Delegates from Newtown High School’s sister school in Liaocheng, China, will be arriving this Saturday to spend the week at the school and with host families in town. Over the week the delegates will be treated to diverse activities, from a trip to New Haven for a tour of Yale University to a trip to Danbury Fair Mall. Delegates will be staying with host families to learn more about life in Newtown, and the host families will be encouraged to bring their guests around town. I know I will give my coat an extra lick to make sure it is shiny for our visitors, in case they stop by The Bee. And if you’re out and about next week and happen to hear Chinese spoken or see a family showing a visitor around, remember to be extra welcoming to our visitors from Liaocheng No. 3 Middle School.

Lisa Bailey tells us that her family will be celebrating two very special birthdays on January 31. Her youngest, Meghan, will turn 1 that day, the same day that Great-Grandpa turns 93 years old. Happy birthday to both the young and the young at heart!

Mae Schmidle reminded me that the Newtown VNA grand finale celebrating the organization’s 90th Anniversary is Tuesday morning, February 3, at 9 am, at Sal e Pepe. Former and present members and officers will feast on a delicious breakfast, but Mae said that’s not all: She’ll be passing out stickers in honor of the upcoming February 6 National Wear Red Day during the breakfast to all who attend. Wearing red (not a problem for our queen of crimson, Mae) that day, or sporting a sticker, shows support for research into the number one killer of women, heart disease. This is not just for the ladies, either — guys are encouraged to tie one on; that is, a red tie. Go Red For Women!

Every now and then I run across a bit of info I just can’t resist passing along. While most of us can’t put this to the test, I’m hoping The Ferris Creamery can. According to an article published in the spring 2009 Anthrozoos journal, by Catherine Bertenshaw and Peter Rowlinson, cows like having a name better than a number. Input from 516 stock managers in the UK showed that “On farms where cows were called by name, milk yield was 258 liters higher than on farms where this was not the case.” I can’t wait ‘til spring when I can slip under the fence on Route 302 and whisper, “Hi, Bossy! Hi, Bessie!” More milk. More ice cream, right?

My human counterparts here at The Bee have been abuzz lately. For readers on the go, or for those with a roughly 15- to 20-minute commute, The Bee’s Buzzcast is the purr-fect way to wake up with some news from Newtown. Each week The Bee’s podcast, or Buzzcast, is updated by Friday with highlights from that week’s issue of The Newtown Bee. My curiosity got the better of me recently, and I ventured to our website to see what this “buzz” is all about. By clicking on “The Buzz” box on our website, readers can now become listeners. It works with Windows Media Player or iTunes. For those with iTunes, a free subscription means an automatic weekly update is downloaded right to your iTunes play list. This podcast business is making me think of creating my own “Fuzzcast” for all of my technology savvy cat friends. 

Once again the workweek was interrupted by Mother Nature who had to spew snow and ice all across the Mid-Atlantic and New England. Except for the grind of snowplows against asphalt, traffic pretty much ground to a halt around Newtown on Wednesday morning as overnight and early morning snow turned to freezing rain. I did what any self-respecting cat would do: I slept, ate, and stayed indoors.

But don’t stay indoors next week. You’ll need to get out if you are going to… Read me again.