The Associated Press recently asked pet owners who would win the tossup if it were between a significant other and a pet. Even though the sweetheart won, a good number of people did choose their pet over their human partner (and they are probably dining in the dog house with that pet this Valentine’s Day….) I’m pretty sure that the respondents to the AP question must have owned dogs, not cats. Who wouldn’t choose the cat? A similar Bee Facebook question this week elicited responses that were (perhaps wisely) more on the fence.

This cat wasn’t sitting on the fence, but rather the side of the road. Gerri Snow is convinced she saw a cousin of mine while driving to work Wednesday morning. It was either a lynx, her first pick, or a bobcat (those two cousins are nearly identical in appearance). Geri was driving on Key Rock Road, she said, when she saw the animal walk very calmly across the road, a snowbank, and then go no more than 15 feet into the area along Key Rock that is usually swampy (now frozen solid, natch), and sit down. “It looked right at me, and I stared right back,” said Geri. “I thought I was at the zoo. It was so calm.” The animal had the tell-tale tufts of fur on its ears, and even some spotting on the sides of its body. “It had multi-toned fur, just absolutely gorgeous,” Geri continued. “It felt like forever, but it was probably just a minute or so before it stood up and just walked into the woods.” Geri, of course, regretted that she didn’t have a camera with her and was afraid that it would take too long to get her cellphone out of her purse to take a photo. (I wonder if this “lynx” was drawn to the area by distress signals sent out earlier by another “linx” — the Blue “Linx” on South Main Street. Just sayin’. It’s the kind of thing us cats think about.)

A word of caution from the Education Connection in Litchfield has come my way. “February is National Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month,” according to a press release from Education Connection. “Dating abuse is defined as a pattern of physically, sexually, verbally and/or emotionally abusive behavior or privacy intrusion in a dating relationship. Dating abuse can involve digital communications and technologies, real world communications, physical interactions, threats, or intimidations. Nationally, nearly one in three teens who have been in a dating relationship report experiencing some form of physical or sexual abuse or threats of physical harm to self or partner. Nearly one in four teens report being victimized through technology. Nearly one in two teens report being controlled, threatened, or pressured to do things they did not want to do.”

The FUN — Families United in Newtown — group is hosting its next meeting and free activities at Club Newfit on Commerce Road, Sunday, February 13, from 2 to 3:30 pm. Newtown families with children with special needs or disabilities are invited. The children will have an opportunity to engage in supervised activities with local Honors Society students, while parents and caregivers enjoy some social interaction and refreshments. The event will have a Valentine’s Day theme. For information, parents can e-mail funforthedisabled@gmail.com, but attendees must preregister to assure there are adequate student volunteers and refreshments on hand. Interested parents can also contact Linda Jones at 203-512-6284. The event is open to children and teens, as well as disabled adults under parents’ care.

NHS Class of 2008 graduate Marissa Bobkowski is looking for some support, we hear. “I am running the Boston Marathon in the spring and need to raise $3,500. I am running for the nonprofit Cops for Kids with Cancer,” Marissa says in a note to The Bee. “It is a Boston organization that donates to local children’s hospitals.” Visit www.copsforkidswithcancer.org for more information about the cause, and if you can help Marissa out with a donation, go to www.firstgiving.com/marissabobkowski.

By the time this column goes to press, the Newtown Choral Society will hopefully have had their first rehearsal for the May concert. Bad weather has canceled the first two scheduled rehearsals this winter. The good news is, because rehearsals are just beginning, you can still join the nonaudition choral group. There is plenty of time to learn the music. If you like to sing, rehearsals are at 7 pm, in the choral room of the Newtown Middle School, each Wednesday evening. Contact Choral Society president Laura Lerman at lel@se-ltd.com for information.

They call themselves “The Silly Fishermen,” and this group of fishing enthusiasts was caught on film by resident Karen McKnight whiling away the hours before the Super Bowl, last Sunday afternoon, February 6, on Taunton Lake. They don’t appear to be catching many fish, but I’m sure they were happy just to catch some sunshiny rays, after the wet, gray day handed to us by Saturday.

St Rose is already beginning to think spring … or at least, thinking green. The annual Knights of Columbus Irish Cabaret is just about five weeks away and tables are filling fast. This year’s big event is scheduled for Saturday, March 12, and will once again feature music by Keltic Kick. Admission is $25 per person, which covers the music, as well as coffee and Irish soda bread. The rest of the refreshments are up to you: BYOB and snacks. Tables, which hold eight to ten people each, are filling quickly, so call Tim or Debbie Reilly (203-270-1838) or Jud and Marilyn Doyle (203-426-1696) for information or to make your reservation.

I am trying hard to think spring, but in the meantime, I’ll make my way over the Top of the Mountain (that is, the snowbanks) to uncover next week’s news. Don’t forget to…. Read me again.