Giving ‘work from home’ a new meaning | Morning Newsletter
And what you need to know about naked ballots.
The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
Katie Krzaczek here, filling in for Taylor this morning, and I’m glad to finally see some sun! ☀️
It’ll be a little warmer today — temps will just creep into the 70s.
Yesterday, we talked about how most of us are still working from home or in some hybrid model. But what if your commute didn’t exist because your home is your work?
That’s the case for Sean O’Donnell, who’s the resident caretaker of the Victorian-era Knight Park House in Collingswood, N.J.
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— Katie (@hashtagkatie, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
When Sean O’Donnell became the resident caretaker of the Victorian-era Knight Park House in 2020, he called it a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
O’Donnell is also restoring the house on behalf of the nonprofit Knight Park Board of Trustees, which owns the 60-acre park.
Some background: Knight Park was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, and the Proud Neighbors of Collingswood organization began funding restoration of the park house in 2010, donating more than $30,000 thus far.
Former borough commissioner and Haddon Avenue business owner Joan Leonard is credited with originating the resident caretaker-restorer approach in 2010. She called it “exhausting work.”
“As much as it’s a beautiful house and you’re living in the middle of a park, it’s a labor of love. You have to really love that house,” Leonard said.
Keep reading about the progress O’Donnell has made, including a dream project he called the “cherry on top.”
What you should know today
Nationwide, employers posted 10.7 million job vacancies in September despite the Fed’s attempts to cool the economy.
Mehmet Oz has personally spent more than Bryce Harper’s annual salary on his Senate campaign.
Buying a home is less cutthroat — but still not easy as mortgage rates rise.
For decades, Philadelphia has been unable to pass local gun laws. My colleague Henry Savage breaks down why that’s so hard for the city to do.
A CHOP psychiatrist shares her perspective on the mental health of young people and gives tips for caregivers.
Are the Phillies predictors of financial doom? Experts weigh in on that and the economics of this year’s World Series cities.
Local coronavirus numbers: Here’s your daily look at the latest COVID-19 data.
Election Day is less than a week away and the down-to-the-wire U.S. Senate race in Pennsylvania is renewing some attention on how mail ballots can be rejected in Pennsylvania if voters make mistakes filling them out and sending them back.
The state Supreme Court also ruled Tuesday that Pa. counties must segregate and not count mail ballots with missing or incorrect dates on their outer envelopes.
“Naked ballots” are tossed for missing the required inner secrecy envelopes, but voters can also have their ballots thrown out for missing the deadline, forgetting to sign them, and other errors.
Some votes are rejected every election, and the difference between votes cast and votes actually counted is usually pretty small. Rejected ballots go largely unnoticed — until they matter in extremely close races.
Continue reading about what naked ballots could mean for the John Fetterman-Mehmet Oz contest.
🧠 Philly Trivia Time 🧠
Which is the best place in the country to retire, according to U.S. News & World Report?
a. Philadelphia
b. Ocean City, N.J.
c. Miami, Fla.
d. Lancaster, Pa.
Find out if you know the answer.
What we’re...
🎶 Listening to: Garrett Stubbs’ Phils Win playlist.
📚 Reading: Helen Ubiñas’ story of Maureen Boland, a Philadelphia teacher who’s leaving the classroom to hear your stories of love, loss, and building a better city.
💐 Honoring: The memory of loved ones at the Día de los Muertos altar by artist Reyna Guzmán Casarez outside the Bok building.
🧩 Unscramble the Anagram 🧩
Hint: The second name for Philly’s first baseball stadium
ACCOUNT MEDIA MINKS
Think you know? Send your guess our way at morningnewsletter@inquirer.com. We’ll give a shout-out to a reader at random who answers correctly. Today’s shout-out goes to Julian Brodsky, who correctly guessed Queen Village as Tuesday’s answer.
Photo of the Day
That’s it from me this morning. Thanks for starting your day with The Inquirer! ☕