Anyone able to identify these large leafy plants growing on the path?

I spotted a robin! There’s something green in the robin’s mouth: a worm, catepillar or a leaf?

For more Nature Notes, visit:

Now she is in third grade, and she was taking photos along side her mom (me). And chatting with her friend. I’m not sure why she so wants me to be at the annual school parade for Israel, but there I was. I’ve been doing this for a while: here is the 2008 post of this little parade.

Some of her focus was on this dog named Winston. He is a therapy dog.

Here is a portrait shot of Winston the therapy dog. Anyone remember Belle, also a therapy dog? There is also a dog at the bottom of my 2009 RPRY March Around the Block for Israel post.

Getting back to the parade, there were children, teachers, parents and neighbors in our little march around the block for Israel. I had a great time chatting with a fellow blogger, Pragmatic Attic.

Thank you to the policemen of Edison, New Jersey who guarded our parade.

Art Show at RPRY, my children's school in Edison, NJ

Because school doesn’t have to be just reeling, writhing, and arithmetic.

For more photos straight out of the camera, visit Murrieta:

I previously wrote about Raritan Air Water Power in this post called Say Thank You – a trait the Rosenbergs do well! I got to know the Rosenbergs when our sons were in the same Cub Scout pack.

When did you start your business? We started our heating and air conditioning company here in February 2005. However, we were in business for a number of years when we lived in Potomac, MD. Zev has been in this field for 30 years.

How do you market your business? Currently we market mostly through word-of-mouth. We also send customers reminders about preventative maintenance that should be done in the winter and spring. Being part of the Highland Park First Aid Squad discount card also brings in additional business and customers seem to appreciate the savings.

Customers are very interested in energy savings and we try to alert them to ways to save. There is tremendous opportunity in high efficiency equipment right now due to federal tax credits and utility rebates.

Have you used social media? We currently have a page on Facebook. Readers can become a fan of our page at Raritan Air Water Power Service. We give tips and reminders there on savings and ways to manage your home.

What are some ways a business can keep customers? The most important thing is 100% quality control. For us that means every job that we do the customer has to get a follow-up phone call asking them how things are going and if we met their expectations. Let’s face it, people have come to expect lousy service. When someone’s not happy with the service they’ve received they are likely to go elsewhere, thinking it’s not worth the hassle. Occasionally we have to go back on a service call or installation. It makes the whole situation easier on the customer if we call them. I think people appreciate that you followed up even if they don’t have a problem. Most people are just shocked that once you get paid you even care! That is the biggest thing.

The second thing is to let people know that sometimes they have options of what they can do to repair their equipment. If they do have options, I like to present them and let people decide what best meets their needs.

Third, whenever I make any kind of suggestion on what needs to be repaired, I ask myself, “what would I do if this were my home or business.” I think people appreciate that you are trying to keep their perspective and or help them make decisions that are in their best interest.

Finally, in this current economic climate people need options for paying which is why we take credit cards.

How do you suggest dealing with a difficult customer? The first thing is that you have to establish realistic expectations and listen to what your customer is saying. We try and spell out for people exactly what we can and cannot do and what they should expect. Also you have to understand that not everybody wants what you have to offer. Many contractors will do anything to “get the job.” Because I live here I can’t offer to give someone less than what they need.

•   •   •

Thank you so much, Zev and Leslie, for this interview.

I jokingly told Leslie I was going to photograph one of our toilets, which Zev has fixed while checking our heating system or our air conditioning (he’s multi-talented), but instead I will show you their logo and phone number:

Do you have any questions for Zev or Leslie? Or if you would just like to cheer them on, please feel free to leave a comment.

Stained Glass Detail at Congregation Ohr Torah, Edison, New Jersey

On My Blog

  
  
I had plans to draw a cow and put it on my blog (like when I did the sheep), but this never happened. Can anyone guess why I wanted to put up a cow?

Elsewhere in the Blogosphere

• In 1917 children voted against candy.
• Jew Wishes posted her latkes recipe.
• Dreidel photo by G6 and another dreidel photo by Mrs. S.
• Persian cyclamen and other beautiful flowers of the Carmel
• Photo essay by Mother in Israel of Kula forest
• Ilana-Davita asks difficult questions about giving charity.

Attention Jewish Photo Bloggers: JPIX, the blog carnival of Jewish Photo Bloggers, is next Wednesday, December 23. So please send in your links to favorite photos by December 22. You may also send them to jpixcarnival at gmail dot com. And if you are not a Jewish Photo Blogger, you are invited to come back to this blog on December 23 to see the “show.”

Pesky Settler will be hosting a JPIX on February 25. Thanks for volunteering.

Watercolor: A Study of an Aravot Leaf, 2008

• Spray-painted swastikas at an Edison synagogue and the arrest of a teenager accused of harassing three Jewish residents of Highland Park (hat tip: Cosmic X)
• For Sukkot: an etrog with a gartel (Isramom)
• Aravot tree: Now this is impressive (Mrs. S.) – ours is still tiny
• With the Jewish New Year comes a new sanctuary at Highland Park temple

After that bad news of antisemitism* in Edison, New Jersey, I had to post some good news of the Temple in Highland Park re-opening its sanctuary three years after a terrible fire. I haven’t been inside the new sanctuary, but at some point I’ll go over there with my camera and take photos.

Someone remarked that the shortest Yom Kippur service in Highland Park is at the Temple. The longest is where we attend, Congregation Etz Ahaim – not even a break this year. One of the reasons is the beautiful piyutim (liturgical poetic songs) sung by our visiting chazzan, Refael Ishran. I started listening to the CD of the chazzan in the hopes of preparing a post about the piyutim. Stay tuned.

*If you want to know why I spelled antisemitism without a hyphen, you will have to take Prof. Roni Stauber course on the History of Zionism, coming to you online for free sometime later this fall. Stay tuned for more on that, too.

Tom talks to the orphans and the cat

The King, Ladies in Waiting, and the Lady in Purple

Musketeer Soldiers Behind the Magical Puss

One final note: going to theater camp was a big adventure for my daughter. She was with people that are from different backgrounds than her own. One neat little skit that she put on for open mike (just for the other campers and the counselors) was with one of her friends that she knows from her ballet class. On their own the two made up this skit in which one talks in Ukrainian and the other (my daughter) talks in Hebrew. Neither understand each other, but then they finally figure out that they both know English. I was very proud of her for doing this skit and for telling me about it.

For more photos with a little or a lot of red, visit:

Castle Kids in The Brave Little Tailor, part of Theater Camp

On My Blog

Skywatch: Three Birds Land – if you look at these 2 pictures fast, back and forth, is it sort of like a movie?

Nature Notes: Sparrow, Groundhog, Echinacea, Rudbeckia, Hydrangea

Pressed Salad

Ruby Tuesday: Gray Catbird, Clown and Vampire

Summer Stock: Object Animation

This morning we are going to see Puss in Boots at Middlesex County College Theater Camp in Edison.

Elsewhere in the Blogosphere

• Ilana-Davita has fireworks for Bastille Day.
• Mrs. S. tells us how determination helped a health clinic stay open.
• Cooking Manager (aka Hannah Katsman) has a post on growing herbs by a guest blogger named Fern.