Congrats to the 2007 World Champions, the Boston Red Sox!!! Wow, twice in the last five years. Of course, it's not quite as much fun as actually being in Boston, like I was last time they won, but it's still very, very cool.

It's been kind of a strange weekend. Much less busy, thankfully, than last weekend. Unfortunately, the lazier nature of this weekend had more to do with my nursing a migraine off and on throughout my two days off than it did with actual deliberate relaxation. Still, I managed to get some grocery shopping and laundry done, as well as go hear my friend Rob play cello with The Portland Cello Project.

Although it was a bit longer than I expected, the concert was really, really good. Who'd have thought 15 celli on stage at once would be so awesome!? They did a number of "alternative" pieces. For instance, they were joined on-stage by a hiphop group called HurtBird which - despite my general distaste for rap/hip-hop music - I really found interesting, along with arrangements of a Brandenberg Concerto (for 4 cellos and 2 more cellos), the jazz standard "Take Five" and a nifty tango by Astor Piazzola, complete with Argentine Tango dancers that reminded me that I need to get back to my second (or was it third?) love, partner-dancing.

Continue reading "Go SOX! Yahoo!" »

Posted by Zee at 09:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Rennie and I awoke this morning to a blanket of snow covering the ground, trees, cars and everything else outside our little abode. This is darned unusual for this part of the country, so Ren and I went outside to find the newspaper (which was buried) and do a brief bit of frolicking before it melted off. Since it was an atypical day, I took the camera with me and got some shots of Miss Yorkie Princess. A couple turned out really cute, though it's a shame she has to have her leash on because it detracts from the photo.

What IS typical in this area are the crazy-ass drivers who can't seem to either SLOW DOWN or pay attention to what they're doing. The problem, of course, is we're not allowed to use salt in these parts, so the snow stays on most of the major streets, gets packed down from the cars driving all around and then ices over so it's slick as snot. Plus, we only have about 5 plows for the entire city so even larger side-roads stay snowy for a long time.

I never minded snowy days in New England because the streets were usually always clear. Sure, you had to shovel yourself out of your driveway, but once you got on the roads it was fairly smooth sailing.

But here? No way. I don't have (many) concerns about driving in the snow and ice itself (key is to just go slow and steady); what I worry about most is other drivers. And in this part of the country, you couldn't pay me enough to get in my car on a day like this!

As Parker Parker once said, "good in snow" is not something you buy; it sits in the driver's seat.

Posted by Zee at 10:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Zee's Boston Era, that is.

How do I know? Well, a couple weeks ago I realized with dismay that I was running low on my beloved Dunkin' Donuts coffee. And rather than refill my coffee subscription with them, I trotted on down to my nearby New Seasons Market (SO much better than Whole Foods!) and bought several different varieties of the local roaster's brew.

See, I've been hearing about Stumptown coffee from Betsy for quite a while and a couple weekends ago I enjoyed cup after cup of it at my grandma's birthday lunch. So when the Dunkin' coffee was running out, I decided to give the Stumptown a try.

I've been drinking it for a couple weeks now and this morning, I had one of the best cups of coffee I've had in some time. So for that reason and for convenience's sake, I'll probably be sticking with the Stumptown. Plus, this little blurb on their website makes me feel good about buying their stuff:

Believing in the social, environmental, and economic benefits of sustainable business leads us to not only support coffee farms that are committed to the well being of their workers, land and water, it compels us to be a sustainable business in our own community. Providing health insurance for our employees and donating freshly roasted coffee to the Oregon Food Bank are some of the ways that we act on our belief in sustainability. Creating relationships with coffee farmers allows us to roast and provide coffee with the finest cup quality, confident that these farms and communities will continue for generations.

[snip]

Fair Trade means an equitable and fair partnership between marketers in North America and producers in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and other parts of the world. A fair trade partnership works to provide low-income artisans and farmers with a living wage for their work.

Still, I am kind of sad to see the Dunkin' Donuts coffee go. It was my last little piece of Boston here in Portland and it's a little bittersweet.

Posted by Zee at 04:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

When we left off yesterday, I'd just picked up my dad from Logan Airport in Boston and we were headed west towards my uncle Jeff and aunt Gale's house in Saratoga Springs, NY.

Over the 10.5 months I lived in Boston, I spent quite a bit of time with my dad's brother and his wife. I stopped there on my way to Boston in October, then went back for Thanksgiving (driving with my cousin, who is currently attending Boston University Medical School) and again in April for the dog show Rennie was in, in Troy, NY (suburb of Albany). I'd also visited my aunt and uncle a couple times before moving to Boston.

So I knew their house and the area pretty well by the time dad and I got there at about midnight. Fortunately, my aunt and uncle were still up and we sat around for an hour or so after unloading the car, talking and sipping wine and trying to decide what to do the next day.

The next day was, after all, my 30th birthday! Saratoga Springs is a pretty upscale place - it's a bit of an artist community and is home to the New York City Ballet every summer. However, it is most famous for its horse racing and the Saratoga Race Course. Somewhat unfortunately, I'd never managed to get to Saratoga during racing season. This is not terribly surprising, considering that racing season is all of 6 weeks. But I was pleased to discover that for my last trip there, and on my birthday, the race track was open.

Now, I'm really not much of a gambler but I am awfully fond of horses! So I agreed to get up the next day and go to the race track. It was, apparently, an experience not to be missed!

Continue reading "Saratoga Springs, NY" »

Posted by Zee at 09:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

When we left off yesterday, I'd just picked up my dad from Logan Airport in Boston and we were headed west towards my uncle Jeff and aunt Gale's house in Saratoga Springs, NY.

Over the 10.5 months I lived in Boston, I spent quite a bit of time with my dad's brother and his wife. I stopped there on my way to Boston in October, then went back for Thanksgiving (driving with my cousin, who is currently attending Boston University Medical School) and again in April for the dog show Rennie was in, in Troy, NY (suburb of Albany). I'd also visited my aunt and uncle a couple times before moving to Boston.

So I knew their house and the area pretty well by the time dad and I got there at about midnight. Fortunately, my aunt and uncle were still up and we sat around for an hour or so after unloading the car, talking and sipping wine and trying to decide what to do the next day.

The next day was, after all, my 30th birthday! Saratoga Springs is a pretty upscale place - it's a bit of an artist community and is home to the New York City Ballet every summer. However, it is most famous for its horse racing and the Saratoga Race Course. Somewhat unfortunately, I'd never managed to get to Saratoga during racing season. This is not terribly surprising, considering that racing season is all of 6 weeks. But I was pleased to discover that for my last trip there, and on my birthday, the race track was open.

Now, I'm really not much of a gambler but I am awfully fond of horses! So I agreed to get up the next day and go to the race track. It was, apparently, an experience not to be missed!

Continue reading "Saratoga Springs, NY" »

Posted by Zee at 09:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

So it has been one of those days where everyone comes at you all at once asking for stuff or asking questions or wanting you to do something or wanting this or that thing. At about 10:30 I practically lost it and basically wanted to tell everyone, "if you'd all effing leave me alone for 5 effing minutes I could put together the information you're all asking for! Sheesh!!!" I did manage to only snap at one person in the course of all this, so I suppose I'm doing ok... I did apologize practically on the spot but, seriously, I need to remember to PAUSE and step back for a moment when things get like this...

Apparently this is what my boss deals with on a daily basis and it makes me a) glad I'm not her, and b) in awe of her for dealing with it with such grace and calm.

Anyway, in the midst of all this, the (very cute and adorable) UPS guy showed up with my new duvet cover!! Yahoo!! I put it on my bed this afternoon and snapped a couple shots. Lookey here:

Pretty, no? I actually like the duvet cover and pillow shams much better when they're all together. The shams are nice and all but I don't think they don't work very well on their own.

And I'm not the only one around here who got a new bed... (Woudlja check out that literary transition!?) A week or so ago I was at Target and found a cute little bed for Miss Yorkie Princess. As with most things in her life (food being the only exception), it took her a little while to warm up to it. But now she has it figured out she gets into full-on lounge-mode with soft-underbelly exposed and everything:

Here she is, all pouty and sad that mom is working instead of throwing the stuffed hippo for her:

My birthday rapidly approaches. I still haven't come up with an idea for where to go to dinner with my dad and bro, et al... but I have Friday off (and have the fun and excitement of going to see my neurologist. YAHOO!) as well as Monday, which is my actual birthday. So, Saturday night is dinner with a few friends, Sunday is brunch with my mom's side of the family and Monday I'll be sleeping all day trying to recover from my weekend! Also, the Conductor is apparently in Portland that day so I'm going to try to arrange lunch or something with him. I've not seen him since my trip up north back in October. My, how times flies!

Speaking of, Sunday marks one year from the day I left Boston.

Continue reading "Crazy-Ass Day! Plus, a Story!" »

Posted by Zee at 09:56 PM | Permalink

Couple photos from my last trip to Cape Cod before moving back to Portland. My dad has a friend who lives in Mashpee, and when he came to visit me in early July, we drove down to visit her. These photos were taken in her back yard:

Exploring the yard

On the deck

Tormenting the kitty. I love this photo. :)

Posted by Zee at 11:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Well, Rennie is definitely feeling better. She has been running around like a loon all day, dragging her rubber chicken over to me to get me to throw it for her and generally just being a total PIA. Not that I mind this return to normalcy - certainly beats the worry I've been feeling! - but I woke up this morning with a sore throat (actually, I went to bed last night with it) and feel just generally rotten. It wasn't until around 1:00, when started sneezing uncontrollably, that I realized I might be suffering from allergies rather than the onset of a nasty cold.

So, I took some Claritin. Which didn't help. Of course, because actually relieving my syptoms might be too much to ask from an OTC medication purchased on the cheap at Costco. (60 pills for $26! BARGAIN!) The thing about Claritin is, you have to take it for a couple days before it starts to really work well. [sigh] So I took half a Benadryl a couple hours later and, well, I still don't feel much better. But at least Benadryl has the happy side effect of causing drowsiness, so perhaps I'll sleep well tonight.

Still, this allergy onset means spring is right around the corner! The leaves of the crocus bulbs I planted last fall have started sprouting and I can see some of the tulip tips coming up through the dirt as well. This week is sunny and bright and clear - I can't wait for it to warm up just a bit!

Hallelujah, though, for the reprieve from the rain. If I miss anything about Boston, it is the weather. Well, the weather anytime other than summer, when the humidity is unbearably oppressive. But in the fall, winter and spring? There is sun and sky to be seen on a regular basis in Boston, even if it's cold. I miss that.

Posted by Zee at 07:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

At least, you'd think that's what they were doing here in Portland based on the "special reports" airing on the news every ten minutes about the "weather event" we had yesterday. Originally, the forecast was for freezing rain to begin around 6 p.m.ish, but snow actually started falling gently around 2:30 or 3:00 and it was quite pretty from inside the warm house where I was watching Disc 1 of 24 (Season 4) and knitting a hat.

By about 6 p.m., there were about 2 inches total on the ground, but that didn't stop the newscasters from heading out in force, broadcasting live pictures of the back-ups on Interstates 5 and 84 and 205, and the Sunset Hwy and talking to "experts" about... well, the snow. They were eager to have 'news' to report on, obviously, and kept going on and on about how the snow had come "early" and caught people off guard.

"No!" declared I, out loud to the TV and anyone else within earshot, "the snow wasn't early, you just failed to predict it correctly!" My dad snorted and laughed. I giggled and went back to my knitting. Rennie chewed on her bone, without even looking up to acknowledge that I'd said anything - funny or not.

Having now lived through winter in a place where winter actually happens and people continue to live their lives in spite of it, it amuses me to see all the Portlanders scurrying around looking timid about driving. I don't blame them, though. People here don't know how to drive in snow - simply because we don't get much of it - and it would likely be easier for them if the snow plowing here was more effective when we did.

The problem is that plowing only happens on the larger streets and highways and they use sand rather than salt, so even with the "plowing" you can still hit patches of ice. The freeways always seem to get the worst of it and invariably, there is usually at least one jack-knifed semi somewhere on the roads to help block up traffic. And, despite my frequent jokes about Portland only having 2 snowplows, according to one of the "experts" on a newscast last night, we actually have 55 plowers out there. That still doesn't sound like a lot compared with the 3,000 plows in the greater Boston area but it is better than I expected.

Anyway, so I spent the majority of the day inside yesterday giggling at the newscasters, and by the time I got up this morning everything was slush and roughly back to normal.

Posted by Zee at 06:59 PM | Permalink

Well. I'm busy these days. Ack!

Seriously. School and lots of work coming my way and trying to keep up with dog grooming and attention-giving and the like. I'm exhausted.

I was all set yesterday, even, to post longly and eloquently about how it was one year ago today (yesterday) that I was starting my new job in Boston and how momentus and exciting and scary and whatnot it was. But by the time I got home it was 9:30 and there was homework and dishes to do and all I wanted was just to go to bed.

Of course, once I did go to bed I couldn't sleep, but that's beside the point. The point is, I'm busy. And will continue to be so for the foreseeable future. There is lots of busy-ness going on. A plethora of busy-ness. Scads.

Continue reading "Busy Busy Busy" »

Posted by Zee at 11:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

I am truly blessed. Dad stopped home today for lunch and brought with him a couple of packages that'd come in the mail. The first was from one of my aunts and contained rubber bands and tissue papers for wrapping up Rennie's coat. I've reversed my decision and decided to show her again, and now that her coat's getting a little longer I need to start wrapping it up to keep it from breaking.

Anyway, so the wraps came and I knew they were coming and it was cool and everything. But there was also a big box from two of my favoritest people in Boston - Joe & Julia.

I hadn't been expecting anything from them - in fact, I think I still owe them five bucks from when we went to Bobby's New York Style Deli the last time - so I was pretty excited to see what they might have sent me. Honestly, I didn't have a clue. I was wondering if maybe I'd left something at their house or they'd found a toy for Rennie or who knows what. But no, inside the box I found this:

Continue reading "Good Friends" »

Posted by Zee at 04:39 PM | Permalink

Last night I finally got around to going through some of the photos I took during the drive from Boston to Portland. There were roughly 200 of them, so it took me a while to get through them all. There were a few I really liked, so I wanted to post them up here. Follow the link to the extended entry to see the pics. (Click each shot to biggify.)

Continue reading "Photos from the Drive Home" »

Posted by Zee at 11:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

My brother sent me this little gem, which had me laughing out loud. I dedicate this to all my friends in Beantown, who will doubtless find this not only humorous but (hopefully) also helpful. :o)

Posted by Zee at 09:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I'm home. Finally. It feels so good to be back, if a bit surreal.

We pulled up in front of the house about 5:00 p.m. Pacific time today and I've been running around ever since doing laundry and unpacking and trying to get Rennie and I settled in.

The trip cross-country was fun and there is much to write about, but at present I'm exhausted and not feeling very well on top of that. Once the laundry is done I'm headed straight to bed!

Stay tuned for all the details!

Posted by Zee at 08:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Everything except my computer is now packed and ready to go. The movers arrive tomorrow between noon and four, and before that time I have to run out to Staples to pick up another roll of packaging tape because I'm about to run out with 3 or 4 boxes still to seal. I am a taping fiend! Expert packer! Mover extraordinaire.

OK, that may be going a little bit overboard. But I have been crazy-busy today and only now have a little bit of time to sit back and think.

Today, I:

• Dragged boxes and boxes of stuff to the Goodwill drop-off place.
  
• Donated my unused canned goods and other yummies to the Greater Boston Food Bank.
  
• Dragged even more bags and boxes of stuff to the garbage dumpster.
  
• Talked to someone about a possible job in Portland. (More details soon, I promise!)
  
• Bathed the dog. (She was not happy about this.)
  
• Returned all my empty bottles and cans. I received $1.80 for my efforts.
  
• Finished packing up the stuff in the kitchen. All cupboards and drawers are now empty.
  
• Vacuumed and mopped all tiled floor-like surfaces - in the entry, the bathroom, laundry room and kitchen.
  
• Did the laundry.
  
• Cleaned the microwave, refrigerator, freezer and wiped down all surfaces on the range.
  
• Cleaned the sink until it sparkled! Brillo Pads are my friends, oh yes they are!
  
• Destroyed the nail on my right pinky as I sliced a piece out of it while cleaning the range. OUCH! At this rate, I'll have lacerations on every last finger and thumb before I even leave the state!
  
• Played my piano for what is likely the last time. I shall miss it.
  

After the movers take my stuff I will have only intermittant access to the Internet until I arrive in Portland next weekend. I promise I'll be back, though, as soon as I'm home and settled!. After all, I'll have all kinds of stories to tell!

Posted by Zee at 08:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Tomorrow, the movers are coming to take away every last item I own - including this computer. Granted, I don't own that much stuff anymore, but what I do have they're whisking away with them so that I'm left for the night sleeping on an air mattress with only a fraction of my clothes, nothing upon which to sit and no television. Fortunately, I'll have plenty to read in the next two days, as I've picked up a copy of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in preparation for reading my sister's copy of HP 6 when I get home.

My dad arrives Saturday and as soon as I pick him up we head west to upstate New York, where my aunt and uncle live. We'll spend Saturday night and Sunday with them in Saratoga Springs and then we really get started on our trek, bright and early Monday morning. Between now and then, however, I've got cleaning and packing and errands and all kinds of things to do.

Still, my dad and I haven't taken a road trip together since I was 15 and I'm looking forward to heading home. So here, in the style of David Letterman - though not nearly as humorous, I'm sure - are the Top 10 Reasons Why My Drive Back to Portland is going to be FABULOUS:

Continue reading "Top Ten Reasons Why My Drive Back to Portland is Going to Be Fabulous!" »

Posted by Zee at 08:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Or, at least, a turn for the interesting.

Over the weekend, I thought I had all my furniture items sold except the piano and a nightstand. By Monday, however, I'd heard from the people who'd planned to take the loveseat and the dresser letting me know that they could not, in fact, purchase those items.

So I took a step back, sat down upon my lovely loveseat and thought about it for a while. Because the piano did not sell on eBay, it would have to be shipped back to Portland and delivered to the piano shop where I bought it. Given that, thought I, why not just have the loveseat shipped along with it? And, while I'm at it? Let's check into the cost of shipping 20 or so boxes and see if we can't avoid dragging a UHaul trailer across the country altogether.

Continue reading "A Turn for the Better" »

Posted by Zee at 10:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Having moved twice in the last year and 13 times since the age of 18, I'm becoming something of an authority on the ins and outs of moving a household. After the first couple moves, I discovered that saving boxes from one's previous move saves quite a lot of money when it comes time to pack things up again. And, while borrowing a truck and/or relying on friends for stuff-transportation is less expensive, it's a helluva lot more work than paying a couple hundred dollars to a moving company. Writing a check is taxing - for both the bank account and the thumb and forefinger - but hauling crap in and out of homes and up and down stairs is insufferable.

My discoveries from the last two - and this - move involve the mechanics of downsizing. Selling, throwing or giving stuff away is an amazingly lightening feeling. So much so that I've challenged myself to get rid of as much stuff as I can prior to this move.

Of course, the added incentive for this is that I have only my car's trunk and a 4'x4'x8' trailer with which to haul my belongings back to Oregon. (That's Ory-gun for you east-coasters! ;-)

Continue reading "Moving Aficionado" »

Posted by Zee at 02:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Despite the onslaught of inquiries about my stuff for sale on Craigslist, I have yet to sell a single item to someone I don't know. I heard from a number of people interested in the standing lamps, but when I followed up, they flaked out. Same story with the dresser and nightstand and TV stand. So I've been going through each response systematically, checking with the people to see if they're still interested.

I have managed to sell my cozy chair, the TV Stand, coffee table and all my bookcases to a couple friends, and a couple other friends took a number of cast-off items off my hands for the low, low price of nearly-free.

So I'm making progress. I still have boxes littering my dining and living rooms

Continue reading "Lightening the Load" »

Posted by Zee at 07:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

So I posted my stuff for sale on Craigslist last night, fully expecting to hear nada from anyone about anything. I mean, I posted my apartment, heard from no one. Posted my piano; again, nothing. So I was expecting to hear nothing back from anyone on the smaller items and furniture I have for sale.

Oh, how wrong I was. WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. I guess in this case, being so very wrong is not at all a bad thing. But everyone, it seems, wants to buy my stuff OH MY GOD, RIGHT THIS VERY MINUTE!! CAN WE COME OVER RIGHT NOW?!

Not that I'm complaining, mind you. So far, people have written about the dresser, the nightstand, the lamps and the vacuum. No bites on the bed, loveseat, rocking chair or tv stand. So yeah, the big stuff is still available. It's looking like I'll be living for the next month with no light and my undergarments strewn all over the floor for lack of dresser to contain them. Perhaps it will look like a Victoria's Secret store was hit by terrorists. I should be so lucky.

Oh, and forget the idea of actually vacuuming the carpet before I leave because, well, someone wants to buy the vacuum too. But I guess that's ok, because the bras and panties and nylons strewn about would only gum up the works anyhow, and then NO ONE would want to buy and and then where would I be?

Still nothing about the piano, but I have an alternate plan for that... let's just hope it works. Want to peruse the for-sale items?? Link to my specially-created for-sale page is over there on the left-hand sidebar. Happy shopping!

Posted by Zee at 10:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

I dropped my dad off at the airport this morning after two more fun-filled days. I was bummed to see him go - this was the first time a friend or family member had come to visit me since I moved to Boston, and it'd been 6 months since I'd seen anyone from Portland. I didn't realize until Dad arrived how much I've missed everyone!

Sunday afternoon, we headed south from my apartment in Waltham down to Falmouth on Cape Cod. I'd found a fairly inexpensive hotel room that allowed dogs, and so we headed there first after spending a leisurely Sunday morning reading the paper and lazing around.

Continue reading "Playing Tourist, Part II" »

Posted by Zee at 08:06 PM | Permalink

I've had a good couple of days with my dad.

Friday we spent up on the north shore, heading first to Rowley, Mass to check out the town where several of our ancestors lived. We weren't at all successful in finding any graves, so we headed back to Boston by way of Salem and the Salem Witch Museum. The presentation was rather cheesy, but the content itself was interesting. Who knew that the Salem witch trials started because of the machinations of four young girls??

I managed to get into a scuffle with some young, defensive mother whose baby was screeching. The kid was obviously frightened, and rather than taking him out of the 'theater,' the woman stood in the back letting him scream. Now, I have all the sympathy in the world for parents whose children are crying uncontrollably for no reason. But I get SO frustrated with people who think it's their god-given right to stay in a movie theater, a presentation or wherever, even if their kid is screaming. Look, I'm sorry your kid is screaming, but the rest of us DO NOT want to hear it. TAKE IT OUT OF THE DAMNED THEATER. We paid good money to be here and see/hear what's being presented, and we should be able to do that without the addition of a child's cries.

If the baby's fussing for 30 seconds or so, no problem. But crying for minutes on end?? Probably needs something, and you should find out what that is. Maybe that makes me intolerant, but jaysus, people, have some consideration!

Continue reading "Playing Tourist" »

Posted by Zee at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

My dad arrives at Boston's Logan airport today, and I'll be leaving in just about 3 hours to pick him up. The apartment is clean (mostly), clean sheets are on the bed, the laundry is done, Rennie's had a bath (she was a stinky dog!) and my favorite slow cooker recipe, Gingery Beef Strips, is in the Crock Pot for a late dinner later tonight after we get home.

The plan is to spend time the next few days sightseeing - including a trip down the Cape! - as well as figuring out my move plan. I'm especially looking forward to dinner with Joe & Julia tomorrow night and our Fenway Park tour with my aunt, uncle and cousin.

As you might guess, my posting will probably be spotty over the next few days... so au revoir, and I'll report back soon!

Posted by Zee at 06:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

I had lunch downtown with my friend A today. I met A about a year and a half ago, back when I was still in Portland and doing PR at the agency I used to work for. My client had hired him to give a speech to a group of partners and I was the one coordinating his visit and speech, so A and I ended up talking pretty regularly and becoming pretty good friends.

Anyway, we headed for a sushi lunch at a place in Boston near his office. It was good to catch up and while we've only gotten together three times (including this visit) since I've moved here, I'll miss having him nearby.

After I got home, I decided it was time to face the music - so to speak - and so I headed to my apartment manager's office.

I sat down and talked to Molly the manager about my situation, about how I'd lost my job and was planning to move home to Oregon, and asked if there was a way we could work something out as far as the lease penalties went. She agreed to put together a payment plan for the penalties and I gave my 60-days notice then and there.

The good news is that if they're able to rent my apartment before the 60 days is up (Sept. 7, for those keeping track) I won't have to pay the penalty!!! So I'm keeping my fingers firmly crossed.

Posted by Zee at 02:35 PM | Permalink

I was reminded again last night why it is that I so rarely go to large, city-sponsored events. I am NOT a crowd person. At. All. But, having completely and totally flaked on my friend Amy on Saturday, I didn't want to do that again. Plus, it was the fourth of July, and being in the city where the birth of the country took place, I had a hard time staying in.

So I headed downtown to meet Amy at the Government Center T stop. It was a beautiful day - sunny and warm and almost no humidity. It felt like a summer day in Portland - not a cloud in the sky, with a breeze coming off the harbor.

Continue reading "Fear of Crowds" »

Posted by Zee at 10:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

As you might guess from reading the last two entries, I've been kind of blue and spending a lot of time at home. In fact, I spent all day yesterday inside - didn't even set a toenail outdoors except to get the newspaper and pick up the mail - which is unfortunate because it was gorgeous and sunny and NOT humid out. I was supposed to go out last night with a friend and just couldn't. be. bothered. I did not want to see people, talk to people, deal with anyone. Yes, I most certainly do have my anti-social moments.

Anyway, in the last 24 hours I've become edgy and stir crazy and Rennie, too, has been acting kind of antsy. So, deciding we both needed an outing, I picked up my trusty guidebook, "The Dog Lover's Companion To Boston," to find a place to take Ren for a walk.

I just happened to open the book to the Lexington section and there was an entry about the Lexington Battle Road, which is a 5.5 mile trail that follows the path Paul Revere took on his midnight ride to alert the locals about the British. Considering that tomorrow was Independence Day, it seemed like a good place to go - both for walking and for appreciating the events that led to our nation's independence.

So off we went to Lexington, and 15 minutes later we found ourselves sauntering along the trail, enjoying the beautiful (and not muggy) day, admiring the beauty of the woods and stopping every so often to read informational signs and look at monuments.

Continue reading "Revolutionary Boston" »

Posted by Zee at 03:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

My goal is to be on my way home by the end of the month, or at latest, early August. I want to be home by my birthday. Plus, now that I've made the decision to go, I'm feeling anxious and edgy and just want to get on with it. Start - or reclaim? - my life.

But things are starting to come together, slowly but surely. As I mentioned, I did some of the critical stuff on Wednesday: got health insurance stuff dealt with, applied for unemployment and started figuring out ways to deal with off-loading my apartment.

Continue reading "Preparations" »

Posted by Zee at 11:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)

Until last night, while I IM'd casually with a good friend, it hadn't really sunk in that I am actually moving back to Portland. He asked me, "Are you really moving home??" And it wasn't until I typed "Yes, I am," that it became real. My emotions have been incredibly varied about this fact - even to the point of wondering whether it's the right choice - and the circumstances of my firing and the choices I've made over the last few days.

On so many levels, this is the right choice for me. Portland is my home. My family is there. My closest friends are there. My life is still there, albeit slightly dusty and hidden in the back of the closet. And while I have established a life in Boston, I have never really felt at home here. Sure, I've become accustomed to how things are on the east coast, I have become good at intuitive driving^TM, I have some very good friends here whom I will miss extraordinarily, and there are some things inherent to this part of the country I will feel the loss of.

But on the whole, I've been disappointed by Boston and my experience here.

Continue reading "Reflections on My Life in Boston" »

Posted by Zee at 09:18 AM | Permalink

Until last night, while I IM'd casually with a good friend, it hadn't really sunk in that I am actually moving back to Portland. He asked me, "Are you really moving home??" And it wasn't until I typed "Yes, I am," that it became real. My emotions have been incredibly varied about this fact - even to the point of wondering whether it's the right choice - and the circumstances of my firing and the choices I've made over the last few days.

On so many levels, this is the right choice for me. Portland is my home. My family is there. My closest friends are there. My life is still there, albeit slightly dusty and hidden in the back of the closet. And while I have established a life in Boston, I have never really felt at home here. Sure, I've become accustomed to how things are on the east coast, I have become good at intuitive driving^TM, I have some very good friends here whom I will miss extraordinarily, and there are some things inherent to this part of the country I will feel the loss of.

But on the whole, I've been disappointed by Boston and my experience here.

Continue reading "Reflections on My Life in Boston" »

Posted by Zee at 09:18 AM | Permalink

My first day of unemployment has not been what I would call smooth. Until today I didn't realize how very backwards the Commonwealth of Massachusetts could be.

Did you know that you can't purchase short-term health insurance in Massachusetts? No? Well, neither did I. When I moved out here from Oregon, I was in need of temporary, major-medical coverage for the 2-week gap between my former-employer-provided insurance and my new-employer-provided insurance. And I got a nice little policy for all of $50 a month. Yeah, that's it. I think there was a nominal set-up fee, but on the whole it was about as easy as could be. It was all set up through State Farm and everything!

So imagine my surprise when I discovered that none of the companies that came up in a Google search for "short term" or "temporary" health care offered insurance in MA. Turns out that MA is a state that requires all healthcare providers to accept anyone, so the premiums are really high, even if you only want major-medical coverage for a short period of time. Argh. So I'm going to call my old State Farm agent in Portland see if there's anything he can do for me, though I'm skeptical it will be of any good considering the way my day has gone.

Continue reading "Roadblocks" »

Posted by Zee at 03:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

The run I did yesterday with BostonFit was along the Charles River. Although I've lived in the Boston area for 8 months now (wow, times flies, doesn't it?) and I've been running here for nearly that long, this is only the second time I've run along the Charles River.

As I've said, I had a nice run - the weather was a perfect 50 degrees or so - but I couldn't help looking with envy upon the rowers and scullers out on the river in their kayaks. They looked so graceful, almost like swans.

And as I ran, I thought, "gosh, I'd love to try that." I'd once looked into rowing while I lived in Portland but the classes were at a ridiculous 5 a.m. so I never ended up doing it. But I think I'm going to look into it again and see what my options are.

A quick search online brings up Community Rowing, Inc. and Charles River Canoe and Kayak. I'm sure there are plenty more out there to choose from. Bound to be spendy but heck, what else am I going to do this summer?!

Posted by Zee at 08:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

So I had a truly 'New England' experience today. On a whim, after our morning team meeting, one of my bosses (yes, I have two managers) suggested the team go bowling. Now, being absolutely horrible at traditional-style bowling and, having been ill earlier in the week and terribly behind I was resistent. But the rest of the team was adamant and claimed that Candlepin bowling was more fun than the 'normal' bowling style, so I gave in and agreed to go.

And, honestly? I'm glad I did. They were right. Candlepin Bowling is FUN.

The pins look like this:

Continue reading "Bowling, New England Style!" »

Posted by Zee at 09:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This morning was the first meeting of BostonFit. I ran with Portland Fit the last two years and even though I ended up getting injured during the marathon in 2003 and didn't run much during last season, I had met such a great group of people and had so much fun that I couldn't wait for BostonFit to get started.

At least, I couldn't wait for it to start until I woke up this morning. I was tired, you know, and wanted to sleep in. It's odd how these things work: you know you'll have fun, you know it will be good for you, but at the moment of truth the idea of actually doing something becomes less appealing. This happens to me frequently: sign up for something, agree to show up and, at the last minute, it no longer sounds like as much fun as watching a DVD with a bottle glass or two of wine, or blogging or reading others' blogs or sleeping. (Wait, is this something that only happens to me?)

Anyway, I have Rennie to thank for the fact that I made it there at all today. Well, that and the fact that I had already plunked down my registration fee, and having paid is very motivating. Rennie wakes up every morning at 6 a.m. It's like clockwork. So this morning, she just kept licking my face and jumping around on my bed (and me) until I finally gave up trying to fall back to sleep. I was out the door at 7:30 and made it to the meeting location along the Charles by 8 a.m. As usual, there was the driving drama that accompanies every trip in Boston and, having missed the well-concealed entrance, I ended up having to drive about a mile out of my way so that I could turn around and get to where I was going.

Continue reading "BostonFit" »

Posted by Zee at 10:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

On a more exciting front, I got an email from my dad last night. He and I had been talking about his coming to visit and he was waiting to make the final decision until he'd gotten some closure from doctors on a medical issue he'd been having.

So he wrote yesterday to tell me he'd finally decided that he would be coming out to Boston to see me! Hooray!! Now I just have to figure out what to do with him for 5 days. (Dad, do you like looking at 15th-century sailing ships? We got a lot of 'em out here! ;-)

In other globe-trotting news, I am about 99.9% certain I will get to be HOME in PORTLAND for my 30th birthday!!! As I mentioned earlier, there's an industry convention I'll be going to in San Diego the Thursday and Friday before my birthday and since it's only a $150 flight from SD to Portland, I figured it would be akin to a crime to NOT go home.

So, for those of you in PDX, please mark your calendars for August 13, and plan to show up at Touche Restaurant in NW Portland. Expect to drink a lot, play pool a lot, and hopefully laugh a lot. OH, and bring a lot of presents. (Kidding.) (Kinda. :) More details - times, confirmation that I'll actually be there, etc. - will follow once my plane tickets are secured, but for now, I'm announcing it to the world: I'M TURNING 30 and, apparently, I feel the need to subject myself to ridicule.

No, but seriously. My trip to San Diego is also of some note, because our fine friend Dating Dummy lives there. So if I'm able to swing it, I just may find myself at a bar sipping margaritas and eating tacos with one of my favorite bloggers. :o)

Posted by Zee at 08:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

This morning on my way to work I stopped by an apartment in Wayland whose rent was significantly less than the place I mentioned last night. I was hoping it would be that 'gem' of a place for under $1000/month that everyone wants and few actually find, particularly in this area. Anyway, I was hopeful upon pulling into the drive because the outside actually looked pretty nice. But no, when I got into the place it was dingy and smelled of cigarette smoke. Yuck. I was reminded of my initial search for an apartment when I was here interviewing for my current job back in August. So much for that.

Of course, my visit to the dumpy place took longer than I'd hoped - as it always seems to around here - but I managed to get to work only 15 minutes late.

I called the rental office of the first apartment when I got into the office to let them know I did want to rent the place, and they told me they'd put the application in, process the credit card and send me my approval letter. Well, it took them about 6 hours before they finally called me back with the approvals, which had me on edge the better part of the day. But the place is mine!! The deposit is paid, I have an appointment on Saturday morning to sign the papers and agreements and etc. and I take possession on the 29th of this month!!

I know it's Memorial Day weekend, but I'm going to try to find movers who will agree to move my stuff on Monday the 30th. And if they won't?? I'm moving eveything over there that I can and sleeping on the floor until they can move the big stuff the following weekend.

Continue reading "My new home" »

Posted by Zee at 08:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Today was the 10th annual Dead Runner's Society Northeast Crewed (a.k.a "Crude") Run. Since there was no way in hell I was going to run 20 miles (or even three miles, for that matter) I signed up to be part of the crew. I know there are some people who grudgingly sign up to provide support for a race out of guilt. I don't. I like being there for the runners and feel happy for those times that I can give back; there have been so many times when I've seen the aid station and felt overjoyed to see all the people and hear their cheering. So I signed up and have been looking forward to seeing the DRSNE gang, helping them out, cheering them on and - best of all - having brunch at Bobby's New York Style Deli in Newton afterwards!

The goal of the Crude Run is to give folks who are running the marathon in April a chance to get in one last long run before the race. We met up at Newton Town Hall at 7:30 a.m. and by 8 a.m. were on our way out to Hopkinton to the starting line of the Boston Marathon. Joe was running long - planning between 20 and 22 miles - and Andy, Geoff, Mike, Tim, Bill, Connie and a variety of other folks were all planning to go at least 19 miles. All in all, there were about 11 folks who were running various distances.

After a pit stop at the porta-potties, I headed to my first stop: mile 3. The way it was set up was that there would be someone with aid at every mile marker, with people leap-frogging to the next mile marker 6 miles ahead, once the last runner headed past their stop. This was great in theory, but didn't account quite as well for variances in pace.

Continue reading "Crude Run" »

Posted by Zee at 06:37 PM | Permalink

I have one thing to say about Boston: it is BEAUTIFUL at night.

Saturday night, my friend Amy and I got together with several folks she knows for dinner (in) and drinks and dancing (out). Amy and I met up at her place around 5:30ish and headed to the Lechemere T station to catch the shuttle bus into the city. When we got off the T, I stopped for a minute to look around. Lights were still in the trees from the holiday season and the place sparkled. Had I wanted to, I'm sure I could have imagined a dozen horse-drawn buggies and wagons from days gone by, making their way through the streets.

After getting off the shuttle, we walked through the Haymarket open-air marketplace. There was a stench of fish permeating the chilly air. From there we headed to Amanda's apartment in the North End, stopping along the way at a 24-hour bakery called Bova's to pick up dessert (ricotta cannolis dipped in chocolate chips. YUM!)

Amanda's apartment is in a small brick building and when we got inside the stairs had some of the sharpest corners I've ever seen. This building - and all the ones around it - was OLD. I mean, really old. Her apartment was really quite cute, though, and we shed our coats and poured the wine I'd brought. Amanda's roommate, Kate, and Christine were already there, and we all set about chatting and talking. Carrie arrived shortly thereafter. I'd only met Amanda once before, so it was fun to catch up with her and also meet some new people. Before long, we were all chatting about various 'girl' topics like bikini waxes and shaving and make up and nails while putting the finishing touches on dinner.

Continue reading "Saturday night out on the town!" »

Posted by Zee at 11:07 PM | Permalink

One of the things I love about living in New England is the snow. Yes, I know it's nuts. In Portland, I hated when it the weather was nasty - ice, snow, crap all over the streets, etc - because it meant that I couldn't get anywhere or do whatever I wanted to do. Sans car, I was pretty much trapped in my apartment unless I wanted to slide down the hill on my butt and catch the bus.

But in Massachusetts, there are these really cool things called SNOW PLOWS! And what's even better, the snow plows go out and push the snow off the streets so all the little people in their little cars can drive around.

So this morning, when I was (rather rudely) awakened by my little dog at 5:30 a.m., I looked out the window and there was snow swirling around. And it was just lovely. I know that later I'll have to go out and help my roommates shovel the sidewalk and driveway, but for now I'm sitting here at my computer, looking out the window while typing this post (I can do that, because I can touch-type!). The snow is covering the fir trees and the little shed across the way and it looks quaint. And I love it.

Posted by Zee at 11:05 PM | Permalink

Betsy's been writing about Portland lately and it's got me feeling a little bit nostalgic. So I thought I'd share some of the things I've been missing about my home town:

• Fred Meyer: Yes, yes it's true. For those of you not from the Pacific Northwest, Fred Meyer is a chain that offers "one stop shopping." They sell groceries, natural foods, electronics, household goods, office supplies, plus, they have a pharmacy. Prices are good - usually better than other grocery stores - and there's quite literally a Fred Meyer in every single neighborhood. I haven't yet found anything equal to a Fred Meyer out here on the east coast. I suppose the Super K-Mart might fit the bill, but they're just not ubiquitous in the way Freddie's is.
  
• Urban planning: Although the curvy, windy streets here in New England sometimes work to one's advantage, I really miss the grid system upon which Portland's streets are based. It was almost impossible for me to get lost in Portland, and I miss the feeling of just getting in my car and going wherever I chose without consulting a map.
  
• New Seasons Markets: Another one of my favorite stores. It's similar to a Wild Oats or a Whole Foods market, but the service is impeccable. Plus, the layout of the stores is well-thought-out and there's plenty of room in the aisles. I think my biggest frustration with Whole Foods has to do with the narrow width of the aisles. On a busy Saturday, it's impossible to get a cart through there.
  
• Wine/Beer in Grocery Stores: I hate that most grocery stores out here don't carry a drop of alcohol. It's not that I'm a lush (usually :), but I'd like to not have to make a special trip just to get a nice bottle of red. Out here, only one grocery store in every chain can have liquor, but I've found that the stores that do carry wine or beer usually charge more for it than the local liquore store. So you end up making a special trip anyway.
  
• The Coffee: As I've mentioned previously, the coffee here in Boston is dreadful. If it weren't for Dunkin' Donuts, I don't know what I'd do. Yes, there are Starbucks here, but they're few and far between. There are Dunkin' Donuts around here the way specialty espresso shops line the streets in Portland. Plus, they almost always have parking lots (unlike the Starbucks around here) so it's usually easier to swing through DD, get your coffee and get on your way. Lattes schmattes.
  
• Freeways: Emphasis on free. Highways that you don't pay to get on and off of, and - for the most part - they're very well cared for. Surprising, right? I'm sure home owners statewide are paying for some portion of the roads, but it's nice not to have to worry about whether you've got enough change to get where you're going.
  
• Crocuses poking up through the dirt in January: We've still got snow covering the ground here and it's February, while in Portland, spring begins to poke through and brighten things up as early as mid-January. Seeing the first little buds of my crocuses and tulips poking through the soil in my back yard was one of my favorite things about the new year. But I guess I'll have to see what comes up around here and when. (The fall leaves may have to be my trade off, because they were stunning!)
  
• My family & friends: this one is a no-brainer and has zero to do with the merits of either Boston on Portland. It's just that the people who mean the most to me are in Portland and I miss being able to see them on a regular basis. I have met some lovely people here, and I'm sure I'll grow to love them as I do my friends at home, but this takes time and I am impatient.
  

So that's it for the moment. As with my other lists, if I think of more items, I'll update the post.

Posted by Zee at 07:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

When I started this blog, I had planned to keep a running tally of things I loved and hated about Boston. Well, I started it but then didn't keep it up. Probably because the link to the original post fell off my "recent posts" section of my sidebar. But I'm adding this link to the sidebar for good so I can update this as more things come to my attention.

Continue reading "Zee's Definitive "What I Love About Boston" List" »

Posted by Zee at 11:37 PM | Permalink

When I started this blog, I had planned to keep a running tally of things I loved and hated about Boston. Well, I started it but then didn't keep it up. But I'm adding this link, along with the "Things I love" post, to the sidebar for good so I can update this as more things come to my attention.

Continue reading "Zee's Definitive "What I Hate About Boston" List" »

Posted by Zee at 10:30 PM | Permalink

Today I had happy plans: I was invited to Joe and Julia's for a Boston Indoor Games pre-party. Of course, I had zero intention of (or interest in, to be perfectly honest) attending the games themselves, but I'm always up for hanging out with the lovely folks who make up the Northeast chapter of the Dead Runner's Society, and Joe and Julia in particular. (Truly, there are lots of reasons why they are lovely and wonderful and terrific, but unfortunately I will have to enumerate those a different post.)

What's funny - and largely inexplicable - to me is my fascination with subway systems. As a 17-year-old in Frankfurt, Germany I'd mastered the U-Bahn in about two days. When I moved back to Portland after my 3-month internship in Washington, D.C., I missed the Metro. I absolutely LOVE New York City's subway system. And Boston, of course, has the T. Why do I love subways? No idea. Portland has an extremely intricate system of buses and even has light rail, but it's certainly not a subway system so maybe it's a case of a 'wanting what I could never have' syndrome.

Joe & Julia live in a beautiful brownstone right in the south end of Boston and I was excited to have another opportunity to take the T somewhere! So I headed over to the Alewife subway station at about 1:00 p.m., and by 2:00, I was walking along Clarendon street giggling at a conversation I'd had on the train with a young guy who was talking with his buddies, trying to figure out exactly which holiday it was that featured the Boston Marathon. (It's Patriot's Day, for those of you not aware.) Anyway, I was feeling only slightly guilty that I'd not spent much time with Rennie at all but I was looking forward to seeing the gang since it'd been more than a month since our dinner at Red Bones. Parker was there with his girlfriend; Connie, Doug and Mike also showed up.

And it was good. I had fun. Joe had made a very yummy (if slightly spicy) chili and I had a couple bottles o' beer along w/ my hamburger and chatted w/ the gang and Joe & Julia's upstairs neighbor/tenant. Her name was Sharon and she was hilarious. She's a runner too, so we all had plenty to talk about.

I'm counting this foray into Boston as January's 'Boston Area exploration of the Month' ... I had originally planned to go out to Walden Pond a couple weeks ago, but since it's been so darned snowy, I've pretty much given up on that idea. In fact, it just might be a better trip when there is less snow on the ground. So a trip right into the heart of Boston, the historic South End at that, seems to fit the bill. Not that I saw much but the inside of Joe & Julia's home... ;-)

Continue reading "Traveling the T" »

Posted by Zee at 09:37 PM | Permalink

I was talking to my little sister last night via Yahoo messenger, as we frequently do, and she was in the midst of praying for snow. Now, snow in Portland is a good thing - from a student's perspective - because a lack of snow plows in the area means that in especially bad storms the roads stay covered with snow. Then it rains, and then it freezes again, and then it's extremely nasty to drive on, particularly on the steep hills on the west side, where snow plows wouldn't go even if they had more than 2 in the entire city.

So Johanna was hoping for snow in order to afford herself an extra day off and probably a little bit more time to get all her homework completed. So I told her it was a good thing that she didn't live in Boston, where children go to school whether there's snow or not.

So she asked, in all seriousness, how they got there... And it occurred to me at that moment that she had zero concept of how snow and ice is handled in other parts of the country. And this is not surprising - until my friend Alex explained it to me last year at this time when we were both in Seattle on business, I had no idea either. So I explained to her that Boston has something on the order of 3000 snow plows and that by the time people were getting up and getting ready for school and work, the streets and roads are usually quite clear.

In thinking about this exchange, it made me realize just how little most of us understand about what goes on in other parts of the country or - indeed - the world. And I don't think it's for lack of trying to understand, in most cases. I heard a piece on NPR this morning that pointed out the fact that many east Asian countries had no clean drinking water even before the tsunami struck. The United States donated $350 million for tsunami relief efforts, which undoubtedly included funds for clean drinking water in the time of crisis, but apparently the number of deaths occurring as a result of a lack of clean drinking water dwarfs the number of tsunami deaths many times over.

Now, I certainly don't want to downplay the tragedy caused by the tsunami: I guess what strikes me, and what I'm trying inadequately to express, is the fact that most people just don't know what happens in other parts of their country or the world and it's the dire circumstances caused by a tragedy that brings such things to light. In some ways, that gives me just a little bit of hope.

Posted by Zee at 07:00 AM | Permalink

Massachusetts is a funny place. We're not just a state like everyone else, we're a Commonwealth. And every other 'official' department or agency flows right from that slightly askew view on the world. What, in most states is know as the DMV (department of motor vehicles), in the Commonwealth is called the RMV - the Registry of Motor Vehicles.

On my lunch hour yesterday, I headed down to Framingham to finally take care of getting my car registered in Massachusetts and getting a new driver's license. Although 12 miles away from my office, it takes about 30-35 minutes to drive there because you have to take a bunch of back roads where the top speed limit hits about 45. So I alerted my colleagues that I would be gone for a longer lunch and set out at about 11:45, swinging through the cafeteria for a sandwich on the way.

I arrived at the RMV without much trouble, and to my delight the waits were not too long. However, as everyone knows, a trip to a state (any state) regulator's office is not complete without some measure of hassle. They sent me first to get my driver's license taken care of.

Being the clever girl that I am, I had surfed around online before heading down there to find out exactly what I needed to get my license converted. Passport, check. Old Oregon license, check. Proof of residency, check. Social Security card... oops. It turns out my reading comprehension leaves some thing to be desired, because I had missed the section that said you needed a social security card PLUS all those other things. Apparently, my 1200 other pieces of identification were just not enough to prove the social security number I listed on my form was really the one assigned to me.

Why, in this day and age of identity theft, we have to provide both the number AND the card as proof of worthiness for anything is beyond me. But apparently this is standard procedure and the lady handed me a piece of paper with "APPLICATION REJECTION FORM" stamped across the top. Rejection. Doh!!

After that, I was sufficiently irritated and ready to get the hell out of there but still had the license plate/registration hassle to attend to.

Like Oregon, Massachusetts offers a wide variety of license plates from which you can choose - including those emblazoned with the logos and likenesses of the Red Sox, the Bruins, or the basketball hall of fame, as well as plates that support the environment, animal welfare or children's rights and needs.

Having recently written at length about the atrocities being conducted by the US Navy using low-frequency sonar, I decided to put my money where my mouth was and get the plates that support the Massachusetts Environmental Trust.

This is what my new plates look like:

Continue reading "I've been RMV'd!" »

Posted by Zee at 01:53 PM | Permalink

OK, OK, I know that to all my friends in Portland this is going to sound like blasphemy... but this morning I stopped at the Dunkin' Donuts on my way to work and got a cup of coffee. And it was good. Hot, not bitter, no weird after-taste. In fact, I'm enjoying it right now. The only thing that would make it better is if there was a drive-through so I wouldn't even have to get out of my car...

Sigh.

Now what am I going to complain about every morning??

:)

(P.S. My Thanksgiving report will be available shortly. Watch this space.)

Posted by Zee at 08:15 AM | Permalink

Saturday - Cape Cod
Amy, a gal I know through my previous job in Portland (and who recently moved to Boston herself), invited me to come with her to Cape Cod on Saturday. She started her day at the celebration parade for the Boston Red Sox while I was out in Marlborough doing a work thing, and we met up at the Alewife T station in the early afternoon. Her reason for heading down to the Cape was to pick up a Christmas gift for her brother, and I hadn't been on the Cape yet so decided to come along.

Rennie came with us, and I had a really good time hanging out with her and exploring Falmouth, MA. It was a really quaint little town with lots of little shops, most of which Amy and I went into. Everywhere we went we were stopped by people wanting to pet or hold Rennie. (Ironically, the only store we went into where the salesperson DIDN'T comment on her was the 'doggie bakery' place. Needless to say, I didn't buy anything there.) For once in her little life, Ren was content to have me carry her through the shops, because she was a bit overwhelmed by all the new stuff; I have to admit that it was nice getting to cuddle with my usually-squirmy/energetic puppy!

I really enjoyed the drive down the cape, as well as being out there. It is really gorgeous and I'm beginning to formulate plans to head back down there for 4 or 5 days during my vacation in July - Falmouth is in a great place; close to Provincetown and Newport, Rhode Island, and there are ferries that leave from there for Nantucket Island and Martha's Vineyard. I'm sure I could spend several weeks there exploring the islands and surrounding areas, but I suppose that will have to wait until the next time I'm unemployed! :)

Continue reading "The Joy of the Weekend" »

Posted by Zee at 10:21 PM | Permalink

I've never been a huge sports fan. That is, I've never been a huge fan of "the big three" sports that the nation seems to think is so important to our culture. Indeed, I'm often surprised (at best) and disgusted (at worst) by the amount of time people spend watching these games and the amount of money the people playing the games make. I mean, there are people starving all over the nation, schools are running out of money to pay teachers, and the local NBA team is paying a pot smoking rapist a million bucks to run around a court trying to get a big orange ball through a net that's 10 feet off the ground.

Continue reading "HOORAY for the Red Sox!!" »

Posted by Zee at 07:02 PM | Permalink

For the first time since arriving in New England, I put on the long, wool coat B gave me for Christmas several years ago and my new cashmere scarf (thanks Aunt CJ!) before heading out the door for work. It was cold cold cold out there this morning - probably not far above 40 - and for the first time since hearing about them I contemplated purchasing a remote-controlled car starter.

I'm not kidding. PT and his wife told me about these when I was at their place for dinner a couple weeks back and I thought they were nuts... until this morning. Apparently, you can get them with all kinds of different features in addition to the remote starter - from remote keyless entry to alarm systems and everything else. The cost? $85 on up to $1000. Maybe I can get one that will brew a cup of coffee and pour non-dairy creamer in there for me just before I get in the car. :)

Posted by Zee at 08:08 PM | Permalink