It was a groundbreaking weekend at Westport Community Gardens.
Literally.
Work began on the Long Lots Preserve — the area surrounding the 100 plots lovingly tended to on Hyde Lane, where a true “community” of gardeners has grown.
However, the property is overrun with invasive plants. They’re being removed now. Soon, the area will be densely planted with native, pollinator-friendly trees, shrubs, wildflowers and wild grass, making it more ecologically sound.
Stakeholders include the Audubon Society, Aspetuck Land Trust, Earthplace and Westport Community Gardens.
Robbie Guimond and Bartlett Tree Service provided in-kind donation, to get the project off the ground.
Taking a break from working at the Westport Community Gardens (from left): Jeff Wieser, Daryl Kowalsky, Louis Weinberg, Joe Wiles..
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Many Westporters know Jeff Clachko. He’s very involved in many local activities. And he has a great sense of humor.
So when he had a close encounter of a deer kind — and realized it was captured by his Ring video — he quickly put it online.
Just as quickly, it went viral. As of last night, it had 8 million views.
And when “06880” readers click this TMZ link, there will be many more. Be sure the audio is cranked up high! (Hat tip: Amy Hochhauser)
Closeup of a screenshot: deer (left) and Jeff Clachko (right).
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Saturday’s Roundup item on the 2022 Westport PAL scholarship recipients was noticeable for 2 things: They’re a great group of Staples High School students.
And they’re all male.
Several readers wondered about that in the Comments section. I did too.
I asked PAL president Craig Bergamo. He quickly replied: “No girls applied this year. If they had, they would have gotten scholarships too.”
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Earlier this month, a ceremony in France honored a long-forgotten (at least here) Westport woman. Charlotte MacLear — a driving force behind our town’s friendship with Marigny, in the 20 years following World War II — were commemorated by officials in the Normandy village. They named a room in their Town Hall in her honor.
Now the event has been noted in a local website, Coté Manche. Click here for the site; then use Google Translate to read.
The new Charlotte MacLear room at Marigny Town Hall.
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The Staples rugby team battled the top teams in the nation — along with injuries and the flu — at this weekend’s national tournament in Elkhart, Indiana.
But they finished 7th in the country. And when their bus pulled off I-95 at Exit 18 yesterday afternoon, they enjoyed a police escort back to the high school.
Congratulations, Wreckers. You’ve done us proud!
On the Sherwood Island Connector. (Photo/Doug Tirola)
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It was a beautiful weekend for walking. On Beachside Avenue, Barbara Phillips spotted this gorgeous bird. It’s a handsome start to our “Westport … Naturally” week.
(Photo/Barbara Phillips)
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And finally … today is the birthday of Robert Moog. The inventor of the famed synthesizer was born in 1934. He died in 2005. But his impact will last for a long, long time.
Just to be clear, Dan, my husband is extremely brave…
I know. I can tell from the video.
Betsy always getting my back … I actually thought I was being very thoughtful calling her outside (at 6:30 am) so she can see the cute little newborn
“Lay Lady Lay” translates well to mandolin. In this case, perhaps we should take a page from French and entitle it: “Lait Lady Lait”.
Baby deer can be terrifying. Until you’ve walked a mile in Jeff’s shoes, don’t judge.
With reference to your “And, finally…” above, if you turn the “M” upside down, ‘Moog’ turns into ‘Woog’.
Dan, you’re synthesizing the sights, sounds, and developments of Westport so as to bring together and revolutionize our beloved community!
I had to watch the deer video several times it made me laugh so much! I thought maybe these were new transports from the City, not used to Westport wild life! Thank you for sending to Dan and giving me a laugh!!
And Dan thanks for posting!!!! Judy
I remember packing up and sending CARE packages to Marigny toward the end of WWII (a bit hazy on the dates). My parents went there many years later (1961, IIRC), and were warmly welcomed by the townspeople.
That video of Jeff Clachko reacting to the baby deer and the mad mama deer was hilarious!