3 cheers for CU's Advocacy Division's Annual Halloween Smackdown Contest featuring the Choosing Wisely campaign

Consumer Reports' West Coast Office was inspired by an out-of-the-blue grassroots rap song submission by a gynecologist in Maine who loves Consumer Reports' Choosing Wisely campaign. 

To give context, the presentation begins with a Public Service Announcement about Choosing Wisely, which they did not create. 

Many thanks to Dr. Jay Naliboff of Farmington, Maine for his musical inspiration, and to CU's Meat Without Drugs campaign mascot, Joe the Pig, for making a cameo appearance. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6myW59D0Mg&feature=youtu.be 

Enjoy

Happy Halloween 

New guitar store in Northvale, NJ

Coming soon to Northvale: 

Beau Monde Guitars

Sales, Lessons, Repairs, Rentals

Proprietors: 
Louis Bottone & Harry Jacovou

285 Livingston Street
Northvale, NJ 07647
201-660-7844
www.beaumondeguitars.com

Hours:

Mon, Fri-Sat 10 am - 6 pm

Tue-Thu 10 am - 8 pm

Specialties

Beau Monde Guitars specializes in musical instrument sales, lessons, repairs and rentals. 

Authorized Dealer for: Casio, D'Addario, Dunlop, Electro-Harmonix, Epiphone, Ernie Ball, ESP, Gibson, Ibanez, Marshall, Martin, Maxon, Mesa/Boogie, MXR, On-Stage, Tama, Way Huge & more!

History

Established in 2011

Beau Monde Guitars is an owner-operated full-service musical instrument retailer dedicated to making an elite experience an everyday courtesy for every customer. Owners, Louis Bottone and Harry Jacovou, bestow over 30-years of comprehensive expertise in music retail alone, while also proudly adding an advanced knowledge of the music business, music production and all things guitar to their credentials. As guitarists/musicians, they bring over 30-years of respect for the instrument, which allows them to speak the language of both the avid gear aficionados and the enthusiastic novices.

Halloween at Greenbriar Oceanaire

What a treat we had watching grandparents and grandchildren parade around in and outside the clubhouse. The children were all sporting great costumes and some of the grandparents out shined the children! The volunteers did a splendid job decorating and entertaining the children.

 This is one flyer I missed in the mail

 

 

Our neighbors

 

 

 

 The parade is starting

 

 

There will be a you tube video shortly

 

 How cute!

 

Parade

 Party room all decorated for the children

Fred & Ray looking for some treats

 Lots of tasty cupcakes

What an adorable pumpkin!

 

Cranberry Festival in Chatsworth

The 30th Annual Cranberry Festival

 in Chatsworth was held on

October 19th & 20th, 2013

The main attraction is the diverse showing of many artists and craftsmen,

some of which demonstrated their crafts as well as displaying them for sale.

30 years and this is the first time we heard about it so we took a trip
on Sunday to check it out. We never heard of the town either.
The festival was HUGE. 

It was so large, we didn't walk through the entire site. 

Unfortunately, there were more flee-market type vendors
selling new items than artisans. 

It was a beautiful fall day and we enjoyed walking through the area. 

Sadly, we never saw the antique car display because it was too far to walk! 

You weren't able to take your car down the road to get to the cars.

We didn't tour any cranberry bogs either. It was just too crowded. 

On the way home, we wound up in the woods.  

Fred's car went off-road trucking! It needed to visit a car wash desperately. 

It was starting to feel like I was in the movie

 that I hate the most-- Deliverance

Let's see how deep this puddle is

...let's be thrill seekers and drive through it. 

Or we can turn around and travel through the woods again. 

Nah, we will drive through it!


It was another fun-filled day. 

Wine festival at Manahawkin

We had a great, day relaxing out by the lake and sampling wine from 6 NJ wineries. 

cousins

I paid $5 for the wine glass holder around my neck.

Next year all my girlfriends will have one 

because I am going to make them. 

I can't help it if I am freezing 

(thank goodness we didn't have this week's weather)

Fred's annual sip of wine

Oh no, he is having another sip of wine

Yes, your glass was full a minute ago...

Who could he be calling?

Wow, Fred is having another sample..

I knew a few sips were going to do him in...

the man can't drink

Time to take this bad boy home!

Tips for a Safe Halloween

'Lucky 13' Tips for a Safe Halloween

Whether you’re goblin or ghoul, vampire or witch, poor costume choices—including decorative contact lenses and flammable costumes—and face paint allergies can haunt you long after Halloween if they cause injury.

Enjoy a safe and happy Halloween by following the “lucky 13” guidelines from FDA, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

1. Wear costumes made of fire-retardant materials; look for “flame resistant” on the label. If you make your costume, use flame-resistant fabrics such as polyester or nylon.
2. Wear bright, reflective costumes or add strips of reflective tape so you’ll be more visible; make sure the costumes aren’t so long that you’re in danger of tripping.
3. Wear makeup and hats rather than masks that can obscure your vision.
4. Test the makeup you plan to use by putting a small amount on the arm of the person who will be wearing it a couple of days in advance. If a rash, redness, swelling, or other signs of irritation develop where the makeup was applied, that's a sign of a possible allergy.
5. Check FDA’s list of color additives to see if makeup additives are FDA approved. If they aren’t approved for their intended use, don’t use it.
6. Don’t wear decorative contact lenses unless you have seen an eye care professional and gotten a proper lens fitting and instructions for using the lenses.

Safe Treats

Eating sweet treats is also a big part of the fun on Halloween. If you’re trick-or-treating, health and safety experts say you should remember these tips:

7. Don’t eat candy until it has been inspected at home.
8. Trick-or-treaters should eat a snack before heading out, so they won’t be tempted to nibble on treats that haven’t been inspected.
9. Tell children not to accept—or eat—anything that isn’t commercially wrapped.
10. Parents of very young children should remove any choking hazards such as gum, peanuts, hard candies, or small toys.
11. Inspect commercially wrapped treats for signs of tampering, such as an unusual appearance or discoloration, tiny pinholes, or tears in wrappers. Throw away anything that looks suspicious.

For party goers and party throwers, FDA recommends the following tips for two seasonal favorites:

12. Look for the warning label to avoid juice that hasn’t been pasteurized or otherwise processed, especially packaged juice products that may have been made on site. When in doubt, ask! Always ask if you are unsure if a juice product is pasteurized or not. Normally, the juice found in your grocer’s frozen food case, refrigerated section, or on the shelf in boxes, bottles, or cans is pasteurized.
13. Before bobbing for apples—a favorite Halloween game—reduce the amount of bacteria that might be on apples by thoroughly rinsing them under cool running water. As an added precaution, use a produce brush to remove surface dirt.

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Eye Safety

FDA joins eye care professionals—including the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, the Contact Lens Association of Ophthalmologists and the American Optometric Association—in discouraging consumers from using decorative contact lenses.

These experts warn that buying any kind of contact lenses without an examination and a prescription from an eye care professional can cause serious eye disorders and infections, which may lead to permanent vision loss. Despite the fact that it’s illegal to sell decorative contact lenses without a valid prescription, FDA says the lenses are sold on the Internet and in retail shops and salons—particularly around Halloween.

The decorative lenses make the wearer’s eyes appear to glow in the dark, create the illusion of vertical “cat eyes,” or change the wearer’s eye color.

"Although unauthorized use of decorative contact lenses is a concern year-round, Halloween is the time when people may be inclined to use them, perhaps as costume accessories," says FDA eye expert Bernard Lepri, O.D., M.S., M.Ed.. "What troubles us is when they are bought and used without a valid prescription, without the involvement of a qualified eye care professional, or without appropriate follow-up care. This can lead to significant risks of eye injuries, including blindness."

This article appears on FDA's Consumer Updates page, which features the latest on all FDA-regulated products.

Posted October 19, 2011; reviewed October 24, 2013

Scary Hayride

Saturday night, after the rain, we decided to take a ride on the tractor around the lake. The bright, full moon surrounded by clouds was just perfect for a thrilling ride through the woods. We were lucky to catch the last ride of the night--all the zombies, ghosts, deformed characters, unnatural children, pirates, vampires, and other ghouls were ready to leave the pond area and head out to terrify the public.  After all, midnight is feeding time for some of them.

I could play the part of a zombie!

J had lots of fun playing with the hay...

we wound up wearing some

They better not touch me; 

I am ready to poke anyone who does

Yikes, look at that gigantic spider coming toward us

We were glad we had the courage

to venture out late that night.

 It was fun.

No way was Judy going to wear 

my cute yellow socks with bees on them. 

She rather freeze her tootsies off.

Laura would have loved it. I am sure she was laughing at us!