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About 75 people gather at Area 51 gate, 2 people detained

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Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate remains at 3.9 percent

<p>There was my buddy Alner, on his front porch, studying the stuff he&#8217;d pulled from his mailbox like it was the Dead Sea scrolls and not even noticing my friendly wave at him.</p><p>What really irked me, though, was the way he just blew off the couple getting out of their car across the street when they offered him a thumbs-up.</p><p>&#8220;Alner, old pal,&#8221; I said, striding up to him. &#8220;We have to talk.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Talk?&#8221; he said, shoving a paper at me. &#8220;Talk? Look at this &#8211; my cost of heating has gone up again. When will all this end?&#8221;</p><p>My grin must have been a dead giveaway. Clutching his torn envelope and crying &#8220;no, no,&#8221;, he lunged for his front door, but I was too quick for him. Within seconds, thanks to my power of metaphysical travel, we were standing on the sidewalk in a Wyoming Valley neighborhood of times past.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;I guess I&#8217;ll never learn,&#8221; he said resignedly. &#8220;What&#8217;s up today?&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Actually,&#8221; I said, &#8220;it&#8217;s what&#8217;s going to be up. Do you have any idea what next Saturday is?&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Why, is there a good game on?&#8221; he said.</p><p>I sighed, but kept my composure. &#8220;Old buddy, next Saturday is National Good Neighbor Day.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Darn, I was thinking it was National Shaving Cream Day.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;The contestants on &#8216;America&#8217;s Got Talent&#8217; have nothing to fear from you,&#8221; I said. &#8220;Pay attention. It&#8217;s a day established in 1978 to promote neighborliness.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m not neighborly?&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Without naming names, let me say that we could all stand some improvement. Take a look at those young kids going from door to door down the street. They&#8217;re rounding up their buddies to play baseball. And notice that they&#8217;re talking to each other, not carrying some personal gizmo and staring at it.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;I remember playing,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Yeah, that was fun.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;In a couple of hours their parents will be getting together at one of the houses to have a nice evening of cards or listening to the radio or maybe just conversing over coffee.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;So, everything was better back here?&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Not necessarily,&#8221; I said. &#8220;But there might be a few things we can learn. It used to be standard to make friends with the folks who lived around you. You&#8217;d go over and introduce yourself. Today, the family next door to you could be space aliens and you wouldn&#8217;t know it.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Yeah, I kind of see what you mean,&#8221; he said. &#8220;But we&#8217;re all so busy rushing around, and&#8230;&#8221;</p><p>I cut him off. &#8220;Excuses!&#8221; I said. &#8220;People years ago worked longer hours than we do, and they found time to chat. In fact, they made time. If you spotted someone you knew in a store, you&#8217;d go over and ask about their day. Look at those teenagers heading down to the soda fountain or dance hall to hang out with their buddies. They&#8217;re not sitting at home.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;So, what&#8217;s the solution for us?&#8221; Alner asked.</p><p>&#8220;Nothing radical,&#8221; I said. &#8220;When you read that National Good Neighbor Day is coming up, use that as a spur to be a little friendlier.&#8221;</p><p>At that, I brought us back to our own time.</p><p>&#8220;Oh, no,&#8221; he cried. &#8220;I dropped my utility bill back there.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;You&#8217;ll get another one &#8211; don&#8217;t worry.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Well, I guess I made one contribution to neighborliness already.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;How so?&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Those folks way back will probably laugh like hyenas over a bill bigger than their weekly pay.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Alner, let&#8217;s have a neighborly talk about energy-efficient windows.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Tom Mooney Mug</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/web1_TOM_MOONEY-5.jpg</photo0><caption0>Tom Mooney Mug</caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Tom Mooney</p><p>For Times Leader</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Tom Mooney is a Times Leader history columnist. Reach him at tommooney42@gmail.com.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Remember When: Neighbors got to know each other…