Wait a minute! Hold the phone! Are you telling me there is an entire display currently on view at C.H. Booth Library celebrating me and my kin??! The answer is a very happy Yes! Presented in one of the beautiful display cases on the main floor opposite the meeting room, “Lucy’s Black Cats” celebrates the memory of one woman’s first cat through a collection of pitchers, creamers, porcelain and ceramic figurines, antique advertisements and boxes, and more, all celebrating black cats. It’s a lovely collection and I really hope many people take a few minutes to admire it.

Black cats already know to be careful. People think we bring bad luck and have done very mean things to us over the years. I hope my friends and readers are all being careful this Halloween season. From pumpkin carving to trick-or-treating, this season brings its own series of dangers. According to a new survey, Connecticut residents are among those spending the longest time in emergency care. Nutmeg State patients spend an average of 197 minutes in an emergency department before leaving the hospital after they get hurt. Maryland residents have the worst of it, with a median time of 251 minutes. Massachusetts and Rhode Island tied at 220 minutes, and then Delaware’s visits average 214 minutes, just above our wait-and-treatment time. The study by Whitley Law Firm examined data from The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. It found the best time for patients was still nearly two hours, with people in North Dakota spending an average 110 minutes in an ED.

I can’t wait to see what this year’s popular costumes turn out to be. I was very surprised to read this week that boohoo.com has put Regina George as “the most fashionable fictional character to dress as this Halloween.” The online fashion retailer did research, examining Google searches ahead of Halloween for terms related to the style of on-screen characters.

The blonde leader of the clique at the center of the high school novel and subsequent movie Mean Girls, Regina George’s fashion still sees an average 25,416 monthly search volume across the country. That far eclipses the 12,493 searches for Rachel Green from Friends, Carrie Bradshaw of Sex and The City fame, Blair Waldorf (Gossip Girl) or Vampire Diaries protagonist Elena Gilbert. We’ll see…

If you’d like to show off your costume locally next week, at least three members of The Newtown Bee team plan to be ready with candy and smiles for late Friday afternoon. Our front door will be open and a large bowl will be filled with treats, ready for those who stop on their way up to Main Street, or even for those who miss us on the uphill walk but want to stop by on their post-Main Street walk. I’m not one for crowds, but I’ll keep an eye on things from a safe distance.

Last week’s Newtown Bee had a photo of Ginny Clyne standing within the pews of Newtown Congregational Church, her latest collection of dolls enrobed in child-size blankets for children at Bridgeport Rescue Mission displayed in front of her. We called the longtime Newtown Congregational Church member “a one-woman quilting ministry,” which I still agree with. I just wanted to give Ginny another shout-out because right after we went to press last week I heard about another great thing she did recently. Ahead of a trip to Kenya taken by Reverend Carra McFadden, Ginny created eight handmade baby quilts. Rev Carra and the nine others who went on the September 29-October 12 trip to United Kenya Rising in Kakamega, Kenya, took those quilts with them and shared them with eight Kenyan families on behalf of Newtown Congregational Church.

Congratulations and “Happy #Fairlife Retirement” to Barb and Rob Sibley, who co-chaired their final NUMC Fall Fair last weekend. The Sibleys have co-chaired the fall fundraiser for Newtown United Methodist Church for at least five years, if not longer. Last weekend was the final presentation under their guidance. The fair will continue, however, don’t you worry. Janine and Dan Poole have already agreed to take on the lead roles, and I understand Barb and Rob won’t be walking completely away from the special event. Thank you to the Sibleys — and their predecessors — and best wishes to the Pooles.

For many neighbors there is never a break from the challenge of putting food on the table. A few special events and at least two new events hope to help residents in approaching weeks. FAITH Food Drive hosts Drive-Thru Food Drives the first Saturday morning of each month, which means the next one will be November 1 — don’t let the changing of the calendar surprise you. Volunteers will be available from 10 am until noon to help unload nonperishables, household cleaning supplies, personal hygiene items, and pet supplies, or even accept financial donations. The pantry is at 46 Church Hill Road, behind St Rose Church; its ongoing wish list, including its Amazon wish list, can be found at newtownfoodpantry.org.

Newtown Community Center and Around Town Real Estate will work together to fight local food insecurity through the Annual Food Drive Can-paign, November 1-24. Nonperishable donations can be dropped off at the community center, 8 Simpson Street, and the Around Town office, 17 Church Hill Road, to help stock the shelves for local families. A special Neighbors Helping Neighbors Day of Giving has also been scheduled as part of that effort. A Stuff-a-Bus will be held at Around Town Real Estate on Saturday, November 15, from 10 am until noon.

Newtown’s firefighters will also conduct their annual Fill the Fire Truck next month. Members of three local fire companies will be at Big Y World Class Market on Saturday, November 22. Concurrently, members of the other two companies will be at Sand Hill Plaza. All will be accepting donations for FAITH from 9 am until noon, after which everything will be delivered to the pantry to help fill shelves just before Thanksgiving.

Very upsetting news out of Watertown this week, when it was announced that next week’s edition of Town Times will be its final. Watertown is about to lose what Newtown is still clinging to: a hyper-local newspaper dedicated to collecting and sharing all things related to that town. In an October 22 post on his Facebook page, State Representative Joe Polletta said the same thing we remind people every week: “The loss of the publication is an indication of a trend seen nationwide. Local newspapers have thinned in favor of social media platforms. The Town Times gave our town a pulse. It showed the good work our civic organizations do, it gave a highlight to our students/athletes and, perhaps most importantly, it gave a voice to residents/taxpayers to voice their concerns in the letters section.” It’s very sad to hear of another newspaper being shuttered. When a newspaper goes away, another one doesn’t spring up in its place. I feel very bad for the residents of Watertown and those who have worked to keep its newspaper operating. Thank you to everyone who continues to help us build the permanent record of Newtown, one week at a time.

I need to take a walk now. I need to digest this news, and send my best wishes to colleagues a few towns away who will no longer be doing what they love. There’s a display at the library I need to look at. I’ll let you know how much I love it next week, when it will be time for you to come back and … read me again.