Philly Tales

“Ties that bind” is an English language idiom that generally refers to shared beliefs that connect people emotionally. Religion would be one tie, f...

It’s odd to look back to my days growing up during the 1950s in Philadelphia’s Kensington section. Kensington today is different from the blue-coll...

People often tell you, “Don’t sweat the small things,” and that’s good advice when it comes to things that disturb you. However, it’s the small thi...

On November 22, 1963, I was working in the darkroom making prints of some target or another for my employer, the United States Air Force. It was a ...

My favorite Bruce Springsteen song is “The Streets of Philadelphia.” It gives me a lump in my throat every time I hear it. This haunting song remin...

Over the years, I have written a lot about the days we reserve to honor our military veterans (Veterans Day and Memorial Day). Growing up in the ye...

The first writing I did for money was a pamphlet called Whaling in Cape May. A Cape May retailer asked me to write it to help promote his nautical ...

One of my favorite pastimes, growing up in the Kensington section of Philadelphia in the 1950s, was going to the movies. Our neighborhood theater w...

It’s after midnight, and the street is empty as usual. Not even a stray cat or dog dares to walk this street at this time of night in the fall or winter. If there are rats, which is likely, they don’t show themselves. Occasionally a lone flying roach buzzes overhead, no doubt trying to find a warm house to raise its babies.

 It was a fantastic day. Puffy white clouds slowly drifted across the bright blue skies, and it was warm, but the breeze was cool. It was the kind ...

As much as I loved summer when I was a kid in the 1950s, the fall was always my favorite time of year. Temperatures dropped, and my bedroom in my m...