Monday night, while cruising around South Philly, Luigi and I happened by 2nd & Jackson to check out the newly renovated Burke Playground. While there, we met Mark Squilla who, as head of the Burke Playground advisory board, has transformed the park from an antiquated playground into a state-of-the-art hockey, basketball and community meeting place. After watching a couple games, Mark invited us to McDaniels Saloon at 2nd & Snyder where he moonlights as the Monday-night bartender. There I met his wife Brigid Squilla, who was eager to share her favorite car story.

As is often the case when you graduate college, money is tight, so you look for the best deal. When Brigid graduated from West Chester University in 1985, her first car, a 1969 baby blue Volkswagen Beetle, cost her $500. Like many of us, she immediately gave her “new” car a pet name, Baby. As you might have guessed, Mark and Brigid met at a bar, the old “Harry the Hat’s” in North Wildwood, where Mark DROVE her crazy while trying to get her attention. Since he didn’t have a car and was doing enough drinking for both of them, Brigid offered to drive him home. While Mark was smitten with her, he mistakenly accepted the offer for a ride as an invitation to further their relationship and once in the car didn’t wait long to “make his move.”

Unbeknownst to Mark, Baby was very protective of her “mommy.” The passenger door, while secure for most passengers, was more than willing to let Mark know when he was attempting to move too fast. Every time Mark would try to steal a kiss, the door would spontaneously open and Mark would need to focus all his energies on trying to prevent himself from falling out of the car, and thus abandon his amorous pursuits. Not until Mark “slowed down” did Baby let him stay in the car without incident.

Fast forward to 2008, Mark is still DRIVING Brigid crazy; but now their four real babies, ranging in ages from 12-17 years of age, are there to help steer him in the right direction! So if you are driving around near 2nd & Jackson Streets, be sure to check out the new Burke Playground. Maybe you could start a community group in your neighborhood and spearhead a similar transformation of your local park. Until next week, ciao for now!