Joshua B.'s Profile
DateFranklin, MA 02038
(508) 520-1550
Planet Chrysler Jeep Dodge
Categories:
Auto Parts & Supplies,
Car Dealers,
Auto Repair
Hudson, MA 01749
(774) 245-4251
Penny Wise Second Hand Super-Store
Category:
Thrift Stores
Owner Michael just opened this store earlier in the week. He buys at auctions and estate sales.
I left with 4 CDs, but there are also 8 tracks, cassettes, DVDs, stereo equipment, clothing, jewelry, video games, musical instruments, and gift items.
The owner was very friendly and hopes for a high merchandise turnover so he can keep showing his new finds.
Last year, my wife and I went on a serious local church search, partly because we want to have a regular place to worship and be involved, but to be completely honest, even more important to us, we wanted our yet unborn son to grow up with strong Christian influence and a youth program. We tried about five churches in Hudson and Marlborough, then based on a relative's recommendation, drove a bit further and tried Grace Baptist in Shrewsbury.
We wanted a multicultural environment, especially for our son and we had a hard time feeling really comfortable anywhere until we visited Grace Baptist for the first time. I appreciated the traditional worship. Although it is a mix between praise songs led by a worship team and traditional hymns, it still has a reverent vibe that I appreciate. The pastor's wife, Monica sings with the worship team that is lead by Jonathan, a young man with a great voice. Usually, before individual song selections are announced, Jonathan will quote a Bible passage relating to the song's message. As a special treat, another John plays the euphonium, a mellow brass instrument that sounds a lot to me like the trombone. The church has an excellent regular pianist that plays on an electronic keyboard with a decent simulated piano sound. Her solos during the offering are often quite moving.
Pastor Conway Campbell and his wife are originally from Jamaica. Their two boys are both starting to participate in the worship and are seemingly very musically inclined. One sometimes subs in on the piano and one plays drums via an iPad. Their daughter, along with most of the children, sing in an ensemble for special music programs. We hope someday our son can be a part of this, but for now he is only 4 months old. The church seems to have thriving youth program called Awana.
The pastor is a warm, gentle man that preaches directly from the Bible. After every sermon, he invites anyone who may be inclined to invite Jesus into their hearts. I have seen this done from time to time in church, but never every week. To me, this clarifies the pastor's intentions. He wants people to be saved. He has been exceptionally welcoming to my wife and I, and even visited our newborn son at our house a few days after he was born. We missed his hospital visit because my wife and baby were discharged early.
The church has Sunday School, morning service, evening service, and different youth and adult programs throughout the week. Our son has been well taken care of in the nursery by one of three different caring people that rotate every week. One woman, Jean, knitted him a beautiful winter outfit complete with hat.
A personal highlight to me has been the 4 times that different people have become official church members during different Sunday morning services. The candidates share their testimony in front of the church body and each time has been moving.
I hope I've touched on some of the different aspects of the church that you may have wondered about.
I have never played an Addams Family game running so perfectly and displaying so beautifully. This experience plus playing Funhouse with a perfectly working Rudie and introducing it to my family and my relatives (who met us there) were the highlights of my night. Turns out that Skip is quite a player and could hardly be dragged away from Funhouse as the 10 o'clock closing got closer! Jeff was very into the Twilight Zone pin.
Both Owner Sarah and Christina spent a lot of time with me, as they could see my enthusiasm and my big smile that never went away. Can we do this again tomorrow night mom?
Then I called Rick at American Thermal Window who had installed replacement windows in my parents' house 20 years ago and had even made a recent free service visit last year.
Rick actually drove with his wife who was originally going to stay in the car, but we offered her a spot on the couch with the TV. They are an older couple, very polite and dignified. His presentation was much simpler than Champion. He didn't present all the tech specs and he didn't guarantee a certain percentage of savings. But his window looks like very good quality and the price was about what we wanted to pay. He showed us a photo book with many of his home and business window installations. One location caught my attention, the Clarion Nantasket Beach Hotel that I'd seen many times.
Unlike the Champion salesperson who gave me one price, then kept lowering it when we didn't accept, Rick made me one offer that my wife and I instantly felt was fair. About a month later, he and his crew were here and they installed all ten windows complete with capping around the exterior in one day. The workers removed and then reinstalled my blinds for me which saved me time and effort.
The windows are manufactured by Stergis Windows & Doors in Walpole. Here are some specs:
U-Factor - .30
Solar Heat Gain Coefficient - .26
Visable Transmittance - .53
EnerG Low E/Argon Top SS/DS
Vinyl * Double Glaze
We LOVE the windows. They are simple to open and clean. They have half screens that can slide up to the top or down to the bottom pane so that we can open either the top or bottom panes in the summer.
Best of all, as it's gotten colder this fall, I notice our hot water heat barely turns on. Our townhouse stays warm and the heat is definitely working less to maintain temperature. These windows are dramatically lowering our heating bill and give us a more comfortable, consistent indoor temp.
Earlier this month, Rick sent a handwritten letter of thanks along with all of the documents I need for my tax credit. He's a gentleman who will treat you fairly. I believe he's a man of his word which is important when you deal with a contractor.
Amherst, MA 01002
(413) 256-4643
The Lone Wolf
Categories:
Breakfast & Brunch,
American (Traditional)
We shared the spare ribs/pulled pork combo. Both were really sauced up. The ribs were very meaty and the meat was tender. Unfortunately, not even a hint of smoke flavor and no smoke ring. Good sauce though. :-/
Both the unsweetened tea and the sweet tea seemed watered down. We tossed both for other fountain drinks.
The sides are great but Bub's needs to find its pride and slow smoke the meat.
1 Previous Review:
-
5/16/2010
With the smoker going, a tent full of people eating at picnic tables, a line to order out the door, and a Phantom Gourmet recommendation, this looks like a perfect spot. Unlimited sides are a great idea. Reviews and awards all over the walls show me they take their restaurant seriously. The BBQ beans are great. Seasoned peas and dirty rice very nice. Too bad the baby back ribs were a big letdown. Meat was tough. Slathered with sauce. I scraped the sauce off to see if I could taste the smoke that's supposed to be there I looked close for signs of a smoke ring. Very hard to pick up any signs of real slow smoked BBQ like it's supposed to be. I sampled my friend's chicken and sadly, no taste of slow smoke either.
Last thing to try is the beef brisket. Maybe next time.
Odd that hardly anyone mentions the smokey flavor that real BBQ should have...
Acton, MA 01720
(978) 263-7638
Acton Bowladrome & Arcade
Categories:
Restaurants,
Bowling
The music from the performer taking advantage of open mic night was way too loud, so my wife and I finished our second game and paid. Throughout our time there, generally, you'd go to the counter and wait until someone noticed you and came over. I was told the bowling was $2 but I reminded the guy we bowled 4 games so I'd pay him $4.
My wife went to the restaurant and ordered a BLT which was good but she said the fries weren't.
I played Ripley's Believe It Or Not pinball. The left slingshot wasn't working and the third flipper was a little weak. Otherwise playing nice. The Star Wars Pinball 2000 machine had the same dead left slingshot issue. They're down to four pins right now. The other two are South Park and Monopoly which was down. It looked like the bank was being fixed.
Then I went to the new classic arcade room that they're putting together and talked to Josh who is very excited about it. They have a nice collection, but as of last night, only about half are playable. I have high hopes for this room. Josh also says he's moving the pinball machines into this room. I played Phoenix, Spy Hunter (upright) and Ms. Pac Man. Also working are Missile Command, Donkey Kong, and Centipede. Non-working but there are Pac-Man, Galaxian, Beer Tapper, Krull, and Defender. I think I'm missing one.
One piece of great news: The redemption prize counter is in its own room, far away from the main counter.
Candlepin bowling is fun, but a little expensive. It's awesome that the Drome offers cheap bowling Wednesday nights. My only complaint is that the open mic performance was way too loud for comfort. Show owner comment »
1 Previous Review:
-
1/31/2010
As long as they provide pinball machines and maintain them, I'm a fan. The current lineup is: Star Wars (Pinball 2000), Ripley's Believe It Or Not, Elvis, Monopoly, and South Park. Great pinball tables like these remind me of the days when pinball machines and video games were at arcades. Now, "arcades" are mostly filled with redemption games where kids get tickets to trade in for glow rings or jacks. Acton Bowladrome's arcade has a bit of variety with the pinball, NASCAR, another sitdown driving game with two networked machines who's name I forget, DDR, skee ball, and the usual annoying redemption games.
Unfortunately, yesterday (Saturday) it was a zoo. The counter where you get a bowling lane or pay for your bowling was crawling with little ones deciding what to choose from their redemption game winnings. Two young teen girls were manning the counter with occasionally someone older there helping. Needless to say it was a pain just to get to the counter and a longer wait to get a lane and then later, pay for bowling. Lots of parents too. All bowling lanes filled even after my wife and I had bowled two strings each.
Bowling is $4 per string and $2 for shoe rental.
My wife and I have our own shoes so we didn't rent any when we put in our name for a lane. It was about a 15 minute wait so we happily played pinball until I heard an employee (one of the young teens) asking around in the arcade if anyone was there to bowl. When my ball drained, I hustled back to the counter and said I heard her asking around about bowlers in the arcade. She said our lane had just opened up.
The bowling was fun. Loud pop music was playing. To our left, 4 teens and to our right, a father with a toddler and two probably 18 month old twins, all in their lane at once. I felt embarrassed for all the parents there when the unedited version of "Holla Back Girl" blasted away complete with multiple s-words. Once the people to our right started bowling, there was a ball shortage and we'd often have to wait for a ball to be returned. Twice, the automated pinsetter only set up a few pins instead of 10. Minor quibbles. I love candlepin bowling so again, I'm a fan. After about 1/2 hour, the lights went down and the rock 'n' bowl atmosphere was complete.
When I went to pay, it was more waiting at the counter, again, filled with parents just hanging around and children choosing their little prizes. I am pretty patient and I don't like to cut in lines, so I waited. Luckily, someone else cut and gave *me* an opening to pay. A father and son wanted to bowl and asked if any lanes were open. I spoke up and announced that my lane was free. One of the young teens girls (now with a baby in one arm) said no lanes were open and there was a wait, so I spoke up again repeating my lane was free. The father said, "I'll take his lane!" He got to bowl and I got to pay and get out. :-) I was charged $20 for 4 games so I payed with my card and asked if prices are higher on the weekends. After a little discussion with me continuing to ask questions, she said, "Oh that's right, you didn't rent shoes." She nicely gave me $4 back in cash. Basically, I think all the employees here aren't bad at all. When it gets busy, it's tough for anyone to handle. But then again, a young girl with a baby in her arm manning a crowded counter with just one other girl her age--I think anyone would agree, not the best.
To wrap up, I'll definitely be back for bowling and pinball, but probably not on a Saturday afternoon.
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Hudson, MA
Yelping SinceJune 2008
Things I Love Find Me InEastern MA and all over New England
My HometownHudson, MA
My Blog Or Website My Second Favorite Website My First ConcertChicago
My Favorite MovieThree Amigos
I had just a few specific models in mind that I was looking for (Honda Civic, Mazda 3, Hyundai Elantra), and although none of the makes were affiliated with his dealership, he agreed to be on the lookout for me. Within a week, he called to tell me about a trade-in that was pending, a 2007 Honda Civic with only 29,000 miles. Yes, he even faxed me a CarFax, showing the car was clean. He actually understated the car, saying the body/paint was average for a 2007. When I saw the car, it was definitely far better than average. It was beautiful outside and in. Even though the car was in excellent condition, I still got it for $1,500 under Kelly Blue Book value private seller estimate.
I live about 45 minutes from the dealership and Joe was mindful of my drive, so after I had accepted delivery of the car on premises, a few days later my wife dropped by to pick up the registration. Joe had a $29 check made out to me to compensate me for the inspection, knowing I was opting to get my inspection sticker locally so I wouldn't have to make another trip to the dealership.
Joe was straightforward throughout the process and was actually a lot of fun too. I'd recommend him and this location to buy a car.