Happy New Year to all of Somerville, and a reminder to some that this is a gossip column. Some might not be familiar with what a gossip column does, just ask those guys that ran the Socialist Progressive Paper a few years (now they have their online site instead). They had that column called “The Somerville Snoop” – what’s the major difference? We’re not as nasty as they were.    To all those and newcomers to the city, ask a local progressive what we’re talking about.

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Recent report out on the number of committee meetings each alderman attended last year, and we’re not surprised to see the alderwoman from Ward 2 Maryann Heuston attended the most committee meetings this year. Committee meetings are where the real work gets done so we’re happy to see Maryann putting in so much work for her constituents. We here at Newstalk are big fans of Maryann and we didn’t have to be told that she was number 1, we already know she’s one of the hardest working aldermen. This is not to say others aren’t hard workers but she was number 1 in the various attendances of the 18 different committees that the board has. Although each alderman is assigned various committee’s some alderman attend other meetings, like Maryann did. We congratulate her; by the way as Chairman of finance she had the most meetings for the year, just beating out Legislative Matters.

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Local Somerville firefighter Christopher Clark has his birthday this week, along with Flora Pignatiello a long time Somerville resident and great lady, we wish both of them a happy birthday and many more.

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Get well soon to a well liked local guy and our good friend here in the Ville, Tommy Doucette.   Tom isn’t starting his New Year off too well. He spent most of the New Year’s holiday in the Mass. General Hospital recovering from a heart attack. Tommy’s a great guy and we wish him a speedy recovery.

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Another star sighting here in the Ville?  This time we heard that New England Patriots Tight End Alge Crumpler has been frequenting Mama Gina’s Pizza in Union Square for some great pizza and french fries, how’s that for a combination?

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Somerville Chamber of Commerce has their monthly after hours get together this Thursday night from 5 p.m. to 7p.m., (January 6) at the Foundry on Elm Street in Davis Square, great time to network the local businesses if you’re either a local business or someone looking to get seen. Contact the Chamber office to make your reservation.

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At the recent annual Ceremonial Flag raising ceremony this past Saturday, was interesting to see fewer and fewer elected officials, for this very historic event. Great ceremony and very interesting to the rather large crowd that turned out to hear the history. We were kind of shocked to see that the new Police Chief showed up in, shall we say, street clothes, its good he is a fan of the Sox, but his first public event was less than impressive, he could have shown some respect by dressing up just a little, that’s just our opinion. For the new pay raise he got and the excuse he didn’t have to move into the city by the administration and aldermen you’d think he would be presentable.

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A short sell seminar free to all those homeowners who have questions with no commitment, no pressure, is being held January 18 at 7 p.m. at The Norton Group 699 Broadway offices, call 617 623-6600 for information.

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The Somerville Public Schools are holding volunteer training sessions  supporting early reading skills in grades kindergarten through fourth grade this month.  Volunteers share their time and talents to inspire learning. Whether it is sharing a book, sharing a lunch hour, mentoring a student in music, or helping with homework in an after school program, a volunteer can make a significant difference in the life of a student. If you have an hour a week to share this year, join us for a Volunteer Training on Tuesday, January 11 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at the Arthur D. Healey School, 5 Meacham St., Somerville. Volunteers will learn about academic and enrichment volunteer opportunities and receive literacy tutoring instruction. For more information and to register contact Volunteer Coordinator Jen Capuano at 617-625-6600 x6023 or jcapuano@k12.somerville.ma.us.   To begin serving and inspiring visit:  www.somerville.k12.ma.us/volunteer.

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Christmas trees may be disposed of with your regular trash, on your normal trash day during the month of January as long as they are clear of all ornaments, lights, tinsel and other items.

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The Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Committee is requesting nominations of a person, youth or organization for the Somerville Human Rights Commission’s Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Award.The recipients of this award should reside or work in Somerville, has not received this award in the past year and has over the past year should have promoted human and civil rights, shown striving for equality, respect, and dignity of all people, strives for equality, respect, and dignity of all people, strives for economic justice, showing a commitment to non-violence, inspiring others to practice these ideals. Applications for this award can be found at www.somervillema.gov or at the City Hall Welcome Desk, and the deadline for nominations is January 7, 2011. Completed applications can be submitted electronically at sdarai@somervillema.gov by mail to Sonja Darai, City Hall Annex, 50 Evergreen Avenue, Somerville, MA 02143; or can be left at the Welcome Desk in City Hall. For more information, please call 311.

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Please join the Somerville Police Department in supporting Detective Mario Oliveira who was injured in the line of duty in November and is on the path to recovery. On Friday January 28 at 7p.m. at the Somerville City Club,  located at 20 Inner Belt Rd. a DJ will provide the entertainment, a buffet will be available and raffle tickets will help support Mario in his recovery. Entry is $20 per person.

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There’s a new semester of Learn to Skate classes at Somerville and Cambridge  rinks. Glide, jump, spin and have fun in the New Year!  The season for ice-skating is here!  Come learn to skate or improve your Recreational, Figure or Hockey Skating Skills.  Classes are held at the CAMBRIDGE SIMONI RINK on Gore St., with lessons starting on Saturday January 8th at 2:00 p.m. for a 7-week series. Also, at the SOMERVILLE VETERANS MEMORIAL RINK located on Somerville Ave., with lessons starting the week of January 2nd for a 7-week series.The Learn-to-Skate Classes, as featured on Chronicle, are for children ages 4 ½ and up and adults wearing either figure or hockey skates. Professional Instructors teach beginner, intermediate and advanced levels. Come join the fun and advance your skills at the CAMBRIDGE and SOMERVILLE Rinks, or at any of 11 other rink locations. To register for classes or to get additional information, please call the Bay State Skating School at 781-890-8480, or visit us online at www.BayStateSkatingSchool.org. Gift Certificates available. Ice skate and feel great!

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You are invited to a movie…and a murder. The Somerville Public Library Mystery Book Group celebrates ten years of reading and meeting Jan. 5 at 6:30 p.m. The group has met on the first Wednesday of the month (unless it’s a holiday) for ten years. To celebrate, we are hosting a movie night and a murder! Come join us for a screening of Murder by Death, a hilarious Neil Simon send up of the detective genre featuring an all-star cast that includes Peter Falk, Peter Sellers, Maggie Smith, David Niven, Truman Capote, James Coco, Elsa Lanchester, and more. Refreshments will be served, of course. You can’t have a movie without popcorn and we won’t have a murder without chocolate! By the end of the night, one of our members will be dead. Wanna find out whodunit? Join us. Come on time, or you’ll miss some clues.  This will be a low-gore event, suitable for ages pre-teen through adult. If you want a role in the mayhem, contact Rona at rona@twofisch.com.

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The Somerville Public library would very much appreciate it if you would  take a survey about Somerville Public Library facilities, services, and collections. It will only take a few minutes, and your opinion is very valuable to us as we plan for the future. The Survey can be found on the libraries web site.