Jan. 6 seems like a lifetime ago. Especially for the extended family of Monsignor Bonner and Archbishop Prendergast.

But they're going to have to wait a little longer.

It is now past 7 a.m. on Friday morning. Families are well into their morning routines. And students are heading into the twin high schools on the hill in Drexel Hill.

They just don't know if the schools will exist next year.

Last week the Archdiocese of Philadelphia ruled on appeals filed by elementary schools who were disputing the recommendation of a Blue Ribbon Commission that they be shut down. Amazingly, 18 of the 24 appeals were upheld.

But at the same time, a decision on four high schools - including Bonner & Prendie - were delayed by a week.

A ruling is expected today, but yesterday a spokesman for the archdiocese would say only that a ruling today was 'likely.' He would not confirm when or even if a ruling would be made.

And so we wait.

Which, of course, puts the rumor mill in high gear.

I have heard from a lot of people this week, including many whom I believe are in position to know. And still opinions appear to be split on how the ruling will go.

I still find it hard to believe that the archdiocese can possibly turn the Bonner-Prendie appeal down, after their boosters raised an amazing $5 million in just a couple of weeks. But it would not be the first time I've been floored by the actions of the archdiocese.

Now all they can do is wait and wonder.

Today is the traditional ring ceremony at Prendie, when junior girls receive their class rings. The Mass has been pushed back from 9 a.m. to noon. Whether or not they will know at that time is still not known.

If you want to vent, chat or just sound off on the issue, you can take part in the live chat we're hosting on DelcoTimes.com all day. CLICK HERE to view the chat. And use Twitter and the hashtag #delcocatholic to post your comments.

The ball's in the archdiocese court.

And two schools remain on pins and needles waiting for word on their fate.

Keepin the Faith? Absolutely. But it's not easy.

Stay tuned.

The Daily Numbers: 6 armed men who pulled off a daring smash-and-grab heist at the jewelry store located in the Radnor Hotel on Lancaster Avenue.

5,000 dollar reward for information in the case being put up by the business.

1 dead, 1 injured in what police are describing as a possible murder-suicide in Upper Darby.

1 more day until we learn the fate of the appeal hoping to save 4 Catholic high schools, including Monsignor Bonner-Archbishop Prendergast.

2 unions that represent workers at Fair Acres that now have new deals with the county.

2 murders now charged against Jamir Williams of Chester.

2 suspects in holdup of a Radnor Wawa now in custody.

20, age of man from Titusville, Pa., who pleaded guilty in the murder of an Aston man in Chester County.

3 vehicles torched in Aston that police now believe was the work of a Philly man.

24 of April, date for the Pennsylvania Primary. The date will not be moved, despite the flap over redistricting of legislative boundaries.

5 to 8 cents, how much price of gas is expected to jump this wekeend in the region.

33, age of woman charged yesterday with abandoning a newborn baby found in a box on a Philly street.

20 debates held by GOP presidential candidates. Last night was the last one before the Super Tuesday Sweepstakes.

2 journalists killed in the strife in Syria.

80-79 win in OT for Temple over La Salle in a thriller.

490-194 lifetime record for legendary Delco hoops coach Alonzo Lewis, who was killed when he was struck by a car in Philly.

5 straight losses for the Sixers as they go into the All-Star break.

93-87 loss for the Sixers at Houston last night.

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Call me a Phanatic: A look at the ups and downs of being a Philadelphia sports fan.This was not the way the Sixers wanted to go into the break. They have now lost five straight. It’s pretty simple, without Spencer Hawes and Elton Brand in the lineup, they’re a donut team – nothing in the middle.

 

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I Don’t Get It: When are teens going to realize that the idea of getting sloppy drunk, then making a video and posting it online is going to be around forever. At least we had the good sense to do those kind of things in private.

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Today’s Upper: Dynamite new video put out today by Bonner-Prendie booster group. Well done.

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Quote Box: “The proposal is an unwise experiment with the education of 1.8 million public school students.”

- Pennsylvania State Education Association President Michael Crossey, on the Corbett budget.

Denis Stephano says we can’t say we weren’t warned.

Stephano is the laid-off union boss representing workers at the ConocoPhillips refinery in Trainer.

We took our “Live From the Newsroom” Internet live-stream webcast on the road again last night, making another trek to the union hall in Linwood to talk to refinery workers union leaders. You can check out the replay here.

“Have you bought gas lately,” Stephano greeted me as I walked into the hall.

Count Stephano among those who see a link between the shutdowns of the ConocoPhillips and Sunoco refineries in Trainer and Marcus Hook and a spike in gas prices.

He said as much during a rally last week in Washington, D.C. Stephano warns that we’ll be paying more than $4 a gallon come summer, and that next winter heating oil will be through the roof, and jet fuel also is going to be more expensive. Bottom line? Almost everything is going to cost more because of the cost of gas.

Stephano put it a bit more bluntly. “It’s called price-fixing,” he said.

There was news on two fronts on the crucial refinery issue yesterday.

Workers at the Sunoco Marcus Hook refinery and the company have agreed on a tentative deal for their severance packages. You can read about that here.

Then there was this little item from Jim Savage. He’s the president of United Steelworkers Local 10-1, which represents workers at the company’s South Philly refinery. That one is still operating – for now. Both the Trainer and Marcus Hook plants have been shut down. The workforce in Trainer has been laid off, and a similar process is getting underway in the Hook.

Much has been made of both companies’ statements that they are interested in finding a buyer for the three refineries. But Sunoco officials have been pretty clear in pointing out that despite overtures from as many as 150 companies, they have not received one legitimate offer to buy the plant and operate it as a refinery. In the meantime, the process grinds on toward shutting down the facilities.

Savage, for one, has his doubts about the company line. He said last night he knows there was at least one legitimate bid, and in pretty blunt language alleges the company is not exactly being forthright in their efforts.

Maybe that's why Sen. Robert Casey and others are planning a series of hearings on the issue. There is one being held today in Philadelphia by Democratic state reps.

Stephano paints a gloomy picture of what is going to happen in the lower end of the county. That’s particularly true of the Conoco facility, which the company has indicated will be demolished if no buyer comes forward.

“Once that promise starts, there’s no coming back,” Stephano warns.

In the meantime, brace yourself for higher prices. For just about everything.

Mike Sturla was in town yesterday.

He wants you to do him a favor. He wants you to go to the window, open it up and start yelling, “I’m as mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.”

Sturla, a state rep from Lancaster County, is the chairman of the state Democratic Policy Committee. He was in town for a public hearing on Gov. Tom Corbett’s budget he hosted along with state Rep. Margo Davidson, D-164, of Upper Darby. You can read about that here.

After the hearing, he stopped by for a visit with our editorial board.

Sturla is in a tough spot. He doesn’t like Corbett’s budget even a little bit. He believes it is going to have disastrous effects across the state in terms of education, child care and public welfare.

And he knows there’s not a lot he can do about it. Republicans control both the state House and Senate. And Sturla believes the bare-bones spending plan is going to sail through the Legislature after some minor adjustments.

That’s why he’s depending on the public to raise their voices in protest.

He has an interesting take on Corbett’s no-tax mantra and recurring theme that “the money just isn’t there.”

Sturla believes this is largely because of Corbett’s own actions and the way the budget has been crafted, condensing several items into a single line-item in the fiscal plan.

He claims Corbett simply refuses to take advantage of opportunities to bring in new revenue. Of course Exhibit A in this case would be the new “fee” the governor recently signed on the extraction of natural gas in the state’s Marcellus shale regions.

Simply put, Sturla believes it was a giveaway. He points out even Grover Norquist, the guy who crafted the no-tax promise, has labeled Corbett’s “fee” a tax.

More importantly, Sturla points out what the state lost under the Corbett-endorsed plan. He expects the fee to raise about $180 million, while a tax, similar to one used in every other state that deals with natural gas extraction, could produce a multi-billion dollar gusher of new revenue in the state.

Corbett has put out his austere spending plan and touted it as a “no-gimmicks” plan. He’ll have a hard time convincing Sturla of that.

“This budget had more gimmicks than any budget I’ve seen in 22 years,” Sturla pointed out.

He laments that Corbett is viewing his role as governor as an administrator, and not a leader.

He’s warning of the bloodlettting to come – education, public welfare, social progrmas.

Sturla warns that people should not believe it’s only troubled districts such as Chester Upland here in Delaware County that are in danger. He believes as many as 50 districts are lined up behind Chester Upland on the critical list.

And Sturla knows there’s not a thing he can do about it. That’s why he wants the public to raise their voices.

Or live with the consequences.

The Phillies season can’t start soon enough. Or least kick off the Grapefruit League season.

That’s because what appeared to be such a promising Sixers season has hit a speed bump. Last night they lost their fifth straight game heading into the All-Star break. Doug Collins needs to use all his coaching skills to right this suddenly foundering ship.

Then there’s the Flyers and Ilya Bryzgalov. There must be a curse on this franchise when it comes to goaltenders. The Flyers gave Bryzgalov a nine-year, $51 million deal. Everyone thought he was the best goalie on the market. And of course as soon as he donned that orange and black sweater, he turned into a basket base.

It’s not too late for Bryzgalov to prove his critics wrong, to rally and carry this team through the playoffs. By the way, without Chris Pronger, whose career is now in jeopardy as he battles concussion symptoms, this team will go as far as Bryzgalov carries them.

Right now that’s not very far.

Let’s go, Phillies.

The Daily Numbers: 34, age of Upper Chichester woman charged with having sex with a 15-year-old.

3 year deal approved by Garnet Valley School District with their teachers.

6.72 percent pay hike over the course of the deal for teachers.

2, 4 and 6 percent health care co-pay for teachers, the first time they have contributed to their health care plan.

50 Boeing union workers who protested outside the plant yesterday morning. They claim the company is sending union work to firm in Del.

200 dollar bribe authorities allege was taken by a TSA airport workers from Sharon Hill.

2 Delco fire companies, Lenni Heights and Lenni, that are planning to merge operations.

21,000 dollars, how much authorities believe a former member of the Penn-Delco School Board pilfered from a sports club account. John Green is on trial this week.

28 of April. Circle the date. That’s when Media plans a huge parade to honor returning vets.

26, age of Chester County man who police say fatally shot his father during an argument.

13,000 plateau shattered by the Down Jones yesterday, even though it retreated a bit and closed under it.

40 days of Lent starts today with the traditional Ash Wednesday observances. What are you giving up for Lent?

10 minority channels being developed by Comcast.

9.7 seconds left when Wayne Simmonds lit the lamp to pull Flyers into tie with Winnipeg.

5-4 win for orange and black in overtime.

4 straight losses for Sixers as they fall to Memphis, 89-76.

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Call me a Phanatic: A look at the ups and downs of being a Philadelphia sports fan.Turns out Roy Halladay did not wrestle an Anaconda snake while saving the life of a man during his Amazon fishing expedition. It’s still a great story.

 

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I Don’t Get It: Pat Meehan thinks maybe there is more to this spike in gas prices than meets the eye. Can you say closed refineries?

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Today’s Upper: There were a lot of sighs of relief last week as 18 of 24 archdiocesan schools that appealed learned their pleas were upheld.

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Quote Box: “It’s often said that a good deal is one no one likes.”

- Garnet Valley School Board member Ed Plasha, on the new 3-year deal with district teachers, including pay hikes and an increase in health care co-pay.

Catholic school closures

While we continue to wait for the ruling on Monsignor Bonner and Archbishop Prendergast high school, as well as the others on the Blue Ribbon Commission hit list, there continues to be lots of talk about school closings.

Don't miss Chris Freind's fascinating look at the surprising number of parochial elementary schools that were successfu in their appeals; 18 of 24 schools that filed appeals had them upheld by the archdiocese. CLICK HERE to read it.

I can admit that I was stunned at many of the rulings. I did not think the grade schools had much of a chance. Shows what I know.

I'll write more on the topic tomorrow. In the meantime, were you surprised at how many grade schools won their appeals?

Post a comment and get in on the conversation.

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