Worcester Magazine January 14 - 20, 2022

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Featured ..............................................................................4 City Voices ..........................................................................8 Cover Story .......................................................................11 Next Draft .........................................................................17 Screen Time .....................................................................20 Listen Up ...........................................................................21 Adoption Option.............................................................24 Classifi eds ........................................................................25 Games................................................................................26 Last Call.............................................................................27

On the cover Snow is mounting on Turtle Boy, the Burnside Fountain on Worcester Common, in a past winter.

FILE PHOTO

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4 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

FEATURED

COVID surge leads to more canceled shows Richard Duckett Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

On Jan. 4, Eric Jacobsen, conductor and co-artistic director of The Knights orchestral ensemble, was looking forward to a January tour with acclaimed guest jazz pianist Aaron Diehl that would bring them to Mechanics Hall on Jan. 14 for a concert presented by Music Worcester.

“As far as I know, it’s going to happen. I’m really hoping,” Jacobsen said during a telephone interview that day about the Worcester concert.

A shadow over the conversation was the geometric rise of cases of COVID-19 caused by the Omicron variant, leading to concerts getting postponed again nationally and locally.

Even the Grammy Awards, scheduled for Jan. 31, have been postponed for a second year.

However, Jacobsen wanted to keep going with the good feelings and connections he’d been experiencing since returning to the concert stage this past summer.

“These concerts should happen, and we’re looking forward to it,” he said.

Music Worcester said it would also be adding a live stream option for Jan. 14 with the approval of The Knights.

Two days later on Jan. 6 The Knights canceled the concert — understandably not wanting to take on the tour due to the current rise in COVID cases. Music Worcester said it hopes to reschedule.

Meanwhile, Jan. 6 also brought the news that the Jan. 16 date for the national touring percussion show “STOMP” at The Hanover Theatre and Conservatory for the Performing

Pianist Aaron Diehl.

MARIA JARZYNA

Amy Lee of Evanescence, left, and Lzzy Hale of Halestorm.

MARK HUMPHREY/AP

Arts was being postponed due to a breakthrough COVID case within the touring company.

That performance will be rescheduled at a date to be announced, The Hanover Theatre said.

Such has been the recent daily drama for concerts, shows and events.

On Nov. 30, the United States designated Omicron as a Variant of Concern. On Dec. 1 the fi rst confi rmed U.S. case of Omicron was identifi ed.

On Dec. 8 Amy Lee and Lzzy Hale were excitedly talking on the phone about the upcoming Dec. 18 date at the DCU Center for their respective hard rock

heavy metal bands Evanescence and Halestorm.

All had seemed well.

Then fi ve days later on Dec. 13 it was announced that due to multiple COVID-19 cases within the touring party, the DCU Center show has been postponed to Jan. 20.

Lee said in an announcement: “We’ve done everything we could to try and make it

work but with multiple positive COVID tests in our touring party it just wouldn’t be right to continue the show schedule as is. All the bands and crew have been so diligent with every precaution to keep this from happening but this virus is a real bitch! We are all vaccinated and nobody’s symptoms are severe, See SHOWS, Page 5

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 5

A production of “STOMP” scheduled for The Hanover Theatre Jan. 16 has been postponed.

PROMOTIONAL PHOTO

Twiddle had to postpone its New Year's Eve at the Palladium.

Shows Continued from Page 4

we are very grateful for that.”

Other December casualties included Twiddle’s New Year’s Eve show at The Palladium.

The Delta and Omicron COVID variants can both claim responsibility for putting the brakes on shows just as the entertainment scene looked as if it was getting back up on its feet. However, the very infectious nature of Omicron has sounded some very loud alarm bells even if it has apparently less serious outcomes among people infected who are vaccinated.

For host venues such as The Hanover Theatre and Conservatory for the Performing Arts and the JMAC, it has been a case of working with the presenters of the shows on a “show by show basis.”

“We’re watching and waiting to see how things evolve,” said Troy Siebels, president and CEO of The Hanover Theatre.

The family show “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Live!

Neighbor Day,” which had originally been on the calendar at The Hanover Theatre for Jan. 21, has been rescheduled to May 10, Siebels said.

“Several events scheduled for January have been postponed at the request of their presenters. We support and work with each presenter who chooses to postpone their engagements due to COVID,” said Olivia Scanlon, managing director of the BrickBox Theater at the JMAC. Due to some of its candidates contacting COVID, The Miss Worcester County Scholarship Organization said on its Facebook page that it had postponed its competition from Jan. 8 to Feb 13 at the BrickBox. The Worcester Chamber

Music Society said that because of the COVID surge it was postponing its Spotlight Concert at the Brickbox featuring cellist Joshua Gordon and pianist Randall Hodgkinson from Jan. 16 to to March 4.

Similarly, 4th Wall Stage Co. postponed its run of “If I Forget” from Jan. 27 to a new time TBD at the Brickbox.

The Hanover Theatre’s production of “A Christmas Carol” last month did complete its full run in returning to the stage after a year’s absence. (In 2020, “A Christmas Carol Reimagined” was presented by the new THT Rep and fi lmed at the BrickBox Theater where it was screened and the show was also available online.)

Attendance for “A Christmas Carol” this year was 20 percent down compared to some other years pre-pandemic, “but I think in this climate I count it a win,” Siebels said.

“It felt successful, particu-

DAVE DECRESCENTE

larly with the artistic choices.”

The Hanover Theatre is requiring proof of vaccinations or a negative COVID test and the wearing of masks at the shows it hosts, and all staff are vaccinated.

“I feel we’re in a new normal of being able to keep safe,” Siebels said. “We’re trying to do the most responsible thing.”

Siebels said he doesn’t see a situation “like it’s going to be a blanket closure” of venues again.

On the other hand, “it’s not going to go away,” he said of COVID. There are several shows and events scheduled for The Hanover Theatre and the JMAC in February.

Adrien C. Finlay, executive director of Music Worcester, said the Polish Baltic Philharmonic scheduled for Feb. 3 in Mechanics Hall “is still on at

this time.”

So too was Evanescence and Halestorm at the time of writing this story.

In her announcement, Lee had said, “This tour has been an unforgettable experience that we are so proud of. From the production, to our fantastic crew, to Halestorm and Lilith Czar and PLUSH — and most of all, to you. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts to you incredible fans for making this dream a reality, and making it mean so much more than we ever imagined it could. Thank you for your understanding. We love you!”

The shows will go on — sooner or later.

Barbara Guertin, who is directing 4th Wall’s “If I Forget,” said that at a recent cast meeting the message was “everyone wants to move forward.”

Stay tuned.

6 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Worcester’s new Youth Poet Laureate Franscisco-Mejia talks his big plans Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

On Jan. 3, Adael FranciscoMejia gave his fi rst recital as Worcester’s new Youth Poet Laureate for the 2022 City Council, School Committee and Mayoral inauguration at Mechanic’s Hall. Though Francisco-Mejia, 19, was unable to attend in person, his performance recorded earlier that day clearly displayed the energy he will bring to the post over the next two years as an advocate for not only poetry but the arts in general.

“Worcester needs a louder scene,” said Francisco-Mejia, “and I want to collaborate with artists to put us on the map.”

His stated goal is to make poetry performances more accessible, creating more avenues for Worcester youth to express themselves creatively, such as open mic nights and talent shows. “Worcester has a lot of gems,” he said, “and they deserve to be seen.”

Juan Matos, who as the current Poet Laureate is on the selection committee for the YPL, agrees that the amount of talent to choose from made for a diffi cult selection. So much so that he hopes to follow up with the other participants, in collaboration with the Worcester Public Library, to form a youth poetry workshop. “To guarantee that every year we get more and more participants.”

Growing the youth poetry scene naturally falls under the responsibility of the YPL. “I view the role as crucial,” said former YPL Amina Mohammed, who held the post from January 2020 to December 2021. “Being a teenager is hard.

You’re pushed into the world without any blueprint or any-

thing, while adjusting to norms because people see you as a young adult,” she said. Creative expression can provide a vital outlet for an often tumultuous time in a young person’s life — “something to fall back on, to release all that stress that is held within.”

Mohammed speaks from experience, explaining that poetry has been and will continue to be a touchstone throughout her life as she fi nishes college. She is currently majoring in nursing at UMass Lowell. Looking back on her time as YPL, she said, “it’s been a roller coaster but I’m so grateful and enjoyed the opportunity” to advocate for art in Worcester youth.

Art, particularly singing and dancing, has always been a big part of Francisco-Mejia’s life.

“Being from Puerto Rico, there was an atmosphere in my family that was like no other when the music was playing,” said Francisco-Mejia. “It was dance music to get you moving.”

Those memories infl uence his poses and stances when performing to this day. His fi rst performance he remembers was a cover of the Justin Bieber and Jaden Smith song, “Never Say Never” at 6 years old. He would go on to study diverse hobbies such as theater, karate, football, dance, musicals, and multiple instruments. “I love the performance,” he said. “I love making people laugh but if I can make you cry, that’s cool too.”

Eighth grade was when he began focusing on poetry and songwriting as his primary medium. “I was going through a lot — moving and just a lot of teenager problems and I needed a voice or outlet,” he said. While sports, specifi cally football, See POET, Page 7

Adael Francisco-Mejia. CITY OF WORCESTER

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 7

POETRY TOWN

‘Pockets’ Tony Brown Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

I keep dead friends in my pockets: so many people minimized. They pinch my hands when I reach for my keys. They tap out regrets on my thighs when I do not expect it. I stop in mid-stride on busy sidewalks and try to decipher the messages — dear me, so many. Names I’d tried to forget but it’s such a crowd now, worse in winter when they surge into all of my coats and some even hang off my scarves, swinging free in blizzard wind when it blew and covering up when it is still and cold.

I wish they were still and cold as well but there they are among gum wrappers saved for the trash, straddling the Swiss Army knife as they wait for my hand to appear.

Dead friends, so many, how difficult to hold them at arms’ length when they are there all the time tugging at me, staying warm while I stay cold and wishing they’d stop, leave, go where they have always belonged and stay there. Leave my pockets alone, old chums.

Empty them and go.

All that’s in there now is your dark mess and I do not wish to carry it for you.

Tony Brown is a Worcester poet and the frontman of the Duende Project.

Worcester’s poet laureate, Juan Matos, and now former youth poet laureate Amina Mohammed.

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helped somewhat, “I always liked to express myself mentally more than physically.”

The art scene isn’t the only thing that Francisco-Mejia wants to expand in his city. He hopes to use this position to achieve a platform to eff ect wider change in Worcester, particularly the school system and the students who sometimes fall through the cracks.

“I know a lot of children in alternative schools and in mental health programs that deserve more than what was given to them in the school system,” he said. “There are things that need to be fi xed and I want to be that person to fi x it.”

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Spending the holidays with family behind bars Frankie Franco Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Receiving a letter or a phone call from a loved one who’s incarcerated is bittersweet.

Sweet, because you know they’re alive and doing as well as they can be. Bitter, because it reminds you of where they are and the pain of not being able to hug them. Letters, phone calls and visits are what a family has to speak with their loved ones. At the time I was writing two letters, one to my older brother and one to my younger brother. Both were incarcerated at the same time at Worcester House of Correction. Double the letters and double the pain. My older

brother growing up was the person I wanted to be, while I shared a room with my annoying younger brother. Due to personal decisions and the many factors that impact lowincome families of color, led both of my brothers to be locked up and it’s always around the holidays that their presence is missed most.

Visits at Worcester House of Correction are only about an hour long and scheduled twothree times a week. My mother and I went together most of the time to see both my brothers.

Everyone must be searched before entering the visiting room and follow a strict dress code. No sweatpants, no See FRANCO, Page 9

A 3-D mural on the side of the Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts by Greek artist Insane 51, with 3-D glasses installed by Michael D’Angelo. TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF/VICTOR D. INFANTE

A fresh look at some downtown discoveries Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Having stopped for lunch at the Theatre Café Thursday while meandering around the city, I decided to walk around the corner and look at the 3-D mural on the side of The Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts. I’ve done it before, of course, but it had been a few months. The mural is by Greek artist Insane 51, and if you look at it through a pair of 3-D glasses, it looks diff erent depending on whether you’re looking at the red or the blue lens.

Better still, there is a giant pair of 3-D glasses mounted on the fence, which makes the experience amazing, being able to easily see the mural’s transformation from lens to lens. A young man in a hoodie saw me, and asked what I was doing. I told him to look through the lenses, and he exclaimed out loud in surprise at what he saw. A cop on the other side of the street saw us and said, “Have you never seen this before?” The young guy hadn’t. A guy in a suit and tie who was parking his car heard the conversation, and stopped to take a look himself. He, too, exclaimed out loud.

The glasses are just one of numerous little things that make Worcester an awesome place to live. And I say live, because most of these things, you have to spend some time here to fi nd. You can drive by that mural every day and never realize there are a pair of giant glasses there that transform the experience. As I was talking about the mural and the glasses with its new admirers, it occurred to me that the glasses had actually been installed later than the mural, but I couldn’t remember when.

As I often do in these situaSee DOWNTOWN, Page 10

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 9

Franco

Inmates walk outdoors at the Worcester County Jail and House of Correction. T&G FILE PHOTO/CHRISTINE PETERSON

Continued from Page 8

jewelry, no hair-buns. Sometimes the rules changed and my mother would have to go back to the car and change. One week is no hair-buns and the next would be no loose-hair.

She wanted to look pretty in front of her sons.

Once we passed the search, we’re allowed into the visiting room. It’s a row of chairs in a fl uorescent lit grungy room. In front of each chair is a window and a payphone. All visits regardless of the crime is through a payphone, so no long hugs or any physical touch. Before sitting, my mother would go to the bathroom and use a wet paper towel to clean the payphone, “we know they don’t clean it right,” she would say. We wait for about fi ve minutes and out they come, a group of inmates rushing to see who came to visit. Sitting next to my mom we each would have our own payphone. Then they appear, my brothers wearing matching dingy inmate clothes with big smiles on their faces, ecstatic to see my mom and I. Whoever got to my mom’s phone will be the fi rst to speak with her and I was the backup. We picked up the phone and they always asked us “how are you doing?”

Any updates about our lives or news of the outside world provided an escape from their current reality. I shared anything I could think of to entertain them and so would my mom. The room fi lled with all the mumble of conversations between inmates and their loved ones. We switched seats mid-conversation at times to explain a story or a joke. Both my brothers laughed and their funny stories made my mom and I laugh. We avoided any tragic/bad news because seeing them like this was painful enough. Next thing you know a guard will yell out “fi ve minutes!” It was time to wrap up our stories as fast as possible, say our love, when’s the next

time we visit, they will call, or we will write. Our goodbyes meant me putting my fi st on the glass and my mom’s palm on the glass. My brothers on their end will do the same and that’s as close we get to touching. On the way out, my mom would either look happy after our visits or she would break down crying for having to see her sons like this. Then the cycle will continue, even on the holidays.

I wrote this piece in honor of the families having to experience this on the holidays.

Though their loved ones are behind bars, they are not forgotten. Also, I want to acknowledge the strength it takes to support those behind bars. My older brother is free, but my little brother is not. I love you little bro and soon we will be able to hug again and spend quality time together not through a phone or express our love not through letters.

Frankie Franco is a youth worker, community organizer and longtime Worcester resident.

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Downtown Continued from Page 8

tions, I called up Nikki Erskine, of Worcester’s Cultural Development Division and Worcester Cultural Coalition, to see if she knew the answer. She had it in moments: They were installed in April of last year by Michael D’Angelo. She also confi rmed that the mural itself came in with Pow! Wow! Worcester in 2018.

I asked her where she was looking that up, and she pointed me to the website http:// www.worcesterma.gov/cultural-development/cultural-projects/public-art, an interactive map of public art in the city, including murals, statues and installations. In hindsight, I think someone had mentioned it before, but I had never looked at it, and had no idea how fun it was to use, especially if you want a free, outdoor activity while COVID is making indoor activities dicey. It’s an exciting tool, one which, in hindsight, deserves more exposure. But it’s that little irony of being a great little hidden gem that makes the site itself very … well … Worcester. This city is full of tiny, enormously cool details that are delightful when you fi nd them.

I’d found many cool little things I’d either not noticed or not looked closely at before on this particular meander, including the lovely white “Esther Howland Bench,” outside City Hall, and right near it, the Little Free Library, but on this trip, the most personally interesting gem had a tie to my past at the Telegram & Gazette.

When the T&G was on Franklin Street, one of the windows in my offi ce looked down on Allen Court Alley, which I did not know had a name until today, and pretty much the only thing that happened there was inebriated fi ghts and drug deals.

Now, there’s an amazing neon art installation there.

Still, it occurred to me that I had never actually walked

Beautifully stylized metalwork by Randal Meraki. TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF/VICTOR D. INFANTE

The “Esther Howland Bench,” outside City Hall.

The Little Free Library outside Worcester City Hall.

TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF/VICTOR D. INFANTE

TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF/VICTOR D. INFANTE

down that alley, in large part due to my previous knowledge of what occurred there, so I decided to go ahead and do it. It is pretty much just an alley when the neon’s not lit. Still, I was

struck by the details on the ramp access into what was once the old T&G building. The metalwork was meticulously, beautifully stylized. Erskine informed me that it was built and

designed by Randal Meraki, of the WorcShop and Eternity Ironworks. I think Meraki had mentioned it once when I talked to him for a story, but it’s diff erent seeing it in person. It’s

gorgeous, and it’s in a place where few would ever see it, indeed, where most people are even reluctant to look. If that doesn’t scream Worcester, I don’t know what does.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 11

COVER STORY

A line of plows attacks the snow on Franklin Street, beside Worcester City Hall, in an earlier winter. T&G FILE PHOTO/GEORGE BARNES

LET IT SNOW?

Winters in New England are getting warmer ... what does that mean?

Continued on next page Continued on next page

12 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

“We definitely see a strong trend towards warmer winters across the Northeast — the winter climate is warming more than any other season here.”

Alison Dunn,

professor and chair of the Department of Earth, Environment and Physics at Worcester State University

“Usually the fi sh bite better during a storm,” says William Celco Jr. of Woodstock, Connecticut, while fi shing on Quaboag Pond in Brookfi eld. T&G FILE PHOTO/TOM RETTIG Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

Ed Carr knew something was diff erent. After 24 years away from southern New Hampshire, where he grew up, for college and work, he was back in New England. And there was an unmistakable change in the weather. Particularly winter. h Most readers will be familiar with the feeling that winters have changed over the years. It’s easy to write off that feeling of seeing more snow when we were kids as simple childhood nostalgia, but it turns out our memories may not be playing tricks on us after all. Especially this year when till Jan. 6, we had rain puddles where there should have been snow drifts or at least a coating of the white stuff . Sometimes, getting people to believe in climate change is as simple as looking out the window.

Carr, who is director of International Development, Community and Environment at Clark University and one of the lead authors of the upcoming Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report due out in February, began charting the changes. His observations? The month of December is now 5 degrees warmer than it was when he was growing up. His reaction?

“Nuts, absolutely bonkers to have that degree of change in that short a time.” Which explains why the ground doesn’t freeze as much and why more often than not, rain replaces snow.

“We defi nitely see a strong trend towards warmer winters across the Northeast — the winter climate is warming more than any other

season here,” said Alison Dunn, professor and chair of the Department of Earth, Environment and Physics at Worcester State University. In fact, according to Dunn, who teaches a climate change class, of the top 10 warmest winters, fi ve of them took place in the 2000s, and it is a really clear signal that the average temperature is increasing in the winter times. While December is not traditionally one of the snowier months in Worcester, the typical snowfall is usually 12.7 inches. The past month was only 2.1 inches.

Lauren Rodhermich, Worcester resident, hiker and outdoorswoman, also remembers there being more snow on the ground for more days when she was growing up. “In terms of

winter activities, skiing, winter hiking, snowshoeing — you need snow — and even up north it seems less than usual.” She observed that after a snowfall, it warms up and melts immediately so even if we get snow storms it doesn’t stick around, and it is gone within a week.

Snowfall amounts, however, on average, are actually not decreasing through the whole winter, even if snow doesn’t remain on the ground for long. The early months of 2015 saw the highest snowfall on record but that skews the average. So not only were the top fi ve warmest winters in the 2000s, the top four snowiest years See SNOW, Page 13

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 13

Alison Dunn, professor and chair of the Department of Earth, Environment and Physics at Worcester State University. KRISTEN LECLAIR

Snow Continued from Page 12

were also in the 2000s. Dunn explained that dichotomy: “Warmer atmospheric conditions can create more moisture and more snowfall produced by this juiced up atmosphere — an intensifi cation of the water cycle.”

So when is the snow falling?

Not as much in December and more so in January and February, which are more stable, but even in March. Both Carr and Dunn acknowledged that warming temperatures make sense for more snow since warmer air carries more moisture. Carr explained that, “while still below freezing, if the temperature rises even from 25 degrees to 29 degrees, it can precipitate more.” This can be very confusing for people who won’t believe that more snowfall actually means warming temperatures, but that’s how it works, he said.

Winter hiking is a unique experience but that depends on snow, Rodhermich said. Mountain trails are transformed as

A woman shovels snow from her walkway on Jan. 7. There’s still snow in winter, obviously, but Worcester’s not getting as much as in years past. ALLAN JUNG/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

the snow makes a nice fi rm path over the roots and rocks.

Unfortunately without the snow, the rain and sleet creates a wet, slippery obstacle course — “just a lot more dangerous and not as much fun.” Specifi cally, the White Mountains have a lot of rocks so one needs a couple of feet of snow to get around them.

Dunn explained why that is happening. By the end of the 20th century, there were between 19 and 40 fewer days when temperatures were below freezing, and we have lost 36 days of snowpack since 1965.

Climate change, she said, “means a lot of diff erent things, but the main observable eff ects are fewer days of snowpack despite increased snowfall because snow melts faster due to

higher temperatures.” The data show consistent warming and the minimum temperatures are increasing the most — so winters and nighttime lows are not what they used to be.

The loss of snow cover in turn contributes to overall higher temperatures. Snow and ice, being light colored surfaces, have a high albedo (a surface’s ability to refl ect sunlight). As the snow cover decreases, more solar radiation is absorbed, leading to overall warming. This in turn leads to less snowpack in a self-perpetuating cycle.

Colin James Novick, Worcester resident and executive director of Greater Worcester Land Trust, makes it clear that winter sports enthusiasts stand to lose a great deal. With

warming winters and less snowpack, ice fi shing, snowshoeing, ice skating on ponds and lakes, cross country skiing (it’s hard to make snow on anything other than a mountain slope), snowmobiling, sledding, and ice boating out on Indian Lake will be badly aff ected. “They won’t all go away at once, I know,” he said “but it all becomes more rare, more of an event, and more of an exception and not just our normal way of winter life.”

Another winter pleasure that Novick looks forward to, “that magic of walking on water. One can walk around Cook’s Pond all year, and then, as if by magic, as the deep cold sets in, being able to just stroll right across the middle is so unexpectedly wonderful.” That

magical thing should have been possible by now but so far this winter, Novick is still walking around Cook’s Pond rather than across it.

A four-season athlete Justin Raphaelson, said, “Watching the erratic weather going from 47 degrees and raining to 16 degrees and snow showers the next day and back to rain is demoralizing in some sense, because one can’t count on having that seasonal stability.”

Dunn is of the same opinion.

“Greater variability is a marker of a change in the climate system.”

As an ice climber, Raphaelson, who is a Worcester resident, local lawyer and hiker, fi nds he just can’t do it now as See SNOW, Page 14

14 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Snow Continued from Page 13

the ice melts every day due to warm weather and one needs to have below freezing temperature consistently for several days, “which we’re just not getting.”

In addition, Worcester County is a great place to snowshoe due to the minimal elevation gain compared to other parts of New England, but he has been trail running on snow shoeing trails. “As a trail runner, as much as I am disappointed in the lack of snow, it’s been nice to get out on the trails without snow — more practice — but consequences for the planet are something that I keep in the back of my mind with the unseasonably warm weather.”

Rodhermich is of the same mind. “The upside in Worcester County is you can be on the trails all season — been so warm that there is hardly any ice — you can trail run and maybe even trail ride if you’re brave.” She knows that she will probably be chasing the snow.

“If we’re not getting it here we’ll go fi nd it somewhere else — out west to the Rockies.” So right there we have an impact on the winter sports economy in New England.

Backcountry skiing, another winter sport, Raphaelson say, relies on natural snow and one uses adhesive skins on skis and special bindings to hike up using skis, then ski back down.

This year, it has been non-existent at the usual places. “Mt. Garfi eld in New Hampshire is entirely reached by a backwoods trail that can be skied down but requires a base of several feet of snow to cover rocks so has been more dangerous this season.” There is snow at the higher elevations but that carries the risk of avalanches.

“It’s been a total thumbs down this winter,” he says.

“The thing I love about New England is the seasons and the

reliability of being able to ski in the winter and run/rock climb in the summer.” No skiing to be had in the natural areas outside of resorts and even at the resorts, it’s icy and many trails have been closed down because they can only use their snow machines in a few places.

“My understanding,” he said, “is that the resorts’ ability to survive is contingent on their snow-making capabilities because natural snow isn’t as reliable.”

The cascading ripple eff ects of a few warmer days in the winters go far beyond the paucity of winter sports. Dunn reiterated that the environment here has been relatively stable for the last 7,000 years after the ice sheets retreated. But it isn’t anymore. Carr concurred, “crazy that we have more snow in March than December — not how I thought about it as a child.”

The fl ora we have like the maples, oaks, white pines and the fauna that exist are because of the climate we have — what we consider to be the New England landscape depends on this. “Bears, for instance, are usually asleep by Thanksgiving, but friends in western Maine still see them,” said Dunn, as an example of an obvious change in natural cycles.

Even a few degrees change can create ”profound responses in the biosphere” so fl owering plants bloom earlier due to warmer weather but a number of pollinator species track day length. So when the length of daylight remains what it should be in winter but the temperature is warmer, it causes a mismatch between the fl ora and the pollinator species that they depend on.

Dunn has concerns about the impact on food crops and fruit trees and how people may have to shift growing priorities.

“Peaches (which need warmer temperatures) are marginal in central New England during the summer but may be a better option 25 years from now See SNOW, Page 15

Seumas Livotte of Gardner clears snow from the sidewalk along Hope Masonic Lodge in 2019.

T&G FILE PHOTO/RICK CINCLAIR

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 15

Justin Raphaelson, left, and Lauren Rodhermich on a winter hiking trip in snowier times. JUSTIN RAPHAELSON

Snow Continued from Page 14

(when temperatures may be higher).”

Likewise, “sugar maples may not be around in 50 years and retreat farther north,” where it may still be cooler. The famous New England autumn colors may cease to be as showstopping as they have been in the past. “All these things that we take for granted, but leaves cannot undergo the change if the climate warms.”

What does this mean for Worcester? Dunn was clear. “It means fl ooding due to the hydrologic cycle speeding up, it means heavy rain that taxes urban infrastructures, higher summer temperatures will increase demand for air conditioning, leading to greater energy use and air pollution.”

Carr agreed that “the incidence of urban fl ooding is much higher because the drainage system was built for a diff erent precipitation regime and there are more intense rain events than we used to.”

All of this points to very clear evidence of climate change impact in the city.

Carr also recognized that higher summer temperatures cause the urban heat island effect, where cities end up being several degrees warmer than the surrounding countryside.

“Parts of Worcester are experiencing intense heat island effects such as Green Island and Main South. They don’t get hotter but stay hotter longer and don’t cool off in the evening and can stay high enough to be dangerous to vulnerable populations.”

There are other sneakier effects, such as an increase in Lyme disease since the ticks do better in warmer weather, and that has public health eff ects, Dunn said. “Everyone I know has had Lyme disease at least once.”

Carr was optimistic that Worcester would address the issues scientifi cally. “In my limited work with the city so far, I’ve been really pleased with how they’re taking on this issue of climate change — not just how the climate’s shifting but the way it impacts vulnerable people — very progressive and Worcester is really out in front on this.”

Others are more upbeat about the lack of snow, trying to look on the only bright side.

Justin Raphaelson back country skiing, in a season when there was more snow. JUSTIN RAPHAELSON

Peter Morand, Leominster resident, said, “snow is bad for business — if it snows they will cancel work to keep us safe, so no snow means I get to keep my sick and personal days.” But he too laughingly recalled “it defi nitely snowed more out here when I was younger, but snow

was fun then, now it makes my back cry.” Holden resident Dan Dudley was of a similar mindset, saying he’s “just happy I don’t have to shovel as much.”

Despite the grim ramifi cations of the lack of snow in December and what it heralds for the planet, Raphaelson pointed

out something we should all keep in mind. That even if the classic winter sports are lacking the customary snow, “there’s an insane amount of benefi t to being outside during the winter — even if it’s a walk at lunch time. Getting that sun makes all the diff erence.”

16 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

CITY VOICES TABLE HOPPIN’

Chef joins S&S Marketplace to off er high-quality takeout Barbara M. Houle Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

A year ago, Steven Sprague took on the new role of chef manager of The Cookery at S&S Marketplace in West Boylston after spending nine years as executive chef at Harrington Farm, a popular wedding venue in Princeton.

Sprague says he was ready to put his restaurant experience and passion for food to work at S&S, bringing the elements of comfort food and home cooking to the company’s new line of “high-quality, takeout cuisine.”

“I’m beyond grateful for the years I’ve spent in local kitchens,” said Sprague, “but for me personally, I was at the point in life where I needed a change.”

These days, he’s not alone when it comes to chefs looking at new options. For some chefs it might be pandemic fatigue, while others want off the line, said Sprague. Chefs are hardworking, dedicated and passionate about what they do, and they work long hours. It’s not as easy as cooking shows sometimes make it seem, he said. His new gig allows him weekends off and more leisurely time.

Sprague has held stints at Nashoba Valley Winery Restaurant in Bolton (15 years), and in the beginning of his career at Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, and the former Shorah’s Ristorante on Park Avenue in Worcester. Sprague

Chef Steve Sprague, chef manager of The Cookery at S&S Marketplace, holds a smoked beef brisket meal that was special of the day Jan. 7. RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

was employed at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-aLago in the late ‘90s around the time of his graduation from Florida Culinary Institute in West Palm Beach. He recalled preparing food used by Trump and club members on fl ights out of Palm Beach. “I saw Trump come and go but never met him,” said Sprague.

He said he fi rst heard that Josh Bailey, who owns S&S with his wife, Erin Bailey, was looking to hire a chef over the

phone. “I had used S&S as a wholesale supplier and often talked to Josh,” said Sprague.

“We had never met face to face until he told me about the chef position, and I said I was interested and available.”

The Cookery is S&S’s new kitchen that Sprague helped plan. It took six months to build, he said, calling it a chef ’s dream come true. “New equipment, expansive kitchen space fully loaded.”

The Cookery off ers “small

batch, elevated prepared meals” that run the gamut from the popular Lasagna Bolognese to Apple Barbecued Smoked Pulled Pork and Vegan Risotto Stuff ed Peppers. Classic dishes include Chicken Piccata, Chicken Parmigiana, Swedish Meatballs, Oven-Ready Meatloaf, Macaroni and Three Cheese, Crafted Stromboli, Calzone, Stuff ed Pizza, soups and salads. Smoked Beef Brisket was a recent chef ’s special. Fresh Focaccia (garlic Parmesan) is

available every day. Carry-out meals are available in S&S’s deli. So are a couple of Sprague’s desserts. He hinted chocolatecovered strawberries as a romantic dessert for Valentine’s Day. S&S’s owners understand the importance customer feedback plays in a successful business, said Sprague. Chefs like to put new things on their menu but it’s really the customer who dictates it, he said. “It’s about customer satisfaction.”

Sprague doesn’t have to reach far for ingredients. He uses meats from S&S’s Butcher Shoppe (which recently started off ering dry-aged meats) and fresh produce and herbs from the S&S Farm Stand, located across the street from the marketplace. “Everything’s fresh daily,” said Sprague, whose menu is poised to deliver simplicity and variety in meals.

S&S buys from local businesses such as Berlin Orchards in Berlin and Smith’s Country Cheese in Winchendon, and supports local fundraisers, he said.

The chef grew up in Fitchburg and studied culinary arts at Newbury College in Brookline. He recalled his fi rst job in a restaurant was washing dishes, and like other chefs he worked his way up the line to executive chef. His wife, Danielle Sprague, also is a chef and food service manager at Dr. Franklin Perkins School in Lancaster. The couple live in Leominster.

See CHEF, Page 19

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 17

THE NEXT DRAFT

New Year, new beer — clearing out beer fridge of news Matthew Tota Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

I originally wrote my fi rst column of 2022 as a rumination on Dry January, but realized those thoughts wouldn’t fi ll much space.

Suffi ce to say, the end of the year had me toying with the idea of taking a break from drinking alcohol for the month.

Certainly, I’m aiming to a at least limit my consumption in 2022, and there has never been a better time to try more low or non-alcoholic options (more on that next week).

But with Wormtown about to unveil its distillery and Tree House’s mecca in Western Massachusetts opening for pours and pizza, the Patriots return — limping — to the playoff s and so many new beers to try, I opted out of Dry January.

It will still be a month of renewal and refl ection — for my beer fridge, not for myself.

Those overburdened shelves hold too many hold-overs from last year, so it is time again to go through a beer fridge of news and make sure nothing goes out of code.

You know what they say, “New Year, New Beer.”

Tree House back on top for Untappd check-ins Last year, more than 1.3 million people around the world used the beer rating app Untappd to check in — share a brew they drank — some 126 million times.

According to Untappd, our own Tree House Brewing Co. tallied the most check-ins for 2020. Tree House last topped Untappd’s list in 2019. In its history on Untappd, Tree House has racked up 5.45 million check-ins from nearly See DRAFT, Page 19

Stone Cow Brewery is one of 50 breweries collecting plastic can carriers for reuse. Last year saw a noticeable push from the brewing community to reuse the carriers. COURTESY OF STONE COW

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18 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

CONNELL SANDERS

10 tips to declutter your home and your life in 2022 Sarah Connell Sanders Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

When my husband and I purchased our fi rst home, I developed an irrational fear that we would never have enough possessions to keep the place from feeling empty. I was so wrong. Just as Parkinson’s law proclaims, “work expands so as to fi ll the time available for its completion,” so too does junk multiply to fi ll the size of the space.

I have a really hard time throwing things away — a trait inherited from a host of family members who have achieved amateur hoarding status.

Hoarding is typically associated with an indecisive personality or a tragic loss.

Mostly, I blame the little voice in my head that says, “But, what if you need this later?” The result is a closet full of “going-out” dresses I haven’t worn in years and a desk drawer jammed with old tasting menus and birthday cards.

Central Mass. life coach Adriana Keefe helps women like me declutter their lives. Keefe’s work is purposedriven, meaning she aims to determine what lights her clients up and align those interests with their practical lives.

She prides herself in breaking down mental roadblocks and clearing out the physical ones.

Keefe is not here to feed into newyear-new-me resolutions or hashtags.

She wants to help you fi nd lasting change. Here are 10 tips for decluttering your home and your life in 2022: 1 Start by asking yourself, “How do I feel when I walk into my house?” If you are overwhelmed by dirty dishes or resentful of your kids’ toys, try to name and acknowledge those emotions and then envision how you want to feel in a particular space instead. Do you want your bathroom to feel like a clean and refreshing retreat? Remind your body and your brain of that feeling. Your brain can help you to experience the sensations of an old memory almost as clearly as if they were happening.

Channel those feelings and then recreate them.

2 Unless you are someone who starts and fi nishes tasks in one sitting without giving up, don’t dump everything out in the middle of the room. Set

Adriana Keefe is a purpose-driven life coach based out of Central Mass. who specializes in helping women declutter their homes and lives. SUBMITTED PHOTO

a time frame and mark it on your calendar. Five to 10 minutes a day adds up.

Start small with the bathroom by clearing out one drawer at a time. When that room is complete, move on. Reward yourself for the little wins along the way. When you feel good, it keeps the momentum going.

3 Accountability is key, whether it’s to yourself or someone else. Find an accountability buddy who is willing to undergo a similar life change and check in with one another daily or weekly.

4 Cultivate a growth mindset. If you

grew up in a family that was clutterfi lled, you will likely feel an odd sense of comfort in chaotic environments. Remember, clutter leads to depression and burnout, particularly in women.

Encourage your children to partake in routine decluttering sessions alongside you to break the cycle.

5 Change the gift-giving expectations for your family. Ask people to gift your kids experiences rather than toys.

The infl ux of stuff is constant when you have kids. Find new ways to preserve sentimental items. Make a folder in

your phone for pictures of your children’s artwork rather than saving a mountain of fi nger-paintings on the fridge.

6 Consumerism is an addiction. Beware of Marshalls and T.J. Maxx, or whatever your brand of kryptonite might be. You don’t need to avoid them altogether, but take a basket instead of a cart.

7 When you make a purchase, consider the present moment. Ask yourself, “Is this me right now or is this the me I want to become?” For example, if you buy a Peloton with a million accessories and ten pairs of Lululemon bike shorts, but then you try it once and realize you hate cycling — you are going to be left with nothing but clutter. Don’t buy things in hopes of achieving personal growth. Adopt a new set of healthy behaviors fi rst, and then make the appropriate purchases.

8 Decluttering is not the same as Marie Kondo’s minimalism. “I don’t think you should limit yourself to a predetermined number of things; I think you should learn to live simply in a way that feels good to you,” explained Keefe.

9 Society puts women last. Choosing to take care of ourselves can often lead to guilt. Many women feel shame when they complain about the diffi culties of being a mom. Remember: If you put yourself fi rst, then everyone else will be happier because you are happier and you are no longer pouring from an empty cup.

10 Be intentional with your time. “I don’t want to get to the end of my life and wish that I had done anything differently with my job or my kids,” shared Keefe. Lean into gut feelings and intuitions when it comes to living intentionally.

We all know what it’s like to sit down at a workspace that is so messy it practically repels productivity. “Imagine living in that feeling day in and day out,” said Keefe. “Now, think about the postcleaning moment when you feel like you can breathe. That is your future.”

You can learn more about Adriana Keefe at https://www.adrianakeefe.com/ or tune into her show “Women Who Want More” wherever you get your podcasts.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 19

Chef Continued from Page 16

The biggest infl uences in Sprague’s life have been his mother and grandfather. “At a young age I was always curious about what my mother was preparing in the kitchen,” said Sprague. “My grandfather would give me tours of his gardens, and his family-size batches of homemade meatballs or stuff ed grape leaves were often in the slow-cooker.

Those aromas were ingrained in me very early on,” said Sprague, “and I now have his (grandfather) grapevine growing in the backyard.”

Sprague in spare time rides a Harley Davidson with the Leominster Eagle Riders and participates and cooks at local fundraisers. His hobby is “BBQ on the outdoor grill at home.” Sprague is a member of the Les Amis d’ Escoffi er Society, New England Joseph Donon Chapter.

S&S is located at 307 West Boylston St. (Route 12), West Boylston. Visit www.ssmarketplace.com for more in-

formation about hours, The Cookery, Delicatessen, Butcher Shoppe and Farm Stand. Telephone: (508) 835-9989; connect on social media. Custom-catering is available. Note: Bailey bought S&S Farms and Deli in 2008.

I did a little grab and go shopping at S&S after interviewing Sprague, aka Chef SS at The Cookery. I had the bestever Eggplant Parmigiana! Can be eaten with a simple, leafy salad, or enjoyed as a side vegetable dish or appetizer, cut into squares (no gooey mess).

I say, “What’s not to like about a chefinspired carry-out meal?”

Oishi plans move to Main St. Oishi Japanese Restaurant, 8 Franklin St., is closed as owners look to relocate at 422 Main St., Worcester.

“We apologize for any inconvenience and look forward to serving you at our new location,” is the Facebook message.

Customers can expect new menu items when the business reopens. Connect on Facebook, or send email to yummyoishi12@gmail.com.

Draft

The 2022 Regional Environmental Council (REC) Winter Mobile Farmers Market began this week, operating through April.

Fresh and local produce will be brought to indoor locations in Worcester that include the Worcester Youth Center, Green Hill Towers, New England Ghanaian Seventh Day Adventist Church, Coes Pond Village and Elm Park Towers. There also will be a weekly stop on Wednesdays at the Webster Housing Authority in Webster.

Visit www.recworcester.org/farmers-markets for full schedule. All REC markets accept SNAP, Healthy Incentives Program (HIP), WIC, credit and debit cards and cash.

“While we accept all forms of payment at our markets, we are particularly focused on ensuring that there is consistent and safe access for SNAP recipients in Worcester and Webster to use their Healthy Incentives Program Benefi ts,” said Grace Sliwoski, director of programs with REC. “The Healthy Incentives Program

tion and sales,” the Bros. said.

Among the 15 breweries to close was Sturbridge’s Homefi eld Kitchen & Brewery. Owners Jonathan Cook and Suzanne LePage confi rmed back in October they had no plans to renew their lease on their historic 6 Arnold Road space, where they have brewed and cooked for the last six years.

When I reached out to Cook last month about the pair’s plans for Homefi eld’s future, he would only say they hope to “expand our local food footprint in a big way.”

Continued from Page 17

270,000 unique users.

Tree House’s dominance is startling considering it sells most of its beer out of one brewery, even as it added three more sites in 2021. To put that in perspective, Scotland’s BrewDog came in third, despite being a multinational brewery and pub chain with almost 80 bars worldwide.

Tree House turns 10 this year.

Greater focus on reusing plastic beer can carriers

More Mass. breweries closed in 2021 than ever before Fifteen breweries shuttered in 2021, the most ever to close in a single year, according to the Mass. Brew Bros.

The inimitable Brew Bros. also reported that 19 breweries opened in the state, bringing the current total to 214.

The beer news and data site (https://massbrewbros.com) expects that next year and beyond, closings and openings will continue to balance out, calling the trend a “new normal” for the state’s brewing industry.

REC winter farmers markets open

Time to clear out the beer fridge to make way for 2022. MATTHEW TOTA

“By new normal, we mean that while new breweries will continue to open, it seems logical that nearly as many are likely to close because the industry itself isn’t growing much these days, at least not in terms of overall beer produc-

I’ve written in this space before about my disdain for the plastic beer can carriers, how they’re tricky to recycle and often left to collect in a cupboard.

In recent years, though, there has been a noticeable push from the brewing community to reuse the carriers and seek more sustainable alternatives.

Thanks to a state-wide initiative led

by Rob Vandenabeele, founder of EcoFriendlyBeer.com, breweries across New England have been urging customers to bring their carriers in for use

provides up to $80 in monthly rebates for purchases of local produce made with SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). HIP provides a critical resource for families in Massachusetts to stretch their food budgets with fresh fruits and vegetables while supporting our local farmers.”

According to Project Bread, hunger rates in Massachusetts doubled during the pandemic, “rendering a record 19.6 percent of households food insecure at its peak.”

“Ensuring our community members using SNAP have access to local produce through HIP benefi ts is a vital piece of meeting our community’s food security needs,” said Ashley Carter, REC Farmers Market program coordinator.

“The REC markets are one of the few walk-up friendly HIP farmers markets in most of South Worcester County and the only in Worcester during the winter months,” said Carter.

Masks are required to be worn at all REC Markets.

If you have a tidbit for the column, call (508) 868-5282. Send email tobhoulefood@gmail.com.

again.

Vandenabeele estimates that last year alone almost a quarter million carriers — or about 3 tons — were kept out of landfi lls, incinerators and the environment.

“Though diffi cult to calculate precisely,” he said, “it will prevent more than 20,000 pounds of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere and spare wildlife from harm from entanglement or ingestion of microplastics.”

EcoFriendlyBeer has a handy map of the breweries in the state that want your carriers (https://ecofriendlybeer.com).

When I remember to, I typically bring my pesky carriers to Lost Shoe Brewing & Roasting Co. in Marlborough. Stone Cow Brewery in Barre and Greater Good Imperial Brewing Co. in Worcester are two other breweries that take back the carriers, among more than 50 others.

While the can carriers are marketed as 100% recyclable, Vandenabeele said that isn’t entirely true.

“Because they are incompatible with standard curbside recycling programs, the only practical disposal option businesses and consumers have access to, billions of plastic can carriers end up in the waste stream annually,” he said.

20 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

SCREEN TIME

Following in the footsteps of ‘The Night Stalker’ Craig S. Semon Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Earlier this week — Tuesday, Jan. 11, to be precise — marked the 50th year anniversary of the premiere of “The Night Stalker.”

Produced by Dan Curtis (best known for the gothic soap opera “Dark Shadows” and the horror classics “Trilogy of Terror” and “Burnt Off erings,” both starring Karen Black), “The Night Stalker” chronicled the exploits of a seasoned investigative reporter hot on the trail of a modern-day vampire draining the blood out of his unsuspecting victims on the Las Vegas strip.

First airing as part of ABC’s “Tuesday Movie of the Week,” “The Night Stalker” stabbed a stake right in the heart of the Nielsen Ratings, becoming the highest-rated original TV movie on U.S. television up to that point.

“The Night Stalker” was excellent. The teleplay was written by Richard Matheson, the same man who wrote “I Am Legend,” which has been adapted for the screen three times, including “The Last Man on Earth” (with Vincent Price), “The Omega Man” (with Charlton Heston, one of my personal favorites) and “I Am Legend” (with Will Smith). Matheson also wrote “The Twilight Zone” episode “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” (with William Shatner) and “Duel,” which was one of Steven Spielberg’s early directorial triumphs.

The initial success of “The Night Stalker” inspired a TV movie sequel “The Night Strangler” (featuring Richard Anderson as a Civil War Union Army surgeon-turned Jack the Ripper-type serial killer who hides in the Seattle Underground) and a 20-episode series called “Kolchak: The Night Stalker,”

Craig S. Semon cosplays as Carl Kolchak at the NorthEast Comic Con in November.

CHERYL ROSEN PHOTOGRAPHY

which ran on ABC between 1974 and 1975.

Not only has it been cited by Chris Carter as the inspiration behind “The X-Files” (especially in the show’s monster-ofthe-week variety episodes), “The Night Stalker,” more specifi cally, Carl Kolchak (as played by veteran character actor Darren McGavin), was my chief inspiration to become a newspaperman. No kidding.

However, the show was doomed from the start. Not only was it put on the ratings death hour of 10 p.m. Fridays, the premiere episode was pitted against CBS airing for the fi rst-time on television broadcast of Robert Altman’s

“M*A*S*H*.”

You have to realize back in the ‘70s there was no streaming, no Blu-Rays, no DVDs, no VHS, no Beta. HBO was fairly new (launching in November 1972) and fi rst-run movies were usually a year-and-a-half to two years old by the time they got on the premiere premium (and pricy) channel. So back then, a cut-up, commercial-interrupted theatrical movie on television was a big deal.

So that night I was huddled in my room with a portable black-and-white TV the size of a shoebox watching “Kolchak: The Night Stalker” while everyone else in the house was watched Donald Sutherland,

Elliott Gould and Sally Kellerman in the den.

“Kolchak: The Night Stalker” was a good show. Yes, there were a few episodes that were clunkers, but McGavin and company always sold the material, and some of the scripts were top-notch, especially the six co-written by David Chase, the creator of “The Sopranos.”

My favorite of the Chasescripted episodes is the “Zombie” episode, which actually had an underlying mob plot.

Not only was it spooky, it had one of the best pieces of dialogue — a hilarious, three-way conversation with Kolchak talking, in person, to the local coroner (aka Gordy the Ghoul,

play by character actor John Fiedler) at the morgue while talking to his editor Antonio Albert “Tony” Vincenzo (the always great Simon Oakland) on the phone.

However, my favorite scene pops up in “The Ripper” episode when fellow INS reporter Ron Updyke, fi lling in for Kolchak (who has to ghost-write the newspaper’s popular “Miss Emily” advice column), has to do lead on a crime story. In the scene, Updyke (who Kolchak nicknames “Up Tight”) shows his press badge at a crime scene (which happens to be a seedy massage parlor), strolls right in, trips over the victim’s body and excuses himself before he abruptly vomits, totally contaminating the crime scene. This is something that would never happen in real life.

But it wasn’t the horror or the monsters that I liked as much as I liked Kolchak, or should I say, McGavin’s portrayal of the character.

Wearing a blue seersucker suit with a straw porkpie hat, square dark tie and a pair of sneakers (a must to run away from the monsters), McGavin had a look and swagger all his own.

I loved the fact that that Kolchak was a police scanner junkie who often arrived at a crime scene before the police.

I loved that he would go to great, life-risking lengths to uncover the truth of a story, no matter how fantastical and unbelievable and unprintable it sounded.

I loved that he was always equipped with a bulky Sony TC-55 cassette recorder, Rollei 16S Submini camera with a blinding fl ash and interchangeable arsenal of weapons that included crosses, wooden stake with matching mallet, holy water, candles, salt, neeSee ‘STALKER’, Page 22

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 21

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Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

There are times you can be listening to a track on Worcester hip-hop artist Papa Shawn Boo’s latest album, “Almost50,” and you just get caught up in the groove, in the rapper’s innate ability to deliver tight rhymes with a sense of eff ortless cool. Then, there are other times when you listen to the album and you hear something that makes you think, “This is messed up.” There are points on the album which are deeply uncomfortable, but the overall narrative Papa Shawn – who formerly performed as KQAUZ – creates is one of looking back at life as one approaches the age of 50, and taking ownership of both the mistakes he’s made and the trauma which has been infl icted on him. Papa Shawn takes a lot of the narrative of rapper braggadocio, and then upends the tropes, revealing the human mess underneath it all.

It’s not always easy, but it IS effective.

The album begins with the swaggering “I Love That,” which serves as a sort of mission statement for the album: “I went from underdog/to being in charge/that’s how I know there is a God,” he raps.

“I went from behind the bars/ kept in the yard/now I’ve got a job/I love that you discriminate/you think I can’t rehabilitate.” Ultimately, this entire album is about growing up and changing, and that’s what’s il-

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lustrated here: That you’re not a captive of your past. Still, there’s some glee as he shoots down the naysayers, and it’s utterly earned. In a lot of ways, the next song, the battle rapfueled “Challenge,” inverts the prior song’s theme: “I’m almost 50,” he raps, “my lifestyle’s valid.” Then, he has some fun talking smack about newbie rappers coming up behind him, off ering to give them some help: “First class I’ll ask/ See ‘ALMOST50’, Page 22

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22 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

‘Stalker’ Continued from Page 20

dles and thread, incantations and what have you.

And I loved how he bribed coroners for autopsy reports and butted heads regularly with law enforcement authorities and his editor who was always forced to squash the story. The banter was priceless.

Not only did “Kolchak: The Night Stalker” make being a reporter look dangerous and cool, it made me want to become a reporter uncovering the big story, no matter how thankless and Sisyphean the task. You could hold your head up high as you rode out of town (and you would be arrested if you ever returned) after uncovering the truth and stopping an unconceivable evil from killing again, even though no one would ever know or read about it.

I always wanted a true Kolchak moment to call my own. But there are only so many vampires, zombies, werewolves, killer robots, invisible aliens, devil dogs, prehistoric primates, humanoid lizards, witches, medieval knights with anger management issues, headless motorcyclists with axes to grind, succubae and Spanish moss murderers to uncover.

Then, in the summer of 2017, it looked like was going to have my fi rst, fullfl edged Carl Kolchak moment, when the grisly discovery of three dead baby Nigerian Dwarf goats (one in North Brookfi eld and two in West Brookfi eld) put the good, God-fearing people of the Brookfi elds in fear, while the local authorities searched for answers to no avail.

‘Almost50’ Continued from Page 21

’Do you know what a rhyme is?/OK, let’s write it down, kids.”

It’s a good laugh, but things take a turn with what he calls, “the realest (expletive) I ever wrote,” the song “10 Kids 5 Baby Mommas.” It’s hard not to hear the hectoring voice of disapproval in your ear as his persona raps about having his fi rst child at 17. “I was cool,” he raps, “so I dropped out of school.” This is, musically speaking, a bit of a trap for the listen-

Not only were the three baby goats’ necks snapped, the animals were found on the back porch and twisted around to face anyone coming out of the house. All evidence pointed to a very sick individual, not an animal, killing the pets. You think? Or maybe an evil, so unthinkable, and older than time itself.

In full Kolchak mode, I started poking around for the dark truth and prepared to butt heads with local police at an expected press conference. And like any good Kolchak premise, it started with an opening voiceover as I drove into town.

“If by chance you wander into the Brookfi elds on August 7 of this year and your name was Billy or Nanny or Scape, you would have had good reason to be terrifi ed. During this time, the Brookfi elds were stalked by a horror so frightening, so fascinating, that it ranks with the great unsolved mysteries of all time.

It’s been the fi ctional subject of fi lms, plays, even an opera. Now, here, are the true facts of the Jack the Goat’s Neck Snapper.”

Not only did I have an opening voiceover, I had my list of questions ready to shoot off to the local authorities. First, I would start sheepishly with my questions, none of which were based in fact.

“Chief, do we have a serial goat killer on our hands?”

“Is it true that all the goats’ necks were snapped from the inside out?”

“Isn’t it true that the three goats were drained of every drop of blood and the goats had two puncture wounds on the back of the neck (pointing with two fi ngers) that were made by the fangs of a vampire?”

“Isn’t it true that the goat killings are part of a voodoo ritual that the board of selectmen have been conducting for

centuries to combat the ravages of time?”

“Isn’t it true that there was a series of unsolved ritualistic goat killings strikingly similar to these 117 years ago done by the same neck snapper?”

Then, I would become more accusatory with my questions, like I was the big, bad wolf.

“Chief, you have two choices — admit you have a serial goat killer on your hands or keep telling the public that the goats died of self-infl icted wounds and poised themselves in provocative poses, post-mortem, by themselves?”

“How many goats’ necks have to be snapped before you take your head out of your (expletive)?”

Then I would end with the big fi nish.

“The goat killer will kill again and keep killing unless you equip your police force with crosses, stakes, hammers and a pocketful of hay. Take your hands off me,” I said as I abruptly ran out of the station and we broke to commercial.

To my chagrin, the press conference didn’t happen, which, in the long run, is probably a good thing as far as my job is concerned. But, I so wanted that Kolchak moment.

Last year, in the heart of the pandemic, I decided it was time to show my everlasting kinship with Kolchak at the only place you can dress up as a fi ctional character and not get ridiculed for it.

No, I’m not talking Provincetown. I’m talking at a comic con, in this case Rhode Island and the NorthEast comic cons.

And, unlike the others dressed in costumes of super-heroes, time lords and extraterrestrial creature, I would bet that I was the only one who dressed as a fi ctional character from pop culture

who actually followed that career path, To my surprise, a lot of people realized who I was dressed as, even a woman in her early 20s who needed to take a picture with me to show to her father, who turned her onto “The Night Stalker.”

Finally, my Kolchak moment.

er: It’s clear Papa Shawn knows that in a lot of contemporary rap, this would be where the story ends, but he revisits the themes here repeatedly throughout the album, each song adding a layer to the story. Still, here he’s playing up the cool rapper image, reveling in youthful folly.

The thread rolls on into the extremely catchy, “Mic Check 1213.”

It’s the next song, the moody “I Wrote It,” where Papa Shawn begins to subvert tropes, where his persona recalls fathering his fi rst child. The persona here is scared and broke, but also excited about being a father. He begins building a life, envisioning a future, not knowing it was

built on an unsteady foundation: “She said, ‘We can get on Welfare’/I was like, ‘Oh, hell yeah/maybe we could get food stamps/I was young/I was so scared.”

There’s something aff ecting about the song’s honesty and sense of perspective, a point of view he reinforces in the next song, “Howcome?” Here, he runs across an old friend, and wonders how their kids don’t know each other, even though they were once close and both still live in the city. Again, there’s an honesty about the song, about how people grow apart with age, and you can’t always remember why, or even if there are amends that need to be made. We

grow up. We change.

After the R&B sizzle of “All She Does,” we enter an odd section of the album, beginning with the song “LUCID,” wherein the persona expresses contempt for his lover’s intelligence, and then, “She’s Sneaky,” which is raunchy to the point of discomfort. Of these three, the fi rst is blisteringly engaging, and the latter two are, frankly, hard to like if they’re not already to your taste.

They’re not pointless, though: All of them portray a disconnect between the persona and his partner. Something is

‘To Sir, with Love’ One thing the last two years has made me is very nostalgic, very nostalgic of movies, television and music of my youth that were so much better written, acted and sung than most of the pop culture being off ered today.

And while I usually try to celebrate NOT to lament someone who lived a long, productive life, the loss of Sidney Poitier, 94, has made a personal impact on me.

Easily one of the greatest actors to ever live, Sidney Poitier lives on with the great body of work he produced over the years, including “Blackboard Jungle,” “The Defi ant Ones,” “Lilies of the Field,” “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” “In the Heat of the Night” and my personal favorite, “To Sir, with Love.”

Everything Poitier was ever in is a bona fi de classic and he always gave a larger-than-life performance even when he was subtle and showed nuance. Poitier said more in his telling eyes than most actors say in loud gestures. Truly, a one of a kind actor.

Do yourself a favor. Watch “To Sir, with Love” or any of the above mentioned classics again. Better yet, watch it with someone who has never seen a real Sidney Poitier movie before and watch the magic of Sidney Poitier unfold in their eyes.

See ‘ALMOST50’, Page 24

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 23

3 THINGS TO DO

EVANESCENCE, DIRTY CATECHISM AND MORE ...

Richard Duckett and Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK Editor’s Note: Because of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, all events are subject to change. Please visit Worcestermag.com and Telegram.com for changes, and consult the venue’s website or social media before attending.

Evanescence will perform Jan. 20 at the DCU Center in Worcester.

PHOTO COURTESY KALEY NELSON

Ready to Rock

‘Inside & Out’

Evanescence and Halestorm are two great heavy metal bands fronted respectively by two Queens of Rock, Amy Lee and Lzzy Hale. It is Lee and Hale’s friendship that is largely responsible for Evanescence and Halestorm going on a groundbreaking U.S. tour together. The tour was scheduled to bring them (and guest Lilith Czar) to the DCU Center Dec. 18. However, due to multiple COVID-19 cases within the touring party, the show has been postponed to Jan. 20. It will still be a major rock event. (RD)

ValleyCAST, the arts and culture arm of Open Sky Community Services, has collaborated with the New England Sculptors Association to bring a unique member exhibit of sculpture to the Whitin Mill in Whitinsville titled “Inside & Out.” Over 30 sculptures are included in the exhibit and displayed inside the gallery, out on the Community Plaza, and around the grounds of the Mill Complex. Artists from all over New England are represented. Viewing begins Jan. 18; call or email the receptionist to schedule a visit: (508) 234-6232, Dorcas.Carlson@openskycs.org.

Prizes for favorites will be awarded by people’s choice for first, second, and third place.

Voting ends Feb. 23. There will be a closing reception “Owl,” by R. Douglass and awards Rice. SUBMITTED PHOTO ceremony from 5 to 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 25. (RD) What: “Inside & Out” Where: Spaulding R. Aldrich Heritage Gallery, 50 Douglas Road, Whitinsville When: Regular gallery hours Mondays through Fridays from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m. Closed Jan. 17 in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and Feb. 21 for Presidents Day. www.openskycs.org.

What: Evanescence with Halestorm and Lilith Czar When: 7:30 p.m. Jan. 20 Where: DCU Center, 50 Foster St., Worcester How much: Tickets starting at $35. www.Ticketmaster.com. Masks and proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test within 72-hours prior to event entry are required.

An Album to ‘Covet’

The Dirty Catechism will perform Jan. 15 at Ralph’s Rock Diner. PROMOTIONAL PHOTO

“Covet,” the 2020 album by Reverend Dan and The Dirty Catechism, is an absolutely delightful blast of punk, one that somehow manages to remain surprising from song to song. “I Guess,” for example is a fun and engaging pop punk tune, bright and enthusiastic. Compare that to the next song, the Pogues-esque drinking song, “Come Back to Me,” and you might easily think it’s from a different band.

But no, it’s just an example of the band’s immense range, one it maintains even on more pyrotechnic songs such as “Circus Fire” or “Chasing After You.” The band’s commitment is evident on each track, and it makes the album immensely listenable. (VDI) What: The Dirty Catechism, Think Machine, Hardcore Driven and Crimson Wing When: 8 p.m. Jan. 15 Where: Ralph’s Rock Diner, 148 Grove St., Worcester How much: $10

24 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

ADOPTION OPTION

Meet Princess!

Princess is available through the Worcester Animal Rescue League's adoption program. WORCESTER ANIMAL RESCUE LEAGUE

This lovely girl is Princess.

We gave her that name because she is reserved and elegant. Princess chooses her friends based on her own values and traits. Patience and a quiet nature are a few of the qualities Princess is looking for in an adopter. Accepting her for who she is and taking an interest in some of her favorite things is the way to her heart.

This beauty loves to go for leisurely strolls and take in the wonders of nature. At fi ve years old she has outgrown the urge to romp and play with other dogs. However, she has found a few dog friends that she enjoys sharing a walk with.

Think of it this way — Princess is similar to a person that has a bird watching hobby. You may take a buddy with you bird watching, but you don’t want to have a long conversation or start up a wrestling match when you are looking through those binoculars, otherwise you will miss the birds. So, when it comes to dogs, Princess’s philosophy is, “You do your thing & I’ll do mine.”

That is pretty much her philosophy when meeting new people as well. Once Princess gets past the “fi rst date” stage with a new person she begins to loosen up and you will begin to fall in love. Is your living situation one with adults only?

Have you been thinking about adding a dog to your household? If so, Princess may enjoy meeting you. Please contact the shelter to fi nd out how to meet her.

COVID-19 Protocols: The Worcester Animal Rescue League remains closed to walk-in visits with the animals and appointments must be made, in advance, to meet with any of the animals. Masks are required.

Visit https://worcesterarl.org/ for more information.

‘Almost50’ Continued from Page 22

terribly wrong, and Papa Shawn wants you to know it.

“Show You Things” does much the same, although it has a lighter touch, and the hilariously believable excuse for not sleeping over: “baby I snore/I don’t have my CPAP with me.”

Emotional connection may not be happening here, but it’s all indelibly human. The passage of the album decelerates with “Family First,” which both rejects criticism of fathering so many children, while embracing fi nding salvation in religion, and then fi nally ends with “This Time Around,” a more refl ective song where he ponders the sins of youth and asks, “I messed up/how long should I pay for it?”

The rapper leaves that question aside as he slides into the Black Lives Matter anthem, “Enough is Enough.” It’s a soulful and searing indictment of racial injustice, one propelled by a visceral sense of heat. It’s odd that such heavy subject matter manages to be the moment of relief in the album, but that’s what happens.

When the soulful beat clips out, replaced by the mournful keyboard beats of “I Lost It,” it signals a tonal change and a shift in perspective.

“I Lost It” talks about the persona’s early sexual experiences as a child, with what’s described as a neighbor, and it’s shockingly clear he’s describing an act of molestation.

There’s no way to sugar coat that, but it’s interesting that the refrain is, “I’m almost 50/ please don’t tell my mom,” and that “he doesn’t want anyone to get into trouble.” One could almost think the persona feels unaff ected, but they cast the the earlier songs, particularly “10 Kids 5 Baby Mommas,” in a diff erent light. And in case the listener still has any doubts, the next song, “Clearly,” the persona details desire to die in his sleep: “God please take this

pain away/and thank you Lord for another day,” the persona fi nding faith as a way through the darkness in his mind.

As I’ve written before, it’s a fundamental mistake to view each piece of art as an act of autobiography, and to immediately assume the creator is the persona. That’s how I’m approaching this album, as I do everything I review, but it’s impossible not to view this suite of songs as anything but deeply personal. They resonate with emotional agony. The listener moves out of the pain of “Clearly” into the cold isolation of “Be Thy Self,” before returning to the theme of molestation in “Alone in My Room.” Here, the song switches to third person as he details the abuse: “He didn’t even know it was wrong/that ain’t right.” It’s interesting that this is the only song in third person, even as the persona draws lines between the molestation and a sense of distrust in others.

It’s diffi cult territory, and not the sort generally addressed in hip-hop, but Papa Shawn handles it frankly and fearlessly. The penultimate song, “Crazy Wavy,” brings everything back to the present: “I guess you live and you learn/ time unlike money/you can’t come back to burn.” This and the closing number, “I’m the Man Around Here,” paint a contrast of embracing responsibilities on one hand, and being hardened by experiences on the other. In a lot of ways, it’s a disconcerting ending, but it’s also a fi tting one: both perspectives feel true, two diff erent aspects of where the road has led the persona. It’s not an easy ending, but then, that’s the point: It’s not an ending at all. Whatever else has happened, the persona is still alive. “I love that you think it won’t happen,” raps Papa Shawn back in the fi rst song, “I Love That.” “I love that you think I should stop rapping.”

As an age and an album, “Almost 50” is simply another beginning.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 25

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26 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

“The Best of 2021”--keeping things positive.

by Matt Jones

J O N E S I N’

Enjoy Fun By The Numbers puzzles? Then you’ll love sudoku. This mind-bending puzzle will have you hooked from the moment you square off, so sharpen your pencil and put your sudoku savvy to the test! Here’s How It Works: Sudoku puzzles are formatted as a 9x9 grid, broken down into nine 3x3 boxes. To solve sudoku, the numbers 1 through 9 must fill each row, column and box. Each number can appear only once in each row, column and box. You can figure out the order in which the numbers will appear by using the numeric clues already provided in the boxes. The more numbers you name, the easier it gets to solve the puzzle!

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Across 1 Kerosene lantern material 6 Invitation’s request 10 Current measures?

14 Displeased with 15 “A Change is Gonna Come” singer Redding 16 Cafe supplement 17 Basketball venue 18 Gymnastics gold medalist who made news in 2021 as the first Hmong-American Olympian 20 Horror movie revived in 2021 (with a script co-written

by Jordan Peele) 22 “The ___ Ballerina” (Degas work) 23 Luggage checkers, for short 24 Crash maker 25 Low poker hand 28 Swampy land 32 Young ___ (small children) 33 British tennis star who won the 2021 U.S. Open, only the second Grand Slam tournament she had entered 37 Full of energy 38 Judges’ gp.

39 Rampageous revelry 43 2021 documentary directed

by Questlove about the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival 46 Dad joke, generally 49 Ed of “Up,” “Elf,” and “JFK” 50 Sanitizer’s target 51 Battery poles 54 Occupational suffix 56 Prepared potatoes, as for hash browns 57 2021 Adele chart-topper that broke records on streaming services 62 2021 Netflix series that made Lee Jung-jae a star outside South Korea 65 Scheduled to arrive 66 Baseball scoreboard data 67 Make Kool-Aid 68 First class, briefly 69 Squirrel’s home 70 Where a Yankee follows November?

71 Ford’s failure Down 1 Auto financing co., formerly 2 “Tomb Raider” protagonist Croft

3 4 5 6

Yemeni port on the Red Sea Course hazards Sticks around “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” detective Diaz 7 Shock and amaze 8 Diesel in an automotive vehicle?

9 Pressure unit, briefly 10 Warning signal 11 California surfers’ mecca 12 Nursery rhyme merchant 13 Swipes 19 Person with intelligence?

21 One of the Berenstain Bears 24 Dance step syllable 25 Treat in collectible dispensers 26 “___ seeing things?”

27 Rapscallion 29 Surname shared by two presidents 30 “American Idol” winner Studdard 31 Sudden fright 34 Protagonist of the “Street Fighter” series 35 Bounced-check abbr.

36 Shipping option that skips air travel 40 Eggs in the water 41 Moldova’s cont.

42 Shady tree 44 Postgrad degrees 45 Metal minerals

46 “Winter Wonderland” clergyman 47 Matchless 48 “Wait your turn!”

52 Jefferson, by belief 53 “Ed, ___ n Eddy” (Cartoon Network series) 55 “Blame It on the Bossa Nova” singer Gorme 57 Cast forth 58 Dynamic prefix 59 Court dividers 60 Swampland 61 Organic compound 63 Channel that aired “Lingo” (which is pretty much what all your Wordle results posts are) 64 ___ high level

Last week's solution

©2022 Matt Jones (jonesincrosswords@gmail.com) Reference puzzle #1075

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | 27

LAST CALL

Tad Doherty, volunteer hockey coach, freelancer and optimist Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

The rise of the particularly infectious new omicron variant of COVID-19, which may or may not be less dangerous than Delta, made the return from winter holidays just that much more diffi cult.

Demand for testing has risen and some are seeing shades of early 2020. Longtime Worcester resident Tom “Tad” Doherty, however, is determined to fi nd reasons to be optimistic. A freelance benefi ts consultant and volunteer hockey coach for Holy Cross, Doherty is confi dent that Worcester’s trademark resilience will, hopefully, see it through the fi nal stages of the pandemic. Doherty sat down with Last Call to discuss his observations during the pandemic and going forward into 2022.

How has the pandemic aff ected your work?

From a business standpoint, I switched to more of a virtual world during the pandemic like everyone else.

People are more comfortable when they don’t have to leave their place and that’s helped my business a lot. Even with the pandemic, it was actually one of the best years I’ve ever had. As the year went on and the world tried to come back to some kind of normalcy, people realized you don’t need to go to an offi ce every day to get your job done. People were still trying to fi gure out how to come back but then omicron showed up and then everyone hit the brakes. I can actually get as much done if not more without leaving my home. That’s like going back to the '80s where you could do more business over the phone — that was the era when the phone rang all the time.

What eff ects have you observed in the last week as people come back from holiday during omicron?

After the holidays, the number of testing sites seems to have quadrupled.

I was driving through the city to pick up my daughter, and a 10-minute drive turned into 30 minutes because of the

Tom "Tad" Doherty, has lived in Worcester for 22 years TAD DOHERTY

traffi c jams around the testing areas. At the old Greendale mall site, the line was down the street around the corner. I think testing is going to be a regular way of life from now on.

I feel like we’ve gone back to the stay at home order which hasn’t quite been given but all the precautions are out there. The streets this morning at rush hour were quiet — there was no traffi c.

People are staying home — they’re as concerned as they were last time and it’s

more quiet at all hours.

Were you bracing for a post holiday surge?

I’ve been braced for a winter surge since summer. What happens every winter in New England? People get the fl u, pneumonia, etc., as they begin to be indoors more. I wasn’t sure of the extent but I expected a bump when the weather turned colder. Especially post holidays, when people missed getting together last year and felt pretty confi dent

they could do it this year.

Would you say omicron reminded people not to give up on the remote/ hybrid workplace? That they don’t have to go all-in back to the offi ce?

I don’t know if it reminded them so much as pulled them back in that direction. Even with the vaccines and everything else, they had found a diff erent way of life. And consequently, I think a lot of people came to a better work-life balance — I know I did. It’s allowed me to follow another of my passions — coach hockey.

How has this resurgence aff ected your work at the rink?

I’m not there every day but I’ve seen the intense level of stress and anxiety it’s put on the players and coaches — on top of what the sport already brings — almost doubled it. That has added a whole other layer to managing and organizing for coaches. Before Christmas break, there seemed to be a good system. Post holiday, they had to try something new and players were divided up into pods based on vaccination and symptoms. It’s a really unique challenge of keeping practice going but making sure everyone’s healthy and I think they’re doing a great job.

So what does all this look like when you go in for practice?

Everyone’s practicing in smaller groups, so it’s a trade-off . On the one hand, you get more one-on-one with players. On the other, you get less time working on full-team plays and concepts. I’m a volunteer coach and my time at the rink is limited so I haven’t gotten the worst of it, but I can still see what a logistical nightmare it is.

How hopeful are you for the end of the pandemic?

I’m very hopeful that we will fi gure this out but it might be a while before that. I think there’s a level of acceptance here that wasn’t there before — people are taking it ever so slightly more seriously. For all the unknown, overall, people are continuing to adapt and doing the best they can do.

28 | JANUARY 14 - 20, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM