A Message from Bob

Bob is a Plainfielder, member of the Democratic City Committee and the Human Relations Commission. He sends this message:

Hi Folks,

I've been asked by my Pastor, Peg Kaleh, to broadcast that whoever would like to come by and pray for the victims in Dallas and elsewhere who suffered from gun violence, the church will be open from noon until 1:30.  Please let people know that they can come and pray if they are available to pray for peace. This invitation is open to anyone who wishes to come.

The church is at 150 Dunellen Avenue, that is the street that the Plainfield Health Center is on.  If you go down to the second stop sign, the Dunellen United Methodist Church is on the right.  Parking is on the street.  The sanctuary is on the second floor and the chapel is on the first floor.

Have a blessed day and let us pray for peace and for those killed or harmed in gun violence.

Thank you for your kind attention.

Bob Bolmer

Dunellen United Methodist Church, Lay Leader

Can We Choose Peace?

Day in and day out I see Plainfielders who get along and hold hope for the city's future. We all have different backgrounds, yet we are here now. We do not have to walk in lock-step but we can move forward together. Let us remember in this sad and trying time what we prize about our shared experience in the Queen City.

--Bernice

Public Safety Rally Friday Night

Public Safety Meeting at 7 p.m. Friday

Yesterday afternoon I received a recorded call about Mayor Adrian O. Mapp holding a meeting on public safety at 7 p.m. Friday in front of City Hall. I have very poor auditory recall and can't remember any more details, nor could I find anything more on the city website. Feel free to add details if you got the call.

I also got an email Tuesday from the mayor with the heading, "Gun Violence is the Scourge of the 21st Century - No City is Immune" which contained information on ways Plainfield police are mentoring young people and fostering community involvement. If you are not receiving these communications,  go to the city website at www.plainfieldnj.gov and click on the Stay Connected link at the right. You can get messages by phone, email, Twitter and more.

People are horrified at what happened at the hands of police in Baton Rouge. It is good to know that our police are community-minded and pro-active toward young people as indicated by events such as PBA cookouts in each ward and youth mentoring events.

--Bernice

Summer Images

The 2016 Praying Mantises are about an inch and a quarter long now. Click images to enlarge.

This one was prowling my topiary basket bush. An ant wandered near and was snapped up in his powerful forelegs and quickly devoured.

Purple Loosestrife backlit by the setting sun.

 Black-eyed Susan, always spectacular.

Spider Plant and Coleus, sharing a window box with Purple Oxalis and Purple Queen. Grown indoors from cuttings, the Coleus brightened up considerably once it was set outside.

My flower seeds had to be replanted after the April 20 decimation.

Things are on the verge of blooming, including Cosmos, Echinacea, Four O'Clocks, more Black-eyed Susans, Portulaca and Nasturtiums. Hoping the new owners will let them get through this summer.

The Pieris Japonica and Rhododendron got crushed by snowplows over past winters and then the landscaper removed all but a stump. The Hosta and Irises made it through, despite the largest Hosta having four bags of concrete dumped on it during the winter. Someone removed the bags in time for the Hosta to recover.

Crossing my fingers for luck with the little garden patches that are left. One was obliterated when an underground tank was removed, others got buried under spilled paint and concrete. The Sundrops almost got wiped out in one of the borders. A very  disconcerting year - still cleaning up.

--Bernice

Eid Mubarak

Eid Mubarak

to all

who are celebrating

Eid al-Fitr

Hotter Than The Hinges of Hell

Yes, we are in for a heatwave.

Three days with temperatures over 90 degrees is a regular heat wave, so I hope you have put some strategies in place. I don't have air conditioning, so I try to do things early, because by mid-afternoon, it feels like time for a siesta.

When I worked in a newsroom kept at 60 degrees, I used to go out and sit in my car to warm up. But I happened to have an old round wall thermometer in the car once, and it went up to 113 degrees inside the closed car. Don't leave children, pets or sensitive devices like cameras in a vehicle when it's over 90 degrees.

So far I have not heard or seen any advisories on cooling centers, but if you are on the Nixle network, you may get a phone call about where to go to stay cool for a while.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have suggestions on a "SciJinks" page for young people titled, "What is a Heat Wave?"

July in New Jersey gets that way, so look out for the very young, very old, and anyone with asthma. Click here for air quality alerts from the NJDEP.

--Bernice