We all have contradictions. I was a child who hated dusting on Saturday. However, I lived in a house with many shelves. Each shelf held many tiny ornaments. Dusting? Bleaagh.Yet household hints and tips? I couldn’t read enough of them. At Star Cleaners, in north central Mass., our family business, heaps of magazines were left […]
Opinion
Family Recipe Box: Custom-baked pies for Pi Day
Who needs a plate if you have a pie? This versatile pastry has accommodated fruit, meat and fish throughout the centuries and there is no sign of pie ever losing its popularity. And with March 14, known as “Pi Day” (as it is 3.14.15 etc.) approaching, we thought our readers might be thinking about pie. […]
Family Recipe Box: Firehouse dining in Fitchburg
In the kitchen at the central Fitchburg Fire Department on North Street, you’ll find a ceiling-mounted rack clustered with large pots, pans, and lids. This hangs above a restaurant-sized aluminum prep table, surrounded by cabinets which hold additional cooking items, including a tureen big enough to bathe a litter of Dalmatian puppies. The one item […]
Editorial: City of Fitchburg, residents in these heroic workers’ debt
How about a warm round of applause for this group of hard-working public employees. By the way, they’d really appreciate that warmth. And please, no jokes about how many workers it takes to change a light bulb. That insulting, hackneyed stereotype of the municipal sector couldn’t be further removed from the harsh reality faced by […]
Editorial: Mass., N.H. govs must follow mayors’ drug-partner steps
A few weeks ago Lowell Mayor Dan Rourke addressed an open letter to New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte on this newspaper’s Opinion page in response to her tweet warning drug dealers from Lawrence and Lowell that law enforcement in her state “will find you, stop you, and lock you up.” While rightly pointing out that […]
Family Recipe Box: Sick of snow? Make some Money’s Cake
Just 48 hours until the big V-Day — if it stops blizzard-ing long enough. If your loved one is hoping for fresh flowers, I’d say get ‘em now. This week, I was reflecting on how Mother Nature has her own “Family Recipe Box” with tried and true formulas such as: snow turning to freezing drizzle, […]