Many of us are home, without an income and taking a harder look at what is in our cabinets and what we are purchasing. No worries! The same thing was done back in the day and a cookbook was assembled by the Norwich Bulletin Social Corner. There is no date in the edition I am looking at so I am guessing the 1950’s or possibly earlier.

I am going to share some of the recipes just as they are given. Some because they sound tasty, some because they made me smile and some because they me laugh. Some I recognize under a different name today. Ladies and gentlemen while everything and more is available on-line, go old school and see whats in the cookbooks in your kitchen.

Gravy for Two – ½ lb cubes stew beef, 2 tablespoons fat, 1 large onion. Cut up onions and fry them in the fat until light brown and then add the beef cubes add 1 or 2 green peppers, salt to taste, ¼ tsp sage, ¼ tsp cloves, ¼ tsp cinnamon; add pepper to taste, 1 can tomato soup and a cup of water. Put on the back of the stove and simmer for 3 hours or until meat is cooked. It is good on potatoes or Johnny cakes. Celery may be added. – Orchide

English Dish – 1 lb hamburg, 1 or more fried onion, 1 can creamed corn, mashed potatoes.

Fry onions a little, add hamburg, salt and pepper to taste, cook but not brown. Butter a casserole dish, place hamburg and onion mix on bottom to layer, put mashed potatoes over it. Add the corn and dot with butter, place in oven until corn on top browns . Serve with ketchup. – Green Hollow [No baking temp listed so probably 350]

Mock Meat Loaf – 1 ½ cups ground bread crumbs, 1 ½ cups coarse chopped English Walnuts, 2 stalks finely chopped celery, 1 hard boiled egg, 1 onion, 3 cooked potatoes mashed, some pimentos cut up.

Add above ingredients all together. Then add one raw egg beaten. Salt & pepper to taste. 1 cup hot water. A little poultry seasoning. Dot with butter. Bake ½ hour in moderate oven [No baking temp listed so probably 350] – Lilo

South American Chop Suey – 1 lb hamburg, 1 onion, 1 green pepper, 1 cup cooked rice, 1 can tomato soup, salt & pepper to taste. Chop onion and pepper. Fry in a small amount of fat until done. Add hamburg and let fry then pour off excess fat. Add tomato soup and cooked rice and simmer a few minutes to blend flavors. – Grace

Leftover loaves – 1 ½ cups chopped cooked ham, 2 cups chopped cooked noodles, 1 tablespoon chopped onion, ½ teaspoon chopped parsley, 1 egg, 1/8 teaspoon celery salt, 1 tablespoon flour, ½ cup milk. Mix together, bake in greased pan 25 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes after it comes out of the oven Salt and pepper to taste. – Tricks

Veal Frigaulet [Note: Spelled as in book] – Cut veal into bite size pieces. Brown in a skillet or heavy iron kettle, taking care not to burn. When nicely browned, simmer slowly, adding enough water to make a gravy. When nearly done add ¼ teaspoon allspice, salt and pepper to taste. When veal is done thicken with flour and a little chopped parsley. Serve with mashed potatoes, green string beans, cold slaw or a green salad. – Paradise Corner

Baked apple with onion. 3 apples (sliced,) 1 small onion, 1 cup well packed brown sugar, butter or margarine, bread crumbs. Butter casserole. Crumble one or two slices of bread in the bottom. Sprinkle with half the sugar. Slice the apples and add onions alternately that have been sliced thin. Add remainin sugar, dot with butter and cover with bread crumbs. Bake 1 hour or until apples are done with a cover on. More sugar may be added. This is good as a side dish while hot. [Personal note: I cut back on the sugar and change the spices at times to include cinnamon, or ginger, tumeric, or hint of curry. I serve on rice. .At Thanksgiving I mix in a can of whole cranberry sauce.]

Eggplant Columbia – 1 small eggplant, 1 ¼ cups medium white sauce, ¾ cup chopped ripe olives, ½ cup grated cheese. Pare and quarter the egg plant. Cover with boiling salted water. Boil for 15 minutes. Drain. Place in greased baking dish. Combine sauce and olives. Pour over the eggplant. Top with cheese. Bake in 375 degree oven for 10 minutes. – Wiltwyck

Torquemado -[Personal Note: This is not to be confused with Tomas de Torquemada – the Spanish Grand Inquisitor responsible for the death of thousands of Jews and suspected witches during the Spanish Inquisition (1420-1498)] 3 medium onions – sliced and separated into rings, 2 tablespoons bacon fat, 2 cups canned tomatoes, 2 eggs, 3 or slices buttered toast, salt & pepper to taste. Cook onions in hot fat until yellow. Add tomatoes and simmer about 20 minutes or until onions are tender. Add salt & pepper. Remove from heat and add eggs, stirring them quickly in the tomato mixture. Serve over toast triangles. Yield – 3 to 4 servings – Grace

Mountain Dew. 4 or 6 rolled crackers, 1 pint milk, 2 egg yolks, butter size of walnut. Bake 1/2 hour. Add beaten egg whites with 3/4 cup sugar. Bake 15 minutes 1 pint sweet milk, 4 tablespoons cocoanut, ½ cup cracker crumbs, yolks of 2 or 3 eggs. Add beaten egg whites with 1 cup sugar. Bake ½ hour. – Semaeve [Note: This is as it appears. No changes whatsoever.]

Vinegar Dumplings – 1 cup molasses, 1 cup water, ¼ cup vinegar. Let above come to a boil and drop dumplings into syrup. Note: Do not make dumplings too large as they will sear all over much better. – Lena

Ring-Tum Diddy – ½ lb grated American Cheese, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 can tomato soup, a few grains of cayenne (optional), toasted crackers or toast. Melt cheese over a slow fire in saucepan; add cayenne and tomato soup. Stir well until thoroughly mixed. Serve on large crackers or toast. – Fuchia

Thank you for reading and sharing my history and Norwich Community blog freely with your family or friends or anyone you think might be interested or in a position to take on some of the suggested projects. Don’t hesitate to contact me for further information. I am happy to pass along anything I can. Together we can make a difference. Email comments on this blog to berylfishbone@yahoo.com View my past columns at http://www.norwichbulletin.com/section/blogs .

Did you receive a thin envelope from the U. S. Census Bureau ? But you put it down and then lost it? Kids used it as scrap? Did the dog eat it? Did you open it, look at the blue page with a box around a 12-digit number and decide to do it later? Now is a good time.

BUT, if you can’t find the blue paper or it hasn’t arrived, you can still reply. Everyone is invited to reply no invitation required.

Step 1 – Go to the website my2020census.gov

Step 2 – Either fill in the 12 digit number from your blue page

or

Click on the line saying Do not have a Census ID

Step 3 – Click on the correct response for you and then Next

Please select where you will be living on April 1, 2020.

A U.S. state or the District of Columbia

Puerto Rico

Somewhere else

Step 4 – Fill in the correct response for you and then Next

Where will you be living on April 1, 2020? (Help)

Please provide a complete street address for your residence. Provide the street address you would use to have a package delivered directly to your residence, not a rural route or P.O. Box address used for mailing purposes. A street address is the most helpful for processing your response.

Address Number Ex: 101 Example Address Number: 101

Street Name Ex: N Main St Example Street Name: N Main St

Apt/Unit Ex: Apt 23 Example Apartment or Unit Number: Apt 23

City

State

ZIP Code

Or I do not have a street address

Then the system will take you through the Household, people and final questions.

At the end you will be given a 32 digit confirmation number with the suggestion you print out the page but it is not required.

I printed my page out so I could show it in case a Census person comes knocking at my door.

So relax. Completing the 2020 Census is important but if you don’t have the invitation with the number, its O K. The Census2020 computer system is still ready 24 hours a day for you. Call 1-844-330-2020 with any questions, problems or concerns or just check out the website most answers are there.

Thank you for reading and sharing my history and Norwich Community blog freely with your family or friends or anyone you think might be interested or in a position to take on some of the suggested projects. Don’t hesitate to contact me for further information. I am happy to pass along anything I can. Together we can make a difference. Email comments on this blog to berylfishbone@yahoo.com View my past columns at http://www.norwichbulletin.com/section/blogs .

I am trying to clean. Operative word is trying. I came across a book and I set it aside but then it fell to the floor so I had to pick it up again. I read the title,The New York Book of Tea by Niles & McNitt, 1995 and put it on the table to read later. I was passing by the table later when it fell to the floor. This time, I decided to have a seat and a peek at the contents.

It is a small book but its contents are much like a Visitor to Norwich booklet of the 1920’s. It lists where to have a rest, a cup and the type of tea to enjoy there, what their best savory or sweet is and the price. Hotels, restaurants, tearooms, museums, department stores are all listed. How to choose between Japanese and Chinese teas. How to choose a tea by its packaging. All were very interesting. Very concise and well written but I got stuck on the section titled, Where to buy teaware, subsection – Setting the table. More things I never even knew I did not know.

If you ever need a gift for me, may I suggest anything from this list. I abbreviated some of the descriptions.

A Teapoy: a small pedestal table with a lidded compartment to hold glass or lead containers for tea and porcelain mixing bowls for combining special blends.

A Tea Caddy: A container of silver, glass or inlaid wood in an extraordinary variety of shapes and sizes.

A Caddy Spoon: A short handled scalloped spoon used to measure tea leaves. In the early days, Chinese merchants included a scallop shell tea leaf scoop in each tea chest they shipped to Europe.

A mote spoon: A dainty, slightly pointed spoon with a shallow or pierced bowl to skim off specks of tea leaf that may escape the pot into the cup.

Tea strainer, tea kettles, and tea stands were described too.

A tea tray can be almost two feet in length; designed to hold a kettle on its stand, a teapot, a sugar canister, tea caddies, and a milk pitcher. The tray was usually footed to prevent contact with wood surfaces and had raised edges to prevent things from sliding off. The tray might have been fashioned from silver, tole, or papier-mache. The weight of the tray has my arms sore now and I am questioning the weight and strength of the papier-mache.

A tea table is small with a rim.

A muffin dish is of course made of silver, with a hot-water liner and high domed lid to keep the muffins warm. A muffineer is similar to a large-scale domed pepper pot with a perforated decorative top. Its used to sprinkle cinnamon or sugar on toasted goodies. You should use proper etiquette to toast your bread near the fire with your long handled two or three-tined spindly handled toasting fork so you don’t burn your face or hands.

A sugar basin holds pieces of sugar broken off from a cone. Sugar tongs permit guests to pick up the sugar and place it in their cup.

A well placed slop bowl makes it easy to dispose of the dregs of the prior cup of tea.

Teacups are shallow, gently swelling bowls with a single handle which may also be footed.

The saucer is a shallow plate with a circular indentation to prevent the cup from slipping off.

A creamer is a small pitcher for milk. Although cream should never be put in tea- its high fat content masks the flavor and oil globules may float to the top.

Teaspoons are a pointed or oval spoon used for blending milk and dissolving sugar into tea. In the hierarchy of spoons, they come after the dessert and before the coffee spoon.

I have to go now. I need to find out what a coffee spoon looks like.

Be safe. Wash early. Wash often. Stay well.

Thank you for reading and sharing my history and Norwich Community blog freely with your family or friends or anyone you think might be interested or in a position to take on some of the suggested projects. Don’t hesitate to contact me for further information. I am happy to pass along anything I can. Together we can make a difference. Email comments on this blog to berylfishbone@yahoo.com View my past columns at http://www.norwichbulletin.com/section/blogs .

This is a full fledged rant. I am on the official government DO NOT CALL lists. The list for my land line phone and the list for my cell phones. I am not at all certain who it stops from calling me. People call me to sell car insurance, windows, doors, roofs, health insurance, medicare hole insurance, solar panels, and great savings on my utilities, and credit cards.[Side rant: My utility bill is over 93% NPU customer membership fees and not usage) This company or that company is a paid solicitor to collect for the local police, fire and rescue services. Not according to the Norwich Chief of Police and Fire Departments/rescue services. Researchers need my dollars to find a cure for diseases that have not been invented yet. On occasion, depending on my mood, I have given them the inside number to the police department. I was just trying to be helpful.

I can’t trust the numbers I see because I have seen my own number being used. That’s right, one day my caller ID told me I was calling myself. I picked up and learned I was collecting for some charity I had never heard of. I put them on hold and called an immediate meeting of my split personalities, my separate identities, my aliases, my conscience, but there was a delay to wait for the triplets, Me, Myself and I to show up (they are always late.) I asked everybody if they had given our number to a company to use to call for donations. No one said they had. Oops. I left the person on hold while I checked and then forgot them.

I let calls go to an answering machine and voice mail but sometimes, I am expecting a call and pick up the phone when it rings. I have begged, pleaded, demanded, spoken with the supervisor and the manager to be removed from their list to call. If I can get enough information from them I send it to the Secretary of State Office, the CT Attorney General Office and the Better Business Bureau (but the companies are from out of state so they can’t even put them on a bad list.)

I can’t not answer because I don’t recognize the number or the name. I frequently deal with friends I haven’t met yet for an assortment of local and far away projects. If you get a message, please don’t hang up but leave a clear message and a phone number and I will call you back.

Thanks for listening. I feel better now.

Remember to wash your hands with soap. Even the webby part between your fingers and be well.

Thank you for reading and sharing my history and Norwich Community blog freely with your family or friends or anyone you think might be interested or in a position to take on some of the suggested projects. Don’t hesitate to contact me for further information. I am happy to pass along anything I can. Together we can make a difference. Email comments on this blog to berylfishbone@yahoo.com View my past columns at http://www.norwichbulletin.com/section/blogs .

When times are tough everyone needs a reflective story time. The Norwich Morning Bulletin borrowed this story from the New York Sun on February 28, 1891. So settle in and settle back and at the end of the story, titled, “Making Diamonds Grow.”

“Look at this stone,” said a young journeyman jeweler in a street car the other day, removing a tissue paper wrapping from a piece of white wax, in the center of which a beautiful diamond blazed. “That is worth at the least $180.”

“How is it you can afford to buy such a valuable stone as that?” asked one of his friends who knew his circumstances.”

“I will put you onto the map,” said the jeweler. “That stone has been growing for a year, and I think that it has got its growth.”

“What do you mean by a diamond growing?” asked the friend.

“I will tell you. You remember the little spark I had in my scarfpin Christmas. Well, this is what it has grown to in less than a year. That little stone cost me a dollar and the pin cost me $2.80. I sold the pin for $8., and bought an eight carat stone a little off shade for a trifle over $5. I bought a stud setting. You know you can get those things quite low now. They are made up by the thousands by firms which do not take finished goods. Well, I put the stone in the setting on a spiral and sold it the same week for $18. Then I went to the office and bought the best stone I could get for $15 and mounted that in the same manner. I wore it a month and then sold it for $30, and I put $25 into another stone. It was a little beauty, and I traded it for another one of about the same size, and got $5 to boot. That put the stone down to $20, and I put it into a setting that cost me about $3, and sold it a few days later for $35. I got another stone for $30, and had it two months before I made a turn with it; then I cleared $12 and put the money into a beautiful stone, which brought me up to $60, when I sold it in a handsome stud setting.

“Then I got a chance to sell a ring for $75, and I made it to order, putting in a stone which cost me $42.50. I put the whole $75 into another stone, which I carried around for a while, and had fully made up my mind to keep, but a butcher offered me $100 for it and I sold it to him. It was in a crown setting, which cost me $6.25. For the hundred I got a dandy stone, and I was sure I would keep that one, but I have had four better ones since, and have got up to $180. I can’t go much higher than that, I guess, for there are few men of my acquaintances who can afford to tempt me with a profitable offer for it. I wouldn’t sell it tonight for $200, because I know that I have got a bargain. I’m a pretty good judge of diamonds, and when I put that stone in a nice ring I will make it look like $250 worth, and I don’t think that anybody can persuade me to sell it for anything less. In all the changes I don’t think I have put in more than $16 or $18 of my pocket money. The rest has all been profit on the stones and settings.”

Alright now ladies and gentlemen of 2020, “Discuss.” What lesson is being taught? Is it different from the lesson learned? Could this be done today? How? Does his math prove out? Do you think the story is true? Why was the story printed in the paper? What questions are you raising?

Thank you for reading and sharing my history and Norwich Community blog freely with your family or friends or anyone you think might be interested or in a position to take on some of the suggested projects. Don’t hesitate to contact me for further information. I am happy to pass along anything I can. Together we can make a difference. Email comments on this blog to berylfishbone@yahoo.com View my past columns at http://www.norwichbulletin.com/section/blogs .

When you go to the public meetings you observe the most amazing things. The downtown roundabout was one of those things. The flower filled fountain on Washington Street may become the center of the Roundabout again. Almost exactly where it once stood. In August 2017 I wrote about the wonderful woman of Norwich, CT who thought of it, designed it and after a large public battle, monumental (couldn’t resist a pun) fundraising saw the project through.

Today, there is no rock with a plaque giving her credit. Few today know her name or any of the myriad of things she was and still is responsible for in this city. So once again here is her name and her story. I take pride in once more giving a name to the people of action who grasped responsibility and took the actions necessary to get things done. In Norwich it was usually a struggle and against the odds and the advice of others. As people travel past the fountain on Washington Street I hope someone will remember to tell this little tale. Bravo Mrs. Hubbell! May your fighting spirit continue to live on in the residents of Norwich, CT.

This information is from the August 25, 1906 Norwich Bulletin, The Fountain and Birds and Beasts. – What a persistent little woman did for God’s creatures.

It “is always a pleasing sight to passengers waiting on the Trolley cars in Franklin Square to note the enjoyment obtained by the birds and the cats and the dogs of the little low-down troughs in the Franklin Square fountain and the large dogs ‘ bathtub on the back of that quencher of thirst for human beings and horses; but few people remember how that fountain came to be such a perfect boon for man and bird and beast.

In the days when that fountain was designed Mrs. Lucretia Bradley Hubbell was a more active woman for years than any other woman in Norwich and, like her friend, Dr. Walker, she was doing things for others whenever she could find an opportunity. When she first broached the subject of making those little animal troughs her views were simply laughed at, but by her persistent effort that fountain was made a perfect servant for all God’s creatures.

When the birds are drinking and bathing there on hot summer days and the setter dogs are bathing in the rear trough and the pet pugs and smaller dogs are rolling in the little pools of water beside the fountain, those familiar with its history witness the fruits of one persistent woman’s sympathy and love for dumb creatures. The wisdom of her work is shown by the creatures she spoke for in these close and sultry days.”

The fountain has moved but God’s creatures are still enjoying the troughs now filled with flowers. Thank you once more Mrs. Lucretia Bradley Hubbell for your caring, persistence, and foresight.

Maybe this time when its moved we can all learn a bit more about the work of Lucretia Bradley Hubbell, woman of foresight and action.

Thank you for reading and sharing my history and Norwich Community blog freely with your family or friends or anyone you think might be interested or in a position to take on some of the suggested projects. Don’t hesitate to contact me for further information. I am happy to pass along anything I can. Together we can make a difference. Email comments on this blog to berylfishbone@yahoo.com View my past columns at http://www.norwichbulletin.com/section/blogs

Yes! The Connecticut State Legislature is in session. So now all the organizations and people with an agenda are telling their friends, families, supporters, and members to call, write and testify in Hartford to support or not to support on a date and place subject to last second change.

Recently I attended a very nice presentation of the Connecticut Women and Girls Task Force on Public Policy. There were two very nice speakers on Advocacy Training explaining that advocacy is defined as any activity to effect social or political change. That advocacy is an opportunity for everyone to make their voice heard through legislation, administration and our communities.

I also read a great article in Nature Conservancy Spring 2020 by JoAnn Tredennick whose tips I have added.

Together we advocate by building relationships in our communities and with our legislators and coalitions. Educating ourselves, our communities and our law and policymakers. Did you know that the same people who write, create and pass the laws are not the same people as the policymakers?

You can learn more about the steps of how a bill is passed on the Connecticut General Assembly website www.cga.ct.gov Each bill must have a public hearing before it moves forward. Most legislators do read and listen to the testimony presented. Your voice matters. Spend time with candidates before they are elected. Become a trusted source of reliable information.

Advocacy is about sharing your experience through salesmanship, persuasion and facts. Be prepared with facts to back up your story. Keep your story short and to the point. It’s your story so it’s ok to have emotion.

Talking to your legislator in Hartford can be hard as they are generally rushing from one meeting to another. Be flexible. Do not be offended if they have to rush off unexpectedly or if their phone rings. Just turn to the legislative aide and identify yourself by name and town. Keep your story to under thirty words. Then ask the legislators position on the specific issue. It is acceptable and encouraging to have a Legislator say, “I will have to get back to you.” Ask for a written response if you spoke with an aide and not the legislator and don’t forget to provide your name, address, phone and e-mail for the response. Say “Thank you, ” regardless of the result. There is always a next time.

When you write testimony for a public hearing be certain to have the correct hearing number as it may change at the last minute. Clearly state your position (support or oppose) and how it will impact individuals and communities. Give examples of your experience and data. When you e-mail the testimony cc: your own legislators.

Why are you still reading this? There are issues that are important to you. Be heard!

Thank you for reading and sharing my history and Norwich Community blog freely with your family or friends or anyone you think might be interested or in a position to take on some of the suggested projects. Don’t hesitate to contact me for further information. I am happy to pass along anything I can. Together we can make a difference. Email comments on this blog to berylfishbone@yahoo.com View my past columns at http://www.norwichbulletin.com/section/blogs .

Now why didn’t I ever think of that? Make an x-shape with two wire hangers so that an upside down flying disc can be laid in the opening and fill with water for a bird bath or place a few marbles in the disc with the water so the bees, moths and butterflies can have an easier time enjoying a refreshing drink.

Butterflies are attracted to over ripe bananas so put a banana in a hanging corn birdfeeder during the summer. Better butterflies than the cursed and destructive squirrel that rips and destroys my porch cushions every year for her nest. By the way, I have thrown away the cushion without replacement. She will have to resort to branches and leaves like everyone else.

Moths, can be attracted with a smear of paste on a tree made of beer, brown sugar, and overripe banana. Do not smear it on house as the mix may also attract ants.

I never thought about night insects as pollinators until I read an article somewhere (I should have made notes but I did not) of how there are daytime and nighttime moths. The nighttime moths also spread the flower pollen during their nightly search for nectar.

When you plan your garden consider planting a few areas with late day or night blooming plants or flowers. As the days grow longer and warmer the afternoon and night bloomers extend the beauty of your garden.

I have a few plants that spread easily and I am pretty certain they are really weeds but they are pretty so they stay. I have planted clumps on purpose and can barely keep them alive for the season. I am also blessed with volunteers. Volunteers are the plants that grow with abundance and joy that found a home in my soil by accident or nature.

I saw a big brown rabbit the other day. The first I have seen in a long while due to some hunter cats and two hawks that consider my area their hunting and feeding ground. I encouraged the hawks to hunt and feast on the resident groundhog. You’re right I do not like him or her. He built the den right next to my house foundation with no consideration for upsetting my roses and plantings. Let alone, the huge deep entryways he built for his home. One entry was not enough for him, he has built at least three entries and just threw the dirt wherever he saw fit. I checked with Norwich city hall and he did not file any building permits or plans.

If you have started looking at your yard thanks to this early warm weather, mark your calendar for the Norwich Plant Swap, to be held from 11 am – 2 pm at the Lower Parking Lot of Mohegan Park Center in Norwich, CT. No fancy pots needed. Bring your “extra” plants with roots or bulbs wrapped in newspaper. Indoor and outdoor plants are welcome. First time adopting plant parents and experienced gardeners are encouraged. We are hoping to see a wide selection of herbs, flowers, vegetables, trees and bushes. Learn two make plant pots from a can. There will also be a variety of free seed packets available . Plenty of free parking. No reservations needed. No plants to swap? That’s ok, you are welcome with hope you will find a plant or two to take home.

Thank you for reading and sharing my history and Norwich Community blog freely with your family or friends or anyone you think might be interested or in a position to take on some of the suggested projects. Don’t hesitate to contact me for further information. I am happy to pass along anything I can. Together we can make a difference. Email comments on this blog to berylfishbone@yahoo.com View my past columns at http://www.norwichbulletin.com/section/blogs .

Someday I would like to have an original thought. Every single one of the suggestions I have made to the leaders of Norwich, CT to do, has been something that has already been done somewhere else. I am just looking for Norwich, CT leaders, elected, organizational and volunteer, residents, taxpayers and businesses to discover that Norwich is diverse and can appeal to an even greater diversity of people and interests than what it has in the past and the present.

In the future I would like to see Norwich, CT be listed among one of the top ten artsy towns in Connecticut. On June 28, 2018 Natalie Clunan wrote an article for Only in Your State on what she referred to as “7 Artsy Towns.”  Clunan wrote about Old Lyme, Norfolk, New Haven, Chester, Ridgefield, East Haddam and Cornwall.

Five museums demonstrate Norwich, CT has as much history as those towns. Have you visited them all? Can you name them? We have two playshops in Norwich that bring plays and musicals to the public. Which performance did you enjoy the most? Varieties of music can be heard year-round thanks to Strange Brew, Lottie Scotts Jazz Series, Rock the Dock at Brown Park, and people of all ages can still enjoy the experience of music on a genuine town green. Make it a date night! Speaking of green Norwich is home to a 500-acre wood in the center of the city with walking trails, ball fields, basketball and tennis courts, a beach, picnic facilities, and more with plenty of convenient parking and everything is free. No admission, parking or use fees.

Clunan illustrated her article with photos of smiling and happy people enjoying group and solitary activities. Photos of food showed variety and always plated at its best. It is long past time for Norwich, CT promoters and photographers to begin telling the experience of Norwich with photographs that show joy, laughter and people. Selfies and the same three people in every photograph are unacceptable. Readers need to see the building and the openings of buildings and businesses not more photographs of empty buildings, or another last photo before the building or company closed, burned or was torn down. Show employees a work. Show clients happily making decisions. Make it clear Norwich is a dynamic community.

Norwich, CT has some lovely old homes that would benefit from En Plein (artists who work outside) artists being welcomed to visit and to paint. Next time you are paging thru a travel magazine or visiting a website count how many photographs are of photographers or artists painting a scene or a home. We hear a lot about the architecture of Norwich so why aren’t we promoting it? Let’s begin a program of showing off the wounds and the scars of the growth of the city over the years.

Its exciting to see such interest in walking tours of Norwich, CT and some of the tours have begun to demonstrate some creativity. Otis library has past issues of the Norwich newspapers on microfiche and film so true local stories from different eras, some happy, some tragic and some completely improbable can be told. What a change those would be from the “a dead person lies in the grave below that old headstone.” “A revolutionary war hero is said to have eaten dinner here.” Or one of my favorites, “On this street, everyone was a millionaire.”

Glad to know the dead person was buried but I like the stories of what a person did while they were alive. Sometimes its the details of how they died that get my attention. Before the age of the World Wide Web it was easy to make up stories of great people eating and sleeping because it was hard to check the facts. Now everyone can check whether that famous celebrity was in fact where the claim is said to be or if its a much repeated fairy tale. Millionaires there might have been but I enjoy more the story of the father who built the Norwich mansion for his son in hopes he would behave more like a man of worth and take his responsibilities seriously. I adore the well documented story of the insurance swindling couple of Norwich, CT. Runaway husbands and runaway brides of Norwich deserve their own Hallmark series. Lost love, jewelry, exciting destinations of New York, Washington DC and Chicago spiced with detectives, taxi drivers and meddling in-laws and parents. Dad was a famous artist. Son was on a buying trip to Norwich for specialty items. Hearts fluttered but then what happened? Sorry, I got a little carried away.

How many of us will travel miles to attend an event we read or hear about but are too busy to attend a similar event right here in town. Have you ever been to a First Friday of the month in Norwich? Have you enjoyed a Polish Supper on a Second Friday? You have missed a delicious treat if you have not.

Drone photos are a developing industry and Norwich has some interesting and unique roofs with features that can only be seen from above. What a tourist and promotional draw it would be to the city if the some of them were photographed and used as an enticement to draw other drone photographers and hobbyists.

Diversity festivals are a current rage and Norwich has a rich history of celebrating the religious and cultural origins of its residents but instead of taking charge Norwich residents are fine with flying a flag of a chosen country and assembling the same for each event out of town food trucks and purveyors of plastic toys and bouncy houses. Parades too have begun to re-appear on the streets of Norwich but there will be no laughter, noise, or music. Parades in Norwich are silent and solemn events. I want to hear the noise of a parade above the car radio. I want to see the parade and the skill demonstrations on the local cable and school stations and websites. I want to hear the music of the radio station even if I don’t like it.

Norwich is a city where there are things to do, people to see, meet and greet but we, as residents need to brighten the dingy, shine the light, and be loud and proud as the old becomes new again.

Thank you for reading and sharing my history and Norwich Community blog freely with your family or friends or anyone you think might be interested or in a position to take on some of the suggested projects. Don’t hesitate to contact me for further information. I am happy to pass along anything I can. Together we can make a difference. Email comments on this blog to berylfishbone@yahoo.com View my past columns at http://www.norwichbulletin.com/section/blogs .