Category: News

This Week 25/01/09

Thursday, Jan. 9

The New Boston Historical Society (2 Central Sq., New Boston, 487-2526, newbostonhistoricalsociety.com) will host a lecture by Mary Adams of the New Hampshire Historical Society called “Redcoats & Rebels: New Hampshire and the American Revolution” tonight at 7 p.m. in the Community Church, 2 Meetinghouse Hill Road, New Boston. This event is sponsored by the NH Humanities Council.

Friday, Jan. 10

The Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St., Derry, 437-5100, tupelomusichall.com) will host a Night of Comedy tonight, starting at 8 p.m. The comedians will include Paul Nardizzi, Kyle Crawford (pictured) and Jolanda Logan. Tickets are $22 through the Tupelo website.

Friday, Jan. 10

Jewel Music Venue (61 Canal St., Manchester, 819-9336, jewelmusicvenue.com) will host Boston Flowmies presents: Bass Blizzard, a night of local talent, flow arts, craft vendors, raffles and more, tonight from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. All flow props and levels of experience welcome. Tickets are $15 through eventbrite.com.

Saturday, Jan. 11

The “Library of Things” at the Derry Public Library (64 E. Broadway, Derry, 432-6140, derrypl.org) has a loom and library trustee Monica Cataldo will give a demonstration on how to use it today from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Ms. Cataldo has demonstrated loom technique many times, even at the League of NH Craftsmen fair. Watch the demonstration and try it out for yourself. All are welcome at this free demonstration.

Tuesday, Jan. 14

Join Positive Street Art (48 Bridge St., Nashua, 589-9003, positivestreetart.org) for its monthly free Art Social this evening from 6 to 8 p.m. Attendees can bring their art projects and supplies to work on in a supportive environment. Tables and seating will be provided, and there will be snacks and drinks for purchase. The space is wheelchair-accessible with ramps and an elevator.

Wednesday, Jan. 15

The audience at Dancing with the Stars: Live! will have the opportunity to experience the excitement, athleticism and artistry they see in the TV show’s famed ballroom live, up-close and personal at the SNHU Arena (555 Elm St., Manchester) tonight at 7:30 p.m. The tour delivers a night of electrifying dance performances from world-renowned dancers who topped the leaderboard, including Emma Slater, Alan Bersten, Brandon Armstrong, Britt Stewart, Daniella Karagach, Gleb Savchenko, Pasha Pashkov and Rylee Arnold. Tickets start at $54.50 through ticketmaster.com.

Save the Date! Wednesday, Jan. 22
Legendary comedian Sarah Silverman returns to the stage at the Chubb Theatre (Chubb Theatre at CCA, 44 S. Main St, Concord, 225-1111, ccanh.com) Wednesday, Jan.22, at 8 p.m. The show, “Postmortem” focuses on the deaths of her father and stepmother two weeks apart from each other in 2023. Tickets start at $63.75 through the Capitol Center website.

Featured photo: Kyle Crawford.

Quality of Life 25/01/09

An eggs-treme shortage

As reported on Dec. 30 by Manchester Ink Link, New Hampshire’s inventory of fresh eggs has been hit hard by bird flu. “Avian flu, officially H5N1 bird flu, continues to cause issues for supermarket chains, bakeries and restaurants,” the story read, noting that area Hannaford supermarkets have been adversely affected, as well as many other wholesalers and retailers. “

QOL score: -1

Comment: “Prices are up 20 to 22 cents for Extra Large [eggs], up 24 cents for Large, and unchanged for Medium,” the USDA wrote in a Dec. 30 press release. Visit mymarketnews.ams.usda.gov/viewReport/1427.

Is the bird flu going to last for-heiffer?

In a Jan. 1 online article, New Hampshire Public Radio reported that the state will join a federal program to test dairy herds for aggressive strains of avian influenza. While the only instances of bird flu that have been detected in New Hampshire were in wild birds about a year ago, other states have reported infections in dairy cattle. “Concern about Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza is spreading,” NHPR reported. “At least 875 dairy cattle herds in 16 states have tested positive…”

QOL score: -1

Comment: On its website, the United States Department of Agriculture has stated that the dairy testing is part of a coordinated strategy to “facilitate comprehensive H5N1 surveillance of the nation’s milk supply and dairy herds. The strategy is designed to increase our understanding of the virus’ spread …, decrease the risk of transmission to other livestock …, and protect farm workers, to help lower their risk of exposure.” Visit aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-livestock.

Electrical service was gone with the wind

WMUR reported in a Jan. 3 online story, “As winds gusted above 40-45 mph, thousands of New Hampshire customers lost power.” More than 10,000 customers were left without electricity, as high winds picked up Thursday afternoon, Jan. 2.

QOL score: -1

Comment: “The National Weather Service issued a wind advisory for all of New Hampshire,” the article read; that lasted until 9 p.m.

A stronger community through flowers

Fortin Gage Flowers in Nashua announced in a Jan. 6 press release that it has launched a new initiative called “Flowers for Good” to “support local nonprofits through unique floral arrangements.” Each month the Nashua florist will design a unique flower arrangement for a particular area organization, the announcement said. “Proceeds from the sale of these exclusive arrangements will directly benefit the featured nonprofit, fostering community engagement, connection and support.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: Sales of January’s arrangement will go to support Bridges: Domestic & Sexual Violence Support. “The exclusive arrangement for January, titled ‘Flowers for Change,’ features a harmonious blend of purple hydrangea and purple veronica in a white vase, symbolizing purity, hope, and courage,” Fortin Gage wrote in its announcement, “reflecting the resilience of those affected by domestic and sexual violence.”

QOL score: 53

Net change: -2

QOL this week: 51

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

Let us know at [email protected].

Pats fire Mayo

The Big Story – Mayo Out After Final: Well, that didn’t take long. But seeing Mike Vrabel interviewing to be HC of the NYJ’s last week likely gave Pats owner Bob Kraft the sense of urgency he needed to do the right thing and put Jerod Mayo out of his misery immediately. Stay tuned to see what, if any, changes are coming next, over what should be the eventful weeks ahead.

Sports 101: Name the NFL team and players that had their QB named MVP one year and his backup win it for them the next year.

News Item – Ohio State Rolls in CFP: You’ve got to love what Ryan Day’s OSU Buckeyes have done in dismantling Tennessee (41-17) and Oregon (43-23) in the first two CFP rounds. And it wasn’t just Chip Kelly’s offense, which pretty much ended it for the undefeated Ducks by midway through the second quarter. The D did their part in holding OU to an astonishing minus 23 yards rushing on 28 carries.

Up next: Texas in Dallas on Friday night.

News Item – QB controversy in Foxboro: While it was an exhibition kind of game, it’s hard to say anything bad about the debut of rookie sixth-round pick Joe Milton in the Pats’ franchise-damaging 23-16 win over Buffalo. And to think he had to transfer out of Michigan to start elsewhere his senior season after struggling in Ann Arbor. He was cool, calm, athletic and dynamic in going 22 for 29 for 241 yards and a TD while running for another. Which pretty much matched anything Drake Maye did all year. Throw in the standing back flip the 6’5” 250-pounder did after scoring his TD and it’s a legend in the making. Hey, wait, a sixth-round pick from Michigan competing with a more highly drafted guy for the QB job. That sounds familiar. Hmmm.

News Item – Darnold Seeing Ghosts Returns: Did the clock strike 12 on Sam Darnold’s Cinderella season? He sure looked like he did in his Jets days during Sunday’s showdown for the NFC Central title, where he was 18-41 for 166 yards and an 0-fer on TD’s the five times Minnesota got in the red zone. The easy 31-9 Detroit win gave the top-seeded 15-2 Lions home field throughout the playoffs and a Week 1 bye while 5-seed Minnesota face the Rams in L.A.

The Numbers:

24.1 – Christmas Day Chiefs-Steelers TV rating on Netflix, compared to the 5.25 NBA games averaged on ABC/ESPN the same day.

57,471 – careerminutes played by LeBron James as he passed Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s all-time record.

… Of the Week Awards

Thumbs Up – Detroit Lions Trick Plays: The best was the “stumble bum” just before Christmas where Jared Goff faked like he stumbled and fumbled as RB Jahmyr Gibbs dove on the ground like he was trying to recover the fumble. After the Bears bought it hook line and sinker, Goff straightened up and threw a 21-yard TD pass to a wide open Sam LaPorta. And the hook and ladder from Amon-Ra St. Brown to Jameson Williams vs. SF the next week for another shock TD was sweet too.

If it ain’t gonna be Vrabel, Bob Kraft, make it the guy who thunk them up to be the next HC of the NEP’s: Detroit OC Ben Johnson.

Thumbs Down – JimmyButler: Hearing a guy who forced his way out of Chicago, Minnesota and Philadelphia demanding a trade because he “lost his joy” in Miami is beyond laughable.

Best Commercial on NFL Broadcasts – Uber Eats: Matthew McConaughey is very funny in the clever spot as a guy seeing NFL games as conspiracies for getting viewers to buy food.

Random Thoughts:

I hate that the portal transfer rule allows senior QB’s, like Ohio State and Oregon had, to pick a team to move to alter the balance of college football every year.

Latest example why I hate Nike’s influence on the tradition of sports were the garishly awful red pants worn by Ohio State last week over their beautiful silver pants with the red jerseys.

Sports 101 Answer: Johnny Unitas was the 1967 MVP and after he went down in pre-season Earl Morrall stepped in to win it by leading Baltimore to the league’s best record at 13-1 in 1968.

Final Thought – Pats’ Plan Going Forward: Give Bob Kraft credit for admitting his mistake and firing his hand-picked not-ready-for-prime-time head coach Jerod Mayo after just one season.Mistake 2 was keeping the staff in place who helped Bill Belichick the GM compile an abysmal drafting record dating back to 2014. Which is why they came up with a 2024 draft that gave them nothing after Maye (and maybe Milton). The next step is getting a GM with a track record for creatively finding, acquiring and drafting talent to maximize their huge cap space edge and draft position. Then hire a coach who can help a young team grow into a winner.

Email Dave Long at [email protected].

News & Notes 25/01/09

New governor

Governor-elect Kelly Ayotte will get to drop the “-elect” on Thursday, Jan. 9, when she takes the oath of office at the Statehouse. On Jan. 6 she announced more of her staff members, building on her announcements in November that Christopher Connelly will serve as Chief of Staff and John Corbett will serve as Senior Advisor to the Governor. Additional hires include these:

  • Myles Matteson, who previously served as senior assistant attorney general and chief of the Criminal Justice Bureau at the New Hampshire Department of Justice, will be Legal Counsel.
  • Paul Dean, previously chief of police at the University of New Hampshire police department, will be Director of Citizen Services.
  • James Gerry, budget director for Gov. Sununu, will be Director of Policy and Finance.
  • Caroline Hakes, deputy campaign manager for Ayotte’s campaign, will be director of Communications.
  • Morgan Hughes, previously an associate attorney at Orr & Reno, will be Director of Appointments and Liaison to the Executive Council.
  • Consuelo Carver, a retired FBI agent and retired lieutenant in the U.S. Navy, will be the director of scheduling.
  • John Callaghan, field director on Ayotte’s campaign, will be policy and legislative assistant.
  • Alex Holderith, most recently a special assistant to Gov. Sununu, will be assistant director of policy and finance.
  • Donna Schoenfeld, a staff assistant in Sununu’s office, will be a staff assistant.
  • Virginia Drye, previously director of circulation for the Claremont Eagle Times, will be citizen services assistant.
  • Tyler Flanigan will be community engagement coordinator.

See gencourt.state.nh.us/house on Jan. 9 at 11:30 a.m. for a livestream of the proceedings.

U.S. Attorney resigns

Jane E. Young, U.S. Attorney for the District of New Hampshire, announced her forthcoming resignation on Friday, Jan. 17, in a press release on Jan. 2. Young was nominated for the position in January 2022 by President Biden and has been in the position since May 2022. “Over the past two and a half years, law enforcement in the Granite State prioritized investigating those who illegally possessed firearms, made threats to government officials and schools, exploited our most vulnerable citizens, as well as defrauded pandemic-relief and other federal programs. I am particularly proud of the education we provided community members and the private sector on emerging frauds and scams, the expansion of the United States Attorney’s Office to include two additional prosecutors focused on civil rights and violent crimes, and the restitution orders obtained to make fraud victims whole,” Young said in the statement.

Conservation training

The University of New Hampshire Extension, New Hampshire Fish & Game and New Hampshire Division of Forest and Lands is accepting applications now through March 1 for its NH Coverts Project, according to a press release. “Started in 1995, the NH Coverts Project has trained over 500 volunteers in promoting wildlife conservation and forest stewardship throughout the state,” the release said. “In exchange for the training, participants commit to volunteer for at least 40 hours during the coming year and motivate others to become stewards of the state’s wildlife and forest resources. … Some lead field walks or organize volunteer workdays, while others serve on town boards or manage their own property for wildlife habitat.” There is a $50 registration fee and the training workshop is May 14 through May 17, the release said. See extension.unh.edu/blog/2025/01/application-period-opens-2025-nh-coverts-project-training.

Blood drive

The American Red Cross is looking for blood donors and offering a chance to win a trip to Super Bowl LIX. Donors who give through Sunday, Jan. 26, will be entered in a giveaway for a trip that includes tickets to the game, pre-game activities, round-trip airfare, three-night hotel accommodations and a gift card for expenses, according to a press release. See redcrossblood.org/SuperBowl for details. Upcoming local blood donation spots include:

  • NH Audubon McLane Center in Concord on Thursday, Jan. 9, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
  • Sky Meadow Country Club in Nashua on Thursday, Jan. 9, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
  • Goodale’s Bike Shop in Nashua on Friday, Jan. 10, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
  • Boys and Girls Club of Greater Concord on Saturday, Jan. 11, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m
  • St. Joseph Hospital in Nashua on Monday, Jan. 13, from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
  • Bektash Shriners in Concord on Monday, Jan. 13, from 1:30 to 6:30 p.m.
  • St. John Neumann Church in Merrimack on Tuesday, Jan. 14, from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
  • Great North Aleworks in Manchester on Tuesday, Jan. 14, from noon to 4:30 p.m.
  • White Birch Banquet Hall in Hudson on Tuesday, Jan. 14, from noon to 4:30 p.m.
  • LaBelle Winery in Amherst on Wednesday, Jan. 15, from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

The Ice Castles in North Woodstock is slated to open Friday, Jan. 10, at 3 p.m. with attractions including the Mystic Light Walk, the Polar Pub ice bar, the tubing hill and more, according to a press release. See icecastles.com.

Registration is open for the 23rd annual Rock’N Race, which will take place Wednesday, May 7, at 6 p.m. at the Statehouse in downtown Concord to raise funds for HOPE Resource Center at Concord Hospital Payson Center for Cancer Care, according to a press release. Earlybird registration, through March 1, costs $35 for adults and $15 for youth and the first 2,700 registrants will receive a T-shirt, according to a press release. See rocknrace.org.

Ed Brouder, Manchester Historic Association trustee and past president, will present an illustrated talk about The Ledge, a swimming attraction in a granite quarry near Derryfield Park that was created when granite was pulled from the quarry in the 1870s and 1880s for the city’s mill foundations and street curbing, according to manchesterhistoric.org. The talk will take place Saturday, Jan. 18, at 11 a.m. at the Millyard Museum in Manchester and is included with admission to the museum. RSVP by calling 622-7531 or emailing [email protected].

The NH Wolves Hurling Club will hold a Winter Gala Celebration on Saturday, Jan. 18, to “honor the achieves of the past season and to kick off the new year” according to the nhwolveshurling.com (where you can find details of the Wolves Indoor Hurling and Gaelic Football series, which starts Tuesday, Jan. 28, in Goffstown). The gala will take place at American Legion Post 98 (43 Baboosic Lake Road in Merrimack). Tickets start at $30 per person (plus fees). The evening will feature food by The Peddler’s Daughter, an award ceremony, live music and more.

This Week 25/01/02

Friday, Jan. 3

Strange Brew Tavern (88 Mar­ket St., Manchester, 666-4292, strangebrewtavern.net) will host a special comedy event tonight from 8 to 10 p.m.: Laugh Attic Pres­ents: The High School Dropout. Some of New England’s funniest comedians will ditch their material and educate you on classic litera­ture. Tickets are $15.

Friday, Jan. 3

Dueling Pianos of New Hampshire brings fast-paced request-driven fun to the Tupe­lo Music Hall (10 A St., Derry, 437-5100, tupelomusichall.com) tonight at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $22.

Saturday, Jan. 4

New Hampshire Public Television (nhpbs.org) will screen a sneak-peek preview of the first episode of Season 5 of All Creatures Great and Smallat the BNH Stage (16 S. Main St., Concord, 225-1111, ccanh.com) this afternoon at 3 p.m. Tickets are free through the Capitol Center’s website.

Saturday, Jan. 4

The Parish of the Resurrection (449 Broad St., Nashua, 882-0925, parishoftheresurrection.org) will hold a free organ concert to cel­ebrate its new Rodgers instrument this evening at 5:30 p.m. The con­cert will feature pieces performed by seven friends of the Parish and members of local chapters of the American Guild of Organists. Most of the pieces will be Christ­mas- and Epiphany-themed, and all will be relatively short and lis­tener-friendly. The concert as a whole will be approximately one hour long.

Sunday, Jan. 5

Recycled Percussion contin­ues its 16-show run at the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St. in Man­chester; palacetheatre.org) with two shows today — at 1 and 4:30 p.m. In addition to shows this weekend, the group has six shows left on the schedule next weekend, Friday, Jan. 10 thorugh Sunday, Jan. 12. Tickets start at $39.

Tuesday, Jan.7

The Derry Public Library (64 E. Broadway, Derry, 432-6140, derrypl.org) will host a Drop- In Genealogy Session from 6 to 7 p.m. in the New Hampshire Room. This will be a collabora­tive research session. Bring your laptop or use one of the Library’s. Ask for help if you need it; give help if you can. Share a fun fam­ily history story with a fellow researcher.

Wednesday, Jan. 8

This evening at 6:30 p.m. NH Humanities will present a lecture at the Loudon Historical Society & Museum (29 S. Village Road, Loudon) on Poor Houses and Town Farms: The Hard Row for Paupers. Historian Steven Taylor will present a look at New Hampshire’s early and flawed institutions for dealing with

Save the Date! Wednesday, Jan. 15
The audience at Dancing with the Stars: Live! will have the opportunity to experience ath­leticism and artistry they see in the TV show’s famed ballroom live with dancers including Emma Slater, Alan Bersten, Brandon Armstrong, Britt Stewart, Daniella Karagach, Gleb Savchenko, Pasha Pashkov and Rylee Arnold. The show comes to the SNHU Arena (555 Elm St. in Manchester; snhuare­na.com) on Wednesday, Jan. 15, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets start at $54.50.

Featured photo: Dancing with the Stars Live.

Quality of Life 24/01/02

Votes for the Sand-man

The New Hampshire Department of Transportation has narrowed down the options for names for its snow plows. NHDOT says it received more than 900 suggestions for plow names in its first round of polling, which it has narrowed down to 15 finalists: 6 Snow 3, Adam Sander, Big Leplowski, CTRL-Salt-DELETE, Darth Blader, Fritz Plowerbee, Live Free and Plow, Notch Your Avg Plow, Please Snow Down, Rider on the Storm, Sled Zepplin, Sleetwood Mac, Snobi Gone Kenobi, Tomie DePlowa, and Vincent van Snow.

QOL score: +1

Comment: Cast your vote while the poll remains open (through Jan. 10) at forms.office.com/g/Px4hL1gvDi. The comments in NHDOT’s Facebook posts about this contest are excellent and, appropriately enough, extremely salty.

Cold holiday week was kind to ski towns

As reported by WMUR in a Dec. 29 online story, cold, snowy weather during the first week of winter has brought a welcome influx of business and revenue to New Hampshire ski business­es and their communities. WMUR quoted Frank MacConnell, the owner of Bob Skinner’s Ski and Sports in Sunapee, who said that this has been one of his top three holiday seasons. “At the end of the day,” he said, “the whole crew locked the door and went, ‘OK, what was that?’ That was huge.” As reported by WMUR, many ski industry workers credit new technology, like flexible ski passes, for bringing in new business.

QOL score: +1

Comment: For information about New Hampshire ski passes, visit skinh.com/deals/season-passes.

Everyone likes a bad boy

By one metric, Santa Claus’s popularity was overshadowed this season by The Grinch. New Hampshire Public Radio reported in a Dec. 24 online story that travelers at Manchester-Boston Region­al Airport during the holiday week showered more attention on a greeter in a Grinch costume than they did on one dressed as Santa Claus. NHPR quoted Airport Director Ted Kitchens: “The one that people loved the most this year was the Grinch. People just wanted their photo with the Grinch.” The airport started greeting travelers with characters in costume during the holiday season three years ago, NHPR reported. 2024 marks the 67th anniversary of the pub­lication of How The Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss, and the 58th year since the original animated television special first aired.

QOL score: +1

Comment: As reported by NHPR, approximately 52,000 people were expected to travel through the airport in the two weeks sur­rounding Christmas.

QOL score last week: 50

Net change: +3

QOL for the end of 2024: 53

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

Let us know at [email protected].

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