Editor’s Note: This the third part of Thomas Gotowka’s series titled “Great Leaders and Great Speeches.’ The previous three parts can be found at these links: A View from My Porch: Great Leaders and Great Speeches, Part 1 A View from My Porch: Great Leaders and Great Speeches, Part 2 A View from My Porch: Great Leaders and Great Speeches, Part 3: The Cold War Part 3 … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch: Great Leaders and Great Speeches, Part 4: The Cold War Heats Up
A View from My Porch: Great Leaders and Great Speeches, Part 3: The Cold War
Editor's Note: This the third part of Thomas Gotowka's series titled "Great Leaders and Great Speeches.' The previous two parts can be found at these links: A View from My Porch: Great Leaders and Great Speeches, Part 1 A View from My Porch: Great Leaders and Great Speeches, Part 2 Part 2 concluded with President Truman’s decision to use the atom bomb to bring the war with … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch: Great Leaders and Great Speeches, Part 3: The Cold War
A View from My Porch: Great Leaders and Great Speeches, Part 1: Washington’s Farewell through Theodore Roosevelt
Part 1: Washington’s Farewell through Theodore Roosevelt I enjoy reading historic speeches. I often find them to be inspiring; and they can fill gaps in my understanding of an important event or period in history. In this essay, I begin my review of these speeches, and provide some context for the events that precipitated their creation. These essays will not be an … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch: Great Leaders and Great Speeches, Part 1: Washington’s Farewell through Theodore Roosevelt
A View from My Porch: The Rising Waters of Long Island Sound — A Primer on Global Warming and Climate Change, Postscript Now Added
POSTSCRIPT ADDED 04/14: Our home is on a salt marsh alongside a small, tidal river. Over the past several years, we have observed gradual changes in the breadth and height of high tide. Eventually, the borders of our yard directly adjacent to the river were covered with brackish water at high tide to about 25 ft. beyond the riverbank. This occurs regardless of moon phase or the … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch: The Rising Waters of Long Island Sound — A Primer on Global Warming and Climate Change, Postscript Now Added
A View from My Porch: Keep Calm and Carry On
The title of this essay is derived from a poster designed by the British government in the late 1930s to maintain morale when war against Germany became imminent. This essay roughly considers “a day in the life” of Southeastern Connecticut residents as the COVID-19 pandemic impacts each of us and our collective ability to “carry on” our lives as usual. I will present the key … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch: Keep Calm and Carry On
A View from My Porch: Who’s Played Sherlock? Who Did it Best?
Although more than a century and a quarter has passed since publication of Arthur Conan Doyle’s first story, Sherlock Holmes continues to inspire novels, movies, TV, and the stage. I will review some of the actors who played Holmes in this concluding essay in my Holmes duology; and assess how true each was to Conan Doyle’s artistic vision. Where possible, I’ll contrast each … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch: Who’s Played Sherlock? Who Did it Best?
A View From My Porch: An Appropriate Day to Remember Connecticut Icon William Gillette
Editor's Note: Tom Gotowka sent us this piece last week, but we had always planned to publish it today. By an extraordinary coincidence, we now find — thanks to an article sent to us this morning by our friend and regular correspondent George Ryan — that today is the 90th anniversary of William Gillette's final performance as Sherlock Holmes, given Feb. 12, 1930 at the popular … [Read more...] about A View From My Porch: An Appropriate Day to Remember Connecticut Icon William Gillette
A View from My Porch: Lyme Native Ezra Lee was World’s First Commander of an Attack Submarine in Battle
There was a time before our time, It will not come again, When the best ships still were wooden ships But the men were iron men … I believe this eloquent verse from Rosemary and Stephen Vincent Benet’s ode to New England’s “Clipper Ships and Captains” can also be used to describe Ezra Lee, the first man to command an attack submarine in battle. In this essay, I … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch: Lyme Native Ezra Lee was World’s First Commander of an Attack Submarine in Battle
Letter to the Editor: ‘Tis the Season for … Vandalism in Old Lyme? What on Earth are the Perpetrators Thinking?
To the Editor: A view from my porch: some sorrow and anger. It’s the holiday season, right? “Peace on earth to men and women of goodwill”, right? However, as I looked out from my porch window this morning, there was something that was clearly amiss. One of my neighbor’s beautiful flower pots was missing and lay smashed and broken near my driveway on Library Lane. This was … [Read more...] about Letter to the Editor: ‘Tis the Season for … Vandalism in Old Lyme? What on Earth are the Perpetrators Thinking?
A View from My Porch: The Second Renaissance of Miss ElizabethTashjian (Connecticut’s “Nut Lady”)
Editor's Note: We are delighted to welcome a new columnist to our LymeLine family today. Tom Gotowka will write an occasional piece under the title, "A View From My Porch," and we are going to let him introduce both his column and himself in his own words. We hope you enjoy Tom's offerings -- as always, let us know your thoughts! Author's Note: “A View from My Porch” is a … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch: The Second Renaissance of Miss ElizabethTashjian (Connecticut’s “Nut Lady”)
I See Great Things in Baseball – Part 3: The Movies
Editor's Note: This is the third and final essay by Tom Gotowka on the subject of baseball. We apologize for the delay between the second and third essays, but we made the choice, in consultation with Tom, to hold the latter as it arrived in our Inbox very close to election day. We did not wish it to become lost in all the excitement of our election reporting ... and so now … [Read more...] about I See Great Things in Baseball – Part 3: The Movies
Letter to the Editor: A Post-Election Message To The People of Old Lyme, ‘We Must Go Forward Together’
To the Editor: The election is behind us and Old Lyme still has a government. I am certain that Bonnie Reemsnyder will ensure a smooth and gracious transition to Mr. Griswold and our re-elected incumbent selectwoman, Mary Jo Nosal, and selectman, Chris Kerr. Mr.Griswold inherits a fiscally strong Old Lyme that sits on a well-maintained infrastructure. Clearly, the RTC was … [Read more...] about Letter to the Editor: A Post-Election Message To The People of Old Lyme, ‘We Must Go Forward Together’
Letter to the Editor: ‘Spurious and Specious Editorial’ on Sewers in Old Lyme Presents ‘An Inconvenient Mistruth’
To the Editor: On October 12, Gregory Stroud, editor of the CT Examiner, published “A Stray Conversation About Sewering Rogers Lake and Elsewhere in Old Lyme; which was based on a conversation" with retiring Waterford First Selectman Daniel Stewart, who is presumably leaving public life. Stewart alleged first-hand knowledge that Old Lyme First Selectwoman Bonnie Reemsnyder has … [Read more...] about Letter to the Editor: ‘Spurious and Specious Editorial’ on Sewers in Old Lyme Presents ‘An Inconvenient Mistruth’
I See Great Things in Baseball – Part 2
Editor’s Note: We are delighted to continue publication of a three-part essay on the literature of baseball written by Old Lyme resident Tom Gotowka. This is the second part, find the first one at this link, and look for the third in the coming weeks. As I noted in my first essay, baseball fans have been blessed with a remarkably rich - and often thoughtful - literature … [Read more...] about I See Great Things in Baseball – Part 2
I See Great Things in Baseball – Part 1
Editor's Note: We are delighted to publish the first section of a three-part essay on the literature of baseball written by Old Lyme resident Tom Gotowka. Look for the second and third parts in the coming weeks. Walt Whitman, editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle in the mid-1840s, wrote: “I see great things in baseball. It’s our game – the American game.” I love baseball and … [Read more...] about I See Great Things in Baseball – Part 1