We’re getting some great reader anecdotes in response to our call for stories about the Great Ice Storm of 1998.

Denise Kearns from North Waterboro sent us a touching story about how her family lost power and became friendly with a couple from Pennsylvania who had come to Maine to help as part of the Red Cross response to the storm – a friendship that remains strong today.

I also had an e-mail today from a woman in Washington state who was living in a cottage on the Presumpscot River at the height of the storm.

Please keep ‘em coming. You can e-mail anecdotes to me at arussell@pressherald.com. The stories on the storm’s 10th anniversary will run Sunday, Jan. 6.

OK, my New Year’s resolution is to update this blog more often.

I’m going to try to get back to my original idea, which was to give readers an early look at the stories we’re working on for tomorrow, which hopefully will result in more regular updates.

With that in mind, here are some of the stories we’re following for tomorrow:

1. The assassination of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto is a huge international story, with implications for the future of that country. As The Washington Post noted this morning, “Bhutto’s death comes 12 days before Pakistanis are set to vote in national parliamentary elections, which have already been marked by enormous political turmoil.” Here in Maine, reporter Ann Kim is trying to reach members of the Pakistani community for their reaction, as well as talk to members of Maine’s congressional delegation and Middle East experts for their insights.

2. Reporter Beth Quimby is working on a story about the latest population estimates from the U.S. Census. The numbers show Maine has experienced a slight uptick in population, but the state remains one of several “slow growth” states in the United States.

Looking ahead, we’re planning a package of stories and photos on the 10th anniversary of the 1998 ice storm that disrupted power to more than 200,000 Mainers. The stories are scheduled to run January 6 – two days before the actual anniversary. If you’ve got a story to share about your own experience during the ice storm, e-mail it to me.

Just want to get in another reminder for folks to fill out our annual survey of the top stories in Maine in 2007.

You can vote on the Web site at pressherald.com (check out the button near the top right portion of the page), or fill out one of the paper ballots that ran in the Insight section on Dec. 2 and 9. (More ballots will run in upcoming editions of the daily and Sunday newspaper).

The deadline for voting is Dec. 21. We’ll run the results on Dec. 30, and compare readers’ picks with the picks of our newsroom staff.