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The Erudite Sports Enthusiasts By Stephen O’Connor Professor Ernest Harrington, PhD, Trinity College, welcomed the members of the “The Erudite Sports Enthusiasts” to his home in Cambridge where, as I shall relate, a most startling development ensued. The Enthusiasts consist of Professor Margaret Alvarez, Amherst College Doctor of Comparative Literature,…
Read More »Welcome to this week’s edition of Seen and Heard, in which I catalog the most interesting things I’ve seen, heard and read over the previous seven days: Film: Saturday Night (2024) – This movie depicts the 90 minutes leading up to the debut of the TV show Saturday Night LIve…
Read More »“It was a very good year” – (PIP #93) By Louise Peloquin The beginning of a new year always brings forecasts, predictions and plans. L’Etoile tried to cover them diligently, but always with a special local focus. 1926, Lowell’s centennial, was expected to be a very good year. L’Etoile…
Read More »The January 13, 2026, Lowell City Council meeting began with a brief presentation by the Lowell City of Learning committee on UNESCO’s recent decision to add Lowell to its Global Network of Learning Cities. This is the first time a U.S. city has received this honor. This network is designed…
Read More »Time of the End of the Season By Bob Hodge **** Bob Hodge grew up in Lowell and went on to graduate from Lowell High (1973) and University of Lowell (1990). He was (and still is) one the greatest runners to come out of this region. He’s also a writer…
Read More »An Adventurous Palate By Leo Racicot When I was a kid, I wouldn’t have anything much to do with food. I wasn’t an eater and found most meal items our mother presented alien and strange. I remember a slab of cheese looked and tasted like a piece of plastic, and…
Read More »Welcome to this week’s edition of Seen and Heard, in which I catalog the most interesting things I’ve seen, heard and read over the previous seven days: Film: Frankenstein (2025) – I’m not a fan of horror movies but I understood that this new Frankenstein movie, currently on Netflix, was…
Read More »Bequests and Budgets – (PIP #92) By Louise Peloquin Proverbs, slogans and food-for-thought phrases filled spaces in L’Etoile’s columns. Here’s one which is especially appropriate for the article below. Three things set the value of a gift: sentiment, appropriateness and manner. – signed Mme. Ricoboni. (Published in L’Etoile on…
Read More »The 2026-27 Lowell City Council took the oath of office at a Monday morning ceremony at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium. The council’s first business was to elect a mayor. The election proceeded alphabetically: the assistant clerk called the roll, and each councilor announced their choice for the position. The first…
Read More »Wandering But Not Lost By Rich Grady I spend a lot of time wandering in the woods behind my house. I did it when I was a free-range kid in elementary school, and now that I’m a free-range septuagenarian, it still gives me a sense of belonging to something bigger…
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