Category: Activities (Page 14 of 50)

Activities are gatherings that occur on a regular schedule, usually weekly, to enjoy a specific pastime.

Current Affairs: May 18 at 2 p.m. at the DCA and on Zoom. Our current and future relationship with China

April 28, 2023 /

Jan Selkowitz is a veteran China watcher.  There is no more important foreign affairs issue facing this administration than our complex relationship with Xi Jinping and China. Are we friends or enemies?  Can we cooperate on important technology issues like Artificial intelligence, or are we headed into a Cold War?  What is the future of Taiwan?  How aggressively should we be providing them with military resources?  What are China’s challenges going forward?  How is their Belt and Road initiative doing? Some Geopolitical commentators predict with their aging demographics, China’s days as a world power will be over in the next decade. Others strongly disagree.

You won’t want to miss this discussion on May 18th at 2 pm moderated by Jan Selkowitz.

Background Material

What Does Xi Want?  YouTube Video May 11, 2023

Is China’s Power about to Peak   The Economist May 11. 2023  Subscription Required

Just How Good can Chinas Get at AI  The Economist May 11, 2023 Subscription Required

What’s China’s growing role on the world stage mean for the U.S. ?    NPR April 30, 2023

America, China and a Crisis of Trust   Tom Friedman New York Times April 14, 2023  Subscription required

A Country in Flux: Recent and Future policy shifts in China   Brookings Institute March 10, 2023

U.S Taiwan Relations: Will China’s challenge lead to a crisis?  Brookings Institute May 1, 2023

Peter Zeihan: Decoding China’s Destiny   April 2023

HIKE LARSEN WILDLIFE SANCTUARY,   APRIL 27, 2023 10:00 AM

April 15, 2023 /

   HIKING 

      LARSEN WILDLIFE SANCTUARY

    FAIRFIELD, CT

    APRIL 27, 2023

10:00 AM

 

The Larsen Sanctuary is owned and run by the Connecticut Audubon Society and was a gift from Roy and Margot Larsen in the early 1960s after the construction of I-95 eliminated about half of Audubon’s sanctuary in coastal Fairfield. It consists of 155 acres of varied terrain with little elevation change, several ponds and streams and very well maintained trails. We will be hiking about 3 miles which we should complete in about two hours as there will be many places to stop and observe wildlife. What you say, “wildlife on a DMA hike?” yes indeed there is here. We saw birds, turtles, a snake and an active beaver pond during our pre-hike. There is a pair of nesting Barred Owls on the property and the center also has a birds of prey compound which we may be able to see as well. This should be a terrific hike!

 

The Sanctuary is located at 2325 Burr Street in Fairfield which is north of the Merritt Parkway. Google “Larsen Wildlife Sanctuary”. There is plenty of parking, a nature store and bathrooms. NO DOGS permitted on this hike but please bring spouses and/or friends!

There will be NO LUNCH after this hike so that hikers will also be able to attend the Current Affairs meeting at 2:00 that afternoon.

 

PS-The director of the Fairfield region of Connecticut Audubon is Amy Barnouw, the daughter of John Schlachtenhaufen, who guided us on our pre-hike!  Thank you Amy!

Trip report:

The forecast for today was occasional showers with a probability of rain of about 50% during the hike two hour window of 10-12 am. However, at about 8:30 the skies opened up in Darien which apparently had a sobering effect on many DMAers desire to hike. Your hiking captains, Robert and Dave, were not deterred and headed up to Fairfield ready to push ahead. 

As it turned out, five other DMAers were not deterred either and the seven of us set out pretty much on schedule to tour the spectacular Sanctuary. The weather was just fine for a hike, cool but no rain. We set out on the main trail and detoured for a one mile trip through Deer Meadow (no deer!) before resuming on the main path which then took us past two beaver ponds and into the forest of giant trees and many streams and ponds. We hiked 3.2 miles in under 2 hours.

The overcast weather kept more than hikers inside, most wildlife stayed away too! We did see two Canada Geese, a few birds and a squirrel. Thanks to all who turned out!

The next hike is scheduled for Monday June 5 at a site TBD. We will hope for a better forecast!

Dave McCollum

Robert Plunkett

Bruce Museum May 12, 2023

April 5, 2023 /

May 12, at 10 a.m. Visit to the “New” Bruce Museum, Greenwich.

Organized by Jan Selkowitz, the trip to the Bruce Museum is scheduled for Friday May 12. It has been fully booked since the second day announced. We do have a waitlist. The group will meet at the museum at 10 a.m. where admission stickers will be distributed. We can wander around the museum until 11 a.m. when we meet our docents who will accompany us to several exhibits. At noon we will gather for lunch in a private conference room. Since the trip to the Bruce is short, people can drive alone or arrange to carpool with others.

The “new” Bruce Museum has just reopened after a major $60 million addition and renovation. This should be a fine outing to a local treasure. Jan Selkowitz: jankarlselkowitz@gmail.com

Your host: Jan Selkowitz

Current Affairs: April 27 at 2 p.m. at the DCA and on Zoom. Voting Integrity.

March 30, 2023 /

Current Affairs: April 27 at 2 p.m. at the DCA and on Zoom. Voting Integrity.

Last year, Current Affairs had a lively discussion on voting rights.

The flip side is voting integrity. Having made a career in accounting for the world’s largest corporations, which requires great accuracy and verifiable data, DMA member and CPA John Wolcott will look first at how our elections’ votes are cast, collected, stored and counted. Disputes in this process have created recent mistrust.

John will then review some possible common sense solutions to ensure that future election counts are less subject to dispute by any party or faction.

You may ask how these might be implemented. Of course, that is part of the debate. Our conversation about John’s analysis and recommendations may lead to some solid findings in that area too.

Join us for a discussion of this timely issue. We should all try to be as well-informed as possible before the next election cycle!

Darien Registrars discuss the chain of custody challenges for early voting at the Board of Selectmen’s Department Heads meeting

Elections should be grounded in evidence, not blind trust

 

Watch: Black Americans Debunk Liberal Talking Point that Voter ID is ‘Racist’: They’re Ignorant. 

Best Practices and Standards for Election Audits

The Free Consent of the People: Thomas Hooker and the Fundamental Orders

Charter of Connecticut 

“Here’s  the (almost) perfect voting device. More to come”

 

 

Book Club: Trust by Hernan Diaz, May 10, 2023

March 23, 2023 /

“An award-winning writer of absorbing, sophisticated fiction delivers a stylish and propulsive novel rooted in early 20th century New York, about wealth and talent, trust and intimacy, truth and perception. In glamorous 1920s New York City, two characters of sophisticated taste come together. One is a legendary Wall Street tycoon; the other, the brilliant daughter of penniless aristocrats. Steeped in affluence and grandeur, their marriage excites gossip and allows a continued ascent — all at a moment when the country is undergoing a great transformation. This is the story at the center of Harold Vanner’s novel Bonds, which everyone in 1938 New York seems to have read. But it isn’t the only version. Provocative, propulsive, and repeatedly surprising, Hernan Diaz’s Trust puts the story of these characters into conversation with the “the truth”-and in tension with the life and perspective of an outsider immersed in the mystery of a competing account. The result is an overarching novel that becomes more exhilarating and profound with each new layer and revelation, engaging the reader in a treasure hunt for the truth that confronts the reality-warping gravitational pull of money, and how power often manipulates facts”–

Wandering Torrington, March 30, 2023

March 9, 2023 /

The Wanderers first Spring Wandering is upon us. This Thursday March 30 we head to Torrington in the Naugatuck Valley. This area was one of the industrial hubs that helped to create Connecticut’s initial prosperity and is now a modern scenic venue.

Travel to Torrington will be by carpool from the DCA (274 Middlesex Road, Darien) leaving at 8:30 am. Please arrive at the DCA some minutes before. The ride is approximately 75 minutes up Rte. 8 off the Merritt Parkway. All are welcome.

Year End Picnic June 13, 2023

March 9, 2023 /
The DMA’s annual spring picnic at Weed Beach is scheduled for Wednesday, June 15 (Thursday, June 16 in the event of inclement weather). A sign-up sheet for the picnic will again be available at this coming Wednesday’s general meeting at the DCA; the cost will be $40 per person. Please contact Alex Garnett if you are willing to assist with the preparations and/or clean-up.

DMA members can also confirm their plans to attend with Jan Selkowitz or Alex Garnett by email. Members should either deliver their checks in person at the DCA or mail them to the Darien Men’s Association, c/o the Darien Community Association, attn.: Marilyn DeMaio, 274 Middlesex Road, Darien, CT 06820 (and email Jan or Alex that you have done so).

LI Sound boat ride May 30, 2023

March 9, 2023 /

Frank DeLeo will have a sign-up sheet at this week’s Wednesday meeting for the Long Island Boat Trip he has organized for May 30. It is limited to 40 people, and the list is filling up fast. Please bring your checkbook and pay when signing up. The fee is $40 per person. We will cruise the Sound along with two docents to help us better understand the Sound’s history and eco-system.

Music From The Movies: Norwalk Symphony Orchestra. April 26, 2023

March 9, 2023 /

Date.  April 26
Cost.  $30.00
Location . St Luke’s Church Darien auxiliary building behind the church
Time. 6.30-9.00
Horsd’oeuvres and beverages will be served at 6.30 and the music will begin at 7.30

Caterer. M Joseph
The event will be lead by 5 musicians from the Norwalk Symphony Orchestra. The theme will be music from well known movies.

We will have a sign up list beginning next Wednesday at the DMA meeting. You can also sign up by contacting Bob McGroaty or Jan Selkowitz.

Visit the Cloisters March 21, 2023

March 9, 2023 /

On March 21 we will be going to the Cloisters Museum, which is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art . The Cloisters is located in upper Manhattan. The museum specializes in European Medieval art and architecture and has views of the Hudson River. It has great tapestries and gardens. We will car pool from the DCA at 9.30 . A docent will meet us at 11.30. After our time at the museum we will have lunch at a nearby restaurant. We currently have a waiting list which usually opens up. The museum cost is $30.00. Please contact John Bassler or Jan Selkowitz if interested.

Hike Cranbury Park, March 23, 2023

March 8, 2023 /
Our next hike will be on Thursday, March 23 at 10:30 am at Cranbury Park in Norwalk. The park’s expansive 227 acres surround the historic Gallaher Mansion, a classic example of Tudor Revival style of architecture which is on the National Registry. Beyond the great lawn and mansion, Cranbury Park offers a series of meandering and wooded trails and a dog-friendly environment. This hike has a few moderately difficult sections but otherwise has trails that are generally flat and well maintained. The entrance to the park is at 300 Grumman Avenue.
If you have questions or would like additional information, please contact Robert Plunkett.
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