Author: James

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This Valentine’s Day Make Sure You Have The Right Soundtrack For Making Love

YogiTunes

February 1,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Better sex through music? Absolutely.  The right soundtrack can make or break the mood, enhance a sense of intimacy, and fine tune you to the rhythms of your lover.  Or if you’re currently solo, either by choice or by circumstance, sensual music can help draw you inward where you can experience ecstasy simply by swaying your hips to the beat.

The art of crafting a sexy playlist is as much about the order of songs as it is what songs to play.  Consider the arc of love making: a slow opening, an intensely erotic build up, multiple peaks, a deeply fulfilling orgasm followed by cuddling and ultimately rest.

The playlist created by one of the music experts at YogiTunes.com is a subtle, deeply sensual mix that moves through tenderness, sparse but swelling vocals, and multiple slow peaks of luscious, hypnotic rhythms. Created to cultivate presence in the body, it is intended to bring forward the pleasure that arises from waves of sonic body love. Perfect for when you want to surrender to your practice of literally making love blossom in your body……….or when it’s time to have making love BE your yoga practice 🙂

Why Does Music Help Create Connection?

Music is sometimes referred to as the Universal Language.  Often times in relationships people are trying to find ways to communicate deeper parts of themselves, be vulnerable and demonstrate authentic affection.  Music remind us that we are all connected because the very mechanics of sound work on the principle of sympathetic resonance, a principle that causes similar and connected objects to vibrate at the same frequency which translates to “I feel what you feel” in human terms.

To hear the playlist:

https://music.yogi-tunes.com/dj_playlists/6787

About YogiTunes

“Where the sonic mastery of DJ culture meets the illuminated sensibilities of the yoga lifestyle.”

YogiTunes was created to be THE destination for yoga music.  From teachers to students, classes to festivals – yoga has become a mainstream lifestyle component and music is an essential part of the experience. If you want to find out who the latest kirtan artists are, where they’re playing, or what that funky beat you heard in class was, YogiTunes is your destination.   Enjoy our streaming app where music discovery is so fun you just want to keep coming back for more.  Why?  Because we have really passionate people who love music and yoga, poring over content, picking only the best, so that you can enjoy the sonic fruits!

You can also be your own DJ, make playlists from thousands of hand-picked albums, stream unlimited songs from any device, any time (no internet connection required), and hopefully be the funkiest yogi on the block!

Sign up for a 30 day FREE TRIAL of unlimited streaming, no commitments and you can cancel anytime.  Individual unlimited streaming starts at just $9 per month.  If you’re a professional or a yoga studio we’ve got our new performance rights plans starting at just $15 per month.

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Tickets to the JAMBOREE “WORLD TOUR” show FEBRUARY 8, 9, 10 and 11th are now on sale !!!

Tickets to the JAMBOREE "WORLD TOUR" show

February 1,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Tickets to the JAMBOREE “WORLD TOUR” show FEBRUARY 8, 9, 10 and 11th are now on sale !!! Come join in the fun as we transport you from the comfort of your seats here in town to far of places such as France, India, Argentina and Japan before bring you back home for a road trip across America. CA, Vagas, New Orleans and Chicargo to name a few. Enjoy the splender, the sights and the sounds knowing that the money raised will go towards need-based scholarship funds for college bound Ridgewood High School seniors.
Be part of this 71 year old Ridgewood tradition.

https://jamboree2017.brownpapertickets.com/

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Jersey Mike’s, is coming to Ridgewood

Jersey Mike’s, is coming to Ridgewood

February 1,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Jersey Mike’s, is coming to Ridgewood with a scheduled opening for February 8,2017
at 305 E Ridgewood Ave, Ridgewood, NJ 07450

Jersey Mike’s is a fast-casual sub sandwich franchise with more than 1,000 locations open and under development nationwide, has a long history of community involvement and support.

Started at the Jersey Shore in 1956, Jersey Mike’s serves authentic East Coast-style subs on fresh baked bread – the same recipe it started with over 60 years ago. The company’s mission is to bring its customers the highest quality, freshest made sub in the industry and give back to the communities in which it operates. A store locator and franchise information for Jersey Mike’s can be found at www.jerseymikes.com.
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Ridgewood Kindergarten Registration Takes Place this Month

Kindergarten
Kindergarten Registration Dates are February 7, 9
February 1,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Registration for incoming Kindergarten and First Grade students will be held in individual Ridgewood elementary schools on Tuesday, February 7 and Thursday, February 9 from 3:30-4:30 p.m. All information and printable forms may be found on the website under Registration. Click here to go directly to that page.

Click here for a letter from Superintendent of Schools Dr. Daniel Fishbein regarding Kindergarten registration for the 2017-2018 school year.

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New Jersey college loan Program will no longer Require Repayment of Student loans in the event of a student’s death

RHS Grad

HESAA Loan Program revises its rules to benefit grieving families.

February 1,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

UPPER MONTCLAIR NJ , A student loan program that had placed parents of deceased students in an unthinkable situation has now been changed. The Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA) program previously required parents of a deceased child to continue to pay their NJ CLASS / HESAA loans as a co-signer. However, New Jersey legislators have recently amended the program’s terms and conditions.
John Crosby, CFP®, ChFC, CAS, CLTC, CRPC®, and Advocacy Chairperson for FPANJ, was thrilled at the change in the loan program.
“This change came a result of all the advocates fighting for the same Terms and Conditions available for Federal Student loans in the event of death or disability of the borrower or co-borrower. We are grateful for everyone who testified on behalf of families who were devastated by the impacts of the HESAA rules.”
 An article in the New York Times that detailed one family’s nightmare in dealing with their son’s death and his student loans through HESAA finally spurred discussion among New Jersey State Senators. In August 2016, Crosby had spoken to several of the legislators and those that officially testified to explain the process of borrowing, the liabilities of the co-signer vs. co-borrower and their un-forgivable legal obligations. Some had called the program “predatory” and “loansharking,” and testimony led to a unanimous vote by the Higher Education Committee to approve S-743, requiring HESAA to forgive the student loan of someone who dies before completely repaying it.
Crosby has counseled clients in similarly tough situations with HESAA. The program also had been characterized with extraordinarily stringent rules that can easily led to financial hardship. Loan repayments could not be adjusted based on income, and few breaks are given for unemployment or other hardship.
A memo from HESAA Executive Director Gabrielle Charette provides further details on all of the changes that are being made in the program.
“This is truly the power of advocacy for the greater good,” Crosby said. “FPANJ continues to act as a resource in educating legislators on topics like these. Now we are just happy that parents in this situation can start to move forward in healing.”
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NJ Supreme Court Hands Teachers Union Huge Victory Denies Christie Request on Abbott Schools Ruling

Ridgewood EA teachers protest

February 1,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Newark NJ, in a statement from the Partnership for Educational Justice comments on the New Jersey Supreme Court’s denial of State motion to re-open Abbott v. Burke.

The New Jersey Supreme Court today denied the State’s September 2016 motion to re-open the decades-old school funding lawsuit, Abbott v. Burke. As part of their broad motion, the State had asked the court to grant the State Commissioner of Education – a political appointee – the authority to waive enforcement of the State’s “last in, first out” (LIFO) teacher layoff law, among other education laws and negotiated policies.

In response to the State’s motion, six Newark parents also filed a motion with the Supreme Court against the State’s legal tactics to address LIFO. These same parents instead are fighting the LIFO statute on its own in the trial court. Their case, HG v. Harrington, asserts that New Jersey’s quality-blind LIFO law violates students’ constitutional right to a “thorough and efficient” education by allowing ineffective teachers to remain in classrooms while effective teachers are let go. The plaintiff families have asked the court to declare LIFO unconstitutional and render it unenforceable in Newark and similar districts.

The Supreme Court’s denial of the State’s motion today means that the lawsuit filed in November by six Newark parents is the only case pending to address New Jersey’s outdated LIFO statute.

The following is a statement by Ralia Polechronis, Executive Director of Partnership for Educational Justice:

“This ruling is a big win for New Jersey parents and schoolchildren. The Supreme Court has echoed the position of a group of Newark parents, who argued to this court that the state’s unjust quality-blind teacher layoff law must be evaluated on its own, and not in connection with a decades-old school funding lawsuit. Concerned about looming school budget cuts, these same parents – the plaintiffs in HG v. Harrington – will continue their fight in the state’s trial court to invalidate the “last in, first out” law that prevents the retention of Newark’s best teachers during funding crises. These brave parents are leading the charge for students’ rights in New Jersey, and they will not back down until the harmful impact of this law is revealed and deemed unconstitutional.”
To learn more about HG v. Harrington, the parent-led lawsuit challenging New Jersey’s “last in, first out” teacher layoff law, please go to edjustice.org/nj. To read all legal filings related to HG v. Harrington, click here.

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RIDGEWOOD VILLAGE COUNCIL WORK SESSION AGENDA

village-hall-theridgewoodblog

THE RIDGEWOOD VILLAGE COUNCIL’S

PUBLIC WORKSHOP AGENDA

FEBRUARY 1, 2017

REVISED

1.         7:30 pm – Call to Order – Mayor

2.         Statement of Compliance with Open Public Meeting Act

Mayor: “Adequate notice of this meeting has been provided by a posting on the bulletin    board in Village Hall, by mail to the Ridgewood News, The Record, and by submission       to all persons entitled to same as provided by law of a schedule including the date and           time of this meeting.”

3.         Roll Call – Village Clerk

4.         Flag Salute/Moment of Silence

5.         Public Comments (Not to Exceed 3 Minutes per Person – 40 Minutes in Total)

6.         Discussion

  1. Ridgewood Water
  1. Award Professional Services Contract – USEPA Compliance Services for Evaluation of Groundwater Wells
  2. Item Moved to 6.c.5.
  3. Authorize Change Order – Installation of Backup Power at Critical Facilities
  4. Award of Contract – Furnish and Delivering Sodium Hypochlorite – Second Year
  5. Award of Contract – Servicing and Repair of Potable Water Pumping Facilities – Second Yearb.         Parking
  1. Central Business District Non-residential Parkingc.         Budget
  1. Deferred School Tax for 2017
  2. Appropriation Reserve Transfer Resolution
  3. Sewer Fees for Significant Dischargers – Wastewater Collection System
  4. Sustainable Jersey PSE&G Grant
  5. Award Professional Services Contract – Review of HVAC System Operation at Village Hall
  6. Award of Contract – Maintenance of Irrigation Systems – Water Fountains
  7. Graydon Pool – Fees and Improvementsd.         Policy
  1. New Recycling Regulations
  2. Establishment of an International Club 

    7.         Review of February 8, 2017 Regular Public Meeting Agenda

    8.         Manager’s Report

    8.         Council Reports

    9.         Public Comments (Not to Exceed 5 Minutes per Person)

    10.       Resolution to go into Closed Session

    11.       Closed Session

    A. Legal – RCRD, Valley Hospital, Affordable Housing Litigation

    12.       Adjournment

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RIDGEWOOD SNOW & ICE REMINDERS FOR RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES

snowstorm_theridgewoodblog

February 1,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, some reminders for the snowy weather .

Sanitation – Please remember to bring your garbage to the end of your driveway at the curb when snow & ice are forecast for our area.

Sidewalks – Snow must be removed from all residential sidewalks within 24 hours of the snowfall. This is especially important on school walking routes.

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What you need to know about Colorado judge Neil Gorsuch, Donald Trump’s pick for the Supreme Court

Colorado judge Neil Gorsuch,

President Donald J. Trump Nominates Judge Neil Gorsuch to the United States Supreme Court

Today, President Donald J. Trump nominated Judge Neil Gorsuch of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by the passing of Justice Antonin Scalia. The nomination of Judge Gorsuch comes after a selection process marked by an unprecedented level of transparency and involvement by the American voters.

“I am proud to announce the nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch for Justice of the Supreme Court,” President Trump said. “This has been the most transparent and most important Supreme Court selection process in the history of our country and I wanted the American people to have a voice in this nomination. Judge Gorsuch has a superb intellect, an unparalleled legal education, and a commitment to interpreting the Constitution according to its text. He will make an incredible Justice as soon as the Senate confirms him.”

Judge Gorsuch was born and raised in Colorado. He attended Columbia University and Harvard Law School. After graduating with honors, he received his doctorate from Oxford University as a Marshall Scholar. Judge Gorsuch clerked for Judge David Sentelle of the D.C. Circuit and both Justices Byron White and Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court. Following a successful career in private practice, Judge Gorsuch joined the Department of Justice as the Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General. In 2006, President George W. Bush nominated him for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, and he was confirmed by voice vote without objection. He has served with distinction, earning a reputation as a brilliant jurist with an outstanding intellect and a clear, incisive writing style, and he is universally respected for his integrity and fairness to all parties.

“I am honored and humbled to receive this nomination,” said Judge Gorsuch. “I look forward to meeting with Senators over the coming weeks as we begin this process.”

The fourth-generation Coloradan and conservative jurist has written against euthanasia and in favor of political term limits

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump plans to announce his pick for the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday night and one of the leading contenders is Judge Neil Gorsuch, a fourth-generation Coloradan and conservative jurist who has written against euthanasia and in favor of political term limits.

For several days, Gorsuch, a justice on the Denver-based 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, has stayed on the short list of nominees expected to fill the seat of Justice Antonin Scalia, who died last year. Also there: William Pryor Jr. of the 11th Circuit and Thomas Hardiman of the 3rd Circuit – though Trump could go in a different direction, too.

Gorsuch is considered a top pick for reasons both legal and political.

https://www.denverpost.com/2017/01/30/neil-gorsuch-supreme-court-donald-trump/

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How to fix the Port Authority

Shaft_017Pyxurz

By Post Editorial Board

January 29, 2017

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is an $8 billion behemoth plagued by “politicized decision-making, money-losing facilities and declining financial viability,” notes a new Manhattan Institute report that outlines how to fix it.

And thereby end the massive cost overruns, bloated payrolls, regular scandals and general waste that define the modern PA.

Authored by the Reason Foundation’s Robert Poole, a national transportation expert, the 24-page report pushes a total reinvention of the PA’s unsustainable business model, especially the way it finances its system.

Using airports, bridges and tunnels as cash cows to cover ongoing losses at other operations, like the PATH, Poole rightly notes, has meant “mediocre airports, congested and inadequate bridges and tunnels, money-losing seaports, a pathetic bus terminal, and the worst heavy-rail transit system in the nation.” And no cash available to reinvest in fixing or replacing what’s wrong.

Instead, the PA should move to finance projects via public-private partnerships, with public pension funds as key investors.

The agency would no longer own or operate the tunnels, airports, etc., but rather regulate an array of concession companies held accountable via bond covenants and the conditions of their long-term contracts.

Up-front payments for the concessions, along with investments, would provide the revenue for replacement infrastructure.

https://nypost.com/2017/01/29/how-to-fix-the-port-authority/

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SOUTH JERSEY SCHOOL DISTRICT READY TO CHALLENGE SCHOOL-FUNDING FORMULA IN COURT

BOE_theridgewoodblog

JOHN REITMEYER | JANUARY 30, 2017

Superintendent no longer willing to wait for Legislature to fix the problem, says ‘We are going to become the aggressor on this issue’

Kingsway superintendent James Lavender and other school officials announce their legal challenge to New Jersey’s school-aid formula.

School officials in communities all over New Jersey have complained for years about state education-funding inequities, and now lawmakers are holding a series of hearings on the issue — giving clear indications that they plan to address the school-aid problems in the next state budget.

But that new spending plan won’t go into effect until July, and officials representing the Kingsway Regional School District in South Jersey say they can no longer wait on the State House to fix a system that is shorting their students more than $11 million in state aid this year.

Instead, Kingsway regional superintendent James Lavender said district attorneys will be filing a legal brief this week with the state Supreme Court as they attempt to join a new phase of school-aid litigation that Gov. Chris Christie has been seeking to initiate since last year. But unlike Christie, who wants a complete overhaul of the state school-aid law that was enacted in 2008, the Kingsway district is instead pushing only for the invalidation of a “hold harmless” provision that for years has allowed some districts to avoid losing school aid even as others, including Kingsway, have been shortchanged.

https://www.njspotlight.com/stories/17/01/29/south-jersey-school-district-ready-to-challenge-school-funding-formula-in-court/?utm_campaign=Observer_NJ_Politics&utm_content=New%20Campaign&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_term=New%20Jersey%20Politics

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Lawmakers to formally urge attorney general to investigate FieldTurf

RHS_Stadium_turffield_theridgewoodblog

By Christopher Baxter and Matthew Stanmyre | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on January 30, 2017 at 4:34 PM, updated January 30, 2017 at 8:00 PM

TRENTON — A leading state senator said Monday she will formally urge the state Attorney General’s Office to investigate the top U.S. maker of artificial sports fields, FieldTurf, after the company failed to answer key questions about its sales practices.

During a hearing, Sen. Nellie Pou (D-Passaic) led more than 90 minutes of questioning of the Canadian-based FieldTurf’s CEO, Eric Daliere, focusing on why company officials did not notify all customers of problems with its turf after they became apparent to executives.

“If it was clear that it happened to enough customers throughout the country, early enough, why weren’t actions, the appropriate actions taken?” said Pou, the chairwoman of the Senate Commerce Committee.

Daliere offered a spirited defense of the company, noting that nearly all of the fields in question in New Jersey made it through their eight-year warranty period and emphasizing that the problems with its Duraspine turf did not create a safety hazard for those who used the field.

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2017/01/senate_panel_questions_fieldturf_executive_on_alle.html?utm_campaign=Observer_NJ_Politics&utm_content=New%20Campaign&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_term=New%20Jersey%20Politics#incart_river_home

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Measles, again — baby could have spread infection in northern NJ

New Jersey Department of Health

By Adam Hochron January 30, 2017 6:17 PM

WAYNE — The New Jersey Department of Health has confirmed a travel-related case of measles in Passaic County.

According to the department, the disease was found in an unvaccinated 7-month-old who had come to the state through international travel, and who may have exposed others between Jan. 17 and 23, including at two local hospitals.

The child visited the emergency department of St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital from just before 7 a.m until 1 p.m. on Jan. 21, according to the health department. The child as at the Pediatric Emergency Department at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center two days later from 6:30 a.m. until 3:45 p.m.

While it has been more than a week since the child was at either hospital, and is currently recovering at home, the health department warned that symptoms may not develop until as late as Feb. 15.

Also, according to the health department, this case of travel-related measles is not connected to a man from Hudson County who also contracted the disease traveling abroad.

Read More: Measles, again — baby could have spread infection in northern NJ | https://nj1015.com/measles-again-baby-could-have-spread-infection-in-northern-nj/?trackback=tsmclip

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Reader offers some more practical tips on how to raise a kid that won’t quit

Ridgewood kids keeping the entrepreneurial spirit alive

file photo by Boyd Loving

Reader offers some more practical tips on how to raise a kid that won’t quit:

1. Keep Score in sports
2. Make them get a job that makes real money (from someone other than the parents) ASAP
3. Clean up after themselves 
4. Earn perks – do your chores or you don’t get TV, phone, lessons, sports, to attend that party, etc… NO or very, very rare exceptions
5. Don’t buy them everything – they’ll figure out how to get it if it is really important to them
6.They must take care of/look out for/defend/protect siblings
7. Teach them to cook – they should always be able to feed themselves
8. Don’t be their friend, be their parent