the smedley log - suburban scrawl

I’m not Catholic, but my Godchildren are

And so my sister and her half-dozen offspring ventured out my way to visit the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, home to the shrine for St. Katharine Drexel.

Since they were in town, I went along, never wanting to miss the opportunity to spend time with the nieces and nephews (five of whom are also my Godchildren). We first stopped for lunch at Poppy’s, where the eight of us downed the better part of two pies. Then we ventured over to Bensalem where the Sisters, along with the Drexel shrine, reside.

The shrine was interesting, and I wish I’d taken a camera (for some reason I thought cameras wouldn’t be welcome – apparently I was wrong). Among the artifacts related to the life of Katharine Drexel was a collection of worn down pencils in a glass case. They were part of a display demonstrating St. Katharine’s commitment to her vow of poverty.

Poverty strikes me as an impressive vow to keep. Considering Drexel’s background, maybe even more so. Heir to a vast inheritance, she could have chosen a much more lavish life. Instead she chose to try to serve the under-served, contributing large sums of her family’s fortune in the process – effectively putting her money where her mouth was.

I’ve just been thinking about how rare that is, how counterculture it is, given everything society conditions us to value. I’m not Catholic, but I’m always impressed by people whose commitment to serving others is stronger than the desire to serve themselves.

Tuesday night music club

No time (or expertise) to offer comprehensive reviews right now, but I wanted to mention the following three music offerings I’ve recently acquired. I’ve been enjoying all three over the past couple weeks. All three have been easy to hear, right from the first spin. (Clicking on a CD image or title below will take you to a page where you can purchase that disc.)

In order of acquisition, they are:

Ellipsis: Take What You Will
I didn’t even realize they had an active website until after I started writing a post partly inspired by an earlier song of theirs. This 2004 release is more of everything I loved from the earlier CD I purchased at the Point in Bryn Mawr several years ago, namely, Vale Jokisch’s soothing voice coupled with textured melodies fusing guitar and violin. First song to reach out and grab me: “Shine”

The group’s website is here. Their MySpace is here

John Francis: Strong Wine & Spirits
I first saw John perform at the Point not long after he made his move to Philly in 2003. I bought a copy of his earlier CD Fire in the Marrow after listening to a couple live performances. Strong Wine seems a little more bluesy, but with the same heartwrenching lyrical focus of previous efforts. First song to reach out and grab me: “Love in the Fallout Shelter”

John’s website is here. His MySpace is here.

Raina Rose: The Prophet, the Panhandler & the Moon
I haven’t had as much time with Raina’s latest disc yet, but it takes a slightly more folksy turn than her other solo disc, Despite the Crushing Weight of Gravity. First song to reach out and grab me: An untitled track that follows after the last listed song (I wouldn’t have known to even listen for it had Marisa not tipped me off).

Raina’s website is here. Her MySpace is here.

Soothing sounds of the 90s

Ah, the wonderful tones of the Breeders’ “Cannonball” creep back into my eardrums…

I was just clicking through some recent stories and comments at my second home, when I happened upon a link to Skin Radio. It seems like an effort to revive all of my favorite college era memories (and a even few of the non-favorites).

Even though they’re on the air at 1340 AM, the best listening option for me is going to be their streaming service. That is, if they stay around a while. Which apparently is not set yet, as they’re still seeking corporate sponsorship – that thing that both enables and kills most great media.

But for now, I’ll just enjoy while it lasts.

Now that’s what I call music… no, not that

I just saw an ad on TV for Now That’s What I Call Music! Vol. 23.

Volume 23?

First thing that popped into my head upon seeing this ad: skepticism. Since the U.S. version of this series hit the market in 1998, have there really been enough Top 40 hits to produce 23 albums of material befitting such enthusiastic titling? – maybe there’s been enough for two or three albums, but I think even that’s a bit generous.

The second thing that popped into my head? The November Paste Magazine, the sampler of which contains some pretty good music, albeit on a less-heralded (and much less expensive) disc. Pleasantly surprised was I to find track 10, a number from Philly’s own Melody Gardot. It’s called “Goodnite” and it’ll be on her upcoming CD, Worrisome Heart (due out November 7).

Though I absolutely recommend the current issue of Paste Magazine, you can also catch a sampling of Melody’s wares from her MySpace site. There. That’s all for now.

Goodbye, Goodnoe’s

This sad news comes from the Bucks County Courier Times:

After more than 30 years in the restaurant industry, Raymond “Skip” Goodnoe is calling it quits and closing the historic restaurant and dairy bar that has carried the family name for five decades. …(full text)

The Bucks County landmark will close its doors to the public this coming Labor Day. If it seems a cruel irony that such a business should announce its fate over the Memorial Day weekend, which has become the popular symbol of summer’s start, then at least it’s fitting that the establishment will remain open until summer’s symbolic end.

Here’s to one more summer with that delicious, locally-owned, locally-produced Goodnoe’s ice cream. If you live in the area and you haven’t ever been there, or you haven’t been there in a while, you’ll still have the chance over the next few months before it’s gone.

Familiar places and faces

Had lunch at one of my all-time favorite places today. Just a stone’s throw from both Tyler State Park and historic downtown Newtown Borough (right in between, actually) is Goodnoe Family Restaurant. Had some spuds, a patty melt and shared a couple scoops of made-on-the-premises peanut butter swirl ice cream. Mmmm-mmm. (In case you can’t tell, I highly recommend the Goodnoe dining experience.)

During lunch I spotted a semi-familiar face a few tables away. It was one of the Democratic hopefuls in the early stages of vying for PA’s 8th district U.S. Congressional seat, Mr. Andy Warren. I’d only met him once before, several years ago, so it took me a few minutes to be sure, and I was only really sure when a fellow patron, an elderly man on the other side of the restaurant, called his way and said, “Hey, Mr. Commissioner.” Warren waved back and responded in a predictably friendly fashion.

Warren, for those who aren’t keeping score here at the smedley log, is the former Republican Bucks County Commissioner who changed party affiliation this past year, citing a shift toward more extreme ideology within his former party. I can relate to his shift, as it’s one I’ve sort of made myself, and for the exact reasons he cited too. Although, to be clear, I didn’t join the Democratic party—I just settled in as an independent.

After paying the bill, I decided to mosey over and say “Hi.” I wanted to say face to face that I respected his shift from the party with which he’d spent his whole life, and to just wish him luck. In the two minutes I spent speaking with Warren and his fellow diner (apparently a campaign person of some sort—sorry I forgot his name), I think I said everything I needed to. I haven’t settled all my decisions for the 2006 election cycle yet, but he’s one of the candidates I’m leaning toward quite a bit. Prior to hearing that he was going to run, I had hoped for it.

I don’t know what I was trying to accomplish, as I mostly just made small talk (though I’m sure he appreciated the well-wishing). I think I was just passively trying to size him up, whatever that amounts to.

And there you have it. My uber-local celebrity sighting at lunch today.

As an aside, I previously opined on Andy Warren’s break with the local GOP in a post entitled “Andy Warren breaks away“

Blue Chippers

Friedman points out the market dominance of both Herr’s and Utz in the Philly and Baltimore/Washington salty snack markets (respectively).

Having grown up in this area, I’ve become accustomed to forgetting that both Herr’s and Utz are regional brands. I tend to prefer either of them over Frito-Lay, and I don’t think it has much to do with them being more local to me.

I do fondly recall the Utz billboard campaign, now that I think of it, where the text would mention other U.S. cities, like the old New Orleans one: “New Orleans—dorky masks, no Utz.” And there were others to rub in the chip inferiority complex for people from other metropolitan areas far from Southeastern Pennsylvania.

Fruitless search terms: Styer Orchard, etc.

I was shuffling through recent keywords used to land on thesmedleylog.com over the past couple weeks, and I noticed that 29 out of the first 100 on the list were references to some variation of Styer Orchard (or Styer’s, or Styers Orchard, etc.), or otherwise referred to apple cider doughnuts.

I have written about both on this site, but due to the unfriendly search layout of my old blogging format (parts of April, 2005, and prior), I sense that people have lost patience with finding their terms. So I’m here to help.
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Poppy’s Pizza

I had my first experience with the newest Pizza place in town on Saturday night. We picked up a very tasty Sicilian pie (half pepperoni, half cheese) from Poppy’s Pizzeria.

Poppy’s is located at 1269 Wood Lane in Langhorne, PA. It’s a true Italian pizza joint with informal table service and, of course, take-out. Poppy just opened up shop last week, and while it may be a little off the beaten path, if you live in the Lower Bucks area and like a good pizza, I highly recommend it.

The history of the big apple

No, not that big apple—this one:

The above picture is of the sign in front of The Market at Styer’s Orchard, one of the oldest continuously operated farmer’s markets in this area. (It also happens to be the subject of many Google searches that end up at this blog, so maybe this entry will provide a wee bit more info.)

Founded in 1910, Styer’s was run as a family business and surrounded by vast stretches of farmland and apple orchards, up until the late 1990’s. That’s when it was sold to the township (Middeltown), in a purchase funded by the local open space initiative. The store is now run as a more-or-less public interest, with items from other area farms, not the least of which is my favorite ice cream in the world, which happens to come from Goodnoe’s Dairy (I’ll plug that some more in another post).

And thank God for the open space plan, because otherwise the whole spread would have become just another 900 luxury homes on half acre lots. But enough about that, for a little bit anyway.

In addition to noting the fine local business signified by the above-pictured sign, you may also notice a large apple below the sign—to be more specific, a large concrete apple. The apple is in its 50’s now, a fact I only know because it used to sit in front of another apple growing farm, and that’s the one on which my father grew up.
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McCaffrey’s

Jim McCaffrey’s Lower Makefield store, located at 635 Heacock Road in Yardley, is the first local business I’ve gotten around to choosing for a series of businesses I’m highlighting in the spirit of Buy Local Philly Month, which I mentioned a little over a week ago.

I know McCaffrey’s doesn’t technically qualify for the Buy Local Philly campaign, but since I’m not actually in Philadelphia, I thought I’d select from stores and businesses local to my little patch of suburbia.

In addition to being a truly local business venture, McCaffrey’s is something of an inspirational story over the past fifteen months, since a fire destroyed the store building. The store finally re-opened last month to much local fanfare. In the interim Mr. McCaffrey not only vowed to rebuild, but also to find ways to keep providing a certain level of benefits to his employees. Already known for relatively generous employment compensation, he sought help from many sources. One source that came through was the Pennsbury School District, in which McCaffrey’s store has been located since 1986.

The story of how he’s decided to help repay the district for its generosity is detailed in yesterday’s news, from which I learned that he has pledged to offer scholarship help to two graduating seniors of Pennsbury High School every year, starting with next month’s graduating class.

Incidentally, when you read a story like the one about the store re-opening, could you ever imagine people saying things like that about a Wal-Mart? Just wondering.

In a related note, Dragonballyee highlights a local Philly business called Sue’s Produce, for those local shoppers in his neck of the woods.