It may have been the sheer power of the Rotary Club of the Caldwells and the Kiwanis Club of Caldwell -West Essex that scared all that rain away yesterday.
After all, it hasn't rained during this Caldwell Street fair in 21 years, and as anyone that is involved in these charitable organizations can tell you, the money raised goes towards helping the needy both locally and abroad.
So those rain clouds behaved - and though the crowd wasn't quite as large as usual, there was a steady non-stop flow of happy visitors, eating drinking and enjoying all kinds of fun things to do, including rides for the kids and live music.
At Rockn' Joes, Paul Gargiulo and his band rocked the house - bringing in tons of old and new fans to this hot spot in the center of Caldwell. Adults and little kids kept the staff busy from opening until closing, and the comforting hiss of hot chocolates or lattes provided a fun backdrop for the stunning guitar and vocals of this band.
Gargiulo played plenty of his own songs, mixing some seriously incredible Rockabilly tunes with some other singer/songwriter and more rock n'roll tunes.
Outside, kids lined up to go on the ferris wheel or other rides as their parents stood by, enjoying what was being hailed as "the best BBQ in Jersey" over at Hog Wild, the Caldwell spot that has become famous for its pulled pork and other delights.
The 50/50 tickets seemed to be selling well, and as one Kiwanian said,
someone would be very very happy last night, since the pot would be well over $10,000.
As for this reporter, I can tell you one thing for certain: If Caldwell could have an outdoor fair every Sunday - or even once a month - with the Avenue closed to traffic and open to pedestrians - this borough could surely compete with other go-to destinations.
UPDATE: Kiwanian and new dad Dan Merlino won first prize in the 50/50 raffle. Congratulations to this new parent on his new baby and also winning the 50/50, since it will surely come in handy.
