Newtown is beginning to feel a little like Wild Kingdom to me. In addition to the usual coyote and deer sightings, I am hearing about some more unusual activity. First, there are the bobcats on Scudder Road. Then there is the swan on Route 302. If you were caught in the backup of cars trying not to hit the swan wandering in and out of the road by Key Rock, last Thursday morning, you will be happy to know that the big bird is safe. Animal Control Officer Carolee Mason tells me that while they could not locate the swan in the morning, just as she was all cozied up on her couch she got a call Thursday evening, at 8:30, that the swan was in the driveway of a Route 302 home. When she pulled up, Carolee noticed all the lights on and ordered them turned off — because (unlike cats) swans cannot see at all in the dark. “I just walked up behind him and nabbed him,” said Carolee, “and put him in a crate.” The swan spent the night at the animal control center before Carolee was able to deliver him to Wildlife in Crisis in Weston, where the swan is doing fine, so far as she knows. It could be, Carolee guessed, that this bird was once a pet, with wings clipped. That would be one reason it had not flown away. “The swan was able to walk fine, when I saw it in the evening,” she reported, and she did not see any obvious signs of injury.

On Monday morning, Edna Ostendorf of Sandy Hook gave me a call. On her way across town to baby-sit her grandson, she had a big bear cross the road in front of her in the Palestine/Hundred Acres Road area. “He was just rolling across the road” at a good pace, says Edna. It is the second time she has spotted a bear in that same area, she said, so she wants early morning walkers and runners to be aware of this activity.

Now all we need is a mountain lion or a moose. With all this wild life popping up, I know I’ll be sticking indoors, as should all good cats and small dogs.

Thanks to the Newtown High School Facebook page, I learned that Main Office staff members Deb Modzelewski and Nathalie de Brantes joined all of the high school community members celebrating Spirit Week this week, dressing up for “Twin Day” on Tuesday, October 21. Who did they dress up as? Their favorite NHS employees of course: the school’s maintenance staff.

We hear from Relay organizer Chris Farrington that the 2015 Relay For Life event in Newtown will take place Saturday, June 13, from 3 pm to midnight, on the Newtown High School track. The theme for next year’s Relay is “Dr Seuss.”

You can get in the mood for the Relay this Halloween. Dress up in your favorite Dr Seuss attire and stop at the Relay For Life table, in front of Newtown Savings Bank, Halloween night. You’ll get a special prize, and Relay volunteers are excited to see the Dr Seuss costumes. Will you be a Fox in Sox? Thing One, Thing Two, or Cat in the Hat? Horton, Lorax, Grinch, or Sneech — no costume idea is out of reach. Go, Dog, Go!

Women Involved in Newtown (WIN) is celebrating 50 years of service to the community this Friday night, October 24, with a hayride and festivities at Paproski’s Castle Hill Farm on Route 302. Join in the fun for $10 per person or $25 per carload. Since it’s such short notice — an RSVP would be nice to Secretary@WINCT.org, but not required.

Here’s another purr-fect reminder about the upcoming Great Pumpkin Challenge, which Newtown High School junior Mackenzie Page is bringing back to Main Street for the fourth year. The Great Pumpkin Challenge asks residents to carve a pumpkin, drop it off for display at her home at 14 Main Street, and give a suggested donation of $5. This year all of the donations will go to The Hole In The Wall Gang Camp, Paul Newman’s nonprofit organization for seriously ill children. Pumpkin drop-off dates and times are Sunday, October 26, from 10 am until 5 pm; and Monday, October 27, through Thursday, October 30, between 3 pm and 7 pm. That’s this weekend and next week. Get carving!

The Halloween fun begins this coming Wednesday, October 29, for kids between the ages of 3 and 7. The C.H. Booth Library invites this age group to show off Halloween costumes and take part in Halloween Fun For Kids activities. Hosted and led by members of the Young Adult Council, from 3:30 to 5 pm, there’s no need to register. Just stop by and get in the “spirit” of the season. (No costume? That’s fine, too!)

I expect it won’t be long before the iconic Ice Cream Shop (aka Holy Cow) hangs out its Gone Fishin’ sign for the season, and the innovative and delicious flavors they’ve been serving up all summer will be just fond memories. Ditto for the Ferris Acres Creamery on Route 302. The last day for ice cream there is October 30, so if you’ve been waiting for some special occasion to indulge, don’t wait too long. I’ll be putting a stash of pumpkin and sweet cream ice creams away for the holidays; but it’s not the same as sitting on a bench and watching the world go by, a thread of sweetness melting on my whiskers…

I’m always watching the world go by, to the point that it makes me dizzy. Find out what has my head spinning next week, when you… Read me again.