Category: News

Quality of Life 25/05/29

Concord has the best water

According to a tasting panel of fourth- and fifth-graders, Concord’s municipal water is the best-tasting. As reported by the Concord Monitor in a May 13 online article, this year’s New Hampshire Drinking Water Festival (nhwaterfestival.org), hosted by the Department of Environmental Services, brought “professionals from around the state to show fourth and fifth graders how water treatment — and contamination — works.” The yearly event includes a water-themed science fair and a poetry contest. The Water Festival itself features classes, demonstrations and a blind taste-test of “five tap waters from five New Hampshire municipalities: Concord, Hooksett, Manchester, Plymouth and Rochester,” according to the Monitor story.

QOL score: +1

Comment: According to the Monitor story, this is Concord’s sixth victory in the past seven years.

That’s a lot of Tagalongs

Some Loudon Girl Scouts have put their cookie money to good use in traveling to New Mexico. According to a May 15 press release, the seven girls from Loudon Girl Scout Troop 60180 “planned the trip themselves with help from their leaders and funded it from the proceeds of their Girl Scout Cookie sales. The troop voted on where to go, where to stay, eating, packing, and picking out a car.” The press release quoted Girl Scout Dalia, who said, “The trip was completely worth the cold, long cookie booths!”

QOL score: +1

Comment: During the trip in March, the Scouts visited White Sands National Park and Carlsbad Caverns. They rode horseback and met with “female college students that were volunteering at the caverns to clean lint that builds up from visitors.”

All girls. All named Willow.

According to a May 17 online story by NHPR, retired Forest Service ecologist Scott Bailey has tracked down something elusive to the point of near non-existence: male specimens of a rare New Hampshire tree. “Specifically,” the NHPR story read, “Bailey has been inventorying satiny willow trees, also known as Salix pellita. They’re more shrub than tree, native to northern parts of the United States, and shiny.” Like all trees, the satiny willows need blossoms on female trees to be fertilized by pollen from male trees. But nobody had been able to identify any male satiny willows since it was discovered until Bailey finally identified two males this spring.

QOL score: +1

Comment: Male silky willows are incredibly difficult to find, as it turns out, because they produce blossoms for an incredibly short time, often a matter of hours, before dropping them, the story said.

QOL score last week: 62

Net change: +3

QOL this week: 65

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

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

The week that was

The Big Story – The Red Sox Stumble Into June: To say they have not lived up to expectations is an understatement. Especially given that their major off-season acquisitions Alex Bregman and Garrett Crochet are living up to what’s been expected of them.

The good news is that with the Orioles having already fired their manager the division overall is a mess outside of the Yankees. So despite being under .500 they enter Memorial Day weekend within striking distance of the Yanks at 4.5 games and just a couple out of the wild card race. If they can shake off the malaise there’s ample time to get in the race over the next four months.

Sports 101: Seven NBA coaches have 100+ career playoff wins. How many can you name?

News Item – Top 4 Reasons For Red Sox’ Dismal Start: (1) Abysmal work of their awful bullpen (outside of closer Aroldis Chapman) who in a two-week span in May blew six ninth-inning or extra-inning leads and lost all six times. (2) Starter Tanner Houck and his 8.04 ERA as of last week thanks to delivering the two worst starts in Red Sox history. (3) The ongoing travails of shortstop Trevor Story that have people thinking he may be headed for being DFA’d despite being owed a boatload of money over the next two years. (4) And of course the major distraction caused by the brass’s cowardly response to Raphael Devers’ refusal to move over to play first base after Triston Casas went down for the season. He’s hitting now but they’re still looking for a first baseman and the perfect solution for them and him is already on the team.

News Item – Alex Cora and Pitching: When is the spotlight going to fall on the Red Sox manager for being a typical stat geek handler of the pitching staff who, despite having a bullpen full of flame throwers, regularly yanks starters after five innings or less to let the bullpen lose the game? Most egregious was last week vs. the Mets when he yanked ace Garrett Crochet in a 1-1 game after 5.1 innings and 85 pitches. Then, big surprise, they immediately put up three runs vs. Liam Hendriks, leading to a 5-1 loss. Given the state of affairs, wouldn’t it be better to let the starters go deeper in games to give the pen only two innings to blow it until pen reinforcements come?

News Item – Tush Push Lives: The vote to ban the Eagles’ signature play failed last week. I’m not for it or against it, but I do know this: The Eagles were for it because they’re great at it. Knowing how hypocritical and self-serving most are (outside of the Rooney family), if Philly’s rival in NY were great at it and they weren’t, they’d be against it. Push or no push, the real reason they’re so good in short range is because they have a great offensive line. So they’d have still been the best after any ban.

The Numbers:

3 – managers fired before the second month of the baseball season concluded (Pittsburgh, Colorado and Baltimore).

58 – after their elimination by Florida, years since the Toronto Maple Leafs last won the Stanley Cup in 1967.

430,000 – dollars Anthony Edwards has paid the NBA in fines so far this season after he got hit for $50k for dropping an f-bomb in his post-game press conference after the T-Wolves Game 1 loss to Oak City.

.… Of the Week Awards

And Another Thing – Aaron Judge: Aaron Judge’s monster start over the season’s first two months has him on a 64-homer pace. If it continues it will tie him with Babe Ruth and the PED twosome of Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire for most 50-homer seasons with four. That is Hall of Fame material.

Sports 101 Answer: The NBA coaches with at least 100 playoff wins are Phil Jackson, Pat Riley, Gregg Popovich, Erik Spoelstra, Doc Rivers, Steve Kerr and Larry Brown.

Final Thought – Cedric Maxwell: Max is right that he doesn’t get enough credit for his contributions to the Celtics. And it’s a joke how the Bill Simmons self-indulgent, fanboy HBO Celtics series treated him. First by not giving him props for saving the team when he was MVP in the 1981 Finals, a series where Houston’s Robert Reid handcuffed Larry Bird into shooting a combined 11-37 while scoring just 8, 8 and 12 points in Games 3, 4 and 5 when Max went for 19, 24 and 28. And while Kevin McHale had the higher ceiling at their Celtics peaks, Max was far more important to the two championship teams they played on together. The Celtics-loving Simmons knows that because he saw it all happen and should have given him his due. Instead Max joins Dave Cowens, Bob Cousy and John Havlicek as guys whose Celtic greatness is sadly being lost to time and memory.

Email Dave Long at dlong@hippopress.com.

News & Notes 25/05/29

Health care research

In a May 22 press release, New Hampshire Attorney General John M. Formella announced a $1.6 million grant to the University of New Hampshire for a research center to inform the public on the “impact of consolidation to the New Hampshire health care market. The center will examine hospital, physician and private insurance market consolidation. Using data-driven methodologies, the research will compare New Hampshire’s market trends with both nearby states and broader national patterns,” the release said. See doj.nh.gov/health-care-consumer-protection-advisory-commission.

Birthday pic

To celebrate Bedford’s 275th birthday, artist Ann Trainor Domingue painted “Village of Bedford, NH- Established 1750,” a work featuring notable town structures including Joppa Hill Farm, the Presbyterian Church, the Bedford Public Library, the Bedford Village Inn, the Town Hall and others, according to a press release. The work was unveiled last week at Sullivan Framing and Fine Art Gallery (15 N. Amherst Road in Bedford; sullivanframing.com) which will be selling commemorative prints to benefit “Bedford Historical Society and their completion of the Stevens-Buswell Community Center,” the release said. The prints cost $135 unframed, $250 framed, and are signed by the artist, according to the website.

Waste line

Nashua Regional Planning Commission is holding a Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day on Thursday, June 5, from 3 to 7 p.m. at the Nashua Park and Ride, 25 Crown St. in Nashua, accepting up to 10 gallons or 20 pounds for $20 per vehicle, cash or check, according to a press release. The collection is open to residents of Amherst, Brookline, Hollis, Hudson, Litchfield, Merrimack, Milford, Mount Vernon, Nashua, Pelham and Windham, the release said. No latex or acrylic paint, electronics or medicines; see nashuapc.org/hhw or call 417-6570 for a list of accepted items.

Full-time vet

Salem Animal Rescue League (4 SARL Drive in Salem; sarlnh.org) has hired a full-time staff veterinarian, Dr. Jordan Gagne, according to a press release. “With a steadily increasing number of intakes and medical cases, having a full-time veterinarian on-site will allow for faster diagnostics, improved treatment plans, and enhanced preventive care for the animals under the rescue’s care. It also will allow for an increase in community clinics for the underserved in our community,” the release said.

The Ted Herbert Music School will hold its Jazz Showcase on Sunday, June 8, at 3 p.m. at the Ted Herbert Music School and Majestic Studio Theatre (880 Page St. in Manchester), according to a press release. The event will feature performances by the 2025 Ted Herbert Community Big Band and the school’s students and instructors, the release said. Tickets cost $15; see majestictheatre.net.

The Derry Public Library (64 E. Broadway in Derry; derrypl.org) will host a “Dartmouth CARES — Heart Health Screening” event on Thursday, June 12, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. including free screenings of blood pressure, cholesterol and blood glucose, according to an email. No registration is required.

The Nashua Chamber Orchestra will present a performance of Beethoven’s Fifth for its season finale, Saturday, May 31, at 7:30 p.m. at Nashua Community College (Judd Gregg Hall, 505 Amherst St. in Nashua) and Sunday, June 1, at 3 p.m. at the Milford Town Hall on the Milford Oval, according to a press release. See nco-music.org for tickets, which cost $20 for adults and $15 for seniors, military and students ages 18 and over; kids under 18 get in for free.

YMCA of Greater Nashua will offer a free Water Safety Day event on Sunday, June 1, at the Merrimack YMCA (6 Henry Clay Drive in Merrimack), according to a press release. The event will include free “safety around water” swim lessons for children, drowning prevention giveaways, water watcher tag giveaways, activities and family swim time, the release said. Register for the free event at nmymca.org/water-safety-month.

This Week 25/05/15

Thursday, May 15

The BNH Stage (16 S. Main St., Concord, 225-1111, ccanh.com) hosts a performance of “This Is My Brave – The Show” tonight at 7 p.m. benefiting NAMI New Hampshire. Performers will share personal stories of overcoming mental illness and substance use disorder. Tickets are $31.

Saturday, May 17

NH Muscle Cars will hold its Granite State Season Opener Car Show today from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Deerfield Fairgrounds featuring live music, vendors, fair food and of course fields of cars competing for 35 trophies in a variety of categories. Spectator admission costs $5; see nhmusclecars.com.

Saturday, May 17

Canterbury Shaker Village (288 Shaker Road in Canterbury; shakers.org) opens today for the season and will be open daily through October from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Today, the Canterbury Shaker Village Cross Country 5K begins at 10 a.m.

Saturday, May 17

Saint Peter’s Episcopal Church (3 Peabody Row, Londonderry, 437-8333, stpeterslondonderry.org) will hold its 38th Annual Spring Artisan Craft Fair today from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Saturday, May 17

The Manchester City Library (405 Pine St., Manchester, 624-6550, manchesterlibrary.org) holds its spring book sale today from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Library’s Winchell Room.

Saturday, May 17

The NH Philharmonic will present “Swashbucklers and Superheroes,” a celebration of “the iconic music behind some of the greatest adventure films in cinematic history,” tonight at 7:30 p.m. and tomorrow, Sunday, May 18, at 2 p.m. at Seifert Performing Arts Center in Salem. Tickets cost $35 for adults, $30 for seniors, $10 for students. See nhphil.org.

Saturday, May 17

It’s the final weekend of the New Hampshire Renaissance Faire. Tickets, which can be purchased at nhrenfaire.com, cost $20 for adults and $15 for ages 6 to 12 and for military and veterans, the website said. Kids ages 5 and under get in for free.

Sunday, May 18

The Nashua Choral Society presents Vive La France, “a choral journey celebrating French composers,” at 3 p.m. at Immaculate Conception Church (216 E. Dunstable Road, Nashua). See nashuachoralsociety.org.

Sunday, May 18

Chunky’s Cinema Pub (707 Huse Road, Manchester, 206-3888, chunkys.com) hosts the 2025 New Hampshire High School Short Film Festival at 12:30 p.m. Presented by the New Hampshire Film Bureau, this festival screens a two-hour program of selected films. This event is free to attend. Visit nhmediateachers.org.

Tuesday, May 20

“Beyond the Lawn: No Mow May’s Role in Sustainable Communities” will be the topic at tonight’s Science Cafe NH, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at SOEL Sistas Cafe, 30 Temple St. in Nashua.

Wednesday, May 21

Beaver Brook (117 Ridge Road in Hollis; beaverbrook.org) will host a Lilac Walk today from 1 to 3 p.m. Registration costs $22.

Saturday, May 17

It’s plant sale Saturday! The Goffstown Community Garden Club sale starts at 8 a.m. and runs until noon (or when they sell out, whatever is first) at the Goffstown Town Commons. Find the Milford Garden Club from 8:30 a.m. to noon at the Community House Lawn, at the corner of Union and Elm streets. The Nashua Garden Club will hold its annual plant sale from 9 a.m. to noon at the Nashua Historical Society, 5 Abbot St. The Bedford Garden Club will hold its sale at Joppa Hill Farm (174 Joppa Hill Road in Bedford) from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Featured photo: Courtesy photo.

Quality of Life 25/05/22

Competitive Ford fixing

As reported by Nashua InkLink on May 8, teams of high school students in auto tech programs took part in a statewide competition to determine which team could most efficiently diagnose a troubled vehicle. The 2025 NH ACE Competition was a hands-on, timed event. “Ten New Hampshire Automotive Programs from across the state compete in teams of two to diagnose and repair a Ford Bronco within 90 minutes,” InkLink reported. The event, organized by the New Hampshire Automobile Dealers Association and Ford Dealerships, brought student tech teams together from 10 area high schools, the story said.

QOL score: +1 for investing in our vocational students

Comment: As reported by Nashua InkLink, “the winning school receives a 2024 Ford F-150 to enhance their training.”

A diploma and an ear-scritch

As reported in a May 14 online article by WMUR, Bear, the Derry Police Department’s first comfort dog, officially graduated from his training program in a ceremony attended by Gov. Kelly Ayotte. “During a ceremony, Ayotte congratulated Bear and his handler, Master Patrol Officer Erin Sullivan, for their hard work and dedication throughout training,” the WMUR story read. “More than 10 fellow service dogs from law enforcement departments across New Hampshire were also in attendance.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: Lt. Shawn O’Donaghue from the Derry Police Department said in a telephone interview that Bear, a 1-year-old black Lab, is ready to go to work full-time for the Department. His duties will “involve the well-being and mental health of officers,” O’Donaghue said, “as well as outreach to the community and helping ease emotional trauma for emergency victims.”

Not enough lifeguards

The City of Concord doesn’t have enough lifeguards. According to a May 13 online article by WMUR, Concord’s Parks and Rec Department is still trying to fill openings before the City’s pools open for the summer in mid-June. WMUR quoted City Councilor Stacey Brown: ““We desperately need more lifeguards. This is something that is incredibly important. We don’t want people swimming in the river; we want people learning how to safely swim. [Our pools are] clean, there is no cyanobacteria, and this is something that sets us apart from other communities,” In a telephone interview with the Hippo, Assistant Parks and Recreation Director Laura Bryant said there is no clear cause for this year’s lifeguard shortage. “It ebbs and flows year to year, so I think maybe people just aren’t thinking about it as much. We’re probably still looking for another 10 to 12 [more lifeguards] at this point.”

QOL score: -1

Comment: Bryant said her department has several interviews scheduled for prospective lifeguards over the next week. She said that there are still a few weeks until Pool Time. “Our Public Properties Division is just getting out and opening all the pools up and seeing where we’re at with everything. So we don’t have an official date, but typically it’s around Father’s Day weekend.”

QOL score last week: 61

Net change: +1

QOL this week: 62

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

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

Knicks end C’s season

The Big Story – Celtics Season Ends Early: That’s all she wrote for the 2024-2025 Celtics. And maybe for 2025-2026 as well with Jayson Tatum likely out for much or all of next season after tearing his Achilles tendon in the closing minutes of Game 4. The loss of Tatum had nothing to do with why they were eliminated by New York in six games. It’s because of their horrid fourth-quarter play in Games 1, 2 and 4 as they were blowing 20-point leads in those games. Helped along by the truly awful coaching by Joe Mazzulla in the first two losses.

Sports 101: Who was the lowest-seeded team to win an NBA title?

News Item – Tanner Houck: After giving up nine runs and 12 hits in 2.1 innings vs. Detroit last week Tanner Houck inthismonth alone has had the two worst starts in the Red Sox’ 135-year history.

New Items – 3 Things To Like About The Knicks: (1) The resilience and mental toughness showed in the series. (2) The Villanova threesome of Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges and yes foul shooting challenged, but offensive rebounding machine Marcus Robinson, who I’ll take all on my team any day. (3) That Brunson has clearly demonstrated how much better he is than Kyrie Irving after Dallas let him walk to sign the more expensive Irving.

The Numbers:

.122 –batting average of Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story while in a protracted 22-game slump dating back to April 22 in which he’s 11 for 90 with one home run and five RBI.

5 – margin of victory at the PGA Tournament on Sunday as Scottie Scheffler won his third major championship.

265 – million-dollar contract given 49er QB Brock Purdy, quite a pay increase for a guy who not long ago was the last person picked in his draft class.

… Of the Week Awards

Alumni News – Chris Sale: It probably didn’t look familiar because it was Fenway Park and he was healthy. But that was the Sox one-time ace lefty who bested their current ace lefty Garrett Crochet 4-2 Friday when Sale held the Sox to five hits and a run while striking out eight over seven innings.

Four Leaf Clover Award – Dallas Mavericks: For getting the NBA’s top pick after entering the lottery with a 1.4 percent chance to get it. Not to mention getting Cooper Flagg should quiet those still ticked over the Luka Doncic trade.

Coward of the Century – Rob Manfred: The Baseball Commissioner gets it for his capitulation on admitted baseball gambler Pete Rose’s eligibility for the Hall of Fame so Donald Trump won’t be mean to baseball. Of particular offense was the excuse that MLB’s objection should end after a guy dies. Earth to Rob, Shoeless Joe Jackson, who was better than Rose, died in 1951, so why the sudden rush now? And as a matter of point, when Whitey Bulger got offed in prison, did they vacate his murder convictions? No, because crimes don’t go away after someone dies. Rose broke baseball’s cardinal rule. Which, after lying about it for 15 years, he finally admitted, to juice book sales.

Random Thoughts:

With the Red Sox wearing green uniforms with yellow trim at Fenway against Atlanta last weekend, am I the only one who thought the Oakland A’s were in town? I know the answer is merchandise sales, but what is the point of the city edition uniforms?

Another reason to like the Knicks: they refused to talk to Steven A. Blowhard on ESPN after their Game 6 win.

Prediction – NBA Conference Finals: Indy over New York in six. Oak City takes out T-Wolves, setting up a Pacer-Thunder Finals.

Sports 101 Answer: The six-seed 1995 Houston Rockets were the lowest seed to become NBA champions. After going 47-35 to finish third in their division, they swept Orlando four straight in the Finals.

Final Word – Patriots Hall of Fame: Congrats to Julian Edelman for his election to the Patriots Hall of Fame. But with all due respect, he was erroneously selected because it was done thanks to recent popularity over the chronology of worthy contributions. First, Adam V should have won — and wouldn’t it have been a nice touch to see him go in with Bill Parcells, who first signed him in 1996? But second, how could Edelman go in before Wes Welker? Edelman has an incredible postseason resume for sure with arguably the greatest Super Bowl catch ever. But Welker came first and his per year averages of 112 catches, 1,243 receiving yards and 6 TDs are off the charts compared to Edelman’s 59, 620 and 3.5.

Overall it’s Welker 672, 7,549, 37 TDs, five 100-plus catch and 1,000 receiving yard seasons in six Patriot seasons to Edelman’s 642, 6,822 yards, 36 TDs and just one 100 catch and three 1,000 receiving yard seasons in 11 years. No complaint about Edelman’s worthiness. But how dominant Welker was in the slot as Tom Brady’s first big target is being lost to time. Email Dave Long at dlong@hippopress.com.

Email Dave Long at dlong@hippopress.com.

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