GOOD MORNING, UPPER VALLEY!
Just a reminder... No Daybreak tomorrow or next week. Back as usual on March 21.If you've got plans to be outdoors, today's a good day. High pressure's building in, temps are getting into the 40s, and though it's going to be mostly cloudy there's nothing due to fall from the sky (that comes over the weekend when, fair warning, there's a winter storm watch in effect). Enjoy the little taste of spring while it lasts. Calm wind from the west, lower 20s tonight.Just to keep you busy over the Daybreak break... Here are three albums of photos and videos to revisit:
As you may have noticed, E. Thetford nature enthusiast Erin Donahue has been finding gems from her trail cam and writer and naturalist Ted Levin has been captioning them. So far they've given us gray fox, coyotes, and a bobcat. More down the road.
And if you want to relive the glory days of snow cornices... (With the usual Google-is-so-annoying note: They're not by me; just click on the album image and you'll find the true photographer and location.)
Plus, of course, daybreaks and sunsets keep happening.
"I like to think rocks are alive." Auk's ever the romantic. Eddie, not so much. This week in Lost Woods, they spend some quality time pondering rocks. As he usually does on Fridays in this spot, today Lebanon author and illustrator DB Johnson chronicles the doings in Lost Woods. Hit the back arrow to catch up on previous weeks or the double back arrow to head back to the beginning if you're a newcomer.NH towns have their say... A lot happened at town meetings in the region this week. Cornish boosted police funding, a majority of voters in the Kearsarge Regional School District backed renovations at the high school but not enough for the 60 percent threshold it needed to pass, Canaan rejected a property tax exemption for wind and solar, Grafton Town Clerk Bonnie Haubrich handily beat back a challenge, there were new school board and selectboard members elected in Croydon, Haverhill, Plainfield, New London, and elsewhere... The Valley News has it all wrapped up town by town at the link.SPONSORED: APD's germ-zapping robot needs a name! We're excited to have a robot working hard for us at Alice Peck Day Memorial Hospital (APD), and because we believe in personalized care, we want to personalize the robot too. Cast a vote for your favorite robot name and support your local non-profit community hospital. (Each $2.50 ticket is equal to one vote; proceeds benefit the APD annual fund.) Current front-runners include R2clean2, Anne Droid, and EVE. Voting ends at noon on March 31, 2022. Sponsored by APD.Hiking Close to Home: The Indian Ridge Trail in Lebanon. The Upper Valley Trails Alliance's suggestion this week is a 1.8-mile trail that passes through hemlock swamp, dry pine forest with sphagnum moss carpets, and a hardwood forest with glacial boulders. The trail has multiple connections, including the Albert Schweitzer Trails at DHMC, Boston Lot (bikes are not permitted on the Indian Ridge Trail), and Mink Brook Preserve, making it perfect for completing loops to other networks and even commuting. To the north there is a parking area on Gile Dr. and a connector trail to Sachem Village.Effort in NH to eliminate ballot-counting machines stumbles. Twice. Spurred by their distrust of 2020 election results, activists in some towns and some GOP legislators had been pushing to eliminate use of AccuVote machines, the only ones approved in the state, and mandate that all ballots be counted by hand. The idea was rejected in the dozen towns where it was on the town meeting ballot on Tuesday, and yesterday, reports NHPR's Casey McDermott, the House Election Law Committee unanimously voted against a bill that would have imposed it statewide.“This bill was only filed because of the Washington, D.C. Oreo lobby and the sponsors’ deep ties and addiction to ‘Double Stufs.’” That was NH's deputy House speaker, Steve Smith, in a mock session last week as the House prepares to return to its chambers today for the first time in two years. The mock session was pretty entertaining—but as NH Bulletin's Ethan DeWitt, Amanda Gokee, and Annmarie Timmins write, there's a bunch of serious business ahead today, from abortion-related bills to wireless privacy to a proposed move to secede from the US. They run down the agenda."Sometimes it's disheartening knowing how hard I work and my poll workers work to be open and transparent and do everything by the book and just have people accusing..." In the politically heated focus on election integrity over the last few years, the people most likely to draw attention are local election clerks and volunteers. NHPR's Peter Biello talked to Derry town and school moderator Tina Guilford about how she's navigated the challenges. To people who question her, she says, "I offer, do you want to work an election? I'm always looking for people to work."Wait! That's not a scallop! Nope. It's a woolly mammoth tooth. And it showed up in the net in December while the Portsmouth, NH-based sustainable fishing outfit New England Fishmongers were out dredging for scallops. Captain Tim Rider took the 11-inch, 7-pound artifact to UNH, reports Katherine Underwood of Boston's NBC10, where they identified it as a 12,000-year-old fossil. Rider has been keeping it at a restaurant he operates in Kittery, ME, and is auctioning it off on eBay to raise funds for World Central Kitchen, an organization that's set up in several Ukrainian cities and at border crossings to feed refugees."We send them cases of Vermont maple syrup and Vermont beer... They probably know Vermont better than anyone in Ukraine." Those would be the Ukrainians who work with Belarusian newspaper owner Paul Belogour's two papers in southern VT, the Bennington Banner and the Brattleboro Reformer. Belogour stunned local readers before the Russian invasion with a column headlined, "War Is the Answer"—but since then the papers have been running reports fed them by their Ukrainian colleagues and reporting on Belogour's efforts to help refugees. Seven Days' Colin Flanders covers the tangled story.“There is literally no place for people to live. If you don’t have a house now, you’re out of luck.” That’s VT Rep. Seth Bongartz, mincing no words about the state’s ongoing—and seemingly intractable—housing crisis. He’s one of many people—home buyers, landlords, housing officials—whom Seven Days’ Matthew Roy spoke to for a sweeping investigation of an issue with countless dimensions. Real estate prices keep skyrocketing while new-home construction continues to fall—due to high material costs, fewer tradesmen, restrictive zoning laws, vocal opponents to new developments…“This call may be recorded for quality assurance purposes.” You'll recognize that automated line. But for every chat with a customer service rep that goes well, dozens of others pose a grave threat to personal sanity. To prove that the promise of “quality assurance” has always been a ruse—and a springboard for laughs—here's a classic routine from 1965 by comic duo Mike Nichols and Elaine May. Nichols needs help with a phone number; May, almost six decades ahead of time, nails your struggles with customer support. (Note to younger readers: Pay phones used to be everywhere.)
Last numbers for a while. Not much has changed in two days, but what the heck... Also, if you want to keep up next week, each link will take you to the relevant dashboard.
Dartmouth cases remain mostly steady, with between 41 and 44 active cases reported yesterday, compared to 39 Monday. The college's dashboard reports 31 active undergrad cases (+1), between 1 and 4 among grad and professional students, and 9 among faculty/staff (no change). There have been 64 combined new cases among students over the previous seven days, as well as 16 among faculty/staff. 28 students are isolating on campus, somewhere between 2 and 8 are isolating off-campus, and 12 faculty/staff are in isolation.
NH continues to drop, with a 7-day average now of 129 new cases a day, compared to 151 at the start of the week. The state reported 66 new cases Tuesday and 96 yesterday, bringing it to 299,873 in all. There have been 5 deaths reported since Monday; the total now stands at 2,408. Hospitalizations are still dropping: 47 people are currently hospitalized (-9). The state reports 1,007 active cases statewide (-38) and 143 (+1) active cases in Grafton County, 51 (-8) in Sullivan, and 77 (+2) in Merrimack. In town-by-town numbers, the state says Lebanon has 57 (+7), Hanover has 40 (-2), New London has 16 (no change), Claremont has 15 (-2), Newport has 10 (-2), Grantham has 6 (+1), Charlestown has 5 (-3), Haverhill has 5 (+at least 1), and Warren, Rumney, Orford, Lyme, Orange, Grafton, Enfield, Plainfield, Cornish, Croydon, Sunapee, and Newbury have 1-4 each. Canaan is off the list.
VT reported 50 cases Tuesday and 195 yesterday, bringing it to 113,651 total. There was 1 new death over that time, with 608 all told. Hospitalizations are now at their lowest since last August: As of yesterday, 18 people with confirmed cases were hospitalized (-7), with 4 of them (+1) in the ICU. Windsor County saw 10 new cases over the last two days, with 140 in the last two weeks and 8,403 overall, while Orange County added 10 to reach 4,797 overall, with 105 in the past two weeks.
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At 5 pm today, Woodstock's Norman Williams Public Library hosts an online talk by local journalist Devi Lockwood on the travels—covering twenty countries across six continents over five years—and collected personal stories about how flood, fire, drought, retreating glaciers, and rising seas are changing communities around the globe that led to her book, 1,001 Voices on Climate Change.
At 5:30 pm, Sustainable Woodstock hosts an online talk about lesser-known traditions of maple sugaring among the region's Abenaki communities, including historical practices as well as the resurgence of sugaring on tribal lands today. The presenter is outdoor educator and regional historian Alexander Cotnoir.
At 7 pm, Here in the Valley's Tuesday Jukebox is back with a special Thursday edition, taking advantage of Canadian alt-rock band Status/Non-Status's tour while they're on their way to SXSW in Austin. The band is led by Anishinaabe-Canadian singer-songwriter Adam Sturgeon. They'll stop in at Speakeasy Studios for a livestreamed performance and sit-down with fiddler Jakob Breitbach. You can also request in-person tix.
Also at 7, Lyme's Converse Free Library brings in longtime Hanover High social studies teacher Bill Murphy to talk about the school's history—Murphy has put together an informal history of Hanover High, called Did You Know...? You'll need to register for the event here.
Tomorrow, Friday, AVA Gallery is holding a reception from 5-7 pm to mark the opening of five separate exhibitions: a group show entitled, “Why Can’t One Girl Change It?” that works with content and themes focused on courage; and four solo shows—with work by women (Olivia Janna Genereaux, Danielle Klebes, Rachel Montroy, and Ann Young) who express their divergent experiences through sculpture and paint.
And starting at 7:30 tomorrow, the Anonymous Coffeehouse is back at the First Congregational Church of Lebanon with singer-songwriter and Upper Valley native Allison Fay Brown; acoustic duo Richard Ruane and Beth Duquette; and 2 x 2, the vocal-instrumental quartet of Valerie Kosednar, Mark Grieco, and Betsy and Lee Rybeck Lynd.
On Saturday and Sunday, VINS is offering $10 admission to VT residents as part of its Vermont days. Next weekend it's New Hampshire days, with the same deal for NH residents.
At 11 am and 3 pm on Saturday, the Hop's got a HopStop family show with Abenaki storyteller, musician, and Woodland Indian historian Roger Longtoe Sheehan, together with fiber artist and director of the VT Abenaki Artists Association Vera Longtoe Sheehan. They'll be at Alumni Hall in the Hop for the 11 am event, and at the Claremont Savings Bank at 3 pm.
And at 3 pm and 5:30 pm on Saturday, Billings Farm closes out its film series with The Conductor, Bernadette Wegenstein's new documentary about Marin Alsop, the first woman to lead a major orchestra in the US (the Baltimore Symphony), as well as the the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra and the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra. She faced opposition (including from her parents) at pretty much every turn as she changed the culture of the orchestral world, but as the film shows, over time her "vision and abilities got to be the story," as the LA Times put it last month.
Saturday at 3 and 7 pm, Upper Valley Baroque presents its second-ever performance(s) with a program featuring music by J.S. Bach, Corelli, and Veracini. Both concerts will be at The Church of Christ at Dartmouth College—tix for the 3 pm performance are disappearing fast, there are still some available for 7 pm. Here's Alex Hanson's profile of the group in today's Valley News.
Also at 7 pm Saturday, the First Congregational Church of Lebanon and Muskeg Music & Norwich Dances (the folks who in less pandemic-y times put on the regular Tracy Hall contradances) are bringing in one of their favorite dance bands, Atlantic Crossing, for a concert of music fromthe Celtic British Isles and French & Maritime Canada.
If you feel like a little bit of a drive, also at 7 on Saturday the Clemmons Family Farm and Catamount Arts are offering up a concert at ArtPort in St. J with KeruBo, the Kenya-born, Burlington-based singer of African folk music, Afro-pop, and Afro-jazz. Tix are free, but you'll need to reserve them.
Saturday at 7:30, the Lebanon Opera House brings in Alabama-based St. Paul and the Broken Bones, touring their latest album, The Alien Coast. The band made its name with its mix of soul, R&B, funk, and rock, but lately has been exploring everything from electronica to psych-rock. "At turns explosive, elegant, and unhinged," LOH writes, "that sound makes for a majestic backdrop to St. Paul & The Broken Bones’ visceral exploration of the strangest dimensions of the human psyche."
Finally, on Sunday at 4 pm the Howe is hosting a virtual garden tour—"My Garden in Bloom, June Through December: Flowers, Shrubs, and Trees, an Oasis of Joy"—led by Susan Edwards, past president of the Hanover Garden Club, using photos taken mostly by Etna photographer Jim Block.
Whew. That was
a lot
, eh? Now then... Sofiane Pamart is a Paris-based, classically trained pianist and composer who shifts effortlessly from Chopin to rap to jazz to...well, whatever strikes his fancy. His most recent effort is a series of compositions inspired by settings around the world—Cairo, Medellin, Havana, Chicago...
At night. In the cold. With the northern lights on full display behind him. The concert was a bit over an hour, so just set it going and go about your day. And spare a thought for the people who had to get a grand piano to the site.
Have a fine 10 days. See you Monday, March 21 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 and writers who want you to 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.
Want to catch up on Daybreak music?
Written and published by Rob Gurwitt Writer/editor: Tom Haushalter Poetry editor: Michael Lipson About Rob About Tom About Michael
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