ELECTION DAY last Tuesday was an event for the few, the proud, the voters with the patriotism of Marines. As for the rest, they stayed home in droves. Too bad, because while this didn't have the excitement of the presidential election a year ago, some important races were decided. Pittsburghers voted in an unusual mayor's race -- in a city that bemoans a lack of youthful residents all three candidates were young men -- and the choice was the incumbent, Luke Ravenstahl. In the race to seat a new justice on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, the reluctant voters were bombarded by sleazy ads from both candidates. In the process, a troubling record was set in individual fund raising for the top court. Superior Court Judge Jack Panella, the losing Democrat, raised $2,350,633 while the winner, Judge Jane Orie Melvin, a Republican on Superior Court, raised $733,948, according to Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts, a nonprofit judicial reform organization. This was just the money sent directly to the campaigns, not to the parties, and it reflects pre-election figures -- so it could grow.

WHAT A NEW WORLD this is where we have elections that lots of people sometimes ignore and money oftentimes speaks with too loud a voice, all because in 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue. A reminder of the historic event came to Pittsburgh last week in the form of replicas of two of Columbus' ships, the Nina and the Pinta. They sailed down the Allegheny River, not blue but slate gray, and are now docked at the North Shore Riverfront Park, where the curious can visit from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. until Nov. 16. Admission is $7 to see these remarkably small boats -- $6 for seniors and $5 for children -- but presumably you can visit for free if you are the queen of Spain and your name is Isabella.

WHEN IT COMES to hotels fit for queens or perhaps big-spending judges, the Hilton Pittsburgh Downtown has been a disappointment in recent years. Shubh Hotels LLC, which bought the hotel for $28 million in 2006, has been beset by problems. It launched a $25 million renovation project but had trouble paying its bills -- a situation that got so bad that a giant banner had to be erected to cover the eyesore of unfinished work for the G-20 summit. But as the Post-Gazette reported last week, a new business group with links to Miami and New York is close to completing a deal to buy the hotel and finish the expansion. That sounds like good news for Pittsburgh's largest hotel.