Offline kids
An Aug. 24 report by thecannyvulture.com said, “In Hillsborough County, 2,253 children live in a home with no internet, 2.7% of all the kids in the county.” According to an Aug. 24 blog post on compareinternet.com, nationwide, 3.2 million school children are starting this school year without internet access.
QOL score: -1 New Hampshire ranks well in internet access nationally, but this is still 2,253 children too many.
Comment: According to the compareinternet.com blog post, “Washington County, Mississippi, in the Delta, has 47 percent of its children living in homes with no internet. That’s more than 5,100 kids. Claiborne Parish, Louisiana, is also at 47 percent. Socorro County, New Mexico, rural and largely Hispanic and Native American, is at 39 percent.”
Lanternflies
As reported in an August 25 online article by WMUR, an invasive species of insect, the spotted lanternfly, has been seen in New Hampshire for the first time. “Officials confirmed … that the spotted lanternfly was seen in Salem,” the article reported. “The spotted lanternfly poses risks to vineyards, nurseries and agricultural and ornamental plants. Officials said it doesn’t harm people, pets or structures, but it can become a nuisance if it becomes more established over time.”
QOL score: -1
Comment: On its website, the US Department of Agriculture describes the spotted lanternfly as “an invasive planthopper that feeds on a wide range of plants, including grapevines, hops, stone fruit trees, and hardwood trees. When the spotted lanternfly feeds, it excretes a sticky, sugary fluid that promotes sooty mold growth, which can further damage plants.” Visit aphis.usda.gov/plant-pests-diseases/slf.
Murals and more murals
In an Aug. 31 press release, the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Nashua announced that as part of the club’s ongoing MuralFest, “10 nationally and internationally known artists continue transforming the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Nashua through five large-scale murals, located throughout the Club both inside and outside. The festival, which runs through Sept. 2, brings artists from across the country and around the world together with the Club community. The event’s name, Be Creative BGCN MuralFest, was chosen by a Club member.”
QOL score: +1
Comment: In an Aug. 30 online article, WMUR reported that on Saturday, Aug. 29, artists from the organization ArtCity Nashua invited members of the public to help create 15 permanent murals along Nashua’s Heritage Rail Trail. The goal of “the mural and music festival,” WMUR reported, was “to transform the area known as the ‘Tree Streets’ into a public art display. Artists joined people from the community to make masterpieces, even leading a spray painting class.”
QOL score last week: 58
Net change: -1
QOL this week: 57
What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire? Let us know at news@hippopress.com.