Category Archives: Featured Event

The New Yorker Discussion Group: Fall 2024 Session

Extra session on Wednesday, November 6 

Maybe you already have a subscription but only consistently glance at the cartoons? Or perhaps you yearn for in-depth reporting, written well without the prefab soundbites of TV news? Or you might just like to meet up with interesting individuals to talk about current events, the latest big hit on Broadway, upcoming museum exhibits worth a look all while enjoying a sip of wine and savory bites on a crisp fall evening.

The magazine issue is on us. Selected articles for the November 6 meeting:

From the November 4 issue: 

  • Page 20 – The Last Mile: How aid workers risk their lives in Gaza by Dorothy Wickenden
  • Page 26 – The Convert: Is J.D. Vance the new face of MAGA? by Benjamin Wallace-Wells
  • Page 36 – The Big Deal: What Bidenomics is building by Nicholas Lemann
  • Page 60 – Books: The Enlightenment’s great female intellect by Adam Gopnik
  • Page 66 – Dancing: Compulsion, complicity, and the art of Bunraku by Jennifer Homans

Register here!

View our Photo Release Policy, effective since February 1, 2019, here.

Knitting for Kids

Kids in Grade 3 and up are invited to join us for this 6-week introductory series with Rowayton Elementary School teacher and knitting enthusiast Alex Kaminski! She’ll cover the basics of knitting (like casting on, basic stitches, and binding off) and help kids start their knitting journey. The needles and yarn are on us!

Register here!

Please note that this is an 6-week series and space is very limited. Please only register if you can commit to the workshop dates.

View our Photo Release Policy, effective since February 1, 2019, here.

Election Day Fun Fest

Kids in grades K through 5 are invited to join us for some or all of the following fun drop-off events that we have planned for Election Day:

12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.: Games Galore! We’ll have tables with puzzles, card games, crafts, and more.

1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.: Pizza Lunch/Walk Around Break.

2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.: Movie Showing of The Garfield Movie (rated PG).

Please register here as space is limited and we want to make sure that we have the needed supplies and food for everyone.

Chair Dance with Claudia

Using many different styles of music, Claudia’s motivating, high energy dance class includes a classic dance movement warm-up using a chair, light weight strengthening exercises, and a full body stretch, using the mind-body connection to make this class both inspirational and fun.

Sing a little, dance a lot, move to your fullest potential, while getting a light aerobic workout, as well as gaining strength, flexibility, and energy. Posture awareness is the focus of this combination of standing, dance and chair stretch. Work out at your own pace while gaining benefits of the group energy.

Register here for this 45 minute workout that is guaranteed to make you feel great!

View our Photo Release Policy, effective since February 1, 2019, here.

Three Artists, Six Hands Art Exhibition

Join us for The Drop Out Gallery’s first exhibition of original art and photographs.

We’ll have live music in the courtyard around 3 p.m. and, if we’re lucky, Cynthia may be bringing down homemade cookies from Vermont! We welcome any other bakers to bring goodies, too, if you’d like but refreshments will  also be served. This exhibition is a fun, kid-friendly event filled with good vibes. You may be so inclined to buy a piece of art so be prepared, and we look forward to seeing you there!

A sneak peek at our featured artists:

Cynthia Rosen is a Vermont, palette knife, oil painter whose stunning work has many collectors. Check out her mind-blowing archive of sold work on her website www.cynthiarosen.com. Wow!

Meighan Morrison is a Connecticut-based abstract painter whose paintings are off the charts original, mesmerizing, and simply everywhere! Find her online at www.mmorrisonart.com or on Instagram @morrisonmeighan.

Kevin Keaney is a San Franciscan mixed-media specialist whose complex and beautiful works are a sight to behold. And own! Visit him on Instagram @kevkeaneyart.

View our Photo Release Policy, effective since February 1, 2019, here.

Maybe You Should Talk To Someone: Examining the Truths and Fictions we Tell Ourselves with Lori Gottlieb

Every year, nearly 30 million Americans sit on a therapist’s couch—and some of these patients are therapists. In her remarkable book Maybe You Should Talk to Someone, Lori Gottlieb tells us that despite her license and rigorous training, her most significant credential is that she’s a card-carrying member of the human race. “I know what it’s like to be a person,” she writes, as a crisis causes her world to come crashing down.

Enter Wendell, the quirky but seasoned therapist in whose office she suddenly lands. With his balding head, cardigan, and khakis, he seems to have come straight from Therapist Central Casting. Yet he will turn out to be anything but. In her book, Lori explores the inner chambers of her patients’ lives—a self-absorbed Hollywood producer, a young newlywed diagnosed with a terminal illness, a senior citizen threatening to end her life on her birthday if nothing gets better, and a twenty-something who can’t stop hooking up with the wrong guys (even one from the waiting room)—she finds that the questions they are struggling with are the very ones she is now bringing to Wendell.

With startling wisdom and humor, Gottlieb reveals our blind spots, examining the truths and fictions we tell ourselves and others as we teeter on the tightrope between love and desire, meaning and mortality, guilt and redemption, terror and courage, hope and change.

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone is revolutionary in its candor, offering a deeply personal yet universal tour of our hearts and minds and providing the rarest of gifts: a boldly revealing portrait of what it means to be human, and a disarmingly funny and illuminating account of our own mysterious lives and our power to transform them.

We invite you to join us as Gottlieb shares her wisdom on examining the truths and fictions we tell ourselves to help us breakthrough what is holding us back and getting in the way of living the life we desire. Register here now to start your journey! Aren’t able to attend? Visit us here to view recordings of past events and the list others that are coming up!

About the Author: Lori Gottlieb is a psychotherapist and New York Times bestselling author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone, which has sold over two million copies and is currently being adapted as a television series starring Kristen Bell. In addition to her clinical practice, she co-hosts the popular “Dear Therapists” podcast produced by Katie Couric and writes The Atlantic’s “Dear Therapist” advice column. She is a sought-after expert in media such as The Today Show, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, CNN, and NPR’s “Fresh Air” and her TED Talk was one of the Top 10 Most Watched of the Year. She is the creator of the Maybe You Should Talk To Someone Workbook: A Toolkit for Editing Your Story and Changing Your Life and the Maybe You Should Talk To Someone Journal: 52 Weekly Sessions to Transform Your Life. Learn more at LoriGottlieb.com or by following her on Instagram @lorigottlieb_author and X @LoriGottlieb1.

Brought to you in partnership with the Library Speakers Consortium.

Women and Money Series: How to Make Sense of Today’s Financial Markets

When it comes to the financial and real estate markets, people aren’t always as rational as you would think. Behavioral finance experts have been studying the not-so-smart decisions people make. We will reveal the fears, misperceptions and emotional needs people have that sabotage their investment and home sale returns.

Join us for this monthly roundtable for women on money led by financial professionals Julia Strayer and Liz Maccarone. This series’ discussion will focus on how to make sense of today’s financial markets, is open to women with any level of financial knowledge, and is an ongoing informational gathering to learn and share.

We’ll show you how to avoid the mistakes and make decisions like the pros. We’ll cover the latest market news and how that might affect your decision making. We’ll also give you background and context for understanding why market movement occurs and we’ll share strategies for keeping ahead of what might come. Register here!

Our Roundtable Leaders:

Julia Strayer, CPWA®, CIMA®, CRPC®
Senior Vice President, Wealth Management Advisor

Prior to joining Merrill Lynch Wealth Management in 2000, Julia was a vice president and private banker for BankBoston’s Private Bank for 7 years, responsible for asset management and trust services. Previously, Julia worked in marketing for 9 years with Merrill. Julia has a BA from Ohio State University and an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business. Julia has appeared on the CNBC show “Power Lunch,” CBS “This Morning,” WGCH’s “Women in Business,” in addition to featured articles in USA Today.

Liz Maccarone, CRPC®
Senior Financial Advisor

Liz joined Merrill Lynch Wealth Management in 2012. Liz works closely with high-net-worth individuals and their families to create personalized and comprehensive strategies that support their goals, including investment management, retirement planning, liability management, and multigenerational planning. Liz values the importance of establishing and cultivating relationships with families including the next generation. Liz graduated from Fairfield University with a dual bachelor’s degree in Finance and Marketing. She began her career working at a boutique investment firm as a Business Development Associate, specializing in commodities and futures trading.

The roundtable meetings will be conducted via Zoom. Visit their website here to find the appropriate download instructions and download link for your device.

This session of the series is hosted by Darien Library.

Learn to Play Mah Jongg

Friday, October 4, 11, 18, and 25

Learn to play American Mah Jongg, a fun and fascinating tile game. Over these three sessions, new players will be taught the basics of understanding the tiles and the Mah Jongg card. You’ll soon be throwing out phrases like 6Bam! 2Crak! Green Dragon! and Mah Jongg! Rules and strategies of play as well as game etiquette will be covered.

**THIS IS AN INTRODUCTORY SERIES FOR BEGINNERS ONLY**

Space is very limited for this program so please only register here you can commit to all 4 weeks.

View our Photo Release Policy, effective since February 1, 2019, here.

Chair Dance with Claudia

Using many different styles of music, Claudia’s motivating, high energy dance class includes a classic dance movement warm-up using a chair, light weight strengthening exercises, and a full body stretch, using the mind-body connection to make this class both inspirational and fun.

Sing a little, dance a lot, move to your fullest potential, while getting a light aerobic workout, as well as gaining strength, flexibility, and energy. Posture awareness is the focus of this combination of standing, dance and chair stretch. Work out at your own pace while gaining benefits of the group energy.

Register here for this 45 minute workout that is guaranteed to make you feel great!

View our Photo Release Policy, effective since February 1, 2019, here.

Magic: The Gathering

You have been summoned to join The Gathering! Interested in traversing different planes of existence? Or battling your friends with powerful creatures and spectacular spells? Then this group is for you! Players in grades 5 and up are invited to join us for commander games of Magic: The Gathering. Compete with friends, meet new opponents, or learn how to play! We will provide playing cards and dice but you’re welcome to bring your own, too!

Register here!

New Photo Release Policy effective February 1, 2019. See here for details.

The New Yorker Discussion Group: Fall 2024 Session

Wednesdays from September 4th through October 30th
**No session on September 18th**

Maybe you already have a subscription but only consistently glance at the cartoons? Or perhaps you yearn for in-depth reporting, written well without the prefab soundbites of TV news? Or you might just like to meet up with interesting individuals to talk about current events, the latest big hit on Broadway, upcoming museum exhibits worth a look all while enjoying a sip of wine and savory bites on a crisp fall evening.

The magazine issue is on us. Stay tuned via our website and/or eblasts for the selected articles to be discussed each week.

Readings from the October 21 issue for the October 23 meeting:

  • Page 12 – As Bad as All That: Donald Trump and the unmaking of America by Adam Gopnik
  • Page 24 – The Ascent: Can Kamala Harris end the Trump era? by Evan Osnos
  • Page 36 – Prison Diaries: The Russian opposition leader’s last years by Alexei Navalny
  • Page 57 – A Critic at Large: How Alvin Ailey built a home for Black dancers by Hilton Als
  • Page 62 – Ta-Nehisi Coates and the temptations of narrative by Parul Sehgal

***Optional***

  • Page 18 – Pecking Order: The scientists who are starting to decode birdsong by Rivka Galchen

 

Register here!

View our Photo Release Policy, effective since February 1, 2019, here.