Occupy D.C.

'Occupy Washington, D.C.' tents set up in Lafayette Square, with the
Capitol building in the background.  (Image/Dick Bergeron)

On the way to our first visit to the Martin Luther King Memorial in Washington, D.C., we came upon an unexpected surprise:  As we crossed Pennsylvania Avenue from the J.W. Marriott Hotel, Pris and I noticed a tight grouping of weatherproof tents on the concrete slab of Lafayette Park. 

 
The sign outside one of these shelters read “Welcome to Washington, D.C.,” and the marking on the largest one read “First Aid.”  It was, to my surprise the peaceful encampment of an “Occupy Washington” contingent.
 
However, unlike what’s been happening in Manhattan with “Occupy Wall Street,” the Washington version seemed to be a model of civility.  Indeed, I couldn’t determine whether or not there was anyone occupying any of the tents!  Nor did I see any protesters on the pavilion.

Downey Road Gets a Facelift

Ten-wheelers prepare to cart away the old road surface of Downey
Road which has since been completely stripped and resurfaced.
(Image/Dick Bergeron)

One of the results of budget tightening in Bridgewater since the financial and real estate debacles of 2007/2008 is that this Township, as well as other municipalities throughout New Jersey, has had to carefully watch expenses and the outflow of cash.

 
The poor condition of some of the roadways in this Township seems to have been an unintended casualty of the need to address fiscal austerity.
 
For example, Downey Road is a short, very busy little connector that runs from Route 202/206 near the Green Knoll Grille.  It links up with Woodlawn Avenue and Garretson Road, at the point where these two streets meet at the overpass that spans 202/206.

An American Thanksgiving

Annalee Dolls in our home reflect the joyous spirit of the day.
(Image/Dick Bergeron)

This morning, after yesterday’s Thanksgiving dinner with friends and family just outside of the Nation’s Capital, I was reminded not only of how uniquely American this national holiday is, but also of how it has come to be such a significant day of celebration and gratitude for newly-minted American immigrants as well

In an above-the-fold article on this morning’s front page of the print edition of The Washington Post, writer Luz Lazo quotes Abraham Lima, a Salvadoran immigrant who says, “How can I not be thankful?” 

Several photos depict Mr. Lima with his wife, his grown children, and his granddaughter sitting at their dining room table, offering up a pre-meal prayer of gratefulness for the blessings which have been showered upon them in their new country.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Santa awaits his kids on the other side of
this three-story high Christmas tree. 
(Image/Dick Bergeron)

Each year the Bridgewater Commons Mall sets up its tall Christmas tree for the Holiday Season in the open area of the three-story atrium at center court.  That’s where parents have already begun to bring their young children to visit Santa Claus so that they can ask him to fulfill their favorite wish.

There are also two other much smaller, though just as significant Holiday trees where some of the neediest people, although they may not be able to visit the Mall and Santa Claus, can still ask in absentia for a favored wish:  

These are the two Salvation Army make-a-wish Angel Trees upon which needy people of all ages, sizes, desires, and cultures get a chance to have a tag hung on one of two trees on their behalf.

One of the Angel Trees is prominently displayed next to the up escalator near the huge Santa Claus Holiday tree in the Atrium area, about 20 feet across the aisle from the entrance to Godiva Chocolate.

Board Picks Petrozelli

At an open public meeting which began at 7:30 p.m. last night and finished nearly four hours later, the Bridgewater-Raritan Board of Education elected Daniel M. Petrozelli to fill the School Board seat vacated by Anda Cytroen who resigned in September.

A happy Daniel Petrozelli after his appointment to the Board
of Education.  (Dick Bergeron Image.)

Mr. Petrozelli is a licensed electrician, a seven-and-a-half year Bridgewater Township resident, and has a daughter who will be entering elementary school in this district.

He served in the U.S. Navy Submarine Service from 1983 to 1986, and earned his Associate’s Degree from Raritan Valley Community College in 1989.  Petrozelli worked his way up the ladder in his trade and is currently employed by Local 102 of the IBEW in Parsippany, where he works as a certified instructor to electrical apprentices.

In a process which was completely transparent and open to the public for observation, the Board interviewed 11candidates who were queried separately in the conference room at the Wade Administration Building.  Of thirteen people who had submitted applications, eleven showed up.

Each person was allotted five minutes, during which time they were asked to explain why they wanted to be on the Board; what skill sets and experience they would apply in their role as a Board member: and, what ideas did each have to improve the educational and budgetary issues facing the School District.

This was followed by a five-minute questioning period by individual Board members, including a one minute summary by each candidate.

There even was a touch of high technology in the process, as Jacqueline Barlow, one of the candidates who was out of the country on business, was accommodated by the Board – she joined the process via a Skype video conference call.