Happy 300th b'day Willow Grove: Block party on Davisville Road

Where were your people 300 years ago? I spose mine were in some shtetl in eastern Europe, Hungary or Russia. My kids' father's folks may have been in the British isles.

Ah, think of all those kidneys doing their important work. I did wear my "Ask me why I Have 3 Kidneys" shirt and answered many questions.

People are fascinated that they leave the old kidneys in.

Sarah and I had a great time at the Block Party. Saw Kevin Hoke, a big mahoff in the Democratic party. He introduced me to DIANE MORGAN for Montgomery County Controller.

All these people have very firm handshakes. They love shaking hands.

I capitalized Diane's name so I can remember to vote to re-elect her come November. I see now I'll never remember. Diane was instrumental in keeping developers from building on an asbestos heap in Ambler, PA, once the asbestos capital of the world.

I'm lying here in bed w/my laptop and scratching my feet (opiates make you itch, even tiny amounts, for sciatica) trying to remember my favorite parts of the block party.

My camera will do it for me.

Finally met Chief Tom Nestel of the Upper Moreland Police Dept. I'd interviewed him by phone for one of my Patch.com stories.

Wonder why he's wearing Your Choice of Credit Cards.



The police dept had its own booth. I also met Officer Gallagher who told me our police dept has the SWAT team for the whole department including canine personnel. Grrgh! Grrgh!



Gallagher himself has been called to numerous tense situations and arms himself with this shield. Note firearm at hip.

Weinrich's Bakery had a booth and gave out generous slices of cake. Stephen Weinrich introduced me to his dad, Edward Weinrich, who once owned two bakeries in NYC. My writer's group meets at Weinrich's Bakery. We're having our first 'open mic' night on June 10. We'll officially debut our first publication, "Icing on the Cake." Thanks, Beatriz Moisset, for the great name.

WWII veterans represented the Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum on Easton Road. New Directions visited it last year. Really awesome.

Gerry, you're adorable. He's my editor at Patch.com. My next assignment is due next Thursday. Next to Gerry, who has thick black hair neath his cap, is his boss, Melissa Treacy (pronounced Tracey).

I introduced them to Sarah - more firm handshakes all around - and told Say (our nickname) that Melissa writes an excellent Mommy Column.

One of her topics was Is it OK to swear around your kids?

Oh, said Sarah, Mom always swore around us.

Actually, I remember teaching them the delicate art of cussing by using it sporadically. When we'd be at the library, par example, and it was time to leave, they'd be sitting at those cute baby tables, and I'd whisper, Let's get the fuck out of here.

At one point I realized we were walking in the middle of a once-busy street, striding on the double yellow lines.

What a fucking thrill! Ooops. Got carried away.

I reached into my backpack to snap away.

Another thrill was seeing three members of New Directions at the fair. At our last meeting, I brought young Sarah up to the microphone so she could tell the group about her stellar achievement: graduating from Montgomery County Community College. Her mom, Linda, whispered to Sarah that New Directions was the best thing that ever happened to their family.

When I got home I made this collage of the booty we collected at the fair.

In the upper right was something left over on my bed: therapeutic putty to strengthen my hands. After the operation I lost strength in both hands, esp the right. But due to the excellent physical therapy I get twice a week, my hands are much much stronger and I can write w/o terribly wobbly handwriting.

And now it's back to my great book: the newest Lee Child paperback about our tough hero Jack Reacher. Boy is he ever in a jam. Two hired guns are out to get him. He's hiding out in a barn in Nebraska.

I think I'll go help him escape.

PS - Today, May 24, Patch.com did a recap of the block party. I was the first one to comment:

my family and i had a great time. did you know that willow grove was once a stop on the underground railway? stop in at the upper moreland library and you'll see paintings - behind the checkout counter - that beautifully illustrate this. that's why i was shocked that there were no booths manned by the many black organizations in our community. i had suggested, via email, that you contact some black churches who might be encouraged to participate, esp. mckinley baptist and their b'ful choir. well, there's always next year and i hope you folks follow up. we must try hard, as a community, to include all our diverse population, which also includes other ethnic-racial groups. bristol, pa has been doing this for more than a decade.