Omaha, NE

Popping in to remind everyone that Chris Isaak will be at the Stir Concert Cove tonite at 7:30 pm and Keith Urban will be at the Qwest Center tomorrow night. If that international talent isn’t what you’re looking for, head on out to Westfair for all the great local shows and carnival rides/games.

Happy Friday all!

Yesterday at 10am firefighters and rescue squads were sent to a Bellevue home engulfed in flame. Three young girls, ages 16, 2, and 11 months lost their lives in the fire, reportedly started when one of the other children (a 7 year-old) played with a lighter on a mattress upstairs.

The teenager, babysitting the other two girls, attempted to get them to safety, but was unable. An airman tried to rescue them but also failed, as did police and firefighters.

Four other children in the house all made it out, and Alma went back in for the two remaining little girls. That’s when tragedy struck this family.

Our thoughts are with the families and the surviving children as they cope with their loss.

(photo courtesy of the omaha world herald)

Due to yesterday’s amazing Lohan-focused drama, today is all about the alcohol!

There’s a new Catholic school in town, and despite it only having less than one week to finish filling it’s necessary 100 spots to open this fall, it looks likely it will find those students. St. Peter Claver Cristo Rey Catholic High School (what a mouthfull!) is part of a Chicago-based Catholic High School group that targets lower-income students. During their four years at the high school, the students attend class four days a week and work in the community on the fifth, gaining valuable work experience and helping cut costs of their education.

If I had a child, I would want to send them to a school like this, Catholic teaching aside. The valuable experience, plus the boot camp-style pre-school program they have to attend beginning July 30, makes this school unique amongst Omaha high schools. Here’s hoping they get the rest of the students they need!

Have a great weekend, and enjoy the new Harry Potter book.

Omaha, newspaper, African-American empowerment network, creighton, harry potter

I’m giving in, people. Personally, I caved long ago, but for blogging purposes, today is the day. Harry Potter mania is sweeping the nation, from spoilers and pages being scanned and posted to bloggers across the world posting costume pictures and party ideas for the big day. I won’t be attending one of the many parties happening Friday evening, although I will be heading to Buffalo Wild Wings for their Friday night special Harry Potter trivia game.

Because, deep down, I’m still a dork like that.

Here’s a list of some Harry Potter-related stuff happening in and around Omaha.

Long Live Potter!

For Fashionable Omaha Wednesday, I find great pleasure in bringing this to your attention.

Monday night Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson appeared on the Colbert Report on Comedy Central, with questions centering around the 18 benchmarks Congress is using to evaluate the Iraq war, and which Nelson helped to author.

However, the true greatness of the show (and of the focus of this article in the local paper), was in the new hairdo the Senator is sporting. Apparently not one to be outdone by the cosmetic changes most females undergo on a regular basis, Nelson dyed his grey hair auburn!

Claiming his new barber suggested a rinse, and that he didn’t know what he was getting into, Nelson’s new barber and his new hair color probably won’t last long. I guess he didn’t think people would notice? There’s nothing wrong with dying your hair, Ben. Wear the new brown locks proudly!

As for the Colbert Report, the papers are reporting Nelson held his own, but I seriously doubt that’s the case. No one can when faced with Colbert.

Omaha, Ben Nelson, The Colbert Report

With temperatures still on the rise in Omaha, much of the daily news seems to focus on keeping cool while keeping safe. From articles about fencing off your pool to the Salvation Army’s free fans, we can’t seem to get the temps out of our heads. If you don’t have central air (like me) now is the time to break down and turn on every window unit you’ve got, and be sure your pets have plenty of water and shade.

(note to my neighbors … PLEASE don’t leave your dog outside all day today, or i WILL have to call the Humane Society on you. it’s too hot outside for him)

One way to beat the heat? Head to the Guitar Hero tournament tonite at the Waiting Room Lounge in Bensen.

Omaha, heat, guitar hero, swimming pool, air conditioning

Not much else in the news today. I’ll be back with more excitement tomorrow.

Omaha, Omaha World Herald, news, prostitution arrests, rape case, immigration

I’m back from vacation, back to work, and already overwhelmed with my to-do list! I might not get to posting some real content here until tomorrow, but I’ve got some great stuff lined up, so don’t give up on me!

I’ll be taking a few days off, back on Wednesday after a nice little vacation. I’ll possibly get a few things posted to go live while I’m gone, but I make no promises. In any case, have a great weekend and I’ll catch everyone next week!

Omaha, Ralston, 4th of July parade, martini bar, Old Market

Driving home today from a family 4th of July barbecue, we came across an amazing site.

A train headed east over 84th Street had some sort of accident, and four of the cars had dumped all or part of their coal loads out onto the surrounding grass. One local train enthusiast stopped in a parking lot told us that each of those cars carries 100,000 pounds of coal. Each one. So there’s somewhere between three and four hundred thousand pounds of coal dumped out in the area now.

We didn’t stay long enough to see how they’d go about cleaning it all up, but I got some great photos of the whole ordeal. I’ve included them after the jump for those who are interested.

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