#4 Boston - Tales from the Hub - June 30, 2005
Tale #1: How Mattie Almost Went to Jail
Well - here I was with my friend Matt in tow, who had just flown in from the UK and who had booked himself in the very economically priced auberge at the YMCA on Huntington Street here in Boston. Let me urge you (and this constitutes a serious warning) to NEVER NEVER NEVER EVER go there - I have seen jail cells with more luxurious accommodations than this dump! Don't even get me started on the "bathroom in the hallway" issue. Y.I.K.E.S!! The decision was made immediately to relocate Matt to my surpassingly comfortable sleeper sofa, and in the end we had one very happy British chemist. It took both of us several hours and a couple of beers to forget about this unsightly pig pen.
Tale #2: Beers of New England
It was not just the YMCA sty that made us go drinking, but a weekend of sizzling temperatures in Boston contributed to tale #2 as well. Saturday claimed a solid 95 degrees F (=35 Celsius) and on Sunday the thermometer read 92 F (33.3 C). And of course, it was humid as can be, which made you want to dive into a bar every chance you got. After an initial stroll through Boston (it takes only about 10 minutes for most folks to fall in love with this city of ours anyway), Matt and I headed to the famous Parish Cafe on Boylston. If you want to have spectacularly scrumptious sandwiches and also drink your way through New England - this is the place! Located in the heart of the hub, they feature 50 bottled beers, 12 brews on tap and usually a few specials as well. I commenced the beer fest with Magic Hat's Blind Faith (Vermont), and then moved East toward Maine, to sample Gritty McDuff's Best Brown Ale and the Sea Dog Raspberry Wheat. Matt's selection included Allagash Summer Ale from Maine, followed by Tremont Ale and Rapscallion Premier, both from Massachusetts. The latter was probably my favorite beer of the day and was served in a glass reminiscent of a cognac snifter. Yumm -y!
Tale #3: The Barbary Coast Wars
Boston, American History and the Freedom Trail, again - and NO, I am not tired of it - even though my tour was somewhat less fact-filled as I recently lost my wonderful booklet on "Revolutionary Boston" - so Matt's guess was as good as mine when it came to certain historical facts. We educated ourselves in the USS Constitution museum (ahh, air-conditioning!!) on the Barbary Coast Wars, hostilities that took place between the US and several Northern African Muslim city states (Morocco, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli) in the early 19th century - a response to their rampant piracy on US merchant ships at the time. Now the US did not appreciate these acts of illegal appropriation and sent in their navy, among them the now-Boston-based USS Constitution, to put an end to these bad habits. Two wars ensued, one from 1801-05 and one in 1815, ending the massive pay-offs US merchants had to shell out for their own safety.
Tale #4: My New Addiction to Windshield wiper Fluid
Moving on - I know I am not always THE brightest light on the horizon, but I certainly could have figured out this one a bit quicker and saved my throat and lungs from massive irritation. My little Ella had just returned from a small check-up at the car doc when I noticed a burning sensation in my throat every time I took her out for a spin. Blaming the car dealership immediately, I called up and made a follow-up appointment, thinking that exhaust was backing up in the car, it's all their fault, yada yada, yada .... who knows what it was! It was bad and needed to be fixed! Eventually (duh!) I figured out that a bottle with windshield-wiper fluid had opened a bit, and all that wonderful methanol was evaporating out. This (the figuring out part) happend fortunately right in time before I had to pick up Matt from the airport (in 95 degree heat) - in addition to the "jail cell" experience at the Y, having toxic fumes in the car would have definitely made this an even more memorable trip for him.
Tale#5: Running on Empty
On the fitness front, I have really gotten into running and due to the heat and humidity I have started a regimen of running at 6:30 AM. As you know, I am not the most coordinated person, klutzy some might say, in particular in the wee hours of the morning. Joanne is now chasing me up Beacon Hill once per week, but even on flat ground, I realized this morning that having two beers the night before and maybe not enough sleep might just put a bit of a damper on my running performance. Elaine and I had attended a meeting of the Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay (http://www.nabbonline.com/index.htm) last night, in the rooftop bar of the Rattlesnake Bar and Grill on Boylston Street. Cool Place, and aside from a little drizzle here or there, it was a very pleasant experience (until I had to get up today).
The 4th of July weekend is upon us and I am looking forward to a relaxing time, no particular plans yet aside from watching the USS Constitution do a turnaround (from Charlestown Navy Yard to Castle Island) and to attend a re-enactment of the Boston Tea Party. Happy Holiday Weekend Everyone!
pet:)
Well - here I was with my friend Matt in tow, who had just flown in from the UK and who had booked himself in the very economically priced auberge at the YMCA on Huntington Street here in Boston. Let me urge you (and this constitutes a serious warning) to NEVER NEVER NEVER EVER go there - I have seen jail cells with more luxurious accommodations than this dump! Don't even get me started on the "bathroom in the hallway" issue. Y.I.K.E.S!! The decision was made immediately to relocate Matt to my surpassingly comfortable sleeper sofa, and in the end we had one very happy British chemist. It took both of us several hours and a couple of beers to forget about this unsightly pig pen.
Tale #2: Beers of New England
It was not just the YMCA sty that made us go drinking, but a weekend of sizzling temperatures in Boston contributed to tale #2 as well. Saturday claimed a solid 95 degrees F (=35 Celsius) and on Sunday the thermometer read 92 F (33.3 C). And of course, it was humid as can be, which made you want to dive into a bar every chance you got. After an initial stroll through Boston (it takes only about 10 minutes for most folks to fall in love with this city of ours anyway), Matt and I headed to the famous Parish Cafe on Boylston. If you want to have spectacularly scrumptious sandwiches and also drink your way through New England - this is the place! Located in the heart of the hub, they feature 50 bottled beers, 12 brews on tap and usually a few specials as well. I commenced the beer fest with Magic Hat's Blind Faith (Vermont), and then moved East toward Maine, to sample Gritty McDuff's Best Brown Ale and the Sea Dog Raspberry Wheat. Matt's selection included Allagash Summer Ale from Maine, followed by Tremont Ale and Rapscallion Premier, both from Massachusetts. The latter was probably my favorite beer of the day and was served in a glass reminiscent of a cognac snifter. Yumm -y!
Tale #3: The Barbary Coast Wars
Boston, American History and the Freedom Trail, again - and NO, I am not tired of it - even though my tour was somewhat less fact-filled as I recently lost my wonderful booklet on "Revolutionary Boston" - so Matt's guess was as good as mine when it came to certain historical facts. We educated ourselves in the USS Constitution museum (ahh, air-conditioning!!) on the Barbary Coast Wars, hostilities that took place between the US and several Northern African Muslim city states (Morocco, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli) in the early 19th century - a response to their rampant piracy on US merchant ships at the time. Now the US did not appreciate these acts of illegal appropriation and sent in their navy, among them the now-Boston-based USS Constitution, to put an end to these bad habits. Two wars ensued, one from 1801-05 and one in 1815, ending the massive pay-offs US merchants had to shell out for their own safety.
Tale #4: My New Addiction to Windshield wiper Fluid
Moving on - I know I am not always THE brightest light on the horizon, but I certainly could have figured out this one a bit quicker and saved my throat and lungs from massive irritation. My little Ella had just returned from a small check-up at the car doc when I noticed a burning sensation in my throat every time I took her out for a spin. Blaming the car dealership immediately, I called up and made a follow-up appointment, thinking that exhaust was backing up in the car, it's all their fault, yada yada, yada .... who knows what it was! It was bad and needed to be fixed! Eventually (duh!) I figured out that a bottle with windshield-wiper fluid had opened a bit, and all that wonderful methanol was evaporating out. This (the figuring out part) happend fortunately right in time before I had to pick up Matt from the airport (in 95 degree heat) - in addition to the "jail cell" experience at the Y, having toxic fumes in the car would have definitely made this an even more memorable trip for him.
Tale#5: Running on Empty
On the fitness front, I have really gotten into running and due to the heat and humidity I have started a regimen of running at 6:30 AM. As you know, I am not the most coordinated person, klutzy some might say, in particular in the wee hours of the morning. Joanne is now chasing me up Beacon Hill once per week, but even on flat ground, I realized this morning that having two beers the night before and maybe not enough sleep might just put a bit of a damper on my running performance. Elaine and I had attended a meeting of the Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay (http://www.nabbonline.com/index.htm) last night, in the rooftop bar of the Rattlesnake Bar and Grill on Boylston Street. Cool Place, and aside from a little drizzle here or there, it was a very pleasant experience (until I had to get up today).
The 4th of July weekend is upon us and I am looking forward to a relaxing time, no particular plans yet aside from watching the USS Constitution do a turnaround (from Charlestown Navy Yard to Castle Island) and to attend a re-enactment of the Boston Tea Party. Happy Holiday Weekend Everyone!
pet:)
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