Of the handful of editor's notebooks I wrote during my tenure as Belleville Patch editor, this is undoubtedly the saddest and most difficult. Because, unfortunately, this is my goodbye to you, my readers, colleagues and friends. When I shared this news around Belleville, it was met with some sadness. Which, truthfully, shocked me because this was such a brief journey for all of us. But what it was, was three months of telling some great stories here in Belleville. And there are plenty. Although some choose to narrow their focus towards crime and politics (which have to be covered, sure) and …

Because she is one of our own, a born-and-bred Bellevillite, more than 700 people supported Lindsay Giordano and her brave battle against breast cancer in person Wednesday night at The Brownstone in Paterson. Although her affliction, her roots, and her family's established history of selflessness explain the staggering number, most of these people will come together tonight at Belleville High School for a basketball doubleheader between the Buccaneers and Nutley that will serve as a Pink Out while paying tribute to Giordano, a 29-year-old beloved from border-to-border in our town. Think of …

One year, I abandoned a New Year's resolution in 13 minutes. True story. So my track record with resolutions, glass being half-full, was suspect entering 2012. But this time, this year, needed to be different. And it was. As a writer, I ask and expect full disclosure from my interview subjects. In that vein, here is why I started a 10-day Juice Reboot based off the movie “Fat Sick & Nearly Dead” on Jan. 3: I loathed everything about how I looked, how I felt, who I became. At 228 pounds, I neared my all-time high in weight (topped only by a 2007 beer/fried food/pizza binge after my dad died of…