Go check the calendar on the refrigerator and notice how the squares are filling in on the other side of September 3. It’s an ominous sign and more than a little unsettling for those of us still clomping summer sand out of our shoes. The accelerated schedule, the gathering deadlines, and the faint glow of holidays on the distant horizon are pulling us out into the wound-up world at precisely the time when cooling temperatures and a kitchen table full of ripe tomatoes are telling us to stay home and do something truly satisfying – like eat. There is no better place to be a homebody than New England in the fall.

Newtown’s end-of-summer antidote this powerful impulse to stay close to home is, of course, its Labor Day Parade. Since 1962, half of Newtown has poured itself down Main Street every Labor Day while the other half watched in an incredible ritual of seeing and being seen. It is so much fun that few in town can resist it. But if you are among the few who are thinking of staying home this year, be aware that this may be the parade that people will talk about for years. You won’t want to miss it. Go early and get a good seat; it starts at 10 am on Monday. If you are a parade regular and want to show your appreciation, parade organizers report that their fundraising efforts have fallen short; donations are still needed. You may send your contribution to “Labor Day Parade” c/o Brian Amey, Fleet Bank, 6 Queen Street, Newtown.

Because this is the 40th anniversary of the Newtown Labor Day Parade, parade organizers have gone to great efforts to ensure that this year’s event will be memorable. Chief among the attractions this year will be the nation’s largest American flag (90 feet by 45 feet), which is so large that it would drag on the ground if it were hung from Newtown’s flagpole. So a crane will hoist it high above the intersection of Main Street and Glover Avenue. We can’t wait to look down Main Street at the scene: thousands of spectators watching thousands of marchers move toward a 4,050 square foot flag.

And after the parade, when everyone’s appetite for social activity is whet, there will be an opportunity to do something truly satisfying – like eat. An ice cream social starts at 11 am in the Parish Hall of St Rose Church. There is no better place for the summer-sated homebody to get back into the swing of things than Newtown on Labor Day.