Giving thanks

(Nov. 21, 2012) Tomorrow, Thursday, Nov. 22, is Thanksgiving Day, a national holiday for giving thanks. President Abraham Lincoln established the official observance in 1863. The annual event falls on the fourth Thursday of November.

Thanksgiving is traditionally a day for families and friends to get together for a special meal which often includes a turkey, stuffing, potatoes, cranberry sauce, gravy, pumpkin pie and vegetables. It is a time for people to give thanks for what they have. This year we in this part of New Jersey are especially thankful for a minimum loss of life due to last month's hurricane. We are grateful also for our homes, most of which escaped the fury of Superstorm Sandy despite widespread destruction of the landscape and resulting long power and telephone outages. Thanks too for the tree and electric company workers who came from all over this country to help restore our power.

Thanksgiving Day parades are held in some cities and towns on or around Thanksgiving Day. Some parades or festivities also mark the opening of the Christmas shopping season. Some people have a four-day weekend so it is a popular time for trips and to visit family and friends, making it one of the busiest travel periods in the United States.

Most government offices, businesses, schools and other organizations are closed on Thanksgiving Day. Many offices and businesses allow staff to have a four-day weekend so these offices and businesses are closed also on the Friday after Thanksgiving Day. Public transit systems do not usually operate on their regular timetables.

Check your Recorder Community Newspaper for details on holiday observances and festivities. Fifteen newspapers can be found right here online at newjerseyhills.com along with their 60+ blogs with personal and community organization messages. Anyone interested in joining this group may call me at (908) 832-7420 or e-mail panderson@recordernewspapers.com for information on this free communication tool.

Back in business

(Nov. 12, 2012) More than two weeks ago, at the start of Superstorm Sandy, Jack and I moved to son John's house in Chester. Our area had lots of high winds, but thankfully not much rain, so no flooding. Then before the nor'easter snowstorm, we came back home to no electricity, no phones, no Internet. We're in a dead zone for cell service too. Dozens of trees are down and tangled in power lines so we didn't expect power to be restored until this weekend. And last night, wow, everything was restored. So we're back in business.

By the way, in our neighborhood the tree workers from Ohio and the power company personnel from North Carolina, Virginia and Georgia were top-notch. A big thank you to them for coming here to help.

Our generator, which which we used conservatively because of the gas shortage, is stored back in the garage, hopefully not to come out for a long while. We still have lots of cleanup, but first two weeks' of laundry, insurance notifications, telephone messages, e-mails, etc. The weather has calmed down, actually rather pleasant and unseasonably warm.

Our prayers go out to the shore communities who faced much greater challenges and water destruction, in fact still have a long recovery ahead.

Through it all, Recorder Community Newspapers has been keeping readers abreast of what's happening in their local areas, despite power outages. In addition to Sandy's hit, Halloween was canceled, standard time resumed, Veterans Day was observed. Check out your newspaper online, including the 60-plus bloggers who share their personal stories and community bloggers who write about their organizations. Anyone interested in joining the group is invited to contact me at panderson@recordernewspapers.com or (908) 832-7420.

Full moon, Sandy and Halloween

(Oct. 28, 2012) Hurricane Sandy reportedly is headed straight for New Jersey and the current full moon is making its impending impact worse. What's with Halloween? Wasn't it just this time last year when we were pummeled with an unseasonable snowstorm resulting in downed trees and extra long power outages? So this weekend, instead of children celebrating one of their favorite holidays featuring fun costumes and candy, families are bracing for another catastrophe -- many fleeing to safer ground which is what we are doing.

Check out Recorder Community Newspapers for updates on the storm, related closures and services, Halloween postponements and more.

10-11-12

(Oct. 11, 2012) Today is 10-11-12, one of those fun number days that folks who enjoy numbers like to notice. Have a happy day! The next one is 12-12-12.

Columbus Day

Columbus Day, which is annually on the second Monday of October, remembers Christopher Columbus' arrival to the Americas on Oct. 12, 1492. This holiday is controversial because the European settlement in the Americas led to the demise of the history and culture of the indigenous peoples.

In some towns and cities, special church services, parades and large events are held. Most celebrations are concentrated around the Italian-American community. The celebrations in New York City and San Francisco are particularly noteworthy. In Hawaii Columbus Day is also known as Landing Day or Discoverer's Day.

Not all parts of the United States celebrate Columbus Day. It is not a public holiday in California, Nevada and Hawaii. Moreover, Native Americans’ Day is celebrated in South Dakota, while Indigenous People’s Day is celebrated in Berkeley, Calif.

Some schools and governmental agencies are closed. Check out your Recorder Community Newspaper for information on the holiday in your town.

Day of Atonement

(Sept. 24, 2012) Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, will begin at sundown tomorrow, Tuesday, Sept. 25, and continue until sundown the next day. The second of two Jewish high holy days, it falls 10 days after the first, Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. The purpose of Yom Kippur is to bring about reconciliation between people and between individuals and God. According to Jewish tradition, it is also the day when God decides the fate of each human being.


Although Yom Kippur is an intense holiday it is nevertheless viewed as a happy day. Those who observe the holiday properly will have made peace with others and with God.

Yom Kippur commemorates the day when God forgave the Jewish people for the sin of the Golden Calf. Forty days after hearing God say at Mount Sinai, “You shall not have the gods of others in My presence; you shall not make for yourself a graven image,” the Jews committed the cardinal sin of idolatry. Moses spent nearly three months on top of the mountain pleading with God for forgiveness, and on the 10th of Tishrei it was finally granted: “I have pardoned, as you have requested.”

From that moment on, this date, henceforth known as the Day of Atonement, is annually observed as a commemoration of this special relationship with God, strong enough to survive any rocky bumps it might encounter. And while it is the most solemn day of the year, Jews are also joyful, confident that God will forgive their sins and seal their verdict for a year of life, health and happiness. The day is marked by prayer, works of charity, temple services and a ceremonial meal.

For more information on the holidays of fall, check out Recorder Community Newspapers and their blogs right here online. Any individual or group representative interested in joining the growing group of Recorder bloggers is invited contact me at (908) 832-7420 or panderson@recordernewspapers.com.

First day of fall

(Sept. 22, 2012) Fall for 2012 begins in the Northern Hemisphere today at 10:49 a.m. with the autumnal equinox. The word equinox comes from the Latin words for "equal night." The fall and spring equinoxes are the only days of the year in which the sun crosses the celestial equator and day and night are equal. From here on out, weather temperatures begin to drop and the days start to get shorter than the nights.

Fall brings a myriad of activities from school events to Oktoberfests and more. Check out Recorder Community Newspapers and their blogs right here online for details.

Any individual interested in becoming a Recorder blogger is invited to contact me at (908) 832-7420 or panderson@recordernewspapers.com. Representatives of community organizations are invited as well. I will be happy to explain the simple process of blogging which is a free 21st century communication tool. All you need is Internet access and an e-mail address.