GAS PAIN: It’s all relative; Gas pain, that is.

Late last week we heard from Betty Gaston of Gifford who,
returning from a trip to Ohio, was darn happy to pay Bradford
prices for a gallon of gas.

And we heard the same thing about Ohio prices from Harry
Fleming.

Betty tells us she had been warned by her daughter to “fill up”
before leaving home, and found out why when she crossed the Ohio
border. At a time when Bradford’s going rate was $3.09, Ohio was
paying $3.49 a gallon.

Betty tells us the price was $3.49 in cities she visited,
including Columbus and Cincinnati, and apparently covered all of
Ohio. “I’ll be glad to pay 3.09,” she told us upon return.

Harry Fleming added these remarks: “Just wanted to pass along a
quick note about gas prices. I just read the article in Friday
morning’s online paper and couldn’t help but laugh as McKean County
apparently has it good.”

“I live in Troy, Ohio, after growing up in Smethport, and last
week we were paying $3.49 a gallon. Over the Memorial Day weekend,
my wife and I traveled to Dayton, Tenn., an hour or so north of
Chattanooga, and paid $2.95.

“Keep your chins up, McKean County, things could be worse!”

Doesn’t it seem like only yesterday we were complaining when the
price first went over a dollar a gallon? And, now, we’re forced to
feel relatively “happy” to “only” pay $3.09.

OH, ZIPPO: How could this be? That’s basically the question
posed by John E. Rimer of Bradford about the obvious (to
Bradfordians, at least) origin of the Zippo lighter.

He wrote us Friday, “The U.S. Open is being played at the
Oakmont Country Club just outside of Pittsburgh, Pa.”

“I received a program for this year’s Open and on page 41 it
lists Pittsburgh Firsts. There are ten of them listed but one
caught my eye. ‘First Zippo Lighter:ðGeorge G. Blaisdell invented
it in Bradford, Pa., in 1932. Some still bear the Bradford
stamp.'”

“How can the Zippo lighter be a Pittsburgh first?” John
wonders.

Honesty, we have heard of this before – having Zippo being
considered a “Pittsburgh First.”

Maybe, in the very grand scheme of things, Bradford is
considered a distant suburb of Pittsburgh! After all, Bradford is a
lot closer to Pittsburgh than, say, Moscow.