New Hope tries to dig out

By Charlie Sahner

New Hope did its collective best Thursday to dig out from the massive double-punch storm that dumped more than a foot of heavy, wet snow on the borough.

Residents complained of shoveling for two hours or more merely to unbury cars and clean front sidewalks of homes, and state workers seemed hard pressed to clear the numerous canal bridges in town.

By mid-afternoon, several sections of sidewalk downtown remained unpassable, although many strollers appeared to have stayed home, as streets were nearly empty of foot traffic.

But locals were sure to continue digging out and sprucing up for the busy Winter Festival weekend just ahead.

Baby, it's cold outside!

New Hope section of Delaware Canal beginning to freeze

Mechanic Street Micky, New Hope PA

Public Given Until Jan 15 to "Share Thoughts" on New Hope-Solebury Teachers' Contract

The New Hope-Solebury School Board and administration are scheduled to begin negotiations this month with the teachers' union over a new contract for July 1.

Says the School Board: "We would like to hear from parents, students, and other members of the community about your views concerning negotiations and a new teacher’s contract. We ask that you contact us prior to January 15, 2010 to share your thoughts at our school board e-mail address: schoolboard@nhsd.org. "

"Contract negotiations are necessarily conducted in private, and our Board will therefore be limited as to the specifics of public statements regarding the substance of the negotiations. However, we value your opinion, and to the extent possible, the Board will make every effort to keep the community informed about the status of negotiations."

Now sit up straight and stop mumbling, darn you!

Signs of the Times in New Hope PA

The good.




The bad.





The ugly.

Shopping -- Knife Maker "Little John" Featured at Medieval Gallery in New Hope PA

Expert custom knife maker Little John will be on site at Medieval Gallery in New Hope PA on weekends throughout the holiday season to present and demonstrate his handiwork.

Little John is fairly well known throughout the region and RenFair community for the quality of his work. The blades are beautifully crafted in stainless and carbon steel, but what really stands out are the custom-designed stag horn handles that are one-of-a-kind works of art in and of themselves.

Also impressive are the bowie style blades, but his work features blade shapes of every style and for every purpose. These are not "fantasy" knives either, but handmade heirlooms that are practical, historical and beautiful.

Little John is the real deal. Stop by and chat with him weekends through the New Year at Medieval Gallery, 86 South Main Street in New Hope PA, 215-862-4800.

Glimpses of New Hope PA: The Good, The Bad, And the Ugly

Three merchant displays for your consideration -- the first, a lovely pond garden adorns the entrance to Wildflowers Restaurant; the second, from a shopowner who apparently hasn't figured out that windows have two sides; and lastly, a sign that is priceless because it appears so completely shabby in form, function and content. If you've seen an uglier one, send it in.

New Hope PA Store Owner Feels the Heat for Being Honest

The owner of a God Save the Qweens, a punk themed clothing emporium on West Mechanic Street in New Hope PA, had the courage to speak the truth and is taking some heat from local bigwigs who accused her of the apparently unforgivable sin of "being negative."

What store owner Michelle, who has a local reputation for candor (along with a penchant for frequently-changing hair color themes) has been chastised for is having the nerve to poke fun at New Hope's parking problem by creating a humorous t-shirt that is selling at an apparently brisk pace.

It is rumored that complainers include a member of New Hope's Borough Council and another individual associated with the local Chamber of Commerce. Never mind that some of these critics voted recently to spend a rumored $45,000 for a "study" of the very parking problem whose existence they might like to deny.

Meanwhile, Michelle seems above it all, happy to have created something that visitors to New Hope are identifying with, and buying, in a big way.

God Save the Qweens is located at 13 West Mechanic Street in downtown New Hope PA, 215-862-2696.

Things Not to Do in Lenape ("The Quarry") Park in New Hope PA

An expensive-looking sign tells visitors what not to do in controversial Lenape Park on Ferry Street in New Hope PA.

Along with no pets, smoking, or evening strolls, the treeless, virtually grassless rock pile of a park provides little in the way of family fun. No swings for kids; this is a park made for speeches at the gazebo by local politicos, not recreation or communing with nature.

Estimated cost of this taxpayer-paid boondoggle? Rumor has it in excess of $600,000, but who knows? One local who saw the initial plans said the goldfish pond alone cost more than $32,000.

Money that could have been spent on strengthening the local economy, creating jobs, and helping support local art.

Any guesses on what that overbuilt, tax-wasting sign cost?

Is this Dragon Super Kind? Let's Hope So!

Creepy Cuties by Queen Morbid

Local gonzo artist and photographer Queen Morbid has her latest line of disturbing and twisted dolls currently on display at craft gallery Mechanic Street Mugs, 10 W. Mechanic St., New Hope PA.

They are well-made, original and decidedly creepy. Only in New Hope!