Melissa in the Morning: Smart Bird Feeders

Melissa in the Morning: Smart Bird Feeders

This spring, David Mestre installed a bird feeder at a community center on the East side of Bridgeport. The smart feeder is equipped with a special camera that can capture images and, using AI, can identify bird species that come by to feed at our bird feeder. Find out who landed on the feeder and what that means about urban green spaces as well as the adaptability of bird species.

Bird Info from the Cornell Ornithology Lab: https://www.birds.cornell.edu/home/

Image Credit: Getty Images

Melissa in the Morning: How to Handle a Bully

Melissa in the Morning: How to Handle a Bully

According to national statistics, one out of every five students report being bullied in America. And in today’s world, there are many ways children fall victim to bullies. Data shows the most common forms of bullying include verbal harassment, followed by social harassment, physical bullying and cyber bullying. So, what do you say to your kids in the event that they face a bully in school or at a public park or online? And what happens if YOUR kid ends up being the bully? We spoke with Ilaria Filippi, the executive director of the Clifford Beers Community Care Center.

To connect with Clifford Beers Community Care Center, check out: https://cliffordbeersccc.org/

Image Credit: Getty Images

CT Humane Society Pet of the Week

CT Humane Society Pet of the Week

Teddy is an 8-month-old neutered male standard poodle/cavalier king charles mix. 

~ I can live in a single-family home, condos and apartments considered.

~ I am a high-energy kind of dog and am looking for a home where I can get lots of exercise every day.

~ I want to live with kids over the age of 12, pending a meet and greet. I can be a little shy and want to be with people who can read my body language. 

~ I have not had much experience with cats or dogs but am willing to consider sharing my home with a furry friend, pending a meet and greet.

~My coat is very beautiful, but it will need routine grooming for preventing matting! 


Small non-terrier breeds (Chin, Maltese, MinPin, Papillon, Peke, Pomeranian, Poodle, Pug, Shih Tzu, ChiChi, Etc.)
a. When full grown, these are typically small dogs.
b. They often make great companions for condominium or apartment living as they do not require much space to receive proper exercise.
c. Small dogs sometimes choose to compensate for their size with big personalities.
d. Small dogs are just as capable of learning and being trained as any other dog. Because they are small, training and socialization are very important to help these pups realized that, although bigger then they are, new people and other animals should be welcome friends.
e. They are affectionate, sociable and adaptable to a wide range of lifestyles.

Because they can be so affectionate, some toy breeds may enjoy living with children but many are not be sturdy enough for the unskilled handling or play style of younger children.

CT Today With Paul Pacelli – Another Big SEBAC Deal

CT Today With Paul Pacelli – Another Big SEBAC Deal

Tuesday’s “Connecticut Today” with host Paul Pacelli looked at the latest state employee contract with State Senate GOP leader Steve Harding (00:25). Yankee Institute blogger Meghan Portfolio dropped by for her weekly check-in (08:21), while Paul also had some thoughts on the root cause of the anti-Israel protests popping up at universities all over the nation (17:52)

Image Credit: iStock / Getty Images Plus

Melissa in the Morning: Glamorous Seniors

Melissa in the Morning: Glamorous Seniors

For the first time at Milford Senior Center, eight fabulous ladies took to the stage to compete in the Golden Glamour Pageant. We met the winner. Galina Murphy, to hear about the experience and what it meant to her. Also, the senior center executive director, Leonora Rodriguez, shared what sparked the idea to have a pageant for seniors and how she’s changing the narrative for seniors enjoying life. 

IMAGE CREDIT: Melissa Sheketoff

Melissa in the Morning: Don’t Just Put Your Head Down

Melissa in the Morning: Don’t Just Put Your Head Down

Career strategist, Julie Bauke, discovered the five most common mistakes people make at their jobs. Last week she talked about the first mistake: moving forward with more direction (aired and podcasted on 4/16.) This week, she tackles number two: keeping your head down and doing a good job.

Image Credit: Getty Images

Melissa in the Morning: Good Digital Citizens

Melissa in the Morning: Good Digital Citizens

National data shows that kids on the internet is the norm in America. According to The American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, recent surveys show 90% of teens (ages 13-17) use social media. Our social media consultant, Krista Carnes, talked to us about our children becoming “good digital citizens.” What does that term even mean? Does it apply to adults too? What if adults are anti-social media; how do they stay in the know with their kids? And the most common question…what age is most appropriate for kids to start getting online? Krista tackles it all!

Image Credit: Getty Images

Melissa in the Morning: The Root of Anxiety

Melissa in the Morning: The Root of Anxiety

A new article on NPR highlighted what one author called “The Anxious Generation” and why anxiety and depression shows up in kids. We wanted to tackle anxiety with counselor, Julius Dudics. He shared why identifying the problem in ourselves, the adults, can begin to be the solution for our kids handling anxiousness too!

Image Credit: Getty Images

CT Today With Paul Pacelli – You’re Not In Charge

CT Today With Paul Pacelli – You’re Not In Charge

Host Paul Pacelli opened up a new week on “Connecticut Today” wondering where today’s college students get their senses of entitlement and expectation of influencing their schools business policies (00:34). Washington Times Online Opinion Editor Cheryl Chumley returned to the show to comment on the current protest situation at some U.S. colleges (11:13), while CT NewsJunkie columnist and Sunstack.com blogger Terry Cowgill dropped by with his thoughts on the latest local and national stories (19:25)

Image Credit: iStock / Getty Images Plus

Melissa in the Morning: “Marriage Killers”

Melissa in the Morning: “Marriage Killers”

When discussing marriage with people, there typically is one universal response “marriage is hard”. Why is it hard and why does everyone seem to share that point of view? This is a topic our marriage coach, Bob Donovan, tackles with hundreds of Connecticut couples a year. He did some deep thinking and determined there are 17 marriage “killers” that can lead to separation or divorce. He narrowed it down to the top four common killers and shared how to address the problem in your relationship before it’s too late.

Image Credit: Getty Images