ROUND AND ROUND WE GO

June 27, 2015April 10, 2015 ~ Jnana Hodson ~ 4 Comments

Fair warning, especially when there's no backup. — Fair warning, especially when there’s no backup.

Drivers from other parts of the world are often terrified by New England’s use of traffic circles at busy intersections. We’re not the only people to use them – Washington, D.C., has some of the worst – but they do become landmarks. In New Hampshire, for instance, a set of directions might mention the Portsmouth Traffic Circle, or the one at Epsom or Stratham or Alton or Lee, shown here.

It's when you add traffic that things get fun. — It’s when you add traffic that things get fun.

Other terms for the routing around a central island include “rotaries” and “roundabouts.” What Romans call theirs would be unprintable in a family-friendly blog like this.

EVERYTHING HAS A PRICE?

June 26, 2015June 20, 2015 ~ Jnana Hodson ~ 3 Comments

Driving back from the coast along a rather honky-tonk stretch of highway the other night, my headlights flashed across this sign:

INTEGRITY
— —
FOR SALE

At least, that’s what I think it said. The two blanks, I’m finding, may have said Residential Brokerage.

Still, considering our public life today, the message is disturbing.

How do you read it?

UP NIMBLE HILL

June 20, 2015December 5, 2014 ~ Jnana Hodson ~ Leave a comment

Nimble Hill Road is quite a contrast to the congestion around the mall and big-box stores on the other side of the turnpike.

The town of Newington, just over the bridge on our way to Portsmouth, is easily misunderstood.

With a 2010 population of a mere 753, it often appears to be little more than the Spaulding Turnpike exits to the mall and big-box stores plus a few apartment complexes and a section of the Pease International Tradeport industrial park.

It also has a major electrical generation plant contributing heavily to the property tax base – a major, major factor for any municipality in New Hampshire as it addresses public finances.

The town is also surrounded on three sides by tidewater, including ocean docking on its eastern edge.

But the place was also severely impacted during the Cold War when the U.S. Air Force used eminent domain to acquire 4,255 acres to construct an air base (now turned into the industrial zone) mostly in Newington. The noise of bomber-sized jet planes taking off and landing did little to enhance the neighborhood as a place to live peacefully in those days – the frequent interruptions even forced the grade school to find a quieter setting. After all, its runway, now used by commercial, private, and National Guard flights, is among the longest in New England.

Given those factors, few people would have much incentive to take the Nimble Hill Road exit from the turnpike.

As it turns it, the road presents some classic New England just before culminating in a dead end near the runway. The historic district is a treasure.

Here’s a taste of what you’d see.

The 1725 parsonage includes a salt-box addition as an early renovation.

A cannon is part of the town monuments near the center of the Parade where the militia practiced. More Newington men served in the Siege of Louisburg (13) and War of 1812 (12) than in World War I. The background includes the well-funded library and 1712 meeting house, said to be the oldest in New Hampshire. (Hope they mean oldest in continuous use, since I know of two Quaker meetinghouses that are now private residences.)

The elementary school fell victim to loud noise from Air Force bombers.

The 1872 Old Town Hall once also housed the school.

CIVIC PRIDE

June 16, 2015April 10, 2015 ~ Jnana Hodson ~ 1 Comment

As municipalities emerged in the 19th century, the populace often took pride in the local identity – and this was reflected in the craftsmanship and details adorning their public buildings.

Dover's old waterworks. — Dover’s old waterworks.

Stained glass windows in what was the high school's chemistry lab. It's now a community center. — Stained glass windows in what was the high school’s chemistry lab. It’s now a community center.

Don't forget the central firehouse. — Don’t forget the central firehouse.

A TYPICAL TRAILHEAD

June 13, 2015April 10, 2015 ~ Jnana Hodson ~ 6 Comments

Starting off on a mountain hike in New Hampshire often looks like this. The trails are often marked by color blazes, in this case, blue.

CRACKLING IN OUR AIR

June 12, 2015June 2, 2015 ~ Jnana Hodson ~ 3 Comments

In blogging here, I’ve generally tried to steer clear of current events, as in political and economic news. Even my reflections on the weather have been, I hope, along a larger or more timeless horizon than mere day-to-day changes. Think of watching the grass grow.

But I do live in New Hampshire, and the campaigns for the November 8, 2016, presidential election are already generating daily front-page headlines here. Remember, that’s nearly a year-and-a-half away.

The primary is tentatively set for February 9, but that could move up, depending. We hate when it clashes with Christmas.

The point is, politics is already crackling in our air. How can I possibly avoid it?

HIGH STREET STYLE

June 11, 2015April 10, 2015 ~ Jnana Hodson ~ 1 Comment

Situated at the mouth of the Merrimack River, Newburyport, Massachusetts, has a historic harbor and charming brick downtown – one that echoes many others in New England, for that matter. Its residential neighborhoods are likewise filled with a range of fascinating details from many historic styles. But for me, the real glory is High Street, built at the height of the lucrative whale oil business. Interspersed among the dominant federal-style houses are some other fine examples. Here’s a sampling.

Lingering Georgian, without many of the distinctive details.

Greek Revival Temple, here a former church converted to private residence. It has an attached matching garage.

Georgian "Colonial" Revival — Georgian “Colonial” Revival

FEDERAL ROW

June 10, 2015April 10, 2015 ~ Jnana Hodson ~ 1 Comment

The federal style of architecture flourished from the 1780s into the 1820s, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a finer sampling of it than in Newburyport, Massachusetts – especially along High Street. Here are a few examples.

YET ANOTHER SCANDAL

June 8, 2015June 2, 2015 ~ Jnana Hodson ~ 2 Comments

Growing up, many of us were instructed that the Fourth Commandment, “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain,” was a prohibition against using certain curse words, not all of them confined to four letters.

But that misses a much larger situation: those who arrogantly claim to know or do what God wants, even when that harms others or runs counter to Scripture.

Faithful action, from all I’ve seen, requires humility and compassion. As humans, any of us can be wrong or fail, especially when we mistake our egos for divine guidance.

Newer translations of Exodus 20:7, I sense, capture this difference by using “misuse” instead: “You shall not misuse the name of Yahweh your God, for Yahweh will not leave unpunished anyone who misuses his name” (New Jerusalem Bible). The New International version, meanwhile, finishes the line with “not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.”

Everett Fox, in his close-to-the-grain rendering, presents the passage this way: “You are not to take up the name of YHWH your God for emptiness, for YHWH will not clear him that takes up his name for emptiness.” In a footnote, Fox explains “take up … for emptiness” as “Use for a false purpose.”

I can’t help but think of this in light of the continuing news reports involving the cablevision series 19 Kids and Counting.

We’ve heard their lines of argument.

Now listen for the “will not leave unpunished” part of the commandment. Who’s standing up for the alleged victims? And where’s the true, full submission in place of arrogance? Let the tables turn rightly.

For now, the words fly. And fly. Can we ask how many are empty?

ANOTHER REPRESENTATIVE SCANDAL

June 5, 2015June 4, 2015 ~ Jnana Hodson ~ 2 Comments

Even his own mother and sister are rejecting his claims about the money.

Frank Guinta, who represents half of New Hampshire in the U.S. House of Representatives, is in hot water over $355,000 an investigation by the Federal Election Commission has documented as campaign finance violations.

How serious is this? His explanations from 2010 on have been tangled, leading to Tuesday’s damning FEC report.

As for serious, the right-wing editorial page of the Union Leader, the statewide newspaper based in Manchester, came to the conclusion yesterday: “For the New Hampshire Republican Party, there also remains no choice. It must call for Guinta’s resignation and sever its ties.”

Quite simply, he “received illegal campaign contributions … for the purpose of stealing a Republican primary and a general election, then repeatedly lied to the people of New Hampshire to cover it up.”

In other words, it’s about maintaining the viability of democracy. Both sides of the aisle. And it’s about serving the voting public, regardless of their identity. Without that, we’re left with raw power — and its abuse.

The editorial emphasizes, “The party cannot stand by a politician who has revealed himself to be wholly unworthy of the public trust. Political parties are supposed to stand for ideals, not merely tribal connections. … The party can either lead by integrity or it can stand by Frank Guinta. It cannot do both.”

This is a small state where you often get to meet or question your public representatives. Even when you don’t agree with them, they’re not from another planet, as it can feel elsewhere.

In this case, Guinta serves from my House district. And it hurts.

INTEGRITY — — FOR SALE

INTEGRITY
— —
FOR SALE