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The endless horizon: Why generations of landlocked Appalachians keep coming back to Erie

Long before the furthest-left corner of the Commonwealth began welcoming millions of sunbathers, Presque Isle State Park served as a critical shield for a young nation. During the War of 1812, the peninsula’s natural, 5.8-square-mile harbor provided the perfect sanctuary. Master mariner Daniel Dobbins recognized that a shallow sandbar across the bay’s entrance would protect American shipbuilders from deep-draft British warships. Under the cover of Presque Isle’s dense forests, Commander Oliver Hazard Perry constructed a formidable naval squadron. In September 1813, Perry sailed ...

Dear Annie: Dispirited Da Vinci

Dear Annie: I recently turned 27 and feel as if life is just passing me by. I try so many different things to find career opportunities and to meet other people but nothing leads to anything, and I am always stuck back at square one. It seems like nobody ever gives me a chance (social and economic). Is there a way to move on in life without sacrificing your identity? Right now, I’m terribly alone. Outside of a few family members, I have no social life, no love life and no career opportunities. It wouldn’t be so bad if I could just have one of those pillars. I’m stuck in a small ...

Acute grief reaction occurs in sibling who lost their sister

DEAR DR. ROACH: My sister died about a month ago. We were very close, and I was with her when she died of a brief but serious illness. The day after, I felt completely unbalanced. I had brain fog and nausea, which comes and goes, as well as extreme exhaustion and tinnitus. I saw my general physician and asked for a full blood test, which came back normal. She said that all signs pointed to grief and stress from a traumatic event. I then went to my doctor of otology, who did a full ear exam and concurred with my physician. I’ve had many people who’ve passed away in my life, ...

The GOP isn’t always the best party for conservatives

I often get asked for my advice on how to vote. I’m the first to concede these requests come from a very niche slice of the electorate — that tiny remnant of people who know who I am, value my opinion and share my exasperation with both parties. I am going to answer the question. But first let me explain why I don’t like it. I think too many pundits on the left and right fall into the habit of confusing or conflating the fortunes of a party with that of their philosophy. Many come by this tendency honestly. As the parties have polarized ideologically, it’s a natural ...

Obsessed with yesterday, Trump is unprepared for tomorrow

“The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” The Nobel Prize-winning author William Faulkner wrote those words in 1951. Yet, they could be a commentary on the political scene 75 years later. No issue matters more to President Donald Trump than the results of the 2020 election. Despite newspaper investigations, congressional hearings and the results of over 60 legal challenges, he still says he won. This year, FBI agents in flak jackets seized boxes related to the presidential election six years ago in Fulton County, Georgia. After a Justice Department investigation, his ...

Shingles patient doesn’t experience pain due to vaccination

DEAR DR. ROACH: I was reading your recent column about shingles. Several years ago, I contracted shingles, even after getting the shingles vaccine. It hit me in my left eye, so I went to my eye doctor. (I wasn’t sure what the problem was.) He took one look at my eye and diagnosed me with shingles. He gave me an antibiotic that cleared up the problem. At no time was I in any pain, which I attributed to my getting the vaccine. Do you concur with my observation? I’m aware that getting shingles can be very painful. — L.J. ANSWER: Shingles is caused by a reactivation of the chicken ...