You go all the way to Prague just to get away from the office, according to Dick Baker, and who do you run into?… The Boss! But not just any old boss, I might add. Dick and Louise Baker’s son, Dan, a 1984 NHS graduate is pictured on the right, with friend Dave Krell on the left, along with “The Boss” Bruce Springsteen, in front of Prague Square in Prague, Czechoslovakia, after a concert last week. Looks like even if these friends were “Born in the USA,” traveling afar paid off for them.

“Carol presents a smiling and cheerful face to the world,” says the friend who has nominated Carol Smiley for my Good Egg Award. “To all, she is always the good friend and neighbor. Just recently she made a number of little girl dresses for children in need in the Danbury area as well as aprons for the Newtown Historical Society History Camp. She has been known to make an afghan for a friend recuperating from shoulder surgery, or to make a batch of her famous macaroni and cheese dish for a friend who needed cheering. At her church, she is front and center helping keep the garden neat and tidy and helping sort goods that come in for the church thrift shop. All this she does with a smile and casual grace,” adds her fan. Carol, you are a Good Egg!

The Fourth of the July is long over, so whoever “borrowed” the 20 chairs, two tables, two umbrella stands, and the umbrella from the Newtown Senior Center facility on Riverside Road for a party is welcome to return them. The patio furniture is much beloved by the center, so if you know the whereabouts of the furniture, please call the Senior Center at 203-270-4310, or simply return it to its home. “No questions asked…” says center director Marilyn Place.

Visitors to the new SCAN art show at Newtown Municipal Center for Saturday’s opening reception were left in the dark. High technology conquered SCAN volunteers’ abilities to turn on the lights in the hallway where the art work is posted. Fortunately, cats have great eyesight in dim lighting, so I still enjoyed seeing the varied paintings and collages that make up the new show. Other visitors, however, were doing a lot of squinting in the gloom. I highly recommend stopping by this month to view the exhibit — in broad daylight.

There’s still time to catch Newtown artist Joanne Conant’s show at the Good Gallery in Kent. Joanne’s plein air oil paintings will be on exhibit there until July 28 — and you can stop to admire the beautiful Kent Falls and Litchfield hills while you are up that way, too. Call 860-927-5065 for info.

My desire for stacks of books to get me through the summer has been satisfied, thanks to the Annual Book Sale that took place Saturday through Wednesday. Now I can wile away the hot, hazy days lost in someone else’s fantasy. (I thought Fifty Shades of Grey was going to be about getting older and my silvery fur. Who knew?)

Thinking I’d be trampled by the crowd, I didn’t even bother trying to make a run for the rare and antiques book room at the Annual Book Sale, where I knew an inscribed first edition copy of The Hunger Games was up for grabs. It looks like I’ll have a second, and much less dangerous, chance to get my paws on it, though. Only one buyer was willing to pay the $2,500 price tag — and then backed out at the last minute. So the Friends of the C.H. Booth Library will be offering it for sale on eBay! “We would have preferred to sell it at the sale and ideally to someone local,  by offering it on eBay we hope to get a good price for it, thus maximizing the benefit to the library...which, at the end of the day, is what the sale is all about,” said Friends spokesperson Toni Earnshaw. Keep your eye on eBay, and may the odds be ever in your favor — once again.

The Friends are grateful to the support of the community and so many others from far away who attended the sale, but particularly want to thank a certain NYC taxi cab driver who came up all the way from Brooklyn to buy books for a church reading program.

The Incredible Edible Book Contest is scheduled for Saturday, July 28. Get your creative juices flowing and come up with a winning edible version of your favorite book or character, or even a play on a book title. Check out chboothlibrary.org for details!

If you are a fan of baseball at all levels, this weekend is a big one in Newtown. The Cal Ripken New England Regional Finals are coming to Newtown July 20, and our own U12 Newtown Thunder team is going to be among the regional clubs taking a swing at getting into the 2012 Cal Ripken International World Series. The fact that Newtown Thunder is a three-time state champ, as well as the quality of Newtown’s playing field at Glander, on Mile Hill South, led to the Finals taking place in Newtown this year. Seven New England teams will play this Saturday and Sunday. Check out www.eteamz.com/crbnewenglandregional for details. Batter up!

C.H. Booth Library will have a pair of programs to pick from Friday night. Beginning at 6 will be a community dance and cookie contest in the lower meeting room. Registration is requested due to the size of the available space, and can be done by calling the library at 203-426-4533.

Meanwhile, the main floor of the library will be host to a special program by Newtown photographer Chris Seman, author of The Patriotic Spirit, who will host a book signing from 6:30 until 8 pm. The book offers photos taken in every state featuring Americans of all ages taking their turn holding an American flag. He began his project shortly after 9/11, and the finished book is a tribute to the victims of 9/11 as well as the April 19, 1995, bombing in Oklahoma City. Wine and cheese will be offered for guests, who will also have the opportunity to view some of Chris’s nature and wildlife photography. Attendees will need to enter the library through its lower entrance on Friday (the building regularly closes at 5 on Fridays), and then make their way up one level for this program. In addition, library curator Michelle Rosenthal mentioned this week that a collection of Chris’s photos will then be on short-term display in the library’s lower meeting room, beginning Saturday morning.

Do I hear the distant sound of drumming? It’s the memory of Labor Day Parades of the past, and of the future, I hope. As usual, the parade committee is in great need of donations to support our end of the summer parade. Without the nearly $25,000 it costs to host the parade, it is impossible to hire special entertainment, area bands and musicians, and all of the other things that make our parade the best one in the state on Labor Day weekend. To support the 2012 Labor Day Parade — this year honoring Kevin’s Community Center, and Dr Z. Michael and Jocelyn Taweh — go to www.newtownctlabordayparade.org, or mail your check to Labor Day Parade, PO Box 746, Newtown CT 06470.

I know it seems like I keep drumming it into you, but I’m sincere when I say that I hope next week you’ll… Read me again.