How we spent our Christmas vacation

Here's hoping you had a splendid Christmas holiday!

We enjoyed the Zoom Christmas program put on by London Grove Friends Meeting, with carols, a story and Scripture readings. Marlborough Friends Meeting's customary Carol Sing also went online, with a podcast featuring music, songs and Bible verses. The latter ended with the hope that God willing, we will be able to meet in person in 2021.

For the past several Christmas Eves we've had the pleasure of going to a laid-back open house in Embreeville, and we did it by Zoom this year. The toddler son of the hosts stole the show. He and his father were assembling a toy John Deere tractor that had many, many parts, one of which just wouldn't fit.

The youth carefully studied the situation.

"I see the problem!" he announced to his father triumphantly.

We had a short Zoom meeting on Christmas Day with family members. We listened to "The Nutcracker Suite" and hours-long YouTube Christmas carol playlists. We watched "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation," the original animated Grinch movie (the only one worth watching), and the 1951 Alistair Sim version of "Scrooge." 

And we particularly enjoyed watching "The Prince and the Carrot," the Pantomime (this year a virtual one) produced by the Kennett Amateur Theatrical Society. We got to sing the Silly Song and greet the Dame, just like it was a normal year and we were at the Kennett High School auditorium! The Panto is online at KATS British Panto | Kennett Amateur Theatrical Society | Inc. (callkats.org) and is highly recommended.

And oh, did we feast! On Christmas Eve we ate our free Giant ham (well, a tiny fraction thereof) along with macaroni and cheese and peas. And on Christmas Day we had breakfast-as-dinner: Kodiak pancakes and a spectacular omelet made with eggs from a friend's hens and cheese from one of those holiday food parcel gifts, this one from the electrician.

Imagine my amazement to find I hadn't gained any weight despite all those deliciously rich Christmas cookies. I'm not at all sure how that happened.

Godspeed, Bill Landmesser

My friend Bill Landmesser died on Dec. 16 at the age of 89. What a nice man he was! I worked with Bill on a local volunteer board for several years. When difficulties arose -- and we faced our share of them -- he took an analytical approach, gathering reams of data and synthesizing it methodically. Bill spent his career working in employee relations for large companies, so naturally, he took the lead when it came to things like personnel evaluations for the staff. 

It was hard to rankle Bill. I never heard him raise his voice, and the worst thing I ever heard him say about someone was that he really wasn't acting very sensibly. "D'ya think he might have some kind of a chip on his shoulder?" I remember him asking, with a baffled chuckle, when our board had to deal with a particularly cranky individual.

Bill was eager to learn and was fascinated with technology. He'd see me doing something on the computer, maybe working on a newsletter, and he'd sit down next to me and ask endless questions about what I was doing. He also spent a lot of time volunteering with service groups, in particular SCORE, a group of retirees who help young people who want to start their own businesses. 

Bill unplugged completely in the summer, heading north to his cabin in the Adirondacks, where mail arrived irregularly, via boat. 

A widower, Bill leaves behind three children, six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. 

He will be greatly missed.

Stinking up the joint

There's an exact type of gym top that I like to wear when I'm exercising, and it's tough to find because (just my luck) the manufacturer, Athleta, has moved on to other styles. Don't they know who I am?! So I keep an eye on eBay and whenever one pops up in my size, I bid on it. 

So I purchased one a few weeks ago, and when it arrived it was in fine shape, except for a foul odor. It wasn't the usual locker-room funk. No, I think it was an overdose of some kind of fabric softener or clothing deodorizer. The stench was almost overwhelming. 

I tried low-tech remedies, like hanging it out on the clothesline in the wind and rain, laundering it repeatedly, and soaking it in vinegar and baking soda. The odor may have lessened slightly, but I still had to quarantine it from my other clothes so they didn't become contaminated.

A friend recommended hydrogen peroxide, which she uses to get skunk smell out of one of her mishap-prone dogs. I didn't really want to try that, as the garment tag said not to use bleach.

So I went online and discovered that smelly secondhand purchases are common and troublesome to resolve; it seems the offending chemicals are often stubbornly adherent to the fabric. A smell-lifting "laundry enhancer" made by a Florida company called Enviroklenz received universally positive reviews, even from people with chemical sensitivities, so I've ordered some. It hasn't yet arrived, but I did receive a call from their customer service people thanking me for my order. I'm inclined to like this company. I'll let you know how the laundry product works!

A churlish opinion piece

I've been thinking a lot about the word "churlish" recently. "Rude in a mean-spirited or surly way," says the dictionary. I think of it more as going out of your way to be unpleasant when you don't need to.

The first time I encountered it was in John Fowles's novel "Daniel Martin." The titular character was flying back to England from California and had run into an old friend on the plane. When they landed at Heathrow in the wee hours, the friend offered to give him a ride home. Daniel didn't want to accept, but "it seemed churlish to refuse." (As an aside, Daniel clearly had his antennae up; the old friend was having an affair with his secretary, Daniel's daughter.)

Churlish behavior seems to be increasingly common, even from people who should know better. In a recent "Wall Street Journal" opinion piece, Joseph Epstein encouraged our incoming First Lady, Jill Biden, not to use the title "Dr.," even though she has earned a Ph.D. He considers it pretentious; he thinks only medical doctors should call themselves "Dr." He used the word "kiddo" when he was addressing Mrs. Biden, as if he was being avuncular. 

Churlish. Exhibit A.

Why, WHY, would you do such a thing? Why would you write such a nasty, unnecessary piece? Surely there are plenty of other pretentions he could have highlighted that are far worse and far more timely. 

As you might expect, the reaction to the op-ed was furious (and not only from academics) and in many cases involved a lot of F-words. Two wrongs don't make a right, but he kind of asked for it.

 

Obeying the rules

I take my recycling over to the SECCRA landfill every few weeks. I enjoy it; it's very satisfying coming home with fewer items in your car rather than more. Today I had lots of newspapers to drop off, along with various-sized cardboard boxes from Amazon deliveries, half-gallon milk jugs, a large vanilla extract bottle, soda bottles and lots of plastic "clamshell" packaging from blueberries.

Two other vehicles were parked in the recycling area in front of me. I watched as two ladies took a big plastic bucket from the back of their CRV, hauled it over to the dumpster and emptied it. One then picked up a black plastic garbage bag and took it over to the dumpster.

Oh no, thought I: Don't they know that you can't recycle plastic bags?!

Well, they did know. The woman dumped the contents of the bag in the dumpster and then even went so far as to pick up a stray plastic bag by the dumpster. She stuffed it in the empty bag and put both back in the bucket.

I was impressed. I also noticed what an immaculately tidy CRV they had. In contrast to, ummm, Tilda's. 

Tilda learns to love pho

One of the Dearest Partner's most endearing qualities is his openness to new things. A few months ago, seemingly out of the blue, he had a hankering to try the Vietnamese soup called pho. We watched videos to learn the correct way to pronounce it ("fah") and to ingest it (with chopsticks and a spoon/ladle combo). Slurping, we learned, is acceptable.
I went on social media to look for restaurant recommendations, and it turns out there is a place called Pho Now fairly close by, between Coatesville and Downingtown on Business Route 30, in the Caln Village Shopping Center. Between COVID lockdowns 1 and 2, we visited twice for dinner and had terrific meals. 

Pho is a mixture of rich broth, rice noodles, green onions and cilantro, along with your choice of very thinly sliced meat or fish. They give you a plate full of bean sprouts, basil sprigs, lime wedges and hot peppers to mix in to your liking, as well as a spicy dark sauce. It's fragrant and pungent, but you can control the spiciness. The bowls are big enough that you can take home fully half the soup as a doggy bag.

While eating, we noticed that the place was doing a pretty good takeout business. One fellow came into the restaurant and the owner looked up and said, "Brian? Takeout?" The man was baffled: yes, his name was Brian, but he hadn't even ordered yet. A few minutes later the real Brian came in to pick up his order and they laughed about the mix-up.

Pho Now also offers an extensive menu of dishes and beverages we haven't tried but will. The owner is welcoming and delightful and grateful for the business in this tough business climate. It was close to the freezing mark when we visited for dinner the second time, and I told him that pho was a perfect meal for a chilly night.

He corrected me: "Pho perfect every night!"

Pho Now is at 3911 West Lincoln Highway, Downingtown. The menu and contact information are on Facebook.

Our COVID Christmas tree

Our quest for a Christmas tree on Saturday did not go as planned -- but, really, what has in this topsy-turvy year? 

First we visited the annual Boy Scout Troop 53 tree sale outside the New Garden Giant -- but it wasn't there. I don't know if they had sold all their trees or if COVID had discouraged them. (Fortunately, we were able to support the Cub Scouts a few weeks earlier, buying wreaths from their stand at Barnard's Orchards.)

I'd driven past the Avon Grove Lions tree sale in Jennersville, so that was our next stop. Again: no trees, no Lions (we discovered later they had sold all their trees; good for them!).

Time to reboot and fortify ourselves with McRib sandwiches in the car while watching the sun setting over Jenner's Pond (they were meh at best, but we were curious to learn what all the fuss was about; kind of like eating fried Oreos at the Cecil County Fair). I had seen people online talking about Clark's Tree Farm, and it was close by (on Pusey Mill Road in Cochranville), so we headed over there. Almost unbelievably, we saw two friends in the parking lot -- worth a mention in these days of social distancing!

We went into the gift shop and Dearest Partner asked about the procedure for finding and buying a tree, and the employee filled us in. So we headed out to the tree field and after some debate selected a tree that was perfect in shape, fullness and height. I stood there while D.P. fetched an employee with a saw. We carried the tree to the "corral," where it was measured (they charge by the foot), and then we paid inside the gift shop. 

The guy who seemed to be in charge told us a funny story about some customers earlier in the day who purchased a towering 18-foot-high tree and hauled it off in a Ford F150 pickup, well strapped down. He was tickled that they later sent him a photo showing the tree inside the house.

We were fortunate to have an unseasonably warm day to buy and set up the tree -- usually it's freezing! 

Friday evening with a bang

Many Embreeville-area residents were startled at about 7:30 Friday evening, Dec. 11, by a very loud boom that rattled windows. Facebook lit up with posts like "WHAT WAS THAT????" Some feared it was a pipeline explosion or a hazardous materials incident. 

Per protocol, emergency services crews from all over the area were sent to the scene at Brandywine Creek Road, near Green Valley Road, and found that the boom was due to a bonfire that had been lit "in an unorthodox manner," according to the Po-Mar-Lin Fire Co. in Unionville.

The fire company posted on Facebook, "To all Newlin Township and surrounding area residents, the recent “boom” heard throughout the area was not a pipeline explosion or hazmat incident. The situation is under control after Po-Mar-Lin units found a bonfire lit in an unorthodox manner. All units have cleared the scene."

Former State Rep. Eric Roe said he heard the "truly alarming" explosion from his home in Marshallton. He posted on Facebook later that evening, "To the over 25% of our district who may have heard a very loud “boom” around 7:30pm this evening between Newlin Township, West Bradford Township, East Bradford Township and East Marlborough Township, I’m told it was a bonfire that involved an unsafe amount of liquid fuel (perhaps gasoline). Thankfully, it appears nobody has died from the explosion."

Replacing culverts on Green Valley Road

Newark Road may be opening soon, but now Green Valley Road in Newlin Township will be closed for a state-funded construction project starting December 14 through mid-March, according to PennDOT. Workers will be replacing the 13-foot-long bridge over an unnamed tributary to the Brandywine Creek (built in 1937) and the 10-foot-long bridge over Green Valley Creek (built in 1935). The detour will take motorists on Powell Road and Brandywine Creek Road. PennDOT says the culverts carry an average of 167 vehicles a day.

Here is Uncle Meleager's cryptic puzzle

Readers, forgive me, this post has nothing whatsoever to do with Unionville. I just wanted to share a cryptic crossword with some puzzle friends.

This is from the short story by Dorothy Sayers, "The Fascinating Problem of Uncle Meleager's Will."

Will Newark Road open soon?

A "Unionville in the News" reader reports that it looks like the road project on Newark Road just south of Toughkenamon has been completed (the intersection of Newark and Hillendale Roads was widened) and the stretch of road will be reopening any day now. He says the paving seems to be done and the lines have been painted.

The imminent reopening represents a glass-half-full/half-empty situation for me. Certainly, it has been a minor inconvenience to detour around the roadwork. But the reduced traffic coming north on Newark Road has been a godsend for those of us who have to make left turns at the challenging Toughkenamon intersection.

The project started in mid-May and was scheduled to take six months.

Great customer service at BB&T Bank

Talk about humbling! 

I'm the treasurer of a small not-for-profit group, and we're in the middle of our annual fund drive. Even in this strange fundraising climate, people are being VERY generous, and we've already received a pile of donation checks. I had a meeting set up so I could hand them over to our bookkeeper for deposit.

The day before the scheduled meeting, the bookkeeper phoned and apologetically told me he was about to undergo emergency gallbladder surgery.

"Does this mean you'll miss our meeting?!" I asked mock-petulantly, making him chuckle despite the circumstances.

So it was up to me to deposit quite a chunk of OPM (other people's money). I could not remember the last time I deposited a check actually inside a bank, much less a few dozen of them. Do you have to endorse each check? Do you need a deposit slip? If so, how do you obtain one? And given COVID, were they even open for walk-in customers? I was full of trepidation. 

Thank goodness for the professionals at the BT&T branch on West Cypress Street in New Garden. I phoned the bank explaining the situation and confessing my utter ignorance, and a reassuring employee named Kessler walked me through the process. Yes, I did need to endorse each check; no, they'd take care of completing the deposit slip; yes, their doors were open; no, I didn't need an appointment.

When I arrived at the bank, a teller named Bonnie apologized for my literally-seconds-long wait while she was helping a drive-through customer. I handed over the stack of checks and our most recent bank statement and held my breath, sure I had forgotten to bring some key information. But she congratulated me on preparing everything perfectly, printed out my receipt, and said if the "back office" found any discrepancies in my math, they'd contact me (no call yet!). 

Then, with a smile, she thanked me for my business. 

We will be sticking with BB&T.

A Scavenger Hunt via Zoom

We had an absolute hoot last night doing a Zoom scavenger hunt with a group of about 20 people.

It was well organized: The emcee would call out the item, noting if it was a "hard" or "easy" one (the "hard" ones were worth more points). Then we all went scrambling to find the item within the 30-second time limit (you got a full minute for the "hard" items). As soon as you located the item, you "raised your hand" using the Zoom tool and held it up so everyone could see.

One fellow acted as the timer, and two scorekeepers kept track of the points each player earned.

The items were both common (e.g., a take-out menu) and offbeat (e.g., a salt lamp). The "feather" item sent me rushing out to the backyard with a flashlight, checking under the bird feeders. It didn't occur to me until the next day that I could easily have retrieved a goose feather from the always-shedding down quilt!

The "empty toilet paper roll" had me rooting through a trash can full of snotty tissues and used dental floss. One participant confessed that she even ripped half a roll of toilet paper right off the roll to qualify!

There was a great deal of scrambling around, laughter, and creativity. For the "apple" item, one woman argued that her iPhone should qualify (the judges said no). One man, out of breath after repeatedly running up and down the steps to retrieve items, said that's it: he's selling his house and buying a one-story home!

We oldsters had a bit of an advantage as some of the items were a flip phone, a fire extinguisher, a box of Band-Aids and a G-rated movie (all of which we had). In the end, though, a young couple who had just put their infant to bed took the top prize: a $20 Amazon gift card.

This same group will be holding a Zoom Bingo competition later this month, and we are greatly looking forward to being part of it.

Room to move

Some friends just sold their Chadds For house in four days, receiving multiple offers over the not-inconsiderable asking price. (Of course, now the family faces the challenge of finding a place to live in Connecticut, where the wife was transferred.) It seems that COVID has spawned a seller's market as people perceive that their houses are insufficient, in either size or amenities, for pandemic living.

As a freelance copy editor, spending hours at home is nothing new for me, but I have had to adjust my living space to accommodate my exercise regimen. For my Zoom yoga class, I push the coffee table out of the way. It's amazing how many cobwebs and dust bunnies you see when you are lying on the living-room floor; the telescoping Swiffer duster that I bought at Lowe's has been a COVID-era game-changer.

For my Zoom cardio class, which includes a fair amount of fast-paced jumping and shuffling, I use the back deck when the weather permits. Surprisingly, the wooden surface is nice and springy and easy on the knees. Otherwise, I've set up an older computer in the concrete-floored garage. Just one pine needle or sweet-gum leaf underfoot can be slippery, so the deck and garage floors have never been cleaner.

Seeking clarity

Two "say what?" moments on today's errand run:

On Baltimore Pike near the Longwood Village shopping center the SUV in front of me had one of those oval magnets on the back that said WTF. I pulled closer and saw, with a smile, that it stood for Wild Thyme Flowers, the florist on Kennett Pike. 

A few minutes later the radio announcer, giving a public service announcement, said, "If you're over 55 and tired and want to share your expertise with others..." Wait, what? If I'm tired, why would someone want to volunteer for something like this? Then I realized he must have said, "over 55 and REtired." Yeah, that makes a bit more sense.

Also a shoutout to John at Sardella Eye Associates in Willowdale, who did a super job tweaking my eyeglasses so the lenses were balanced. He said everyone's spectacles are getting out of whack because we're all donning masks, adjusting them, and taking them off repeatedly during the day.

I watched him gently bending my wire frames and said, "Yeah, I was thinking of doing exactly that myself --"

"Don't!" he said firmly.
 

I thought reporters had thick skins!

For a lark, a friend and I attended an outdoor political rally back in October. It was overcast and spitting rain now and then, but the temperature was seasonal and perfectly comfortable. We were therefore surprised to read news accounts that evening in which the big-city reporters described the "raw" conditions that we supposedly hardy participants had braved for hours. 

"Wow!" commented my friend. "They need to come out to the Cheshire Races one year."

It would be fun indeed to see what the reporters would have to say about the mud and sleet!

No tax increase for 2021; slowing traffic on Newark Road

"This year's budget looks very much like last year's budget" is how township supervisor Bill Wylie summed up the proposed $541,270 budget for West Marlborough Township at the December township meeting. No tax increase is proposed for 2021.

 Last year's budget process was unusually controversial, as the supervisors decided to greatly increase the township's contribution to the fire and ambulance companies that serve the township, as well as helping to fund the building of a new regional library in Kennett Square. Dozens of residents attended township meetings at the end of 2019 to object to the library funding while supporting the funding increase for the emergency services.

 This coming year those contributions remain in the budget: $15,000 for the new library and $51,313 for EMS. On the income side of the budget, the township expects to receive $150,000 from real estate taxes, $190,000 from earned income taxes, $71,759 from liquid fuel taxes, and additional funding from the state and other sources.

 The final vote on the 2021 budget will take place in the township office (not the garage) at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 28. Here is the proposed budget, which will be posted on the bulletin board outside the township garage:

Also at the monthly meeting, the supervisors discussed the perennial problem of motorists speeding through the township, this time focusing on the three-quarter-mile stretch of Newark Road between Route 82 and Route 842.

 "I see the cars just blazing through there," said Supervisor Jake Chalfin. He said he has noticed that part of Newark Road varies greatly in width, and he wondered whether narrowing the road to a uniform width might slow down traffic.

 Other suggestions discussed included painting white lines along the road edges.

 Road crew supervisor Hugh Lofting said he would measure the varying widths along the road and let the supervisors know his findings.

IOU extra rations!

I took Tina, my dear senior cat, to the vet (Brandywine Valley Veterinary Hospital on Strasburg Road) for her annual shots and checkup and happened to mention that her breath had been a little bit rank of late. Dr. Carfaro found that she had a bad tooth that should be extracted, and we scheduled the procedure for a few days' time. I duly dropped her off, only to receive a call 90 minutes later saying that the offending tooth wasn't there; it had come out on its own! So hooray, Tina, for saving me the cost of oral surgery! Three cheers, too, to the good people at BVVH. Everyone there is so kind, gentle, professional and efficient. They seem to realize how much we love our pets and how worried we owners become when they are under the weather.

Seeking enlightenment with Scott

I am so grateful to Lowe's employee Scott, who saved me a great deal of time yesterday. I had a vague sense that the light fixtures in my living room could be brighter, so I unscrewed one of the bulbs and headed over to Lowe's, hoping to create a more cheerful living space. Well! Buying lightbulbs is not so simple anymore. You are confronted with a dizzying array of halogens, fluorescents, and LEDs of all shapes, sizes, efficiencies and dimming options. Fortunately employee Scott came to the rescue. He fired up the magnifying app on his phone so he could perceive the important numbers printed on the base of my lightbulb and then explained my options: for instance, did I want soft light, daylight or bright light? I didn't think the base of the bulb he recommended would fit my wall-sconce fixtures, but he assured me it would (and he was right). Scott was a huge help. I also want to give a shout out to Debbie, the woman who was managing the very busy checkout area. When faced with some impatient customers, she kept her cool, looked them straight in the eye and told them to wait their turn. Wisely, they listened.

Plus vs. -er

French is such beautiful-sounding language, but they certainly do speak quickly. For good reason: they have a lot more syllables to enunciate than do we English speakers! Exhibit A: this package of "pinces à cheveux" (aka bobby pins).

How orange juice is made

Loyal readers know I'm a regular customer at the Produce Place (next to the Country Butcher on East State Street in Kennett), but until Monday I had never seen the automated orange juice maker in action. It was fascinating! The employee simply tossed whole oranges into the wire hopper in the top, and the rotating cupped arm of the machine "grabbed" each one and extracted the juice, which dripped down into the waiting plastic container. You could watch the whole process through the machine's window.

The machine, manufactured by Zummo, was a far cry from the juicer that F. Scott Fitzgerald described in "The Great Gatsby": “There was a machine in the kitchen which could extract the juice of two hundred oranges in half an hour, if a little button was pressed two hundred times by a butler’s thumb.”

Enjoying Eastern European cuisine

The members of St. Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church in Glen Mills hold a Food Festival twice each year, and this year we got to sample their Eastern European specialties, made by church members. We browsed the online menu, ordered perogies, cevapcici and halushki, and picked up our food at the church on Nov. 14. Behind the church some folks were eating at picnic tables, enjoying the warm, sunny afternoon, but we took our goodies home for supper. We enjoyed the camaraderie among the church members: the man who brought our order to the car called out a friendly greeting to "Uncle Mitch," an elderly fellow heading toward the kitchen, and taught us how to pronounce the names of the dishes we had ordered. "I don't know if that's right," he said, "but that's the way I learned it." The perogies were pasta dumplings filled with potatoes and covered with onions (far left in the photo); the cevapici were hearty ground-beef sausages (far right in the photo); and the halushki was a mixture of cabbage and noodles (third from the left in the photo). All were delicious -- I wish we had ordered more! You can learn more about the church, which is on Route 352, at its website www.sthermansoca.org/.

Best mac & cheese in Kennett

The best macaroni and cheese in Kennett Square is at Travelers in the Liberty Place food court. The pasta: medium-sized shells. The cheese: a blend, with a thick topping. The sauce: rich and creamy. The proportions: perfect. I mean, just look at this photo from the Travelers website! We had dinner there last week and had the mac and cheese with delicious, tender, nicely seasoned brisket, and we overheard a customer ordering just the mac and cheese. He sounded a little apologetic but I completely understood: if you need some comfort food, nothing beats mac and cheese! The night we were there, Travelers also had ribs, chicken, and oxtail stew on the menu. And for dessert they offer Gifford's ice cream (made in Skowhegan, Maine) -- it's never too cold to eat ice cream.

Holiday cookbook to benefit KACS

Kennett Square Mayor Matt Fetick and his real-estate team at Keller Williams are collecting recipes for a holiday cookbook to raise funds for Kennett Area Community Services. I'll be submitting recipes for my blue ribbon-winning ginger cookies and my chocolate banana bread!

Deadline for submitting recipes online is Nov. 25. Deadline to order a copy of the cookbook is Dec. 1; the cost is $20, with all proceeds going to KACS (which has been a very busy organization given the financial strife caused by the pandemic).

The website is mfteats.com.

Discretion and chicken pot pie

I just finished copyediting a book about neuroanatomy, and the final chapter included instructions for assessing the patient's cognitive function. The examiner asks the patient to explain the meaning of the following proverbs, ranked from easy to difficult:

Don’t cry over spilled milk.

People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.

The tongue is the enemy of the neck.

One swallow does not a summer make.

You never cross the same stream twice.

I paused at the third, which I'd never heard before: "The tongue is the enemy of the neck." Huh?

My first association was that wartime slogan "Loose lips sink ships" -- meaning, watch what you say because you never know who might be listening. Good advice, surely (especially in a small town like ours). 

But what about the neck part? Perhaps it refers to medieval rulers who didn't hesitate to behead someone who said something that displeased (or, worse, disrespected) them.

I tried Googling the proverb and got nothing. Pity the poor patient sitting in a hospital bed having a doctor lob bizarre proverbs at him. And that was considered only the middle level of difficulty! To my mind, "You never cross the same stream twice," supposedly the pinnacle of complexity, was a lot easier to understand. 

The value of discretion was brought home to me in a ridiculous Facebook exchange. I belong to a group whose normally lighthearted members are fans of a particular mid-20th-century mystery writer. I posted a recipe for chicken pot pie that reminded me of one of the characters. My post received repeated and increasingly vitriolic feedback from a snarky Scotswoman who said it wasn't an authentic dish, it wouldn't have been baked by the character in question, and the administrator should delete my post.

I was itching to respond but for once held my tongue, suspecting that things would just escalate if I replied. And my patience paid off: the next day she got booted from the group.

Oh well!

Here's the recipe, BTW: Easy chicken pot pie! 1. Roast four chicken thighs (or use leftover chicken, or buy a cooked chicken from the store) and some diced potatoes. Take the meat off the bones. 2. Saute half an onion (chopped) and some chopped mushrooms in butter. When they are soft, add 1/3 C flour, salt and pepper, a 14.5-oz can of chicken broth, and 1/2 C milk and stir until nice and thick and bubbling. 3. Add the sauce, onions, and mushrooms to the chicken meat, the roasted potatoes, and your choice of vegetables (I used chopped carrots, green beans, and peas -- don't go overboard with quantity because all must fit into pie). 4. Line a 9-inch glass pie dish with a crust (I used store-brand refrigerated dough) and fill. Top with the second crust; seal and flute the edges. Cut vents and brush with egg wash. 5. Bake at 425 for about 35 minutes. Watch it toward the end so the edges don't burn. 6. Mine bubbled over a bit, so protect your oven floor.

Book about the Hunt

Please forgive my month-long sabbatical! I'm afraid that without the pressure of my weekly deadline, I have slacked off sadly.

But here's a nice item to start up again with. 

Photographer Jim Graham's book on Mr. Stewart's Cheshire Foxhounds, entitled Bound to the Country, has just been released. It's wonderful. Jim has been photographing the horses, hounds and humans of the Hunt for 30 years, and this is a compilation of his work. I recognized many of the scenes of the Unionville countryside and had fun seeing photos of friends and neighbors, some of them, like Nancy Hannum, Gerry Hoover and Dr. Ramsay Buchanan, who are no longer with us. 

I showed the book to a friend who used to foxhunt with Cheshire and she immediately recognized many of the riders, even if they were in a far-off group shot and barely distinguishable from the rest. 

"How on earth can you tell that's her?!" I asked, astonished at her practiced eye.

"That's just they way she sits on a horse," my friend explained. She even could identify many of the horses, by name, owner and behavioral peculiarity ("He would never pick his head up!"). 

The photos of the energetic hounds are marvelous. I smiled at the shots of the hounds flying over fences, tucking into their food trough, or just sharing some love with the huntsman.

It's a gorgeous and timeless book. It's available for purchase at the Brandywine River Museum and the Trail Creek Outfitters store in Kennett Square, or you can order online from Cheshire Editions (cheshireeditions.com).

A fire company open house with social distancing

The Po-Mar-Lin Fire Co. volunteers held an ingenious drive-through open house on the evening of Monday, Oct. 12. They set up stations around the firehouse parking lot and recorded brief explanations about their trucks and equipment so you could drive through and learn about them without getting out of your car. 

In addition to accidents, fires and other emergencies, we learned that Po-Mar-Lin is responsible for conducting large animal rescues throughout Chester County. Recent examples of animals in distress: a horse unable to extricate itself from deep mud and a cow stuck in a manure pit. And because much of the company's territory is rural, they have an all-terrain vehicle that's useful for reaching accidents and fires in remote areas. 

Also on hand at the open house were representatives from Longwood EMS (its mobile intensive care unit ambulance was on display) and the Pennsylvania State Police at the Avondale barracks.

The volunteers were friendly and knowledgeable and were clearly proud to serve as firefighters. It's clear that they put in a lot of time not only responding to emergency calls at all hours but also training and preparing behind the scenes. It was heartwarming to talk with such enthusiastic and community-minded folks.

He was a bad egg: a drive-through murder-mystery

Coping with the pandemic has brought out a lot of creativity in organizations, what business people call being "nimble."

Take the Kennett Amateur Theatrical Society (KATS), the folks who bring you the "Pantomime in the British style." Instead of the murder-mystery they usually stage each summer in downtown Kennett Square, this past Saturday they held a drive-through "social distancing" version at St. Anthony's in the Hills, a now-abandoned summer camp for kids in New Garden Township. 

We investigators were tasked with determining who had pushed Humpty Dumpty off a balcony -- a heinous (and messy) crime! We drove through "Wonderland," stopping to interview the 11 suspects along the way and attempting to discover if they had a motive and an alibi. We learned that all was not well in Wonderland: the late Mr. Dumpty, in fact, was something of a rotten egg, having cornered the market on Wonderland's vital supply of tea and tarts. 

The suspects -- the Cheshire Cat, the Queen of Hearts, the Executioner, the King of Hearts, Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, the Dame of Pikes ("I'm evil, sure, but I'm not a murderer!"), the Knave of Hearts, the Mad Hatter and the March Hare (both desperate for real tea), and Old Alice -- were all portrayed by long-time KATS regulars, and it was great fun to see them again. We were especially amused by the pugnacious brothers Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, who claimed they were "shopping for new bats" at the time of the crime. The suspects were more than happy to offer their alibis and cast suspicion on others. 

(We felt sorry for the actors, as they had to repeat their information so many times for each carload of detectives. They probably weren't doing a lot of talking the next day.)

At the end we reviewed our notes and submitted our guess for who did the murder. Dearest Partner hit the nail on the head: it was "Old Alice," who had no alibi. Who knew that such a mild-mannered woman could hold a grudge for so long! 

I had never visited St. Anthony's before and found it fascinating. Developed by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wilmington, the site is now owned by New Garden Township. While driving through we saw evidence of a former petting zoo, a miniature golf course, and lots of now-overgrown camp buildings with whimsical details and elaborate metalwork. There's a giant amphitheater with concrete tiers and staircases overlooking a small lake. The camp must have been a magical place in its heyday.

Two actual live events this Saturday!

After so many pandemic-related cancellations, I'm jubilant that I have some actually live and in-person events to tell you about! Both will be held this Saturday, Oct. 10.

1. The Kennett Amateur Theatrical Association, the folks who bring you the pantomime each year, are holding a drive-through murder-mystery, "The Mystery of Humpty Dumpty," at St. Anthony's in the Hills (on Route 41 at Route 7) on Saturday, Oct. 10, from 4 to 6 p.m. (last car admitted at 5:30 p.m.). Here's how it will work: 

Tour through a scenic route of St. Anthony’s in the Hills – and along the way question the suspects to determine who murdered Humpty Dumpty. After presenting your ticket at the welcome center, you will remain safely in your vehicle and proceed along the designated route as you question each suspect. There will be suspects all around — so keep your eyes and ears open for clues. Once you have finished questioning the suspects, submit your findings before leaving the park. Later that evening, the proclamation will be presented online and all those who correctly identified the murderer will be entered in the drawing for authentic KATS Murder Mystery T-Shirts.

Tickets are $10 per car and can be purchased online at http://callkats.org/event-dtmm/.  

2. Also on Saturday, Oct. 10, is the third and final "Taste of the Unionville Community Fair" at Foxy Loxy on Route 82 in downtown Unionville from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The featured events this time will be an apple pie competition, a pumpkin contest, and the Fair Queen crowning, which are always highlights of the Fair.

Any kid dressed in a Halloween costume will receive a free kid's cone or cup of ice cream.

-- For the apple pie contest (sponsored by Barnards Orchard): Pies will be accepted from 11 a.m. to noon and, after judging, the winners will be announced at 1:30 p.m. Prizes are $25, $20, $15, and $5. Please include (in a zip-lock bag) an 8.5-by-11-inch sheet of paper with your recipe written on one side and your name, phone number, and address on the other side.

-- For the pumpkin-carving contest and the decorated pumpkin contest: Enter your pumpkin between 11 a.m. and noon and include an index card with your name and phone number. Winners (cash prizes!) will be announced at 1:30.

-- The crowning of the Fair Queen and Princess will begin at 1 p.m.

-- Vendors include DIY Wood Signs; Streitwieser Designs; RJC Woodworking; WoodworksKS; Nodaj's Soaps and Scents; and Rough 'n' Rowdy Honey.

A new Mexican restaurant on our rotation

Jordan Bohall, the new owner and chef at Fuego Eats Cocina Mexicana in the Jennersville shopping center, is a brave man, opening a restaurant in the face of the COVID-10 restrictions. But the new venture is booming, judging from what we saw during our Wednesday night visit. People were not only eating inside and outside, but there was a steady stream of folks ordering and picking up their takeout meals. While we were paying for our meal, the waitress put two callers on hold! 

The menu offers some creative twists on the standard Mexican restaurant fare of tacos, burritos, chimichangas, quesadillas and fajitas. I loved my taco salad with grilled chicken and lime cilantro sauce, served in a crunchy fried tortilla bowl. Dearest Partner had the shrimp and steak fajitas, served with sauteed onions and peppers, rice and grilled vegetables -- which I finished off for lunch the next day.

We were given a choice of eating inside or outside. We chose a table out on the sidewalk, and the busy waitress was cheerful and relaxed, bringing us chips and salsa as soon as we sat down. 

Bohall purchased the restaurant on Aug. 15, added the "Fuego Eats" name, and after closing down for redecorating, reopened on Aug. 25. According to his mission statement, his goal is "to serve exquisite Mexican-inspired cuisine, using the freshest ingredients possible, with a creative touch."

The hours are Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. They're closed Sundays to give the staff some rest, according to a sign on the door. The phone number for takeout is 484-667-8520.

Sold! To West Marlborough Township!

The online bidding for the John Deere 6320 mower was fierce, rising steadily in $100 increments, but West Marlborough Township finally came out victorious with a winning bid of $28,200. 

Road crew boss Hugh Lofting Jr. said the new mower, a 2003 model with 3,800 hours, will be used to mow road banks and will replace one made in 1975 (the township also still uses one made in 1973). It has an enclosed cabin with air conditioning. 

"It's really nice," he said. He said the township got a good deal, as the mower is probably worth close to $40,000 and a new one would sell for over $100,000. Before the auction he drove to West Earl Township in Lancaster County to inspect the mower in person, and he and township supervisor Bill Wylie together handled the bidding on the intermunicipal website.

Hugh Lofting Jr. and road crew member "Brother" Wilson show off the township's new mower at the township garage on Thursday morning.

Hugh 2 picked up the new mower from Brownstown, Lancaster County, on Wednesday. Because it was too wide to fit on a trailer, he drove it home, a trip that took him an hour and 45 minutes ("I actually thought it would take longer"). He said that West Earl was selling the mower because they are rethinking their mowing strategy.  

"Looking "under the hood." The mower is the yellow attachment on the left. 

A lecture about the King Ranch

Before the pandemic struck, a bus tour through the former King Ranch west of Unionville was planned for August 20. Instead, Kathleen Hood is going to give a talk about the history of the ranch, entitled "Riding with Cowboys, Cattle, and Kings." It will be broadcast on the Oxford Area Historical Association's Facebook page from 7 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, September 15.

Interest in the King Ranch is so high that a bus tour in the summer of 2019 was not only sold out but also had a waiting list of 600 people. The tour, which featured stories by two former cowboys, Kenny Young and Rocky Dillow, included stops at Springdell, Chapel Road, the feed lots, the former ranch office, and the West Marlborough township building in the village of Doe Run. 

Kathleen Hood has written "Echoes in the Glen," a book about St. Malachi Catholic Church in Londonderry Township, and has spent the past several years interviewing former cowboys at the King Ranch for another book.

Kennett Occupation Day is Thursday, Sept. 10

Kennett Square is marking "Occupation Day" on Thursday, September 10, the date in 1777 when British forces took over the town the day before the Battle of the Brandywine. Folks dining along State Street will have the chance to meet Revolutionary War reenactors from 4 to 6 p.m. and listen to a fife-and-drum corps. 

According to the "Kennett Occupation Day" website: "The day and night before this great battle the entire British and Hessian Armies marched into the small town of Kennett Square and occupied the homes and taverns where they rested and planned their attack strategy. The occupation was devastating to the local community as livestock, horses, food, etc. were taken by the British Army."

The event is co-sponsored by the Chadds Ford Historical Society and the Kennett Heritage Center.

Speaking of Kennett history, Lynn Sinclair and Lars Farmer were kind enough to show me around the new Kennett Heritage Center at 120 N. Union St., the former home of Dr. Isaac D. Johnson (and, more recently, the law office of Kennett Township supervisor Scudder Stevens). Perhaps you've seen workers in the front yard doing millwork.

Still under renovation, the museum will include rooms devoted to the 1700s (including the Lenni-Lenape), the early 1800s, the late 1800s, and the Underground Railroad. Lynn said she hopes to have the center open later this year: "It would be really fun to have a holiday celebration here!" 

 

This rendering shows what the first room in the Heritage Center will look like.

An outdoor concert at Primitive Hall

I love my "quarantine" companions: Tina the cat, Dearest Partner, and my next-door neighbors. I see my gym friends via Zoom twice a week and my international group of crossword solvers once a week. But I didn't realize how much I missed the actual physical presence of other humans until I went to an outdoor concert at Primitive Hall on Aug. 30. (Primitive Hall, the big brick house on North Chatham Road between Routes 926 and 842, is the historical home of the Pennock family.)

This was the fifth year for the concert by local balladeer Charlie Zahm and fiddler Tad Marks, and there was much discussion among those of us on the Primitive Hall Foundation board about whether we should hold it: Could it be done safely? We decided that it could, if we enforced mask wear and social distancing and cleaned the bathroom after every use. We recruited a diligent bathroom attendant and used a measuring stick to space out the groups of friends. 

And what was the response? The cars just kept pouring in! We had set up a folding table with spare masks and Hall information -- and we had to keep moving it to accommodate more cars. Over 140 people attended! 

Folks were ecstatic just to get out of the house. Guests thanked us over and over for holding the concert: "You have no idea how excited I am," one woman told me. She said the last concert she saw before the shutdown was, in fact, Charlie Zahm, and she was thrilled to see him again (Charlie has an especially loyal fan base, known as the "Zahm-bies").

The weather was beautiful -- cool and sunny -- and sitting in the walnut grove with friends, listening to music again, was a truly heartening experience. 

West Marlborough township meeting

(I'm out of practice reporting on township meetings, but I'll give it a shot!)

Last night I went to the September meeting of the West Marlborough Board of Supervisors, held as usual in the township garage in Doe Run. The garage door was open for optimal air flow, and everyone wore masks. The folding chairs for the audience were spaced six feet apart, but it was a moot point as I was the only resident who attended. 

Supervisor Jake Chalfin announced that the intermunicipal planning commission comprising West and East Marlborough and Newlin Townships will be reviewing its plan for coordinating the zoning uses in the three townships. The group will apply for state funding to pay for professional assistance with the process, although Mr. Chalfin said he didn't think much would need to be revised in the plan. He and township planning commission member Emory Jones will represent West Marlborough.

Township secretary/treasurer Shirley Walton reported that close to 100% of residents have paid their township real estate taxes within the "face period" (before a penalty is assessed).

The board agreed to send a letter to the state supporting the Kennett Library's request for a $4 million grant to construct its new building. 

Supervisor Hugh Lofting Sr. said during the recent heavy rainstorms, the township road crew had to deal with trees and wires down and gullies in roads, but other areas were harder hit by the flooding and power outages. Supervisor Bill Wylie complimented the road crew on their routine work responding to residents' concerns and keeping the road banks mowed.

The township planning commission meeting that usually precedes the supervisors' meeting was cancelled for lack of business. The group has not met since March.

Lunch at the patio at Loch Nairn

One of the minor casualties of the pandemic has been the casual, spur-of-the-moment lunch invitation. Now you have to take into account which restaurants are open, what their hours are and whether you need reservations. 

A dear friend and I overcame these hurdles and met for lunch on the patio at Loch Nairn Golf Club on McCue Road. We hadn't seen each other for weeks, so there was a lot of catching up to do. It doesn't help that our conversational style is amorphous rather than linear -- just the mention of a person's name in an anecdote can spin us off on a completely different tangent, from health to politics to pets to the washing away of driveways.

So we ate our lunch, split a dessert (delicious apple pie a la mode!), and lingered over our coffee until we realized that the golfers we'd seen unloading their gear in the parking lot had finished their round and were returning, hot and sweaty and ready for a drink. Time to head home!

The show must go on ... line!

Dearest Partner keenly missed the Philadelphia Folk Festival in Schwenksville last weekend. It's a highlight of his summer. He has developed a whole ritual for packing his gear and he knows just when he needs to arrive to snag his preferred spot in the campground. He loves seeing his "Fest friends," and all year round, he becomes endearingly sentimental talking about the feeling of "coming home" he gets upon entering the Old Poole Farm. 

But with a live show impossible this year, the Philadelphia Folksong Society went digital, airing recorded performances by the musicians who were supposed to appear. We logged in and watched quite a bit over the weekend. The one singer I was especially looking forward to seeing was Billy Bragg, who I've enjoyed since his "She's Got a New Spell" days. He was supposed to perform on Sunday afternoon, but instead they aired a tribute to the late John Prine. But that's the nature of live music, and they did warn us that the schedule was "subject to change without notice." 

During a break in the music, Society Executive Director Justin Nordell went down on one knee and proposed to his boyfriend, Dr. David Koren, on camera (he said yes!). 

The Society also made available footage from prior Fests dating back to the 1980s (the 2020 show was the 59th annual Fest). We had fun watching David Myles, Tommy Emmanuel and Tom Rush, and D.P. got nostalgic rewatching shows he had seen live. It's amazing how the quality of video production has improved in the past few decades.

D.P. made some noises about pitching his tent in the backyard and sleeping outside, but somehow that never happened. The heavy rainstorms and muddy aftermath would've almost completed the full Fest experience.

The Unionville Community Fair, COVID-style

The Unionville Community Fair organizers are thinking outside the box. Of course this year's Fair had to be cancelled, but the Fair board is trying to recreate the experience anyway by holding three "Taste of the Fair" events, all at Foxy Loxy in "downtown" Unionville. 

We attended the first one on Aug. 15 and it was a fun event. Lou Mandich of the Last Chance Garage had several of his vintage autos on display. Charlie Brosius, a lifelong mushroom farmer and former Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture, played his old-time calliope, which added a cheerful air to the event. Baily's Dairy brought Priscilla, the Jersey cow. Folks were playing horseshoes and corn hole in the field next to Kinloch Woodworking, and families were enjoying Foxy Loxy's delicious ice cream creations.

Two more Saturday events are planned, both from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Foxy Loxy. At the Sept. 12 event, there will be a chocolate cake competition and on Oct. 10 there will be an apple-pie contest. Make your own cake or pie and bring it to be judged, just like at the Fair. When we were chatting at the August "Taste," Fair president Bonnie Musser gave me the choice of which one I wanted to judge; I chose the apple pie contest.

A Greek bakery is coming to Kennett Square

Folks seem to be really excited about "Greek From Greece," the new Greek cafe/bakery coming to downtown Kennett Square. I happened to be walking along State Street on Tuesday and spotted its new canopy over the old Portabello's location. Curious as ever, I did some research when I got home, posted a little blurb on Facebook and -- wham! -- dozens of comments and "likes" from people eager to enjoy some baklava and Greek coffee.

Greek From Greece, a franchise founded in 2016, has as its motto "Daily Trips to Greece." According to the website (https://www.gfg-bakery.com/#products), "GFG is the only bakery in which all products are made in Greece. Wheat, olives, corn, tomatoes growing under the Greek sun and the beneficial sea breeze. And, GFG perfectly aligns with the universal shift towards organic, natural ingredients and specific move towards the Mediterranean Diet, as a premier paradigm of healthy, natural eating."

There are four GFGs in New York City, one in Hoboken, N.J., one in Wayne, N.J., and one in Paramus, N.J. I'm not sure when this one will open -- the windows are covered with brown paper and there's a building permit signed by Rusty Drumheller on display.

A relaxing summer evening at Anson B. Nixon Park

On a Wednesday evening at Anson B. Nixon Park in a normal, pre-pandemic summer, picnickers would have been gathered in front of the amphitheater, socializing, enjoying their meals and listening to the concert. But even though the summer concerts, like everything else, have been cancelled, the park was still a busy spot this past Wednesday evening. 

We stopped in for an after-dinner stroll and saw skateboarders, a guy perfecting his tennis serve, youths playing basketball, many disc golfers, soccer players, folks walking their dogs, anglers, and two guys practicing a salsa dance routine on the amphitheater stage. A park employee was working hard even as sunset approached, shoveling wood chips into the back of a Gator and then zipping out to spread them on the walking trails.

Lots of big trees had been blown over by the recent storms, and several of the gravel paths had deep ruts in them from the fierce runoff. Debris from the creek was still stuck in bottom of the dog-park fence.

The community garden plots are flourishing. There were tons of tomatoes and hot and sweet peppers, as well as huge zinnias and sunflowers. Some gardeners are already starting their fall crops of carrots and broccoli. Some kind of a vining crop -- possibly loofah gourds? -- had summited the high wire fence that prevents deer from getting into the enclosure, and its fruit was dangling in midair.

The park is spread out enough that social distancing was no problem. If someone was approaching on a bridge, we'd just stop and let him or her pass before we stepped onto the bridge.

As we were walking we noticed that a lot of work had been done to the banks of the creek. I learned from the park's website that it's "a water quality project of the Brandywine Red Clay Alliance and the Kennett Area Park Authority to restore portions of the East Branch of the Red Clay Creek and a tributary. Stream restoration addresses sediment, nitrogen and phosphorous pollution in the creek by stabilizing eroding stream banks, connecting the stream to flood plains, reducing new erosion in the creek channel and improving fish and aquatic habitats."

The Brandywine Red Clay Alliance offers a lot more detail on the project at http://www.brandywineredclay.org/watershed-conservation/red-streams-blue/east-branch/ 

A hidden graveyard in North Wilmington

If you're looking for a historical mini-road trip, visit the Newark Union graveyard, where seven Revolutionary War soldiers are buried. It's tucked away in a suburban North Wilmington neighborhood off Baynard Boulevard; in fact, a friend who grew up in Shipley Heights had never heard of the place.

The stone walls around the graveyard abut people's backyards, and as we approached it felt like we were driving up someone's driveway. Nonetheless, it was completely peaceful and we spent an enjoyable hour wandering around.

The graveyard is beautifully kept and looked as if it had been mowed within the past few days. Even the 18th-century grave markers were standing upright, and some sunken stones had been raised and put onto new plinths. One stone had just been repaired and still had a brace holding it together. Discreet dots of white spray paint marked the grass at the corner of some of the plots. The marigolds growing on some of the graves were thriving and had very recently been watered.

In addition to the Revolutionary War patriots, there are also veterans from the Civil War and both World Wars. There are also lots of Weldin, Carr and Talley family members, readily recognizable New Castle County surnames. The most recent of the 950 residents was buried only earlier this year.

The graveyard and now-abandoned church are located at 8 Newark Union Road.

These photos of the historical marker on Baynard Boulevard and the plaque on the cemetery wall are from the "Dearly Departed in Delaware" website.

Longwood Gardens hours and rules

 I've visited Longwood Garden only once since they reopened post-lockdown and decided to check and see if the regulations have changed before I stopped by again. Here's the latest:

1. Hours are Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Until the end of August, the Friday and Saturday hours are 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.; starting in September, the Friday and Saturday hours will be 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

2. Timed tickets are required. You're asked to purchase your ticket (if you're not a member) or make your timed reservation (if you are a member) online before you arrive. Tickets are spaced out every half-hour, but you can stay as long as you like.

3. Longwood's mask policy: "Face masks are required (ages 2 and older) in both indoor and outdoor public spaces, unless individuals are outside and are able to consistently maintain a distance of six feet from individuals who are not members in their household. Please stay home if you are sick or symptomatic."

4. The fountain shows have started up again, both in the amphitheater and in the main fountain garden.

Also, I finally remembered to find out what those new buildings are at Longwood Gardens, on the south side of Route 1 toward southbound Route 52: a 63,790-square-foot greenhouse and a 14,580-square-foot headhouse.

What's a headhouse? I didn't know either. According to Merriam Webster, it's "a service area or building attached to a greenhouse usually for housing the central temperature-control equipment and providing working and storage room."

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