Maybe rain and snow and sleet do not stop the postal service from delivering the mail, but something is sure holding up the delivery of new digs for the Hawleyville Post Office. Postmaster Mark Favale has heard nothing since January when he was told that the Housatonic Railroad and the US Postal Service were still working out details of the who, what, when, and where of renovating the dilapidated building on Route 25. Design drawings were presented to Newtown last summer, but neither the HRR nor the USPO has seen any haste in moving things along since then. If someone doesn’t get the show on the road, Postmaster Favale and his co-workers are going to be sorting mail in the parking lot.

For many of the patrons and friends of the Benath family at South Main Pizza, following daughter Daryle’s pregnancy has been like watching the dough rise — for more than nine months. But last weekend, Daryle and husband Todd Adams celebrated the long-awaited arrival of Madelyn Rose Adams. The proud couple’s first child, little Madelyn weighed in at 6 pounds 10 ounces and measured 20 inches. She arrived promptly at 9:36 am March 9 at St Vincent’s Hospital and as a result, the whole restaurant has taken on the air of a nonstop baby shower with pink balloons decorating the tables and patrons shouting out congratulatory wishes as they place their calzone orders. Congrats to all!

Always looking for ways to help save taxpayers a few bucks, Selectman William Brimmer, Jr, expressed similar sentiments before a recent Board of Selectmen meeting when he observed both that First Selectman Herb Rosenthal and his administrative assistant and board secretary Jan Andras showed up with new hairstyles. The first thing he asked after complimenting the pair was, “Did you get two for the price of one?”

The Relay For Life team Walking for a Silver Lining is holding a Sound Tigers Hockey game fundraiser. The game is on March 24, at 7 pm, at Bridgeport’s Arena at HarborYard. Proceeds will benefit the American Cancer Society. The Sound Tigers mascot, Storm, will visit Dunkin’ Donuts this Saturday morning.

Cats might be color blind, but even I could see how useful local garden expert Sydney Eddison’s Gardener’s Color Wheel could be. She was kind enough to share a couple of the guides to using color pleasingly in the garden with some of the worker Bees when she stopped by this week. I also happened to spot a Fine Gardening special issue that Ms Eddison wrote to help even the most color challenged put together great garden designs. As long as it includes some large-leafed plants of any color for lazing beneath this summer, I’m all for it.

Blue Colony Diner will celebrate its 34th anniversary this weekend, with a party open on Sunday afternoon from 3 to 4 pm. Nora, one of the waitresses at the Church Hill Road diner, called this week to extend an invitation to anyone who wants to visit the diner on March 19. There will be 12 costume characters, plenty of balloons, and a moment of silence to honor past employees who have passed away.

Speaking of eating places, Panera Bread was scheduled to make a sizable donation to Connecticut Food Bank this week, and customers of the recently opened Newtown shop played a part in the very successful Operation Dough-Nation® program. Through coin drop-boxes in Panera locations in Brookfield, Hamden, Meriden, Milford, North Haven, Shelton, and Waterbury, as well as the Newtown store in Sand Hill Place, Panera customers have donated spare change over the course of the past year. Panera then matched that total, and the combined efforts — $14,754 — was being donated on March 15 at the Newtown café to Julie T. Rio, the development director of Connecticut Food Bank. That’s a whole lotta dough!

Kristin Ryan, a member of the Class of 2007 at Colgate University and a member of Newtown High School’s Class of 2003, is preparing for her senior voice recital. Kristin will be performing at Colgate’s Memorial Chapel Thursday, April 5. The recital will include arias by Bach and Mozart, a group of early music pieces including works of Machaut and Caccini, and a group of classical lullabies including works by Bartók, Mussorgsky, and Barab. Kristin is a member of Colgate University Chorus and The Colgate Dischords, a coed a cappella group. She plans to graduate in the spring with a double concentration in music and Russian studies. Her parents are Jack and Patricia Ryan of Newtown. We wish her the best of luck — and clear pipes.

Newtown resident Dexter Anderson will be singing a lead tenor role onstage as the warrior Guron when Troupers Light Opera performs the Gilbert and Sullivan opera Princess Ida this weekend and next at St Luke’s School in New Canaan. Princess Ida is not as familiar as the popular G&S works The Mikado and Pirates of Penzance, but it carries Sullivan’s trademark rich music and passages of extremely clever Gilbert dialogue. Performances are March 16–18 and 23–24; all shows are at 8 pm except the one this Sunday, which will be a 2:30 matinee. There will also be a 2:30 matinee on March 24 (in addition to the evening performance). Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors, and $15 for students; call 203-653-3438 for details.

Jim Tevnan, who holds the coveted title of Chairman of The Fry, teased me this week with a reminder that all of you humans have one last chance for a Friday Night Fish Fry. I, of course, am only welcome at the St Rose Parish Hall if there are any tidbits of tilapia lying around after the final dinners are cooked up. You, however, have three hours next Friday to help yourselves to the fresh fish dinners that are being served as an offering to the community during Lent. The third and final installment of the 2007 St Rose Fish Fry will be on March 23 from 5 to 8 pm. Dinners are $8 for adults, $4 for children, $30 tops for a family (eat-in), drive-up and takeout service is available, and Jim says if he and the other Knights of Columbus who are running the event match the first two Fish Frys earlier this month, they are on track to sell 1,850 dinners overall this year.

Now if they would only sell to cats, that number would be much higher. By now, you probably have my number, so you know that this is where I say…

Read me again.