Remembering Cupples Square By Leo Racicot In spite of my lifelong devotion to The Acre and Saint Patrick’s Parish, I was actually born on Pine Street in The Highlands, baptized at Saint Margaret s Church on Stevens Street. Aunt Marie and Nana lived most of their lives in The Highlands…
A weekly report on things I’ve read, heard and seen since last Wednesday. Podcast: The Varsity featuring host John Ourand interviewing Ted Leonsis, a Lowell High Distinguished Alumni. Leonsis gained fame and fortune as an executive with America Online (AOL). In 1999, he purchased the NHL’s Washington Capitals and since…
Two years ago, Louise Peloquin began sharing excerpts from L’Etoile, a French-language newspaper published in Lowell from 1886 to 1957. At my urging, she has agreed to compile some of her previous posts with added contextual information into a book manuscript to be called, L’Etoile: A Star on Prince Street.…
We’ll start with a housekeeping announcement: Due to the ongoing storm, I postponed this weekend’s tours of Lowell Cemetery. They will now be held next weekend, Saturday, October 3 and Sunday, October 4, 2026, both starting at 10 a.m. from the Lawrence Street Gate (same tour both days). **** The…
Due to the coming wind and rain storm, this weekend’s tours of Lowell Cemetery have been rescheduled to Saturday, October 3, 2026, and Sunday, October 4, 2026. Both tours begin at 10 a.m. from the Lawrence Street Gate.
Jay Atkinson’s Novel ‘Storrow Drive’ Is Getting Pulled Over by Readers I’m always glad to see a new book by my Merrimack Valley Conference literary comrade Jay Atkinson, in his case a former Ranger from Methuen High School who was a scholar-athlete in college in Nova Scotia. Jay is still…
Due to the coming wind and rain storm, this weekend’s tours of Lowell Cemetery have been rescheduled to Saturday, October 3, 2026, and Sunday, October 4, 2026. Both tours begin at 10 a.m. from the Lawrence Street Gate.
Words By Leo Racicot “Expert use of language is to me a perpetual joy.” Noel Coward Ever since when in first grade I intuited the Beatrix Potter sentence Mrs. Hare printed on the blackboard, I’ve felt words are pearls of great value. There are writers whose belief is the opposite.…
A weekly report on things I’ve read, heard and seen since last Wednesday. Article: “Keepers of a Shrine to Cable TV Decide to Cut the Cord” by John Koblin, New York Times, September 13, 2026. There was a place in Denver, Colorado, called “The Cable Center” which was funded by…
The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons-Barron’s own blog. Whistler by Ann Patchett is another confirmation of the author’s elegant writing style, her adroitness at weaving narrative threads into a compelling tapestry, and acuity in probing the complexity of human character and emotion. Her stunning use of…