Page 8 — The LACONIA DAILy SuN, Thursday, October 28, 2021

Let Us Take Care of Breakfast

BENEFIT FOR THE VETERANS!at the Laconia Lodge of Elks 876

Sunday, October 317:30am - 10am

Scrambled Eggs, Bacon, Sausage, Homefries, Pancakes, Toast, Juice, Milk, and Coffee

$9 / adults $6 / kids (ages 5 to 11)Kids under 5 eat freeALL YOU CAN EAT

17 Sugarbush Lane, Gilford, New Hampshire(603) 524-0809

‘Tis the season of ghosts, goblins and gourds, spi-ders, moths and pumpkins. Black witches perch on the edge of windowsills, spider webs stretch across door frames, and everything seemed to be haunted, in the shadows of eerie, orange-colored lights.

I’m not certain when or how Halloween became such a popular holiday encouraging such extrava-gant decorations. Apparently, the large theme parks got involved in the 1980s and played a role in cat-apulting Halloween into a global phantasmagoria. According to the National Retail Federation, the economic impact of Halloween 2021 is expected to reach an all-time high. Total spending will be up by nearly 20 percent over the $8 billion in 2020.

And costumes? Parents order them months in advance. According to a list in USA Today, the 10 most popular costumes this year are witch, rabbit, dinosaur, Spider-Man, Cruella de Vil, fairy, Harley

Quinn, cowboy, clown and Chucky (a terrifying thought).

I have my Halloween traditions that include baking, carving a pumpkin and gathering friends for a reading of Edgar Allen Poe’s The Tell-Tale Heart. First published in 1843 it is one of Poe’s most beloved short stories. If you aren’t familiar with the tale, it is told by an unnamed narrator who tries to convince us of his own sanity after describing a murder he has committed.

When he is confronted by the police, at the end of the tale, he “grows very pale…” and what could he do but “I foamed — I raved — I swore!” When he is visited by the police, he can hear, he is certain, the beating heart of the man he has murdered.

“I felt I must scream or die! — and now — again! — hark! louder! louder! louder!”

During the reading there is the sound of organ music in the background, a black stuffed raven is perched on the arm of a chair and I keep the light-ing as low as possible — with just enough light for the person reading. It is possible to create a feeling that seems to befit the ghosts and spiders that are floating about.

This year my Halloween dinner was early, we cel-ebrated last weekend. I found a recipe for a molas-ses pumpkin spice cake and baked it in a small, round, nine-inch pan. After cooling, I turned it over and using cut-out stencils designed a jack-o-lantern face using confectionary sugar.

My carved pumpkin, created by friends who have the tools and have developed an expertise in this skill, punched out circles in two layers around the pumpkin. It sits majestically in the window and will stay through Halloween.

Next Sunday evening, just at midnight the ghosts will vanish, and All Hallows Eve will come to an end. On Monday morning we will pull back the sheets and find the page on the calendar has turned to November. Magically, holiday decorations will begin to appear in the windows, Jolly santas will replace the ghosts and witches. Christmas trees, angels, and the glow of soft candlelight will appear in the win-dows.

... Silver bells!What a world of merriment their melody foretells!How they tinkle, tinkle, tinkle,In the icy air of night!Edgar Allan Poe“The Bells”

•••Listen to Elizabeth on the Short Fuse Podcast

found on Apple or Spotify, follow her on Instagram @elizh24 or send her a note at elizabeth@laconia-dailysun.com. She is an author and journalist. Her books include Ned O’Gorman: A Glance Back, a book she edited (Easton Studio Press, 2015), A Day with Bonefish Joe (David R. Godinez, 2015), Queen Anne’s Lace and Wild Blackberry Pie, (Thornwillow Press, 2011).

On the cusp of all Hallows Eve

by Elizabeth Howard Special to The Laconia Daily Sun I found a recipe for a molasses pumpkin spice cake and baked it in a small round nine-inch

pan. After cooling, I turned it over and using cut-out stencils designed a jack-o-lantern face using confectionary sugar.

The LACONIA DAILy SuN, Thursday, October 28, 2021 — Page 9

279 DW Hwy. • Meredith • 603-279-7920Like us on Facebook so you can see other beautiful things made

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SHOP in the Gallery or ON LINE atwww.meredith.nhcrafts.org

Celebrate the magic with hand crafted gifts.

See Fred Moyer in concert virtually on Saturday, Nov. 13, with Wolfeboro Friends of Music. (Courtesy photo)

WOLFEBORO — Pianist Fred Moyer will be the artist for the Wolfeboro Friends of Music 86th season’s second concert on Saturday, Nov. 13 at 7:30 p.m. The celebrated artist returns by popular demand and launches a festive evening with the Grande valse brillante in E-flat major Opus 18 by Frederick Chopin and Felix Mendelssohn’s Fantasy in F-sharp Minor, Op. 28.

The concert is free of charge and may be accessed electronically when you send an email to info@wfriendsofmusic.org and request the unlisted You-Tube link be sent to your preferred email address. The link will be released to you shortly prior (late afternoon) to concert time and sent to the email address you sent to us.

Donations may be made at wfriendsofmusic.org or sent to WFOM, P.O. Box 2056, Wolfeboro, NH 03894.

Fred Moyer in festive virtual piano concert

Lonestar will come to the Colonial Theatre of Laconia on Saturday, April 22, 2022 at 8 p.m. (Taylor Ballantyne LLC photo)

LACONIA — The Colonial Theatre of Laconia will welcome Lonestar on Saturday, April 2, 2022, at 8 p.m.

On their forthcoming TEN to 1 record, the award-winning band — with Dean Sams on key-boards, acoustic guitar, background vocals; Michael Britt on lead guitar and background vocals; Keech Rainwater on drums; and Drew Womack on lead vocals and guitar — are taking a fresh look at all 10 of their chart-topping country songs.

Lonestar’s roots date back to the early ‘90s, when Sams originally moved to Nashville from his native Texas intending to be a solo artist. However, after a few months, he realized that he was better suited for a band and recruited Britt and Rainwater. Womack joined the group in early 2021.

With the re-recordings, the band members were mindful of striking a balance between preserv-ing the elements fans were familiar with, and not

Lonestar to play at the Colonial Theatre next April

repeating them. “It was a high wire act trying to figure out how to change it a little bit and not throw people off too much,” Britt said. “I’ve seen bands that when they do the big hits that I know, and they change it up too much, I feel disappointed. I think people want to sing along—the vocal melody is what people really are latching onto the majority of time.”

For tickets, visit coloniallaconia.com or call 800-657-8774.

MEREDITH — The Winnipesaukee Play-house’s Education Department returns to the stage for the first time since February 2020 with Spoon River, Jason Pizzarello’s adapta-tion of Edgar Lee Masters’ beloved collection of poems The Spoon River Anthology. The produc-tion runs from Oct. 28-31 with performances at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday through Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sunday.

In Spoon River the denizens of a small town in the American Midwest address the audi-ence from beyond the grave. Eight local student actors portray dozens of characters depicted in the poems who each have their opportunity to reflect on their time on earth as they sit atop Oak Hill Cemetery. On “the hill” as it was called, the deceased citizens of the town confess their deepest secrets. From doctors to drunkards, everyone has the opportunity to reveal their innermost thoughts, their disappointments, and their joys.

When first published in 1915, the collection of poems was considered scandalous in Masters’ hometown of Lewistown, Illinois as Masters had done very little to cloak the real-life identi-ties of the citizens of his local community. While the book was a huge success elsewhere in the country, it was banned in Lewistown where the residents were appalled that Masters had aired their dirty laundry for all to read. It would take another 60 years before the wounds healed and the ban was lifted.

The Playhouse’s production is directed by Meredith C. Brown who last directed the Edu-cation Department’s production of The Wolves.

Winnipesaukee Playhouse Ed Dept returns with Spoon River

see PLAYHOUSE page 17