Darien Morning Briefing: Dec. 7, 2011

Today is Wednesday, Dec. 7, the 340th day of 2011, six days before the town Shuffle Referendum and 18 days before Christmas.

Seventy years ago today, on Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese forces attacked Pearl Harbor, bringing the United States into World War II.

HEADLINES

• Bill Clinton to Visit Darien Friday

Holiday-related:

SHUFFLE REFERENDUM INFORMATION:

Websites for each camp:

• Vote Yes Darien
• Stop the Shuffle

From the town website:

• Taxpayer Impact of BOE/Mather Community Center Renovation
• P&Z Commission Mandatory Referral, 2 Renshaw Rd.
• P&Z Commission Mandatory Referral, 35 Leroy Ave.
• Mather Community Center Cost Analysis
• BOE/Mather Community Center Presentation, 9.19.11
• Annual Debt Service & Outstanding Principal
• Bond Total
• Public Works Garage Remodel
• BOE Occupancy Comparison
• Town Facility Optimization

EVENTS & REMINDERS

• Darien Farmers Market is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the Mechanic Street parking lot behind the Darien Fire Station (the market runs every Wednesday through Dec. 21)
• Holiday Gingerbread Tree at Town Hall "decorated with colorful paper Gingerbread people describing various ways to help  children, families and seniors in Darien, who are in need.  There is also a Gingerbread tree at the Darien Rowayton Bank on the Post Road Pick a Gingerbread tag, fill a wish, and drop it off at Social Services, Rm. 109. For more information on making a donation you can call 203-656-7328."—Town website
• Handel's Messiah: 7:30 p.m. Thursday at St. Thomas Church, 1 W. 53rd S., New York, NY. Darien's Matthew G. Higgins Iati, 12, will be one of the choristers from the St. Thomas Choir School singing at the concert (which is why Patch is telling you about a New York event). Doors open at 6:30 p.m., and the concert ends at 10:30. Tickets are available online.
• Darien Senior Center: Have lunch at 12:30 (for $4) and then .
• THURSDAY: Wrap your gifts at the Darien Library, 7 p.m.: "We'll provide the wine, music, and wrapping supplies—you provide the unwrapped gifts! Join us in our Conference Room where we'll have an assortment of wrapping paper, scissors, tape, and ribbon." (From Saturday, Dec. 17 through Friday, Dec. 23, teenagers are available to help wrap gifts at The Depot.)
• SATURDAY: : 7:30 p.m. in Norwalk Concert Hall, 125 East Ave., Norwalk. "Admission is FREE.   The 65-member, 4-part mixed chorus, directed by Brian Muller, will perform music for the holiday season."—quoted from the events listing.

TEENS

Darien High School: 

• Schedule: for a C Day, periods will be: 4 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 5 | 6
• Buy a toy for the Toys for Tots program: Give it to the EXCEL program in Room G111 between now and Dec. 19. Toys should be new and unwrapped. "There is a real need for toys for 11-12 year old boys and girls this year.  In addition, they ask that we get in as many of the toys as we can to them by December 16th, as they have most of their parties the weekend of the 17th and 18th."—from their announcement on the high school homepage.
• Senior Internship Information Sessions: Come to one today or Thursday during lunch period in Room G105.

Darien Library:

• We Love Wednesdays: 3 to 4 p.m. Drop by the teen lounge for crafts and other things to do

Darien Depot:

• Open 2:30 to 9 p.m. today; safe rides, 7 to 8 p.m.

DARIEN PLAYHOUSE SHOWTIMES

• The Muppets: 7 p.m. (1 hr. 38 min.) — IMDb—trailer—trailer—website—Rotten Tomatoes
• The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn: Part 1: 7 p.m. (1 hr. 57 min.)—IMDb—trailer—website—Rotten Tomatoes

GOVERNMENT MEETINGS

• Advisory Commission on Coastal Waters, 7:30 p.m., Room 213
• Environmental Protection Commission, 7:30 p.m., Room 206
  
• Five Mile River Commission, 7:30 p.m., Rowayton Community Center,
  

FORECAST as of 9:26 p.m., Tuesday (update)

• Wednesday: "Periods of rain. Patchy fog before 11 a.m. High near 55. North wind between 5 and 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90 percent. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible."
• Wednesday Night: "Rain, mainly before 5 a.m. Low around 36. Breezy, with a north wind 8 to 11 mph increasing to between 18 and 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90 percent. New rainfall amounts between three quarters and one inch possible."

INTERSTATE 95 TRAFFIC CAMS

• 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

• Low tide: 2:43 a.m. (0.7')
• Sunrise: 7:05 a.m.
• High tide: 8:50 a.m. (7.2')
• Low tide: 3:24 p.m. (0.2')
• Sunset: 4:25 p.m.
• High tide: 9:23 p.m. (6.4')

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