Midsummer is here and the temperatures have climbed to the point where most people are looking for a little relief from the heat and humidity. People have left town in droves for the shore or the mountains. It’s gotten to the point where you only have to wait a half hour or so to make a left-hand turn at the flagpole. The town is practically deserted.

If the heat makes you feel a little uncomfortable, imagine what it’s like for us felines, with our full fur coats in, say, a heat absorbing color like black. Ugh! My good friend Simba has the right idea: hitch a ride out of town.

Simba is a fellow feline who belongs to the Miles family on Elm Drive. On two occasions recently, Simba tried to stow away in the package compartment of a UPS truck that had stopped for a delivery. On both occasions, the UPS driver didn’t notice Simba until a couple of stops later and had to return to Elm Drive with its cat cargo. Nice try, Simba. Next time, label a box for delivery to Nova Scotia and climb in.

When I meandered over to Dr Roger Moore’s office at 11 Church Hill Road to check my sharp vision, I was surprised to find him and his staff packing up all of those cool eyeglass frames. Turns out, the optometrist’s office, is moving across the street to 14 Church Hill Road next week. Whew. I don’t need to look too far to find him, after all.

I see that the newest fashion trend among grocery shoppers in Newtown these days are bright green, reusable cloth bags. Both Stop & Shop and Big Y are offering the bags, to be used in place of the environmentally unfriendly plastic bags, for a minimal sum. The bags are sturdy and hold a good amount of groceries, I’m told. The biggest problem is getting into the habit of bringing the cloth bags to the grocery store. Old habits die hard, but this seems like a really good habit to instill.

Milfoil weed in Taunton Pond; toilet paper algae in Vermont; mile-a-minute weed invading Connecticut: it’s enough to make a cat afraid to go outdoors. Thanks to the efforts of local conservation officer Rob Sibley and his crew, though, who spent several hours on Tuesday eradicating mile-a-minute weed from two sites on Huntingtown Road, I can safely walk there again without fear of that spiny weed creeping up and tangling in my fur. I’m hoping that that’s the last we’ll hear of this nasty invasive. If you think you have the fast-growing, triangular-leafed weed on your property, give Rob a call at 270-4350. He says he’d rather check out false reports than have even one positive sighting go unreported.

Peter Lubinsky, a Boy Scout from Newtown, will be attending the 2007 World Scout Jamboree. From July 27 to August 8, the World Scout Jamboree will take place in Hylands Park, Chelmsford, United Kingdom. World Jamborees are held every four years and this year’s jamboree marks the 100th anniversary of scouting around the world. Troop 104 comprised of 36 Scouts from Westchester, Putnam, and Fairfield Counties, will join approximately 40,000 other participants at the jamboree. The World Scout Jamboree provides a wonderful opportunity for travel, meeting scouts from around the world, and learning about other cultures. While in Chelmsford, the scouts will participate in a wide range of activities and physical challenges, including rock climbing, rappelling, and obstacle courses. They will also perform a day of community service.

By the time you read this, Scott Baggett will have received his office birthday card, and this year it was a little confusing. Somewhere along the line his age was lost in the translation so when the card first started circulation earlier this week around The Bee office, friends and co-workers were having fun giving him a hard time about turning 50 on July 26. Unfortunately for the card signers, Scott won’t hit that milestone for another three years. When he received his card Thursday morning, half of the signatures made sense. The other half can be saved and reread in 2010.

I’ve noticed that my employers, Scudder and Helen Smith, are unveiling a new Bunny Garden for kids in The Pleasance this weekend. It’s really quite something, with whimsical buildings and characters, including a family of cute rabbits, which will probably overrun the place in no time. So now The Pleasance has a rooster, a turtle, a few dogs, humans, and now rabbits. I’ve got one question. Where are the cats?

I wish I could spend all my time in a park, but I’ve got a lot of work to do between now and next week, so be sure to…

Read me again.