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Good morning from the shoreline.

I hope you all had a good Fourth of July. I watched from down by the New London lighthouse and could see fireworks going off in five spots at once: New London, Groton, Waterford, Fishers Island, and a faint one way out over Long Island. That lightning storm that rolled through afterwards was better than any of the fireworks. Hope you stayed safe and cool and got the weekend you were after.

This Saturday, New London throws the biggest party of the summer: Celebrate New London takes over Bank and State Streets, and it caps off with the largest fireworks show in the state, fired from the middle of the Thames.

One more things worth flagging up top. The North Stonington Agricultural Fair runs four days this weekend, one of the bigger ag fairs in the state, oxen pulls and midway rides and all.

Here's what I've surfaced this week.

Last week I floated a Shoreline Crew Dinner Club. Most of you wanted to know how it actually works, so here it is, quick.

Tickets are $20, and seats are limited. You take a short personality-style quiz when you sign up, and I use it to seat you with five or six locals you're likely to have a genuinely good night with. It's a weeknight, you cover your own food, and the restaurant gets revealed a day ahead. There’s an afterparty later in the evening for everyone to meetup if interested.

One tap. Vote yes and hit reply if you want first dibs when tickets open.

Suzie Fitzgerald has been our first Crew Expert these past few weeks, a fine gardener serving Mystic and the surrounding towns. This is her last installment, so scroll down for one more round of coastal-garden wisdom.

Get in touch: Instagram @gardengirl.llc · [email protected] · (860) 908-7689

Saturday, July 11 · from 4pm · Downtown New London & Waterfront Park

Celebrate New London takes over the downtown cultural district and Waterfront Park all afternoon and into the night: food trucks, live music, art galleries, and a waterfront market, building to the Mashantucket Pequot Fireworks Extravaganza over the Thames. It's the largest fireworks show in Connecticut, the Tribe's gift to the region every summer, and the festival that picked up where Sailfest left off. New this year, a Folk Fest stage debuts at Hygienic Art Park on Bank Street. Get downtown early and stake out your spot. Details →

Thursday–Sunday, July 9–12 · 21 Wyassup Road · North Stonington

The North Stonington Agricultural Fair is one of the larger ag fairs in the state, and it runs the whole issue window: livestock, oxen and tractor and truck pulls, a midway, blacksmith demos, and stage entertainment. Thursday and Friday it runs 5 to 11pm, Saturday 9am to 11pm, and Sunday 8am to 6pm. Admission is $12 for adults, free for kids under 10. A proper old-fashioned fair fifteen minutes up Route 2. Details →

Thursday, Friday & Tuesday · 6:30pm · Fitch Senior High School · Groton

The Mystic Schooners, our NECBL wood-bat summer team, play three home games this week: the Newport Gulls Thursday, the Martha's Vineyard Sharks Friday, and the Keene Swamp Bats Tuesday. Cheap tickets, a lawn, a hot dog, and college ball under the lights behind Fitch in Groton. About the best-value night out on the shoreline all summer. Schedule →

Saturday & Sunday · New London

The Thames River Heritage Park runs two walking-and-water history programs this weekend. Saturday at 11:30am, "In Our Nation's Defense: Military Stories on the Thames" traces the river's military past from the Revolution to the modern submarine fleet. Sunday at 11:45am, "Black Heritage Along the Thames: The Half That's Never Been Told" surfaces the stories that usually get left out of the harbor tour. Two good reasons to look at the water we all drive past. In Our Nation's Defense →

Some events listed are submitted by organizers or sponsors. We only feature things we’d genuinely recommend.

Opening a restaurant? Launching a new menu? Reply to this email and let us share it with the community!

Sunday, July 12 · 2:30pm · Saltwater Farm Vineyard, 349 Elm Street · Stonington

Dan Watson plays the lawn Sunday afternoon, with Jayy's food truck parked on-site and Moovin' Scoops handling dessert. Bring a chair, order a glass, and let a Sunday go slow in the old airplane hangar turned tasting room. Details →

Friday, July 10 · 6–9pm · Stonington Vineyards, 523 Taugwonk Road · Stonington

Violet Theory plays the summer concert series Friday night. It's a lawn-chair-and-picnic setup, $10 in advance or $15 at the door. Pack a blanket and dinner and settle in for the evening. Details →

Stonington Village Farmers Market — Saturday, July 11 · 9am · Stonington

Denison Farmers Market — Sunday, July 12 · 12pm · Denison Homestead · Mystic

Get your week's produce local. Stonington sets up in the village Saturday morning; Denison runs Sunday on the Homestead grounds.

Some food and drink picks come from organizers or sponsors. We only feature things we’d genuinely recommend.

Want to share a Featured Event ? Reach out and let’s talk.

Live music runs heavy this week, from a Groton park concert to a string of vineyard sets and a busy stretch at the Charlestown Rathskeller.

The Cartells hit the park in Groton. The City of Groton's Concerts in the Park series brings The Cartells Friday at 6:30pm. Free, on the grass, and the marquee live-music night on the Groton side of the river this week. Details →

The vineyards are loaded. Stonington Vineyards has Violet Theory Friday at 6pm ($10 advance), and Saltwater Farm Vineyard has Dan Watson on the lawn Sunday at 2:30pm with food trucks on-site (both are in Food & Drink above too, since they come with a meal). The classic slow-Sunday shoreline outing.

Blue Monday keeps rolling in Stonington. The free Blue Monday Concert Series brings Loaded Wagon Monday at 6pm in Stonington. Show up, throw a few dollars in the bucket, hear some good roots music for the food bank.

Visit wailingcity.com for complete live music list and venue updates

This is the last installment of our first Crew Experts Corner run. For the past few weeks, Suzie Fitzgerald (Garden Girl Suzie) has answered your questions with no chemicals, just an eye for what actually grows in our coastal soil. One more before she signs off, and it is a good one for July.

Dave asks: "For someone with a small patio, a few pots, and not much time, what are three vegetables they could plant right now that would actually thrive?"

Suzie: Hi Dave! There are a few vegetables that do very well in patio pots. Tomatoes: try one tomato per pot and stick the cage right in there with them. Lettuce: it's great to have lettuce pots right on the patio for cutting and bringing inside for salads. Herbs: try a few herb pots (especially near the grill if you have one) so you can just cut and add to your summer dinners. Make sure all of your pots have proper drainage and water regularly.

Big thanks to Suzie for answering our questions and thank you to Ann, Steph, and Dave for the questions. Sorry that we couldn’t get to all you!

Now, who's next? The Crew Experts Corner is a rotating chair, and Suzie was our first. Know someone around here who really knows their craft, whether it's boats, cooking, home repair, fishing, or something we would never guess? Or is that you? Reply to this email and tell me what you would want to teach the Crew.

Work with Suzie: She is on Instagram at @gardengirl.llc, [email protected], and (860) 908-7689. She designs and maintains gardens, does containers and window boxes, and runs a home-delivery floral subscription.

A few things worth planning around. The back half of July and into August fills up fast:

GOING ON ALL MONTH, THROUGH JULY 25

Historic Stonington and the Greater Mystic Chamber are running a free America 250 Scavenger Hunt through July 25: 18 clues spread from Mystic to Pawcatuck, all on the free Go Mystic app, each one a piece of Stonington's Revolution-era history. Solve nine and you're entered in the prize drawing at the Village Fair. A good rainy-afternoon or restless-kids answer that costs nothing. Details →

FRIDAY, JULY 17

Ben Eramo's Elton John tribute plus fireworks at Ocean Beach Park, 8pm. Bring a blanket and make a night of it on the boardwalk. · New London

SUNDAY, JULY 19

Shovels & Rope land at the UNITED Black Box in Westerly. Doors 7pm, show 8pm, all ages. The husband-and-wife duo put on one of the best live shows in roots music right now, and the Black Box is a room small enough to feel every bit of it. Tickets run $45–52, and this one will move. Details→

THURSDAY–SUNDAY, JULY 23–26

The Blessing of the Fleet returns to Stonington Borough, the shoreline's oldest working-waterfront tradition. The 5K road race kicks it off Thursday at 6pm; Saturday brings Meet the Fleet, a raw bar, and the Portuguese Holy Ghost Society's food and music; Sunday closes with the Fisherman's Mass and the blessing procession down to the Town Dock. If you've never gone, this is the year. Details →

FRIDAY, JULY 24

Everclear plays Jonathan Edwards Winery in North Stonington. '90s alt under the stars at one of the area's best vineyards. Details →

SATURDAY–SUNDAY, JULY 25–26

The International Sea Glass Festival sets up on the Village Green at Mystic Seaport, 10am to 5pm both days: 50-plus juried artisans, talks, and a sea glass contest down by the water. One ticket covers the whole weekend.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 6

Adventure Mystic runs Paddle for a Purpose on the water from 6 to 8pm, with a portion of proceeds going to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's Out of the Darkness Walk in Niantic this September. Paddleboards and single kayaks are $50, doubles $70, space is limited, and there are raffle prizes on the night. Book ahead if you want in. Details →

THURSDAY, AUGUST 27

Moonlight Social returns to Stone Acres Farm in Stonington, 6 to 10pm under the Sturgeon Moon: live music, food and drinks, vendors, a sound bath, and a good crowd, presented by 85th Day Food Community and 2Primo. Presale tickets are on sale now.

That's your week.

The biggest fireworks in the state, a county fair, the Schooners at home, and vineyard music every night. Pick one thing off the list and get out the door.

Where's your fireworks spot for Saturday, or is there a corner of the shoreline you'd defend to the death for the view? Hit reply and tell me.

Talk Thursday.