Latest News
Turning Back the Pages
May 01, 2024
100 years ago — 1924
Work has been going forward in cleaning up and preparing the new public playground for the coming season. The field which contains between four and five acres is situated on the level stretch in the rear of the M.E. Church. It is an ideal location for a playground. The ground is reached from what is known as Porter Street which runs along one side of the High School building. This is particularly fortunate as the school children will be able to use the play grounds at recess and noon hour as well as after school, a fact which should interest every parent as it will naturally take the child off the street and out of danger of the increasing auto traffic.
C.D. Tusca, the manufacturer of radio sets of Hartford, was a guest of Mr. and Mrs. I. Kent Fulton last Sunday. Mr. Tusca made the trip from Hartford in his aeroplane, using up about an hour coming and landing on the athletic field at Hotchkiss School. While here he treated “Sonny” Fulton to a ride greatly to the delight of that young man. Mr. Tusca returned to Hartford on Sunday afternoon, making the trip in 35 minutes.
LIME ROCK – Trains have changed time, therefore the stage does not go to any trains unless ordered to do so.
Daylight Saving went into effect in some sections on Sunday morning. The Hotchkiss School has advanced its clocks and many of the tradesmen are starting work and quitting an hour earlier. There has been considerable change in the railway schedules and none to their improvement. The general mixup is now on till Oct. 1, so grin and bear it.
The enterprising housewife is now treating the family, on a mess of hand picked dandelion greens.
“Bonnie-Boy” the German police dog belonging to Miss deLima has died as a result of strychnine poisoning. The poison was placed on Mr. deLima’s property by some one whose identity is already known. Any person guilty of such a cruel and unhuman act does not deserve to live in decent society, and will be punished to the fullest extent of the law.
50 years ago — 1974
While most of the towns in the Northwest Planning Region have some type of recycling program, only Cornwall’s is making money for the town treasury. Cornwall also is looking ahead on the program and will try to find new markets for crankcase oil, scrap iron and metal and cans of mixed metals.
A second restoration of the monument on top of Bear Mountain is likely, according to A. Mitchell Finlay, president of the Salisbury Association. Mr. Finlay said he has “talked informally” with some of the trustees of the Association, and he feels the consensus is for restoring the marker again. The stone and concrete structure, which underwent extensive repairs last year, was vandalized a few weeks ago.
Sgt. Stanley Szczesiul of Lakeville has been designated a lieutenant in the Connecticut State Police. Best known in the town for his service as resident trooper from 1958 to the spring of 1971, Szczesiul continues in his present assignment as chief of Gov. Thomas Meskill’s security detail.
The Brothers Pizza House, a new restaurant for Lakeville, opens today at 11 a.m. in what was formerly the B&L Restaurant on Ethan Allen Street. Two brothers, Peter and William Stefanopoulos of Waterbury are the new owners and they have redecorated the dining room of the restaurant and enlarged the kitchen area.
25 years ago — 1999
SHARON – The voice is back. Marshall Miles, the veteran host of morning radio in the Tri-State area, will again be heard on local airwaves May 3, when he makes his debut on a new morning show on WKZE-AM (1020) One could say Mr. Miles is, in some respects, returning to his roots. For it was at WKZE-AM that he began his local broadcasting career in 1986. He left the station in April 1993, and later helped in the formation of WQQQ-FM (103.3) in Lakeville, where he served as station manager and morning host until this past February.
A wave of nausea swept through Salisbury School this week as dozens of students were sent to the infirmary with gastroenteritis. It all started April 19, when the first cases were reported. Early symptoms included vomiting, nausea, diarrhea and fever, which lasted about 24 hours. The number of cases peaked Sunday night and the school cancelled classes Monday, April 26. By that time, there were between 70 and 100 students and staff affected, according to assistant headmaster Sam Simmons. According to Torrington Area Health District director Gil Roberts, the cases developed gradually, rather than all at once, which suggested a virus transmitted person to person, rather than food poisoning. The state’s epidemiologist is examining the cases to determine the exact cause.
Items were taken from The Lakeville Journal archives at Salisbury’s Scoville Memorial Library, keeping the original wording intact as possible.
Keep ReadingShow less
Love and romance: Part II
May 01, 2024
Bob Dylan wrote “The Times They are a Changin’” and that was certainly true in the dating world. I knew people who found a partner online, mostly 30 something’s, and decided to give it a try.
I researched dating sites the way I used to research stocks, with the same confidence that I’d make an “ informed” decision. I started with JDate and Our Time, but they were each too limiting — my religion is hugely important to me, but it only mattered that the man I chose respected it, and the “senior” dating sites were depressing — I didn’t want age to be our common denominator.
I then did a “trial run” on Match.com and that seemed ideal for me though it was not totally reliable, not always credible, certainly not algorithmically accurate, but replete with SO many good selections.
It’s challenging to create a profile, and I was wary of revealing too much but wanted to be clear about my negotiables (religion, career, education, widowed/ divorced, children) and non- negotiables (politics, sense of humor, motivation, compassion). I made sure my photos were recent and relevant and highlighted my career, travel, sense of humor, independence, focus on social justice, and total DIS-interest in sports. I provided my first name but was vague about other details (employer, alma mater) which would make me easy to Google.
Fortunately I was a salesman for 40 years and could handle rejection, because it came fast and furious. I initially contacted many men but so few got back to me; I reassured myself that it wasn’t “personal” — they didn’t even know me. It made me wary of continuing, (although I was in the City and had four dates the first week which felt like a good start, including two dates with one man). I recognized the challenges with online dating, encountering more problems than solutions: one man asked to see me again and ,when I readily agreed, told me he had a girlfriend but she worked evenings; another had NO internet presence and implied it was because he worked for a high level secret government agency. I realized quickly that I had to learn to manage expectations, and, as the saying goes, trust but verify.
A week later Covid started, I moved to the country, and everything changed — I could chat but not meet anyone. I learned to avoid crazies, phonies, predators, men who were unsuitable, and just took my time. I learned to ask last names so I could Google them, and insisted on FaceTime to confirm who they were. I expected to return to the City after Covid, and “met” a man who seemed perfect — highly educated, funny, sensitive, and we FaceTimed daily for months until we finally met in person. All the indications were perfect — we even predicted Match would use our narrative in ther ads — but he was really tied to the City and had zero interest in the country — confirmed when he spent a weekend and couldn’t wait to get on the train home.
After a few more dates (in the city!) I ended it.
I was clearly better off dating locally (and maybe Boston and DC), and that first summer primarily dated a retired engineer who had taken up watercolor painting — we had wonderful dates visiting every outdoor sculpture park we could find, but having lived with a fabulously talented artist, I frankly couldn’t “relate” to this man’s work, let alone live with it.
I spent a year dating men from Match and never had a really bad date, but during online chats came across one fellow whose ex-wife had a restraining order against him; another who described himself as a petroleum engineer and gemologist, and I discovered he was wanted for swindling a woman he met online out of $75,000; one who turned blatantly anti-Semitic when I suggested we weren’t a great match; one was described himself as “gender fluid” and told me if we were to meet he couldn’t guarantee he’d come dressed as a man; and one who sent me home from our FIRST date with a draft of his autobiography. That said , I also met several lovely men who were just not what I was looking for.
Please reach out to Gwen with your thoughts or questions at GwenG@millertonnews.com
Gwen lives in Pine Plains with her partner Dennis, her puppy Charlie, and two Angus cows (who are also retired!).
Keep ReadingShow less
The appliance scam
May 01, 2024
If you haven’t noticed, the price of large appliances continues to climb. What’s worse, in a year or two, many find that the costly smart refrigerator, oven, or washing machine in your kitchen is suddenly plagued with all kinds of problems. What happened to the concept of quality?
In the last two years, my wife and I have had to purchase a new refrigerator and washer. The guy who delivered them warned me that it was just a matter of time before the dryer went as well. None of these items were more than ten years old. I credit Rachel Wolfe of The Wall Street Journal for explaining why.
There seem to be three factors behind the shorter life span of these household goods. Computerization, an increase in the number of individual components that go into each appliance, and the quality of materials overall. Let’s take the refrigerator, as an example.
Back in the day, I can remember my mom having to shut down the fridge every six months or so and scrape off the ice that had built up in the freezer. Those days are gone. Manual defrost gave way to frost-free refrigerators that came with a bunch of new parts like heaters, fans, and sensors to automate the defrosting process.
The dawning of the 2000s saw a breakthrough in both energy efficiency and precise temperature control by replacing thermostats with digital computer control. All that was required was to add another batch of components and parts, mostly electronic, such as relays, capacitors, and solder joints to the old ice box.
Another factor impacting all appliances, not just refrigerators, was the industry-wide transition to lead-free solder in 2006. Environmentally, the benefits are obvious, since it eliminates toxic lead, however, the new solder requires stricter control over manufacturing processes and better design practices to ensure long-term reliability. This has resulted in an entirely new series of challenges to your neighborhood repair person to figure out what parts need to be repaired while others may need to be replaced.
In the meantime, George Jetson would be proud of the advancements. Appliance manufacturers keep coming up with wonder after wonder. Icemakers, touchscreens, and chilled water dispensers are built into refrigerator doors. I fully expect my fridge to be able to sing Zippity Do Dah in its next reincarnation.
The same trend is occurring in other appliances. New smart ovens offer induction, convection, air fry, steam, dual-fuel, and touch control. Washers and dryers promise smart technology integration with features such as in-washer faucets, dirt level and fabric type sensors, steam closets, removable agitators, cold water wash technology, and even add-on filters for microplastic capture.
While all these features enhance functionality, the number of valves, pumps, electrical connections, electronics, and such make something created to keep things cold now takes a rocket scientist to figure out, let alone repair. I confess that I still can’t figure out how to switch the icemaker from simply dispensing water to giving me a cup full of ice. What’s worse is that a blip in the icemaker can cause a system-wide failure and put your fridge down for the count. It has happened to me.
I am not alone. My appliance repair guy said his industry is seeing a ton more items in need of repair. The Wall Street Journal article confirmed that and found that Yelp helped users request 58% more quotes from thousands of appliance repair businesses. American households spent 43% more on home appliances last year than ten years ago, even though prices have declined during that same period. One of the main reasons for this discrepancy is there has been a higher rate of replacements. Twenty-five years ago, the average homeowner replaced appliances every 12-13 years. Today it is every eight to nine years.
As most readers know, getting someone to repair your appliance is an expensive and time-consuming process. House calls are roughly $250 per visit before any work is done. You can easily spend almost as much repairing an appliance as buying a new one.
In summary, the appliance market today “ain’t what it used to be.” One of my neighbors just ordered a dishwasher from Home Depot. They only drop it off. Now she needs to find a plumber to uninstall and cart away the old one and install the new one. There’s not much anyone can do about it but if you still have that old freezer or fridge in the basement, I would keep it.
Bill Schmick is a founding partner of Onota Partners Inc. in the Berkshires. None of his commentary is or should be considered investment advice. Email him at bill@-schmicksretiredinvestor.com.
Keep ReadingShow less
loading
