Memorial Day weekend is here….the unofficial start of the summer season, a 15-week stretch that is vital to many here in Ocean County. Traffic has picked up noticeably over the last couple of days, especially in beach areas which all of a sudden have come to life. Lifeguards will be out this weekend and if the sun shines visitors and locals alike will step onto the beaches from Point Pleasant to Long Beach Island…most for the first time this year. Many will choose to stay closer to home as this is a popular weekend for barbeques and family outings.
Of course for many the downside to this weekend is that it brings visitors to the shore area and they are not always a welcome sight. Yes they bring money and that’s good for our economy but they’re not always the best guests. They jam our roads, pack our beaches and can be a nuisance. But as I’ve said before…how many of you were at one time visitors who later became residents? There’s a good chance you were pretty similar to those who now come here for the day, weekend, week or even summer. At some point you decided this would be a nice place to live so you moved from North Jersey or New York and now Ocean County is your home. Bottom line is most of you hearing me now are not natives and yes at one time somebody called you a “benny.” You might still even be one because there has to be some period of time before you can be considered a local. I’ve lived here for 42 years so I qualify but if you’ve only been a resident for say ten years….you’re not yet a local but you are getting close. All kidding aside we should treat our visitors like we like to be treated when we go on vacation.
I know that for many this weekend means beaches, barbeques and relaxation but we should also pause to remember why we have a holiday weekend. It’s to remember those that have made the ultimate sacrifice in the service of their country. From the Revolutionary War to the current War on Terrorism we honor those fathers and sons, brothers and uncles and even mothers and daughters who did not come home safely. They might be gone but as a nation we should not forget them.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Honoring The Best
Most people know the story of Brian Piccolo from the 1971 ABC TV movie “Brian’s Song”, one of the great tear-jerkers of all time. Piccolo was a pro football player for the Chicago Bears, who died of cancer at the age of 26.
He is best known for his friendship with teammate and Hall of Famer Gale Sayers and the courage he displayed through his illness which was portrayed in the movie. Piccolo’s memory is honored each year by UNICO, which gives out awards to courageous and outstanding athletes of Italian-American heritage. I mention all of this because last night I was the guest speaker at the Brick chapter of UNICO’S Scholarship Dinner at Woodlake Country Club. The organization honored five high schools seniors with the Brian Piccolo Memorial Scholarship Award which came with a $1000 towards their college expenses.
Those saluted for best-displaying the attributes of Piccolo were Nicole Binetti and Lexus Guarino of Brick Township High School…Phil Segonia and Jake Vescovi of Brick Memorial and Monsignor Donovan’s Alex Pangaro, a Brick resident. All five of them had to overcome obstacles during their high school careers from injuries to academic challenges. In addition to those awards the club honored Brick High School’s Gianna Pizzella with their second annual Vincent DiLeo Scholarship. Congratulations to all of them and to Anthony Argondizza, who headed up the scholarship committee for UNICO and is a longtime assistant football coach at Brick Memorial. I also want to thank them for accepting me…only after I disclosed I was married to an Italian.
So Toms River South and Jackson Memorial will play for a fourth time this baseball season when they meet in the finals of the Shore Conference Tournament next Wednesday at FirstEnergy Park. Both won their semifinal games Wednesday….the Indians beating Manalapan as pitcher Andrew McGee improved to 11-0 and the Jaguars topping Jackson Liberty on Matt Meleo’s game-winning, three-run homer in the bottom of the 7th. South has won two of the first three meetings, including the Ocean County Tournament Championship game. Jackson will first host Manalapan tomorrow afternoon for the Central Jersey Group 4 title.
He is best known for his friendship with teammate and Hall of Famer Gale Sayers and the courage he displayed through his illness which was portrayed in the movie. Piccolo’s memory is honored each year by UNICO, which gives out awards to courageous and outstanding athletes of Italian-American heritage. I mention all of this because last night I was the guest speaker at the Brick chapter of UNICO’S Scholarship Dinner at Woodlake Country Club. The organization honored five high schools seniors with the Brian Piccolo Memorial Scholarship Award which came with a $1000 towards their college expenses.
Those saluted for best-displaying the attributes of Piccolo were Nicole Binetti and Lexus Guarino of Brick Township High School…Phil Segonia and Jake Vescovi of Brick Memorial and Monsignor Donovan’s Alex Pangaro, a Brick resident. All five of them had to overcome obstacles during their high school careers from injuries to academic challenges. In addition to those awards the club honored Brick High School’s Gianna Pizzella with their second annual Vincent DiLeo Scholarship. Congratulations to all of them and to Anthony Argondizza, who headed up the scholarship committee for UNICO and is a longtime assistant football coach at Brick Memorial. I also want to thank them for accepting me…only after I disclosed I was married to an Italian.
So Toms River South and Jackson Memorial will play for a fourth time this baseball season when they meet in the finals of the Shore Conference Tournament next Wednesday at FirstEnergy Park. Both won their semifinal games Wednesday….the Indians beating Manalapan as pitcher Andrew McGee improved to 11-0 and the Jaguars topping Jackson Liberty on Matt Meleo’s game-winning, three-run homer in the bottom of the 7th. South has won two of the first three meetings, including the Ocean County Tournament Championship game. Jackson will first host Manalapan tomorrow afternoon for the Central Jersey Group 4 title.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Super Bowl Comes To New Jersey
I’m happy the Super Bowl is coming to New Jersey (and New York) because it has to be viewed as a badly-needed positive for our state. On the other hand what does it really mean to most of us? The answer is nothing.
Honestly the fact that the “big game” will be played in the still unnamed new Meadowlands Stadium in four years doesn’t mean that much for those of us who live in the shore area. For some there might be a better chance of getting tickets as the Giants & Jets will get about 5,000 or so as the host venue. However unless one of those two teams play in the game we’re going to watch on TV and not think any differently than other Super Bowls….unless Mother Nature makes things very interesting. As a side note, I would like to have a dollar for every time somebody says or writes that the game is being played in New York because the last time I looked East Rutherford was in New Jersey.
The High School Baseball and Softball Seasons are coming to a close and there are a couple of Ocean County schools who will play for state sectional titles. Jackson Memorial crushed top-seeded Monroe 17-6 Tuesday to advance to the Central Jersey Group 4 Baseball Finals. Joe Ogren & Alex Herceg each homered and drove in five runs for the Jaguars, who will host Manalapan on Friday. Ironically both those teams play semifinal games in the Shore Conference Tournament today with Jackson hosting rival Jackson Liberty and Manalapan visiting top-seed Toms River South. The Jaguars are the defending champions.
The lone county team left in the state softball tournament is surprising Central Regional. The Golden Eagles scored runs in the 6th and 7th innings to edge top-seeded Hammonton 2-1 yesterday and Central will visit Delsea Friday in the South Jersey Group 3 Championship game. In the semifinals of the Shore Conference Softball Tournament today, Toms River East will host Manasquan and Jackson Liberty will visit defending champion Red Bank Catholic.
Honestly the fact that the “big game” will be played in the still unnamed new Meadowlands Stadium in four years doesn’t mean that much for those of us who live in the shore area. For some there might be a better chance of getting tickets as the Giants & Jets will get about 5,000 or so as the host venue. However unless one of those two teams play in the game we’re going to watch on TV and not think any differently than other Super Bowls….unless Mother Nature makes things very interesting. As a side note, I would like to have a dollar for every time somebody says or writes that the game is being played in New York because the last time I looked East Rutherford was in New Jersey.
The High School Baseball and Softball Seasons are coming to a close and there are a couple of Ocean County schools who will play for state sectional titles. Jackson Memorial crushed top-seeded Monroe 17-6 Tuesday to advance to the Central Jersey Group 4 Baseball Finals. Joe Ogren & Alex Herceg each homered and drove in five runs for the Jaguars, who will host Manalapan on Friday. Ironically both those teams play semifinal games in the Shore Conference Tournament today with Jackson hosting rival Jackson Liberty and Manalapan visiting top-seed Toms River South. The Jaguars are the defending champions.
The lone county team left in the state softball tournament is surprising Central Regional. The Golden Eagles scored runs in the 6th and 7th innings to edge top-seeded Hammonton 2-1 yesterday and Central will visit Delsea Friday in the South Jersey Group 3 Championship game. In the semifinals of the Shore Conference Softball Tournament today, Toms River East will host Manasquan and Jackson Liberty will visit defending champion Red Bank Catholic.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Goodbye Jack Bauer...For Now
(Note: There was no Hometown View on Monday, 5/24)
After eight seasons the TV drama “24” aired its last episode Monday night and count me among those who were slightly disappointed with the two-hour Fox finale which was more fitting for the end of a season rather than a series. The show starred Kiefer Sutherland as special agent Jack Bauer and it’s been among my favorites during its eight year run which saw many cast changes as Jack was the only character to last all eight seasons. I guess what I wanted last night was for Bauer to get on a plane at the end and live happily ever-after instead of being a fugitive on the run again plus there are other questions. However maybe they’ll be answered in the major motion picture which is expected to begin filming in the very near future.
I want to mention the Toms River Regional Schools Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony which was held Friday in the Poland Spring Arena. I was the Master of Ceremonies for the district’s fourth class of inductees which spanned generations from 1926 graduate Cleveland Gaiter, the first African-American to play sports at Toms River High School to 1999 Toms River North graduate Lauren Anderson. Many of the inductees had not been back to the area for years and enjoyed reminiscing about their school days during a dinner afterwards at the Holiday Inn of Toms River. A special thank you to Superintendent Michael J. Ritacco who surprised me with the presentation of the Hall of Fame’s Service Award. Ritacco, knowing that the Dallas Cowboys are my least-favorite football team, presented me with shirt autographed by the coaching staff and a personalized picture from quarterback Tony Romo. I’m still considering selling them on eBay.
The Hall of Fame Committee and Athletic Secretary Joyce Willie did an outstanding job with the event.
Toms River’s Jeff Frazier singled and doubled in two at-bats against Washington Nationals top draft pick Stephen Strasburg in a Triple-A game last night. Strasburg allowed his first two runs in nearly 21 innings as he gets ready to come up to the majors. Frazier finished the night 3-4 and is now hitting .282 with Toledo, the Tigers Triple-A team.
The Beachwood Soccer Club holds registration for the Fall Season this week at the Soccer Complex on Berkeley Avenue. Registration will be held tonight, Wednesday and Thursday from 6-7:30…there will also be a final registration on June 14th. For more information you can also visit www.beachwoodsoccer.com
After eight seasons the TV drama “24” aired its last episode Monday night and count me among those who were slightly disappointed with the two-hour Fox finale which was more fitting for the end of a season rather than a series. The show starred Kiefer Sutherland as special agent Jack Bauer and it’s been among my favorites during its eight year run which saw many cast changes as Jack was the only character to last all eight seasons. I guess what I wanted last night was for Bauer to get on a plane at the end and live happily ever-after instead of being a fugitive on the run again plus there are other questions. However maybe they’ll be answered in the major motion picture which is expected to begin filming in the very near future.
I want to mention the Toms River Regional Schools Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony which was held Friday in the Poland Spring Arena. I was the Master of Ceremonies for the district’s fourth class of inductees which spanned generations from 1926 graduate Cleveland Gaiter, the first African-American to play sports at Toms River High School to 1999 Toms River North graduate Lauren Anderson. Many of the inductees had not been back to the area for years and enjoyed reminiscing about their school days during a dinner afterwards at the Holiday Inn of Toms River. A special thank you to Superintendent Michael J. Ritacco who surprised me with the presentation of the Hall of Fame’s Service Award. Ritacco, knowing that the Dallas Cowboys are my least-favorite football team, presented me with shirt autographed by the coaching staff and a personalized picture from quarterback Tony Romo. I’m still considering selling them on eBay.
The Hall of Fame Committee and Athletic Secretary Joyce Willie did an outstanding job with the event.
Toms River’s Jeff Frazier singled and doubled in two at-bats against Washington Nationals top draft pick Stephen Strasburg in a Triple-A game last night. Strasburg allowed his first two runs in nearly 21 innings as he gets ready to come up to the majors. Frazier finished the night 3-4 and is now hitting .282 with Toledo, the Tigers Triple-A team.
The Beachwood Soccer Club holds registration for the Fall Season this week at the Soccer Complex on Berkeley Avenue. Registration will be held tonight, Wednesday and Thursday from 6-7:30…there will also be a final registration on June 14th. For more information you can also visit www.beachwoodsoccer.com
Monday, May 24, 2010
Her Deadly Phrases
(From I-Am-Bored.com)
I’m guessing this was written by a man, but I think the translations are actually pretty funny if you let them be! Ha!
1.“Fine.” She uses this in an argument to tell you it’s time to shut up.
2.“Five minutes.” If she’s getting dressed, this can mean 30-minutes or even more. But if you’re watching a game and she gives you ‘five minutes’, then five minutes means five minutes.
3.“Nothing.” ‘Nothing’ means something, and you’re going to find that out sooner or later.
4.“Go ahead.” This is a dare. Be careful, because if you “go ahead” and do whatever it is you want to do, things could get ugly.
5.“That’s ok.” This is a delay tactic. She just needs some more time to figure out how to make you pay.
6.“Thanks.” She’s genuinely thankful, so you need to just say ‘you’re welcome’ and then back away. If she says “Thanks a lot,” she’s being sarcastic and you’re in big trouble if you say “You’re welcome.”
7.“Whatever.” This is bad. This is really bad. This is like the middle finger.
8.“Don’t worry about it. I got it.” You haven’t done something she’s asked you to do so many times now that she’s really mad.
I’m guessing this was written by a man, but I think the translations are actually pretty funny if you let them be! Ha!
1.“Fine.” She uses this in an argument to tell you it’s time to shut up.
2.“Five minutes.” If she’s getting dressed, this can mean 30-minutes or even more. But if you’re watching a game and she gives you ‘five minutes’, then five minutes means five minutes.
3.“Nothing.” ‘Nothing’ means something, and you’re going to find that out sooner or later.
4.“Go ahead.” This is a dare. Be careful, because if you “go ahead” and do whatever it is you want to do, things could get ugly.
5.“That’s ok.” This is a delay tactic. She just needs some more time to figure out how to make you pay.
6.“Thanks.” She’s genuinely thankful, so you need to just say ‘you’re welcome’ and then back away. If she says “Thanks a lot,” she’s being sarcastic and you’re in big trouble if you say “You’re welcome.”
7.“Whatever.” This is bad. This is really bad. This is like the middle finger.
8.“Don’t worry about it. I got it.” You haven’t done something she’s asked you to do so many times now that she’s really mad.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Sports Friday
Albert Einstein once said “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” For that reason alone you have to give credit to the horse racing officials behind the major schedule change at Monmouth Park this summer.
Attendance at Monmouth and most other tracks around the country has been declining so rather then just try different promotions the Oceanport facility will change the way they do business. Monmouth Park opens tomorrow and the 50-day summer meet will be conducted on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays only through Labor Day.
Top-seeded Toms River South has advanced to the semifinals of the Shore Conference Baseball Tournament after shutting out Howell 5-0 Thursday.
Monmouth University-bound lefty Andrew McGee threw a 3-hitter and struck out 9 while also doubling in a pair of runs. An interested spectator at the game was former Indian star Todd Frazier, now playing for the Cincinnati Reds Triple A team in Louisville. The Bats had a morning game at nearby Lehigh Valley so after going 1-2 Frazier came home with his parents and will head back for tonight’s game. While Todd has been struggling and is batting only .192 he told me he feels very comfortable at the plate and is confident things will turn around.
Also in the Shore Conference Tournament, 11th seeded Jackson Liberty scored two runs in the top of the 7th to tie the game and an inning later stunned Wall 5-4. The Lions now play town rival and defending champion Jackson Memorial in the semifinals.
8 weeks from tonight the US Army All-Shore Gridiron Classic will be played at Matawan High School, matching the best recently-graduated seniors from Monmouth and Ocean County against one another. Last night players, coaches, game officials and others gathered at Wall High School for media night, sponsored by Jersey Mike’s Subs. The head coaches for the July 16th football game are Joe Martucci of Matawan and Toms River East’s Charlie Diskin. Lacey coach Lou Vircillo has done a tremendous job in running the game along with the Shore Football Coaches Foundation and we will broadcast it live on the Shore Sports Network.
Matt Harmon and I will broadcast tomorrow’s BlueClaws-West Virginia game on 1160 and 1310AM. First pitch at FirstEnergy Park is 4:05.
Attendance at Monmouth and most other tracks around the country has been declining so rather then just try different promotions the Oceanport facility will change the way they do business. Monmouth Park opens tomorrow and the 50-day summer meet will be conducted on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays only through Labor Day.
Top-seeded Toms River South has advanced to the semifinals of the Shore Conference Baseball Tournament after shutting out Howell 5-0 Thursday.
Monmouth University-bound lefty Andrew McGee threw a 3-hitter and struck out 9 while also doubling in a pair of runs. An interested spectator at the game was former Indian star Todd Frazier, now playing for the Cincinnati Reds Triple A team in Louisville. The Bats had a morning game at nearby Lehigh Valley so after going 1-2 Frazier came home with his parents and will head back for tonight’s game. While Todd has been struggling and is batting only .192 he told me he feels very comfortable at the plate and is confident things will turn around.
Also in the Shore Conference Tournament, 11th seeded Jackson Liberty scored two runs in the top of the 7th to tie the game and an inning later stunned Wall 5-4. The Lions now play town rival and defending champion Jackson Memorial in the semifinals.
8 weeks from tonight the US Army All-Shore Gridiron Classic will be played at Matawan High School, matching the best recently-graduated seniors from Monmouth and Ocean County against one another. Last night players, coaches, game officials and others gathered at Wall High School for media night, sponsored by Jersey Mike’s Subs. The head coaches for the July 16th football game are Joe Martucci of Matawan and Toms River East’s Charlie Diskin. Lacey coach Lou Vircillo has done a tremendous job in running the game along with the Shore Football Coaches Foundation and we will broadcast it live on the Shore Sports Network.
Matt Harmon and I will broadcast tomorrow’s BlueClaws-West Virginia game on 1160 and 1310AM. First pitch at FirstEnergy Park is 4:05.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Parking In $easide Park
I have said a lot of positive things over the years about Seaside Park so I feel its okay to express some negative thoughts about an issue that irks me a bit.
For more than 30 years I have spent a good portion of my down time on the 2nd Avenue beach in the borough and I will be back again this summer but I and many others will not be as happy. In order to bring in additional revenue without hurting the taxpayer Seaside Park has taken away a couple of hundred free parking spaces near the beach and boardwalk in the southern part of the borough. Centralized pay stations have been installed near beach entrances and if you want to park in the spots closest to the beach and boardwalk you will have to pay for them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
My goal has always been to get to the beach early so I could get one of these prime spots as they are obviously the first to fill-up on nice beach days.
However it will now cost me and everyone else $1.50 per hour to park in these spots which previously were free. I fully understand the town council seeking ways to bring in revenue and if I was a taxpayer I might be in favor of the new parking plan. However I think $1.50 per hour is excessive when you consider many of these parking spots are used by local people who are spending a day on the beach. For someone like me it would cost about $10 per day to park and over the course of the summer that will add up. Of course you might say then I should park on the street as those spots are free.
The problem there is that residents occupy many of those spaces and it can be very tight….it’s easy to get boxed in by other cars.
Another way this new parking system is detrimental is that it will be enforced 24 hours a day. So if you want to come over early in the morning to fish, walk or ride your bike you’ll still have to pony up $1.50 per hour for the pleasure. Not that my opinion counts for anything but many of the spaces I am talking about are used by people from the Toms River area and even borough residents themselves who don’t live close to the beach and boardwalk. At the very least they could have made it easier by maybe charging $1.00 an hour beginning at 9am or something like that. However stealing a line from Gordon Gekko in the movie WALL STREET….”greed is good” and Seaside Park’s Parking pay stations are just another example.
For more than 30 years I have spent a good portion of my down time on the 2nd Avenue beach in the borough and I will be back again this summer but I and many others will not be as happy. In order to bring in additional revenue without hurting the taxpayer Seaside Park has taken away a couple of hundred free parking spaces near the beach and boardwalk in the southern part of the borough. Centralized pay stations have been installed near beach entrances and if you want to park in the spots closest to the beach and boardwalk you will have to pay for them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
My goal has always been to get to the beach early so I could get one of these prime spots as they are obviously the first to fill-up on nice beach days.
However it will now cost me and everyone else $1.50 per hour to park in these spots which previously were free. I fully understand the town council seeking ways to bring in revenue and if I was a taxpayer I might be in favor of the new parking plan. However I think $1.50 per hour is excessive when you consider many of these parking spots are used by local people who are spending a day on the beach. For someone like me it would cost about $10 per day to park and over the course of the summer that will add up. Of course you might say then I should park on the street as those spots are free.
The problem there is that residents occupy many of those spaces and it can be very tight….it’s easy to get boxed in by other cars.
Another way this new parking system is detrimental is that it will be enforced 24 hours a day. So if you want to come over early in the morning to fish, walk or ride your bike you’ll still have to pony up $1.50 per hour for the pleasure. Not that my opinion counts for anything but many of the spaces I am talking about are used by people from the Toms River area and even borough residents themselves who don’t live close to the beach and boardwalk. At the very least they could have made it easier by maybe charging $1.00 an hour beginning at 9am or something like that. However stealing a line from Gordon Gekko in the movie WALL STREET….”greed is good” and Seaside Park’s Parking pay stations are just another example.
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