Where Plainfield turns for news.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

House tour today.. Bernice: Virgin of Guadalupe celebrations begin.. Olddoc on the Council's fiscal duties..



PLAINFIELD TODAY:
Home Sales: "Union County home sales drop 25% in real estate bust"
Buying: "Foreclosures can off deals, but 'buyer beware'"
Mortgages: "FHA has new rules for reverse mortgage counselors"

Plainfield observers (click on name to go to post): Bernice notes a weeklong celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe begins today. Olddoc riffs on Council's fiscal responsibilities. Maria has a hectic weekend, check in tomorrow. CBAC (budget advisory committee) looks for your questions and/or comments -- citizens are chiming in, check it out and add your voice. Everyone else is on break.

Also, three personal blogs by Plainfielders, each with a point of view: Rebecca Williams' Confessions of a Bathrobe Blogger, Renata Hernandez' PEPTalk: Revisited, and Jackie Schnoop's The (TV) Show Must Go On.

Solomon Dwek Case: "IRS looking at Dwek's donors"
Hannukah: "More than one kind of holiday tune"
Home Sales: "Cities take brunt of home sales slump" -- Ledger | Courier |
Incinerators: "Residents say incinerator poses health risks"
Newark: "Measures sought to close $2.2M gap as state withholds aid"
Scarlet Knights: "RU falls to West Virginia, awaits bowl fate" -- Courier | Ledger |
Teachers Union: "Once-powerful NJEA faces tough times with Christie"



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HOLIDAY OPPORTUNITIES: GIVING & GETTING

  • Food Donations Needed: Consider donating to your local religious organization's feeding program or food pantry, or give to the COMMUNITY FOOD BANK OF NJ: Accepts dry, refrigerated or frozen food. Distributes food to charities throughout the state. Location: 31 Evans Terminal Road, Hillside, N.J. Info: (908) 355-3663; or visit njfoodbank.org/.

  • Today. Noon - 5 PM. Estate Sale. Antiques, furnishings, chairs, tables, sofa. African artifacts, including masks, fabrics, statues. Priced to sell -- Cash only. at 315 Stelle Avenue, in the Van Wyck Brooks Historic District. Info/directions: (908) 755-3196.

  • Today through Friday - December 18. Holiday Toy Drive by Sleepy Hollow Realtors. Once again, Joe Burris, John Nash and the Sleepy Hollow Realtors team are collecting toys for area charities. Bring your donation of a new, unwrapped toy for a boy or girl BY FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18, to Sleepy Hollow Realtors, 1304 South Avenue. Info: (908) 822-0550.

  • Saturday - December 12. 2 - 7 PM. Christmas Gift Bazaar. Holiday gifts and craft items. Door prizes and light refreshments. Proceeds benefit PHS Class of 1970 Reunion. At Mohawk Lodge #307, 1337 West Third Street (corner of Rushmore Avenue). Some vendor slots still available ($55/table) -- contact Carolyn Jenkins (732) 829-9372 or Viola Eaddy (732) 208-7167. Event is FREE.

  • Tuesday - Dec 15 thru Sunday - Dec 20. All Day. BORDERS Gift Wrap Benefiting Plainfield Area Humane Society. Shop at Borders in Watchung Square Mall and have your book or other item gift-wrapped by volunteers from PAHS. Proceeds benefit the Rock Avenue facility.

  • Thursday - December 17. 7 PM - 2 AM (Showtime 11 PM). Plainfield Fire Division Annual Holiday Party and Toy Drive. A must-do annual event, gathering toys for distribution to social service agencies AND having fun enjoying one of the holiday's great parties. At Los Faraones club, 111 East Front Street. Admission FREE with an unwrapped toy of $10 minimum value.

  • Saturday - December 19. 7 PM. New Dems Holiday Potluck and Canned Food Drive. Mix and mingle with new friends and old and celebrate the winter holiday season! Bring a dish to share and one or two nonperishable food items for donation to Plainfield's local feeding programs. Food, fun, music -- maybe even carolling. At the home of Adrian and Amelia Mapp, 535 West 8th Street.

WHAT'S HAPPENING


  • Today - December 6. 1 - 6 PM. House Tour: An Old-Fashioned Christmas. Don't miss the V Wyck Brooks Historic District's 2009 holiday house tour, featuring seven historic homes decked out in Christmas finery. Stained glass, achitectural details and workmanship in styles from Queen Anne to Tudor to Arts & Crafts. Plus a Gingerbread Village and ornament collections. And a house-to-house Parker Game Treasure Hunt with prizes. Tickets: Advance: $20/person, available at Swain Galleries, East 7th Street and Watchung Avenue or The Pillars, 922 Central Avenue. Online sales at anoldfashionedchristmas/. Day of tour: $25/person, at 935 Central Avenue. More info at the Van Wyck Brooks Historic District website here.

  • (NOTE VENUE) Tomorrow - December 7. 7:30 PM. City Council Agenda Session. Cook School, Leland Avenue at Berkeley Avenue. Public may speak at end of meeting.

  • (NOTE VENUE) Wednesday - December 9. 7 - 10 PM. City Council: Budget Session. The Council will work on amendments to the proposed FY2010 budget, received from the Administration after the state's budget deadline. At the old Senior Center, 305 East Front Street.

  • Saturday - December 12. 1 - 3 PM. Plainfield Library: Publication Party & Book Signing. Got book lovers on your holiday gift list? This is the perfect place to check out more tha 20 local authors who will be offering their works for sale, and signing their latest books. Discover romance and murder in NJ. Or the history of NJ beers and minor league baseball. Explore NJ's history in photographs and writings. Info: Mary Ellen Rogan at (908) 757-1111 x132 or email me.rogan@plfdpl.info. In the Anne Louise Davis Meeting Room at the Plainfield Public Library, Park Avenue and 8th Street. FREE.

  • Saturday - December 12. 2 - 7 PM. Christmas Gift Bazaar. Holiday gifts and craft items. Door prizes and light refreshments. Proceeds benefit PHS Class of 1970 Reunion. At Mohawk Lodge #307, 1337 West Third Street (corner of Rushmore Avenue). Some vendor slots still available ($55/table) -- contact Carolyn Jenkins (732) 829-9372 or Viola Eaddy (732) 208-7167. Event is FREE.

  • Saturday - December 12. 7 PM. Plainfield Symphony Holiday Pops Concert. Music Director Charles Prince leads the PSO in a medley of holiday carols as well as Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker, Victor Herbert's March of the Toys, and Leroy Anderson's Sleigh Ride. Tickets: $25 at the door; $5 off with the presentation of two non-perishable food items (which will benefit Starfish, Plainfield's food pantry). Tickets may also be purchased online at www.plainfieldsymphony.org/. At Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church, East 7th Street and Watchung Avenue (parking in lot on First Place or at Swain Galleries).

  • Sunday - December 13. 5:30 PM. Concerts: Yuletide by Candlelight. Under the leadership of music director Ron Thayer, the Crescent Singers present their annual gift of holiday music of all ages to the community. At Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church, Watchung Avenue at East 7th Street. Tickets: $20, $15/senior, $5/student. Info: (908) 756-2468 or www.crescentconcerts.org/.
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