Woodstock CT Café

WorkInMyRoom.com was featured in the Times today as an example of a successful teenage entrapreneur (see http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/28/jobs/28teens.html ). Laura Durst created www.WorkInMyRoom.com  in November 2007 and her web-based business was featured at the Cafe in the January of 2008….so I guess this means that the Cafe scooped the Times .

WorkInMyRoom.com changed the Cafe forever when it designed our precious “YOU MORON” cups.
Click the image to read the fine print.

Laura graduated from the Academy in June 2008 and continues to manage WorkInMyRoom.com while away at college.

a quote from the Times article:
“Laura Durst, 18, a recent high school graduate in Woodstock, Conn., in the state’s northeast corner, said that there were so few jobs for teenagers there that two years ago she began setting up a Web-based business, WorkInMyRoom.com. It provides teenagers with information and online resources to find jobs that can be done from home.

Ms. Durst said she was inspired by her mother, who also is an entrepreneur. “Seeing her work from home, where she could be her own boss, I liked the idea of that,” she said.

Ms. Durst’s revenue comes from advertising. She uses Google Ad Sense — which displays relevant Google ads on her site — and earns money when users click on them. She says she is making about $250 a month.”

Yikes! She makes more $ than the Cafe .

by Harry Stefan

The local scene is currently pretty quiet. At the state level, however, there is considerable last minute activity to put together a budget for the coming fiscal year.

What do you all think about the options for balancing the budget?

I think that it’s necessary to add some new sources of revenue (taxes). I find it logical and reasonable that those who are fortunate enough to have larger incomes should pay more taxes. I think that another tax on cigarettes generates income and discourages the continuation of a bad habit.

by Frank Corden

Congratulations to Harrison Schroeder. He represents the commitment to achievement that we hope all our children aspire to. It’s really wonderful to see students throughout our school system excelling at all levels and then when they progress to college or directly to a career. I had the pleasure of attending Woodstock Academy’s 2009 Class Night and then the commencement ceremony on Sunday to honor the accomplishments of my beautiful daughter and her classmates. Hearing the accolades and honors bestowed on many of our students is a poignant reminder, that in Woodstock the education glass is certainly more than half-full.

We do have issues in our education system, as do all school systems and we have many opportunities to improve on the education received by all our young citizens. But we are fortunate. We have a good foundation to build on. A key ingredient is engaged and committed parents, and that is a great advantage for Woodstock. Many parents have chosen to live in our beautiful town with the intent of sending their children to Woodstock Public Schools and Woodstock Academy. Our faculty and staff are skilled professionals who are doing a commendable job of developing the inherent talents of our students. The dedicated volunteers including the PTO, the Booster clubs at both the WPS and WA and the Woodstock Education Foundation as well as other volunteer contributors who are too numerous to list, do an incredible job of supporting the programs led by our faculty, classroom volunteers and coaches at all three schools. Read the rest of this entry »

When I read about Harrison’s success and heard about his mature character from others, he reminded me of my closest childhood friend, Paul. Paul and I grew up in Rowayton on Long Island Sound between Darien and Norwalk. All I had to do to get to Paul’s house on an adjacent street was to walk across our neighbor’s yard. We were very close from the age of 5 (he was Gene Autry and I was Roy Rogers; later he was a Dodger fan and I was a devout Yankee) through to the end of summer after high school graduation before we departed for college, and very different lives and career paths.

The thing about Paul was that he was the best at everything (except tennis). I recall that when we tried out for Biddy Basketball at the Norwalk YMCA (6th and 7th grade), Paul was the tallest allowed in the league and I was a relative shrimp. While Paul became the leading scorer in the league, I had to sit out the first year because of a bone spur in my right heal. Everthing we did together became a competition from playing marbles, to shooting baskets in his back yard, to the 1100+ ping-pong games we played one year; Paul kept score and won about 700 of those games. I was great for his ego and he was great for challenging me at every turn. And Paul’s parents were great for me as well because they showed me an alternative approach to life and beliefs that contrasted with my own parents. Paul’s dad was always out there playing catch with us or driving us to the movies or to the YMCA for basketball, swimming., etc. I’ll never forget Paul’s mom’s answer to Paul when she thoughtfully explained why I was not as good at ‘things’ as he was … she said something to the effect that I was growing up a little slower and that eventually I would catch up to him (I’m sure this was an ominous thought for Paul ).

I remember 8th grade as a strange year for me. On the last day of school in seventh grade, my home room teacher, Mr. Nartoff, actually got on my bus to congratulate me personally for getting high honors. I’ll never forget his thoughtful interest in me.

In 8th grade, I was more shy. Paul was already carrying Playboy magazines in his saxophone case, while I was too embarassed to accept a smart girl classmate’s invitation to accompany her to a party. In 8th grade everything changed and I became less smart and less accomplished, and this continued for some years. I was hanging on by my fingernails while Paul was number one at everything. His example gave me hope, though.
Read the rest of this entry »

News Release from Pomfret School
Debby Thurston, Communications

Pomfret, CT – Harrison Schroder, an eighth grade student at Woodstock Middle School in Woodstock, CT, was recently honored as the 2009 recipient of the Pomfret School Patrick D. Wood ‘01 Memorial Prize. The prize, given by Patrick Wood’s parents, Robert Wood and Lisette Rimer of Pomfret Center, CT, was established in memory of Patrick, a member of the Pomfret School Class of 2001, who was a top scholar, accomplished musician and outstanding member of the Pomfret School community. Patrick passed away in early 2006 at the young age of twenty-three. Annually, the prize will be awarded to the top eighth grade day student from Windham County who will matriculate at Pomfret School.

Ms. Rimer commented, “More important than rewarding ability alone, we wanted to encourage Pat’s humanity. It was Pat’s imperfection, his ability to laugh at mistakes, and his ability to take risks that made him the endearing person that he was. [Harrison] has that same level of ability and endearing qualities. He has that greatness that enables him to see concepts and grasp them quickly. And like Pat, he is a doer and a risk taker.”

Schroder, of Woodstock, is a top scholar of his grade and a member of the Math Olympiads team and chorus at Woodstock Middle School. He was elected student council President this year and was the class representative in both sixth and seventh grades. He was also captain of both the soccer and basketball teams for his school. He is a United States Soccer Federation referee for local soccer games in Woodstock, Pomfret, Thompson, and Putnam.

From Left to Right: Robert Wood, Lisette Rimer, Harrison Schroder, and Mr. Gamache (Middle School Principal)

What Mr. Powers, Mr. Rosendahl, and Mr. Shultz lacked for the June 9th referendum was Ahmadinejad’s approach. Simply deny the ballots and declare victory by a 2/3rds margin. Those days are over in Woodstock just like they are in Iran. Never again will things be the same in Woodstock.

Why do I say this?  The Democratic Town Committee played their hand and lost. I don’t mean the Woodstock Democrats lost (that includes me), it was the DTC that lost. DTC Chairman, James Kaeding, played his hand with a last minute Letter to the Editor in the Villager advocating repeal of the Board of Education while Mr. Powers, the instigator of the petition, and Ms. Wholean (DTC Secretary) soon to be DTC candidate for First Selectman signed the petition together, possibly while holding hands.

Mr. Kaeding decided not to sign the petition because it looked bad as he is Chairman of the DTC. How disingenuous.

The contrast between Allan Walker and Ms. Wholean is remarkable. For example, Mr. Walker turned back a raise this year while Ms. Wholean awarded herself a 9% raise in her final last 7 months as First Selectman. She went on to lie on WINY saying that the purpose of this raise was to guarantee that ‘there would be enough money in  the budget to support hiring of a Town Manager’ (gag me with a spoon ). Ms. Wholean handed over FOI information that she requested from the BOE, while she was First Selectman, to CPS litigator, Mr. Shultz, so that he could pursue his FOI litigation at the FOIA Commission on behalf of the Citizens for Prudent Spending, forcing the BOE to defend themselves incuring more lawyer costs.

On the other hand, Mr. Walker has been careful to show no bias as First Selectman to any party although he is a Republican. This is perhaps the exemplary role that a First Selectman should play. He has stabilized Town management while Ms. Wholean commanded in her last six months in office that no communications would be sent from the Town Hall without her approval (Yuk!). Read the rest of this entry »

The current 36 members of the RTC are listed on the RTC page in the left sidebar.

by Bill Sowka

The Woodstock Republicans are actively working on a new platform for 2009 that builds off their 2007 platform.

Like you, perhaps (to Newcomer), I found ‘Justa Simple Person’s comments quite interesting but oversimplified, particularly when he states “that the local RTC is not willing to embrace the “Big Tent” philosophy.” Not only am I wondering how he/she came to that conclusion, but also whether the RTC should embrace a “big tent” philosophy is something currently up for debate within all levels of the Republican party as they seek to define for themselves what it is this ‘big tent” philosophy actually means and what is at stake with embracing it.

Cliff Springs, author and blogger of “Dang Write”, wrote recently of the big tent philosophy and I think you’ll find his quote quite telling.

He writes: “For those of you who may not be clear on the meaning of the “big tent” philosophy, it’s basically this: our party is so big and so diverse that we welcome all who will come. In my mind, that’s the generous definition. “Big tent” is another way of saying, “We stand for nothing, so you can join us without fear of being offended.”

So while the Republicans may want to reach to a broad and diverse community, the point Spring’s is making is that we shouldn’t compromise our values just to do that. This is of course is where the debate lies.

It is my belief that the Republican party at all levels is a very diverse group. However, at their core they all share a commonality of certain values. I think that these shared values are the worthiest components of any platform because they DO appeal to a diverse group of people. It is important to uphold these values not only in order to reach this broad constituency, but also to maintain the integrity of our party as one that actually stands for something.

And actually standing for something in this day and age is something so widely needed so desperately desired.

The following quotes were taken from the NYTimes article cited by Con.

“…, pseudonymity is a benefit to the reader as well. The authority has been ceded — everything lives and dies on the quality of the writing itself. If there is to be any benefit to the growth of blogs, it is precisely that authoritative voices are forced to stand on their own merits. This is a problem for some, who attained authority without the writing chops to support it. For others, it is a challenge. Pseudonymity makes the tubes more interesting, more challenging, and far more fun than they would be otherwise.”

“While complete anonymity may enable someone to evade any accountability for intemperate or unwise remarks, the creation and maintenance of a pseudonym can have a disciplining effect on blogger behavior, and thus should be encouraged as an alternative to purely anonymous blogging and posting. Reputation effects and the desire to maintain readership can impose significant discipline. A pseudonym operates like a brand name, and the value of the brand is, at least in part, a function of how the pseudonymous blogger acts over time. This disciplining effect is hardly perfect, however, particularly when it comes to maintaining civility. . . . I believe this means that those who utilize pseudonyms should take greater responsibility for the tone and content of their own posts so their pseudonymous shield does not become a license for nastiness and snark (and I hope I was able to do this when I used a pseudonym). But I also believe that, barring exceptional circumstances (e.g. something far worse than wrong-headed criticism) other bloggers should respect the choice of others to rely upon pseudonyms.”

I was pleased to read that Allan Walker will run for a second term as First Selectman. I had an opportunity to interact with Allan in the weeks leading up to the June 9th referendum and was pleased with his handling of the petition and his unilateral decision to send the petition to a town-wide vote. I think that Allan has had a stabilizing influence in Town management and hope that he will be re-elected as the First Selectman.

That being said, I think the Republican Town Committee did a tremendous disservice to the Town by nominating Mr. Rosendahl for the Board of Education in the last election. The BOE appears to be stuck with him for 4 more years. Mr. Rosendahl obviously is bent on undermining the Board of Education. I quote Joyce Gresh, Corresponding Secretary for the Woodstock Association of Teachers (WAT):

“The WAT is dissapointed that Mr. Rosendahl falsely portrayed the relationship (the relationship between the teachers and Dr. Baran) and is saddened that a member of the Board of Education would use such divisive and malicious tactics to further a personal agenda.” (Woodstock Villager, June 19th)

The Republican Town Committee has an opportunity to make amends to the Town by nominating credible, upstanding candidates for the Board of Education. The Cafe would like to encourage potential candidates to approach the Republican Town Committee to seek endorsement.

Since the leaders of the failed petition are also the leaders of the Democratic Town Committee in James Kaeding (Chairman), Margaret Wholean (Treasurer and Kaeding’s wife), and Craig Powers, the Cafe at present has no confidence in the DTC’s nomination process (but we will have to wait and see).

If Lee Wesler, John Day, and Dick Cass would like to give us some encouragement regarding the DTC, we would appreciate their input.

The Cafe would like to support reputable candidates (Independent candidates included) for the coming election. Candidates who wish to present their case at the Cafe will have the benefit of campaign rules and will not be subjected comments (the comment section will be shut off).

Last Tuesday, referendum day, makes other days look dull. These are underestimates of visitors (blue) and page turns (green) from our StatCounter but the pattern is correct. Yesterday is the set of bars on the furthest right.