Halloween at the Mall

The Wicked Witch!!  (Image/Dick Bergeron, Homestead Farm, Poolesville, MD.)

Early this afternoon, when I visited the Bridgewater Commons Mall, it was overflowing with young people ranging from tiny ones in strollers, small munchkins walking about in their Halloween costumes, and teenagers taking advantage of school closings, courtesy of the treacherous snowstorm which closed down so many school buildings.

The big hit this afternoon was the bevy of tiny tots in their Halloween costumes who were old enough to walk from store to store in a safe and welcome environment, guided by their moms and dads who helped them to collect their treats, as they sauntered from one place to the other.

One of the best spots was the Lego storefront which had a lady dressed in princess regalia standing at the entrance to the store, ready to greet the trick-or-treaters.

Beats having the wicked witch of the west coming after you!

The All-too-Early Wind and Snows of October

The old big-box TV goes out for recycling.  (Image/Dick Bergeron)

This was to be the weekend that, after seventeen years with our old and trusted TV, we would have it hauled out and replaced with a new flat-screen model. 

However, although the old one was picked up early Saturday morning as the storm began to rage, delivery and installation of the new one scheduled for late that same day, was delayed until the middle of next week.  The snow and wind proved to be unforgiving.  (Not to mention that we may have lost that beautiful pin oak in the front yard.)

Our big old cabinet model Zenith TV was manufactured with ‘state-of-the-art’ technology when we purchased it in 1994.  But technology does not stand still and, a year later, Zenith came under the control of South-Korea based LG Electronics whose products are now carried by major store chains such as Costco and P.C. Richard. 

A Matter of Judgment

Photo Courtesy of Google Images

The New Jersey Constitution seems to be quite clear on the question of whether or not Governor Chris Christie and the Legislature of this state were within the letter and the spirit of that document when public employee compensation reforms were codified into law in June, 2010.

Those reforms provided for increased contributions by state employees for their pension and health benefits.

But – it seems – at least two members of the state judiciary think that the law does not apply to them, claiming that this legislation reduces their ‘salary’ under provisions of New Jersey’s constitution.

A plain reading of that document is quiet clear on this matter to anyone else with even a scintilla of common sense:  “The justices of the Supreme Court and the judges of the Superior Court shall receive for their services such salaries as may be provided by law, which shall not be diminished during the term of their appointment.” 

(If you want more, Click here for the full source of this quote and scroll down to the Judicial section to read Paragraph 6, under Article VI, Section VI.)

Pretty simple, yet this has become a controversy which is now headed to the New Jersey Supreme Court under pending appeal by the Christie administration.

Bridgewater-Raritan Schools Seek to Fill Board Seat

Anda Cytroen at 5/3/11 Board Mtg. (Dick Bergeron Image)

With the recent resignation of Bridgewater-Raritan School Board member, Anda Cytroen, the position needs to be filled by an appointment to that post. 

New Jersey law requires that the B-R School Board solicit candidates, interview them, and appoint a person from their ranks to take Cytroen’s place on the Board until the end of her 3-year term of office.

The person selected to fill this vacant spot will occupy it for the remainder of that term which expires in April, 2012, at which time the appointee and two other incumbents – if they so chose to run again – will be up for re-election by voters for another 3-years of service.  There is no number of term limitations on school board positions.

(Each year, on or about April 17, three of nine school board seats come up in rotation for approval by voters together with the school budget.)

PTSD and the Wars that Won't go Away

Book Jacket.   (Dick Bergeron Image)

Potomac, MD.  The testimonials on the back of the book jacket for “In the Name of Honor” don’t do it justice.  I wonder if any one of those whose names appear on it ever read the book front-to-back, if at all.

The author, Richard North Patterson, is a master storyteller with a disciplined grip on the English language. 

Throughout this highly readable 400-pager, he skillfully employs words and phrases to buttress his main thesis – that the deadening  impact of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) on American families and their loved ones returning home from Iraq has not been counted into the price of that war.

The forcefulness and validity of that message is wrapped within the story of two military families.  The first can boast of an intergenerational West Point succession of high-ranking Army officers whose current patriarch is a general and the Army Chief of Staff.  He is slated to become head of the Joint Chiefs. 

The Vietnam Wall Pays a Visit

The Washington Monument serves as a sentinel to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. 

Potomac, MD -- As chance would have it, while I was driving north on Route 202/206 by the Bridgewater Commons Mall on Wednesday, a column of police cars and motorcycles moving southbound on the other side was escorting a decorated trailer containing the Traveling Vietnam Wall.

It formed an impressive motorcade – one that was impossible to miss.  The exhibit may be seen at North Branch Park in Bridgewater, where it is open to the public until Sunday afternoon.

Against the Tide

(Photo/Google Images)

You can’t push an incoming wave back into the sea.  No matter what you do, it’s going to come crashing down upon the sand. 

The same may be said of business ventures which, for whatever reason, are about to hit the beaches of the bankruptcy courts.  This applies whether a company is in the field of solar energy or in any other emerging market where competition is tough and the future uncertain.

The rate of failure among start-ups, especially among those in new, cutting edge industries is very high – often 60% or greater within the first four years.  One study that employed Census Bureau data shows that only 29% of new businesses which started in 1992 were still operating in 2002.

That is why, in the United States, the traditional source of funds for unproven start-ups has been venture capitalists, not the Federal Government.  

Venture capital firms usually spread their risk among a diverse group of young emerging companies and perform a high degree of analysis on a fledgling enterprise, its founders and its markets.  Their due diligence is pristine.

Sunday: Last Day for the VNA Rummage Sale

Leaving the Fairgrounds at closing time! (Photo/Dick Bergeron)

Sunday afternoon is the last opportunity for you to benefit from enjoying the fall Rummage Sale sponsored by the Visiting Nurse Association of Somerset Hills. 

It’s a semi-annual event which also takes place in the spring.  This affair always seems to take on a festive character, especially when the weather is as perfect as it has been Friday and Saturday, and as it will be on Sunday.

It wasn’t always like that.  There have been times when I’ve had to step deep into the muck during wet, chilly weather to get to some of my favorite tents – but, not today.  Priscille, I and our two grand-daughters, M&m, moved about a few of the tents and came out with some goodies – (me with a bag full of books: any surprise?).

Welcome to the Fall Season



This last, lonely apple is probably destined for the cider press.

Well, it finally arrived – fall, that is.  Yes . . .  I know:  The official start of fall came nearly two weeks ago on September 23^rd.  But it never felt that way – too much rain, too many gray, cloudy, overhanging days.

Fall is supposed to be accompanied by brisk cool weather and puffy clouds against the backdrop of a blue sky.  If AccuWeather keeps its promise, the sun will shine for the rest of this week and into the next, punctuated with rain on the last three days of October.
 
Expect cool nights and comfortable daytime temperatures.  That is, if Mother Nature does not change her mind in between now and then:  It’s been known to happen quite frequently. She can be unpredictable.
 
Nonetheless, for the next ten days it’s worth your planning for any outdoor activities which you may have been thinking about.