Purdy is back home.

An older calico cat “Purdy” has gone missing from 48th & Warrington. If you see her please call Jennica at 215-850-9012 or email jennicachik – at – gmail.com

Come on Craig LaBan. We love the restaurant critic for the Philadelphia Inquirer and all, but he lists the best coffee places in the region and just one is in West Philly? Only Lovers and Madmen made the cut. Great coffee shop, but what about the others over here? Green Line? Earth Cup? Milk and Honey? Satellite Cafe? Or how about Manakeesh? Gold Standard? Cafe Clave? I’m sure we’re forgetting others.

Dude, there is life past 40th Street.

The classic Japanese film Sansho – The Bailiff will screen at the International House (3701 Chestnut St.) tonight as part of the Cherry Blossom Festival. All proceeds will be donated to the Philadelphia- Japan Disaster Relief Fund.

Here is a description of the 1954 film from the International House website:

“When an idealistic governor disobeys the reigning feudal lord, he is cast into exile, his wife and children left to fend for themselves and eventually wrenched apart by vicious slave traders. Under Kenji Mizoguchi’s dazzling direction, this classic Japanese story became one of cinema’s greatest masterpieces: a monumental, empathetic expression of human resilience in the face of evil.”

Tickets are $8 for general admission, $6 for students/seniors and $5 for Internationalist members.

All of the funds raised in the Philadelphia-Japan Disaster Relief Fund will go directly to the Japanese Red Cross Society in Japan.

Mariposa Food Co-op has a new tool in its quest to raise money for its move to a new (and much larger) building in the fall. The co-op has opened an account on the fundraising site IndieGoGo.com, where individuals can securely contribute any amount.

The co-op hopes to raise $10,000 toward its move costs on the site, which will be bundled together with other fundraising ventures – from member and institutional loans to brunches – to cover the estimated $2.2 million purchase and rehab of the new building at 4824 Baltimore Ave.

Kia Gregory wrote a story for the Philadelphia Inquirer that we think everyone can relate to: The first hints of spring and the draw of water ice.

She profiles Morrone’s Water Ice, a West Philly institution at 63rd and Race. The store has been there since 1925.

One father, Rodney Mason, told Gregory: “Water ice drives my kids crazy.”

We noticed that the water ice cart was out at Clark Park yesterday as well and later in the evening I heard the first ice cream truck song of the season.

Philadelphia Weekly published an important story yesterday about opposition to the proposed rehab of the 52nd Street shopping corridor.

One street vendor, Bashir Postley, was vocal in his opposition to the city’s multimillion plan to “revitalize” the historic shopping strip.

“Let’s call it what it is,” Postley told Philadelphia Weekly. “They gonna take the urban culture out of 52nd Street and make it into a little shopping mall for white people.”

The city’s plan includes the refurbishment of storefronts along 52nd Street.

Many vendors are angry that the city has taken down the custom awnings erected in 1976 to shield shoppers and vendors from the elements. The city has said that it was a necessary first step to determine how much work needed to be done. The city had originally planned to take the awnings down in 2009, but protests from vendors put that move on hold.