Whole Foods, Wegman's, Fairway, even Trader Joes, I'll take any one of them.

And, btw, regarding whole paycheck, the Shop Rite is not particularly cheap. Even the Pathmark is more expensive than the fancy versions of the same chain stores in the suburbs . . .

I think the municipal consolidations idea is FANTASTIC. And, the Newark history is right on (so I understand). In fact, I think those of us in Hudson don't even understand the true value of such consolidations because we live in cities that are, arguably, big enough to have their own systems. NJ's real problem is the HUGE number of little towns all over the state that EACH have their own schools, town government, police department, fire department, etc. I mean this is not Montana, these towns are smushed up right next to eachother. Consolidation would be SO much more efficient and we could even leave Hoboken alone so we wouldn;t have to win them over and they are far from the "worst" example.

Ever since the state supreme court decision that said the at least some NJ property taxes had to be spread around for schools in poorer areas statewide (read, JC) we are all in this together, at least to a certain extent. If the smaller towns costs were lower, they could both cut their property taxes by part of the reduction and the rest could be spread around more effectively. You, know, to us

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) took over both what the INS (Immigration Naturalization Service) and the Customs folks used to do. Also, ICE was moved from the Department of Justice (DOJ), which used to supervise the INSA, to the Dept. of Homeland Security. So any immigration or customs bust likely would have a vehicle that mentions both ICE and it's boss, Homeland Security.

Now that is clarified, and making NO ACCUSATIONS WHATSOEVER, I really hope that the ICE agents were there for CDs/DVDs and not this . . .

http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/10/18/child.porn/index.html

which was run, in part, by ICE and which went down today . . . yuck.

Morris Blvd does not yet exist . . . part of the new complex.

As for Whole Foods. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE come here!! Fairway would be fine too. Or I would settle for a good butcher on Grove Street.

I know WF is way overpriced but there is nowhere to get good meat or seafood in town. And the selection of produce at WF is unmatched. As much as I love getting my groceries delivered, a woman cannot survive on FreshDirect alone, and the big markets around here are really only good for packaged foods.

First of all, this is not an actual ode. I can't write poetry.

I don't come around often enough to follow and post everywhere that Parkman gets maligned, so I thought I would just do a one-for-all kind of thing here.

I appreciate you Parkman! And every time I walk through Van Vorst Park (multiple times a day) I make mental thanks to you and all of the others who volunteer their time, energy, manicures, and sanity for the beautification and upkeep of Van Vorst Park. I know, you would prefer my money and my time, but mental thanks is what I have to give right now.

As to specific complaints I have seen on this site:

1) Asking for money to help build the dog run is absolutely acceptable. The goverment pays some, we pay some, makes sense to me. Why do people get so bent out of shape when they are asked for money for public projects? I am super excited about the new dog run, but frankly I'd rather the city spend more money on schools and crime enforcement than mounds for my dog to play on!

2) I love the dog-free areas in VVP. I can take my blanket out there and read a book, eat a picnic, etc. And listening to the complaints of the folks at Hamilton Park just emphasize how great it is that the VVP people got together to make our park friendly to all. (I've only been here a year . . . missed the big hulabaloo).

Overall, I love the park -- the variety of flowers ans shrubs, the adorable drippy fountain, the fenced kids area, etc. Great job.

Now, if we could just get everyone to throw away their cigarrette butts and pick up their dog poop, it would be perfect . . .

I voted a few minutes ago. Can we discuss how biased the ballot is? I am a highly educated and fairly smart person and it took me a bit to figure out how to vote for Vas.

I realize that this is a primary and is therefore run by the party, not the government, per se, but the HCDO candidates are given an unfair advantage. Especially since, to answer a previous question, the party and the HCDO are technically NOT the same thing. Although in reality . . .

I saw him a few weeks ago on Varick between York and Bright. Maybe on his way to the pathmark. That time he was in the yellow outfit. Best thing about the yellow was the calf-length yellow fur coat and the matching yellow fur fedora. Who has ever seen a fur fedora?!

Re: Sherbet vs. "Sherbert"

Sherbet is the proper term. "Sherbert" is a regional pronunciation that occasionally gets transcribed phonetically by those who don't know the proper spelling. It's kind of like writing "pahk" instead of park when you're from Boston.

Boy, I sound like a nerd, don't I?