The Way Life Should Be

For the past week, my family has been on vacation in Maine. The state has a tourism slogan, The Way Life Should Be. And indeed it is. We’ve been coming here since the children were little, our summer break filled with hiking, biking, swimming, kayaking – sometimes in a single day. We enjoy the spectacular views of the coastline and its pink granite mountains, the culinary delights of lobster and blueberries, and even jumping into its chilly waters. OK, the kids jump. It takes me a bit longer.

Phil Hoops, a LHS graduate and Rutgers University student, has filled in as editor of Livingston Patch while I spent a week unplugged in Maine. Phil covers township government during the year and I am very grateful to this capable young man who stepped up to sub while I was gone.

My kids are sleeping in. So I thought I would sneak a peak at Patch to see what’s been going on. And it’s been plenty. Livingston helped Newark battle a huge fire in the Ironbound. s were out on strike. Police are investigating a rash of n Livingston and neighboring towns. And Councilwoman provided an insider’s view on her role on township council and the attorney’s opinion of her involvement with a proposed charter school.

We hope you are clicking onto Patch daily for news of Livingston and receiving our daily or weekly newsletter. We run half a dozen stories a day of interest to Livingston residents, covering our town and people who live and work here.

Some of the top stories of the past week:

: Andrew and Sam Kim of Livingston recently competed at the SCS National Climbing Competition in Atlanta.

: Money raised benefits improvements to the Livingston Skate Park.

  It's not a question of 'if' anymore. It's 'when'.

: Heritage Middle School Teacher Ken Zushma Inspires Girls To Love Science

: Will the spoils from a lawsuit really ease the pain?

: Time 2 Focus: What do you think of the Pa. restaurant banning young kids?

: Local band Going Dark to open for Nickelodeon’s power pop Big Time Rush.

: Fun for all ages -- for the literary and artistically-inclined.

: Administrators charged with implementing tough new Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights, from new definitions to new jobs.

You can find all the news on top of the Livingston Patch site by clicking on the tab for News. You can browse by Arts, Government, Business, Police and Fire, School News, Sports, Announcements, Events and Local Voices -- blog posts written by Patch readers, to continue the conversations we are having in our homes with a broader audience. If you're interested in blogging, email marilyn.lehren@patch.com.

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