Bushtemberfest

Lazy, rainy end-of-summer days? Don't let it get you down. Celebrate Bushtemberfest! Via the award-winning Steven Hart at The Opinion Mill:

Bushtemberfest, or the Festival of Fatal Fuckups, will give GOP-weary Americans a chance to celebrate the non-accomplishments of George W. Bush, the first president to let one major American city be devastated by terrorists and allow another one to drown, all within the space of a few years. The observance will start with the anniversary of the flooding of New Orleans and climax with the anniversary of the destruction of the World Trade Center, during which time we will pray — loudly and publicly — that no other disasters befall us while we await the blessed day that King George and his menagerie of religious hucksters, corporate bandits and ideological grifters get their eviction notice.

How will you celebrate Bushtemberfest? Head on over to the Opinion Mill and let Steve know. Personally, I think that faithful observers of Bushtemberfest will celebrate by going on vacation to Texas and clear brush. Preferably, underfund your smoke detecters, then light candles in your kitchen before you leave home. Remember to tell everyone that no one could have predicted a house fire.

Better late than never

I'm about halfway through Crashing the Gate by Jerome Armstrong and Markos Moulitsas Zúniga. It's not a long book but I've had almost no free time lately (as you might have noticed by how little I've been blogging.) If you have a free day, you could easily finish it that quickly.

This book is simply a revelation. It should be the wake-up call the left needs to, well, wake up and stop snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. After I read a section, I spend the next twenty minutes explaining it to my husband (who hopefully will read it, but really, does he need to now?) and wondering aloud why the Dems are still doing what they're still doing, and why they don't get it.

I highly recommend it. And, now available in paperback!

Princeton Hospital

The University Medical Center at Princeton has proposed moving out of Princeton proper and to Plainsboro, to the FMC property on Rt. 1. The plan is to break ground in 2007.

I sure hope they do it.

Yesterday I got to spend some time at the hospital's ER (everyone's fine now, thanks.) Every process was painfully slow- more so than I've ever seen at other ERs. The building is old, outdated and unnecessarily complicated. The parking sucks, what there is of it. There's no room to make any improvements or expand, both of which are sorely needed.

The population of Central New Jersey is expanding rapidly and the hospital has not been able to keep up with it. It should be moved.

Central NJ gas price watch

$2.69, Riggins, Mercer St. Hightstown 10AM 8/29

Central NJ gas price watch

$2.75, Getty, Mercer St., Hightstown 5:35PM 8/25.

...but they don't want them right now.

The housing market continues to slow down.

Prospective home buyers have turned cautious about making such a big-ticket purchase as mortgage rates have gone up and uncertainty has risen about whether the economy and job creation will keep slowing, analysts said.
Existing-home sales dropped 4.1 percent in July from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.33 million units, the National Association of Realtors reported. That was the lowest level since January 2004.
The latest snapshot of housing activity was weaker than analysts anticipated. Economists were forecasting the pace of sales to fall to 6.55 million.

This is an AP article and those figures are nationwide; existing-home sales fell even further, 5.4 percent, here in the Northeast.

Ya mean, families might want those houses?

Washington Twp. (Mercer County) was shocked to find that their school enrollment increased so much this year:

WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- In light of an unanticipated boost in kindergarten enrollment, school officials are dipping deeper into the district's budget and leasing two modular trailers.
While preliminary projections last year indicated that 22 more kindergartners would attend Sharon School in 2006-07, recent figures suggest that number will triple, said Superintendent John Szabo.

Washington (also known as Robbinsville) was already well on the way to learning that unrestrained residential growth also means unrestrained spending on schools and infrastructure. This is just one more step on that learning curve.

Home grown tomatoes

I love home grown tomatoes. They are a treasure, and none are better than those we grow here in the Center of NJ.

That first tomato is such a thing of beauty. Now, late August, I can barely use up all that I get every day. By mid-September, Ill be leaving them to rot on the vine.

As always, I planted too many. At least I skipped growing zucchini this year.

Sun Beer

Anderson Valley Brewing in Booneville, Ca, just announced they completed installing their Solar system. At 122kW, "the largest private photovoltaic solar installation north of the San Francisco Bay Area."

Woo-hoo! Sun beer. Gotta get me a Hop Ottin'.

(hat tip to Paul at the Crooked Beat. Visit the Crooked Beat Music & Beer Map!)

Central NJ gas price watch

$2.79, All three gas stations at the intersection of Rt. 1 and Rt. 571, Princeton NJ 8/20 9:30AM.

We're number one! Oh... wait...

New Jersey leads the nation in political double-dipping

In Our Fair State, it's tradition to hold several gvt. jobs. Look at Charlie Epps:

Double-dippers are unlikely to be able to give sufficient time and attention to one or both of their public jobs. Assemblyman Charles Epps Jr. (D-Hudson), spends at least two days of most weeks at the State House, which is time when he's not back home superintending Jersey City's troubled school district, for which he receives $210,520 a year. In 2003, Assemblyman Ronald S. Dancer (R-Ocean) triple-dipped as a legislator, mayor and Ocean County employee.

How do these people sleep at night? Better still, why are we still electing them or letting them hold two jobs? Better still, anyone know where I can get a job that pays $210K a year and lets me show up only three days a week?

This kind of BS would put them in jail in Indiana.

Assemblyman Michael Panter has sponsored A524, which would prohibit legislators from holding another public office. He sponsored it in 2004 too, where it did exactly what it'll do this time- dead stall in the Assembly State Government Committee. I can only hope he'll propose it again and again until it gets passed.

One Year Later

Katrina Home Bush Visited Still Stands Empty

There are a lot of "One Year After Katrina" articles out there right now, but this one really struck me yesterday when NPR ran it. It's an embarrasment, in the richest country in the world, that this is the way it's been.

I'm sorry, Ethel.

South Jersey Gas Price Watch

$2.81, Citgo, Rt. 70 across from the old racetrack property, Cherry Hill 6:03PM 8/17

I get searches- you get answers

'S always fun to look at recent search terms that have led folks to this blog. Here are some of the more interesting:

"something really really fun to do in south jersey today"- Boy, I could write a book on that one. There are lots of choices, but it depends on your idea of fun. The entire shore, Wharton State forest, Atsion Lake, Atlantic City, Flying Fish brewery tours, among others- here's a whole list of family fun options, too.

""Afghan Kebab House #7" nj"= Rob mentioned this in a guest post over a year ago, and I still often get folks looking for it. The restaruant has no web site of its own, but I found a review site. I've yet to go there but it's clearly pretty popular.

"scams to play on people"- um, I'm not going to be much help on this one. Thanks for visiting!

"gas stations in central nj"- I guess all my Central NJ gas price watches have led folks here for that. I'll be wrapping that up at the end of summer. I also got an isolated search for "gas price watch NH" - I've only done one of those and it was a month and a half ago.

"how to write a letter to my congressman in new jersey"- ahhh, this is my favorite. Write to your Congressman! Start here, and follow the drop-down menu to NJ, and enter your zip code. It's easy! Your congresscritter should hear from you often.

Speaking of talking to your lawmakers, the Special Session on Property Tax reform is underway in Our Fair State, and they want to hear from you. Go and let the committees know what is important to you.

I haven't gotten any searches lately looking for Carol Gay. Carol is running in the 4th against Representative Chris Smith (who doesn't 'represent' me to speak of.) I talked to Carol for a Blue Jersey podcast and I was thoroughly impressed. Go Carol!

Tell it to her Tuesday

Janet at The Art of Getting By has a feature called "Tell it to me Tuesday" which is quite popular. This week's question- "What are some songs you can listen to over and over?"

I can get sick of anything if it gets overplayed enough. But, songs currently in heavy rotation on my iPod qualify, I guess, so here goes:
Feel Good Inc., Clint Eastwood, 19-2000- Gorillaz
Strange Ways- Moby (the one from the Bourne movies, only Moby song I own)
Santa Monica- Everclear
Dog Train- Blues Traveler
And, every time it comes on the radio, Shaft- Issac Hayes.

What are yours?

Fly away home

Trenton-Mercer airport announced last week more passenger service, now to Balt-Wash airport and Elmira-Corning airport on the carrier Boston-Maine. (Wow, that's a lot of hyphens, even for me.) Now, Delta's subsidiary Comair is proposing to add direct service to Atlanta and Logan in Boston. That would be absolutely great for area residents!

Central NJ gas price watch

$2.98, Rt. 35, Oakhurst, 8/13 5:30PM

Follow-up to the Beach Condos

I posted about Last Rides at Funtown Pier a couple weeks ago. Seems Seaside Park is considering turing a charming, classic NJ pier and boardwalk into a condo development.

Following up on that, this weekend, I visited Pier Village in Long Branch, a site where they tore out the somewhat dated, run-down and old real estate around the former pier area to make a new, really upscale boardwalk area loaded with condos.

My impression? Eh.

Long Branch did what it had to do, I understand that. The area was getting run down and since they are competing with all the other shore towns for your vacation and day-trip buck, they had to do something drastic to create attraction. It's clearly a winner, too; it was crazy crowded, even well into the evening on a Sunday.

I mean, it's nice- in a generic, plastic sort of chain-store way. Where there once was character, there now is style, and they're not the same thing.

Progress marches on, but I'll be a little sad for the passing of the old boardwalks. The ones made out of boards, not plastic.

Central NJ gas price watch- preliminary wrap-up

The Newhouse News Service has already begun the wrap-up of summer gas prices.

Central NJ gas price watch

$2.89, Raceway, Rt. 33 Eastbound, Monroe Twp. 3:30 PM 8/9