Book: Possibility within poetry and painting
Imagine A Night By Sarah L. Thomson, illustrated by Rob Gonsalves (Children’s picture book, 2003) Dream, fantasy, and reality gradually intermix in beautiful perception. The speaker instructs the audience to “imagine” a night of all sorts, from flying over fields of bedspreads and farmers playing lullabies to their swaying crops to plays of words and light opening doorways to the magical. Gonsalves’ paintings stir something...
Hearts for Kindness group honors local Kindness Heroes
Hearts for Kindness was brought to life in 2014 by local Realtor Brenda Perkins. The nonprofit organization’s mission is to promote community and hope through community-driven acts of kindness and financial assistance to local community members in need. For several holiday seasons, Perkins has opened her home to 10-plus volunteers to make scarves and assemble care packages for the homeless. When there is a need in the community for a...
Book: Make a plan for your final days
The Lost Art of Dying: Reviving Forgotten Wisdom By Lydia Dugdale (259 pages, nonfiction, 2020) Death. That dreaded word. It rolls off our tongues in a whisper. We mustn’t let it find us. But in doing so, we are only making death more scary. We’ll do anything to fight it. No matter the cost. Which results in the art of dying well being lost. So how do we make death less scary? How do we properly prepare ourselves for the...
City Manager’s Newsletter: Concord PD taking applications for next Citizen’s Academy
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. Police accepting applications for Citizen’s Academy The Concord Police Department is now accepeting applications for the next Citizen’s Academy, which will begin...
Entertainment: Live shows Nov. 27 to Dec. 3
Nov. 27 Open mic at Penuche’s at 8 p.m. Nov. 28 Raid the Larder at Penuche’s at 8 p.m. Malcolm Salls at Concord Craft Brewing from 4 to 6 p.m. Nov. 29 Paul Donahue at 6:30 p.m. at Hermanos Nov. 30 Brian Booth at 6:30 p.m. at Hermanos Dec. 2 Open Mic at Area 23 at 6:20 p.m. Dec. 3 Queen City Improv will perform at the Hatbox Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Send show information to...
Blast From the Past: Recalling the city’s first Arbor Day celebration
As citizens of Concord, we have always loved our serene habitat and the many trees that surround us, especially as they begin to flourish each spring. With the upcoming Arbor Day celebration arriving in this spring, I was inspired to share a little piece of “tree history” with each of you, the true meaning behind the many beautiful trees in Concord. The term “memorial tree” was quite common at the start of the 1900s and gained...
Looking back: Cider topper makes his rounds
There was a time in our little village of Rumford, back when we were a British province and ruled by a Royal governor, that the old-world customs and traditions were quite evident and certainly relevant. The harvest was a grand time when the school houses were closed so that the children could work in the fields and bring in the bounty before the onset of the first killing frost. The children were quite pleased to leave the one-room...
Entertainment: Get ready to laugh all over Concord all week long
It’s a pretty good week ahead on the entertainment front around here, with the strange exception of Friday night, which apparently has just two shows. Something tells me venues and/or performers have slacked off in their postings this past week. At least there’s all kinds of comedy coming to the city, plus jam band superheroes moe. are coming to the Cap Center on Thursday, so who needs Friday anyway? Music Tuesday Kid Pinky at...
Poem: Thanksgiving
As Thanksgiving approaches, our thoughts return to long ago, people did gather, thankfulness they did know. The celebration was had, with people different yet so alike too, they sat together at meal, as friends with enemies few. Thanksgiving is a time, to reflect on memories old, steeped with many old traditions, old stories retold. As each year does pass, new memories again made, sadly, the old memories, sometimes do have to fade....
Tasty Brews: Elysian Space Dust IPA from Area 23
For this installment of Tasty Brews, I took a ride over to the Smokestack Center to check out what was on tap at Area 23. The bar is always changing things up and I hadn’t been there in a while, so I was curious to check out the selection. Most of the options were beers I’d already had, but there was one that caught my eye – Elysian Space Dust IPA. I’d seen this beer in stores many times and always wanted to try it – the label is...
This week in Concord history
Nov. 26, 2000: More than three-fifths of the state’s voting-age population cast ballots in this year’s election, Newsweek reports. Only four states did better: Minnesota, Maine, Wisconsin and Vermont. Nov. 26, 1845: Five hundred twenty-five turkeys mysteriously pass through the streets of Concord, one day before Thanksgiving. Nov. 26, 1900: “Uncle Ben” Davis dies. He was one of Concord’s most popular citizens during the...
Food Snob: Ginger chicken with string beans from Chen Yang Li
There was news in the Monitor last week that keno revenue has come in below projections. That got me to thinking about the time I played the game at Chen Yang Li in Bow. Nothing was eaten during that trip, so I figured it was time to go there for the food.I dropped in about 1 p.m. last Tuesday and was in the mood for something spicy, so I ordered Ginger Chicken with String Beans off the lunch specials menu. This came with a bowl of...
Bulletin board: Donation opportunities and things to do
Food fund online In past years, Concord High School has conducted a food drive for the Capital Region Food Program. This year, in place of the traditional Food and Fund Drive, they launched a Go Fund Me page to support the Holiday Food Basket Program. The link is https://gf.me/u/y9a3k5. For nearly 50 years, the CRFP’s Holiday Food Basket Project has provided food to those in need while offering our community many ways to donate. Due...
Gibson’s Bookstore to host trio of events this week
On Wednesday at 5:30 p.m., the Poetry Society of New Hampshire will meet at Gibson’s Bookstore for a poetry performance and an open mic. The headliners this month are the husband and wife team of Maggie Dietz and Todd Hearon, with guitar accompaniment. An open mic follows their performance.The Poetry Society meetings are free and open to the public. All are welcome, and newcomers are encouraged. Come to listen, or come to...
This Week in Concord History
Feb. 19, 2000: Concord wins the Class L wrestling title – but has to share the crown with Timberlane and Salem. A pin in the final match of the day should have given the Crimson Tide the title outright, but the team is penalized one point for premature celebration, and that leaves all three teams with the same score. Feb. 19, 2002: The Diocese of Manchester holds a lunch meeting in Concord for all the Catholic priests in the state....
Concord Handmade returns for 10th season
Open for its 10th holiday season, Concord Handmade has opened a pop-up shop featuring the creations of New England artists. It was going to spend a second holiday season the building next to the Bank of N.H. Stage, the former OutFITters shop, but a heating issue forced it to relocate shortly after it opened. It is operating out of 2 Capital Plaza, Unit 109, Concord, this year, next to Indigo Blues. It will be open until Dec. 29 on...
Book of the week: Haddix has new story
The Strangers By Margaret Peterson Haddix (405 pages, youth sci-fi, 2019) Margaret Peterson Haddix always tells an exciting tale. Her latest series, Greystone Secrets, is no exception. Chess, Emma and Finn Greystone live a happy and ordinary life with their devoted mother. Everything changes when three kids with the Greystone’s exact names, ages and birthdays are kidnapped all the way across the country. Suddenly their mother...
Book of the Week: ‘Dear Committee Members: A Novel’
Dear Committee Members: A NovelJulie Schumacher2014, 180 pagesAdult Fiction (Comedy) Jason R. Fitger, professor of creative writing and English at Payne University, somewhere in the Midwest, claims to have written over 1,300 LORs, or letters of recommendation. He has written them for good students, bad students, teaching assistants, graduates, fellow faculty members, ex-wives, girlfriends and – on one occasion – an extremely...
The Hotel Concord offers upscale stays with upscale views of downtown Concord
There’s no shortage of hotels in the capital city. Between Holiday Inn, all the various iterations of Marriott, Best Western and Comfort Inn, it should never be too hard to find a place to crash for a weekend.But let’s be honest – if you’ve been to one chain hotel, you’ve been to them all. It tends to be a pretty predictable, cookie-cutter experience. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.A new place in town aims to provide a...
City newsletter: Enjoy the holiday festivities
The city manager’s office sent out the City Manager’s Newsletter last Friday. The full newsletter can be found by going to concordnh.gov and clicking the “Newsletter” button. Here are some highlights: Thanksgiving reminders All city of Concord offices will be closing early at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 25. Offices will be closed on Thursday, Nov. 26 and Friday, Nov. 27 in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. Trash and recycling...
Live music and shows available in Concord
Music Nov. 19 Brian Booth at 6:30 p.m. at Hermanos Lucinda William’s virtual series, episode 3, Bob’s Back Pages: A Night of Bob Dylan song at 8 p.m. at the Capitol Center for the Arts. Tickets start at $20. Nov. 20 Masceo Williams at Penuche’s at 8 p.m. Swappin’ Sets with Brian and Dave at Area 23 at 7 p.m. Nov. 21 Jared Steer at Penuche’s at 8 p.m. Dwayne Haggins at Chen Yang Li from 7 to 10 p.m. Saturday Jam with Ross Arnold at...
End of Days: Old motel comes down in Concord, sparking second new hotel development in a year
After days of demolition, all that remained of the old Days Inn was a lonely brick wall and a foundation. The Concord motel – whose riddles greeted Interstate 93 motorists for years – was torn down last week to make way for a new hotel by developer Steve Duprey. It’s the second new hotel project to come online in almost a year after The Hotel Concord opened its first dozen or so rooms last summer. The two projects break what has...
Bulletin board: Things to do in Concord
Author presents latest history book Mike Pride returns to Gibson’s Bookstore on Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. to virtually present the widest-ranging narrative history to date of the military bastion in the Florida Keys, Storm Over Key West: The Civil War and the Call of Freedom. Signed copies are available from Gibson’s Bookstore. Pride grew up in Florida and graduated from the University of South Florida with a degree in American Studies. After...
‘The Farnsworth Invention’ to be performed at Concord City Auditorium this weekend
On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the Community Players of Concord will proudly present The Farnsworth Invention, a witty and fast-paced play by Aaron Sorkin, the Academy Award-winning creator of The West Wing, A Few Good Men, The Social Network and more. This exciting, funny and dramatic play portrays the Depression-era story of David Sarnoff and Philo T. Farnsworth as they lead two teams, 2,000 miles apart, in the race to invent...
Poetry: November
November has returned, an old friend from my past, finding a different world, so very different from November last. The darkness on this cold eve, as the rain does gently fall, a shadowless night indeed, no moon to cast shadows so tall. The sanctity we so desire, as we search each and every day, hoping for some tranquility, that will last and hopefully stay. We move toward the holiday season,...
CYPN’s Young Professional of the Month is Jim Seavey
The Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce’s Concord Young Professionals Network introduces you to our “Young Professional of the Month,” Jim Seavey. Each month the CYPN Steering Committee recommends a young professional in the community it thinks readers would enjoy getting to know better.How old are you? 32.Where do you live? Concord.Where do you currently work? I am the owner/CEO of The Bit Lounge, a web design and digital marketing...
City Newsletter: Clerks office thanks you for patience, gifts
The city manager’s office sent out the City Manager’s Newsletter last Friday. The full newsletter can be found by going to concordnh.gov and clicking the “Newsletter” button. Here are some highlights: Holiday reminders Christmas parade: The Christmas Parade will take place on Saturday, Nov. 21, at 9:30 a.m. The parade will form at the N.H. Department of Transportation parking lot on Hazen Drive and proceed down Hazen Drive to Loudon...
Alcohol could be headed to Everett Arena
Next time you go to Everett Arena for an event, you might be able to crack a cold one when walking around. The city council was to decide Monday (after Insider press time) whether to authorize the city manager to enter into a licensing agreement with the state’s Liquor Commission, allowing it to sell beer and wine at the arena, according to city documents. For this to work, there needs to be a demand for beer and wine during some of...
This week in Concord history
Nov. 19, 2000: In classrooms around the state, the drawn-out presidential election is providing great fodder for civics lessons. “These are excellent times for teachers who are teaching government classes,” says Gary Baker of Kearsarge Regional High School. Nov. 19, 1846: Three laborers on the Northern Railroad are buried when a sand bank near the railroad bridge in Penacook caves in. Two survive; one is killed. Nov. 19,...
City Manager’s Newsletter: Absentee ballot notice, spring prep at Beaver Meadow and more
The city manager’s office released the City Manager’s Newsletter last Friday. The letter contained too much information to fit into this space, but the full letter can be accessed by going to concordnh.gov and clicking the “Newsletter” button on the home page. Absentee ballots, voter registration On Tuesday, March 5, residents will have the opportunity to cast their vote at the special municipal election. Polling locations within the...
