Category: News

This Week 25/02/27

Thursday, Feb. 27

Open extra days during school vacation, the Aviation Museum of N.H. (27 Navigator Road in Londonderry; aviationmuseumofnh.org) will be open today from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Elite Flight Simulator will be available from 1 to 4 p.m. for kids age 12 and up. Admission costs $10 for ages 13 and up; $5 for kid ages 6 to 12 and veterans, and is free for kids under 6 years old.

Friday, Feb. 28

The Community Players Children’s Theatre Project’s Winter Vacation Theatre Camp presents “The Story of Hansel and Gretel” tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Concord City Auditorium (2 Prince St., Concord, 228-2793, theaudi.org). This production is a comical musical retelling of the Brothers Grimm classic tale of two lost children, a gingerbread house and a witch, but with some twists. This is a one-hour show. Tickets are by donation.

Friday, Feb. 28

The Nashua Center for the Arts (201 Main St., Nashua, 800-657-8774, nashuacenterforthearts.com) will host Gimme Gimme Disco, a DJ-based dance party playing ABBA hits plus other disco hits by artists of the ’70s and ’80s. Disco attire is encouraged. Tickets start at $21 through the Center’s webpage. This is a general admission, open floor show. Ticketholders must be 18+.

Saturday, March 1

Catch Classic Stones Live at the Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St. in Derry; tupelomusichall.com) today at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $39.

Sunday, March 2

As part of its Sunday Cinema Classics series, the Nashua Public Library (2 Court St., Nashua, 589-4600, nashualibrary.org) will screen 1939’s The Women this afternoon at 1 p.m. Joan Crawford and Norma Shearer star in this classic comedy about a happily married woman who lets her catty friends talk her into divorce when her husband strays. This showing is free and open to the public.

Tuesday, March 4

Laissez les bons temps rouler: Today is Mardi Gras and Lisa Marie & All Shook Up will play Fat Tuesday at Strange Brew (88 Market St. in Manchester; strangebrewtavern.net) at 8 p.m. Seeallshookup.us for more about performers; the website describes Lisa Marie this way: “From jump-swing to swamp boogie, country blues to funky New Orleans grooves, her deep husky vocals express an unmistakable joy.”

Wednesday, March 5

Tonight is Comedy Night at the Shaskeen Pub (909 Elm St., Manchester, 625-0246, shaskeenirishpub.com). Seating for this free 21+ show is first come, first served. The comedy starts at 9 p.m. Find Ruby Room Comedy on Facebook for updates on who will be at the mic.

Save the Date! Friday, March 28

The New Hampshire Orchid Society presents Flight of Fancy, its 32nd Annual Orchid Show and Sale, Friday, March 28, through Sunday, March 30, at the Courtyard Nashua (2200 Southwood Drive, Nashua, 880-9100, marriott.com). There will be exhibits, plants, supplies, jewelry, artwork and more. A speaker program and free guided tours will be provided daily. Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for seniors, and free for children 12 and under.The public is invited for dinner among the orchids and an award ceremony beginning with a cash bar on Saturday evening at 6:30 p.m. Advance ticket purchase is required for the dinner. Visit nhorchids.org/NHOS_2025_show.

Featured photo: Courtesy photo.

Quality of Life 25/02/27

A really big wedding

Intown Concord will pay for the wedding of one couple who agree to get married in public at Concord’s Market Days Celebration on Friday, June 27. “Intown Concord will handle everything,” the organization announced on an online registration from, “from the ceremony to the reception — so all you have to do is show up wedding ready!” The couple selected for the public wedding will receive a ceremony with licensed officiant, a live band for dancing, a free meal and drink provided by Market Days vendors (for the couple only), ceremony seating for 20 close friends/family in front of the New Hampshire Statehouse, an ice cream cake provided by Social Club Creamery, and an overnight stay in Concord. the website said.

QOL score: +1

Comment: Adventurous couples should register at marketdaysfestival.com by Friday, March 21.

Action Jack

Manchester chicken tenders booster and musician (and more) Nick Lavallee has, via his business Wicked Joyful (wickedjoyful.com),made multiple action figure works of art over the years, such as a Vermin Supreme complete with head boot and a Chicken Tender Capital of the World “Tendie” action figure. Recently he made a custom action figure of musician Jack White, which was presented to White by a show promoter after two sold-out shows in Boston, according to several social media posts by Jack White and Lavallee. “I love the orange toys r us price tag with the date of the shows encoded in it!” White said in a Feb. 20 Instagram post.

QOL score: +1 for some fame for a local artist

Comments: Lavallee crafted an action figure honoring the retiring Fritz Wetherbee, complete with “$6.03” fake price tag and “I’ll tell you the story” tagline; see the figure in a Feb. 8 post on the Wicked Joyful Facebook page.

Also a great band name

In a Feb.19 press release, the New Hampshire Fisher Cats announced the creation of a team alternate identity: theNew Hampshire Space Potatoes. “With rooted history beyond baseball in New Hampshire,” the press release read, “the Space Potatoes [will] take the field for three nights in 2025, beginning Saturday, April 19, at Delta Dental Stadium.” According to the Fisher Cats general manager Taylor Fisher, this alternate identity baseball team honors “two notable New Hampshire firsts into one brand,” New Hampshire’s official state vegetable, “first [planted in] American soil in Derry, New Hampshire, by early 18th century Scots Irish settlers” and “the infamous Barney & Betty Hill incident that occurred on Route 3 in New Hampshire’s White Mountains late in the summer of 1961, remarked as the first widely reported alien abduction in the United States.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: The New Hampshire Space Potatoes will take the field against the Harrisburg Senators on April 19 at 4:05 p.m. Space Potatoes tickets and merchandise are available at milb.com/new-hampshire/team/space-potatoes.

QOL score last week: 53

Net change: +3

QOL this week: 56

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

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

NBA takes over

The Big Story – NBA Hits the Stretch Run: With the All Star Game nonsense and Super Bowl out of the picture, the NBA moves to center stage. The three biggest questions are (1) Can Cleveland keep doing it in the playoffs like they have in the regular season?, (2) Can the Celtics shake off their lethargy to hit the switch to defend their crown? and (3) How big a difference will Luka Doncic make as he joins LBJ out there in L.A.? And here’s a fourth: Will we be lucky enough to see a real competitive New York-Boston playoff series for the first time since 1984 (OK, 1990) followed by a Boston-L.A. Final? Time will tell.

Sports 101: Who holds the NBA record for playing the most consecutive games without fouling out?

News Item – Celtics Come Out Swinging:Maybe the Celtic Slump is over, as they came out of the All-Star break with big wins over Eastern rivals Philadelphia and New York on national TV. With Philly reeling and Joel Embiid looking like he’s headed for season-ending surgery, the Knicks’ win was more meaningful, as it was their third drubbing of their likely Round 2 opponent in the playoffs in three games against N.Y.

News Item – Kenny Atkinson: Thing I love most about NBA season so far is that in his next try as a HC after his cowardly boss listened to dirtbags Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving stabbing him in the back to get him fired in Brooklyn, Atkinson is coaching the team with the NBA’s best record in Cleveland while Kyrie and KD are facing steep climbs just to even make the playoffs. As Pat Riley once un-grammatically said, sometimes dems get what dems deserve.

The Numbers:

7 – million dollars the reported among the nation’s top college basketball recruits AJ Dybantsa (Brockton, Mass.) will be paid in NIL money to play at BYU next year.

13 – goals away from passing Wayne Gretsky as the most prolific scorer in NHL history for Alexander Ovechkin after going for the hat trick in Washington’s 7-3 rout of Edmonton on Sunday.

49 – years since Yankees players could have beards and mustaches until this year, now that the ban imposed by George Steinbrenner in 1976 was lifted last week.

… Of the Week Awards

Thumbs Up – Cooper Flagg: The Larry Bird-like Maine native told The Atlantic that he wants to return to Duke for his sophomore season over becoming the NBA’s No. 1 draft pick. The question is, if he does do it, will the team with the first overall pick take him anyway as the Celtics with Bird after he said he was returning to Indiana State for his senior season?

Random Thoughts:

Why does nobody do the “was it Brady or Belichick?” game with Duncan and his coach Greg Popovich? Because in the eight full seasons since TD retired, Pop’s won-loss record is a Cotton Fitzsimmons-like 299-356.

Sports 101 Answer: Most incorrectly believe Wilt Chamberlain holds the record because he never fouled out of any game ever. But he only played in 1,045 in his 14-year career. And while Moses Malone fouled out five times early in his career, he later played in 1,212 straight without fouling out.

Final Thought – Victor Wembanyama: With the French phenom likely shut down for the year due to shoulder and neck issues it’s a good time to evaluate how he’s lived up to the hype he got when entering the league down there in San Antonio.

His 22.6 ppg, 10.8 rpg and 3.8 bpg stats are among the best in the game in his two years. But after hearing how he would turn the NBA on its head, besides those stats and some highlight videos, we haven’t really seen it turn up in the standings. In his Year 1 the Spurs won the same 22 games they won the previous year, which is area codes behind these four guys who actually did immediately turn the league on its head by dramatically improving the teams they joined over the year before they got there:

Larry Bird – Boston had the greatest turnaround ever in going from 29 wins to 61.

Lew Alcindor – expansion Milwaukee won 27 in their first year and 56 the next.

Tim Duncan – he had more help in his first year than the other three as David Robinson missed the year when the Spurs won just 20 and 56 when he was back with Duncan in his Year 1.

Shaquille O’Neal – Expansion Orlando won 21 in their first year and 41 the next year with Shaq.

The first three won the NBA title in Year 2 while Shaq magically had Orlando in the Finals after knocking no less than Michael Jordan and Chicago out of the playoffs. While for Big V it’s just 24-31.

This is picking on the prognosticators who overhyped a new guy again. Not Wemby because he’s been terrific. Just not beyond belief, where so far he’s more Yao Ming than the four real game-changers mentioned above. Email Dave Long at dlong@hippopress.com.

News & Notes 25/02/27

Scam updates

The United Way of Greater Nashua is offering a free scam alert newsletter called the “Scam Alert Email List” that will send “alerts on trending scams as well as fraud prevention tips and resources for reporting suspicious activity,” according to a United Way press release. Sign up via tinyurl.com/ScamAlertsUWGN.

Tiny films

The Nashua Public Library (2 Court St., Nashua; nashualibrary.org) will hold its third annual Tiny Film Festival on Friday, March 7, at 6 p.m. The fest will feature 60-second all-ages films submitted to the library, according to the library’s website. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with a red carpet, photo booth and free popcorn, the website said. Films will be judged in the ages 12 and under, 13-17 and 18+ categories. Winners will be announced on the library’s website Saturday, March 11.

Help for vets

Service Credit Union Impact Foundation and Robert Irvine Foundation awarded Liberty House (221 Orange St., Manchester, libertyhousenh.org), an organization that helps veterans, a $20,000 grant, according to a press release. “The grant will support Liberty House’s transitional housing program for veterans facing homelessness, post-traumatic stress, traumatic brain injury and other challenges,” the release said.

Poetry contest

The 8th annual MacGregor Poetry Contest will accept submissions Monday, March 10, through Saturday, April 12. The contest, run by the Derry Public Library (64 E. Broadway, Derry; derry.org), offers prizes in two age groups — poets 15 and up and poets 14 and under. Email (macgregorpoetrycontest@derrypl.org) or snail mail (addressed to “Derry Public Library Poetry Contest”) up to two poems, no more than two pages each (no Google docs), according to an email from the library. See the website for entry rules. Winners will be announced in May.

Rock’N Race

Registration is open for the 23rd Annual Rock’N Race, which raises money for HOPE Resource Center at Concord Hospital Payson Center for Cancer Care, slated for Wednesday, May 7, at 6 p.m., according to a press release. The race starts at the Statehouse and racers can choose a 5K run, 5K walk or 1-mile walk. The cost to enter is $35 for adults through March 1, $40 after, at rocknrace.org.

Badges battle

Tickets are now on sale for the 2025 Battle of the Badges Hockey Championship, presented by the Elliot Perry Foundation and raising funds for Dartmouth Health Children’s and the Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, which will have Team Fire and Team Police face off on the ice on Sunday, March 16, at 1 p.m. at the SNHU Arena in Manchester, according to a press release. A family fun event starts at 11 a.m. on SNHU Arena plaza featuring first responder vehicles and more; doors open at 11:30 a.m. Advance tickets cost $16 (plus fees) for ages 13 and up, 12 and under get in for free but still need a ticket; tickets on the day cost $20 for ages 13 and up, according to chadhockey.org. Tickets include access to the Kids Zone, a scavenger hunt and more, the release said.

The Gafney Library (14 High St. in Sanbornville; gafneylibrary.org) will host Jordan Tirrell-Wysocki for the program “Songs of Emigration” on Tuesday, March 5, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

Howie Newman, former sportswriter for the Boston Globe and other publications, will present “The Musical Baseball Show” at the Goffstown Public Library (2 High St.) on Saturday, March 22, at 11 a.m. The event is free.

The country band Locash will play the Dana Center for the Humanities at Saint Anselm College in Manchester on Thursday, March 6, 7:30 p.m. Tickets start at $65. See tickets.anselm.edu.

The NH State Home Show comes to the Manchester Downtown DoubleTree, 700 Elm St. in Manchester, Saturday, March 1, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, March 2, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets cost $10 for adults, free for ages 12 and under.

Leah Dearborn, associate director of the Aviation Museum of NH, will discuss her new book Grenier Air Base: A Beacon on the Home Front at Balin Books in Nashua (Somerset Plaza, 375 Amherst St., balinbooks.com) on Saturday, March 8, at 2 p.m.

This Week 25/02/20

Thursday, Feb. 20

The Nashua Center for the Arts (201 Main St., Nashua, 800-657-8774, nashuacenterforthearts.com) will host Less is More: An Evening with Joss Stonetonight at 8 p.m. Joss Stone is a Grammy and Brit Award-winning artist who released her acclaimed debut album, The Soul Sessions, in

Thursday, Feb. 20

Mosiac Art Colletive (66 Hanover St. in Manchester; mosaicartcollective.com) will host Gelli Jam, a workshop on Gelli printing, tonight at 5:45 through 8 p.m. Suggested donation of $5 to $10. Some materials available for use. Register on the website.

Thursday, Feb. 20

LaBelle Winery Derry (14 Route 111, Derry, 672-9898, labellewinery.com/labelle-winery-derry) will host Harvest & Rust, a Neil Young tribute concert, tonight at 8 p.m. Harvest and Rust represents the wide range of Neil Young’s six-decade career,. Tickets are $40.

Friday, Feb. 21

The Warren Haynes Band will play the Chubb Theatre (Capitol Center for the Arts, 44 S. Main St., Concord, 225-1111, ccanh.com) tonight at 8 p.m. as part of its Million Voices Whisper Tour. Tickets start at $55..

Friday, Feb. 21

Tonight marks the first of three nights of one-act plays from the Nashua Theatre Guild (14 Court St, Nashua, 978-300-2444, nashuatheatreguild.org). The plays will include a noir play, The House on the Hill on the Boulevard at the End of the Sidewalk; Neil Simon’s Rumors; Big Al, and Hammered: a Thor and Loki Play. The curtain will go up tonight and tomorrow, Saturday, Feb. 22, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Feb. 23, at 2 p.m. Tickets are $20 ($18 for students and seniors) through the Guild’s website.

Saturday, Feb. 22

The New Hampshire Philharmonic Orchestra (647-6476, nhphil.org) will perform Eroica Inspirations: A Journey from Beethoven to Torke tonight at 7:30 p.m. and tomorrow, Sunday, Feb. 23, at 2 p.m. at the Seifert Performing Arts Center (Salem High School, 44 Geremonty Drive, Salem, 893-7069, ext. 5601, sau57.org/pac), with special guest pianist Taige Wang. Tickets are $35 for adults, with reduced prices for seniors, students, Salem students, and streaming. Visit The Phil’s website.

Saturday, Feb. 22

There will be an Apokriatiko Greek Dance tonight at the Saint George Greek Orthodox Cathedral (650 Hanover St., Manchester, 622-9113, stgeorgenh.org) tonight from 7 to 11 p.m. in the church hall, DJed by the Salonica Boys. There will be Greek and American dancing, hot hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar. There is a suggested donation of $25; children 12 and under are free.

Save the Date! Saturday, March 1

The Red Hot Chilli Pipers will bring their hard-rocking bagpipe fusion to the Nashua Center for the Arts (201 Main St., Nashua, 800-657-8774, nashuacenterforthearts.com) Saturday, March 1, at 8 p.m. The band has been described as “AC/DC meets the poet Robert Burns.” Tickets start at $29 through the Nashua Center’s website.

Featured photo: Courtesy photo.

Quality of Life 25/02/20

Headed for the Big Show

Venomous snake on Aisle Four

As reported by WMUR in a Feb.16 online article, an employee at the Manchester Market Basket received a surprise on Friday, Feb.14, while unloading a box of bananas: a venomous snake. According to New Hampshire Fish and Game, the snake was a 2-foot-long Ornate Cat-eye, a mildly venomous snake species native to Central America. “The snake was not harmed and given to Rainforest Reptiles Shows,” the WMUR article reported, and went on to quote Mack Ralbovsky, Vice President of Rainforest Reptiles. “We get something like this maybe three or four times a year,” Ralbovsky said. “A lot of the invasive species we see come from situations like this where an animal might be shipped in produce.”

QOL score: -1 because SURPRISE!

Comment: According to Ralbovsky, while technically venomous, this species feeds mostly on lizards and amphibians, and poses little danger to humans.

NH Super Bowl bets

According to a Feb. 14 press release from the New Hampshire Lottery Commission, New Hampshire football enthusiasts wagered more than $7.5 million on last week’s Super Bowl game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs. “Of those who wagered on the outright winner, 89% of them were correct in their bet on the Eagles,” the Lottery Commission wrote, then went on to quote Charlie McIntyre, New Hampshire Lottery’s Executive Director. “Between the standard touchdown, yardage, or MVP and the Swiftie Special betting options, the Super Bowl certainly lived up to its reputation as New Hampshire’s largest sports betting event of the year.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: “Since the New Hampshire Lottery and DraftKings launched mobile sports betting in New Hampshire on December 30, 2019, bettors have wagered more than $3.5 billion,” the press release reported.

Joann Fabric holding on by a thread

In a Feb. 12 online article, WMUR reported that troubled fabric and craft chain Joann Fabric has announced it will close more than half of its 800 stores, including seven of eight stores in New Hampshire. “According to court filings, the Hooksett location is the only one of the state’s eight stores expected to stay open,” the story read.

QOL score: -1

Comment: “Joann has filed for bankruptcy twice in the past year and is looking for a buyer,” WMUR reported.

Do not disturb until August

In a Feb. 15 online article, New Hampshire Public Radio reported that “New Hampshire farmers can now apply for funding in exchange for leaving their hayfields alone in the early summer.” The conservation group the Bobolink Project hopes to preserve a strong breeding environment for bobolinks, small migratory birds that nest in New England in the spring. As reported by NHPR, the group will “compensate farmers for the income they might lose by not haying in early summer, paying them to keep their fields as habitat for the birds. Keeping that habitat also helps other birds, like meadowlarks and grasshopper sparrows.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: Farmers can apply to be part of the project at bobolinkproject.com/farmers.php. Applications are due by March 31.

QOL score: 53

Net change: 0

QOL this week: 53

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

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.