This is the brand new SGI-USA Buddhist community center for NJ opened Summer 2016. After decades of…read morethe East Orange center operating as the sole center for NJ, this expanded facility truly shines as its successor. There are daily activities going on in the center and every Tuesday evening there is an introduction to Buddhism open to anyone. This practice has saved my life in so many ways, enriches it daily and helps me to be the best person I can be while recognizing the goodness in others. Nam Myoho Renge Kyo It's the chant of the Sokka Gakki Buddhist. It's meaning: to embody the mystic law of cause and effect through our voice. A brief introduction below from the website. www.sgi-usa.org The essence of Buddhism is the conviction that we have within us at each moment the ability to overcome any problem or difficulty that we may encounter in life; a capacity to transform any suffering. Our lives possess this power because they are inseparable from the fundamental law that underlies the workings of all life and the universe. Nichiren, the 13th-century Buddhist monk upon whose teachings the SGI is based, awakened to this law, or principle, and named it "Nam-myoho-renge-kyo." Through the Buddhist practice he developed, he provided a way for all people to activate it within their own lives. Shakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism, first awoke to this law some 2,500 years ago. Discovering that the capacity to transform suffering was innate within his own life, he saw too that it is innate within all beings. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo could be described as a vow, an expression of determination, to embrace and manifest our Buddha nature. It is a pledge to oneself to never yield to difficulties and to win over one's suffering. At the same time, it is a vow to help others reveal this law in their own lives and achieve happiness. Nam comes from the Sanskrit namas, meaning to devote or dedicate oneself. Myo can be translated as mystic or wonderful, and ho means law. This law is called mystic because it is difficult to comprehend. What exactly makes it difficult to comprehend? It is the wonder of ordinary people, beset by delusion and suffering, awakening to the fundamental law in their own lives and realizing that they are inherently Buddhas able to solve their own problems and those of others. Renge means lotus blossom. The lotus flower is pure and fragrant, unsullied by the muddy water in which it grows. Similarly, the beauty and dignity of our humanity is brought forth amidst the sufferings of daily reality. Further, unlike other plants, the lotus puts forth flowers and fruit at the same time. This illustrates the principle of the simultaneity of cause and effect; we do not have to wait to become someone perfect in the future, we can bring forth the power of the Mystic Law from within our lives at any time. Kyo literally means sutra and here indicates the Mystic Law likened to a lotus flower, the fundamental law that permeates life and the universe, the eternal truth. To chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is an act of faith in the Mystic Law and in the magnitude of life's inherent possibilities. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is not a mystical phrase that brings forth supernatural power, nor is it an entity transcending ourselves that we rely upon. It is the principle that those who live normal lives and make consistent efforts will duly triumph.

So I am the first one to review this community center. I wish I could say it was the greatest…read morecommunity center in the world. But it's not. It's old. But it is clean and it is well maintained. It serves our small town very very well. It's available for people in town to have meetings. There's a very large kitchen. There's plenty of room so that multiple groups can meet at the same time. So all in all it's actually a fantastic community center.

A group of friends have been playing at this Hudson River Pickleball place for about 8 months for…read moreat least once a week regularly. But, I am giving "zero". Not for its court price. (Quite reasonable) Not for its court quality. (Low ceiling, but ok) I am giving "zero" for the owner's unacceptable attitude in addressing an incident. The manner he talks to customers, abruptly, absolutely rudely, no explanation what so ever. And if you reply and ask for "why", his response is "You cannot use the facility anymore. I can kick you out." Authority .....? "I can kick you out and ban all of you." Yes, he is one of the partners and yes, he may have the authority. But, if there is no sign of what to caution, and no warning, no explanation, then he cannot enforce such. His attitude of disrespecting the customers condescendingly was so unacceptable that we ended our membership there. We will not be going back.

I've been to Hudson River Pickleball a handful of times now. Each visit has been a great…read moreexperience. The staff is friendly. Prices are fair. The courts are well maintained. Can't really ask for much more. I'll probably find myself back at Hudson eventually.

The NYC Parks Department maintains a bunch of recreation centers in the city that are often refered…read moreto as City Gyms. These include Community Centers, Field Houses, and Nature Centers and offer services such as indoor pools, weight rooms, basketball courts, dance studios, boxing rings, art studios, game rooms and libraries. Though J. Hood Wright may be a good community center it doesn't have very good fitness facilities. From what I observed when I took a tour it's a small place that probably does more after-school and senior programs than fitness stuff. The center itself is in a park and during the day mostly the older folks in the neighborhood use it, so that's not a big surprise. The fitness room is very small with about 6 machines and a paltry selection of free weights. The center also didn't have a very good 'feel', if that makes sense. I went through looking at the facilites and didn't feel welcome and some of the dudes hanging around the fitness room were, frankly, creepy. So I won't be back. Since there's no pool it only costs $50/year to join this center.

What more can you ask for? ... Dog run, a nice circle pattern to take your animals for a walk and…read moreto do their business, play ground, courts...I don't use the fitness center, just the public walk areas. Deduction of stars because of the poop on the ground from inconsiderate people who don't curb their dogs, glass on the ground here and there, dudes drinking Hennessy at the chess table, cops occasionally doing car searches along the outskirts of the park. J "HOOD" rriigghhtt... gotta have thick skin to go through their after sunset, but it's on the up N up.

I'm still shocked that I'm living through a pandemic, but fingers crossed that we're almost on the…read moreother side of this whole thing! I know it's been difficult to secure a vaccine appointment but sometimes it's just about getting onto these websites at the right time. I had already signed up through the NJ COVID-19 Information Hub and began looking for appointments as soon as possible. I was able to find an appointment for that same week at Holy Name Medical Center aka Richard Rodda Community Center. My first appointment was for February 5th at 5:25pm which was the last appointment slot for the day. I arrived and there were about 20 people ahead of me on the line. I wasn't expecting to wait since each person should have a designated time. I waited about an hour until I finally received my first dose. The vaccines they have depend on which shipment they get. I got the Pfizer vaccine because that's what they had then (this may change depending on when you go). After my first vaccine, they made me an appointment for the second dose 3 weeks later on February 26th at 4:40pm. I must have come on a better day or they really changed up their methods because I was in and out in 10 minutes! I was not expecting that considering what happened during my first appointment but I'm glad they made changes! Thankfully, I am fully vaccinated (and had no side effects - aside from basic arm soreness). What I like about this vaccination site is they give you an Apple Wallet version of your COVID-19 Vaccination Card. So not only do you have the hard copy card but you can also have this electronic version with you at all times. Huge shout out to the pharmacists and nurses working tirelessly to vaccinate the community. Both nurses who vaccinated me were super friendly and my experience was pretty smooth-sailing!

The staff at the Fort Lee Public Library is absolutely wonderful. The natigation on the new…read morewebsite is terrible. Even the wonderful staff in Fort Lee has trouble try as they may to help the caller. I'm sticking to my Kindle!

Fort lee public library dies a great job at community engagement. They host regular weekly…read moreprogramming as well as special events, which they advertise in their news bulletin. Some events are for certain age groups/ populations, like seniors, teens, parents. Etc, while others are open to the general public. Activities range from practice career guidance to social events like movie screenings and even wine tasting. Every time I come to the library, the staff at the front desk is always very friendly and helpful. The librarian is also knowledgeable and able to point me In the right direction whenever I have a specific topic or title I'm looking for. I'm a big fan of the inter-library book exchange. You're able to place a request online for almost any book and pick it up at the Fort Lee branch when it becomes available. It's super convenient. Another great feature of this library is their partnership with museums in nyc. As a former NYC resident i was worried about missing out on some of the perks of being an NYC resident, but I found out that you actually get free access to to several museums with your Fort Lee Library card and you can request passes for a few guests as well. Overall, this library isn't the largestor necessarily the most modern, but it has mostly everything you could need or want from a local library. It's certainly nicer than my local library growing up and the service is always friendly. 4.5 stars

I have attended 5 workshops so far with Mano a Mano (Huichol Yarn Paintings, Piñatas, Paper…read moreFlowers, and various Jewelry-Making) and have been very pleased with the quality of information and materials the organization provides. The facilitators are knowledgeable and really enjoy sharing the history of Mexican folk art which often leads into other conversations revolving around general Mexican history and present day traditions. This aspect is what sets them apart from any other workshops I have attended which revolve around Mexican folk art. I highly recommend if you want to get a real hands on approach on Mexican folk art and crafts. The organization offers workshops in both Spanish and English. I can't wait to attend more workshops! Thank you!

After enjoying your workshop plz visit Mexican Culture at 2017 Amsterdam avenue offering delicious…read moreauthentic foods and drinks by Mario from the puebla.Enjoy

Came here for a community art event with a friend and two middle schoolers. The event was outdoors…read moreon a hot Sunday and they had popcorn and water available for folks. They ended the day with live musical performance. There was face painting, a make art station, and a couple more other activities. The museum as also open so we went inside and looked at the current exhibit as well as the giant mural (pictured). It was a great day and we all had fun. I highly recommend the art events.

I visited the Hispanic Museum & Library last weekend for the first time. It's a museum and…read morereference library for the study of the arts and cultures of Spain, Portugal, and their former colonies in Latin America, the Spanish East Indies, and Portuguese India. It was founded in 1904 and expanded into the former home of the Museum of the American Indian (adjacent to the museum's original building) in 2021. Their collection includes 18,000 works, including works by Diego Velázquez, Francisco de Goya, El Greco, and Joaquín Sorolla. When I visited last weekend, the largest space of the museum was closed as they set it up for a new exhibit. Unfortunately, that meant only two small spaces were open to view. Luckily, one of the spaces I was able to see was the Sorollo Room. It displays 14 paintings painted by Joaquín Sorolla. Together, the paintings depict different provinces of Spain and total 227 feet in length. It's incredible and worth a trip to the museum on its own. It's free to visit the museum, so if you're in the area it's well worth stepping by. If you get lucky, you'll get to see more than I did (bad timing!), but even if you see nothing more than the Sorolla Room, it's worth it. I'll probably return one day to see more of their space and different exhibits!