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15th Annual Ocean Grove Town-Wide Yard Sale. To participate, send us an email (Blogfinger@verizon.net) with sale address, seller’s name, and cross streets. This site is Blogfinger.net

May 6, 2026 by Blogfinger

Click flyer once to enlarge.

Sign up NOW for the June 27, 2026 Ocean Grove Town-Wide Yard Sales.  Contact us  (Eileen and Paul Goldfinger)   by email;      Blogfinger@verizon.net.  No rain date.

 

Pick up flyers at our porch 113 Mt. Hermon Way at Delaware Ave.   Help us promote this “for the people” event in its 15th year.    Bring some to merchants to place in windows.  Place flyers  on your home.  Please take some flyers  and take a walk downtown.  We will advertise in The Coaster, APP, Next Door and Facebook,

Sellers names will not be posted unless the seller wants that..

Send us your lists of sale  items at any time. You can send updates until June 26.

From now until the sales, we will have this Blogfinger post  in place,  and this is  where we will communicate information and this is where we will begin posting “THE LIST.” which  will contain the addresses of all participants  including cross streets and, eventually  items for sale.  We will post the “LIST”  here and add new addresses as they come in to  Blogfinger@verizon.net .  We will organize the sellers by neighborhoods to help shoppers.

New participants will be added to “The List”  as the addresses arrive to us from now through June 26.   Tell your friends visit  Blogfinger.net to find basic information. 

Add your items for sale  whenever you wish.  We will save the item “List”  until 1-2 weeks before.  We don’t want early birds knocking  on your doors.

We are leaving this post here until June 27  so that those who go to Blogfinger.net for yard-sale information will not get lost.   The content of this post will vary until the sale.

About parking it should be OK. If you drive into town, bring a bike and park anywhere.

This an Ocean Grove event run by We-The-People,  and we expect that mostly Grovers will show up as before, but out-of-towners are always welcome to our historic town .  Bring the kids, the dogs, your band, or your saxophone or  flugelhorn.    Have music at your sale.

Sellers will need a Neptune Township yard sale permit for $5.00. Get them at the Neptune Township Town Hall-building dept.    Tell them that you are with the band.

Seller groups of neighbors or friends will enhance the success, fun and games.   We can use some volunteer citizen reporters  with bikes who could monitor and photograph  the sales and report back to the Blogfinger headquarters.

 

 

 

THE TRAVELING WILBURYS:   “Heading For the Light”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Blogfinger Presents |

Modern Ocean Grove history—2023 on Blogfinger.net: “The plan is to make the whole boardwalk area an international destination for music, arts and culture.” ( The Tri City News.)

June 8, 2006 by Blogfinger

A rendering of the Casino which will feature the Stone Pony Summer Stage, shops and more. OG is not shown to the south. What will that “more” become?  OG needs to plan. Image from the Tri City News. 4/13/23.

 

The view of the Casino from the Asbury side. Imagine what it will all look like with the current OG North End planned project stuck next to it on the other side.  Will  the NERP look ridiculous?    From the Tri-City News…

 

By  Paul Goldfinger, Editor Blogfinger.net

Source for this article.  The Tri City News.    4/13/23

 

Well, the cat’s out of the bag, and Neptune Township needs to figure out how to protect Ocean Grove from this incredibly ambitious concept on the Asbury side including the Casino and its surroundings.  Remember, Asbury owns the entire Casino and a portion of the boardwalk on the OG side.

This massive proposition will likely render the North End Redevelopment  Plan null and void for a number of reasons including that there is no rational argument* now to justify the redevelopment  zoning changes on the OG side that would have turned our North End into a congested commercial area.  The AP side will be a massive  piece of real estate and  there is now no  rationale to give the OG developers permission to have special zoning*.  Their plan won’t fit.   Would you want to live there?

Aside from the plans for Convention Hall at the AP north end, the south located Casino side will  have a state-of-the-art  Stone Pony  Summer Stage with  an outdoor amphitheater for 5,000.  And Convention Hall will become a 3,500 seat concert hall.

According  to the Tri City News, a developer on the AP side said, “The end game is to have one of the most incredible world-class destinations for everything:  music, art, and other entertainment.”

The Casino project will cost an undisclosed millions of dollars

Pick up this week’s Tri City News for details, but their piece doesn’t even mention Ocean Grove.

Neptune Township should immediately appoint a commission consisting of Grover residents and the one  big player in town—the CMA.   OGNED can do its own juggling.  Neptune must put a halt to the current North End Redevelopment Plan which should immediately be revoked as it should have been years ago, and think about what will be best for  Ocean Grove looking into the future.

My opinion is that the Master Plan for OG should be reconsidered to solidify our town as “historic small town America” and to  maintain our distance physically and culturally from the amazingly  ambitious A. Park.

We should turn that entire North End property into a park with lots of trees.  We should be known in the region as a town of history, neighborhoods, local artists, and local arts and culture.

We should frame ourselves as not a place for exploitive tourism or religiosity, but a place for families, diversity, local color, fresh air, scenic beauty and comfortable and affordable  places to live.   Short term rentals need to be discouraged, because all those ambitious plans to our north will put unbelievable pressure on OG parking, places to stay,  and home prices. How will we remain a town where families will want to live?  And finally cancel all giant events like Flea Markets.  That’s how Bradley Beach maintains its personality without excessive tourism.

And, what evils will these AP projects send our way?

*There never was a rational argument that would have justified turning the North End into a “Zone in Need of Redevelopment.”

 

GERALD PRICE:  From the off Broadway cast of the Threepenny  Opera:  “The Ballad of Mack the Knife.”

 

Posted in Blogfinger Presents | 4 Comments »

Illumination Night 2017

June 9, 2026 by Blogfinger

Illumination Night 8/4/17. Ocean Grove. Paul Goldfinger photograph ©  Click to enlarge.

JACK TEAGARDEN   “Stars Fell on Alabama.”

 

 

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A pretentious Asbury Park headline wafts across Wesley Lake towards OG from their ostentatious newspaper “The Tri-City News.”

June 8, 2026 by Blogfinger

6/4/2026.

By Paul Goldfinger,  Editor,  Blogfinger.net, a source originating in Ocean Grove, and a web site with nearly 5 million hits since its founding.   We know OG.  And our posts are not  anonymous.

We have avoided paying much attention to the  Tri-City News just as they have avoided Ocean Grove despite our proximity to the Asburians.   I once asked an editor at the TCN why they never mention Ocean Grove in their self-important paper, and he denied that they ignore us, but despite the undeniable geography of the situation they would probably say to us, “drop dead”.

TCN: This what they may offer

But now, in the anonymous pompous Nagle’s  article shown above dated 6/4/26,  the publisher of the TCN,  probably the author  of this  “mystical” piece,  is busy showing off his adjectives regarding  a local glorified  diner being promoted beyond its actual importance only because the new owner, Kelly Ryan, a Grover, is friends with him.

So he is now falling all over himself to make sure that her version of Nagle’s is predetermined to be a “mystical” success.    Has anyone in the Grove ever considered their town as being a “mystical beauty?”  Many of us know “Lenny”   and many of us know his circumstance, but this TCN  show-off cannot help but inappropriately exploit Len Steen’s current situation.   If you read the piece, you will find no insights into the real feelings that many  have about the Nagle’s legacy or even about the historic town of Ocean Grove and it’s dubious relationship to A. Park.

Yes we in the Grove are happy to see Nagle’s re-open, but we should be the judges of possible “mysticism” arising at that location and in our town,   I don’t think we who live here would consider “mysticism” to be a good proscriptor—maybe  “local roots” would be more accurate.

But the Asburians are oblivious when it comes to the Grove. In fact they are a force for evil when it comes to our “relationship” with them.  I recall when the AP town council refused to support us in our quest for FEMA assistance at our boardwalk after Sandy .    Do you all recall why those A. Parkers  said “No” to us?

And how about the Asbury planners who would not consider our side when coming up with grandiose ideas for their side of the Casino.  And you may recall when the mystical town council over there refused to help us with our parking issues related to their tourists  and workers. And then there was the obscene complaints about the security locks at the WL bridges, and somehow the Parkers got their way recently on that subject.

So go to Nagle’s and decide for yourselves. Then let us know at Blogfinger@verizon.net.

 

DON JULIAN AND THE MEADOWLARKS

 

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Faces at the Lakes Park Farmers’ Market, Ft. Myers, Fla. (southwest)

June 8, 2026 by Blogfinger

Lakes Park Friday Farmers' Market. March 18, 2016. Paul Goldfinger photo. ©

Lakes Park Friday Farmers’ Market. Ft. Myers, Fla. 8:30 am.  March 18, 2016. Paul Goldfinger photo. ©  Click to see wassup.

—-Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger reporting from Fla.  2016.

The Farmers’ Market is supposed to open at 9 am, but many arrive a little early. We got there at 8:30, and few shoppers were there, but many of the displays were ready to go, and I like that morning light which was spectacular at 8:30 am.    One more hour and the place will be crowded, and I prefer to make photos when the light is right and when I can move in close without knocking any vegetarians over. Also the light changes as time goes by, becoming more harsh and contrasty.

Photography is difficult under these conditions because the light is not even: there are shady spots, bright sunny locations, and medium dappled light, and I can’t trust auto exposure for that, so I am constantly fiddling with my manual controls and taking light readings.  I know most of you don’t care about these details, but in this day and age of photography as a form of communication, you don’t want your images to be dark as midnight or as bright as the burning bush.

The photograph above is of a French bakery which is almost as good as a New York version. There is a lot of variety at this Market including fresh sea food just off the boat, soul food like lobster mac and cheese, “New York” bagels  (pretty pretty good,) and an Italian chef from Bolivia who brings a brick oven that burns wood to make marvelous individual pizzas to order. If you are taking them home, he bakes them half way and then sends them “to go” with handwritten instructions  as to how to finish the pizza to perfection in your oven directly on a rack. (450 degrees and 7 minutes.)

People watching is fun, and I rarely ask someone to pose.  It’s got to be candid.

Get organic watermelon green tea here, but the best part was her ensemble. 3/18/16 ©

Get organic watermelon green tea here.  It has medicinal powers.  But the best part was her ensemble. 3/18/16 ©  Click to enlarge. All photos by Paul Goldfinger at the Lakes Park Farmers Market ©  3/18/.16

 

3 for $5.00. Tis the season. 3/18/16 ©

3 for $5.00. Tis the season. 3/18/16 ©

 

Crepes. Some have fresh fruit, Nutella and whipped cream. ©

Sweet crepes. Some have fresh fruit, Nutella and whipped cream.  Great with coffee in the morning.  The chefs also have “savory” crepes with chicken, cheese, ham, veggies, herbs,  etc. ©  They line up for these treats.

 

The farmers pick their goods that morning. ©

The farmers pick their goods that morning. ©

AMY ADAMS  and JAMES MARSDEN.   “True Love’s Kiss”   from the movie Enchanted

Amy Adams. No, she is not at the market, but the song is fine, and she is beautiful. ©

Amy Adams. No, she is not at the market, but the song is fine, the dress has flowers, and she is beautiful. ©

Posted in Blogfinger Presents, Faces at the Farmers' Market, Florida connection on Blogfinger | Tagged | 1 Comment »

34th Annual “Statewide” LGBTQ+ Pride Parade: Much ado about pride in Asbury Park . 6/7/26

June 7, 2026 by Blogfinger

All photos by Paul Goldfinger, Editor, Blogfinger.net.   6/7/26 Asbury Park. The sign says, “AP Our pride our home.”     And, “Love is love.”

 

Blogfinger.net photo. 6/7/26.

 

 

“Equality in NJ means trans rights.”    Read the banner.     Blogfinger photo. 6/7/26.

 

Paul Goldfinger image.

 

Paul Goldfinger photo today. By the electric scooters.

 

SARA BAREILLES:

 

 

Here is a link to our last year coverage

 

Pride Parade 2024

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Walkin’ Around Greenwich Village: Pastry and Cappucino

June 6, 2026 by Blogfinger

Coffee break at Bruno's Italian bakery on LaGuardia Place, Greenwich Village. PG photo. April, 2013

Coffee break at Bruno’s Italian bakery on LaGuardia Place, Greenwich Village. PG photo. April, 2013

 

By Paul Goldfinger, Editor, Blogfinger.net

While I was  in the neighborhood, I went back to Bruno’s Italian bakery on La Guardia Place.  Below is a link to our original post about this wonderful patisserie and cafe which is located on a busy New York street.  You can sit outside, but you have to follow their rituals.  (When in Rome, etc).  So you pick your table and the waiter comes over.  He tells you to walk inside where there is a store length display case filled with pastries, many of which I could not identify.  A guy with a white apron comes over behind the case and, without a word,  just stands there and watches me.  I feel the pressure, so I confine my attention to items that I can recognize, although it is obvious that everything there must be delicious.

My eyes wander over some amazing fudge cupcakes  (too rich and too American;)  I feel obligated to find something inviting that looks European and sophisticated, and I am not referring to the waitress.  So, in an effort to make the guy happy  (he was watching me closely,) I chose the first thing that seemed to meet my criteria–  I chose an apricot and walnut tart, told the guy I also wanted a cappuccino, and then I went outside to wait.

I found the only table that was left in the shade.  It was an extremely sunny day—so bright that I had to go to the NYU bookstore earlier and choose a hat among the 1,000 choices.  They even have one that said  “NYU basketball.”  Gimmie a break!   NYU basketball?    The last time I checked, their basketball program was shutdown over a gambling scandal 40 years ago .   But I digress…. ( I often digress–makes Eileen a little nuts sometimes,)

So, the photo above shows what I ordered.  The waiter brought the snack, but he would not give me a check.  He told me to wait until I was done, and then I would get a check.   Everything was excellent—the coffee, the tart  (no, not the waitress), the scene across the street, the quirky service, and even the woman at the next table who ignored me even though I was close enough to try her croissant.

Across the street was something that looked like a park.   But it was not—it was a community vegetable garden.  A big sign on the fence said that NYU wanted to take the garden from the people.  NYU is always butting heads with preservationists who want to keep the Village protected from the university’s expansion plans   (sound familiar?)

So I took a photo of my snack and texted it to Eileen  (just to annoy her).  But I brought half my tart home so that I wouldn’t be a total SOB.  But she’s on a diet and she only ate a tiny piece; but even a tiny piece is heaven, and I enjoyed the rest on my OG porch where I found a parking space in front of my house and I didn’t have to pay $35.00 to park for three hours in the Big Apple.

Another coffee and pastry post

BIG MAMA SUE TRIO:  “I Want a Big Butter and Egg Man”

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Gallery scene: Tony Vaccaro in Santa Fe.

June 6, 2026 by Blogfinger

Photograph by Tony Vaccaro on the set of Federico Fellini’s La Dolce Vita c. 1960.  Filmed near Rome.

 

 

Paul Goldfinger, MD. Editor Blogfinger.net   Re-post from 2020.

 

Tony Vaccaro is celebrating his 98th birthday with the opening of his latest fine art photography show at the Monroe Gallery in Sante Fe, New Mexico.

His photography career dates back to the D-Day landings in Normandy and carries forward to now.  He still teaches and photographs.

Photograph magazine posted some of the prints from the Santa Fe show , and the Fellini image is one of them.

Nino Rota is the prolific Italian composer who wrote the music for La Dolce Vita (1960)  and for the Godfather I and II, for which he won an Oscar.  During his long career,  he composed music for over 140 movies.

 

ORIGINAL MUSIC FROM LA DOLCE VITA SOUNDTRACK.  Composed by Nino Rota.

 

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WWII album. Courtesy of George Demby. Special to Blogfinger.net

June 6, 2026 by Blogfinger

 

By Paul Goldfinger, MD. Editor Blogfinger.net. 12/5/24. Ocean Grove, NJ

The Demby family sent 4 brothers to serve during WWII.  The parents Helen and Chaim came from Poland early in the 20th century.  Most of their 9 children were born here.  Duke, Marty, Al and Ben were in the Pacific except Marty who was with the Coast Guard  on ships traveling the North Atlantic bringing critical supplies to England and Russia.  Ben won a Bronze star for valor, and when I was a kid visiting Bayonne, I loved to read his certificate on the wall…over and over again.  Uncle Al was a union electrician who served with the Sea Bees.

The family home was a row house on the Boulevard in Bayonne.

George Demby’s Dad Saul  was another brother who served—- in  the home civil defense. We will display all their photos.

The Demby brothers were my uncles on my Mom’s side.

This is truly a saga, and Blogfinger will continue to present these  photographs especially as Pearl Harbor  Day approaches on Dec. 7.

D-Day, the invasion of  Fance took place on June 6, 1944.

 

 

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The summer of the liberation of Paris. It began with D-Day June 6, 1944.

June 6, 2026 by Blogfinger

Paul Goldfinger still photo from a Netflix documentary film . Americans march on the Champs Elysees  to the Arc de Triomphe.

 

Hitler marched his Nazi army down the Avenue Champs-Elysees on June 14, 1940. He thought he would rule the world.

But finally the Allies liberated France in  1944 beginning with D-Day June 6, 1944.

 

U.S Army  28th Infantry during the Paris Victory Parade. August 29, 1944. National Archives.

 

VERA LYNN with a song from that wartime era.

 

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In case you didn’t get the memo…….

June 5, 2026 by Blogfinger

OG Boardwalk. June 29, 2017 10:00 am. Blogfinger photo © If you were considering biking at 2 am, the law sees you as a danger of some sort. But 3 am is just fine.

 

LARRY CHANCE AND THE EARLS  “That Sunday  That  Summer”   (Can you ride a bike on the boards on Sunday morning?)

 

Posted in Ocean Grove lifestyles, Ocean Grove magic moments | 1 Comment »

One summer night….Nagle’s Ocean Grove

June 5, 2026 by Blogfinger

Summer Saturday night in the Grove. Paul Goldfinger photograph © c.2015

Summer Saturday night in the Grove—-at Nagle’s.  Paul Goldfinger photograph © 2015.

 

THE DANLEERS   (1958)

 

Posted in Ocean Grove lifestyles, Ocean Grove Main Avenue news, Ocean Grove summer time | Tagged | 1 Comment »

Dreamscape: “She”

June 5, 2026 by Blogfinger

From “The Way Back” Paul Goldfinger photo  movie still.  2021.

 

 

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“Oh, oh, wouldn’t she be so nimble, fiddling with her thimble…..” Stephen Sondheim

June 5, 2026 by Blogfinger

A TRIBUTE TO STEPHEN SONDHEIM:

 

Ocean, New Jersey. 2013. By Paul Goldfinger©

Were you ever taken to the cleaners?     Ocean, New Jersey. 2013. By Paul Goldfinger©

 

STEPHEN SONDHEIM.   From ” Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum”    (the album is Putting It  Together)

 

 

Posted in Jersey Shore gallery, Photography by Paul Goldfinger | 3 Comments »

Modern AP history: Jersey Pride parade in Asbury Park 2022. LGBTQ day of celebration.

June 4, 2026 by Blogfinger

2022 Pride Parade in Asbury Park reposted below.   The 2026 version will be on Sunday June 7 at 11 am.  20,000 visitors are expected.

Paul Goldfinger photo. 6/5/22  A. Park. Pride. Blogfinger.net  Click once to enlarge all photos,

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Paul Goldfinger photo. Asbury Park 6/5/22 ©  Blogfinger.net

 

So, what’s her story? Paul Goldfinger photo. Blogfinger.net ©

 

By Paul Goldfinger, MD, Editor, Blogfinger.net   Ocean Grove, NJ, USA

I know that the rainbow is the symbol of LGBTQ pride, and everyone around me would be shooting in color, so I decided on black and white for my photo coverage this time.

There were thousands of people assembled on Cookman Avenue for the Pride parade that kicked off at noon sharp.  As predicted, various gay factions were represented, and there were plenty of garter belts, leather, ripped muscles, smiley and tough lesbians, tattoos out the wazoo, marching bands, floats and souvenirs handed out along the route. There were gay cops,, high school kids, and gay seniors marching.

 

High school kids from Rumson. Paul Goldfinger photo. © Blogfinger.net

 

Girls just want to have fun. Paul Goldfinger photo. 6/5/22 ©

 

The noise was pervasive with lots of hoots, hollers, and whistles.  There were few Asbury cops around, and no sign of trouble.

Since I am hopelessly hetero, I could not appreciate all the nuances of the costumes, gestures,  and insider banners.  Rainbow flags were all around, and what’s with the dog theme above?  And I have to look up all those letters in the name LGBTQ–no banner in the parade explained that.

I saw some really cute girls marching and holding hands, and I’m thinking “Really?”

Looking at the crowds in and around the parade, I couldn’t help but wonder how many LGBTQ people were there per square yard–maybe a new record.

As a photographer, I was having difficulty with the noon start time because the light is so contrasty that it was messing with my exposures.  But I did get a few good shots.

I did see a few Grovers at the parade, but I thought there would be more since there is a good sized gay community in the Grove; so much so that I imagined a change in our street name to “Mt. Hormone.”

The parade lasted about 45 minutes, and I found myself people watching, not only in the parade but walking and laughing on the sidewalk.

I was impressed with the happiness and enthusiasm of everyone there.  It was a wonderful parade, and we all could use some cheer these days.

 

EMMY ROSSUM from her album  Sentimental Journey

 

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