This is RTS for Friday, June 15, 2007

BLUE MOON: Look up tonight to see part of a special event: a
blue moon.

That’s the word from Denny Ordiway of Emporium who writes,
“Normally we have two full moons every month, but once a year, we
get three in a month, and, according to my calendar, it’s June 1,
15 and 30 this year.”

“I heard a weatherman say that the moon has a different color
sometimes, and he called it a blue moon. I thought a third full
moon was called ‘once in a blue moon.’ Just looking for other
people’s thoughts on this subject.”

It would appear to us that the expression “once in a blue moon”
refers to an uncommon occurrence – such as the three full moons in
a month. If you’ve got a more scientific explanation, let’s hear
it.

COKE BOTTLES: Tom Aiello of Kane “unearthed” a question while
rototilling his garden the other day.

He writes, “Did Bradford ever have a bottling plant that
actually manufactured bottles for Coca-Cola? While rototilling our
flower garden Friday, the 8th of June, I came upon a hard object
that made my tiller bounce and wouldn’t turn over.”

“I stopped the tiller and proceeded to hand dig and turned up a
6.5 ounce Coke bottle. The bottle was green glass and the lettering
on the bottom was Bradford, Pa.

“Now I know Bradford has a Coke plant but I wondered if they
ever had a bottle manufacturing plant.”

Readers?

POP CORN MAN: Norma (Lane) Vider has a memory from her school
days in Bradford that she’d like to corroborate.

She writes, “The one thing that keeps popping up in my mind and
I never hear any reference is to the Pop Corn Man that used to come
around pushing his cart selling popcorn, Mary Jane suckers, bubble
gum and other sorts of candy.

“We kids knew he was coming as he had the loudest whistle! I
don’t think I’m dreaming this up but does anyone else remember him?
Hope so. I really enjoy reading about my home town,” she
writes.

Norma tells us she grew up on Melvin Avenue and attended school
“at the head of Lorana Avenue” (gotta be 6th Ward School, right?)
and also went to junior high and high school in Bradford.

If you know something about this Pop Corn man, give us a call or
drop us a line.