So now that it’s the Fourth of July and we have finally made it to the open palm of summer, some of that tension in our necks that we first noticed back when we were Christmas shopping has finally begun to ease. Let’s all get in our cars and go for a ride.

I don’t know about you, but I love riding in a car with the windows down on a summer evening. But there’s a right way to do it. First, don’t go riding around with you head out the window, like some Labrador retrievers I know, tongue flapping in the breeze, spewing skeins of saliva across the landscape. In summer, if you want to keep cool, you gotta be cool. If you’ve got the top down or the moon roof open, all the better, but even if you’re cruising in a hardtop sedan, relax. Slouch down, put your head back, and crank up the music ––“Louie Louie” by the Kingsmen if you can manage it –– and cruise. When you’ve got all that going on, there’s really no reason to stop, unless of course, you spot an ice cream stand.

If you’ve got a rusted out compact car with a Swiss cheese muffler, however, it’s hard to be cool. It’s hard not to envy all those folks driving around in their Ford “El Conquistadors” with 47 cup holders. There is a way, however, for you to drive one of the coolest SUVs there is –– at least occasionally. The Newtown Ambulance Corps is in desperate need of volunteers who can drive the paramedic vehicle –– one of the most tricked out SUVs around. The paramedics quite often have to leave their vehicle behind at the scene when they have to ride to the hospital in the ambulance with a patient. Volunteers then have to drive the paramedic vehicle to where it will be needed next. It’s serious business, so no slouching and no “Louie Louie,” but it sure sounds like a thrill to me. If you want to volunteer, call Deb Aubin at 426-6874 or the dispatch center at 270-4200.

Speaking of the ambulance corps, Jeff Marquis was named EMT-1 of the Year by Danbury Hospital recently. Jeff is a volunteer with the Newtown corps and is also the chief of the Dodgingtown Volunteer Fire Company.

It has been a quiet week at Andrea’s Pastry Shop since owner-baker Tony Posca, a Sandy Hook resident, has taken a weeklong, well-deserved vacation, temporarily closing the bakeshop. Maybe it was our imagination, but bakery customers seemed a little edgy last weekend as Tony was preparing to close things down. “What am I going to do without my marzipan crescents?” said one man, who was visibly upset. A lady with two small children was stocking up on seven-grain loaves and Russian nut rolls, “just in case I get a little peckish while the bakery is closed,” she said. When Andrea’s Pastry Shop opens its doors again July 8, we’re sure the line of grateful regulars will be all the way out to Queen Street.

Welcome back to Mary Kelley who has returned to work in the selectmen’s office after a few weeks off because of surgery. She said because of all the rain she was only able to relax and recuperate on her deck about three times.

Alan Hermanson got a flat tire in his Florist on the Green delivery truck Monday night. He had to leave the van in the parking lot of The Bee overnight when he couldn’t figure out how to dislodge the spare tire from its hiding place under the chassis. He had to call the Ford Motor Company for instruction, but finally he was rolling again on Tuesday.

The year 2005 may seem pretty far away but to some Newtown residents it’s not too early to start planning for Newtown’s tercentennial celebration. Newtown will begin its 300th year anniversary in January 2005, and Town Historian Dan Cruson and Town Clerk Cindy Simon and members of historic and community organizations will be meeting soon for what is called a “brainstorming” session to discuss ideas for the upcoming celebration. Here’s an idea: let’s create a historical tableau depicting the great cats of Newtown, ranging from the saber-toothed tigers of Newtown’s prehistory to the patriot Persians of colonial Newtown to the great 19th Century alley cat rebellion of Sandy Hook, to the celebrity cat columnists of modern times. It’s just a thought.

I’ve got to go find my tri-cornered hat, but I’ll be back again next week, so be sure to…

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