Two Upcoming Events Celebrating Bergen County History

The Lustron Home in Closter

1. Tour a Porcelain-Enameled Steel Lustron Home in Closter, June 2

This event posted on Craigslist looks interesting enough on its own:

"Why did the NY Times call Haworth a "concrete town" in 1907? Learn the answer on a historical house tour sponsored by the Friends of the Haworth Library, Sunday, June 2, 1-5 PM...featuring 6 of Haworth's early "concrete houses, PLUS the all-metal Lustron house in Closter."

Wait. "The all-metal Lustron house in Closter"?

I couldn't wait. So I ventured to Closter on a recent Saturday, and caretaker Mike Pisano was kind enough to give me a tour and let me take these photos.

You can read all about the history of the Lustron home at this Closter Historic Preservation Commission page, so I'll let these images speak for themselves. The house, located at 421 Durie Ave., has a Bergen County Historical Society marker out front that states:

"To ease post WWII housing shortages, the Lustron Corp. of Ohio made a unique house of all pre-fabricated steel parts on an assembly line basis and shipped them directly to owners' lots. Harold Hess purchased a Westchester Deluxe model with attached garage from an NJ dealer and assembled it on this site in 1950. All walls, roof and chimney are porcelain-enameled steel panels. Between 1948 and 1950, Lustron made 2,498 homes."

Only nine such houses survive throughout New Jersey.

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2. Honoring Jack Antonoff and Ruth Beiner in New Milford, June 7

This Facebook post from the New Milford Historic Preservation Commission is promoting its June 7 Hall of Fame dinner at the local/historic/nostalgic Athletic Club.

Of particular interest, the post references an eclectic mix of famous people who at one time or another lived in New Milford (aka, "The Birthplace of Bergen County").

This local Hall of Fame includes The Fontane Sisters (who often sang with Perry Como); Joe Regalbuto (the actor who portrayed Frank Fontana on "Murphy Brown"); two-time Tony Award nominee Rob McClure; football star and actor Ed Marinaro; and Jack Antonoff, the Grammy winning producer who has worked with Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey, Lorde, and Bruce Springsteen.

While Jack can't attend the June 7 dinner because he's on tour, this event is an opportunity to honor some current great (and locally famous) contributors to the community, such as Ruth Beiner, a teacher at New Milford High School who has produced its spring musical for two decades.

The deadline for reserving tickets is end-of-day tomorrow, Friday, May 31. One interesting give-away will be "New Jersey Go Fish!" -- a card game designed by Alex Flannery in partnership with Jersey Collective. To find out more about the imagery chosen for the cards, visit https://www.jerseycollective.org/gofish

Meanwhile, I hear there's a bowling alley and wood-paneled bar at the unassuming-on-the-outside Athletic Club on Boulevard, so you know where I'll be on the 7th!

A Bouquet of Haikus in April in New Jersey

This post is all about poets, organizations, and events in New Jersey... all who inspired me to write a poem a day during Poetry Month in April.

I even read one poem -- a mashup of a dozen haikus -- at two open mics. One reading was virtual, thanks to Project Write Now's Friday Zoom, and the other was in real life at the mic pictured here, thanks to poet Toney Jackson.

Toney hosts warm, welcoming poetry readings monthly at the Puffin Cultural Forum in Teaneck. I recommend attending the next one: Friday, May 31, at 7 p.m. (details at the link).

I also enjoyed some pro-level poets reading from their work at the Poetry Month event hosted by Talena Lachelle Queen in late April at The Paterson Museum. Talena is Paterson's poet laureate, and pictured below is Teaneck's poet laureate, Scott Pleasants, performing one of his works, with Jersey City's former poet laureate, Rashad Wright, interpreting his words in the wings.

All the poets were wonderful, including Felicia Sherelle, who often helps Talena in running programs and events for the great Paterson-based Word Seed Inc. organization.

Thanks to their efforts... and many more throughout the state... poetry is alive and well in New Jersey, every month of the year.

A Dozen Haikus for Poetry Month in April 2024

1. Dedication

Hi, Toney Jackson.

Thank you, I feel welcome here.

I feel inspired.

2. NYC Subway Haiku

My hands slip inside

Her orange bomber jacket.

Ghosts on the A Train.

3. Attending a Poetry Festival

Lost in Dobbs Ferry,

where Westchester poets hide.

I seek to destroy.

4. Eclipse Haiku

Please remember us

in 2079.

We were once like you

5. I’d Trip at the End of the Universe

Fall into the void,

Bounce from the edge of a star,

Break eternal love.

6. Haiku to My Wife

I drink beer alone.

I only drink wine with you.

I like wine better.

7. Along the New Jersey Turnpike

Wood trellis crosses

Fill barren raspberry fields.

Golgotha in Spring.

8. Haiku Written at Citi Field

The Mets in April,

warming my heart in the cold.

Unlike October.

9-11. Love Is, A Haiku Trilogy

Love is a zombie.

A zombie with a warm heart.

Pulsing. Cheating death.

Love is regretful.

Sorrow that ages like wine.

Full of scorpions.

Love is not jealous.

Love is patient. Love is kind.

Claims Corinthians.

12. Goodbye

Writer’s block is real. 

My ordinariness, revealed. 

This is not a poem.