AFC Division Playoff Provides Excuse for Feasting with Friends

AFC Division Playoff Provides Excuse for Feasting with Friends:

Jets take win leaving Pats fans humbled

(Posted to Fairfield.Patch.com 1/16)

By Mike Lauterborn

© 2011. All Rights Reserved.

1/16/11

The event had a Super Bowl feel to it and, as such, needed to be properly celebrated.

The match-up late Sunday afternoon was between the New York Jets and the New England Patriots in the AFC Division Playoff, pitting QB Mark Sanchez against QB Tom Brady.

A devoted Jets fan, my Fairfield friend Ken Kubel would normally host such an event but he had done the honors for the previous game, the Wild Card Playoff between the Jets and Baltimore Colts. So, it fell to our mutual friend Brian Pisanelli, a Patriots fan, to open his doors at his Shelton home and for us Fairfielders to make the trek up.

I had already seen the season fortunes of my own team, the New York Giants, dashed, so had thrown my weight behind the Jets, even dressing in the team’s colors. Mutual Fairfield friend Paul Mucha had adopted the same approach and, really, was more in it for the beer, toting a keg of homemade Alaskan Smoked Porter to the festivities.

Mucha’s contribution was a tasty accompaniment to the fare Pisanelli’s wife Theresa, a Jets fan, had prepared, literally enough food to feed a battalion. Stacked and on deck in her kitchen, it included chicken fries, chili, jalapeno poppers, chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, ribs, pigs in a blanket, mac and cheese and assorted chips.

The only other critical room in the ranch-style house was the basement where the game viewing would take place. It had all the features a sports fan could desire: an 18-foot long working bar, pool table, air hockey, dart board, CD jukebox, slot machine, fireplace and, of course, a big screen TV.

As Theresa and Kubel’s wife Ann enjoyed chocotinis, we men tackled the brew and voiced predictions for the game’s outcome.

“I think the Patriots are a slightly better team, but in football, anything can happen,” said Kubel. “I’ve been a Jets fan since the early 80s, during the New York Sack Exchange era, when the Jets made it to the playoffs but not the Super Bowl. This could be our shot.”

Weighing in with a contrasting forecast, Pisanelli said, “I predict the Patriots will win by 23. Our offense is explosive. Tom Brady is unstoppable.”

As the Patriots won the coin toss and elected to kick, several more guys joined the gathering, including Craig Granello, a Steelers fan who was backing the Jets, Brian Fitzgerald, a Pats fan, and Fairfielder Will Silbert, a Jets fan. In all, with kids and significant others in tow, we were a crowd of about 20.

Just over eight minutes into the game, a huge surprise came on a Patriots drive – a Brady pass was intercepted, the first one against him in 340 prior attempts. Unfortunately, New York didn’t capitalize on it and missed a resulting field goal try. Later in the quarter, New England made a similar FG to put the first score on the board and take the lead, 3-0.

“I think this is going to be close,” said Mucha, assessing the game at the close of the 1^st. “If the Jets don’t make any more mistakes, like the missed field goal, they’ve got a shot.”

In the 2^nd quarter, the Jets answered big with, first, a 37-yard pass completion, then TD run-in by Ladainian Tomlinson to put NY on top 7-3.

“I’m not worried,” said Pisanelli. “It’s still early. Our offense will definitely step up and rise to the occasion.”

The Pats fan was soon eating his words and holding his head as Sanchez connected with Braden Edwards at the close of the 2^nd to push the score to 14-3 Jets. NY fans in our group erupted with a chant of “J-E-T-S!”

Silbert weighed in with a halftime perspective. “I think the Jets are doing a great job frustrating the Patriots and pushing penalties. The Brady interception and sacks have been great, too. I really believe the Jets can pull this off.”

The Jets remained feisty in the 3^rd, continuing to get to and sack Brady. The angst clearly registered on the QB’s face, but didn’t keep him from tossing a TD pass and leading a 2-point conversion with seconds left in the quarter. This put the Pats within a field goal of NY, trailing 14-11.

The Jets refused to be overtaken and came out swinging again in the 4^th with Sanchez connecting to Santonio Holmes for another run-in, pushing the score to 21-11, NY.

“It’s all over now guys,” defended Pisanelli. “All you did was piss ‘em off,” he added, donning his Patriots helmet for the duration of the game.

Theresa took advantage of the moment to step in front of the crowd to rub it in, saying, “Just in case you don’t know the score, it’s 21-11 Jets. Brian, you stink!”

With less than two minutes of game time remaining, the Pats registered a field goal then tried an onside kick, but it ended up in the Jets’ hands and materialized into another New York TD. New England scored once more but couldn’t top the mighty Jets. The final score: 28-21, New York.

“Even though we have one more game left, I think we’re going to the Super Bowl!”, said Kubel’s 11-year-old son Matthew as Theresa good-naturedly tossed her husband’s Patriots helmet out into a backyard snow bank and his jersey to the floor.  

Kennedy Ctr. Annual Fundraiser Promises Roaring Good Time

Kennedy Ctr. Annual Fundraiser Promises Roaring Good Time:

Event founded 20 yrs. ago by Fairfielder Christine Donahue

Brow

(Posted to Fairfield.Patch.com 1/16)

By Mike Lauterborn

© 2011. All Rights Reserved.

1/10/11

Fairfield, CT – What began as a modest event two decades ago that raised about $4,000 has evolved into a leading regional occasion that has to date raised nearly $1 million. And while the event site and organization is Trumbull-based, the orchestration in large part is steered from Fairfield.

On January 29, beginning at 6:30 p.m., The Kennedy Center will hold its Annual Cabaret and Auction fundraising event at the Trumbull Marriott, Hawley Lane, Trumbull. As it has been for the last 20 years, this year’s event is being directed by Fairfielder Christine Donahue Brown. Themed around the “Roaring 20s”, the evening will offer talented Connecticut actors and actresses singing and dancing to popular show tunes, hors d’ouevres, a full-course dinner and a live and silent auction. Attendees are encouraged to wear something reminiscent of the era, such as a flapper dress or gangster suit, to play off the theme.

Brown, 41, founded the event at age 21 as a law student at Quinnipiac University. “I have a brother with Down Syndrome, who was 11 at the time,” she said. “He was a client of The Kennedy Center. I approached the center and told them I had an idea for a fundraiser. They were a little skeptical at first because of my age, but proved to be extremely supportive and encouraging.”

Now a partner at Fairfield law firm Donahue & Brown, LLC, Brown said the initial event was modest but that it has grown by leaps and bounds in both attendance and support. “Our first year, we only had about 120 guests, a small committee of eight and raised $4,000. Now, 20 years later, we’ve raised just shy of $1 million, have a committee of over 45 individuals and the event is a sold-out occasion, attracting about 425 attendees each year.”

As the event has grown in scope, so too has the Kennedy Center’s clientele – children and young adults with physical and mental disabilities. “When I first collaborated with them, they serviced about 400 people. Now they serve over 1,800,” said Brown.

The non-profit has helped its clients live and work in the community and has established supported residences dedicated to them. In Fairfield, the group home is Broadhurst Manor at 1038 Old Post Road. “The greatest thing the Center does is provide job coaches to help clients get and maintain jobs so they can eventually work independently,” added Brown.

The majority of people on the event committee were personally recruited by Brown and are either entertainers at the event, parents of children served by the Kennedy Center or administrative supporters. The committee includes four women from Fairfield: Debra Jones, Sondra Kennedy, Carol Karpovich and Ruth Ridgeway.

Brown is indebted to her committee and particularly to Ridgeway. “Ruth has been a contributor to the event for the last 10 years donating countless dollars and hundreds of hours of time in creating the event atmosphere through her company, Ruth Ridgeway Design.”

The Center continues to play a role in Brown’s brother’s life. “He is still served by the organization. They helped him acquire a position at Fairfield University as well as enroll in college-level classes where he studies art and photography.”

Martin D. Schwartz, President and CEO of The Kennedy Center, hopes this year’s event will set a new milestone. “We want to raise over $100,000 to bring us to the $1 million level. We encourage the community to show its support.”

For fundraiser tickets, call Debra Kane at The Kennedy Center, 203-365-8522, ext. 216.

Pequot Library Offers Volumes of Entertainment

Pequot Library Offers Volumes of Entertainment:

Books, LPs and band draw crowds to annual mid-winter sale

(Posted to Fairfield.Patch.com 1/15)

By Mike Lauterborn

© 2011. All Rights Reserved.

1/15/11

Southport, CT – They had books in their bags, a tune in their heads and a spring in their step as they merrily browsed a local book sale event that has become an area institution for more than a decade.

Saturday marked the opening day of Pequot Library’s 2011 Mid-Winter Book Sale. The popular event will continue Sunday noon-5 p.m. and Monday 9 a.m.-5 p.m., and conclude Tuesday 9 a.m.-noon. Mostly fiction (hardcover and paperback) is offered but also children’s books and videos, LPs, vintage paperbacks, collector comic books, matted prints, audio books and videos. Admission is free and all proceeds benefit the library.

“We’ve been doing this about 15 years,” said Dan Snydacker, the library’s executive director. “It started as a way to empty out our storage area, but then became an event unto itself. And because it’s held mid-winter, it tends to be smaller and quieter than our summer book sale, and people like that flavor and intimacy.”

Enhancing the atmosphere of the sale this year is live blues music performed by Mark Naftalin and Friends, at 1 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. Naftalin is a nationally known blues piano player who performed with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Radio station WPKN 89.5FM) was onsite at the library providing a live on-air feed of Naftalin’s performance.

“The addition of the live music really adds a nice component,” said Snydacker. “Six years ago, Mark alone volunteered to play piano. Gradually, he has been joined by other musicians and friends and this has become an important and fun part of the event. And because the music is broadcast on WPKN, the event is essentially shared with people in a wide area along the East coast.”

Snydacker added that the inclusion of LPs in the sale has been a plus. “One of our hardest working volunteers, Paige Gillies, is coordinating our LP section. There are lots of great titles and they’re priced right. You may even find a great treasure as did a visitor this morning who found a very rare Beatles album.”

Snydacker said the sale is an important fundraiser for the library and, just from a morning money count, they were way ahead of last year’s revenue. Equally important though was the power of the sale to magnetize people. “There’s a social aspect wherein people really come together over books.”

Book browsers combed through titles, happy to be attending and to find key selections. “I wait for the book sale and buy fiction and history,” said Southporter Peg North. “I read book reviews all the time and count on their guidance. I look for prize winners, too, like The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx, which I really look forward to reading.”

Stamford resident Dee Ronaghan searched titles with a strategic approach. “I keep a small catalog of books that I’ve read or want so that I don’t double purchase,” she said. “It’s a system that seems to work for me. I tend to buy fiction and try to stick to the list, but I always see other interesting titles.”

Phyllis Heine came all the way from Scarsdale, NY for the sale. “We usually come to the summer sale but had time this weekend to attend the mid-winter event. You never know what you’re going to find. Sometimes it’s something you’ve been seeking for a long time. We always go to Mystery first, then Fiction Classics and Travel. The band was an unexpected treat… really a pleasure.”

New Canaan resident John Zannini, who was drawn to the sale by the live WPKN broadcast, was having a ball sifting through boxes of LPs. “I’m finding some amazing records – my whole personal history with music is here.”

Library volunteer Madlyn Karpinski was just glad to be out of The Dungeon, the basement space where she and a team of some 25 other volunteers sort and price the books, preparing them over a week’s time for the sale. She said, “While it’s a lot of work, it’s very rewarding to do and this is such a fun social event.”

Audience ‘Rapt’ by Live Birds of Prey

Audience ‘Rapt’ by 
Live Birds of Prey:

Audubon Society shows hawks, owls and falcons up close

(Posted to Fairfield.Patch.com 1/15)

By Mike Lauterborn

© 2011. All Rights Reserved.

1/15/11

Fairfield, CT – These were not your everyday backyard birdfeeder birds but you might seem them up in the treetops nevertheless.

On Saturday morning, the Connecticut Audubon Society Center at 2325 Burr Street presented a Live Birds of Prey program that gave over 40 attendees the chance to meet up close falcons, hawks and owls that are native to Connecticut.

Linnea McHenry, the Animal Care Supervisor and Environmental Educator, a full-time worker at the Center, presented the program. McHenry teaches classes both at the Center and at local schools using the Society’s animals for demonstration purposes. This particular program is offered three to four times a year with a goal of raising awareness about the birds that are found in this local area and to help people identify the various species.

“People often wonder about the birds, thinking that they live in faraway places,” said McHenry, “when in reality they are native to the area. Each one of our birds has a story and all are non-releasable due to past injuries and domestication.”

McHenry said her presentation is a rare opportunity to be close to these amazing birds. “They are so powerful and wild. To work and train them is very fulfilling. It’s humbling really. They’re incredible. Unfortunately, they end up here usually because of an accident and they lose trust for humans. We work hard to win that back, which is really difficult to do. Then they go from being very independent to dependent on everything from us,” she explained.

Attendees were a mix of children, adults and even amateur nature enthusiasts, and all looked forward to the program.

“We see hawks around a lot in our area and now we get the chance to see them up close,” said Denise Rainey of Stratford attending with her grandson Nolan Liscinsky, 6. “Nolan likes neighborhood birds but I think he’s going to be wowed by the big ones.”

Adam Bell of Trumbull, attending with his son Austin, 2, and father Don, said, “Austin loves birds, particularly owls. It will be neat to see the different birds and to learn about them. He has bird books at home with sounds and related toys. What does an owl say, Austin?” The boy replied with a grin, “Whoooo!”

Speaking at the front of a high-ceilinged great room with large picture windows framed by icicles, McHenry didn’t disappoint. Donning leather gloves called gauntlets, she presented the first of several resident raptors, Bella the broad-winged hawk.

The newest in the Center’s care, Bella had been hit by a car, which damaged her left wing. She was initially treated by an independent “rehabber” and though she healed well, she couldn’t be re-released to the wild. She was very nervous at first and had to be kept in a large, dark mesh cage for two months before she gradually adjusted to her environment. McHenry spoke about its lifespan – usually 6 to 8 years in the wild – and diet which included mice, small birds and amphibians.

Bailey, an American Kestrel from the falcon family, was the second bird McHenry presented. Bailey had fallen out of its nest as a baby and was found by a woman who took him into her home and fed him milk and bread. Bailey got very sick and was taken to a vet. Luckily, the bird recovered but never gained the strength to survive in the wild. Attendees were delighted by its musical chirp and intricate feather patterns.

Perhaps the most popular bird was Millie, a female barn owl, that the Center had received when it was just two months old and is 100% domesticated. It’s heart-shaped monkey face and facts about its exceptional hearing and ravenous appetite intrigued the audience.

Snapping photographs at the back of the room with a serious Canon camera, self-described semi-pro wildlife photographer Ed Gonzalez of Killingworth, CT, was clearly moved. “I’m usually down on the Connecticut River photographing bald eagles and hawks. I haven’t had much luck with owls. I really love birds of prey.”

Casey’s the Place to Be for Young Adults with Special Needs

Casey’s the Place to Be for Young Adults with Special Needs:

Monthly themed activities provide safe, fun social outlet

(Posted to Fairfield.Patch.com 1/14)

By Mike Lauterborn

© 2011. All Rights Reserved.

1/14/11

Fairfield, CT – They came, they saw, they ate and they socialized.

The participants were young adults with special needs age 18+ and the attraction was Movie Night held early Friday evening at Casey’s Place, a space in Wakeman Hall at the First Church Congregational, 148 Beach Road. The featured film was the popular animated “Up” and various snack food supplemented the showing. The event attracted over two dozen people, including a few parent and professional chaperones.

“We started this program in Fall 2006 in honor of my daughter Casey,” said Jan Laster, a member of First Church. “She passed in July 2004 of brain cancer. She was sick for nine years. I know what parents of some of our program participants are going through. It’s a tough thing to see your child in distress.”

Laster said the program meets a very simple need. “People in any walk of life need to have outlets where they can socialize in a safe environment. Our attendees have a whole range of disabilities including autism, blindness, learning difficulties, Down Syndrome, cerebral palsy, etc.”

For Laster, the program presented a healthy diversion. “It was a way of dealing with my grieving process and gave me something to do as well. I need to do, do, do.”

Providing some program background, co-event coordinator Cathy Lambert said, “We meet October through May on the second Friday of each month, from 6:30 to 8. We have a theme and different activity every time. Last month it was survival cooking and a holiday party. Next month will be a Valentine’s dance. We usually have about 22 young adults attend.”

Lambert is a special education teacher in Fairfield Public Schools and taught many of the attendees when they were children. Supporting Lambert and Laster with event coordination is a small team of professionals including an occupational therapist, retired teachers, a paraprofessional and a speech therapist. 

Of the team, Lambert said, “They were very helpful in the beginning with building social skills and continue to be helpful in engaging attendees in conversation or helping with a project like December’s cooking event.”

While the program is held at the church, it is not church funded. All funding is awarded through a grant process and SEPTA (Special Education PTA of Fairfield), as well as through individual contributions.

Parents and staff also pitch in with food. “Sometimes people come with baked cookies, soda and water,” said Laster. “At our cookouts in May, they will bring side dishes to augment hamburgers and hot dogs.”

The community has also been very supportive of the program. “One time, we took the group to a Bluefish game and the team supplied the tickets,” said Laster.

The program goes beyond just offering a social outlet. “We’re working on not only social skills but life skills like cooking, summer safety and more, better preparing these young adults to be independent.”

The program has truly had an impact on participants. Said Deena Deitz, 23, who has cerebral palsy, “I’ve been coming since the beginning. I like to come to see my friends, get to hang out a little bit and see what’s going on. We remind each other about events through Facebook. One of my favorite past events was dancing. I can keep my own pace, which is important as the right side of my body doesn’t work so well. I can let my guard down.”

Parents have been equally impressed. “This is just fantastic, a great social outlet for these young people,” said Dianne Baxter. “We used to have to facilitate to get them to socialize but now they get together on their own. I didn’t expect it to leave Casey’s Place and it did. It’s a blessing. You just want to be here.”

The program has also fostered a relationship or two. Baxter’s son Jeff, 25, who is intellectually disabled, had the fortune to meet Melissa Gennari, 21, who has cerebral palsy, and they have been dating for almost a year.

“I never expected to meet someone here,” said Gennari. “It’s been really great. We go out to dinner, movies, bowling, each other’s houses.”

Laster officially commenced the evening by ringing a set of chimes to get everyone’s attention and gather in a circle. Each person introduced themselves to the group and then collected a snack and sat in a one of several rows of chairs that had been set up in front of a portable movie screen.

“Here we go!” said Amanda Fleita, 31, a smile of great delight spreading across her face. 

For upcoming events and more information, email Cathy Lambert at clambert@fairfield.k12.ct.us or call her at 203-259-2241.

Don’t Worry, Be Happy

Don’t Worry, Be Happy:

Fairfield Happiness Club meets tonight, 7pm, SHU

(Posted on Fairfield.Patch.com 1/13)

By Mike Lauterborn

© 2011. All Rights Reserved.

1/13/11

Fairfield, CT – Feeling blue? Allowing negative people to bring you down? Accepting certain events as unchangeable? Make a new year’s resolution to change all that and start by attending the monthly meeting of the Fairfield Happiness Club.

The Club meets tonight from 7 to 9 p.m. at Sacred Heart University, 5151 Park Ave., in the University Commons room. Educator/personal life coach Susan T. Dinnocenti will be the featured speaker, presenting a program titled “Filling or Fulfilling Your Life – Choose One!”. Anyone may attend and the program is free.

The latest presentation is one of over a hundred programs that have been presented by the Club since its founding in Jan. 2000 by retired printing executive Lionel Ketchian, 65. Ketchian is a Fairfield resident who has lived in town for the past 40 years, the married father of three children and a grandfather.

Ketchian’s inspiration for the Club began with an awakening back in Dec. 1990. As he described it, “I recognized that I was happy, and thought it was a great feeling. I’d gathered together some emotional wealth and wanted to hold onto it. It was an inner experience and culmination of happiness.”

Over the next 10 years, Ketchian read every book on happiness that was available. He said pickings were slim at the time and only since has there been an explosion of literature on the topic. Ketchian also read several books on philosophy including the works of Socrates.

“There was one thing in particular that Socrates wrote that had a lot of impact on me,” said Ketchian. “’Everything in life is a means to an end except one thing which is happiness, because happiness is an end in itself.’ Essentially, everything a rational person does is to derive happiness. I thought, boy, Socrates has been significant for 2,400 years and yet his teachings have been underutilized.”

He became inspired to teach a course on happiness at Sacred Heart University in Fall 1999. It was an adult education program open to anyone. “I really felt people were not benefiting from happiness, knowledge and value, so I taught the course for that reason.”

At the end of the course, the class said to Ketchian, ‘We didn’t think we could become happy and did’ and asked him if they could continue meeting on a monthly basis. They wanted to reinforce what they had learned and maintain their happiness.

“I started the Club in Jan. 2000 and we have been meeting every month since,” said Ketchian. “This is the beginning of our 12^th year. We had 19 people at the very first meeting and participants consisted of both students and other interested people. Now, meetings attract 60 to 70 people on average, and that’s just Fairfield. People who were interested and qualified have run with the format and created their own offshoots. There are now over 80 Happiness Clubs in the world, including 13 branches in Connecticut.

One of the key developments over the past 12 years that has spurred increasing interest in the topic, Ketchian said, is the introduction of Positive Psychology, the study of happiness and strengths, by Dr. Martin Seligman, a noted psychologist at the University of Pennsylvania. Seligman founded the International Positive Psychology Association and has written a number of widely accepted books on the subject.

In addition to leading the monthly Club meetings, Ketchian writes a bi-weekly “Be Happy Zone” column for a Fairfield newspaper, hosts a half hour “The Happiness Show” television program every Monday at 9:30 p.m. on Cablevision Ch. 88 and produces a free newsletter twice a month. These media breach different aspects of happiness, providing tools and ideas for people to use happiness.

“It takes a conscious, aware person to be happy,” said Ketchian. “We’re generally not mindful of available choices. We just allow certain events, circumstances and negative people to dictate our negative reactions and become unhappy. The choice you’re not aware of is the choice you cannot make. What I’ve practiced in my own life and teach is that happiness is a decision. You’re not going to have the life you want by not wanting certain things to happen to you. Most people get up and say, ‘I hope I don’t have a bad day.’ If you make the conscious decision to be happy, things really change, people treat you differently and positive things start to happen.”

For more information about the Happiness Club, contact Lionel Ketchian at 203-258-7777 or visit www.happinessclub.com

Fairfield Digs Out After Record Snow Dump

Fairfield Digs Out After Record Snow Dump:

Many Side Roads Still Impassable

(Posted to Fairfield.Patch.com 1/12)

By Mike Lauterborn

© 2011. All Rights Reserved.

1/12/11

Fairfield, CT – Homeowners grunted, groaned and moaned Wednesday afternoon as they dug out from a snowstorm that dropped an estimated 20 inches of snow in the area. Those able to dislodge their cars found most main roads clear but many side roads still impassable.

Patch made a tour through the Beach Area to survey road conditions and speak with shovelers. One resident (who declined to give his name) at the corner of Charles Street and Reef Road, said, “I started shoveling with my son at around 10. We’ve been going back and forth for a good four hours. This really sucks, but it is what it is when you live on the East coast. It comes with the territory.”

Further south on Reef, Griffin Reidy looked exasperated. “This is the biggest job I’ve ever done by far. I’ve got little more than a short sidewalk and some space behind the trucks and it’s literally taken me hours. The biggest part strategy-wise and physically has been trying to find places to heave all the snow.”

The Grossos – brothers John, Mike and Joe and nephew Joe – were busy plowing a drive on a family-owned property near a still unplowed Reef Court. “We’ve been around the area. It seems some streets are perfect, while some don’t seem to have been touched,” said John. “The last time it was this bad was 1978. It all came down in a period of 8 to 9 hours. Amazing.”

Walking north on Reef Road was Paris Mygatt, 22, Ashley Guy, 18, and Pamela Yates, 56. They had been touring the Beach Area and Penfield Beach. “The amount of snow was impressive there,” said Mygatt. “No one was there except for us. The side roads don’t seem to have been plowed. We’re on Alden and it definitely wasn’t plowed. Sandy Way was also bad – we saw only footprints.”

Bud’s Deli at 714 Reef was open for business but had seen little foot traffic. “I just got here at 1 p.m. but my boss said it was pretty slow this morning,” said counterperson “Sam” Perce, 20. “It’s starting to pick up now – people have come in for sandwiches.”

Steve Yap, at the corner of Sandy Way and Reef, had just finished shoveling and was salting his front walk. “Sandy Way was definitely not plowed. The snow’s up to my kneecaps. I literally can’t leave in any of my cars and I’ve got an SUV and a four-wheel drive.”

Housemates Colin Callahan, 21, Chris Hurd, 21, and Justin Nusblatt, 22, had just begun digging out the drive of their lower Reef Road rental. “We just got the motivation to get out here and shovel,” said Callahan. “It’s a lot of snow, up to your knees. It almost seems like an impossible feat to dig out, but we’re slowly getting there,” said Hurd. “This stuff needs to go away ASAP,” said Nusblatt.

Near the Seagrape, Celeste Stranaghan, 30, was unearthing her brand new Toyota Corolla, of which only the windshield wipers were showing. “It’s pretty buried. I’m going to be out here a while. I wanted to dig it out before the snow freezes.”

Shoveling the walk at That’s the Spirit Shoppe, 740 Fairfield Beach Road, owner Kevin Pinto, 38, said, “We opened at noon. We’ve had a few customers, though most people are still shoveling out. People have been saying, ‘I just got out of my driveway.’”

Letter Carrier Michael Richardson, making deliveries on Rowland Road, had his work cut out for him. “Most of the streets have been passable except for some side streets, like Lalley Blvd. I haven’t been able to deliver in some areas. A lot of people have been out shoveling so we can get to their houses. This has been a tough day. Just getting into work was a challenge with clearing my own driveway.”

Happy to have the day off, Smith Street residents Bella and Finula Milici, 9 and 10 respectively, were doing what kids do on snowdays. “We built this cool hill to sled down. It took us a while. We’ve having fun and may walk around the area later,” said Finula.