Cheers installs heated igloos to provide patio seating option for diners
Cheers owners Todd and Wendy Roy have taken outdoor seating to the next level – igloos. “My wife and I were talking about it, and we have this beautiful patio, so we wanted to use that and we started looking at these igloos,” Todd Roy said. The Roys found what they were looking for at TableBaseDepot in Blaine, Wash., and had four of them shipped to New Hampshire. “The customers we had in there last weekend were like, ‘We haven’t been...
Book: Painting problem
Next to Last Stand By Craig Johnson (336 pages, mystery, 2020) Custer’s Last Fight is a famous painting that was reproduced by Anheuser-Busch and has been viewed by thousands in saloons and barrooms across the country. At one point prints were distributed at a rate of over two million copies a year. The original painting was destroyed in a fire at Fort Bliss, Texas in 1946. But maybe it wasn’t? Maybe someone saved it before the...
Upcoming book discussions with Gibson’s
The Last Exit Michael Kaufman will visit Gibson’s Bookstore virtually on Feb. 2 at 7 p.m. to present his new thriller, The Last Exit! Perfect for fans of Ben Winters and Cory Doctorow. In this thrilling near-future novel, the secret to eternal life is closely guarded by people who will do anything to protect it – even if it means destroying everything in their path. Kaufman is the author of two novels and seven works of non-fiction....
City newsletter: New history display, winter activity updates
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: Skating The White Park Pond, Beaver Meadow Pond and Rollins skating areas will be open for skating. The Merrimack Lodge at White Park will be open Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. Masks are required while inside the building and...
This week in Concord history
January 28, 1942: John G. Winant of Concord, the U.S. ambassador to England, tells a national defense luncheon in London that the United States will recruit an army of 7 million men. “Idleness has not been part of our national life,” he says. “That is not America.” January 28, 1986: The space shuttle Challenger explodes 72 seconds after liftoff, killing all aboard, including Concord High teacher Christa McAuliffe. ...
Icy celebration returns to downtown
The Hotel Concord and Intown Concord will again be hosting a Winter Fest for the third year in a row. The ice carving competition in downtown Concord will be held Jan. 29 and 20. Masked spectators will enjoy watching ice-carving demonstrations and meeting some of New England’s most talented ice carvers. All spectators will be expected to wear masks and keep social distancing per state and city guidelines. The schedule for the weekend...
Book: Pensioners look into cold case
The Thursday Murder Club By Richard Osman (Mystery, 2020) Four very different retirees live in Coopers Chase, a “luxury retirement village” in England. They meet in the Jigsaw Room to discuss cold cases. There’s “Red Ron,” the former trade union leader; retired psychiatrist Ibrahim; Joyce, a former nurse; and Elizabeth – once a spy, perhaps? No one knows exactly what Elizabeth was, and she isn’t telling. Elizabeth used to work...
Bulletin board
Learn about wooly mammoths The McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center will host its monthly online Super Stellar Friday series as Harris Center Community Programs Director and Teacher-Naturalist Susie Spikol explores “New England’s Long Ago Elephants: Woolly Mammoths” via Zoom webinar on Feb. 5 at 7 p.m. Spikol will describe these ancient relatives of elephants, explain how mammoths and mastodons differ, and tell the story of their time...
City newsletter: Ponds have thawed for now
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: Trail Guides Due to the rising cost of printing and supplies, the Conservation Commission had to raise the price for the trail guides to $11 (or $13 if mailed). This price covers the printing cost, no revenue is generated through the...
This week in Concord history
Jan. 21, 2000: Barney’s Clothing, a fixture in downtown Pittsfield since the 1940s, announces it is going out of business. “It’s an end of the era for the downtown,” says shopper Sandy Burt of Barnstead. “I think it’s too bad they can’t compete with the superstores.” Jan. 21, 1857: A choral concert celebrates the opening of the new city hall and county building on the site of the current Merrimack County Courthouse. Jan....
Book: NPR host examines top businesses
How I Built This By Guy Raz (302 pages, nonfiction, 2020) Ever wonder how successful businesses did it? What steps did they take in the early days to get them to where they are today? If you are an entrepreneur or you just like hearing the story behind the business, then this book is for you. Guy Raz, from NPR, looks at the origin stories of big names like Airbnb, Five Guys, Southwest Airlines, and tons of other businesses. Get...
City ponds open for skating
Insider staffOn Jan. 8, Concord Parks and Recreation announced that the White Park and Beaver Meadow ponds were ready for skating. Another skating area is available at Rollins Park.The city does not open the ponds for ice skating until there are at least 5 inches of frozen ice. Staff takes measurements in several locations to make sure ice is safe. All skating is at your own risk. Please follow all posted signs. You can check the...
Bulletin Board: Look overhead
How to be a stargazer The Harris Center for Conservation Education is hosting a free online session with the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center’s David McDonald to find out what to look for in the winter sky. The Zoom presentation will be held on Friday, Jan. 15, from 7 to 8 p.m. It will include how to find specific constellations. McDonald will also show us the sky as it is this very night, using special software to highlight...
Frozen excursion: Ice Castles open
You don’t have to travel to the North Pole to find Frosty’s winter wonderland. The company that has built a frozen fortress in New Hampshire for the last seven years has returned again in 2021. Ice Castles is an award-winning frozen attraction located in four cities in the U.S., including Woodstock, an hour drive up Interstate-93. It is opening for the season on Jan. 14. The attraction is built using hundreds of thousands of icicles...
City Newsletter: Things to do on the snow and ice
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:MeetingsThe planning board will meeting Wednesday at 7 p.m. via Zoom. For more information, visit concordnh.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx. Agendas will be posted ahead of the meetings. Visit the City of Concord calendar,...
Poem: Concord Gasholder
Sometimes a memory, is just meant to be, the old round brick building, whose fate we await to see. Passed each day, anonymous a century or more, our gasholder has returned, with much old lore. The past should be remembered, as our past will too, sometimes history is best not repeated, if our ancestors only knew. Let us think, as we do gather, do we want to preserve our past, or do your thoughts think rather....
Author events: Zoom in to two book talks
On Jan. 21 at 7 p.m., Simon Winchester will present Land in a Zoom discussion with Gibson’s Bookstore. The author of The Professor and the Madman and The Perfectionists will explore the notion of property — our proprietary relationship with the land — through human history, how it has shaped us and what it will mean for our future. He will be joined in conversation by Gibson’s own John LeDonne. Signed bookplates will be included with...
Poem: January
The fire crackles in the old brick hearth, a warm friend on this cold day, thinking of summer past, thoughts wander to days of May. The wind howls from the north, as temperatures hover very low, January in New England, sunsets across the fresh snow. The festive days have now ended, cloudy days and dark nights arrive, a good book read by candlelight, until spring I will survive. Winter indulged with warm treats,...
This week in Concord history
January 14, 1858: The Coos County Republicans hold a convention and pass a resolution stating: “As the advocates of freedom and equal rights, we deplore the existence of slavery … and ardently hope for its speedy abolition when it can be constitutionally effected.” Jan. 14, 1824: The “other Concord” – in the North Country – officially changes its name to Lisbon, ending confusion with New Hampshire’s capital city. ...
Book: Ragtag crew works together to save the day
Six of Crows By Leigh Bardugo (465 pages, young adult fantasy, 2015) Unlikely heroes. The impossible keeps happening, and rumor of a synthetic drug making super soldiers circulates the city. Criminal prodigy Kaz accepts a job to rescue the scientist responsible, held in a fairway fortress as world powers attempt to steal and weaponize the formula. Kaz selects a ragtag crew from the underbelly of society: an impossible group for...
Book: A novel for these times
Survivor Song By Paul Tremblay (320 pages, horror, 2020) Massachusetts has been overrun by a mutated rabies pandemic. The disease is spreading rapidly, and the infected are driven to bite other people. The word zombie is being whispered online. Hospitals are inundated with the sick and dying, and hysteria has taken hold. Dr. Ramola Sherman receives a frantic phone call from her best friend Natalie, eight months pregnant....
Book: A guide to know yourself better
The Body: A Guide for Occupants By Bill Bryson (450 pages, nonfiction, 2019) In his latest book, The Body: A Guide for Occupants, Bill Bryson once again earns his reputation as one of the 21st century’s best popular science authors. As in his immensely popular A Short History of Nearly Everything (2003), Bryson displays an uncanny ability to distill complex subject matter into not just informative, but also incredibly fun,...
Hit the snowy trail
For those looking to get outside this winter while staying close to home, cross-country skiing checks off those boxes. The wallop of snow from the Dec. 17 made trail conditions glorious before a warm and wet Christmas rinsed it away. Snow is returning to the trails as winter goes on and its worth a visit. Some ski areas have groomed trail systems open to the public. There are more than six miles of cross-country skiing trails at...
Don’t miss your chance to cast
Saturday, Jan. 16, is the winter Free Fishing Day in New Hampshire. State residents and non-residents alike can fish any inland water – or saltwater – in New Hampshire that day without a fishing license. However, people participating in a fishing tournament must still hold a license, even on Free Fishing Day. Also, season dates, bag limits and all other fishing regulations must be followed on Free Fishing Day. Free fishing days are...
Bulletin board: Scholarships available, online events offered
Scholarships available The Zonta Club of Concord is offering three scholarships/awards to local women: New American Merit Award given to a local new American high school senior who is recognized for her scholastic excellence and leadership qualities; Young Women in Public Affairs award recognizes young women, ages 16-19, for their demonstration of leadership skills and commitment to public service and civic causes and encourages them...
City news: Capital city in full winter mode
The city manager’s office sent out the City Manager’s Newsletter last Wednesday. The full newsletter can be found by going to concordnh.gov and clicking the “Newsletter” button. Here are some highlights: Tree collection Christmas tree collection starts on Monday, January 4 and will continue for two weeks in coordination with residential curbside trash and recycling collection. Residents can place Christmas trees curbside for disposal...
On the calendar with Gibson’s Bookstore
Gibson’s Bookstore is jumping right into the new year with several virtual author events. On Jan. 7, at 7 p.m., former Concord resident K. Woodman-Maynard visits Gibson’s Bookstore virtually to discuss her graphic novelization of The Great Gatsby. This sumptuously illustrated adaptation casts the powerful imagery of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s great American novel in a vivid new format. Concord novelist Virginia Macgregor joins her in...
This week in Concord history
Jan. 7, 1942: Concord starts a three-day spell of bitterly cold weather with a low temperature of 15 below zero. The next day it’ll be 25 below, and the day after that, the temperature will fall to 22 below. Jan. 7, 1904: At its annual meeting, the First Church of Christ Science thanks Mary Baker Eddy of Concord for her gift of $120,000 toward the Concord church, now under construction. Jan. 7, 1942: A tannery is...
Book: A static life upended
The House in the Cerulean Sea By TJ Klune (400, fiction, 2020) Linus Baker is a by-the-book caseworker in the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. As cog in a very large machine, his days are gray and unchanging. His only pleasures are his cat, the patch of sunflowers his neighbor is trying to kill, and a vacation picture of the sea (he’s never been to the sea). His newest assignment is determining the fate of an orphanage...
Book: Tantalizing tale by Nix
The Left-Handed Booksellers of London By Garth Nix (393 pages, young adult fantasy, 2020) Darkness, meet Whimsy About to start art school in London, Susan leaves her childhood home to move to the big city. As she looks for jobs there she also searches for her father, 18 years absent. Her few clues to track him down are an old reading room ticket as well as a silver engraved cigarette case. Her adventure begins in earnest when she...
