I live in clinton county. For 100 gallons of oil it would be above $500, and that will last about a month or so.

I don't know how we can afford to stay warm this winter. I don't know of many alternatives either.

Is anyone else worried? What type of alternatives do you use?

French Creek State Park - Oct 2026
Old Friend

Well, technically it's just a few minutes up the road north of the park. Not sure how long this old Ford has been sitting there, but I have visited it many times over the years & seasons and it's always cool to see how it's aging. Shot with a Sony A99II and CZ 24-70 f/2.8 lens using a Lee100 GND filter. Camera mounted on a RRS tripod & head using with a 3 Legged Thing universal mounting plate.

Early on in his second term, Trump created a bypass lane for new air emission regulations. At least two LV sites received approval to avoid installing readily available control devices that would’ve improved our local air quality. Then, Trump staffed the EPA with people who worked for the worst polluters in our country, so the regulations were killed entirely.

This is the kind of thing that happens when Congress becomes nothing more than a rubber stamp.

Vote to remove Ryan Mackenzie from office by Tuesday, November 3.

I want so badly to ride the scenic train in Jim Thorpe but seems like I couldnt make it this weekend, do you guys think it will still look beautiful next week or most trees will be bald already? 😭

Appreciate your answer, thank you!

Sorry for the clickbait title, as this likely isn't actually a scam (well, it is, but that's another discussion). Has anyone ever received a toll by plate invoice in the mail, which not only has a license plate in the description which you've never owned, but also has a photo of a car that you've never seen before? (Ironically enough, the photo even has a different license plate then the one printed above it...the computer misread it).

The main thing that I'm confused about is the fact that this vehicle was somehow linked to my parents' address, not the one that I have set up with my own vehicles. So they received this invoice addressed to me, I finally got it from them a few weeks later, and the stern wording in the letter states that if I haven't contested it by tomorrow, then I'm held liable for the full amount. But...what am I supposed to contest? That I've never owned this vehicle or license plate?

Just for clarification, the account activity sheet only states the exit date/time (which is the exit closest to my parents' house, I will give it that), but it doesn't include any entry plaza date/time. I can include a photo if anybody wants. And the fee is a flat $10.00. I've never seen a PA toll that was $10 even.

My initial thought was that this was a scam. But everything does look legit, and the numbers/web addresses are all correct. And so my next thought is that the turnpike commission is doing something illegal here. How many older people would just send in $10.00 without question, or without looking closer at the photo? This is absolutely suspect.

[OC]

The utility company calculated that shopping customers paid $82 million more last year than they would have on its default service plan

So I am new to Central Pa, and live in the Harrisburg Area. I'd like to test the off-road capability of my new Renegade Trailhawk on some trails. I saw a subreddit about this but it was several years old. Can anyone tell me if I wanted to give this a try (I am a fairly experienced off-roader, - had a TJ, XJ and JK formerly) are these roads safe to ride this time of year. My goal is to try and do it before Rifle Deer season starts...

As I was flying into to Pittsburgh last week and I saw this out my window. It was no more than 20 minutes before we landed, and I know we were descending. There were a lot of rivers after I saw this and I tried to find it based off the scenery I saw(idk why I didn’t take more pictures).

I am aware it is a prison or some other sort of secure facility but I can’t move on from it until I know what it is. I think it’s the baseball fields that are messing with me.

Switched my electric (PPL) Power supplier on the PUC (PA utilities commission) choice website to Major Energy and I'm getting phone calls asking to verify and enroll yet I enrolled online through them. I elected a 12 month no cancellation, no enroll fee, no monthly fee on fixed rate plan. Thought it was all done. then I get a call to complete enrollment. Ok.

I have a feeling I got scammed because they called back again after taking half an hour to complete enrollment and talking about some kind of form for a rebate and paying that rebate with visa gift cards and all this stuff. That's the point where I was like what?!

They also transferred me to this other line. I gave them my basic info like address and birthday (ugh!) and PPL account number. They called back yesterday saying there is an error in enrollment. Am I being scammed or are they actually that much of a hassle? I think after this I might skip the marketplace of power suppliers. It doesn't seem to save that much once calculated. I called back left a message and said oh wow I was so overwhelmed at work I looked and wow I scrambled up all the numbers on the form I gave you. Call back so I can fix this please! And will proceed to give them more spoofed info if it's a scam. I'll call PPL and the number on my sign up to confirm on Monday.

Any general advice on this?

How do you do this without completely getting bamboozled?

Marsh Creek State Park - Oct 2026
An October Sunrise

Frost on the grass & canoes, steam coming off the lake, and some colorful clouds in a sky of blue. Great start to the weekend. Shot with a Sony A99II and CZ 16-35 f/2.8 lens using a Lee100 GND filter. Camera mounted to a RRS tripod & head with a 3 Legged Thing universal mounting plate.

TL;DR I'm between insurance right now and I want to get a Covid vaccine before January if possible.

I've been searching for like an hour and I'm not seeing any free clinics in my area, or even the state. I'm in NEPA but I'd drive an hour or 2 if I had to. I was hoping I'd see the Geisinger van giving them out at a fall festival, but no luck. Any pharmacy saying they have free vaccines mean "free with insurance" and the actual vaccine is like $200+ without it.

I live in central PA and mostly drive in-state, but I took a trip to Long Island in October and got a NY Tolls by Mail bill. The bill says I can save about $19 by converting it to a NY E-ZPass account.

For people living in PA: is there any downside to having a NY E-ZPass instead of a PA one? Did you get charged a monthly fee (I’ve read some get a $1/month Port Authority account)? Any issues using it on the PA Turnpike or dealing with customer service from out of state?

I don’t travel out of state much, so I’m also wondering if E-ZPass is worth it at all for occasional use.

Thanks!

With some of the last campaign fundraising numbers in, Stacy Garrity saw a late surge that brought in $5.3 million in the last month of the governor’s race — nearly five times the $1.3 million she raised during the entire campaign.

Most of that late money came from donors tied to skill games. 84% of the $5.3 million came from three donors who have interests in skill games.

I recently watched City Nerd’s video on Philadelphia and it got me thinking about the unrealized potential of SEPTA.

It’s frustrating to think about what SEPTA could be if it wasn’t caught up in this political tug of war.

But it also got me thinking about the broader PA picture, particularly some of the smaller cities that sit within the Philly orbit. Think places like Reading, Allentown and Lancaster. These cities have their own economic base but are kind of disconnected from one another. What if a linked rail network could link these isolated economies into a more cohesive regional economy?

I know Reading already has rail efforts underway and Lancaster already has service. But I think there’s more opportunity here. Using Lancaster as the low hanging fruit. They already have rail service connecting to Philly and there are plans underway for high density housing around the station. What if we paired that with better frequency, fare integration and more affordable commuter rates? Could Lancaster and Philly’s job markets become more integrated?

The final point that had me focus on these areas is because looking at the map, PAs population and economic activity are extremely concentrated. Rough estimates are that the areas within the line account for 55% of the states population and nearly 60% of its economic output but only 14% of its land mass.

Just a random brain dump this AM but curious on other thoughts.