Doug Durren and Gloria Todor - Delaware County, Pennsylvania

The Borough of Parkside will be celebrating its 90th Anniversary in conjunction with its Community Day this coming Saturday. The events start off with a Parade at 10:30 AM that will go through the whole borough. Members of the community are invited to walk in the parade and are encouraged to wear a favorite team jersey or shirt.

The Community Day events follow the parade from 12 - 4 PM. Activities include face painting, games, raffles, a moon bounce, an obstacle course, a dunk tank, music and much more! Then remember to return at 7 PM for a movie and popcorn.

It's your day Parkside! Have fun! Hope to see you there!

If you enjoy garage sales then you will love this annual event that will be taking place in Media this coming weekend 9am - 4pm Saturday and Sunday. Residents of Media have been invited by the Media Business Authority to participate in this event and may have their house posted in a map that shows the locations of houses having a garage sale throughout the borough. This event is a great way to pick up some bargains while you are strolling around this very picturesque town.

Today I happened to see someone removing peeling paint from an old garage of a house that is going to settlement in a few weeks and I imagine this work may need to be done for the buyers to get their mortgage or to satisfy the terms of the Agreement of Sale. The worker was using an electric sander and not wearing a protective face mask.

To me this is an ironic situation because the paint is most likely being removed to protect the new owners from lead based paint, but the person doing the work either doesn't care to protect themselves from potential exposure to lead paint dust particles or they are totally out of the loop about the health hazard. Of course they could have tested it to make sure it contained no lead.

Become aware of the potential dangers of working or living with peeling paint that may date back to 1978 or earlier. Read, "Protect Your Family From Lead In Your Home" an EPA Pamphlet (United States Environmental Protection Agency). Thanks to the EPA this type of paint is no longer used but there is still a lot of it out there, in apartments and houses that are 31 years old or older. (written by Gloria)

In September 2007 a new type of library opened its doors to the public in West Philadelphia. The items it has on loan are not books but tools; tools that can be used to make things, repair things, maintain things and beautify things. I remember seeing such a library in the mid 1990's when I lived in Seattle and I am so happy now to know that they are catching on in other parts of the country.

The reasons I am happy to see one here is that too often people buy a tool for a project and then they never use it again. It sits on a shelf or in a drawer never to be seen or used again. What a waste, someone could be using it! I also like the community building potential such a place offers. Not only are there the tools to be borrowed, but there is the potential to educate the public and offer a hub for sharing ideas and skills.

Another reason I like this type of library is that some people just don't have the money to buy tools or equipment to do a repair or a job around the house that they could easily do themselves if they had the right tools and now here is an affordable alternative to buying tools.

I wish this library many years of service to the public. Gloria

Find out more about the West Philly Tool Library www.westphillytools.org

Find out more about tool libraries around the country www.westphillytools.org/other_tool_libraries.htm

Tony D'Amico Hair Styling
2827 Edgmont Avenue
Parkside, Pennsylvania 19015 (Brookhaven zip)
610-872-8010
Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday 9-4:30
Saturday 8-12

If you visit Tony D'Amico's Hair Styling shop you will receive a hair cut from a barber who has been cutting hair since he was a teenager. There has been no break in his business, not even his 2 years of service for his country stopped him from cutting hair, for he was his company's barber while in Kentucky. Tony's father was a barber in Linwood and Tony followed in his footsteps. Well not entirely. Unlike his father he has had a life long love for active involvement in sports: from basketball, running hurdles, boxing, refereeing volleyball games and golf which is his passion now. When you visit his shop and you need to wait, just use the time to practice your putting. You see there is a supply of clubs and balls at your disposal complete with a pseudo hole to putt into.

A few of Tony's goals in life are to work until he is 97 and golf until he is 100! That's great!

During my visit to Tony's shop I also had the opportunity to meet two of his regular customers, Bernie and his "handsome" son (as he wanted to be called). Having customers from two generations is the norm in his business; he is even cutting hair of members of the third generation in some families. After all he has been a local barber for 50 years and one would expect such a following. And yes he does cut women's hair too!

Another interesting thing about some of Tony's customers is that a few made it to the big time in the music world, like Louis Sylvestri of The Four Aces and Ruddy Pompilla and Ralph Jones from Bill Haley and The Comets.

If you want to visit a friendly, non-smoking environment for your next haircut and practice your putting, then stop in to Tony's place. No appointment is necessary and starting at $10 you will receive a professional cut from a man who has been cutting hair all his life. (written by Gloria)