This Friday, September 23, The Somerville City Club presents Somerville’s own Jimmy Plunkett at a fundraiser at the club hall (across from Holiday Inn on Innerbelt Road). Donation is $20. Raffle and light refreshments begins at 8:00 p.m. and goes to 12 midnight. A great time and a great cause. The club actively supports the youth of Somerville. Proceeds to benefit this coming annual Children’s Christmas Party. For information and to reserve your tickets call Rita Bears at 857-866-7464, Steve Harvey 617-625-7325, Don Johnson 617-866-7464 or directly to the club at 617-623-9340. Come celebrate their 50-year anniversary of serving and supporting the children of Somerville.

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The 11th annual What the Fluff? A tribute to Union Square Invention is happening this weekend, on Saturday September 24 (rain date September25). As they prepare for their biggest festival yet, they’re excited to share some delectable updates with their biggest Fluff fans. All happening in Union Square.

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A CAAS Fundraiser is happening at Slumbrew Taproom, 15 Ward Street, Somerville, on Thursday, September 22 from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. You can have fun and support the work of the Community Action Agency of Somerville (CAAS), our local anti-poverty agency, by purchasing a ticket to their Fall Fundraiser at Slumbrew. Drink a beer, eat some delicious food, enjoy a private brewery tour and win awesome raffle prizes. To learn more about CAAS, visit www.caasomerville.org.

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Happy birthday to a lot of our friends and fellow Villens here this week: Happy birthday to a nice guy, Conor Brennan, who owns the pub PJ Ryans in Teele Square, a nice place with a lot of activity and a popular place as well. Happy birthday to Marsha Hamel McGlashing, who is celebrating this week. She’s very involved with Pop Warner here in the city. We hope she has a great birthday. Happy birthday to another nice lady, Joan O’Meara, who still has that nice Irish brogue after all these years. Happy birthday to Mark Alston-Follansbee, head of the Somerville Homeless Collation and past President of Somerville Rotary. Happy birthday to a lady who grew up here in the city and is now married with grown children herself, Donna Piro-Andon. What a great sense of humor she has. Happy birthday to a great friend from an old Somerville family whom many know, Wayne Snow, the best accountant around. We wish Sue MacLeod, who also grew up in East Somerville, a happy birthday. Happy Birthday as well to Joe Bordonaro, who grew up in Winter Hill. Also, a big happy birthday to Joetta Silva, who grew up here and has many contacts as well, as she owns and operates her own real estate company, Silva Realty.

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Arts Union Fall Walking Tour is September 25 (rain date, October 2) from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Meet at the Public Safety Building. Learn more about the history of Union Square with ArtsUnion and the Somerville Historic Preservation Committee at Tracking Progress; How Somerville Yards – Rail, Stock and Brick – Have Shaped Union Square. Juliet will host the complimentary ending session.

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The Temple Street and Mystic Avenue turkey is showing up more and more often. This time last week a lady was chasing it, trying to get it on the sidewalk, when all of a sudden the turkey – who by now is used to all the morning traffic there – started to chase her. We found it this week on Temple Street just walking around like it owned the street.

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There’s a new website in town. Check it out at www.somervillema.com. The Somerville Times is on the site. Also check out www.medfordma.com. Someone asked online why we keep these two websites in Newstalk. We guess it’s because we like them.

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For those that might be interested in obtaining certification for firearms should look up the Lawrence Rod & Gun Club. They provide an extensive program at the end of which you receive certification for Massachusetts/NRA Certified Firearm Safety Classes. They run a class once a month, which is limited to 10 people and we hear that this is the place to go to learn safety when handling guns. Email gunclub@earthlink.net for more information and or go to their website at www.lawrencerodandgunclub.org and read up about the course. We’ve been told that the course has seen a major increase in people applying for it, especially women. We can tell you first hand here that it’s a great course and quite thorough. The same goes for this in Newstalk. The club has informed us that many residents of Somerville have called or gone to the club to find out about certification.

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The popular State Representative here in the city, Denise Provost, has a Pirate Party opponent called Aaron James. You might want to go to voteaaronjames.org and click on “About Us” in the top right corner and read his bio. It’s a story of a drug afflicted youth. The person behind these Pirate opponents of Denise last time is the MA Pirate Captain who lives in Teele Sq. with his family. He’s also the Vice Chair of the United States Pirates Party. Using the expression “behind these opponents” is my interpretation … James might not say or admit that.

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The recent events with the Water Department and their new fee that they sprang on residents this year went before the Board of Alderman last week and several of the aldermen were very upset that no one knew about it. We guess that back about 20 years ago or so under the Capuano administration the Board of Alderman, through a charter change, gave full power to the administration and Water Department to charge whatever fees they wanted without going back to the Board for final approval. It looks good that the aldermen just might have the votes to override a possible veto from the mayor if they decide to change that back to the way it used to be with a charter change. We’ll see how this week’s Board meeting goes this coming Thursday night. Remember, it’s a $60 extra fee each bill for the year, making it $180 per household. It doesn’t matter right now if you’re in a condo or 6-unit building or a multi unit, it’s the same fee.

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Don’t forget one of the best hamburgers in the city can be found at Sally O’Brien’s in Union Square, on Somerville Avenue. There’s different entertainment every night and lots of fun every time we go there. You never know who from the Ville is there, and besides, the owner and host Liam is a great guy as well.

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Don’t forget to vote in the November 8 election for public officials, both statewide and nationally. If you need to register to vote call the Election Department at 617-625-6600. The registration deadline is soon.

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Last week mentioned that the bridge in Gilman Square next to the old Monarch Building was now opened both ways, which by the way is great for businesses and neighbors there. Online it was asked what the Monarch Building was. Yes, some refer to it as the Holman Building, but actually the building was built in 1929 by Reid and Murdock who put it up it as a warehouse. At the time they also owned Monarch Foods out of Chicago and decided to build the building as a warehouse and distribution point since it was located on the old B&M Railroad tracks. Still on the main door on the Medford Street side you will notice the Monarch Foods emblem of the lion head. After a while the place was sold to a few other temporary owners until Holman’s ended up there.

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SHS Class of 1946 will be holding their 70th Reunion this Saturday, September 24 at the Highlander Cafe, 81 Highland Ave. beginning at noon.