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David Daniel, a longtime contributor to this blog, passed away on May 5, 2026, from pulmonary fibrosis. Raised in Weymouth, Massachusetts, Dave was a prolific writer with more than ten novels, more than 200 short stories, and countless essays, reviews and columns. Dave’s obituary recounts more of the fascinating life…

Cats I Have Known By Leo Racicot The jury’s still out on whether I like cats. I must, huh? Through no doing of my own, I inherited two. I’ve also over the years cat-sat for friends. Nobody forced me to do that although I must say there’s really nothing to…

A weekly report on things I’ve read, heard and seen since last Wednesday.  Literary Event: “Three Franco Poets from Lowell” This event was held on Monday, June 22, 2026, at UMass Lowell’s Coburn Hall as part of this year’s Lowell Franco American Festival Week. The three poets were Dr. Joseph…

This post originally appeared on this site on July 1, 2025.  “Lowell has responded splendidly” – (PIP #75) By Louise Peloquin       The National Defense Day program was one of the items on the September 3rd 1924 Lowell City Council meeting agenda. (1)  Posting it seems appropriate on the eve of America’s 250th birthday.…

There was no Lowell City Council meeting this week, so today’s newsletter contains Part II of my biographical sketches of past mayors of Lowell. Today we start in 1883 with the first mayor of Irish Catholic heritage and go until 1943, with the last mayor elected prior to the city’s…

Time of the End of the Season Part V 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…

Dogs I Have Known By Leo Racicot I didn’t always like dogs. When I was 8 or 9, I was walking through North Common when a big German Shepherd began following me, barking its head off, baring its teeth viciously. It chased me onto a bench where I stood for…

A weekly report on things I’ve read, heard and seen since last Wednesday. Book Review: Isola, by Allegra Goodman. I recall reading a Times review of this book when it was first published last November. It caught my attention. It’s the story of a young French noblewoman was dependent on…

Streetwise – (PIP #108) By Louise Peloquin       Several “peeks into the past” have demonstrated how L’Etoile made use of the tiniest of column spaces. (1)      The following article could have been a dispatch provided by the Associated Press or by France’s oldest news agency, l’Agence Havas, founded in…

The Lowell City Council met on Tuesday, June 16, 2026. The substantive portion of the meeting led off with a motion by Councilor Rita Mericer asking the city manager to provide “a monthly report to the council as to the overtime spending in the fire department.” In speaking on her…