From Jack Marin - Pets, Your Responsibility

Why my grandchildren cannot play around my house:

My granddaughters and I were walking the area around my house, which includes the pond, when one of them bent down and put her hands in a grassy patch. I noticed it was wet on the concrete that surrounded this patch of grass and realized it was the result of one of the dogs urinating. I quickly rushed them into the house trying to keep them from touching parts of their body until I could get their hands thoroughly washed.

When I purchased my house I paid extra for the pond view and still pay higher real estate taxes for that same view. They didn't tell me that what I thought was a scenic pond was really the sewer system for all of the pets (dogs) in the area. I cannot sit down to a meal in my kitchen, which overlooks the pond, without having at least one dog defecate and urinate in front of me. To their credit their owners never fail to bag the results, but, that does not enhance my ambiance. Of course when we have company over they get to enjoy the same ambiance. I should also point out that the constant urinating does damage the grass and landscaping, my view.

The Association has tried sending emails, but, clearly that does not work. I suggested putting up signs, but, that was turned down by the board. I agree with the last association email that requested that owners have their loved pets complete their bathroom needs on their own property and then take the walk. I wonder what they find objectionable about their pets defecating and urinating on or near their own environment?

What Chutzpa, Joel Moskow as a concerned resident.

95 Gables Way
Jackson, New Jersey 08527
(732) 928-8846
April 8, 2010

Mr. Marvin Aronowitz
Editor-in-Chief
Metedeconk Moments

Re: WHAT CHUTZPA

To the Editor:
Just the other day, I ventured into the new JPMorgan Chase bank on County Line Road. The bank had only opened a few weeks ago so I thought I would give it a try with some of my business. A friend had just repaid a loan to me with a check drawn on JPMorgan Chase and I planned to cash the check at the bank and discuss some of its services.
When I reached the teller, I presented the check and asked her to please cash it for me. I was not a customer of JPMorgan Chase at the time. “There is a six dollar charge to cash this check,” she said with a tone in her voice that told me she had said these words many times before. I explained that it was the bank’s own check. “It’s six dollars to cash the check,” she repeated, this time in a more precise way. I thanked her, smiled to myself, and left the bank with the check in hand.
This bank, JPMorgan Chase, is one of the banks that took billions of dollars of mine and other citizens, in order to stay alive. The teller herself would be unemployed if it were not for our money. The staff of that branch would be unemployed if it were not for our money, and the branch itself would not exist today if it were not for our money. In fact, there is a good chance that JPMorgan Chase Bank would not be in business today if it were not for our money. Six dollars to cash a check, drawn on their own bank, What COLOSSAL GALL, and in plain English, WHAT CHUTZPA!
Every one of us knows about, and was outraged when we learned about the millions in bonuses that banks, living on our handouts, gave to their employees. I hope that now a few hundred local people will know of this little “six dollar fee,” and what this fee says to the people that helped bail this bank out of a self made disaster so it could stay in business. This is what JPMorgan Chase Bank thinks of the people who funded their very survival. Millions in bonuses to their employees and a six dollar fee, to cash the bank’s own check, to the public.
If you have as much as one thin dime deposited with JPMorgan Bank, you need to have your head examined. Take a good look at all of the fees this bank charges its customers and non customer alike, then, take your account and place it with a local bank, a bank that cares about the people it serves. In the future, when you hear the word CHUTZPA, you should realize that JPMorgan Chase Bank defines the word!

Very truly yours,
Joel H. Moskow

From Eileen Rosenbaum - Silverts Furniture, Freehold

I would like to share a very unpleasant experience that Mark and I had while shopping at Silverts in Freehold.

Our salesperson, Larry, who I believe is related to the Silvert family, gave us a price on an office suite. He actually wrote down the prices for the individual pieces on the back of one of his business cards. When we returned 1 week later to order the furniture, he told us that either he made a mistake on the pricing, or we wrote the prices on his card ourselves. He then turned his back on us and walked away without saying a word.

We did order our furniture from another store and found that not all sales people are as rude or dishonest as Larry and the folks at Silvert's Furniture in Freehold.

Eileen Rosenbaum

Community Property and DOGS - From The Sigman's

We have written various e-mails to community management regarding "community property and dogs" - thus far to no avail.
We understand that the appearance of the community is important to everyone including us (Cheryl and Steven Sigman - 3 Devonshire Way). We have been living here for over 5 years and have made many wonderful friends. Unfortunately, we've made a few enemies as well due to the lack of a designated area for our dog, Seymour, and the other four-legged residents that enjoy the over 55 lifestyle here at Four Seasons Metedeconk.
When we moved here we were welcomed to the community with two children over age 19 and one dog. This was one of the few communities in the area which did not limit us to only one adult child nor did they put a restriction on pet ownership. We have done all that we could to restrict Seymour to areas where there are no houses, although, there is NO AREA presently which is not designated as community property. We keep him on our property but sometimes dogs want to walk around and enjoy the neighborhood too. We clean up after him all the time and dispose of his wastes properly. It is not fair to expect us to drive him outside of Metedeconk to relieve himself - especially since, as we all know, the urge may strike more than once a day. Nor is it physically possible to restrain a dog from urinating even curbside and targeting only the sidewalls rather than the adjacent grass (community property, sorry!)
As pet owners and residents desiring to live within an attractive and friendly community, we firmly and vehemently suggest that an area be designated for dog walking and relief! We are just as tired of the negative comments and dirty looks from our neighbors as they are of us walking our pets on "Community Property".

A Neighbor's Family Loss - From Hal Wohl

‘Minyan Prayer Group’
Formed

It was the desire of a number of members of our community to form a ‘Minyan Prayer Group’ that would come to the aid of a Jewish family observing the Shivah (explained below). The group has the necessary materials for the conduction of the ‘Minyanim Service’, and would also supply the number of participants needed.

The driving forces behind the effort to organize such a group were Irwin Schubert, Joel Moskow, Hal Wohl, and Ike Shalom. The group currently has 31 resident members, and their wives, making a total of 62 people. Any member of our community in need of the services of the group, or knowing of a neighbor who is in such need, please call:

Hal & Marsha Wohl – 732 928-5621

An Explanation of Jewish Customs during
The Mourning of the death of a family member

As explained from the writings of Stephen Butterfass, for Religious Living on the Web

The period of mourning, for a Jew, begins as soon as the burial is over. On the first day of mourning, as an act of consideration for the needs of the mourners, Jewish tradition mandated that the bereaved were not to eat their own food as their first meal after the funeral. It is a mitzvah (a blessing) for friends and neighbors or for members of the community, to prepare a meal of condolence to be provided the mourners on returning from the cemetery. This practice is common to all branches of Judaism and should be considered an important act of sensitivity to another's need.

Visiting a house of mourning to comfort the family by your presence and to join together in prayer is also considered a blessing. The Jewish community is expected to join a minyan to honor the dead and comfort the bereaved. You need not have known the deceased or the family. What is required is the performance of the mitzvah. Those who visit a house of mourning should neither ring the bell nor knock before entering. The tradition also frowns on frivolous conversation. Visitors were traditionally not supposed to speak with the mourner until spoken to.

Following the funeral, there are seven days of intense mourning, called Shivah, or "seven". During these seven days, the tradition stated that it was forbidden to wear leather shoes, to work, to cover mirrors and pictures, not shave, and the sit on boxes or low stools, among other customs. The practice of observing shivah for a full seven days is not obligatory in Reform Judaism and should be a personal decision. Reform practice seems to consider three days as the minimum period of mourning and for the holding of minyanim, prayer services, at the home.

GE Gold Dishwasher - Jo Ann Devory

Has anyone had a problem with their GE Gold Dishwasher?

Ours is only 1 ½ years old and the entire electronic panel burned out! During one night, last week, I smelled wires burning and found that the dishwasher panel was lit up and blinking like a Christmas Tree! I pulled the circuit breaker. Since then Sears/A&E repair service came and determined the entire circuit panel is not working and will be replaced at a cost of over $200! If others in our community have had the same problem, we may start an effort to have GE recall/pay for repair. Please leave a message on the Blog or contact me: 732-276-6591 or devory02@optonline.net

Computer Services - Senior Discounts - From Estelle Weiss

An excellent computer repair person, who is very reasonable and reliable.
He charges less for senior citizens and has fixed my desktop and laptop on separate occasions.

He really knows his stuff with regard to hardware and software. He does computer repair and maintenance, network design and installation, hardware and software upgrades.

He has a flexible schedule and comes to the house. On a scale of 1-10, I give him a 10.

Armen Orbelyan
EZ-Tech Computers, L.L.C.

732-914-8247

Email: ARMEN_COMPUTERS@YAHOO.COM