Pete D'Amico met his goal of wearing shorts until October 1. Chilly, but determined, he wore them that day on the Common. "I don't like the cold but my goal is to make it to October before I put them away. I did it!" Pete also said he loved their trip to Cancun, "because I liked the hot weather". (Cancun is a coastal city in Mexico, on the eastern side of a penisula on a channel separating Mexico from Cuba). Kate and Pete D'Amico made the trip as owners of the NAPA auto parts store on Wall Street. Kate said, "We stayed at a beautiful hotel right on the beach, played volleyball in the pool, soaked up the sun, and met people from all over the world."

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On the same day, high school student, Emily Baraw, told us she always wears her sandals until snowfall. "I love flip flops and I hate having to put on boots. It takes so much time,"

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Also on the first day of October, Granddaughter Kirsten forwarded her Christmas list to everyone in the family who reads email. She realized it is early but that there are several early shoppers in the family who might want to know. Money for a trip to visit relatives in Michigan topped the list. She also requested DVDs, or gift cards, or art supplies, or boots and a laptop apologetically--for she realizes that is expensive.

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Bernice Drown spent a week in Chicago this summer visiting her grandson, Galen, his wife Emily and their new arrival. She flew out with her daughter-inlaw, Mary. Bernice said, "It was an excellent flight. Made all its connections and was on time. No problems." Someone listening to her report declared she is afraid to fly since it could cause death. Bernice responded, "If the good Lord's ready for you, it don't matter if you're afoot, on horseback or in the air." The baby is her twentieth great grandchild.

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The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged, playing at Lost Nation Theater is hysterically funny. Great show. Loved it. Three young guys romp through most of the Bard's plays in two hours flat. They performed one as if it were a football game, one in rap. They did Hamlet in ten minutes, got it down to 3 minutes, then one. Then they did it backwards taking all the characters from being dead on the floor to the opening scene where the ghost said, "oob". It's playing through October 11.

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Kirsten and I enjoyed the opening exhibit at the T.W. Wood Gallery and Arts Center: "The Figure and Beyond, a Show of Work by Bill Brauer and His Students of the Past 40 Years". Artists and their fans packed the rooms. Artist Candy Barr told us that it's an extraordinary show in that it doesn't contain the safe and non-controversial landscapes that are a favorite of galleries. In the show, the human figure is celebrated and expressed in more than 150 pieces of art created in different media. We were agog. The show is open through October 29.

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Asked what's new, one of the town's citizens replied, "If there's anything new, no one's told me." If you know anything new, please tell us. It's the only way to keep this column in print. commontalk@trans-video.net