My daughter, Michelle, and I took advantage of the glorious weather we had near the end of last week to stretch our bounds as well as our legs last Friday for our evening walk after dinner.
When I was a schoolchild this was the part of the summer I dreaded, after the first dog days and heat had passed, came the realization as temperatures turned "crisper" (a word my mom always used) that the sun was showing up a little later every morning and calling it a day a little earlier each evening.
That could only mean the return to school was around the corner. As a man of sixty-three, its meaning is a bit more somber now, I know, but despite the memories and the worries, I put my best forward as we started our walk from near Chelsea Parade, down Broadway to Union Street.
We discovered to our enjoyment that it was First Friday in downtown Norwich and we passed larger than normal groups, bordering on crews and nearing the size of crowds, on the sidewalks of Lower Broadway around the Norwich Arts Center at the Donald L. Oat Theater with, I'm guessing now, both the curious and the cognoscenti flowing through the doors to check out the new (and the new to them) artwork being offered.
We could hear someone busking near Franklin Square, just down from the Gallery at The Wauregan, also with a large crowd, as most of the gallery patrons merely nodded in acknowledgement of his efforts while he remained undeterred and undaunted by the race and roar of motorized traffic passing him on Main Street.
On Main Street was a hustle and bustle at Harp and Dragon and on the Upper Main portion, beyond the traffic barricades, was a lively pedestrian zone packed with people who were face painting or taking a brush and colors in hand to work on their own art while others were admiring the myriad of goods created with duct tape and still others enjoyed the memories and mysteries found on the sidewalk in front of and inside Encore Justified.
You could clearly hear the music of the Friday Night Acoustics at Howard Brown Park- it offered a perfect soundtrack to a marvelous movie
We made our way home by way of Franklin Street and pressed our noses nearly to the glass at These Guys Brewing Company at 78 Franklin Street watching as all hands were putting the finishing touches on what promises to be a terrific addition to Norwich (they open this Friday, with a full menu so come hungry)
We had a great walk and a great time as we wandered "over hill, over dale, thorough bush, thorough brier, over park and over pale." Norwich in the Summer of 2015.
-bill kenny
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