Small towns and villages throughout the North Country are losing the institutions that make them a going concern, instead of just another rural housing cluster. It might be the last bank, as in Sarah Harris’s story today from Alburgh, VT. Or it might be the hospital, or the nursing home, the school or the library, the only department store, the last gas station or the post office or the town diner.

Today’s Question of the Day is:

Which institutions are the vital organs in your community? How’s their health?

At 72 degrees, today is the hottest March 19 in history at Massena NY, beating the previous record of 61 degrees, set only two years ago. Yesterday was the hottest March 18 in history at Massena. Tomorrow is forecast to break the record for that day, as are the forecast highs for Wednesday and Thursday. A prolonged or unseasonable hot spell (or any stretch of weird weather) always heats up the debate about human impact on climate change.

Today’s Question of the Day:

Have you changed your mind in the last ten years, one way or the other, about the impact of human activity on climate change? What evidence or argument was most persuasive?

Geographical distribution of the name 'Hobson' in the UK. Source: http://www.dynastree.co.uk

With St. Patrick’s Day coming up tomorrow, a quarter of me will be getting my Irish on, courtesy of my grandmother Mary (nee Driscoll), whose family came from County Cork. Other bits of me hail from Scotland, the Channel Isle of Guernsey, and Derbyshire–at least by name origin. I am generations removed from my multiple old countries and think of myself as plain old American, sans hyphenation. But I feel I’m missing out on something, when those whose immigrant/ethnic roots are less tangled and nearer in time than mine take the opportunity to strut their stuff.

Today’s Question of the Day comes from Barb Heller:

Which part(s) of your ancestry do you relate to most?  Why?

A car of the future

My ’97 Corolla has made it through another winter (so far), but the day is going to come when I have to troll the lots of the local car dealers again. A lot rides on the second-largest purchasing decision most people have to make. Go hybrid? Go plug-in? Domestic or foreign? Two-wheel drive or four-wheel drive? New or used?

Eventually there’s a car of the future in everyone’s future. But which? Today’s Question of the Day is:

What make and model currently tops the list for your next car purchase? Why?

A word cloud of overly-popular corporate jargon.

Words and phrases get tired, too: jargon, catch-phrases, cliches, pop neologisms, techno-jibberish, shopworn analogies, Orwellian euphemisms, and punch lines that have outlived their jokes. Is it time for a little spring cleaning, a little circular filing? Are your sound bites getting a little flea-bitten?

Today’s Question of the Day is from NCPR’s dear leader, Ellen Rocco:

Which overworked phrases or words should we put on vacation for the next decade?

One of the advantages of living in a society constrained by law, rules, customs and manners is the many opportunities it provides to indulge in the pleasures of disobedience and creative chaos.

Today’s question of the Day was submitted by “erb,” who says, “I’m a rule breaker,  I get a kick out of breaking rules that are arbitrary or unnecessary.”

What rules have you broken lately? Why?

Confess all below. You can follow all Question of the Day posts by clicking on the “qotd” tag on any one of them. And you are invited to use the comment form to submit your own Question of the Day.

The Precious, of course.

Sometimes you just run out of good questions, like Bilbo Baggins in his riddle game with Gollum in The Hobbit. But it worked out OK in the end. Bilbo  escaped with his life by asking–to himself–”What have I got in my pocket?” A real poser, apparently, for a fish-eating homicidal head-case.

I put the day off as long as I could, but the time has come to open up the Question of the Day to a wider pool of inquisitors–all of you. Today’s Question of the Day is:

What burning question (about life, the universe, or anything) has you looking for some answers?

For today,  submit your questions in a comment below. A little later on we’ll build a special page just for your interrogatory needs. And from now on, we’ll let you “share the load.”

We “Spring ahead” an hour to Daylight Savings Time this weekend. This practice began in an official way during the First World War. The resulting “extra” hour of light in the evening was supposed to aid productivity. Thanks G.V. Hudson for proposing the idea first in 1895, and too bad, morning people.

Today’s question of the Day:

Which is better, springing ahead, falling back, or should we just stop messing with the clock?

We do our best at NCPR to provide a great and varied line-up of public radio programs for our listeners, but from time to time a gut check is in order. We want to know what programs keep you riveted to the radio.

From now through our Spring fundraiser (the week of March 26) we are asking listeners to let us know which one of our programs serves them best, and (most importantly) why. You can let us know via our toll-free listener comment line: 1-866-233-1420. (Please leave your name, and where you listen, along with your program pick. And say if we can use your message on air.)

Or you can answer today’s Question of the Day in a comment below:

Which program aired on NCPR is the most
interesting/important/entertaining for you? Why?

Bayside Gatehouse, Clarkson Avenue, Potsdam.

While the towns and villages of the North Country may not all have the relentless charm of their New England counterparts, there are great bits of public and private architecture to be found everywhere. I’m from Potsdam, and pass Bayside Gatehouse every day going to and from town.

It was built in 1900 from Potsdam Sandstone, quarried behind my house and brought to site downriver on a narrow gauge rail line. I tried to rent it in the 1970s, but was foiled by the requirement for a 3-year lease (and a marriage license.) I’ve always wanted to ring the bell in the tower.

Today’s Question of the Day:

What is your favorite building in the town where you live?

If you can send in a photo (email radio@ncpr.org), we’ll put together an album of best picks.