Category: Featured Content

News & Notes 21/03/04

Covid-19 updateAs of February 22As of March 1
Total cases statewide73,66575,588
Total current infections statewide2,8832,363
Total deaths statewide1,1541,170
New cases2,648 (Feb. 16 – 22)1,923 (Feb. 23 to March 1)
Current infections: Hillsborough County807692
Current infections: Merrimack County232163
Current infections: Rockingham County650533
Information from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services

Covid-19 news

During the state’s weekly public health update on Feb. 25, state epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan reported that 97 people statewide were hospitalized with Covid-19, the first time that number has dipped below 100 since mid-November. Test positivity rates of the virus also continue to be on the decline in recent months, as well as active infections and deaths.

State health officials expect to receive their first supply of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson Janssen Biotech vaccine this week, which received emergency use authorization by the Food & Drug Administration on Feb. 27. According to a report from WMUR, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine only requires one dose, and it can be stored at refrigerated temperatures as opposed to being kept in a freezer, which will make it easier to transport and distribute. About 288,000 doses of vaccine had been administered in New Hampshire as of Feb. 25, according to Dr. Beth Daly, Chief of the Bureau of Infectious Disease Control of the New Hampshire Department of Health & Human Services. This includes 197,000 people who have received their first dose and an additional 91,000 who have received their second dose. “This means that about 15 percent of New Hampshire’s population has received one dose of vaccine, and seven percent of the population has been fully vaccinated,” Daly said during the press conference.

On Tuesday, Gov. Chris Sununu announced in a press release that the state will host a mass vaccination event this weekend, on Friday, March 6, Saturday, March 7, and Sunday, March 8, at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. However, the site is not open to walk-in appointments; instead people who have appointments scheduled for first-dose appointments in April will be contacted by the state and offered an appointment. The state hopes to vaccinate more than 10,000 people at the event, the release said.

Also last week, Gov. Chris Sununu joined 21 governors from across the country to send a message to Washington politicians that the $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill would bail out poorly managed states at the expense of taxpayers in better-managed states like New Hampshire, according to a press release. Unlike previous relief bills, the new federal funding package allocates aid based on a state’s unemployed population, rather than just its population, which would mean that New Hampshire would lose over $233 million using this formula, the release said.

Housing help

During the Feb. 25 press conference, Gov. Chris Sununu announced a new rental assistance program through the Governor’s Office for Emergency Relief and Recovery for Granite Staters who have experienced difficulty paying their rent and utilities due to the pandemic. The program is being administered by New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority, which will begin accepting and processing applications on March 15. “This assistance will be available retroactively, which means that it can help cover rent going all the way back from April 1 of last year through the date of application,” said Sununu, adding that the program is only eligible for renters and landlords, not for homeowners. “It really helps landlords and those that have to bear the brunt of the inability of those individuals to collect rent.”

Then on Monday, the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority announced that it has launched a new initiative to help essential frontline workers become homeowners. According to a press release, the Community Heroes Initiative provides a $3,000 closing-cost credit to eligible first-time homebuyers who finance through one of New Hampshire Housing’s Plus mortgage programs. The $3,000 grant goes directly to the lender, and the borrower does not need to repay it. Borrowers who are eligible for the program include health care, day care and elder care workers; law enforcement officers, firefighters and first responders; educators; and active members of the armed services, according to the release.

Bills wrapped up

The New Hampshire House of Representatives acted on more than 100 pieces of legislation over the course of two days last week, according to a press release. The House met indoors at NH Sportsplex in Bedford, and legislators were seated 10 feet apart from one another. “I’m pleased that the House was able to get its work done on time in the midst of a pandemic,” House Speaker Sherman Packard said in the release. “We can get our work done in a risk-mitigated manner.” The House will have to meet again before April deadlines, according to the release. According to a report from WMUR, 24 Democrats were absent from the sessions, “many of them suffering from health conditions that put them at high risk for Covid-19.” Though a lawsuit was filed against Packard claiming that in-person sessions would put people at risk and that remote sessions should be held instead, the U.S. District Court ruled that Packard did not have to use remote technology for the House sessions.

DCYF roadmap

The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services Division for Children, Youth and Families has released its inaugural Procurement Forecast, according to a press release. The Procurement Forecast is a summary of the results of the Request for Information that was issued in 2019, and its purpose is to provide a roadmap for the expansion of evidence-based prevention services aimed at keeping kids safe and strengthening families. According to the release, DCYF will be working with other Health and Human Services divisions to introduce new service models that will focus on keeping children at home with their families. The first request for proposals is for multisystemic therapy, which provides support for youth with behavioral health needs that put them at risk of entering out-of-home care. Studies have shown that 91 percent of youth who take part in multisystemic therapy remain home upon completion of the program, and 86 percent remain in school and employed, the release said.

On Monday the Daniel Webster Council announced that New Hampshire has its first female Eagle Scout. According to a press release, Valerie Ann Johnston of Thornton is also one of the first female Eagle Scouts in the nation. Eagle Scout is the highest rank in Scouting, and only about 6 percent of Scouts earn the achievement, the release said.

Kumon Learning Center, with locations in Bedford, Nashua and Portsmouth, will be joining New Hampshire’s exclusive Learn Everywhere Program, according to a press release from the New Hampshire Department of Education. Learn Everywhere allows students to earn credit for learning outside of the classroom, and Kumon Learning Center is now authorized to offer an array of math classes.

The Nashua Public Library reopened with limited service on Monday. According to a press release, customers can now come inside to pick up reserved materials; browse and check out new materials; browse the adult stacks to select books, DVDs, CDs, audiobooks, videogames and magazines (by appointment); use computers and printers (by appointment); and use the tax PC in the lobby to print tax forms. The Children’s Room and Teen Room are still closed, but curbside pickup continues. The building will be open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Last summer’s Drive-In Live, held at the Cheshire Fairgrounds in Swanzey, will return for a second season under the new name of Northlands. According to a press release, artists in the first round of the series will be announced in mid-March, and performances are scheduled to start in May. This year all attendees will be in 10’ x 10’ “pods” that will hold up to six people, and all pods are spaced at least six feet apart. A new beer garden is also being planned, the release said.

Donor towns

In 1999 the Supreme Court declared New Hampshire’s system of taxation “unconstitutional” based on the Claremont education funding decision. The Supreme Court forced the legislature to make a hard choice. The Claremont decision was based on Part 2 Article 5 of our Constitution, which says taxes “must be proportional.” Like any other state tax, like the Tobacco Tax, Gas Tax, Rooms and Meals, one rate statewide. It became clear that the state’s education regulations were mandates and therefore needed to be funded with a uniform tax rate.

Studies were done to determine the cost of the education regulations. Most every analysis showed that the so-called “property rich” towns, largely on the seacoast, resort lakes, or ski mountains, had plenty of valuable property and could easily raise money while many communities, including Manchester, Londonderry and Derry, struggled. Tax concepts were brought forward including an income tax, sales tax and statewide property tax. The state property tax emerged.

Similar to how we would think of it today, the statewide property tax was born in 1919 at a tax rate of $3.50 per $1,000 of value. So studies were done to see what would happen if a state property tax were to be re-enacted. Spreadsheets showed that if every community were to pay the same rate to cover the cost of the education regulations, the result would be that 75 to 80 percent of the state’s population would see a reduction in property taxes while the remaining percentage (20 to 25 percent), those property-richer communities, would see a tax increase. Ironically, even if this were enacted, the property-richer communities would still have the lowest property tax rates in the state.

While the property-poorer communities would run bake sales to pay for their attorneys, the property-richer communities simply hired lawyers to make the case that they would be unfairly treated by a uniform statewide property tax. They called themselves “donor towns.”

But which are the real donor towns? If the state constitution says that everybody needs to pay the same rate tax rate, but somehow the property-rich towns’ lawyers have tricked lawmakers into ensuring that they don’t actually have to pay the tax, thus, forcing monies to be raised from other sources, especially from property-poorer towns, is that fair? In reality, the property-poorer towns are contributing higher property taxes in order to ensure that the property-richer towns don’t have to pay the uniform rate. So who’s donating to whom?

Fred Bramante is a past chairman and memtber of the New Hampshire State Board of Education. He speaks and consults on education redesign to regional, state and national organizations.

Still rocking

Fable finds Leaving Eden in fine form

Since forming in 2011, Leaving Eden has remained among the most dedicated bands in New England. Their latest album, Fable, shows them maturing but still delivering high-energy rock ’n’ roll. “Broken” is a floor-mopper that stands with anything on their eight previous records, but there’s also a strummy cover of “The Rose” — yes, from the ’80s movie. “Detached” has a Beatlesque jangle evoking “Nowhere Man,” and the piano-driven title track is a tuneful departure for the band.

Keyboards are a recent addition to Leaving Eden’s sound, provided by Alyssa White, their newest member. White also collaborated on songwriting with guitar player and principal lyricist Eric Gynan on the song. She also co-wrote the title track of Dream With Me, released last year, and used it for an evocative Covid-19 themed video.

That wasn’t the plan, Gynan said in a recent phone interview. Dream With Me was due to support a tour covering most of 2020.

“We didn’t have one open date, and I had to turn places away,” but the pandemic had other plans, he said. “Of course, everything got canceled.”

So the band filmed a video full of masks and dancing molecules, then set about finding ways to work — successfully.

“We were able to play different places we’d never played before, like Hampton Beach Seashell Stage; right on the sand was just so cool,” Gynan said with a vial-half-full positivity. “As one door closed, another door opened, and we went straight through November, when it got too cold because everything we were doing was outdoors.”

They used the chilly months to complete the new record, released in mid-January, and practice for a livestreamed Lockdown Series show that debuted Feb. 13. The YouTube concert will eventually become a live album.

The band’s original lineup included two women: lead singer Eve and bassist Carissa Johnson, who’s now a solo artist. So adding White is a return of sorts. They were introduced in late 2018 at a gig — sort of.

“Alyssa was too shy, so she had her cousin come up to us to say she plays keyboards, sings and wants to be in the band,” Gynan said.

He responded by giving White Eve’s cell number.

“If she calls, that’s cool, then let’s see if she shows up,” he said. “She showed up. So [then it was], let’s see if she can learn the material. … She just did it all, a check mark off of each thing.”

Rounding out the group are drummer Jake Gynan and bass player Rick Chouinard. The latter played with Gynan and Eve (Gynan’s wife) in a pre-Leaving Eden band. Their latest public appearance was at The Chop Shop in Seabrook on Feb. 20. But the livestreamed show felt like a return, Gynan said — even if the stage was a bit cramped due to camera restrictions.

“I wanted to jump around but I couldn’t because if I moved even a little bit to the right or left I’d be covering Alyssa, and if Eve moved she’d block Jake and Rick would be out of the frame,” Gynan said. “We literally had just those spots, but it still had the energy.”

A show scheduled for Feb. 27 at VFW Post 88 in Kingston has been postponed to May 22, but a March trip to Florida for a few gigs is still on. As warm weather returns, they expect their home turf to become more welcoming.

A few Leaving Eden songs have appeared in movies, including Mayday, Lockdown, Painkiller, Bloodthirst and The Penthouse, all from Italian director Max Cerchi. Seemingly inspired, Gynan wrote his own screenplay for a film called The Nitwit. Rooted in reality — “things that really happened to me or somebody very close” — it was filmed in Iowa and is nearly complete.

“We would be done if this pandemic didn’t happen,” he said. “We’ve only got to go there for a long weekend and we can finish up.”

Ten years down the road, Leaving Eden soldiers on. Is the original vision intact?

“That’s a great question,” Gynan said. “You can’t be a frustrated musician forever. I guess you can be, but it’s not fun. It’s good to set your expectations high [but] I’ve learned to be totally happy doing exactly what I’m doing right now. Every gig is just as important as the next … a big concert or a little dive, it’s still important to me. It’s all just a matter of perspective.”

Leaving Eden
Watch Leaving Eden, The Lockdown Sessions on youtu.be/N31j1cfmkQM, or find them at facebook.com/bandleavingeden

Featured photo: Leaving Eden. Courtesy photo.

Nomadland (R) | The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (PG-13)

Nomadland (R)

Frances McDormand gives one of the year’s great performances in Nomadland, a movie based on the non-fiction book by Jessica Brueder.

The two most common scenes in this movie are McDormand’s Fern talking to people in what feel like actual conversations people are just having with McDormand herself, and Fern by herself enjoying the beauties and working through the difficulties of life as a nomad. Fern became a nomad — specifically, a nomad who lives in a van and travels from one seasonal job (Amazon warehouse) to another (a harvest) — after, basically, losing everything. Her beloved husband died after a painful illness and her town essentially died when the factory employer closed and kicked the workers out of the company housing.

Shorn of everything — her possessions are in a storage locker, she even cut her hair we’re told — Fern packs up a few of her most precious things and heads out. First, she stays at an Amazon-paid-for RV lot while she works packing things at some massive distribution center. Later, we see her follow new friend Linda May to a job as a park host at another RV/campground near a national park. Fellow nomad Dave (David Strathairn, one of the few other people not essentially playing themselves here) is a worker at the park and helps hook Fern up with a job at Wall Drug (a tourist attraction in South Dakota). Dave takes a shine to Fern; she maybe likes him too. They’re both awkward as heck in their flirting but we also get the sense that Dave is an attachment Fern is not ready for.

According to posts on the Nomadland Twitter account, several of the people McDormand’s Fern meets along the way — including Swankie, Linda May and Bob Wells — are essentially playing themselves and had their stories told in the book. I think this approach helps to ground this movie and keep the story focused on Fern and her life, rather than letting it spin off into thinkpiece territory. Fern is working through grief and dealing with a life turning point when we first meet her and that makes her story (and all the socio-economic aspects to it) all the much more layered and meaningful.

I realize that projecting soul-deep authenticity is sort of a baseline of any McDormand performance but she really does knock it out of the park here. I cared about Fern, and the movie makes us understand why she makes the choices she does and empathize with them.

And on top of this, the movie is beautiful — beautiful to look at (so many shots of the western and midwestern country) and beautiful to listen to, with a really excellent score. Definitely add Nomadland to your awards season must-watch list. A

Rated R for some full nudity, according to the MPA on filmratings.com. Directed by Chloe Zhao with a screenplay by Zhao (from the book Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century by Jessica Bruder), Nomadland is an hour and 48 minutes long, is distributed by Searchlight Pictures and is in some theaters and available via Hulu.

The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (PG-13)

Two teens are stuck in one of those Groundhog Day/Edge of Tomorrow-time loops in The Map of Tiny Perfect Things.

We enter in the middle of Mark’s (Kyle Allen) time-loop experience. He knows all the beats of this one day he’s been living over and over. Currently, he is using his knowledge of when and where everything happens, down to the second and the milimeter, to get the attention of a specific girl who always falls into the water at the neighborhood pool after getting hit by a beach ball. That is, she falls in if Mark isn’t there to catch her (and sometimes if he is; playing it cool takes a lot of do-overs).

But one day, instead of Mark catching the girl after the ball hits her, another girl walks by and swats the ball away. This new girl’s sudden appearance and the way she looks at and runs away from Mark makes him pretty sure that she, too, is in the loop. After a few “days” of looking, Mark finds and meets Margaret (Kathryn Newton). They are, as she says, marooned on this island together, so they hang out and become friends, even creating a project to map all of the little awesome moments (a guy getting pushed out of the way of bird poop, an eagle grabbing a fish, a girl showing up all the lesser skaters at a local skateboard hangout) that happen during their one day. But every evening Margaret mysteriously leaves him, and Mark isn’t sure how to turn these regular hangouts into something more. Or how to even have something more when he can never move forward.

Unlike other timey-wimey movies, Mark actually has a good group of people around him that he can lean on. We see him interact with his dad (Josh Hamilton), his sister (Cleo Fraser) and his best friend (Jermaine Harris), who don’t know about the “one day over and over” thing but are still able to help him work through some things. It’s all very sweet and allows the movie to examine the regular teen clash of emotions of wanting to grow up and also not being ready to move on. Newton in particular stands out as being a solid up-and-comer; I liked her in the recent Freaky and this movie similarly shows her skill with blending drama and humor, silliness and genuine emotion. B+

Rated PG-13 for brief strong language, some teen drinking and sexual references, according to the MPA on filmratings.com. Directed by Ian Samuels from a screenplay by Lev Grossman, The Map of Tiny Perfect Things is an hour and 38 minutes long and is distributed by Amazon, where it is available on Amazon Prime.

Featured photo: Nomadland

Flavor impact

What you eat or drink affects your brew

In sort of a famous family incident several years ago during a get-together at a restaurant, my dad complained about the Wachusett Country Ale he was drinking. He didn’t like it. The flavor wasn’t quite right.

As the brew is one of my staples and frankly, unarguably, one of the least offensive brews on the planet, this concerned me. Was it skunked? Did the bartender accidentally give him the wrong beer? Was something wrong with my father?

After a little investigation, he admitted he had popped an Altoid just as he was drinking the beer. Look, I’m not going to question the big guy. He must have needed a breath mint. But I feel sure the brewers at Wachusett Brewing Co. didn’t brew any of their beers to be enjoyed with an Altoid.

The point is, juxtaposition matters when it comes to beer.

This is not an article about pairing food with beer. This is some commentary on at least considering how one thing might impact another. It’s also about encouraging people to give beers another shot — in a different context, you might find different results.

If you’ve had a couple rich, smooth stouts, and then you make the jump to an amped up double IPA, well, it might work but the bitterness might be a lot to take on the first sip.

Recently I was enjoying a delicious Velvet Moon Milk Stout by Mighty Squirrel Brewing of Waltham, Mass., just savoring the rich coffee flavor and decadence of the brew. Then I followed it up with a much drier stout. It was not a good experience and left me disliking the second brew. I even bad-mouthed it to a friend.

I gave the brew another shot several days later and it was a completely different, completely pleasurable experience. I’m glad I came back to it.

Juxtaposition matters, of course, when you’re making a dramatic shift from one style to another, but it also matters when you’re sticking with the same style. If you’re enjoying a bunch of IPAs, sometimes the combination of hops from the next brew can hit you right or wrong.

Food has an impact as well, potentially bringing out the right or wrong flavors from the beer you’re drinking.

Just keep it in mind. If you try a beer and you don’t like it, you might just not like it, but consider the possibility that other factors have impacted how you feel about it. Try it again in a different context.

Here are three random beers that can probably be enjoyed in succession but I don’t really know.

ArrrVP Oak-Aged Robust Vanilla Porter by Great North Aleworks (Manchester)

Great North Aleworks takes its terrific Robust Vanilla Porter (RVP) and ages it in rum oak cubes, which accentuates the vanilla in the brew and gives it a little “bite,” while the beer maintains a dry finish. At its core this is still RVP, just a little different. The ABV is pretty low at 6.6 percent, making it approachable too.

Blueberry Ale by Wachusett Brewing Co. (Westminster, Mass.)

Just a coincidence that I referenced Wachusett earlier in the piece, but when you have had more IPAs than you should, this is a perfect choice. The subtle sweetness from the blueberries and the light body provide the perfect counterpoint to all that hop bitterness.

Unraveled IPA by Founders Brewing Co. (Grand Rapids, Michigan)

This is good stuff: very juicy but also smooth, if an IPA can be that. It’s also a crystal clear pour, making it very unique for this style. It also has big citrus aromas.

What’s in My Fridge
60 Minute IPA by Dogfish Head Craft Brewed Ales (Milton, Delaware) I hadn’t had this in forever and I’ll tell you what, this brew, now nearly 20 years old, absolutely stands up to today’s super-hoppy IPAs. Cheers.

Featured photo: ArrrVP by Great North Aleworks

Erofili Roesel

What is your must-have kitchen item?

Definitely a knife.

What would you have for your last meal?

A spaghetti and feta pizza. … It’s something we have on the menu that my mom created back in the day.

What is your favorite local restaurant?

We’ve been going to The Red Blazer [Restaurant and Pub in Concord] for the longest time. I get the chicken Parm there.

What celebrity would you like to see ordering from your restaurant?

Adam Sandler.

What is your favorite thing on your menu?

The cheese pizza is something we have all the time. I like simple stuff.

What’s the biggest food trend in New Hampshire right now?

The steak and cheese sub, just because it has so many variations, and the gyro also seems to be upcoming as well. We have a beef strip or a grilled chicken option for our gyros.

What is your favorite thing to cook at home?

I like a simple piece of grilled chicken with Greek olive oil, oregano and some lemon, and then some mashed potatoes.

Homemade grilled chicken and mashed potatoes
From the at-home kitchen of Erofili Roesel of Brookside House of Pizza in Loudon

3 pieces chicken breast, butterflied
5 russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
¼ cup milk
½ stick butter
Dash of fresh oregano
Pinch of salt
Pinch of pepper
1 fresh squeezed lemon
Greek olive oil

Cook chicken breasts on the stove top in a cast iron pan, with enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Add oregano, salt, pepper and lemon. Boil the peeled and cubed potatoes until soft. Blend potatoes with milk, butter, salt and pepper. (Optional: Add another squirt of lemon when chicken is done).

Food & Drink

Farmers markets

• Cole Gardens Winter Farmers Market is Saturdays, from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., at Cole Gardens (430 Loudon Road, Concord), now through April 17. Visit colegardens.com.

• Downtown Concord Winter Farmers Market is Saturdays, 9 a.m. to noon, in the Families in Transition building (20 S. Main St.). Find them on Facebook.

• Rolling Green Winter Farmers Market’s final dateis Saturday, Feb. 27, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Rolling Green Nursery (64 Breakfast Hill Road, Greenland). Visit rollinggreennursery.com.

• Salem Farmers Market is Sundays, from 10 a.m. to noon, inside the former Rockler Woodworking building (369 S. Broadway, Salem). Visit salemnhfarmersmarket.org.

Featured photo: Erofili Roesel

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