Election Day in May?

It is election day today in Jersey City and many places around the state including my used to be hometown of Hoboken. Above is Steve Fulop, someone who doesn't seem like he is in it for the glory, but for real. He is the first independently elected official in Jersey City history. Yes, that is true, no other candidate elected to the city council or the Mayor's office has ever done it without party support. He did it four years ago. After flirting with running for Mayor this time around he is making a go at the council one more time. It makes it just as difficult this time around because they are gunning for him. He does, however have a big following in Jersey City, especially here in Ward E. Here is hoping he wins. Maybe even One Jersey City folks will make the run off instead of the same old dopes running things here. Here is props for Dan Levin as Mayor though he has a steep hill to climb.

The Flyover in Jersey City

So, this morning I went to go get my coffee at Legal Grounds. As I am walking back to Sussex street to begin the day writing Appellate briefs, the biggest plane I ever saw was directly above me, as loud a plane as you can possibly imagine and so low flying it gave me chills. I ran into the middle of the street to get a better look, possibly as low as the tallest building in Jersey City, the Goldman Sachs building, it crossed my mind this might not be by accident. It also occurred to me the plane looked a lot like Air Force I, though minutes before I saw the new President on the television screen,not in the air. A plane flew next to it, what looked like a fighter plane, an F-16? Maybe they caught Dick Cheney and Obama is giving him a scolding?

I walked up the stairs to see my partner, visibly shaken running from the bedroom (home sick) and asking me what the F$@^! is going on out there. Exasperated, I said I didn't know and then heard it circle and come back and I ran to the window to see it again, turning toward the south headed directly for the Statue of Liberty. We also heard many screams and the sounds of running feet at the waterfront in Jersey City, it seemed people were alarmed at the flight, like me. I asked myself, could this be a plane carrying the swine influenza? Seriously, watching the panic in the reporters eyes asking the CDC questions might have added to my own panic. It circled again, but then in an instant disappeared. I turned on the television, but nothing until about 2 PM and at the press briefing on the pandemic a reporter asked about the plane and wondered if this was a good idea to alarm the very victims who suffered during 9/11. Ya think.

Turns out it was a pre-planned photo op by a couple of bozos which caused evacuations at the buildings at the World Trade Center and in the financial district in Jersey City (many of these people transferred to Jersey City after the tragedy of 9/11), about three blocks from my house. Not the FAA's best day, nor the police who were told "not to alarm the public" with this information. Huh? I can tell you I was very alarmed at the sight of these planes, one absolutely breathtaking to look at and a bit unnerved; along with the sound I don't think New Yorkers will ever be able to relinquish - it rattled me for at least an hour. Just another example of government thinking the little peons don't need to know information. Just imagine what it has been like to live in Baghdad or Gaza the last few years?

Interview With Ward E Councilman Steve Fulop

This is an interesting discussion on Jersey City politics, an honest discussion with someone who seems to really care about the city, a moderator who has been around and is disgusted with what is occurring in politics in Jersey City. Watch if you are interested.

Interview with incumbent Steven Fulop for the Ward E/ Downtown JC municipal race

Jersey City Mural Arts Program

We found this on Draw and Quarter, an arts blog in Jersey City. It seems murals have taken off in Jersey City. Above is a new mural on Coles by Hudson County Arts Supply. Very nice. We need lots more of this.


RON ENGLISH x BIGFOOT x JASON MALONEY / MURAL / JERSEY CITY from joe russo on Vimeo.

a brand new bag & a brand new me

a new year, a new home -- in downtown jersey city -- but i needed some new stuff. can't remember the last time i bought anything new (thanks sis for the lovely hand me downs). my only pair of jeans looks threadbare and feels uncomfortable. lucky for me, i moved right around the corner from life, a hip, out of the ordinary boutique stocked with clothes and accessories from local jersey city designers, such as billykirk (whose bag/wallet collection is made by a group of amish leather workers in PA), as well as other collections by rag & bone, mike & chris, joe's jeans & more.

i walked into life, having read about the store in NEW guide/magazine, eager to find something to perk up my lame closet of clothes. life, set in a beautiful brownstone building at quaint 112 morris street in paulus hook, just steps from the light rail, doesn't overwhelm, instead you feel invited in, comfortable browsing and touching the materials. soon enough i met cliff, the owner of life, who chatted with me in a familiar, casual way (unlike the many city boutiques i've shopped at which have a tendency to either make you feel pressure to buy or too uncool), then he magically picked up a few items to show me after i said, help i need a wardrobe boost (but i want usa/locally made items). cliff carefully described each designer's style, and how that item could best solve my clothing ills. everything he presented (billykirk bag, mike & chris grey jacket, jeans, black pants, grey james perse shirt) completely matched my style & fit almost perfectly (life handles alterations). cliff's knack for finding exactly what i craved doesn't feel forced or sales-person-y. with an air of genuine friendliness and expertise with all the designers he carries in the store, he treats each and every customer personally, listening to what the shopper seeks, yet not pushing the purchase or leading one astray.

so now, comforted in my new jeans in the new neighborhood, i praise life, the urban boutique i couldn't seem to find in hoboken, nyc, san francisco or paris ... where i go to shop, browse, pick up the latest NEW guide or visit with cliff to talk about jersey city happenings.

Confessions in Jersey City

I walked to the gym this morning and noticed my new coffee shop in Jersey City is closed for the day. Legal Grounds, which gives coffee for a dollar with your own mug is a down home, coffee shop from days gone by mixed with a hip, wifi feel. Coffee is great, but when they are closed what am I to do? Paulus Hook still lacks lots of these amenities. So, I decided to head to the gym at Synergy, also the cheapest of health clubs in Jersey City.

A guy on unemployment has to watch his budget, eh. It is great though, gives you what you need, Nautilus, free weights, and all kinds of machines. It is also the most diverse gym by far I have ever worked out at...from mom's to kids, to young men to women, from fringe hippies like me, to Arabs, Indians, Latinos, African-Americans, you name it. It is very cool. You want old New York? Come to Jersey City.

After the gym, however - contemplating watching the Palestinian massacre on television without a coffee was not something I cherished. There it was in front of me. Starbucks (no link needed). At the bottom of the gargantuan, pathetically drawn, architecturally stupid, structure of Grove Pointe, a Starbucks. I thought to myself, I have not yet enjoyed the beauty of an egg nog latte yet this holiday season. Voila! In and out in two minutes with a huge egg nog latte. A Venti, they call it. Italian they are not.

The old and new mixed right in this city that is struggling to define itself. Anyway, on January 2nd, Legal Grounds will reopen and I will return.

Thought of the day: Why is one Israeli life worth 350 Palestinian lives?

art n' fashion -- jersey style

fall is here! time for the annual jersey city artists tour ... my personal favorite stop will be found object art at van vorst park to see the interaction of art and nature in deborah pohl's traffic cone #3: for the birds, see photo above.

note that for both days of the studio tour, the jersey city museum (gallery hours 12pm-5pm saturday and 12pm-8pm sunday) will offer free admission to all visitors.

fall is also the time to break out last year's gear (like i always do) or buy something new ... at rubee's closet ... run there this weekend for 15% off all sweaters and jackets!

JERSEY SPRAWL

a spring shout out for my friend, a local hoboken artist whose work is part of a new show at the jersey city museum, opening on march 20th...

SPRAWL at the jersey city museum

SPRAWL is a bold, multi-venue exhibition that brings together works by 41 New Jersey artists that focus on the state’s legacy of ‘sprawl’ and its effect on urban, suburban, rural and marginalized landscapes.


Artists in SPRAWL: Mauro Altamura, Aileen Bassis, Pat Brentano, Jason Burch, Brendan Carroll, Hector Canonge, Michael Dal Cerro, Paul Ching-Bor, Lisa Dahl, Tim Daly, Jessica Demcsak, Andrew Demirjian, Dahlia Elsayed, Rebecca Feranec, Jonathan Glick, Patrick Grenier, Susan Evans Grove, Emily Helck, Owen Kanzler, Robert Kogge, Michelle Loughlin, Valeri Larko, Gregory Maka, Megan Maloy, María Mijares, Richard Pasquarelli, Deborah Pohl, Ben Polsky, Debbie Reichard, Bryony Romer, Joseph Gerard Sabatino Roger Sayre, Leslie Sheryll, Nyugen Smith, Roger Tucker, Ana-Mária Vág, Kimberly Witham, Andrew Wilkinson and Bryan Zanisnik.

also, i'm eager to check out the plywood hummer by ryan roa!

and, bonné boche, the colorful, spring flower display of carson fox...

jersey city's cookie party

...c is for cookie...

sarah silverman and her sis laura have their own cookie party obsession. now i have one, right here in jersey city.

feed your soul (store and cafe) opened in 2005 on 520 jersey avenue (grove street PATH) and though i walked by it several times, i never tried the goodies. but in november i started to pick up some (chocolate-chip graham) at my local shop, empire coffee & tea company. hooked at first bite! chewy, fresh, with a strong taste of graham to complement the chocolate. soon, i was stopping by empire every evening after work to buy my fix. the last time i remember loving a cookie so much was in the early 90s when the city bakery had its first, cozy, small and less mass produced store near union square.

feed your soul "was founded on the belief that anything is possible." their mission is "to provide a quality product that embraces a concept, one which generates an appreciation for life, for living every day, for doing the simple things that truly feed your soul."

according to a recent article, quick bite, in the new york times, owner mya jacobson started in 2004 by baking and selling among 20 types of cookies from her hoboken apartment. now she sells wholesale and online. you can buy all kinds of collections, gift tins, student care packages and within each tin is a card with a inspirational quote or line of poetry. feed your soul also donates one percent of profits from your purchase when you choose a charity from their list.

i have yet to try the s'mores or peanut butter marshmallow or chocolate chip mint... time to visit mya's cafe for my own cookie party.