Tag: 261008

Sox bow out badly

The Big Story – Sox Go Down Hard:Well, the Red Sox season ended pretty much the way it started — badly — as they were swept out of the playoffs for the second year in a row by the Yankees. Making it worse was being run over by Boston area products their local scouts whiffed on, Ben Rice and Cam Schlittler, who they’ll now have to deal with for years, along with looking so overmatched against a team missing Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton.

In the end it left all wondering who they actually were. The team that burned through most of June and July? Or the one that went 15-15 in their last 30 games?

See you next spring.

Sports 101: Who holds the NFL career record for most receptions by a non-drafted player?

News Item – Pats Beat Bills 26-24

Phew! That was close. But amid an up-and-down start they finished where they needed to be after their tough opening four games at 2-2.

Biggest highlights: (1) Drake Maye had a couple of scary plays, but in throwing for 268 yards and three TDs he looked back on track. (2) Spectacular one-handed catches by Romeo Doubs and Efton Chism on the Pats’ last two TDs. (3) Decent job by the D containing Josh Allen without the Christians Barmore and Gonzalez.

Special teams: Bad all day by allowing several big kickoff returns and the punter kept killing the net gain by sending booming punts into the end zone rather than dropping them inside the 20.

The Numbers:

17 – catches by Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb for 189 yards in Dallas’ comeback 36-30 win over Houston.

94.8 – the average mph of all 2026 MLB pitches according to MLB Statcast, up from 91.9 mph when tracking began in 2015.

658 – days (and 643 attempts) between interceptions before Minkah Fitzpatrick got one to end the Jets’ 21-game streak without a pick. Though they’re still the Jets, who lost 23-12 to a Bears team using their third-string QB.

… Of the Week Awards:

• Thumbs Up – Drake Maye: Patriot Nation gets to breathe easier since he returned to normal on Sunday.

• Thumbs Down – U of Texas DE Colin Simmons and RB Raleek Brown: For their vulgar on-field “celebrations” during the top-ranked Longhorns win over Tennessee.

• Quote of the Week: Texas AD Chris Del Conte wrote“… it was embarrassing to our proud and widely respected football team…” in a blog post apologizing for his nitwit players. Nice, but a two-game suspension would have been better.

• Play of Week – Igor Shesterkin: The New York Rangers have had 93 goaltenders since entering the NHL in 1926-1927. And none had scored a goal until Thursday when Shesterkin buried an empty netter in NY’s opening night 5-1 win over Tampa Bay.

Sports 101 Answer: With 903 Wes Welker has the record for most NFL receptions by an undrafted player.

Final Thoughts – On The Red Sox’ Demise

• Chad Tracy: He deserves much credit for righting the ship after taking over for Alex Cora. But, while they still would’ve lost, he turned manageable deficits into full Yankee blowouts by panicking to yank Payton Tolle and especially Sonny Gray far too early.

• Roman Anthony: Lost year for a guy who many thought was on track to be Yaz-like. He’ll be more of a question mark next spring because after missing most of 2026 and with his first two seasons ending early he’s starting to look brittle.

• Early Signings Strategy: With Anthony missing most of the year, Brayan Bello being so awful he got sent to AAA in June and Kristian Campbell still buried there, the “let’s sign the young guys early” strategy to lower their cost as the career progresses ain’t working out too well.

• Off-Season Work Ahead: To start, they need; a BIG bopper to hit fourth, to re-sign Gray and a permanent second baseman.

Email Dave Long at dlong@hippopress.com.

Quality of Life 26/10/08

Canobie Lake is running low

According to a September briefing from 20 Windham lake-front abutters, presented to the Windham Board of Selectmen on Sept. 27, Canobie Lake’s water level is historically low. According to graphs presented to the Board which you can see at windhamnh.gov/DocumentCenter/View/21010/Canobie_Lake_BOS_Presentation, the lake has historically been considered full when water levels reach 220 feet. This year, the presenters said, “The lake peaked at 218.76 ft on May 1 — the lowest spring peak in the 2022–2026 record — then fell 1.40 ft over eleven weeks to 217.36 ft.” The group pointed out that water consumption from the lake has outstripped the area’s population growth. “Population has grown roughly 10% since 2000. Water demand grew more than four times as fast — 42% — in just the last eight years alone.”

QOL score: -1

Comment: Some concerns stemming from the lake’s lower water levels include “higher algae risk, reduced spawning habitat, reduced waterfront [property] value, lower marketability, docks losing water access, and lower long-term tax revenue.”

Cooking and heating and apparently fire season

Oct. 4 through Oct. 10 is Fire Prevention Week, according to an Oct. 5 press release from the Red Cross of Northern New England. So far in 2026, its volunteer disaster teams have responded to 129 home fires “assisting more than 530 Granite Staters,” the release said. “Cooking and home heating are two of the leading causes of home fires,” the release said. Get a free smoke alarm from the Red Cross by going to RedCross.org, and scrolling down to the “Fire Prevention” icon, which takes you to a page with fire prevention tips and a link via “Smoke Alarms” to a page to sign up for a smoke alarm installation.

QOL score: +1 for the help

Comment: The fire prevention page also features a fun video with cooking fire related tips featuring the advice “keep an eye on what you fry.”

A water bragging rights upset

According to a Sept. 30 Concord Monitor online article, “Concord was disqualified from a state drinking water taste test.” For the past eight years, according to the Monitor article, Concord “brought home the title of best-tasting tap water in New Hampshire in six of the annual state competitions.” In the blind taste-test of drinking water from towns across the state conducted by the New Hampshire Drinking Water Coalition at its annual festival, the rules state that all water samples must be fresh tap water, served at room-temperature, the article said.. This year, Concord’s sample was noticeably cooler than samples from other towns. Though Concord’s water was tasted, ultimately, “contest officials ended up disqualifying it for being too cold.”

QOL score: -1

Comment: Plymouth was victorious after Concord’s disqualification, the article said.Oh well, there’s always next year.

QOL score last week: 63

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.

News & Notes 26/10/08

Ed Aloise

Edward Aloise, the Manchester restaurateur who opened Republic Cafe & Bistro and Campo Enoteca and before that Café Pavone and Milltowne Grille, died on Sept. 25 at the age of 72, according to his obituary at the Connor-Healy Funeral Home website, connorhealy.com.

Aloise is survived by his wife, Claudia Rippee, with whom he owned and operated the restaurants, the obituary said. His family also includes his brother and sister-in-law, nieces, great-nieces and -nephews, cousins “and many dear friends,” the obituary said.

“Eddy lived every day to the max, including Friday when he left us after his final bike ride that morning. Please keep Eddy in your thoughts and hearts to keep him alive forever,” Rippee said in part in a post on her Facebook page.

A statement posted on the Facebook page for Campo Enoteca, which Aloise and Rippee sold when they retired from the restaurant business, reads: “Stepping into Campo Enoteca means stepping into an environment created by Ed and Claudia. On a nightly basis, you will hear reminiscing, laughter, and stories about Ed and Claudia and what they meant to each and every one of you. The impact they’ve left on our community is deeply cherished and unmatched. Their love for life is truly inspiring. Claudia — our deepest condolences to you and your family. You always have a home here. Ed — your enjoyment of travel created a unique menu that our guests today still love. Every touch thoughtfully created, which made you the legendary chef that you are. We honor you. RIP Chef Ed Aloise”

“A gifted writer, Ed had two books of short stories published and was completing a novel at the time of his passing,” the obituary said. Those books are The Boardroom and Other Stories, published in 2025, and The Muse and Other Stories, published in May 2026, according to their Amazon listings.

In a December 2022 story in the Hippo when Aloise announced plans to sell what was then “Republic of Campo” — both Campo Enoteca and Republic operated out of 969 Elm St. since August 2020 — Aloise described meeting Rippee in Boulder, Colorado, in the late 1970s.

“Claudia was a cocktail waitress and I was a bartender,” he said. “It was an over-the-bar love affair.” (Find that story, which looks back at Aloise and Rippee’s time as Manchester restaurant owners, in the Dec. 15, 2022, issue of the Hippo, in the digital library at hippopress.com.)

The obituary said a party “celebrating Eddy will be held at Republic Brewing Company, 72 Old Granite St., Manchester” on Tuesday, Nov. 10, from 4 to 8 p.m. “Memorial donations in honor of ‘White Wing’ may be made to the NH Audubon Massabesic Center, 26 Audubon Way, Auburn, NH 03032, nhaudubon.org/center-and-events/massabesic-center-auburn. The Connor-Healy Funeral Home and Cremation Center, 537 Union Street, Manchester, NH has the honor of assisting the family. For more information or to sign the online guest registry, please visit www.connorhealy.com,” the obituary said.

The Manchester Garden Club will meet on Thursday, Oct. 15, at 12:30 p.m. at St. Hedwig Church Hall, 17 Walnut St. in Manchester, and feature “Amy Cardello, a ‘Proven Winner’ representative from Pleasant View Gardens,” who will “explain what it means to be a ‘Proven Winner’ plant and also give information as to what is new for 2027,” according to an email from the club. See manchesternhgardenclub.webly.com.

According to a sign on the property, Flatbread Co., which has locations in Portsmouth and North Conway as well as in other New England states and in Hawaii, will open a location in Bedford at 224 S. River Road, the former spot of the IHOP. See flatbreadcompany.com.

The United Way of Greater Nashua will hold its Care-E-Oke 2026 fundraiser on Friday, Nov. 6, from 7 to 10 p.m. at the Nashua Center for the Arts, 201 Main St. in Nashua, according to a press release. “Those interested in competing are encouraged to sign up early to secure their place on stage before the roster fills. Contestants will perform in front of a live audience and panel of celebrity judges while competing for bragging rights, community recognition, and the title of Care-E-Oke Champion,” the release said. “For tickets, contestant registration, sponsorship opportunities, or more information, contact United Way of Greater Nashua at info@unitedwaynashua.org or 603-882-4011 or visit unitedwaynashua.org/event/care-e-oke.”

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