Town Talk

By, Alex Pavljuk

It is evident that now more than ever, although social distancing, it’s necessary to become closer than ever as a community. It is an extremely confusing and wildly unfamiliar time in not only New Egypt’s story but in American History as a whole. The COVID-19 Pandemic will be studied in history classes in the coming generations and the actions taken by lawmakers, community members, and everyday citizens will be judged in the eyes of history more likely than not. So, in order to do our part we need to still be supporting the small businesses that the community has relied on every week, because they are relying on the community to support them now. 

According to VOX News reporting and projections, unemployment in the United States by the end of 2020 will potentially reach 2.25 Million unemployment claims, which shatters all unemployment records. This number was predicted based on just the unemployment claim rates these past few weeks alone. It is important to remember that number will most likely change in the coming days and weeks but what will not change is the need to help out these local businesses. (Look for yourself, the article is linked below)

Based on this staggering scary number, it is key to recognize that unemployment and lost wages will be seen here at home. So as community members it is important to do our parts and help out our local businesses and small business owners who are residents of New Egypt so they can get through this incredibly difficult time. 

A lot of local businesses are offering several promotions to try and get customers to order out by offering incentives. Some of these incentives include discounts off of orders, and large take home kits like for Pizza or Ice Cream. A great way to be able to know if your favorite local establishment has any offers or incentives running during this situation can be done by checking their Facebook Page or website for updates! 

Additionally, it is important to note that many New Egypt residents are small business owners in other towns. Admittedly, my writing of this article is somewhat a conflict of interest. My bias stems from the fact that my parents are both small business owners, and our family is being affected directly. So for me, the support of small businesses both in New Egypt and owned by Plumsted residents is very important. 

“The uncertainty of reopening my hair and nail salon is frightening, to say the least.” Said my Mom, Karen Enourato, a small business owner in Hamilton NJ, “At this point, all I can hold onto is the hope that my clients will not only return but be supportive during these circumstances some small businesses like mine are presented with.” I recognize there is some pretty overt bias in interviewing one’s parents, but with the social distancing in place, and their direct link to the article, I hope as readers you let it slide just this once.

“Most small businesses work week to week with revenue. So, your overhead bills like insurance and rent won’t be paid. To me, it’s the global economic downturn, and its effects that will cause people to not have the means for spending on my craft.” My dad, Michael Pavljuk, the owner of a small business in Hamilton NJ, mentioned in regards to the situation at hand. 

So please if possible, watch out for our local businesses and our local business owners. Buy take out, get a gift card, or pledge to go back and spend once things have settled down because they all need the community’s help. 

Work Cited

https://www.vox.com/2020/3/21/21188529/initial-unemployment-claims-goldman-sachs

By, Alex Pavljuk

As a community and nation we have woken up recently to a brand new reality that we must face. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic it is important that as a society everyone remains diligent and active as creatures of habit in this temporary time of adjustment for all. 

What that means is that students all should keep the normalities of the schedules that they have come accustomed to over the course of this school year. So on weekdays it would be key to wake up relatively close to normal times that students would for any other school day, take breaks from work occasionally and eat a snack, maybe step outside for fresh air on a nice day (within the boundaries of social distancing of course), and even go out and work out once you finish your work to keep in shape for spring sports. 

This is something that is going to take getting used to, however the fact is that it is important to keep a sense of familiarity as all of us go down this long and unfamiliar road. 

With that said it is important to find things to do when online schooling ends for the day. A few things that could be fun to keep you busy after a long day online could be while social distancing…

1. Run or walk outside
2. Play some basketball or soccer
3. Throw axes at trees (if you are a trained professional with proper supervision)
4. Read a book
5. Watch a Movie
6. Listen to some records
7. Go fishing
8. Write a daily journal
9. Clean your room 
10. Bake a cake
11. Cook some food
12. Go for a drive
13. Write a play, that’s what Shakespeare did during one of those old plagues. 

This will take some getting used to, but hopefully in due time we will be back to normal. Yet for now, let’s do our part as good citizens and students by listening to the CDC and WHO’s updates and recommendations while constantly washing your hands, not touching your face, and practicing social distancing. 

By: Alex Pavljuk

As the holidays rapidly approach it is important to keep in mind more than just what gifts we will be receiving this year. Each holiday season the largest overlooked environmental issue takes place, that being the dinners each family partakes in each holiday season. During the month of December, 150 million miles of carbon are let out into the environment thanks to the excessive eating habits that occur during this time of the year. Thanks to the slaughter of livestock to feed the needs of families in this season, each family purchases the food equivalent of traveling the world in a car 6,000 times, according to Business Leader. 

Food alone is not even the most compelling issue to wrap up this season. In gift wrapping alone, 125,000 tons of plastic will be improperly recycled and end up in our oceans. Additionally, most of the plastic used is not biodegradable in the first place. By March of the next year, roughly 41% of holiday gifts will be broken or thrown away, resulting in not only more waste being discarded, but a waste of carbon and materials used to create these gifts. 

In speaking with Mrs. Baumiller, a science and specialized education teacher at New Egypt High School, she had a few tips on how to save waste and money this holiday season: “The biggest way to reduce and reuse this holiday season is to find creative and new ways to wrap your gifts, with maybe recyclable paper or newspapers and omitting bows from the wrapping process” she also added, “a lot of stores now give out paper bags instead of plastic so reusing those for gifts would be a valuable way to save money and resources, and while you are at it, don’t be afraid to go shopping this season with a reusable bag”. 

For a simple and local option, Wawa offers $0.99 reusable bags which would help cut back on plastic waste at the two locations in New Egypt.

In New Jersey alone there are 261 Starbucks locations, each average about 500 patrons a day resulting in 130,500 people in total to walk out of Starbucks with a drink. Starbucks offers reusable cups for $1.00 for hot drinks and $3.00 for a cold beverage. If one person alone who drinks at Starbucks each day used a reusable cup that would save $0.10 each drink resulting in around $70.00 of saved cash per year.  This is in addition to the 1,825 plastic cups that would be saved from being improperly recycled over five years. 

It is important to be aware of how you might unknowingly make an impact on our planet. We live in a strange world where we seem to be waging a war on nature by denying the very present issue. 

 

Sources: https://www.businessleader.co.uk/the-dark-environmental-impacts-of-our-christmas-season/57161/ 

 

https://spoonuniversity.com/lifestyle/the-number-of-starbucks-in-every-state

 

https://www.starbucks.com/responsibility/environment/cups-and-materials 

By Alex Pavljuk

As the holiday season rapidly approaches people across the country quickly adapt to the switch from pumpkin spice to eggnog, and cornstalks to Christmas trees. With that said there is a tradition rooted in New Egypt that is absent in the other sections of the state. Households across Plumsted have for years have blindly partaken in a tradition that was seemingly concocted for reasons unexplained. That is leaving peanut butter out for the Elf on The Shelf. 

 

The Elf on the Shelf is where the story begins. During French class, last winter in passing conversation the idea of the Elf on The Shelf was brought up and with confidence, I openly talked about how in my youth, to summon the elf, my family and I left peanut butter out so that he would be inclined to join us for the holiday season. Now to myself and every other student who had been raised in New Egypt, this was very common knowledge. I had been told by the other kids in the neighborhood that to receive Santa’s helper this was the procedure to follow. Even their parents backed this concept and reassured the children of it’s effectiveness. Yet as we confidently conversed about our seemingly normal situation, it was news to the students who had only entered the warrior ecosystem in recent years. Out of the dozen or so students in the class, four or so who didn’t grow up here had no clue what we were saying. This also included Mrs. Palumbo, our French Teacher,  who said that she had never heard about this phenomenon either. Are we all just crazy? Did we make it up? How could an entire town be infatuated with leaving peanut butter out to attract these elves to our childhood homes with no questions asked by willing parents? 

This rattled me in all honesty. As someone who partook in this unknowingly regional concept, it was insanity to me that I had gone 17 years of my life and never batted an eye, or recognized that no one else from any other town left peanut butter out. 

 

“That’s crazy, I always thought it was a national thing,” Bailey Manion, a New Egypt High School student said in disbelief that no other community did this, yet another student who had only recently moved here proceeded to testify “No, he just came randomly. Who would even think to do that (leaving peanut butter out) and expect an elf to show up.” Lexy Lees’s words although only a single individual share the same view with numerous others who have not gone to the Plumsted Township School District from K-12. To be honest, they are not wrong. When you google “Elf on The Shelf peanut butter” nothing comes up other than the occasional parent who might have used a peanut butter jar to hide the elf from their children in the morning, nothing at all about the summoning of the magical humanoid Christmas creature. T. Corby, a history teacher at NEHS who raised his kids a few towns over had no idea what leaving peanut butter out was for “No, the elf shows up on Thanksgiving.” 

 

With my confusion still mounting I published a poll via Instagram to get a solid idea of if this is truly a New Egypt tradition that had somehow taken shape out of thin air with no real origin. The results were a 60% to 40% split in favor of the elf on the shelf being drawn to the magical goodness of peanut butter. Yet, out of the 70 people who made up the yes vote all participants grew up in New Egypt. The no side was made of 43 individuals 13 from New Egypt that had not grown up here, the other 30 have never attended the Plumsted Township School District. Yes, 70 said they did, but that just backs the question because they have only grown up here. 

 

In short, this uniquely localized concept is something that was born here and has blinded all those young children who distinctly remember being told that peanut butter attracted the Elf on The Shelf. Many questions still remain, who came up with this idea, when did it start, are we really all alone? At the end of the day, yes, oddly, this was something we did for clearly no reason, but nonetheless, it simply adds to the charm and character of this strange little place that we call New Egypt.