Ah, H-Town. You might have grown up here, you might forever be considered a newcomer. But on October 7, 2023, in this quaint little corner of the world all will be considered Townies! Darby Road will again be transformed into a bustling hub of activity, celebration and community spirit. It's the 28th annual Haverford Township Day (HTD), and listen up newbies: If you've never been, you're in for a treat. Imagine waking up to the gentle hum of a community coming together. The day kicks off with a flea market and craft fair at 10:00 am. Now, I've been to many a flea market in my time, but there's something about the Haverford one that feels... well, homey. Local and artisan vendors will set up shop. If I’m being honest, in the last several years, I’ve been a bit “meh” about many of the vendors, especially the Multi-Level Marketing pyramid schemes like LuLaRoe (they should be banned from the festival). There’s also a lot of overpriced, mass-manufactured jewelry. I try to suss out the hand-beaded, hand-made wares. The good thing is you can always find some vendors with true flea market finds like old books, vintage clothes, and trinkets you don’t need but you’ll definitely want. Watch out for the one table with the small wind instruments, though - if you blow it, you bought it! If shopping isn't your thing, perhaps a 5K race at the Middle School at 8:30 am might get your heart racing. Or, if you're like me and prefer a more leisurely pace, the parade starting at Manoa Shopping Center at 10:30 am is a sight to behold. It comes up Eagle and down Darby, ending at the Skatium. The *rocking* Haverford High School band plays, there’s usually Mummers (because: Mummers - they’re everywhere!), and various scouts. Sometimes there are politicians waving and throwing candy from the backs of convertibles. No floats though really. Sad. But! The firehouses usually toss a few treats and blast their sirens. Bring ear plugs and maybe don’t bring the dog. Our dog howled his … [Read more...]
Hey Uze!
You, yous, youse, uze. Uze done now? Uze better not go off on the free mason remark We've lived here in Delco, in H-Town, for 20+ years. We came here after living in center city for 7 years. Growing up in the Poconos, we used "you people" for a plural you. In Pittsburgh, where we went to Pitt for college, it was "yinz" and "yinz guys." Here, we've been using "youse" - putting the "e" on the end of the written form because for some reason it makes it easier to pronounce. Got a big group of people to address? Add an "all" as in "youse all." The "uze" would probably come out as uzi, like the machine gun. It was a good effort by this graffiti, uh, artist, though. … [Read more...]
Townie Knows Nothing of YouTube
Walking past little Wawa today friends and I came across this sign. Seems like someone doesn't know how to use the internet. Sorry, Townies, the contest seems to be done. The text says:"Cash Prize $100. Marilyn Monroe Impersonation Contest!!! Just call the contest hotline at (610)XXX-XXXX When prompted by the judge or the contest hotline voicemail box, just sing the following line to the iconic Marilyn Monroe song that we all know... "Happy Birthday Mr. President" [.] The caller who does the best Marilyn Monroe impersonaltion will receive a $100 cash prize. Winner will be selected Sunday January 1st." … [Read more...]
Happy New Year, H-Town!
We're gonna try to post here regularly in 2023, and keep up with the Facebook group. Keep an eye on this space. Best to all our Townies in the coming year. … [Read more...]
To school or not to school?
That is the question on all the parents' minds in the Township. Things are up in the air. Contingency plans are being made. Arguments had online, locally and nationally. School in the time of COVID is no simple matter, and since we have no national leadership or guidance, states and districts are on their own in deciding what the 2020-21 school year will look like. Here in Havertownies HQ, we have one student in the district who is heading to HHS for freshman year. We've heard of a 2-days in, 3-days home schedule as a proposal. Philadelphia school district will follow this schedule. We are waiting for more definitive info from the District before we decide, along with our high schooler, what school will look like. I'm tending toward a fully online option, but I fear for what that may mean for activities and groups. For example, what will band and the radio station do? Can our student still participate in those things if our decision is a fully online school year? One thing is for sure, though. There will be COVID-19 outbreaks. There is no way to avoid it. If students will be in the building, no matter what the school does or does not do, there will be outbreaks. We cannot be virus-free. To think we can is foolishness. So now, as parents, we must assess the risk to our individual students, with the contradicting and confusing information we get from a gagged and handicapped CDC, European scientists and county health departments. Also, I expect the teachers' unions will have something strong to say about those risks. No-one can smoke in bars anymore because of the risk to the employees, and we aren't concerned about the risk to teachers? If the unions don't drag the districts into court soon I will be surprised.It's difficult living with so many "what ifs." So many questions. Not a lot of answers. We just have to wait.-CCP Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay … [Read more...]
“Social Security” robocall hitting PA. Print this out for vulnerable neighbors.
You can copy and paste this post (in between the lines), print it out and put it in their mailboxes. Also please share it via text and email messages and posts in social media. We got this call today, July 16, 2019. The scam is currently active in PA. __________________________ Pennsylvania is the 2nd most senior state, after Florida. Pennsylvanians will be the target of “Social Security” scams for many years to come. Don’t answer the phone or email when you are busy, tired or feeling unwell. These states make us particularly vulnerable to this type of “phishing” scam (i.e. “fishing for information.”) Here’s what to look out for with the latest Social Security scam call. We received a call today from 1-646-755-1692, a New York, New York phone number. It was a robocall, but to untrained ears it could sound like a recorded human voice. The phone number of this scam changes quickly. You may not receive it from the same phone number, but the scam will basically be the same. The call attempts to scare the listener into pressing a button to “hear more” about the “suspension” of his or her social security number. The callers want to get you live, on the line, so they can trick you into telling them your Social Security number, banking numbers and other information. Here is the transcription of the message we received. Your message may be the same or similar: “This call is from the Department of Social Security Administration. The reason you have received this phone call from our department is to inform you that we just suspend [sic] your Social Security Number because we found some suspicious activity. So if you want to know about this case just press 1. Thank you.” THIS CALL IS A SCAM. HANG UP. Do not press 1 to hear more information. Hang up. If you do press 1, you will be routed to a fake call center where a human worker will ask you to verify your Social Security Number and contact information. These workers are well-trained in psychological … [Read more...]
A Delco town makes a “coolest burb” list
Super popular interior design and all-things-Millennial-living website Apartment Therapy has made a list of 24 of the Coolest Suburbs in the US, and a Delco town made the cut! Spoilers: Haverford Township isn't it. I'll bet you can guess which Delco town was, though. Think hipster. (ok that's a little unfair but we're feeling jealous) | | | | | \/ You guessed it! Media, PA made the list. We have to give it up to them down there. Media is a pretty fun town. We like the whole Christmas thing and the trolley going down the street and the coffee shop/music scene. Some super fun Escape the Rooms are down there too. And hey. It wasn't Narberth. No Lower Merion towns made the list. Soooo... tea. DELCO DOES IT AGAIN. Just sayin'. There are some Jersey 'burbs, but the rest are spread out. Have you been to any? Are they cooler than Media and the pure awesomeness that is Delaware County? The 24 Coolest Suburbs by Apartment Therapy Image: Apartment Therapy … [Read more...]
Knock knock: Who shouldn’t be there
Knock Knock Who's there? Clipboard guy. Clipboard guy who? Clipboard guy who shouldn't be here but I'm going to try to sell you something anyway. Now that the weather is better, some windows, doors, siding, roofing etc. companies will come knocking. Here's what you need to know to keep them from disturbing your peace. TOWNSHIP CODE 130 Like most municipalities, Haverford Township has regulations regarding the solicitation of business. We have codes that are quite clear. All business people must follow them, and that includes businesses based in other towns that wish to knock on doors to drum up interest. SPOILER: These regulations are rarely followed. Many businesses that send (usually younger) people to knock on doors routinely disregard township laws. Here is a summary of Chapter 130 of the Haverford Township Code: If a business that wants to send someone to knock on doors, it must register with the Township, and solicitors must carry a badge issued by the Township on their persons. This includes everyone who is in the group knocking on doors, even "helpers." They must check in with the Township on each day they want to knock on doors, along with everyone in their party. They must not approach any properties that are on the DO NOT SOLICIT list, maintained by the Township and provided to them when they register. They must not approach properties that are displaying a "NO SOLICITORS" sign, whether or not those properties are on the DO NOT SOLICIT list. Failure to adhere to these regulations can carry fines and involvement of the police. (Charitable organizations are mostly exempt from these rules). SOMEBODY'S KNOCKING The police advise us to never open our door to strangers, and really, not even to people known to us that we weren't expecting. That second part seems a bit extreme, but police think in terms of bodily safety first. It is reasonable to not open your door to any stranger. Here at Havertown HQ, we have a window … [Read more...]
Keeping up with the companies, cops and commotions.
We have 5 volunteer fire fighting companies in Haverford Township. You can keep up with their activities via social media and the Delco dispatcher service. Here are the Facebook pages of each firehouse. Some pages are updated more frequently than others. Some share on-scene photos and describe their work. It's amazing what our neighbors do for us on a daily (and nightly!) basis. Bon Air Fire Company Brookline Fire Company Llanerch Fire Company Manoa Fire Company Oakmont Fire Company And don't forget to pay your dues! The money is desperately needed. The houses run on donations. Also, all kinds of volunteers are welcome. Lots of work goes into running a fire company. Fighting fires also requires administrative support. Contact your local firehouse to see how you can help. Delco Alerts will send you texts about different emergencies... like the wee hours tornado warning we got last week! Sure, you may be awakened for no good reason, but sign up if you want to be told of the zombie apocalypse before they are crawling up your awning. Wonder what all the sirens are for but don't want to be one of those dispatcher radio weirdos? You can try signing up for Delco Dispatch alerts. We've found the system to be spotty sometimes. It works well enough, though. Log in to the page and go up to the menu in the top bar and click on "alerts." You can customize it to send alerts only for your firehouse, township police, etc. CALLING 911 in Delaware County, PA. REMEMBER: 911 is the number to call for any emergency and non-emergency police calls. We do not have a separate non-emergency line for police here. The Delco dispatcher will direct your call to the appropriate place. When you call 911, immediately say "This is a non-emergency police call for Haverford Township." When reporting an emergency, follow the six W's of 911: Where, What, When, Who, Weapons, Welfare. Where: Know the address or cross … [Read more...]
Chalk it up to spring!
Walking along Pennsy trail last night, we caught a sure sign of spring: chalk drawings! We hadn't seen the typical native markings on Pennsy trail before. There seem to have been some ancient rituals performed involving grids of Xs and Os, as well as some cave drawings, "name tagging" and what we assume is a reference to the natives' local leadership, "Fancey Man." We faithful suburban explorers present our photographic evidence of the phenomenon here. Click on each to examine closely. … [Read more...]
Our own little ice show! Dec. 17, 2017
Havertownies HQ is in Mario Oliva's section of town, so we get his emails. We received a very merry one today. We don't usually post events that cost money, but this flyer was just so sweet and it involves the kids of H-Town. The Skatium is inviting all Townies to get tickets for an ice show of local talent at the Skatium* on the afternoon of Sunday, December 17, 2017 from 3 to 5 pm. It's like our own private Winter Olympics preview! 8 bucks gets you into the show, open skate and skate rental. That's a deal! Kids under 10 are $5.00. Come on over to the 1000 block o' Darby Road and see the show and get some winter fun on. … [Read more...]
Leaf collection up in the air
The snow has compelled our trusty Townie workers to convert the trucks into snow removal machines. Larry Gentile, top Townie Whats-What-Sayer, wrote a note to 2nd Ward Commissioner Mario Oliva (R, who was recently re-elected), saying, basically: No idea if or when we'll get those last bits 'o tree trash this year: "This weather is not what we were hoping to happen this early. Our crews were called into work last evening to break down the trucks from leaf collections to salting operations. It took most of the evening and we currently have 10 trucks ready to apply salt to our roads. If the weather prediction is accurate and the snow freezes the leaves, our leaf collections will be complete for the year. It is too early to predict now but I will have more information for you Monday evening. Larry Gentile" Havertownies HQ has a big ol' pile of leaves out there waiting to be Noo-Noo'ed up. We may get a dose of what it's like to live in Montgo soon (they don't have a Noo-Noo and have to bag their own tree trash, like commoners!). Check here or our Facebook page or group for updates. UPDATE: We witnessed the leaf-sucking Noo-Noo truck in the Llanerch section on December 12, 2017 at about 11 a.m. … [Read more...]