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The diversity of Topsmead dogs! Read about them in this month's Musings
Miss Edith with her dog Jacques
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ASK BOB
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The new format for Bob's "Remembering Topsmead"
Bob Orintas, the son of John Orintas, Miss Edith Chase's chauffeur, has been sharing his wonderful essays recounting his memories of Topsmead on our website each month for more than four years! Thank you Bob! In thinking about what else to chronicle, it occurred to us that perhaps our readers might have some questions for Bob which he has not yet addressed. So, we decided to offer the opportunity for everyone to do so. We hope you jump right in.
Please send your questions via the button below. Starting in April, your question may be one that Bob responds to in our newsletter and on the website! |
When was my last summer at Topsmead
and how was it memorable?
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This is a hard question to answer because there was no clear-cut end to my time at Topsmead. In fact, the Friends of Topsmead has enabled me to feel connected to the property even in my old age. Miss Edith in her will, gave my parents lifetime access to their home at Topsmead. She was very good to her employees that way. But for me, it’s kind of sad to think of the last years I lived at Topsmead because the main house was empty.
My last full summer as a child would have been in 1946 when I was 9 years old. After that my summer “Topsmead time” was limited to our two-week glorious summer vacations and weekends. This was because my mother opened a luncheonette in Waterbury with her sister, so we were in town with her. However, my dad commuted to work at Topsmead during the summer. In 1962, my mother retired from her business and Miss Edith completely refurbished our house at Topsmead because my mom was coming back. |
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by Margaret Hunt (photos by Margaret Hunt)
Edith Chase's photograph of her jonquils in bloom
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Thank You, Miss Edith, for Diversity
and Inclusion! May 2025 photos by Margaret Hunt I was savoring the first warm May day when a friend called asking if I felt like meeting at Topsmead for a dog walk. She cautioned, "Remember I have Sherlock as well as Maggie, and Amy will be joining us with her dog Remy." Of course! The more the merrier. We met at the main parking lot, introduced the dogs to each other, grabbed poop bags from the Friends of Topsmead poop bag station, and set off on our walk.
I was struck by the diversity represented by our four dogs: Gloria the Standard Poodle, Maggie the Labrador Retriever, Remy the Rottweiler, and Sherlock the Springer Spaniel. Each dog had its own coloring and coat quality: curly black, smooth yellow, black and tan, silky red and white. Each dog had its own breed-specific behavior: 100% focus on its owner, nose to the ground sniffing, relaxed but alert, and tail-waving ADHD-ness. And yet all four of them got along famously. -read complete Musings essay- |