What a mild winter we have had thus far. No delays, early dismissals or
cancellations. And it seems that
this pattern may hold through the first of the year. With the meteorological start of winter on Dec. 21 (my
twins’ birthday; (Happy 32nd birthday, Morgan and Tyler!), we have
yet to see an accumulating snowfall.
By contrast, at this time last year we had 28 days of plow-able snow. Of course, January and February could
make up for the mild winter thus far; if this happens, we are prepared.
Although students and staff do not come back from Christmas
break until January 4th, our facilities will hum during that time
with myriad activities, practices and events. Throughout this period Greg Shaffer and his crew will ensure
that our sidewalks and lots are salted and plowed as the need arises.
The musical production, The Secret Garden, was very well executed
and equally well received. Mrs.
Wolfe, Mr. Duman and Mr. Seymour, the cast and countless others whose work made
this possible, deserve tremendous praise for a marvelous show. To transform from “student group” to
“theatrical troupe” in such a short time is amazing. With such dedication,
commitment and hard work by all, our district continues the proud Red Devil
tradition of providing an outstanding fine arts program.
Here’s a familiar topic: as of December 18, we have gone 170
days without a state budget, and it appears that no budget will be agreed upon
until after the holiday break at the very earliest - if at all. The impasse is the result of major
unresolved issues in Pennsylvania’s budget: for one thing, no consensus is emerging
on the subject of a tax package to pay for increased state spending; a second
point of contention in negotiations is the postponement of a House plan to take
up a public pension bill. I have
gone on record as saying that we are “holding our own” with our budget, but the
district’s ability to do this is getting progressively more difficult as the
budget impasse drags on. Here’s
hoping the New Year will find our legislators and governor agreeing on a
budget. Ironically, the Governor
presents his new budget for next year during the first week of February. Yes, I
am talking about the budget for the year following
the year for which no budget has yet been determined. If we ran our households
in a similarly neglectful way, the water, electric and gas would have been shut
off long ago….
And now to the subject that keeps me sane through the
state’s shenanigans: College bowl games begin soon. If you read my blog, you know that I am a huge fan of
college football and that I try to watch every game at the risk of being
ostracized by my family and my in-laws, or at the risk of developing carpal
tunnel remote control syndrome. Every
team in every division has worked hard to earn a bowl berth and I feel I owe it
to them to watch them. (Do you think this line will mollify the people I ignore
at this time? Truth be told, I’m not really as bad as I pretend to be.) Even as
I watch the game, a small part of me is already donning the black armband as I
know that the end of bowl season signifies the end of college football for
another year. One benefit of
college football, from a personal perspective, is that I don’t get as worked up
with these games as I do with the games played by our Steelers. Is it possible
that the Steelers’ crushing defeat of their rivals, the Bungles, is a sign that
the team is peaking at just the right time? Could this be The Year? I hope so.
No venison this year for the DiLeo family, as I never really
got to see all the nice bucks during hunting season that I saw on my trail
cams. As with football, there is always
next year…
Enjoy the holidays – Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Please hug your family and tell them you love them…. Dr. D.
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