Worcester Magazine July 2, 8, 2021

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | CULTURE § ARTS § DINING § VOICES

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Everybody’s talking about

fireworks!

FROM POLAR PARK DISPLAYS TO BOTTLE ROCKETS IN THE STREETS, HOLIDAY FAVORITE IS AN EXPLOSIVE TOPIC. PAGE 13

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IN THIS ISSUE

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Worcester Magazine 100 Front St., Fifth Floor Worcester, MA 01608 worcestermag.com Editorial (508) 767.9535 WMeditor@gatehousemedia.com Sales (508) 767.9530 WMSales@gatehousemedia.com VP, Sales & Strategy Andrew Chernoff Executive Editor David Nordman Editor Nancy Campbell Content Editor Victor D. Infante Reporters Richard Duckett, Veer Mudambi Contributing Writers Stephanie Campbell, Sarah Connell Sanders, Gari De Ramos, Robert Duguay, Liz Fay, Jason Greenough, Janice Harvey, Barbara Houle, Jim Keogh, Jim Perry, Craig S. Semon, Matthew Tota Multi Media Sales Executives Deirdre Baldwin, Debbie Bilodeau, Kate Carr, Diane Galipeau, Sammi Iacovone, Kathy Puffer, Jody Ryan, Regina Stillings Sales Support Jackie Buck, Yanet Ramirez Senior Operations Manager Gary Barth Operations Manager John Cofske Worcester Magazine is a news weekly covering Central Massachusetts. We accept no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts. The Publisher has the right to refuse any advertisement.

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Featured ..............................................................................4 City Voices ........................................................................10 Cover Story.......................................................................13 Artist Spotlight................................................................18 Next Draft .........................................................................20 Screen Time .....................................................................23 Adoption Option.............................................................28 Classifi eds ........................................................................29 Games................................................................................30 Last Call .............................................................................31

On the cover Boaters and revelers take in the fi reworks over Lake Wickaboag on July 4, 2020.

T&G FILE PHOTO/CHRISTINE PETERSON

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FEATURED

Happy Fourth of July. SUBMITTED PHOTO

A meditation on the Fourth of July in North Brookfi eld Jack McClintock Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

It’s 5 p.m. and midsized cars are fi lling the parking lot behind a small-town school. A fourth generation Irish-American superintendent walks beside his

second-generation Mexican-American fi rst grade teacher. A newly naturalized Pakistani liquor store owner chats with a soon to be naturalized Korean beauty shop proprietor.

The steady stream of neighbors exchange gossip and greetings as they make their way to the cafeteria where a

local band is setting up for an early evening performance. Inside, more than a dozen volunteers put the fi nal touches on a spaghetti supper they’ve been preparing all day. Everyone knows everyone as families settle in to tables set with paper plates and plastic cutlery.

The din of children playing and

adults talking over them subsides as more than a hundred souls rise to face the fl ag hanging from a painted cinderblock wall. Without prompting, everyone places a hand over their heart and recites the pledge of allegiance. No one See FOURTH, Page 5

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 5

Fourth Continued from Page 4

remains seated but the handful of elders and disabled veterans who can’t stand.

The local lodge of Free Masons is holding its annual Hearts for Heat charity dinner that will provide fuel for area families with an assortment of ethnic surnames; all of it delivered by residents whose families came from other nations.

The hall is packed with people less concerned about the quality of the meal than the welfare of their fellow townspeople.

Once the pledge is fi nished the band begins a three-hour medley of music reaching back across the decades. Like the volunteers who made the meal and musicians providing the entertainment, everything’s donated. There’s nothing fancy showing as people cue up for

food and drink provided at cost by local markets.

And there’s not a frown to be found as folks mingle who may only speak to each other once or twice a year. Not everyone’s friends, but everyone’s welcome at the sort of gathering that’s formed the core of social unity since our nation’s founding.

In the tiny town of North Brookfi eld, just a few miles from a place famously named Podunk, lies a community that lends proof to what most Americans imagine when they think of their country. A community that harkens back to the days of Thornton Wilder, Aaron Copland and Norman Rockwell; a town where people respect each other, even when they disagree. Where no one’s a castaway and everybody knows everyone else’s history, achievements, and family problems.

A place where volunteer fi re

and police augment municipal departments, a community whose pioneer history is cherished by men and women who revere the wisdom of experience more than the celebrity of self promotion. A quiet slice of sanity resting amid the verdant farms and rolling foothills of Central Massachusetts. This is truly the spiritual center of our modern American nation.

As the tables are cleared, children continue playing and the band takes a break so prize winners can be selected from a large circular drum holding thousands of chance tickets.

Tickets purchased by citizens, all of whom surely have needs of their own. Chances to win: haircuts, massages, auto repairs, and groceries; hand crocheted sweaters, and farm fresh produce — all of it off ered to neighbors who could simply buy it at one of the small shops along Main Street. Every ticket purchased with an eye to the

needs of others.

When the last prize is awarded, the Master of Ceremonies takes the stage and asks the assembly to rise. With a wave of his hand the band breaks into God Bless America, and the assemblage sings the words of a song familiar to them all.

They sing without embarrassment, mindful of the love they bear for their country. Not the earth underfoot, but the people standing fast upon it.

Solid in their faith that a nation’s not a piece of land so much as an amalgam of people, and not so much an amalgam of people, as an idea.

An idea dreamed in the hearts of people willing to risk everything to build a life free from want, and the tyranny of masters.

A diverse people enriched by the children of other lands, endlessly renewing the pulsing life blood of that dream.

The great and noble dream of E Pluribus Unum: from many, one. A multiethnic, multiracial, multicultural society ever striving to perfect an ideal wrought from the blood of its founders, and the utmost hopes of humanity.

The heart of that nation still beats, in a place tucked away among the fi elds and streams at the heart of our Commonwealth. A dot on the map hardly recognized amid the clamor of cellphones, sirens, and marketplace turmoil. A place deeply loved by none other than George M. Cohan, the revered Father of Broadway who found in it a sense of community time honored values and deep rooted belonging. A sense of nation that refreshed his pride of place among the poor, tired, and huddled masses, reaching across time and space to the oasis of liberty. A nation where even plain folk can breathe free.

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Sean Scott Hicks seeks redemption in Worcester while sharing his story Richard Duckett Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

When Sean Scott Hicks decided to settle in Worcester he was hoping he was on the road to redemption after spending much of his lifetime in prison and involved in organized crime.

His arrival in Worcester was partly accidental. In 2016 Hicks, who grew up in South Boston, said he was involved in an accident on a construction site where he was working. He spent time at a rehab facility in Worcester.

“I basically fell in love with the city. I absolutely love it,” he said.

Earlier in 2016, he had been released from the Massachusetts Correctional Institution — Cedar Junction in South Walpole.

Afterward, a lapse, which Hicks attributed to drinking, sent him to the Worcester County House of Correction.

But it was there that he decided to give up drinking for good, and it is in Worcester where he continues to see it all through.

After getting out of Walpole, Hicks got into a relationship, and he now has a house in Worcester and has worked hard at establishing his own own construction business. He’s trying to reconcile with his two grown daughters, Asia and Mercedes, and get to know his grandchildren. He’s attending counseling, addiction treatment, and court ordered anger management sessions.

And so actually, “it’s getting better,” as the Beatles once put it.

In fact, Hicks also has a See HICKS, Page 7

Sean Scott Hicks, shown here in his Worcester home, is looking to share his story through music and television.

RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 7

Hicks Continued from Page 6

background in music (particularly in hip-hop) and entertainment, and it is in those areas that he’s now hoping we’ll be hearing more about him rather from jaded and faded crime and courthouse clippings.

Hicks said his band, Test Human, has just signed a record distribution deal with Str8Up Entertainment through The Orchard/Sony imprint.

With Hicks’ movie and television ties, there is the possibility of a reality show/documentary about his life.

Hicks has also released hip-hop recordings under the name Ghost, but he knows there are challenges that include ghosts from the past coming back to haunt him.

“My biggest obstacle is some people have a preconceived notion of me,” Hicks said during a recent interview.

“My underlying concept is trying to renew some faith in humanity. Rehabilitation is possible. Life is like a book and this is one chapter,” he said.

Ultimately, “It is a story of redemption,” Hicks believes.

Hicks will turn 50 in September. “In total, l have spent over two decades in maximum-security institutions. In my past life l was a member of organized crime. In short, l was a monster. But all that has changed. Worcester welcomed me as a citizen, business owner, home owner, and more importantly a human being. It is now my home, and l love it here. Couldn’t imagine living elsewhere.”

Growing up in Southie, “I hate to be clichéd but at that time in Boston, being Irish Catholic you had three choices — priest, cop, or you became a crook. I didn’t have a calling to the church. I defi nitely didn’t want to be a police offi cer,” Hicks said.

Asked if he had had ties to the notorious Winter Hill Gang in South Boston, Hicks said, “It was alleged.”

Beyond that, “I was affi liated with organized crime in Boston,” he said. “Irish faction.”

There were the trappings — “lifestyle, money, women, the respect you garnered in the neighborhood.” Then the traps. “It ultimately led to me spending over 20 years in prison.”

In 2000 then Boston Celtics basketball forward Paul Pierce was stabbed at the Buzz Club in Boston in a notorious

Sean Scott Hicks is looking to share his story through music and television. SUBMITTED PHOTO

incident. Regarding whether he had involvement, Hicks said, “the way that happened the music group I was associated with got caught in the net that night.”

The assumption was he “technically violated parole just for association,” Hicks said.

However, “through the years” Hicks did have a past with “bank robbery, money laundering, multiple assaults.

Standard fare. Unfortunately I hate to say it like that.”

In 2011 Hicks was involved in what he said was “a territorial dispute with another family which included several being people shot and being charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault.”

Overall, he’s been “shot four times, stabbed fi ve or six times,” he said.

He wasn’t a happy warrior. A psychiatrist diagnosed Hicks as borderline an-

ti-social and also going though PTSD. “I can’t count the vanity mirrors I punched out because I hated myself,” he said.

In 2011, Hicks determined that he wanted to change his ways. He had been shaken by the fact the shooting incidents had also been about young teenagers who were getting caught up in the deadly hardline drug fentanyl.

See HICKS, Page 8

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Hicks Continued from Page 7

Sean Scott Hicks in his Worcester home May 19.

RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

“There are no drugs at all in my history. I have zero tolerance for narcotics,” he said.

Alcohol, however, was another matter.

Out of Walpole and on the road back, “I was doing great.”

Then, “I drank a little too much one day.”

Hicks discovered that an individual who worked for him had lied about his identity.

“I took on myself to hurt him pretty bad. I was still actually drinking. I was arrested and sent back to jail.”

Being sent to the Worcester County House of Correction may have been a saving grace, as Hicks confronted his alcohol use that had started when he was 15.

“That would be the moment,” he said On the outside he had ap-

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peared to be doing well, but the inside feelings were another matter. “I was just a drunk.”

Hicks said at Worcester Central District Court the judge “asked me if I had any remorse for what I did.” Hicks replied, “I’m sad some innocent people got in the way.”

He also told the judge about his drinking.

Hicks was sentenced to twoand-a-half yeas in the Worcester County House of Correction, to be commuted to one year if he successfully completed the jail’s “STOP” Program. In Hicks’ case, that meant a stop drinking program.

Hicks said at the jail, the head of STOP told him, “You’re better than this. I’m going to put you in my program.”

Meetings were three to four times a week. “I could not believe here in this rinky-dink county jail I fi nally realized and accepted I was an alcoholic.

That’s not something that was ever addressed when I was in maximum security prisons,” Hicks said.

“In order to live in my own skin and face myself in the mirror each day, I turned to alcohol to drown out the things I had done, to dull the pain as they say. I never took any satisfaction or enjoyment in hurting somebody. I have a lot of shame that I carry with me for having done things,” he said.

“I am recovering. I haven’t had a drink in 17 or 18 months. I was a full-blown alcoholic. I’d start drinking at 4 a.m. with a fi fth of whiskey. I drank throughout the day.”

Out on the streets as an organized crime man, he’d set up for business at bars, Hicks recalled.

Later, “I’d drink myself into a stupor at night in order to sleep.

If I woke up I’d have a few drinks and go back to sleep. I didn’t drink to socialize. I drank in order to live with myself, with my skin.”

Finally, “I just had had enough. Some people had collateral damage (as a result of his drinking). I have a lot of remorse for that. A lot of shame

and guilt,” Hicks said.

He got out of the Worcester County House of Correction after about a year and has been able to resume building the new life for himself in Worcester.

Hicks said he has “developed some good friendships” here, including with business owners and enjoys being a regular customer at Brew on the Grid on Franklin Street.

Does the road back to the old life ever beckon?

“I didn’t want that lifestyle anymore. A lot of guys I know are doing life in jail. There’s a lot of guys in unmarked graves in the woods somewhere. I’ve caused a lot of damage. I just want to rectify that if I can,” Hicks said.

“I feel alive and I feel productive every day,” he affi rmed, but added, “It’s a struggle. I see a psychiatrist now.”

At his construction fi rm, he’s hired ex-convicts to give them another chance at life like he feels that he’s receiving.

While he’s had a music background for 35 years, “unfortunately I always considered it a hobby. My connections with the underworld took precedent,” Hicks said.

Still, people in the entertainment world have come calling.

He has been asked to be a criminal consultant for movie projects and has previously worked on a script. More recently, he’s shot music videos in Worcester and made some new recordings.

Some large future projects may be in the works …

Hicks said his dream is to “share my story with millions of viewers … to give people insight into my experiences in life and they learn something from my mistakes.”

In particular, “What I’m hoping is at-risk youth, they take away that you can achieve goals and attain your dreams in life but you’ve got to work hard.

I’m hoping they’ll see the things that I achieved and see that it came from sobriety and good, old-fashioned hard work.”

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 9

NorthEast Comic Con returns after COVID hiatus Craig S. Semon Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Part P.T. Barnum, part Colonel Tom Parker, part Bill Graham, NorthEast Comic Con & Collectible Extravaganza’s Gary Sohmers lives by a simple motto, “Guaranteed not boring,” when it comes to putting on one his shows.

‘It’s all about providing the ADHD generation and the Baby Boomers as they merge, something they can enjoy together,” the longtime Hudson resident explains. “You hear, ’Hey, that’s really interesting!’ ‘I remember having this when I was young!’

‘Oh, look over there!’ And the next thing you know the child looks over there and the merging of the insanities happen.”

Scheduled for July 2-4 at the Boxboro Regency Hotel, 242 Adams Place, Boxboro, the NorthEast Comic Con & Collectible Extravaganza is the fi rst comic book, collectible, and/or pop culture convention of any kind in New England since the coronavirus pandemic.

Not only that, NorthEast Comic Con was the fi rst comic con casualty of COVID. Slated for March 13-15, 2020, the convention was closed a few hours before the doors were scheduled to open, due to the massive shutdown order given by Gov. Baker.

Despite getting support from the vendors who decided to leave their money in place for the next extravaganza, Sohmers said he lost approximately $40,000 out of his pocket on the March 2020 event.

In all, Sohmers missed out on four shows because of COVID-19.

“They could have done it (in the Bay State) like other places and said, ‘OK, on Monday, everything closes.’ We would have still had less people because of all the fear, but the reality was there was no way to recover from just being shut down and then shut down for July 2020, then shut down for November 2000 and shut down for March 2021,” Sohmers said, “I had to take a big risk in saying in April, all right, we’re going to go for July. Sign the contract with the hotel with the stipulation that if we can’t do it, we can’t do it.”

Sohmers — an appraisal expert of pop culture, collectibles and toys for 13 years on “The Antique Roadshow” and entrepreneur of the legendary Wex Rex Collectibles, formerly in Hudson — is a true pioneer of comic cons and pop culture collectibles shows.

Sohmers is the man who gained national attention when he brought together the beloved “Lost in Space” cast for their 25th and 30th reunions (in 1990 and 1995) at the Bay Side Expo in Boston.

The “Lost in Space” reunion show had everyone from the original cast, except for Guy Williams (who died in 1989 but was still alive when Sohmers was working out the fi nal details for the 25th). And, it only cost $40 to get autographs of the whole cast, including Jonathan Harris, June Lockhart, Mark Goddard, Marta Kristen, Angela Cartwright, Billy Mumy and Bob May, who played the Robot.

While some national comic cons are charging $200-plus for either an autograph or phoSee COMIC CON, Page 12

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10 | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

CITY VOICES DON LANDGREN

COULD DEATH PLEASE TAKE A HOLIDAY?

WORCESTERIA

You gotta leave Hollywoo to see ‘F9’ Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

FIRST PERSON

Spring Break for Seniors Joe Fusco Jr. Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

After Cyndi and I were fully vaccinated for COVID-19, we decided to visit our fellow senior-friends in Tampa, Florida.

Thirteen minutes into the trip to T.F. Green, the “check engine light” glowed in our 2008 Entourage, so a sense of dread accompanied the remaining 40 minutes to the airport.

We parked in Garage B and left the car and its plethora of possible problems for contemplation six days later. We were going to have fun in 2021, dammit!

At the security-check, I re-

moved the belt holding up my pajama-shorts. As I held my hands up for the full-body scan, my checkered pantwear fell to the ground.

“Oh my,” the woman behind me exclaimed. The security guard was nonplussed but did pat me down as my hip-replacement always gets me to 2nd base.

In the men’s room at T.F. Green, I had my fi rst encounter with an Automatic Toilet Seat Cover. Mesmerized, I kept standing up then sitting down so the protective shield would revolve like a carnival ride.

Our friends in Tampa live across the bay from Tom and See BREAK, Page 11

THE LAST PICTURE SHOW: Sometimes, you stop and look at Worcester, and realize that it’s a really weird town, and one of the things that’s brought that weirdness into focus was the closing of Showcase Cinemas North, which left the city without a movie theater. Sure, you can just go over the town line to Millbury and see fl icks at the Blackstone Valley 14 Cinema de Lux or the Elm Draught House Cinema, but it still feels weird that you have to leave the second biggest city in New England to see a fi lm.

Of course, that doesn’t count organizations such as cinema-worcester and Cinema 320, which play more esoteric fare, and a handful of festivals.

And of course, it seems these days you can just look out your window and see a fi lm being shot. This may be Hollywoo, but you’re still gonna have to leave town to see “F9 The Fast Saga.”

Mind, for all the nostalgia it’s enjoying, Showcase North could be a rough place to see a fi lm. One showing of “The Cabin in the Woods,” for instance, got a good 10 minutes in before the staff realized they were actually playing the animated fi lm, “The Lorax.” Another day, a screening of “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” was brought to a halt as the corner of the fi lm melted. The theater, which had a nice run of foreign

Showcase Cinemas North remains closed. T&G STAFF/ASHLEY GREEN

fi lms and second run showings, was a casualty of audiences demanding the luxury of its shinier corporate sibling in Millbury, or the convenience of streaming services and pretty awesome home entertainment centers, the latter of which has been exacerbated by the pandemic.

TIMES THEY ARE A’CHANGING: Sometimes, the world just changes and makes some businesses less viable.

There was an interesting discussion on the Reddit Worcester community the other day, about why there’s not a lesbian bar in the city, and that really the only gay bar in town at all is the MB Lounge, which mostly caters to gay men. Excepting some internal community issues, the basic reasons for the paucity of such places seemed

pretty simple: dating apps made meeting people easier; marriage equality and other social watersheds made the need for such places less pressing, and a general acceptance at other venues normalized mixed crowds. Still, at least judging from the tone of the conversation, there seemed to be a demand for places like that, and if that’s the case, maybe they’ll reappear. After all, not long ago, the only place to buy new books in town was Barnes & Noble. (Excepting of course the endearingly eclectic used bookstore, Annie’s Book Stop, and the goto place for comic books and graphic novels, That’s Entertainment.) Now, B&N is gone, but we have Bedlam Book Café, See F9, Page 11

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 11

F9 Continued from Page 10

Tidepool Bookstore, and Root and Press. Sometimes, a city gets things it’s lost back.

Sometimes.

A DISTURBING LACK OF ICE CREAM: Still, a post on Twitter made clear the weirdness of what Worcester does and doesn’t have: In a place on the verge of reintroducing candlepin bowling and opening an axe-throwing facility, you can’t get ice cream or frozen yogurt on a hot day near the DCU Center. Sure, people pointed to

such worthy establishments as Froze Zone at the Worcester Public Market and Cool Licks on Pleasant Street, but both of those are a bit of a walk for someone who only has a few minutes to dive out for a treat.

Of course, it’s also been pointed out that downtown doesn’t really have a convenience store, either. Indeed, if you live downtown, you really only have a limited amount of choices for groceries, even with Maker to Main.

Sometimes this can be an unironically exciting city to live in, a place that seems to brim with possibilities and potential. But every now and

again there’s this hole in the community fabric, a negative space where it seems something basic should be. Sometimes, that might just be life, but others might just be waiting for the right entrepreneur, one who’s less caught up in the glamor of development and more looking to fi ll a need in their own backyard, things out of town developers might never think to create.

But until then, it seems — at the very least — our movieviewing money will be spent in Millbury, or at least on Disney+. Who knows what other dollars are needlessly fl owing out of town?

POETRY TOWN

The Worcester Galleria in 1979. T&G FILE PHOTO/FRANK JAMES

‘Galleria Mall Rats’ Robert Eugene Perry Special to Worcester Magazine

Break

USA TODAY NETWORK

We were all mall rats wandering the galleria maze looking for meaning, searching for acceptance

Continued from Page 10

Gisele Brady, who rent a house larger than Wyman Gordon from Derek Jeter. When I sauntered onto Bayshore Boulevard, most of the young hardbodies responded positively to my “nice morning” salutation.

On Friday, I crossed paths with a young woman walking 15 dogs. After responding positively to my “nice morning” salutation, she ordered the canines to “stop” as she answered her cellphone and all 15 complied.

Our friends took us to St. Pete Beach on Saturday where No alcohol, pets, fi res, glass, nudity, littering or fi reworks are allowed. I stayed under the cabana and read a Carl Hiaasen novel.

On Sunday, we visited Tarpon Springs which is famous for its sponges, handmade soaps, and Greek food. I had a chicken souvlaki sandwich with extra tzatziki sauce for lunch that spilled all over my “Life is Reasonably OK” shirt.

Fortunately, Cyndi had just purchased a 4-foot sponge that cleaned it off .

Our Tampa friends have 305 orchids in their backyard as

grabbing scraps of love from anyone, anything that might make us feel we belonged somewhere.

DiRado documented the scene in black and white, mohawks and misfits, spiked hair and savoir faire for the ‘80s.

Beachgoers take advantage of the weather as they spend time on Clearwater Beach March 2 in Clearwater, a popular spring break destination, west of Tampa. CHRIS O'MEARA/AP

well as an inground pool, screened-in gazebo, and cornhole pit. I saw my fi rst love bugs’ swarm as hundreds of the attached twosomes surrounded the neighbor’s BMW. I also learned that a squirrel can squeeze into the tiniest birdfeeder and Moscow Mule in a copper cup is a refreshing late afternoon beverage.

On Monday, we reserved a spot at Busch Gardens which combines nine terrifying rollercoasters with 12,000 animals in a 335-acre Africanthemed park. You had to wear your facemask at all times in the 90-degree heat and I swear

the gorillas were laughing at Robert Eugene Perry is a poet and author of several books, our incongruity. his most recent collection of poetry, “Surrendering to the Our fl ight back to ProviPath,” was released by Human Error Publishing in 2020. dence was packed but uneventful and the Entourage made it back to Worcester with the “check engine light” still glowing but benign.

Cyndi and I agreed that it was a fun trip and welcome respite from the pandemic madOur marketing helps you Our marketing helps Our marketing you helps you Our marketing helps you ness. She returned to work Our marketing helps you Our marketing helps Our marketing you helps you Our marketing helps you make the grade. make the grade. make the grade. make the grade.

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12 | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Comic Con Continued from Page 9

tograph with a star from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (and getting it), Sohmers takes pride in being able to bring in a level of celebrity that is fun, personable and low-cost.

In addition to over 100 exhibitors, artists and authors, there’s a full roster of New England bands playing over three days that is included in the $60 three-day general admission pass, VIP three-day pass or daily admission. Plus, there’s plenty of free parking.

Musician Walter Sickert will present a live version of his much acclaimed “Bunker Buds” web series on Friday night; The Fools will perform Saturday night; and Barrence Whitfi eld and NRBQ will perform Sunday afternoon.

NRBQ, “The Simpsons” house band, were on eight epi-

sodes, Seasons 10, 11 and 12.

One of the executive producers of “The Simpsons,” Mike Scully, is a huge “Q” fan,” Sohmers said. “They actually cut a toon of them. They were playing a biker bar when Homer came in looking for Marge.”

In addition, a showcase of artists on Boston’s newest indie label, Red on Red Records, (including Justine and The Unclean, The Daylilies, Kid Gulliver, Tom Baker, Andrea Gillis and The Chelsea Curve) will perform 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday underneath a 6,000square-foot tent outside, followed by a performance from old “The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson” mainstay The Amazing Kreskin (which costs a little extra).

WBCN’s “The Big Mattress” and “The Howard Stern Show” alumni Billy West, who is one of the most popular and beloved voiceover actors today, will do a script reading with fellow voiceover actors and an interview

Gary Sohmers at the last NorthEast Comic Con & Collectibles Extravaganza before the pandemic, which was November 2019 in Boxboro. PHOTO COURTESY CHERYL ROSEN

on his career.

West has provided the character voice of Doug on “Doug,” both Ren and Stimpy on “The Ren & Stimpy Show,” Philip J.

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Fry, Professor Farnsworth, Doctor Zoidberg and Zapp Brannnigan on “Futurama” and is the voice behind the Red M&M in commercials. An autograph from West will be $25, $30 for a combined autograph and selfi e.

And for those who like to play dress up, NorthEast Comic Con has a cosplay contests that encourages creativity to the extreme.

“To me in collectibles, cosplay is frivolous. They would spend all their money on these incredible things to look like somebody else and they don’t have pockets. So they’re defi nitely not buying anything from me,” Sohmers said. “What I discovered many years ago at our very fi rst comic con was the creative arts aspect of cosplay, people that could come up with a new costume, not just a mash up but a new, whole concept of a costume and a backstory. So I had this concept and I call it ‘Create A Character Cosplay Contest.’”

Despite lingering concerns about the pandemic, Sohmers said he’s confi dent that the con is going to be easygoing.

“When people come in, we’re not asking for them to show any kind of vaccination.

We are asking for them to wear

a mask if they’re not vaccinated for their own safety,” Sohmers said. “We also have made up 12 diff erent stickers with cartoon characters from ‘Futurama’ and ‘Pokemon’ and ‘Ren and Stimpy’ that say, “I’m vaccinated,” so that you can wear them and people from a distance see you’re vaccinated. Therefore, they will not be paranoid. Anyone who claims to be vaccinated will be allowed to have and wear a sticker.”

Sohmers said it’s a big enough venue and he’s selling a limited amount of tickets to keep things moving.

“To me, my whole goal is fl ow, just like a theme park, like Disney. You’re supposed to be absolutely able to just fl ow,” Sohmers said. “If somebody’s in front of that table, go to a different table. You don’t have to wait in line, just go with the fl ow, keep moving, enjoy things, stop and watch the music, listen to a panel, go to a seminar or go to music, talk to an artist, buy an autograph, get a photo.”

Early bird entry is 9 a.m., with general admission at 10 a.m. The vendor room closes at 6 p.m. July 2 and 3 and 5 p.m.

July 4. After-parties with musical acts performing are from 8 to 11 p.m. July 2 and 3.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 13

COVER STORY From a canceled 4th to illegal fi recrackers in the street and ongoing displays at Polar Park, fi reworks are the talk of the city Fireworks light up the sky during the annual Independence Day Festivities at the Dr. Arthur and Dr. Martha Pappas Recreation Complex July 1, 2019. T&G FILE PHOTO/RICK CINCLAIR

An explosive issue

14 | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Worcester resident Rush Frazier. ASHLEY GREEN/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

“The fi reworks ‘booms’ always give me a little anxiety,” said Mitchell James Cho. h The Worcester resident is referring to the fact that illegal fi reworks were a serious issue last summer in Worcester, with the city having received nearly 2,000 complaints. Heading into July and the dog days of summer, residents are concerned that Worcester neighborhoods will sound like a city under siege once more. h Though fi reworks and July go together like peanut butter and jelly, they are illegal in the state of Massachusetts. Still, backyard fi recrackers are nothing new to Worcester residents, despite the worries about fi re hazards, risk of injury and noise pollution. The latter can have an especially detrimental eff ect on veterans suff ering from PTSD as well as pets and kids.

See ISSUE, Page 15

A fi reworks display above the Worcester Common on New Year’s Eve, 2018. T&G FILE

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 15

Charles Luster, right, founder of 2gether We Eat, discusses hydroponic farming at an event at the Boys and Girls Club in March. RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

Issue Continued from Page 14

Last summer, fi reworks could be heard all night, every night. Deputy Fire Chief Martin Dyer said, “it seems more normal this year,” and they have so far only received about 50 complaints. As it did last year, the city is setting up a task force along with an anonymous tip hotline. “Just trying to be a bit more proactive with the problem," Dyer said, "last year, it

wasn’t just Worcester but a phenomenon across the nation and by the time we established the hotline, the horse was already out of the gate.”

Rush Frazier, Worcester resident, has an idea why that was the case. “People were going through hell last year and just trying to fi nd a little joy.” They believe there are other ways to discourage fi reworks rather than criminalize them, suggesting educating residents about fi re safety and making extinguishers more available.

According to Frazier, the

double standard is especially galling when Polar Park is setting off a fi reworks display almost every Friday night. Frazier is clear that they would “much rather be hearing rinkydink fi reworks than the professional loud ones” and goes so far as to say that the Polar Park fi reworks are disrespectful.

Frazier thinks this year will be diff erent in regards to illegal fi reworks. “People have better things to do now, thankfully, but think of all the things that Polar Park could be doing with that money …”

The Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce announced in May that the 4th of July fi reworks and celebration were canceled again due to COVID concerns. With approximately 10,000 attendees expected, it was deemed too much of a risk but that was before the timeline took a leap forward. “At the time, things weren’t going to open until August,” said WRCC Communications Director Dominque Goyette-Connerty. “We didn’t anticipate things getting better so quickly when we made the

decision.”

Some residents aren't happy with the decision.

“Worcester pulled the plug too soon,” said Charles Luster.

While nearby communities will host their own display, Luster pointed out not everyone has the means to go see them. “Kids who can’t get a ride to the nearest town will purchase fi reworks illegally and it will be dangerous for our community,” he said.

Goyette-Connerty has reSee ISSUE, Page 16

16 | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Issue Continued from Page 15

ceived several calls asking about a reversal of the Chamber’s decision but says it’s not possible at this late stage. For an event of that size, the fi reworks had to be booked far in advance. “It’s just not something we have the capacity to do,” she said.

Rather than make their own illegal fi reworks show, GoyetteConnerty hopes that Worcester residents will enjoy the fi reworks at Polar Park, sponsored

by UniBank and the Worcester Red Sox. Displays are planned for the entire July 4 weekend.

Additionally, there will be 12 more displays through the summer at Polar Park following all Friday night home games. A press release stated they “expect hundreds of thousands of people will see the displays from their homes or in gathering spots around Worcester.”

For Worcester residents like Cho and Frazier, that’s exactly the problem. “It would have been nice to have had a community conversation around the fact that basically every Friday feels like 4th of July,” said Cho. Noise pollution is not the only reason residents would prefer fewer “community fi reworks,” as Cho refers to them, but also to reduce interactions with law enforcement. The recently implemented ShotSpotter system, meant to track gunshots, he said, may be triggered by the fi reworks and lead to an increased police presence in certain neighborhoods. However, Lt. Sean Murtha of the Worcester Police Department said that's not likely, explaining that every activation is analyzed to determine whether or not it’s a gunshot before it’s sent to the WPD. “The vast majority of illegal fi reworks will not come out as ShotSpotter activations,” he said.

Despite this, the formation of a city task force is still not very reassuring to some. “I

Deputy Chief Martin Dyer CHRISTINE PETERSON/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

think that making a task force is part of the larger issue of policing of BIPOC and underserved populations,” said Cho. Luster shares this trepidation, saying especially for minority communities, the term task force is associated with examples of systemic racism and city politics, rather than seriously addressing an issue.

“When I hear the word task force,” he said, “the fi rst thing I think is, who is in charge.” In

order to bring about any tangible change, he believes, the community must be involved from the conceptual stage. “[Illegal fi reworks] have been going on for eternity,” said longtime Worcester resident Wanda Alvarado-Eaton, but the city never made a serious attempt to stop them until last year. “The use of the word task force makes me wonder if they’re going to be targeting particular neighborhoods like

mine.” Alvarado-Eaton lives in Bell Hill, and hears fi reworks often. While she doesn’t dispute they can be a nuisance, “over policing and over governance” can be just as disruptive.

“I don’t need anyone knocking on my door educating me, I need them to stop the 10-yearolds playing with fi recrackers,” said Alvarado-Eaton, who as a child, saw her cousin burn his stomach when a fi recracker backfi red in his hand.

Fire safety is a separate issue from noise pollution and infi nitely more objective. What one calls disturbing the peace, another might call background noise or a mild nuisance, but there’s no arguing about a burned hand. Dyer pointed out that one third of all injuries from illegal fi reworks involved children under 15 years and last year, there was a fi re on Preston See ISSUE, Page 17

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 17

SUMMER IS BACK NOW – SEPT 5TH

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CATCHIN’ RAYS

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There are no official fi reworks this year, but the streets of Worcester are usually fi lled with unofficial ones for weeks around the Fourth of July, and Polar Park has its own for Friday home games. T&G FILE

Issue Continued from Page 16

Street. Their greatest concern remains the most heavily urbanized areas of the city.

Luster did not disagree. “It takes one fi rework to be done wrong to burn down a house and injure someone, but people don’t think about that — they are focused on the excitement of it all — breaking the law, the thrill of the fi reworks themselves.”

Dyer says that is, indeed, a signifi cant part of the problem, and state police made large confi scations last year at the state border.

The gravity of the fi re hazards and the high risk of injuries makes it important that fi reworks are set off by experienced persons, according to Dyer. He reiterated that there is “so much that goes into it.”

The fi reworks at Polar Park and Holy Cross are managed by professionals who use the

right shells, maintain a safe distance, along with security, and work with WFD to make sure everything is as it should be, he said.

Everyone agrees that illegal fi reworks are a contentious issue in Worcester. The question is how to address that and while the city clearly believes a task force will investigate and make recommendations, the mixed messages are confusing to residents. If noise pollution is a concern then why is Polar Park being allowed to launch them every Friday, albeit legally? Particularly, the big bucks displays that create a great deal of sound pollution.

Others like Cho have resigned themselves to the fact that illegal fi reworks are a part of July in the City of Worcester.

"Honestly, I'd love to know why some folks light fi reworks and cause a ruckus," says Cho, "but then again, I accept that I don't live in a quiet residential neighborhood … it's colorful and I enjoy that.”

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18 | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

Gregory Barry’s ‘Shadow and Gravity in Wood Sculpture’ Victoria Wright Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Gregory Barry is an Ashburnham-based artist whose work lies at the crossroads of drawing, sculpture and installation. Barry’s sculpture is a three-dimensional experience, based on his belief in the simple and fundamental transactions between people and objects. This means that his sculptures are not only abstractions or decorations but should be understood as a commentary on contemporary societal values. His objects incorporate discarded and natural materials like aluminum wire, plywood and rocks into sculptures that serve to emphasize their past life. As Barry puts it: “Material history becomes signifi cant in this work because it brings voice, conversation, awareness, and curiosity to the material’s previous existence.” Barry works to create unity between people and their natural environment by allowing them to connect through materials, space, light, and shadow.

Barry’s works are characterized by questioning how humans interact with nature. Emphasizing the creative process to the same extent as the work, Barry identifi es with the river, with the breath, and with essential movement and life. He reveals the incessant movement at the heart of the natural cycle which, over time, alters beings and things, and is driven by the desire to understand nature in its evolution and decline. The fundamental

ideas of his approach are growth, change, transformation, and temporality. He comes out of the condition of humanity to understand the condition of nature itself. The sculpture “Open Forms,” for example, is a collection of distinctly colored pieces of wood, screwed together to create contrasting shapes, which he then wraps around a tree trunk. This sculpture refl ects the diff erentiation between humans and nature while still highlighting the connection of one to the other.

In his sculpture “Plates,” Barry uses discarded wood from construction sites to create intricate patterns and shapes. An emphasis on recycling and bettering the earth is clear in this sculpture as it seemingly depicts two tectonic plates. Metaphorically, it is a commentary on climate change and the impact of humans on the ecology of our planet. Barry’s sculptures are intense with meaning, but have organic shapes and are often light in appearance. This playfulness is contradicted by the dark commentary of the work.

The strategic use of wood in Barry’s art plays with shadows and light, appealing to the need for sunlight in all natural beings. It reconnects these treated woods to their natural roots.

The sculpture “Ply” is a wall installation that intentionally plays with shadow and light.

The small pieces of plywood broken and joined together creates a wavy shape in relief against the wall. The piece is intended to give a sense of movement and new life to the old materials, producing a second, third, and even fourth life of matter.

Barry does not interfere with the material, accepting any-

“Ply,” discarded/weathered plywood, 2018 GREGORY BARRY/ARTSWORCESTER

thing that can alter the work.

He fi nds that the history, the age, and the traces of the human hand add character and individuality to all of his works.

These individual aspects of each work are inseparable from his creation, allowing for history to be incorporated in his sculptures. Learning and understanding through touch and making is a simple but deeply important element in his work.

His enthusiasm and wonder are expressed through the realization of each sculpture.

With visual links to minimalism and environmental art, Barry creates an interaction between sculpture and space. The sculptures are presented in the same environment as that of the spectator, creating an intersection across human life, nature, and art. He creates experiences that are not only visual but engage all the human senses. The Writhe sculpture is an organic shape that gives us the feeling that the sculpture is in motion. It is as if the sculp-

“Writhe” SUBMITTED PHOTO

ture has arms that extend out and take the space and the viewer’s attention. The sculpture, therefore, refuses to simply sit in space: it inhabits it.

The works have been designed for a viewer to walk alongside them, directly interacting with their environment and placement. The sculptures are not static. Rather, they appear to be in motion. If we look at them from diff erent angles, our perception also appears to be in motion. The beauty of his work is its openness — each viewer brings their own interpretation of the work, an interpretation that is generated by their own memories.

“Art History 201: Art, the Public, and Worcester’s Cultural Institutions,” at Clark University gives students the opportunity to work closely with regional contemporary artists.

With individual artists from ArtsWorcester’s gallery programs, the students hone their visual and critical skills by producing short essays positioning the artists’ work within contemporary art history. This year, the students also curated small selections of their artist’s work for these online spotlights. This collaboration was funded by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 19

CITY LIVING TABLE HOPPIN’

Veg Out food truck open at Nourse Farm in Westboro Barbara M. Houle Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

The Veg Out Food Trailer at Nourse Farm in Westboro is open for its second season, providing a take-out menu that’s fi lled with made-from-scratch salads, soups, sandwiches, smoothies and snacks that utilize the fresh, healthy food grown on the 140-acre familyowned farm.

Veg Out founder Catherine Nourse said the food trailer parked next to the Farm Store served its fi rst customers in May, getting off to an early start with the asparagus harvest.

The farm’s newest vegetable was an instant hit, especially at the food trailer where it was transformed into Age of Asparagus Soup, said Nourse.

Moira Healy is the food trailer’s new culinary creator, bringing more than 30 years of food experience to the business. Nourse describes Healy as a “fantastic person and culinary whiz.”

“I’ve spent my career working in the food service and hospitality industries,” said Healy, “and decided to change direction a little. Plant-based and sustainability is trending in the food industry, and I love the idea of working with Catherine to help introduce more food options. I like to think of it as a new challenge.”

What’s on the menu?

June strawberry season introduced a strawberry-mango salsa and two coconut milk smoothies to the food trailer.

Pretty in Pink combined strawberries, rhubarb and mango, while Strawberry Na-Na teamed strawberries and ba-

Plant promoters Claire and Sophie Protano, culinary creator Moira Healy, plant promoter Varun Ganesan and head veg Catherine Nourse at Nourse Farm in Westboro. ASHLEY GREEN / TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

nana.

Good news is that the strawberry pick-your-own season at Nourse Farm got off to a great start and expanded. Strawberries should be available through July 4, according to Nourse, a registered dietitian and Adjunct Faculty/Nutrition Coordinator at Quinsigamond Community College in Worces-

ter. She defi nitely talks the talk and walks the walk, helping others enjoy life through healthy food.

FYI: Nourse’s husband, Timothy Nourse, son of David and Hazel Nourse, works in the family business. Farm operator Jonathan Nourse is his uncle.

Last season, Nourse told us the food trailer’s plant-forward

concept came with a “side of nutrition education and a smile.” Nothing has changed in 2021, she said, adding that the food trailer’s staff , referred to as “plant promoters,” are back on the job. “We’re so lucky to have them,” said Nourse, the “head veg.” Nourse has a great sense of humor that shines through in the names she gives

dishes, such as the How Ya Bean Burger and the Up-Beet Burger. She loves puns!

The farm has tremendous community support, and Nourse, in response to “customers’ requests,” has added a couple of new picnic tables and umbrellas next to the food trailSee HOPPIN’, Page 21

20 | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

THE NEXT DRAFT

Informational Facebook group helps beat lines at Tree House Brewing Co. Matthew Tota Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

To the uninitiated, a weekend trip to Tree House Brewing Co. in Charlton can seem overwhelming.

The swelling crowds, myriad beer options and long lines — if you don’t know what to expect or don’t know the ordering process, you might feel confused or anxious upon arrival.

Take heart though, you’ll nearly always fi nd someone to point you in the right direction.

Eric Clark is one such Tree House tour guide.

Once a newbie himself, Clark called a friend before his fi rst trip to Tree House in 2016 for a tutorial on how to secure your place in line and order growlers. He later paid that knowledge forward in a big way: taking on the role as one of fi ve administrators for Tree House Brew Co: Line Updates, a private Facebook group that provides information for visiting Tree House — to more than 43,000 people (and growing) every day.

“Tree House is a destination: People make it part of their trips, and they want to know that information,” Clark said.

With Tree House now selling beer at four diff erent locations and having recently reopened for draft service in Charlton, the group has never been more relevant or necessary: It has not taken long for the weekend masses to return.

The group formed in 2015 as a small gathering space for Tree House enthusiasts to chat about their beloved brewery.

Soon questions about the daily wait times dominated discussions, with the group morphing into more of an information

The patio view of Tree House Brewing in Charlton. T&G FILE PHOTO/CHRISTINE PETERSON

hub for line updates and beer releases.

Clark likens the group to Waze, the crowd-sourced maps app, but for navigating all things Tree House. The page relies on real-time updates from people at Tree House — often accompanied by pictures — who describe how much time you can expect to wait for your beer, whether picking up cans or staying for pours. Sometimes the reports give time estimates or approximate the number of people waiting.

Common updates pinpoint where the lines end, such as “to the top of the parking lot.”

Each morning, one of the admins has a post packed with information to help you better plan your Tree House visit.

They include basic details about each location, such as the hours of operation or availability of pours, links to the brewery’s own FAQs and wayfi nding pages — which inevitably people fail to read — and brief summaries of the order procedure for each site.

“Each location has diff erent formats for how you get your beer: Charlton you get in line again, Deerfi eld and the Cape, you stay in your car,” Clark said.

You’ll fi nd the most valuable insight in the comments under each post, where people fi le mini-dispatches from one of Tree House’s four locations.

The admins also have a reliable team of moderators to delete misinformation from the comments and answer questions, like what the minimum purchase per order is ($65) or

whether there will be a food truck.

“We rely heavily on the commenters — the customers,” said David Ryan, one of the group’s admins. “They will engage with the Tree House staff , and they can ask questions and get concrete answers. We’ll go through that and try our best to summarize what’s currently happening at each location.”

Last month, Tree House resumed draft pours in Charlton, See DRAFT, Page 21

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 21

Hoppin’

Taste of Shrewsbury St. returns

Continued from Page 19

er. Online food orders for pickup are accepted. Check www.noursefarm.com for the farm’s history and info about subscription to the farm’s Supported Agriculture (CSA) program. (FYI: Summer CSA is fi lled but you can fi nd info for the fall CSA in October.)

More than 40 fruits and vegetables are grown by Nourse Farm, and crop availability changes month to month.

The farm’s timetable for blueberries is after the Fourth of July, “probably more towards mid-July,” according to Nourse, who expects the crop will be ready in time for this month’s farm celebration.

Taste of the Harvest, open to the public, is scheduled from 1 to 4 p.m. July 18. The focus will be the farm, which celebrates its 300th anniversary next year.

Tasty and nutritious, blueberries this month at the food trailer will be featured in smoothies, in addition to a new blueberry vinaigrette for drizzling over fresh salads. The Farm Store will sell homemade, fresh blueberry pies. Visitors to the store look forward to seasonal fruit pies and other desserts made on premise, said Nourse. On a personal note: A friend, whose husband co-owns a popular Worcester bakery, says she fi nds the chocolate chip cookies, fresh out of the oven, “irresistible” when she’s at the farm.

Draft Continued from Page 20

but without any formal announcement.

Yet the group’s administrators knew almost immediately thanks to their vast community of tipsters. Eagle-eyed members had noticed subtle changes to the website foreshadowing the return of draft pours. And they were at Tree House sending in pictures of their draft cups that day and breaking down the new system for ordering pours.

The group is the ultimate source for all of Tree House’s secret releases. Part of Tree House’s allure has always been its silent drops of new beers, not listed on its website for the day. When members learn about these beers, they post

Taste of Shrewsbury Street participants include, from left, Lee Hanson from Leo's Ristorante, Meraki owner Joanna Bachour, McDonald's franchisee Katie Hurley, and Vintage Grille owner Chris Stone. RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

The farm’s Cut-Your-Own-Flower fi eld opens this month. For info about pick-your-own, call (508) 366-2644.

Veg Out Food Trailer hours: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday; 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday. On a hot summer day, enjoy dishes like Cool as a Cucumber Soup or the light and refreshing U Make Me So Happy Salad that features zucchini noodles, julienned carrots and purple cabbage with a ginger miso dressing.

Farm Store: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday

through Friday; 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Farm produce, specialty products and more!

Nourse Farm, 80 Jasper St., has a self-guided informational trail that gives visitors a chance to walk in fi elds and learn about the surroundings. The half-mile walk along a dirt road takes “about 20 minutes.”

Nourse Farm is among local farms and farmers markets where you can enjoy a taste of summer.

about them, in some ways spoiling the surprise and buzz Tree House hoped to create.

“There are times where Tree House’s strategy to go to market is undermined by us, because we have all the information that works against that hype,” Clark said. “They do it in a way that creates that fear of missing out. If there are gaps in information, and they are doing it purposely to create that allure or fear of missing out, we’re there to fi ll in the gaps.”

There has never been any animosity between the group and the brewery, though, even as there have been no public endorsements from Tree House: merely silent respect and mutual understanding.

Now would be a good time to stress that none of the group’s admins work or

have worked for Tree House. In fact, in talking with four of them, I’ve learned they all have stressful day jobs. Three live in Connecticut.

“People often think we work for Tree House, but no: In reality we just waste a ton of time on social media to help you,” said Tim Derouin, of Monson, the only admin I spoke with who lives in Massachusetts.

Writing them off as simply Tree House fanboys also misses the point.

They aim to make the Tree House scene — and the craft beer community at large — as welcoming and helpful as possible.

They also all agree that they’ve met some of the friendliest people waiting in line at Tree House.

“It’s all about the sense of community,” Derouin said. “You go to Six Flags and you’re waiting in line, but there’s no

The return of Taste of Shrewsbury Street is good news.

The event, canceled last summer due to the pandemic, is scheduled from 5 to 9 p.m. Aug. 24.

Cost will be $25 per person, with admission stickers, and it will feature food, live music and more. The Table Hoppin’ column will list participants closer to the August date.

Also, Roger Bachour looks forward to an August opening of his new business, Meraki Café at 274 Shrewsbury St. The former Dark Rose Saloon space is being renovated and Bachour would like the café to be open in time for Taste of Shrewsbury Street. He will go before the Worcester License Commission before then, he said.

The café will serve desserts, no meals, according to Bachour and his wife, Joanna Bachour, who will work in the business.

Bachour owns Boardroom Kitchen & Bar, 139 Water St., Worcester, and the Whiskey Lounge, 316 Main St., Worcester. He has been associated with the hospitality industry for more than 25 years.

Restaurant Week in August Circle the date: Worcester Restaurant Week 2021 is set for Aug. 2-Aug 14.

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

common ground, you aren’t talking about roller coasters across the country.”

There has been no better example of that community than when it came out in support of Nicholas Hutchinson, an admin, and his wife, Jess. In March, Hutchinson’s son, Callum, was born premature at 32 weeks and had a fi veweek stay in the hospital with 24-hour monitoring.

Clark, Hutchinson’s best friend, posted in the group that he was raising money to help cover the family’s medical expenses by raffl ing off Tree House beer. The response was enormous, with the raffl e raising more than $10,000.

“It was an awesome display of the people in that group and how generous they are,” Hutchinson said.

22 | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

LISTEN UP

Add New England artists to holiday playlist Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

There is something of an art to putting together a Fourth of July Playlist. You want some songs that speak to the country, however it is that you feel about it. You want some songs that speak to the heat and swelter in the air. You want some good grooves you can dance to, and you want the overall vibe to be positive, upbeat and maybe even a little inspirational. What follows are a few suggestions for a New England-centric playlist for your Independence Day Barbecue, if Barbecues Are A Thing We’re Doing This Year, accompanied online by a Spotify playlist which has some explicit lyrics and which will invariably delight some and annoy others.

Because freedom.

SOMETHING TO GROOVE TO: If you want straight-up splash of unironic patriotism, you can’t do any better than Annie Brobst’s recent song, “Holler & Swaller,” a song about kicking up a ruckus in “the home of the brave and the land of the free.” It’s irresistible. On the same token, the sheer optimism and positive energy of Jazzmyn Red’s “We Gon Make It” is an ode to social justice and positive change that you can dance to. Much the same with the rap-rock fusion of Oompa’s collaboration with Walter Sickert & the Army of Broken Toys, “Love Be the Way,” or Ruby Rose Fox’s spiritually soaring “Lady Godiva.” Of course, it’s not all politics: Michael Kane & the Morning Afters’ “Carol Kaye” is an infectious earworm and an ode to the golden age of rock ‘n’ roll. What’s more American than that?

A LITTLE SUMMER HEAT: There’s a sizzle in the air, and it should be refl ected in the music, and in a lot of ways, that

Annie Brobst’s newest album is “Where We Holler.”

MATTHEW ALLEN PHOTOGRAPHY

calls for some jazz. How about Tyra Penn and Her Army of Snakes’ rendition of “Summertime,” Eddie Japan’s’s searing “Summer Hair,” Savoir Faire’s steamy and haunting “1945,” or Senseless Optimism’s soulful “Why?” Of course, if you want to turn up the heat a little more, there’s always Ralph Weah’s sizzling “Run Away” and Louie Gonz’s gritty “My City.” It’s best to balance out all this sizzle with something soaring, such as Leon Legacy’s “Superman Vibe,” or something just indelibly cool, like “Get It Poppin’” by the K. Fingers band. Sure, not all of these are about “summer” or “America,” but a theme too tightly held makes for tedious listening.

YEAH, OK, SOME POLITICS: Let’s face it, a lot of the best songs about America have a social justice bent and an unrestrained rage against injustice. Some people try to write this off as “hating America,” but

Jazzmyn Red’s song “We Gon Make It” is a good choice for a Fourth of July playlist. CHRISTINE PETERSON/T&G

Eddie Japan’s “Summer Hair” adds some heat to a playlist. T&G FILE

frankly, you can’t work up that much anger if you don’t care in the fi rst place, and protest songs are some of the country’s

best. A few regional selections might include Zigmont’s defi ant “No Lo Contendre”; “Rich Man, Poor Man” from the the

trio of Worcester rappers that comprise Stanton Capitol RecSee ARTISTS, Page 24

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 23

SCREEN TIME

After 35 years, Worcester fi lm columnist lets fi nal reel roll Jim Keogh Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

On July 1, 1986, my fi rst movie review appeared in The Evening Gazette. I’d been assigned “American Anthem,” which was meant to be the launch of Olympic gymnast Mitch Gaylord’s acting career. I don’t recall my exact words, but I believe I suggested that Mitch moves like a jungle cat and acts like a pommel horse, or something to that effect. His time on this particular stage was brief, then he was gone.

And so am I. For 35 years I’ve been writing about movies for the Worcester County audience — fi rst at The Evening Gazette, then The Telegram & Gazette, and fi nally, for more than a decade, at Worcester Magazine. Now I’ve decided it’s time to step away from this wonderful gig to direct my time and capacity toward other pursuits, and to deal with a personal challenge that requires my focus. Besides, three-plus decades at anything is a good run, amiright?

I’ve enjoyed fi lling this space with observations, criticisms, and silliness, week after week, year after year. The late, great Gerry Goggins hired me in 1986 to write freelance reviews and produce the Film Clips column in the Gazette’s Time Out section after I’d abandoned my short-lived career as a high school English teacher (and lost my reserved place in heaven). I’m not sure I knew what I was doing in those early days — no, on second thought, I am sure I didn’t know what I was doing — so when Gerry, a taciturn guy, would say, “Good column,” I took it as a sign my stuff was passable enough to keep printing for at least another week.

When I started as a critic, Worcester had four theaters within the city limits — National Amusements’ theaters downtown and in Lincoln Plaza and Webster Square, and a General Cinema on the basement level of the Galleria, later to morph into the Bijou. White City Cinemas was just across the bridge in Shrewsbury, and the independent Cine-

For 35 years Jim Keogh has been writing about movies for the Worcester County audience — fi rst at The Evening Gazette, then The Telegram & Gazette, and fi nally, for more than a decade, at Worcester Magazine. GETTY IMAGES

ma 320 screened art house and international fi lms at Clark University. All are gone. Showcase Cinema North debuted in 1995, and it’s shuttered, too.

I loved these places. As I write this, the memories are racing through me: If you attended a movie at the downtown Showcase in the ’80s, you likely encountered Selma, an elderly Worcester character known for her heavily powdered skin and penchant for cackling loudly from the front row, even during slasher movies. I once gave Selma a ride home after the Mikhail Baryshnikov movie “Dancers,” and she regaled me with stories about her own former dancing career. Was any of it true? I hope so, because I bought every detail.

(The late Doug Ingalls, then the Showcase manager, always waved Selma through for free, and hosted a Thanksgiving party at the theater for the band of regulars who had no other dinner options.)

When my wife and I were newly married, we trudged through a snowstorm from our apartment off Mill Street to catch a double feature of “Moonstruck” and “Overboard” at Webster Square.

The audience was so tiny that the manager came around and chatted us up individually between shows. Cozy doesn’t begin to describe the experience.

On the Bijou’s last night, I drifted away from the party in the lobby and made my way upstairs to chat with the

projectionist who spilled his stories about old-time Worcester cinema (including porn). I felt like Jimmy Breslin interviewing the guy who dug JFK’s grave.

My favorite of all was Showcase North, that boxy, beautiful behemoth on Brooks Street where I introduced our two children to the miracle of big-screen movies. I brought them to fi lms that were perfectly matched to their ages and maturity levels, and exposed them to others that proved to be wholly inappropriate. (I regret nothing. Well, maybe “Jackass Number Two.”) A few days after the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center, during a packed screening of “Monsters, Inc.” at Showcase North, the lights came up and we were instructed to immediately evacuate the theater. At the time, everyone was on high alert for the next terrorist strike, and the unsettling sight of fi retrucks and police cruisers gathered at the entrance only added to the discomfort of the parents clutching their children’s hands. Finally, we were allowed back in, and as I passed by Deb, the manager, she whispered to me, “Burnt popcorn.”

I’d considered for this fi nal column getting into technology’s infl uence on the production and delivery of these columns and reviews (yes, I wrote my early reviews on a typewriter) or doing a deep dive into the evolving ways we engage the tsunami of content available to us. But I and many others have already addressed all of it. What’s left to say?

Just tell me a story that moves me — to tears, to laughter, to wonder — and I don’t care if it plays on an IMAX screen or a smart phone or is projected on a yellowed sheet in an alley.

I will certainly have more to say after today, and my editors have graciously invited me to contribute to these pages when I’m inspired to do so. For now, this break from the weekly duty is good and necessary. It was an honor to share my thoughts, opinions and whimsies with you across the years, and thank you for reading.

24 | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

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Artists Continued from Page 22

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ords, Jafet Muzic, Danny Fantom and K’Nen; “The New Normal Pt. I” from Boston hip-hop outfi t STL GLD; “Sin Justicia, No Hay Paz,” by DJ WhySham with Eva Davenport & Sophia Islander; and the punk rock “21st Century Failure,” by the Prefab Messiahs. Of course, if you really want to mess with a few relatives at the cookout, you can play the Dandy Highwaymen’s “A Modest Proposal”: “No cake! No bread! Let’s Eat the Rich Instead!” That usually gets a reaction. And if you’re looking for something more positive and affi rming, you could do a lot worse than Wildcard Characters’ extremely catchy Pride anthem, “Louder.”

ROUNDING THINGS OUT: There are some songs that aren’t on Spotify which would have worked on any number of levels, such as Sapling’s delightfully anarchic “(Expletive) This Yuppie Barbecue” and Vance Gilbert’s ode to holding community together in the face of profi t-based change, “Upon Rockfi eld.” Still, songs such as Jeff rey Foucault’s

From left, Danny Fantom, K’Nen and Jafet Muzic are the principal rappers of Stanton Capitol Records.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

meditation on rock ‘n’ roll and commercialism, “War on the Radio,” the Duende Project’s labor-rousing “Crumbs” and the Marshall Pass’ “Blood Riders” — another one about a town facing change in the face of monied interest — bring a certain gravitas and sense of social awareness without being too weighty.

This playlist isn’t for everyone of course, but then, that’s the beauty of America: If you feel diff erent about the country and the groove, you can express it through your own mix.

It is, after all, a free country.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 25

In the wake of suicides in US, 237,500 lonely people left behind Abigail Salois Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

It was just after nine that night and our children were sleeping upstairs when I received a message from the New York City Police Department. I dropped to the kitchen fl oor and squeezed my hands over my face because I already knew that she was gone; I handed the phone to my husband to return the call. My mind often replays this evening and one thing that stands out is the pain in my husband’s voice as he squeezed out the words “she jumped” through his own tears.

The last year was one of communal loss. We lost jobs; proms and graduations; baseball, March Madness, and the Boston Marathon. We lost traveling, and we lost loved ones.

On Sunday, October 25, 2020, we lost my older sister Liza.

Approximately 47,500 people take their own lives each year in the U.S. Suicide is the tenth leading cause of death.

The statistics don’t include suicides that are misreported as accidental overdoses, heart attacks or falls down the stairs. I found myself in the loneliest place I’d ever been after Liza died; the statistics suggest, however, that I am in good company. Even if each suicide death profoundly aff ects just fi ve loved ones — a conservative estimate — there are 237,500 of my compatriots walking among us.

Those of us who have lost a loved one to suicide are further isolated by public attitudes.

World Suicide Prevention Day is observed on September 10.

The primary goal of the largest suicide prevention organization in the country, the Amer-

Approximately 47,500 people take their own lives each year in the U.S. Suicide is the tenth leading cause of death. ULRIKE MAI

ican Foundation for Suicide Prevention, is to save lives and it frames suicide as largely treatable with the implementation of mental health services.

Of course, suicide should be prevented where possible, but the prevention message is as oversimplifi ed as Just Say No to Drugs or abstinence-only sex education. It fails to consider that many people will not accept help and you cannot save someone who doesn’t want to be saved. People do not have that sort of control over one another.

Even those who are amenable to treatment may not have access to quality mental health care. It is incredibly diffi cult to fi nd good help these days, especially for someone fl attened by depression. Further, suicide prevention messaging makes the hundreds of thousands of people like me feel like terrible sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers, daughters, and sons for failing to save our loved ones.

Liza died when her struggles converged in a perfect storm, no single factor was to blame.

Her mental and physical illness, substance abuse, divorce, family confl ict, fi nancial and housing instability made her a live grenade with the pin pulled. Already unsettled by our unstable national climate, Liza could not hang on in the isolation infl icted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

There was always a passive suicidality about Liza. She didn’t always want to kill herself, but she always knew she would die young. She lived her life like she had nothing to lose; she smoked, misused drugs and alcohol, never slept, made risky fi nancial decisions, and drove her car way too fast.

About three years ago, Liza was hospitalized after she tried to die using pills and alcohol.

Liza’s struggles were not the whole of her, though. Those Liza counted as friends are lucky.

She delighted in cooking, eating, and above all, feeding people. I can see Liza walking into our parents’ home like a tornado with armloads of baked goods. She would blow right by the dish of olives, hummus,

and crackers on the kitchen island to the fridge and excitedly ask, “What are we eating?” Like our dad, Liza was a great dancer and had a passion for all things beautiful, from cars to fashion to women.

She loved music and produced a track that made it to the Billboard chart. Liza had a raspy, mischievous laugh and a gift for delivering one-liners, also inherited from our dad.

She made us open gifts immediately — before she even took her jacket off — because she could not contain her glee in watching people open her gifts.

Liza always showed up for her people and would not miss a birthday, phone call, graduation, shower, or wedding. She was one of the fi rst people to hold my son after he was born, even though she had to drive three hours to do it. When our dad neared the end of his life, Liza constantly held his hand and put her face inches away from his when she spoke, ignoring his desire for personal space. It was funny to watch because he could do nothing

about it; she fi nally had him as a captive audience. But then, she always held the ones she loved closely.

I bet you know someone who has lost a loved one to suicide; you do not have to leave them among the 237,500 lonely people. I know you are uncomfortable, but please don’t stand silent or sling platitudes like “everything happens for a reason” or “she’s in a better place now.”

Everything doesn’t have to be pretty. Do not ask what happened or the method of their loved one’s death.

Suicide loss is grief compounded by trauma and these questions sting. Put your discomfort aside, and be there; call, go for a walk, send food. Be aware of how quickly the news cycle moves, and that your friend is still suff ering six months or six years after their loss. If your friend is willing, talk about their loved one and use their name. People die twice; fi rst when their heart stops beating and, second, the last time a living person speaks their name.

If you were friends before the loss, you must get to know the new them. The pieces just don’t fi t together the same way they used to. Grief doesn’t vanish, but it changes. We who have experienced profound grief get brave; we can jump in with reckless abandon. If we can withstand pain like this, we can do anything.

Abigail Salois lives with her husband, two children, and dog in Holden, Massachusetts. She has been a practicing attorney in Worcester since 2012. Follow @mourning_runs on Instagram to learn more about Abigail’s writing and to join the conversation about destigmatizing suicide loss.

26 | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

5 THINGS TO DO

The band moe. will perform at 6:30 p.m.

July 3 at Northlands, Cheshire Fairground, 247 Monadnock Highway, Swanzey, N.H. PHOTO BY JAY BLAKESBERG

GREATER WORCESTER OPERA, MOE. AND MORE Richard Duckett, Veer Mudambi and Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

Ready to jam Since emerging from Buffalo more than 30 years ago, moe. has been one of the premier groups on the jam band scene and a fan favorite. As one reviewer noted, “Not only do they play with peerless skill and energy, they have an extensive catalog of songs that are complex and feature multiple mood and tempo changes; it is music crafted to allow the band maximum opportunities for improvisation.” Fueled by an impassioned fan base, moe. has spent much of those 30+ years on the road, and the band is back at Northlands in Swanzey, New Hampshire (formerly Drive-In Live when it played there last October) for a show at 6:30 p.m. July 3. Also at Northlands 6:30 p.m. July 2 is singer-songwriter and former Allman Brothers Band lead guitarist Warren Hayes. (RD)

What: moe.

When: 6:30 p.m. July 3 Where: Northlands, Cheshire Fairground, 247 Monadnock Highway, Swanzey, New Hampshire How much: Single tickets available for this show. One pod purchase for five people is $29-$32 per person. www.northlandslive.com.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 27

Bow WOW! For dog lovers, there’s not much better than watching our canine companions flying after a frisbee on a summer day. Mike Piazza and his border collies take this to a whole new level (literally and figuratively) in Flying High Dogs this Tuesday at the Tatnuck Magnet branch of the Worcester Public Library.

As the current holder of the world record in K-9 frisbee, Piazza and his collies have performed for the NFL and NBA, as well as on Animal Planet and ESPN. Space is limited so register at WPL website via the online calendar. Masks and social distancing required. (VM) What: Flying High Dogs When: 4 to 5 p.m., Tuesday, July 6 Where: Tatnuck Magnet branch of the Worcester Public Library How much: Free, but register beforehand at mywpl.org and select Classes and Events.

A scene from Greater Worcester Opera’s production of Stephen Sondheim’s “A Little Night Music,” which was halted mid-run in March 2020 when the coronavirus hit. T&G FILE PHOTO

Give my regards to Broadway

Bullet, 6, a Border Collie, lands on her front two legs, after making a difficult catch of a frisbee, during a demonstration of Mike Piazza’s famous “Flying High Frisbee Dogs”, at the Oak Street Middle School in 2015. T&G FILE PHOTO/STEVE LANAVA

Jam for a cause Primal Soup is a jamband super band, comprising members of Skyfoot, the New Motif, A Phine Connection and Don’t Let Go. For this show, the band is coming together to raise money for Skyfoot drummer Aaron Morey, whose Franklin home was destroyed in a fire. The band will be playing songs by Phish and the Grateful Dead, and promises there will be guest performers sitting in. (VDI)

Primal Soup is set to perform at Electric Haze.

T&G FILE PHOTO/STEVE LANAVA

What: Primal Soup When: 9 p.m. July 2 Where: Electric Haze, 26 Millbury St., Worcester How much: $10

Greater Worcester Opera returns to live performances with a new outdoor Summer Concert Series starting with “The Great American Songbook” July 7 at the West Boylston Bandstand. Bring a chair or blanket. The four concerts in the series will be every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. July 7-28 (rain date Thursdays). Besides “The Great American Songbook,” themes will be “Gilbert & Sullivan Night” (July 14), “Classic Broadway” (July 21), and “Contemporary Broadway” (July 28). GWO promises that the shows will feature “many singers you know and love, and a few new faces.” Olga Rogach will be the piano accompanist. The concerts are free, but donations will be accepted “with gratitude.” (RD) What: Greater Worcester Opera presents “The Great American Songbook” When: 6:30 p.m. July 7 Where: The West Boylston Bandstand, Church Street and Route 12, West Boylston How much: Free; donations accepted. For more information visit www.greaterworcesteropera.org

Poetic Beasts and Where to Find Them Like animals? Like poetry? Then tune in to “Poetic Beasts” this Friday, a virtual panel of poets discussing writing about animals.

Panelists include Maura MacNeil, Susan Roney-O’Brien and B.G. Thurston, who will share their work as well as pet stories and animal encounters that inspired them. Presented by the Worcester Public Library, registration is required via the WPL online calendar. (VM) Poet Susan Roney-O’Brien will be on of the presenters for the virtual panel, “Poetic Beasts — a Virtual Panel of Poets Discussing Animals,” July 9 for the Worcester Public Library.

WORCESTER MAGAZINE FILE PHOTO/ SAM FULLER

What: Poetic Beasts — a Virtual Panel of Poets Discussing Animals When: 4 to 5 p.m. July 9 Where: Virtual event How much: Free, but register beforehand at mywpl.org and select Classes and Events.

28 | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

ADOPTION OPTION

Meet Corrie

Welcome to Adoption Option, a partnership with the Worcester Animal Rescue League highlighting their adoptable pets. Check this space often to meet all of the great pets at WARL in need of homes. WARL is open seven days a week, noon-4 p.m., 139 Holden St. Check them out online at Worcesterarl.org, or call at (508) 853-0030.

Corrie was transferred to WARL by a veterinary hospital that got him from people who found him unable to walk. He had a fractured pelvis, which has healed, but he needs pain medication for his arthritis. We also discovered he has food allergies and will be on special food and medication for the rest of his life. We put Corrie in a foster home. His foster parent said, “Corrie is the most wonderful cat! He is friendly, lovable, quiet, playful and chilled out.” He spent his evenings in his foster parents’ laps and gave kisses. He had a good relationship with the foster parents’ two older cats after their initial introduction. Even with his old injury, Corrie enjoys jumping up to get a wand toy or chase a laser beam. Give him a catnip toy, and he is in heaven!

Corrie would not be a good playmate for young children and hasn’t been in the company of dogs during his foster care.

However, given his even temperament, Corrie would be comfortable in most homes. He will need medical care for the rest of his life, so just be aware that Corrie will be on a fi rstname basis with his veterinarian.

WARL COVID-19 Procedures As of Nov. 9, 2020 As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, we want to

Corrie is available for adoption through WARL. PHOTO COURTESY EAST DOUGLAS PHOTO

share with you some changes we have implemented so that we can continue to serve the pets and people of our community while keeping our team protected.

• ADOPTIONS: At this time, adoptions are being held BY APPOINTMENT ONLY. If you are interested in adoption, please visit our website worcesterarl.org/ adopt/ to learn more about our available animals then call us at (508) 853-0030 ext.0 or email us at info@worcesterarl. org to schedule an appointment.

• CASUAL VISITS TO THE SHELTER are prohibited. We

will strictly enforce this in order to keep our animal care team protected while still maintaining the most essential function of our operation ... fi nding homes for animals in need.

• ANIMAL SURRENDERS: Our business practice for surrendering a pet remains the same. All pet owners must contact WARL in advance of surrendering a pet. Please call (508) 853-0030.

• SPAY/NEUTER CLINICS: All scheduled appointments will be honored. If you have a scheduled appointment, we will be contacting you to dis-

cuss changes to our drop off / pick up procedures.

• DONATIONS ACCEPTED except for open bags of food.

• Pet food, cat litter, and other shelter supplies will be essential in continuing to provide for our animals and to assist community members in need. To avoid unnecessary travel and exposure, items can be purchased online from our Amazon Wishlist — https:// www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/3AX342JIL73M0 • Weekly training classes are going on for adopters.

• The WARL Volunteer Program is temporarily suspend-

ed. All regular volunteer shifts are on hold. We look forward to welcoming you back as soon as we can. We have many animals in our care who depend on us to stay healthy and well. The above measures help to protect our staff and community from the spread of COVID - 19 by minimizing face-to-face interactions while continuing to operate only core essential services. Please continue to follow our Facebook page for additional updates. Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact the shelter at (508) 853-0030 or info@ worcesterarl.org.

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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!

R U O Y E C A PL AD HERE! Call

66

-34 4 5 2 8 8 8 cla

or email a.com i d e m e s u o ateh ssifieds@g

Across 1 “25” singer 6 “No thanks” 11 “Awesome!” (and the letters seen on the outside of each theme answer) 14 Cartoon cat with a “bag of tricks” 15 “Same here” 16 Fight of the Century participant 17 They’re coming to save the day 19 Downside 20 Announcer Hall 21 Hardly sympathetic 23 Noble partner?

26 “A ... crawly thing!”

27 Fivesome on a clock face 28 Gathered 30 “Semper Paratus” org.

32 Cereal box activity, maybe 33 Easy two-pointers 36 Tire filler 39 “Carmen” composer 41 “La ___” (Debussy opus) 42 “Gandhi” character 44 “Angry Anymore” singer DiFranco 45 “The Wizard of Oz” setting 48 Illuminating gas 49 Financial subj.

51 ___ souchong tea 53 Get hold of 55 Come up short 58 “Sir, this is a ___” (fast food based meme response) 59 Rookie 61 It gets spilled, so to speak 62 Singer Rita 63 Colorful final track in most Mario Kart games 68 Make a dent in 69 Kemper who plays Kimmy Schmidt 70 Avoid skillfully 71 Button on some flip phones 72 “Black Velvet” singer Alannah ___ 73 Suffix with poly Down 1 2nd-largest continent, for short 2 River in Scotland that sounds like a letter

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

See 57-Down Franchise operator Gives off Proofs of age Raise, as curiosity Carry ___ Compare Vending machine drink Leaving competitors in the dust 12 Privately 13 Fender flaws 18 Automotive disaster of the 1950s 22 Sinbad’s giant egg-layer 23 “La ___” (Ritchie Valens hit) 24 At full speed, on the sea 25 What “Dolittle” won in the category of Worst Prequel, Remake, Rip-off or Sequel, in 2021 29 2017 Kendrick Lamar album 31 Taxpayer’s no.

34 Positive feedback 35 Mountain range separating Europe and Asia 37 O. Henry’s specialty 38 Ladder parts 40 Ring decision 43 Gets tangled up 46 Deviation 47 Handled, as a matter

50 “Hockey Night in Canada” broadcaster 52 TV “Playhouse” name 53 Lawn figurine 54 Put on TV again 56 Brecht’s “Threepenny Opera” collaborator 57 With 3-Down, golf legend from South Africa 60 City NNW of Provo 64 Wanna-___ (copycats) 65 On vacation 66 Sports drink suffix 67 “Dawson’s Creek” actor James Van ___ Beek

Last week's solution

©2021 Matt Jones (jonesincrosswords@gmail.com) Reference puzzle #1047

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JULY 2 - 8, 2021 | 31

LAST CALL

Geoff rey Esper, world class competitive eater Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Hosted by Major League Eating, competitions across the country test not only your appetite but endurance and speed. In a normal year, there can be more than 20 contests a year by MLE and one of the biggest is Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island in New York. Anyone hoping to break the top 50 in MLE ranking needs to make a good showing on Independence Day. High school teacher and Oxford resident Geoff rey Esper is currently ranked second in the world for competitive eating and will be participating this weekend aiming to maintain his ranking.

He sat down with Last Call to talk about how he got started and how he feels going into this year’s competition.

How did you get into competitive eating?

My story’s basically the same as anyone else who gets into it — I started off doing restaurant food challenges. I did well at a couple of those locally and I decided to try out in the qualifi ers for Nathan’s at Coney Island. Came close the fi rst time — lost by a few hot dogs — and qualifi ed the second.

How do you prepare for events?

In a regular contest, I’ll try and fi nd the same type of food as they’ll have at the contest and try and practice eating it.

I’ll do about one or two practices usually but for Nathan’s I’ll do fi ve or six.

On the day of the contest, I’ll get up early and eat a small breakfast so I don’t get tired.

Some people fast but I can’t do that. I’ve found that if I just starve myself, I fall fl at on my face.

What are the rules for contests? Are they the same ev-

Geoffrey Esper of Oxford, will be competing in the annual Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest on the Fourth of July. He’s currently ranked second in the world by Major League Eating. SHEA COMMUNICATIONS

erywhere?

Most are 10 minutes but some can be 6, 8 or 12 and how much you can eat in that time.

Diff erent for other contests.

Some are fi rst to fi nish — you get fi ve pounds of food and race to fi nish. I do pretty well at those.

Tips for other competitive eaters?

I don’t know if I’d ever promote somebody else to go into it — it’s kind of a weird thing.

Eating a whole bunch of the same food, it’s not like sitting down to a Thanksgiving meal.

You can’t really enjoy it. It’s like

a sport. I would say, if you’re just starting out, make sure you really really like it, because it’s not as fun as you think it is. If you’ve been doing it for a while, remember that regular exercise is very important because more fat means less capacity for your stomach, so you want to stay

fairly lean.

When’s your next shot at No. 1?

If you ever want to get to No. 1, you have to win Coney. And Joey’s got that locked for quite a while now. (Joey Chestnut holds the record of 13 wins at Nathan’s). Second place is pretty good competition this year and I think I got a pretty good shot.

Preferred food to competitively eat?

Pizza — you don’t get the fl avor fatigue like with other foods. The ones that are a little bit greasy like tamales, you get sick of those after a few minutes.

Favorite food overall?

It might actually be pizza, that’s why I like it in contests.

How has this aff ected your view of food generally?

I don’t really have cravings anymore. Like some people say “I’m craving a cheeseburger,” I just think back to that time I ate 50 cheeseburgers.

How do you reach top ranking?

If you want to work your way up the list, you have to place up in contests. They don’t change the rankings very often but they’re pretty accurate. They look at how you’ve done in each contest and who you’ve beaten over a period of time.

What kind of contest is the hotdog eating?

Skills and capacity — it’s as much as you can eat in 10 minutes.

Your MLE profi le implies you have a reputation for being serious. It says MLE offi cials have seen you smile “despite reports to the contrary.”

Is there a story behind that?

[Laughs] It’s more compared to the other guys there. A lot of them talk a lot, make a big show of it like WWE, but I’m not into that. I try to downplay it a little bit.

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