Saturday, August 31, 2013

Sunday Happenings in Bergen

Events and Things to Do in the Bergen County, NJ Area

You'll find information about Bergen County, NJ area festivals, fundraisers, concerts, dance performances, 5k runs, museum exhibits, plays, kids' events, health fairs, business networking opportunities and more on mybergen.com. The mybergen.com Events Calendar is updated daily.    
                                                                                         
Click here to sign up for the mybergen.com Weekend Planner E-Newsletter and we'll send you a weekly email loaded with information about things to do in the Bergen County, NJ area!

Don't forget to 'Like' mybergen.com on Facebook! You'll be kept in the loop with information about things happening in the Bergen County, NJ area.
 
Mybergen.com Featured Events
 
Allendale Farmer's Market, Presented by the Allendale Chamber of Commerce, Open every Saturday from 10:00 am-2:00 pm through November 16th.    Click here    for more information!
St. Leo's Annual Family Festival in Elmwood Park, September 5th-8th. Click here for festival hours and other information!
 

Sunday, September 1, 2013

8:45 AM
Location:
HUMC at Pascack Valley
250 Old Hook Road
Westwood
Contact Information:

View Website
8:00 AM-2:00 PM
Location:
Fort Lee Community Center
1355 Inwood Terrace
Fort Lee
Contact Information:

View Website
9:00 AM-2:00 PM
Location:
Train Station
Main Street
Ramsey
Contact Information:

View Website
9:30 AM
Location:
Memorial Field
Harrington Avenue
Closter
Contact Information:

View Website
10:00 AM
Location:
DeKorte Park
1 DeKorte Plaza
Lyndhurst
Contact Information:
201-230-4983
View Website
8:45 PM
Location:
Memorial Field
Harrington Avenue
Closter
Contact Information:

View Website
5:00 PM
Location:
Tommy Fox's Public House
32 S Washington Avenue
Bergenfield
Contact Information:
201-384-0900
View Website
1:00 PM
Location:
Memorial Field
Harrington Avenue
Closter
Contact Information:

View Website
3:30 PM
Location:
Tenafly Nature Center
313 Hudson Avenue
Tenafly
Contact Information:
201-568-6093
View Website
9:00 AM-3:00 PM
Location:
Railroad Station
Garber Square
Ridgewood
Contact Information:

View Website
4:00 PM
Location:
The Shannon Rose
1200 Rt 17 North
Ramsey
Contact Information:
201-962-7602
View Website
7:00 PM
Location:
Depot Square
Park Avenue
Park Ridge
Contact Information:

View Website
9:00 AM-2:00 PM
Location:
Closter Commons
570 Piermont Road
Closter
Contact Information:

View Website
4:00 PM-10:30 PM
Location:
St. Joseph Church Grounds
40 Spring Street
Lodi
Contact Information:
973-779-0643
View Website

Friday, August 30, 2013

Mom UN-friendly

When you have kids, you look for things to do and places to go that specify that they are "kid-friendly". Some places, just by the nature of what they do as a definition are supposedly kid-friendly. But to me, that term is very subjective and not necessarily true even if they exist as a child-centered activity place. What I'm getting at is that if you aren't MOM friendly, you're not really kid friendly either.

Who is dealing with the schedule, the payment, getting the children to and from? The parents. So everything has to work out for something to be truly family friendly. And make no mistake- if you're not family friendly, meaning that what you offer works for the whole family vs just someplace that happens to be designated for child related activity, then it really works for no one.

This is mainly what I never understand about child centered business. The same way advertisers target a certain demographic, it should be common sense that these places would also. But they don't. They target the child. And in most cases, the children who would be using these services are under six years old. Know what that means? They make little to no household decisions. So you want to strongly appeal to their parents. Yet, they don't.

Here's my example. I don't know why but there is pretty much nothing for kids to do AFTER their eight weeks of camp until school starts. In some cases, it's a week. But in others, like this year, it's THREE weeks. Well, if you work, that's a long time to be jockeying babysitting, calling out, or calling in many, many favors. Not as many people are using this time to go on vacation as you'd like to think. Trust me, you build it, they will come.

I was lamenting to a friend that I didn't know what I was going to do with my four and a half year old, VERY ACTIVR son for the next day. It was the one day I didn't have covered for childcare. I have to go to work. It's my store, but I still have to be there. She told me her son was going to a "camp" at My Gym in town. She said to call them and see if they had a spot. She also said she thought there might be a "registration fee" but they had a period of time they were waiving it so maybe they'd do it for me. I was thrilled that I could actually get him into an activity to burn off some energy. From 9-12 he could be there. Then it wouldn't be so bad for him if he had to sit in my store for a few hours after. I have a lighting store, not an indoor track. While he can amuse himself for quite some time, using all the staples, tape and paper we have is only going to take up so much time. So I called, all ready to sign him up.

Yeah, no. I called and was told that the "Lifetime Membership Fee" is $75 and it HAS to be paid. There is "nothing he could do". I told him that sounds insane for two reasons. One, this was sort of more of an emergency situation. I can't think about when I might need them again, which is a definite possibility, but I'd want to try it out first in this situation before I'm stuck with a fee. And for the one day, including the $40 it would be for the "camp", it would be costing me almost $40 AN HOUR. But he basically just said he was sorry. He didn't sound that sorry. I also went to their website & maybe I missed it but I couldn't find anything about this fee on there. Just that there were fun days added. From the site it reads like you could just sign up. If the fee was waived at some other time, you DO actually have the power to waive it THIS time. Maybe E would've gone and told me he loved it there. Maybe I'd sign him up for their other school break camps. I wasn't prepared to do anything right then except sign up for the next day camp. That moment I needed something for the next morning. But you don't know about the future. And part of your job is anticipating the future.

B says I have to respect the way other people choose to do business. But that's the thing. I really don't. Well, I can, and I guess I do, in the way that I will then respect my money and choose to spend it elsewhere. Because we own a business too. A small business that isn't the franchise of some big operation. And we bend over backwards for customers. We're dragging our four year old to your house, maybe a half an hour away, at his dinnertime, to see your room and help you decide the best kind of lighting fixture to put in there. We're dropping off a finial because you don't drive and can't get someone to drive you. We're picking up your lamp on a Sunday, our only day off, because it's too heavy for you to bring. You didn't like what YOU picked? We'll exchange it for you at no cost, even though we custom made it for you. THAT is customer oriented service. Telling me you want to charge me $115 for three hours of childcare, when I tell you it's kind of an emergency situation, is not. No, one was dying. I just needed to go to work. So it was an emergency to me and they had a spot for him. Seemed like it should work out if people are willing to work with you.

I'm sure they're not the only place that does this kind of thing. I'd say most of the issues I end up finding with kid oriented play places is with policy and management, not the actual places or activities themselves. The actual facility is clean and nice- I've written about them in a positive way prior to this instance. But- I sometimes think people open these kinds of businesses thinking it will be easy money. Then they've seemed angry or bewildered as to why it isn't that easy. Most parents that I know don't have just unlimited hundred dollar bills they're just wiping their asses with. We're very conscious as to where we spend our hard earned money. We all talk to each other, get recommendations from each other, and we all use the same places and services. I would think this would be something these places would take into consideration. Yet, it's always the same places doing the same things and it's baffling. Am I recommending the place that helped me out when I was in a sticky spot or am I recommending the place that just stressed me out? Come on. It's bad enough our workplaces in this country are so unfriendly to parents working outside the home, in a general sense. Then we get to contend with the places we want to send our kids to basically trying to gouge us because we need to be able to send our kids somewhere while we work. Find a way to PRETEND you care about my plight. Although, if you really cared, you'd have an option for care for the entire day....but that's another story entirely....

We have policies in our store. I understand policies. We make people pay upfront before we make something. But it's a tangible good they take home in the end. I don't really know what my $75 is used for. What I do know is that I don't actually get anything for it except the ability to pay more for any other time I use them. $75 is just excessive to me.

What I've found since having my son is that kid activity places don't seem to stay open long. I can name three off the top of my head who have been in and out since I had E 4.5 years ago. I used to see that kind of turnover in tanning salons when I worked in that industry. It was because a banker, lawyer or candlestick maker would think he could have an easy side business and thought money would just pour in. But if you don't know what you're doing or know how to best cater to your clientele, you fail. There is one kid place in particular (not My Gym) where the PLACE itself is awesome. I LOVE it there as just an activity. But I've held off on having an event or using their services because of the owner. He's turned so many moms off that I don't know how it's going to last. He nickels & dimes EVERYTHING and makes every parent request a whole production and wants to tack on more money. When parents use these places for parties or classes it's usually for the convenience! It's not because they particularly like basket weaving, doing the chicken dance or jumping for long periods of time. They are looking for easy, minimum to no work, a fun time for the kids, and no set up and clean up. For an affordable price. They are not looking to argue, fight, or to have to complain.

The point is, most moms will give places a real chance or few because they still need to entertain their kids and let them work out all their extra energy. We don't want places like these to close! I know so many people who were devastated when In The Swing closed. But we don't want to feel taken advantage of or like they think we need them more than they need us. It has to be a synergistic relationship. I was so furious after I got off the phone with My Gym because there was not even an offer to work with me. When I balked at the $75 fee, if you are going to refuse to waive it, tell me you'll take 50% off. Or even 50% off and if I need to do it again I'll have to pay the other 50%. I might have taken them up on something like that. If one of our customers really hesitates on price and they were nice, bought stuff before, seem like they might buy in the future, we totally give a discount if it's something not already discounted as low as we can do it and still make money on it. Because we'd rather make & retain the customer, not just get in the one sale. That's called looking at the bigger picture vs just the instant gratification of the full amount.

E has been to My Gym, but not in a year and I really don't know if it's too babyish for him now. But he did really like when he went for like 10+ birthday parties over the past two years. I just really don't like how they handled my situation and now I'm over them. I'm not boycotting or anything. I just am not paying that amount of money as just a fee.  I ended up hiring a fifteen year old babysitter, paying $28 dollars and getting more hours and my kid got one on one attention. Winning!

Thursday, August 29, 2013

Music and Fun for FREE

Need something fun to do with your little one(s)??

Music for Aardvarks- www.ahummusic.com

Please join us for one of our free trial classes coming up on September 7th, 8th, 10th, and 13th!

Sign up for a Free Trial class!
Saturday, 9/7 Waldwick
Superdome, 134 Hopper Ave.
10:30Bobby
Sunday, 9/8 Glen Rock
175 Rock Rd. Rear Building
10:30
Merri
Tuesday, 9/10 Park Ridge
The Valley School
24 Wampum Rd.
The Valley School is at the back most building in the parking lot, by the playground.
9:30
Bobby
Friday, 9/13 Glen Rock
175 Rock Rd. Rear Building
9:30
Bobby
10:30
Bobby

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Kilroy('s) was (is) Here

I find myself in like five supermarkets a week. Sometimes less but usually it's a combo of Shop Rite, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Pathmark and then a random depending where I am- possibly Oakland Farmer's Market (indoor), Kings, Stop & Shop, and finally Kilroy's, right here in Glen Rock.

I've had a theory since I moved here in 2006 that Glen Rock stays so quaint because it's surrounded by a "wall" of supermarkets. In Ridgewood surrounding area there are three, Fair Lawn surrounding area has two, and then on the Hawthorne border is one more. No one is coming IN to town to shop at Kilroy's but some of the people here are using it as their main market. I haven't been able to use it as my main market because I need certain brands of most everything. I also need a good selection of organic and healthier options. I have a four year old who also happens to be very picky. And I'm picky for him. But I also own a retail business and we're open six days a week. My son has school and extracurricular activities and I don't always have time to ride all the way to TJ's and Whole Foods is really expensive.

I run to Kilroy's all the time for something I've forgotten or just for convenience. But I don't buy a lot there because they really didn't have a lot of organic choices or just healthier options. So imagine my surprise and feelings of joy to see Applegate Farms organic products in the freezer. They also have taken in Earth's Best organic waffles and French toast sticks. I'm sure there was more in the way of organics but I was in a hurry and didn't get to really look around. But I saw those things and was thrilled at the direction Kilroy's seems to be going in. Now, if I had to run out to grab something for E quickly, it doesn't seem like such a huge pain in the ass. The Applegate Farms Organic burgers (beef/turkey) are $6.99. Some Shop Rite stores sell it for $7.99 so Kilroy's is definitely not pricing themselves out. I didn't see if they have kefir or Applegate organic hot dogs but who knows what might be around the bend for them. They might have had some Amy's Organic stuff too.

So, don't count the little guy out. I try to shop local mom & pop as much as I can because I, too, am local mom & pop. But they have to have all of what I need....and now...they actually do. They'll definitely see more business from me! Get me some organic puree pouches (Plum Tot, Happy Baby, Ella's, etc), Dickinson's Seedless Black Raspberry jelly (my own vice), Coleman organic nuggets (green box), Lifeway or local brand lowfat kefir, Annie's organic products, and Horizon 1% milk (regular not flavored) boxes by the case and maybe I won't have to leave town so often.

http://www.kilroyswondermarket.com/

Saturday, August 24, 2013

Best of Bergen 2014

So every year 201 Magazine does the Best of Bergen issue in February of the new year. But the voting starts in August and usually goes until November.

We need your vote! Let's make this the FOURTH year in a row!

Best Home Décor store is #68 in the Best of Bergen Readers Poll- That's our category. Just type in Shades of Soho, Glen Rock.

We really appreciate it. Winning is really important to us- it's a great way to get some free advertising, a boost in sales, and just getting the word out there that we exist. We can't do it without you and your votes.

Thanks!!

http://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/1317130/201-Magazine-s-Best-of-Bergen-Readers-Poll-2014

Friday, August 23, 2013

Facebook Gynecology

Does your gyno have a Facebook page? Mine does. I'm looking at it right now. I'm at work today, smiling, thinking of my gynecologist's office. That totally sounds weird. But in a way, isn't that how it should be? I mean, it's the most intimate of all doctor-patient experiences, right? It's one most women dread. I've never heard any woman, any friend of mine, say that they can't wait for their gynecology appointment. BUT, you can have a "better" experience.

Since college, I've had like fifteen different insurances and I've moved around a decent amount. I didn't just move around Bergen County. I moved from Bergen to Mercer and back between 1992-2001. I've had lots of doctors. Including gynecologists. I saw a woman for a hot minute in Englewood I think but she was going on maternity leave the next week. I went to a crazy man who saw me in a room filled with what looked like moving boxes. I wasn't sure if I was in an exam room or a broom closet. One time, I was supposed to have a procedure and they FORGOT about me. So I was naked in an exam room/broom closet for close to an hour before they realized I was there. The last time I went there they told me they moved. When I got in there the staff was behind bulletproof glass. I didn't know what was going on. I was thinking maybe the broom closet wasn't so bad. He was cool in the way that he'd call personally at any hour, like 9p, if he had something to tell you. But then he told me something was wrong with me that wasn't. I decided to find another doctor.

I knew I was going to start trying to have a baby in 2008. I must have asked friends for a recommendation for an OB/gyn. I'm not really sure how I ended up finding Dr Craig Wiener. I know my one friend had been going there her whole life and her mom had gone to his dad. And maybe she used his dad too. In any event, I chose him. I think that was in 2008. And from the beginning he was great. Admittedly, the office back then was kind of a shitshow. It was hard to get an appointment and when I'd have one, I'd be sitting for hours in the waiting room.

But now- I don't know what they did over there. I've been going there every month for a year doing their weight loss program. Yes, they do other stuff! I think they even do Botox but you'll have to ask them about it. The ENTIRE year- the office runs like CLOCKWORK. I come in for an appointment and I think the longest I've waited, IF I've had to wait, has been fifteen minutes! It's amazing. The staff is all really nice and caring and they all know who you are. Lisa, Erin, Mary (squared) are all really nice, smiling faces to see when you're going to the doctor specialty you least want to be seeing. It's not like when you go to "doctor factory" and no ones knows anything about you. It's like that old-school "family doctor" feel. And when I see Dr Craig, it's like he has all the time in the world to discuss whatever. He asks about E, work, my husband, etc.

Someone JUST asked me for my gyno recommendation. I went to the FB page so I could copy and paste the link in the email back and that's why I'm smiling. I'm seeing all these new babies they're posting pics of as new additions to the Comprehensive Women's Care Family. They put up new info, and they stay current. When we had the power outages after Sandy, they were seeing patients by candlelight and I knew they were open because they posted it on their FB page. It's just cool to be able to communicate with the doctor's office like that. I saw the post, asked if I could come in and they said yes. It was the equivalent of sending a text. I think that's pretty cool.

Anyway- while I was thinking nice thoughts about my doctor's office, I thought I'd get it down and give them a shout-out.

Here's their FB page- https://www.facebook.com/pages/Comprehensive-Womens-Care-of-Oradell/159063570790648

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Glen Rock Car Cruise

Glen Rock's first Car Cruise is this Sunday evening 8/25. (It rained this past Thursday)


If you know anyone with a Classic, Muscle, Exotic or otherwise Fantastic car, please let them know.


A list of specials for the night by local businesses will be available at the cruise.


Prizes will be given to select cars.


Please plan on coming down to see the fun and consider grabbing a bite to eat in town while you are at it.


It all starts at 6:30PM at Veteran’s Park on Main Street near the 9-11 Memorial.
  We hope to see you and your cars there.

Join the Friends of Glen Rock Facebook page to get more info on events!

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Friends-of-Glen-Rock/110567729113982


Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Letter


I received this letter in my Facebook inbox just to let me know it was written & sent. I asked if I could share it & got the go-ahead. It's a letter from someone I grew up with about the carousel. And she doesn't even have children who are melting down over it. It's not just the local moms who are in an uproar....

To Whom It May Concern,

I wish to address the removal of the Carousel at Paramus Park, the only mall in this area I actually enjoy going to.

As a loyal customer for over 30 years, and the child of loyal customers since the mall's creation, I am truly disheartened.

I am not upset only because of the carousel's removal, but in the manner in which the managing company of Paramus Park has conducted themselves in this change.

To give the owners of the Carousel only 5 days notice of this non-negotiable change is simply ungracious, rude, and heartless.

Many of us love the Carousel, it's history, and it's charm.  It is the one draw left that brings children to this mall.  Your toy stores, positioned around it have their businesses buoyed by the children peeking at the windows as they ride.  The mothers and fathers of Bergen County choose this mall for it's smaller size, and the bribery factor of the Carousel.

Those of us who love that mall still weep and stare in disbelief at the ugly puddle you chose to replace the gorgeous, sweet-smelling waterfall with.

I can't help but note in many articles that you feel your replacements of a play area and large-plastic chess pieces are suitable replacements for the Carousel.  I assure you, without any hesitation, that any child of mine would not be permitted to use either.  The chess pieces are germ-ridden, and strewn, as the children drawn towards them are not remotely interested in them, and do they know how to play chess.  The play area in front of Sears has already been a site where my friend's young child was continually hurt by another child in the area.  The Carousel is the best solution for all parents taking their children to the mall.  There is no contact involved, and the parents can choose to wipe down their child's horse.  Additionally, nothing in the mall lights the eyes of the children as the carousel does. Parents smile broadly since they can get their shopping done, and then nostalgically watch their children ride the horses as they once did.

My criticisms of your management of the mall form a very long list.  You removed the live trees, which perfumed the air of the enclosed space with freshness.  You removed our most beloved waterfall, and replaced the crown jewel of your entire piece of real estate with a puddle that couldn't possibly ever replicate the glorious smell and sound of the tumbling water. You already have plans to expand the mall, and I assume compete with Garden State Plaza.  But there is something you don't appreciate about your own property.  That those of us who go only do so because we prefer the smaller space, and the shorter walks.  Because Paramus Park used to house great stores that now can't afford to set foot in your mall.  McDonald's would have a packed house at any given time, when they had a restaurant space with seating.  Now you've overcharged a multi-million dollar corporation away from even staying at the pathetic counter you left them.

I understand your corporate location is in Chicago.  Perhaps in Chicago, this is what your consumers want.  But here, in New Jersey, you need to do your research, and do it quick.  Many of us resent the Garden State Plaza, and find it too intimidating to approach.  The same goes for The Palisades Center Mall, and the re-vamped Bergen Mall.  We CHOOSE Paramus Park for it's size and convenience.  Ask the locals what they want.  Give us the survey; we will fill it out in resounding numbers and tell you that your moves, so far have been in every other direction than the right ones to keep us as customers.

Until you make the effort to ask us what we would really enjoy in that mall, I will choose to shop elsewhere.

Sincerely,

Casey Marie Hittel


Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Bergen Record Reports On Loss Of Carousel

Mothers mourn loss of Paramus Park mall's old-fashioned carousel


Tuesday August 20, 2013, 9:28 PM


The Record


At the Paramus Park mall, it seems, if the moms are happy, everyone is happy. On Tuesday, however, the moms were unhappy about the news that an old-fashioned carousel that has kept generations of children amused for nearly 40 years has twirled its last tot.
The carousel at Paramus Park mall has closed.
BOYD A. LOVING / SPECIAL TO THE RECORD
The carousel at Paramus Park mall has closed.



“‘Meet me at the carousel’ cannot be said anymore,” said Caren Fassbender, the mother of a 2-year-old and a frequent visitor to the mall, which has carved out a niche as Bergen County’s mom-friendly shopping center. “It was a Bergen County icon.”

The small, 18-seat ride – the Golden Horse Carousel — was shut down Tuesday, and will be removed from the mall within the next two weeks, said Minnie Adams, the mall’s manager. She said Paramus Park did not renew carousel’s lease, and the mall plans to temporarily use the space it occupied for its Santa Claus station during the holidays.

The ride’s operators began telling customers last week that carousel was leaving Paramus Park, Adams said.

News of the carousel’s closing spread rapidly among the moms of Bergen County, who took to Facebook and other social media sites to comment on the move, and in at least one case to mount a “Save the Carousel” campaign.

Tara Diamond-Kule of Glen Rock wrote about the carousel removal on Monday on her blog, Know-it-all in NJ, and called on fellow mothers to call the mall office and email the mall’s manager urging them to spare the carousel.“The backlash from moms is very strong,” she said.

Diamond-Kule, 39, grew up in New Milford, and remembers riding the carousel as a girl. In recent years she has enjoyed visiting it with her son, now 4. “I know a lot of people who went to the mall to take their kids on a final ride,” she said in a telephone interview Tuesday evening. “I know I did.”

Paramus Park is preparing to build a major addition that will include a movie theater and several new restaurants, but construction work related to the addition is planned for the opposite side of the mall from the wing where the carousel stands. Diamond-Kule said she understands that the mall needs to remodel and stay current, but she doesn’t understand why the carousel simply couldn’t have been moved to another part of the mall. “It’s not that big,” she said. “I feel like it could fit in someone’s backyard. I’ve seen bounce houses that are bigger.”

Paramus Park was considered Bergen County’s state-of-the art showplace mall when it opened in 1974. For 25 years, nothing changed, and fans of the mall liked that. When changes eventually were made, they usually were accompanied by protests. In 1999, management removed the two-story waterfall in the center of the shopping center, triggering similar complaints that “Meet me at the waterfall” was an essential part of the Paramus Park experience.

Joan Gaige, who managed the carousel for its owners, the Hackensack accounting firm Bowen & Bowen, said the carousel’s operators did not want to leave the mall. “It was a mall decision,” she said, “not ours.”

Adams, the mall manager, said in an email that Paramus Park doesn’t “have any announcements to make at this time regarding what will replace The Golden Horse Carousel for the long term, but when that time comes, we know our shoppers will be just as excited as we are.”
The mall is owned by General Growth Properties, which also owns Willowbrook Mall in Wayne. Adams said it is “constantly evaluating the evolving needs of the market and working hard to meet those needs and expectations.”

Paramus Park is viewed as the “small mall” in comparison to the Westfield Garden State Plaza, which sits to the south on Route 17 and is the largest mall in New Jersey. Paramus Park is seen as having more mom-friendly shops and features than Bergen Town Center, also in Paramus, or The Shops at Riverside in Hackensack. The carousel sits in a wing named the Carousel Court, surrounded by a children’s photo studio, children’s clothing retailers and other kid-friendly merchants.

Fassbender and other parents who were eating at the Tom Sawyer diner Tuesday evening said that losing the carousel will make them think twice about visiting Paramus Park. “When you’re at home with a toddler full time, you need something to do – especially on a rainy day,” Fassbender said.

“They need to have things for kids if they want families to go to the mall,” said Karen Asta of Waldwick, the mother of a 2-year-old. She used to ride the carousel as a child with her brothers.
“How do we blackmail the kids to get them to the mall?” she said. The carousel was the answer, she said. “That’s how our mom got us to the mall.”

Email: coutros@northjersey.com; verdon@northjersey.com

See more at: http://www.northjersey.com/community/Mothers_mourn_loss_of_Paramus_Park_malls_old_fashioned_carousel.html?page=all#sthash.7DunC1iW.dpuf

Monday, August 19, 2013

Save the Carousel!

I moved to NJ from NYC when I was two and a half years old. I'm now almost forty. My mom told me I wanted grass so she wanted me to have it. We moved to mid-Bergen County and I got my grass. And malls. Closest to us was Paramus Park. It was just the place you went for everything. I had my fifth or sixth birthday party at Farrell's, where McDonald's had been residing for years and years. In middle school, my friends and I spent all our babysitting money at G&G and some store, the name escapes me, where you could get chatchke stuff personalized for gifts. (Someone help me out with this one). In high school I'm pretty sure I spent most Friday or Saturday nights there smoking cigarettes with Jerry & Mike, and sometimes with the boys who worked at KB Toys- Tom, Jay and Tom's friend who wore giant furry boots. Most of our time was trying to meet boys from other towns. When I was fifteen, I lied about my age to work in CVS. You had to be sixteen to work there. But Ann & I wanted to work in Paramus Park & that seemed like the best bet to be hired with no real retail experience. She had Burger King on her resume and I had a deli. CVS eventually left or got kicked out and is also now something else. They broke it up into two spaces and one of the spaces became some kind of gaming store- not sure what it is now. I spent my first CVS check at Littman Jewelers on a birthstone ring. I put it on layaway and paid a little every month until I quit five months later. My mom paid the rest as a holiday gift surprise.

I got lost in there as a kid. Somehow I made it to the mall office by myself. They called for my mom over a loud speaker. It just so happened my father was in there on business- Macy's was a client. It was just one of those things you don't want to hear over a loud speaker at a mall- that you child who is supposed to be with your wife is at the lost & found. As something "lost". I feel like I lived in that mall. I can close my eyes and picture the guys in Sid's Pants. I remember thinking the guy with the long black hair in Just Shirts was the cutest I'd ever seen, who I coincidentally became friends with later on working together somewhere else. There was the girl with really long eyelashes and huge black permed hair that worked in Sgarlato's pizza. Where the pizza was always so hot (but delicious) that you burned your mouth. I think before Express existed, Canadians was in Express's old-old spot and that was where you got STEEL jeans and those polyester faux-layered outfits. Like, where it looked like a button down white shirt with a vest over it. But wait! It was actually just one piece- a vest with shirt arms & neck sewn together! Novel!

Today: 8-19-13
Some things stick out the most though. Real nostalgia. There was the ginormous waterfall everyone threw their change in to make wishes, that was next to the escalator.  It seems huge in my mind but it probably was a lot smaller in real life. Then there was gigantic metal statue thing. I feel like it was a bird with a guy on it but I have no idea. It was just always there- a  landmark of the mall. Some years ago, they moved it to another part of the mall but it's still there. And last, but definitely not least, was the carousel. It plays totally bizarre songs like "Found a Peanut" which, for all intents and purposes, is about dying from eating an old rotten peanut. But it makes me laugh every time I walk by and hear it. I will never forget going on that carousel with my grandparents when they were in from Florida or begging my mom for just one ride. That was also when The Children's Place had that big slide that looked like an old TV set. I'm sure that was one more casualty of insurance and litigious parents. We'd go on the slide, get our clothes for a new school year, and get in a ride on that carousel where what color horse you were able to get on was of the utmost importance. They were the prettiest of carousel horses too. Blue, pink, purple, airbrushed. It's small, doesn't go fast, but it was the perfect kind for a first ride.
2010

I didn't live in Bergen for about ten years. And I didn't have a child until 2009. But at one point, for about a year, we were going to Paramus Park EVERY SINGLE SATURDAY NIGHT. Why? We would eat at Bensi, which had a liquor license. They had a TV in the back room they'd turn to Nick Jr for me and the other parents back there. We'd get a glass of sangria each and have a nice dinner with our kid. Then, we'd let him run his energy out to the now-small fountain, as the waterfall had been taken away years ago, throw his pennies in, and then run to the carousel. We'd let him go on one or two times, run back through the mall, I'd pick up a thing or two in Gymboree, BabyGap, and/or The Children's Place (minus the slide). That was just our Saturday night routine. Then Paramus Park management dropped the hammer on Bensi and we stopped going to that mall altogether as our routine. But every now and again I'd get over there with my son. I'd be going to run an errand, like pick up a gift for a child's party, but I'd really be choosing THERE because of the carousel. And I liked that weird store that is also now gone- the one that was part hair salon, part Spencer's, part beauty supply.

Now they are taking away the carousel. YUP. THAT'S WHAT I SAID. Taking it away. Why? I've heard it's because the management wants more money from the carousel company. I don't know if that's the case or not. So this isn't "hard news"- just word of mouth. My guess is that they think they are going to do a major overhaul of the mall and they want bigger, better, cooler, etc. But no one wants that. We just want to keep some of the charm we have all loved over the years. If we want bigger and faster, we'll go to Garden State Plaza. But that's not what the people who frequent Paramus Park want.

I get needing to make it a more viable mall as a whole. I understand that Paramus Park has to compete with Garden State Plaza, and now, Bergen Town Center. But it can compete without losing all that made it what people like about it. They like that it feels like home. A movie theater can be added and rocking chairs and whatever else that has been done to improve and upgrade. But leave us our damn carousel! Please! There are so few simple joys in life and that carousel just happens to be one of them. It's not Six Flags Great Adventure. It's not some kind of crazy thing that gets a story in the news. But it's something that gives a smile to all the little kids that come through there daily. It's been a smile, a bribe, a treat, a reward, and quality time spent together as family.

Today is supposed to be the last day the carousel will be giving rides. So if you want to go over there and take a photo and/or stop in the mall office and complain, this is your shot. The mall office is up by the food court. My friend says you have to look for it, it's between stores but it's there. Or you can email the GM- minnie.adams@ggp.com or the management phone number is 201-261-8000 x4. She might as well get a flood of angry mommy emails and/or calls. At least you can feel like you have a voice! As for me, I need to go to Claire's or something like it for a new earring for my son. So I guess I'll be taking a ride over myself later today...








Thursday, August 15, 2013

Honor Thy Neighbor

Or neighborhood school. And your town.

I don't know what the hell is going on over here in Glen Rock. I like to call it the Mayberry of Bergen County. And it usually is just that. It's quaint, seems small, even with a population of around eleven thousand and nothing really happens here. Sure, we have drug busts left and right of people passing through and the random thefts of personal property from unlocked cars. Hi, just lock your cars. But I'm really disturbed at the vandalism at the elementary schools. It's disgusting.

My son doesn't go to elementary school yet but we've walked by the school and seen the cool new equipment that has been put up recently. We've played basketball on the new hoops and everything was looking really great.

Then- graffiti, broken fences, and other vandalism has occurred over a short period of time. Hey- I get it- I was a teenager. We hung out on the school playgrounds. But we never trashed them. For what? So little kids can't play? Granted, our playgrounds weren't made of safe, light, resin/plastic materials. We would've had a hard time trashing heavy metal monkey bars and the like.


And no, our parents weren't around 24/7 but I still want to know- where are the parents? Are we talking to our kids about respecting other people's property? Are we doing enough to teach them right and wrong? I also want to know if kids have a little fear of their parents anymore? Because I don't think that's such a bad thing. Fear doesn't have to mean fear of getting knocked into next week. It could simply mean fear of disappointing you. Fear of SOME kind of punishment or repercussion. Maybe losing the lifeline of their iPhone? Their computer? SOMETHING.

I'm really thinking this behavior is all part of the bigger problem of parents wanting to be their child's friend more than do the hard stuff- which is to hold them accountable for bad behavior. I'm not a fan of the whole hippie-dippy trying to reason with them or talk about their feelings of why they're behavior is atrocious- mean-spirited, violent, rude, irresponsible, disrespectful, etc. How about just some clear expectations and real follow-through on consequences? Kids do stuff like trash a school-yard for a few reasons. They do it because they can, they do it for attention, to look cool, because they're taking out some kind of aggression....OR, they're just inherently little assholes.

I don't know why this is happening at all of the elementary schools in town. I don't know if it's that it's unexpected, that no one is adequately patrolling these areas, or what. What I do know is that we need better lighting and better cameras, more patrolling, and maybe we need some kind of old-school Neighborhood Watch (without guns- I'm not talking George Zimmerman kind of Neighborhood Watch), where people take turns, in teams of two, patrolling the areas. I walk at night all the time and I walk past two of the four elementary schools. Sign me up.

I'm also not against shaming any perpetrators that are caught. I feel like in a small town like this, the best way to get the behavior to stop is to embarrass them. Or their parents. Is that too much? No, I don't think so. I don't feel bad doing it. If you have the balls to deface and ruin other people's property and think it's funny, then you should have your identity plastered all over the place so people know exactly what kind of character you have. Harsh? Not to me. If it was my kid, I'd be mortified. I'd WANT his face recognized as the person who did something so stupid, careless, and disrespectful. He'd have to learn a lesson. Lessons that I think have become sorely lacking in our new touchy-feely version of parenting.

I've been told by tweens and teens in town who it "probably" is- no one has definite IDs, video, or photos. Just speculation. I asked what the story is with the parents and got the same thing every time- "Oh, their parents don't care what they do....they can do whatever they want. They stay out until whenever they want." Of course that's just hearsay, but is that what you want said about you as a parent? I know I don't.

I went by the school last night to see the damage myself and take some photos. Not only was there damage but there were beers in the garbage there. This isn't a hidden playground. Anyone walking or driving by could see anything going on in there. When I was in high school, you went deep in a hidden area to drink or smoke. This is just totally brazen and I have to question how no one has been caught there....


Chair seat in park

Ripped fence #2




Wednesday, August 14, 2013

To Market To Market

Someone I'm friended to on Facebook posted about this awesome farmer's market in Oakland. I didn't pay too much attention because I'm not really into the farmer's market thing. I already go to enough supermarkets and I need to be able to get more than what's at the average farmer's marker. But then I read the word "indoor". Intriguing. So I read on.

It's in the shopping plaza where the DMV is housed. The awesome DMV where you're pretty much in and out at any given time of the day or month. Anyway, it's right in there. I decided to take the drive because I also needed to go to Shop Rite which is another few miles down the road there. My FB friend exclaimed about the low prices for good fruit and vegetables. How could I resist?

I went in and she was right. The first thing I saw was three packages of baby carrots for $1. Yup. I bought them. Downside- I didn't notice till I got home that the sell by date is August 15. I won't be able to eat that many baby carrots in that time but it's not like carrots go bad on that date so whatever- for $1, it's fine. E eats them with dip as his dinner veggie. I guess he'll be eating them all week.

Next was 6oz blueberry packages for $.99/each. And they look and taste great (I'm eating them right now). Driscoll's blueberries. I bought $4. B eats them in his cereal and E would eat them in place of raisins with his morning pancakes.

Cucumbers were 3 for $1, and while I don't remember the exact prices, the grapes, plums, and nectarines were cheaper than regular supermarket prices. I didn't get to taste those all yesterday but the grapes were the same brand as what I buy in a small, more local to me market and they were much cheaper.

The interesting thing was the rest of the stuff in there. It was really random. They had a decent amount of organic products, and obscure ones I haven't even seen in Whole Foods. But they didn't have gallon size organic skim milk. Only all the other fat-full ones- 1%, 2% and whole. So I didn't buy milk there. But they had Applegate Farms Organic Chicken Strips, which I have a hard time finding in regular supermarkets. And they were like $6.49 and if I can find them in Shop Rite or Fairway, they're at least $6.99-$7.99. They had the organic puree pouches- new flavors (from the same old brands) that I haven't seen yet in Target, Fairway or Shop Rite. But they were more expensive for those. Kashi frozen dinners were more expensive in Oakland Farmer's Market than in Target which I went to for my Lean Cuisine's later. They were like $5.49 vs like $3.99.

But on fruit and vegetables- it was definitely worth it. All the fruit looked really good and fresh. Sometimes it doesn't even look that good in the supermarket. I did want red and yellow grape tomatoes which may have been there but I didn't see them. I saw red ones but they were on a vine and I didn't want them like that. Plus, the one package of red ones I picked up were all shriveled.

The prices of the other products weren't bad- some were comparable to regular supermarket prices. They have interesting brands you might not be able to find easily elsewhere. They also have gluten-free products as well. I don't think you could do your whole food shop there but you could do a decent part of it and definitely great for some good organics in a pinch. They also had a full deli area but I'm not sure if they had any prepared food. I didn't have time to check it out and I don't buy cold cuts.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/giant-farmers-market-oakland-2

Monday, August 12, 2013

Aardvark News!

I have a real soft spot for the Music For Aardvarks program. I used them with E for a LONG time. Longer than I should have really, because we'd done every semester from when he was eight months old until he was approximately two and a half years old. E just couldn't sit still anymore and he was ready for more drop off classes. He was in school already without me and used to being dropped off. He just got really wild in his Aardvarks class so we said good-bye to Sean & Pat and our David Weinstone CD's.

But- I do get their updates. And I got a text this morning from a friend who asked if I knew Music for Aardvarks was not only coming to Glen Rock, but coming into the same shopping plaza my own store is in. I had no idea. I knew they'd inquired about space here like six months ago or more but I forgot about it.

So I just wanted to share the email with all their updates that I received this morning in case anyone is looking for a fall activity for their children. They do a really great job, the music is much cooler than the average kids music, and the teachers are all really great.

I'll also add that the space Aardvarks is taking is becoming a real cool little hub for "healthy" and more interesting kid stuff activity. There is karate, ballroom dance, and yoga back there along with a juicing café. The yoga studio has classes for kids as young as 3-4 years old. I know because E took yoga there and really liked it.

Dear Families,
 
What a great summer this is!  We are having so much fun with you and your children in class, and The Hums just performed a Pajama Jam in Woodland Park at Dowling Gardens as part of the Alfred H. Bauman Free Public Library's Summer Concert Series.  Thanks so much to all our Aardvark families who made the trek to come sing and dance with us. What a fun family evening in the park! We’ll be scheduling another Pajama Jam soon, so stay tuned!
 
We know you’ve been waiting for the Fall schedule, and it is now up on our website!  We apologize for posting it later than we usually do, but we have a lot to tell you about. 
 
We'll start with some bittersweet news: after working with us for five years, Kristen is taking a break from teaching classes.  While we are so sad to see her leave, and we will miss her dearly, we are happy for her.  She has decided to explore some other parts of her music career.  If you don’t know, Kristen is a highly accomplished professional opera singer (she’s performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and around the world) and she is now exploring opening a private voice studio.
Also sadly, while this has only been Ana’s first semester leading classes on her own, she is not going to be able to teach with us in the Fall.  We’re so glad her families have had so much fun with her this summer, but she is off to graduate school at NYU, and we wish her much success and happiness!  
 
Now on to the good news…
 
First of all, you may have seen an old familiar face in some classes over the summer -- our very first guitar player Bobby is back, and he will be leading classes beginning this Fall!  For those of you who are long time A Hum Music families, you will remember Bobby as a really fun, talented back-up musician.  He also plays bass with The Hums at our Pajama Jams.  We've missed him these last few years as he has been performing around the country, as well as teaching in Brooklyn.  He's such a talented musician, energetic teacher, and great guy -- we can’t wait for you to get to know him!

But wait, there’s more good news!  No, GREAT news…!
 
As you know, we always listen to your feedback, and we try our hardest to make your and your little one’s musical experience the best it can be.  In that effort, we have been searching for a better space for families who take classes in our Ridgewood location.  After a long, hard search in Ridgewood and the surrounding towns, we are so excited to tell you we found an amazing place in the neighboring town of Glen Rock.  We know you are going to love it!  The studio is beautiful, and best of all there is a huge parking lot, which was one of the biggest complaints shared with us about Ridgewood. 
 
Our new space is conveniently located less than 2 miles from our current Ridgewood Studio, at 175 Rock Road in Glen Rock.  If you know where the Greek Taverna and the CVS is, right next to the train station, we are in the back building of that complex.  The studio is large enough to host birthday parties(!), play dates, and other special events.  Down the hall there is a yummy, healthy café and juice bar called Nectar Café.  We're also excited to share the building with Naturally Yoga and Gary Stevens TaeKwonDo. This new space will be a great place for your children to feel good, sing, dance, be silly and have fun learning through music.
 
We hope you will join us for open houses in the beginning of September (dates to come shortly) as well as some free music classes to kick of the 2013-2014 season of Music for Aardvarks in Bergen County! 
 
Please check out our class schedule, registration opens on Monday, August 19th at 5pm, and is on a first-come, first-served basis.  Tuition for the Fall semester is $245 for the ten week session, but tuition is discounted to $225 if you register during the first 24 hours!  Please mark your calendars, we encourage you to register sooner rather than later, especially if you wish to do a morning class with friends.   Registration is done all online through our website at ahummusic.com, but if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to call us or email us at 201-615-1292 and info@ahummusic.com
 
We are so excited to jam with you this Fall! 
 
See Ya Soon,
Cindy and Sean

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Lash-ing Out

I don't know what happened, why it was happening, or what- but I know I wasn't happy about it. My eyelashes were falling out. Not just a lash here and there. I'd go to put mascara on and notice a whole patch missing. I wish I took before photos. I think I was just so distraught at my missing lashes that it didn't occur to me.

If I tried to wear mascara, I had to take a safety pin and do some kind of comb-over to try to cover up the spot where so many lashes were missing. And it was on both eyes! Just in different spots. On my left eyelid, they were missing just to the right of the middle and on the right eye they were missing closer to the outside. I stopped wearing mascara because it was looking ridiculous with these big patches missing. At least if I didn't accentuate with mascara, you couldn't tell as much. I feel I need mascara to look like I have eyes, but I preferred wearing none to wearing it with a comb-over.

I looked really close and it didn't even look like there were follicles there. It just looked gone. That scared me the most because I didn't think there would be a way to get them back. My friend Julie uses Latisse, which sounds awesome, except that she has brown eyes. From using that, her lashes look as long as the fringe on my lampshades. But you can't use Latisse if you have blue or green eyes. It can actually change the pigment of your eyes. Of course I have blue eyes and I'd like to keep them.

Coincidentally, I ran into a friend who happens to actually have alopecia. I told her about my eyelashes. She gave me the name of something she used to grow her lashes back. I wanted to really research different remedies though because they're not cheap and I wanted to make sure I got something that really worked. I told my other friend about it who has missing brows from years of over-waxing or over-plucking. She also wanted a product that could be used on brows. Her lashes are fine.

I looked online for reviews of the best lash grower potions out there. There are actually a lot and it's confusing. I saw MarveLash and LiLash had really good reviews. But then there was also the one my friend with alopecia told me about so I didn't know what to do. I told my friend about MarveLash because it was definitely for brows too and I didn't know about the other rec that I'd got. The LiLash is probably great but way out of my price range clocking in at around $150. I'm posting the site I found the comparisons/reviews:

http://www.letstalkbeauty.com/eyelashes/eyelash-growth-products

I spoke to my friend with the brows and she said she didn't like MarveLash because it was very drying. I hadn't gotten around to getting any yet so I then placed my order for Osmotics Cosmeceuticals- FNS Nutrilash. It is for brows too but like I said, I didn't know that. When I ordered it from Amazon there was little description.

It comes with four little tubes and 28 applicators. Theoretically, the kit is supposed to last for around a month. But there is no way. So far I've only used 1.5 tubes and I've had it since the end of June. You're supposed to use a new applicator every night- you put it on at night, on clean eyelashes, before bed. I just wash the applicators off and reuse for like three days. I don't know if they designed the stuff with really big eyes in mind but there is no way I could use a whole tube in a week.

The best and most important part- My eyelashes grew back! They're growing back more every day. I definitely no longer have big bald spots. The newer lashes aren't as long as the ones around it but they are BACK. I examine them closely every night with a magnifying mirror and where it looked like no follicles, they are now there. It's not like all of a sudden I have thick, lush lashes or anything but anything is better than bald. Well, on your eyes. I could do without elsewhere...but that's another topic altogether.

I think on Amazon it's even cheaper now than it was when I bought it and it looks like more reviews and information. But at $38 (what it is today), it's not overboard for that type of product. I mean, I wish I didn't need it at all but it's way cheaper than Latisse and LiLash and it definitely wasn't drying to my eyelids like my friend said MarveLash was for her eyelids. Now, I don't know what it would be like if I used it on my brows but I don't need more hair there so I'm not going to find out.

http://www.amazon.com/health-personal-care/dp/B000NATYR2

I really was afraid my eyelashes would never come back. So I'm really happy with the results of this product. If you're missing eyelashes, this is the product to try.

Monday, August 5, 2013

As Seen on ME

It's my quarterly hair blog time. I was so happy, hair time coincided with my birthday this year. You might think I should just be able to do this all the time, but I can't. Sometimes I need to go a little earlier or later because I have an event to go to or I have to reschedule or....I used to CALL for an appointment only to find that Don was booked up till who knows when. And since I have a kid, and that kid goes to school that is closed for about a million holidays, I used to never be able to book an appointment at the end of my last one because I never knew the school calendar. But thanks to my friend Cohen, she got me to actually input the ENTIRE year's school days off this year into my Google calendar. Regardless, this time hair and birthday matched up and I got my hair done a few days prior to the big day.

I try to look cool. Sometimes that means trendy. But most of the time, so contrary to how I usually make decisions, it takes me awhile to get on board with most trends. I love the look of ombre hair, or as Don called it, "minking". But I loved it on other people. Because I was still kind of cautious of having to use a lot of full on bleach on my hair. I love that whole dip-dye look with the blue or pink or whatever at the ends. On other people. Because I don't always "do" my hair. It really looks good on people that take time to curl the ends as their daily look. I just didn't know how it would look on me and it seems like a big commitment. Although, I forgot this Elumen stuff isn't like the first hair color stuff I used which came out in the tub like teenage Manic Panic. The Elumen really "sticks" or whatever you want to call it. No residue running out in the shower. And I stopped with the blue which required separate washing sections of hair that was a MAJOR pain in the ass.

I brought pictures in of ombre hair I like- it had pinks and purples, from halfway up to the ends. I didn't even know if he would do it. Sometimes I bring him pictures and he's just like, "Um, no.". Which is actually fine because I don't want anyone telling me how to do my job and I'm not going to insist he try something on me that's going to look shitty. He's just not going to do anything that's going to reflect poorly on him, the same way I don't want to give someone ugly lampshades.

We decided on pink and purple from mid-way on down and regular highlights on top. It came out perfect. I couldn't tell right away but when he dried it and curled it on the round brush it looked like a colorful fan. Super cool. It wasn't ombre in the traditional sense of the pictures I brought, but this is the thing, what I love about Don is that he knows I don't have unlimited funds to do my hair. I have to be very cost conscious but I still want something funky and  want it to look good. So, he didn't do the whole back. He did what you'd see from the front and sides. And that was actually enough. Had he done the whole back, I couldn't see it anyway, and it probably would've cost a fortune. He figured out how to do it where it looked cool but didn't break the bank. I also had credit for sending people there and whatnot but it was around $200. It probably would've been like $220 but that's less or around the same as other salons in the area. Because I also always get a haircut too and blown dry.

Now, this is sort of a "three parter" of a blog. While Don was doing my hair we somehow started talking about that commercial for the As Seen On TV "Air Curler". It's that thing where you put hair in a giant cup-like thing that attaches to your hair dryer. It curls the hair in seconds and stays curled. Don said he thought it was impossible that it worked or that it works as fast as they say. I kind of took this conversation as a challenge. So I bought it! Before we went out to dinner on Thursday night, I used it on my own head. Don't get me wrong, I was a little scared. I was like ugh- this is going to be like the time I tried to use a round brush with the hair dryer and got it super stuck. But I put on my big girl panties and went to town.

IT WORKS. It works. For real. Now, Thursday was really rainy, humid and gross out. And it was my first use of this...accessory. So I did see some frizz. But I had nice curls and they made my hair look great in a matter of like ten minutes. Normally, it would take me hours to do that with a curling iron. It gave me great body and it felt like it "fattened" up my hair. My ponytail felt thicker after. I used it again this morning, a PERFECT 10 of a weather day. No humidity at all. I had even less time to do it but I got hardly any frizz. I didn't get to really play with the curling in areas I would've liked to but it definitely makes my hair look more done. And without doing it straight, because it's curled, it's not all falling in my eyes and annoying me. On a usual day, I'd have it pulled back in a ponytail by now because it would be in my way. It's still down. The other cool thing is that I can take big sections. To get hair all hot with a curling iron the section of hair have to be relatively small. This could really take any amount. So, it ends up being much quicker.

I also want to mention what's going on with Keratin in Salon Azano. There are always Groupons, Amazon Local deals and Living Social deals for Keratin but the descriptions are never really specific as to what kind of treatment they do. There are some you need to keep your hair straight for 72 hours. I could never do that. I had a hard enough time with 24 hours! So some are 24 hours, some organic, some not, so on and so forth. I was always afraid to try any of those deals because I just will not do the 72 hour one. And I don't want to end up bald because someone put some strange chemical on my head.

So here's the skinny on what they're doing:

-It's as close to "organic" as it can be. That means it's as little formadehyde as possible.
-It is 24 hours then you can wash
-On Mondays it's discounted, EVERY Monday, with Brittany and Stephanie.
-They have a Val-Pak or some deal going on- just call and ask where to find it. It's good through October. I think it's $100 off. I took notes but of course, I just hit some button on my phone and my notes are gone.

Basically with the Monday deal or the coupon deal it brings the price to about $200 which is really good for the 24 hour treatment. You can find it cheaper using Groupons or whatever in other salons but that could be for the Brazilian Blowout or some other kind and it's usually for the 72 hour treatment. Try keeping you hair pin straight for 72 hours when you have a kid or more than one.

Lastly, he got a new line of Eufora products made for thinning hair. He is running a 30% off special if you buy 3 or more. I asked him what the best product of all to buy would be if I could only buy one. He told me to buy this scalp stuff you put on twice a day and that I'd see results in 30 days. I convinced my husband to try it with me, just so I'd be able to write about how it worked for both a male and female. We haven't started it yet because it was just a hectic few days but we will start sometime in the next few and I'll write about that in about a month from now. The reason I'm trying it myself is because I feel my hair has been thinning for years. And I trust him. He's not going to put himself in a position to be called a "snake oil salesman". He only sells products he believes in and/or has seen really work. So I'm excited.

Salon Azano: www.azano.net
Air Curler: http://www.asseenontv.com/air-curler/detail.php?p=448276
Eufora: http://www.eufora.net/



I realize this looks like a mug shot

Curled with the As Seen On Tv Air Curler