Mark Twain is credited with sayin’ something to the effect, “If you don’t like the weather in New England, wait a minute. It’ll change.” Well, in the parts, dearie we’ve had a bit o’ that in the latter part of October and the beginning of November. Mornings have had frost on the ground, and then the temps have climbed up to the 60s, and in some cases, 70s. Meanwhile, effen yore on the Internet, there are posters who are claiming that a Polar Vortex is gonna make a big change and very soon. “
Very Soon” was s’posed to be Halloween weekend. Nope! Then last weekend. Nope! And now, it’s coming, jest be ready for it. I think that’s what the kids call “click bait.” It’ll git cold, and when it finally does, we will be perty sudden, methinks, and we won’t see anything warmer until the crocuses decide it’s time to wake up.
Here in the Asylum by the Sea the election is over, and it wasn’t a good one. All the usual suspecks are still in power, and nationwide the wolves are at the gate. So, we in our little corner of the universe can expeck more nonsense, more disruption and more taxes and spending. Luckily, the “veto” is still a check against those who would bankrupt the country.
A lit’le closer to home the four-year term won in the charter revision vote. Cobina wasn’t against that, she was against the “non-gendering” of the language in a woke fit by the Charter Revision Commish. She voted against that. Haven’t seen the numbers, but Iyam sure that passed. People don’t take language as seriously as they should. Why say something that is clear when you can say something fuzzy and show yore “empathy” and “forward thinking.” Bosh.
The only good thing is that we still have Rosa DeLauro Greenberg to lampoon. She of the purple pate is gonna be well into her dotage by the time this term is over. And that voice, oh, that voice ! Now she’ll be a chairman (no chairwoman, no chair) of some oversight committee or t’other and badger people with whom she disagrees. What a deplorable biddy. But, we like roasting her. Gal never worked a real job in her life. Jest proves mediocrity flows upward.
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The wag was in t’other day and he had a good query. Earlier this month, Nov. 1 to be exack, we went from Daylight Saving Time to Eastern Standard Time. Now, when yew and I were in our salad days, DST didn’t start until late April. Then because of the 1973 fuel crisis, it was moved earlier, and was moved earlier again to the pernt that for virtually eight months outta the year we are on it.
Sooooo, the Wag queried, “If we’re only on Eastern Standard Time for four months, how ‘standard’ is it?” That’s quite the query. Should DST now be called “standard,” and EST called, oh, I dunno, “winter” time? And, of course, with the change of time, the stories and columns about the disruptions setch things cause was plastered everywhere. But nothing ever happens, and it won’t. Effen it doesn’t have to do with spending our hard-earned kopecks, Congress isn’t interested. And that is both parties.
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On the quasi-political front, the new “Hub” was opened. That’s the community center that now stands in the same building that was once Meloy School (on Melloy Road). Sammy Bluejay was there and sez that all the high mucky mucks were there, much like they were there for the press conference more than two years ago, when the projeck was announced.
It is now going to house sundry groups, and we hear even a performing troupe to utilize the auditorium space. The Senior Center has been moved there and we hear-tell the Noble School building is gonna be put up for sale. Not sure where that puts the West Haven Child Development Center that rents space in the building, but Iyam sure that discussion is being had by someone with a plan.
Of course, the project could have been done earlier, but it couldn’t git started until Washington School moved to the new building. It’s been over a year, but still the school stuff had to be moved, the place gone through to bring it up to code, and then work could git started on what it needed to be a community center.
The “Hub” is the current name for it. I got a feeling that setch a monicker won’t last long. And our offer to help run a contest to git the place named is still in place.
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Meanwhile, the city’s teachers got a new contrack, according to Nelly Nuthatch. The terms of the contract haven’t been announced as of this missive, sweets, but methinks there are still some dotting and crossings to be done. Now, I understand that the teachers need more money. And I certainly don’t want to trash them.
But I seem to remember when a English Coordinator wanted to ditch Shakespeare for graphic novels, thinking the kids would read them. It’s same ole same ole dumbing down instead of pushing up, or as someone once said, the “soft bigotry of low expectations.”
We wonder why our kids can’t read and can’t write, cursive or anything else. It’s cuz the school leadership is made up of people with degrees that were padded with nonsense about the aforementioned “empathy” and “forward thinking” bovine residue.
Is there a correlation between contracts and reading scores. Yes and no. But, in the real world, not the fake one of government, results matter more than buzz words and feel-good ideology. Someday we might actually believe that again.
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In a folly-up to the library story from the last missive, the council has implored the library system to use its funds for improvements it needs now that the purchase of the land on the Boston Post Road cannot include the $1 million if American Rescue Plan Act funny money that was given out after the pandemic. Word is the library is gonna move ahead with the purchase trying to find alternative sources of funding.
Of course, the fack that the Village Improvement Association signed a Letter of Intent for the property does put them under some type of contractual obligation. The details of what happens next will be interesting.
Effen yew look hard enough, I will bet the rent that “other sources” will be found. Some NGO or foundation or federal program is out there somewhere. How much the entire project will cost will come later in the process as these things go. There are details upon details, not to mention timelines that have to be established and other setch things.
We will keep you posted. This is a little blip on the screen, not a trainwreck for the VIA.
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Not to put too fine a pernt on it, but other people have noticed it as well. The day after the election last week, gasoline prices went down, and not jest be a few cents. In some places as much as 15 or 20 cents. Now, I ain’t a conspiracy type of gal, but experience has shown that there ain’t no setch thing as coincidence.
Oil has been flowing out of the Strait of Hormuz for weeks, with pre-war barrels topping out about a month ago. Yet, the commodity market kep’ things high. Like I said, Cobina ain’t the only one who noticed.
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Our own lit’le Jimmy Olson has a story on the fack that a new apartment complex is set to go up where the former Mantilia Motors/First National supermarket (for those of us old enuff to remember) once stood. He pernted out in his story that the place has been vacant since 2009. That was a punch to the gut for Cobina. That means it’s been 17 years. Where did they go, Felicia?
Tennyrate, 90 apartments are expected with commercial space on the ground floor. Now, I jest have a question: if we have soooo much commercial space we can’t get rid of – cuz people aren’t using brick-and-mortar stores, why are we requiring setch spaces? Jest wondering.
Go along Campbell Avenue or anywhere else and stores have closed left and right, and there ain’t nothing to take their place. People let their fingers do the walking, and not through the Yellow Pages, but through their apps.
Hey, if we can git the spaces rented, great! But empty retail space jest makes a main drag look even more desperate. Here along the Boston Post Road, stores are closing, even ones that are of the “bargain” variety. I jest wonder effen there will be a market for these spaces.
On the other hand, having a new building constructed over on Campbell Avenue may spur some movement on the former Christopher John Michael’s and the old American Buckle Company properties. CJMs has been closed for decades. One can only wonder what critters have taken residence there and what the interior looks like. Yikes!!
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With that bit o’ chatter, I’ll close this time till next, mitt luff und kizzez,
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