Mine’s getting there. Pictured here are some of my luscious Betty Boop roses. They sit near some indigo salvia and some chartreuse spirea and the combination is pretty great. Most of my roses are opening up and I’m doing my best to keep up with the weeds. Which brings me to this little adventure in weeding……

Continue Reading

This is John Raido, a math teacher at Montclair High School. Friday afternoon, as I was walking down the hall near Unit 1 I heard a cheerful plinking sound. Could that instrument be a mandolin? Close–it was a Bushman Ukulele, played by Mr. Raido. Turns out there are quite a few high school students who enjoy playing the ukulele, and now they all meet up every day to sit outside and play their ukes together.
In these volatile times of rollercoastering stock markets and missile-happy North Korea, I find it utterly dear that a bunch of high school kids and one of their teachers would so enjoy plinking out “Rubber Ducky” and other benign tunes.

Last night a tipster sends in a disturbing report of being verbally harrassed with gay slurs.

Just wanted to let you know that just now as we walked by the intersection
of Union & Orange (right at Rocky the horse’s paddock) my partner and I were
verbally abused by a pair of black men in a sedan.
As they approached, the passenger began yelling loudly “Hey, you wanna have
sex? You want me to f***you? Want me to F*** YOU?”

The tipster and his parter ignored and turned onto Union. The men in the car stopped at the light and the guy was leaning out the window, continuing to yell out offensive remarks; the yelling continued until the lights changed and they continued south on Orange.
The tipster asked that we post his account along with the recommendation to take care while walking around town at night.

We love receiving our reader tips, but where in the cyberworld would Baristanet be without the support of our advertisers? Every couple of weeks, we’ll tune you in to some special deals Baristanet readers can take advantage of. Please, be nice and tell them if you’ve noticed their ads on the pages of Baristanet.

Hipnotique – an eclectic boutique for men and women – just opened in the atrium shops on 26 South Fullerton, Montclair. Cool, funky, unusual and affordable describes the clothing and gifts. Baristanet readers get 20% off the total bill when making their first purchase. (Tell them Baristanet sent you….)
Meanwhile, over at the new Serenity Spa in Bloomfield, you can “join the club” and get hour-long massages for just $49 whenever you want…GT Fitness will get you in shape – send them your email and get two free personal training sessions.
You really enjoyed restaurant week, right? Well our friends at Bistro 18 did too. Chef Ricky continues to offer prix fixe menus every Tuesday evening, and a prix-fixe pre-Wellmont menu on concert nights. Coming up on June 9 is another prix-fixe night with a regional menu from Piedmont, Italy and delicious wine pairings…’Tis the season for crabs, and Church Street Kitchen in Montclair is getting pretty crabby. Check out the menu of soft shell crab dishes prepared many delicious ways. They are also featuring a $5.99 lunch, $20.99 prix fixe dinner, and host regular wine tastings. Check out their website for the details. At Ritacco’s Midtown Bar and Grill (Nutley) just say the magic word “Baristanet” for a free appetizer or dessert.

Get your weekend started now! This afternoon, get over to Fairfield Street for the first of 10 Friday night “Fridays On Fairfield” parties. Where’s Fairfield Street? Precisely. It’s at Watchung Plaza, on the block anchored by Watchung Booksellers, and don’t you forget it! Six business owners are throwing a free sidewalk party with live music, happy hours, snacks, and in-store specials. Stop by every Friday 4-7 p.m. through July and say hi to Watchung Booksellers, Piazza della Sole, Dot Reeder, J&J Antiques, La Belle Vie, and Lilli Meili & Beau.
Then walk or bike through some amazing art galleries in Montclair (more wine and munchies) on the third annual Gallery Walk, tonight 6-9 p.m. Go to our Calendar, for more local events. For more kid-friendly activities, go to Barista Kids. But before you go anywhere tomorrow, consider stopping at Montclair’s Family YMCA to make a bone marrow donation to help Kai.
Like outdoor shopping? FIVE yard sales are listed on Baristanet’s Classifieds page for this weekend. List your future yard sales free by emailing us here.
The forecast for the weekend looks pretty good – drier and sunnier than today. Up for a road trip to experience The Big Easy? Well buckle up, because you can get there in New Jersey! In its 20th year, the three-day Crawfish Fest, offering up Cajun, Zydeco, amazing Lousiana cuisine and more, sounds like the definition of fun…at the Sussex County Fairgrounds, Augusta, NJ. All you need to know to let the good times roll is on the Crawfish Fest website.

Tipsters tell us there was police activity earlier this week at South Park Bar and Grill in Montclair. An observer says a man was taken away from the pub in handcuffs.
Chief of Police David Sabagh confirmed that Montclair Police and MPD narcotics detectives made an arrest at South Park Bar and Grill, while conducting an annual ABC inspection of the estabishment. No further information is available at the moment, the case is under investigation.

UPDATE From Chief Sabagh:

The arrested individual was identified as the owner of South Park, his name is Jeffrey Melnikoff, age 43. He has been charged with possession of marijuana under 50 grams, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Bail was set at $15,000 bond or $1,500 cash alternative

.

Has anyone else noticed there seems to be a game of musical doors going on among Montclair businesses? Many merchants are moving into bigger spaces — could it be the sign of a recession rebound? In the downtown business district, Fume Cigars is moving east a couple of blocks on Bloomfield Avenue next door to Dr. Cameron’s Animal Hospital. The elegant dress shop, Chez Renee on Church Street has moved into a primo location on the corner of Church and South Park. There’s new bling on that block: Gallery Loupe hopped right into Renee’s old space ditching their Midland Avenue digs. Modern Yarn, who recently closed the Church Street knitting center will resurface at 182 Glenridge Avenue – a space being vacated by Chalk Farm. (Chalk Farm is hunting for another locale…) Minnow kids’ haberdashery on Glenridge Ave. will open on Church Street the 1st week of July at the former knitting shop.
Jafajems is closing both the Church Street and Valley Road stores to move into the Olympic Store Renovation (photo, above).

Continue Reading