no one commented on a disgusting Barbie doll named Yolanda sticking out of the ice tub. Not the teachers, not the upperclassmen, not the parents. I guess that's the kind of school Geibel was."

Especially curious considering just a few years later, another Barbie was allegedly found in the cafeteria, and a former teacher allegedly yelled, "What is this bullshit!?" but that Barbie was also allegedly naked and maimed.

For the Guitar Players

Check out these beauties in Atkins!

Attorney caught in drug deal

This might be one of my favorite Fayette County stories of all time. And there's really no way to get into it other than to just get started.

Uniontown attorney is facing drug-trafficking charges after police allege he brazenly delivered heroin and other narcotics to a man in custody at the Uniontown Police Department on Thursday night.

I could justifiably end this post right here because what else could I possibly add to that!? But actually, it kind of does get better. Because you're all wondering by now why this even happened, right?

City police Officer Matthew S. Painter said the charges were filed after Salisbury, under the guise of speaking with a client, delivered heroin, Xanax and Suboxone to Aaron L. Yauger, 30, of Lemont Furnace, after police picked Yauger up on a bench warrant Thursday.

Painter said Yauger, who had been wanted on drug-related charges, told officers that he had a prearranged agreement with Salisbury that should he be arrested, Salisbury would deliver heroin to him so Yauger could “avoid becoming dope sick.”

That sounds like a great arrangement. I mean, what could possibly go wrong with delivering drugs to the police station just after an arrest!?

The Nam on Facebook: Let the Fair Posts Begin!

That's right, tonight is the first night of the Fayette County fair. I'll be there at some point this weekend, possibly liveblogging if I can get decent phone service, unless I forget like I did last year. One of the most entertaining parts of the fair, though, is the social-media posts, from Nam princesses--and I mean that in the prissy sense, not the authoritative one--being above the fair to interesting Instagram sightings to Tweeting during The Clarks' set (it's tomorrow night). This is a great start!

Have fun listening to an encore of "Cigarette," winning knives or new pets, and eating various fried cuisine!

Larry Orlando Calligraphy

I'm all for support local business, especially when that local business also involves local art and is awesome. Oh, and is done by your former geometry teacher, who came as close to making you good at math as one can when dealing with a girl who went on to get an English degree.

That's right--to add to his website and Etsy store, Larry Orlando has entered the world of Facebook pages!

I've mentioned a few times before that I own this beautiful piece of his, which I bought at last year's Geibel auction and looks great in its temporary home on top of my bookshelf, until I can get it hung on my living-room wall.

Well, that's a fitting piece for a writer to own.

Most recently, I bought his lovely Les Mis card and gave it to my best friend and her husband for their first wedding anniversary, and Mr. O sent a nice little note with it. He says he reads all my Facebook posts, which immediately makes me think, "Oh, God, what have I been posting lately!?" And that reminds me of when MySpace first became a thing and the teachers were creeping on our MySpace profiles and vice versa, but that's another story for another day. Someday, I'll explain why "Laffy Taffy" was requested at prom.

Basically, I endorse these calligraphy products and highly recommend them for a beautiful, inspirational, and more personal gifts and cards. In fact, I almost never actually give people cards, so that alone should tell you something.

And no, Mr. O is not paying me for this post.

Churches

Fayette County is not happy about the numerous church closures in the county--understandably so--and have appealed to the Vatican.

Full disclosure: I was raised Catholic, went to Catholic school until I went to college, and now no longer consider myself a practicing Catholic, mostly because some of the church's teachings don't mesh well with me.

However, good friends of mine are still good Catholics, including my boyfriend, and my grandparents were quite devout. I've seen the benefits of churches--specifically, their sense of community--and so even though I don't really agree with or like a lot, I do understand and respect others' beliefs and what the churches mean.

And they mean a lot, because people are not happy. If you go to church, you probably know this and have probably heard firsthand people complaining about their church closing. Fayette County isn't exactly handling this gracefully. In fact, when a Mt. Washington church had to temporarily close, my boyfriend and I saw people on the news saying, "The church isn't the building, it's the people," and we were like, "Wait, what? People react calmly to church closings?"

That said, the closings bring up to other issues.

Some, like St. Procopius in New Salem, just underwent renovation projects that parishioners donated money to have done. Just a few months after renovations were finished, St. Procopius closed. Kind of seems like a waste of money, doesn't it?

The second is logistics. Okay, fine, some churches had to go and combining them in central locations does make sense, but the problem is that one of the new churches--St. Thomas--though really pretty, has no air conditioning, has a huge flight of stairs to get into it which is problematic for the elderly and basically anyone in winter, and is on a hill. Some argue--quite reasonably--that it would've made sense to keep the big, flat church in Cardale open instead.

Meanwhile, what happens to all the closed churches now?

Urban Gardening

Need some food? Plant a garden!

A partnership with the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, the Uniontown Arts Fellowship (UAF) and the Phoenix Arts Center, the “potato barrel project” was developed as a way to entice children to participate in the summer food service program.

My grandfather used to have a nice, big garden, and a few summers before I moved out of my parents' house, I planted raspberry bushes in their yard. I pick them every time I go over. It's been a bountiful summer. And one of my few goals for my future living space is to have a place with space for a nice, big garden like my grandfather used to have.

I'm always big on finding solutions to Fayette County's problems. We could address food, poverty, and hunger in many ways and the causes are numerous, but urban gardening is certainly a promising start, and I've heard good things about it being done elsewhere.

While there are no income guidelines to participate in the potato program, organizers said the project is an outreach to the 7,460 children in Fayette County who suffer from food insecurity, meaning they don’t always know where their next meal is coming from, according to information from the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank.

The idea has spread, which is awesome.

In addition to the Village of Searights Community Center, the potato barrel project is also being conducted at Marion Villa Apartments, Solid Rock Ministry, Calvary Baptist Church and the Keisterville Community and Youth Center, with the hope to reach 125 children at the five sites.

And Searights has taken it a step further.

Those living in the Village of Searights Community Center have already embraced this idea. Community members are involved in tending to a garden, the fruits and vegetables of which are shared by all.

Think your community could benefit from gardening? Then by all means, go at it! And who knows? Maybe one day I'll have that garden, too, and I'll share my feast with you.

Not Even the Ducks Are Safe

First of all, we can't discuss this article in depth because apparently now you have to pay to read anything more than a few sentences on any HeraldStandard.com article. Which I get from a business standpoint because hey, before the internet was a thing, paying for the paper was pretty much how you got the news. That said, this is the internet--the times, they are a-changin'--and I'm pretty sure there are better ways to make a newspaper profitable than charging $10 a month to read it online. Also, I don't want to pay $10 a month to read a few articles.

So anyway, about these ducks. Now, we all know that the Nam has a bit of a reputation for abusing...well, almost any living thing. But seriously, how often do we really hear about people actually going after wild animals like ducks in a park?

If you're a Geibel student, the answer to that is once--when the class of 2008 were freshmen, went on their retreat, and threw rocks at ducks. According to legend, they also toppled--or tried to topple--a small tree and did the wave after mass. Friendly reminder that I graduated in the class of 2007 and everyone loved us.

But I digress. Here's the one quote I have access to without paying $10:

Marybeth Homistek asked borough council to do something about people abusing ducks at the Fairchance Community Park. Homistek said people throw rocks, harm and harass the ducks at the pond by the Sheldon Avenue playground.

Really, guys? What joy can you possibly be getting out of harassing ducks? Also, are we sure by "people" they don't mean "Geibel class of 2008"?

Just throw bread instead, like normal, non-sociopathic people.

The Nam on Twitter: Street Fights

The tweets tell the story themselves. Enjoy.

I still can't get over the fact that I watched a woman jump out of the passenger seat ON THE HIGHWAY to beat the heck out of another woman.
— Kelsey Zimcosky (@kelcyum) July 8, 2013

@LittleJanelleS On the road from Walmart to Target! By all of those new medical buildings! It was insane.
— Kelsey Zimcosky (@kelcyum) July 8, 2013

@LittleJanelleS It was so crazy. Two cars were parked at the light and one woman was out of her car, arms and fingers pointing and yelling
— Kelsey Zimcosky (@kelcyum) July 8, 2013

@LittleJanelleS at whoever was in the other car. All of a sudden, the passenger door opens, a woman leaps out, grabs the woman's hair (c)
— Kelsey Zimcosky (@kelcyum) July 8, 2013

@LittleJanelleS and she starts throwing her around, punching her head until she was on the ground!
— Kelsey Zimcosky (@kelcyum) July 8, 2013

All of Connellsville Was at St. Rita's Parish Festival

• Had a good time for a little bit at the St. Rita's parish festival finally checking out Sammy Brooks Band live for the first time. Best of luck to former keyboardist, Levi, who is focusing on his other musical project, The Lay Jains. The fair was so packed that the line for fried dough was dishearteningly long.
• Time for farmer's markets! Here's a calendar of where they are and when.
• The fair is coming up, and their Facebook page wants to hit 8,000 likes. When they do, they're giving away free tickets.
• Speaking of Facebook pages, we recently hit 100 likes and would like to raise that number. Help us out? Also be sure to check out posts over there about things like missing pets.
• The Run for Your Lives zombie 5k may have hit the Pittsburgh area last year, but this October, The Running Dead zombie run will be held in Connellsville to benefit the Connellsville High School Patriots. And if you're unfamiliar with the Patriots, it's one of the nicer things Connellsville has to offer--they raise money to support the troops and send care packages. Usually, they have an annual auction. Personally, I'd like to see a run of the actual locations in the George Romero zombie films. With a gust appearance by Tom Savini.
• A benefit for Connellsville's East Park with vendors, crafts, music and a screening of Up will be held this Saturday, July 20.
• Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is hitting Scottdale's Geyer Theater!

The Nam on Twitter: Pittsburgh Dad

No Brandon, you and Jeffy ain't taking that Shamu raft down Streets Run Road. It's Ohio Pyle down 'ere.
— Pittsburgh Dad (@Pittsburgh_Dad) July 11, 2013

Fitting both because apparently, everything was a hot mess yesterday with tons of flooding I was lucky to avoid but also because the Mighty Yough has claimed another life. Be cautious out there, kids, especially in Ohiopyle.

The Fair's A-Comin'

Who's doing the "County Fair Diet" this year? Funnel Cakes, 64 oz. Lemonade, Kettle Corn, and Gyros..........all day.........every day.
— PA Problems (@PennsylvaniaPro) July 9, 2013

So it's not strictly Nam-related, but the fair is only just over two weeks away. This is a diet we all know well, though mine will be tweaked slightly. Not so much kettle corn and gyros--more like church haluski and various combinations of deep-fried Oreos, snow cones, cotton candy, and as many free samples from the Laurel Mall Popcorn Guy as I can swindle.

The Nam on Twitter: Cigarette

Did you know that it's illegal to cut your grass in #fayettecounty without a cigarette hanging out of your mouth? #TheMoreYouKnow
— lady larry david (@emilyrianna) July 8, 2013

The county does seem to smell solely like cigarettes in the summer...

The Nam on Twitter: The Mayor at Lynn's

First of all, I'm way backlogged on Nam news. So much shit going down right now, guys. Stop being crazy for a hot minute...okay, forever, but just for a hot minute to catch up?

I love how the mayor of Connellsville is handing out glow sticks at Lynn's right now.
— Sarah Guynn (@Sarah_Beth_Guy) June 30, 2013

Like, the real mayor, right? And not the snazzily dressed gentlemen that appeared at a themed party a few weeks ago?

Also, if this is done as a campaigning gesture, I'm all for that. As long as the campaign promises involve appointing Fr. Bob to some sort of office and getting Sherwood's reopened.

The Nam on Facebook: Connellsville Crackheads Strike

So, in case anyone is trying to sell any sorts of makeup and hair stuff or if any of you guys try to buy it--especially if it seems used--heads up. It's stolen.

Also, great job, Connellsvillians!

The Nam on Facebook: Seriously, Listen to Fr. Bob's Ideas

Seriously, Fr. Bob should be running this county. We could have a nightclub right now, but no. We have Sky Toilet and themed party costumes.