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The time and location of the next Webster Cash Mob has officially been announced.

If you’ve never heard of a “cash mob,” the idea is simple. It’s kind of like a “flash mob,” where people show up at a specified time and perform some sort of choreographed dance routine or activity.  In a cash mob, local residents show up at a predetermined small business at a certain date and time and spend money, giving the business an economic jolt.  Mobbers typically spend $10-20 dollars.

This month’s “mob target” is The Art Stop, at 10 North Avenue in the village.  The Art Stop, open since 2003, sells fine art supplies, creative items for children, and gift items.  They also have a custom frame shop and a gallery featuring work by local artists, and offer art lessons in their second-floor studio.

The Cash Mob will descend on the Art Stop on Saturday Oct 20 from 1:00 – 3:00 pm. Afterwards, mobbers will meet at Barry’s Old School Irish for a pint and a scone.

You can find out more about this cash mob and future Webster Cash Mob efforts by “liking” the group’s Facebook page, or contact Renee Short at 585-670-9385.

I got to wear pajamas to school today.

You see, it’s Homecoming Week at the Webster high schools, which means that every day this week there’s a different dress-up theme for students.  At Thomas High School, faculty members are encouraged to participate as well.  So Tuesday — Pajama Day — we all got to wear our fuzzy pajama pants, or something equally comfortable, like sweats.  Wednesday, we can dress up like superheroes or space aliens, and Thursday is “music genre” day. I’m thinking of pulling some polyester disco pants out of the box in the attic.

It all culminates on Friday with color day, when each class dresses in a different color.  When the entire student body gathers in the gym at the end of the school day for the pep rally, the effect is dramatic. The bleachers are transformed into a rainbow, enveloping the gymnasium floor. And the noise is deafening.

I know that Spirit Week at Schroeder is much the same, down to the deafening pep rally on Friday.  I think this is only the second year in which both schools have held their Homecoming celebrations in the same week, a decision which I think was long overdue.  Even though we have two high schools, we are still one community, and should make an effort to hold joint events a whole lot more often than we do.

Which is why I am really excited to see that the Homecoming Parade is back for a second year on Saturday morning.  Students will be making floats and walking with their classes, or teams, or clubs. The parade begins at Spry Middle School at 10 am and will proceed through the village.

There’s actually a whole line-up of Homecoming sporting events taking place this week, including the Schroeder Varsity football game on Friday and Thomas Varsity game on Saturday night.  Click here for the entire schedule of this week’s events.

** P.S.  Like last year, I will not be able to attend this weekend’s Homecoming Parade. So like last year, I’m asking my readers to submit photos for me to post in my blog.  If you’re interested, choose a half dozen or so of your favorites and email them to me at missyblog@gmail.com. Thanks! **

This was the scene outside Mitch Nellis’ Eastridge High School room during the sorting phase of the collection drive.

I got an email a few days ago from Mitchell Nellis. He’s the brains behind Greenseed Educational Supplies, the organization that coordinates the effort at the end of every school year to recycle gently used school supplies.  I know that many of my readers are really interested when I post blogs about Webster Thomas’ annual participation in this effort.  So I thought I’d post a follow-up and let you know how things went this year.

In a word, spectacular.

As a matter of fact, Mitch received so many supplies at the end of the school year that he didn’t even try to count them all.  (That was pretty good news, but disappointing to those of us who love to spout statistics.)  But he did report that the supplies were distributed to 19 local organizations — including city schools and community service agencies — and schools in Africa and South America.  Here’s a list of the local places the supplies landed:

* RCSD #29
* RCSD #30
* RCSD #58
* RCSD #44
* Urban Choice Charter School
* Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.’s literacy program
* Strong Behavioral Health
* Christian Grove St. Church
* Purple Crayon Day Care
* Saving Wild Horses Through Grace Ministries
* Pack 925 Cub Scout Troop
* Young Audiences of Rochester/ArtPeace — Arts for Learning
* Homeschool Programs in Middleport
* Unity Chemical Dependency Inpatient Unit
* CHESS homeschooling co op
* United Christian Community Program
* Compeer Rochester, Inc.
* Community Support Shoppe, Inc.
* Journeys of Solutions, Inc.

Webster was once again blew Mitch away with the amount of donated items we collected from Spry and Willink Middle Schools, Plank North Elementary and Thomas High School.  Hopefully even more Webster schools will participate next year and even more worthy agencies and schools will benefit.

If you’re connected with the PTSA at a school which would like to get involved, drop me a line and I’ll let you know how to do so.  And if you know of any community group which could use supplies next June, contact Mitch at mitchellnellis@ hotmail.com.

Last weekend I found myself driving home along Ridge Road a few minutes after midnight. Believe it or not, the Powers That Be in the state believe it is still necessary at that time of night to have the light at the Webster Square/CVS intersection change to red on a regular cycle. This, despite the fact that those businesses had closed up shop hours ago and there are no cars in the parking lots. You can imagine how frustrating it is to sit there at that light at midnight, waiting for… nothing.

C’mon, New York State. Wise up.

If yesterday morning’s inclement weather kept you from coming into town for Village Days, I am sorry to inform you that you missed a pretty good time.  There was some rain in the morning, for sure, which made it difficult for the vendors to set up, and actually kept many of them from showing up at all. But by 11:00 or so, the last of the puddles were drying up, and the sun even dared to break through the clouds every once in a while.  So the event pretty much proceeded as planned.

Still, it was obvious that many people had indeed been scared away by the gloomy weather forecast.  The crowds were rather sparse, especially in the morning hours.  That was good news for the young participants in the model plane flying contest; fewer entrants meant it was easier to win.  I was pleased to see that that both the museum and the fire station had some good foot traffic for their open houses.

As always, the best part of Village Days was walking through town, and seeing so many old and new friends, neighbors and business owners I have come to know in the past few years.  As always, it was a very nice event, celebrating all that is great about Webster.

Click here or on any of the images to redirect to a gallery of photos from Village Days 2012.

A look at Cafe Sewciety’s new classroom.

Not long ago I got an e-newsletter from my friend Judy Merritt at Café Sewciety Quilts, in which she announced that her little shop was celebrating its first year anniversary.  That’s quite an achievement. It’s tough for new small businesses to make a go of it, especially in today’s economy.  Witness the recent closing of A Barker’s  Dozen after only about 16 months.

It got me to thinking about some other young businesses in town, many of which I wrote about when they opened. I thought it might be fun to check in and see how they’re doing.

First, let’s go back to Café Sewciety.  When Judy bought the little house on Ridge Road a little more than a year ago, it was in dire need of redecorating and remodeling.  She and her husband worked tirelessly to turn its two main rooms into a charming little quilter’s shop and classroom with a small but diverse selection of quilting and sewing supplies.

In the year since, Judy has quadrupled her inventory and turned the garage area into a dedicated classroom. Plus she’s also upgraded her website to offer online purchases.

Read my original blog about Café Sewciety Quilts here.

Danny and Jessica Barry transformed Webster’s Four Corners.

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A year ago September 23, Danny and Jessica Barry officially opened the doors to Barry’s Old School Irish Pub and Bakery, transforming the village’s Four Corners.  They transformed a corner which had been an eyesore for years and created a business which which is so much more than just an Irish a pub — Barry’s is more like a community meeting hall, where friends meet over scones, co-workers raise a Guinness together, and where onetime strangers have come to feel like family.

Barry’s is still going strong, and is already planning its one-year Grand Opening anniversary in October.  In this first year they have greatly expanded their menu and beer offerings, and instituted weekly special events including Wednesday night Trivia Night and a Sunday morning brunch.

Read my original blog about Barry’s Old School Irish here.

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Take a short stroll from Barry’s down East Main Street and you’ll come across Webster Hots, now owned by Debbie and Pat Bush. Debbie and Pat didn’t start their business from scratch, but they did take it over from the previous owners back in January, and have been doing very well since. This summer they solidified their position as a favorite summer meal stop when they added ice cream to their menu.

Check out the first blog I wrote about Webster Hots here.

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Walter Scott at his new East Main Street location.

Cross the street from Webster Hots and you’ll see Webster Gourmet. The first time I wrote about Webster Gourmet was about two years ago, not long after Walter Scott opened the specialty foods shop on West Main Street.  Last January I had occasion to write about it again, to announce that Walter had moved to his current location on East Main Street. The move meant more space for the fledgling business, allowing Walter to expand his inventory and regularly bring in new products.  As a result, the business continues to attract new customers and is thriving in its new location.

Next time you’re in the village, you might see Walter sitting outside his shop watching the world go by. Make sure to stop for a chat. The teapot is always on.

See my most recent blog about Webster Gourmet here.

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When BC’s Chicken Coop moved into Webster Village, I immediately had a new favorite chicken place.

The Chicken Coop is kind of hidden off the beaten path on South Ave., but this little restaurant has developed a loyal and steadily growing clientele in the more than two years it’s been in business.  Owners Brandie Rauber and Christina Wasson have significantly expanded their menu since they opened, and starting this week, will be open for lunch Wednesday-Friday.

The Chicken Coop, by the way, recently was recognized as one of Rochesterians’ favorite restaurants on urbanspoon.com.

Check out my original blog about BC’s Chicken Coop here.

Please indulge me once again as I post a personal blog, a short follow-up to today’s Father’s Day blog.

Dad watches one of his shots.

In it, I wrote how my siblings and I were able to spend Father’s Day with our dad for the first time in more than 40 years. That alone would have made the weekend great. But this morning it got even better, when I joined 83-year old Dad, my big brother Greg and my little sister Mindy for a round of golf.

The event was the Father/Child Golf Tournament at Genegantslet Golf Course in Greene, NY (the same town which had the Memorial Day parade which I blogged about a few weeks ago).  It was nine holes of pure fun (and aggravation, and frustration, and embarrassment, and abject humiliation.)  It was a captain-and-crew format, which meant that we all played from where the best ball landed on each shot. As a result, everyone was able to contribute to the game, even if we were not always consistent. My Dad actually was one of our best putters, and holed in at least two par putts for us.

We were hoping for par, and ended up coming in two-under. So we considered that a real success.

The Captain and Crew.

Congratulations to John Carlin and the folks at the Genegantslet Golf Course for putting together a very nice little tournament. I particularly thought it was great that, when the awards were given out, they made sure every young child who participated got a small trophy.  It was for “putting up with your dads,” John told them.

And because I know you’re wondering, I did pretty OK, if you don’t count the three balls I put in the water. And the dribblers off the tee that looked like I bowled them down the green.  And my one drive which went, well, almost between my legs so that it landed BEHIND me (see if you can do THAT, Tiger).

Actually, my father was rather impressed by how well I could drive when managed to I hit the ball squarely.  By all rights, though, it shouldn’t have surprised him; after all, he’s the one who taught me how to swing a golf club back in the early 1970s.

Seven-year old twins Rowen and Maeric Barrows with the trophies they won for playing in the tournament. They were so excited. Rowan fist-pumped the air all the way back to his table. And then for several minutes afterwards.

Impact Award winners Brother Wease, Don Alhart and Carol Ritter

Saturday night I had the pleasure of attending the first-ever Rochester Media Association awards dinner, an event held to honor 25 members of the local media for contributions to their organizations and the general community.

A who’s who of Rochester media talent attended. The three top awards, called the Impact Awards, were presented to former Democrat and Chronicle reporter and columnist Carol Ritter,  95.1 The Brew radio personality Brother Wease, and WHAM13News anchor Don Alhart.

But I also want to congratulate Webster Post reporter Linda Quinlan, who also received an award as an Established Media Professional.  Linda and I occasionally cross paths at Webster meetings, and while I am not a “real” reporter, I consider her a colleague who more than deserves the recognition she received last night.

It was a terrific evening, and a rare opportunity for local media professionals to relax among their peers.  Read more about the night and check out some more photos (when they finally get posted; I took 99 of them) at the Rochester Media Association website.

Messenger Post reporters Linda Quinlan and Bethany Young with their RMA awards.