Darien Morning Briefing: 2.28.12, Tuesday

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Today is Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2012.

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HEADLINES:

• (Herve opinion column)

• ("You Said It" column)

EVENTS & REMINDERS

Adults:

• Power Struggle: Balancing the Needs of People, Power and Trees: 7 p.m., Town Hall Auditorium: "a panel of speakers from several stakeholders such as C.L. & P., the Governor’s Two-Storm Panel, P.U.R.A. (the Public Utility Regulatory Authority), the Connecticut Forest  and Park Association and others who will  speak on this all important issue of powers outages, past and future, and what can be done to reduce their frequency and duration. A Q&A will follow their presentations."—from on Darien Patch.
• Long-term care insurance—don't miss out: 7 p.m., Darien Library: "If you’re 40 or older, long-term care insurance approved by the State’s Connecticut Partnership for Long-Term Care should be part of your retirement plan. These policies assure you of the highest quality standards. They’re affordable and provide asset protection, protect against inflation, and – most importantly – give you peace of mind through your retirement years. Come learn about how the State’s Partnership for Long-Term Care can help you plan ahead for your future needs."—from the Darien Library announcement.
• START READING IT NOW: March 6: Spring Book Discussion on "Steve Jobs," a biography by Walter Isaacson. "We have copies of the books available for patrons to borrow, but prior reading of the books is not necessary to attend the discussions. [...] Our Spring Book Discussion Series will continue with The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides on Tuesday, April 3 at 7 p.m., and The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach on Tuesday, May 1 at 7 p.m."—from the Darien Library announcement.
• Darien TV79 Program Guide
• at March 2-4

Kids:

• Toddler Tales: 10:30 to 11 a.m., Storytime Room, Darien Library. "Walkers up to 36 months and caregiver."—from the library announcement.
• Sleepy Time: 6 to 6:30 p.m., Storytime Room, Darien Library. "2 to 6-year-olds family storytime"—from the library announcement.
• Register for "Think Beyond": "For a few hours on Saturday mornings, the students and teachers at Think Beyond, on the campus of , engage in real 21st Century learning through hands-on, collaborative, global, and experiential activities designed to encourage deeper thinking."—from on Darien Patch.

Teens:

• Darien High School Shedule of periods: "E" Day: 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 8
• Darien High School Principal's Winter Newsletter
• Submit art for Congressional Art Competition: "Congressman Jim Himes (CT-4) is inviting Fourth District high school students to participate in the Congressional Art Competition, a nationwide art competition and exhibition conducted by members of the U.S. House of Representatives."—from on Darien Patch.
• Vote in the DMV Teen Safe Driving Video Contest for 2012: See the video attached to this article. The Connecticut DMV and Travelers Insurance are "sponsoring a challenge to communities – in Connecticut and outside the state — to view these videos and rally behind one,  as shown by the number of views it gets,  that best supports a community safety message.  Please help us promote this challenge. [...] Schools ranking in the Top 10 [...] can be viewed at: http://www.youtube.com/teensafedriving12 "—from The Depot website
• February Doings at the Depot (calendar)
• WRITING COMPETITION: For this third annual event sponsored by library, there is "$100 for the winner in each age group and category, You will also have the opportunity to meet with published authors and have your work printed and read by a large audience. And can you imagine putting this on your college applications?" Poetry, fiction and nonfiction are all accepted. If you have any questions, call Erica at 669-5225. [...] To enter email your entry along with the application form to teenstaff@darienlibrary.org beginning on Jan. 1.  Participants have until Feb. 28 to enter for a chance to win cash prizes.  An awards ceremony will conclude the competition on Saturday, March 31."—from the Darien Library website.

DARIEN PLAYHOUSE SHOWTIMES

• The Artist: 7 p.m., P.G. 13 (1 hr., 40 min.)—IMDb—trailer—Rotten Tomatoes

• The Vow: 7 p.m., PG-13 (1 hr., 44 min.)—IMDb—trailer—Rotten Tomatoes

GOVERNMENT MEETINGS

All meetings take place in , 2 Renshaw Rd., unless otherwise noted. Since Darien town government provides no reliable, centralized list of town government meetings, and there is not enough time in the day to go searching for them, this list may well be incomplete:

• Board of Education, 7:30 p.m., Board meeting room, Darien Public Schools offices in Town Hall (agenda)

• Power Struggle: Balancing the Needs of People, Power & Trees, 7 p.m., Auditorium (description) ( on Darien Patch)

• Darien Housing Authority, 7:30 p.m., Room B1

• Planning & Zoning Commission, 8 p.m., Room 206 (agenda)

FORECAST as of 11:59 p.m., Monday (update)

• Tuesday: "Mostly sunny, with a high near 43. West wind between 14 and 17 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph."

• Tuesday Night: "Mostly cloudy, with a low around 30. North wind between 5 and 9 mph."

INTERSTATE 95 TRAFFIC CAMS

See also Darien Patch's "Traffic & Gas Prices" page.

• Stamford: southbound, Exit 8 - Elm St.

• Stamford: northbound, south of Exit 9 - Lockwood Ave.

• Darien southbound, north of Exit 9 - Darien Service Plaza

• Darien northbound Exit 12 - Tokeneke Rd.

• Darien northbound, south of Exit 13 - Darien Service Plaza

• Darien southbound, Exit 13 - Rt. 1 (Boston Post Rd.)

• Norwalk southbound, Exit 15 - Stuart Ave.

• Norwalk Rt 7 south of Exit 1 - Connecticut Ave.

• Norwalk northbound, Exit 15 - Rt. 7

TIDES & TIMES

• Sunrise: 6:30 a.m.
• Sunset: 5:43 p.m.

• High tide: 3:13 a.m. (6.8') 
• Low tide: 9:47 a.m. (0.6')
• High tide: 3:49 p.m. (6.1')
• Low tide: 9:56 p.m. (0.9')

HOW TO USE PATCH:

Forecast obtained from the National Weather Service; tide information obtained from saltwatertides.com (calibrated to Long Neck Point).