So, did anyone see the partial solar eclipse this Monday? Yeah right! Apparently it happened, but with all of the cloudy weather that hung over Newtown like a quilted blanket, people were hard pressed to see the tops of buildings at times.

Strolling through Ram Pasture Monday, I felt more like I was traipsing through England’s Lake District than Newtown’s landmark park. Luckily I came across Hawley Pond and got my bearings straight. It’s no Lake Windemere, that’s for sure.

Although I’m sure he didn’t catch Monday’s eclipse, Curt Logan has been looking up into the sky more these days, after spotting a genuine Unidentified Flying Object hovering over his home a few weeks back. Curt and I were playing tennis, when he noticed what appeared to be a toy falling effortlessly through the air. He stopped the game to rush in for his binoculars, and sure enough whatever was falling sure was hard to identify. There was no telling where the thing came to rest, but Curt called me up the next day to say he was planning on investigating further. I saw him last weekend at the Newtown Tennis Association barbecue, and he wasn’t any closer to an answer.

Speaking of the NTA’s barbecue, I spotted Alex Aitchison out and about this past weekend. Alex has been under the weather of late but appeared to be in fine shape. Don’t be surprised if you see the affable Australian out on the tennis courts again by the end of the summer.

I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Town Hall South looking better in the coming weeks. Both the upper and the lower levels should be shining more brightly soon, thanks to Mike Snyder. The town has designated Mike to maintain the building, which houses the police station on the upper level and the social services department and borough government on the lower level. Mike has worked before over at Edmond Town Hall.

Mike Snyder is not the only one in town with a new job to do. I strolled into Superintendent of Schools John R. Reed’s office this week and spotted Kathy June ensconced at the desk that Annette Levy occupied for 18 years. Kathy is now the clerk for the Newtown school district, taking over Annette’s many duties, including weathering long Board of Education meetings. Last month, Kathy received a sort of baptism by fire, keeping the minutes for her first school board meeting, which happened to last past midnight.

Speaking of the superintendent, John Reed is back in town after a little R and R. Dr Reed spent a couple of weeks up at his retreat along Maine’s eastern coast. He told me that he doesn’t know what would happen if he spent a month up there. He said he doesn’t typically like the first week of vacation up there, but by the second week he is slowly getting used to the more relaxed atmosphere of Maine’s small towns – just in time to come back to work and the rigors of running the school district.

Poor Ron Bolmer. The town engineer just can’t get any respect, as this sign hanging in the hallway at the highway department indicates. This sign is posted outside the door leading to the highway department garage. Of course, the highway crew will tell you it’s just a joke. Ron is welcome anytime. However, it is suggested that he enter at his own risk.

Falling trees have sure presented a real risk of late. The Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire and Rescue crew turned out at about 1 pm Wednesday to Capitol Drive in Riverside. For no apparent reason, the top of a tree fell to the ground snarling traffic on the narrow dirt road. The fireman quickly cleaned up the mess, clearing the road for traffic.

I heard from Liz Heetman this week. The 1995 graduate is busy finalizing plans for her upcoming wedding in October. Indeed these have been a busy six months for Liz, who finished her degree in musical therapy at Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania in December, and since then has been busy putting her degree to practice in a Pittsburgh hospital. Congratulations Liz, on the degree, and the upcoming nuptials.

And I guess another kind of congratulations is in order for Andrew J. Woods Jr. The Newtown resident, who is a captain in the Danbury Police Department, has retired after 28 years of faithful service.

I’ll always be your faithful servant, and for many more years to come too, so make sure to…

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