I think it was Jackie Gleason who once said that New Year’s Eve is for amateurs. Being the big celebrator he was, the famed comedian no doubt thought that the last night of the year, though special, perhaps wasn’t worth all the hype it received. This year, as the turn of the century stares us in the face, it seems that most of Newtown will usher in the millennium from the warmth of their homes.

Except those who will be attending the various New Year’s Eve soirées around town. The Sandy Hook Fire Company’s party will begin at 7 pm with cocktails, followed by dinner and dancing from 8 pm until 1 am. The cost is $38 per ticket, and reservations are required; call 426-5505 or 270-4392 for details.

They’ll be ringing in the New Year in the Edmond Town Hall’s Alexandria Room as well. The cost is  $75 per ticket, with proceeds going to the Newtown Mural Maintenance Fund. Call 426-5957 to book.

One organization that will need your help in the next few weeks is the Red Cross. As with most holiday periods, Y2K has raised the specter of blood shortages. Although the American Red Cross said it is ready for Y2K, holiday periods traditionally are low collection periods as people are busy with other activities.

Connecticut has done all within its power to prevent a holiday-related shortage, including the institution of a number of “Save-a-Life” Sunday blood drives along with blood drives on Christmas Eve and others planned on New Year’s Eve. Newtown will do its part on Monday, January 10, when a blood drive is held at Trinity Church on Main Street from 1:30 to 6:45 pm. You may donate if you are 17 years of age or older, weigh 110 pounds or more, and are in good health. When you donate blood, the American Red Cross types your blood and will let you know your blood type within a few weeks. Call 800/GIVE-LIFE (800/448-3543) to make an appointment or to find out about becoming a blood donor or a blood drive sponsor.

We always like to hear a success story, especially like the one about Spencer Ley. Spencer’s family lived in Newtown for 21 years on Bari Drive and he attended Henry Abbott Technical School in Danbury, graduating in 1980. He had several jobs in and around Newtown, mostly carpentry because it was his major at Abbott Tech. But he had a hard time finding work during the recession, so he moved to Harrisonburg, Virginia, after his parents retired there. He put an enclosed porch on his parents’ house but there wasn’t much other work to be found, so he even tried living in North Carolina but that was a disappointment too.

The happy news is that in his 30s, Spencer went back to school at James Madison University in Harrisonburg. On December 17 he graduated with honors, magna cum laude, with a bachelor’s degree in social work. Way to go, Spencer!

Another Newtown resident also knows the value of lifelong learning. Josephine Bojnowski is featured in Masonicare’s magazine, Share, in an article about computers. The mother of Selectman Joe Bojnowski is one of the first soon-to-be graduates of the computer classes arranged at Ashlar of Newtown by therapeutic recreation director Carl Anderson. A teacher for 30 years before she retired, Josephine lives at Lockwood Lodge, the assisted living facility at Ashlar. She said the computer mouse took some getting used to, but she likes being able to keep in touch via e-mail with her grandchildren, who are scattered around the country.

Nisha Bansal knows a thing or two about long hours hitting the books. The 1995 Newtown High School salutatorian was spotted throughout the week at Starbucks, practically buried under a pile of books. After graduating from Brown University last spring, Nisha entered the University of Connecticut’s Medical School to chase her dream of becoming a doctor. She says that she has never studied harder before in her life. The workers at Starbucks can attest to this; Nisha estimated that she averaged between five to six hours at the coffee shop, studying. “There’s nothing better than studying at a coffee shop,” she said. “I like the atmosphere, and watching people. Because of the noise around me, it forces me to concentrate on my studying.” Starbucks seemed to supply the two necessary ingredients for her studious sieges: ample table space, and an endless flow of caffeine. She returned to her favorite study spot, Borders Books near UCONN’s Framingham campus, on Friday.

The high school’s technological and video capabilities have come a long way from the days of Nisha’s tenure, a scant five years ago. I was flipping through the channels Sunday night and finally stopped on channel 17, the Newtown High School channel, which was televising a recent boys’ basketball game. The audio and video quality was impressive, as was the fine play-by-play and color commentary of sophomores Brian Budnick and Tom Ragusa. Look out Dick Vitale! Sophomore Mike Sobo serves as director and cameraman.

Sarah Mannix has her hands full these days with Hannah, her new 11-month-old cocker spaniel. Sarah loves her new friend, but can’t get over the amount of energy she has. The dog is constantly running around the house and loves playing with toys. Sarah took the dog in after one local family decided Hannah was too much to handle. They paid $700 for her. “I wouldn’t give her up for the world,” Sarah said.

Artistic onlookers might enjoy taking a drive around town and looking at the designs in some of the parking lots. In front of the police station, the parking lot almost resembles a marble cake these days, what with the white swirl patterns created by road salting atop the dark, black surface of new asphalt paving. And then there’s the large reserve parking lot behind Edmond Town Hall, which looks like a large environmental painting in light of the curling patterns of sand and salt spread on it recently after icing conditions. When viewed from above, it might be taken as an abstract expressionist work.

The commuter parking lots in town, which are normally almost full of cars, had noticeably fewer vehicles in them this week as many people took off the period between Christmas and New Year’s Day. There’s almost enough room in there for some skateboarding.

Yet the arctic chill that has gripped Newtown has made any outdoor activity feel like an endurance sport. This week’s cold weather has everyone bustling from their cars into stores or back into their warm houses. Without snow there have been few outdoor sports and it has been too cold to do much else. At least I haven’t seen Carol Mahoney up on any roofs. Our erstwhile tax collector was seen before the cold set in helping replace a roof on a senior citizen’s house in Shady Rest.

So as not to become your former keen-eyed, wry observer, I’ll wrap this column up for this week, and this century. A happy and safe New Year’s to all! This Y2K-compatible cat will return next year, so don’t forget to come back and…

Read me again.