AVENELS’ ERIC LEGRAND LAUNCHES NEW LINE OF CLOTHING
R0LL MODEL 52 By Debbie Meehan
...READ MOREYou might be S.A.D. but you don’t have to be What is Seasonal Affective Disorder and how do I treat it?
By Andrey Pakholskiy, Pharm. D. & Ian Berman, Pharm. D.
Have you ever noticed a shift in your mood around the time of the seasons changing? As the leaves change colors, do you ever start to feel down, or sad, or even just more tired in general? You may have heard of people getting the winter blues and maybe you even suffer from this. It is a common disorder called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and it is estimated that 10 million Americans are affected by SAD. Some common symptoms include feelings of hopelessness and sadness, increased sleeping and fatigue, change in appetite, weight gain, irritability, difficulty concentrating, and even social withdrawal. You may even experience a type of SAD when the seasons turn after winter into the warmer months. Symptoms during the warmer months are a little different usually and include a decrease in appetite and weight, and well as trouble sleeping and anxiety. Other symptoms that can be present at either season change include feelings of guilt, loss of interest or pleasure in activities previously enjoyed and physical ailments like headaches and stomach aches.
To be diagnosed with SAD, you must experience at least two seasons where symptoms of depression presented and then dissipated after the seasons changed again. There are a few believed causes for SAD. When the amount of sunlight that you are exposed to decreases, it may disrupt your internal clock, effecting the levels of melatonin in our brains. This disruption in our sleep cycle can lead to these symptoms. With less sun light may come a decrease in serotonin which is a chemical that is commonly low in people that suffer from depression.
When it comes to deciding what to do about these symptoms, we have quite a few options. Using melatonin supplementation shortly before you would normally go to bed can help fix the cycle for some people. Getting more sunlight can be very helpful, and if sunlight is not an option there are sun lamps that some people find useful in simulating natural sunlight indoors. Vitamin D is also another possible path to relief. Our body produces vitamin D when in the sunlight and a lack of sunlight can lead to vitamin D deficiency. Symptoms of vitamin D deficiency can include fatigue, muscle aches, and even feelings of depression. Supplementing your diet with Vitamin D from some companies such as Solgar and BlueBonnet can help make up for what your body can not produce while stuck inside during the cold months. A couple other good vitamins and minerals that can help alleviate some of our SAD symptoms include zinc and folic acid, which also are available from Solgar and BlueBonnet. Fish Oil, or Omega 3 Fatty Acid, is a healthy type of fat that we are finding useful for many things these days. We have more recently found that consuming these healthy fats can help improve mood. Orthomolecular and Nordic Naturals have high quality Fish Oil products.
There are some good natural options to help remedy the winter blues. St. John’s Wort is a well-known herb that can be useful for treating depression. It is important to be careful with St. John’s Wort however, because it interacts with many other medications. If you take any medications regularly you should check with your pharmacist to see if it is ok to take. Enzymatic Therapy and Nature’s Way both have St. John’s Wort products to choose from. Chamomile can be enjoyed as a tea or even taken as a liquid, carried by Herb Farm. Chamomile is thought to work in the same way that GABA works, which is by calming the central nervous system down. You can also take GABA as a supplement as well, made by Integrative Therapeutics and Solgar, for its calming effects. Aromatherapy is another option for relieving some symptoms of the winter blues. Some good essential oils for this purpose include Lemon Oil and Mandarin Oil are both uplifting while Lavender Oil is relaxing and comforting. Nature’s Truth and Aura Cacia both carry these essential oils and other essential oils as well.
A Message from Your Pharmacists: As it gets colder and we get less sunlight, it is easy to find yourself a bit sad, but with a little help we don’t have to be. Your local pharmacists will be happy to help you if you need any assistance resolving your winter blues.
COLONIA THEN & NOW… November 2019
By Dan D’Arcy
I’m sitting at my desk trying to make decision on what to write about this month. I am in the process of reorganizing all my files and memorabilia for the past twenty-one years. Probably the most precious of these are the letters written to me by the readers of the Corner, “Colonia Corner”, either by email or hand- written and delivered by the USPS. Since 1998 these letters from the readers have contributed to the success of this article and has greatly inspired me. I love reading them, sharing and knowing that others share my passion for our past, present and future of our part of the Township.
Picture.
I have been asked many times, where was the train station in Colonia. Yes, there was a small stop at the Haughtonville farm on what is now Rt. 27 and New Dover Rd. The farmer, Mr. Haughton would let animals from the train graze on his pasture before being sent back on their journey. Once Elizabeth Savage Cone convinced the Pennsylvania Railroad to change the name to Colonia, for the benefit of making the “Colonia Colony” more sellable, (since the whole premises of the Colony was to the sell the lots that the Cones had purchased. Yes, they also wanted to create a little utopia a short train ride away from New York City, which in some ways still exists today.) the station became a magnet to future Colonia residents. Don’t forget that the conversation by Mr.’s Freeman and Albee aboard a train from that station lead to the construction of the World War one Army Hospital. With platforms on both sides of the tracts the station served for many years until the Super Station Metro Park in Iselin was constructed. Deemed redundant, the stop was discontinued, and the station demolished for new construction. So, where exactly was the station Dan? When you drive over the New Dover bridge, and it wasn’t always there, you make the right hand turn on Fairview and an immediate right hand turn on Morton, which I think should be named after the first Colonia Postmaster Thompson, and the station lay straight ahead. I have been on the tracks looking (which you should never do) and have found many bricks that are obviously not associated with anything other than a building. I can’t say whether they are related to the Station building but I’ll just say maybe. The concrete platform on the southbound side was still there the last time I looked but there has been a lot of work on the sides of the tracts recently, so I’ll have to look again. The “candy store and post office, that so many people remember on Morton was recently remodeled back to a single-family home. The picture that you see above was sent to me by Fred Kirste in 2010, an original member of the Colonia History Club, who has since passed.
Letter
Coincidently, I received this letter from Fred Kirste in 2008.
The Colonia Post office was established as an independent office in 1894 and operated as such through 1955. At the time,1955/56 it became a branch of the Rahway Post Office. In 1955 the Colonia Post Office was in a store front in the building that which still stands today but has been converted into an office or apartment on the corner of Middlesex Ave and Morton Place. In 1955 this location was across South Middlesex Ave. from the Colonia Railroad Station, both buildings located on the south western side of New Dover Rd. Bridge. I am told that until 1955 customers picked up their mail from the PO boxes in the Office. In 1956 I am told there was one home delivery route established which centered on the homes along New Dover Rd. Prior to 1955 mail for homes along Lake Ave. in Colonia where delivered to roadside mailboxes by a Rural Free Delivery Route. In 1955 the Dukes Estates homes were provided house to house delivery, but for many years used Rahway, NJ 07065 designation. Always enjoy reading your articles Dan. After reading the front page of the Colonia Corner, I go next to Colonia Then & Now. Best Regards Fred. (Fred was a real nice guy and a pleasure to be around.)
Always looking for new information on anything we talk about.
Thanks for reading,
Daniel D’Arcy 908-599-3958 dandrc@aol.com
This Month in world war II — 75 Years Ago
By Phil Kohn
British forces take Thessaloniki, in Greece, on November 1, 1944. The destroyer USS ABNER READ is sunk by a Japanese kamikaze attack in Leyte Gulf.
Canadian troops take Zeebrugge, on the Belgian coast, on November 2. Belgium is now completely liberated. The Red Army enters Hungary.
The last Axis forces on the mainland of Greece leave on November 4. In Asia, U.S. planes on November 5 bomb Singapore, held by the Japanese since 1942. The German Fourth Army recaptures the town of Goldap, in East Prussia.
On November 6, the aircraft carrier USS LEXINGTON is badly damaged off Luzon, in the Philippines, in an attack by a Japanese kamikaze aircraft.
In the U.S., Franklin Delano Roosevelt on November 7 is elected to an unprecedented fourth term as President of the United States. Sen. Harry S. Truman of Missouri will be vice president. In Athens, the Greek government orders the dissolution of the country’s two largest resistance groups.
In France, the troops and tanks of the U.S. Third Army by November 9 have captured the outer defenses of heavily fortified Metz and threaten the city.
Heavy fighting continues on Leyte island, in the Philippines, on November 10. U.S. Navy carrier-based aircraft attack a Japanese convoy off Leyte Island, the Philippines, on November 11. Four destroyers, one minesweeper and five transports carrying nearly 10,000 troops are sunk. U.S. Navy planes bomb Japanese-held Iwo Jima.
On November 12, the German battleship TIRPITZ, anchored in a fjord near Tromsø, Norway, is attacked by the RAF. Two bombs find their mark and the vessel quickly capsizes, trapping over 1,000 crewmen inside her hull.
U.S. Navy aircraft on November 13 attack targets on Luzon, the Philippines. In Hungary on November 15, the Red Army captures Jázberény, 37 miles east of Budapest. Between Korea and Japan, the amphibious assault ship AKITSU MARU is sunk by the American submarine USS QUEENFISH, killing 2,046 Japanese soldiers.
On November 16, the RAF drops 5,689 tons of bombs, a record for one day on German lines to the east of Aachen, Germany.
The Germans give up Tirana, Albania, on November 17. In the China Sea, the submarine USS SPADEFISH sinks the Japanese fleet carrier SHIN’YŌ.
The German hospital ship HS TÜBINGEN is sunk on November 18 by two RAF aircraft in the Adriatic Sea; fortunately, no wounded are aboard.
On November 19, U.S. Navy air strikes continue hitting targets on Luzon and shipping in Manila Bay in the Philippines. In Washington, D.C., the government estimates the cost of the war at $250 million per day.
Elements of the U.S. Third Army continue the siege of Metz, France, on November 20. Adolf Hitler moves his headquarters to Berlin, where he establishes his center of operations in a highly fortified underground bunker — the Führerbunker.
In the China Sea northwest of Keelung, Formosa, on November 21, the submarine USS SEALION sinks the Japanese battleship KONGŌ, with a loss of 1,200 men, and the destroyer URAKAZE with the loss of 240 crewmen.
The French First Army on November 22 takes Mulhouse, France. Metz, France, is taken by U.S. Third Army troops on November 23. Meanwhile, French forces capture Strasbourg, in eastern France. In Moscow, the Soviets announce that the Red Army and Finnish troops have cleared Finnish Lapland of German forces.
From bases on Saipan and Tinian, in the Mariana Islands, 111 U.S. B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers take off on November 24 for a raid on Tokyo. It is the first attack on the Japanese capital since the Doolittle raid in April 1942. Near Luzon, the Philippines, the Japanese launch an air raid on the U.S. Navy’s Fast Carrier Task Force 38. The aircraft carrier USS INTREPID is hit (for the third time on its current patrol) by two Japanese kamikaze aircraft, killing 66 crewmen and starting serious fires.
The Japanese take Nanking, in eastern China, on November 25, continuing to make gains in that theater. The Americans abandon their airbase at Yongning, China. On Peleliu, in the Caroline Islands, the last Japanese resistance ends. Over 14,000 Japanese are killed or captured while the U.S. suffers 9,300 casualties.
The Red Army advances into eastern Czechoslovakia on November 26. The German vessel M/S RIGEL is sunk off Norway by British Royal Navy planes on November 27. Of the 2,838 aboard, 2,571 drown, most of them Allied POWs.
On November 28, the first Allied ship sails into the harbor of Antwerp, Belgium. A German V-2 rocket strikes London on November 30, killing 23 people.
Dedicated to the memory of his father, GM3 Walter Kohn, U.S. Navy Armed Guard, USNR, and all men and women who answered the country’s call.
Phil Kohn can be contacted at ww2remembered@yahoo.com.
November Salute to Veterans & Offering a National Thanksgiving
By Mayor John E. McCormac November is
...READ MORE
Thanksgiving Pancreatitis
The days following Thanksgiving can be some
...READ MORE
13th Annual Woodbridge Township Veteran’s Day ParadeSteps-Off on Sun., Nov. 10 at 1:30 PM
Mayor McCormac and Municipal Council Encourage Township
...READ MOREThoughts From The Editor by Debbie Meehan
November 2019
A community is a group of people who share something in common. You can define a community by the shared attributes of the people in it and/or by the strength of the connections among them. You need a group of people who are alike in some way, who feel some sense of belonging or interpersonal connection. Communities are people. They are not abstractions. They are not rhetoric. They are human beings.
On October 29th, the community of Colonia was shaken to its core when a plane crashed into three homes. Unfortunately the pilot of the small plane was killed, but somehow by the grace of God no one on the ground was injured in the crash. The aftermath of that crash could have been catastrophic had anyone been home in the house, had it hit another house with families inside or had it hit one of the nearby schools. Immediately, the Colonia Fire Department was on the scene, along with every fire department from Woodbridge Township and other neighboring towns. I was there at the scene right after it happened as neighbors gathered to see if they could help anyone or do anything. All their words were the same, “Are the families ok, was anyone hurt?” All along thinking of the realization that the plane could have hit any of their homes while they were inside. I don’t think there was a person in the crowd that had gathered who wasn’t thankful to be alive at that moment and who realized that this terrible tragedy could have been so much worse.
In the days to follow once again the residents of this community stepped up to help the families that were affected. Immediately before the flames were even out the Mayor set up a Charity fund to help the families. On the Saturday after the fire we spent the day outside the Evergreen Center collecting donations and gift cards. So many people in this great community stopped by to support these families they didn’t even know. “They are our neighbors, we just want to help,” one woman said. Another handed me a soft teddy bear for the little girl that lived in the house that was totally destroyed and said, “I wanted the little girl to have something to hug,” tears rolling down her face and ours as she spoke.
But, out of all the beautiful words that were spoken that day and the kindness that was shown, the one that moved me the most was that of two young boys, Aiden Pydeski, 10 and Declan O’Rourke, 12, of Colonia, that came to make a donation.
Like most young children the boys love Halloween and the sweet treats they receive but this year what they wanted to receive was much sweeter: As they went door to door they handed their neighbors this letter…
“Happy Help-O-Ween”
“Hi, we are the “Jofrendy Kids” (we live in the area of Joanna, Frederick and Wendy). As you know, on Tuesday, October 29th, not far from here, a plane crashed and destroyed 3 homes in Colonia. After seeing this devastation in our community, we knew we had to do something to help! So this year instead of treats, we are asking our neighbors to consider giving us your spare change as a donation for these families that lost so much. We will still be Trick or Treating door to door but for donations instead of candy. All money collected by the Jofrendy Kids will be donated to the Woodbridge Community Charity Fund which has been designated by the
township to collect donations to help these families.”
Aiden and Declan raised $ 592.15 and I think their letter says it all…
Community is a group of people who share something in common and this community what they share in common is kindness and human compassion for each other, and there is nothing better than that!
So remember, this holiday season promise yourself that you will slow down and enjoy it. Give food to someone that is hungry, give a toy to a needy child, bake cookies for an elderly neighbor and then stay with them awhile, or attend one of the several fund raisers or events we have listed in this issue, give the gift of yourself this holiday season, for there is truly no better gift to give.
From our families to your families, Happy Thanksgiving!
