Just some things:

• Summer is winding down and the football season is ramping up, but there are several other constants that seem to hold everything together — among those is food.

Whether it’s a Fourth of July or Labor Day picnic or a late-October tailgate or a Super Bowl bash, you can be sure that there will be a lot to eat and drink.

One of the favorites at any get-together — or a snack that can be enjoyed at any time — is the humble potato chip.

We like to eat them — a lot. In fact, according to the Smithsonian Magazine, Americans will eat about 1.85 billion pounds of the snack each year. If you’re keeping track, that breaks down to about 6.6 pounds per person. According to Statista, we will spend an estimated $10.71 billion on chips.

Looking at it from another angle, the United States Department of Agriculture, says that about 7,500 million pounds of potatoes are made into chips each year. It’s a number that represents 22 percent of the country’s potato crop. And, as Statista reports, there are more than 360 potato chip production businesses in the United States.

With that much of the savory and more-often-than-not-salted snacks consumed each year, and that many different choices that might be available, you might be wondering just what brands are the favorites.

According to a report released Aug. 13 by Mental Floss, that varies widely depending on the region of the country you live in.

The New York-based site that looks to answer life’s big questions and uncover fascinating facts, says information compiled by Instacart paints an interesting picture of chip consumption across the country.

As you can imagine, there’s a big difference in favorites, and that includes across the Tri-State Area.

The survey shows that Pringles are the favorite chip in Ohio, while Utz leads the way in West Virginia and Herr’s is tops in Pennsylvania. That’s according to Instacart orders placed between June 28 and July 4, 2024.

By far, the favorite across most of the country is Ruffles, which is tops in 17 states.

Pringles also was the top choice in Missouri and Alabama. Utz, meanwhile, also was tops in Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, North Carolina and South Carolina. And, Herr’s also was No. 1 in New Jersey.

Some things to think about when you reach for that next bag of chips.

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Since Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer, many people will be looking to get away one last time before the fall arrives.

According to AAA East Central, the top domestic Labor Day weekend destinations are Seattle, Orlando and New York City, with the top international destinations being Vancouver, Rome and Dublin.

“Labor Day traditionally marks the end of the summer travel season, providing one final holiday weekend before fall routines begins,” said Jim Garrity, director of public affairs for AAA East Central. “Top destinations like Seattle and Vancouver are popular because they are port cities for Alaska cruises. But many travelers are opting to stay closer to home and take road trips to nearby beaches or national parks.”

Travel by car will be a little more affordable this year, according to AAA East Central, which serves members in Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Kentucky and New York.

Gasoline prices, it predicted last week, likely will be below last year’s Labor Day average of $3.33 a gallon.

The best times to travel by car during the holiday, AAA reports, fall early in the day and late in the day –before 1 p.m. Thursday, before noon Friday, between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. Aug. 30, before 11 a.m. Aug. 31 and before noon on Sept. 1. The worst times will be between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. Thursday, from noon to 8 p.m. Friday, between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Aug. 30, between noon and 5 p.m. Aug. 31 and between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Sept. 1.

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Fall’s a busy time on the high school sports schedule, with a lot of activities going on each day. Football remains a key component of those schedules. The high school season for Ohio teams is under way, with the region’s West Virginia squads scheduled to start this coming week. College football is underway, as well, with the National Football League regular season scheduled to open Sept. 4.

In case you missed it, you owe it to yourself to get a copy of Prep Football 2025, which was included with your Wednesday paper. It’s our annual high school football preview edition, and it’s filled with information fans can turn to time and again as the season progresses.

Our football previews aren’t done — you’ll be able to find detailed analysis of the region’s college and pro teams included in our Sept. 3 edition.

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And, in case you missed it, congratulations are in order to members of our staff who were honored during the annual meeting and awards banquet held by the Ohio Associated Press Media Editors. Recognized when the awards were handed out Aug. 3 at the Villa Milano Banquet and Conference Center in Columbus were members of our sport staff, led by Sports Editor Andrew Grimm, who took second-place honors in the best special sports section category for our 2024 high school football preview section and third place in best sports enterprise for Football Xtra, our weekly preview of each week’s action.

Former staff writer Christopher Dacanay finished second in the best business writer category.

The Herald-Star competes in Division I, which includes papers with nine or fewer newsroom employees.

Every member of our staff works hard each day to ensure residents of the Tri-State Area can be informed. No one sets out specifically to win an award, but it’s nice the work you do is appreciated by our readers and the peers who judge the annual contests.

(Gallabrese, a resident of Steubenville, is executive editor of the Herald-Star and The Weirton Daily Times)