The Hammonton Gazette 02/26/2014 | Page 6

Page 6 • Wednesday, February 26, 2014 • The Hammonton Gazette The Hammonton Gazette “The Paper of Record” gabriel J. donio, Publisher gina rullo, Editor-in-Chief dan russoman, Sports Editor benny Mendez, Staff Artist Marysusan hoffman, Paul J. Macrie iv Michael hozik, donna brown, Joseph bruno, lauren bucci, lauren Crescenzo, brian Morris, Staff The Hammonton Gazette is located at 233 bellevue ave. to reach a staff member, call 704-1940 or fax at 704-1938. the mailing address is P.o. box 1228, hammonton, nJ 08037. editorials The Hammonton Gazette is published Wednesdays, by The Hammonton Gazette, Inc. Copyright © 2014. All rights reserved. ISSN 1093-6181 restaurant week is here Do you have a favorite restaurant in the Hammonton area? How about two or three favorite restaurants? The Gazette’s Restaurant Week is the event for you. This year marks the 11th year for The Hammonton Gazette’s Restaurant Week in Hammonton – the longest-running event of its kind in Atlantic County. Originally, the event focused primarily on restaurants within Hammonton’s borders. While the majority of the restaurants involved are located in Hammonton, it has since stretched to neighboring municipalities, providing more and more options for delicious nights out to local and area residents. Just look at the Hammonton Area Restaurant and Food Guide featured on page 26, the first page inside our incredible 20-page Menu and Dining Guide special supplement that begins on page 25 of this week’s newspaper. You’ll see a comprehensive listing of all the restaurants in Hammonton and the surrounding area, categorized by type of food, with their contact information. All the listings, menus and restaurant ads are being published in conjunction with The Gazette’s Restaurant Week. We encourage all readers to keep this handy guide at their home or workplace. It’s an excellent reference that you can consult all year long when you’re making a decision to go out to eat or order take-out for breakfast, lunch, dinner or a snack. What makes The Gazette’s Restaurant Week so different is that we make it simple: just great restaurants offering their wonderful food from their regular menus. Remember: these restaurants are some of the businesses that support local causes, sports teams and charities all year long. This week, they are the ones who are looking for your support. So eat out at a restaurant once, twice, three times or more in the coming days. Restaurant Week will begin on February 28 and conclude on March 9. In between, there are going to be a lot of happy diners who enjoy some of the best food in the region, right here in Hammonton and the surrounding area. Gazette sports week Today marks the first time a local Hammonton newspaper will launch its own online streaming video show. The first episode of the new online TV show “Gazette Sports Week” will be coming to your smartphone, tablet, laptop, personal computer, smart TV or television with Chromecast or a similar device. Sportswriter Paul Macrie IV and Gazette Sports Editor Dan Russoman have put together an entertaining, informative program that will last about 45 minutes each week. The show will feature analysis and commentary on Hammonton High School and St. Joseph High School athletics, plus other area high schools competing with our local teams. College, professional and national sports topics will be covered as well. We’d like to thank Hammonton’s own Coach Paul Rodio of St. Augustine Prep, fresh off his milestone 800th boys basketball victory, who came up to our new studio area inside The Gazette offices on Bellevue Avenue for an interview for the inaugural edition of Gazette Sports Week. He helped make the first show a memorable one. Catch the show by going to www.hammontongazette.com each Wednesday and clicking on the link. It’s a new era for sports coverage in Hammonton — brought to you by The Gazette! PersPeCtive/Pastor’s Corner Normally, I’m not overly fussy with what people say as long as they are not trying to put something over on me. My father used to say, “Keep it real or keep it to yourself.” He did not have many jewels of wisdom, but this certainly was one that has been helpful to me down through the years. I have tried to keep this in focus when talking to other people. Nothing I hate more than somebody lying to me, so turnabout is fair game. I do not want to lie to anybody myself. At least intentionally. The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage and I were relaxing at home watching a little bit of television. It is hard to find anything “real” on the old television set. The reality shows are everything but. We were casually listening to a talk show who was interviewing some TV personality celebrating his 80th birthday. We were not really paying attention, you know how it is. You are watching TV, but you are talking back and forth to one another trying to catch up on the day’s activities. Then this TV personality made a statement that captured both of our attentions. “I don’t believe,” this personality, which shall remain nameless, said, “in the afterlife. Only foolish people believe in the afterlife.” This sparked some conversation between my wife and me. The question I had was simply this; how long does it take to get to this point of superior idiocy? What university awards an SI degree? If they did, I am sure they could never keep up with the production of such awards. Right after this TV personality, whose name will remain anonymous, although he thinks he is some kind of a king, said he did not believe in the afterlife, he said something that was contradictory. “I have it ordered,” he said about as seriously as any SI person could be, “that when I die I will be frozen until the medical field has discovered a cure or for what has killed me. Then I will be brought back to life with this medication.” My wife and I waited for the laughter. I really thought it was a joke. I did not think anybody could be that stupid. Apparently, a great deal of people are that stupid because nobody laughed at that remark. I think people with the SI syndrome have one severe dysfunction between their brain and their mouth. We know from listening that their mouth is working but what we hear from their mouth more than suggests their brain is not working. I do not have any problems with people being a practicing SI as long as they keep it to themselves. This TV personality who wanted to be frozen after he died suggested to me that the freezing had already begun with his brain. I do not know if he ate too much ice cream too fast causing a brain freeze or what. All I know is that some things should not be shared and being an idiot is one of them. The Apostle Paul made this quite clear when he wrote, “For the wages of sin is death: but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Only God can keep it real and thankfully, He does not keep it to Himself, but shares it with those will put their trust in Him. the rev. James l. snyder springs shores, Fla The Rev. James L. Snyder is pastor of the Family of God Fellowship, PO Box 831313, Ocala, FL 34483. He lives with his wife, Martha, in Silver Springs Shores, Fla. Call him at 1-866-552-2543 or e-mail [email protected]. His web site is www.jamessnyderministries.com. Quote of the Week: “Cooking is like love. it should be entered into with abandon or not at all.” — Harriet Van Horne The Hammonton Gazette welcomes letters to the editor that are no more than 800 words long. All letters must include the name of the author and an address and telephone number for verification. Letters should be mailed to The Hammonton Gazette, Editorial Page, P.O. Box 1228, Hammonton, NJ 08037. Letters also will be accepted via fax. The fax number is 704-1938.  Or by e-mail to [email protected]. Deadline for all submissions is 2 p.m. Monday. The Hammonton Gazette reserves the right to edit any submissions. The opinions expressed in letters, perspectives or in guest columns do not necessarily reflect those of The Hammonton Gazette.  The Gazette is not responsible for factual errors in letters, perspectives or in guest columns. The Gazette retains the right to refuse any submission or advertisement.