as if

there was EVER any REAL DANGER of the post office in the center closing. HELL NO. it's WEST EFFING HARTFORD. they'd NEVER close the center p.o.
Two Hartford-Area Post Offices No Longer Being Considered For Closure
Bill Leukhardt
WEST HARTFORD - The post office branch on LaSalle Road here and one in East Hartford are no longer in danger of being closed by the postal service as a way to trim costs.

Pauline Dean, the president of the Hartford postal workers union, called West Hartford Mayor Scott Slifka Tuesday to say that the two branches are no longer on the list of facilities statewide being reviewed by postal officials.............

some rather good news for (what was formerly) the park road playhouse

and more good news for park road in general. i HATE HATE HATE what has happened to my center. i wouldn't go to west hartford center on a dare. it's (more) full of idiots (if that's possible) than ever before. are cars allowed in the area or just suvs with only one or two people in the gas guzzling giants? why do people find it so necessary to show off anyway? not just the cars that substitute for little or no genitalia but sitting out on the sidewalk of let's say farmington avenue to eat? why the f**k would ANYONE WANT to sit on a busy fume-filled street to eat? (why indeed)




Former Park Road Playhouse In West Hartford Reopening
By BILL LEUKHARDT |The Hartford Courant
WEST HARTFORD — - The former Park Road Playhouse, closed last month after a nearly nine-year run, is reopening this month with new owners and a new name. Playhouse on Park will have its public opening with "My Show, A Choreographer's Story," by Darlene Zoller and her stop/time dance theater. Zoller of Vernon, Tracy Flater of Simsbury and Sean Harris of West Hartford are the owners of the new playhouse. Flater said the group signed a lease about a week ago. The Park Road Playhouse closed May 24 after staging its 50th play. Howie Hirsh, who founded it in 2001 with his wife, Linda, said their theater was a victim of the recession and rising costs.......

pic: Sean Harris, a theater director at Hall High School and one of three partners of Playhouse Theatre Group Inc., helps set up their new performance space, Playhouse on Park, taking over the old Park Road Playhouse. The theater opens June 25 with "My Show, A Choreographer's Story," by Darlene Zoller, another partner. The new owners hope to keep it active with "dance, theater, plays, musicals, youth activities, comedy, jazz to keep it vibrant," Zoller said. (RICHARD MESSINA / HARTFORD COURANT / June 10, 2009)

two MORE biting the dust in west hartford center

one of them has been in the center since the 40s. i thought black and blue square was supposed to be bringing throngs of shoppers down to the ENTIRE center? every article i read about b&b square says it's hoppin' and doing well. i can't say one way or another. i hope it is but i'm still sorry it's there. i hate the IDEA of it even.

one more time too - to the town of west hartford, BLACK AND BLUE SQUARE (which you used TOWN FUNDS to finance) was supposed to bring our taxes down and allow us townfolk MORE MORE MORE. well, WTF HAPPENED? not only haven't our taxes gone DOWN DOWN DOWN but we're losing services left and right

hey, YOU voted for it, i didn't

Allen Collins Clothing Store Closes In West Hartford
By BILL LEUKHARDT |The Hartford Courant
WEST HARTFORD — - The last sale at Allen Collins clothing store ended Friday and included deals on fixtures and furniture along with closing-sale prices on men's and women's business and casual clothes.

The iconic store at 8 Ellsworth Road, a source of quality clothes and service since the 1940s, closed its doors, done in by the recession and the prevalence of discount outlets that emphasize price, not assistance.

"Allen Collins has been a standard business in West Hartford where business men and women would go to buy suits. It's sad to see the store close," said interim Town Manager Ron Van Winkle, a town native. He walked across South Main Street on Thursday from town hall to wish owners Brian and Tina Rosso well.................

and japanalia is moving from farmington avenue west hartford center to:

JAPANALIA EIKO is moving from
West Hartford Center (May 30 is our last day) to 11 Whitney St. Hartford*, reopening June 2.

25% off SALE May 21-June 6

Phone till May 30, 860-523-7722
from June 2, 860-232-4677

* corner of Farmington Ave, formerly
LaMotta Fine Art, next to Japanalia on one!

good BUT it should have been longer

just on principal

a couple of years ago i met up with a group of friends at the elbow room. my first time there. i'm NOT a fan of the see and be seen scene in west hartford center. never have been in the max there or grants either. have been in briccos (yeah i know same owners as grants). you CANNOT beat the food. it's most excellent. i rather love murasaki as well.

anyway, my friend whose birthday it was chose the elbow room so i went. i ordered the portobello sandwich (don't know if it's still there but it was when i went). the server told me, SORRY BUT THAT'S JUST FOR LUNCH (it was about 4:00 pm when we went). i asked if there was bread and portobellos in the kitchen. yes there was, but i STILL COULDN'T HAVE MY SANDWICH. i was pissed. i ordered a drink. wished my friend a happy birthday and left, NEVER to return. so hell yeah i'm glad

Liquor License Suspended For One Day At West Hartford Center's The Elbow Room

WEST HARTFORD — - The state Liquor Control Commission has suspended the liquor permit of a popular restaurant and bar in West Hartford Center for one day, saying it sold alcohol to a minor.

The Elbow Room at 986 Farmington Avenue paid a fine of $3,000 for the violation, the commission stated in a press release today. The date of the suspension is May 26.........

since i avoid going to the center at ALL costs

i sure have no need to get one of these cards. i think it's a good idea, i just think west hartford parking is a giant rip off/robbery. (if you've ever been to northampton, now THEY have a parking system which is MORE than reasonable. there are machines here and there. you put some change in the machine and you get a parking receipt which you put on your windshield. it's ridiculously inexpensive as well. a quarter will get you a couple of hours at the LEAST). west hartford? $.25 for FIFTEEN EFFING MINUTES. yeah, that is welcoming to visitors!

so west hartford has these new cards you can buy. like i said good idea. BUT (you knew there was going to be a but) YOU HAVE TO INITIALLY LOAD IT WITH $60.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

60 BUCKS IN PARKING MONEY? that's a lot o' dough

West Hartford's Parking Meters Accept Special Debit Card

By BILL LEUKHARDT
WEST HARTFORD — - A new service will end the need to pump coins into town parking meters.

The West Hartford Parking Authority is offering a special debit card usable at any on-street parking meter and at participating businesses. The card, called Parcxmart, costs $1, and can be loaded with up to $500 from a user's credit or debit accounts or with cash.

It is available at the authority office, 17 Isham Road, online at the Parcxmart website or at participating businesses.

"We've sold about 20 at our office since we first offered it April 1, and dozens have been sold online," John Phillips, the town's parking operations manager, said Monday. "We hope to sell many more, especially as more businesses participate."
.................

whole foods at bishops corner

(where i shop by the way. it's far less intrusive and abusive than the west hartford center store. i'm talking CUSTOMERS here. i have no issues with the staff of either store) will be no more

Whole Foods Ordered To Sell West Hartford Store
The Hartford Courant
Whole Foods will have to sell its Bishop's Corner supermarket in West Hartford as part of a federal antitrust settlement announced today.

The store, one of two Whole Foods locations in West Hartford, had been a Wild Oats store until Whole FoodsMarket Inc. bought Wild Oats Markets Inc. in 2007. It is one of 13 stores -- 12 former Wild Oats locations and one that was a Whole Foods before the merger -- that Whole Foods must sell within six months, under the company's settlement with the Federal Trade Commission.

Separately, Whole Foods has agreed to sell the Wild Oats trademarks and other non-tangible assets connected with Wild Oats, including the leases of 19 former Wild Oats stores that were closed.................

i AM the kind of person who says

i EFFING TOLD YOU SO

i told you here

and

here

and

here

and

here

i told you black and blue square not only emptied the town coffers (where is all of the money we were going to get back so our taxes wouldn't rise????????? how come no one is putting up a stink about that??????????) but would DRIVE STORES OUT OF THE CENTER AND BLACK AND BLUE SQUARE ITSELF. why? the rents keep going up and up and up. the stores jack their prices and NO ONE CAN AFFORD TO SHOP THERE

sit-n-knit was the ONLY reason i was going to the center. they moved a while ago to wintonbury mall in bloomfield. there's PARKING. PLENTY OF PARKING AND GUESS WHAT? it's FREE FREE FREE (on that note, when i went to northampton last month, their parking is quite reasonable. there are no meters at the parking spots. there's a little machine thing that spits out tickets. you put in a certain amout of money and it gives you a ticket with a time on it. you place that ticket on your windshield. how much is it to park in northampton you ask. IT'S FIFTEEN CENTS AN HOUR. yes, you read that correctly IT'S FIFTEEN CENTS AN HOUR. can you imagine that in west hartford??????)

but my peeps i digress. what i wanted to tell y'all was

and like an id-jit i didn't ask if i could name names so i won't

but i digress once again

a store that has been an institution in the center is MOVING. they've found another place in west hartford at far far far less rent. and what else do i have to tell you my peeps? well at least ONE store IN BLACK AND BLUE SQUARE is moving out. yup - has it even been a year? they're going at the end of 2008. there is a very good chance another store is going as well, however i cannot confirm that one.

that's only the ones i know about. i'm sure i don't know about the others contemplating MOVING OUT OF THE CENTER THANKS TO BLACK AND BLUE

way to go west hartford!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

finally!

sit-n-knit has moved from west hartford center (yuk yuk and triple yuk) to bloomfield. i stopped by yesterday on my way home from work. the new location is HUGE AND there is plenty of FREE parking (unlike west hartford center). it's easy to get to, about 10 minutes from the old location (give or take)

so do stop by. no need to rush through the store so you can hop out to feed the parking meter. take your time. sit n knit!

jim hightower is coming to west hartford center

THIS friday 5 to 6:30 at town hall. i post his comments on occasion on my other blog. he's funny, he's wise and he knows king george and his court are destroying our country

click the link below for more info
Meet Jim Hightower!
.........Tickets are just $10, and proceeds benefit Connecticut Common Cause’s work to make government more accountable. Don’t miss it! For more information, contact Andy Sauer at (860) 549-1220.............

i absolutely TOLD you this story was true

and peshaw, you didn't believe me THEN - here's my ORIGINAL noah webster finger posting. now the courant backs me up

(told ya those west hartford matrons are NOTHIN' to be messin' wit)

Statues Of Limitations
Erecting Memorials To Public Figures Becoming A Thing Of The Past?

By WILLIAM WEIR Courant Staff Writer

Since late last year, the statue of Noah Webster in West Hartford has returned to its perch in front of the town library, overlooking South Main Street.Newly lit, on a pedestal, and with a new forefinger where once there was a stump, it's a new start for Noah. Like a lot of public art, the memorial to the pioneer lexicographer and West Hartford native has had an unusual relationship with his community. For one reason or another, monuments can elicit an odd mix of reactions from the public.It was tough from the beginning in Noah's case, and we can trace his troubles back to sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski. Unknown at the time, the young artist moved to town from Boston and volunteered his services in the 1930s to build the statue after reading of Webster's work on the American dictionary. The town didn't have much to offer Ziolkowski, but officials agreed to pay for the expense of the limestone monument.From the get-go, things were a little shaky. Arguments erupted over whether Noah should sit or stand. Construction added to the rancor, because of the all-day noise of drills and hammers. Ziolkowski's working on Sundays didn't go over well, either.The completed work didn't end the Webster memorial's troubles. Specifically, there was his pointing forefinger. Considered vaguely phallic by many, some thought it was Ziolkowski's attempt to get the last laugh on the town. In any case, it was all but an invitation for pranks..............

picture: NOAH WEBSTER'S FICKLE FINGER may have a better fate now that it’s been reconstructed on the native son’s memorial in West Hartford's Blue Back Square. But already word is that the formidable finger is attracting a new generation of pranksters who dress it up with condoms. (PATRICK RAYCRAFT / March 5, 2008)

a cool little story on sit-n-knit on channel 3

i missed it (it was on yesterday morning) but the video is at the link below. sit-n-knit really IS a cool place. if you're ever in the hood (a store in wethersfield and one in west hartford - with one opening in bloomfield soon) DO stop in!

Sit'N Knit In West Hartford
Owners Barbara and Richard Fabian of Sit'N Knit in West Hartford have opened their store because there was nothing like it around. With walls and walls of yarn, thousands of different colors and materials, the store can look overwhelming -- but the Fabians said that if you show up with no experience, they'll teach you how to knit for free............

oh boo-hoo

the residents around west hartford center (WHO ALMOST UNANIMOUSLY VOTED FOR BLACK AND BLUE SQUARE MIND YOU) are up in arms because service workers (i made a funny squinty face showing my distaste at the words 'service workers') ARE EFFING PARKING FOR FREE, FREE I TELL YOU on THEIR side streets! oh my goddess OFF WITH THEIR HEADS or better yet, BURN THEM AT THE STAKE! of course everyone involved in black and blue square SHOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF THE PARKING ISSUES PRIOR TO BUILDING (and RUINING MY TOWN CENTER) the monstrosity that is known as black and blue square. the townspeople should have thought of that PRIOR TO VOTING to HAVE that monstrosity know as black and blue square built! (can you guess i voted against it TWICE?)

as i mentioned in a previous posting, even whole foods is marking the tires of cars parked in it's lot. i didn't hear that second hand by the way, I SAW IT WITH MY OWN EYES.

i know of at least ONE more store leaving the center - due to high rent AND parking problems for it's customers. how many more in the future?

(p.s. wait until we all get our tax bills that reflect 100% of the new assessment. we'll see who is smiling then. - oh not me or mine. we're already NOT smiling and we'll continue not to smile then too. HOWEVER, WE'LL HAVE MORE COMPANY)

Seeking Parking Solutions
By DANIEL P. JONES Courant Staff Writer
WEST HARTFORD - Finding affordable parking has long been a challenge for service-sector workers in West Hartford Center, and the problem has worsened with the opening of Blue Back Square.Now town officials, working with merchants and state transit managers, are trying to come up with solutions that will alleviate the problem and also satisfy nearby homeowners who complain that workers are parking for free on residential streets.One proposal, according to Mayor Scott Slifka, who organized a transportation summit earlier this week, is to make the town hall parking lot available to workers at reduced rates during evenings and weekends, when the lot is typically not full. Another proposal envisions Blue Back Square and West Hartford Center workers driving to state park-and-ride commuter lots, where they would catch a Connecticut Transit shuttle. Over the next week, the town expects merchants to provide information on how many workers they employ and where those workers commute from. The town plans to share the data with CT Transit......

we knew something was going on at bishop's corner

when we found out they didn't renew (the VERY popular) macaroni grill's license. westfarms, the center, black and blue square (which i spit on) and now a revitalized bishop's corner. it's already fairly difficult to find a parking place there on EITHER side by whole foods or marshall's. the foodmart/post office side isn't quite so bad, but i have a feeling it WILL be. we'll see what they do. i'll wait to make my judgement

Bishops Corner: Plans For Fresh Face
By KENNETH R. GOSSELIN
WEST HARTFORD
In 1953, Lord & Taylor opened its first store outside the New York area at a quiet crossroads known as Bishops Corner, bringing with it big-city glitz, glamour and fashion.The center created a retail buzz and drew shoppers from all over Greater Hartford. It spawned a wave of retail development and the rise of the suburban mall in the area as people and commerce headed out Albany Avenue from the city.Now, 55 years later, can this aging, tired shopping center create magic again — this time in a mature suburb?The owner of what was once Lord & Taylor — now a Marshalls — and a retail and office complex next door is expected to unveil plans as soon as this spring for a major redevelopment of the two properties, which could include the demolition of the half-empty Marshalls building and adjoining parking deck.The developer, Edens & Avant, isn't giving details. But early talks with town officials — who will help shape the plans — point to a walkable "town center" with small shops and one or two large anchor tenants. The project could cost as much as $100 million, town officials said.........

rick green writes a pretty decent

column about black and blue square. of course i was wickedly opposed to black and blue (and still am). mr green mentions a couple of times people walking more. so does that mean i am NOT going to be seeing all of those GIANT SUVs all over town taking up my parking spots? i doubt that. they (the they are the hep and happenin' west hartford, avon, simsbury in the center to see and be seen types and the like) are NOT going to WALK to the center. THEY will drive their horrid gas guzzling giant monstrosities (which they don't need because they either only have one or two children or one or two children and a dog) into town, park THEN walk into a few stores. several quotes on west hartford becoming urban in the story! urban??????????????? HARDLY. it will NEVER happen.



sit-n-knit is in the center. i'll continue to go there but attempt to go FIRST thing in the morning (when i have a day off that is). i just don't want to deal



again, i did think mr green's editorial was good. hit the nail on the head a FEW times.



In A Blue Back Minute
Like It Or Not, West Hartford Is The New Urban

Rick Green
November 4, 2007
I was there at the precious moment West Hartford became a city.It might have been in the town hall auditorium Thursday night. The connected and affluent raised their blue martinis, balancing small plates of apricot-glazed corned beef and sushi, in a self-confident celebration of the opening of West Hartford's trendy tableau of shopping and public life: Blue Back Square.Or was it Friday, when I bumped into a woman walking out of that large, new home furnishings store?
"I'm lost in West Hartford," she told me enthusiastically, standing at the busy new cobblestone corner of Isham and Memorial roads. She pulled a handful of movie tickets out of her pocket and informed me she was walking off to the new cinema with her kids...............

...................Blue Back's opening is a portentous snapshot in the history of West Hartford, perhaps the most self-analyzed, self-absorbed and over-debated suburb in Connecticut...................

..........Still, as I strolled back to Blue Back to meet my wife for her lunch break, I recalled the words of Rhea M. Lettiere. She looked at the new streetscape and proclaimed, "Gone is the dignity!"................

west hartford cow parade 2007

friday morning, 2:00 am september 28th. not my best work, but hey it was EARLY AND RAINY. for more (and different) pictures see: the reformed pirate
i'm going to try to take more cow pictures next week or the week thereafter. we'll see
(if you click on a picture, it will enlarge)

because west hartford center isn't crowded enough

(can there BE any more SUVs in any other town???) - on september 12th, the second cow parade will begin.

ok ok, i LIKE the cows. they're cool. i go VERY early in the morning before anything opens up.
(and i had no idea the inventor was from west hartford)
and if you click the link, besides the rest of the article, there is an interactive cow painting graphic!

There's Moola In Them Thar Cows

By JANICE PODSADA Courant Staff Writer

WEST HARTFORD - Who would think Connecticut is home to a herd of globe-trotting cows?Beaded, bejeweled, bronzed, sometimes even be-winged, these painted ladies have popped up on six continents.Since 1999, more than 50 cities have held cow parades. Typically sponsored by the local business community, the parades - really outdoor exhibits - feature lifesize, fiberglass cow sculptures that have been fancifully decorated by local artists.
But whether the cow parade is in New York City, Moscow, Paris, Istanbul or Harrisburg, Pa., it originates in West Hartford, home to CowParade Holdings Corp.Founded by Jerry Elbaum, 67, a West Hartford lawyer, the privately held company's business consists of selling the licensing rights and providing expertise to people who want to hold an official cow parade in their city.A cow parade is a deceptively simple event: A city contracts with CowParade Holdings and the company joins with a local partner who then solicits local sponsors and artists. A year later, the whimsical cows make their debut........

speaking of my new specks....

my eye doctor is in the center. i dreaded going BUT i did have to pick up my new glasses AND i had to stop at sit-n-knit on lasalle road. i needed a few more skeins of the BEAUTIFUL and SOFT natural focus ecologie cotton (100% pima dyed with plant dyes. the colors are subtle and gentle). i have enough for the edging, i needed three other colors for the flowers.

i'm making THIS:






















for a friend of mine (wedding shower gift). the cover version is not made out of cotton, but i wanted to use it. each flower has a crystal sewn in the center. it's lovely. you make the edging first (which is the part i'm working on). then the individual flowers. they get sewn onto the edging (which has been folded in half and sewn in an oval)





i digress. i wanted to go down boulevard then take a right onto woodrow or four mile or whatever - then a right onto farmington ave so i wouldn't have to maneuver through the center itself. NOOOOOOOOOOO CONSTRUCTION corner of bouleavard and main. NO LIGHT four stop signs. it was UGLY. i get to the eye doctor (a sweatbomb i will say) and pick up my new specs. i'm not quite sure about them. i'm having an issue or two. i'll wear them a few days and see if i bond with them. anyway, i was going to leave my car in the doc's parking lot (shared with other bid-nez') but it was hot and i was cranky so i drove to lasalle. CONSTRUCTION farmington and lasalle. UGLY UGLY UGLY. the two GOOD parts were i found a parking spot RIGHT in front of sit-n-knit (thank the great parking spot goddess her own bad self) and of course sit-n-knit itself. i just LOVE LOVE LOVE that store! (barbara and richard got a new kitty too. her name is pearl)

anyway, i picked up a few more skeins, picked up some sock yarn (made out of corn) and a couple of other yarns i can't remember at this second. i DO have my eye on some incredible wool crepe from mountain colors. hand dyed and gorgeous. have to think about that though

anyway - I HATE WHAT THEY'RE DOING TO MY TOWN

black and blue (square) and the 'sterilazation' and death of west hartford center as we KNEW AND LOVED IT

i don't want black and blue square in my town. i'm shite out of luck on that one though 'cause it's there and i can't do a thing about it. west hartford center will now be a breeding ground for suvs and designer outfits (well it HAS been that for a while now but it will be WORSE) and martini drinking 'i want the world to see how cool i am' asses.

i'm in mourning

i want the acorn shop back
i want hilliards (sp) back
i want the lasalle shop back
i want teh central to be back
i want dunns to be back

Rents Rise, Some Worry
Longtime Businesses In West Hartford's Prime Shopping District Have Seen Lots Of Changes

By EZRA R. SILK Courant Staff Writer

WEST HARTFORD - Pfau's, an old-fashioned hardware store with tin ceilings where a homeowner can buy a single set screw and still get solid advice on house repairs, is a retail throwback in the glitzy regional shopping area that is downtown West Hartford.So is the Family Hair Care shop on LaSalle Road. The barbershop, which Tom Reddin opened 49 years ago, doesn't look like it's changed much. It has turn of the century barber chairs, a life-size pirate in the front window and hundreds of Elvis pictures and memorabilia.Reddin, 70, sports Elvis sideburns and slicked-back hair, both a testament to the King..........

.......................Now the center is a gleaming consumer bauble, soon to be enhanced by the $159 million Blue Back Square complex, complete with big-name anchor stores.............

.........Reddin is more blunt about the changes he's seen in West Hartford's retail heart: "The center has been sterilized."He remembers Hillyer's Candy Store, the LaSalle Restaurant deli, the recently shuttered War and Pieces hobby store and other evaporated retail haunts.To Reddin, high prices borne out of high rents have driven out some with smaller pockets, such as teenagers.............

we STILL don't have our tax bills yet in west hartford

of course taxes were due july 1st. when i called the town last week they confirmed they were NOT mailed yet and there would be an extension. i forgot if she said until august 1st or the END of august. that's neither here nor there, we're all going to be paying taxes OUT our ASSES

black and blue square was supposed to STOP that from happening. of course not only hasn't it stopped it, so far (and it's not even opened yet), it's MUCH MUCH MUCH WORSE.

it's a horror show driving ANYWHERE near the center. i'll only stop now to run into sit-n-knit. and then only in a yarn emergency.

farmington avenue is a mess, trout brook is a mess and please don't even get me started on main street AND park road (especially by the highway exit).

speaking of black and blue here is an article listing more of the stores and whatever else that's going in there

Retail space is filling up at Blue Back Square

Heavy construction continues at Blue Back Square in West Hartford Center, in anticipation of a November 2007 opening. An update was released this week from the developers, reflecting a significant step forward in the number of retail tenants signing rental leases. The retail spac, as expected, is filling up.

When completed, Blue Back Square will have a total of 600,000 square feet of space that will include condominiums, apartments, medical offices, a Healthtrax fitness center, professional offices (non-medical), a movie theater, restaurants, and the retail stores. Ed Pilkington, executive director of the West Hartford Chamber of Commerce, sees Blue Back Square solidifying West Hartford Center's regional attraction. "On behalf of the Chamber, I am very excited about the diversity of retail options," said Pilkington. "These tenants are great additions to Blue Back Square and they will contribute to West Hartford remaining the premier shopping destination in the region."Retail tenants include a 1,988-square-foot Lucy Activewear, a 4,163-square-foot National Jean Company, a 3,100-square-foot Homeward Bound, and a 1,201-square- foot JD's Cosmetic Essentials. Robert Wienner is a partner in Blue Back Square/JDA Development. "I am thrilled with the amount of response that we have had to leasing retail space at Blue Back Square as we move toward grand opening this fall," Wienner said in a prepared statement. "We are currently over 85 percent leased and have continued progress and interest from many different retailers, restaurants and service oriented merchants."....

NOTE: i had not heard of most of these stores before so i looked them up. lucy activewear looks like a medium priced clothing store for 'hip YOUNG teenaged typed babes'. national jean company sells different brands of jeans to 'hip YOUNG teenaged typed babes'. homeward bound is a connecticut based store focusing on the greening of the earth (i'm guessing they are higher end. how else could they afford the black & blue rent??? any way seems they sell furniture and the like). jd cosmetics sells a few (very few from what i could tell) higher end cosmetics for the 'hip YOUNG teenaged typed babes' to look AS BEAUTIFUL AS THEY CAN. janie and jack sell baby clothes (i'm sure nothing i'd ever put a kid into. oh shoot, i take that back, i WOULD put a kid into that beret!). there are other stores named in the article and a movie theater and a restaurant that serves big hunks o' dead cow.

beret picture: janie & jack

it's already starting in west hartford because of black and blue square

i KNEW it would. didn't know it would be that soon.

i went to whole foods yesterday afternoon about noon. yes, i know it's usually a bit more crowded at that time. i know not only the regular crew of shoppers is there but some of the construction workers from black and blue also stop off to get lunch. they don't drive though, they walk across the street. there is a new light at the entrance of whole foods. it's jamming up the lot AND raymond road. i know they did build another entrance into whole foods from trout brook too AND there is an entrance from farmington avenue (which i use). the lot was a mess. all of the spots were full (of GIANT UNNEEDED AND UNNECESSARY i might add) SUVs. suvs being driven by ONE person, not entire families. SUVs taking up 1 1/2 parking spots.

the traffic was a nightmare and black and blue square isn't anywhere near open yet. i can only imagine

i'm already saying i told ya so