This week I've been editing a 100-page master's thesis, which a friend is writing for a British university. It's been quite a change of pace: usually I have to "Americanize" British spelling, punctuation and usage, and now I'm having to convert her American prose into British (manoeuvering, centred, defence and such).
"How do you know how to do that?" asked the Young Relative.
I explained to him that when I went to school in England, my spelling and usage were corrected relentlessly.
"Oh," he said, his eyes closing in bliss, as if he had achieved nirvana at the dinner table. "I would LOVE to see that."
Sunday, June 7, 2015
LIBRARY TOUR: A day of animals, antiques, and artwork
I've been going on the Bayard Taylor Library's Home & Garden Day tour since the mid-1990s, but I can safely say that this is the first year that I've gotten to feed koi, cuddle a baby goat and coo over fuzzy three-day-old goslings.
This year's tour, which stretched from the Maryland line, through the New London area, all the way up to Avondale, was blessed with perfect weather and included a marvelous variety of stops. Some random highlights were the waterfall in the stunning garden behind the McIlvains' home; the 16th-century chairs and original Audubon print at the William Miller House; the gorgeous view out over the countryside at the Kings' farm; the koi, catfish and bass in the pond at the Jenkses' home (which is for sale; Jackie Roberts of Berkshire Hathaway Country Properties is the listing agent); and all the adorable critters at the Petersons' farm. (We didn't get to all the stops on the tour.)
The mushroom crepes by Portobello restaurant in Kennett, made on the spot at the McIlvains' kitchen, were delicious, and the coffee (donated by Starbucks) and cold drinks (donated by Waywood Beverages) were extremely welcome. The pasta samples from La Verona were gone by the time we got to the Petersons', but we heard good things about them.
I hope the tour raised lots of money for the library's children's programs! The super-organized and hard-working members of the Special Events Committee and their helpers (the parkers were especially helpful and entertaining this year) made this a really memorable and fun day.
(By the way: I love the new idea of picking up a wristband at the first house that you visit. So much easier than having to root around and pull out your ticket at each front door.)
This year's tour, which stretched from the Maryland line, through the New London area, all the way up to Avondale, was blessed with perfect weather and included a marvelous variety of stops. Some random highlights were the waterfall in the stunning garden behind the McIlvains' home; the 16th-century chairs and original Audubon print at the William Miller House; the gorgeous view out over the countryside at the Kings' farm; the koi, catfish and bass in the pond at the Jenkses' home (which is for sale; Jackie Roberts of Berkshire Hathaway Country Properties is the listing agent); and all the adorable critters at the Petersons' farm. (We didn't get to all the stops on the tour.)
The mushroom crepes by Portobello restaurant in Kennett, made on the spot at the McIlvains' kitchen, were delicious, and the coffee (donated by Starbucks) and cold drinks (donated by Waywood Beverages) were extremely welcome. The pasta samples from La Verona were gone by the time we got to the Petersons', but we heard good things about them.
I hope the tour raised lots of money for the library's children's programs! The super-organized and hard-working members of the Special Events Committee and their helpers (the parkers were especially helpful and entertaining this year) made this a really memorable and fun day.
(By the way: I love the new idea of picking up a wristband at the first house that you visit. So much easier than having to root around and pull out your ticket at each front door.)
COVERED BRIDGES: Relief is finally coming for Frog Hollow Road residents
In last week's Kennett Paper you may have read a story about the three county covered bridges that are going to be repaired: Speakman Covered Bridge #1, which spans the Doe Run between West Marlborough and East Fallowfield townships; Rapps Dam in East Pikeland; and Knox in Valley Forge National Historic Park. West Marlborough resident Mark Myers has been the township's representative to the meetings involving the Speakman bridge repair, and he gave the township supervisors an update at their June meeting.
Mark said the contractor that has been hired, Eastern Highway Specialists of Wilmington, has experience working on covered bridges, including the Ashland bridge in Hockessin. The Speakman bridge will be the largest project of the three, and completion is set for September 2016.
" I think we're going to end up with a very satisfactory result," Mark said. He recommended that West Marlborough and East Fallowfield work together to come up with a way to protect the bridge, which has been closed to traffic since it was seriously damaged by an oversized truck seven years ago.
Mark said the contractor that has been hired, Eastern Highway Specialists of Wilmington, has experience working on covered bridges, including the Ashland bridge in Hockessin. The Speakman bridge will be the largest project of the three, and completion is set for September 2016.
" I think we're going to end up with a very satisfactory result," Mark said. He recommended that West Marlborough and East Fallowfield work together to come up with a way to protect the bridge, which has been closed to traffic since it was seriously damaged by an oversized truck seven years ago.
LA MANCHA: Come and meet critters up for adoption at "Yappy Hour"!
LaMancha Animal Rescue is hosting an open house and "Yappy Hour" from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, June 19, with "dog and cat meet-and-greets," crafts, refreshments and games. Adam Westgate of PawPrint Story Books will be reading from "Cody The Shepherd’s Strasburg Rail Road Ride" at 5 p.m. in the horse ring. For more information about the event or the shelter, e-mail Courtenay Acton at LaManchaVolunteer@gmail.co
The shelter is at 855 Doe Run Road (Route 82), south of Strasburg Road.
The shelter is at 855 Doe Run Road (Route 82), south of Strasburg Road.
JUST NOT DONE: Limiting access to a camp's farewell ceremony
My friend Chris Barber, editor of the Avon Grove Sun, was just turned away from this afternoon's "Farewell to Camp Tweedale" closing ceremony by officials from the local Girl Scout Council, the same ones who made the unpopular decision to close down the camp and sell the property.
"No press," they told her.
Now, see, banning the press from an event is something you really don't want to do if you're smart. You may not want reporters or photographers there, for whatever reason (and possibly a justified reason), but kicking them out makes it look like you have something to hide.
And you know they're write the story anyway -- as Chris did, being a resourceful woman (she is a former Girl Scout, after all). Nothing gets the fourth estate more jazzed up than suspecting that there's a juicy story out there that somebody is trying to prevent them from writing.
When I was a full-time reporter in another part of Pennsylvania, I used to cover a particularly quarrelsome borough council that met in a one-room building (they used to meet in the fire hall but managed to tick off the chief). They once kicked me out of the room so they could hold a dubious executive session, forgetting that the windows were open and I was standing outside and could hear everything anyway. Naturally, I reported on their discussion, complete with quotations.
At the next meeting they went into executive session again and went around the table furiously accusing each other of leaking the conversation to "that girl reporter." Even the mayor, a gentle, kindly minister, took his share of the vitriol.
"No press," they told her.
Now, see, banning the press from an event is something you really don't want to do if you're smart. You may not want reporters or photographers there, for whatever reason (and possibly a justified reason), but kicking them out makes it look like you have something to hide.
And you know they're write the story anyway -- as Chris did, being a resourceful woman (she is a former Girl Scout, after all). Nothing gets the fourth estate more jazzed up than suspecting that there's a juicy story out there that somebody is trying to prevent them from writing.
When I was a full-time reporter in another part of Pennsylvania, I used to cover a particularly quarrelsome borough council that met in a one-room building (they used to meet in the fire hall but managed to tick off the chief). They once kicked me out of the room so they could hold a dubious executive session, forgetting that the windows were open and I was standing outside and could hear everything anyway. Naturally, I reported on their discussion, complete with quotations.
At the next meeting they went into executive session again and went around the table furiously accusing each other of leaking the conversation to "that girl reporter." Even the mayor, a gentle, kindly minister, took his share of the vitriol.
Saturday, June 6, 2015
CAFETERIA FOOD: School administrators serve up a hearty breakfast
What a tasty -- and free -- breakfast we had on Saturday, courtesy of the administrators of the Kennett and Unionville-Chadds Ford school districts. We arrived for the annual community breakfast at the UHS cafeteria at about 8:30 and filled our plates with pancakes, sausages, scrapple, bacon and eggs (scrambled or over easy), pastries and fruit. Plus there were boxes of soft pretzels left over from the American Cancer Society's "Relay for Life," which was just wrapping up at the track.
Sitting at a cafeteria table brought back memories of school lunches -- but the food was much better than in my day.
In addition to the school administrators -- who proved to be excellent servers -- we saw several local journalists (free food, after all); Beverly Brookes, who told us some amusing stories about her methods of persuading reluctant jurors to serve during her days as jury commissioner; and Danielle Chamberlain, the president of the Unionville Community Fair.
Sitting at a cafeteria table brought back memories of school lunches -- but the food was much better than in my day.
In addition to the school administrators -- who proved to be excellent servers -- we saw several local journalists (free food, after all); Beverly Brookes, who told us some amusing stories about her methods of persuading reluctant jurors to serve during her days as jury commissioner; and Danielle Chamberlain, the president of the Unionville Community Fair.
Thursday, June 4, 2015
WEST MARLBOROUGH: Batteries stolen from the cellphone tower
The West Marlborough supervisors heard two police reports at their June 2 meeting.
Lieut. Richard D'Ambrosio, commander of the Pennsylvania State Police at Avondale, said in the past three months there had been 54 incidents in West Marlborough, a slight increase over the same period in 2014. Only two of the incidents were criminal in nature: one was a case of harassment and the other was the theft of backup batteries at the cellular phone tower off Route 926 at Vince Dugan's equestrian training facility. The trooper said such thefts are "very common" and the thieves "know what they're doing."
He said there were 11 crashes in the township, only three that were reportable, and five drunken-driving arrests, eight false alarms, five calls for debris on the road and five calls for animals on the road, and one warrant served.
"This is a very safe community," he said of West Marlborough. "You always, always have the lowest numbers."
Chief Robert Clarke, who patrols the township for 40 hours a month, reported that he handled 15 incidents in May, issuing 11 speeding tickets and four warnings.
Lieut. Richard D'Ambrosio, commander of the Pennsylvania State Police at Avondale, said in the past three months there had been 54 incidents in West Marlborough, a slight increase over the same period in 2014. Only two of the incidents were criminal in nature: one was a case of harassment and the other was the theft of backup batteries at the cellular phone tower off Route 926 at Vince Dugan's equestrian training facility. The trooper said such thefts are "very common" and the thieves "know what they're doing."
He said there were 11 crashes in the township, only three that were reportable, and five drunken-driving arrests, eight false alarms, five calls for debris on the road and five calls for animals on the road, and one warrant served.
"This is a very safe community," he said of West Marlborough. "You always, always have the lowest numbers."
Chief Robert Clarke, who patrols the township for 40 hours a month, reported that he handled 15 incidents in May, issuing 11 speeding tickets and four warnings.
WEST MARLBOROUGH: Zoning, paving, and mowing in a rural township
In other business at the June meeting of the West Marlborough Township supervisors, township engineer Al Giannantonio reported that he issued two zoning permits in May: one for a shed extension at a farm on Doe Run School Road and one for an addition to a farmhouse on Route 82.
Roadmaster Hugh Lofting said the township road crew has been busy mowing road banks. They plan to tar and chip Bartram, Line, Chapel, Rokeby, and Doe Road Station Roads, as well as the paved part of Doe Run Church Road, and the hill on West Road near Route 82. Road crew member Hugh Lofting Jr. said he will be trying out a new, larger kind of gravel this year.
The supervisors scheduled a hearing at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 7, at the township hall/garage to get the public's comments about revisions to the township's zoning ordinance. A copy of the revisions is available from the township office.
Roadmaster Hugh Lofting said the township road crew has been busy mowing road banks. They plan to tar and chip Bartram, Line, Chapel, Rokeby, and Doe Road Station Roads, as well as the paved part of Doe Run Church Road, and the hill on West Road near Route 82. Road crew member Hugh Lofting Jr. said he will be trying out a new, larger kind of gravel this year.
The supervisors scheduled a hearing at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 7, at the township hall/garage to get the public's comments about revisions to the township's zoning ordinance. A copy of the revisions is available from the township office.
WEST MARLBOROUGH: Vacant house is once again a problem
Street Road resident Elizabeth Smoker told the West Marlborough Township supervisors that the deteriorated condition of the vacant house next door to her is "very problematic to me" due to the thick weeds and lack of maintenance. The house, at Sportsmen's Lane, was formerly the property of the Raimatos but has been empty for seven years after the mortgage company foreclosed on the subsequent owner.
When Mrs. Smoker brought similar concerns to the township last year, the supervisors asked township engineer Al Giannantonio to contact the mortgage company that owns the property. He volunteered to do so in hopes they will once again send out a maintenance crew.
Mrs. Smoker had her own, tongue-in-cheek suggestion for what the township should do: "Fine them a million dollars!"
When Mrs. Smoker brought similar concerns to the township last year, the supervisors asked township engineer Al Giannantonio to contact the mortgage company that owns the property. He volunteered to do so in hopes they will once again send out a maintenance crew.
Mrs. Smoker had her own, tongue-in-cheek suggestion for what the township should do: "Fine them a million dollars!"
Monday, June 1, 2015
BIRDS: Feed me! Feed me! is the baby birds' chorus
Every few minutes, it seems, one chickadee parent or the other is bringing a beakful of food to the nestlings inside the bird house out back. I'm not sure how many babies are inside -- I don't want to approach the house -- but they are both vocal and voracious. I was a little concerned that the strong wind during last night's series of thunderstorms might knock the house down, but no, it's still there this morning, with the nestlings still squawking.
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