I’ve heard lots of stories associated with Newtown’s Labor Day Parade, but the story of the missing float is one of the most unbelievable ones I’ve heard.

We’re all familiar with the Little Red Schoolhouse float that Middle Gate enters in the parade year after year. It’s one of my favorites. After last year’s parade, it was tucked away for safekeeping, but no one seems to remember where. The school has looked for it all over town to no avail, and since time is running short the decision has been made to give up the search and get to work on a new float.

Folks at Middle Gate are going to gather in the school parking lot on Saturday, August 26, at around 3 pm to build another schoolhouse for the upcoming parade. The only problem is they have no budget or materials. Anyone with money, materials, or time to spare is asked to call Desiree Gilassi at 426-3214. I suggest they install a homing beacon in the new version of the float.

Joe Wupperfeld has marched with Newtown Hook & Ladder in the Labor Day Parade for more than 50 years but this year he will bring his own transportation, driving his Model A down from South Windham. A lifelong Newtown resident until he moved to South Windham, Joe has made the trip back for the last seven years in a modern car to march with the company and his partner, chief Lee Glover. Both men served on the Parade Committee for the 250th year celebration of Newtown’s history 50 years ago. Joe hopes to bring some other Windham Model A owners to see what happens west of the Connecticut River.

Betty Presnell and her husband, Richard Merrill, really know how to get away from the heat. The couple has just returned from a cruise to Alaska, where the temperatures were much more moderate. Betty and Richard are the local coordinators of the Take Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS) nonprofit weight loss support group that meets on Monday nights at the Newtown Meeting House. Betty says she is assembling a cookbook (not necessarily diet recipes, either) to sell and raise money to pay for an Edmond Town Hall Theatre seat. Anyone who wants to submit a recipe can send it to her at 86 The Boulevard Extension, Newtown CT 06470. For more information about TOPS call 426-6224 or 800-932-8677.

Newtown resident Leslie Hudson-Tolles will be in Bristol to celebrate the opening of “Invitation To Ride: Equestrian & Carousel Art by L. Hudson-Tolles.” The exhibition of Leslie’s work will be on view at New England Carousel Museum from Friday, August 19, until Saturday, October 23. Leslie will be at the museum on Friday for the opening reception, which runs from 5:30 to 7 pm. She will also be at the museum on Saturday, September 10, to present an artist’s talk about her work (which was featured on the cover of The Chronicle of The Horse last October) at 1 pm. The museum is at 95 Riverside Avenue; call 860-565-5411 or visit www.TheCarouselMuseum.org.

Winter’s coming on, and every hearth needs a cat curled up on it between October and April. Do you have one? If not, you should give Sharon Lusky a call at 364-1358. She’s got four hearth-worthy cats that need homes immediately.

It looks like the library Labor Day weekend book sale volunteers have finally reached their limit. A sign posted this week at the C.H. Booth library requests that book donations to the sale be held until mid-September. So, if you still have that bag of books you planned to donate to the sale sitting by the back door, hang on to it for just a little longer. What’s a few more days of tripping over a worthy donation?

Only ten more days of summer vacation for Newtown kids, so it’s time to start studying the bus routes, which are conveniently listed in The Bee’s Back to School supplement this week. I know it’s not cool for kids to ride the bus, but I think this year, with the price of gas approaching that of fine wine, more and more parents may be driving their kids to the bus stop rather than to school.

Fortunately, you don’t have to drive anywhere to read this column, unless you can’t wait to get it in the mail and drive to the newsstand every week. However you want to work it out, just be sure to…

Read me again.