06880 | Where Westport meets the world

Time 2020-06-22 15:06:24

Web Name: 06880 | Where Westport meets the world

WebSite: http://06880danwoog.com

ID:7887

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Westport,Where,world,

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For decades, Westporters have watched meadows disappear. New homes replace open space. Natural grass gives way to well-manicured, well-meaning yet artificial-looking lawns.It s hard to imagine a new meadow being created anywhere. But it s happening on Prospect Road.John and Melissa Ceriale are already Westport heroes for the beauty they ve brought to Greens Farms. Gardens, trees, bushes and walking paths fill their 8-acre property.Looking northeast, on the Ceriales property.The couple noted philanthropists and volunteers have a vision. Noted landscape designer Cindy Shumate brings its to life.And they re in it for the long haul. In 40 years, the trees we re planting now will be magnificent, Cindy says.Right now, it s the meadow that s drawing raves.Early this spring, Cindy planted 4,600 3-inch perennial plugs on an acre of land, at the far end of #25 Prospect. They ll grow in slashes, she says, self-sowing in the lawn grass to create a wild meadow. Already, that lawn grass is 18 to 20 inches high. It moves in the wind. So beautiful and natural, Cindy says. It s what anyone s lawn would look like if they stopped mowing. The Prospect Road meadow.She likens her role to a painter. Instead of a brush, her medium is plants.Neighbors notice. People out on their COVID walks pass by, Cindy says. They re curious. I wave, and they come over to the stone wall to talk. One man stared as he drove by. Then he backed up to chat, and learn more. Everyone is amazed that someone would purchase a piece of land and not put a home on it, Cindy says. But John and Melissa have a larger perspective. As they ad land, they re putting this parcel together so that it really works with nature. A parcel of land with gardens, walking paths, and now a meadow. What is Westport coming to?(Hat tip: Samuel Wang)Pyramid grasses on Prospect Road. A little pandemic can t keep Westport s Sunrise Rotary club down.Every April, they do a volunteer clean-up in town. The lockdown postponed this year s event. But yesterday the members were out in force, ridding the I-95 Exit 17 parking lot of trash.It was just like old times. Except for the masks.Westporters have been intrigued by a Ford Escort at the train station.During the pandemic it sat for weeks in the same spot. Last week it finally vanished. Some folks were pleased because it seemed the driver was okay; others wondered if the car had been towed, because the driver was not okay.Well, the Ford is back. But now I ve got another question:There are hundreds of empty spots in the lot. Why does he (or she) choose such a random place to park?(Photo/Curtis Lueker)Bridgewater got Paul Podolsky to Westport. The 1991 Brown University grad  liked the town so much, he moved here.Five weeks ago after more than 20 years with the firm he retired. His goal is to write full time. Judging by his memoir released today he s got another great career.Raising a Thief is the powerful, insightful and searingly truthful story of the orphan girl Podolsky and his wife adopted from Russia. They imagined she d blend in well with their son, and enjoy all the wonders of Westport.But she suffered from Reactive Attachment Disorder a condition in which a child who has suffered physical or emotional neglect or abuse cannot form a healthy emotional bond with new parents.Sonya lies and steals. She has an eating disorder, and tries to jump out of a window.It s a difficult story to read. It must have been even harder to live through and then write.Yet, Podolsky notes, Bridgewater helped. The culture is all about radical honesty. I was accustomed to that. Founder Ray Dallio says of the book: I am passionage about understanding how people think, and why This book offers an invaluable picture about how the earliest childhood experiences shape thinking. I recommend it for all parents. Podolsky s wife became a therapist, and now treats struggling families. They and anyone with an interest in the human condition will appreciated Raising a Thief. As for Podolsky, his next book is fiction. It s based on his work in international finance, specifically China and Russia.For more information and to buy Raising a Thief, click here.Paul PodolskyThey re the gifts that keep on giving.From the earliest days of the coronavirus, stones bearing uplifting messages have been spotted around town.They re at Grace Salmon Park. Outisde the police station. On Burying Hill Beach.Yesterday, Lauri Weiser spotted this particularly pretty one. Rock on, Westport!And finally summer arrived yesterday. Of the squintillion summer songs, this Gershwin tune and this Billy Stewart version stands at the top. I knew last week s Photo Challenge would be tough. But I also thought that since many Wesptorters have been taking long walks during the pandemic, more folks than usual might have spotted the banner with Paul Newman s smiling face that was the featured shot.Nope.The only 2 readers who knew were artist/designer Miggs Burroughs (who seemed to have inside knowledge, when he wrote studio garage behind 25 Imperial Avenue; it was conceived and created by the late internationally renowned futurist Watts Wacker ) and Jeff Kaufman (who, by noting I have an unfair advantage, must mean he works at that small office complex).The banner is visible from a few vantage points near the police station. So, if you re still out taking a COVID walk, check it out. (Click here for the photo.)This week s Photo Challenge should be much easier. If you know where in Westport you d see this, click Comments below.(Photo/Kathie Motes Bennewitz) Caroline Barney began writing The Trebors 4 years ago.An adventure novel for middle school youngsters, it s about a race of creatures that established a civilization in an enormous, mysterious tree that was shaken by a powerful storm. As the characters grapple with something larger than themselves, they and Barney s readers learn about the power of community.Caroline BarneyWhen she began, the Westport mother 2 had no idea it would be published in the midst of a pandemic that is teaching those some lessons to children everywhere.In her previous career, Barney was an advertising professional. When her second daughter was born, she moved into the non-profit and freelance world. But, she says, I d been a writer in my heart forever. Four years ago, walking in woods with her dog, she saw a tree door. Imagining an entire world outside, she came up with her story.But she could never have imagined the story that is unfolding now.Barney says, we are at the precipice of a changed world. I really believe in the next generation. I think we can all be united. If we frame what is happening today in the right way, we have the power to help kids see there s hope for a better world. The author certainly walks the talk. She s donating 50% of the proceeds from The Trebors to Save the Children. The organization now based in Fairfield, but for many years headquartered on Wilton Road has been part of her life for decades. Her mother worked there.In college, Barney interned there. While studying abroad, she visited a field office in Cameroon. Recently, she worked for the non-profit as a freelance writer.The book was published on June 1. Coincidentally, that s the day Save the Children launched Read a Story, Change Their Story. The 100-day campaign aims to curb summer learning loss, while providing support and resources for kids in rural America.There s no better story for them to read than The Trebors a story about changes, in our ever-changing world.(To order The Trebors, click here.) Live music is back!The first in-person Supper Soul concert since the pandemic shutdown is set for Friday, July 3 (6 p.m., Imperial Avenue parking lot). The Tom Petty Project headlines the drive-in tailgate show, sponsored by the Westport-Weston Chamber of Commerce and the Westport Library.Cars will be set up every other spot, in every other row (a state requirement). But with up to 5 people per car and tailgating starting at 5 p.m., using the empty space in front of each vehicle it should be a great (and much-needed) evening out. The Chamber says it s the first event like this in the state.The Tom Petty Project includes Westporters Phil LoPresti (lead guitar) and Pete Najarian (lead singer, guitar). The band wowed a Levitt Pavilion crowd last year, and have sold out shows throughout New England. They re volunteering their time for this show, to help the Chamber while bringing live music back to town.Tickets are $85 per car. Ten dollars from each sale will be donated to a local non-profit to be selected by the band.The Chamber encourages everyone to order takeout from member restaurants, and bring it to the show (click here for the list; it will also be emailed to ticket purchasers). No food or drink will be sold on site. The cost of the meals is not included in the ticket price.A limited number of tickets goes on sale this Monday (June 22, 10 a.m.). For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.COVID-19 canceled many Westport Woman s Club events. There was no March fashion show, April art show, May antique appraisal day, and this one really hurts no June Yankee Doodle Fair.They can t get those fundraisers back. But the 113-year-old civic organization still awarded $40,000 in college scholarships. And though the 10 deserving Staples High School seniors did not get the public ceremony they deserved, the get this shout-out on 06880. Congratulations to the honorees and thanks to the WWC, for their continued yeowomen s work!Tamikah Boyer (University of New Haven, Emily Duvoisin Scholarship)Nicole Caiati (Georgia State University)Victoria Caiati (Marist College)Alyssa Chariot (Penn State University)Anna Fuori (Penn State University, Emily Fuller Scholarship)Audrey Kramer (California Polytechnic State University)Ian Kramer (Penn State University)Katherine Meszaros (College of the Holy Cross, Lea Ruegg Scholarship)Niyhive Michel (Morgan State University)Tomaso Scotti (University of Connecticut, “Most Active Member” Scholarship, which this year honors Mira Auxier).Hilary Arnow Burns did it all in Staples. The 1977 graduate played in the orchestra and band. She sang in the choir. She played tennis, and was on the cheerleading team.After Wharton came consulting work with Arthur Young and Drexel Burnham. She married, moved back to Westport, started 2 businesses, had 2 children, and got divorced.When he was 50, she caught a glimpse of someone who did not look good. It was her in the mirror. What happened to me? she wondered.At a Staples reunion a classmate said, You were so much fun! Hilary thought, I ve become another person. I was not happy. She lost weight. She rediscovered athletics, my brain, and fun. She got her life back.Now after writing classes with Jessica Bram (and 7 years of revisions), and  she s written a memoir about her journey. The Second Piece of French Toast: If Marriage Was My Dream, Why Was I Numbing Myself? It s been called the wake-up call I didn t know I needed. To order the book, click here. For her website, blog and YouTube channel, click here.Hilary Arnow BurnsAnd finally I heard this yesterday, on Juneteenth. It brought me back several decades. Sweet Honey in the Rock is as uplifting, and important, as ever. When the COVID quarantine began in March, we lost our routines. For many, the lack of daily exercise the Y, the gym, the spin studio, whatever was toughest.But we missed more than just the physical workout. We longed for our suddenly severed social connections too.Early in the lockdown, a dozen women from Westport, Weston, Fairfield and Norwalk gathered on Zoom for what they figured would be 2 weeks of planks and push-ups. Their friendships had been solidifed at JoyRide. The group included one of the owners, an instructor, even one of the member s sister-in-law and her friend, both in Denver.Planking via Zoom.What started as a temporary fix turned into much more. They do 75 push-ups and 5 minutes of planks daily (that s over 7,000 push-ups and 8 hours already and they have not missed a day).If a group member can t make the designated workout, someone joins her on FaceTime. No one works out alone.After planking, they do another, member-inspired workout together. They track their favorites on a Google Doc.More than exercising together though, the group is a support system. They laugh ( a lot, says one member). They ve shared their children s college acceptances (and rejections), graduations from college, high school and 8th grade, and a pair of 50th birthdays.After working out virtually for weeks, the group (minus their Denver members) got together for a 50th birthday celebration.They created a logo, and designed a shirt, water bottle and (of course) face masks. They ordered the same leggings and workout equipment (including mini-trampolines). They had (multiple) happy hours.They also gave back to the community, both as a small group and in conjunction with JoyRide.These past few months, everyone needed something to keep sane and connected. These women may be back together in person soon. They ll be fit and fresh, both physically and emotionally.And they ll have those very cool t-shirts, water bottles and face masks forever.(Hat tip: Lauren Burg) Please support 06880 thanks! Click here to help support 06880 via credit card or PayPal. Any amount is welcome and appreciated! Reader contributions keep this blog going. (Alternate methods: Please send a check to: Dan Woog, 301 Post Road East, Westport, CT 06880. Or use Venmo: @DanWoog06880. Thanks!) SUBSCRIBE TO 06880 BY EMAIL -- IT S FREE! Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Join 10,575 other followers DISCLAIMER This blog is personal opinion, and is not representative of the views of the Westport School District or Board of Education.

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