GOOD MORNING, UPPER VALLEY!
Oh, will this perfect weather ever end? Yes, of course. This is New England. But not yet! Mostly sunny and warm today (and tomorrow, and Sunday, with each day getting warmer until, unbelievably, we're around 80 on Sunday). Some high clouds today, but even so, temps will reach the mid-70s. Low tonight comfortably in the 50s. Been stuck on Mechanic Street in Leb lately? So have a lot of other people. And they're not happy. "Maybe we should just closed down stupid Mechanic Street," Nicole Cameron posted on FB yesterday. "Toddler and I waited 15 mins to go through, now we're waiting for two dump trucks to get filled up..." This sparked a lot of venting about ongoing construction and the gridlock it's caused, from "I don't even bother any more" to pleas not to block the intersection by the APD underpass. Oh, and "Literally sitting in traffic reading this!"And Leb isn't the only place where construction's disrupting things. Dartmouth is putting in underground pipes to expand its hot and cold water networks, which has yielded delays and pedestrian detours along N. Main Street from Webster Ave to N. Maynard. That's in addition, of course, to the "West End" expansion project — you may remember it as this summer's mis-dug hole in the ground — which has made getting up West Wheelock into Hanover even more of a pleasure than usual.And if you happened to be stuck in traffic on I-89 around Enfield yesterday afternoon during rush hour, that was a fatal crash that shut down the highway. A silver SUV driving north in the left lane veered into the median, hit a guardrail, then veered back onto the roadway across both lanes of traffic. The driver, whose name hasn't been released, was killed. VT Ag Secy Anson Tebbetts and a delegation of legislators visited George and Linda Miller's Jericho Hill Farm in Hartford yesterday. They're trying to understand the state's dairy scene better, and were there because of the Millers' arrangement with Reading's Spring Brook Farm, which processes their raw milk into cheese. Jericho Hill's a relatively small operation — 30 cows — and if it had to sell to one of the dairy cooperatives, says George Miller, it "wouldn't make a dime." (VN)Could Lebanon lead the way for NH to up its power game? No, not politics: We're talking electricity. Under legislation enacted earlier this year, local governments in NH can "procure and provide electricity to their residents and businesses on a competitive basis," says Henry Herndon, who runs the local energy program for Clean Energy NH. And Leb's the first with a community power program, aiming to build both solar and a gas-to-energy plant at the landfill.Of course, NH is also filled with power games of the other sort. “Remember today George Washington’s final words to our country, that in order for our government to be efficient and permanent, we need unity," state Senate Chaplain Jon Hopkins prayed yesterday at the start of the Senate's veto override session. Didn't happen. NHPR takes a look at the partisan gridlock and "animus" in Concord.On the other hand, Congress has managed to find unity on one thing: a commemorative coin for Christa McAuliffe. It passed the GOP-held Senate during the summer and the Democratic-led House yesterday. If the measure is signed by Pres. Trump, surcharges collected by the Treasury for the $1 coin will be given to FIRST Robotics, the Manchester-based nonprofit founded by inventor Dean Kamen that helps students in the STEM fields. Days like these make you want to go get a view, don't they? But in case you somehow didn't manage to take the day off and go climb Camel's Hump, here's what it looked like from up there around 5 yesterday. You don't really need to climb a mountain to get a stunning view in the fall, though. Yeah, the leaves are changing. And just in time, the Monitor's "Granite Geek," David Brooks, explains what's going on as the chlorophyll leaches out of them, leaving all those pigments behind. A succession of warm, sunny days and crisp nights (sound familiar?) is good news. His bottom line: "Head north whenever you can, and avoid the Kancamagus Highway.""It’s like the show is its own animal and it has its own momentum and so it’s pretty remarkable to get to stand back and see it just doing its thing.” That's VT singer, songwriter and Broadway composer Anaïs Mitchell on VPR the other day, talking about Hadestown and what comes next. She's on the verge of a solo tour. In case you didn't catch the interview when it aired Wednesday, the link takes you to excerpts.Okay, seriously. One orchard in all of New England? Fodor's is out with a guide to "11 Dreamy Apple Orchards You'll Never Want to Leave," and the only one in the region to make the grade is Shelburne Orchards in VT, which has the usual hay rides, but also live music and Taiko drumming. Westwind Orchard in Accord, NY, has salsa dancing. Edwards Apple Orchard West in Winnebago, IL has a playground. The unkindest cut? There are two California orchards on the list.THE TITLE VERMONT SUPPOSEDLY COMES FROM THE FRENCH VERT MONT, OR INEXPERIENCED MOUNTAIN. I can't even begin to guess how this happened. The Herald Publicist, an online outlet in India, is up with an article noting that VT and MA are featured in the new "Rough Guide to the 100 Best Places on Earth 2020," by the well-known British travel publisher. The article pulled quotes from the guide, but something seems to have been lost — or, really, gained — in the translation of "green." Or whatever. You'll be pleased to know that "VERMONT’S RECENT AIR AND LOVELY SURROUNDINGS WILL MAKE THE SOUL SING."
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. The film revolves around two "charismatic purists," as David Edelstein calls them in
Vulture:
Matt Damon as a car designer (and ex-racer) working for Henry Ford II, and Christian Bale as the attitude-laden driver and racecar
savant
Damon enlists to help build a car that can obliterate Enzo Ferrari's best in the 24 Hours at Le Mans. Judging from
, it'll take about a week for your pulse to slow down. Shows at 4 and 7:30.
. A musical ode to the disruptions and innocence of the Gilded Age. Five actors and a "brew" of popular songs (think "You're a Grand Old Flag" and "Meet Me in St. Louis") from the era. Runs through Oct. 5 on various days and at various times. Tonight at 7:30.
. Wilcox, originally from Cleveland, is a folk musician with a long, 20-record pedigree, a lot of time on the road, and a deep well of original songwriting, lyrical creativity, and guitar-playing talent. Starts at 7:30.
. They're at the start of a three-month tour, part of Tomashow's senior thesis project at Hampshire College. Jazz, folk, blues, experimental film, poetry... You can
. Half the proceeds go to support the Town House. Starts at 7.
. In recent years, the Boston-based quartet has steered away from its Americana/folk roots to check out something more like dystopian Chamber pop that rests on mood and sentiment almost as much as on lyrics, the band's lush, evocative harmonies, and its carefully crafted arrangements. Starts at 7:30.
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