Entertainment: Concord Community Music School’s Community Music Fest highlights a musical week
We’ve got a pretty nice week of entertainment here in the first week of April. On the music side, Concord Community Music School holds its all-day Community Music Fest on Saturday, offering up all kinds of chances to both listen to and create sweet sounds. Then, later that evening, ’80s and ’90s legend Paul Reiser, star of Mad About You, among many other big-time Hollywood productions, will do a comedy show at the Capitol Center for...
Gibson’s Bookstore to host Open Discussion Project on Monday
Reasonable people of all political persuasions view the increased polarization of our politics with dismay. Too often, we’re only talking to people who agree with us. Anyone who doesn’t agree is an idiot, a troll or a monster. This “siloing” of ideas and experiences undercuts our nation’s ability to address urgent problems and take necessary actions. This isn’t just a left vs.right issue. It has corrupted the internal politics of both...
Bulletin Board: Many happenings at NHTI, free workouts and more
International student at NHTI NHTI has students from more than 50 foreign nations. Every April, Wings of Knowledge invites one of them to speak about their homeland, and their journey to America. On Tuesday, April 2 at 6 p.m., join us as Human Service student Chekeri Byimanikora shares the wonders and beauties of her homeland, Rwanda. Known as Igihugu cy’I misozi Igihumbi, or Land of a Thousand Hills, Rwanda is rich in natural beauty....
Take a trip to Eastern Europe with the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce
The Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce invites members, their family and friends, and interested community members to join them on an eight-day journey through Eastern Europe departing March 17, 2020. From the enchanting medieval towns of Eastern Europe to the vibrant and cultured cities of Prague and Vienna, this tour will provide guests with a close-up look at this part of the world. Regarded as Europe’s most beautiful travel...
Blast From the Past: The true meaning of Concord
It was in the year 1725 that our beloved town was granted by the Massachusetts Bay Colony as the town of Penacook Plantation. The good citizens were subjects of the crown and settled as they established themselves in the first years. There were chores at hand and buildings to be built while farms were established and a day of worship observed. Our ancestors certainly knew the value of hard work, and survival was of the utmost concern....
Book of the Week: ‘The Wild Trees: A Story of Daring and Passion’
The Wild Trees: A Story of Daring and Passion Richard Preston 2007, 294 pages Nonfiction Richard Preston delivers a captivating story about some of the oldest living (some predating the fall of Rome) and largest organisms (in some instances over 350 feet high) on the planet. Described as “the dreadnaughts of trees, the blue whales of the plant kingdom,” the coastal redwood trees in Northern California harbor their own ecosystems in...
Come along with us on our second ‘Insider’ field trip to the fine town of Hooksett
Welcome to our first field trip of 2019. In fact, this issue marks the first true Insider field trip since Sept. 5, 2017, when we hit up Penacook, Boscawen and Canterbury in a 3-for-1 deal. That was back when there actually was a we in the Insider. Nowadays it’s a one-man show, and though it’s certainly harder to cover a lot of ground alone, I found a way to get out to Hooksett last week and discover some really cool places. You might...
This Week in Concord History
April 2, 1835: A second temperance society is formed in Concord. It calls itself the Concord Total Abstinence Society and will attract mainly middle-aged men. The city’s Temperance Society already has 262 members, including 92 women. April 2, 1851: Concord’s town meeting votes to end the tolling of bells at funerals. The practice, the resolution says, “is productive of no good, and may, in case of the illness of the living, result in...
Parker Academy to host Empty Bowls fundraiser Wednesday
Students at Parker Academy have been working really hard preparing for the school’s annual fundraiser, Empty Bowls, which is scheduled for Wednesday at 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the school, 2 Fisk Road. The event raises money for hunger relief efforts in the local area. Parker Academy students have created pottery bowls by hand, from rolling the clay, creating the 3D structures and custom painting them. The faculty, staff and families provide...
City of Concord posts load limit signs this week
The city of Concord began posting “No Trucking – Load Limit 9 Tons” signs Monday to protect roads from heavy vehicles during the spring thaw. Weight restrictions are posted on roads to help minimize additional road damage from heavy vehicles on weakened road structures. Road structures are naturally weakened around this time of year from the frequent freezing and thawing cycles. The fluctuating temperatures can cause the ground to...
Bulletin Board: Wild & Scenic Film Festival kicks off Friday
Toastmasters forum, free raffle Toastmasters is where distinguished leaders are made! The Concord area Toastmasters welcome you to a Public Speaking Forum and free raffle Tuesday (March 26) from 6 to 8 p.m. at New England College’s 62 N. Main St. location in Concord. These events will showcase great public speakers and impromptu speaking, along with tips about how to organize a speech, effectively move an audience, and to think on...
Concord notes: Citizen’s Academy, dog license deadlines approaching
Apply for CPD Citizen’s Academy The deadline to apply to the Concord Police Department’s next Citizen’s Academy is April 1. The academy is a 10-week program taking place one night a week beginning April 9 from 5 to 7 p.m. Applicants who are accepted can expect an informative session examining all the duties of the Concord Police Department. The program will consist of classroom instruction, demonstration and trips to other...
Book of the Week: ‘Mycroft Holmes’
Mycroft HolmesKareem Abdul-Jabbar and Anna Waterhouse2015, 323 pagesFiction This is an exciting adventure story about Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock Holmes’s big brother. Mycroft is a 23-year-old English gentleman who has just finished at Cambridge, and has a responsible job working for the Secretary of State for War. He asks beautiful Georgiana Sutton for her hand in marriage, and she accepts. But Georgiana has a terrible secret that began...
Maple Weekend 2019: Everything you need to know to have the stickiest time of your life
New Hampshire Maple Month 2019 is in full swing, with dozens of sugarhouses across the state opening their doors for tours, demonstrations, samples and sales. While the official Maple Weekend is this Saturday and Sunday only, many operations offer special experiences every weekend of March – some even open up every day. Here is a roundup of sugarhouses in Concord and the general surrounding area that have events planned for Maple...
Don’t feel like traveling for Maple Weekend? You don’t have to
Hardcore New Englanders and pancake lovers have longed to hear it – maple season is finally here.Hosted by the New Hampshire Maple Producers Association, March is Maple Sugaring Month, and this upcoming weekend is Maple Weekend, when dozens upon dozens of maple operations all over the Granite State – from commercial size to hobby size – open up their sugar shacks to let visitors in and check out the process. This is always a...
Injustice for Brawl 2 to provide family-friendly fun for a good cause
The Undertaker. Stone Cold Steve Austin. Randy “Macho Man” Savage. Hulk Hogan. The Rock.These names are all legendary in the pro wrestling world now, but they all started off somewhere else, likely bars and local sporting arenas.On March 31, Everett Arena will become one of those venues, as Injustice for Brawl 2 brings pro wrestling to Concord for the first time in about 30 years. The best part is that proceeds from the show will go...
Album Review: Andrew North’s ‘Lost City’ a piano-lover’s dream
If you’re a regular reader of the Insider or a regular fan of the local music scene, you’ve probably seen the name – and probably the person, too – Andrew North. Maybe you’ve seen it as Andrew of the North, or you’ve seen the full-band version called Andrew North and the Rangers. The point is, it’s all the same guy (with sometimes different accompanying members), Andrew Grosvenor of Concord, and he has a new solo album out.Following...
Making Good Health Simple: Crock-Potting 101: Rules to live by
Crock-Potting – a verb. To some, a sport. For me, it’s a time-saver. In the late 1930s, Irving Naxon (one of my heroes) applied for a patent for a portable cooking device that would be able to cook evenly and replace hours of someone miserably and inefficiently standing over a stove stirring. The two-part appliance contained the crock housed inside a casing that contained the heating element. Can we say genius? I have attempted to...
Entertainment: Loaded music schedules at Area 23, Hermanos, plus lots of laughs coming to Hatbox
It’s a pretty good week ahead – if you’re into music, comedy and movies, that is. There’s tons to check out, so stop reading this intro and go be entertained! Music Tuesday Kid Pinky at Hermanos Cocina Mexicana at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday Andrew Merzi at Hermanos at 6:30 p.m. Open mic at Area 23 at 7 p.m., sign-ups start at 6. New Black Eagle Jazz Band at Concord City Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. Thursday Richard Gardzina at Hermanos at 6:30...
CASL: These students have bright futures ahead
The Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce welcomed 24 students selected to take part in Capital Area Student Leadership (CASL) 2019 during a reception on Feb. 20, also attended by parents, guardians, CASL committee members and Chamber staff program liaisons. The students assembled again last Wednesday at the City Wide Community Center for CASL Communication Day, during which students interviewed each other for this Insider feature, gave...
Bulletin Board: Acting workshop, jazz show at Audi and more
Poetry Out Loud champ named The New Hampshire State Council on the Arts announces that Rachel Budd from Bow High School is the winner of New Hampshire’s 2019 Poetry Out Loud High School Championship, which took place at the State House’s Representatives Hall on March 15. Alana Ervin from Oyster River High School was selected as alternate champion. As state champion, Budd receives $200 and an all-expenses-paid trip with an adult...
City Manager’s Newsletter: World Water Day, wastewater treatment facility open house and more
Last Friday, the city’s public information officer, Stefanie Breton, sent out the City Manager’s Newsletter. The letter was too long to print in its entirety here, but you can access the full version at concordnh.gov by clicking the “Newsletter” button on the homepage. Fix a Leak Week and contest Join Concord General Services in celebrating EPA WaterSense’s “Fix a Leak Week,” March 18 to 24! Leaks can waste a lot of water and can lead...
Fill your bellies while helping the homeless at the 10th annual SouperFest
The 10th Annual SouperFest, a benefit for the Concord Coalition to End Homelessness, will be held Saturday, March 30, at Rundlett Middle School in Concord. This anniversary event will be the first with an international flavor, celebrating the diversity that makes Concord such a wonderful, welcoming community.The event begins at 2 p.m. with FunFest, sponsored by the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Concord. The gymnasium will be...
Delusive Relics address gender equality in their home country with latest project at Hatbox Theatre
Delusive Relics, a new electronic music project in the style of Depeche Mode and Nine Inch Nails, will perform music from its debut album at Hatbox Theatre on Friday. Delusive Relics is the side project of Farhood Ghadiri, member of the Iranian progressive rock band Mavara, and his wife, Anis Oveisi. Ghadiri, who performs under the pseudonym Frank Nik and grew up with music from Depeche Mode, Gary Newman and other ’80s and early ’90s...
Book of the Week: ‘The Ravenmaster’
The Ravenmaster: My Life with the Ravens at the Tower of London Christopher Skaife 2018, 241 pages Nonfiction Legend has it that if the ravens ever leave the Tower of London then the tower “will crumble into dust and great harm will befall the kingdom.” But Yeoman Warder Christopher Skaife is there to make sure that this doesn’t happen. Skaife has been the Ravenmaster at the Tower of London since 2011. He tells us about his daily life...
This Week in Concord History
March 19, 1967: The calendar says spring is about to start, but few believe it. The low temperature in Concord falls to 16 below zero, tying the record for the coldest March day in the 20th century. This follows a reading of 13 below the day before and 10 below the day before that. March 19, 2000: On its way to the NCAA championship game, fifth-seeded Florida cruises past fourth-seeded Illinois in the second round of the men’s...
Check out some fine student artwork at Steeplegate Mall during Youth Art Month
It’s finally March, the month many New Englanders look forward to all winter long. It’s a month often associated with new beginnings – we turn the clocks ahead, days start to get a little warmer and signs of spring start popping up all over the place. Another big part of March is the abundance of student art that starts popping up, too, particularly at Steeplegate Mall. March is Youth Art Month, and every year around this time a big...
Concertmaster String Quarter to present ‘An Invitation to Dance’ at Concord City Auditorium
Fans of music, dancing and all-purpose partying won’t want to miss the next big to-do at the Concord City Auditorium, because it’s a show that combines all of the above.The fourth concert of the Concord Community Concert Association’s 88th season brings the Concertmaster String Quartet to the Audi stage on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.It’s a concert and a party – festivities begin at 7 p.m. in the lobby with a dessert reception and a special...
Making Good Health Simple: Don’t let clutter compromise your home
Knickknacks. Tchotchkes. Stuff. Junk. Gear – you name it, and I am sure I own it. My entire life I have been accumulating things. Some of them necessary to live, like a bed, furniture, automobile, clothing. And a ridiculous amount of completely unnecessary items I convinced myself I needed. The brain has the capacity to rationalize just about anything, including pointless purchases and keeping items you don’t need. During my years of...
CYPN: Melina Murray is the Young Professional of the Month
The Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce’s Concord Young Professionals Network introduces you to our “Young Professional of the Month,” Melina Murray. Each month the CYPN Steering Committee recommends a young professional in the community it thinks readers would enjoy getting to know better.Where do you live? Concord.Where do you currently work? I’m a real estate agent at EXIT Realty Great Beginnings with offices in both Concord and...
