Adventuring from a distance
Children and their caregivers can get out of the house for a neighborhood walk (or drive) to hunt for bears, at least those of the plush variety. Taking inspiration from the 1989 children’s book, “We’re Going on a Bear Hunt,” written by Michael Rosen and illustrated by Helen Oxenbury neighborhoods across the state, and country, have put together window walks as a source of entertainment in this time of social distancing. The story...
Concord City Auditorium to host 28th Pitch In
Ever wonder why the Concord City Auditorium – the Audi as its more affectionately known – looks so good at the start of each season?Well, you can thank the Friends of the Audi and a swarm of volunteers for that. Every year, the Friends go through the city-owned theater with a magnifying glass looking for any dust bunnies, chipped paint or blown light bulbs during the three-day Pitch In. And it just so happens that the Pitch In is...
Mr. Aaron keeps Rattlers going remotely
Like many group activities, Concord-based children’s music Mr. Aaron has closed his in-person Rattlebox Studio programs. But for all the kiddos at home, he’s planned virtual shows via Facebook live (visit facebook.com/ mraaronmusic). Shows are held Monday through Saturday at 9:30 a.m. live (though you can watch the day’s episode anytime after as well. Mr. Aaron performs original song (“All My Friends are Giants”) and familiar songs...
Q & A: We caught up with Mr. Aaron ahead of his show at the Capitol Center for the Arts
Aaron Jones – you know him as Mr. Aaron – is the family- and kid-focused musician who has taken Concord by storm over the last couple years. He runs Rattlebox Studio, a studio for kids to listen to and create some music, and he plays all over either by himself or with the Mr. Aaron Band or Bosey Joe. He’s playing a show at the Capitol Center for the Arts on Thursday at 11 a.m., just the latest in a very busy schedule for him.We caught...
Yoga instructors keep businesses going through online classes
When he was forced to close the physical doors of Sharing Yoga in the middle of March, owner David Breen noticed an increase in his virtual business. “It’s been a 278% rise,” Breen said. The statistic was more joke than math fact, but the point is clear – even though studios are closed due to the novel coronavirus pandemic and the need for social distancing, people still want to practice yoga. The need to get on a yoga mat makes sense...
Heritage Harley-Davidson to host community barbecue for Concord Friends Program on Saturday
If you like a good barbecue – and who doesn’t? – as well as helping out your community, there’s no better event to check out than Heritage Harley-Davidson’s Community BBQ this Saturday afternoon. The second-generation, family-owned Harley dealership has been hosting these barbecue events every Saturday during riding season since 2013, marketing manager Ryan Jelley said. “We want to make it a point to support our local charities,” he...
City Newsletter: Deadline for tax exemption nears
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: City information on COVID-19 We are continuously updating our coronavirus web page with information and resources. You can access it here: concordnh.gov/coronavirus. Downloadable PDFs with information for residents and businesses are...
Bulletin Board: Jazz Sanctuary, Penacook concert and golf
Concert at Penacook church United Church of Penacook is hosting a concert featuring the duo Danielle Buonaiuto, soprano, and Jason Wirth, piano, on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The concert is free and open to the public. Directions to United Church and additional information about this concert are available at ucpnh.org. This duo will be in residence at Avaloch Farm Music Institute in Boscawen this August. Lynne Raleigh Village association to...
Book of the week: Two lives weave together
The Alice Network By Kate Quinn (historical fiction/308 pages/2019) The Alice Network is an historical novel set in two time periods – 1915 and 1947 – and tells the tales of two fascinating women in alternating chapters. The story begins in 1947. American college student, Charlotte “Charlie” St. Clair, is unmarried and newly pregnant. She comes from an affluent family and her French mother has brought Charlie to Europe to take...
On Display: See Alison Vernon’s art at the Forest Society
Through August, Alison Vernon will be showcasing her artwork at the Society for the Protection of N.H. Forests. Vernon started painting after the birth of her three children, and over the years, her painting style and technique have evolved as she has learned to appreciate the texture and richness of painting with palette knives. You should totally go check out her work.
Book of the week: Find your style of order
Organizing for your Brain Type: Finding You Own Solution to Managing Time, Paper, and Stuff By Lanna Nakone (nonfiction/276 pages/2005) Ever wonder why you just can’t get organized? Despite how hard you try. Despite how many organizing contraptions you’ve bought. Well it’s not you, it’s your brain. You’ve been trying to fight your brain’s natural process. Instead of fighting it, work with...
Learn the ins and outs of the harmonica at Concord Public Library
First of all, did you see what we did there with the headline, with the ins and outs of harmonica? We thought that was pretty funny, too.Anyway, Concord Public Library is at it again. There’s seemingly something cool and fun going on there every day, and next Wednesday, Aug. 22, it will be a program called Harmonica 101.We know that title is very ambiguous and mysterious, so we’re here to tell you that it is, in fact, a little...
Poem: Once content
The hallowed halls of high school where memories still remain, sometimes very pleasant, other times not the same. Years pass and thoughts wander, to a nostalgic time, carefree years lived well, responsibility not quite mine. Classrooms where we traveled, around the world and more, each day in an adolescent dream, walking out the door. Some left and married, bought a house enjoyed a life well, while some left for college, some for a...
Making Strides Concord kickoff event to be held Thursday
Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Concord is hosting a team kickoff event on Thursday at Red River Theatres.Anyone interested in putting a team together for this year’s event – scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 14 – is encouraged to attend the kickoff event to get materials, team kits, coin cans, posters, registrations. Team leader kits will be available.Whether you’ve faced it yourself, or someone you love has, almost everyone has been...
Poem: Compassion
As we enter times unknown, social distance a common thought, people draw together, the same enemy now fought. Initial reaction on the street, fear of something not known, the people of the world gather, compassion has finally shown. Our current climate has changed, not the politics or parties any more, reach within yourself, help the poor. Faith restored once again, in our fellow mankind, it was really there all...
Entertainment: No festivals? No problem – it’s still a big week
You’d think Rock On Fest might be a tough act to follow, but there’s a pretty swell lineup of music this week to keep you rockin’ through the summer. Have a look: Music Tuesday Lester Hirsh at Hermanos Cocina Mexicana at 6:30 p.m.Wednesday Paul Heckel at Hermanos at 6:30 p.m. Club Soda at Concord Public Library’s Music on the Lawn at 6 p.m.Thursday Richard Gardzina at Hermanos at 6:30 p.m. Mr. Aaron at the Capitol Center for the Arts...
The Yogi: Napkins and 6 reasons to love soap and water
‘Napkins!” I grew up in a family of six. We had dinner together every night, and often played a game that involved the exclamation: “Napkins!” The rules were simple. Anyone at the table could make the call, and everyone at the table would hold up their napkins. Yes, we used actual paper napkins at dinner time. As you might imagine, the conditions of the napkins varied wildly. Some would be crumpled or torn. Some were in...
Does your pooch know how to act? The Community Players are looking
Have you ever wondered if your dog would do great on stage? Well, here’s your chance to find out. The Community Players of Concord is hosting auditions for the classic musical Annie, and if you’re familiar with the story, it involves Annie’s dog, Sandy. And you can’t put on a production of Annie without one of the main characters in the story. So the Players are holding auditions on Sunday for “a dramatic dog” on Sunday at 5 p.m. at...
Book of the Week: Trace Elements
Trace Elements Author: Donna Leon (Mystery, 278 pages, 2020) Commissario Guido Brunetti and his co-worker, Claudia Griffoni are called to a hospice to hear the words of a dying young woman. The patient, Benedetta Toso, says that her husband, Vittorio Fadalto, took “bad money” from someone to pay for her care. And then Fadalto dies in a motorcycle accident soon after. Was it just an accident? Did Fadalto, an exhausted and grieving...
Concord Young Professionals Network: Joseph Conti wants to see all 30 MLB stadiums
The Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce’s Concord Young Professionals Network (CYPN) introduces you to our “Young Professional of the Month,” Joseph Conti. Each month the CYPN Steering Committee recommends a young professional in the community it thinks Concord Insider readers would enjoy getting to know better.How old are you? 28 Where do you live? Manchester Where do you currently work? I am an associate at Crisp Law Firm, PLLC. You...
This week in history
April 2, 2003: After nearly 14 months of searching, the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire has found five potential bishops from around the country from which its members can choose, officials announce. The five finalists include the Rev. Canon Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, who, if elected, would become the first openly gay man to head an Episcopal diocese in the United States. Despite considerable controversy, Robinson will be...
Book of the Week: ‘Universal Harvester’
Universal HarvesterJohn Darniell2017, 214 pagesFiction John Darniell’s Universal Harvester largely follows Jeremy Heldt, a video store clerk living (resentfully) in the town of Nevada, Iowa, with his widowed father. What begins as a poetically humorous depiction of life as a twenty-something in the Midwest turns slowly into a dark gothic mystery novel when customers of the video store begin to complain about mysterious splices in the...
Tackle solo pursuit of planting
Gardening is a great way to practice “social distancing” during the coronavirus crisis and a garden is a great place to be these days for several reasons. First of all many of us are coming down with bad cases of “cabin fever” and working in our gardens would go a long way to freeing us from the confinement of our homes. There is a lot that can be done out there — and all by yourself! The COVID-19 outbreak is happening at a time...
This Week in Concord History
Aug. 14, 1852: Concord officials vote to build the Sewalls Falls bridge. Aug. 14, 1864: One day before the deadline imposed by the Legislature, Concord Mayor Benjamin Gale and other citizens remove a house south of the State House to make way for the building of Capitol Street. Aug. 14, 1945: The victory bell rings at 7:11 p.m., signaling the defeat of Japan and the end of the war. Thousands of people rush into downtown Concord to...
Poem: When Life Was Simple
The storyteller told stories, researched across the land, gathered much information, each story told was grand. The storyteller visited many places, different generations seen too, traveled in time together, with both your ancestors and you. Years provided the topics, the adventures on pages wrote, the readers gathered around newspapers, enjoying each story of note. Remember all the nostalgic times, when life was...
Get downtown this weekend for Rock On Fest 2018
We’re heading into mid-August now, which can only mean one thing – Rock On Fest is on its way. For the fourth year in a row, the Rock On Foundation will hold its big music-and-basketball festival in Concord. For the second straight year, the bulk of the festivities will take place right in the heart of downtown Concord – in the middle of North Main Street, in fact. The festival is the creation of the Bonner brothers, Luke and Matt....
Book of the week: Ghosts abound
A House of Ghosts By W. C. Ryan (372 pages, mystery, 2019) It is the winter of 1917 and Kate Cartwright is in London in the intelligence service working on codebreaking. But she is asked by her superior to join her parents and her former fiancé to a house party at Blackwater Abbey, an island off the Devon coast. Lord Highmount, an armaments manufacturer, has arranged for a séance with a spiritualist. He and his wife are hoping to...
Rock On Fest 2018 schedule
FRIDAY, AUGUST 10: Rock On Court Noon: Youth 3×3 Hoops 6:15 p.m.: Concord Police vs Concord Fire 7 p.m.: MVHS vs CHS Unified Hoops Eagle Square 8 p.m.: Outdoor Movie Night featuring Coco SATURDAY, AUGUST 11 Merrimack County Savings Bank Stage (North Main Street) 2 p.m.: Mr. Aaron 3 p.m.: Novel / Novella 4 p.m.: Ed Balloon 5 p.m.: Honeysuckle 6:15 p.m.: Damn Tall Buildings 7:45 p.m.: Overcoats Eagle Square Noon: Youth...
COVID-19 virus lasts longest on shiny, hard surfaces
As the COVID-19 shutdown spreads, we know not to get close to other people. But what about pets? Swingsets in the park? The daily copy of the Concord Monitor? Should we stay away from those, too? This virus is so new that answers are still being developed, but a study published Tuesday provided some guidance. Scientists from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases sprayed the virus in an aerosol that duplicated the...
Concord Craft Brewing Co. is making a special Rock On Fest beer
You know what they say – you can’t have a music festival, or any kind of festival, for that matter, without booze.That’s just a joke, but only kind of. While it is completely fine to have a music festival with no beer, it just adds a little bit of excitement for the 21-plus crowd when brews are readily available. It gets even more exciting when there’s a specialty brew that only exists because of said festival.What we’re getting at...
