Saturday, May 4, 2013

All Over Manhattan

A Unionville friend -- the one with the new knee -- got a call out of the blue from a friend and former boss, offering her a discount week at a timeshare in midtown Manhattan. My friend, an avid traveler just back from the Grand Canyon, jumped at the chance and headed north with her daughter.
They had a splendid time and perfect weather: they walked in Central Park (did I know, she asked, that there is a Literary Walk there?), visited and were deeply moved by the 9/11 Memorial, studied Egyptology at the Met, took a double-decker bus tour around town, and saw "Spiderman" and "Wicked" on Broadway. She loved the High Line, the linear park on what used to be an elevated railway.
She enjoyed the fact that cabs now take credit cards and admired the "sophisticated suits" on the businessmen; the women "all were wearing very high heels," she said, holding her fingers a few inches apart to indicate the heel height.
What she didn't like was the lines and the crowds: "it was just a little claustrophobic." As soon as they saw the long lines for discount theater tickets, they decided just to ask their concierge to get the tickets for them. Walking on the jammed sidewalks "was like running a gauntlet," especially since she still has to be cautious on curbs and steps with the new knee.
She said that although they had a great week, "we agreed we are glad we live in the country."

First editions


My book-collector pals probably won't be pleased that I'm publicizing this: but there's going to be a really interesting auction at 816 Newhall Road, East Marlborough, on Thursday, May 23 (preview is 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 11). On the auction block will be some Bayard Taylor first editions, an 1883 Chester County atlas and "a large collection of vintage books from personal library," according to the auction notice. The brick ranch house and lot are being sold at noon; the sale of contents starts at 10 a.m. The auctioneer is Morphy Auctions, www.morphyauctions.com.

Fish tacos

I ran into my dear friend (and loyal reader) Doug at La Pena Mexicana on Saturday night, and he didn't even have to tell the waitress what he wanted: she knew he'd order the fish tacos "with everything." I decided to try it myself -- and I now have a new favorite. Tilapia, onions, cilantro, tomatoes, lettuce and avocado on corn tortillas, with rice and green salsa -- for seven dollars? Seriously, what's not to like?
La Pena is at 609 West Cypress Street in Kennett Square.

Speechless


In what I can only interpret as one of the weirdest pickup lines ever, the middle-aged fellow next to me caught a glimpse of the photo that serves as the "home screen" of my phone. It depicts one of the beautiful unpaved roads here in West Marlborough.
"So," he asked, "are you a bowhunter?"

Motivation

At a family dinner at the Half-Moon, the Tally-ho patriarch announced, perhaps unwisely, that his doctor had ordered him to lose 15 pounds in the next three months. How, he asked, was he ever going to do this?
My brother the engineer sensibly suggested a combination of decreased intake and increased exercise; he calculated the required caloric balance. I suggested frequent walks at Longwood Gardens. The Young Relative suggested that I include a box in each week's "Unionville in the News" entitled "Diet Progress." (I rejected this idea after my father started muttering something that sounded a lot like "you wanna be disowned?")
So, readers, help me out here. If you see my father at a restaurant, go up to his table and inspect his plate. Do not be afraid to denounce him publicly if you see him eating dessert. Waitresses, monitor his orders ("It's for your own good, Mr. Tally-ho"). Praise him if you see him walking at Longwood and ask intrusive questions about the regularity of his exercise.
Trust me, he'll appreciate it.
(The doctor also suggested that he might think about hiring someone to do tasks like cutting down trees instead of doing it himself. But as my father would say, "From the movie `Fat Chance.'")

Friday, May 3, 2013

Universal

Tired of making small talk about the weather and the Phillies? Don't want to risk bringing up gun control, gay marriage or the Kennett Township Board of Supervisors? In the past week I've found two new, safe and fairly universal topics of discussion: curtains and drainage problems.
I've been putting up new curtains (three visits to Lowe's so far) and, when telling family and friends about my choices, I was surprised to find that almost everyone has a window-treatment story to share. After all, you have to make lots of decisions about colors, fabrics, styles, hardware -- they fill up two whole aisles at Lowe's! You should have seen my friend Karen's eyes light up when I mentioned my new cordless honeycomb blinds.
Same things with drainage problems: who doesn't like to talk about their plumber and the vagaries of their plumbing setup? You have to have the lingo for it, though, or else your conversation will consist of vague references to "that thingie that comes out of the garbage disposal" or "those round PVC jobbies."

Growin' up


In a few weeks a young woman I know is going to be processing down the steps of Old West and graduating from my alma mater. It seems like just yesterday that she was at Tower Hill, thinking about where she would like to go to college and -- being a loyal alum -- I suggested my old school as a possibility. And in every sports story about the UHS baseball team, it seems there's a photo of a certain young man, scoring the winning run or making a crucial out. How time flies: his mother was in my exercise class up until the week he was born.

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Where are they?

Has anyone seen hummingbirds darting around? I haven't, and I've had my feeder up since April 27. There are plenty of red-winged blackbirds, chickadees, catbirds and carpenter bees, but no hummingbirds quite yet.
A young ornithologist friend has offered to take me on a bird walk along my road, which -- who knew? -- turns out to be something of a birdwatcher's paradise. Can't wait!

Another chapter ends

On my way home from dinner last night (May 1) I noticed a "for sale" sign on a vacant lot at Baltimore Pike and Waywood Lane, just east of town. If you lived around here back in 2000, you will doubtless recall that this parcel was the cause of a firestorm of controversy. The board of the Bayard Taylor Memorial Library purchased the lot for $500,000 with the hopes of building a new library there. However, the opposition to this idea was swift and fierce: many people didn't want the library to leave the center of town.
It was a huge and bitter battle. Invective-filled letters to the editor filled this paper (in fact, I wouldn't be surprised if even this diplomatic recap sparks at least one). A "Friends of the Library" group sprung up to oppose the move. Sadly, some long friendships broke up over the vitriolic dispute.
I found myself in the middle of the whole to-do and, with hindsight, I can say that I learned a great many things -- most of them useful but few of them pretty -- about politics, human nature (including my own), and being on the "other side" of journalism.
Obviously, since the Library is still located "in town,"the fundraising campaign for the proposed Waywood library never succeeded. I'm told the Board voted unanimously to sell the property; the asking price is $995,000. One can only hope they see a nice profit for all the time and energy that was expended.

Obstructed view

Great constituent service from Kennett Borough Council member Dan Maffei -- and I'm not even a constituent of his! A few weeks ago I mentioned the sight-line problem at Race and Cypress Streets, near the Kennett Y. Dan got back to me immediately and said that Borough Police Chief Ed Zunino is looking into the problem at that intersection and a few others.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

"Mogreena"

Some of the nicest folks I've met recently are those who work in the tiny borough of Modena, just south of Coatesville. Several "green-minded" small businesses have set up shop there, like Waste Oil Recyclers and Organic Mechanics Potting Soil, and they'll be sponsoring the Fifth Annual Energy Independence Day at 6 Union St. from 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday, May 19. There's going to be live music, local beer tasting, kids' activities and a great, welcoming ambiance (I speak from experience).

Why risk it?

Overheard at Starbucks early this morning:
A woman put in her order and the cheerful clerk offered her a free sample of some goodie.
"No, thanks," replied the customer ruefully. "I might end up liking it."
And overheard in the Lowe's parking lot:
One woman to another: "So I told him, you can either pitch in more, or you can rub my feet every night!"
I didn't hear the response to that ultimatum and I'm not sure I wanted to.

Monday, April 29, 2013

Work to do

We hear a great deal about the sense of entitlement among young people today, but here's one who has her head on straight. I overheard several high-school girls complimenting a friend on her dress, her socks, and her purse.
One of them asked, rather petulantly, "How can you afford all that?!"
Her immediate reply: "I have a job."

Sunday, April 28, 2013

To-Do List

There was SO MUCH going on this past weekend! I asked my Facebook friends to share what they did, and here's what I heard:
-- The Art on the Square show and the Y's Healthy Kids Day in Kennett
-- The UHS spring play matinee of "Princess Bride" ("It was awesome!")
-- A husband-and-wife date to see the tulips at Longwood Gardens (so popular they had to park in the auxiliary lot)
-- Mary Dugan's memorial service at London Grove Friends Meeting
-- The Woodlands at Phillips Mushrooms anniversary celebration
-- The Pennsbury Township community yard sale
-- Pocopson Elementary School's art and garden day
-- The Chester County Master Gardeners plant sale at Springton Manor
-- The Maryland Hunt Cup (featuring several local jockeys)
-- The Unionville Track & Field International.
Four people told me they had to work -- specifically, writing, doing hair, running a restaurant and baking bread. I, too, worked, but then I went to the Young Relative's baseball game and got a fair amount of gardening done.

No hearing

Sorry to disappoint you if you were looking forward to reading about the April 24 zoning hearing for Dick Hayne's bridge at his Doe Run Farm, but the hearing was cancelled at Mr. Hayne's request. No word on whether it will be rescheduled.
Mr. Hayne had submitted plans for a proposed steel box beam bridge, off Route 841 near the S-curve east of Thouron Road, that would be about 56 feet long and 12 feet wide, with oak planking. At the West Marlborough Township planning commission meeting on April 2, the township's engineer, Al Giannantonio, described it as "a very substantial bridge" that could bear the weight of not only cattle but also heavy vehicles. He told the commission that Mr. Hayne's workers had already started the bridge project when the township alerted them that they needed permits; the project was then halted and the zoning hearing was scheduled.

Household management

How does anyone, ever, get anything done?
Yesterday morning I was hanging out the laundry on the clothesline. While there, I noticed that the bird feeders were empty, and I remembered my mother's comment that it's time to put out the hummingbird feeder. Got the birdseed. Mixed the nectar. While hanging up the feeder, I noticed that the daff leaves needed to be braided (yes, I'm one of "those"!) and the lamium needed to be trimmed back. Coming inside to get the clippers, I noticed two stink bugs on the ceiling. Dealt with them. Heard the guinea pig squealing and gave her some carrots. Spotted the LL Bean catalog and remembered I need to order a new hammock.
This went on all day; somehow I managed to get the garden raked and planted pumpkins, four kinds of sunflowers, gladiolus and Peruvian daffs. Finally I sat on the deck with a drink, took off my boots and baseball cap ... and noticed a dog tick crawling on the brim. Inside to get the Scotch tape to seal it up. While washing my hands I noticed a splinter in my palm from the rake and took it out with my Swiss Army knife tweezers. Saw a cookie sheet and realized I owed a friend a batch of lemon crisps ... And the cycle began again.


 
 
 

Outreach

St. Michael Lutheran Church in Unionville is putting out the word that it offers transportation for senior citizens to its Sunday services each week. "The bus makes stops at the Luther House and Jenners Pond campuses in Jennersville and Kennett Friends Home," according to the church bulletin. If you know anyone who might be interested, you can contact the church office for a schedule (610-347-1696; saintmichaellc@verizon.net; www.StMichaelPA.com).
(By the way, if you want to send me your house of worship's bulletin the way St. Michael does, please email me at uvilleblogger@gmail.com.)

A history talk

Just a reminder that at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 16, Seth Hinshaw, historic preservation planner with Wise Preservation Planning of Chester Springs, will be speaking about old Kennett Township barns. The talk is at the Kennett Township building. It's free and open to the public, with no registration needed.

Coexist

The spring weather is bringing out hordes of  fair-weather bicyclists (in addition to the hard-core folks who have been pedaling all winter). Early Saturday morning I was at my desk working when I heard the dog barking frantically, in the way she usually reserves for a raccoon up a tree. No, it was a pelleton of a dozen cyclists zipping by.
Later in the day I was behind two cyclists riding side by side along Upland Road. As soon as the middle-of-the-road guy noticed me, he quickly pulled over behind his colleague. Excellent behavior! Thank you! There's nothing that annoys motorists more than bicyclists who take up the whole lane.
But motorists: please remember, one of those cyclists could be my brother. Treat them with respect and courtesy.

Signs of the times

Politics is everywhere. While driving along Baltimore Pike the other day I spotted a couple of red-and-white signs saying "SOS: Save Our Support Staff." It seems the teachers' union at the Kennett Consolidated School District is objecting to the school board's proposed outsourcing of teaching assistants.
And planted prominently at the URA fields on Saturday was a campaign sign for one of the candidates for the East Marlborough Township Board of Supervisors (the primary election is Tuesday, May 21). Given how busy the URA fields are this time of the year, his message reached a lot of voters.