Connecticut Green Living

Update: Feb. 1, 2023. My hero, Tom Brady, has announced his retirement "for good". I wrote the following after his last "retirement", though this time I know it is true. Couldn't love you more, Tom. Thanks for showing millions of us how the game should be played, for providing a beacon during hard times, for being you. I will miss you. February 5, 2017 I had been watching Superbowl LI in my mom's man cave. She was, of course, back in her room. She wasn't a football fan, but told me she loved my enthusiasm for Tom Brady and (at the time, before he left them) the Pats. So when they pulled out a victory and I ran screaming into her room, seeing her face light up with sheer joy was its own kind of success. I had made my late mother happy just by being happy myself. The end of that game sticks with me because I was worried about Tom's mother Galynn - whom he was hugging, and who was suffering from breast cancer at the time. I worried she might pass away,...

Full disclosure: I had to leave Connecticut in May for a job in the D.C. area, and I'm pleased with my decision. But that doesn't mean there isn't a tug at my heart from Milford, where I spent over a dozen summers, when farmers' market season rolls around. So let's start with the Downtown Milford Farmers Market . It is held every Saturday, June 17 through Oct. 14, except on Oyster Fest Saturday (Aug. 19), from 9 AM to 1 PM. Get there early, right as they open, and you'll gobble up the best squash, cucumbers, and (my favorite) peaches. Also remember to pluck jams or fresh flowers and plants from the myriad vendors who come in from all points throughout the Nutmeg State. Kids can devour popsicles, Mom can get her pierogie-on-wheels fix, Dad can rock out to any number of musical acts who grace the space - located at 58 River Street, right by the train station, in the parking lot behind Corner Convenience and Scratch Baking. Of course, Milford isn't the on...

Whether you are single, married, or something in between, Connecticut has something to offer you this Valentine's Day. And let's be honest, it's not just a day. Some of us have been collecting our little conversation hearts since January 18th. While some may say, "Oh, it's just a day and Valentine's should be every day," we know those are the cheapskates who'd rather snore their way through any holiday (remember their lame excuses for not putting up a Christmas tree?) So here you go. Enjoy the holiday and the Valentine's weekend: 1. Putnam - Fire and Ice fest : February 11. Downtown Putnam will boast ice sculptures, horse and carriage rides, live music, ice luminarias, fire torches, fire dancing performances, fantastic food, live entertainment and as they say, much more. 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. 2. Willimantic - Romantic Willimantic 13th Annual Chocolate Festival : February 11. Organizer say, "The day begins with the Cupid Made Me Run road rac...

The following article originally appeared on Examiner.com, Feb. 13, 2016 Mold. The word conjures up images of two-week old bread in the fridge, that hunk of cheese we accidentally bit into or something we suspect in the crevices of the bathroom tiles. It's that last image this article aims to address. Robert Weitz, owner of RTK Environmental in Fairfield County, says that there are different signs to look for in winter versus summer. In summer, the worry and the danger stem from the humidity and condensation, but sometimes winter brings more insidious challenges. "Ice damming is a big issue," says Weitz. "On Facebook and Twitter we get a lot of traffic [concerning this problem]. [Ice damming means that] when we get a significant amount of snow on the roof, and then the sun on the next day, it causes snow to melt; and that water will end up, naturally, on the roof itself and flow down towards the gutter into the roof ... Now you have water [leaking] into the gu...

October is National Energy Awareness Month, and according to WalletHub, the average household spends nearly $2,000 a year on energy bills. In honor of this important month, the personal-finance website conducted what they say was "an in-depth analysis" of 2016’s most and least energy-efficient states. The top 10 most efficient states are, in order: New York, Utah, Minnesota, Vermont, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Colorado, Connecticut, and New Hampshire. The least efficient are, in order: West Virginia (#39), Kentucky, Georgia, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, Louisiana, and South Carolina (#48). We Nutmeggers can be proud that we ranked number 9 on the list, right behind Colorado but ahead of the Live Free or Die State. Yet, 9 isn't 1, so this reporter wanted to speak to someone at WalletHub who could explain how we could become first. Note, due to what WalletHub said were data limitations, Alaska and Hawaii were excluded from analysis....

This has been an astounding election season. At once nauseating as shocking, despicable as hilarious. Yes, if you don't have a sense of humor, your nerves and stomach won't survive this final stretch. But through it all, whatever your feelings about Hillary Clinton in particular, you must vote for her. To vote for a candidate who denies the existence of climate change is a vote for ruining the planet. Think of it: every day, Americans board planes, confident that the laws of science have allowed that plane to take off and get them safely to their destinations. And adventurous souls, from the SpaceX astronauts to National Geographic explorers to simply weekend backpackers, rely on physics, astronomy, geology and other disciplines to inform their every move. When a high school friend was killed during a rock climb of Half Dome in the '70s, it was a scientific principle that killed him, not the will of God or magic. When there is a tragic train accident, science is behind the...