Although we’ve had our share of criminal mischief this year, there are still plenty of fun decorations to see.

Plus we’ll have some pictures later from the whimsical Raga-Muffin parade that just finished. I guess Halloween and Christmas are the two best days of the year for the kids (other than their birthdays and the last day of school).

Of course, scenes like this were rampant yesterday:

This afternoon, NJ Nets players Vince Carter, Antoine Wright, Nenad Krstic and Mile Ilic stopped by the McDonald’s to read a Halloween story and help local pre-school children in the Halloween spirit.

They told a spooky story to a group of costumed children from Hoboken’s A Whole New World Academy.

In addition to reading the kids a Halloween tale, they were also supposed to get behind the counter to serve a group of lucky customers some grub. This was all part of the NBA’s “Paint The Town Red” program to promote the start of the basketball season.

They also signed autographs for a long line of people. Channel 4 News was there, along with the Hoboken Reporter and other newspapers.

Previously, Hoboken criminals (no age limit applies) really had no excuse to commit crimes. They were just dregs of society.

Now, despite still having no excuse, they think they do, because it’s near Halloween.

Today, a caller notified police about a heavily damaged vehicle on Sinatra Drive (between 7th and Sinatra Park). Many smashed windows and tail lights.

Park your car in a garage if possible, or at least a populated and well-lit area closer to Washington.

I guess when you get older, you tend to forget the mischief night / cabbage night that usually preceded Halloween back in the day.

Seems like the “up to no good” behavior in Hoboken starts sooner (and lasts longer).

This time it’s a bunch of (typically criminal to begin with) Hoboken Juveniles tossing eggs everywhere along the Criminal Superhighway near 4th and Adams.

Local Hoboken comedy writer / blogger Adam Wade wanted us to let you know about this upcoming comedy show at GoldHawk on Monday, October 30th at 8:30pm.

It’s a free event along with drink specials. If the event is a success, he plans on having it monthly. If it bombs, he will have a GIANT heart attack. So come out and show the love.

400 First St., third floor. Smoke everywhere.

Another careless cooking incident leads to disturbing the peace with ear-smashing sirens and wasting town resources.

How can you burn potatoes in a microwave? Doesn’t it have a timer?

Welcome new readers and old. Here are a few things that were covered in the last seven days.

News, items of importance:

• “Hoboken University Medical Center”
  Read about the proposed changes at St. Mary Hospital and see how shady Hoboken meetings are run.

Town Government:

• Our Parks (and lack thereof)
  Some observations regarding our parks incite anger and dissatisfaction from frustrated residents.

Events:

• Hoboken House Tour
  Was actually pretty nice, minus the developer sales pitches.
• HoBOOken Haunted House
  This coming Monday and Tuesday, Hoboken gives back to community kids.

New or Coming Soon:

• Bambi Baby
  Some new businesses really have a niche they can fill.
• Tennis Courts
  Along with a 1/2 court basketball area. Finished just in time for the cold weather.
• “Suit Up”
  Seems like an apparel store back on Monroe Street.
• Joey’s BBQ
  A much anticipated grub joint should be opening any day now.
• Yapple’s
  A juice and oxygen bar + tanning will be opening soon. Some debate ensued regarding the name.
• Maxwell Place
  Some new photos and discussion followed about parks and how they re-negged on their promises.

Doomed:

• Nothing officially made the “doomed” category this week. Sorry!

Reviews:

• Court Street
  We stopped into this very popular restaurant to give it a taste.
• Teak
  One of the larger places in town opened up under mixed reviews.

Fun, Games and Random Observations:

• Fall Foliage River Cruise
  You still have a few weeks to take a trip up the Hudson and observe the seasons change.

• Bird Watching
  We thought it was an eagle, but it turned out to be a Red-Tailed Hawk paying a visit to terrorize local squirrels.

Recent Town Incidents:

• Check the Incident Map
  The recent retardation you can’t read about anywhere else.

PREVIOUS WEEKS IN REVIEW:

- 10/22/2006
- 10/15/2006
- 10/8/2006
- 10/1/2006

Below is a quick one minute slide show of random pictures taken while scaling the rooftops of various Hoboken buildings in the past week or two.

I also took this opportunity to test three major video upload sites, You Tube, Yahoo Video and Google Video.

I sent the same video to each site to compare the quality.

You Tube: I think the video quality is kind of crappy, however it has the best audio quality. Downloads often hang up. It’s slow.

Yahoo: Best video quality, worst audio quality. Acceptable download speed.

Google: Mediocre video quality, sound quality seems only 1% worse than You Tube, fast download.

Guess who the band is.

Now that the seasons are changing and the weather is getting colder, it’s important and kind to consider those less fortunate than the rest of us.

One of our local businesses, BrianDavid, Realtors®, is hosting a food drive from now until November 15, 2006 to support the Hoboken Homeless Shelter located at 3rd and Bloomfield. People can drop off nonperishable food items Monday through Friday from 9am-5pm and Saturday & Sunday from 10am-4pm. They’re located at 1001 Bloomfield Street. This is a great cause to support and the perfect time of year to do it. Above all it’s always important to give back to your community. Click here for the PDF file from BrianDavid®.

While you can always drop food off at the Shelter directly, having an additional drop-off location makes it more convenient to those that live uptown.

This is the time of year when they could use donations the most as the year is winding down and the budget is close to spent. They’re looking for basic foods and other essential daily items:

Foods:
Pasta Sauce
Tuna Fish
Coffee
Sugar
Cereal
Juice Mix
Sliced Bread
Cheeses

Supply Donations:
Laundry Detergent
Dish Soap
Hot/Cold Cups
Paper or Plastic Plates
Napkins
Paper Towels
Toilet Paper
Tissues
Garbage Bags
Cutting Boards

Toiletries:
Toothbrushes
Toothpaste
Razors
Shampoo
Soap
Spray Deodorant
Sheets
Towels
Washcloths
Socks

The Hoboken Shelter feeds over 150 meals daily and shelters on average of 50 people on a nightly basis.

The rain has pretty much stopped for the day, and it’s warmer than originally predicted, which is good. However, this wind is causing some damage all around town. Haven’t been outside yet, but there are many reports of downed trees, powerline problems and damage to cars.

7th & Adams: Arcing powerline
4th & Adams: Aluminum siding ripping off building
St. Mary: Tree down

Anyone out and about with a camera today please send in what you might witness.