"A (musical) comedy tonight"

The Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Chester County is presenting the witty operetta "Iolanthe; or the Peer and the Peri" at West Chester University Nov. 18 though 21. I first saw this group perform years ago at the Brandywine Valley Association, and they are so talented and so silly. Tickets are available at http://www.gsschesco.org/; ordering, the Society assures us, is "so easy, even a Peer could do it!"

Heads up

A dear friend of mine got a major haircut the other day. It looks great, but she realized that with all the missing volume, now her riding helmet is going to be too loose. She's going to have to stuff foam into it.

Country hours

I realized this weekend just how "country" I am when George Mutter, a well-traveled, cosmopolitan friend from Boston, was in Media to visit his folks. We arranged to meet for dinner, and he e-mailed me that he had made reservations for us at the Rose Tree Inn in Media.
For 8 p.m. Yikes!
By the time we finished our wonderful meal (a crusted tuna appetizer and amazing duck glazed with cherries), it was 10:30 p.m. and they were closing the restaurant. I didn't get home til after midnight.
Thank goodness for strong coffee, and for his riveting conversation about the discoveries his pathology lab  is making.

Here there be Dragoons

Revolutionary War re-enactors from the Fourth Continental Light Dragoons are going to be camping out at Primitive Hall Nov. 12 through 14, complete with tents and horses.
The camp will be open to the public from noon til 4 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 13, and the re-enactors welcome curious civilians, both children and adults. At 1 p.m. they will be holding an authentic court-martial for one unfortunate soldier who got a little rowdy the previous evening. At 2 p.m. there will be a "Children's Muster," where the soldiers will teach kids how to drill using wooden muskets. Then at 3 p.m. "the infantry and cavalry will perform a joint drill to demonstrate how a combined legion of troops operated in the 18th century."
I've met several of these re-enactors, and they are fascinating and absolutely dedicated to historical authenticity. This is the third year in a row they have camped at the 18th-century Primitive Hall, which they love because it provides such an authentic backdrop.
Primitive Hall is on Route 841, between Route 926 and Route 842, near the village of Chatham (830 North Chatham Road). You can see photos of a previous encampment at http://www.primitivehall.org/galleries/dragoon_gallery/index.html and for more details on the Dragoons, visit http://www.fourthdragoons.com/.

Huan ying (Welcome!)

Xuan Yang, a visiting scholar from Wuhan, China, is bringing Chinese culture, language, art, games and music to the elementary school pupils in the Unionville-Chadds Ford district. Miss Yang spent the first six weeks of the school year at Unionville Elementary and is now at Hillendale Elementary. According to an e-mail from Hillendale's principal, Steve Dissinger, Miss Yang "is one of approximately 20 delegates sponsored by the Chinese Ministry of Education who are spending the 2010-2011 school year visiting and teaching
in American public schools."

Things we do for love

A hapless young fellow appeared at a hearing last week asking West Marlborough to bend its zoning rules. He is getting married soon, he explained, and his fiancee wants to bring her two horses along when she moves in. But the township code requires one acre per horse, and he was proposing to keep two horses in a now-wooded area measuring only 3/4 of an acre. The board members, most of whom had long experience with livestock, gently explained to him why this was not a good idea: the animals would quickly eat all the grass that could be coaxed to grow, the bare pasture would erode and the dirt would run into a neighboring stream.
The landowner admitted that he knew little about horses and had never owned any.
"You're a lucky man," quipped one board member dryly, who knew how horses become a priority for their owners.
Friends in Newlin lost water for the better part of a day last week (some mechanical problem), and I was struck by how their sole concern was making sure their horses had enough water. Toilets, drinking water and showers for themselves? Completely secondary and unimportant issues.

Not just desserts

They're clever, those 4-H Creating Community Networks folks. They've scheduled their annual "Be a Sweetheart" fundraiser for a weekday night -- Tuesday, November 9, to be exact. I went last year and I'm going again. It pulls together a diverse group of folks, the desserts are excellent, there's a minimum of speeches -- and most importantly it raises money for really useful and creative youth programs. Instead of just writing a check to the general fund, you get to pick a project to "adopt"; last year I sponsored a journal-writing program for kids. The event is held at the Kennett Flash, which is always a fun venue. It's from 7 to 9 p.m. and tickets ($30) are available at the door.