Abandoned Dog

On January 2, a dog was found tied to a railing in a Scottish train station located in South Ayrshire. The male shar-pei crossbreed was found with a suitcase full of food, bowl, a toy, and a pillow. The dog had a microchip and the original owners of the dog was found. However, the owners sold the dog online and does not know the address of the new owner. The SPCA says this is the exact reason why you should not sell your dogs online because people are buying a dog they know very little about and could lead to a situation like this. In Scotland, the act of abandoning a dog is a crime and can ban you from owning an animal for a certain period of time or even for life.

I believe this is a horrible act. I don't understand why someone would just leave an animal unattended in a train station. It doesn't make sense why they couldn't just bring the dog to the SPCA so it will go to a good home. At least there was no sign of physical abuse on the dog.

The SPCA says that they will look after the dog until they are able to find a suitable owner.

Gas Prices

Recently I went on a trip to Florida and passing by a gas station I notice the price of their gas, it was $1.97 a gallon! I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the gas below $2. When I got home I noticed the gas was around $2.80. That's not even the worst of it, the national average is at $2.19 per gallon, making our gas about sixty cents over the national average. I wonder why Western New York has the most expensive gas in the country.

Last night on Channel 2 news they questioned senator Chuck Schumer about the big difference of gas prices. His response was, "We did not like what the [Federal Trade Commission] did a few years ago. We've asked the Energy Information Administration to do a study. They are doing it now. As soon as we get results, I'll let you know." Channel 2 reported that crude oil fell below $50 a barrel, so I don't understand why our gas is not coming down to around the national average. But we can't complain that much because the gas is still under $3. Hopefully, they will fix the problem soon.

Lancaster Snow Piles

Even though the "Snovember" Storm was over a month ago, residents in Lancaster still have huge piles of snow blocking the sidewalk. The Village of Lancaster did cut the citizens a break during and shortly after the storm and dropped the law saying you must clear your sidewalk for that period of time. However, a month after the snow storm residents are still having trouble removing the snow piles which have now turned more into ice. These piles are very dangerous for people because they will have to walk in the street instead of on the sidewalk. A concerned resident called WGRZ news station and had one of their reporters investigate the story. The reporter went to a village official who said it is the landowner's responsibility to clear the sidewalk. He then went on to say that the village will help anyone who contacts them. And the village did send out workers to clear some of the sidewalks the reporter did come across. I'm glad that the Village is doing something about it but they should have done something about it before a citizen had to reach out to a news station.

Cat Killer

Last week, a man was walker his German Shepard in Batavia and ended up killing a cat. He came across the cat, threw it in the air and stomped on it a few times until the cat was dead. By the time the police arrived, the man and his dog were gone. There is now a $500 award out for whoever finds the man. 

I think it's horrible that someone would just kill a cat for walking in front of him. There was no reason to hurt the animal, he could've just kept walking. I hate when people hurt animals like this. There is just no place in my mind where I can figure out why people would do this sort of thing. It is believable that the man has something wrong for just killing an innocent animal and hopefully they find him and give him the help he needs. If anyone with information is asked to Batavia Police at 585-345-6350.

The "Drip Plan"

Last year if you lived in Niagara Falls, you might have had your pipes freeze and not have had water for weeks at a time. Well the city of Niagara Falls is saying to leave your faucet running all winter. They want you to turn a sink in your house on, preferably the lowest one such as in the basement, and turn the water on until the water coming out is an eighth of an inch in diameter, or the size of a pencil lead. The city notified the people that had this problem last year with a letter stating these instructions. Now many citizens have problems with this. They feel like the city is not doing anything about it and just giving them this "band-aid" solution. Also in the letter, it states that if you have more than an eighth of an inch of water coming out, you will be charged extra. This could be a problem for elderly people who might not be able to decipher an eighth of an inch. Do you think the city should be making more of an effort to try and fix this or just let this minor solution be the end of the problem. Also, should the city pay for the extra money that is being charged to the citizens that have to leave their water?

PB&J Drive

With the lack of the true Christmas Spirit I have been talking about, I want to bring you some more stories of people helping the community like the person that dropped the gold coin in the Salvation Army Kettle. There is a group of people from Lewiston, NY that have started a peanut butter and jelly drive five years ago. Their goal is to help hungry children by filling shelves of food pantries with food kids will eat and enjoy. A lot of food pantries have a lot of canned foods but its food that children will not like or eat. In five years of doing this drive, the collection of jars has grew from a few hundred to about 13,000 jars last year. They then take these jars, separate them, and take them to various pantries including the Salvation Army in Lockport, which feeds 200 families a month.  "It'll help a lot of children and a lot of people," said Robert Drinkwater, Salvation Army Director of Social Ministries. "And you don't really realize when you see people who get it how appreciative they are that it's there." This is a great group of people that continue to not only help men and women but their children too. I'm glad there is people out there that remembers to put Christ in CHRISTmas!!

If you want to donate, you can find a list of drop off locations on the Peanut Butter and Jelly Facebook Page. For more information you can call 510-7108, 735-7061 or 799-4013.

The surprise in a Salvation Army kettle...

Recently the anonymous "gold coin" donor has visited a Salvation Army kettle in Mebane, North Carolina. This random person has repeatedly dropped coins like this in Salvation Army kettles in this area for a few years. A few days after he drops the coin, he does call anonymously to make sure the coin arrived safely to the Salvation Army. The coin this year was an Australian Kangaroo $100 gold piece which is estimated to have a value of $1,200. Captain Jimmy Taylor with the Salvation Army once again thanked the donor for his generosity and how he donates in such a fun and unique way.

Following my post from yesterday, this is a great example of how people should be during the holiday season. We should always remember the people that need our help year round, but especially in this time of year that people are always giving. Try to remember what Jesus told us to do and take time to help the others around. Even if you can't afford to donate a lot of money, you can donate your time to help out at a soup kitchen or volunteer to be one of the bell ringers for the Salvation Army. Once again, remember the true reason for the season!