• Weekend Wanderer: Why Is Benson Boone Singing About My Life?

    Weekend Wanderer: Why Is Benson Boone Singing About My Life?

    Ten days ago, I’d never heard of Benson Boone.  Good Morning America threw him up at the end of their opening sequence, all wiry Timothy Olyphant frame and pornstache.  Not that I’d know.  Who’s that guy? I thought. Why is GMA acting like I know who he is?  Because I don’t.   And I planned to…

  • Lansdowne Woman Who Lost Her Daughter Cares for Miracle Baby Left Behind

    Lansdowne Woman Who Lost Her Daughter Cares for Miracle Baby Left Behind

    Tylicia Bell is coping with the loss of her 19-year-old daughter, a victim of murder, even as she remains strong for her granddaughter. Tanyiah Bell was eight months pregnant when she was shot and killed in her apartment by her boyfriend, according to Lansdowne police. Doctors were able to save the baby, and Tanyiah Miracle…

  • Weekend Wanderer: Old Pictures and a Frozen Cat 

    Weekend Wanderer: Old Pictures and a Frozen Cat 

    Two bins of photographs were among the many things I found when cleaning out Willie’s apartment after she moved to assisted living.  These bins are nearly the size of a loveseat.   They hold heaps of pictures. Traditional 4-by-6-inch pictures. Larger 8-by-10-inch pictures. Pictures in folders. Pictures in frames. Loose pictures and pictures in envelopes from…

  • West Chester Law Firm Advocates for Truth for Parents of Beloved Teacher Who Died in Stabbing

    West Chester Law Firm Advocates for Truth for Parents of Beloved Teacher Who Died in Stabbing

    Josh and Sandee Greenberg, parents of beloved teacher Ellen Greenberg who died after being stabbed 20 times, are still seeking the truth with help from Lamb McErlane, a law firm based in West Chester, writes KC Baker for People.  Ellen was found dead in the apartment she shared with her fiancé, Sam Goldberg, in January 2011. …

  • Weekend Wanderer: Zesty Flounder and Love Letters

    Weekend Wanderer: Zesty Flounder and Love Letters

    By the time we had Willie tucked in over at the assisted living side of the Temple of Doom, it was Christmas.   And I was exhausted.   Exhausted from weeks of clearing out Willie’s apartment. Exhausted from another broken Christmas.  So Willie’s pile of folders packed with newspaper clippings, cards, detritus — I couldn’t deal.  I…

  • Family Homeless Shelter in Brookhaven Closing by End of June

    Family Homeless Shelter in Brookhaven Closing by End of June

    A homeless shelter in Brookhaven set up for families is closing by the end of June, writes Pete Bannan for the Daily Times. The Saint Joseph’s Family Hope Center in Brookhaven Borough is one of only two shelters in Delaware County that are designed to take in entire families. The closure will impact struggling families,…

  • 2 Delco Brothers Work Together as Maryland State Police Troopers

    2 Delco Brothers Work Together as Maryland State Police Troopers

    Dave and Matthew Hughes have always been close. The two brothers grew up in Delaware County and were both students at Chichester High School where they played football and baseball. Now they’re on the same shift out of the North East Barracks, working as Maryland State Police troopers, writes Carl Hamilton for The Cecil Whig,…

  • Weekend Wanderer: I Want to Be a Cowboy

    Weekend Wanderer: I Want to Be a Cowboy

    By the time you read this, I’ll be in Missoula, Montana.  Don’t worry. It’s not forever.  I mean, I’d like it to be forever.   I’ve been to Missoula several times. Once, my Uber driver took me to all the Yellowstone filming locations.  Another time, the staff at the Boot Barn told me about standing in…

  • Philadelphia Mother Uses Intuition to Find Kidnapped Daughter Who is Now Subject of New Documentary

    Philadelphia Mother Uses Intuition to Find Kidnapped Daughter Who is Now Subject of New Documentary

    In 1996, a fire took place in the Philadelphia home of Luz Cuevas and Pedro Vera in which in was presumed that their 10-day-old daughter Delimar had perished, writes Christine Pelisek for People. Cuevas, however, never believed her daughter died in the fire. Six years later, she saw a young girl at a party that…

  • Weekend Wanderer: A Mom, by Way of Houdini

    Weekend Wanderer: A Mom, by Way of Houdini

    I was hanging with Willie in assisted living.  That was when the staff on the independent living side of the Temple of Doom asked to speak with me.  It’s not every day that your mom gets herself in trouble in a building she doesn’t even live in.   But then Willie isn’t your everyday mom.  Given…

  • Inexpensive or Free Summer Activities in Greater Philadelphia

    Inexpensive or Free Summer Activities in Greater Philadelphia

    Whether you’re looking for outdoor activities for the kids or ways to cool off in the air conditioning, the Greater Philadelphia area offers a wide range of inexpensive venues and local community events to enjoy, including summer concerts, museums, nature tours, history walks, and many more adventures to enjoy! There’s no need to spend a…

  • Weekend Wanderer: Am I Really Me?

    Weekend Wanderer: Am I Really Me?

    Once my brother became Willie’s guardian, we thought our days of funky financial transactions were over.  My brother gave me a stack of Willie’s checks — signed by him as per the guardianship — so I could pay for Willie’s, well, shenanigans.  But those checks — they bounced.  We discovered bank policy required that Willie…

  • Child Care Costs Continue Rising Across Pennsylvania and United States

    Child Care Costs Continue Rising Across Pennsylvania and United States

    The cost of child care nationwide continues to climb, with prices climbing by 29 percent between 2020 and 2024, a rate that outpaces overall inflation, writes Emily Peck for AXIOS. According to data from Child Care Aware, in Pennsylvania, the average annual cost of daycare for one toddler and one infant rose to $27,400 over…

  • Weekend Wanderer: In Defense of Bad Shark Movies

    Weekend Wanderer: In Defense of Bad Shark Movies

    Summer glides toward us like ocean waves.  And I have something to say.  Jaws 3 and The Meg are great shark movies.  I know, I know. They’re notoriously bad films. Rotten Tomatoes gives them ratings of 11 percent and 47 percent, respectively.  For reference, Return to the Blue Lagoon, Look Who’s Talking Now — that’s…

  • Glenmoore Teen’s Ashes to be Rocketed Into Space

    Glenmoore Teen’s Ashes to be Rocketed Into Space

    Described by his mother, Aymee Comas-Diaz, as the family’s “star,” Phillip Alexander Diaz tragically died at the age of 16 in a car accident, writes Max Bennett for Patch. After his death in November 2023, she found Celestis Inc. in an online grief support group. Celestis is a private memorial spaceflight company that sends remains into…

  • Weekend Wanderer: My Antique Medical Records

    Weekend Wanderer: My Antique Medical Records

    I just finished a book.   It was about two young princes. They disappeared from the Tower of London during their uncle’s 15th-century reign.  The author’s team discovered a document from that time, in continental Europe. It may explain the fate of the princes.  The document, a 500-year-old letter, was illegible in parts.   Some information —…

  • Philly Rental Housing and Childcare Are Getting Increasingly Expensive

    Philly Rental Housing and Childcare Are Getting Increasingly Expensive

    In Philadelphia, it costs more on average to send two children to daycare than it does to rent a home, writes Lizzy McLellan Ravitch for The Philadelphia Inquirer. According to a new Redfin report, the average cost of childcare for a Philly region child is $961, with two children coming out to about $1,922. That…

  • Weekend Wanderer: Let’s Talk About Hair in the Shower 

    Weekend Wanderer: Let’s Talk About Hair in the Shower 

    I was exploring the submarine Becuna, down at the Philadelphia waterfront. I stepped inside the seamen’s bathroom.  Although that bathroom hadn’t been used in years, I found myself shrinking from the walls. I wanted nothing in that bathroom touching me.  Part of it was stepping over the high lip of the door to enter the…