I got up this morning and threw on a different t-shirt over the sweats I sleep in and went down to the corner store for a half gallon of milk and the Sunday paper and this is the headline I found--New Hampshire�s icon is gone.

The Old Man of the Mountain's face fell off. Not sure how many of you outside of New Hampshire are familiar with the Old Man of the Mountain, but he is our state symbol-- a craggy granite profile that overlooks (overlooked) Franconia Notch. It's the symbol of what we like to think of as the state's natives' character-- strong, sturdy and rugged.
At least the tragedy gave me the chance to read this quote from Daniel Webster, a 19th century NH lawyer and statesman, "Men hang out their signs indicative of their respective trades; shoe makers hang out a gigantic shoe; jewelers a monster watch, and the dentist hangs out a gold tooth; but up in the Mountains of New Hampshire, God Almighty has hung out a sign to show that there He makes men." It's not exactly a politically correct statement in this day and age, but I like it anyway.