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Jersey
Shore Home & Garden, Spring 2005
Jersey
Shore Home & Garden
&
Jersey Shore Magazine & Guide
Feature Articles
Inside Your Home
Important Things To
Consider When Designing A New Kitchen
Comfortable Elegance At
457 Sycamore Avenue, Shrewsbury
Holiday Decorating
The Mini-Mansion On
River Road
The Magic of
the Christmas Tree
Art &
Antiques
Decorating Your Home
With Fine Art
The Allure Of Antiques:
Filling A Home With History
Dick LaBonte, The Jersey Shore's Premier Folk
Artist
Kindred Spirits: Margie Moore Paints A World of
Whimsical Animals
Theresa Troise Heidel's
Nuances of Light And Mood
Moments
Both Wondrous & Ordinary: The Writings of Frank Finale
Services For
Your Home
Creating A Beautiful
Home With An Iron Will
Choosing Hardwood
Flooring
If The Walls Could Talk
The Garden &
Outside Your Home
Container Gardening
Yearly Planting Schedule
Perennial Gardening
Victory Gardens
The Busy Autumn Gardener
New Jersey's Big On
Tomatoes
For The Birds: Setting Up A
Winter Feeder
Real Estate
Landmark Manasquan River
Estate For Sale
Luxury Homes & Estates
Food &
Dining Out
Cake Recipes For
Springtime
Cool And Refreshing
Springtime Salads
Bars—You Betcha!
Three Great Tomato
Recipes
Home Port
Fall
Farm Guide:please refer to Calendar Of Events
Windows Into Spring
Cats, Bats, and
Fabulous Hats by Frank Finale
Decorating Your Home With Fine Art
(Published in 2000)
For even the most ardent appreciator, the purchase of various types of artwork can sometimes seem perplexing. The simplest way to unravel the mystery is to approach the subject by recognizing the medium.
OIL
The most broadly known medium is
oil. For centuries, this particular medium has been regarded as
the most prestigious. There is a distinct richness and depth of
color that is achieved when working in oil, regardless of color
choice. The other major benefits include the fact that oil has
the greatest established monetary value as well as an average
life-span beyond one hundred years.
From an artist's perspective, oil is a more difficult medium to manage due to its heavy consistency and prolonged drying time. These are factors which influence the cost to the buyer and the remuneration to the artist.
ACRYLIC
The next highly regarded medium
is acrylic. Its appearance can easily be mistaken for oil. Like
oil, acrylic offers longevity, but in color, it stands alone with
an effervescence and unique vitality. Paintings from this medium
are usually quite life-like and vibrant to the eye.
From an artist's viewpoint, acrylics are easier to maneuver than oil, and the drying time is rapid. It is also easier to paint over should a mistake be made. One might consider that had acrylic been available in the days of the old masters, it very well might have been the medium of choice.
OTHER MEDIUMS
The intrigue of fine art really
gains momentum when original pieces appear under glass. These
categories include pastel, watercolor, woodcut, charcoal and
pencil, pen and ink, lithograph, serigraph, and silk screen. All
possess their own special qualities of beauty and distinction;
desirability is largely in the eyes of the beholder. They often
require less time of the artist and offer an agility not
permitted with oil or acrylic. Pricing often falls in a lower
range, which seems appropriate since less time is consumed.
PRINTS
All mediums often present
themselves to the buyer in the form of a limited-edition series,
also referred to as prints. An edition represents an exact
duplicate of the original, both in content and color. The
editions are placed under glass, with both the artist's pencil
signature and two numbers at the bottom, which signify the total
number of duplications and where in the series a particular piece
has been issued. For example, 165/375 means that someone is
seeing the 165th piece to be issued in a series limited to no
more than 375 pieces in existence.
Once the maximum number has been set, it will not be altered, and that is to insure the value. The single greatest benefit for the buyer is that a limited edition series allows the enjoyment of an artist's work at a far lower price than the cost of an original. All of the this helps to provide a logical basis for the greatest value belonging to the original.
PRICE AND VALUE
Approaching the areas of cost
and potential value can sometimes seem vague and ambiguous.
However, there is a foundation for pricing that follows a
definite path. The computation naturally revolves around the
medium as well as the artist's talent, experience, and
accomplishments. The overall salability is determined by demand.
Once an artist has established a price history, the guidelines are easier to understand. Quality, original fine art will never decrease in value. The nationally accepted standard is a 9.5 percent increase in value per year. There are exceptions, which include the death of an artist or an artist's soaring national and international success. In either case, the sky could be the limit, as it was when Van Gogh's “Irises” sold at auction for an astounding 53.9 million dollars!
PRESERVATION
Whatever selection may be
decided upon, proper environment should be attend to for the
preservation of the piece. It is best to remember that artwork is
not fond of extreme temperatures. Excessive moisture can grow
mold, just as severe dryness can produce cracking and damage.
Anyone evaluating a work of fine art should always remember that an artist has done the creation for the viewer's appreciation, and most often would like the viewer to be well informed. Never hesitate to inquire!
—Joyce Borden Vernon
Container Gardening
(Published in 2000)
Container gardening is becoming a popular way for people to enjoy their favorite plants, even if space is limited. It is one of the most versatile and creative ways to garden and can be easily adapted to almost any environment. Containerized gardening is very similar to creating a floral arrangement—plants are combined and successfully grown together yet they are enjoyed for a much longer period of time. Additionally, all gardens and patios are enhanced by colorful containers because they provide wonderful focal points that can be changed to reflect the seasons.
CHOOSING A CONTAINER
Be creative and have fun when choosing a container!
Any container can be used as long as it is able to hold soil and
provide adequate drainage. The abundant choice of containers is
limited only by your imagination. For a more traditional look,
clay pots, plastic pots, window boxes, and hanging pots come in
all shapes and sizes. Recently, the choices for containers have
expanded to include topiaries, living wreath frames, fiberglass
and pedestal urns, and wall baskets. The size of the container
needs to be large enough to hold an adequate amount of
soil—enough for mature plants to grow.
THE BEST CHOICE FOR SOIL
The best soil to use in your container is a potting
mixture sold in retail stores. It is a blend of peat moss,
vermiculite, perlite, and nutrients. Commercial potting mix is
free of pests, diseases, and weed seeds and has the proper
composition to hold enough moisture yet will also drain well. Be
sure not to use top soil as it is too heavy for young plants to
root. Each year the soil should be replaced because over time,
the soil mixture becomes compacted and root-bound.
WHAT PLANTS GROW BEST
Almost any plant can be grown in a container with the
exception of large trees. First, plan the placement of your
containers around the duration and intensity of sunlight they
will receive. Take into consideration any structures that may
block the sun. Also, remember to carefully select plants for
special environments such as windy locations or proximity to salt
spray. Your local garden center will be able to provide you with
information that can help with your selection, and most plants
are labeled with information such as height, color, light
preference, flowering time, and where it will grow best. Plants
requiring similar sun and water requirements are generally
grouped together in the same container. However, with careful
planning it is possible to use taller, sun-loving plants to shade
smaller, shade-loving plants. A fun idea is to create a
"theme garden" when planning your container. Some ideas
for these are herb and vegetable, color, scent, butterfly and
humming bird, English garden theme, perennial, and bulb container
just to name a few. Don't be afraid to try something new because
each year brings a host of improved cultivars of plants and
flowers that create exciting recipes when mixed together in a
container.
HOW TO CARE FOR A CONTAINER GARDEN
Maintain adequate moisture levels in the soil. The
container should be kept moist but not soggy. Allowing a plant to
wilt can stunt growth and delay flowering. If the container is in
full sun or a windy location, it will need daily watering during
the hot summer months. Hanging baskets and containers that are
lined with moss also need a substantial amount of watering.
Fertilize every few weeks but avoid overfeeding which causes lush
green growth and few flowers.
Remember that containerized gardening is seasonal; when your pots have past their prime, you can regard them as you would cut flowers that are wilted and spent. Discard the plants without guilt, as they have enhanced your home, given you much pleasure, and can be replaced next year for much less than the inconvenience of trying to keep them alive all winter.
Containerized gardening is a great hobby for anyone with an interest in flowers, decorating, landscaping, or just being outdoors. Above all, have fun, and remember: whatever the size of your home, a few of nature's colors will enhance your environment and add joy to life!
—Anne Heinrics
Anne Heinrics is an employee at Barlow Flower Farm in Sea Girt.
Cake Recipes For Springtime
(Published in 2000)
complied by Evie Holand and Jane Holand
BANANA NUT CAKE
For cake or cupcakes.
2 cups flour
1 2/3 cups sugar
1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 1/4 cups mashed bananas (about 3)
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup buttermilk
3 eggs
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Blend all ingredients at once at low speed in a large mixing bowl. Scrape the sides of the bowl and beat at high speed for three minutes. Fill cake pan or cupcake cups 2/3 full and bake at 350† for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Frosting:
1 8 oz. package cream cheese
6 tbsp. margarine
1 lb. powdered sugar
Mix well to spread. Can be frozen.
COCONUT CAKE
One box white cake mix
1 cup flaked coconut
15 oz. coconut cream or pina colada mix
1 can Eagle brand milk
Cool Whip
Mix the cake as directed on box and add coconut. Bake as directed on box in a 9x13 pan. Remove from oven and poke holes with a large drinking straw one inch apart. Cool until lukewarm. Mix and pour the coconut cream and milk slowly over the cake so it soaks in. When cool, frost with Cool Whip.
CARROT CAKE
3 cups ground carrots
1/2 cup Mazola oil
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. soda
Cream sugar and oil. Add eggs one at a time. Add carrots, then add dry ingredients. Bake in two layer pans at 325† for 40 minutes. (55 minutes for a loaf pan.)
Frosting:
1 stick margarine (room temperature)
8 oz. cream cheese
1 lb. powdered sugar
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 tsp. vanilla
Cream margarine and cream cheese. Add sugar, vanilla, and walnuts. Cream thoroughly.
MOON CAKE
Crust:
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 cup boiling water
1 cup flour
4 eggs
Filling:
2 packages instant vanilla pudding
3 1/2 cups milk
8 oz. package softened cream cheese
Topping:
Hershey chocolate syrup
Cool Whip
Crust: Bring water and butter to boil in saucepan. Then add flour all at once and stir vigorously until mixture clears the sides of pan. Remove from burner and cool slightly. Add eggs one at a time, beating well until thoroughly mixed. Spread batter in greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400† for 30 minutes, or until light brown and may be pressed down some.
Filling: Mix well with mixer and spread evenly over crust. Next, spread on a layer of Cool Whip. Drizzle Hershey chocolate syrup over the top. Chill. Other flavors of pudding may be used and nuts or coconut can be substituted for chocolate syrup.
—Gudrun Einarson
SOUR CREAM COFFEE CAKE
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups flour
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla
Cream butter and sugar, add eggs. Combine dry ingredients. Add vanilla. Alternate sour cream and flour. Mix well.
Sugar Mix:
1 cup chopped nuts
3 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar
Grease and flour bundt pan. Pour half of batter into pan. Spoon half of sugar mixture over batter. Pour remaining batter over and top with remaining sugar mix. Bake 45 minutes at 350†.
—Lyn Sys
OLD FASHIONED BIRTHDAY CAKE
Cake:
1 box of cake mix, white is best, prepared as directed on box for
two 9 inch round pans
Filling:
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sour cream
2 egg yokes
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 tsp. vanilla
Combine and cook slowly, stirring frequently. (Burns easily.) Cool and add vanilla. Spread between layers and on top of cake.
White Boiled Frosting:
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup cold water
2 tbsp. white corn syrup
2 beaten egg whites
Boil the granulated sugar, cold water, and corn syrup until it threads. Pour over beaten egg whites. Beat until stiff. When nearly cool, add powdered sugar. Spread over top and sides of cake.
Yearly Planting Schedule
(Published in 2000)
JANUARY
Start a garden notebook, with diagrams and sketches of
where everything is planted, and lists of what you've ordered.
Leave room for notes about your successes and failures. Check
potted plants for crowded root systems. Some may benefit from
repotting in a larger container. Save hardwood ashes from the
fireplace and store in a dry place; these will be mixed in when
turning over the garden in spring and fall. Peruse the seed and
bulb catalogs and plan for the year. Order spring plantings now.
FEBRUARY
Lettuce seeds should be sown indoors by Valentine's
Day to be ready for transplanting in early spring. Garden tools
should be inspected, cleaned, repaired, and/or replaced if
necessary; watch for sales in stores. If you miss summer's
greenery, this is an excellent time to fly to a Caribbean island
where you will be surrounded by tropical foliage and luscious
native fruits and vegetables.
MARCH
Save discarded eggshells, wash and dry them, and store
in a plastic bag. Crush them and put into soil in early spring;
they make a wonderful fertilizer. Store extra shells for use late
in the year. Destroy any insect cocoons, caterpillar nests, or
insect eggs you find in your garden. Rake and thatch the lawn,
and feed with lawn fertilizer. Re-seed old lawns. The best time
to plant roses is early spring. Replace plants that died during
the winter as soon as the ground can be worked.
APRIL
Plant azaleas, so they will be in full bloom for
Mother's Day. Old-time farmers recommend that corn should be
planted when the oak leaves are the size of squirrel's ears
(i.e., after the last frost). Set out pansy plants as soon as the
ground is ready; they will flower continuously if blossoms are
picked regularly. Work plenty of humus into your garden soil.
Peat moss and manure are excellent for this purpose, as are
eggshells and ashes.
MAY
Plant geraniums in tubs and flower boxes in time for
Memorial Day. Keep all newly planted shrubs, roses, and
perennials well watered. Plant your tomatoes, peppers, eggplants,
zucchini, and beans for summer harvest (which usually starts
around mid-July). Thin the young plants before they become
crowded. Rhododendron should be in bloom.
JUNE
Christmas-cactuses may be taken outside; they like
partial shade and need very good drainage. Annuals are ready to
plant. Impatiens, begonias, and petunias are all good for the
Jersey Shore's sandy soil. Watch for signs of cutworms,
particularly in your zucchini; treat these worms aggressively.
Support your tomato plants with cages, stakes, or a trellis.
Spray roses for black spot; do this once a week. Apply fertilizer
to lawn carefully to avoid burning. Keep lawn well watered.
JULY
Corn should be knee-high by the Fourth of July
(depending on whose knee is being used). Sow Chinese cabbage.
This vegetable can be used as a substitute for lettuce, which
does not grow well in hot weather. Mow the lawn less often, with
the mower set higher than in spring. Order bulbs of fall crocuses
now; plant upon arrival for autumn bloom. Summer harvest usually
starts around mid-month. Buy a zucchini cookbook.
AUGUST
Pinch annual flower pods to assure continued blooms.
Stake late-blooming perennials before they are blown down. Order
daffodils and other spring flowering bulbs now. Eggplants and
peppers are at their peak. Pick mature fruit regularly, so those
pieces not yet ripe will develop properly. Continue spraying for
black spot, aphids, and mildew as the humid weather exacerbates
these problems.
SEPTEMBER
Tomatoes are abundant; make sauce and freeze. Fresh
salsa (chopped tomatoes, onions, lime juice, green peppers, salt
and pepper) is quick and easy. Lily of the valley should be
separated every three or four years, preferably in early autumn.
Fall is the best time for planting lilacs. Re-seed bare spots in
old lawns. Plant crocuses, grape hyacinths, daffodils now. Stake
young trees for protection during the winter.
OCTOBER
Time to pickle your green tomatoes. Pumpkins and
decorative squash are in produce stores; buy early and keep cool.
After first frost, bring in Christmas cactuses, as the buds have
now set. Continue to plant hardy bulbs, especially lilies. Record
their location in your notebook. Also note where bulbs and roots
are being dug up for winter storage. Tulip planting should
commence in mid-October. Old rhubarb plants need a good dose of
manure. Time to set out new plants. Put bonemeal around roses.
NOVEMBER
The vegetable garden should be plowed; add to it the
eggshells stored from March. Lawn should be about two inches when
it goes into winter; fertilize it this month. Plant paper-white
narcissi by November 14 for bloom on Christmas Day; place it
before a sunny window. Save pantyhose to tie up next summer's
tomatoes. Plant rose bushes; water them heavily, and mound soil
around the stems.
DECEMBER
Decide if you're going to keep your poinsettias for
reblooming. They need to occupy a completely dark closet, and
tend to be quite cumbersome—but the results are rewarding.
This is a good time to prune your grapevines. Mulch your
rhododendrons for winter protection. Be sure that cornstalks and
other borer-bearing garden debris are destroyed.
Important Things To Consider When Designing A New Kitchen
(Published in 2001)
So, you've been thinking about redesigning your kitchen for a long time and you just don't know where to begin. Or perhaps, you're buying a new home and the choice is now up to you as to what you'd like your kitchen to look like. Don't panic, the process is not that difficult if you follow a few very important steps.
FIND OUT WHAT YOU LIKE
First, think of this as your dream kitchen and begin
tearing out pictures from magazines of anything that you like.
Colors of cabinets, interesting counter tops, and cabinet
accessories that you find interesting are all a big help when
your kitchen designer is putting information together. If you
have any friends that have recently redesigned their kitchen, now
might be the time to visit and see what you like and don't like
about their project. The more information the better. Of course,
the kitchen showroom has a wealth of information but it still
doesn't hurt to go in prepared.
SPECIAL NEEDS
Next, consider what special needs you may have. Are you
very short or very tall? Do you have a bad back or a special
disability that might require the reduction or raising of the
counter tops and base cabinets? Do you have difficulty lifting
which might require pull-outs or an appliance garage, which would
enable you to slide your mixer out to position? Also, if you have
special religious restrictions that require modifications to the
standard kitchen layout, this should be discussed with your
designer.
APPLIANCES
Consider the appliances choices. Are you a large family
that requires a very large refrigerator or will the traditional
top/bottom meet your needs? Do you entertain a great deal? This
is an important fact when considering one dishwasher or two. Will
a standard range be adequate or would a cook top and wall oven
(single or double) better meet your needs? There are now ranges
that look like commercial units but can be fitted into the
standard kitchen without any fire restrictions. What about a
warming drawer or a microwave that fits into a cabinet? If you
haven't shopped for an appliance in a long time, it may be a good
idea to stop by a showroom before heading to your kitchen dealer
just to get an idea of what's new. You may decide that the new
coffee machine that is built into your cabinets is just what
you've always dreamed of.
OPTIONS
Next, decide what options are important to you. Consider
features like glass doors, pull-outs in base cabinets, pantries,
oversized drawers for pot storage, a special lift for your mixer,
and refuse and recycling storage. These are all things that may
make your meal preparation so much more efficient and enjoyable.
Perhaps you'd like a pot rack over a center island or a specially
designed eating area. Maybe your dream has always been to have a
second sink so family members can help with meal preparation.
Whatever you have thought about has more than likely been done by
your designer already, so don't hesitate to ask.
BUDGET
Somewhere in the kitchen process, probably at the first
meeting, you will be asked what budget figure you have in mind.
This is not done so that the designer can use every last cent
that you have but rather as a guide to what features they might
be able to include while still keeping you in your desired range.
There is no sense asking for granite or solid surface counter
tops if you have laminate budget. You might decide to modify your
allowance once you see the options available but that should be
your choice, not your designers. It's their car but you are doing
the driving.
HAVE FUN!
This should be a pleasant experience, and with a little
preparation, it will be. Be sure to choose a designer that you
like and get along with. You will be working very closely with
them all during the renovation process and you should feel
comfortable with your choice. Designing a kitchen can be a lot of
fun so relax and get started!
—Bonnie Milano and Franca Ferracane
Bonnie Milano is the General Manager and Franca Ferracane is a Sales Associate at Kassenoff Cabinets in Toms River.
The Allure Of Antiques: Filling A Home With History
(Published in 2001)
Many people who enjoy life here on the Jersey Shore would admit to a love of antiques. It's only natural. We are surrounded by history here. From names left behind by the Lenni Lenape Indians who once roamed this land to turn-of-the-century mansions built by wealthy summering New Yorkers, the evidence is everywhere. We see it in Ocean Grove's tent houses, overgrown Revolutionary cemeteries, and Sandy Hook's lighthouse. Our history provides us with a sense of place, a sense of home and belonging. It is the North star to our compass.
Is it any wonder, then, that we would want to carry this sense of history right into our living spaces? Indeed, decorating a home with antiques is more than filling a room with functional furniture, it is wrapping a home in history—both your own families' and something perhaps more transcendent. It is rooting your home in things that have lasted, things that have value. In today's throw-away, commercial society, this aspect can bear great importance.
On a less philosophical note, decorating a home with antiques is also, quite simply, a lot of fun. There's a lot more thrill to the chase when you're hunting down antiques. If you go to Ikea, you can predict what you will come home with before you even leave by glancing at a catalog. An antiques center, on the other hand, is often like Forrest Gump's much beloved box of chocolates—you never know what you're going to get.
As a result, any good antiques hunter often carries the same skills as any other hunter: patience and persistence. Decorating your home with antiques won't happen in a day, a weekend, or even several weeks—nor should it. The best homes reflect purchases made with care and thought, usually over many years. And that's part of the allure. Because when you do find the right piece, it's exhilarating. You've hit your target and the reward is a unique item that will lend a personal statement to your home in a way no easily available mass produced item ever could.
There are literally endless ways to personalize a home with antiques—and not all of them have to be expensive. Begin with small items that have special appeal to you. Guy Johnson, owner of the Antiques Center of Red Bank, says there is no limit to what people will find to collect. From bottlecaps to matchbooks, farm tractors to coins, there is a collector for almost everything. Some collectors seek a treasure in the rough that will have great value someday, others just like adding a touch from a bygone era.
As with anything, a little creativity often goes a long way in decorating inexpensively—and antiques offer a plethora of possibilities. Add whimsy and flair to a kitchen with a bizarre and random assortment of salt and pepper shakers or display bright tablecloths from the 40s and 50s. (Such items can be found for under $20.) Create an easy, eye-catching wall display by framing old postcards bought for $1.50 each. Or find a new use for an old item, such as an old Radio Flyer sled transformed into a pot rack by mounting it to the ceiling and adding sturdy hooks to the sled blades.
Antiqueing can also be inexpensive for those willing to do some restoration themselves. For instance, Johnson says mahogany furniture, once thought of as dark and dreary, is being discovered for its beautiful red grain (once refinished) and its lower cost than oak.
The expense of antiqueing lies in “discovering” a collectible at the same time as everyone else—especially if Martha Stewart has featured it recently, jokes Johnson. The greater demand makes items more rare and drives prices up.
This is evident in one of the most popular items to collect: art pottery. Including manufacturers such as Hager, Fulper, Roseville, McCoy and Roycroft, this area of collectibles came into great popularity about ten years ago, says Johnson. “People got really into it,” he comments. As a result, prices are now much higher. While it is hard to estimate the price difference exactly, Johnson says a McCoy item that might have cost $5., ten or fifteen years ago, could now run around $100. to even $200.
At such prices, it's a good idea to do some research before buying an item—and be on the lookout for fakes. Start out by seeking advice from a reputable antiques dealer or by doing a little research on the internet. Don't look at it as homework, look at it as arming yourself with information. Then, it's on to happy hunting!
—Christine Menapace
Creating A Beautiful Home With An Iron Will
(Published in 2001)
True beauty often combines the very best of form and function: an overstuffed sofa that is as comfortable as it is attractive, a car whose sleek design is surpassed only by its performance, a landscape that provides privacy while also forming a breathtaking backyard. Surrounding yourself with such elements not only reveals a discriminating eye, it makes an visual statement. And it can apply to every corner of your home.
Consider the humble fence or railing. For many, it is simply an item of purpose. But for the clients of Newman's Ironworks, Inc. who order custom-designed interior and exterior railings, fences, estate gates, and pool enclosures, it becomes an artistic expression of ornamental ironwork.
The beauty of wrought iron is something most people are already quite familiar with. From Mexican casa-style to intricate “old world” European, French Nouveau, and American traditional, this metal has been interpreted in many different styles by several different cultures through the centuries. In fact, people have been working with iron in some form for over two thousand years, says Rick Newman, owner of the Brielle-based business.
Though ornamental iron has enjoyed widespread popularity throughout history, Newman says today the term “wrought iron” is greatly abused in the commercial marketplace since it is applied to everything from bent steel wire to cast aluminum. Technically, he says, the term should be applied only to iron that has been worked white hot with physical force—such as the smith's hammer—to cause the metal to flow and be reshaped into the desired form.
Much of today's work that is termed “wrought iron” is simply “bent work.” Bent work consists of commercially available mild-steel bars, tubing, or strips that have been cut, heated, and bent—or sometimes even worked cold. Separate elements are then joined via arc welding or mechanical fasteners. Rather than arc welding, the elite metalsmith uses forge welding, whereby two pieces are joined by heating them white hot, then fusing them into a single unit under the blows of a hammer. Through forge welding and other techniques, such as forged collars and piercing, a skilled metalsmith can assemble a grille or similar piece of ornamental ironwork without using arc welding or bolts.
Thus, purist metalsmithers rejects the term “wrought iron” for bent work because it has not received the hammering, stretching, twisting, and piercing that a top-grade piece of wrought iron is subjected to. As a result, true wrought iron can usually be distinguished by its sensuous patterns and curves—and often the marks of the smith's hammer are evident. Since wrought ironwork is forged by hand, small irregularities are usually apparent and valued as evidence of the smith's craft.
From this description, it's easy to see why true wrought iron is a relatively rare commodity today. In fact, Newman's Ironworks is the only business of its kind in the Jersey Shore area—but not for lack of demand. Newman says that despite the considerable expense of custom-designed ironwork (which can range from $10,000. to $50,000.), his company does about four thousand projects a year—especially in wealthy areas like Spring Lake and Rumson. His customers, he says, are decidedly upper income and even include some high-profile sports stars and entertainers. (Newman, however, declines to name clients since most, he says, greatly value their privacy.)
Often, clients will come and look through catalogs of various ironwork examples to formulate their design. “There's a vast amount of styles,” Newman says, and he strives to personalize each project. “I try not to do any two the same.”
Other times, clients will bring in an interior designer with particular desires. “I did a railing identical to one on the Dakota in New York,” says Newman. Clients have also brought in photos from trips—such as Paris—showing designs they want duplicated.
Many of his higher end clients, he says, are seeking an eclectic look that meshes many different styles. He also sees a trend in “old world, beaten up” looks, but says there is still a great amount of people wanting clean, metallic, modern looks. While the company's work is predominantly in iron, they also work with bronze, aluminum, and stainless steel. Most clients, says Newman, are particular about finishes—which offer even more customization options, such as patina, raw, rubbed-on, multi-color, gold leaf highlights, and color washes. No matter what the choices, the end result is always the same: a beautiful marriage of form and function.
—Christine Menapace
Perennial Gardening
(Published in 2001)
Perennials are among the most useful plants for the home landscape today. They are wonderfully diverse, representing a vast range of height, flower and foliage forms, color, and fragrance. Because of their many differences in appearance and cultural requirements, perennials provide an abundance of beauty for both simple and elaborate home landscapes. Some varieties are perfect in a traditional flower border while others may enhance an oriental rock garden. A number of perennials make excellent groundcovers, whereas some flourish in the foreground of the home environment.
WHERE TO PLANT
Traditionally, perennial borders
were planted alongside or in back of the home, but recently they
have come to the front where they are replacing old evergreens
and giving homes a revitalized appearance. Furthermore, today's
landscapers and home gardeners are seeking to blend the garden
with indoor living areas. To achieve this, perennial garden sites
are planted so that they can easily be viewed from rooms within
the home.
Often perennials are planted in either a "border" or "bed." A border is usually long and narrow and is backed by a building, fence, or evergreen. A bed is free-standing and can be viewed from all sides. Beds can be any size or shape, the most popular, however, is oblong. When planning a perennial garden, plants should be arranged in a stair step fashion with short plants in the front and taller ones in the background.
PLANNING
Winter months are the best time to
begin planning your perennial garden. The right planning helps to
determine quantities as well as minimize future maintenance
needs. It is useful to draw your plant groupings in a scale
diagram. A perennial garden that looks balanced and natural is
the result of a well thought out plan.
SOIL
Soil preparation is a very important
aspect when planning a perennial garden. Most perennials prefer a
well-drained soil that is high in organic content. Adjustments to
existing soil may be necessary when planning a new project.
Preparation eight weeks ahead of planting is ideal especially if
the soil composition and structure need to be adjusted.
MAINTENANCE
Perennials need relatively little
maintenance. While annuals must be planted each year, most
perennials come up year after year with minimal work. Some plants
may need support or trimming, and roots should be divided
periodically. Overall, perennials are prized for their easy care
and low maintenance.
Whether the garden is elaborate or simply consists of accent plantings that add interest to a landscape, the range of color, size, and texture suggests that there is at least one perennial for every situation. Plan to designate space for a few this season. If you are already a perennial enthusiast there are always an abundance of new varieties to try. Perennial gardening, at any level, is an affordable and rewarding hobby.
Twelve Easy And Popular Perennials
Astilbe
Buddleia (Butterfly Bush)
Coreopsis*
Echinacea (Coneflower)*
Gaillardia
Hemerocallis (Daylily)
Hosta*
Ornamental Grasses*
Rudbeckia (Black-Eyed Susan)*
Russian Sage*
Salvia
Scabiosa (Pin Cushion Plant)
—Leslie Barlow
Leslie Barlow is the owner of Barlow Flower Farm in Sea Girt.
Landmark Manasquan River Estate For Sale
(Published in 2001)
Created to its owner's unique vision and custom built twenty years ago, this landmark Jersey Shore estate (visible from the Route 35 South bridge leading into Point Pleasant Beach) is situated on over 2.3 acres of land on the Manasquan River with 410 feet of river frontage.
ENTRANCE
Enter the grounds through remote
controlled security gates (one at the main entrance, one at the
guest house). A curving driveway leads to a pillared portico in
the front, two attached garages on the east side of the main
house, and an additional open parking area on the west side.
Constructed on pilings, this two story brick and stucco home has a contemporary French provincial Mansard roof.
From the double front doors, enter the 30' x 16' grand foyer with black and white marble floor and silk covered walls. Across from the doors is the wide, main staircase to the second level, which is lit naturally by three large skylights. A mirrored powder room is tucked under the staircase, complete with Villeroy and Boch 24K fixtures.
GREAT ROOM
Off the rear foyer, overlooking the
pool and river, is the 38' x 17' great room. This room features
an oak bar area with ice-maker and refrigerator. A built-in
fireplace is surrounded by a comfortable conversation pit. A
sound system, intercom, and security panel are also located in
this room.
GAME ROOM
Through oak doors at the rear corner
is a wide, circular staircase (surrounded by windows overlooking
the river) leading to a 38' x 22' game room complete with pool
table, ping-pong table, table-top hockey and shuffleboard, and
video games. The green tile floors and solid oak paneling are
naturally lit with two vaulted ceiling skylights. A powder room
is attached.
KITCHEN/SERVICE WING
Also on the first level is the
kitchen/service wing. A side entrance near the west parking area
leads to a 9' x 12' laundry and maid's quarters, complete with
combination living/dining room, kitchenette, full bath, and
bedroom. The side hallway, with black tile floor, leads to a 8' x
7' preparation room with additional security system access and
closed circuit TV system.
FAMILY KITCHEN AND BREAKFAST ROOM
Up three steps is the 16' x 22'
family kitchen with every available convenience. Appliances
include Sub-zero refrigerator, Jennaire stove, Ronson food
preparation center, Roper wall oven, microwave, and trash
compactor. On the north side of the kitchen is the 16' x 12'
breakfast room with a long oak table and upholstered chairs set
in an atrium overlooking the mountain waterslide, pool, and
riverfront. Electronically controlled shades in coordinating
fabric complete the setting.
RESTAURANT KITCHEN FOR ENTERTAINING
In the west wing, a fully equipped
restaurant kitchen featuring stainless steel sinks and appliances
has been installed for entertaining. His and her baths and a
changing room are all located in the east wing off the patio. All
custom decorated furnishings are optional.
SEVEN FAMILY/GUEST BEDROOMS
On the second floor are seven
family/guest bedrooms, each with full baths. Each room has river
views from their private balconies. The room sizes are: bedroom
one: 15' x 16'; bedroom two: 18' x 14'; bedroom three: 16' x 12';
bedroom four: 18' x 13'; bedroom five: 17' x 17' (this bath has
Jacuzzi tub and stall shower); bedroom six: 15' x 14'; bedroom
seven: 15' x 14'.
At the north end of the bedroom wing is the 21' x 16' study/office—with white marble floor and built-in cherry bookcases and paneling. A high vaulted sky-light is in the middle of the ceiling.
The master suite includes a 23' x 20' bedroom and a 23' x 20' bath and dressing room with two walk-in closets, a sauna and steam shower, two person Jacuzzi tub, separate toilet and bidet, twin porcelain pedestal sinks with black marble floors and mirrored walls. The attached atrium room is a fully equipped gymnasium.
The second floor foyer includes a temperature controlled wine vault and walk-in cedar closet. Additional storage is available in the attic area, accessed by pull down stairs.
LOCATION
The property is located on Curtis
Avenue in Point Pleasant Beach. This small oceanfront community
is sixty miles south of New York City and fifty-five miles from
Philadelphia. There is New York train service less than one mile
away at the Point Pleasant Beach Train Station. Convenient to the
Garden State Parkway (Exit 98), Allaire Airport for small planes
and helicopters, and Newark International Airport. There are many
fine restaurants locally and a variety of shops as well as Ocean
County Mall and Monmouth Mall. Clubs include the Manasquan River
Golf Club and Bay Head Yacht Club.
PROPERTY
2.3 acres on the Manasquan River
with 410 feet of river frontage protected by a riparian grant.
Sixty-five foot dock for deep water dockage. Ocean access through
the Manasquan Inlet less than one mile away. The house is
surrounded by a private, professionally landscaped park with
exotic fountains, topiary animals, and hundreds of specimens of
plants.
The unique stone mountain (reminiscent of your favorite theme park) is 30' high and has a Jacuzzi on top and a water slide into the in-ground pool. In the pool is an island and soda fountain. A separate guest house is available with a second gated entrance. Systems include automatic sprinkler system with over fifteen zones and state of the art security and fire alarm systems. Sweeping circular macadam drive provides parking for more than twenty cars. A two car garage is attached.
PRICE
The owners are asking $5,500,000.
for the entire 2.3 acre estate. Or, the house and adjoining
property may be divided and purchased separately. The owners are
asking $3,700,000. for the house on approximately 1.15 acres of
property and $1,800,000. for the adjoining 1.15 acres of
property.
For more information, please contact Cheryl Vetovick of Diane Turton Realtors at (732) 774-0246.
In each issue, Jersey Shore Home & Garden features unique homes and estates for sale at the Jersey Shore for its readers' interest and enjoyment. Jersey Shore Home & Garden has nothing to gain in the sale of the home and would decline if offered.
Cool And Refreshing Springtime Salads
(Published in 2001)
complied by Evie Holand and Jane Valente
When one hears the word “salad,” most think of a lettuce salad that is served before the main course of a meal. However, salad has many different variations. We've compiled a collection of cool, refreshing salads that originate from the upper Midwest and will surely be enjoyed by those at the Jersey Shore. Some of the salads are sweet and can be enjoyed as a dessert, its own course, or as a side dish to your meal. The other salads are vegetable or pasta based and are best served as a cool, refreshing side dish. Whichever recipes you choose to make, we know you'll enjoy a new salad experience.
COOKIE SALAD
Evie Holand
1 cup buttermilk
1 large pkg. instant vanilla pudding
8 oz. Cool Whip
1 20 oz. can crushed pineapple, drained
1 15 oz. can mandarin oranges, drained
10 fudge striped shortbread cookies
1 cup crumbled fudge striped shortbread cookies
In a large bowl, mix buttermilk and dry vanilla pudding. Fold in Cool Whip. Add drained fruit. Refrigerate. Before serving, break 10 shortbread cookies into bite size pieces and stir into salad. Top with crumbled cookies. Optional: decorate with maraschino cherries and chopped nuts.
FROG EYE SALAD
Evie Holand
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup and 6 tbsp. pineapple juice
1/2 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 box acini de pepe pasta (a very fine, small pasta)
1 15 oz. can mandarin oranges
1 20 oz. can crushed pineapple
8 oz. Cool Whip
1/2 cup miniature marshmallows
Cook sugar, flour, salt, egg, and pineapple juice until thick; then add lemon juice and cool. Cook acini de pepe according to package directions. Cool, then mix with cooled dressing. Cover in an airtight container and refrigerate overnight. Next day, add remaining ingredients. This is a large salad!
CHICKEN OR TURKEY SALAD
Lynn Sys
1 cup cubed chicken or turkey
1 tbsp. minced onion
salt to taste
1 cup green grapes cut in halves
1 cup diced celery
1 cup mandarin oranges
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 cup macaroni rings, cooked
1 cup Miracle Whip salad dressing (not mayonnaise)
1 cup heavy cream, whipped
Combine chicken or turkey, onion, and salt; refrigerate several hours or overnight. Add grapes, celery, oranges, almonds, macaroni rings, and dressing. Mix well. Refrigerate again. Add whipped cream just before serving. Serves 12.
VEGGIE SALAD
Evie Holand
1 lb. bag baby carrots
1 medium head cauliflower
1 small bunch broccoli
1 16 oz. ranch dressing or 16 oz. zesty Italian dressing
Cut veggies into bite size pieces. Toss with salad dressing to taste and serve.
PRETZEL SALAD
Linda Palmer
2 1/2 cups crushed pretzels
1/2 cup margarine
3 tbsp. sugar
8 oz. cream cheese
1 cup sugar
8 oz. Cool Whip
2 3 oz. pkg. strawberry Jello
2 cups boiling water
2 10 oz. frozen strawberries or 1 16 oz. package
Mix crushed pretzels, margarine, and sugar and bake in a 9”x13” pan at 350 for 10 minutes. Beat cream cheese and blend in sugar. Add Cool Whip and mix well. Spread over cooled pretzels. This acts as a seal, so spread to edges. Dissolve the Jello in the boiling water, add frozen strawberries and break up with a fork as you stir. Chill until slightly thickened. Pour over Cool Whip layer and chill. Note: Sugar-free Jello works fine. Be sure to seal crust with cream cheese!
ORANGE JELLO
Joyce Hansen
2 cups boiling water
1 small orange Jello
1 small tapioca vanilla pudding
1 15 oz. can mandarin oranges, drained
1 envelope prepared Dream Whip
Boil water, Jello, and tapioca 1 minute and cool well. Blend in mandarin oranges and Dream Whip until smooth and uniform in color. Chill.
GRAPE AND WALNUT SALAD
Evie Holand
2 pounds red grapes (wash and pat dry)
16 oz. sour cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. maple flavoring
10 oz. bag walnuts broken in half
Combine and refrigerate.
PASTA SALAD
Diane Anderson
1 lb. colored rotini pasta
1 cup red onion, minced
1/2 stick pepperoni, sliced thin and in halves
1 cup black olives, sliced
1 16 oz. bottle zesty Italian dressing
Cook pasta. Add onion, pepperoni, olives, and toss with dressing to taste. Chill.
CHEESE AND PINEAPPLE SALAD
Karen Carlson
1 pkg. lime Jello
1 20 oz. can crushed pineapple
2 3 oz. pkgs. cream cheese
1 cup grated American cheese
1/2 cup black olives, sliced
1/2 cup celery, chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream, whipped
1/2 cup walnuts
Boil pineapple juice and add lime Jello. Cool. Beat in cream cheese. Add remaining ingredients. Pour into 9”x9” pan, chill, and serve in squares on a lettuce leaf.
Comfortable Elegance At 457 Avenue, Shrewsbury
(Published in Spring 2002)
Enter the gravel driveway of the stately Federal home at 457 Sycamore Avenue in Shrewsbury and the first thing you notice is not the beautiful gardens, or the wide wrap-around porch, or even the lovingly preserved architecture—it's the three, large, exuberant dogs circling your car. For while this home stands today as a decorator's dream of antiques, fine china, and creative details, there is an abounding earthiness that reflects the ideals of the home's current owners, Sally and John Corcoran. It is a comfortable elegance that highlights stunning crystal chandeliers in one room, while allowing for a whimsical, painted spider web on the wall in another.
Built in 1835 by William Lippincott, the home's most well known owner was Dr. William Van Buren, a New York City surgeon who purchased it in 1867. Used as a summer residence, the house “may be considered as a landmark in the establishment of the Catholic Church in Monmouth County,” writes Randall Gabrielan in Shrewsbury, an Images Of America history book. “Bishop Michael Corrigan often...stayed with Dr. Van Buren in his travels while building a church network in the 1870s.”
It's also rumored the home's grounds were designed by the famous Central Park landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmsted. Sally has never found documented evidence of this, however, as an avid gardener, she has discovered unusual plants on the grounds—such as a Benjamn Franklin magnolia—an oddity this far north.
And just as a gardener inherits trees once planted by someone else, Sally sees her role as the home's owner for the past thirteen years as that of a caretaker. “We're merely custodians here,” she comments. With a strong emphasis toward restore and repair, rather than replace, Sally has continued to preserve historical details that survived the centuries. In fact, when she first saw the house, no one was living in it, and she says, “it had charm, even empty.”
An eleven-room house, it contains seven bedrooms, six fireplaces (two are working), five and a half bathrooms, and three floors. Ten foot ceilings on the first floor, bay windows, pocket doors, original silver hardware, original plaster moldings, hardwood floors, a pantry with an abundance of glass cabinets, and French doors leading to a bricked patio all add to the charm. Yet there's also a quirkiness to the house that adds a sense of humor to the sophistication. Many of the bathrooms are tucked in odd nooks with strange sloping roofs, and the floor plan, if one existed, “would be a scary thing,” jokes Sally. So while the room arrangement are not necessarily planned as a whole, one can also choose to look at it as series of unfolding surprises—which is just the approach Sally takes with her eclectic sense of decorating. “If you love it, it will work,” is her unofficial motto.
As an antiques dealer at the The Antique Center Of Red Bank, Sally has a distinct advantage. She can experiment a bit and switch pieces back and forth from business to abode. Most of all, she says, she strives for a sense of balance as well as for colors that harmonize in a pleasing way. This is especially evident in her dining room, which combines coral, midnight blue, and gold with touches of lime. “It sounds funky, but the room isn't,” she comments. In fact, the colors were inspired by Imari porcelain vases and carried though with help from Sally's daughter Christine, a decorative painter. Christine subtly striped the walls a rich, vivid blue and gold-leafed the ceiling. The overall effect is stunning. “This is my favorite room,” says Sally.
Many of the other rooms in the house were also painted by Christine, adding warmth and character. For instance, the living room has glazed terracotta walls that contrast beautifully with elaborate gold mirrors hung over twin marble fireplaces. Yet other details quickly invite your eye to roam. Bunches of dried hydrangeas lay informally on the mantle. A grandfather clock ticks quietly in a corner. A mandolin rests on a table. Framed botanical pictures from a biology project Sally's grandmother did at Red Bank High School (class of 1901) hang on the wall. Sally's mini-collections of antique, leather change purses, wooden gavels, Victorian shaving brushes with ivory handles, and abacuses are scattered around, patiently awaiting discovery.
Such creative touches combining opulence with informality abound throughout the house. An old door knocker keeps cocktail napkins in place. Gorgeous Chinese joss papers (just a $1.50 a pack in Chinatown, Sally states proudly) are displayed on a table. A painting is entwined with berry sprigs and a draped satin bow. A bed is lavishly upholstered in toile. An elephant hawk moth is painted on a powder room wall. A peach and pink kimono is displayed over a tub.
It just goes to show what wonderful effects can be produced when a house with great character gains a caretaker with an artist's eye.
by Christine Menapace
Editor's Note: Sadly, at the completion of this article, Sally and John announced they were leaving their beloved home and moving to another area.
Dick LaBonte
~ The Jersey Shore's Premier Folk Artist ~
(Published in Spring 2002)
At eighty, Dick LaBonte is talking about skinny-dipping in the moonlight. Not as something to do, of course, but as a proposed subject for his next painting. However, it's causing a bit of a problem. “It's hard to find photos of moonlit beaches,” he explains. “I need to capture the quality of the sky, how the moonlight affects color.”
This attention to detail is just one of the many reasons people up and down the eastern seaboard find themselves drawn to LaBonte's paintings of the Jersey Shore. His nostalgic renderings capture an era of bygone innocence. The buildings are fantastically accurate, the setting is often Victorian, and each painting depicts a population of small figures acting out a myriad of dramas. His style (which he terms “neo-primitive”) delights and rewards the observant viewer and has earned him a reputation as the Jersey Shore's premier folk artist. Today, his works are priced in the multi-thousands.
This isn't too shabby for a man who didn't start painting seriously until his early retirement at age fifty-six. A former Promotion Director of “Business Week” magazine, Dick and his family lived in Montclair while he worked for McGraw-Hill in New York City for twenty-eight years. He started spending summers in Bay Head in the 1950s and retired there with his wife, Katie, in 1977.
“When I retired, I had the notion to paint, but I was planning to do writing more,” he comments. However, his paintings caught on immediately. “I realized I really had something here,” he says. “It came as a total surprise to me that people would actually pay for something I did.”
More than one hundred sixty paintings, vignettes, and portraits later, LaBonte has enjoyed a thriving and rewarding second career. Perhaps one of the most initially striking aspects of his paintings is the dead-on architectural accuracy of his buildings. Dick says about the painting, “Centennial Pool Day at SLBTC,” depicting the Spring Lake Bath and Tennis Club, “I thought I'd never finish all that architecture and get that huge saltwater pool filled.” Another painting, “New Trier High School Class of '39,” (Dick's high school) required several calls to friends to determine whether the roof was orange or green. “I am sort of meticulous,” he admits, “and architecture does fascinate me. If I were to live life over, I might have been an architect or a carpenter.”
An avid historical researcher, LaBonte has a vast library of inspirational sources. According to Sheila M. Pardoe, the author of the introduction to LaBonte's forthcoming coffee table book, “Dick LaBonte, Paintings of the Jersey Shore and More” (published by Jersey Shore Publications for release in April 2002), “reference materials spill off the shelves in his studio.” Along with books and old photos of Victorian and Edwardian Shore areas are old Sears Roebuck catalogs. The catalogs provide references for the apparel of his figures, which often include fashions of the era like parasols, stockings, long skirts, and bathing costumes. With all this attention to detail, LaBontÈ's paintings can take quite long to complete. “It's partly [the attention to detail], and it's partly just that I'm a very slow painter,” he jokes.
But look beyond the buildings and costumes in LaBonte's paintings and you'll find their true essence lies in the characters he depicts. “I don't paint buildings; I paint people,” LaBonte told Pardoe. “Each figure has a reason, an attitude, and a relationship to the others.” And their simple gestures speak volumes. In any given gathering, you can observe flirtations, children taunting one another, or someone stooping to pick up a seashell. The message is reassuring: though the fashions may change, a sunny day at the seashore has a timeless joy.
LaBonte's most well known character is “Murphy,” the red haired boy who has come to be a sort of trademark. He now appears in most of LaBonte's paintings, but made his first appearance simply to solve a technical problem. It was LaBonte's first painting, and he had depicted a trolley car next to a church. Concerned about perspective, LaBonte painted Murphy hanging off the trolley as a means of sizing things correctly. In LaBonte's subsequent paintings, Murphy appeared as a red-head; however, in this first painting, he painted Murphy with blonde hair. Years later, he went back to the customer who bought the painting (“a red-haired man,” ironically, says LaBonte) and changed the color of Murphy's hair to red. (Reprints, however, will always show the rare blonde Murphy.)
Although LaBonte paints fewer works each year now, he retains his enthusiasm for new projects. Besides the skinny dipping painting, he mentions wanting to do more portraits and needing a new computer with a USB port so he can get the digital camera he's got his eye on. As a man whose “retirement hobby” has brought him great acclaim, he has kept his success in perspective and maintained his love of painting. He says, “I've always gotten a kick out of it.”
by Christine Menapace
Editor's Note: LaBonte's forthcoming coffee table book, “Dick LaBonte, Paintings of the Jersey Shore and More,” containing more than one hundred sixty of his paintings, vignettes, and portraits, is being published in April 2002 by Jersey Shore Publications.
Choosing Hardwood Flooring
~ Tips To Ensure The Result Will Floor You ~
(Published in Spring 2002)
The warmth and beauty of wood flooring. It adds instant style and class to any home. In fact, according to the Ellisville, Missouri based National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA), “In a national survey, ninety percent of real estate agents said that houses with wood flooring sell faster and for more money.” And it's no wonder why. As the NWFA points out, “The state-of-the-art technology and almost limitless choices of today's stains, finishes, styles, and designs make wood flooring one of the most practical, easy-care, and versatile floor coverings today. Maintained properly, wood flooring should never have to be replaced.”
Historic homes, with their gorgeously-aged, wide-plank flooring, are testimony to wood's durability. And like cheese or wine, wood flooring only gets better with time, developing a rich patina. “Eighty years of being there has changed that wood. It's very, very noticeable. You can't get that look out of new wood,” comments Steve Thrall, owner of Steve's Hardwood Floor Service in Wall Township.
But of course, you can try—for a price. Unless you're lucky enough to have undamaged, old wood floors, you can buy antique “recycled” and “reclaimed” wood. “Generally, the wood is at least sixty to seventy years old and much of it is turn-of-the-century or even Civil War Era,” says the NWFA. Most of the antique wood at Carlisle Restoration Lumber in Stoddard, New Hampshire, for instance, is recovered from old factories and textile mills in New England and along the East Coast. “There is living history in each plank,” touts the company.
Unfortunately, those on a budget may find recycled lumber to be out of their price range. Old antique heart pine sells for about eight dollars a square foot, says Thrall, compared to the approximate one dollar a square foot for new yellow pine. A less expensive option is to choose “old growth lumber,” which is taken from old trees, rather than the younger trees which supply most lumber. A third option is to “age” and “antique” new wood through distressed hand scraping, smooth hand scraping, or hand fluting. “Hand scraping can create a classic floor that wears like iron, and it is the truest way a new floor can attain the look of a genuine one hundred- or two hundred-year-old floor,” says the NWFA.
Though many may want an antiqued look, in his thirty years of business, Thrall says most people ultimately settle for a less expensive option: new wood—eighty percent of whom choose 2 1/4” oak. “Oak is definitely the most popular,” he says, though some woods that are gaining in popularity include maple, ash, yellow birch, and American cherry. Maple, with very little graining, is great for contemporary decors, and ash, when stained white, has a lovely neutral look. Tropical woods, from Brazilian cherry to Santos mahogany, are also becoming popular. “They're beautiful, really nice,” says Thrall.
Thrall's personal favorite is No. 2 yellow pine flooring. He says it's “very inexpensive and gives you a warmth that can't be duplicated.” With lots of knots and checks, “it's highly underestimated.” Though it's not appropriate for a colonial foyer, “in the right house it really makes a difference,” he says. What does the No. 2 stand for? It's a grade of wood, determined by appearance, says Thrall.
Oak and ash have four basic grades. Here's the NWFA's guidelines: Clear is free of defects though it may have minor imperfections. Select is almost clear, but contains more natural characteristics such as knots and color variations. Common grades (including No. 1 and No. 2) have more markings than either clear or select and are often chosen because of these natural features and the character they bring to a room. No. 1 Common has a variegated appearance, light and dark colors, knots, flags, and worm holes. No. 2 Common is rustic in appearance and allows for all the characteristics of the species. No. 2 is the grade most typically used by builders.
Hard maple, beech, birch, and pecan have three grades: First has the best appearance, natural color variations, and limited character marks. Second is variegated in appearance with varying characteristics. Third is rustic in appearance and allows for all characteristics of the species.
Of course, once you've decided upon the age, type, and grade of wood, other factors to consider include: the cut of wood—plainsawn is the most common; the contractor—do they have references? do they vacuum before polyurethaning? do they use a pneumatic stapler to fasten or a clark rabbit for borders?; the design—custom looks can really make a statement; and the finish—choose satin or matte for high traffic areas.
Though the choices may seem staggering, the range of options means there's lots of freedom to attain the perfect look and feel for your home. So do a little homework now, and your wood flooring will look stunning for years to come. It may even outlast you!
For More Information:
• Steve's Hardwood Floor Service: (732) 280-8784
• Dave Beaton Floor Sanding & Refinishing: (732) 295-0843
• National Wood Flooring Association: www.woodfloors.org
• Carlisle Restoration Lumber: www.wideplankflooring.com
by Christine Menapace
Victory Gardens
~ Patriotism through Planting ~
(Published in Spring 2002)
It was the 1940s, and America was at war. National resources were being dedicated to support our troops overseas, and citizens at home did what they could to maintain self-sufficiency. In patriotic spirit, they bought war bonds, they helped one another, they recycled, and they planted “Gardens For Victory.”
“Victory Gardens” were backyard vegetable gardens filled with an abundance of produce that fed families on the homefront, enabling more supplies to be shipped to our troops. Typical plantings included just about everything under the sun: beans, beets, carrots, peas, radishes, lettuce, spinach, chard, onions, cucumbers, parsley, kohlrabi, summer squash, rutabagas, corn, parsnips, leeks, turnips, cabbage, brussels sprouts, broccoli, peppers, cauliflower, tomatoes, eggplant, endive, and potatoes.
According to the Victory Seed Company, “These gardens produced forty percent of all that was consumed. Although canned foods were rationed items, there were relatively few food shortages in World War II America. The call to plant a Victory Garden was answered by nearly twenty million Americans.”
John Orlando is a seventy-seven-year-old Master Gardener who now lives in Shrewsbury. But he was just a teenager in Youngstown, Ohio when his school class was encouraged to plant Victory Gardens. “We all said, `But we have them already,'” he remembers laughingly. A child of Italian immigrants, John came from an ethnic neighborhood brimming with vegetable gardens, grape arbors, fruit trees—even chickens. “I honestly can't remember seeing a yard anywhere as a kid that didn't have a garden.”
John's parents were no exception. “My Dad used to plant his entire backyard...every inch that they could plant, they would put vegetables in.” While others were digging trenches in Europe, he remembers watering trenches between endless rows of beans, lettuce, onions, garlic, cabbage, and peppers. “It wasn't a Victory Garden to me. It was a fact of life,” says John.
John has carried on his parent's tradition and his love of gardening his whole life, earning the esteemed Master Gardener designation two years ago. (Master Gardeners must complete a ten-week course, pass a test, and dedicate sixty hours of volunteer work a year.) So what advice does he have for those who would like to start their own modern-day Victory Gardens? “Try to live with the pests,” he says. Pest management, he says, is the biggest challenge to vegetables today in the Garden State. “Back then (during the World War II era), if you had a problem, you sprayed it.”
Now the thinking has changed and gardeners have realized most insecticides kill indiscriminately—getting bugs both good and bad. “You're killing your ally,” comments John. To deal with his two biggest foes, Japanese Beetles and Leaf Miners, he practices a concept called Integrated Pest Management, or IPM. In practice, this means wiping off plants with water and alcohol as much as he can and using the least damaging insecticides—those recommended by the Rutgers Cooperative Extension. He also reads a lot and pays attention to timing.
John also emphasizes the importance of soil quality. For example, you need a loose, sweet soil to grow our famed Jersey tomatoes. However, this soil doesn't naturally occur throughout our State. “Sandy soil is bad, clay is worse,” says John. He remembers one plot of land he had in New Jersey where, “if I dug it in the Spring, it was goo.”
To achieve a nice loose soil, with lots of leaf matter, he relys on what he calls “gardener's gold”—a compost pile. His, he laughs, is “a lazy man's pile.” It's simply a ten foot by ten foot area in which he rakes all his leaves and grass cuttings. Then he piles the leaves on top of his dormant garden and plows them under before freezing. And every spring, says John, the soil is healthy and rich again—ready for a new year of planting.
So, as you decide how to best weather the current times, remember this quote from Henry Ford, posted on the Victory Seed Garden website: “No unemployment insurance can be compared to an alliance between man and a plot of land.”
For More Information:
• Victory Seed Company: www.victoryseeds.com
• Master Gardeners Of Monmouth County provides educational seminars and has a hotline for questions: (732) 303-7614
Here's A Tip From John:
Never plant tomatoes near walnut trees. They won't grow. “I keep tempting myself to see how close I can get, but those that are too close die almost immediately.”
by Christine Menapace
Bars—You Betcha!
Bar Cookies make a sweet treat for snacks, desserts, or entertaining.
(Published in Spring 2002)
Most people are familiar with Rice Krispie Treats—cereal combined with a marshmallow mixture that is pressed into pans and cut into squares. Bars (also known as bar cookies) are similar but much more interesting in variety. They originate from and are found in most homes across the upper midwest.
The following are just a few examples of great bar recipes you will surely enjoy. They are relatively simple to make and delicious and are perfect for snacks, desserts, or entertaining.
1 cup sugar
1 cup light syrup
1 1/2 cups peanut butter
6 cups Rice Krispie cereal
Frosting:
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups butterscotch chips
Place Rice Krispies into a large bowl. In a medium size pot, bring sugar and syrup to boil. Boil one minute only. Add peanut butter and stir until creamy. Pour peanut butter mixture into prepared bowl of Rice Krispies and mix well with a wooden spoon. Press mixture into a 9”x13” pan with wax paper or back of wooden spoon. For frosting, melt chips either in microwave or double boiler. Spread over cereal mixture, let cool, and cut into squares.
12 oz. pkg. butterscotch chips
1/3 cup butter
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup chopped nuts
1 pkg. cream cheese
1 can condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
Melt chips and butter. Stir in crumbs and nuts. Press 1/2 of mixture of bottom of greased 9”x13” pan. Beat cream cheese until fluffy, beat in milk, vanilla, and egg. Mix well. Pour over crumbs, top with remaining crumbs. Bake at 350º for 25 – 30 minutes.
1 box yellow cake mix
1 box instant coconut cream pudding
2 cups milk
2 eggs
Frosting:
1/2 cup margarine
1/2 cup peanut butter
3 cups powdered sugar
Mix bar ingredients together and pour into greased 12”x18” cookie sheet. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes. Combine frosting ingredients; add vanilla and milk to make a spreadable frosting. Sprinkle top with crushed peanuts.
Note: I use dry roasted peanuts. Duncan Hines yellow cake mix is available without pudding added.
—Linda Einarson Palmer
1 box yellow cake mix
1/2 cup melted butter
1 egg
8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
3 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar
2 eggs
Combine mix, butter, and 1 egg. Pat into a greased 9”x13” pan. Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and 2 eggs. Pour on top. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Bake at 350º for 45 minutes.
—Mrs. J. Oliver Johnson (Shirley Cox)
3/4 cup butter
1 cup peanut butter
2 pkg. butterscotch chips
1 cup nuts
1 pkg. miniature marshmallows
1 cup coconut if desired
Melt butter and peanut butter in a large kettle. Take off stove and add chips, nuts, coconut, and marshmallows. Mix just to cover and put in buttered 9”x13” pan. Keep in refrigerator.
—Darlene Johnson
Mix and set aside:
1 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
3 cups quick oatmeal
Chocolate Filling:
12 oz. chocolate chips
14 oz. Borden sweetened condensed milk
2 tbsp. butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup nuts
2 tsp. vanilla
Mix chips, milk, and butter in double boiler and melt. When smooth, add nuts and vanilla. Spread 2/3 of oatmeal mixture in bottom of 15 1/2”x10 1/2” pan. Cover with chocolate mixture. Dot with remaining oatmeal mixture. Bake at 350º until loose from sides, golden brown.
—Mabel Magnusson
1 10 1/2 oz. pkg. miniature marshmallows
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I use milk chocolate)
1/2 cup butter
2 cups Rice Krispies
1 cup salted peanuts
Frosting:
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (milk chocolate)
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
2 cups confectioner's sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
In large microwave safe bowl, combine the marshmallows, peanut butter, chocolate chips, and butter. Cover and microwave on high for 2 to 2 1/2 minutes. Stir until well blended. (The mixture will be lumpy.) Add cereal and peanuts; stir until well coated. Spread into a greased 13”x9” pan. For the frosting, put milk in another microwave safe bowl, combine chocolate chips, and butter. Cover and microwave for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until melted; mix well. Add powdered sugar and vanilla. With an electric mixer, beat frosting until smooth. Spread over the cereal mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm.
—Diane Wagner
compiled by Jane Valente
Kindred Spirits
~ Margie Moore Paints A World of Whimsical Animals ~
(Published in Fall/Holiday 2002)
The snow falls softly. Wisps of branches stand out against a soothing blue landscape. And an adorable little mouse, Bartholomew, quietly contemplates how to cross a stream. “That was a real joy to paint,” says children's book illustrator Margie Moore of her latest watercolor for an upcoming 2003 holiday book, Bartholomew's Blessing, to be published by HarperCollins. “It just kept getting better.”
So does Moore's career. After years of hard work, refining her craft, and a pile of rejection letters, this Wall Township native is finally reaping the rewards of her dedication. With two books under her belt and several more on the way, she is attracting attention as an up and coming illustrator. “It used to be one thing just to get my foot in the door. Now I'm in the door and it's a whole new world,” she says.
One project in the works, for instance, includes a seven-person review committee. Which means, for the time being, that this self-proclaimed “daydreamer” is busy with real-world responsibilities. But luckily, most of these responsibilities include spending the day painting fuzzy little bunnies in her “studio”—an antique drawing table set up in a corner of her dining room.
What is the appeal of Moore's illustrations? One need only take a look. Soft washes of color, rounded lines, and a definitive sense of whimsy add an undeniable warmth and coziness to her charming animal characters. It's a world of yawning baby bears, napping rabbits, and tiny details. It's a world that is tender, sweet, and delicate and makes you want to scoop up and cuddle someone you love. It's a world that makes you smile.
A visit with Moore instantly reveals how this self-taught artist brings this world to life. She is, in essence, much like the animal characters she creates. Her voice retains childlike qualities. She is welcoming and kind. She lives in a farmhouse and offers you tea. She was a sensitive child who immersed herself in books. Growing up, she had a duck named Dino and found in animals “a kindred kind of thing.”
From a young age, Moore was caught up in daydreams more than anything else, which often got her in trouble at school. Often, she was thinking about a book. “It has a lot to do with how I learned to block people out. Books about animals were a refuge.” Soon, her refuge translated itself into a natural drawing talent, inspired by illustrators of the early 1900s like Alice in Wonderland's Arthur Rackham, and “Beatrix Potter, of course.”
But it would be many years before her talent was fully ready to blossom. First came marriage to a man studying to be an illustrator, who introduced Moore to the idea of art as a career. “My husband draws beautifully...he was really the lead for me” says Moore. Then came raising three daughters. Finally, about ten years ago, a gift of colored pencils from her husband got her sketching seriously again.
The path to her current success, however, was not easy. She remembers receiving form rejection letters and then progressing to form rejections letters with short, handwritten notes, then personal rejection letters, and finally getting the long-awaited call. It was from Hearth Song Catalog, for whom she designed a cover. She recalls her excitement, thinking “Oh God, it really happened.”
However, her career really took off once she got an agent. A book deal came quickly, followed by more offers. But Moore doesn't regret not going to an agent earlier. “I wasn't ready,” she says. “Now I'm ready, and I've been past ready,” she jokes.
Today, Moore's favorite subject to draw is rabbits—which conveniently, is the subject of several upcoming books for Barnes & Noble. “I get some sort of guilty pleasure out of this,” she comments. Mentioning Alice In Wonderland's white rabbit, she says, “”I'm always trying to recreate that in my own way.” Essentially, she says, she wants people to believe the fantasy.
Of all her hundreds of works, it is a rabbit painting that is closest to Moore's heart. Depicting a sleeping bunny in his den, the watercolor now hangs in her dining room—though it was almost sold. Like most of her originals, she had given it to a gallery to sell, but then found she “couldn't sleep well.” So the painting returned home.
Most of Moore's watercolors take about three to four days to complete. Sometimes she consults reference sources, like a bird guide, to help her create an image, but a good deal of the time she simply “sees” the painting in her head. “Over the years, I've developed really strong visual skills,” she comments. “I look like I'm driving to the grocery store, but I'm actually figuring things out.”
One of her recent books, A Gull's Story, written by Frank Finale and published by Jersey Shore Publications, allowed her to do some creative “research” right in her own backyard. “I grew up in Belmar, so the subject matter was all familiar to me. I liked going out and finding flowers. I went to the rivers and really looked. It was fun. I found really pretty little wild flowers.”
Though it would be tempting at this point for Moore to go after mass markets—and the ensuing financial rewards—she remains true to her art and her future goals reflect this. “I would hope someday that my artwork would become endearing enough that it would end up in a museum show, like Beatrix Potter—that it would be that beautiful. That's what I hold near and dear to my heart.”
Published Books
Count the Ways, Little Brown Bear (2002, Dutton
Children's Books)
A Gull's Story (2002, Jersey Shore Publications)
Upcoming Books
Bartholomew's Blessing (2003, HarperCollins Children's Books)
A set of four Bunny Board Books (2003, Barnes & Noble Publishers)
A set of three I Can Read Books (HarperCollins Children's
Books)
Original watercolors available at:
Anchor & Palette Gallery, Bay Head
Thistledown Gallery, Spring Lake
Editor's Note: Margie Moore's bestselling children's book about the Jersey Shore, “A Gull's Story,” written by Frank Finale, was published in April 2002 by Jersey Shore Publications. Please click in the link for more information.
by Christine Menapace
Holiday Decorating
~ Tips & Touches From A Top Designer ~
(Published in Fall/Holiday 2002)
A festive season deserves festive decorating. And what better way to “get in the spirit” than by starting in your very own home. But just how do you incorporate the warmth and joy of the holidays into your existing decor? With a few tips and touches, it's easier than you think.
This year, instead of hauling boxes from the basement and decorating as usual, give some thought to what your home looks like the rest of the year. Is it contemporary or traditional, formal or casual, frilly or streamlined? What colors predominate? Too often, people decorate for the holiday season simply by adding more items to their rooms. “People tend to overdecorate for the holidays,” comments Oceanport resident Ria E. Gulian, president of the New Jersey American Society of Interior Designers (NJASID). At the same time, Gulian often hears clients say: “I hate to take down my decorations, it looks so bare.”
Her advice? “I keep it simple,” she says. “It's really, truly all about color.” While once red and green or blue and white were the dominant colors, recently, home furnishings lines have introduced bold metallics—like gold and silver—to create a sense of festivity. While this new color palette certainly provides a lot more options, Gulian recommends taking it one step further to incorporate black and white. By mixing silver and white or gold and black, a room becomes “quite regal, it takes charge of the space.”
In her own home, Gulian uses black and gold to compliment her existing dÈcor. Red and green, she notes, wouldn't work with her current furnishings. And we all know the feeling: “All of a sudden you put this red tablecloth on a table and it just doesn't work,” she says with a laugh.
Gulian starts her decorating with yards of inexpensive gold roping with tassels, which can be used in several ways. She intertwines the roping with greens to wrap around staircase railings and uses it to trim other decorative objects.
Greens are another element that can be used to great effect. Last year, Gulian put together a long length of greens (“it looks like a big boa”) and added large decorative balls and pinecones. Then, she attached it to a shelf just above her entranceway. She found it was “an inexpensive way to welcome guests,” and loved it so much, she left it up all year.
Like the “big boa” above her entranceway, Gulian finds she is most attracted to holiday accessories that don't necessarily lose their function once the season is over. For instance, rather than buy tableware with snowmen, Santas, or Hanukah motifs, she looks for simple pieces with beautiful gold accents. This includes gold flatware and gold-rimmed glasses. These versatile pieces can then be used year-round for elegant occasions.
She does the same with her tablecloths. For a holiday sit-down dinner, she starts with what might seem more appropriate for Halloween—a black tablecloth. But then she layers it with a gold table runner. When the table is set with gold-accented tableware, the effect is polished and stunning—yet surprisingly easy to create.
For centerpieces, Gulian likes simple arrangements like big bowls filled with apples or decorative balls, or greens highlighted with spray-on-snow. For a festive buffet at a holiday party, she lays a simple table runner and places candlesticks on either side for balance. In the center, she then stacks pastry trays three-high and decorates the edges with artificial grapes sprayed in gold. Doilies, she says, come in a variety of colors—including the metallics—and can be used to highlight holiday treats. As for the chandelier overhead, Gulian has seen people hang crystals from chandeliers in the shape of stars or snowflakes.
Mantles are often the focus-points of rooms and thus, are natural places for festive touches. Gulian recommends putting ropes of greens together with wire (or buying them that way) and weaving them around pictures or candlesticks. For candles, go fancy and buy them in gold or decorated with pearls.
Topiaries of ivy or Spanish moss sprayed with fake snow can also look fabulous on a mantle. Put one on each end for balance and place them in a pot painted gold and trimmed in festive ribbon.
And while you've got the ribbon out, says Gulian, make a big beautiful bow and attach it with a length of wire to a staircase post.
Finally, don't forget the poinsettias—but use them in new and unique ways. For instance, Gulian's collection of miniature lighted holiday houses has poinsettia “trees” in its village.
With a little creativity, holiday decorating can not only be inexpensive and elegant, but it can compliment your year-round style. And, says Gulian, “with a glue gun you can do a lot of this yourself.”
Ria E. Gulian, ASID, is the owner of Designs by Ria, a Holmdel-based interior design firm.
by Christine Menapace
The Busy Autumn Gardener
~ Preparing
Your Garden For
Winter's Slumber ~
(Published in Fall/Holiday 2002)
The air is crisp, the days are shorter, and once-green leaves are displaying a bright pageantry of golden orange and yellow. It's a time for closing up patios, storing away grills, donning cozy sweaters, and replacing summer's cool glasses of lemonade with steaming mugs of cocoa.
As our focus shifts from outdoors to in and plant nurseries across the Jersey Shore fill with rows and rows of autumn-hued mums, it's easy to think that fall gardening is merely a matter of planting a few of these small, bushy perennials. But experienced gardeners know the season is about more than just mums. In fact, it's a very busy time in which to prepare for next spring's success.
In early autumn, while the weather is still warm enough to enjoy being outdoors, there should be several “to-dos” on a gardener's list. First, bring in your house plants now, before the first frost hits. But before moving them inside, ensure that you're not bringing in any pests or diseases with them. (Even a small snail can do big damage.) Look on the back of leaves and spray the plant with a few drops of detergent and water or a diluted Spectracide spray. If you see whitefly, use Bioneem or neem-away; for aphids, mites or scale, try an ultra-refined oil, such as Sun Spray. Besides pest control, move the plant into a shady spot before bringing it indoors so it can adjust to lower light levels. Once indoors, the plant may drop some leaves, but a healthy plant will recover.
Early autumn is also the time to cut back spent perennials. But before you do, gather seeds from your plants to spread next spring (or give to other gardeners). And don't forget your annuals. An inexpensive, one-time purchase may provide several seasons worth of flowers if you help the plant reseed. (The author has done this with marigolds and morning glory for the past three years.) Also take notes on plant spread. In spring, these notes will help you decide where to locate any new plantings.
At least six weeks before the onset of winter cold is an ideal time to split plants and divide perennials. Aim for a cloudy day when the forecast calls for rain and arm yourself with a fork or spade for digging, a trowel for replanting, and cutting tools such as pruning shears, a pruning saw, etc. Make sure the plant isn't flowering or getting ready to flower and determine the best way to divide it based on the way it grows. For instance, bulbs will come apart easily when dug; clumps—such as daylilies, gerber daisies, and hardy geraniums—should be pulled apart by hand or separated with a sturdy tool; mats and patches—such as yarrow, bee balm, or evening primrose—should be cut in squares (like slicing a pan of brownies); and touch clumps—such as Lady's mantle and most sages or salvias—are so dense, they need to be sawed or whacked apart.
In mid-autumn, when some plants are still growing, but a light frost has killed others, there are still lots more things for busy gardeners to do. For instance, this is a good time to reseed and fertilize a lawn or put in a new lawn. It's also a good time to make use of the abundance of dead leaves on the ground. Instead of just raking them to the curb, make them into valuable compost. Chop the leaves up first by running over them with the lawn mower. Then add them to a compost pile or use them to mulch tender plants and keep them warm over winter.
Mid-autumn is also a good time for planting dormant roses and bulbs. While certain bulbs—like peonies and oriental poppies—should be planted in September, October is ideal for lilies, daffodils, hyacinths, pansies, violas, and primulas. Wait until November to plant tulips and look for ones larger than twelve centimeters in circumference (tulips are graded by circumference size.) The biggest bulbs produce the biggest blooms.
Autumn is not only the time to plant bulbs, it's also the time to bring in and store those bulb plants that can't survive winters in our zone—such as caladiums, cannas, clocasias, dahlias, and gladiolas. While each of these plants has different ideal times for digging up and storage, here's some general advice: Remove the plant from the ground the day after the first light frost, when the leaves have been “tipped” or partially killed back. Lay the bulb out in the shade to dry for several days after you have cut back the stems. Inspect the bulbs for damage and throw away any rotten, bruised, or cut bulbs. Most bulbs require storage in very dry conditions that are cool, but not freezing to prevent rotting (approximately 45šF to 65šF). However, dahlias need slightly moist conditions to prevent shriveling, so place them in barely damp peat moss and check every four to six weeks.
Finally, fall presents a good time to clean tools before putting them away for the season. To remove rust, soak tools in white vinegar overnight and just scrub off the rust the next day. And oil and sand down wooden handles or paint the handles of small hand tools so they're easier to find.
One last thing to keep in mind: While fall gardening includes cutting back dead plants and cleaning up for a fresh start in spring, you may want to leave some dead stalks of ornamental grasses, brown eyed susans, or purple coneflowers. Not only will the birds love you for it, but the plants will take on a new beauty when given a sparkly sheen of winter ice and snow.
Jeanne Lynch resides in Howell and has enjoyed gardening for more than twenty-five years. She is the Coordinator of the Monmouth County Master Gardeners Speakers Bureau. For more information on gardening presentations, call (732) 458-2121.
by Christine Menapace & Jeanne Lynch
The Mini-Mansion On River Road
~ Big Ideas For Smaller Rooms ~
(Published in Spring 2003)
It's not a large, stately mansion. The architecture is not stunning or unique. There is no documented history of significant owners. It's simply a charming little house dating from around 1910–one of several that can be found in our area. So why does it steal the show along Red Bank's River Road, like an adorable David amongst Goliaths? Because the home's owner, Danielle Placenti, isn't afraid to apply big ideas to smaller spaces. “I call it my mini-mansion,” she laughs.
The appeal of the house at number 254 is evident at first glance. It welcomes you with the same warmth and coziness often attributed to English cottages. Pink mandevillea and roses climb the porch columns in spring and summer. A brick walkway, flanked by flowering plantings, leads you to a sunny wrap-around porch. Wicker furniture plays host to romantic floral-print cushions. There are wind chimes and copper lanterns. The house is painted in a light, soft green with pale yellow shutters and trim.
Yet amongst this atmosphere of cottage charm are artsy touches that delight and surprise. Moroccan lights hang from the porch ceiling, a mosaic of bright glass beads adorns the front steps, and the porch floor is painted a deep cobalt blue. It's the sort of house you can't help but notice.
“People walking by often comment on how cute the house looks,” says Placenti. But it wasn't always so. Three years ago, when she and her husband bought the home for $140,000, “it was too small and ugly,” she says. However, the potential was there—just waiting for the right touch, not to mention lots of elbow grease—to bring out its beauty. So Placenti and her husband got to work on restoration. Old woodwork was stripped of seven layers of white paint, the original wood floors were uncovered under two layers of linoleum and carpeting, and three missing staircase spindles were custom-made to match the originals.
But Placenti wasn't just interested in restoration, she was also interested in adding some space to the house—which at the time included just two small bedrooms, one bathroom downstairs, a kitchen, and a narrow foyer/sitting room/dining room space. So an addition off the back of the house added a sunken family room with fireplace and patio doors on the first floor, as well as a master bedroom and bath on the second floor.
Today, with the addition, the home is spacious, though certainly not grand. What is grand, however, is the design sense Placenti has applied to her home. An array of textiles, rich warm tones, and bold artwork lend an opulence to the home that is striking yet inviting, and not intimidating. It is lush, detailed, and colorful. When you walk in, your eye is enticed and doesn't know where to settle first. Everything about the space draws you in and envelops you.
It has the ultra-feminine, comfortable allure of cottage-style, Shabby Chic-like decorating, but none of its cool white. It has the rich colors and antiques of more traditional interior design, but none of its stuffiness. It is decidedly eclectic. But it is also not a few things. “I don't like anything plastic...and I don't like white anything,” says Placenti.
What Placenti does love are vintage textiles and these form the basis for much of her dÈcor—be it a great sofa upholstery, Oriental rugs, or an array of needlepoint throw pillows. “You should always start with textiles...they rule the rooms,” she comments. Specifically, elaborate window treatments, all created from vintage fabrics, were the first elements to dictate each room's style. That's not to say that everything now matches these treatments—far from it. “As long as it's colors you love, they're going to coordinate,” she comments.
Another basis of Placenti's decorating are the walls, most of which are painted with faux finishes done by friends in the business. The baseboard in the foyer is a faux tortoise, while the walls have the look of creamy alabaster. But it is the ceiling of all things that truly draws the eye. Placenti painted plaster medallions in gold and affixed them in even rows against a background of Ralph Lauren's burnished gold paint. “I was in Italy and I got inspired,” Placenti reveals of this decorating detail. Additionally, in her family room the ceilings are painted a deep red. “The ceilings are as important as every spot in the house,” she comments.
And it is just this type of attitude that truly sets the home apart. While most would be painting smaller rooms with light colors and the usual white ceiling, Placenti feels this rule of thumb is the decorating equivalent of an old wives' tale. “If the whole room were dark, yes, it would be enclosing,” she says, but she balances it with lots of textured neutrals. Besides, she adds, “What's so bad about feeling closed in and cozy?”
Instead, Placenti never shies away from adding elements of elegance to her “mini-mansion”—be it on the ceiling or anywhere else. Lighting includes a chandelier from Sicily and antique lamps with shades trimmed in feathers. An old painted wooden chest, found at the Red Bank Antiques Center, serves as a coffee table. Iron gargoyle shelves, bought at the Englishtown Auction, hold black candlestick holders with deep red candles. American pottery is sprinkled throughout the house. A leather wingback chair stands by an overstuffed sofa of eight different upholsteries. A stunning Italian bed and dresser of light marbled wood with veneer dates from the 1920s. An antique mantle, found in salvage, was stripped to reveal its rich wood. Another architectural salvage, two wooden arches, round out an otherwise square room division.
In fact, most right angles in the house are softened by more fluid curves. The top of the kitchen cabinets have dried hydrangeas spilling over the edges and windows all include graceful swags of rich, cascading fabrics. “Detail is really important to me,” comments Placenti.
But not all the decorating details are “antiquey” or feminine. Placenti and her husband own a variety of original modern artwork from artists like Red Bank-based Pietro Barbera. Besides, she says, “Artwork is not supposed to match your sofa.” And Placenti also collects old taxidermy. Besides antlers, old tortoise shells, and leopard print wallpaper in her family room, a deer head dating from 1928 hangs over the staircase. “That's a conversation piece,” she says. While it may seem incredibly rustic, Placenti says it is in keeping with her great love of animals and the outdoors. “I like natural things,” she explains. “I have woodsy, earthy things, but then I put something gilded next to it,” she jokes.
Despite schooling at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT ) in New York City for fashion merchandising, Placenti takes a more instinctual rather than academic approach to her decorating. Unless it's an investment, she says people should just buy what they like. And always be collecting. She never says to herself, “I'm going to go buy a window treatment today.” Instead, “I just keep gathering.” She also doesn't let wealth get in the way; it's creativity that's more important. “Of course the five million dollar houses are beautiful,” she jokes. “But you don't have to be wealthy to have a beautiful house.”
Danielle Placenti is the owner of Creative Works, a full service decorating, furniture, and accessories business based in Red Bank and Summit, New Jersey.
by Christine Menapace
Theresa Troise Heidel's Nuances of Light And Mood
~ A Lifetime Enriched By Art, Reflected In Watercolor ~
(Published in Spring 2003)
Theresa Troise Heidel can finally get out of her car. An acclaimed watercolorist who paints on-site and lives in our four-season climate, she has spent the last few months working sometimes from the front seat of her car, capturing the particular light and spirit of the Shore in winter. Now, with the arrival of Spring, she is back out on the boardwalk, with better weather and a few more precious hours of daylight to finish her work. “When I'm painting on location—and not doing a commission or highly detailed architectural work—I strive to finish the artwork in one day to preserve the true feeling and mood. In this way, the work is fresh, instinctive, and spontaneous.”
Indeed, the locations that Heidel memorializes in paint—the Shark River Inlet, St. Catharine's Church in Spring Lake, the Ocean Grove tent houses, the buildings of Asbury Park—mean so much more to her than the details of structure and space. It is their unique feeling and atmosphere which she strives to evoke in the subtleties of watercolor. “I was always fascinated with certain places. I don't know how many times I've painted St. Catharine's...it has such a poetic feel...but I never ever think I really get it. Each time I look at it, it's different.”
The ever-changing quality of light is a large focus of her paintings—be it the ruddy light after a rain, the blue light of winter, or the warm glow of early sunset. Even her titles state its importance: “Spring Lake in Early Evening Light,” and “Winter Light, Warren Beach House.” Heidel comments, “The lighting is what hits you first. When you look at something and say, `Oh, that's beautiful,' it's usually the light. It conveys a mood and gets the message across—not just how something looks, how it feels.”
Heidel has been looking at the world through the eyes of an artist her entire life. Raised in Ridgefield Park, where she still lives today, her childhood was enriched by a family life in which the arts were of paramount importance. Her mother was an opera singer; her father sang as a soloist in New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral. Growing up with the music of Debussy and Wagner playing in the background and surrounded with paintings by her great-grandmother and great aunts, Heidel showed an early affinity for both piano and painting. “I was lucky to be in that environment...the arts were really encouraged,” she says.
Today, Heidel's life's work comes from piano and painting. She runs the music school started by her parents, and she has gained great recognition for her watercolors, winning several national and regional awards, exhibiting throughout the area, and selling her work through Oceanside Gallery in Belmar.
Though she says much of her work is essentially “instinctual,” she credits her education and life experiences as huge influences. She received a degree in art history from Saint Peter's College in Jersey City and then went on to do post graduate studies at the Accademia delle Belle Arti in Florence, Italy. There, she lived a block from Michelangelo's house and received special permission to sketch from Old Master drawings not on public display at the world-renowned Uffizi Gallery.
While the rich culture of Italy has moved her since her youth, later trips to England's Dedham Vale, known to artists as Constable country (for acclaimed artist John Constable), also proved to be highly inspirational. She believes painting in these areas has added an indefinable “something” to her paintings of the Shore. “It's not just technique. It's the psychological aspect of the experiences you gather and bring into your work...it's how to get that emotion into your work, it's you...the person behind the art.”
With this intense connection between art and artist, Heidel has paintings that are particularly close to her heart. Mentioning “Asbury Remembered” and “Bridge on Shark River, Belmar, NJ,” as favorites, she comments, “They fit my sentiments exactly...they're me.” Shark River Inlet, she says, brings back particular memories of childhood summers spent in Belmar, watching the boats go out to sea. “Every single summer we went to Belmar. We stayed in a house on Eighth Avenue owned by a woman named Dorothy. She was straight out of Dickens, surrounded by Victorian furniture and smoking under her Tiffany lamp, playing solitaire.” Ocean Grove, too, evokes a memory of staying in a tent house while her parents sang at the Great Auditorium. “It rained the whole time. I loved it. It was beautiful.”
But while the emotional connection undoubtedly adds a special element to her watercolors, Heidel firmly believes that one must first have a strong drawing as the painting's foundation. “That's really important to me. The drawing is absolutely it.” In fact, when she works on location, it is the drawing—not the painting—that takes the longest time to complete.
This attention to detail is particularly important when capturing distinctive architectural elements, such as in Asbury Park. In these cases, Heidel works from life, but backs up the studies with close-up photos. “I also return to the spot several times, making sketches—light and shadow patterns and colors.”
Currently, Heidel has even been working with a historian to research some of the architectural ornamentation that has been lost in Asbury Park. She eventually hopes to complete a series on the town—including one enormous eight foot painting. “I just want to feel like you're walking right into it...I want to rebuild Asbury Park in my paintings.”
Calling the eight foot painting a “labor of love,” she nonetheless recognizes the challenges ahead of her in creating a watercolor on that scale. “You almost have to pray sometimes,” she says half-jokingly. Luckily, it seems her prayers are often answered.
Theresa Troise Heidel's original paintings can be purchased through Oceanside Gallery in Belmar, NJ. For piano lessons, you can contact Theresa directly at 201-440-2976.
by Christine Menapace
If The Walls Could Talk
~ Decorative Home Murals Speak Volumes ~
(Published in Spring 2003)
Imagine your child playing happily among their favorite cartoon characters. Imagine your kitchen blooming with flowers in the midst of winter. Imagine living room walls that perfectly match your window treatments and sofa upholstery. These scenarios and more can all come true in your own home with just a little paint, a few days, and the skills of a mural artist.
“Today it's a pretty popular decorating idea,” comments Beth Kantor, a mural artist who owns Fine Art & Design with her husband, Sam Bayles. “It's a sort of a replacement for wallpaper.” With wall designs ranging from whimsical storybook scenes in children's rooms to elegant floral borders (two of the most popular motifs according to Kantor), just about any design can be accomplished. “We did a really large floral scene in the corner of a room to serve as the `headboard' of a bed. The flowers matched the bedspread and created a great look. It's one of my favorite projects.”
A fine artist by training, Kantor entered the business last spring when her husband, an illustrator and graphic artist, painted a cartoon scene in his niece's bedroom. “Everybody loved it and told us we should go into business. That's how we got started.”
Diane Antunes, owner of Whimsical Touch by Diane, also entered the profession last year on the urging of friends and relatives. “Everyone convinced me to start a business,” she comments.
Once a pharmacist, Antunes' love of painting murals began several years ago in her own home. She transformed her bedroom into an elegant scene of Roman ruins with stately white columns and bricks. Her bathroom went “underwater” with decorative coral, fish, and other sea creatures. And her living room attained a lovely faux finish. “I had just about run out of rooms,” she laughs, when she gained new wall space by doing projects for relatives.
Then, about two years ago, her daughter fell ill. Spending countless hours at Hackensack Medical University, “I started looking at these blank walls,” she comments. So Antunes took matters into her own hands—literally—by grabbing a paintbrush and adding cheerful cartoon characters to the walls. Though the project was for charity, it helped transform Antunes' hobby into her profession.
Today, she has done a variety of designs from a Tuscan countryside complete with grapevines and a vineyard in a kitchen to a child's room with an Old World map, lighthouse, and nautical flag containing the child's name. Often in a child's room, she will add the family dog or cat to the scene, which creates a special touch. “Wow, that looks exactly like our cat, Fluffy!” one client told Antunes. “I try to make it personal,” she says.
Both Antunes and Kantor agree that many customers know they need something to enliven their walls, but they're not sure what they want. For this reason, both artists typically run through several ideas with a client at a free, on-site consultation. “If it's a child's room, I'll ask about the child's interests,” says Antunes. Popular themes for children, they say, are cartoons, sports, animals, the circus, farms, and more.
For adults, a big advantage of decorative murals is the ability to match draperies, upholstery, wallpaper, and more, says Kantor. Individual elements of a textile can also be singled out and repeated on the wall. “It's an interesting effect,” she says.
After the initial consultation and a design decision, the artist's go to their sketch pads, where they come up with the plan for the wall. Prices for the designs vary greatly according to detail and scale. For instance, a farm scene could contain two animals or five animals. Some people might want just a border, while others will want to fill an entire wall. Some designs are simple, while others are more complex.
Antunes generally charges forty to fifty dollars an hour, with most projects ranging from four to five hours. An entire room, she says, can take ten to twenty hours and costs around seven to eight hundred dollars. Typically, she spends one or two days at a person's home. However, it is interesting to note, Antunes donates fifty percent of her profits to charities. “I believe it's a God-given talent so I want to give back,” she says.
Kantor charges two-hundred fifty dollars a day and says projects generally last from two to three days to one week. She says she always provides clients with a ballpark figure of how many days it will take, plus expenses, at the outset.
Surprisingly, most projects don't take a lot of prep work. All that is required is a surface of semi-gloss paint. If by chance the paint surface is matte, then it will be prepped, says Kantor. The design itself is done in matte acrylic paints.
Antunes has her clients do their own prep work if needed—which saves them money in the long run. Her decorative work is also done in acrylic, which has no smell and is durable. Her bathroom, which was painted six years ago, she says still looks great. “The paint lasts pretty long,” she comments.
Of course, for both artists satisfaction comes not only from creating beautiful wall murals, but in seeing people's reactions to their new decor. “People are very happy,” says Kantor. Marisa Stark, a client of Kantor's, testifies to the truth of this. “Our baby daughter loves her animal mural. She loves to lie in her crib and look up at the characters, and they make her smile every time!” A client of Antunes' summed it up nicely: “It was just a plain old set of closet doors—now it's a work of art!”
To contact Beth Kantor of Fine Art & Design, call 917-903-8849.
To contact Diane Antunes of Whimsical Touch by Diane, call 732-935-0580.
by Christine Menapace
New Jersey's Big On Tomatoes
~ And Getting Bigger—Thanks To A Long Branch Native ~
(Published in Spring 2003)
You can't grow up in New Jersey without an appreciation for our famed Jersey tomatoes. So perhaps it is fitting that one of the nation's top growers of giant tomatoes should hail from right here in Monmouth County! Minnie Zaccaria was born, raised, and still lives in Long Branch, but her renown as a giant tomato grower has spread to all parts of the horticultural world. In fact, you can't talk to any of Monmouth County's expert gardeners about tomatoes without hearing her name mentioned repeatedly. And she's been featured in Delta airlines' Sky magazine.
Why all the acclaim? Quite simply, Minnie has won the New Jersey Championship Tomato Weigh-In seven times in eleven years (from 1986 to 1997); garnered first place in a national contest in 1998; and her largest tomato, at a whopping 6.16 pounds is the third largest grown in the world according to Guinness Book ratings. She has even sold the rights to her seeds. Today, her line of giant tomatoes, dubbed the “Big Zac Hybrid,” is featured in seed catalogs that go out across the country and Europe. (For example, a search for “Big Zac” on the internet revealed an article in the Sacramento Bee mentioning Big Zacs appeal to gardeners in California. It reads, “Bill Franklin, a Sacramento County master gardener, plucked a real behemoth—a 3-pound, 8-ounce Big Zac. Franklin is planting Big Zac again this year. His first four-pounder may hit the scales this summer.”)
But despite all the attention Minnie has received in tomato-growing circles, one might easily mistake her as just another avid suburban gardener. Her growing area is no fancy, high-tech greenhouse or sprawling acres of farmland; it's a surprisingly humble garden plot by the side of her house on Reid Street. And her attitude is just as humble—which explains her reluctance in recent years to enter more tomato contests. “I won so often, I really felt funny entering,” she explains.
However, that's not always how she felt. In fact, her desire to grow mammoth tomatoes arose from a bit of friendly competition, when a neighbor commented of her garden, “You call those tomatoes?” As Minnie tells it, “You make fun of me, I'm going to do better.” Thus, over the years, her passion—and her tomatoes—grew until one day in 1983 she had a three-pound tomato and entered her first contest. By her third year of entering the competition, she had won. “I was hooked,” she laughs. Now when you enter her house, you see a tomato plate displayed on the wall, tomato oven mitts hanging in the kitchen, tomato pictures, and a folder lying on the table labeled “Killer Tomatoes.”
Minnie says she comes by her gardening skills naturally. “My father loved gardening, I guess it was inbred,” she comments. Even her Big Zac Hybrid originated from a line of family heirloom tomatoes started by her grandfather. So by as early as age fifteen, young Minnie had tried growing her first plants from seed, but they died shortly after sprouting, prompting her to write the seed company and complain.
Today, Minnie has come a long way from her first unsuccessful seed-growing experiment, and she readily shares her knowledge. So here's Minnie's quick tomato tips:
While you may prefer to buy your tomato plants, Minnie starts hers indoors from seed. She plants them on April 8 in loose potting soil, gives them twelve to fourteen hours of light under a fluorescent, and then transfers them outside near the end of May. When she transplants them, she places them deeply in the soil—about four inches, or the second set of leaves—so the plant will create strong roots all along the buried stem. For staking, she always uses metal, not wood. And she adds at least a three-inch layer of mulch in early June.
For giant tomatoes, Minnie plants them about three feet apart and allows only one or two stems to grow. (This directs all the plant's strength into fewer, but bigger tomatoes.) Or, if you prefer lots of smaller tomatoes, leave more stems. Some people feel that bigger tomatoes are not as tasty, but Minnie defends her grandiose creations. “People get the impression I only grow for size, but that's not true...they're tasty...I think they're fantastic.” And like any New Jersey tomato grower, Minnie's crop often exceeds her needs. “I give many away,” she laughs.
For more information (and recipes!) visit: www.njtomato.com
by Christine Menapace
Three Great Tomato Recipes
(Published in Spring 2003)
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Your tortilla chips never had it so good with this Zingy Chili Dip!
Zingy Chili Dip
1 can 28 ounce tomatoes; drained, mashed
2 cans 4 ounce black olives, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
4 ounces fresh mushrooms, chopped
2 tablespoons vinegar
1 can 4 ounce diced green chilies, drained
1 can 8 ounce tomato sauce
3 tablespoons olive oil
10 tablespoon (or to taste) garlic,
finely diced
1/2 teaspoon salt
Tortilla chips
Redrain tomatoes, removing as much juice as possible. Mix with all other ingredients. Allow to chill for several hours to blend flavors. Serve with tortilla chips. Note: will keep for up to two weeks in refrigerator if tightly covered.
Submitted to www.njtomato.com by Ann Hudson.
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You can't have a list of tomato recipes without Spaghetti Sauce!
Spaghetti Sauce Recipe
2 28 ounce cans of tomatoes (I tend to
like diced, but whole, pureed, or any combination work fine)
1 3 ounce can tomato paste (the smallest you can find)
1 medium-sized onion
3 or so cloves of garlic, or to taste
(optional: a smallish, say 1 x 1/2 inch chunk of ginger)
1 bay leaf
oregano, thyme, rosemary (dried or fresh)
(marjoram, basil are also an option)
oil for sautÈing
Peel and chop the onion, garlic, and, if using it, ginger. Get these as small as you can/have patience for. I use the food processor. SautÈ onion and garlic (and ginger) in the oil for a few minutes until the onion is transparent, but not brown. Add the canned tomatoes, including the juice. Also add the tomato paste, and mix. Add the bay leaf and other herbs. Simmer for at least 1/2 hour, or until the consistency is right; you may need to add a little water. I don't tend to use measured amounts of herbs, but experience has shown that you don't want to add too much rosemary (a teaspoon is probably enough, and a tablespoon too much), but it does fine with lots of oregano and a good amount of thyme. Also, it keeps really well in the refrigerator and freezes quite successfully.
Submitted to www.njtomato.com by Lucy Hadden
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From Albuquerque, NM, this neat dish...
This is a very elegant side dish—very simple and quite colorful. It is really especially welcome in the winter when tomatoes are relatively poor in flavor.
Slice in half and place sliced side
up in a shallow baking pan:
2 large tomatoes
Sprinkle over the top of each tomato
half:
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon bread crumbs
1 teaspoon grated parmesan cheese
dash of garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon dry oregano
1/2 teaspoon basil, fresh if available
optional: 1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds or a pinch of ground red
chili
Place in hot oven or under a preheated broiler til very hot and top browns a bit.
Chef's Note: These can be baked ahead of time, covered with plastic wrap, and pulled out for broiling as the final step in dinner preparation.
Submitted to www.njtomato.com by Bruce C. Moffitt, retired restaurant owner and chef
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Recipes courtesy of www.njtomato.com.
Windows Into Spring
(Published in Spring 2003)
Spring awakens our lethargic senses from the snow-muffled months of winter. I stand beside the Toms River, where I once skated, and listen as the ice groans and cracks. Soon it will melt and release the burbling sound of flowing water, a simple, liquid melody heard deeply. I pick up a warm stone from the sand and toss it. Kerplunk. Let spring begin.
Spring arrives at our home near the river with snowdrops gathering in the back yard beside the dusty cellar window. Nearby, green shoots rise from the thawed soil. Their snowy heads bow to the sunlight, but at night, under a full moon, they glow ghostly, a reminder of the winter just past.
Robins bob and run across the yard—sweet spring is here. They stop and cock their heads as though listening for worms. Black capped and red breasted, they put the bounce in spring and are like little springs themselves, hopping across the driveway by our red house. At dawn, their wavering, bubbly carol, cheerily, cheerio, cheeriup, cheerily, heralds the new season.
Now the deep purple, yellow, and white of bunches of crocuses add a sprinkle of color to the pale grass in our back yard. Later in the month, the hyacinths bloom. With a heady scent, they sweeten the yard while resurrecting memories of Easters past when our sons munched on the ears of chocolate bunnies and searched the house for the brightly painted shells of hidden eggs.
Before long, and much to her delight, the wild violets my wife gathered from the nearby woods come up. Interspersed with the dark and light yellow daffodils, they form an oasis of color on the garden's canvas.
~ • ~ • ~ • ~
Some springs can be rather strange. One April, I remember gazing out the window at the back yard in amazement as snow tumbled down on the budding leaves of trees, forsythia bushes, and hyacinths. April Fools' Day had passed, yet here it was snowing more heavily than it had done on any day in January. What fates flip-flopped the seasons? Would the roses bloom in December? How startling it was to see that telegram of spring, the forsythia in full bloom, become a wild-haired, wicker bush of yellow behind a nearly all-encompassing white. Green, pink, and purple peeked through the April snow. One lone sparrow puffed its feathers, sat under the bird feeder, and pecked at leftover seeds. Yesterday, the temperature reached seventy degrees, a few days before that, eighty. Snowing and going to snow. Had my sense of sight gone awry?
For the most part, though, most springs are normal. The yard comes alive again with the acrobatics of gray squirrels and their young as they claw up the pine trees, making scratchy rustles, leaping from needled branch to needled branch, then down again, scooting around the woodpile.
~ • ~ • ~ • ~
With everything awakening and the cycle of new life beginning again, the mallard from the river quacks, waddles up the riverbank, and parades her seven ducklings in a neat line across Riverside Drive and into our back yard to look for food. Cars stop, and drivers patiently wait. Most smile. The mother and her ducklings leave our yard; Tigger, our cat, bats a piece of bark. A couple of blue jays from the pine tree screech their cold-steel cries, jay, jay; jay, jay, at the cat. He stops what he's doing and looks up. My wife, upon walking over, screams, “He has one of the ducklings!” The cat drops it and bounds away. The jays screech. She gently picks up the peeping puff of feathers and brings it into the house to examine. "Not hurt, just dazed," she says and brings it down to the river. Upon returning, she tells me how I should've seen it paddle as soon as it hit the water, peeping for its mother. "She half-flew, half-swam to meet it." "What happened when they met?" I asked. "She gave it a loud quack and thumped it with her bill." I grin, remembering my own parents lightly thumping and then hugging me after my return from wondering astray in the supermarket as a child.
~ • ~ • ~ • ~
Although I no longer live right by the river, I still enjoy the new found warmth of a spring breeze on my bare arms and revel in the new life and fresh smell of earth it brings. The street signs where we now live all have bird names: Puffin Glade, Spoonbill Hollow, Sandpiper Lane... The logo of our townhome community features two ducks floating by cattails in a creek fashioned after the real Cedar Creek nearby.
From our second floor window, my wife and I spot a little blond girl, about five years old, skipping on the walk below. She ponys up to an old man (her grandfather?), extends her hand, and offers him a sprig of forsythia, yellow as an egg yolk. "From one generation to another," my wife whispers. The elderly gentleman smiles, accepts the gift, and walks on, stepping a little lighter. Her ponytail bouncing, the girl whirls, dancing around him, while singing, bubbly as the river I remember. The Earth spins with her.
by Frank Finale
The Magic of the Christmas Tree
(Published in Fall/Holiday 2004)
Soon it will be the second week of December—and for Gene Serpentelli of Brick, that means it's time for his pre-Christmas vacation week. After all, he needs the extra days to complete setting up the family's Christmas trees—which now total six—two full size and four table top all done in individualized themes. “As long as I start early enough, it is fun,” he comments.
Despite all the work it takes, for Gene and his wife Bobbi, decorating their Christmas trees is truly a labor of love. Each ornament they place on their trees tells a story of travels, friends, and memories. “We really have a marvelous time at Christmas,” says Bobbi. “It's a wonderful, wonderful tradition.”
Indeed, for Christians in many parts of the world, the Christmas tree has become one of the most beautiful and sentimental symbols of the season. And its history is long-reaching. According to legend, a seventh century English monk named St. Boniface may be responsible. He traveled to Germany to spread the word of God and used the triangular shape of the fir tree to illustrate the Holy Trinity. By the twelfth century, fir trees were being hung—upside down apparently—in central European homes as a symbol of Christianity.
Another possible origin of the Christmas tree dates to the fourteenth century when churches held “miracle plays” to tell stories of the Bible. On December 24, which was Adam and Eve's Day, an evergreen tied with apples was used to represent a lush apple tree. Many churchgoers soon set up their own “Paradeisbaum,” or Paradise trees, in their own homes. One theory traces the traditional red and green colors of Christmas to these red apples and green trees.
Officially, the first decorated Christmas tree has been placed at Rigia, Latvia in 1510. Like the apples on the Paradise tree, early “ornaments” were edible goodies such as sweets, cookies, and fruit. By 1531, according to the National Christmas Tree Association, the first retail Christmas tree lots appeared in German cities. In the 1600s, ribbon, tin shapes, real silver tinsel, paper flowers, and lace started to adorn the trees.
Ironically, it was the Revolutionary War which helped instill the idea of the Christmas tree here in the United States. In fact, one story takes place right in Trenton, New Jersey on Christmas Eve of 1776. As the story goes, some thirty thousand German mercenaries (Hessians), who were hired by the British, became so homesick at the sight of a candlelit evergreen (already a Christmas tradition in Germany), that they left their posts to celebrate. Early British settlers to North American colonies,
on the other hand, rarely observed Christmas and did not cut down or decorate trees at the time, according to one article. As a result, George Washington was able to attack and defeat the Hessians. However, the Hessians who stayed on in the United States helped spread the idea of a decorated Christmas tree.
The area around Trenton later played another role in the history of the Christmas tree. The first Christmas tree farm in the country was planted in 1901 in Mercer County when W. V. McGalliard planted twenty-five thousand Norway Spruce on his farm. Seven years later, they were marketed for one dollar each to customers who chose their trees in the field, cut them, and brought them home, says John E. Perry, a resident of Toms River and Executive Secretary of the New Jersey Christmas Tree Growers' Association. Perry, who owns Yuletide Christmas Tree Farm in New Egypt, warns, however, that several states actually claim the first farm. Currently, he says, New Jersey has over four hundred choose and cut Christmas tree farms. (To find one in your area, visit www.njchristmastrees.org.)
Today, the beauty and splendor of the Christmas tree is deeply tied to traditions that are unique and personal to each family. For the Serpentellis, a holiday including six trees is a tradition that has evolved over time. Their first tree was put up as newlyweds in 1964. Then, the first Christmas after their daughter was born, they decided to put up a second Children's Tree full of nursery rhyme characters, teddy bears, and gingham fabric. A third tree, decorated with miniature ornaments, soon followed. A fourth tree, the Gift Tree, provided a place to display all the ornaments given by family and friends over the years. A fifth tree, at only two and a half feet, became a strikingly simple homage to just lights and bows. Finally, in 2001, the White House Tree became the sixth tree, adorned with ornaments produced annually by the White House Historical Association.
After nearly four decades, the Serpentelli's collection of ornaments is incredibly far-ranging from store bought trinkets to painted clamshells and handmade birds by Vermont decoy-carver Gary Starr. “Most of them we find in our journeys,” says Bobbi. “We vacation every August in Vermont, and we always end up bringing something back for the trees—even though we don't need it!”
She adds, “There's always a little story behind each collection, and we share it with family and friends.” Indeed, the trimming of the trees in the Serpentelli's home is all about having loved ones around. The decorating starts at Thanksgiving with crock pots of apple cider and mulled wine accompanied by home-baked pumpkin and apple pies. And the festive season doesn't end until February, when even the untrimming of the largest of the trees is cause for celebration. “We call it The Defrocking Party,” laughs Bobbi.
Some might think six Christmas trees are enough, but not the Serpentellis. “We're toying with a seventh,” they say. The theme is likely to be the hand carved and painted birds previously mentioned, since the collection has grown large enough to warrant its own tree. “It's in the planning stages,” says Bobbi. “The Christmas tree merchants will be seeing us again!”
Other sources for this article included:
• “History of the Christmas Tree” by Ken Tilt
and Bernice Fischman of Auburn University, AL (www.ag.auburn.edu/
landscape/christmastreehistory.html)
• The Christmas Decorations & Gifts Store
(www.christmas-decorations-gifts-store.com/christmas_ornaments.htm)
• Christmas Tree Farmers of Ontario
(www.christmastrees.on.ca/vtfsite/vtf%20copy/history1.html)
• Captain Jack's Christmas Tree Farm Website
(www.christmas-tree.com/where.html)
• The Christmas Archives
(www.christmasarchives.com/trees.html)
• Did you know? (www.didyouknow.cd/xmas/xmastrees.htm)
by Christine Menapace
Moments Both Wondrous & Ordinary
~ The Writings of Frank Finale ~
(Published in Fall/Holiday 2004)
Several slips of paper are tacked randomly to his bulletin board. One reads, “The infinite is in the finite of every instant.” Another reads, “If you love the sacred and despise the ordinary, you are still bobbing in the ocean of delusion.” Yet one more expresses, “Earth's crammed with heaven / And every common bush afire with God / But only he who sees takes off his shoes.” The first is a Zen saying. The others come from Lin-Chi and Elizabeth Barrett Browning respectively. And the man inspired from these writings is a writer himself—Frank Finale.
For nearly forty years, Finale has been both an acclaimed teacher and poet at the Jersey Shore. As an educator, he taught grades four and six for thirty-eight years in the Toms River Regional Schools, earning various accolades such as “Teacher of the Year” and an “Excellence in Education Award” nomination. As a writer, he has published over three hundred fifty poems and essays in more than one hundred different books, journals, and magazines. He also helped found and edit the literary magazine, Without Halos (from 1985 to 1995) and is currently the poetry editor of the new renaissance, an international literary magazine. He has had four books published, including: Under A Gull's Wing (co-editor, Down The Shore Publishing), To The Shore Once More, To The Shore Once More, Volume II, and A Gull's Story (all Jersey Shore Publications). His two coffee table books of essays, poems, and paintings, To The Shore Once More (Volumes I and II), and his children's book, A Gull's Story, continue to be regional bestsellers; To The Shore Once More recently went into its fourth printing.
Today, Finale is sitting in his office amongst piles and piles of books and papers. An old dresser serves as a filing cabinet, a cat named Peggy Sue is curled up in a corner, and an ancient Brother word processor stands ready for his next act of inspiration. An old typewriter, a dusty Smith Corona, is excitedly extracted from a corner and shown off. “It was my Dad's. This is what I used to bang out my poetry,” he says. He explains how the sound of the keys—click clack—provided a rhythm to his work.
Indeed, it was the sound of words that first drew Finale to writing. As a high school track star growing up in Brooklyn, his focus hadn't always been literary. He went to college on a track scholarship, but after pulling a hamstring, he focused on academics. It was then he discovered a love of poetry. “I was very much enamored with Dylan Thomas and Fern Hill. Also Theodore Roethke—the sound of the words...I love words and where they come from.”
It was while taking a year off from school that Finale first started his own writing—in a sense. In an ironic twist, the former track star was working in his local trophy shop and became friends with another employee, Duke. At age 48, Duke was earning his GED, and Finale helped ghost write some of Duke's essays. “I got very nice comments from his teacher,” laughs Finale.
After graduating from college in 1964, Finale was drawn to the Jersey Shore by his stepbrother, who lived in Point Pleasant. “It sounded like a fairy tale,” Finale recalls. So he moved to Sunshine Harbor, where he spent his days listening to Joan Baez and diving into the lagoon near where he lived. It was during the next few years that Finale would find three of the constants in his life. He took his first teaching job in Toms River; he met his wife, Barbara, in Asbury Park; and he published his first poem, “The Philosophers,” at age 24.
Over the years, these three elements have affected and enriched one another. Being a writer has made him a better teacher and vice versa. From a practical standpoint, having summers off allowed Finale to experience a variety of jobs—from busboy to temporary policeman. “They became grist for my writing...it refreshes you...a new realm of people, different people with different values.” And through it all, his wife provided “feedback and inspiration.”
Barbara has also allowed total strangers to glimpse into their life—for much of Finale's writing is decidedly autobiographical, depicting a kiss in the snow or a weekend away with friends in a troubled marriage. But it is just these moments that give Finale's work its significance. Like the sayings on the bulletin board in his office, Finale strives to capture the extraordinary underlying the ordinary motions of our lives, the meanings behind the moments. But it's not the big moments that fascinate him—it's the little moments, the everyday, which he brings across to his readers. They are moments we can all connect with, making them, on an essential level—true.
Getting across this “truth” in writing is no easy task. But Finale's gift lies in bringing forth sensory experiences that make the moment familiar to a reader in just a few phrases—which is perhaps why he considers himself a “poet” more than any other type of writer. Mostly, he relies on his own memories and will sit in reflection before writing. He also keeps journals as references and will bounce ideas and memories off Barbara. Even then the process is just beginning. “It's hard work. The first time you write it, it comes out clichÈ...so then I have to go back and think `how did it really feel.'”
Often, Finale finds his solution by drawing on nature. For this reason, his writings are often intimately connected with the Jersey Shore. He recalls when he first moved to this area, “It impressed me greatly—the ocean and all that open space. I'm still impressed.” But while he admits that nature is a huge theme for him, he worries about its interpretation. “I guess I like nature writing, but I hate that term. It's not a bluebird and pollyannaish thing.” Close friend and editor, Rich Youmans, expresses it well. He writes in the introduction of To The Shore Once More, “Frank has that rare ability to express sentiment without sentimentality.”
And of course, for Finale, revising his work is never really over. He points out another item on his bulletin board—a cartoon of a skeleton sitting at a desk which reads, “The Last Revision.” “You're never done,” he says, citing an idea from French poet Paul Valery, “We more or less abandon them after a while.”
With this fall marking the first year of his retirement from teaching, Finale finds he is still quite busy. “At first I thought I would have ample time, then I started making to-do lists,” he jokes. Readings at schools and public events, continuing to write, and editing all keep his days full. But even with all of this, Finale finds his writing is now larger than himself. Telling stories of his writing's international travels and effects on people, he says with a laugh, “It leads a more exciting life than I do.”
by Christine Menapace
For The Birds
~ Setting Up A Winter Feeder ~
(Published in Fall/Holiday 2004)
As summer draws to a close, our once busy backyards take on a more barren look. Patio furniture is covered up, barbecues are stored away, and gardens are put to rest for the winter season. But nature lovers will be glad to know that there's one area of the yard that can still bustle with activity throughout the colder months—the bird feeder.
Not only is our area blessed with a number of beautiful native winter birds, but our location on the coast, dubbed the “Atlantic Flyway,” is an ideal spot for catching non-native birds in transit to their southern homes. And naturally, the first few weeks of autumn are the best time to see these winged visitors to our region. “New Jersey is one of the hot spots for migratory birds,” comments Debby Walther, owner of Wild Bird Seeds & Such in Brielle. “During the fall, these migratory birds need to stop and refuel,” and particularly popular “rest areas” include Sandy Hook and the Manasquan Inlet, she says.
Because of the prevalence of these migratory birds, The Monmouth County Audubon Society recommends keeping hummingbird feeders clean and full. You may attract rare hummingbirds that are migrating through, such as the rufous hummingbird, which has been spotted at New Jersey feeders in late autumn, according to the Society's newsletter.
Native birds that will spend the entire winter in the area include the cardinal, chickadee, nuthatch, tufted titmouse, downy woodpecker, mourning dove, goldfinch, sparrow, and bluejay. Winter visitors include the junco, golden crowned kinglet, yellow rumped warbler, and the cedar waxwing. While each species is different, there is one thing they are all attracted to—sunflower seeds. “Black oil sunflower is universal,” says Walther. “It covers the gamut. There's nobody that doesn't like it—and the oil content is good for them in the winter.” Walther recommends straight sunflowers seeds over some “mass merchandised” seed mixes because of the amount of “milo” filler they can sometimes include. Milo, a large, round, red seed, she says, is actually only eaten by three birds on the east coast—two types of sparrows and mourning doves.
Sunflower seeds can be purchased in three varieties: all shell, no shell, or a mix. Mixes are usually best because some birds prefer no shell, while others—like bluejays and tufted titmouses—prefer in-shell seeds. Keep in mind that in-shell seeds will mean that shell casings will be left below the feeder. Expect costs of around four dollars for a five-pound bag and around twenty-one dollars for a twenty-five pound bag.
Also consider putting out a mix of suet, placed inside a secure cage. Check the label and look for one with no fillers or artificial ingredients. It's not only a great lure for winter birds, but “the high energy fat plays a very important role in winter,” comments Walther.
In your garden, the Monmouth County Audubon Society recommends that you allow ripened vegetation to remain if possible. The seed pods provide food for the birds, while the vegetation provides cover from predators.
Perhaps more important than food, though, is a source of water in winter. When temperatures drop and water sources freeze, thirsty birds must eat snow to hydrate themselves, expending twelve percent of their energy in the process. Clean, shallow, heated water sources are a welcome sight to winter birds.
But while feeders and water sources can help birds through the winter, Walther says humans shouldn't overestimate their affects on the bird population. Feeders, she says, act as a supplement to a bird's primary diet of insects, fruit, and berries; birds don't rely on feeders solely. Thus, families going on vacation for a month shouldn't worry that the birds will starve. They also shouldn't worry that feeders left up too long after a particular season will disturb migratory patterns, says Walther. “If feeders were somehow `wrong,' our songbirds would be on the top of the list for endangerment,” he comments.
Humans, however, do hold a responsibility to keep seed and feeders clean and well maintained. Throw out any seed that is powdery or wet, watch for Indian Meal Moth (pantry moth), and store seed in a metal container in a cool, dry place. Buy feeders made from quality materials with lifetime warrantees (this helps ensure against squirrel damage). Walther recommends buying tube feeders with small trays at the bottom for birds that can't balance well, such as cardinals and doves. She herself owns a Droll Yankee tube feeder that she's had for twenty-one years. With current prices starting at nineteen dollars for a two-port feeder, Walther comments, “You don't have to spend more than twenty-five dollars to get yourself a good feeder.”
As to placement, you can hang feeders from tree branches or shepherd's hooks. Generally, birds like a bush or tree nearby for protection from predators. As mentioned, also keep in mind that seed shells will fall below the feeder.
What about squirrels—the bane of all bird feeders? “I have plenty of people who come through my door who are absolutely crazed about the squirrels,” says Walther. Her advice? Mentioning a suet feeder that was dragged away by squirrels to somewhere in the ivy, she laughs. While squirrels can be deterred with squirrel resistant feeders (including designs with counterweights or spring-loaded doors) and safflower seed—which slows down a squirrel's rate of eating—ultimately, a human will never win the war against a persistent creature who can jump five feet vertically and ten feet horizontally.
Besides, the point of bird feeders and bird watching is to create a pleasurable experience. In a busy world, watching birds in your own backyard can be a great stress reducer. It's also a wonderful way to connect with nature during the winter months from inside a cozy house. So grab binoculars and a bird book. Or simply look out the window while sipping a steaming mug of tea. “The birds are very peaceful,” says Walther. “And putting up a feeder doesn't mean you have to be an expert...it's just something that's nice to do.”
For more information:
The Monmouth County Audubon Society
http://www.monmouthaudubon.org
Recommended Reading:
1) A Guide to Bird Finding in New Jersey by William J. Boyle, Jr.
2) Birds of New Jersey by Stan Tekiela
by Christine Menapace
Cats, Bats, and Fabulous Hats
(Published in Fall/Holiday 2004)
All night the autumn wind played among the trees, sailing leaves away from their moorings, throwing them up and tossing them down, to where their flame-like shapes emblazoned the walk. The moon waxed a cold yellow, and from the gruesome grins of jack-o'-lanterns ornamenting all the porches on the street seeped a musty odor of rotting pumpkins and candle wax.
The next day was Halloween, and the weather had turned to Indian summer. At dusk, a legion of little people, each carrying a sack, milled about the street. With their adult shadows following behind, they came to our door in small groups, ringing the bell and shouting, “Trick or treat!” As our stereo played Sounds from a Haunted House, we slowly opened the door festooned with dangling cardboard skeletons and let out the sounds of an ominous pipe organ and blood-curdling screams. Standing before us (I, in my black Count Dracula cape, and my wife, Barbara, in her tall witch's hat) was a band of merrymakers: a tiny princess with a bejeweled tiara; a screaming skull in a hooded black robe; a little tyke wearing an oversized Cavalier hat (complete with enormous plume—more hat than boy); and two detectives in trench coats, each with a spiral-bound memo pad at the ready. All held open a pillowcase.
At first Barbara and I feigned surprise, then realized we really were surprised. Never had we seen a detective on the trick-or-treat circuit, and we felt that this tack was both unusual and original. “What department are you with?” I asked the boys. “Homicide,” grinned the taller one. “FBI” said the shorter. They even questioned us about the candy we were portioning out from our monstrous Halloween bowl. “Is this candy fresh?” asked Mr. FBI. “There's nothing funny in them, is there?” asked Mr. Homicide. “Well, yes,” we said with a smile, “there's a giggling potion.” “We'll see about that,” Mr. Homicide said, as he turned away. A few steps from our door, the detectives tried to trade their Good & Plenty for Butterfinger bars that the little princess and screaming skull had gathered, but the princess and skull kept their treasures. The little tyke kept trying to peer into his sack, but his Cavalier hat kept falling down to his nose. The princess and screaming skull took turns pulling it back onto his head.
This year we had elaborate decorations. A friend of ours (a diehard Halloween fan) had overdosed on macabre accessories, and we were the beneficiaries of his surplus. He even put them up for us, so we were the Halloween Headquarters of our block. A spider web fanned out from the porch roof, down over the shrubs, and onto the ground. A fanny-pack size tarantula and eight fist-size tarantula babies, all with glow-in-the-dark red eyes, spangled the huge web which drew gasping whispers of “Cool!” “Awesome!” “Wow!” and “Eeeek!” A few boys said, “We'll get a lot of good stuff here.”
By 9:00 p.m., when the curfew went into effect, we had seen more than our fair share of screaming skulls, hobos, Batmen, ballerinas, dancing skeletons, werewolves, and little princesses. We survived the rush without getting tricked and even had a couple of lemon Jolly Ranchers left in the bottom of the orange bowl, along with a few Nestle's Crunches and Milky Ways that we had set aside for our own comfort.
But two hours of the steady trickle of treaters had taken its toll on me, and I went to bed early. Barb nestled down on the couch with the TV on and windows open to let in the soft breezes. TV Guide was thickened with its summaries of various Halloween horror films: The Bride of Frankenstein, The Mummy's Curse, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Night of the Living Dead... Yet vampire movies, with their ironic lust for living and romantic overtones, seemed to be her favorite. Bela Lugosi's muffled voice shrouded the TV, the light of an early Count Dracula movie mottled her face, and Barb fell asleep.
She dreams of herself as a ghostly pale yet beautiful young woman riding a white Mustang on the Parkway where she enthralls handsome men to follow her to resort towns by the sea. Soon, they become lost in a night of carnival games. Near the end of the evening, the men's faces change into white petals, which she scatters onto the dark ocean waters. Then, she meets a well-dressed man with mesmerizing black eyes who leads her off to his mansion by the sea. At sunrise, only the other men's empty cars remain on the abandoned streets.
Click, click, click...is someone with a dead battery trying to start their car? Click, click—suddenly, a startled Barb awakes to stare at a bat flapping on the TV screen. As the bat enters a high chamber window, it transforms into Bela Lugosi, but she still hears the flapping of its wings. Screaming, she leaps off the couch and turns on the lights. Somehow a real bat found its way into the house—perhaps through that screen door that has never closed properly. Our black cat, Shadow, makes an icht, icht sound, as if he had a hairball stuck in his throat, then jumps up at the bat but misses. The bat is too high, almost at the ceiling. Barb grabs the old blanket from the end of the couch and tries to throw it over the bat. She misses. She and Shadow chase the frantic bat into a corner where she finally throws the blanket over it, picks it up, and hurries out the back door, shaking the blanket out. The bat flaps away in crazy loops around an old pine tree.
Relieved, she eases herself back onto the couch. She begins to doze off when she hears click, click once again. The bat is back. This time, Barb, agitated by the coincidence that seems creepier by the second, and Shadow, excited by dark possibilities, both chase it, scrambling back and forth across the living room and then into the dining room, the china closet rattling, and on into the den where they lose sight of it in the caves of the bookshelves.
Barbara turns out all the lights except the nightlight in the dining room and waits. Shadow waits with her. Silence. And sure enough, the bat creeps out from the bookshelf and flutters past her face in the near darkness. She turns and throws a towel over it...squeak!, squeak! Barbara hurries to the back door and shakes the towel open. The bat flaps into a nearby red cedar.
This time, she closes all the windows and doors and puts on the air-conditioner, wondering out loud and somewhat resentfully, “How on earth can Frank sleep through this commotion?!” It is nearly 2:00 a.m. When she returns to the couch and TV, Love at First Bite, a comedy about a vampire's love for a New York model, is in its early stages. “Ha!,” she says, shaking her head and reaching for the remote. Shadow curls up at her feet, and within minutes, they fall asleep. She dreams of cold weather, lots of snow, and Christmas. Shadow twitches and dreams of catching flying mice.
by Frank Finale