THE BRANDYWINE: Competitive tubing and a fine pig roast

The Brandywine Creek was a popular spot to be this past Saturday afternoon, with kayakers, canoeists and tubers enjoying the glorious weather. I was one of the latter. As part of his huge annual party, the host drives his guests a few miles upstream in a truck and drops them off.
The only problem is that there's a limited number of inner tubes, so you have to wait for the previous tubers to finish their trip. Tube-snagging became quite competitive: the "welcoming party" of people waiting for tubes moved steadily upstream throughout the afternoon to catch the returning tubers earlier in their trip.
I actually started to get a little cranky while waiting -- but then realized that there were far worse places to be than standing in the middle of the creek on a beautiful afternoon with amusing friends and some pretty funny kids. Nonetheless, next year we're bringing our own tubes.
While floating downstream, one fellow in our party, an arborist, commented on how majestic sycamores are. And sturdy, too, he said; you never see one uprooted. Of course, just around the next bend, there was a horizontal sycamore nearly touching the water.
Back at the picnic, the BBQ chef told me about the art of roasting a 189-lb pig (he bought it at a butcher shop on Ninth Street in Philadelphia). He started the cooking process early that morning. The fire was too hot at first, he said, and the dripping fat produced a fireworks-like jet of flame. He managed to tweak the temperature, and the end result, I assured him, could not have been better.
There was music throughout the day. As I drove in I heard someone doing "St. Tropez" from Pink Floyd's "Meddle"" album (not at all what you'd expect at a picnic). Other musicians took to the stage (made of wooden pallets) to do Dylan songs and Rolling Stones songs, and a DJ in another part of the property was spinning disco and Motown. QUITE a party.

ANSON B. NIXON: Beyond the Pale plays Celtic music on a summer evening

This past week's concert at Anson B. Nixon Park was by Beyond the Pale, a Celtic band who played original songs and traditional tunes (when was the last time you heard "What Do You Do With a Drunken Sailor"?), with the Beatles' "I've Just Seen a Face" stuck in there as well. The evening started out hot and sticky, but as the sun went down it cooled off nicely. I even felt a little breeze, even if those around me didn't.
There were a couple of kids demonstrating Irish dancing, the usual cute toddlers rushing around as fast as their little legs could carry them (with parents at their heels), and a bearded fellow who danced by himself with great enthusiasm and abandon.
State Street Pizza & Grill provided the food, and just like last summer they ran out of pizza before the show even started and had to summon backup. One New Bolton Center researcher learned from his experience last year: instead of returning to his seat and missing the second and third backup deliveries, he stood his ground at the pavilion and was the first to score his slices when they arrived, still hot in an insulated bag.

UNIONVILLE: Wollaston Road is not a speedway

People who live on Wollaston Road in "downtown" Unionville are asking motorists to abide by the 25 m.p.h. speed limit and to remember that people and animals live in the neighborhood.
One friend wrote to me: "Folks make the turn onto Wollaston from 82 and are in third gear by the time they hit our little street (Buffington)." She said her husband bought two "Children Playing" signs and posted them "due to drivers' ridiculous disregard of the presence of young children in our little residential area. Speed bumps, judiciously placed, could help."
And my friend's daughter reports that "a young horse girl" driving a dark-blue pickup hit a dog on Wollaston Road, breaking the creature's leg, and almost hit the four-year-old walking the dog. The driver didn't even stop. I can't imagine.

VISIONING: Who was that shady character?

I got my eyes checked the other day, and as part of the exam my optometrist (Renny Sardella in Willowdale) instilled mydriatic eyedrops. They cause your pupils to expand temporarily, allowing the optometrist to examine your eye's inner structure more easily. Your eyes are very sensitive to light until the effect wears off. Three hours after my appointment I was still squinting and needed to wear my sunglasses, even inside at the Y. I felt the need to explain to everyone in my gym class that I was NOT, in fact, attempting to be cool (a lost cause anyway, the Young Relative would point out, and quite correctly).

PLANTATION FIELD: A horse show honoring rescued dogs

My friend Bambi Glaccum kindly allowed me to share her account of the special horse show held at Plantation Field in June on behalf of rescued dogs.

"All the entry fees went to several Rescue Dog organizations. This idea was very well received by the entrants as there were over 200 rides. Five entrants took advantage of a free entry if they had a rescued dog. This was Plantation Field's way of saying thank you to them for their kindness. The last horse went into the ring at 7:30 p.m.! It was nearly the summer solstice and a bright summer day, so light was not an issue.

The highlight of the day was the Rescue Dog parade at noon. 30 dogs and their owners walked at the end of the arena for the judging of the smallest and largest dog. Amy McKenna and Mike Rotko won those prizes and all the other dogs received a treat from Pet Valu in Kennett, sponsor of the parade.

A huge thank you to Plantation Field for hosting this innovative day and special thanks to the owners and riders for supporting this cause."

 

 

WEST MARLBOROUGH: Trying to tidy up an overgrown house

There's not a lot to report from the July meeting of the West Marlborough Township supervisors.
Township engineer Al Giannantonio said he followed up on a resident's complaint in June about the lack of yard maintenance at a bank-owned, long-vacant house at the corner of Sportsmans Lane and Street Road. He said the bank's maintenance vendor, Safeguard Properties, assured him that the property would be cleaned up by mid-June. It wasn't. He said he will check with the township's solicitor to see what actions he should take next.
The woman who lives next door to the overgrown house was at the July meeting and thanked the supervisors for following up. She had the same problem last year as well.
I stopped by the house on Saturday morning and this is what I saw. There's a sharp line of demarcation from the neighbors' neatly tended lawns.

Mr. Giannantonio also said that there were no zoning permits issued in June and no subdivision or land development plans were submitted; in fact, the July planning commission meeting was cancelled for lack of business.
Robert Clarke, the East Marlborough police chief who spends 40 hours a month patrolling West Marlborough, reported that he investigated 13 incidents and issued eight speeding tickets, two stop-sign violations, two parking tickets and three warnings.
The supervisors rescheduled their public hearing on the amended zoning ordinance until 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 4.

UNIONVILLE: The second annual Cheshire Foxhounds country fair

We had a great time at the Cheshire Foxhounds Country Fair at the Kennels on Sunday afternoon. Lots of friends and neighbors were there, including the senior Tally-hos, and there was good food from the Brandywine Picnic Park and ice cream from the Kilby Cream ice cream truck (minty moo, yum!). Kids competed in the egg-and-spoon race, the sack race and the three-legged race, and there were three hard-fought tug-of-wars.
Two equestrian friends of mine were mock-arguing over their respective times atop the mechanical bull (fortunately I wore a skirt so I had an excuse not to try it).
Lou Mandich of Unionville's Last Chance Garage persuaded several neighbors to drive their antique cars to the event, including Denis Glaccum's well-broken-in Plantation Field Jeep.
Cheshire's hounds, the "Cheshire Beauties," made a special appearance, parading out onto the lawn to say hello.
Thank you to the Hunt for a delightful afternoon!

FOURTH OF JULY: A picnic, Hockessin fireworks and a very big chair

Independence Day was a jolly one even for those of us Unionville dwellers who weren't at the shore, the Hamptons, the mountains or Down East. At the wonderful picnic we went to in West Grove, the host perched in an oversized red folding chair that he could have used a set of steps to climb into. It had six drink holders in the arms. It rained a bit, but the huge sycamore in the back yard provided shelter for everyone.
We were a little late getting to the Hockessin fireworks and actually started seeing them as we were driving along Route 41, near the Hilltop Inn. We managed to park at a bank in Hockessin and found a great viewing spot next to George & Son's Seafood on Old Lancaster Pike. The fireworks were top-notch, especially the loud, huge, colorful ones in the grand finale. At the end of the display, we heard somebody's car alarm sounding, a sure-fire indicator of a successful display.
On our convoluted way home -- there was a lot of traffic -- we passed a development called "Tree Top Valley" and speculated whether or not, based on its ambiguous name, it would be a good place to watch fireworks.
Back home I heard fireworks going off until very late from parties around the area.