GOOD MORNING, UPPER VALLEY!
Mostly cloudy today. There's a slight chance of rain all morning, rising to a small chance through the afternoon. It'll be warmer than usual for November, highs in the low 50s — which you might take note of while you're out and about, because it's likely to be the last time we see this for a while. As the front exits stage east tonight, temps will drop to normal, in the low 30s overnight.In case you haven't gotten to the new Han Fusion in Hanover yet... Susan Apel reviews the restaurant that took over from the Orient, which in turn took over from the Panda House. The verdict? Good, fresh food. Friendly service. "I plan to go back," she says. "There’s a lengthy menu to work through."Strava co-founders Michael Horvath and Mark Gainey take over. Again. The two founded the massively popular social fitness and training app, which is based in Hanover, San Francisco, and Denver, in 2009, then stepped aside from formally running it in 2013. On Monday, Horvath — who in an earlier life taught entrepreneurship at Tuck — settled back in as CEO and Gainey as executive chairman. Leb police want to enlist video doorbells and business security cameras. The technology is, increasingly, everywhere — outside stores, by the front doors of homes, perched above businesses — while the police are not. "Crime is going to happen, and we can’t see everything,” Chief Richard Mello tells the VN's Anna Merriman. They're asking anyone with a security camera to register so that, if a crime happens nearby, the department can review footage. Needless to say, there are issues. (VN)Boston-area delivery driver's death ruled homicide. VT State Police said yesterday afternoon that Roberto Fonseca-Rivera, whose body was found inside his truck in Rockingham over the weekend, was shot in the head and neck. He'd been sentenced to prison a year ago today for his role in a cocaine-trafficking ring that shipped the drug from Puerto Rico to Massachusetts."Closed-loop" composting efforts trying to get off the ground in Hartford. Chuck Wooster's Sunrise Farm and Willow Tree Community Compost, which is a door-to-door food-scrap collection effort for WRJ, Wilder, and Hartford Village, have launched crowdfunding campaigns to build their capacity to take in locally generated food scraps, build soil, and grow more food. The idea, says soil maven Cat Buxton, is to pioneer a local "nutrient loop" for Hartford, then replicate the model elsewhere.Canopy Meg, Canopy Meg, studies insects in the trees above your head... That's the hummable intro to the latest installment of Nature Revisited, Hanover gardener Stefan van Norden's podcast about all things natural. You may know him from his film, Negotiating With Nature, and he had more to say, but the rigors of film-making drove him to podcasting. He's done 11 so far, most recently with forest canopy scientist Meg Lowman. Next up: longtime Dartmouth organic farm manager Scott Stokoe. Enfield now has enough money to remove Center Town House floor. The 175-year-old landmark is rotting, and the town has raised $20,000 in grant money — far less than it needs to restore the building, but enough, at least, to keep it from collapsing. It's now looking for a contractor to remove the floor, subfloor and flooring supports and replace the supports and subfloor with moisture-resistant material. (VN)NH's strict new limits on PFAS face court fight. The chemicals were in wide use until a decade ago in nonstick pans, firefighting foam, and waterproofed clothing, and have been linked to a variety of health problems. But the link isn't ironclad, and PFAS maker 3M, a Center Harbor cattle farmer, and the Plymouth Water and Sewer District are suing. NHPR takes a deep and thorough look at what's involved.One more bell-toll for print: Burlington news distributor cuts back distributing news. The Burlington News Agency, based in Colchester, used to deliver magazines and newspapers to general stores around northern VT. Now it's ended all magazine delivery and Monday-Saturday newspaper delivery. Even Sunday paper deliveries have shrunk: Not that many years ago the company dropped 150 Sunday NYTs to Willey's Store in Greensboro during the summer; these days it's just 22. “Everything is going online,” says the owner. Halloween storm damage estimate now at $3 million in VT and rising. As of yesterday afternoon, 19 towns had reported major damage, and another 97 had checked in with minor damage reports, according to Vermont Emergency Management. Even so, most roads have been re-opened, and power's been restored to all but a handful of customers.Signs of winter I: Killington's open. The lifts for skiers and boarders who have season passes started up on Sunday, and the mountain opened to the general public yesterday. Conditions are still a little spotty, and the resort says, "Terrain is suitable for intermediate and above skiers and riders. No easier terrain will be available." They've also begun making snow at Stowe and Okemo, and will start soon at Sunapee.Signs of winter II: First a tractor-trailer, then seven cars get stuck in snow over Smuggler's Notch. This is par for the course for VT-108 through the mountains, which will no doubt be closed to traffic soon.Signs of winter III: It's "Winter Preparedness Week" at the National Weather Service. And they've got two words: "Snow tires." They recommend them. Signs of winter IV: NH House Republicans oppose Dem bid to tax skiers. The text of the "legislative service request," which is the first step on the way to a bill becoming a bill, isn't even available yet, but apparently the idea is to add ski area ticket sales to the rooms and meals tax. House GOP leader Dick Hinch issued a statement yesterday saying, "It will be a cold, snowy day in hell before we let Democrats pass a ski tax." Plainfield Democratic Rep. Lee Oxenham is a co-sponsor.
If you like Daybreak and want to help it keep going, here's how:
GOT PLANS?
. The Ethiopian-born novelist signaled her ambition with her first novel,
Beneath the Lion's Gaze
, about the last days of Haile Selassie's six-decade rule as emperor of the only African nation never to submit to colonialism. Her new novel,
The Shadow King
, is a precursor and an exploration of women at war—in this case, the Italian invasion of Ethiopia in 1935—and the story of one woman in particular, Hirut, "as indelible and compelling a hero as any I’ve read in years," per Namwali Serpeli in the
NYT
. Sanborn Library at 4:30.
It's the new season of the VT Center for Ecostudies' monthly gatherings, where you grab a beer and get to hear experts in the natural world describe their research. They're starting off with Roger Pasquier, an ornithologist at NYC's American Museum of Natural History, who'll be talking about birds in winter and how they survive this most challenging season. At the Norwich Inn, starting at 7.
Under conductor Nicholas McGegan, the PBO has become a force in the period-instrument world. He once said that when he took over in 1985 "it was...a cross between a chamber group and a Quaker meeting: 'The spirit moves me to play a B flat here rather than a B natural...' As its first music director, I’d say, 'Well, we can discuss it afterward, but if I say it’s a B flat, it’s a B flat.'" McGegan's retiring, and this tour is his victory lap. Tonight: music of the 17th-century Italian Jewish ghetto, featuring soprano Sherezade Panthaki, an international early-music star. At 7:30.
Okay, time to hit the day. See you tomorrow.
And if you think one or more of your friends would like Daybreak, too, please forward this newsletter and tell them to hit the blue "Subscribe" button below. And thanks! And hey, if you're that friend? So nice to see you! You can subscribe at:
Thank you!