PA Fine Crafts Guild

Do you enjoy craft shows? This website lists various craft exhibits and events for the Pennsylvania Fine Crafts Guild. You’ll find the shows listed for the next few months, a listing of workshops available, and you can even purchase some of these crafts online. The workshops are located in Lancaster.     http://www.pacrafts.org/ 

More artisans in Pennsylvania to check out:

Here is one in Western PA:  http://www.westpenncraftguild.com/

This site includes links to various artisans that design crafts with the “wilds” of Pennsylvania in mind:  http://www.pawildsartisans.com/

This one has tons and tons of links to various craftsmen/artisans in Pennsylvania:  http://www.handmadeinpa.net/pennsylvania-artisans-handmade-venues/

This one is about foods/sustainability located in West Chester: http://artisanexchangewcpa.com/

Of course, Peddler’s Village has a lot of fine craft places to visit: http://www.peddlersvillage.com/

Do you enjoy stained glass? http://glassartisans.org/

The Artisan Marketplace is located in Southampton, PA: http://www.localartisanmarket.com/

PA has so much to offer! Hope you can find something here to enjoy!

 

 

Cicadas in PA

The year 2013 is the year of the emergence of the Brood II Cicadas. They come out every 17 years. And they come to various states in the Northeastern seaboard…including PA.

Some call them locusts…but they are known as cicadas. They are a noisy bunch…but they do not sting or bite! They can cause damage to small trees or bushes if too many of them feed on the tree or bush…but larger trees usually don’t have problems.
This map shows where the cicadas will be emerging once the temperatures in the ground (about 8 inches underground) reach 64 degrees. Try this website if you would like to read more about this 17 year visitor.

Roadways in PA

Have you ever traveled from one end of PA to the other (going west-east or east-west direction)? If you have, you probably realized there are a few roadways that go most of the way through PA. One is Route 30, also called the Lincoln Highway,which goes from Pittsburgh, through Lancaster and onto Philadelphia and then across the river into New Jersey.

Route 30 is one of those highways that go through smaller towns – it is not always that fastest route, but it IS an interesting one. Here are a couple of websites with more information about The Lincoln Highway:

The Lincoln Highway

Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor

The Lincoln Highway Association

MAP of Lincoln Highway (Route 30)

Another road which crosses PA is Interstate 80 which is also called the Keystone Shortway, and officially it is called the Z.H. Confair Memorial Highway.(I-80 is the second-longest Interstate Highway in the United States) This road goes across the northern/middle area of the state and frequently used by truckers. Here are a few websites that tell about Route 80 – with pictures of it.

Keystone Shortway

Exit guide to I-80 in PA

No tolls on I-80 in PA (news report)

Map of I-80 across PA

And of course, we can’t forget our Pennsylvania Turnpike (Rt 76)! The PA Turnpike is a toll road, unlike Route 30 and Interstate 80 (at least so far!) The turnpike goes east-west also, but it also has the “northeast extension” (Route 476) which runs from the Philadelphia area (I-95) to (I-81) the Poconos region. Here are some websites about the Turnpike:

History of the Turnpike (with picture)

Interactive Map of Turnpike

PA Turnpike

Hope you are able to visit some places this summer in our beautiful state!

 

 

 

Biking in PA

Did you know that May is National Bike Month?

If you’re looking to find some of the “rules” to teach your children about biking, check out my article at Toytowntreasures.

There are bike paths to ride on in PA. Paths just make it so much easier and safer to ride, especially if you’re riding with children. Check the area in which you live – there are small parks that have trails that may not be listed in the links below.

Here are some links to bike paths in PA:

VisitPA – Bike Paths

Trail Link – these are old railway lines that have been converted to trails

Bike Pittsburgh

Mountain Biking Trails in PA

Mountain Bike PA

Centre Region Biking Coalition

Valley Mountain Bikers

Here are a few maps of trails of the Valley Forge area:

Click here for trail descriptions in Valley Forge

Click here for a trail map of Valley Forge

Click here for a trail map of Mt. Misery

Click here for a trail map of Mt. Joy

Click here for a trail map of the Northside

Click here for a map of bike trails

Click here for a map of the Joseph Plumb Martin Trail

Click here for a map of the Chapel Trail

If you have any others, please feel free to share!

Happy Biking!

Some strange laws in PA

Just something fun – some laws that are “supposedly” on the books in PA. Some may be repealed by now, some may be made up…but they are fun to read about!

In certain sections of Pennsylvania many years ago, the Farmer’s Anti-Automobile society set up some “rules of the road. In effect, they said:

1. “Automobiles traveling on country roads at night must send up a rocket every mile, then wait ten minutes for the road to clear of livestock.”

2. “If a driver sees a team of horses, he is to pull to one side of the road and cover his machine with a blanket or dust cover that has been painted to blend into the scenery.”

3. “In the event that a horse refuses to pass a car on the road, the owner must take his car apart and conceal the parts in the bushes.”

More PA “laws”…

~ A person is not eligible to become Governor if he/she has participated in a duel.

~A special cleaning ordinance bans homemakers from hiding dirt and dust under a rug in a dwelling.

~All fire hydrants must be checked one hour before all fires.

~By law, “watch stuffers” are unwelcome in McKeesport, Pa. Now, no one is quite sure what a watch stuffer does, but whatever he does, he better do it somewhere else.

~Carlisle: In the middle of town, one must pay a fee of $50 dollars a year to park on a particular block. At night, however, the cars must be moved for street cleaning. This law is enforced even if snow or ice prevents the cars from being moved.

~In Morrisville Pennsylvania It is required that a woman have a permit to wear cosmetics.

~Danville: All fire hydrants must be checked one hour before all fires.

~Dynamite is not to be used to catch fish.

~Fireworks stores may not sell fireworks to Pennsylvania residents.

~In Bensalem, Pennsylvania it is illegal to race mufflerless go-karts after 6PM on Sunday.

~In Hazelton, Pennsylvania, there is a law on the books that prohibits a person from sipping a carbonated drink while lecturing students in a school auditorium.

~In Pennsylvania, “any motorist driving along a country road at night must stop every mile and send up a rocket signal, wait 10 minutes for the road to be cleared of livestock, and continue.”

~In Philadelphia, you can’t put pretzels in bag.

~In the Mount Pocono region any group of 5 or more Native Americans are to be considered a raiding party and may be killed on the spot.

~In York, Pennsylvania, you can’t sit down while watering your lawn with a hose.

~It sounds like the title of a rock album or something, but “Coasting on Beaver Street” is illegal in Edgeworth, Pa.

~It is contrary to Pennsylvania law to discharge a gun, cannon, revolver or other explosive weapon at a wedding.

~It is illegal to have over 16 women live in a house together because that constitutes a brothel. However up to  120 men can live together, without breaking the law.

~It it illegal to sleep on top of a refrigerator outdoors.

~Millville: One may not shoot any dog that is found wandering the streets. The sale of alcohol is prohibited.

~Ministers are forbidden from performing marriages when either the bride or groom is drunk.

~Morrisville: It is required that a woman have a permit to wear cosmetics.

~Motorized vehicles are not to be sold on Sundays.

~No man may purchase alcohol without written consent from his wife.

~Pittsburgh: It is still illegal to bring a donkey or a mule onto a trolley car.

~Ridley Park: You cannot walk backwards eating peanuts in front of the Barnstormers Auditorium during a performance.

~Tarentum: Horses are not to be tied to parking meters.

~The state law of Pennsylvania prohibits singing in the bathtub

~Though you do not need a fishing license to fish on your own land, a hunting license is required to hunt on your own land.

* Juggling in front of an airplane is illegal. – Wellsboro, PA