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RED BANK: READY TO (NOT?) FLY AGAIN

hobbymasters 070115 1 hobbymasters 070115 2Back in the indoor skies at Red Bank’s Hobbymasters store: a giant post-World War I replica biplane that was returned to its post of 30 years Wednesday after a two-month restoration by the Jersey Coast Sport Fliers.

Built for radio-controlled flight, but never flown, by Richie Smith, a onetime store employee who died last year, the eye-catching aircraft, with a wingspan of more than six feet, is a customer favorite, says store owner Alan Placer.

“People who know it from when they were kids now bring their kids in to see it,” he said.   (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

LITTLE SILVER: SCHOOL’S OUT, EVEN WHEN IN

Jersey Shore Free School students on the nature trail in Little Silver last month. Below, student Sophie makes a point while staff member Michael waits his turn. (Photo above by Michael Quirk; below by Sarah Klepner. Click to enlarge)

By SARAH KLEPNER

It’s a dream come true.

The kids follow the rules because they made them.

If you respect children, they listen to you. 

My day is seamless: I’m learning all the time. 

These are voices of parents, teachers and students at the Jersey Shore Free School, a social oasis tucked away in a onetime residence on Birch Ave in Little Silver.

It’s a place where the usual rules don’t apply – and unusual ones do. For starters, there are no ‘teachers’ here, staff member Katie Finn tells redbankgreen one recent morning. There’s no fixed syllabus or schedule: all classes are on request, like a recent impromptu lesson in calculating a tip for the delivery of a recent communal lunch. And the school is a full democracy, entrusting even the youngest students with an equal say in all aspects of school functioning, including budget, policies, programs and even hiring.

“The kids follow the rules because they make the rules,” Finn said.

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BUSTIN’ IT AT THE DUB, TAKE TWO

sinead-dunneSinead Dunne models a swimsuit that will be featured in the show. Below, Ruthie Chaparra in a kimono-style dress. (Click to enlarge)

ruthie-chaparra

Somehow, little old Red Bank survived its first century-plus of existence without an outdoor fashion show featuring skimpily clad amateur models.

Rosa Davis of Bella Mystique filled that cultural void with panache on a chilly night back in April. That’s when several dozen customers of her Broad Street boutique strutted a red carpet laid down outside the Dublin House on Monmouth Street.

The place was packed, the music was throbbing, and there was enough jiggle in the courtyard to boost the ambient temperature by a couple of degrees.

So why wait another century to do it again? Even if the temperatures are now tropical quality.

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FAIR HAVEN MODEL ROCKS SPRING RUNWAYS

jacquelyn-jablonskiLess than a year out of Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High, model Jacqueline Jablonski is the “queen” of the spring fashion shows underway in New York’s Bryant Park.

So proclaims today’s New York Daily News, which reports that the drinking-straw-thin, 5-foot-9 Jablonski

walked an astounding 31 shows this past week, beating out other strutters for the most shows walked, and surpassing her record of 21 shows last season.

“I was constantly running from place to place, and I had to have my fittings and castings at night because there was no time during the day with all the shows I was doing,” she says.

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