With the traditional Earth Day celebrated Wednesday, April 22, and this Saturday’s upcoming Earth Day Celebration around town and the region, I know I’ll have plenty of opportunities to honor the Earth. I’m going to make a point of stopping by Mocha Coffeehouse to check out the Recycled Art Contest entries. Owner Rob Kaiser tells me that they will all be on display through the end of the month, in case all of the other activities prevent you from viewing them this weekend. Check out the Community Calendar and the Enjoy Calendar this week for listings of lots of events that can make you appreciative of our natural resources, and remind us to be good custodians of this tender planet on which we walk. (Of course, I’m always just pussyfooting over the surface.) On that same note, we hear from Shirley Ferris that the Woman’s Club has planted an additional tree on Al’s Trail in Fairfield Hills to honor trail namesake the late Al Goodrich and that the daffodils that were planted last year are popping out and look wonderful. Sounds like a good destination for an Earth Day weekend hike.

One of the Bee reporters tells me that when visiting Reed Intermediate School recently she witnessed a giant chocolate bar being carried down the hall by one of the custodians, and had to stop herself from snatching it and devouring the almost human-sized sweet. It’s a good thing she did, because I am pretty certain it is a prop for the upcoming Willy Wonka production at the school. The curtain will open at the school Friday, May 15, at 7 pm, and Saturday, May 16, at 6 pm. General admission for the show is $5, and parents attending Parent Orientation at the school on May 14 will be able to purchase tickets in the lobby. If this chocolate bar sighting is any indication, this show will be one to make Willy Wonka himself proud.

Speaking of pride, here are some fellows who should be proud of their efforts. While Representative Chris Lyddy battled it out in the State House during what may be one of the most contentious state budget sessions in history, his brother Kyle was working a different room in Hartford recently with some “high profile” friends. According to reports, Kyle Lyddy brought along UConn 7’3” basketball star Hasheem Thabeet. Mr Lyddy, a Newtown native, is acquainted with the towering Tanzanian through his job as a manager on the storied basketball team in Storrs, and as a fellow classmate in his Service Learning Class at UConn’s Department of Kinesiology. Lyddy and his classmates work with an initiative called Husky Sport, which supports elementary-age children, and a goal of living healthy through physical activity, eating right, staying in school, and espousing relevant and transferable life skills (e.g., respect, communication, leadership). Kyle and Hasheem are also pitching in to help raise $20,000 by May 1 for UConn hoop star Emeka Okafor’s “One Million African Lives” campaign to help stop the spread of AIDS and other diseases in Africa. For more info on how you can help, see page 1 of this week’s sports section in The Bee.

Another local campaign is underway, as well. It’s hard to get the effect in broad daylight, but local Relay For Life volunteers will be out and about promoting the inspiring candlelit memorials on Luminaria Saturday, May 2. Anyone interested in lighting up the track on the night of Newtown’s 2009 Relay can find luminaria sign-ups in Sandy Hook Center, Mocha Coffeehouse, Dunkin’ Donuts and Stop & Shop. Anyone can help light up the night at the Relay on June 13, while remembering those who have battled cancer by purchasing one or more luminaria kits at any of the Newtown locations on May 2, or by contacting any Relay volunteer. And if you haven’t signed up to participate in the 2009 Relay yet, what are you waiting for? Come out to The Relay Open House on April 30, at 7 pm, in the Newtown Middle School cafeteria. It will be a fun opportunity to meet your fellow Relayers and learn more about the event. Refreshments will be served! (And I know that always brings out Newtowners in droves.)

I moseyed into town clerk Debbie Aurelia’s office in Edmond Town Hall this week, and spotted a group of workers making plans to preserve a piece of history when the big shift to new town offices at Fairfield Hills occurs later this year. The workers were measuring the broad, solid wood countertop in the town clerk’s outer office. They plan to transport the countertop to the new offices, providing the new facilities in Bridgeport Hall with a physical link to the town’s storied past. I like to think that the spirits of all the transactions that have taken place over that counter will carry on in the new space.

Just a reminder to send in your nominations for the Top of the Mountain Good Egg Award. I love giving kudos to those unheralded do-gooders around Newtown, and there are plenty of them. If you know someone who works behind the scenes to make this world a happier place, let me know at Nancy@thebee.com, subject line: Good Egg.

Along with the return of robins and the sunny yellow faces of daffodils everywhere, there is another subtle sign of spring in town. With the advent of mild weather, town police last week started wearing their summer uniforms. I’ll bet they pulled out their winter jackets for the first few days of this week, though, when Mother Nature reminded us that April in New England can still have quite a chill in the air.

I’m counting on nobody giving me the cold shoulder next week, though, when it is time to…. Read me again.