It's disappointing to learn today that the Daily News thinks of itself as serving no other higher public good than acting as a fly swat.

Well, I suppose it could also be used to line a bird cage, wrap a fish, clean a window or mulch a garden.

At The Batavian, we're pretty proud of the fact that we're here to serve the community by helping people become better informed and giving all residents a chance to have a voice in their community.

You can subscribe to the Daily Fly Swat at BataviaNews.com.

The campaign to elect Democrat Jon Powers to the 26th Congressional District is again calling out primary opponent Jack Davis. They allege that Davis' financial disclosure statement revealed that Davis has more than $35 million in oil and big energy stocks — including Chevron, Exxon Mobil and Hess Corp.

The Batavian asked Davis to respond to those initial questions posed by the Powers campaign when they were released a couple weeks ago. No one on the Davis campaign addressed the issue directly in this forum, although, after some inquiries on our part, a representative of the campaign signalled the release of Davis own national energy policy that stressed "energy diversity" — nothing more specific, however, has yet been released.

From the Powers camp press release:

"Jack Davis claims that he will go to Washington and work to lower gas prices, yet he refuses to answer some seemingly simple questions about the $35 million he has invested in Big Oil and the hundreds of thousands of dollars he has profited off of record high gas prices," said Powers for Congress campaign manager John Gerken. "The more money Big Oil makes, the more money Jack Davis makes."

Two weeks ago the Powers Campaign posed several questions to Jack Davis regarding his conflicted interests regarding America's energy independence. Two weeks have passed and still no word from Jack Davis about the $35 million in energy stocks.

Again, we have asked the Davis campaign to respond.

Donations Needed for the 2nd Annual Batavia Players Summer Youth Theater Yard Sale

Saturday, July 19th & Sunday, July 20th

Donations of Yard Sale Items are greatly appreciated.  No CLOTHING OR SHOES. 

Items May be dropped off at Batavia High School, 260 State Street Tuesday, July 15th -  Thursday, July 17th.  From 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

 Items can also be donated on Saturday, June 19th in the morning.

Please help to make this another successful Summer Youth Theater Season.

JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR

AUGUST 14th - 16th - Batavia High School

7:30PM

Tickets at GO ART or ROXY's or at the High School on Nights or afternoons of Rehearsals

OK....so the proverbial question was just asked of me again.  I had made a call to try and obtain some help with  my current Batavia Players Summer Youth Theater Production of Jesus Christ, Superstar and the person on the other line informed me that "time really does fly by...was it time for this again".  Then came the proverbial anticipated question.  Why do I do this year after year, summer after summer and place your life on hold over the nicest months to do a musical show in Batavia?  I assured her that yes, it was "that time of year again" and continued with my conversation to see if they could be of some help.  I added some simple platitude like, "Someone has got to do it!"  I was certain we would digress and since listening is a skill I sometimes have to hone, I decided to give her a listen.

After a few moments listening,  I realized she was just one more person out of millions that expected happiness to find them....I have often thought  that most people really want to be happy but rarely are they happy in the quality or quantity that they believe they deserve.  Most people also believe it is up to happiness to find them.... Not lifting a single little finger to achieve this goal on thier own.  Her discussion of the uninhabital weather, the cost of gas, the price of milk and the need to crack down on some expenses sent me into a quandry.  She actual asked, "How can you be happy with the price of  milk being what it is these days?" 

So we did digress and my mind wandered and soon the person on the other end was getting my uh-huhs and oh gee's etc...... and I was thinking of some basics in my life.  When I was a little kid and the price of milk went up or there was a need to conserve, we just did it.  I remember my mom mixing non-fat dry milk with water and then adding a quart of regular milk to it so that is was 80% powdered milk product and 20% the real thing.  She told us it was healthier and we drank it and obtained the proverbial milk mustache...in reality she was trying to save money.  Mom was never really a stellar cook, but we did have some treats from time to time.  We were not allowed to eat chips or snacks.  We ate popcorn.....freshly popped.   In her words....."It is much better for you and you get a natural product".  In reality, a bag of popcorn would provide my family a week's worth of snacks for 29 cents.  I particularly liked lemon/grape kool-aid with only half the sugar ( YOU guessed it if you knew that Mom said it was "better for us than soda with less sugar")  The reality was it saved money).  I even learned to like the milk mixture.

The point of this whole discussion is this.  When we were challenged financially, and there were times when were and times when we were not, we adapted and smiled and laughed and did everything pretty much that we liked to do.  We just had to be resourceful.   We made things, we had 4-H Meetings, we walked to the neighbors and we took care of our farm and animals.  We may have complained about the heat of the summer while putting up hay or the price of gas going over 40 cents a gallon, but we adapted.  We were always just fine.

Today I wonder.  Do we actually buy happiness?  Are those that have money any  happier than those that need or want?  Do we expect happiness to take its merry stroll through the universe and find us????  When I think back to lemon/grape koolaid and fresh popped popcorn and working on the farm I realize the answer.  IT really is up to us to find happiness and to take as much of it as we can hold.  It is the one component of this world where there is always enough, you can't take too much and it is found everywhere.  It is a simple process, being happy.   I happen to find happiness when I am creating the Batavia Player's Summer Youth Theater Production and working with such great young people.  I happen to find happiness when I sit with my grandchildren and read, play or rock them while watching television.

I find little things and big things to make me happy.   So when you think you are going to complain too much and you are falling in a trap of the doldrums....go out on an adventure.  Scrape up your last change and see a funny movie or rent a DVD, sit next to a children ladden with laughter playground or look at a baby.   Grab a good book and read or take the time to stare at some birds at a feeder.  The abundance of happiness is out there......even in the darkest times it can be found....and there is only one cardinal rule when you do find it..... Share It....Look for someone else who is looking for happiness and give them a hug full. 

The only thing better than finding happiness for yourself is sharing happiness with another. 

Not much Batavia news on the front page of today's Daily News that wasn't already featured on The Batavian. In fact, both Batavia stories — one about GCC's $4 million capital project and the other about LeRoy's Oatka Festival — were on our site this morning and yesterday, respectively. (Check out the link on the right to the Buffalo News coverage of the Legislature meeting for more details.)

Inside, the Youth Page features a pair of articles on summer parks programs run by the Batavia Youth Bureau: the 2008 Batavia Summer Youth Program, which features weekly tennis activities. Call (585) 345-6420 for more information.

Tom Rivers has a nice column on today's opinion page about a local man's ties to an Olympic coach, and the wonders of the pole vault.

As always, we encourage you to pick up a copy of the Daily News at your local newsstands — Main Street Coffee has some, plus they have coffee. Or, better yet, visit BataviaNews.com and subscribe.

Pow! Can you see that sunburst on that sunburst-orange hood? That's hot. Hot!

Genesee Community College's Cruise at the College is right around the corner: July 26. We mentioned yesterday that the Batavia Area Jaycees will be holding a chicken barbecue.

So, what else can you expect?

How about several custom-built trikes from Skull Crusher Trikes of Leicester on display. Or "remote-controlled flying machines" flown by the Batavia Flying RC Club. Plus there's music, "ultra lights" and good, hot picnic-style food. Then, of course, there's the classic cars, motorcycles and trucks.

Dash plaques (see them to the left here) will be granted to the first 200 cruisers. Pre-sale tickets for the chicken barbeuce are available for $8 through the Jaycees — just call (585) 343-5775. Entry to the Cruise is free. Pauly's Pizza will be serving up slices. The Batavia Lion's Club will serve up some dogs and burgers. Abbot's will be serving frozen custard.

The cruise starts at 4:00pm and should go to about 8:00pm.

Call (585) 345-6809 for more information.

• Nineteen-year-old Anthony S. Molaro, of Alabama, faces several felony charges following an investigation into an incident that occurred on June 28, Genesee County sheriff's deputies said. Deputies were told that Molaro violated an order of protection by allegedly locking a person in a car and forcing conversation by threats. Molaro was charged with first-degree criminal contempt, first-degree unlawful imprisonment and first-degree coercion.
• Genesee County sheriff's deputies reported several arrests made at the Motley Crew concert at Darien Lake last night. Three men were charged with second-degree harassment, and all three were accused of punching or otherwise attacking security officers at the concert. They were: Andrew D. Bolya, 26, of Franklinville; Joseph J. Manners, 23, of Kenmore; and Brian M. Slater, 35, of Syracuse. Bolya, 26, of Franklinville, was also charged with unlawful possession of marijuana.
• Amber L. Knapp, 22, of Oakfield was charged with second-degree criminal contempt, second-degree criminal trespass and petit larceny yesterday afternoon, city police said. Knapp was accused of entering and taking something from a Summit Street residence in Batavia that she had been barred from entering per a court order.

Note: All of the above arrests were reported in published releases from the departments.

City Council will vote Monday to allow Batavia's Youth Football program to remain one more season at Dwyer Stadium before relocating somewhere else in the city — that "somewhere else" will remain to be determined.

You can read our earlier posts to learn more about this issue that has ignited a bit of a controversy among council members and city residents. Many say that it would not cost the city much money at all if the program stayed at Dwyer one more year. Others say exactly the opposite, that, in fact, it would cost the city no less than $10,000 to let youth football play another season.

Public comments will be welcome at the meeting prior to the vote.

Also on the agenda for council's business meeting Monday:

• Recognition of a $6,000 grant for portable radios for the police department.
• Contract agreements to hire firms for tree trimming and removal and for grant writing.
• An agreement with the town of Batavia to pursue consolidation studies.

Click here to download the complete business meeting Agenda.

During council's conference meeting Monday, council members will continue the discussion of tree trimming and removal policies throughout the city, sparked in part by the concerns of Councilwoman Marianne Clattenburg that inconsistencies left some neighborhoods looking barren while others were flush with greenery.

Also on that agenda is a discussion on a new sign proposed for the Batavia City Centre mall drawn up (quite literally) by City Manager Jason Molino and presented to the Mall Merchants Association. (You can see the sketch for it to the left here.) This sign would be placed at bothe entrances to the mall and cost approximately $17,000.

Unfortunately, Molino says in a memo to Council, the mall merchants "did not like the design because they stated they could not advertise for events, and that they have lost revenue due to the lack of the sign."

Molino goes on: "When I inquired as to the benefits of even advertising and how much income they received due to the prior sign, there was no response."

The merchants instead requested a free-standing sign that was drawn up by Assistant City Managaer Sally Kuzon (see below). Molino commented in the memo:

"I stated that sign will be placed in-between City Hall and Hawley Insyrance and that a free standing sign downtown would not look very good aesthetically and that it would interrupt the continuity of the pedestrian sidewalks."

No matter. The merchants liked the design of the free-standing sign, which would cost between $15,000 and $20,000.

Any questions?

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm a little doubtful that the first sign would cost $17,000 — it doesn't seem like much more than plastic letters mounted on the entrance.

Check out WBTA for this and other stories:

• The Genesee County Legislature unanimously approved a $4 million renovation of athletic facilities at Genesee Community College that will include the addition of softball and soccer fields with artificial turf and lighting. State funds will cover half the cost.

So... the whole back page of the A-section in today's Daily News is devoted to coverage of two out-of-town festivals happening this weekend: a Taste of Buffalo and the Sterling Renaissance Fest. Both are fine guarantees of a good time, I'm sure. I know I plan to head down to Sterling later this summer. Probably for the Pirate Revel. Argh!

But we're here to say that you don't have to go that far.

LeRoy, everybody's favorite world capital of Jell-O, will be hosting its annual Oatka Festival this Saturday and Sunday. Buffalo and Sterling are both Thruway stops away. heck, you can almost throw a stone from Batavia and hit LeRoy.

LeRoy's Oatka Festival, held on the banks of the lovely Oatka Creek, began in 1989. Its organizers did all they could to ensure the event would be "an old fashioned community gathering" — and they've kept it that way ever since.

You could say the festivities kick off at 11:00am Saturday with a parade down Main Street in LeRoy. That same day, you can expect no less than a backyard family circus, a chicken barbecue, brass bands and "cookie song writing for kids" — not sure what that means but it sounds fun.

And that's just Saturday.

Sunday will keep the music going — including a high school talent show under the tent. For the readers out there, the Woodward Memorial Library will continue its used book sale throughout the weekend. Then, of course, there are the crafts, the food, the 5K Walk/Run and the Vietnam Veteran's Duck Derby.

Click here to download the full schedule of events as it was printed in the LeRoy Pennysaver, or check it out on the Web site.

A story in the local section of today's Daily News about the logo design contest for the New York-Penn League was missing one very important element. In a story all about designs, it would have been nice to see them.

So I went online and found them.

First things first, make sure you visit the Web site and vote for your favorite. There are six altogether from five finalists — Matthew Steinberg of Corfu got two submissions into the finals. Unfortunately, you can't tell which two are his. (This one to the left here is the current logo.)

Here are some more details about the contest from the Minor League Baseball Web site:

At the beginning of April, the New York-Penn League announced their current logo would be retired at the completion of the 2008 season. In an effort to find a new mark, the league announced a contest to help design the new logo. The league received over 80 designs from talented artists as far away as Paris, France, as well as designers from throughout the New York-Penn League community. After narrowing the competition to the top five designs, the contest will now be turned over to you, the fans, to select the league’s new logo.

And here are the final six. I kind of like Option Nos. 4 and 5.

Now, go vote!

What's going on in today's Daily News? Let's take a look...

A former Orleans County resident, who is considered a "person of interest" in the shooting death of Oakfield man William Fickel in 2005, was jailed in West Virginia a couple weeks ago. James M. Nichols, 55, was sentenced to 63 months in federal prison for possessing firearms that he should not have had since he's a convicted felon. While the charges do not relate to the murder, they were discovered as a result of its investigation. Read the article by Scott DeSmit for the full details of Fickel's unsolved homicide and the $100,000 reward for information leading to a conviction.

Reporter Tom Rivers takes a look at some changes in store for the poorly attended Genesee County Fair. Fair organizers hope the changes will bring in more bodies. Genesee has had the second poorest attendance out of eight upstate counties over the past several years, second only to Livingston. Changes this year will include:

• Charging admission by the carload rather than per person: $5.
• Offering an "Everything Pass" for $12 that gets you admission, rides and events.

In addition to the typical fair events, folks should expect live music daily and fireworks Friday and Saturday. The fair opens Tuesday and runs through Sunday.

A public hearing in Oakfield tonight will be the first to get input into a potential merger of the courts in Oakfield, Elba and Batavia.

A story in today's local section about a Genesee Community College $4 million capital project was featured in the WBTA news roundup on The Batavian this morning.

God's Helping Hands and Project Hope are looking for more volunteers for another neighborhood cleanup that runs from 10:00am to 1:00pm Saturday on South Spruce, Prune and Jerome Streets. Call (585) 344-2997 to join up.

Nothing local in sports news today.

We've been advertising The Batavian on WBTA since the site launched in May.  We're very happy with the results, but agree with Dan Fisher that our ad should be switched up once in a while to keep the message fresh.

A week or so ago, I sent Dan over a new script and he suggested hiring a female announcer this time to change the tone of the ad.

The new ad started running yesterday.  It features Nici Johnson, a young, ambitious Batavian who is working to break into broadcasting.

I know her mostly as a waitress/short order cook at the Pok-A-Dot, one of my favorite fine dining establishments in town (previous post), but Nici is also working for WBTA, a couple of radio stations in Buffalo (in promotions) and teaches modeling on Sundays.

Young people who work that hard to get ahead always do, so we can expect great things from Nici.

Here is an MP3 of the spot.

It's very cool, we think, that Dan picked Nici to do this spot.

Monday:

• 2:40am, Oak Street, accident
• 11:51am, 7 Lewis Place, criminal mischief
• 3:51pm, 8351 Lewiston Road, accident
• 5:21pm, 38 Columbia Ave., trespass
• 5:33pm, Vine Street, accident
• 6:54pm, 114 Liberty St., trespass

Tuesday:

• 8:54am, 18 Sumner St., larceny
• 2:14pm, 10 W. Main St., rape
• 3:32pm, 679 E. Main St. (Apt: 4B), burglary
• 3:21pm, 10 Jefferson Square, forgery
• 3:37pm, 16 River St., accident
• 7:23pm, 210 E. Main St., accident
• 8:25pm, Oak Street, accident
• 8:32pm, Clinton Street, accident

Note: We don't include noise complaints, domestic disputes and routine police business.

This isn't a major site change, but it does have a lot to do with how people participate in the site ... We've changed the way comments display under a post.

They are no longer "threaded," which means direct replies to a previous post no longer appear under the comment being replied to.  While the intent of that format is to make conversations easier to follow, it never really works that way.

The "old school" way of displaying comments on posts is in a flat list with the oldest comments on top, newest on the bottom.  That's what we're doing now.

Pavilion Central School Pre-K teacher Betsy Collins was honored with the Partners in Education Award, the first of its kind bestowed by the students of Genesee Community College's Teacher Education program.

Students in the program nominated teachers as a way to recognize not only the important work teachers do in individual classrooms, but also the tremendous mentoring service they provide for future teachers.

"The mentorship students receive in these teachers' classrooms provides a relevant real-life experience that not only helps our pre-service teachers learn and practice valuable skills but also assists them in formalizing their decision and commitment to becoming a teacher," said Christine Belongia, Genesee's Teacher Education program coordinator. "We are so grateful to each and every teacher who generously opens his or her classroom to our students. The educational benefit is immeasurable!"

Call Christine Belongia at (585) 343-0055 ext.6278 for more information about GCC's teacher education.

United Memorial Medical Center issued the following news briefs:

United Memorial Medical Center will offer free blood pressure screenings on Wednesday, July 9th from 10 am to 12 noon at the Batavia Senior Center, 2 Bank Street, Batavia. For additional information on this and other community outreach programs, contact the Healthy Living Department at (585) 344-5331.

United Memorial Medical Center is a proud sponsor of Walk the Villages, a free event initiated by Senator Mary Lou Rath to encourage residents to walk in 6 local communities. Batavia’s community walk is scheduled for Thursday, July 6th at 6pm. It will begin at the Batavia City Centre where United Memorial will offer free health screenings and giveaways. Participants will have the opportunity to go on a guided walk downtown where they will learn about the history of some of Batavia’s businesses and landmarks. For more information on Walk the Villages visit our  website at www.ummc.org.

United Memorial Medical Center will host an informational presentation on Bariatric Surgery on July 16th at Richmond Memorial Library, 19 Ross Street, Batavia. The program is free and will begin at 6:30 pm. Anthony DiBenedetto, MD Chief of Surgery for Rochester General Hospital, will lead the discussion on surgical options for significant weight loss. Seating is limited. Reservations may be made by calling the Healthy Living Department at (585) 344-5331.

The Batavia Area Jaycees will have a chicken barbecue during the Cruise at the College auto show Saturday, July 26 from 4:00 to 8:00pm. Pre-sale tickets are available for $8.

Call (585) 343-5775 or send an e-mail to info (at) bataviajcs (dot) org to order your tickets or to find out more information about the event.

If you just can't wait until then, Silver Lake Country Club in Perry will have a chicken barbecue Saturday, July 19, along with live music from Kid Kurry and the Bud Girls. Check out the club's Web site for more information.

Emmanuel Baptist Church on Oak Street will welcome "songwriter, vocalist and missionary" Nancy Honeytree Sunday, July 27 at 2:00pm. From the press release:

Honeytree's music is cross generational. She gives a dynamic Christian testimony through music. Her "Rattle Me, Shake Me" is among her earlist numbers, while her poignant song about her two sons — one in heaven & one on earth — grabs every heart.

This free concert will be outside under the pavilion.

Check out WBTA for these and other stories:

• The Genesee County Legislature meets tonight at 7:00pm at the Old County Courthouse to discuss a $4 million capital project for Genesee Community College that would include renovations to the gym and an expansion of the athletic fields. The state would pay half.
• Rochester billionaire Tom Golisano made official his intent to start a Political Action Committee and back certain candidates for state office with a bankroll of $5 million. For a more detailed story, check out the Democrat & Chronicle article.