PLANTATION FIELD: A show for horses and dogs

Kathleen Crompton asked me to mention an upcoming "Jump for Rescues" jumper/schooling horse show at the Plantation Field grounds starting at 9 a.m. Wednesday, June 22. Net proceeds from entry fees will benefit dog rescues, and you are welcome to bring your rescue dog and join a parade in the ring at noon. More details are on Plantation Field's website. The PetValu store in Kennett is the sponsor.

SAFETY: Four feet is the law!

Just now I was asked by a bicyclist to remind motorists that, when they are passing a bicyclist, they must allow four feet between their vehicle and the bike. It's Pennsylvania law. It's also the safe and correct thing to do.
Four feet means 48 inches. Period. End of story. Even on winding, narrow Chester County roads with no shoulders, or if you're in a hurry to get somewhere and don't feel like crawling at 15 mph behind a bicyclist.
If you get the impression that Tilda takes this personally and is steaming mad at the moment, you would be correct.

Here's the language in the driver's manual:
SAFE PASSING IS THE LAW
1. Before passing, you must first decide whether you can maneuver around the bicyclist. Be sure to check for oncoming traffic. When passing, you must allow at least four (4) feet between your vehicle and a bicycle in order to pass safely. If necessary and if you can do it safely, you are permitted to cross the center double yellow line so you can maintain the four (4) feet of clearance between your vehicle and the bicycle.
2. Unless making a left turn, bicyclists traveling more slowly than passing vehicles must keep to the right side of the roadway and must travel in the same direction as the rest of traffic. However, this requirement is waived on roads with a single lane in each direction.
3. When there is only one travel lane, bicyclists may use any portion of the lane to avoid hazards on the roadway, including keeping a safe distance from stopped and parked cars.
4. Drivers cannot turn into the path of a bicyclist who is riding straight ahead on a roadway or shoulder.
5. You cannot force a bicyclist off the road. If you do this, you may face criminal charges.
6. Bicyclists are considered to be vehicle operators and are expected to obey all traffic laws; however, they may travel at less than the posted minimum speed and may not be cited for impeding traffic. Bicyclists may operate on a shoulder or berm, but are not required to do so.

OPTICAL: Patients and patience

As anyone who has ever dealt with the public knows, it is not always an easy job. So I was especially impressed by the unfailingly kind and cheerful service provided by the front-desk people at Miller Eye Care in the Jennersville shopping center. A pal was having his eyes dilated for an exam, and I was asked to provide transport home, so I sat in the waiting room for an hour one evening, knitting and observing.
The place was extremely busy, with the phone ringing and customers coming in to pick up eyeglasses or contacts, to get eye exams and to get their glasses tweaked. Everyone was greeted, many by name, as soon as they entered. Some patients spoke limited English, and the front-desk ladies were amazingly patient, helping them to fill out forms or apologizing for not being able to pronounce a foreign name. One little girl beamed when the ladies told her how stylish her new purple specs were.
As we were checking out, I complimented the ladies and they were quick to say that they loved their jobs, and it was a team effort.
One amusing side note: for perhaps the first time ever, I became a fashion consultant. A total stranger buying new glasses asked me for my opinion about three frames she was considering. I suppose I do have pretty cool glasses, but absolutely nothing else about me is the least bit fashionable -- trust me on this. One pair of glasses suited her perfectly, so I had no trouble giving her my confident advice. I probably should have asked about the relative costs first, but it wasn't my money, was it.

PLANTS: A different country

Thanks to the Internet, e-mail and social media, our global world seems so much smaller these days. Just like we are, my friends in England are busy with work and family life and suffering through a contentious political season. But then a moment occurs when I remember that London is a long way from Unionville.
On social media yesterday I posted a photo of the monster jack-in-the-pulpit that's growing out back in the shade garden (40 inches tall!). A baffled British friend responded to the photo with a question mark: he was completely unfamiliar with the plant and had no idea what I was talking about or how remarkable it was.
It seems they don't have jack-in-the-pulpits in the UK, those wretched unfortunates.
Then again, they don't have poison ivy, either.

SCHOOL: Drawing to a close

Yesterday afternoon I was driving past UHS and Patton Middle School just before the end of the school day and slowed down to say hello to the crossing guard.
"Just a few days left!" I said.
"Twelve," she replied immediately. It was almost as if she were counting the days.

VICTORY ISLAND: A tree in peril

I notice that a tree has just been planted in "Victory Island," the new brick and concrete divider in the middle of West Cypress Street in front of Victory Brewing. I don't give that poor tree much of a life expectancy. Despite the white road markings, I have a feeling that an inattentive driver is going to plow into it sooner rather than later. The traffic light for Mill Road motorists who are turning onto Cypress is so short that I've seen them zip through that intersection, sometimes making an ill-judged wide turn, just so they don't have to sit through another interminable cycle of the traffic light. I hope I'm wrong.

MEMORIAL DAY: We miss a parade

What a shame that the Kennett Square Memorial Day parade had to be cancelled. I imagine the organizers who had to call it off based on the weather prediction will feel some kinship this winter with school superintendents facing the same decision.
The Memorial Day parade has become such a fixture in our community that it's assumed that not only will you attend, but you have a "spot" where you watch each year (the corner of  East Linden and North Union Streets for us).
We did make it to the Memorial Day ceremony following the West Grove parade on May 28. It was quite moving: Gold Star mother Jill Hardy spoke with pride, love and grief about her son, Marine Corporal Brandon Hardy, who was killed when his vehicle hit an IED in Al Anbar, Iraq, on April 28, 2006. She said that every day is Memorial Day for her and all the parents of solders killed in action.
During her speech, the little boy behind me started to fuss. To distract him, his mother gave him a little green plastic "Army man."
 

CROPS: Some fast-growing corn

Two farmers were sitting at one of the picnic tables outside Landhope Sunday evening having coffee and a cigarette and discussing, of course, the weather. One of them seemed to be enormously proud of his corn. He said it was growing so rapidly that you could take a photograph of it in the evening, and then again the next morning, and you could actually see how much taller it was.
I would pretty much agree with him vis-à-vis the exuberance of the weeds in my garden.