December 2020 – Page 6

The Sentinel by Lee Child and Andrew

The Sentinel by Lee Child and Andrew Child (Delacorte Press, 253 pages)

As I settled down in a chair with this book, my husband asked what I was reading.
“It’s the newest Jack Reacher novel,” I replied.
“Jack Reacher?”
“Yeah, he’s kind of like a scruffy James Bond. He always knows what to say and how to get out of a jam. He’s actually pretty cool.”
“Huh,” was his reply.
My husband said this because thrillers are usually not my go-to kind of book, but give me a Jack Reacher story any day of the week and I will stop what I’m doing and start reading.
Reacher is ex-military. He’s a bit of a lost soul and travels with only some cash and a toothbrush (when he needs to change his clothes he buys new ones). He is clever and he always outsmarts the bad guys. Sometimes that’s what you need.
The fight scenes are the absolute best because we can read his thought process as he analyzes his opponent’s strengths and weaknesses and then goes in for the kill. It’s why he wins when he’s faced with five opponents at the same time. A Reacher fight scene is pretty much scripted for the big screen.
Reacher helps people in trouble and in this book he’s helping a young man who has been accused of orchestrating a ransomware demand on his town. The town has turned against him, making his life miserable. An elite bad organization (Russian) is after him because they believe he has some files that they need for election interference (and when I say bad, these guys have a basement where you go in whole and come out in several suitcases).
The storyline is a little predictable and seems to be “ripped from the headlines.” That didn’t bother me as it might others.
The pace in a Reacher novel is quick. Each chapter has plenty of action propelling the reader to the next scene. Reacher likes precision and much of his dialogue is about calling people on what they actually mean when they speak.
“Leave town. This morning. Right now, in fact. He has a car waiting outside to take you to the highway. And he wants your word you won’t come back.”
“Well what if I don’t want to leave town?”
“Come on, Reacher. Work with me here. Yesterday you asked him for a ride.”
“That was yesterday. The town has grown on me since then.”
All this is what makes a Reacher novel so desirable right now. We need a hero. We need someone who will kick the bad guys’ butts and who will emerge victorious. We need hope even if it only comes from a fictional character in a book.
The Sentinel is co-written by Lee Child’s brother, Andrew Child — it’s the first collaboration and those who have read the Reacher books will notice some slight differences. Reacher is a little chattier now, a little more emotional. I didn’t mind the evolution but purists might be put off by these subtle changes. I anticipate some growing pains before the new Reacher finds his sweet spot.
And I guess we need to talk about the love interest. Reacher always gets the girl in each of his books. In The Sentinel he does get the girl, but not with his usual panache. This time it seems a little forced.
With all of these comments you would think that I might not have liked this book. Nope. Although it wasn’t my favorite Reacher novel, I did enjoy it. I liked seeing the bad guys get what is coming to them. I liked seeing Reacher come to the aid of people who need help.
And I liked reading about a character who has integrity (the first chapter cements that personality trait).
For these reasons, I’ll be giving this book a solid grade. Who knows, if I had not read it during a pandemic I might have been more critical; however, in times like this when we could use a tough, smart guy, this Reacher book, even with a few bumps, gives us a little bit of much-needed escapism and is worth the read. B
— Wendy E. N. Thomas

Books

Author events
• KJ DELL’ANTONIA Author presents The Chicken Sisters. Hosted by Gibson’s Bookstore in Concord. Online, via Zoom. Wed., Jan. 6, 7 p.m. Registration required. Visit gibsonsbookstore.com or call 224-0562.

Book Clubs
• BOOKERY Online. Monthly. Third Thursday, 6 p.m. Bookstore based in Manchester. Visit bookerymht.com or call 836-6600.
• GIBSON’S BOOKSTORE Online, via Zoom. Monthly. First Monday, 5:30 p.m. Bookstore based in Concord. Visit gibsonsbookstore.com/gibsons-book-club-2020-2021 or call 224-0562.
• TO SHARE BREWING CO. 720 Union St., Manchester. Monthly. Second Thursday, 6 p.m. RSVP required. Visit tosharebrewing.com or call 836-6947.

Writing
• POSTCARD POETRY CONTEST Peterborough Poetry Project seeks submissions of original poems written on picture postcards for an upcoming anthology. Deadline is Dec. 31. Visit peterboroughpoetryproject.org.
• CALL FOR BLACK WRITERS New Hampshire-based theater company New World Theatre announces an open call to Black writers to submit monologues that reflect their experience of living while black, to be published in an anthology titled “08:46.” The deadline for submissions is Jan. 1, 2021. Visit newworldtheatre.org/08m46s.

Featured photo: The Sentinel by Lee Child and Andrew Child

Album Reviews 20/12/17

Sculptor, Untold Secrets (Frontiers Music)

Is “melodic death metal” an oxymoron, a shameless way to sell out, or a sure sign that a band doesn’t belong together owing to artistic differences? This quintet is from Brazil, here tabling their debut album, which is released through one of the few record labels that actively seeks out this kind of stuff, specifically Evanescence-level power-metal sung by guys whose preferred vocal style is totally Cookie Monster. Well, maybe not strictly Cookie Monster; there’s black-metal devil-monster caterwauling too, and rainy gloom-death riffing if you tend to keep score when listening to this kind of album, not that I ever do. I mean, good luck to these dudes, is what I say, not that a Brazilian death metal band that sounds kind of like In Flames would need extra help in the form of best wishes from a critic as detached from the genre as I am — São Paulo is where I’d want to be personally if I were playing in a band like this. B- — Eric W. Saeger

Deafkids, Ritos do Colapso (self-released)

I honestly had no intention of turning this week’s column into a central repository of Brazilian doom-music, but that’s how the dice rolled, first with Sculptor’s debut album and then with this one, which basically caught my fancy after discovering that this slightly experimental ambient-noise-techno band landed a spot on the soundtrack for Cyberpunk 2077, a dystopian role-playing video game starring none other than Keanu Reeves (it seems Australia has some sort of problem with the game’s messaging, which means it’s probably fun in some way). Whatever, this digital-only EP reads like a Whitman Sampler of experimental spazz-beats, starting with two dubstep-ish rinseouts that were apparently played on real drums. That’s a pretty cool trick, but “Tentáculos” is a lot more interesting, a creepy blend of tribal rhythm and random snake-taming bizarreness that would have fit in well on the Hurt Locker soundtrack. Like I said, strictly experimental, but cool; nicely organic, undoubtedly with an eye toward more soundtracking gigs. A

Retro Playlist

I have to admit, sometimes I’ve gotten it right the first time. For those who’ve subjected themselves to this column for the last 15 years plus, you may remember the bit in 2009 when I talked about New Orleans band Stanton Moore/Garage A Trois’s then-new All Kooked Out album, and how there was “nothing wrong with you” if you’d never heard of him. On this one-man effort, I posited, Moore was trying to be “Spyro Gyra and That F–ing Tank in the same album,” a recipe for commercial failure if ever there was one, or, just as possibly, a spazzy version of Charles Mingus’ least listenable records. As you’d guess, the random fricassee of honking, clattering and Wayne Shorter-style sax suddenly stopped about a third of the way in, for a decent-enough tune called “Purgatory,” and then a rather mellow version of Roberta Flack’s “The Closer I Get To You.” As well, there was “Fragile,” which sounded like the E Street Band trying to weird each other out, and “Electric Door Bell Machine,” a look at what Weather Report might have sounded like if they’d been really idiotic hipsters. Nevertheless, believe it or not, in my review of the album, I didn’t cover Moore in snark gravy and bake him at 350 for an hour. I was pretty nice to the dude.

At times I’ve experienced the joy of dissing multiple artists at a time, when unwary compilation albums come in. But it’s not always mean-spirited claptrap I spew; in fact I was quite genial to the various artists featured on 2014’s Le Sigh, Vol II. Le Sigh is/was an online zine based in Brooklyn, supporting women in the arts. In order to prove they were serious, the editors threw together a couple of female-punk comp albums, which gathered together such bands as Slutever, Fleabite and Alice. Soundalike touchstones ranged from X-Ray Spex to The Waitresses, but it was all good fun, really, with more attitude than a 13-year-old girl threatened with losing her iPhone if she doesn’t wear the cute bunny pajamas Grandma sent for Christmas.

Moral: I can be nice at times. It really depends on the quality of our current dinner leftovers, to be honest.

PLAYLIST

A seriously abridged compendium of recent and future CD releases

• OMG, it’s totally the last-minute holiday rush, when those 14 million newly unemployed Americans, all snug in their warm cardboard refrigerator-box condominium complexes comfortably located somewhere under the overpass, need direction as to where to spend that stray $20 bill they found skittering across the parking lot at Whole Foods! Well, I’m here to help, homies, with the latest albums you can buy, all of which are coming to your stores and whatnot, on Dec. 18! As you’d guess, there is basically nothing new coming out except for metal albums and reissues from rich bands and whatever, and trust me, I already looked. First thing that jumped out at me was a 50th anniversary of The Kinks’ eighth album, Lola Versus Powerman And The Moneygoround, a fine album that was released in 1970, in case you’re deficient in math skills like I am! I have to confess that I was never the biggest Kinks fan, like they were basically the prototype for every joke-band ever put together, but this album did have one awesome song on it, I’d be the first to admit it. No, I don’t mean the titular “Lola,” a song I could literally live forever without ever hearing again; it’s in fact “Apeman” to which I refer, a joke song about alienation or whatnot, and it was kind of ahead of its time. Check out these lyrics: “I think I’m so educated and I’m so civilized / ‘Cause I’m a strict vegetarian / But with the over-population and inflation and starvation / And the crazy politicians / I don’t feel safe in this world no more.” Cool, huh? Anyway, there you go, fam, the Kinks, with a new-old album, you are now free to go pay good money for whatever you’re going to get out of it, maybe extra cowbell or whatever.

• If you can stand the suspense and wait until Saturday the 19th, there is a new EP from hip-hop guy Letoa coming out that day, called Glocstarr V1! There is already a user review (not a review from an actual music critic, in other words) on the Album Of The Year website, from someone identified as mIlk, and that person says it’s awful. Actually they didn’t say anything, they just left a one-star rating and wrote “0” as a comment. All that goes to prove is that no one really uses the Album Of The Year website except for rock critics who are desperately trying to find albums coming out at the last minute, because nearly a half-million people have streamed at least one of the tunes, called “Ice Cold.” The beat sounds like some incidental theme music from Lord of the Rings, except for the beginner-level haunted house bass and the stupid trap drums. Can I shut this off now?

• OK, I give up, there’s nothing else coming out this week, and I refuse to talk about whichever black-metal bands are only putting out records because they either hate Christmas or don’t even know when it is, so we’re going to wrap up with chillwave/ambient techno guy Tycho! It’s not that he even has a real album coming out, just a remix album, called, appropriately enough, Weather Remixes, based on his 2019 Grammy nominated LP Weather. That one was great, a little bit guitar-tronic and a little indie-rock, so I’m sure all the remixes are good as well, if they’re even half as decent as the gorgeous remix of “Japan” by Satin Jackets. Awesome stuff.

’Tis the season

Beers for the holidays

You need some beer to get you through the rest of 2020. Has a truer statement ever been made?
In a year like no other, I think we’re all eager to get the rest of this year over with. Yes, OK, we should probably take a minute and try to enjoy a subdued holiday season, but really, let’s get 2020 in the rearview mirror as quickly as possible.
Beer isn’t going to help the end of the year get here any faster, but maybe it will help make the road a little less bumpy and the holidays a little more enjoyable. Well, we can all hope.
We’re celebrating the holidays with fewer people all together this year, but I think we’re still all looking for the same things when it comes to beer at this time of year: rich, malty, maybe a little sweet and maybe with a little spice. I’m thinking flavors of chocolate, caramel, mint, nutmeg and vanilla, and so on.
Here are a few beers to help get you through the holidays and through the rest of the minefield that is 2020.

Kringle’s Krook by Portsmouth Brewery (Portsmouth)
This robust black ale has plenty of roasty, toasty malt character and it’s balanced out by sweet flavors thanks to the addition of candy canes and fresh mint—so yes, this is like drinking a peppermint patty in beer form. A seasonal treat for sure.

Sundae Nights Mint Chocolate Chip Stout by Kettlehead Brewing (Tilton)
Wow. If Kringle’s Krook is a peppermint patty in beer form, it sure sounds like this one is mint chocolate chip ice cream in beer form. This imperial milk stout, which comes in at 10.8 percent ABV, is brewed with cocoa nibs, mint and a “heavy dose” of milk sugar, says the brewery. My goodness — I look forward to trying this indulgent brew.

Bell’s Christmas Ale by Bell’s Brewery (Comstock, Mich.)
My dad said he and my grandfather used to take the Samuel Adams Scotch Ale and mix it with a Budweiser to lighten it up in terms of body and flavor, as the brew was quite “strong.” Look, I was just a kid when he told me this, and at that time who was I to question the move? I’m an actual adult now and as such I have questions, like, I don’t know, maybe just don’t buy that particular beer if you need to water it down? I don’t understand. Anyway, Bell’s Christmas Ale is a bold, richly flavored brew with big notes of caramel and a nice touch of warming alcohol — perfect for sipping by the fire.

Winter by Wachusett Brewing Co. (Westminster, Mass.)
This is a nostalgic pick for me from an underrated brewery as many family holiday gatherings featured this brew as a prime selection. Winter features a traditional holiday bouquet of vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice in a roasty, toasty brew that doesn’t overpower your palate. Extremely well-balanced, Winter is the quintessential holiday brew.

Udder Vanilla Milk Stout by Loaded Questions Brewing Co. (Portsmouth)
I haven’t tried this one but when you combine lactose, vanilla and chocolate malt together in a beer, are we not talking about a glass of chocolate milk? What could possibly be wrong with this one? The brewery says it has “restrained sweetness,” which I think suggests this brew might have a good bit of versatility, too.

What’s in My Fridge
Pompadour by Schilling Beer Co. (Littleton)
This is about as good an American pale ale as I’ve ever had. It’s been a few years since I’ve had this one and it just did not disappoint. Characterized by flavors of citrus, peach and maybe apricot, this is easy drinking and delicious. Absolutely one of my favorite beers of all time. Cheers!

Featured Photo: Beer is your friend as we close out 2020. Photo courtesy Portsmouth Brewery.

Courtney Parker

Courtney Parker of Nashua is the owner of Simple Sweets Bakery (simplesweetsbakery0.wixsite.com, or on Facebook @simplesweetsbakery11), a homestead business specializing in gluten-free baked goods made fresh daily, like cupcakes, cookies, muffins, doughnuts, brownies, whoopie pies and oatmeal cream pies. Orders are accepted via phone, text, email or Facebook messages, with deliveries within a 20-mile radius of Nashua. Dairy-free and soy-free options are also available. Now through Dec. 21, Parker is offering specialty Christmas orders for items like chocolate cream or pumpkin pies, peppermint brownies and gingerbread doughnuts.

What is your must-have kitchen item?
Definitely a silicone spatula.

What would you have for your last meal?
Chicken tenders and Jojo potatoes from Chicken ‘n’ Chips [in Nashua].

What is your favorite local restaurant?
Bistro 603 [in Nashua].

What celebrity would you like to see ordering something from you?
Obviously Carrie Underwood.

What is your favorite thing that you offer?
Snickerdoodles! They are my absolute favorite and are so easy to make!

What is the biggest food trend in New Hampshire right now?
Apple cider doughnuts.

What is your favorite thing to cook or bake at home?
I love to bake and will try just about any recipe, but I’d have to say my favorite thing to bake is anything that contains apples. The aroma from [them] reminds me of Christmas.

Simple sugar cookies
From the kitchen of Courtney Parker of Simple Sweets Bakery in Nashua
6 tablespoons butter, softened
¾ cup sugar
1 large egg
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1½ cup flour (Parker uses Cup4Cup brand gluten-free flour, or you can use regular flour)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking pan with parchment paper. Cream butter and sugar together. Add in egg and mix until smooth. Add vanilla, salt, baking powder, baking soda and flour and mix. Using a cookie scoop, place a teaspoon-sized scoop onto the cookie sheet. Bake for eight to 10 minutes.

Featured photo: Courtney Parker

New Italian option

The Chef opens in New Boston

For more than two decades, Angel Santiago has built his culinary resume at restaurants all over New Hampshire and Massachusetts, including local Italian spots Mangia Sano in Milford and Pasquale’s Ristorante in Londonderry. His first restaurant as owner — aptly named The Chef, which opened in New Boston last month — features a variety of traditional Italian and Italian-American dishes, from pizzas and paninis to fresh seafood and pastas, plus a full bar with domestic and imported wines, local craft beers and cocktails.
Santiago, who lives in New Boston with his wife, Christine, said the couple had looked at several potential spaces for a restaurant over the last few years before finding the one that fit the bill in August. The building on River Road near the Goffstown and New Boston town line most recently housed Sliders, an eatery that closed in the spring.
Since its opening, the chicken Parmigiana has been among the top sellers, as have the seafood entrees, which include seafood risotto and alfredo, cioppino (a fish stew), baked or fried haddock and stuffed lobster ravioli.
“We do a lot of seafood,” Angel Santiago said. “I buy a full case every week and I go through the whole thing. By Sunday I have probably one-third of a pan left over.”
Lunch is normally available from 11:30 a.m. to about 3 p.m., with options like fresh paninis and sandwiches, pastas, and seafood plates like fish and chips.
In addition to soups and salads, there are various house appetizers available on the dinner menu, like sauteed mussels, Buffalo chicken tenders, breaded and fried four-cheese ravioli, and arancini balls with peas, mozzarella and marinara.
The pizzas can be ordered with a gluten-free crust, and house specialty pastas include chicken or veal saltimbocca, piccata and marsala.
“One of the big things we’ve been doing is a family to-go meal,” Christine Santiago said. “It feeds a family of five and you get a half tray of chicken Parm or chicken broccoli alfredo, then a Caesar salad or a garden salad, garlic bread and five sodas, all for $50. We sell a lot of those.”
For dessert Angel Santiago makes cannolis and a tiramisu from scratch. A few other locally sourced treats, like a death by chocolate cake, are also available.

The Chef
Where: 737 River Road, New Boston
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday, until 8 p.m.
More info: Visit thechef603.com, find them on Facebook @thechefofnewboston or call 384-2574

Featured photo: Haddock puttanesca. Courtesy photo.

Tastes of Thailand

Thai Food Connection opens in Manchester

Not long after Republic Cafe moved all its operations down the street into its sister restaurant Campo Enoteca in August, Thailand native Annie Nault was walking down Elm Street in Manchester and saw a “for rent” sign in the window. She had worked in several Thai restaurants in southern New Hampshire and had been searching for a space that could be her own.

“I knew it was a great opportunity, because I walk around here often and it’s always busy,” said Nault, who comes from Phetchabun, Thailand, and whose mother worked as a high school culinary instructor. “I’ve wanted to open a restaurant my whole life.”
Thai Food Connection, which opened Dec. 1, features a menu of authentic Thai dishes like soups, curries, appetizers, entrees and street foods — all of which showcase the diversity of flavors and options available from within the country, Nault said.

“I knew it was a great opportunity, because I walk around here often and it’s always busy.”
Annie Nault

“In Thailand, when you go to any one place, they don’t have a variety [of options],” she said. “If you want chicken and rice, you have to go to this place, or if you want khao soi [curry with egg noodles], you have to go to another place, and they don’t sell anything else.”
Nault purchased a three-station wok for the restaurant and, during the months of renovation leading up to her opening, added all new furniture, curtains and kitchen equipment. A Thai mural and photos of her homeland taken by her friends adorn the walls, while an open kitchen is featured near the back of the restaurant.
Due to its location downtown, Nault said she expects Thai Food Connection to be a popular spot for takeout during the lunch hour. A full page of the menu is dedicated to lunch specials, like chicken, beef or tofu and vegetable noodle soup; pad Thai with chicken, tofu or shrimp; rice dishes, like stir-fried steamed jasmine rice with a hot basil sauce; and curries, like a mild coconut massaman curry and a coconut green curry with sliced chicken and roasted eggplant.
Other items include street foods like krapow, or stir-fried ground chicken with garlic, fresh chili, onion, pepper and basil; and various house specialties, like roasted duck curry, casseroled shrimp or lemongrass chicken with coconut milk, turmeric and Thai spices.
A chili pepper-shaped icon on the menu indicates that dish’s normal level of spice, but you can request anything to be as mild or as spicy as you want, Nault said.
“When you combine everything and all the ingredients with the chili, it reduces the kick of the spice,” she said, “so it’s not burning your mouth.”
There is also a small selection of desserts, like deep-fried breaded ice cream, a deep-fried banana roll topped with honey, and roti, or fried pan bread, with caramel sauce and chocolate syrup.
Online ordering and deliveries within a five-mile radius of the restaurant are also available, and Thai Food Connection is currently in the process of acquiring a liquor license, Nault said.

Thai Food Connection
Where: 1069 Elm St., Manchester
Hours: Sunday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, until 10 p.m.
More info: Visit thaifoodconnection.com, find them on Facebook and Instagram or call 935-7257

Featured photo: Chicken satay. Courtesy photo.

The Weekly Dish 20/12/10

News from the local food scene

• LaBelle Winery expanding to Derry: LaBelle Winery will be expanding its business into Derry next year, according to a press release. Owners Amy LaBelle and her husband, Cesar Arboleda, recently announced the purchase of Brookstone Events & Golf on Route 111. The property, according to the release, will undergo significant renovations beginning this month, with the intention of creating a Champagne house, a restaurant and a wedding and event center. Plans also include an “artisan village” with several outdoor and indoor gathering areas, including a nine-hole par-3 golf course and a miniature golf course. The Champagne house will include a tasting room and a space where a new line of sparkling wines will be produced, while the restaurant will feature farm-to-table American cuisine and wood-fired pizzas served in an upscale casual environment. The golf courses and event center are scheduled to reopen in April 2021, with the restaurant and retail marketplace opening in June, followed by the winery tasting room in July. Visit labellewinerynh.com.

• Farm-fresh feasts: The Farmer’s Dinner, a New Hampshire-based farm-to-table dinner series, recently announced the schedule for its ninth season in 2021, according to a press release, and it will start with a dinner at Live Bee or Die Farm in New Boston on May 23. The series will continue with dinners at Dunk’s Mushrooms in Brentwood on June 12, a colonial dinner on July 18 in Derry, a dinner at Kimball Fruit Farm in Pepperell, Mass., on Aug. 14, and a dinner at Vernon Family Farm in Newfields on Aug. 29. Since 2012, The Farmer’s Dinner has hosted nearly 90 farm-to-table events across New England, feeding more than 17,000 people and raising more than $125,000 for local farms. Tickets are available now at thefarmersdinner.com.

• Blueberry farm retires: Durocher Farm in Litchfield, known as a destination for its early and late season varieties of pick-your-own blueberries for more than four decades, will not be returning in 2021. “The Durocher family has decided that the time is right to retire,” read a recent post from the farm’s Facebook page from Bob Marr, who has leased and operated the blueberry farm with his wife, Jennifer, for the past three years. “Both Jen and I have done our best to keep the farm open to the public but as in life, all good things must come to an end.” The farm, which was established in 1943 by the Durochers, according to its website, featured more than 2,500 blueberry bushes for picking that were originally planted in 1975.

• NHLC launches new website: The New Hampshire Liquor Commission has unveiled a new e-commerce website for its products, according to a press release. Online ordering with 90-minute same-day in-store pickup is now available at 10 Liquor & Wine Outlet stores across the state, including both stores on Interstate 93 in Hooksett and on Interstate 95 in Hampton, as well as the stores in Manchester, Londonderry, Salem, Pembroke, Rochester and West Lebanon. The new site also now has an educational platform with access to virtual and in-person experiences with celebrities, winemakers and master distillers. Users can create personal profiles on the site to search for and save their favorite brands. According to the release, the Commission recently surpassed $1 million in sales from its curbside delivery and in-store pickup program, launched earlier this year. Visit liquorandwineoutlets.com.

Feeding the birds, naturally

Trees and plants for your feathered friends

By now many of us are providing seeds to the neighborhood birds. Of course the seeds we provide are just a part of the diet of a wild bird. It’s important to grow a diverse selection of native trees, shrubs and perennials to help provide shelter and nesting places for our wild friends, and to provide food all year long. Why native? Native species evolved with the birds and they are genetically programmed to feed on them.

Doug Tallamy, an entomologist living in Pennsylvania, counted the number of butterflies and moth species that, as caterpillars, fed on an oak tree on his property. He counted over 400 species. He also counted species on a non-native shrub, burning bush (Euonymus alatus), and found only one. The caterpillars of those butterflies and moths are what birds feed their babies each spring and summer, providing protein and fat needed for their development.

If you watch the birds at your bird feeder carefully now you will see that not only are many of the birds eating the seeds you provide, they are also nibbling things on the trees they perch on. In crevices in the bark are dormant insects and their larvae. Chickadees, nuthatches and woodpeckers — three of the most common birds at our feeders — are constantly pecking at bits of food.

There is a huge native cherry tree (Prunus serotina) right by our feeders, a white pine and several Canadian hemlocks along with a couple of mature pear and apple trees nearby. The birds grab a seed at the feeder, zoom off to eat it and rest before returning. But while they are in those trees they almost always find something tasty to peck at. Planting trees near your house and bird feeders is a good plan if you want to support your birds.

Fruit trees are great for your birds. Apple, pear and especially crabapple trees hold on to some fruit in winter. And while a chickadee might not tear into a dry and wizened apple, bigger birds do. I have seen turkeys feeding in a small weeping crabapple tree that could barely support them. Blue jays, crows, cardinals, grosbeaks and finches and other birds enjoy fruit in winter, too.

So what shrubs have edible fruit that is available to your birds in winter? Right now I see berries on cranberry bush viburnum (Viburnum opulus) and nannyberry (Viburnum lentago). Winterberry (Ilex verticillata), a native deciduous holly, produces myriad bright red berries visible now in swamps and drainage ditches along the road. It is only eaten by a few birds, so the berries linger on into the winter — and are great for decorating wreaths. Junipers, a low-growing bush on low-fertility fields, has berries now too. Eaten by grouse, pheasants, grosbeaks and others, juniper berries are also used to flavor gin!

Alders (Alnus spp.) generally are considered weedy and not planted in the landscape. They grow in wet places as large shrubs or small trees. They are nitrogen-fixing plants, and their seeds are eaten by sparrows and finches, among others. The seeds persist well into December.

Roses that bear fruit are important food sources, too. The invasive climbing wild multiflora roses (Rosa multiflora) are loved by birds, but they drop seeds that grow and take over and smother other shrubs and trees. Beach roses (Rosa rugosa) produce lots of rose hips, and these are eaten by some birds. And although this species of rose is originally from Asia, it does not seem to take over the landscape the way multiflora roses do.

Of the big trees useful to birds, white pine (Pinus strobus) and Canadian hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) are two of the most important. Some 40 species of birds eat seeds of the white pine, and at least two dozen eat seeds of Canadian hemlock. Importantly, both are used in winter for shelter. They hold their leaves (needles), providing a break from cold winter winds. Both are used for nesting in the summer.

Any plant that holds onto its berries or seeds into winter is eventually eaten by birds. One of the small trees, staghorn sumac (Rhus hirta), is the least favorite of our birds. The red fruit generally is ignored until spring, when returning robins and other migratory birds arrive and food is scarce. The fruit is sour and low in the fats that birds love, but a hungry robin will chow down on sumac if earthworms are not available. Sumacs grow mainly along roadsides in sandy, low-fertility soil. They spread by root and I don’t recommend planting them. But if you have some, leave them be if you can.

Mentioned above as food for caterpillars that feed baby birds, oaks are important winter food sources, too. Acorns are a preferred food for turkeys and grouse, and can be cracked by a surprising number of small birds. Others eat the meat of acorns that are broken by cars or people, or clean out shells opened by large birds or mammals. Bears and squirrels love acorns, too.

Gray squirrels have been pirating my bird feeders, so I looked up online just how much they eat per day. Only a quarter of a cup of sunflower seeds per day will feed one, so I am letting the two portly, geriatric squirrels eat, and only chase them away if they get too greedy when my little chickadees are waiting.

Henry is offering one of his books, Organic Gardening (not just) in the Northeast, a Hands-On, Month-by-Month Guide, as a holiday special for $15 including shipping. To get a signed copy, mail him a check at PO Box 364, Cornish Flat, NH 03746.

Featured Photo: Alder catkins provide seeds now. Photo by Henry Homeyer.

Kiddie Pool 20/12/17

Family fun for the weekend

A Shaker Christmas

Take a A Magic Journey through the North Shop Barn at Canterbury Shaker Village (228 Shaker Road, Canterbury), now through Dec. 23, and from Dec. 27 through Dec. 30, daily, from 1 to 5 p.m. The North Shop Barn, which has been transformed into a winter wonderland, will feature art vignettes like a Shaker Christmas, a dollhouse, a skating panorama and snowy forest scenes; a Find-the-Elf treasure hunt; hot cocoa and cider, and shopping at the Village Store. Additionally there will be a Christkindlmarkt-inspired artisan market of handcrafted holiday gifts on weekends, and food trucks with sweet treats on Saturday, Dec. 19. Admission costs $10 for adults and is free for youth. Visit shakers.org or call 783-9511.

Meet Santa

Enjoy a Polar Express family brunch with LaBelle Winery (345 Route 101, Amherst) on either Sunday, Dec. 20, or Thursday, Dec. 24, from 10 a.m. to noon. The event will feature a multi-course brunch menu accompanied by a screening of the family holiday film The Polar Express on a large projector. Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus will be stopping by for a live reading of “’Twas the Night Before Christmas.” Tickets to the brunch are by the table only, and there is a six guest limit per table (price breakdowns are $22.99 per person). Visit labellewineryevents.com.

There’s still time to visit with Santa Claus at Bass Pro Shops (2 Commerce Drive, Hooksett), where he’ll be now through Dec. 24. Santa will have an acrylic “magic shield” barrier in place between families. Free online reservations are required, as spots are limited to allow social distancing. Visit basspro.com/santa.

Holiday tales

Ballet Misha performs The Nutcracker at the Dana Center (Saint Anselm College, 100 Saint Anselm Drive, Manchester) on Saturday, Dec. 19, at 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. Ballet Misha’s production of the holiday classic won the 2019 Hippo Best of award for “Best Dance Performance of the Year.” Tickets cost $28, and reservations must be made via phone at 641-7700.

Watch Eleanor’s Very Merry Christmas — A Musical from the comfort of home. Based on the book by the same name, the musical tells the story of a rag doll at the North Pole searching for a family of her own. This production is available for livestream via the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord, through Dec. 27. Tickets start at $20 (plus a $3 fee) for streaming during a 48-hour window; packages with games and other items are available.

Merry and bright

Christmas lights at Countryside Drive

Turn down Countryside Drive in Nashua and you’ll find your way to a festive display that would give Clark Griswold a run for his money. Nashua resident Whitney Swain has transformed his front yard into an illuminated winter wonderland, with bright lights and a radio broadcast that airs popular holiday tunes played in sync with the display. The show runs from 4:30 to 10 p.m. every day until New Year’s. Swain talked about his process and his motivations for creating the show.

How did you get started with this display?

I’ve been living here for about 10 years now, and my old roommate, Nic, used to do this with me before he moved back to Wisconsin. He still comes out here sometimes and helps me with the show, and I do the same for him.

Was it always this big?

Originally I started with roof lining, and I had this big Christmas tree out in the yard so I figured I’d make it look like the one inside. We added all of the lights and Nic and I built the star at the top. We just went from there, and each year I add more decorations, and program more songs to go along with the lights.

How did you get the radio station?

It’s my own radio frequency. I broadcast music out to the cars that drive by through stations that aren’t being used, and I get about a block’s worth of radius, which is usually sufficient enough. We air all types of Christmas songs, like “Baby It’s Cold Outside” by Bing Crosby. We also throw in some up-to-date tunes like “Uptown Funk” by Bruno Mars, and we play a lot of Trans-Siberian Orchestra because their beats pair really nicely with the lights.

How long does it take to get everything set up?

This year it was a long project because I own a diner now, so I’m limited on time. I had some chipmunks get into my Christmas stuff so I had to fix some of the wiring as well. For the most part it takes about a month to a month and a half. I usually start around Halloween and finish by Black Friday, and they usually come down after New Year’s.

I have to know, what does your electric bill look like?

That’s the question on everyone’s mind. It’s only an extra $300. Sometimes I come out when there’s a line of cars and I talk to the kids and I see all of the smiles on their faces. I got a letter in my mailbox the other day from a kid who wanted to thank me and tell me how awesome all of the lights were. To be honest, that’s all I need from this. I think it’s a great thing for the community, and I’m glad people enjoy it as much as I do.

What do your neighbors think?

All of them are super cool with it, so I haven’t heard any complaints. My next-door neighbor used to come over and [she and her husband would] dress up as Mr. and Mrs. Claus before her husband passed away a few years ago, and we would hand out hot cocoa and candy canes. I want to do it this year, but I need to figure out the safest and easiest way to facilitate that with the pandemic. Whenever Christmas time rolls around I check up on my neighbors across the street and make sure they’re OK with the lights, and they love them. They tell all of their friends and watch the show from their window. All they have to do is turn on their radio and tune in.

Do you have any competition?

There’s a community of us on Facebook, some would call us light enthusiasts. I don’t know of anyone in Nashua that’s doing animated lights and music, but there’s people in Merrimack, Manchester and all over Massachusetts. However, since I’ve been doing this, a lot more people on the street decorate their houses with lights for Christmas, which is awesome. When I moved here there weren’t a lot of lights, so it’s cool to see people getting in the spirit. It would be really cool if I could get the whole block synced up with the music.

Are there any cons to doing this every year?

I enjoy wiring all of the lights, but things do break, and lights burn out over time. It’s a bit of a hassle fixing stuff out in the cold, but creating something that everyone can enjoy, and the sounds of the kids and honking cars, is something I feel good about. Knowing that I made somebody’s night or putting a smile on someone’s face is really great.

Does the inside of your house match the outside’s aesthetic?

We’re still decorating the inside. We wanted to get the outside done first, mainly because we didn’t decorate last year due to a lack of time. But we really like Christmas here. When I was growing up my mom always tried to make Christmas a special day, and that stuck with me. I still love cutting my own tree and making that a family tradition.

Does your mom come see the show?

I actually had her fix a couple of blow-up decorations for me because I can’t sew. She loves it, though. She came over the other night to see the show, and we usually try to do Christmas here, for obvious reasons.
— Shane Jozitis

Month: December 2020