GOOD MORNING, UPPER VALLEY!
Finally! A humdrum forecast. High pressure's building in for the day, so we get partly sunny skies with a high around freezing. Calm winds today from the west, upper teens tonight.Sunrise with snow. But thanks to the snow being blown onto Quechee Ski Hill, it's not just any sunrise, as you can see in this pic by Q "SnowGun" Forkas, the snow engineer technician on the crew. (Thanks, KJ!)Former Woodstock Foundation Board leaders sue other members, allege mismanagement, misconduct at Woodstock Inn, Billings Farm. In the Vermont Standard Mike Donoghue lays out the issues raised by Ellen Pomeroy and Salvatore Iannuzzi, who say in a civil suit filed last Friday that they were improperly removed as chair and vice chair after trying to look into employee claims of misdoing at the two prominent Upper Valley institutions. Those claims allege harassment of and discrimination against employees at the Inn, and mismanagement at Billings. The board's interim chair says it's investigating.A bit more on that submerged car. The driver rescued Wednesday evening from the roof of his car in the CT River hasn't been publicly identified, John Lippman reports in the Valley News; he refused a trip to the hospital and went home with a family member. "He was really just cold," Hanover Fire Chief Jim Wheatley says. Plainfield Police Chief Anthony Swett tells Lippman the crash was caused by "excessive speed and poor road conditions" and that the driver will be held responsible for covering the cost of pulling his car from the river—which a crew from Sabil & Sons did yesterday.Orange County Sheriff's Department in a bind as administrative staff quits. In yesterday's Journal Opinion newsletter, Alex Nuti-de Biasi reports that the department's entire administrative staff has resigned effective Jan. 31, the last day incumbent Sheriff Bill Bohnyak will be in office. On Feb. 1 the man who defeated him in November, George Contois, takes over. He'll find a depleted force: In VTDigger, Ethan Weinstein reports that half the department's deputies have resigned. "Quite frankly, we're in a desperate situation," Contois told a budget hearing this week—though Weinstein reports he's been in Arizona.SPONSORED: What does 2022 tell us about the state of our climate’s health? Time for our annual check-up! Last year was the third-warmest year on record in the contiguous US and sixth warmest for the world as a whole, and from paralyzing winter storms in New England to record heat waves out West—and devastating floods in Pakistan to drought-stricken rivers in Europe—no place on Earth remains unscathed. The burgundy link will take you to a handy climatological recap of 2022, as told in six informative charts on everything from heat to drought to emissions. Sponsored by Solaflect Energy. White River Valley Supervisory Union board settles on policy for flags. The board, which oversees schools stretching from Sharon and Strafford to Rochester and Hancock, spent eight months looking into the politically sensitive issue, reports Darren Marcy in the Herald. The policy, which will only go into effect in member school districts whose boards approve it, states that only students and school groups can request a flag other than the American and VT flags be flown, flags can't be libelous or profane, display hate speech, interfere with a school's "orderly operation," or be bigger than the American flag.Proposed juvenile treatment center in Newbury VT still in limbo. Nothing much has changed since the town appealed a court decision overturning its rejection of the facility, but Vermont Public's Liam Elder-Connors provides a handy overview of both the state's and townspeople's concerns and of the maneuvering that got things to this point. Townspeople remain adamant that it's a bad fit for their community, VT officials say efforts to provide a place for youth accused of crimes are being held up... And it's all in the lap of the state Supreme Court, with a hearing still months away.Lunch is back at the Tuckerbox. For the first time since the mid-August flood in WRJ, the café and Turkish restaurant opened its doors during the day yesterday; in addition to dinner, which it's been serving for a while, it's back to partial daytime hours, with breakfast and lunch between 11am - 3pm Tuesday to Saturday. "As we get our new teammates trained up we will expand our morning hours," owners Vural and Jackie Oktay say on their GoFundMe page.SPONSORED: Find yourself in the Pyrenees! Join Athara Adventures for a Meet and Greet event on Friday, February 3rd at 5:30pm, hosted by Open Door Integrative Wellness in White River Junction. Athara Adventures is a new hiking and e-mountain biking guide company based in the French Pyrenees—come meet one of their founders and envision what an Athara Adventure could look like for you! Now booking for spring/summer 2023 for both e-mountain biking and hiking tours of this unique region. Sponsored by Athara Adventures.Hiking Close to Home: Blue Mountain Nature Trail in Newbury, VT. The Blue Mountain Nature Trail starts at the Blue Mountain Union school, eventually mixing with the Wells River Trail and Cross Vermont Trail. The Upper Valley Trails Alliance says this easy trail winds through a wonderful spruce forest and offers beautiful views of the Wells River. If the 1.4-mile loop is too short for you, you can always venture off on connecting trails for more nature to explore. ValleyNet no longer operates ECFiber and Lyme Fiber. In a long-planned move, the organization has shifted staff and operating responsibilities to GWI Vermont, a subsidiary of broadband operator GWI in Biddeford, ME, which first provided ValleyNet phone service. Now, the two say in a joint press release, GWI Vermont, based in Royalton, will take over all operations. "All of ValleyNet’s former employees have accepted the same positions with GWI Vermont and all of ECFiber’s and LymeFiber’s customers will continue to be serviced out of the Royalton, VT office," the release says.West Central Behavioral Health and NH's rapid response effort for mental health to get regional, national airtime. For the past year, the group—which provides the local rapid response team for NH's statewide effort to keep people in crisis out of emergency rooms—has been working with actor Dennis Quaid's Viewpoints with Dennis Quaid project on a video about NH's rapid-response effort and why it matters. It's now done (well, except the Dennis Quaid part), and due to air next month on regional PBS stations in NH, VT, and MA, then get distributed nationally at the end of the month. You can preview it at the link.Been paying attention to Daybreak? Because the Upper Valley News Quiz has some questions for you. Like, where's the Dartmouth Coach stop in Hanover been relocated to? And what drew Hanover police attention to a rental car that eventually yielded a trove of fentanyl? And why did the Alton Bay Ice Runway not open this year? You'll find those and other questions at the burgundy link.But wait! How closely were you following VT and NH?
Because Seven Days wants to know if you know what's been going on around the state this week—including, what's the state's Dept. of Public Safety aiming to detail in a new public dashboard?
And NHPR's got a whole set of questions about doings in the Granite State—like, what driving-related activity does a new bill in the legislature seek to ban?
Meanwhile, on the NH restaurant scene... Yesterday we talked about the James Beard semifinalist nominations in VT. Today, NHPR takes up the three in the Granite State. David Vargas, the chef and owner of Portsmouth's Vida Cantina, is in the running for "Outstanding Chef." And for best chef in the Northeast, Jeff Fournier of the Thompson House Eatery in Jackson and Paul Callahan, of Vino e Vivo in Exeter, are both in contention.Isn’t it lucky that once upon a time, people sent letters through the mail? Stamps Bot, a new Twitter community, invites collectors to digitally share photos of their stamp treasures from all over the world (no postage required). The feed reminds us that stamps are miniature works of art, political and social commentaries, advertisements, and snapshots of their times. Striking examples are everywhere: brilliant flowers, landscapes, animals … and the occasional trapeze artist. The Friday Vordle. If you're new to Vordle, you should know that fresh ones appear on weekends using words from the Friday Daybreak, and you can get a reminder email each weekend morning. If you'd like that, sign up here.
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Sweatshirts, hats, and, of course, coffee/tea/cocoa mugs. It's all available thanks to Strong Rabbit Designs in Sharon. Check out what's available and wear it or drink from it proudly! Email me ([email protected]) if you've got questions.
At 4 pm today, the Howe Library in Hanover presents a reading by contributors to Clamantis, the literary journal of Dartmouth's MALS program. Poetry, fiction, and non-fiction by current students and alums. In-person and online.
At 6 pm, Artistree in S. Pomfret hosts a Frozen 2 singalong—with Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, and Sven and the hit Disney film's lyrics on-screen and you in the audience, belting out "Into the Unknown," "Lost in the Woods," and more.
Also at 6, the Main Street Museum in WRJ hosts its regular Friday night Piano Night, with its 1930 Aeolian Stroud player piano giving vent to some of the museum's collection of 10,000 piano rolls. Bonfire if the weather allows, and snacks on the deck "overlooking the shimmering waters of the White River," they write.
This evening starting at 6:30 and running until 10, AVA Gallery kicks off its 50th anniversary year with a dance party—and DJ Melissa spinning five decades of tunes, from 1973 to now.
At 7 this evening, the Norwich Bookstore hosts Vermont-based writer Kekla Magoon, reading from and talking about her new novel for young adults, The Minus-One Club. After losing his older sister in a car accident, 15-year-old Kermit Sanders finds an invitation in his locker, signed "-1." Turns out, a group of his schoolmates who've also suffered losses have banded together. There are just two rules: the club's top secret, and they don’t talk about death. But there's a lot of other stuff to talk about.
Also at 7, Fairlee Community Arts presents the final night of its three-Friday Silent Movie Nights at Fairlee's town hall. Tonight, it features portions of the 1925 film, The Lost World, the first film adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's novel about explorers who find a land where dinosaurs and other prehistoric beasts still roam. The film features Wallace Beery in the lead role, but maybe more important, stop-motion special effects by the same guy who later put them into action in King Kong. The evening's feature film is Buster Keaton's hair-raising slapstick and romantic classic, The General, with a sweeping Civil War background (provided by the Oregon National Guard) and unforgettable Keaton acrobatic artistry.
Tomorrow from 11 am to 3 pm, the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department holds its annual Free Ice Fishing Day festival, with its demos this year at Silver Lake State Park in Barnard. Anyone, VT resident or not, can go ice fishing anywhere in the state without a license tomorrow, and at Silver Lake, staff and volunteers will be on hand to help the curious learn about ice fishing gear, hole drilling, tip-up techniques, ice safety, knot tying, fish ID, and more. You can just show up, or register online at the link.
Tomorrow at 3 and 7:30 pm, then again on Sunday at 3 pm, the Lebanon Opera House brings in Recycled Percussion, the phenom band born in Goffstown, now calling Laconia home base. Finalists on America's Got Talent, stars of their own show on the Las Vegas Strip, and able to turn anything from a sink to a blender to roller skates, buckets, and ladders into a beat. Just a handful of tix left for tomorrow afternoon, a handful more for tomorrow evening, and even more for Sunday afternoon.
At 3 pm tomorrow, and again at the same time on Sunday, the Billings Farm film series presents Art & Krimes by Krimes, Alysa Nahmias' documentary about Jesse Krimes, the son of a single mom who was imprisoned in his teens for selling drugs and, while in prison, escaped into art—creating monumental works, including a 40-foot mural made with prison bed sheets, hair gel, and newspaper. The film follows Krimes after his release, as he struggles to adapt—and to deal with his art-world fame.
At 7 pm tomorrow, Upper Valley Baroque launches the first of its two-performance weekend of "A Journey Through Italian Baroque" at the First Congregational Church of Lebanon. Its top-quality professional chamber orchestra, under the direction of Filippo Ciabatti, will perform six concertos by Italian composers, including Antonio Vivaldi, Arcangelo Corelli, and Francesco Geminiani. The Sunday performance is at 3 pm.
Also at 7 tomorrow, at the Loew, Hop Film presents Decision to Leave, director Park Chan-wook's Cannes-award-winning noir romance about a Korean detective smitten by the widow of a murder victim—and she, apparently, by him—even as circumstantial evidence against her mounts.
At 7:30 pm tomorrow, the Hop (at the Church of Christ at Dartmouth) presents the Apple Hill String Quartet, which is in residency at the college this year. The program includes the Hop-commissioned premiere of "The Ceremony That Never Was," composer Dana Lyn's piece inspired by the series of paintings by Native American visual artist Rick Bartow that are at the Hood, as well as works by Raven Chacon, Aleksandra Vrebalov, and Maurice Ravel.
And at 8 pm tomorrow, the Main Street Museum hosts another Reggaetón dance party, with DJ Chele bringing back the beats and Nando's Moon & Stars bringing the empanadas.
Finally, on Sunday from 5-7, VINS has some tickets available for its Forest of Lights at the Canopy Walk and in the surrounding woods. This is not something to take for granted—usually they're sold out well ahead of time. If you're a planner, they've also got some left for Feb. 16 and Feb. 23-24. Here's what it looks like, in case you want to check it out ahead.
And to take us into the weekend...
You could argue that "Americana" existed before Nickel Creek—Chris Thile and siblings Sara and Sean Watkins—released
Nickel Creek
in 2000, but mostly it was separate, time-honored genres of music. The trio's members were all of 18 and 23 at the time, and had been playing together since they were 8 (Chris and Sara) and 12 (Sean). What the album did, following ground that had been broken by Béla Fleck, Alison Krauss, and others, was open massive numbers of minds to the possibility that bluegrass could be infused with jazz, pop, folk, and classical. Now, for the first time in nine years, they're back with a new album,
Celebrants
.
It's "an exploration of the ostensibly rewarding but often awkward, even excruciating act of catching up with an old friend," Thile says. "Can the connection be reforged? Should it be?”
Have a lovely weekend, and see you Monday for CoffeeBreak.
The Hiking Close to Home Archives. A list of hikes around the Upper Valley, some easy, some more difficult, compiled by the Upper Valley Trails Alliance. It grows every week.
The Enthusiasms Archives. A list of book recommendations by Daybreak's rotating crew of local booksellers, writers, and librarians who think you should read. this. book. now!
Daybreak Where You Are: The Album. Photos of daybreak around the Upper Valley, Vermont, New Hampshire, and the US, sent in by readers.
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