A Lazy Day in Boston

All that's missing...

...is a Margarita with an umbrella in it! Kudos to these individuals who came up with the brilliant idea of setting up a hammock on the river.

Sunny on the Charles

A snapshot of yesterday's activities along the Charles River. People were biking, running, walking, sailing, kayaking, wind surfing, reading, climbing trees, and sleeping in the sun. I love Boston in the summertime!

Look Ma, no hands!

The Faneuil Hall Street Performers Festival was this weekend. We headed down and checked out a few of the performers - Magic Dave, Lucky Bob (my personal fave), and the kids pictured above that can do some serious dancing.

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"Attention shoppers, please leave the store"

Pete & I were shopping for beer and cake (en route to a Memorial Day cookout) when the fire alarm went off in Shaws. As we had walked into the store I commented on how it smelled like bbq, and as we were walking out of the beer/wine section we noticed the smell again, and some smoke coming through the ventilation system. The ladder truck was already outside the store when we walked out, and the smoke appeared to be coming from the apartment complex in the adjacent building.

Fishweirs

Recently I was walking through Boston Common and was surprised to see this...fence? made of branches. I missed the small sign explaining it the first time, but it turns out it's not a fence, it's a fishweir:

5000 years ago, in what is now Boston’s Back Bay, Native people built fishweirs in tidal flats to catch alewife, smelt and salmon. These four-foot high, fence-like structures were woven of alder, willow saplings and brush wattling and were made of over 65,000 wood stakes.

Archaeological evidence discovered during subway excavation and building construction over the last one hundred years indicates that fishweirs were built over a 1500-year period in tidal marsh now located 28 to 40 feet below the Boston Common and the Back Bay.

Need a Phone?

I took this random shot on Newbury St. when I noticed that a row of payphones ran conveniently parallel to a row of brownstones. I don't remember the last time I saw a payphone, let alone five of them!

Comm Ave Twins

These two white houses are for sale - the one on the left for $14.95 million. The one on the right is up for auction, but in order to put in a bid you have to present a certificate of wealth and put down a $500,000 deposit. No joke, that's the right number of zeros there. You can also see more pictures, including some interior shots, here.

Froggle Rock

The Frog Pond, located on the Boston Common, is an ol' favorite for kids of all ages. These two frogs keep an eye on the pond's fun activities--in the winter there's ice skating and in the summer it turns into a wading pool.

Perfect Spring Day

Today's picturesque moment was the product of an early morning walk through the Boston Public Garden.

Electricity! Get your fresh, hot, electricity!

This is for Ainz at Zurich Daily Photo! Not technically Boston - this was found in Somerville's Davis Square. I wonder who you have to talk to in order to get approval to paint traffic control boxes like popcorn!

Street Performers - #2 in a series

This gentleman can be found on the orange line platform in Downtown Crossing on Saturday mornings, with his seeing eye dog sitting patiently beside him as he plays.

Get out your rally cap

This adorable boy and his younger brother sat in front of us at the Sox game tonight. He's nine years old and lived half his life in Atlanta and half his life in Boston, so he made a sign that said "Born a Brave, became a Red Sock. I can't lose!" When the Braves were up by 8 runs, he took off his Braves hat and put on his Sox hat and declared that he was going to root for the underdog (but he had his Red Sox jersey on the whole time). Unfortunately, his rally cap didn't help and the Red Sox let the Braves trample them 14-0. I guess it was payback for the 13-3 trampling that the Sox did during the afternoon game - what goes around comes around, right?!

ANOTHER rainy day

It's rainy and gross AGAIN! The Sox were rained out Wednesday and played a double header yesterday. They were rained out again tonight, which means another double header tomorrow. The Boy and I had tickets to tonights game with my alumni group, so hopefully we don't get rained out tomorrow night as well!

What does a blue frog eat?

Pastries! And Cakes!! And cookies!!! The Blue Frog Bakery is typically overlooked for one of the other cafes/bakeries/shops on Centre Street in Jamaica Plain because of it's location. There are no tables, and it is not fancy or well decorated. It is, however, delicious! The character above clings to the wall above the doorway, calling attention from anyone who peeks around the corner and down Green Street.

Top of the Hub

Continuing with the aerial view theme, here's a shot of the city from the top of the Prudential building in Back Bay. The Hancock Tower is in the foreground, and the airport is in distance to the right.

Redemption!

You folks are lucky! I was on vacation last week, and leaving town we took a flight path I've never taken before. Because I force my boyfriend to give me the window seat whenever we fly, I had the most amazing views of the city! So I grabbed my camera! And the battery was dead. So I grabbed my spare battery! And it was dead. I thought I had failed you all.

Yesterday, we flew home. We had these great views the entire way up the coast from DC, and I thought there was no way that we would take the same flight path into the airport as we had going out. Never in my life have I taken that flight path out of Logan before. EVER. We got closer and closer to the city, and we were further west than usual. Friends! I do believe I have redeemed myself from the horror of not having fresh batteries!

This is the view from just north of the city - looking across the Charles towards downtown (Boston Common and the Public Gardens in the center), with Southie (of Goodwill Hunting fame) in the background. Click to enlarge (and that's an order, not a suggestion)!

ETA There's another shot of the Jamaica Plain neighborhood (where I currently live) in my personal photo blog, here!

Popped at the Pops

Last Wednesday night was Boston Pops' opening night gala at Symphony Hall. This photograph was taken shortly before the now infamous brawl broke-out to our left on the third-level balcony.

Hearts of Gold

I was lucky enough to attend the Boston Heart Ball last night at the Westin Waterfront Hotel. According to the event's MC, Ann Curry, the evening raised an estimated 1.5 million dollars for the Heart Foundation. Way to go Boston--open those hearts...and wallets!

Doorways #3

Beacon Hill is home to heaps of adorable brownstones, and a few courtyards surrounded by apartment buildings. This is the entrance off a side street into one of those courtyards.

G'day George

An early morning view of the Boston Public Garden with a statue of George Washington surveying the scene in the foreground and Boston's city skyline in the background.

Twin Donuts

You've heard of dive bars, here's a dive donut shop! Twin donuts in Allston sports this awesome old timey neon sign that lights up pink at night. It's cheap, small, and everything in it is old (except for the donuts and the DELICIOUS breakfast sandwiches).

The sign is convenient to use as a landmark when giving directions, since it stands at a major intersection.

Glass, concrete, and steel.

Riding on the Charles...

Summer weather is here and everyone's making the most of it by exercising outdoors. The paths along the Charles River have been a hive of activity all week.

Dice-K Mania

Fenway Park has tried its hardest welcomed Dice-K (the Sox's new Japanese pitcher) and the Japanese media with open arms: Sushi's now available from at least one food stand on Yawkey Way, and in the Park's media dining room; Japanese translations are finding their way on all sorts of items at Fenway; and the most obvious declaration of welcome comes from Dunkin' Donuts who spelt it out in Japanese on a billboard behind center field.

Champions Cup Boston

The Champions Cup Boston is in town this weekend - marking Sampras' return to tennis. We saw Sampras play Petr Korda and John McEnroe (above) play a poor guy named Tim Mayotte. Mayotte has been retired since 1992, but lives locally and was called up when Mat Wlander hurt his back and couldn't play. It was pretty obvious he was rusty, but he had a great sense of humor about it and put on a good show none the less!

I'm not dead yet!

Don't be fooled - this tree isn't dead, it's just growing sideways.

In Charles River Park, with Cambridge across the river.

Stepping back in time

I've walked by Irving's Toys and Card Shop too many times to count--always intrigued by it but never taking the time to actually go inside. It turns out that I've been missing out on a hidden gem. The following is an online review from Yelp.com:

"You'll see this place but never think it's real. You'll walk past amused but not stop in. And my dear Yelp reader, the loss is yours. Irving's has been run by the same lady for possibly decades. She sits in the front of the store, proudly wearing a badge that reads "I love my customers." Framed pictures of her in the store through the years hang above her on the wall, and she is surrounded by trinkets and toys of another time. The board games in the back seem ancient but are neat and probably collectible. The selection of forgotten games is amazing. I bought Pin the Tail on the Donkey when I visited this goldmine a few weeks ago, and I stared in awe at the wide array of goodies. School kids came running in and out, paying for gum and candy with nickles left over from lunch. A friend and I inspected pop guns and boxes of Lemonheads. We were in heaven. Go while this place is still around. Help support an awesome local business and a sweet lady who keeps joy alive for kids of all ages."

"Let Us Be Your Jewish Mother"

I've spent many a Saturday morning looking at this outdoor mural while waiting for a table inside Zaftigs's Delicatessen in Coolidge Corner.

School days...

Just walking to school...

Brookside Ave Extension, Jamaica Plain (click to enlarge)

Comm Ave Mall #4

Inscription on the Samuel Eliot Morison statue.