The Daily Five: Substance Abuse, Social Security, and Old Lyme Snacks Make Headlines

1. There's a good chance we'll see showers this morning, possibly even snow showers. Rain showers are likely again this afternoon. Weather.com is predicting a high temperature of 47 degrees and an overnight low of 34 degrees. Tonight will be partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of rain. 

2. Jim Goldberg, founder of Deep River Snacks in Old Lyme, was profiled earlier this week by the Wall Street Journal." In the article, Goldberg describes how he was inspired to make his unique snacks after biting into a picked green tomato at Katz's Deli in New York. 

"I said, 'Holy crap, someone's got to make something this good,' " he told the WSJ. "We gotta do this!"

Goldberg's company makes snacks, including low-cal varieties, in uncommon flavors, from zesty jalapeno to spicy dill pickle, although he told the WSJ his most popular flavor right now is salt and vinegar. Alas, he told the Journal, he never seemed to find a market for his tequila flavored snacks.  

3. The end of the month is typically a slow time for meetings but it does mean that meeting rooms are freed up for other events. This evening, for instance, Old Lyme Town Hall Meeting Hall will host a Social Security Seminar starting at 5:30 p.m.

4. East Lyme's Adolescent Substance Abuse Prevention program (ASAP) is hoping to land a Drug Free Communities grant to help combat youth substance abuse in East Lyme. The primary purpose of the grant is to change the environment to create a culture and community that fosters and supports substance-free living.

The grant is substantial, $125,000 a year for five years, and can be used to fund all sorts of efforts. In the past, such grants have been used to push for changes in laws or local ordinances; to provide for additional police patrols or better lighting in known "party" places; or to push for changes at local businesses (removing cigarette machines, paraphenalia, or relocating pseudoephedrine products, which can be used to make meth, to behind store counters).

ASAP will find out whether it has received the grant on August 31.  

5. A quick reminder: Many government offices, including DMV, local town halls, and schools in East Lyme, Old Lyme, and Lyme are closed tomorrow for Good Friday, so if you've got business to attend to, take care of it today!