Annual Brunch

We are pleased to report that a representative of Verizon Communications will be attending the annual brunch this Sunday, May 3, to speak about the upcoming installation of Verizon's highly rated FiOS fiber optic TV and Internet service in our community. David Knights from the Princeton Forrestal Center will also be attending to represent Princeton University's office and research complex.
The brunch offers a great opportunity to meet and socialize with our neighbors. We'll also have an interesting program, with the Plainsboro Police Chief attending and guests now confirmed from the University Medical Center, Verizon and Princeton Forrestal Center. The management office tells us a big turnout is expected this year.

National Poetry Month

Photo by Caroline Lubbers

whippedtheblog.com

This Is Just To Say

I have eaten

the plums

that were in

the icebox

and which

you were probably

saving

for breakfast

Forgive me

they were delicious

so sweet

and so cold

— William Carlos Williams

Meeting Reminder

Property manager Sal Pirrera would like to remind all Parcel Chairs and Finance Chairs that there will be a meeting at The Smith House on Tuesday, May 5, at 7:30 pm. The agenda for the meeting will be to discuss the Association's policy on long term capital reserves. Av Magram will lead the discussion.

National Poetry Month

Tomorrow, April 30, is the second national Poem In Your Pocket Day. The Academy of American Poets suggests that you join in the celebration by selecting a poem and carrying it with you — in your pocket — on Thursday. You can share it with co-workers, family and friends. Last year, people across the country unfolded poems and read them in parks, libraries, schools and workplaces. Poem In Your Pocket Day has been celebrated each April in New York City since 2002. Each year, city parks, bookstores, workplaces and other venues conduct open readings of poems from pockets, and the mayor reads a poem on the radio. To browse poems, visit poets.org where you can find a poem to download and print — and email to a friend.

Store Opening

Princeton area foodies, as well as the Facebook group "Bring Trader Joe's to Princeton, NJ," have had their prayers answered, according to Friday's Princeton Packet. Trader Joe's, the specialty grocery store, will be opening a new store this summer in the Square at West Windsor shopping center on Route 1 at Meadow Road. The privately owned, California-based company will open the new Trader Joe's in the former Sleepy's mattress store, which is moving to another location in the complex. Consumer Reports recently named Trader Joe's as the second best grocery store in the country (behind Wegmans). The Square at West WIndsor also includes Lowe's and Pier 1.

Annual Brunch

We're pleased to report that Plainsboro Township Chief of Police Richard Furda and his wife Cyndy will be attending the annual brunch this Sunday.

Parcel 1 — 1:53 pm

Photo by Karen Stray Nolting

Annual Brunch

We are happy to report that Pam Hersh, Princeton HealthCare System's Vice President of Government and Community Affairs, will be attending FVCSA's annual brunch this Sunday, May 3. She will speak to us about the new, state-of-the-art University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro, which is under construction across Route 1, just south of our community.

Thank you to Larry Hollander of Parcel 6 for arranging UMCPP's participation.

Other guests will be announced shortly.

National Poetry Month

The 2009 National Poetry Month poster, designed by Paul Sahre, features the lines "Do I dare / Disturb the universe?" from T. S. Eliot's poem "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock."

Parcel 1 — 2:16 pm

Photo by Karen Stray Nolting

Earth Day

Two Butterflies went out at Noon –

And waltzed above a Farm –

Then stepped straight through the Firmament

And rested on a Beam –

And then – together bore away

Upon a shining Sea –

Though never yet, in any Port –

Their coming mentioned – be –

If spoken by the distant Bird –

If met in Ether Sea

By Frigate, or by Merchantman –

No notice – was – to me –

— Emily Dickinson

Thank You, Brickman

Photo by Karen Stray Nolting

Thanks to The Brickman Group for the lovely display of spring flowers at our entrance.

National Poetry Month

Poetry

I, too, dislike it.

Reading it, however, with a perfect contempt for it, one discovers in

it, after all, a place for the genuine.

— Marianne Moore

This Week at Princeton Landing

Property manager Sal Pirrera reports that the contractors will begin work tomorrow, Monday, on the sidewalks, curbs and parking lots in Parcel 1. The sidewalks and curbs will be done first and will take approximately 5 to 7 days. The parking lots will begin on or about Monday, April 20, and will take approximately 3 weeks.

Management asks that while this work is in progress residents and their guests keep their vehicles away from the cordoned-off areas. Please feel free to contact management at The Smith House if you have any questions.

Happy Easter

Good Friday

Marc Chagall

from the "Christ window," 1970

Fraumunster, Zurich, Switzerland

Happy Passover

This Week at Princeton Landing

Property manager Sal Pirerra reports that tomorrow contractors will begin work installing privacy walls between the townhomes in Parcel 1. The new privacy walls replace the ones that were removed when the stucco siding was replaced on these homes in 2005.

Nature Guide: News of Spring

Things are already starting to change here in Princeton Landing. Our Nature Guide Jon Latimer writes about the first weeks of spring:

"Recent days have brought out the first signs of spring. You can see a green or red "haze" around many of our deciduous trees and shrubs indicating the first budding of flowers and leaves. The buds on our many rhododendrons are also maturing quickly and our pines are dropping the last of their needles to make room for new growth. In a few weeks those flowers will open and leaves unfurl in just a few days. Insects are also beginning to appear in profusion, matching the sudden appearance of new vegetation.

"You may have noticed the reappearance of our groundhogs (or woodchucks). Unlike their relative, the Gray Squirrel, groundhogs have been hibernating in their burrows since October. A burrow may be 2 to 4 feet below ground level and extend for 25 to 30 feet. A burrow's main opening can be identified by the nearby pile of excavated dirt, but a burrow usually has one or more hidden openings dug from the inside. These allow the groundhog to escape quickly should a predator try to enter the burrow.

"Birds and other animals are dispersing and trying to establish new territories. Mallards are pairing off from their winter flocks and searching for nesting sites. You can see orange-breasted male American Robins jockeying for position on our grassy areas. The feathers of the males of species such as the American Goldfinch or Northern Cardinal are particularly brightly colored this time of year. And many birds are beginning to sing loudly (especially around dawn) to attract mates.

"This is also a time of transition. Winter visitors such as mergansers have already left, and while juncos are still here, they will soon be replaced by warblers and other migrants from the south."