Monthly Archives: July 2024

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Driving, biking, walking in Philly

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I am so very saddened by the recent traffic incident near my home. I didn’t know the young woman who was killed by a drunk driver as she was cycling home. But, I could have. I see CHOP and UPenn workers walking and biking the neighborhood daily. Videos of the July 17 incident are horrendous. She was thrown 20 feet into the air. The 68-year old driver had a blood alcohol level twice the legal limit. He was attempting to pass another vehicle by veering into the bike lane. He slammed into her and three vehicles. He also lives nearby, at 20th and Locust. He’s been charged with vehicular homicide. But, what comfort is this for the family and friends of the young woman? I cannot imagine the hurt and loss.

On the same day a 38-year-old man was struck and killed in Kensington by a driver under the influence of opioids; the driver has been charged as well. A third victim of a drunk driver occurred in Germantown that day; that victim was hospitalized in critical condition. That driver fled the scene, but was found and is now in custody.

ALL HAPPENED IN ONE DAY!

Cycling advocates are clamoring for better protection of bike lanes. That’s important, but at the heart of the problem is people driving recklessly and under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Today, in the Philadelphia Inquirer, a story called on the City of Philadelphia for better protection from “traffic-related injuries and death.” Written by two friends of the resident who was killed in center city, they addressed the Complete Streets program; unfortunately, the funding for this project is questionable.

I agree that “Traffic safety is a major public health issue.” I walk every day in the city and I am always wary and often fearful. So many drivers are going at excessive speeds. I worry that a car can jump a curb just as my dog and I are attempting to cross a street. Another opinion was published today in the Philadelphia Inquirer on the same topic. Both opinions mentioned cuts in the city’s budget for Vision Zero, a community effort to reduce traffic fatalities and injuries.

We call them ‘accidents’ but reckless driving and driving under the influence is a choice. Drivers can choose to stay within speed limits, to PAY ATTENTION to their surroundings. Drivers can choose to not get behind the wheel of a car while intoxicated. I understand that intoxicants impair judgment and leads to bad choices. I understand that addiction is as much an illness as it is a choice. I want to say, “Just DON’T do it!” I know that’s easier said than done.

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It’s been awhile

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Four months away from Breathtakes. I’ve been taking care of the business of life. I’m always reading and writing, but not always finishing…that’s something I’ve just accepted about myself. I finally finished a poem, because I had a deadline, of sorts. Some months ago, I joined FRIEDAcommunity a café and community group located at 3rd and Walnut in Philadelphia. Frieda is creating what they are calling a “FOODbook” which they say “is about memories and stories related to recipes rather than just the recipes themselves.” Not only does Frieda have great food, they have great community events and excursions and now this FOODbook. I joined the group trip to the Metropolitan Opera in NYC, a glorious experience of Puccini’s Turandot, and a very enjoyable time with other members. All that to introduce the first completed poem in what I intend will be a series of poems featuring my Aunt Santa and her recipes.

Aunt Santa’s Pizzelles

The ingredients and directions 
are not enough
to create Aunt Santa’s pizzelles.
 
In her refuge, the basement kitchen,
a cool linoleum floor, 
standing at a pristine countertop,
she carefully oils the pizzelle iron,
she waits, patiently, for it to heat.
 
The table is her workbench,
she rapidly beats the eggs with a fork,
adds precisely measured flour, 
sugar, baking powder, slowly stirs.
 
Like an artist she stands back from her work,
she squints at the recipe,
blinking into memory
recalling improvisations she’d considered.
 
More vanilla or less? almond flavor this time?
Orange rind or lemon? Both? A little juice?
The dough, a delicate consistency, flows
with fluid assuredness from the spoon 
and spreads through the crevices of the hot iron.
 
Sprinkle powdered sugar with the tin shaker,
a flick of the wrist.
She is immersed in the process.
 
In the mouth, Aunt Santa’s pizzelles
dissolve slowly,
like Holy Communion,
a lacey lightness on the tongue.