Northwest Corner Chatter (the CT corner near Dutchess County NY and The Berkshires of MA) Now A Public Page, Thanks Brian Ohler for Keeping the Ball Rollin'

Here's a post I put on the NWCorner Chatter page started by Brian Ohler of North Canaan CT...and enjoyed by 5K plus. Thanks for all who contribute to the bigger efforts and the everyday one too that keeps a town and area humming with positivity and pro-active responses and efforts. It's all much appreciated. All the best for a bright next part of 2019 (and a Happy St. Patrick's Day!)

Thanks for sharing the process...and monitoring of posts is not a picnic...I applaud your efforts and hope the best for the public status. I know things can get dicey. 

On my blog livfully.org which has reached about 200K folks (that many reading one or more posts...) I don't seem to get many serious comments, mostly some troll advertising. 

We likely would do well to have a few pages that discuss various issues in depth such as those talking over the Region 1 schools have...

On that topic, I would love to see more people in each town create SALT efforts. Shared Alliance Learning Teams (just an easy acronym to remember with the notion to add a little seasoning to what's being offered.)

Acknowledging the many resources in each town, area and state (and for the tri-corner area that's impt on many levels whether environmentally, socially, educationally, work or faith wise...) 

There's so much to appreciate and benefit from due to the MA/NY CT mix in the tri-corner circle as well as the three states (and others neighboring ones such as NJ next to NYC, RI next to CT, VT next to MA etc.) that factor into our awesomeness. 

We can enrich offerings and ways to work toward shared goals of health and safety, educating and caring for our youngest team players and helping with basics like jobs, education, transportation, involvement with efforts near and far (through outreaches and networks especially with cities who hare deprived of open land and water access...) 

Being citizens of an area is both a privilege and a job...to pitch in or at least try to be civil to one another... so we can understand what it takes to live in closer quarters (and maybe work to make some connections with those with far fewer resources.) Vassar College and Dutchess Community College for instance are opening up ways for students to take classes at each other's schools... 

We could all encourage our Reg. One students to know about that as well as BCC, Berkshire Community College with their Pittsfield Campus but also their Main St Great Barrington building. We have Toastmasters there from 11:40am to 1pm on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays..and guests are always welcome so there's one place for business and political, faith and community members in general to visit.

That's part of a regional and national network with new online info and a Pathways program. To join Toastmasters costs about 60 dollars for the first 6 months, then about 50 every 6 months to keep membership current. The club needs 20 active members (paying members, plus doing speeches or helping time meetings or introduce speakers and so on.) 

Giving the 1st ten talks (about 7 minute prepared, practiced speeches with a beginning, middle and end that work in conjunction with a focus from a manual such as organization, using props, vocal variety, using persuasion or storytelling or other skills.)

Members take turns evaluating speeches for up to 3 min (with a 30 second grace period to go over.) Sometimes there are special events such as a contest and people need to stay in the time limit's grace period or be disqualified. We check ourselves ideally by slowing down and thinking to avoid saying um and and or even etc, etc.

.Then we head over to the Berkshire Co op for lunch (each buying their own...) I would be happy to meet with some folks and go over this format and even have a run through with talks etc if there's interest. PM me etc. Eventually our area could have its own Housatonic Toastmasters (or other name) and be sponsored by the GB club. In terms of keeping things affordable I'd like to see informal groups happen, and one for women and one for men...

Just sharing the basic ideas I've had for years so appreciate the forum. Brainstorm with a few of your own ideas here or PM etc to me...and I will summarize on the ol' blog or back here... more go-to folks to help the grapevine of positivity thrive are in order. We could use more themed garden clubs, spin offs from playgroups and library groups and more by the way... to meet various interests and social outreaches... The more the merrier.

Okay, I will wrap up here and take advantage of more this area offers and Brooklyn NY. Let me know if you want some help tuning into either place and creating positive networking efforts to build on what so many have created over years in person and online.

I do know of one Mom with a young one trying to get some car work done so she can get back to playgroups and such. PM me if you'd be up for helping create ways to see such ones brave enough to ask for help find support (maybe loans, tag sales and so on...yes, including work and help with childcare etc. Age-old problems but likely we do have more current day solutions...) Thanks a bundle!

PS I feel lucky to know so many steadfast citizens in the northwest corner of CT and some in Millerton and Amenia NY, and Ashley Falls, Sheffield and Great Barrington MA. There are hundreds (and even thousands in towns bigger than mine) of other truly awesome people from yesteryear and the more modern times who are privileged to call the tri-corner area "Home." It's not without its challenges historically in the past 55 years that I've been tuning in since a babe raised near a tricky corner in Salisbury CT.  

There's a blinking light  there that was put up after 20 years of accidents. Thankfully after more a more recent fatality, there are  gobs more signage a mile before that on the fast road at the top of Smith Hill is curvy like a snake slithering in the grass with telephone poles, trees and oh yes, Other Cars rounding the bends...plus a fancy school that might just have some braving crossing the street, so PLEASE SLOW DOWN on that section and many other country roads that want to bring you safely home (not to your final Home in the sky, but maybe if that's part of some bigger plan, there are worse places to transition.)

Some key roads to be careful on are Route 7 (and quit trying to make it a race track or confuse it with the landing strip or takeoff zone of the neighboring airport in Great Barrington MA...it is a R-O-A-D (with far too many fatalities and Under the  Influence Drivers (not just passengers unfortunately..) Please review driving skills at every age for vision, ability and more with conditions such as weather (even tornadoes and onroad flooding.)

Seriously, these roads are an important part of how we all need to get from Point A to Point B and talking about driving safely is actually becoming cool and more common, In part that's thanks to the longtime amazing efforts of Bob Green at the Skip Barber Racing School whose cool and capable of relating stories and facts about the damage that can be done if a car even at low speeds comes to a sudden stop (or impacts with a tree or other car or heaven forbid a person or animal.)

Full disclosure we have moose, deer, bear and a variety of coyotes and mountailn lions, large birds of prey such as owls and vultures who may be in the road near roadkill (possum, raccoons, squirrels.) Ideally we will all be savvy in rural America to not feed any wildlife or leave delectable compost unfenced or garbage that calls to the critters either. That needs its own major effort along with more ways to recycle locally (clothes, treasures, furniture, cars and other ways to help neighbors and newcomers.)

There are many more clothing and collection boxes and I could put a list up (such as at Greenwoods Church in Ashley Falls MA, the Salisbury Transfer station and other towns as well, often with a Swam Shop where good items can be left for a day or so. If people from NY wanted to they likely could have things dropped off at a location near to a transfer station. Then schools and faith groups could spread the word so fewer things would be put in the Swap Shop. Many non-profits have tag sales, and ideally each could have a group to help collect items throughout the year for local and online sales. Just a thought (so often one leads to the next...by putting them down here my hope is many can take advantage of them and think of the Next Great Ideas...and Share them on Social media or back here at the #RanchoDelLivfully.