By David Fortier
Come Sunday morning, the UConn men’s basketball team will have rolled to its second national title in two years, a tribute to the players and coaches, and for us here in Bristol, wonderful because we have Donovan Clingan (and also another Bristol native, Andre Johnson, Jr., by way of South Kent School) on the roster. Congratulations!
Clingan has announced that he will be in the upcoming draft. All the best–to Donovan, his family, coaches, teachers and friends, with fond memories of his late mom, who is such a big part of his life.
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The same day as UConn grabbed the championship over Purdue, of course, we had our solar eclipse. Things didn’t work out to well for eclipse viewers in our city, but there was plenty of coverage and we were able to post a few photos that captured the moment. That is a good moment in history to be a part of.
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Another piece of history unfolded last evening with Iran’s bombardment of Israel. It never ceases to amaze me how these things happen in a world where I can run down to Stop & Shop for a gallon of milk or a bag of chips anytime.
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Listening this week continued with the UConn men’s feat and an interview from earlier in the college basketball season with University of Connecticut men’s basketball coach Dan Hurley. Click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqgPh6rnFsc. Again, this year’s UConn basketball season was pretty special, not only because of the second consecutive national title, not only because Bristol’s Clingan (and Johnson) played, but because of the coach–a pretty special guy.
As for reading, I dipped into that old American Pragmatist, William James, after reading Maria Popova’s weekly post from Marginalia. If you don’t know Popova and Marginalian (or Brainpickings), you can check here for her blog. James, the American pioneer in psychology, is worth getting back to, for the simple reason that his work continues to be influential today.
The reading included a short book, “Habits,” and two essays, “The Energies of Men” and “The Moral Equivalent of War.” “Habits” touches on the importance of habit in our lives, especially those habits that lead to deep work, a contemporary writer such as Cal Newport might say it refers to deep thinking, and the simple act of getting started at a task.
“Habits” might be considered a self-help book circa 1910. The book of essays, by James, but published posthumously by his brother the novelist, Henry James, provides another glimpse of today’s world through the eyes of older works that remind us that people have been working at understanding ourselves and the world for a long time and there is value in those explorations.
“Habits” is available free to download from the Internet Archive. The others are available in the collection of essays, “Memories and Studies,” free to download from Project Gutenberg.
Anyone have a recommendation? Email dfortier@bristoledition.org.
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City meetings this week include the following:
On Monday, April 15
- Park Board Fund Development and Advocacy Committee, Meeting, 5 p.m., Meeting Room 1-5, City Hall.
On Tuesday, April 16
- Real Estate Committee, 5 p.m., Meeting Room 1-1, City Hall.
- Sewer Commission, 5:30 p.m., Bristol Water & Sewer Filtration Plant, 1080 Terryville Ave.
- Water Commission Public Hearing, 5:30, Bristol Water & Sewer Filtration Plant, 1080 Terryville Ave.
- Sewer Commission, 6 p.m., Bristol Water & Sewer Filtration Plant, 1080 Terryville Ave.
- Water Commission, 6:15 p.m., Bristol Water & Sewer Filtration Plant, 1080 Terryville Ave.
- Board of Police Commissioners, 6 p.m., council chambers, City Hall.
On Wednesday, April 17
- Code Enforcement Workshop, 3 p.m., Mayor’s Conference Room, City Hall.
- Park Board Policy and Strategy Committee Meeting, 5 p.m., Meeting Room 1-2, City Hall.
- Board of Park Commissioners, 6 p.m., Meeting Room 3-1, City Hall.
On Thursday, April 18
- Commission on Aging, Bristol Senior Center, Room 103, 240 Stafford Ave.
- Citation Hearings, 3:30 p.m., Meeting Room 1-1, City Hall.
- Animal Control Building Committee, 5 p.m., council chambers, City Hall.
- Board of Public Works, 6 p.m., council chambers, City Hall.
TBE will do our best to update meeting times and locations, but it’s a good idea to check the agendas ahead of time for cancellations. Click here for specific meetings and times.
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We encourage all people, young and old, from our community, who have an interest in telling Bristol stories and improving their skills, to join us. If you are one of these people, or know of one, please contact dfortier@bristoledition.org.
TBE is also looking for sports correspondents to cover our high school events, especially, from Bristol Central High School. We encourage coaches to send in game summaries with highlights, so that we can post them.
TBE is the website of our nonprofit, The Central Connecticut Online Journalism Project, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization. One-time donations and regular recurring monthly donations from our members are welcomed and encouraged.
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Enjoy!
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