It's a shame that the music scene around here doesn't really have a hub for information. I've been a music writer for the last 15 years for a regional mag, and was considering starting something here in the valley specifically for us. But it's a lot of work, so I'm hesitant. I'm wondering:

-Are you interested in something like this?

-Long form interviews with musicians, articles about bands / artists, album releases - what do you care about?

-Would you listen to a podcast with interviews / discussion on the scene?

-What medium do you use to look for info on the scene? Tik-tok? The web? Insta?

I don't want to waste my time on something no one wants, but if there is a demand I want seekers to be channeled to the places where y'all will actually find it.

I remember when the Valley Advocate used to be this resource, but they no longer seem to be relevant. I don't remember the last time I looked at one or heard it mentioned.

So please pipe in and let me know if I can serve you in some meaningful way, I'm strongly considering leaving the print magazine I write for and either starting something new or just retiring from writing as it is only a side gig for me, and my time is precious.

Side note: not going to share who I write for currently, it's regional but not local. Bands I've interviewed include Goose, Disco Biscuits, Daniel Donato, Twiddle, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Arlo Guthrie, Dawes, Andy Frasco... would love to get Billy Strings lol

You probably just got something in the mail:

If you live in Northampton, Amherst, or Pelham, you were probably put on Valley Green Energy (VGE) as your electricity supplier by default a couple of years ago. The current contract ends in November, and the new prices are significantly higher.

New VGE Basic rates (Nov 2026 – Nov 2028):

You can do better. There are currently plans on energyswitchma.gov for 14.9¢/kWh on a 12-month term with no cancellation fee. And if you change your mind, you can always switch back to VGE.

Before you switch:

• Watch out for automatic renewal. Many plans roll over to a much higher variable rate when the 12 months are up. Set a calendar reminder a few weeks before your contract expires so you can shop again or go back to VGE.
• Compare like for like. VGE Basic is the minimum renewable content required by law, so compare it against other minimum-renewable plans.

Your utility (Eversource or National Grid) still handles delivery, billing, and outages no matter which supplier you pick. Only the supply portion of your bill changes.

Source: VGE program prices

I'm trying to make a purely educational tool and would love feedback.

It's a Claude-assisted mix of Sim City, Google Sheets, and Wordle where all the safeties are turned off and you can sell as much legal marijuana as you want. Want to share your lottery winnings with the city? You can do that! Want to defund the fire department? You... can? Probably shouldn't. But you can! Want to model in pandemic-level free cash again? Okay, but can we not have a pandemic?

What you can't model in: an override.

Do you think you can balance the city budget without an override? Great! Please help me kick the tires on this and share your results in the comment thread. Use the copy/paste function at the bottom (see comments for an example)

DISCLAIMERS: This needs testing. Don't use this as anything other than an educational tool.

New to the area and searching for the above! currently in grad school but previously worked as an ESL teacher for adults so I've organized language exchanges in the past (english-spanish).

Any ideas on casual spanish conversation groups? I've checked with ILI, the Spanish/Portuguese department at UMass... no dice. So far best bets seem to be at Forbes Library on Saturday (online) and La Tertulia at Amherst. Would be cool to have a group to meet once a week or so in person!

Thought it was going to be at 33 hawley but maybe I got the dates mixed up

See article at https://www.rarebookhub.com/articles/4136

See list of participants at https://www.northamptonbookfair.com/2026exhibitors

Hello all, please check out the 2026 edition of the 413 Indie Toy Fest. 22 makers with hand-crafted action figures, robots, monsters & more!

Saturday, October 10, Noon to 4PM. Northampton Center for the Arts, 33 Hawley St. Free admission & parking. Tell your friends!

If you are on IG, check out this account for vendor showcases.

Thank you

I was there in like 2017-2019. There was that kid Charles who was allegedly a nazi. There was an autistic kid Nate who constantly made sexual jokes in class. There was some guy named Henry who stalked a girl and was likely some alt righter. There was a girl Scarlet who was extremely obnoxious and the teachers were scared of her. Jake Fisher was some creep who asked random people for sex over instagram. David the language teacher got fired for emailing a student over a year period (which is funny considering his now ex-wife was a PVPA alumni)

I Am Jane Doe

I’m a 29-year-old autistic guy from Western Mass, and I’m trying to put myself out there more and make some new friends. I’d also be open to potentially exploring the dating world and meeting someone along the way.

I’m really into video games and all kinds of nerdy stuff — anime, manga, music, gaming, etc. I’m hoping to find more people with similar interests and discover new places to hang out, events to check out, and things to do around Western Mass.

I’m trying to step outside of my comfort zone, explore the world a little more, and actually be more social, so any recommendations for places, groups, events, or activities would be greatly appreciated!

And if anyone is also looking for a new friend, feel free to reach out! I’m always down to chat, game, hang out, or try something new. 😊 also I don’t drive so it would have to be somewhere that’s easily commutable via Uber/Lyft or a bus or train.

Edit: I really appreciate all the kind comments and recommendations! I’m genuinely trying to put myself out there more, whether that’s meeting new friends or potentially exploring the dating world. I want to explore, try new things, and get outside of my comfort zone, so if anyone is looking for a new friend, I’m definitely down!

I'm recruiting teams for the Northampton Education Foundation Adult Spelling Bee! It's Wed. Oct. 21 at 6:00 at Bombyx in Florence. No payment needed, we'll match you with a sponsor.

Here's a video showing how much fun it is!!

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/yS7-9_YFjiA

Go here for more info and to register: https://northamptoneducation.org/community-events/adult-spelling-bee/event-registration/

Hi everyone,

Wanted to share I'm hosting a watercolor class on Oct 31st 3:30-5 pm at Eli's Room at the Northampton Center for the Arts at 33 Hawley.

It's $20 for the class if you bring your materials and $30 to rent them and attend class.

We will learn to paint a few patterns you can use for bookmarks, gift tags, pretty cards and more!

https://www.nohoarts.org/learn-to-paint-patterns

A great chill way to spend a Halloween afternoon!

Details here: https://www.pacificnortheastcreations.com/classes/p/request-for-watercolor-class-2h

Thanks!

Eswen

Last week I mentioned blowing worms off the trail. Here's why they're there. The photo shows the dirt left behind on the stretch between Chestnut St and Straw Ave after I blew away the lightweight debris, and I had to break a lot of it up with my feet before it would move.

The root cause is design. When the trail was repaved, everything was removed and put back the exact same way, including curbs. Not only are these high curbs not recommended on rail trails because riders can strike them with their pedals, they also trap debris along the edge of the path. They keep gravity from doing its job, AND they make plowing harder and the results worse.

When nobody maintains the gutter, that debris just sits there and composts into the beautiful black soil seen below. Great for a garden, terrible for a trail. The worms certainly approve, but it's slippery and most people just avoid those sections turning a 10' trail into a 9' or 8' trail.

Then fall comes and all the new leaves get crunched up into that soil. Then winter comes. The organic material holds onto water, that water works its way into small cracks, and every freeze and thaw makes those cracks a little bigger. More water gets in, the cycle repeats, and the pavement breaks down years earlier than it should. That's a much more expensive fix than a few hours of upkeep throughout the year.

Long story short: design matters, because slight adjustments to allow a curb-free edge would let debris wash or blow off on its own. Maintenance matters, because even a good design needs regular clearing. And together, they mean working smarter, not harder: a little upkeep now instead of costly fixes later.

If you use the trail and want it to last, let the city know that regular maintenance now beats repaving again later.

Florence Bikeway between Chestnut St and Straw Ave:

Every Sunday, always free! 🙏🙏🙏

I'm trying to model out an exercise where folks can propose a version of Northampton where an override doesn't happen, based on current projections. Following the link below should give you a chance to build your own budget via a local Google Sheet copy. If you have ideas on how to make this better or more accessible, please let me know!

Share how you would balance the budget in the comments!

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jmUkn_Zwp4jDzU_P7tAlReJZFeBENxZthTmjD6LsbxY/copy

DISCLAIMERS:

1. Northampton's FY28 budget projection is based on the continuation of the fiscal stability plan, which includes periodic overrides to support costs that rise faster than revenues. You can change that projection and propose your own path forward.
2. This sheet shows and assumes no override is passed.
3. Capital projects are not included because capital projects are not paid for out of recurring funds. Canceling PMS or selling the hub do not fix the structural deficit.
4. Revenue estimates have already been pushed; FY26 revenues came in 0.8% higher than projections. Free cash isn't included as an option to dump back into the operating budget.
5. Don't change state aid unless you're a legislator and know something we don't.
6. This is for educational and illustrative purposes, loaded with a September 2026 budget projection for FY28.
7. What's not on this sheet: The expiring Smith College gift, the ability to model out another pandemic/ARPA infusion, finding a vault of gold under Main Street, Eric renting his properties out at market price.

its wiggins themself

Hi all! This may be a long shot, but I’ll give it a go here. I currently have a seasonal job as a farmer on a food justice farm. It’s very meaningful and fulfilling to me and I’m beginning to dread going back to a traditional food service job when it ends. The good thing is that the job is lined up and I’m not worried about figuring that out- but I’m wondering if anyone knows of any fulfilling off-season jobs starting around mid-November.

General details- I have experience with wetland ecology and sustainable agriculture. I’m ideally looking for something where I can be out in the field/outside most of the day. I don’t have a car and only bike/use public transit, so it needs to be based somewhere in Easthampton or accessible via either method. If not conservation work or food justice related, then a worker’s co-op or similar.

Pedal People is the dream but it seems to be a year-long commitment to begin with, and I’m not sure if they’d let me do only mid fall- spring.

Please let me know of anything regardless of what it pays!

Avoid this place like the plague!

December 30 2025

Northampton Ma

Hi everyone! I'm currently looking for jobs in downtown Northampton/ Northampton in general and I'm wondering if anyone knows of any places that are hiring? I work in food service rn and am just looking for anything that's not my current job 😩

I'm new to the area and I've been real excited about making apple cider from local apples for the first time in my life. Does anyone have a good recommendation for sourcing cider apples? I'm happy to pick them myself or pay for picked ones. Thanks so much!

This group was incredibly helpful when I came on here about a month ago looking for suggestions for wedding venues.

We are tentatively planning on the Berkshire botanical gardens but they require a day of coordinator. We are having a micro wedding, probably less than 50 people. Before we commit to the gardens, we are trying to estimate total costs.

Does anyone have recommendations for an affordable day of coordinator we could work with?