Tag Archives: Christmas Lake Press

Roundup: 39 Steps, Brooks Corner, Window Painting …

Posted on October 27, 2024 | 10 comments

For the first time in over a year, the Westport Country Playhouse is staging a play.

The iconic 93-year-old American theater survived a near-bankruptcy last year. Since then, it has presented a wide variety of entertainment, including concerts by the likes of Bernadette Peters and Judy Collins, revues, and shows for Taylor Swift and “Pinkalicious” fans.

As part of a new strategy to recapture play audiences, the Playhouse has shifted that schedule from summer to fall/winter/spring.

The first of 4 comedic series — because we all need to laugh — is now on stage.

Despite competing with Game 2 of the World Series (involving the hometown New York Yankees), most Playhouse seats were filled last evening. It was opening night for the hilarious production of Alfred Hitchcock’s “39 Steps”.

The fast-paced show of espionage and mayhem — based on Alfred Hitchcock’s classic 1935 film, with a dash of Monty Python — runs through November 9.

It is directed by Mark Shanahan, WCP artistic director. Click here for more information, and tickets.

“39 Steps” cast takes their Westport Country Playhouse bows. (Hat tip and photo/Dave Matlow)

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The Brooks Corner parking lot is looking a bit emptier these days.

It’s still filled to capacity. But that capacity is now slightly less.

A half dozen spots were removed during recent re-striping.

Yes, there’s someone in that gray car. It’s not parked. (Photo/Dan Woog)

That may mean inconvenience a few shoppers.

But it makes the once-crowded lot exponentially less difficult to navigate.

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Windows throughout Westport were transformed this weekend.

The annual Halloween window painting contest returned yesterday.

Elementary and middle schools painters worked their magic at stores and other buildings, in 3 categories: Scariest Art Work, Best Halloween Theme and Most Original. The prizes are gift certificates, courtesy of the Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce.

Hard at work, at the Senior Center.

That’s just the start. On Tuesday (October 29), the Parks & Recreation Department’s annual Halloween Parade begins at 3:30 p.m., at the Post Road East/Main Street intersection.

Costumed kids will walk to Avery Place, then enjoy festivities on Veterans Green across from Town Hall.

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Westport Sunrise Rotary Club joined Rotarians from Fairfield and Bridgeport to celebrate Read Aloud Day on Friday, at Luis Munoz Marin Elementary School in Bridgeport.

Books were selected by the school, and purchased by the Rotary Clubs. The volunteers were assigned a book and a class from pre-K to 5th grade to read to. After the reading, the books were donated to the class.

From left: Rotarians Dennis Wong, Bruce Fritz, Bruce Paul, Marin principal Judy Swenton, Katie Augustyn, Rob Hauck and Aimee Monroy Smith.

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The Y’s Men’s Thursday meetings often feature intriguing speakers.

This past week, an SRO crowd heard a talk — and a concert.

Professor/musical interpreter/performer Orin Grossman gave a history of George Gershwin and Duke Ellington, then played selections from their music.

he Y’s Men heard — among others — “Someone to Watch Over Me,” “Looking for a Boy,” “Swampy River” and “Single Petal of a Rose.”

Now you can hear it all too. Click the link below:

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As the Staples field hockey team roars through the post-season, they’re feeling confident.

And comfortable.

New shelters and benches have just been delivered to Jinny Parker Field. They’re courtesy of 6 organizations, all of which use the turf: Staples Field Hockey and Girls Lacrosse, Westport PAL girls lacrosse, Westport Youth Field Hockey, the Gridiron Club, and Westport Parks & Recreation.

The Wrecker field hockey team did not use them yesterday — but they continued to roll. The girls — top-seeded in the FCIAC (league) tournament — shut out Greenwich 3-0, in the semifinals.

Staples is in the finals — again. The game is set for Tuesday (October 29, 6:30 p.m., Wilton High School).

The state tournament follows. The Wreckers will begin at home.

The benches will be ready.

The Staples field hockey team, with their new bench and canopy.

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The Westport Library continues its Wednesday 11 a.m. “Anyone Can Use …” educational series. Sessions include:

Genealogy Resources (November 6)

Pronunciator (November 20)

LinkedIn Learning (December 4)

Google Slides (December 18).

Classes are free, but registration is required. Click here for more information.

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Westport-based Christmas Lake Press has published “Voices of Our Children” — and there is a strong local connection.

The illustrated poetry anthology features the work of children in the HEAL Community Service Program — part of Homes with Hope

The small, moving volume include youngsters’ heartfelt work. The official launch is set for the Westport Book Shop on November 14 (4:30 p.m.).

Organized by different forms of poetry, like haiku, odes, colors and Renga, the book showcases poets ranging from kindergarteners to high school seniors, along with HEAL volunteers.

The back of the book includes blank lined pages where readers — from children to adults— are encouraged to write their own poems.

The program that generated the poems in the book was created and run by Westport resident Sylvie Middleton, with Jennifer Lyn Amon, HEAL program director.

All proceeds will help further HEAL members’ creative and artistic aspirations, through Homes with Hope’s programming. Christmas Lake published the book pro bono, as a contribution to the community.

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Former Westport educator Karley Meltzer died peacefully on October 14 in the presence of her daughter, Killian Higgins, in San Mateo, California, where she moved 8 years ago to be closer to her family. She was 84.

Daughter of US Congressman Thor Tollefson of Washington, Karley earned a BA in music from Sarah Lawrence College, a master’s degree in education from Wesleyan University, and a doctorate in education from Columbia University.  

At Staples High School she served as dean of the Class of 1986 — the first class to enter as freshmen, during Westport’s transition from junior highs to middle schools.

She helped develop the Alternatives interdisciplinary program for high school students at Staples High, initiated the Ropes course, served as vice president of the Westport Education Association, and was a board member of Project Return.

Former student (and WEA board member) Karen DeFelice was a student in Karley’s Psychology class at Staples. Karen calls her “an amazing teacher. She had so much energy and passion. She also had a deep appreciation for diverse learners.”

She had taught social studies before moving on to administration, first as vice principal in New Fairfield and then as principal of a magnet middle school in Stamford.

In addition to her daughter Killian, she is survived by 3 step-children and 6 grandchildren.

A celebration of Karley’s life is set for November 16 (2 p.m., the Peninsula Regent, San Mateo). To contact her daughter , email  killianhiggins@gmail.com.

Karley Meltzer

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Cary Peterson sends today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo — and these words:

“This is only one of the animals we’ve seen at our small pond in central Westport.

(Photo/Cary Peterson)

“They are all thirsty. Fresh water is hard to find. People might want to put out water.

“Even though temperatures have been warm, the raccoon’s coat seems very thick. It may bode for a colder winter.”

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And finally … Jack Jones — described by the New York Times as “a crooner who beguiled concert fans and stage, screen and television audiences for decades with romantic ballads and gentle jazz tunes that even in large venues often achieved the intimacy of his celebrated nightclub performances” — died Wednesday in California. He was 86, and suffered from leukemia.

Click here for a full obituary.

(“06880” is your hyper-local blog. We’re also reader-supported. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you!)

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Posted in Downtown, Entertainment, Library, Media, Obituaries, Sports, Staples HS, Westport Country Playhouse

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A Year In The Life Of Scott Smith’s Compost Heap

Posted on July 17, 2024 | 4 comments

In Westport’s Barnes & Noble, “Gardening” books sit on one side of the store.

“Nature” volumes are on the other.

So where does Scott Smith’s new book go? “On Compost: A Year in the Life of a Suburban Garden” is all about living sustainably, and with ecological purpose. It’s about gardening and nature.

But it’s also about raising a son. About being part of a neighborhood. And engaging with the world.

“On Compost” defies easy categorization.

Of course, to anyone who knows Smith — a longtime Westporter, journalist and committed global citizen — that’s no surprise.

Scott Smith

Just like his book, Scott Smith moves easily and fluidly from idea to idea. He connects with a variety of people who, on the surface, have little in common with each other.

And just like his compost heap, there’s always more going on beneath Smith’s surface than meets the eye.

Throughout his life — working for non-environmental publications like Business Week, Bon Appetit and Golf Digest, and now as communications director for Friends of Animals — he has loved the outdoors.

“It thrills and nurtures me,” he says. At the same time, he acknowledges enormous challenges like climate change and pollution.

Following the mantra “think globally, act locally,” Smith has spent nearly 2 decades tending a compost heap in the back yard of his small (1/3 acre) property, off Greens Farms Road.

He  began the project after clearing the land of years of neglected overgrowth and invasive species.

Curious at first, his neighbors soon embraced the compost heap. Building it helped him connect with them — and to the land sloping down, less than a mile away to Long Sound.

Scott Smith’s compost heap.

“Before chemical fertilizers, farmers collected seaweed for fertilizer,” Smith explains. They also used “horseshoe crabs, bunker, ground-up shells — even horse manure from New York City.”

The book explores all that, and much more. It started as a “year in the life”-type diary. Smith is keenly attuned to Westport’s 4 seasons, and writes lovingly of the magic of each.

Focusing on a compost pile — as humble as that sounds — allows him to talk about bigger ideas. Smith tackles food waste, modern landscaping, and the effect of modern pesticides and fertilizer on our planet.

When he started his compost heap, it was a “fringe hobby,” he notes. In the years since, Sustainable Westport and the Pollinator Pathway have become important parts of town life.

More and more, residents have learned that their yard does not have to be “sterile.” They’re finding ways to make it “more productive, and beautiful.”

But just as the compost pile grew and evolved, so did his book. Early readers wanted to hear more about Smith’s interactions with his son Cole. That relationship now forms part of the volume’s broad appeal.

Scott Smith’s son Cole, in the garden. He graduated this spring from Williams College.

The audience is “people who want to live more sustainably,” Smith says.

That does not mean, though, that everyone needs to start composting. “Even if you have a garden patio, you can improve the soil,” he notes.

Many new residents of Westport have “grown up without how-to, hands-on knowledge” of the land they now own.

They can pay people to take care of their property. Yet Smith senses an urge among many homeowners to get close to nature, using their yards not just for enjoyment, but to learn about the soil, plants, and cycles of nature.

Many of those newcomers come from Manhattan and Brooklyn. Once they hear about composting, they are intrigued by this “classic Connecticut Yankee way of living.”

“On Compost” is an important book, for environmental stewards across America. But it is a very Westport book — including the back story of its route to publication.

Another view of the garden.

Smith spent years seeking the right publisher. An “06880” story led him to Christmas Lake Press, the Westport-based brainchild of Tom Fiffer and Julie Bobkoff. Smith’s concept was perfect for the company.

And — like the compost pile he writes so lovingly about — the publisher was right in his back yard.

(Click here to order “On Compost,” and to learn more about the book.)

(Help “06880” grow! Please click here, to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you so much.)

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Posted in Environment, Media

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Tom Fiffer’s Alphabet Of Love

Posted on April 24, 2022 | 2 comments

When Tom Fiffer was going through a divorce, he used his commuting time on the train to write ranting blog posts.

They resonated with readers. But he soon turned the focus outward, from his own situation to more general topics like relationships. He wrote over a thousand posts — always uploading them by the time he left Grand Central — and his Tom Aplomb blog helped countless people.

Tom Fiffer

Tom had always been a writer. A Yale graduate, with a master’s in creative writing from the University of Illinois-Chicago, he worked for Random House for 5 years. In 2013 he began a stint as executive editor of the Good Men Project. The site provides “a glimpse of what enlightened masculinity might look like in the 21st century.”

In 2019 Tom and his business partner Julia Bobkoff started a writers’ workshop in their home. Christmas Lake Creative — named for their lane, off Wilton Road — was a hit. Then COVID struck, and sessions moved to Zoom.

During those workshops, Tom and Julia realized that writers wanted more than critiques and tips. They needed motivational coaching, and practical help finding publishers.

Last July, the pair launched Christmas Lake Press. It was a fast (6 to 9 month) path to book publishing. (The usual timeframe, he says, is “2 years to endless.”) They focus on literary fiction, memoirs, and inspirational non-fiction.

Last year, Tom looked back at some of his thousand-plus Tom Aplomb posts. He realized that “love” played an enormous role in many — and not just in the romantic sense. He’d written about the love people can find in areas like nature, solitude and reading.

Those stories, he realized, could be the basis for a book. He had the perfect publisher: his own company.

Tom organized the posts around the theme of letters. Love is, for example, A (art), C (compassion), D (devotion…). Taken together, all convey the “majestic, mystery and splendor of love,” he says.

The book — “The Alphabet of Love” — will be published May 1.

Both “poetic and lexical,” it is “a practical guide, part source of inspiration (that) brings the magic of love into our minds and hearts and reminds us that love is, indeed, a many-splendored thing.”

The audience, he says, is “anyone in a relationship. And anyone who wants a deeper relationship with another person — or with themselves, or a higher power.”

In other words: all of us.

(Click here for more information, and to order “The Alphabet of Love.” )

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Posted in Local business, Media

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