I read an article this week that asserts that January 24 is the most depressing day of the year. Evidently, someone has figured out that on January 24 Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) really kicks in along with the realization that all those holiday credit card bills have to be paid. Add to that all the broken New Year’s resolutions that litter our lives the third week in January, and you’ve got a pretty depressing scenario.

Fortunately, there is an antidote to these winter blues. The Society of Creative Arts of Newtown is openings its annual winter show at Lexington Gardens this weekend. Now in addition to immersing yourself in all the plant life in the Lexington greenhouse, which goes a long way toward rejuvenating the winter weary soul, you can feast your eyes on the full palette of colors on the canvases of the SCAN artists. The show runs from January 21 to 29 from 10 am to 5 pm daily. An opening reception is planned for this Saturday afternoon, and demonstrations by different artists will be offered each Saturday and Sunday at 12:30.

Who doesn’t love a taste from the past? The sharp flavor of licorice in a stick of Black Jack chewing gum brought back all sorts of memories this week as Bee Copy Editor Janis Gibson passed around her newly acquired hoard of 1950s and 1960s era gum packs.  “A friend and I were browsing around English Drug in Bethel looking for chewing gum, and the young kid behind the counter told us he had some unusual flavors on sale,” Janis said. When he pointed out the familiar light blue Black Jack and red and white Beemans packs, the two women could barely contain their joy. “He looked a bit stunned by our response,” Janis recalled.

Back at the Bee, Janis shared her gum, and everybody in typesetting over a certain age contributed stories of gum chains from their youth. They remembered collecting wrappers and then folding and linking the folds into long zigzag chains that they carried around in junior high school. For those “youngsters” who were unfamiliar the chains, Janis created a short sample. “We tried to make the chains as long as our boyfriends — or the guys we liked — were tall,” said Linda Baur. Since most of the boys were shorter than the girls at that point, it wasn’t as hard as it sounds. “And if you didn’t like someone any more, you destroyed the chain,” Linda said, adding she destroyed a lot of chains.

Just for the record, Gary Duschl of Virginia Beach, Va., holds the world’s record for the longest gum chain, which he began making in March 1965. As of January 11, 2006, his chain of 1,115,701 Wrigley gum wrappers is 47,686 feet long. Judging from this picture, Janis has a way to go.

Believe it or not, behind the scenes work has already begun for the Labor Day Parade Committee. Committee Chairperson Kym Stendahl (going into her 15th year as chairperson) met with the rest of the enthusiastic members recently to discuss possible themes for the 2006 parade and toss around ideas for a grand marshal. “We’re going to focus on fundraising this year,” she said, “which has been increasingly difficult.” She estimates the total cost for the autumn extravaganza will be between $20,000 and $23,000. Let’s see… population 27,000; $1 each….

Tuesday night the weather report cautioned we might be in for some nasty, icy weather. The prediction was enough to make the new high school principal Arlene Gottesman book a room for the night at The Newtown Inn. Anticipating a lengthy Board of Education meeting that night, Ms Gottesman didn’t want to head back to her home in Milford late at night in bad weather. Realizing she couldn’t show up for school on Wednesday in the same clothes she had worn on Tuesday, she dashed off to TJ Maxx to purchase the essentials: a toothbrush, pajamas, a new outfit, and of course the irresistible pair of shoes to match.

Newtownopoly anyone? Winter is a great time to bring out the board games, and I’m a little excited about the Newtown incarnation of the popular Monopoly game that the Newtown High School Choral and Orchestra are selling as a fundraiser ($25 each). Profits made from the advertising and sales of the game will be used for the high school students’ trip to Italy in April where they will be performing in Rome, Venice, Florence, and Milan, which don’t have their own board games. For more information about advertising or to purchase a game contact Linda Jones at 270-9763.

Well, I just passed GO, so I’m off to collect my $200. But I’ll be back next week, so be sure to…

Read me again.