Clinton Township Newsletter

3 d e c e m b e r 2 0 2 1 from Carol Beder's C U S T O M PA I N T F I N I S H Transformations for Your Cabinetry & Furniture • D E S I G N 9 0 8 . 8 3 2 . 6 0 3 2 T E W K S B U R Y Oriental Rug Specialist Since 1934 Sale & Service of Oriental Rugs & Carpets As of this writing, we're in mid-November and the fall leaves are so beautiful. Recently, I've actually pulled my car over a couple of times on quiet back roads in Hunterdon County to take photos – it's all just so breathtaking. I want to appreciate every minute of this beautiful season because I know that (what my husband and I refer to as) the "dark days" are coming soon, possibly by the time you read this issue. There's plenty of beauty in the wintertime, don't get me wrong, I just appreciate the colors of spring, summer, and fall much more. However, having grown up in the sunny state of Florida, I know that I can really only best appreciate those seasons having slogged through our long New Jersey winters. I try to never get political in this column, y'all know, but I will say this – politically, my husband and I consider ourselves centrists. After this last election, it turns out, so does a lot of the country. In this publication, I try to always give equal weight to both major political parties when they send me information, and I also try to deter any political mud-slinging. You can certainly find plenty of that elsewhere, right? (To be honest, occasionally I mess up.) Many years ago, on Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update, anchorman Seth Myers asks (Kenan Thompson's character,) "Common Sense Commentator Mr. Senior" how to go about solving the political problems of the day, to which Mr. Senior responds, "Well, it's very simple. Somebody needs to get on top of the situation, and fix it! Take it one step at a time. Identify the problem, then FIX IT! Identify another problem, then FIX IT! It's not rocket science, Seth. It's a simple three-step process. Step One: Fix. Step Two: It! Step Three: Fix it! Then repeat steps one through three until it's all FIXED!" While this is comedy and an over-simplification of analyzing and solving the problems of our country and the world, I can't help but hear this in my head when listening to or reading the news of the day. Our political leaders – all of them – need to come together, despite their differences, and fix it. All of it. Many of us have now been vaxxed and booster'd for Covid-19, and New Jersey's current (as of this writing, at least) low Covid rate is looking pretty good, but we're still not past this thing. At one point in the summer, it looked as though we had turned the corner and were getting into a post-pandemic phase. Turns out, that was so 20+ weeks ago. After the Delta variant took over, everything seemed to change and we all realized that we're in it for the long haul. I wouldn't be surprised if we find ourselves getting booster shots every six months or annually, for many years to come. Personally, I feel it's best to hope for the best and prepare for the worst, so I and my family will just do whatever it takes to get through this as safely as possible, both mentally and physically. I realize that finding and maintaining that balance is not easy for our political leaders, school administration, and local business owners, and I feel for all of them. As always, I feel very positive about the upcoming new year: 2022. Can you believe it?! For me, having grown up, come of age, gotten married and had my children in the past century, that number just seems surreal. The year 2022 marks this publication's 40th Anniversary! This means that CTNL, The Little Publication That Could, has (if all goes well this month) had a longer life than many flashier national publications. I only wish that CTNL's original owners, Fred and Ruth Keesing, were here to see it – but I'd like to think that somehow they do. CTNL aims to continue to do what we do best: Get The Word Out. With your help, we will. I hope you and your family have a wonderful and safe holiday season, and I hope that 2022 is your best year yet! Julie Flynn

• Cover