Stamford Scribes

The view from my window

 
June 19, 7:15 AM
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Easter morning at the Arboretum

On a perfect day …

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The Bartlett Arboretum was hard hit by the recent storm and needs your help!

"Not only were over a dozen trees in our collection knocked down, but two of the largest specimens on our property were destroyed as well. With the loss of power and water in our propagation greenhouse, the Bartlett also sustained losses to the annuals and seasonal plants which are to be put out on the grounds this summer.

"While the Bartlett Arboretum will continue to expand its collections this summer, the storm damage coupled with a harsh economic climate has made this a defining moment in our ability to continue the growth we have achieved in recent years."   read on

Happy New Year!

Oooh, a minty-fresh, shiny new year. Time to get underway on undoing all the damage that the holidays wrought. For me, that means reacquainting myself with my gym.

I think I've been a member of every gym in Stamford over the years. Sportsplex, New York Sports Club (all locations), Stamford Athletic Club, Planet Fitness, whatever that place was next to Il Falco that was below street level, the little gym at the hotel on Summer Street. I may be forgetting a couple. I join, I go with varying regularity depending on how much I like the gym and how god their class schedule is. I think of all the gyms I've belonged to, I've liked Stamford Athletic Club the most, for its great classes (at least, it used to have great classes) and pool. But it's really expensive.

I recently joined Underground Fitness here in Glenbrook. You've seen their signs all over town, imploring you to make Underground Fitness your gym. They've usually got some great deal or another brewing, but it basically boils down to forty bucks a month. Not too bad for this area.

But I have to say: This is a great gym. I thought the signs (and the ubiquity of them) indicated that the gym was overselling itself. It's really not. It's clean, it's brand-new, it has Body Pump classes which are completely awesome and a great workout (and I wish they had more scheduled!), and there's a ton of snazzy equipment. No waits for anything. And that's not only because there's plenty of equipment. The place is always empty. Is it because most people think the signs are overselling the place, so they're not joining? Or does everyone here who's interested already belong to a gym? I don't know. But what I do know is that I don't want this place to go away. It's got the potential to be one of my favorite gyms in Stamford.

So go on. Make it your gym. For me. For you. After all, it's that time of year. See you on the treadmills.

More Christmas at the Florence Griswold Museum – the Griswold House

We took a quick peek into Miss Florence's dining room and her bedroom. She was born on Christmas Day, and there is a birthday cake on the dining table …

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Stamford Nostalgia (IV)

The  Fairview Camera Shop!

That was a  great place! First they were on 79 Atlantic Street, close to the Palace Theatre, later they moved to "1 Landmark Square," those shops in the Landmark Building that are actually on Broad Street, and the store finally morphed into Ritz Camera.

They did all kinds of services, such as repairing or cleaning your equipment, and there was a wonderful fellow by the name of Phil (I can't remember his last name and hope readers will help me out) who patiently spent time with me going over my slides, helping me decide on how to have them cropped for large prints. Some of these still grace my hallway, and my nature photos always made great Christmas presents.

Unfortunately, they are too large for me to scan and show here.

A Sunday at the Bruce

What to do on a rain-soaked Sunday? Brunch at the Greenwich Grill Greenwich Tavern (thanks, Anne, for the correction), and the Bruce Museum. The museum has outdone itself with three fabulous exhibits! But hurry, they are closing soon!

Alchemy, Magic, Myth or Science? is a mix of art, artifacts, and interactive displays. All you wanted to know about Alchemy and more.

Alexander Calder: Printmaker shows a side of the artist that was not known to me – which doesn't mean much – and highly enjoyable. He even illustrated Aesop's Fables! And there were some mobiles also … and campaign posters for Abe Ribikoff, the Senator from Connecticut. An image is shown on the above page.

And as you walk into the lobby (and continue inside the auditorium) you are greeted by the funniest, scariest, and most outrageous cartoons by Charles Addams, he of the "Addams Family":  Charles Addams: Cartoonist. What a bland title …

The cartoon show alone is worth a visit.

Alchemy closes January 3, Addams January 24, and Calder January 31.

More about the artists:

Alexander Calder Foundation
Tee & Charles Addams Foundation

Food at the Greenwich Grill was very good too, but the service could have been better. Anne's mother and I recently had an enjoyable weekday lunch there also.

My Rosemary ...

... surprised me flowering. I had brought it in from the terrace together with the geranium a while ago. I didn't expect it to be that thriving, as I tend forget how much water it need.

 

I've never had one bloom, let alone see one bloom.

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November in Stamford

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The recent warm weather has totally confused the forsythias …

… and the hydrangea leaves have grown enormous.

still blooming, sort of …

and this is how it looked in July:

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Fall has arrived and gone ...

A little blog post between being sick and busy working on website re-design and wading through a heap of books to be reviewed.

I took this photo last Friday, and with all this heavy rain since then, a lot of leaves are gone by now …

Meanwhile, the geranium is blooming away

Getting My Hands Dirty

This past weekend, I did something I've meant to do for quite some time: I checked out Lakeside Pottery.

The last time I tried pottery was about 10 years ago. I took a class through a continuing ed program that was not Stamford's. The instructor had little interest in helping out beginners, so I spent a lot of time poking aimlessly at lumps of clay.

A very different experience at Lakeside Pottery, for sure. Instructors Patty and Morty were friendly, encouraging, and very clear in their instructions. I left feeling empowered, energized, and excited to go back.

Lakeside is offering 6-week classes over the winter; I may very well sign up for one, if I can figure out the logistics. 

photo from City of Guelph, flickr.com