Author: The Hippo Press

It’s pothole season

In a March 7 online article, WMUR cited Brian Desfosses, the director of public works for Bedford, explaining how potholes happen: “warm temperatures melt snow, leading to water seeping into cracks in the pavement. When the temperatures get colder, that water freezes and expands, weakening the roadway,” the article said. “As the freeze-thaw cycle continues, it could create more potholes this season,” the article said. “The best advice to avoid damage to a vehicle is to slow down and watch the road.”

QOL score: -1

Comment: Consumer Reports says, “Don’t assume a small-looking pothole doesn’t pose a threat: Deep potholes can fill up with water, concealing their true depth.” Search online for “consumer reports pothole survival guide.”

But it’s also (nearly) baseball season!

In a March 3 press release the New Hampshire Fisher Cats announced a new addition to this year’s home games at Delta Dental Stadium. The “Hot Dog Happy Hour” will include “discounted food and beverage deals, live music and acts by local artists [which] will generate a new pregame buzz to the ballpark. Pregame festivities will take place at the plaza near the main entrance of Delta Dental Stadium, next to the Samuel Adams Brewhouse.” Gates open 90 minutes before the first pitch, with Hot Dog Happy Hour scheduled for the first hour of that time.

QOL score: +1

Comment: The Fisher Cats will open their season at 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 3, with a home game against the Binghamton Rumble Ponies. There will be a post-game fireworks display.

More proof that social media is the worst

As reported by Boston 25 news in a March 8 online article, “Residents of a Manchester, N.H., three-family woke up early Saturday morning to a loud kick on the front door in a prank made popular by the social media trend, the ‘Door Kick Challenge.’” Home security video showed a person “sneaking up to the door of the Derry Street building, peering through the window and violently kicking the door before running away,” the Boston 25 report read.

QOL score: -1

Comment: The website Police1.com describes the “door kick challenge”: “Participants — typically teenagers — kick or aggressively bang on random residential doors, often at night, then run away. Though reminiscent of the traditional ‘ding-dong ditch’ prank, this challenge has escalated to significant property damage and real safety concerns.”

QOL score: 54

Net change: -1

QOL this week: 53

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

Dog for Hopkinton

Town elections are coming up and in Hopkinton all the town and school office races are uncontested except one. On March 10 town residents between 0 and 17 years old will be invited to vote for Dog of the Year, for which there will be five candidates, according to a story published on the NHPR website on Feb. 25. Voters will receive “I Voted” stickers designed in recent years by the town’s schoolchildren. The article noted that only one dog per household may run for the office, and candidates must be registered and have up-to-date rabies vaccination records.

QOL score: +1 for civic participation

Comments: The idea came from the new town clerk, the article said; she thought it might help remind people to register their dogs by the April 30 deadline.

A plan for plants

On Feb. 26 Merrimack’s Town Council voted unanimously for a new plan to manage invasive plants. The plan was developed by a committee formed last summer. Merrimack Outdoors, the website for the Town’s Conservation Commission, says, “The term ‘invasive’ is often misused to refer to any aggressive weedy plant. The term actually refers only to plants which are BOTH non-native to the region, AND cause environmental or economic harm, or pose a health risk to humans.” Merrimack’s invasive plant species include Japanese knotweed, kudzu, burning bush, and autumn olive.

QOL score: +1

Comment: “Merrimack’s forests, wetlands, and river corridors are vital natural assets that connect the community to its ecological heritage and future,” the plan says. In a phone interview with the Hippo, the Town Manager’s Office said the plan will be available on the town website soon.

Not a lot of zombie homes

According to a Feb. 26 story published on the New Hampshire Public Radio website, New Hampshire “has the lowest ‘zombie’ vacancy rate in the nation.” A “zombie vacancy,” the story said, “is one in which the homeowner abandons the property before a foreclosure is finalized.” New Hampshire also ranked 41st in the nation in foreclosure rate, the story said.

QOL score: +1

Comment: “The Granite State also had the lowest overall home vacancy rate in the country, 0.03%, and the lowest vacancy rate for institutional investor-owned properties, 0.08%,” the article said.

QOL score last week: 51

Net change: +3

QOL this week: 54

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.