ST. PETERSBURG - A weekend of hope slipped away from the Red Sox, as they suffered a 5-3 loss to the Rays in the rubber match of a critical three-game series against one of the teams they are trying to catch in the standings.

Charlie Bass was in for an election interview the other day. He had telephoned a few days earlier, wondering whether he should ask to meet with our "editorial board." For a guy as steeped in New Hampshire politics as he is, I was surprised.

MANCHESTER - Had enough political ads? Brace yourself, more are on the way, particularly from the U.S. Senate candidates who likely will stage the most expensive Senate primary in state history.

There's a lot of money in doughnuts. Just ask Dunkin' Donuts. Better yet, ask Republican John Stephen, whose campaign for governor has gotten a pile of money from the doughnut crowd.

NEWINGTON - Armed with lawn chairs and plenty of bottled water, tens of thousands of people descended on Pease International Tradeport Saturday for the much-anticipated Boston-Portsmouth Air Show.

PLAISTOW - Forget about finals and midterms for Timberlane Regional High School students. Teachers will assess students' progress throughout the year, and eliminating exam periods will provide at least eight more days for instruction per year.

President Obama will tell the nation on Tuesday that America's combat mission in Iraq has ended. But two New Hampshire men who have served their country over there say the struggle is far from over.

HILLSBOROUGH - It isn't the biggest town in New Hampshire, but it just may have the biggest heart. And Saturday, Hillsborough opened that heart to a group of soldiers heading off to Kuwait next month as part of the largest New Hampshire National Guard deployment since World War II.

At issue is how far troopers can live from their patrol areas. The union filed an unfair labor practice complaint with the Public Employees Labor Relations Board in 2008 after the Division of State Police changed its rules on where troopers can live. For more on this story, pick up a copy of today's print edition of the New Hampshire Union Leader, on newsstands today. Or check out our e-Edition.

Sean Mahoney has been working hard to get his name out as a Republican contender in the 1st Congressional District, but his stroll down Elm Street with Mayor Ted Gatsas on Tuesday revealed he still has some work to do.

The Eastern League Pitcher of the Year has some unfinished business with the Fisher Cats this season. The Double-A club is heading to the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

The two-day "U.S. vs. World" event at Wentworth by the Sea will feature six playing LPGA Hall of Famers and a seventh as a non-playing captain.

He is not the flashiest candidate. He certainly is not the richest. He isn't the favorite of the bigtime professional pols or the Washington crowd. He is just a smart-as-a-whip, honest, hard-working son of New Hampshire who says what he believes.

Peering from behind his dead horse at the charging Sioux, Lt. Col. George Custer might have thought to himself, "This doesn't look good." President Obama, peeking over his golf clubs at the American political landscape two months before this fall's elections, might understandably form the same thought.

People think bobcats are big animals, which they are not, just as they think fisher cats are big creatures, which they are not. A bobcat is about the size of a bread-box, to quote the famous quiz-show line.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Dan Johnson stunned the Boston Red Sox again, hitting a leadoff homer in the 10th inning that gave the Tampa Bay Rays a 3-2 victory Saturday night.

MANCHESTER - Despite a 5-2 loss at the hands of the Portland Sea Dogs on Saturday night, the New Hampshire Fisher Cats are officially in the playoffs.