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JILL SCHMELZER Amherst Reporter

+ MAGICAL MOMENTS - Readers, you may remember an article that appeared in the Oct. 11 edition of The Amherst Bee in which resident Katie Weisser was featured for her efforts to participate in Walt Disney's marathon for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Well, Katie's back and finished the run in about 4 hours and 25 minutes. She was also one of the top 15 fundraisers, donating $9,200 for the cancer society. She sponsored 7-year-old Ryan Dinnocenzo, who was diagnosed with lymphoblastic leukemia in April 2003. He and his family were at the finish line cheering for Katie as she crossed it. That's not all. Katie raised enough money to send Ryan and his parents on their first family vacation. All together participants in the Team in Training program raised approximately $5.7 million for cancer research.

+ WINTER BLUES- Winter has finally begun. Until this week, people would say, "I wish it would snow already." Every time I heard this I would secretly curse under my breath. Sure, snow is pretty, but think of how the ground gets - slushy, muddy and icy. Think of how cold it is as you stand outside brushing off the windshield of your car. It sends chills up my spine just thinking about it.

Also, I am a short person, standing at a mere 5 feet 3 inches tall, so when I walk, the bottoms of my pants often drag along the slush, essentially ruining them.

So far this year, we have had a great winter. The bottoms of my pants have, for the most part, stayed dry and my snow brush has made few appearances. Besides the October storm, we really haven't had a winter. For a person like me, that is music to my ears - or warmth to my body.

On the other hand, because Frosty the Snowman hasn't surfaced much, is winter going to last several days into the spring months when the air is supposed to get warm and the sun's rays are supposed to tan me?

But, with nerves aside, I have been assessing the rest of the nation. Denver, Colo. was doused with blizzards just last month and the most recent winter storm that spread from the plains to the midwest, eventually landing in the east, left 41 people dead to date. Until recently, when I would tell someone I was from Buffalo, they would say, "Your winters are terrible." Normally, I would agree.

But this year, I realized they really aren't that bad. Yes, we get a couple of feet of snow each year, but at least we aren't having a blizzard a week. Think of how many clothes I would ruin. I know what you're thinking, "hem your pants!" But I do and it doesn't matter. I buy pants in "short" lengths, they still drag. And the ones that I hem - it never fails they rip at the seams and drag along the floor. But as much as I gripe about the slush and my pants, I am beginning to realize, it could be much worse.

+ THANK YOU - We would like to thank the law enforcement officials who finally made an arrest Monday after nearly 20 years of diligently working to solve the bike path rapist case. The man who allegedly killed three people and allegedly raped at least nine women will no longer terrorize this area. If it wasn't for the local police detectives who have put in long hours looking for this man, who knows how many more nightmares he would have created for people and for how long.