The New Hampshire Fisher Cats continue their run of home games at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium (1 Line Drive in downtown Manchester; nhfishercats.com) against the Portland Sea Dogs with games through Sunday, Sept. 5. Games Thursday and Saturday are at 7:05 p.m.; Sunday’s game starts at 1:35 p.m. Look for post-game fireworks after Thursday’s and Saturday’s games. Friday’s game is a doubleheader (two seven-inning games) starting at 5:35 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 4
Check out classic cars and music from bands such as Speed Trap, Permanent Vacation and Stuck in Time at this year’s Cruising Downtown, when the Manchester Rotary Club celebrates the 20th anniversary of the event. The car show runs today on Elm Street in downtown Manchester from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There is a $5 suggested donation for adult attendees, according to the event’s website, cruisingdowntownmanchester.com.
Saturday, Sept. 4
If you’re heading beachward this weekend, there are some events to check out at Hampton Beach. Today at 7 p.m., Cirque du Hampton Beach will feature a performance by Boston Circus Guild musicians, artists, dancers and more, according to hamptonbeach.org. On Sunday, Sept. 5, catch a special Labor Day fireworks show at 9:30 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 4
Find big laughs at the Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St. in Derry; tupelomusichall.com, 437-5100) tonight during their Night of Comedy featuring Jim Colliton, Jason Merrill and Jeff Koen. The show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $22.
Sunday, Sept. 5
Catch some music out in the fresh air at the Canterbury Shaker Village (288 Shaker Road in Canterbury; 783-9511, shakers.org). Peabody’s Coal Train, described on the website as “a six-piece acoustic band playing a wide-ranging mix of folk, Appalachian mountain music, classic country, swinging blues, old-time gospel, and toe-tapping bluegrass tunes [plus] a little rock and roll!” will play today at 4 p.m. as part of the Village’s Music on the Meetinghouse Green series. Seating is first-come first-served and attendees are welcome to bring a chair and a picnic, the website said.
Monday, Sept. 6
Spend your Labor Day doing a little plant shopping. Today is the final day of a Native Plant Sale hosted by Bagley Pond Perennials to support the New Hampshire Audubon’s McLane Center Pollinator Garden, according to nhaudubon.org/event/native-plant-sale, where you can place your orders. Plants will be ready for pickup Sunday, Sept. 12, from noon to 4 p.m. so you can do some fun pre-fall planting next weekend.
Save the Date! Sunday, Sept. 12
The Capitol Center for the Arts has two remaining shows in its Music in the Park series at Fletcher-Murphy Park in Concord. On Sunday, Sept. 12, catch Cold Chocolate in concert at 3 p.m. On Sunday, Sept. 19, Kimayo performs at 3 p.m. Gates open at 2 p.m. in both cases. Tickets to either show cost $12 plus a fee. See ccanh.com.
Manchester public high school students can now ride a school bus to school free of charge. According to a press release, last week the Manchester Board of School Committee voted to get rid of the $8.50-a-week fee that high school students had been charged to ride a school bus — New Hampshire state law does not require school districts to provide free transportation to high schoolers, though Manchester students have been able to ride city buses for free since 2019. “We saw a 15 percent increase in youth ridership on buses after allowing them to ride for free, and with this move, we’re ensuring cost is not a factor in a student’s ability to attend high school,” Mayor Joyce Craig said in the release.
Score: +1
Comment:The free rides could even save the district money. “By … no longer requiring drivers to punch bus tickets, we’re hoping to add additional stops to routes and reduce the total number of school buses on the roads,” Manchester Transit Authority Director Mike Whitten, who manages the district’s school buses, said in the release.
Learning to be leaders
Girls Inc. NH Young Women’s Leadership program recently wrapped up a summer of activities that helped teens develop leadership, problem solving and decision-making skills, according to a press release. The girls toured local businesses, like AutoFair, Cirtronics, Anheuser-Busch and more, and the camp culminated with a career fair and mock interviews. The girls also heard from speakers like John Broderick speaking about mental health, Chef Megan from Cactus Jack’s and Karen Borgstrom, who brought her therapy dog Kooper.
Score: +1
Comment: Meanwhile, QOL’s kids spent the summer watching TikTok videos. Kudos to this group of girls who made the most of their summer with this inspiring community-oriented program.
Free programs for teens
The Upper Room in Derry has two new programs for teens this fall who are looking to build self-awareness and a healthy mindset and lifestyle. According to a press release, Building Me is a four-week series that will offer four virtual lunchtime workshops to discuss simple steps to achieving a balanced lifestyle using self-care strategies. That’s happening Fridays, Sept. 3 through Sept. 24, from noon to 12:45 p.m. on Zoom. Building Your Recovery Capital is a three-week series that offers education and guidance on early recovery topics, like building resilience skills, happening on Zoom during the same timeframe, from Fridays, Oct. 8 through Oct. 22.
Score: +1
Comment:Both of these programs are free, so there’s no reason not to encourage the teens in your life to check them out at urteachers.org.
NH ranks high for student debt
Last week WalletHub released its report on 2021’s States with the Most and Least Student Debt, with New Hampshire coming in at No. 2 for the most student debt. According to a press release, data included average student debt to unemployment rate among the population aged 25 to 34 and share of students with past-due loan balances. New Hampshire ranked No. 1 for average student debt and for proportion of students with debt, and 27th for student debt as a percentage of income.
Score: -3, for being No. 1 and No. 2 in some expensive categories — like college debt, it adds up.
Comment:Meanwhile, AdvisorSmith released a similar study last week; using different metrics, it ranked New Hampshire 9th for the state with the most people who have student loans. Fourteen percent of the population has an outstanding federal student loan, according to a press release, and the average loan balance in New Hampshire is $34,353.
QOL score: 90 Net change: 0 QOL this week: 90
What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire? Let us know at news@hippopress.com.
Information from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services
Covid-19 news
State health officials announced 213 new positive cases of Covid-19 in New Hampshire on Aug. 30. The state averaged 336 new cases per day over the most recent seven-day period, an increase of 26 percent over those from the previous week. As of Aug. 30, there were 2,927 active infections statewide and 119 current hospitalizations due to the virus. All 10 counties in the state remain at substantial levels of community transmission.
On Aug. 30, Gov. Chris Sununu, along with several other state officials and a few hospital CEOs, traveled to Kentucky for an “on-the-ground perspective on lessons learned and best practices” in one of the hardest-hit states in the country by the pandemic. According to a press release, the group met with health care officials at Frankfort Regional Medical Center and the University of Louisville’s Hospital, while Sununu also met with Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear to hear about how the state is handling its most recent Covid surge.
PUA lawsuit
Last week a lawsuit was filed against Gov. Chris Sununu’s administration for prematurely cutting off federal unemployment benefits available under the CARES Act, according to a press release. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of four plaintiffs in the Hillsborough County South Superior Court and seeks a declaratory ruling and injunctive relief to reinstate the benefits. New Hampshire is the 15th state to file a lawsuit against a Republican governor for prematurely ending Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, the release said, and in four of those states plaintiffs have been reinstated with their federally guaranteed assistance and have been granted back-pay by the courts. The Pandemic Unemployment Assistance covers workers who are not eligible for regular unemployment insurance benefits, such as self-employed people, independent contractors and gig workers. The four plaintiffs are Cassandra Caron of Manchester, Brandon Dean of Dover, Alison Petrowski of Manchester, and Aaron Shelton of Merrimack, according to the release, and they are being represented by Mike Perez of Perez Legal. “Pandemic Unemployment Assistance was created to help people with careers and businesses that were interrupted because of the pandemic, and who otherwise would not be eligible for the typical unemployment benefits,” Perez said in the release. “Neither state nor federal law gives New Hampshire Employment Security the authority to abandon PUA before it expires. … We did ask New Hampshire Employment Security to reinstate PUA before filing suit, but we have not heard back from them in response to that request.”
Law enforcement laws
Last week, Gov. Chris Sununu signed three reforms that arose from the New Hampshire Commission on Law Enforcement Accountability, Community, and Transparency: HB 471, relative to police disciplinary hearings and authorizing the Department of Justice to maintain an exculpatory evidence schedule; HB 530, relative to candidate background checks for law enforcement officers; and SB 96, relative to establishing a body-worn and in-car camera fund, amending juvenile delinquency proceedings and transfers to superior court, and establishing committees to study the role and scope of authority of school resource officers and the collection of race and ethnicity data on state identification cards, according to a press release. Regarding the latter, Senate Judiciary Committee members Sen. Becky Whitley (D-Hopkinton) and Sen. Jay Kahn (D-Keene) issued the following statement: “It is unfortunate that Senate Republicans drastically narrowed the scope of this legislation, removing key elements such as data collection and mandatory judicial trainings regarding implicit bias and racial profiling, two key recommendations from the LEACT Commission.”
Energy bills
Last week Sununu also signed HB 315, which raises the net metering cap for local renewable energy projects including hydro and solar, and SB 91, adopting omnibus legislation on renewable energy and utilities, according to a press release. “We now have the opportunity to take control of our local energy future,” Kelly Buchanan, Director of Regulatory Affairs for Clean Energy NH, said in the release. “HB315 is a common-sense piece of legislation that opens the door to expanding clean energy development, new investments, and new jobs.” Clean Energy NH worked with municipal members and partners to support this legislation, which the group said will keep energy dollars local, lower rates for residents, businesses and the public sector, and keep New Hampshire competitive in the expanding clean energy economy, according to the release.
Concord has been recognized as a Bronze NH Veteran-Friendly Business — the first municipality in the state to receive this designation, according to a press release. The NH Veteran-Friendly Business Recognition Program highlights businesses that value contributions of service members, veterans and their families; support military and veteran families by identifying veteran-friendly businesses; and help match veterans with positions in New Hampshire businesses, the release said.
Makers are still welcome to apply to take part in the annual NH Maker Fest, which is happening Saturday, Sept. 18, at the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire in Dover. According to a press release, the day-long festival invites all ages to explore the creativity and ingenuity of area makers, hobbyists, artisans, performers and more. Interested makers have the option of participating virtually through pre-recorded videos, online workshops, blogs and more, the release said.
The Manchester School District held an opening ceremony for the renovated stadium at Memorial High School Aug. 27. According to a press release, all Memorial athletics teams were in uniform and on the field for the ribbon-cutting, which was followed by a boys soccer game.
Latitude Learning Resources, a nonprofit that offers learning options for homeschoolers and after-school activities for all students, has opened in Derry with individual classes like home-school gym, grammar and math foundations for elementary-aged kids and Spanish, art, economics, philosophy, New Hampshire history and computer programming for older students, according to a press release. There are also cooperative learning options like Lego engineering, yoga, geography, dance, civics, politics, Shakespeare, creative writing and immersive history, and after-school activities like theater, Quest Scouting and a tween girl club, the release said.
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Isn’t it every child’s dream to be able to eat cookies for breakfast? Actually, don’t a lot of adults have that dream? While I can’t fully endorse cookies for breakfast, I absolutely can support making and eating muffins that taste just like a cookie!
Snickerdoodles have been a regularly made cookie in my home, both as a child and a mom. The combination of sugar and cinnamon plus an interesting hint of tartness makes them a “hard to eat just one” cookie. Turn them into a muffin, and they’re a delicious way to start the day.
Most of the ingredients in these muffins are pretty straightforward and probably are items that can be found in your refrigerator and pantry. The one ingredient you may not have but absolutely need is cream of tartar. You’ll find it in the spice section in the grocery store. Although you need only a small amount, it gives these muffins that special something. As for the milk in the recipe, use whatever you have: plant-based, whole milk, skim. It really doesn’t matter.
Now, for serving them, I highly recommend eating them warm, sliced in half and topped with a little bit of butter. They are so delicious they might be called “hard to eat just one” muffins.
Michele Pesula Kuegler has been thinking about food her entire life. Since 2007, the New Hampshire native has been sharing these food thoughts and recipes at her blog, Think Tasty. Visit thinktasty.com to find more of her recipes.
Snickerdoodle muffins Makes 12
Muffins 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 large egg 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
Muffins Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a muffin pan with nonstick spray. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cream of tartar, salt and sugar. In a large measuring cup whisk the milk, vanilla and egg together. Add the milk mixture and 1/3 cup melted butter to the flour mixture. Stir just until flour mixture is fully moistened. It may be lumpy. Fill each muffin cup 3/4 full. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes. Cool muffins in the pan for 5 minutes.
Topping In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon. Remove the muffins from the pan. Brush the tops of the muffins with the melted butter. Generously sprinkle the tops with the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
New Hampshire Fisher Cats continue their run of home games at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium (1 Line Drive in downtown Manchester; nhfishercats.com) against the Binghamton Rumble Ponies with games through Sunday, Aug. 29. Games today through Saturday, Aug. 28, are all at 7:05 p.m.; Sunday’s game starts at 1:35 p.m. Special theme days include Alex Trebek Tribute Night on Aug. 26, Wrestling Night (with a Sumo Bobble Belly giveaway) on Aug. 27, post-game fireworks on Aug. 28 and a youth jersey giveaway on Aug. 29. The F-Cats begin another run of home games on Tuesday, Aug. 31, when the Portland Sea Dogs return (that game will feature post-game fireworks).
Friday, Aug. 27
Comedian Juston McKinney begins a four-show run at the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord tonight with a show at 8 p.m. Subsequent shows are Saturday, Aug. 28, at 5:30 and 8 p.m., and Sunday, Aug. 29, at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $29.50 (plus fees). See ccanh.com.
Friday, Aug. 27
Get in your classic red Ferrari (but don’t try to roll back the odometer) to head to Wasserman Park (116 Naticook Road in Merrimack) to see Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (PG-13, 1986) tonight at 7:30 p.m., part of the Merrimack Parks and Recreation’s Summer Movies in the Park series. The screening is free and is open to the public. See merrimackparksandrec.org/movies-in-the-park. Looking for more nostalgia-filled screenings? The Prescott Park Arts Festival’s outdoor movie on Monday, Aug. 30, is Big (PG, 1988). It starts at dusk; see prescottpark.org.
Friday, Aug. 27
Watch hopefuls compete in the Hampton Beach Talent Competition, running today through Sunday, Aug. 29, at 7 p.m. at the Seashell Stage on Hampton Beach. Today, the juniors (under 18) compete; tomorrow, Aug. 28, it’s the over 18s, and Sunday is the finals, according to hamptonbeach.org, where you can find more about this and other beach events.
Saturday, Aug 28
It’s another day of Old Home Days.
Plaistow’s Old Home Day today will include a 5K road race (registration starts at 7:30 a.m.), fireworks, food vendors and more, according to plaistowohd.com.
Candia’s Old Home Day will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Moore Park (74 High St.), according to candiaoldhomeday.com. The day will kick off with a parade, followed by crafters, artisans, food, music and exhibits in the park as well as Michael’s Awesome Juggling and Variety Show at 12:30 p.m., the site said.
Gilford’s Old Home Day will kick off with a 5K road race and a free kids fun race (check-in starts at 6:30 a.m.) and a pancake breakfast hosted by the Gilford Rotary (7 a.m.), according to gilfordrec.com. The library will serve pie and ice cream starting at 9 a.m. as long as it lasts or until noon, and a book sale will run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., the site said. Crafts people and food vendors will open for business at 9 a.m. on the Village Green and a parade steps off at 10 a.m., the site said. The day will also feature kids games and events, demonstrations, live music and fireworks at 9 p.m.; see the website for details.
Save the Date! Tuesday, Sept. 21
The fall season of art classes for children and teens begin on Tuesday, Sept. 21, at the Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St. in Manchester; currier.org). Classes in comics, drawing and painting including offerings that are online and classes in person. Adult art classes kick off earlier in September with classes that have one- or two-day sessions as well as weekly classes. Offerings include figure drawing, painting, and an art sampler. See the website for details and to register.
