Mark MacKenzie, the state's AFL-CIO president, yesterday told Rep. JR Hoell of Dunbarton to give him a break. Repeal the law requiring half-hour lunch breaks for employees after five straight hours of work? Trust all bosses to do the right thing, all the time? MacKenzie, who once fought fires and now fights for workers' rights, said pass the salad, not this bill. "Quite…
February 8, 2012
Super Bowl XLVI
There is no football redemption for New England. Rather than erase the memories of the last Super Bowl loss to the Giants, last night's loss served up painfully familiar reminders for the Patriots. They had a chance to push themselves to the top of the "greatest ever" debate. Instead, their legacy took…
February 6, 2012
Skiers, snowmobile riders and other snow lovers may be unhappy, but the lack of snow this winter is more than a disappointment for some creatures that depend on snow for their survival. Small mammals such as mice, voles, shrews and weasels use an area under the snow called the subnivean zone to provide insulation,…
February 5, 2012
When I made a date to talk with Russell "Pud" Ellsworth, age 102, I assumed that I'd be meeting with an enfeebled old man. How wrong I was! "Pud," as his son Bruce introduced me, is far from feeble. Tall, slender and looking quite fit in a red and gray wool plaid shirt, Pud has a nice sense of humor and lots of stories to tell that go back an amazing 100 years. Pud grew up in Penacook…
February 5, 2012
Worried about bullies? With bully-related tragedies making headlines and research revealing the deep and lasting effects of what some educators used to dismiss as normal childhood mischief, most parents are at least mildly concerned that their children are or could be victims. But what if there's a bully living under your own roof? The truth is, not every kid can be an innocent…
February 5, 2012
Guns, guns, guns! For all, everywhere! Including felons! In parks! And let's hear it for the Magna Carta! And Bible study! Ax the tax, any tax! And have I mentioned guns? At times, listening to our esteemed legislators, we can only laugh and hope that, as some longtime State House observers opine, many of them are unlikely to survive the November election. One particularly hopes…
February 5, 2012
Francis LaClair reacted with eyebrows rising and questions flying. Who is Thierry Maquet? Why is he writing me from Belgium? How does he know my father, Nelson J. LaClair? How in the world - or in Europe - did he find me? Is this a hoax? Thankfully, Francis LaClair, who turned 91 yesterday, can use the internet. He…
January 29, 2012
Has anyone noticed that nowadays flights to almost anywhere are almost always less expensive out of Boston than out of Manchester? This is a sad state of affairs. I've always considered Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, well, my airport - small enough to navigate easily, a quick 25 minutes from our house in Bow, plenty of services and comfort. But when Bud and I have to pay an…
January 29, 2012
How do you want to be remembered? Let's face it, this is probably not the most pressing question on the average parent's agenda. What's for dinner? Where's my jacket/retainer/water bottle/hamster? Why can't I get a cell phone? What's a lesbian? These are the sorts of inquiries that rule our days. In the back of our minds, though, we know where all of this…
January 29, 2012
Second Take
Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar appeared on Broadway in 1971. It was a rock opera built loosely around the last week of the life of Christ as told in the Gospels. It spawned performances throughout the decade, from students doing shadow plays on a white sheet to full performances across the country.…
January 28, 2012
His last name was McKillip, but at our Long Island school we called him McKiller. It was the more fitting name for a 12-year-old who'd punch you because he disagreed with you. Heck, he'd punch you if you looked at him funny. McKiller was a beanpole with a nasty right hook. If you nailed a jump shot over McKiller,…
January 26, 2012
Money, money, money Must be funny In the rich man's world Money, money, money Always sunny In the rich man's world ABBA's wonderful ditty may well be the theme song of the 2012 presidential election. The Great Recession and its attendant woes have focused sharp attention on the yawning gulf between those at the top of the American economic ladder and those below. As…
January 22, 2012
Suspenders. I'm standing among rocks encrusted in thick rime ice on the tallest peak in New England, the wind whipping against my body, and I can see the Atlantic Ocean in the distance. Turning around, I spy distant lakes (Winnipesauke and Sebago), ski mountains (Gunstock, Attitash, Wildcat and Shawnee Peak, to…
January 22, 2012
Concord
Hey, how do you weasel out of a traffic ticket in Concord? Call Dick Patten. Ba-dum, tch! Ticket-gate doesn't pack the wallop of burglars breaking into national Democratic headquarters, and it's not the stuff of a late-night monologue. But customers at South Street Market still tossed it around while sipping…
January 16, 2012
