The lip balm results are in!
I am obsessed with lip balm. I keep it in my car, by my bed and in my purse, and if I happen to be caught without it, I run to the nearest drugstore to purchase an emergency replacement. I’m not kidding when I say I experience anxiety if I have to suffer through an extended period of time with dry lips. It turns out that I am not alone in this – when we asked for volunteers to test various lip balm sticks, we were inundated with...
Make your own lip balm!
My favorite lip balm is the one I make myself. It’s so easy! (I don’t sell them, but I do teach classes on how to make them and other goodies.) The basic recipe is four parts oil and one part beeswax. So, you could make it really simple and use all light olive oil or canola oil or something like that. However, I find the combination of the three oils makes a great consistency. 1 oz. olive oil 1.5 oz. coconut oil 1.5 oz. grapeseed oil...
Winter carnival is coming to town!
Yes, readers, it’s true! Winter Carnival, a long-standing Concord tradition, is almost here! In just a few days, you can skate and sled to your heart’s content. Before we get to the pertinent information, we should tell you that the photos you see here are from the 1895 edition of the Granite Monthly. They did a whole spread on Concord’s Winter Carnival tradition with lots of photos to document the proceedings. Our thanks to Sandi Lee...
Review of the week
Rules of Deception Christopher Reich 2008, 388 pages Setting: Current-day Switzerland Dr. Jonathan Ransom's wife of eight years dies during an ill-fated hiking trip in the Swiss Alps. Several days after her death, Dr. Ransom gets an envelope addressed to his wife containing only two baggage claim tickets. Confused, Dr. Ransom collects the baggage, only to be attacked by two Swiss policemen. In the struggle, one of the policemen...
Ask the Elders: Weight loss
Dear Elders, Do you have a weight problem like I do, or can you eat whatever you want and still not gain a pound? What’s your secret? Signed, The Yankee Bill Twibill Dear Fellow Yankee, Just reading the question put on five pounds around my waist. All I have to do is to smell the cookies or breads in a bakery and the buttons pop from my shirts. So obviously, I have no secret to share except I really do my best never to snack between...
City Briefly
Exciting news, indeed! Zoning news for you! According to City Manager Tom Aspell’s weekly memo, the city’s zoning board heard three zoning relief cases at its Jan. 7 meeting. Chances are, you’re already on the edge of your seats with this news, but if you’re not, maybe a tantalizing look at those cases will help . . . Case 58-08: “The board, by a unanimous vote, granted a request to construct a 25-by-24-foot garage addition, with...
Lip balm recommendations
We asked readers to submit their lip balm recommendations, just in case the lip balm reviews weren't enough for you. The moral of the story? Most of Concord is obsessed with chap stick. It’s always nice to find out you’re not alone in your neuroses. For maintenance, my favorite chap stick is Badger Certified Organic Tangerine Breeze. My emergency medical chap stick is Badger’s Certified Organic Cocoa Butter called creamy cocoa....
Calendar of Events: Jan. 20-28
Tuesday, Jan. 20 “Marketing: Plain and Simple,” New Hampshire State Council on the Arts, 2 ½ Beacon St. Preregistration required. Free. 271-0791, judy.l.rigmont@dcr.nh.gov. 9:30 a.m. Area Committee on Aging Meeting, Horseshoe Pond Place, 26 Commercial St., Suite 105. All are welcome. 228-6956. 10 a.m. Communal Viewing of the Obama Inauguration, Capitol Center For the Arts, 44 S. Main St. Free 225-1111, ccanh.com. 10 a.m. Toddler...
Hooray for a new executive director
After a nationwide search, The board of directors of The Concord Family YMCA is pleased to announce they have chosen a local candidate and longtime Y member to fill the position of executive director. Jim Doremus accepted the position and will start to lead the Concord Family YMCA on Feb. 9. Not only does Jim have a strong educational background, a master's degree in organizational development and a bachelor's degree in...
Being funny can make money
CATCH Neighborhood Housing hosted the hilarious Capitol Steps at the 15th annual CATCH comedy night on Jan. 10, raising more than $30,000 to support hardworking local families with quality, affordable homes. The comic troupe from Washington, D.C., brought its unique brand of political satire to the Capitol Center of the Arts just in time to celebrate the end of the election season! More than 100 CATCH supporters attended a reception...
It's time to order your bare-root tree and shrub seedlings!
The New Hampshire State Forest Nursery is once again accepting orders for bare-root tree and shrub seedlings for delivery in spring 2009. Now in its 99th year, the nursery distributes more than 300,000 seedlings annually, mostly to New Hampshire landowners and residents. Originally established to provide seedlings for reforestation, the program has expanded to include seedling sales for Christmas tree planting stock and conservation...
Inventive bird feeder
The Recyclinator would be proud of whoever concocted this bird feeder. Jim Taber, who snapped the photo of our hungry little friend, wrote, “This engineering marvel is a bird feeder made out of an old pretzel jar, sporting a well-fed Northern Mockingbird.” If anyone is interested in making one of these, we’ll volunteer to eat the pretzels.
Pick of the week
Like local hockey? Watch the New England College vs. Plymouth State hockey teams in action at their Jan. 12 game at the Everett Arena in Concord on Concord TV Channel 22 on Friday, Jan. 23 at noon and Saturday, Jan. 24 at 8 p.m. Concord TV features local stories of and by the people in our community. Find out how you can be a part of it. Call 226-8872 or visit yourconcordtv.org. Concord TV
Bye bye, French fries
I've been talking about getting the interior of my car cleaned since last summer. Even then, my car mats were crusted with decomposing French fries and enough sand from the previous winter to build my own personal beach. Naturally, after leaving the interior untouched for another six months, things just got worse. I actually preferred to drive at night – at least then the dust and crumbs were shrouded in darkness. I knew...
Help at Open Door Community Kitchen
Since its inception, the Community Kitchen has depended on the time and effort of volunteers who share a concern and commitment to those in need in our community. At the heart of this mission are people who donate their time preparing food, serving meals to guests and cleaning up afterwards. If you want to volunteer at the Open Door Community Kitchen, we ask you to bring three important things with you: a willingness to work, an open...
Punks and senior discounts
A few years ago, or maybe it was last month, I'm not sure when, actually, I first encountered the “senior discount.” This discount seemed to coincide with my eligibility for AARP benefits at age 50 and, to my somewhat limited recollection, occurred at a local donut shop. Now, I'm certainly not opposed to fudging on my age, especially when it's to my benefit. This age-fudging started when I was about 12 or 13...
Get fit for free!
The Concord Family YMCA would like to offer everyone in the Concord community a free week pass. Come down to the front desk to receive a coupon for a free week pass for you and your whole family! Use our facility and enjoy member benefits for one week. This includes unlimited fitness classes, babysitting, open preschool gym, family swims, rock climb and much more! Offer expires Jan. 31. Sign up for an adult or family membership before...
The Insider’s own personal quagmire
(Editor’s note: To those readers out there who’ve been blissfully unaware of the latest Page 2 grammar smackdown, we love you best. Please go on with your bad selves and read the rest of this publication: Leave now. Save yourselves!!!!!) It’s all Sally Helms’s fault. Sally, if you’d never written a letter to The Grammarnator (and asking US to pass it on to him, no less!), critiquing our pronoun use, among other things, we never...
How I like to spend my Fridays: eating cake and pot roast
Colette Farland-Vogt of Horseshoe Pond Place Senior Resource Program kindly invited me to attend Horseshoe Pond's January birthdays celebration on Jan. 16. I accepted the invite faster than she could say “pot roast.” In this economy, I can't turn down a free lunch. Once a month, the folks of Horseshoe Pond Place get together for lunch and cake (with ice cream, of course) to celebrate the month's birthdays....
Craigslist Missed connections
A new year brings new missed connections. We pulled some of our favorites off of Craigslist and left them in their grammatically incorrect glory. Enjoy! The Insiders SUPERCUTS CONCORD HEIGHTS – m4w – 30 i’m not sure if i got your name… you had dark shoulder length hair with your bangs pulled back. i just wanted to say i am very pleased with my “high and tight” hair cut. you seemed to really take pride in your work....
Move over Super Bowl – We want the Souper Bowl!
Artistic Roots cooperative presents the fifth annual “Souper Bowl” dining event on Jan. 31, at the gallery in Campton. Diners will have an opportunity to tour the gallery while enjoying all-you-can-eat soups, bread, crackers, beverages and desserts. The event will be held from 3 to 7 p.m. Tickets, which include your choice of bowls, are $20 in advance and $25 on the day of the event. When you buy a ticket, you may have...
Hang out with Mickey and Minnie
Performers from Disney On Ice's “Mickey and Minnie's Magical Journey” are visiting Kaleidoscope Children's Museum, 8 S. Main St., for a free fun-filled morning of reading and smiles. Children will be treated to a visit from some very special guests on Thursday, Jan. 22 at 10:30 a.m. See “Mickey and Minnie's Magical Journey” at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester from Jan. 22 to Jan. 25....
