Posted in Ocean Grove bicycles, Ocean Grove events, tagged bike riding in Ocean Grove on September 3, 2018| Leave a Comment »
Ocean Grove. September 2, 2018. Paul Goldfinger photo © Click to enlarge.
Can you count to eight? JAY LEVY with “Ocho Kandelikas”
The album is called To Life
It’s a Hannukah song about a festival of lights: 8 candles.–a little early, but never too early for kids.
Posted in Ocean Grove boardwalk, Ocean Grove events, Ocean Grove lifestyles, Ocean Grove Musical Event, Ocean Grove summer time, tagged OG Summer Band on August 24, 2018| Leave a Comment »
From Jean Bredin (video) Around Town with Jean:
Posted in Ocean Grove events, tagged Ocean Grove block party on July 31, 2018| Leave a Comment »
August 20, 2016. Ocean Grove. Mt. Carmel Way at Asbury Avenue. Paul Goldfinger photo. © Click to enlarge.
The hills are alive with the sound of music. Thanks to barricades from Neptune Township, the block party at Mt. Carmel Way came alive with food, fun and friends. It began in daylight at about 6 pm and continued into the night. The celebrants seem to be ignoring the ordinance which says you can’t eat between the yellow lines.
These events occur around town towards the end of summer. The most famous is the concert version on the beach block of Embury Avenue.
SHIRLEY AND LEE:
“Hey Mr. landlord, lock up all the doors
When the police comes around
Just tell ’em that the joint is closed
Let the good times roll, let the good times roll
I don’t care if you’re young or old
Get together, let the good times roll.”
Posted in Around town with Jean, Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association Activity, Ocean Grove events, Ocean Grove Great Auditorium, Ocean Grove Musical Event, tagged Choir Festival 2018, Photo: the Ushers March on July 8, 2018| Leave a Comment »
Paul Goldfinger ©. 2012. Ushers March in the Great Auditorium during Choir Festival.
Posted in Blogfinger Presents, Ocean Grove events, Ocean Grove lifestyles, Ocean Grove Musical Event, tagged Dan Hickman luthier, Ukulele class Ocean GRove on June 28, 2018| 1 Comment »
Andrew Robertson, the animated uke teacher in motion has an out-of-body experience while singing and naming the chords. 6/27/18 Paul Goldfinger photograph ©
Daniel Hickman, on the left in the video, proprietor of “Don’t Fret Music” at the Jersey Shore Arts Center in Ocean Grove, is known for his technical work including repairing and support for all sorts of stringed instruments. He is officially known as a luthier. But he also offers lessons in his shop including his popular BYO uke classes.
He held such a class on June 27, attended by about 10 students. Dan lives in Ocean Grove as does the instructor for the class Andrew Robinson. Andrew is a professional musician who seems to get a kick out of teaching uke players of all ages and with all degrees of experience including beginners, like me and Jean from the Blogfinger staff.
Andrew was determined to entertain the class, so he taught the chords for a Queen song “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” and he sang while he called out chord changes. Most of the class seemed to have no problem keeping up with Andrew, although at least two of us were having trouble finding the right strings and fingers. There were more laughs than gaffes.
Dan served some snacks, and you can see the group in action in the video above.
For more information, call Dan at 732 361 5060
Here is a link to our 2017 article about Daniel:
Here is a link to his site:
And here is Queen * with their song “Crazy Little Thing Called Love.”
Posted in Girls in summer clothes Jersey shore, Girls in summer clothes Ocean Grove, Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association Activity, Ocean Grove events, tagged Ocean Grove Craft Market on June 16, 2018| Leave a Comment »
Hats never totally go out of style. 6/16/18. Ocean Grove. Paul Goldfinger ©
Girls in their summer clothes. Hats are in. Paul Goldfinger © 6/16/18.
LIZA MINNELLI:
Posted in Music: The Power to Enchant, Neptune Township News, Ocean Grove events, Photograph by Paul Goldfinger, tagged Neptune High School friends going to the prom, Neptune High School prom, Prom photos in Ocean Grove on May 29, 2018| Leave a Comment »
Next stop is the Jumping Brook Country Club in Neptune. May 22, 2015. Blogfinger photo on Main Avenue in Ocean Grove by Paul Goldfinger. © Click to enlarge.
Five friends posing for pictures in Firemen’s Park, Ocean Grove. How beautiful can you look? How wonderful the day? Thus we are re-posting this fine memory for these friends.
We found this happy crew standing for photographs in front of the bell, but get outta here! What about that gorgeous chariot at the curb, waiting to take them to the Neptune High School Prom? Let’s take the picture over there.
These five Scarlet Fliers are a group of friends—they said so. How lucky can you get? Let’s get close together and how about a big smile?
So who do we have here? We have, left to right, Nicholas Severson, Rebecca Sokol, Victoria Alaniz, Sasha Murphy, and Max Schmidt.
The red “limo” is a 1940 Ford owned by Michael Yencarelli. The car has been in his family for 30 years.
Since we have a car from the 1940’s, let’s go retro for music from that same era.
Ladies and gentleman, from the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas, it’s Frank Sinatra with Count Basie and his Orchestra:
Posted in Ocean Grove events, Ocean Grove lifestyles, tagged Ocean Grove Auxiliary, Ocean Grove fish fry, Ocean Grove lifestyles on May 14, 2018| Leave a Comment »
By 6:30 pm there was a long line waiting to get in at the Auditorium Pavilion on Ocean Pathway in Ocean Grove. © Click to enlarge the photos. Blogfinger.net Reposted from July 2016.
The assembly line was well oiled. This was the tartar sauce station. All photos by Paul Goldfinger of Blogfinger.net
You needed to be a red head to work here. It all smelled so good. Nothing like fried fish and chips right out of the oil. © The cooks were professionals from Kearny, NJ, fish and chip mecca.
This is the sort of community event that breathes life into a town like OG.
FRED MOLLIN AND THE BLUE SEA BAND from the movie Ratatouille
Posted in Blogfinger Presents, Ocean Grove controversies, Ocean Grove events, Ocean Grove lifestyles, Ocean Grove tourism, tagged Mega events in Ocean Grove, Tourism in Ocean Grove on May 13, 2018| 4 Comments »
OG Saturday Giant Flea Market June 2016. Gridlock. Blogfinger photo. © Where else can you find this? Click once to make the crowd bigger.
OG mega Flea Market. Blogfinger photo 2016 ©
By Paul Goldfinger, MD. Editor@Blogfinger.net
May 5 Spring Fling Chamber of Commerce closes down Main Avenue: gridlock
May 19 Vintage Car Show CC closes down Main Avenue: gridlock
June 2 Giant Spring Flea Market CC floods Ocean Pathway with thousands of junksters: gridlock
June 16 OGCMA Giant Craft Show —-300 artisans: Gridlock all over town
June 23 OGCMA Huge Christian festival: Bridgefest: Gridlock all over town.
August 4 OGCMA Saturday of the Camp Meeting Week: Gridlock all over town.
August 18 OGCMA Beach boys: Gridlock evening.
Sept 1 Doo /wop: Gridlock evening
Sept. 8 Giant Fall flea Market: CC floods Ocean Pathway —gridlock
Sept 16 British Car Show CC closes down Main Avenue: gridlock
October 6 Fall Harvest Festival CC closes down Main Avenue: gridlock
Note: Every Saturday during the summer season is a gridlock day due to beach attendance and when residents and their guests crowd the town during all those weekends. But that is to be expected. This is a beach town.
But now we are addressing mega Saturday tourist events such as the Giant Craft Show on the Pathway which make the town hopelessly paralyzed.
So what other Jersey Shore towns have so many gridlock Saturday special events geared towards tourists and oppressively imposed on the residents?
Consider Bradley Beach: Just one–The Lobster Festival. Holiday celebrations such as Memorial Day weekend don’t count because they are automatically part of summer. The rest are things like line dancing, music on the boards, opera by the sea, Italian Festival, Bradley Beach Day etc. which are primarily for the residents and don’t cause gridlock.
Here is a link to our recent piece about the struggle in Bradley Beach over one such mega event. It’s very interesting:
Bf reports on Bradley Beach struggle with mega-event
Consider Belmar mega: Just a car show and the NJ Seafood Festival.
Consider Avon mega: no mega events
Consider Asbury mega: Oyster Festival. They have many activities including music, shows, farmers markets, fine restaurants, bars and boardwalk events like the Zombies, but these enhance the image of A. Park and are not merely mega events to suck in huge numbers of tourists like we have. They have crowds and parking issues, but those crowds are drawn to the vibe of A. Park not to giant marketplaces where you can just buy stuff.
Consider Seaside Heights: Nothing mega. Jersey Shore Festival; otherwise arts and crafts, boardwalk fun/food, and soccer tourney.
Consider Spring Lake: Nothing mega. Just sensible small events for residents and guests: House tour, art in the park, garden tour, art walk, sidewalk sale, etc.
Only OG has huge events that overwhelm the town. What good does any of this do for the people of Ocean Grove? The CMA mostly attracts crowds from outside the Grove. All of the Shore towns have events, but they are primarily for the residents, such as ballroom dancing, concerts on the boardwalk, competitions for kids, etc.
Of the towns listed, we are the smallest and the most paralyzed by contrived tourist events. There is no reason to continue these overwhelming Saturday gridlocks—the Township needs to reduce the numbers to be in line with other Jersey Shore towns. But will they? No. These other communities make sure that their citizens enjoy the summer season in their home towns. Tourism, yes, but sensibly done.
Do the people of Ocean Grove want their town to be a circus every Saturday in season? Here is a march from Barnum and Bailey:
Posted in Blogfinger Presents, Ocean Grove events, Ocean Grove lifestyles, Ocean Grove neighborhood event, tagged Ocean Grove patriotism on February 6, 2018| Leave a Comment »
Memorial Day. Main Avenue, Ocean Grove. 2014. Paul Goldfinger photo. Blogfinger.net. OG Lifestyles
NORA JONES. “American Anthem.” From the soundtrack of The War:
“What shall be our legacy?
What will our children say?
Let them say of me
I was one who believed
In sharing the blessings
I received
Let me know in my heart
When my days are through
America
America
I gave my best to you.”
