Under contract

The May 10 Vezelay auction has been called off and the sign has been taken down: the 52-acre Newlin Township estate is now under contract. "[The buyers] understood the value of the estate and were willing to step forward with an acceptable offer in order to negate the risk of losing it on auction day," said Laura Brady, Vice President of Marketing for Concierge Auctions, in an April 20 press release. "Everyone is looking forward to moving smoothly and quickly towards the closing table."
The amount of the "acceptable offer" was not disclosed, but the asking price for the Hilltop View Road property was $4,480,000. I'm told that the buyers are a family with young children who wanted to settle in the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District -- and they paid cash for the property.

Career change

On Saturday I was delighted to run into a former newspaper editor of mine, Bettinita Harris, at the Kennett Area YMCA. She is now a personal trainer at the Y, certified by the American College of Sports Medicine! The move makes sense: she was always in much better shape than the average journalist (and also had much better fashion sense). She looks very fit, and I'll bet she delivers one challenging (and elegantly phrased)workout.

Sun King

My friends Bob and Sheryl Willson are avid entertainers, so when Earth Day rolled around they saw it as a perfect excuse to throw a party. It was also a chance for Bob to show off his new, state-of-the-art solar electricity-generating system. He took us on a tour of his basement, pointing out the neatly labeled meters that show how much power the solar panels generate each day and how much CO2 was saved. There's also a PECO meter that essentially runs backward, showing how much power the farm "sells" back to the utility.
Bob says the experience has helped in his law practice assisting municipalities craft their new green ordinances (solar, wind and geothermal) and helping clients contract for their own green installations.
Oh, and the party? Great company and great food, especially Bob's classic mac-and-cheese.

Unexpected

Late yesterday afternoon I encountered one of those newspaper vendors who stands out there in the middle of traffic. It was a chilly, drizzly, gray day, and I felt sorry for him, so I rolled down the window and gave him a smile and a wave.
He came over and handed me a paper, and I reached for the change dish between the front seats.
"No," he said firmly. "It's Friday, it's raining, and we're off tomorrow. It's a good day for a free paper."

A well-regulated life

My friend Dave was telling me about the rules of the development where he lives: no clotheslines, no on-street parking, no gardening, no awnings, no RVs, front doors must stay their original color, holiday decorations can be up for only 2 weeks, garage doors can be open for only 30 minutes ... the litany went on and on. When his dog died, he couldn't even bury the creature out back ("no digging").
Shortly after he moved in, a friend dropped him off and they sat in the driveway for a few minutes chatting. Before they finished their conversation, the police showed up: a neighbor had reported that "two bearded terrorists in a pickup" were checking out the neighborhood.
Of course, Dave gets the huge new house rent-free as part of a benefits package from his employer, so he's not complaining too loudly.

May Dates

Sunday, May 1: May baskets, May poles, May apples, it's all good. Also the monthly Unionville Community Fair special at Fox's Pizza Den.
Tuesday, May 3: West Marlborough Township meeting, 7 p.m.
Thursday, May 5: Cinco de Mayo.
Saturday, May 7: London Grove Friends Meeting Plant Sale.
Sunday, May 8: Mother's Day.
Tuesday, May 10: A Busy Day! Aggie O'Brien is scheduled to plead guilty in federal court on extortion charges. Also: The Whip hearing continues at the West Marlborough Township building, 7 p.m.
Saturday, May 14: Kennett Run.
Tuesday, May 17: Primary election.
Monday, May 30: Memorial Day.

What town is this?

I was in line at the Unionville post office the other day and a very frazzled young man was talking on his cell phone. From what I could gather, a friend in Florida needed to have a cell phone shipped to him, and somehow the phone was not in this young man's possession, and his car wasn't working, so he needed to be picked up ... it was all very confusing. At one point he turned to the woman behind him in line and asked abruptly, "What post office is this, Avondale?"
She stared at him, left a perfectly timed little pause and said in an icicle-laden voice, "Unionville."
Then she turned and looked at me incredulously as if to say: Imagine, not knowing you're in Unionville!