These Two Men Picnicked in the Sketchiest Places of Manchester, NH

In an effort to debunk a blog that highlighted the five worst pots in Manchester, NH, David Casinghino and Keating Tufts of Manchester Ink Link decided to picnic in every location the original blog listed.

Their rainbows-and-sunshine reviews of the deserted parks, rundown bodegas, and one super sketchy motel successfully turned even the bleakest locations in Machester into pure comedy. Now I'm very tempted to do the same in Portland.

What are some of our bleakest locations that we could embrace with a smile, a blanket and a picnic blanket? Casinghino and Tufts showed us the way, after all. In defense of their city, the two pointed out several instances in which the city is actively putting effort into improving specific spots, like this excerpt from their picnic at Arms Park (East Side):

 Manchester Connects just put a bunch of money into the park to add picnic tables, fun colorful seating, a permanent cornhole setup, and a bunch of other improvements to make the space more bike friendly.  For several years now the park has hosted the Manchester Brewfest, an awesome event that has grown to feature brewers from around the state plus a bunch of great local food trucks. The mill buildings surrounding the park host DEKA’s offices where some of the most cutting edge medical research in the world is happening.  All told its a solid place that will only continue to get better. Oh, and the river is actually pretty beautiful on a nice day.

In short, we could all learn a little something from these guys who chose to spread a blanket where they were told to watch for discarded needles and really look on the bright side of life in Manchester. Who's gonna do this in our fair city?