Philly2Hoboken.com

Rocco's Facebook Page

2013-05-13T04:24:46Z

When I adopted Rocco three years ago, I knew he was a special little pup. Who doesn't like puppies - they get stopped on the street all the time.

As he got older, the requests didn't stop - in fact I rarely take a walk along Washington Street and don't hear someone squealing "OH MY GAWD" when they see Rocco and other Frenchie owners of course would remark that he's pretty cute and where I got him.

I got lucky. My sister actually found Rocco online from a hobbyist breeder who doesn't breed anymore. It's too bad, had I known that Rocco was going to be this cute I would have bred him. But alas, unless I get him cloned there won't be any future prodigy.

I liked taking funny pictures of Rocco and would share them on Facebook. I didn't want my "main" account to be "All-Rocco-All-The-Time" so I created a page for him. Invited a few friends to it who I thought would like to see more pictures of Rocco and would post from time to time.

100 became 200. 200 became 300. And his popularity grew.

Rocco's page is almost at 3,000 likes (at the time of this writing). It's not quite the level of celebrities, but I find it funny that he has such an audience. Sure, some people who joined probably are bots. But its still fun to have an interactive audience. I kind of wonder how this website would have done had I started it when Facebook was popular. I don't update it as much as I used to since most of my days are on Facebook or Reddit now - and reposting the interesting articles to my main Facebook account.

But if you like French Bulldogs and my man Rocco, feel free to check out his Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/roccothebulldog. I'm thinking he must be the most popular dogs in Hoboken. ;)

Operation: Bad Dog Owner

2013-04-23T04:51:18Z

Ask anyone in Hoboken what is their biggest pet peeve behind lack of parking or potholes and you probably will hear about dog owners who aren't picking up after their dog. Its disgusting to walk down the street and see brown bombs all over the sidewalk. As a dog owner, it pisses me off when I notice dog owners that aren't cleaning up after their dogs "do their business".

When you walk dogs in your neighborhood, often you meet other dog owners and get to know them. Some you know by name. Some you know just by their dogs name. While there are others that you haven't met, but have seen them walk their dog often enough that you recognize them.

One owner, in particular, got my attention. After walking Rocco for the last three years, I notice that there was one dog owner who consistently was not picking up after their dog. This wasn't a once or twice thing, but it was Every. Single. Time. Every time I saw him walk his dog, he would let the dog poop - and then sort of do a quick "is anyone watching me" look to the left or the right and walk away.

At first I was going to say something. If you know me well enough i'm not someone that minces words, nor do I have a very good filter. This isn't the first time I confronted a bad dog owner. In fact, I remember once before I confronted someone else about not picking up after their dog - and they went so far to accuse me of needing glasses. I remember another time the guy was going to punch me that he was so angry that I caught him.

Perhaps third time is a charm, so I didn't say anything - I let my government do the work. I'm friendly with a few of the hardworking people in city hall, so I reached out to them and asked their advice. I first thought calling the police would be the logical step. Maybe they could do an undercover sting operation! This was met by laughter and correction - that I should contact the health department.

It turns out that by using Hoboken311: http://www.hobokennj.org/311/, I was able to report what I saw. I had a pretty detailed account of the guy who was letting his dog poop all over the place, he had a regular morning routine which was right outside his building. I knew what he looked like and knew what kind of dog he had. I basically wrote all the details in a request.

My honest thought was that no one would really do anything. I mean, how often do you really see the "little guys" get anyone to notice them in City Hall? I'm not some big campaign contributor or own a big business in town. I'm just a regular guy who gets easily annoyed at the double parked cars outside of Piccolo's. But that's a story for another day.

Imagine my surprise when I received this email only a few days later (with some details left out):

"Please be advised that earlier this morning, beginning at 6:45am, our Office conducted a surveillance of the area described in your complaint (Hoboken Health Department Complaint #[redacted]) in which the individual you described in your e-mail, was found in violation of 93-16 of the Code of the City of Hoboken (not picking up dog feces) and has been issued a summons to appear in Hoboken Municipal Court, on [redacted].

Director Pellegrini and myself would like to again thank you for taking the time to send the detailed information that you did which led to the catching of this individual in the act of creating a public health nuisance.

Frank Sasso"

Wait, what? It worked? This town isn't perfect. There's always going to be someone who is going to complain about everything City Hall does - and rarely do you ever hear someone complimenting City Hall on a good job. This is just an example that sometimes government works, and that Hoboken311 is a pretty nifty site.

Frenchie Potty Training - April Edition

2013-04-05T04:38:02Z

Got this email from a reader:

Hi!

I love your blog! Sounds like your dog is similar to my frenchie. She just turned 3 months! We started with wee wee pads and now walks. She goes outside with us in morning and walker who is her trainer for an hour and then me again after work and at night but she holds her bladder till she gets inside and goes on wee wee pad! We started crating her cuz she went on wee wee pad a lot. She had some accidents especially with loose stool although its getting a bit better but still won't go outside! And also does the planting thing where I literally have to drag her!! Also has been having on and off diareah and a bit of throw up so just switched her to merrick. She is eating duck now I heard a lot of frenchies have problems with chicken. She is still having some diareah, she just changed foods, but no throw up. Mostly we wanna potty train her to go outside and hold bladder but she barely walks (one block maybe with tugs to get through it) and won't go potty outside! Any help would be appreciated!!

Thank you!!!!

Here's my reply:

At 3 months you pup can basically 'hold it' for 1-2 hours per month old. So, ideally, your dog needs a walk every 4-6 hours.

My suggestion would be - when you take your dog outside, bring a wee wee pad. Teach your dog to pee outside on the pad. Do not have any more wee-wee pads inside. Do not bring the dog back inside until they go pee this could take 30 minutes or so. If they hold it - and you go inside and they pee on the carpet or hardwood, you scoop them up and go back outside for another 30 minutes.

At 3 months old, they don't walk very far. Their little legs can only go a block or two. She will get better at it.

As for food, they shouldn't have loose stool. Some foods with Rocco were too rich. Rocco eats Acana. They are grain free, and he likes all of them - currently he eats Pacifica. No problems with loose stool.

Philadelphia Phillies Club Of Hoboken - 2013!

2013-04-01T04:23:58Z

Lots of questions this seasons:

How will Roy Halladay's arm issues in spring training affect the regular season?
Is Dominic Brown for real?
Will the bullpen fare better than last year?
How healthy is Howard & Utley?
Will J-Roll be leading off or moved to a new spot in the lineup?
How will losing Chooch for 25 games affect the team?

Phillies have a team that, on paper, can win at least 84 games. Listening to WIP yesterday, I heard all sorts of predictions. With the Braves & Nats fielding good teams - and the Marlins and Mets having so-so teams, I think Phillies, barring any major injuries, could do better than 84. I don't see them as winning more than 95. There's a ton of question marks - and most of the radio people were harping over Roy Halladay's spring issues.

If you are in Hoboken, here's the games we are getting together to watch the game on Friday nights at Mulligan's. Hope to see you out there we will have the same beer specials on Fridays for Phillies fans that we have at the Eagles club, $2 Bud Light and $2 Yuengling. No buckets of beers, however.

Apr 12 - at Miami, 7:10 PM
Apr 19 - vs. St. Louis, 7:05 PM
Apr 26 - at NY Mets, 7:10 PM
May 3 - vs. Miami, 7:05 PM
May 10 - skipping due to late game
May 17 - vs. Cincinnati, 7:05 PM
May 24 - at Washington, 7:05 PM
May 31 - vs. Milwaukee, 7:05 PM
Jun 7 - at Milwaukee, 8:10 PM
Jun 14 - at Colorado, 8:40 PM
Jun 21 - 21 - vs. NY Mets, 7:05 PM
Jun 28 - skipping due to late game
Jul 5 - vs. Atlanta, 7:05 PM
JUl 12 - vs. Chicago WSox, 7:05 PM
Jul 19 - at NY Mets, 7:10 PM
Jul 26 - at Detroit, 7:05 PM
Aug 2 - vs. Atlanta, 7:05 PM
Aug 9 - at Washington, 7:05 PM
Aug 16 - vs. Los Angeles, 7:05 PM
Aug 23 - vs. Arizona, 7:05 PM
Aug 30 - skipping due to early game
Sep 6 - vs. Atlanta, 7:05 PM
Sep 13 - at Washington, 7:05 PM
Sep 20 - vs. NY Mets, 7:05 PM
Sep 27 - at Atlanta, 7:30 PM

Legal Beans - The New King Of Hoboken BBQ?

2013-03-28T04:44:54Z

What do you call a Southern inspired, Filipino fusion former coffeeshop now BBQ joint?

Just call it by its old name - Legal Beans.

Chris Escudero, a former lawyer, and his wife Mimi first started in 2004 by buying former candy store on Grand Street in Jersey City and turned it into a coffee shop known as Legal Grounds. Then, in 2005, opening Legal Beans Cafe at 86 Garden St, which began as a local neighborhood coffeeshop, selling their home roasted beans (from Legal Grounds), pastries, breakfast and lunch sandwiches in a glass walled eclectic store. In 2010 they founded "BBQ At Legal Beans" in 2010 on Division Street in Jersey City. Chris & Mimi not only had the stores, but also a thriving catering business, too.

Then 2011 happened with a great deal of flooding on Garden Street which did a lot of damage to the store. Up next, Hurricane Katrina. A year later, Hurricane Sandy. It wore on Chris - and, as he told me, he couldn't give the Hoboken location the attention he wanted. He shut down the business after Sandy, and decided to re-launch the Cafe as a BBQ joint for two reasons - One, the popularity of his already established BBQ At Legal Beans in Jersey City and Two - he saw a lack of BBQ options in Hoboken.

He wanted to corner that BBQ market now.

After trying it myself last night, I think we have a new King Of BBQ for Hoboken. There are other restaurants that sell BBQ in town, but since Joey's BBQ closed we haven't had a restaurant that just focused on BBQ. Plus, they are doing a buffet-style serving option, which you don't see very often in town. You can get a plate, load up what you want to nosh on - sit down and enjoy yourself or load up a to-go plate, too. Everything has flat-pricing, depending on the side of the plate.

Legal Beans Cafe isn't going to be the next Dinosaur BBQ, Blue Smoke or Hill Country. Lets get that out of the way first. But, for Hoboken in which most restaurants are mediocre at best, this is poised to be one of the best in town.

After filling a medium sized plate of food for $10, on my way out, their credit card machines were not working yet - and were taking cash only. I didn't have cash on me and the Chase ATM was about 5 blocks away. Chris who was there, just shrugged - "Just pay us next time..." That's something you don't get in NYC. The neighborhood of Hoboken can't be beat. I went home with my plate of food with Rocco, who was very interested in helping with leftovers.

I tried the espresso-rubbed ribs last night. Fall-off-the-bone fantastic, with a dark chocolate, smoky undercurrent flavor. I was in love. Then I tried the pull pork. Sweet, but smoky with a dense thickness of pork that I haven't enjoyed since Hoboken Eddie was doing pulled pork sandwiches from the kitchen under Sullivan's Bar. Also tried Brined, Rubbed, and Smoked Chicken breast - I thought the briny flavor was great, but it clearly was sitting too long and was dry. Finally had the spicy sweet potato, which is mashed sweet potato with pepperjack cheese. Wow. Silky, creamy with a hint of 'jack - worth getting this every time. The best part about the buffet is you get to try different things or just load up your plate with ribs. It's really your choice. I'm a big fan of noshing on this & that - and i'm looking forward to my next visit to try the brisket & the BBQ chicken.

I called Chris after eating to give him my review of what I liked and what I didn't like. I told him that there was something 'different' about his southern style BBQ. He laughed and said, "Yeah, my wife - she's Filipino and we get spices that they don't sell in America and use that in our dishes. Peppers and other spices that you can only buy in Asian specific markets."

After talking with him a bit more and trying to convince him to add a Paleo mashed garlic cauliflower to the buffet for people like me, I told him that if the food quality stays high (for example I told him that the chicken was dry) - he would have a customer like me there every week. He told me that the Cafe was still a work in progress. They are using the buffet but also letting people know that you still can call in specific orders if you don't want a buffet. Or, if something that dries out quickly, like the brisket isn't on the buffet, you simply can ask for it in addition to other things from the buffet - they will make it on the spot for you. Also, the plate sizes will be changing. He plans for a medium, large and "super size" plates which will be something like (still to be determined) $7, $10, $15 depending on your appetite.

Only time will tell if Legal Beans Cafe will be able to thrive in a very fickle town like Hoboken. It's not on Washington Street and will really have to hope for a solid delivery business.There are not a lot of seats in the Cafe, I counted about 12 tables with 2 seats each (when the weather improves the outdoor seating will return), and many tables have been displaced by the large buffet counter in the middle of the cafe. Also they have changed their hours opening at 7am to 8pm weekdays (closed on Tuesdays) & will include a late night option for weekends - open until 1am on Fridays & Saturdays. I'm sure the kids at Stevens will love this. You can check out the

I never had a moment where I felt so helpless. I'm standing there in the cold and I realize that I can't walk. Do I call a friend? Call an ambulance? Ask a stranger for help? Funny thing is that my decision was simple - I was embarrassed that I was hurt. I didn't want to ask for help because I couldn't believe I was hurt to begin with and the pain level wasn't severe, but my leg couldn't bear weight. I simply had to use the edge of the building to lean against while I slowly - we are talking baby steps here - inched my way to the back door of my building to get access. Then up the elevator and doing the same process down the hallway, using both my hands to stabilize myself against the wall.

I thought I was going to need to call a doctor, every movement I was in "soreness pain". So I called my sister, "S". Explained to her what happened and she had me take four Advil and call her in the morning. Long story short - it worked.

Hip is better, but not ready for Crossfit. Aiming for Monday Mar 25 as the return.

What does this all have to do with Paleo? I'll tell you.

In years past when I didn't workout, I would think "Well i'm not working out, so I can cheat meal." Then cheat meal turned to cheat day. Cheat day turned into cheat weekend. Cheat weekend turned into cheat week.

None of that happened here. My "cheat" is when I don't cook for myself and I go to Chipolte or Qdoba and get a burrito salad in a bowl with lettuce, protein, guacamole and salsa. In the long & short of things probably not ideal-perfect Paleo, but its close enough. to what we are trying to achieve.

I weighed myself today - and for the record the weight is more of a barometer than anything else because muscle and fat may weight the same but it sits differently on the body due to density - and I was 218 pounds.

Five weeks and I lost 15 pounds. I haven't wore my "fat jeans" since week three. My belt is at the lowest notch setting, I can't tighten it anymore and i'm thinking its time for a new belt anyhow.

I feel good. I don't feel like i'm sacrificing to get to this, but sure i'd like a cupcake or a roastbeef sandwich from Fiore's. Oddly enough I don't miss alcohol very much, except when my friends have plans they all revolve around drinking. St. Paddy's Day - I skipped going into NYC. LepreCon - skipped. A friends birthday party at a bar - I went to it & drank seltzer.

There were a few nights when I got caught up in work or a game on my PC and forgot to make dinner. Rather than panicking and eating crap, I just skipped my meal rather than eat something "bad". Last night I had three clementines and a banana for 'dinner'.

What I learned from paleo is two things:

1. I ate too much. I generally was good on my diet before this Paleo Self Challenge. But had quite a few weekend days where I would eat a sandwich from Hoboken on Rye, chips, a coke and 2 regular sized cupcakes from "Sweet". I can't guess on the calories there, but would hazard my lunch was 2,500 calories alone. Add in there a few beers later, with pizza and could have been eating 5,000 calories a day. With Paleo, I wasn't craving food because I wasn't hungry. I could skip a meal and yeah I wasn't STARVING.

2. The absence of sugar makes all food taste better. We are a society that eats too much sugar. People know this. But they don't make any change in their lifestyle to stop it. I woke up one day, looked in the mirror and said, "This is not who I want to be." - some people think there is a magic pill they can take which will melt the fat. Appetite suppressant isn't the way to go because it doesn't fix the underlying issue - its the diet, stupid. What makes paleo easier is that when you start to strip away the sugar overload, bland food tastes better. Carrots are tasty. Brussels sprouts are delicious. A simple dish with lamb chops, tomatoes, garlic and curly parsley is out-of-this-world.

Plus, if *I* can do this - anyone can. My willpower is nearly zero. I am very shocked that I went 30 days without alcohol & on Paleo for the second year in a row. My goal is to allow Easter weekend to be a 'cheat weekend'.

Then what?

I don't know. Part of me thinks I should try to go another month on Paleo, but allowing for certain Paleo-friendly alcohols like red wine or non-grain grape-distilled vodka on the weekends. Maybe allowing for a cheat meal once a week (which I nearly guarantee would be Fiore's roastbeef!). We will see. I will keep updating here under "Paleo" to keep people informed.

Also a few closing notes:

People ask "HOW DO YOU FEEL??" - I feel fine. On Paleo i'm much more awake and less groggy. I'm always tired in the mornings. My sleep is good, but not the deep crazy sleep that people report when they are on Paleo. Although I can walk into my bedroom and be asleep within 5 minutes on Paleo, so that's a plus.

If you are thinking of trying Paleo - do it. If you want to try it like me, you can by Robb Wolf's Paleo book and follow his 30 day guide, or search for other Paleo cookbooks on Amazon. Most of my meals are from his book or doing Google searches for foods or meals I liked. For example, I learned how to make spaghetti squash & meatballs because I was craving meatballs. So I searched "Paleo meatballs" and read a few dishes over. Then I look at how my Nanny made meatballs with veal, and I came up with this:

2 pound veal
1 cup almond flour
4-6 minced garlic cloves
1/2 minced onion (very fine)
2 tbls basil
2 tbls oregano
1 tbls red pepper flakes
1 tbls chili powder
2 eggs
salt & pepper
Mix in a bowl with your hands - roll into balls. Put into oven at 350 on a aluminum lined baking tray 15 min on each side. Then, throw into my sauce for 1 hour:

Sautee 3-4 garlic cloves in olive oil, then add
28 oz can of tomatoes & 28 oz water
1 6oz tomato paste
2 tbls basil
2 tbls oregano
salt, pepper, 1/2 tbls red pepper flakes & 1/2 tsp chili powder
set on low heat & cover

Spaghetti squash cut in half, put in oven at 375 for 40 minutes. Scrape with a fork to get spaghetti when its cooked & is great when its a day old too.

To save time, bake the meatballs with the squash. The meatballs should be done with about 10 minutes left for the squash. Also you can throw in the oven Italian sausage to cook the same way for 15 minutes on each side & add that to the pot, too.

That's it. Paleo is worth trying for one reason alone - it works. Plus I don't feel like i'm 'suffering' while i'm on paleo. Sure, I kind of miss some foods, but its more like a wistful thing than i'm-craving-a-cigarette kind of mood.

Do it!

Paleo Part 2 - Week Three

2013-03-08T05:11:58Z

Day 16.

Up until this week I have mostly been feeling OK, no real major cravings and a bit tired. Seems like this week I turned a corner. I'm not feeling as lethargic as I did for the first 10 days. Getting a good amount of sleep, averaging 7 1/2 hours a night. Sleeping OK, was hoping it would be better by now, but really its just OK.

Crossfit going well. 4 days in a row last week. I worked out three days this week (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday) and did Thursday in my condo gym doing a mixture of lifting weights (bicep curls, bench press and pulldowns) and cardio (jump rope, sit ups, squats). I'll be back today at Crossfit. Trying to keep up Crossfit to 4-5 days a week.

Scale today was 225. Funny thing is that my 'fat jeans' are in the corner and I have my old jeans back on already. I can feel the reduction all around my midsection, its just less puffy than before. Still have work to do. My goal isn't necessarily related to weight alone, since a scale doesn't take into muscle vs fat. My goal is just feeling better in my body, and getting stronger at Crossfit.

My back was a major problem when I first started Crossfit again. Really sore. To a point where I could barely do much. It was embarrassing. But I did light weight - and got a massage at Body Balance each week. It really helped. This was the first week I was free of any back pain (soreness) from working out. Now my biggest issue is getting my endurance back, but I feel like each workout i'm a bit stronger than before.

No real issues with eating. Don't "miss" food like I thought I would. I think the key so far is that my breakfast is pretty much the same:
1. Omelette (with veggies) or Egg scrambled
2. 6 slices of bacon!
3. Mixed Fruit cup

Lunch usually is a chicken over greens or rotisserie chicken with a veggie side or left over dinner. Plus maybe a handful of almonds as a snack (no more than a handful).

Most of my dinners are stuff I search for online or from Paleo-centric cookbooks. Jambalaya, Veal Meatballs with Spaghetti Squash, filet mignon steak, Italian veal chops, Flounder Fillet with Dill Vegetables, and others. Sometimes in a time crunch I will go to the Taco Truck and get 6 tacos without shells and just eat that or go to Chipolte and grab a burrito bowl with salad (protein with sauteed veggies, guac and salsa).

Only issue with cutting out alcohol is that social life goes "bye bye" around Hoboken. Really, its kind of funny how much everything centers around having a drink. But, doesn't really matter - the weather is pretty crappy and most of my weekends have been quiet.

Paleo Part 2 - Week Two

2013-03-01T05:54:58Z

Last year my first foray into paleo was new and scary territory with lots of questions and planning.

This year it's been pretty easy. I kind of already know what I like to eat. My routine is mostly like this:

Breakfast: Black coffee, Bacon, 3 eggs, fruit cup.

Lunch: Rotisserie Chicken or chicken salad, or leftovers from last night.

Dinner: Some kind of Paleo dish from my cookbooks or internet.

Last night is a good example of "some kind of Paleo dish". I wanted meatballs. I looked around at a few recipes from different paleo sites. I also compared my Nanny's Meatball recipe which uses ground veal. So I bought ground veal from FreshDirect, and then modified a few things like taking out sugar and adding in chopped garlic & onion, red pepper flakes, chili powder and 1/4 cup of almond flour. Funny thing is - they turned out good! I wouldn't call it "great", I want to try some things differently next time like mincing the onion versus chopping it. Also I want to fry the meatballs instead of baking them like I did last night.

Most of my meals have been homemade, but a few easy ways to order locally and apply it to Paleo Diet:

Order 6 tacos from the Taco Truck - strip off the shell and eat the meat filling with a veggie side.
Order "salad" from Chipolte, order double meat, sauteed onion & peppers with fresh avocado - put some salsa on there and enjoy.
La Isla does a great roasted chicken breast, which is only $5 and great when you are in a jam for something to eat.

Haven't cheated except for one breakfast in which I ordered a Western Omelette and it had cheese in it - this falls under the "don't sweat the small stuff" mantra to the diet. I'm being strict but allowing for things like a packet of ketchup or A1 sauce. OH NO! THEY HAVE SUGAR IN IT. Yeah, yeah. I'm not drinking a pint of ketchup. The salsa at Chipolte could have sugar in it, but it was one meal out of 30.

I feel pretty good. Down about 5 pounds, but that falls under the "water weight" that everyone loses in the first week. I did Crossfit Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday this week. Felt stronger and my recovery a billion times better. I'm sharper - I can feel sharper. I'm still a bit tired, but that is because I haven't been sleeping enough hours - getting to bed late because i'm being dumb.

Interesting side note about sleep. Lately I have changed my approach to my bedroom. I used to play video games in there or surf the 'net. Since Paleo I tried to cut that down, with surfing the net with my iPad and playing games only occasionally. When its time for bed, I go immediately to bed - no TV, no computer, no reading. Bedroom is for sleeping. As soon as I get into bed, lights off and sleepy time.

You know what? That fucking works like a charm. I was definitely someone who had issues falling asleep because i'm thinking or whatever - just making the bedroom the place where you sleep...helps. So, my suggestion is get rid of the TV in the bedroom if you have one (I do not have one).

Open Letter to City Hall: Why The St. Patrick's Day Parade Needs To Return In Hoboken

2013-02-25T05:59:08Z

Often in my blog, I laud Mayor Zimmer. I think she's fantastic, and most everything she has done I have agreed with.

Most everything.

One of the hot topics where I disagree is the St. Patrick's Day parade. This isn't a simple issue. It's complex. There's certainly a lot of people affected by it, and the most obvious issue that critics point to is "quality of life".

Things that can't be disputed that on our parade day there are lots of people who come to Hoboken who could care less about a parade, and are simply looking for an excuse to drink. Considering that most of our fund raisers (Restore Our Shore at City Bistro or The Gala to Rebuild Hoboken) revolve around serving alcohol. You disagree? Try to have either of those events in a "family friendly" setting. Take away the bars from those fundraisers or any serving of alcohol & move those events to a Wednesday night. Think they would have the same turnout? You and I both know they wouldn't.

As for the issue of crime. Recently the city council discussed that last year crime was down compared to years past, and are using that as a reason why moving the parade to a Wednesday was a success. First off, there were far less people in town last year for the "LepreCon", even if 10,000 people online said they RSVP'd - a simple walk around town proved that there were far fewer people versus years past. Hence...less crime. Don't piss on my head and tell me it's raining. Of course if you have less people in town you will have less crime. That shouldn't be a reason to cancel this parade.

Here's the easy solutions that can bring the parade back to the weekends and make everyone happy:

1. Schedule it for a Sunday, not a Saturday. The argument from The Hoboken St. Patrick's Day Committee was that participants could not do a weekday parade because many of them are working. Saturday was the reason, but i'm sure most people will be able to make a Sunday parade. Plus, most younger adults can drink with wild abandon on a Saturday afternoon, whereas most younger adults may have a good time - but many of them have jobs on Monday and that will temper HOW drunk they get.

2. Create a Beer Garden for people to drink & charge them. We have similar tents for The St. Ann's Festival. Plus the St. Ann's Festival has live music. The Nerds played there last time. Why not do the same thing for the St. Patrick's Day event? We had Mumford & Sons play on Pier A last summer. I would do the same event, with live Irish Bands. This would do two things: 1. Less house parties and 2. Keep the drinkers in a place where they can be easily controlled.
It won't stop the house parties. It won't stop bars from having people drink. What it will do is diffuse those events by taking the 17,000 people who would normally be at a house party or a bar - and put them in front of the police. It will allow us to hire Class 2 police or, perhaps, a professional security company (like ones you see at other outdoor concerts) to patrol the "St. Patrick's Day Beer Garden", while "regular" police can patrol the city and respond to calls of disturbances. Visibly intoxicated people at the Beer Garden will be removed with zero tolerance.
Also, the money raised from this event can offset the clean up costs. Mumford & Sons attracted 17,000 people - and they sold beer at that event. Lets imagine to attend the Beer Garden you need a wristband to enter, each wristband is $5. Beer is $4 each, much like you would find at any bar in Hoboken. The wristbands alone would generate $85,000 (17,000 times $5). That's not including what the beer would generate, which I would hazard to say if everyone had 1 drink, that would be $51,000 (this includes beer costs, which would probably be $1 per drink, so expect $3 profile per beer). Also, I would hire for this event licensed Hoboken bartenders at $200 each - and there will be plenty of them available that aren't working the bar that day (trust me, as someone who bartended for 10+ years you can find free bartenders who want to make easy money pouring beer.

3. Move the Parade to Sinatra Drive. This is for multiple reasons. One, the argument from store owners is that they didn't like so many people blocking their store fronts. Two, this blocks major traffic on Washington Street. Three, people live along Washington Street & are affected by the quality of life. Let's move it to Sinatra Drive, where people can easily line up and watch the parade, with NYC as the backdrop. Have the parade begin at 11th Street and "end" at the Beer Garden, with Erie-Lackawanna Park and Hudson Place cars & taxis removed. People who want to watch the parade without having to listen to loud music & revelers along Washington Street can enjoy it without people bumping into them or making noise.

4. Create a "Family Friendly" area at the Hoboken Little League field. Its a large open space which is close to the parade & allows for kids and adults to watch the parade pass by on Sinatra Drive - with a fenced in area so its easy to watch your kids!

5. Work with the bar community. I know more than this than the average citizen. I happen to be friends with many bar owners. You know what they all say - they didn't like the parade. Yes, it increases revenue. But the headache of dealing with drunks on that day - by hiring more security and dealing with drunks really doesn't make it "worth it". An interesting idea would be the following: Bar owners agree that patrons need to buy wristbands to enter their bars - just like the beer garden. The wristbands are a $5 charge, and proceeds will go towards the city. Bars need to "buy" them from the city before the parade.
So, for example, Bar XYZ buys 1,000 wrist bands for that day or $5,000 which they resell. Now, no one is stopping Bar XYZ from selling those at a fair market value. They could sell them at $5....or $20. We all know that bars have a cover on parade days - plus people can then go to the bar or the Beer Garden. Say someone wants to do a few hours at the Beer Garden, and then join their friends at a bar - they can flash their wristband and don't have to pay a cover. People will say "Why should I pay for a $20 wristband at Bar XYZ, when its only $5 at the Beer Garden". Simple, supply and demand and the bars choice on what they price.
Also if someone leaves the bar for a smoke or whatever and they return with a wristband - then they aren't charged a cover again. The bar is "asked" to buy the number of wristbands equal to their occupancy. So, if Bar XYZ has 300 capacity, they buy $1500 worth of wristbands (if not more), which they make their money back by selling to people at $5 each - or maybe even giving those wristbands for free to their "regulars" (the bar eats the cost of $5, like a buyback). This is the easy way to create a Parade Tax, and if you figure we have 80 bars in town and even 40 of those bars get on board and buy on average 200 wristbands, that is $40,000 that the bars just generated for the city - if not more. Its more money than the ill-planned "fund" that Mayor Zimmer tried in 2009. Plus, my idea is $5 for a wristband. You could make them $10 each.

Use the parade to our advantage. My ideas would absolutely work, generate revenue for clean up costs and security costs - I hazard to say the city could generate $175,000+ on parade day (and that's a conservative estimate). It would satisfy the parade committee and if not keep all the curmudgeon homeowners happy, it would satisfy most of them except for the vocal NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) types who will never be happy.

Paleo Part 2 - Week One!

2013-02-22T05:44:07Z

I decided to "Go Paleo" again. For a few reasons:

1. I'm overweight. I weighed myself the other day and I was 233 pounds. I have never, in my life, been over 230 pounds. I'm 6'4, so technically its not quite the same when you are 230+ pounds and 5'9 - but still.

2. I feel like crap after eating. Literally falling asleep at my desk as my blood sugar skyrockets. Or, on the weekend, I take about a 2 hour nap.

3. I'm wearing my "fat jeans". Enough said.

4. I come home from work and often would just nap with Rocco next to me. Wake up around 7 and get something to eat.

5. I restarted Crossfit about a month ago, after taking the last 3 months off. I kept coming up with excuses. First it was Hurricane Sandy. Then it was "the holidays". Once January rolled around it was "too cold". I finally signed up by 2nd week of January and it was like starting all over again. I was so weak. My back hurt. My legs hurt. Kept putting off things.

I'll be first to admit that my willpower is my biggest issue. I have a sweet tooth. I like cupcakes and Tastykakes. Seriously, its bad. Secondly, i'm inherently lazy. Cooking for myself versus walking three blocks to get a sandwich is a no brainer. Plus I like beer and wine - and scotch. My drinking really isn't like it used to be, but usually 2-3 drinks on a Friday or Saturday.

The hardest part of eating right is the planning. Having food on hand in a pinch or when it is late and you are hungry and don't feel like chopping, cooking and cleaning up. There are a few ways to get around that, especially with Hoboken. La Isla makes a great rotisserie chicken breast. Chipolte you can get a naked lettuce bowl with protein and salsa. I'm not letting condiments stop me so i'm allowing for a ketchup packet with my eggs, for example.

What was getting me down was that I first tried Paleo where I allowed for alcohol. Then I allowed a cheat meal. Then I had a cheat day. Then pretty soon I was thinking "Oh, I was good for 5 out of 7 days..."

It starts to cascade. A few days ago I was eating Pop-Tarts after lunch at work. Something had to give.

So, here we are. Technically it is Day 3. I started on Wednesday. I wasn't planning to write about this, but I changed my mind because I figure it would hold me accountable. Plus, I figure I need things to write about, and haven't been updating the blog very often and didn't want to wax poetic on my Facebook about eating.

I plan on being 100% honest until Easter Sunday. No sugar. No bread. No dairy. No beans. No corn. No alcohol. I have 37 days left. Think I can do it?

Open Letter To Fix Hoboken: Create Hoboken Roadway Patrol (HRP)

2013-02-08T05:05:54Z

What's a Hoboken Roadway Patrol?

Basically it would be a law enforcement agency which has patrol jurisdiction over all Hoboken roadways (including any county roads within Hoboken's borders). The HRP would be a branch of the Division of Motor Vehicles in the Department of Public Works. Local police are primarily responsible for investigating and enforcing traffic laws - but having a HRP frees local police to focus on other tasks not related to the roadways. HRP officers enforce the New Jersey Vehicle Code, pursue fugitives spotted on the roadways or sidewalks and attend to all significant obstructions and accidents within their jurisdiction. HRP officers are responsible for investigating and disposing of car accidents, disabled vehicles, debris, and other impediments to the free flow of traffic. They are often the first responders at the scene of an accident (or obstruction), and in turn summon paramedics, firefighters or tow truck drivers.

The job of the HRP would be broken down (but not limited to) into the following main goals:

1. Setting up DUI/DWI checkpoints.
2. Combat speeding with speed traps.
3. Ticket for reckless driving.
4. Ticket for failing to yield right of way to pedestrians.
5. Ticket for disobeying traffic control signal or STOP sign.
6. Ticket for double parked cars.
7. Ticket for jaywalkers.
8. Ticket not using seat belt.
9. Failure to stop for a school bus or disobeying a school crossing guard.
10. Failure to yield to an emergency vehicle.

I think the reason why we have disorder in Hoboken is that people basically know that our police are busy with other tasks. When is the last time you saw a speed trap or a DWI checkpoint in Hoboken? When have you ever seen a cop pull someone over for blowing through a stop sign?

I have been here 20 years and I was once pulled over by a cop for speeding in 1995 on Observer Highway. They let us off with a warning. I don't recall ever hearing about anyone getting caught speeding in Hoboken - have you?

As for "who pays for all this" - its simple. First off, I would suggest that the HRP should not be designed as a 24x7 police department. I would suggest that these officers would work 8 hour days, and those hours can be staggered/shifted depending on the day. For example, wouldn't you like Hoboken to have that "extra patrol" of HRP when the bars are open at night - setting up checkpoints for drunk drivers and people speeding?

The goal of the HRP isn't about adding more cops. To me, that is pointless. What we need are police who have ONE job which is to focus on the roads and sidewalks. If there is an emergency or special event (like a parade day or city-wide festival) we can utilize these police for those situations rather than outsourcing from surrounding agencies.

Also i'd like to see HRP use Class 2 police officers, if possible. Plus it would be a good way to create a pool of "good officers" to choose from if openings become available within the Hoboken Police Department ranks, too.

More taxes? I don't think so. I would surmise that by using Class 2 police for 8 hour shifts and to focus on ticketing reckless drivers or pedestrians would pay for most of the costs. I think there would be an initial upfront cost, which we already are paying for since we have six Harley Davidson bikes that are barely used by the police. Also, I think in warmer weather you can have HRP cops (in tandem) who can patrol using bicycles like they do in other parts of the country. Also i'd like to see cops utilize body-mounted cameras to record activities by the drivers that can be used in courts.

What you do you think?

Frenchie Potty Training - Again!

2013-01-28T05:13:07Z

Hey, I just read your post on google. I just recently got my Frenchie and she is a doll and I love her to pieces but her potty training is bothering me. She knows when she pees on the carpet it's bad and she's not supposed to but it's like she hates going outside. I've had her for 3 days now and I have literally brought her outside 30 times and even walked her to get her to pee but she has not done it outside yet. I will bring her inside then 30 minutes later she'll find somewhere to go and then when I say no she knows immediately she wasn't supposed to and will run and hide then peak around the corner at me to see if I'm still mad. Anytime she gets up and starts sniffing I will say want to go potty? And I will bring her outside but she'll sniff Around and then just sit down then ill walk her around and she'll walk fine and ill stop hoping shell pee then she'll just sit back down again. So I bring her inside and watch her and she'll never go then just squat and per 20 minutes later. I live in an apartment so when I take her out she must be on a leash and I live on the 2nd flight so I have no backyard. Should I start doing puppy pads or crate bcus she acts like she gets distracted and I live right in the city and people are always outside. Thank you!

I guess the first thing that comes to mind is that its only been THREE days.

You have a puppy, this isn't Lassie. Its going to take a bit longer than three days to get used to the idea that outside = potty.

When I first had Rocco I would walk him every hour on the hour. Every. Hour. Not when he was sniffing - every single hour of a day I would take him outside for a 5 minute "walk". If he peed, I would be all "GOOD BOY GOOD BOY" and give him a treat. Also I lived in a 3rd floor walkup with no backyard when I did this. If I can do it, you can, too.

This was for the first 10 days. I know, its winter, and the weather stinks, but if you can't do hourly, how about every 2 hours?

Also if you have her in the house, tie her leash to your belt buckle. Everywhere you go - she goes. If you take a shower - she's in the crate. If you take a nap - she's in the crate. Anytime you cannot see your dog, crate your dog. You aren't hurting your dog. The crate should be out, in the open, with the door open, with toys and a nice blanket in there for her to snuggle on.

Puppy pads are a terrible idea because it makes the dog think that "potty indoors is OK!". Do not, at any cost, use a puppy pad or for the next 10 years you will have a dog that pees inside. I have seen in a hundred times.

Good luck - and lets see a picture of your doggie. I can't get enough of puppy pictures!

Sean
http://www.facebook.com/roccothebulldog

Staying At Home With Frenchies & Crate Training Questions

2012-12-26T05:07:38Z

Kelly wrote:
"Hi there, I read your entire post and found it very informative so thank you for posting that.

My girlfriend and I have looked into getting a French Bulldog and love the breed. But we both have jobs where we will be gone from 8-4 mostly every day, Monday thru Friday. We are going to do our best with having people stop by during the day but will still be an issue.

We are going to walk him before and after work an obviously be with him
4:00 to bedtime.

From your experiences do you see this as being a big issue. Thank you so much for your help!!!"

Reply: "That's not an issue*, just follow these steps:

1. Get a dog walker to walk your pup twice a day for the first 3 months. Your rule of thumb should be for every month the dog is old, they can hold their bladder for 2 hours. 2 months old = 4 hours until a pee & poop is needed.

2. Once you hit the third or fourth month you should be able to tell how long your dog can 'hold it' until they need to go. Around month three four, you can start trying the dog walker once a day. I used to do Monday-Wednesday-Friday were dog walk days and Tues-Thurs was 'doggie daycare'. I'm sure they have that in your area, where dogs can get dropped off and play with other dogs all day.

3. If you follow my rules that I wrote on philly2hoboken.com about housebreaking frenchies, you won't have any problems."

Jenna wrote:
"I loved reading your post on your experience with your Frenchie so far..

I was curious more in detail about his crate training and how it went? Did he cry alot if ever? I'm going nuts because I want to get him when he starts crying but the dog trainer said no! Eventually he will get it."

Reply:

The only time when I crated him and I was in the house was when I was taking a shower. Otherwise, I would crate him when I would leave. He didn't cry.

My suggestion is to listen to the dog trainer. Women are hardwired to respond to crying - so don't feel bad. But I will tell you a story. I used to walk Rocco and he would come to a complete stop on me, to a point where he would pull on the leash and wouldn't budge. I would turn around and he would give me a "look" as if to say "I don't want to walk in THAT direction."

So I gave in. I let him change our course. It was fun at first because I felt like I was being nice to Rocco and letting him go where he wanted to go. Eventually I had to get back to the house, so I led him back towards home and he stopped. I tried to explain to him "No, no - come on boy, lets go."

And he would walk a block and stop. Walk another block and stop. Soon this became our walks with him stopping all the time. See, what I thought I was doing was "being nice" when in reality he was "training me" to stop and do what he wanted to do.

You aren't a dog owner. You aren't his mother. You are his leader. You. Need. To. Lead.

It's not fun because in a way you just want that dog to be happy and wiggly and give you millions of kisses. But being a dog owner - or a leader - means making the hard decisions that you know are best. Crate training is a hard decision that absolutely will pay off in the future. There will be a day, probably by this time next year, that you will NOT need to crate your dog. So if you think about it, you just have to put up with your hurting heart for 1 year before your dog will be good enough that they won't need a crate to "hold it".

I haven't put Rocco in a crate in 2 years now.

Good luck!

Sean
www.facebook.com/roccothebulldog

*A note on leaving dogs at home - the reason I chose a French Bulldog is that I wanted a breed that wouldn't have separation anxiety. Upon doing my research, I found that Frenchies, and bulldogs in general, are good at being at home alone during the day. Now i'm sure there's going to be some readers out there who will immediately want to email me and tell me about their Frenchie who is neurotic and can't be left alone, but I would say the majority of Frenchies are good to go alone - not every single one of them.

With that being said, I often tell people please do your research before buying a dog. This isn't a toy or something to compliment your home. Its an animal with feelings. I made sure that very early on that Rocco had a dog walker seeing him every 4 hours when he was a puppy when I was at work. I would give him daily walks until he was about 18 months old, and then cut back to a twice weekly doggie day care. I cut that back, as he got older, to once a week doggie day care (on Wednesdays). In a perfect world, he wouldn't be alone - but there's no perfect situation for most dog owner.

Some dog owners are vehement about dogs never being left alone. In this regard I would agree - depending on the breed. Unfortunately this isn't a science and you simply will have people who are going to have to agree to disagree on dogs being left alone. I think, and this is just my opinion, that it's OK to leave a dog alone in your home, once they get "old enough" for this. You wouldn't want to leave a 5 year old toddler home alone, would you? I think the same is true for French Bulldogs. Early on, they need contact with people and other dogs. But, I think as they get older and more comfortable - they are OK home alone as long as if they are raised properly.

The Simple Truth About Liberals and Gun Control

2012-12-20T05:00:45Z

I was reading this article today.

"At some point, we will become a gun-safe, and then a gun-sane, and finally a gun-free society."

Jefferson wrote: "What country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance?"

The problem we run into is if you take all the guns away from the citizens what would stop a government from, in the future, slowly stripping away other rights until the day comes in which it is no longer a Democratic institution but a benevolent Oligarchy? It no longer fears the people could rise up and revolt, because they no longer have guns. "We can protest" people will say, and they will roll tanks into the squares to crush the opposition.

Absurd, right?

Tell that to the Chinese and the Tienanmen Square revolt for Democracy that didn't go so well. Tell that to the Syrians who are being slaughtered by a government that out guns them. We were a country born of revolt from a King that sought to oppress us.

The 2nd amendment is read like this:
"A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."

It means nothing about militia owning guns. It uses the militia as context here. Its recognizing that a militia is important FOR a free state, and the key is the COMMA - the pause to say "Hey we know militias are important BUT..."

The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall NOT be infringed.

That's it. We can squabble about what exactly the arms the forefathers envisioned, but at the time people could own the same guns that were given to military troops. Re-read what I wrote about Jefferson and keeping the government in check.

You give the government all the power - be careful what you wish for.