Clinton Township Newsletter

1 M a r c h 2 0 1 6 March 2016 March 2016 Jie Fly, Edit Jie Fly, Edit W h i l e t h i s M a r c h i s s u e contains as much green as I can possibly fit in it, I'm writing this in mid-February – the temps outside are in the teens – and the predicted low temperature for tomorrow is in the negatives. In short, once again I'm feeling that spring can't come soon enough. It's refreshing each year to work on the March issue because I know that it marks the turning point. As my mother-in-law (the REAL Mrs. Flynn) always says on St. Patrick's Day, "Spring is ahead of us and there's no going back (to winter) now!" It's really nice right now to think about the upcoming Friendly Sons Of St. Patrick/Hunterdon's 2016 Parade in Downtown Clinton, on Sunday, March 13 at 3:00 pm. If I'm not mistaken, this will be their third parade, with hopefully many, many more to come. I walked in last year's parade (for Crime Stoppers of Hunterdon County) and I can attest to the fact that a fine time was had by all! You're also invited to the Annual FSSP St. Patrick's Dinner Dance on Saturday, March 5 at The Farmhouse at the Grand Colonial (86 Route 173 West, Hampton, $65/person). Here's what the Friendly Sons are all about, straight from their lips: "We strive to promote and preserve Irish-American culture. We are equally proud of our Irish heritage and our American heritage. We serve our community through initiatives such as scholarships, volunteerism and charitable donations. We seek to establish and nurture camaraderie between our members. We are men of similar ideals, values and objectives. We believe that integrity and excellence are at the core of everything we do. God, family and country are top priorities for all of us, both as individuals and as an organization. We believe that supporting our community is fundamental, and we believe that this support should come from individuals and private entities, first and foremost. We believe that respecting and embracing ones heritage is not only appropriate but essential to ones happiness. Our organization is nondenominational and apolitical. As a charity we are asked where the money raised goes. The members of the FSSP pay yearly dues, monthly meeting costs and work hard to ensure that the monies raised go straight to families in need." You're also invited to the After-Party held immediately following the FSSP Parade at the Clinton Firehouse. To obtain tickets, email: FSSPAfterparty@ gmail.com with your name and the number and type of tickets you wish to purchase. For more information, please visit: www.FSSPHunterdon.com. My wish for Springtime (and Winter, Fall and Summer) is for a multiplex cinema to open somewhere close in Hunterdon County. I so miss the now "kaput" one in Flemington. There have been whispered rumors of a theatre opening in the area but, alas, so far it hasn't happened. I'm 88 years old so someone has to get on this ASAP! Thank goodness for Netflix. I receive reasonably current films in the mail and stream others via Roku. It's getting to be a pain to travel to Bridgewater Commons Cinema so I add my requests onto the Netflix queue and am often informed its release time is "unknown". That means it could be a 6 months wait before a hot show reaches my mailbox. No one is excited about it anymore. No one even remembers who co-starred with whom. However I am able to watch it in my comfortable den munching on a bowl of homemade popcorn so I probably save hundreds of dollars a year for my patience. To make life easier for my over-60 readers, I'm going to play film critic du jour and assist you with some recommendations for your movie viewing pleasure. Granted I am not a qualified critic and certainly don't know all I should about life and culture. (For instance, I cannot fathom why anyone would willingly fork out $125 for a pair of jeans that already has torn patches on both legs and holes in both knees.) Regardless of my obvious shortcomings, I'm going to offer a tad of information that may assist you in selecting future movies. Run, don't walk, away from movies containing any of these words in their titles: SPY, PSYCHO, KILLING FIELDS,VENGEANCE, WARRIORS,MUTANT, DEADLY, HYBRID, DINOSAUR, MASS, SPY and TALLADEGA. Stick with a cast that co-stars Maggie Smith and Alec Guinness. It will be quite calming and respectable and maybe PG 13. You could actually use this kind of film as an alternative to a morning's worth of meditation. On the other hand, from my often jaded viewpoint, movies containing the following words in their titles are worth your $8 to$12 ticket prices: WALTZ, MAGNIFICENT, GRANDEUR, FOLLIES, GRANDMA (or GRANDPA), ABBEY, COUNTESS, CLASSIC, MASTERPIECE, CLOUDS, LOVE and VIRGIN. Remember, as with Siskel and Ebert, you have the power to make your own choices and I wish you much happy viewing. If a cinema opens in Hunterdon County before I depart this earth I'll treat a dozen of you to free tickets! Éirinn go Brách! – Julie Fl�nn "St. Patrick was a gentleman Who through strategy and stealth Drove all the snakes from Ireland. Here's toasting to his health. But not too many toastings Lest you lose yourself and then Forget the good St. Patrick And see all those snakes again." ~ Irish saying "St. Patrick was a gentleman Who through strategy and stealth Drove all the snakes from Ireland. Here's toasting to his health. But not too many toastings Lest you lose yourself and then Forget the good St. Patrick And see all those snakes again." ~ Irish saying

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