Category: Music that moves me

Fun Things to do in Connecticut – Part III

There’s lots to do in the state of Connecticut during the Summer, especially when the weather is cooperating.  It is truly ‘hotter than July’ so there is really no need to travel anywhere, we have sun filled days and long nights right here in CT (smile).

Here is a short list of annual events that occur in the Summer months and involve food, fun, music, festivities, entertainment and more!  The good news is that most are free to attend and some even offer free parking.

 

A Taste of Mystic (New London County)

This annual event takes place at the Olde Mistick Village (OMV) around the second weekend in June (Friday/Saturday/Sunday) and involves food and drinks, live bands, loads of entertainment, merchant specials and more!

 

 

Admission is free (parking is also free).  To participate in The Taste you buy sleeves of tickets for $1.00 each to be exchanged for food and drinks from the vendors.

 

Joyce Reskinoff the owner of Olde Mistick Village being interviewed by News 8’s own Co-Chief Meteorologist Joe Furey

 

And the OMV Merchants offer money-saving specials as well!  Here’s a PSA: Be sure to support these Connecticut based small businesses.

 

Garden Specialties
UNA
Bestemors Imports
Franklins
Smiths Boutique
Kitch
Sticky Situations
Munsons Chocolates

 

New Haven Music on the Green (New Haven County)

In New Haven the unofficial start to Summer kicks off with Music on the Green!

 

Ryan Kristofer and Teresa DuFour of CT Style along with Jo Jo Pastors and her gf on the New Haven Green

 

In Summers past we have been entertained (in our VIP seats) by such notable acts as Ronnie Spector,  Debbie Gibson, Taylor Dayne, KC and the Sunshine Band and En Vogue, just to name a few.

 

And this year we had the pleasure of seeing Lisa Lisa on Saturday 7/20/19 and Morris Day on Saturday 7/29/19!

Morris Day is 61 years young – a real talent for sure!

 

The Hamden Free Summer Concert Series (New Haven County)

Beginning late June on Friday nights at 6pm at the Hamden Town Center Park, live bands play to diverse crowds made up of singles, couples, families, dogs and more!  This free annual outdoor event truly features something for everyone.  There’s no VIP but at the same time there is truly not a bad seat in the house.  And if you come hungry you can feast off of the nearby food trucks or better yet, pack your own picnic complete with adult beverages.  Bring your lawn chairs and blankets and make a space on the lawn as happy people jam to the music.

 

Plenty of room at the free Hamden Summer Concert Series at the Hamden town green. Long lines at the ethnically diverse food trucks

This year (2019) on Week 4 The Wailers, featuring Julian Junior Marvin, delighted the Friday night crowd.

 

Awesome performance!

 

The Greater Hartford Festival of Jazz (Hartford County)

Jazz is alive and well outdoors at the Greater Hartford Festival of Jazz at Bushnell Park in Hartford!  This free annual event takes place over an entire weekend (Friday/Saturday/Sunday) in mid July.   There are food and retail clothing vendors and folks completely covering the Bushnell park lawn with their blankets, lawn chairs, coolers and sun umbrellas.  Big screen TVs on both sides of the stage ensure that everyone gets a decent view.  It’s a thing!

 

 

The line-up of jazz musicians is awesome and the party lasts all day long and well into the night.

 

Having a blast in Hartford – jazz is everywhere – love the energy here!

Although this is a free event donations are gladly accepted…

 

New London Sailfest (New London County)

This coastal city comes alive during the Summer with its signature event, the New London Sailfest!

July is the month and the entire mid-month weekend (Friday/Saturday/Sunday) offers something for all family members.

 

 

From tall ships to face painting to patriotic costumes and more, there is truly something for everyone.

Speaking of which, there are amusement park rides, face painting, delicious food options plus sailboat and people watching.

 

The food, the rides, the atmosphere, the fireworks at night…

 

So that’s my short list of fun things to do during Summers in Connecticut – Staycate and enjoy!

 

Sincerely,

 

TVFL

 

 

Fun Things to do in Connecticut – Part II

There are plenty of fun things to do in Connecticut, no matter what the season, hence why I’m sharing Part II…

 

Low Cost Indoor Event:

Attend the annual Northeast RV & Camping Show at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford, CT

The RVs are sweet and much larger on the inside than they appear on the outside!  Also some of them have showers,  mood lighting, ambience – definitely a must see event!

 

 

Free Family Fun:

Go to the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade in New Haven, CT

In March of 2018, I had the pleasure of driving around News Anchor Jocelyn Maminta on the New Haven parade route.  I drove one of the News 8 vehicles – a Range Rover.  Jocelyn had recently sustained an injury and could not get around so i was her driver for the day.  What an incredible experience actually being in the largest parade in Connecticut!

 

What a great sight to see!
Happily driving in the parade
Jocelyn Maminta was born to be in a parade!

 

Loved hanging out in the Range Rover with Jocelyn Maminta, Mark Davis and Keith Kountz in the Greater New Haven 2018 St. Patrick’s Day Parade!

Good (One Price) Eating:

Check out a restaurant or two or three at the bi-annual (Spring and Fall) New Haven Restaurant Weeks – New Haven, CT.  There are so many good choices (all with Prix Fixe Lunch and Dinner prices.  We ate at one of my favs:  Pacifico where I had the salmon, a side dish, beet salad, a glass of Malbec and coconut ice cream for dessert- yum!

In past New Haven Restaurant Weeks in the Spring or Fall I have eaten at Harvest Wine Bar and Restaurant where I also had the salmon but this time with julienne carrots and beets, a side salad, a dessert and water with lemon.

 

Brew Baby:

Hang out at one of Connecticut’s most talked about new breweries:  Brewport – Bridgeport’s Connecticut’s Brewery and Restaurant where the only things on the menu to eat are specialty pizzas and gourmet salads…

Yummy Pizza
Me and my girls getting ready to grub!
Delish salad!

 

Connecticut’s Live Theater:

 

Here;s the Six Pack: The Bushnell, Waterbury Palace Theater, The Garde Arts Center, Shubert Theater, The Stamford Palace Theater and the Warner Theater

 

This season you can check out Cameron Mackintosh’s version of Phantom  – Waterbury Palace Theater – Waterbury, CT this season – it’s spectacular!

 

Or Beautiful  (Carole King’s story) at the legendary Shubert Theater, New Haven, CT – a must see!!

 

Or try on Crowns for size at the Long Wharf Theater, New Haven, CT.  It’s a gospel musical celebration which appeals to theater goers young and old alike.

 

Me and my girlfriend Mia at Crowns at Long Wharf Theater

 

That’s it for now.  So remember, there are plenty of fun things to do in Connecticut all year long and some are even low cost or free so enjoy!

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL

 

 

Count Your Blessings…

I can’t believe it’s August already which means that Summer is almost over, Boo!  To add insult to injury, the changeable weather in Connecticut has me feeling kinda blah…If you too are finding yourself feeling some kinda way and are looking for solutions,  here’s my list of ways to shake it off (smile).

First things first, Count Your Blessings.   I’ve been known to throw a pity party and not invite anyone but myself and that never ends well.   The quickest solution is to start counting my blessings no matter how large or small.  Works like a charm…

 

 

Take a Mental Health Day – sometimes you just need to forget about work and take the day off, strictly for the purpose of resting and relaxing your mind…

 

 

Get organized  – Declutter – Put things back where they belong – sometimes just getting organized takes a load off your mind and makes you feel accomplished (smile).

 

Surround yourself with positive people.   Life is too short to be made miserable by another person(s).  You can truly ‘do bad all by yourself’ as mama used to say (smile).

Listen to music that you absolutely love – the 70s is my Go-To decade so you’ll find me listening to one or more of the following musical genres:  Soul, Rock, Pop, R & B or Disco.  It instantly puts me in a good mood.

 

 

This is not necessarily going to be easy but try turning off the desktop, the laptop, the cell phone, the iPad, etc.,  for even a few half hours  at a time.  You’ll be amazed at how good you feel.

 

 

Read a book by your favorite author or grab a self-help book.  Either one will do the trick.

 

 

Take a power nap – quick, short naps not only rejuvenate you but they improve your mood, alertness and performance.

 

 

Exercise for life – make working out a part of your daily life – not a dreaded thing to do.   Whether you belong to a gym, or work out at home, it’s one of the best ways to stay in shape, be healthy, combat stress, reduce fatigue and improve your sleep.

 

 

Get involved in a sport that you have not played in years.  I used to be able to jump rope for hours at a time as a child so trying it again recently brought back some fond memories.

 

 

Play with pets –  whether they are your own, your friends or your neighbors  – pets can easily bring a smile to your face and make your worries go away.

 

 

And finally, Count Your Blessings, again…if you have a sound mind, good health, family, faith, friends and work, you’re already ahead in the Game of Life.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL

 

 

Yoga Anyone?

As I mentioned before in Check out my blog post:  Cave Girl, I work Monday through Friday on 100% commission in media ad sales, a super stressful, extremely competitive industry.   Consequently, on the weekends (or even some weeknights) I’m on the look-out for new ways to de-stress.

 

 

 

Yoga has become a new ‘old way.‘  Full Moon Yoga with Gong Meditation that is.  It’s my new go-to when the gym (Edge Fitness in Hamden) although helpful in terms of working up a sweat, building lean muscle, burning calories and fat, etc. still leaves me with a busy mind…

 

 

 

At this point I’m looking more for something that helps me to relax to the point of emptying my mind and filling it with good clear thoughts.

 

My solution has become Full Moon Yoga with Gong Meditation.  It’s offered once a month at the Yoga Community Center in Hamden, on the Friday closest to the Full Moon. It’s  held from 7pm to 9pm.  It’s wise not to go on a full stomach and light refreshments are served afterwards.  It costs $22 for one session or $60 for three sessions.  Everything takes place on the second floor in a large yellow walled yoga studio with soft lighting and relaxing music.  Mats, blankets and other yoga equipment are provided if you do not have your own.  Quick tip: don’t forget your water bottle.  Kundalini Yoga is practiced in the first hour and the second hour (while you are now lying on your mat, covered in a blanket with your eyes closed) focuses on deep sound healing and relaxation via Gong Meditation.  This is where you hear an actual gong being struck repeatedly for a good hour.  The gong vibrations (after two or more sessions) will cause you to experience deep relaxation.  The goal of  each of these sessions is to “elevate awareness and rebalance your physical, emotional and spiritual bodies.”  I remember the first or second time I went I felt like I was walking on actual clouds for at least an hour after the session (smile).

 

Here’s the room where all the magic happens…

 

If interested, you may register online at yourcommunityyoga.com or call them at (203) 287-2277.  Drop-Ins, however, are always welcome.

Namaste!

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL

 

Made of Wood…

I’m listening to a ’70s station on the Sirius radio the other day and one of my favorite songs by The Dramatics comes on, “Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get,” and it really got me thinking…

 

They don’t make music like they used to…

 

It also served to remind me that I grew up in a time when records were made of vinyl and album covers (LP or “long playing” covers) were a small piece of art.  Records (disc formats: 33s, 45s and 78 RPMs) were played on boxy turntables back in the day and we even owned one that had a needle that needed a penny on top of it just to keep it stable (smile) and they were affordable!  A 45 single could run you somewhere between 75 cents to one dollar and a whole album (LP) could run from eight to ten dollars… Also, your favorite song wasn’t as accessible as it is today.  There was no Google or other search engines to go to when you just had to hear your song.  You actually had to wait and hope the DJ would play it on the radio or better yet, your parents owned the record so you could play it at your leisure.

 

I loved Saturdays though because although we did not have YouTube, what we did have featured a lot of Rhythm & Blues & Soul music all in one place.   It was called Soul Train (the musical variety show on TV).  It was the center of my world back then and my show!  I planned my Saturdays around it.

 

 

I marveled at the dancing, the fashions, the too-easy-to-solve word puzzles, and Don Cornelius’s ability to use his charismatic personality to captivate audiences each and every week.

 

I wanted his job, as it seemed like it was more a labor of love than a daily grind.

 

At any rate, the 70’s were a special time, there were no smart phones for people to listen to music out of and dare I say, we were far less distracted as a result.   Plus, music seemed to possess real meaning, as we sang along to heartfelt lyrics which oftentimes conjured up deep thoughts.

 

‘Watcha See Is Watcha Get’ by The Dramatics is just one example from the ’70s of a heartfelt song with meaning.   As it turned out, it was far more than a song lyric, it was a way of life for me, a pre-teen coming of age in the small town of Groton, CT…

 

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL