Tag Archives: wind phones

Bitter news: Saugatuck Sweets is closing.

The beloved shop says:

“It is with mixed feelings that we announce that after spending the last 10+ years building Saugatuck Sweets Westport, we will be closing this location effective December 17.

“In recent years due to the challenging economic conditions and Covid issues, we have determined that it is no longer financially viable for us to keep this business afloat.

“We have so many amazing memories from our time in Westport that we will always cherish. So many incredible and lifelong friendships that we have built in our time here. It is our hope that while serving the Saugatuck section of Westport we have provided you and your families with not only great ice cream and candy … but also a tremendous family experience.

“We extend our appreciation to the Gault family, our landlord, for their great support, patience and help over the last 10 years….

“While we are saddened to be leaving the Westport area, we are excited to continue to serve you at our Fairfield location.

“Thanks for your love, support & business.
Chris & Al DiGuido

“PS. Please note that Westport gift cards will continue to be honored at the Saugatuck Sweets Fairfield location.

“PPS. There are a number of great photos hanging in the store featuring your children. If you would like these photos. you can pick them up in the Fairfield Store as well.” (Hat tip: Mark Mathias)

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Friends and admirers of Lynda Bluestein packed the Westport Library yesterday, for the dedication of 2 wind phones. Donated by the longtime Westporter and her family, the disconnected (but real) telephones allow people to “stay in touch” with loved ones who have died.

Originated in Japan, there are now 170 wind phones in the US. However, these are the first in a public library. One will be in the “Library of Things,” available for checkout. The other will be in the Children’s Library, allowing youngsters to “call” not only grandparents and others, but pets who have passed.

Children’s Library wind phone (left), and the one in the Library of Things.

Lynda — who has terminal fallopian tube cancer, and who after reaching a settlement with the state of Vermont, will be the first non-resident to take advantage of a law allowing people with terminal illnesses to end their own lives — was at the Library ceremony, with family and friends.

Speaking gracefully, she acknowledged the importance of wind phones at the library: a public place where people can also find privacy.

The Library’s wind phones will be accompanied by recommended reading for both children and adults, plus a dedicated resource guide.

Lynda also spoke about the process of grief, and what it means to feel connected to those who are gone.

Library director Bill Harmer and actor James Naughton — who, like Lynda, is a staunch advocate for legislation permitting medical aid in dying — also spoke, lauding Lynda’s generosity, compassion and humanity.

Lynda Bluestein, at the Westport Library. (Photos/Dan Woog)

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There’s no such thing as a free lunch.

Or — soon — no free electric vehicle charging.

Early next year — as soon as signs are delivered — the town will charge drivers 35 cents per kilowatt hour, at public stations.

There will be a 3-hour time limit too in those spots. Drivers who stay beyond that limit will be charged $2.50 every 15 minutes.

The charging stations at the Saugatuck and Greens Farms train stations will be exempt from those time limits.

The new regulations were approved yesterday by the Board of Selectwomen. EVs currently account for about 7% of all vehicles registered in Westport.

For more information on the new charging policy, click here for a link to the EV Club of CT.

New signs will indicate that charging stations are only for vehicles that are actually being charged — with a 3-hour limit.

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A SWAT team descended on 24 Ferry Lane East yesterday.

First responders from 6 towns used stun grenades. Officers — including K-9 corps — breached the house, and found suspects inside.

Fortunately, no one was hurt.

No one was arrested, either.

It was the right house, though: one slated for demolition later this month.

Personnel from Westport, Wilton, Easton, Darien, Monroe and Trumbull seized the opportunity for a training exercise. The “suspects” were playing roles — but the action (except for live ammo) was real.

Neighbors were notified last week. They were told to expect military-looking vehicles and officers along the road.

And explosions too.

It’s great to know that emergency personnel are constantly training.

It’s equally great to know that everything they did yesterday was not for real.

SWAT action on Ferry Lane East yesterday. (Photos and hat tip/Matthew Mandell)

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Anyone lucky enough to have tickets to this weekend’s Candlelight Concerts knows they’re in for a treat. In addition to the usual superb show, the Staples High School Music Department premieres its first commissioned work in 40 years, by Class of 2000 graduates Jake Landau and Emily Garber.

But there’s another important element of Candlelight — and it’s called “Can-Delight.”

This year, the Staples chapter of the Tri-M Music Honor Society is bringing back the tradition of donating cans of food, for Homes with Hope.

They’ll collect nonperishable canned and boxed foods at all 3 Candlelight Concerts. Donation boxes will be in the lobby.

So grab your tickets — and as many cans as you, um, can. It’s an extra-special way to enjoy the Music Department’s 83rd annual gift to the town.

Poster design by Tri-M Music Honor Society co-president Shivali Kanthan.

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Yesterday’s Roundup included an item about contractors’ trucks being parked at the triangular green on Kings Highway North and Old Hill Road, across from the cemetery. It’s a historic site: Militias trained there during the Revolutionary War.

I expected a few reactions:

• “Who cares?”
• “Aren’t there more important things to worry about?”
• “It’s better than parking on that narrow, busy road.”

I did not expect this to be posted in the Comments section:

It is my contractors who have been parking on the green across from the Old Hill Cemetery.

I have felt awful about the damage done to the green and have been planning on repairing everything. The repair will be done in the spring. I already have a quote from my landscaper to put new topsoil down and seed and will do anything else necessary to repair and restore the area.

Thank you,
Ann Sisto
4 Old Hill Road

Just when you think you’ve heard everything …

Happy holidays, Ann. And here’s wishing you a speedy, beautiful and hassle-free renovation!

Trucks on Old Hill green.

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This month marks the 25th birthday of Tess Meisel.

The Coleytown Middle School student was killed in a motor vehicle accident in 2011, during summer camp in Maine. She was just 12 years old.

Her mother, Suzanne Tanner, invites friends who are in town over the holidays to visit her memorial bench at the Westport Library.

It is adorned for the season in “Tessie Blue,” and includes Tess’ poetry.

Tess Meisel’s bench.

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In 1999, Aaron Donovan — just 5 years out of Staples High School, and a New York Times news assistant whose job included updating each issue number — discovered that the venerable “paper of record” had inadvertently credited itself with 500 extra issues.

The mistake happened 101 years earlier — in 1898.

Thanks to Donovan’s epic research, on New Year’s Day 2000, the Times corrected the error.

On Tuesday — nearly 24 years after that memorable correction — the paper looked back on the story behind the story.

The occasion was the Times‘ 60,000th issue. In commemoration, the “Times Insider” column featured an interview with Donovan. (He has moved on to a new position: deputy communications director of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.)

Click here to read the full, interesting tale, and Donovan’s take on it. (Hat tip: Mary Condon)

Page 1 of the January 1, 2000 New York Times, when the issue number error was fixed. Besides the momentous turn of the millennium, there was some interesting news from Russia.

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Amy Simon Fine Art is moving.

It’s not far — just a few yards east, to 155 Post Road East (opposite Design Within Reach). The target date is January 1.

They’re transitioning to a showroom with full inventory, rather than a public gallery space. They’ll be open by appointment.

“So much of our business is online and all over the world, this just makes sense for us,” Amy says.

Meanwhile, nearly everything is on sale. Amy can provide retail and discounted prices by request, or in person (123 Post Road East).

There are deals in all price ranges.

Current location of Amy Simon.

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Looking for something artsy for your kids over the holiday break?

MoCA Westport’s Intensive Art Camp is open to youngsters ages 8-10. There are 2 sessions: December 18-22 and 26-29. Both run from 9:30 a.m. to 2:3 p.m.

Students will learn art fundamentals like line work, color theory and composition, as they explore the MoCA gallery. They explore painting with a palette tool, ink on watercolors and more.

Click here for more information — including sessions for younger boys and girls – – and to register.

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Registration is open for 3 of Wakeman Town Farm’s winter kids’ programs.

“Little Farmers Parent & Me,” “Toddler Sprouts” and “Fantastic Farmhands” all begin January 23. Click here for more information, including registration.

How you gonna keep ’em down on the farm?

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The pumpkin is gone.

In its place: a holiday wreath.

It’s all part of the ever-changing, always-colorful “Westport … Naturally” scene at Burying Hill Beach.

(Photo/Johanna Keyser Rossi)

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And finally … the SWAT team exercise on Ferry Lane East brought to mind this long-ago, now-you-see-it-now-you-don’t TV show:

(If you enjoy”06880″‘s hyper-local journalism, you “can-delight” us with a tax-deductible contribution. Please click here. Thank you!)