P52: 6th week 'round the sun

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This week started and ended with snow (well, it ended with a ton more - but more on that in a second).

Sunday night I went to a good friend's superbowl party - what a game! I was pulling for the Ravens, since Joe Flacco grew up about 30ish minutes from where I did. You have to root for the hometown hero right?

What a great game, too! Between the actual football, the halftime show, and that blackout: it's one I'll remember for a long time! Oh, and of course the snacks we enjoyed (roasted marshmallows anyone?) were icing on a fun evening of friends and football.

The rest of the week was typical. But then as many of you know, the storm of the century arrived in Boston! We had a snow day on Friday and I just hung out and watched the snow pile up and up and up. It only just ended Saturday night with a grand total of 26 inches! Lots more snow recaps to come, so stay tuned!

Highlight of the week: nothing can beat a snow day! I haven't had a snow day in 3 years since "snowpocalypse" hit DC when I was in college! Yes, even teachers want them too. The 2 feet of snow was pretty awesome too.

Favorite teaching moment: I graded my class' first big writing assignment this week (we've been writing, but nothing for a score). I returned them on Thursday and one of my kiddos came up to me at pack-up time and thanked me for his grade! I thanked him for a fabulous story to read!

Random-osity: I can read lips, well, which makes football games fun (coaches have filthy mouthes). But, this year at the superbowl either the coaches weren't saying much or I was having too much fun to take notice to pick up any juicy conversations!

Your turn and all the details:- Post 1 photo or an many as you like each week on Monday.- The button or text link should be present in your post - but not absolutely necessary. - Please visit some other blogs & leave some love & encouragement. - Submit the URL of your blog post - not your home page. Can't wait to see all your photos each week as we venture through 2012!
Project 52

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Nemo found us...

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...and left a few feet of snow! 
So...earlier in the week, "snow" was on the extended forecast. The weather folks kept saying they were "watching it" but expected nothing major and that we should just "stay tuned". I tweeted my fav weather guy, JR, and asked him if "stay tuned" meant "we're in for it big time" - his response was "maybe..."
By Wed night they were talking accumulation of feet - not inches. By Thursday the lines at the markets were insane and they were telling us to expect a historic blizzard. Delightful! School was canceled for Friday, so after a gym session and a coffee run,  I hunkered down for the storm of the year (century?). The snow moved in around 10ish on Friday and slowly got harder and harder. The governor issued a travel ban and everything shut down! Late Friday afternoon, I ventured out to get some "before" shots. By Friday after dark it was coming down like CRAZY! By the time I went to bed at 10:30, we were 90 minutes away from officially being a blizzard.
Well, we easily earned ourselves a blizzard. Along with insane amounts of snow! Boston eventually wound up with 24.9 inches, Brookline got over 26 inches! It's now the 5th largest snow storm in the region!!
I was floored by the amount of snow. Because of the insane winds, there were areas where the snow measured upwards of 3 feet. Cars had become mini-white mountains and windows were plastered with snow. I had a lazy, lazy morning and then went out to find my car. 2 hours later and it was found (take that Nemo) and I felt like I ran a marathon!
Twitter was awesome through this and I was tweeting with my fave weather guy, JR the whole time. He knows how badly I've wanted a big storm and actually sent me a tweet (!) saying, "loving this storm?!?!?! It's YOUR storm!" - I have nothing but praise for the storm team, they spent over 48 hours in the weather center getting us through this! It was great to get out and walk around after it stopped snowing. People were emerging and checking out the neighborhood. Lots of snow everywhere. People were skiing places, just strolling around, and taking it all in. I even saw one guy running in shorts and a short sleeve top - only in Boston!
The best might have been the thought I had when I saw that the subway was open: sub buyers should know that any snow total measurements taken with their "12 inch" subs might not be accurate... (I know, I know...)
We still have much digging out to do. They say long range temps are supposed to be normal so this snow will be around for the next month or more. For now, I'll enjoy the leftovers from storm of the century and the blanket of white in my neck of the woods!

ICA

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Yesterday, I explored a museum I have yet to see here in Boston, the ICA. I'd heard good things about their contemporary art collection and also knew the building itself was a must see as well. Of course, I decided to go down to the waterfront on a day where the windchill was 20º! The museum is in the South Boston, it's up and coming and lots of industrial buildings are being converted around the area. I was digging the view from the bridge heading into South Boston.

Isn't the building so cool? I just love the funky lines and mix of mediums: glass, metal, wood.
The ICA is right on the water. The building has this great boardwalk type promenade. I bet in summer it's a great place to hang out. Yesterday, was more of a snap some pics and run inside type of day!
The collection is small, but interesting. I enjoyed the mix of statues, prints, and paintings.
At the front of the museum's collection floor is an amazing outlook space. You can just look out at the water and the barges and ships entering the harbor.

All in all, a fun afternoon jaunt to a part of the city I'd yet to really get to!

February Randoms v.2

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 snowy window...digging out...snowbanksskype from israel...scratch sprite...state of the unionmannequin fun...we found nemo...costcoveggie burger...working from home...new song lovenew dress...storm number 2...dripping coffeetaped toes...mor snow...snowy shadowfrozen reservoir...matched socks...positive attitudefruit ninja psa...incoming storm 3...grapefruit kickview from ica...subway pride...leftover dosa

P52: week 8 around the sun

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I had all of this past week off for the New England tradition of February vacation week. It was such a welcomed week to relax and have a simple stay-cation here at home.

Vacation week started off with some more snow (yes, really), which allowed me to have a lazy Sunday. Once the snow stopped I drove to ikea and bought my new couch! I had been working on deciding which one I wanted for months and was finally ready to bite the bullet and make the purchase! I sold my old couch that afternoon, so it was no time like the present to get a new one. I was super excited when the new couch was delivered a few days later - I'm loving it!

I also ate out 3x this week (I usually eat out once a month, maybe!). It was nice to catch up with friends and not have to cook every night. It was my vacation after all!

I ran tons of errands, enjoyed more time at the gym, got the car serviced, finally updated the about me section of the blog, and organized around the apartment. I was very proud of myself for only checking my work email 2x a day (usually I'm on it all day long) and I spent some nice time planning my next big unit.  The week ended with more snow (yep, 3/3 on weekend snow storms) and Purim starting (more on that this week). Really, a great vacation and now I am refreshed and ready to take on the world again!

Highlight of the week: getting my new couch! I love how it looks in my apartment and it feels so much more sophisticated, and I am enjoying curling up on it every night now.

Favorite teaching moment: having the week off...does that make me a horrid person for loving having a week off? (I missed the kids though!)

Random-osity: I rigged up my dvd player to the internet so I can stream netflix and am rewatching all of the West Wing. I forgot how much I loved this show!! Seriously, nothing can touch its amazingness. I got through 14/22 episodes of the first season...
Your turn and all the details:- Post 1 photo or an many as you like each week on Monday.- The button or text link should be present in your post - but not absolutely necessary. - Please visit some other blogs & leave some love & encouragement. - Submit the URL of your blog post - not your home page. Can't wait to see all your photos each week as we venture through 2012!




Project 52

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Irish Christmas in America show comes to the Irish Cultural Centre on Friday, December 21

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Irish Christmas in America, a musical show featuring top Irish musicians, singers and dancers, is performing two shows at the Irish Cultural Centre in Canton on Friday, December 21, 2012 at .  Tickets are $25 and can be purchased online for both the 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m shows.

Irish Christmas in America is produced by fiddler Oisín Mac Diarmada of the Irish traditional group Teada.  This year's performers include singer/songwriter Aaron Jones of the Scottish group Old Blind Dogs, accordionist and singer Séamus Begley from West Kerry, Gráinne Hambly (Irish harp), Seán Gavin (flute, uilleann pipes), Brian Cunningham (sean-nós dance) and Seán Mc Elwain (guitar).

Find out more about the Irish Cultural Centre, a year-round facility located on 46 acres of land in Canton, Massachusetts.

For year round details on Irish events throughout Massachusetts and the New England region, visit IrishMassachusetts.com.

For visitor information go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

10th anniversary Boston's Celtic Music Festival Taking Place at Club Passim in Cambridge January 11-12

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The 10th annual Boston's Celtic Music Festival, featuring an array of talented Celtic musicians and dancers, is taking place  on January 11-12, 2013 at Club Passim and other venues in Harvard Square, Cambridge.

Here is a full line up of performances and ticket information. 

Passim has a rich line-up of performances throughout the year.

You can find year round details on Irish cultural activities in greater Boston by visiting IrishBoston.org.

For visitor information go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

Pulitzer Prize Winner Frank McCourt's Play, The Irish and How They Got that Way, Opens in Somerville on January 24

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FrankMcCourt's The Irish and How They Got That Way is opening at the DavisSquare Theatre in Somervilleon Thursday, January 24 and running through March 17, 2013.
Written by Pulitzer Prize-winning author, the late Frank McCourt, The Irishand How They Got That Way tells the story of the Irish experience both inIreland and the United States. It's imbued with McCourt's unique humor anddraws on his personal experience living in both countries. Told through a revueof songs, this sometime irreverent but always loving look at the Irish peoplefeatures music ranging from traditional Irish melodies to the works of Broadwaystar George M. Cohan to the music of U2.
Performances are Thursday & Friday evenings at 7:30p.m.; Saturdays at 4 p.m. & 7:30 p.m; and Sunday matinees at 3p.m.. Tickets are $39.00 - $42.00 and are available bycalling 800-660-8462 or online at www.frankmccourtstheirish.com.
Find year round details on Irish cultural activities ingreater Bostonby visiting IrishBoston.org.
For visitor information go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com. 

2013 Schedule of St. Patrick's Day Parades in Massachusetts, Available from Boston Irish Tourism Association

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The Boston Irish Tourism Association has released its 2013 schedule of St. Patrick's Day parades in Massachusetts. 
Cape Cod: Saturday, March9, 2013 - - 11:00 am
Worcester: Sunday,March 10, 2013 - - Noon

Abington: Sunday, March 17, 2013 - - 1:00 pm
Boston: Sunday,March 17, 2013 - - 1:00 pm
Holyoke:Sunday, March 17, 2013 - - 11:50 am
Scituate:Sunday, March 17, 2013 - - 1:00 pm

For people traveling outside of Massachusetts this year, check out these other St. Patrick's Day parades: 
Quebec City, Canada:Saturday,March 23, 2013 - - 1:30 pm

Manchester, NH: Sunday, March 24, 2013 - -Noon

Dublin, Ireland: Sunday, March 17, 2013 - -Noon 

For a schedule of Irish music and dancing, literary and theater events, and other cultural activities in March 2013, visit IrishMassachusetts.com/march.php

For information about visiting Massachusetts, go to MassVacation.com or BostonUSA.com.  

Boston's Lyric Stage Presents an Irish Comedy, Stones in His Pockets, from February 15 - March16

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Stones in His Pockets, an Irish comedy by Northern Ireland playwright Marie Jones, is running at the Lyric Stage Company of Boston from February 15 through March 16, 2013.

Tickets to the shows are available online or by calling 617 585-5678.

Stones in His Pockets is the story of a rural Irish village turned upside down by the arrival of an American film crew.  It ran for three years in London's West End and earned three Tony nominations.

Here is a schedule of upcoming plays at the Lyric Stage, located at 140 Clarendon Street in Boston's Back Bay.

Find year round information on Irish cultural activities in greater Boston at IrishBoston.org.

For visitor information go MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

Book Review: Sargent's Daughters - The Biography of a Painting

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In 2009, I published an article on my Remember Jamaica Plain blog about the Boit family. The hook for the post was John Singer Sargent's painting The Daughters of Edward Darley Boit, a favorite of mine. I've just learned that the same year, Erica E. Hirshler published a book on the painting, so I've taken a look at it. While Edward D. Boit did live in Jamaica Plain as a child, he spent much of his married life in Europe, and while in the United States stayed either on Beacon Hill or in Newport. Which means that the book itself says nothing about Jamaica Plain. It does, however, speak of Boston, so I thought I'd put this follow-up to the earlier blog post here.

The book does a good job giving a sense of the American expat life during the late 19th century. The book is the story of both the Boits and of Sargent, and shows how their lives were intertwined for many years. We get Sargent's development as an artist, observations by their mutual friend Henry James, and much information from the diary of Edward Boit's brother Robert. And of course, we get the daughters. Much has been made of the later lives of the girls, and Ms. Hirshler shines a good deal of light on what has long been a mystery.

Very little of the book features Boston, but the oldest daughter did have her 'coming out' while the family was on one of their rare return visits. And the painting was in and out of the Museum of Fine Arts - first as a loan, and then as a gift. Still, you do get a sense of Boston Brahmin life, even if most of it is in exile. One particular criticism grows out of the simple fact that very little is known about the genesis of the painting. Occasionally, the author falls into the 'what was he thinking?' rhetorical gimmick, in an effort to fill in the historical blanks. Of course, it's a shame we don't know certain things, but that doesn't give us license to impose upon real life characters. This extends to quoting from a contemporary of a character of whom little is known. The quoted passages may represent a window into the life of the person of interest, but then again, maybe it doesn't. This minor quibble aside, the book is definitely worth a look if you're a fan of the painting.

Let's Go To The Races!

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The trotters run at Readville (BPL Flickr photo group).


It's been a while since I posted. That's because I've suffered from a 'new improved!' version of Google Blogger. As with  other  social media software, Google has managed to scramble what was a perfectly good system, for no benefit that I can see. I won't bore you with the details, but the difficulties of learning the new layout have been great enough to make me walk away from the effort for many weeks. That being said.... back to Boston history.

Many people are familiar with Suffolk Down racetrack in East Boston. Fewer know that there was once a track in Readville at the southern tip of the city. The track, once cite of the civil war training Camp Meigs, famous for its role in the  history of  the black 54^th Massachusetts Regiment. After the war, it became home to an agricultural fairground in the then-new town of Hyde Park. With the fair came horse racing, and the racing stayed after the fairground closed.





Cars racing at Readville (BPL Flickr photo group).



The Readville track, at the Boston/Dedham border, 1918.


. 
In 1896, a new mile-long trotting track opened, with grandstands and a hotel. With a new century came a new form of transportation, and the first thing men did with automobiles was to race them.Trotters and automobiles shared the track. By the early 1930s, a new track had been laid, and cars were king. Nineteen thirty-seven saw the last official race, and during the war years, military pilots used the track to practice landings.




Cars at the starting line (BPL Flickr group).


Cars in the 'pit.'

Stop and Shop built a large distribution warehouse on the site along the railroad tracks, which sits empty today, waiting for redevelopment. As a final, threatened indignity, the town of Dedham once considered their strip of land at the site (much of it wetlands) as a dedicated 'adult' business district. The effort was, of course, an effort to scam their way out of Constitutional requirements, and wiser heads prevailed. 

Source: Boston Public Library, Sports Temples of Boston

Book Review: Boston's Depots and Terminals

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When I set out to cover the old train depots of Boston on this blog, I didn't know that there was a book that covered the same subject.  I recently came across a reference to it online, and was able to access it from within my suburban library network. It is exactly what you'd expect - photos, prints, maps, schedules and posters, along with short histories of each line. There are quite a few images you won't find online, appendices, and a bibliography. Definitely worth a look for anyone interested in 19th (and 20th) century Boston and in the railroads that served it.

Alger's Gun Works

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Cyrus Alger, 1827.


Cyrus Alger was born in West Bridgewater Massachusetts in 1781, and learned metal casting from his father. He set up a foundry in  Easton, and in 1809 moved to South Boston, recently stolen (legally, of course) from Dorchester and annexed to Boston . One source has him supplying cannon balls to the government during the War of 1812.



Cyrus Alger mortar, cast in 1863, currently located on the grounds of the North Carolina State Capitol (Wikimedia Commons).



Alger's Iron Foundry, South Boston, 1852.


In 1816, Alger bought from the South Boston Land Association most of the land west of the Dorchester Turnpike (now Dorchester avenue), and soon began filling in the mudflats of the South Bay. Here, he built his foundry, and made a name for himself as one of the leading metallurgists of his time. Alger developed a process for purifying cast iron, producing a much stronger material, and produced the first rifled gun in the nation. He personally supervised the pouring of the Columbiad, the largest gun to be produced up until that time.


From the Boston Directory, 1848-49. Although now known for his cannons, Alger's company supplied castings for many commercial uses. He had patents for improving both stoves and plows.



The red 'X' marks the 1855 location of the Alger foundry in South Boston, and shows both water and railroad access (BPL map collection). Much of the land at the site marked above was created by Alger.



Closeup map view of Cyrus Algers' Boston Iron Works, Iron (later Foundry) street, South Boston, 1852. The South Boston (Dover street) bridge crosses the South Bay on the left, and the Turnpike to the right.The site had both water and rail access - note Alger's Wharf  and the tracks of the Old Colony railroad.



Alger's gun yard, end of Sixth street, at the outer edge of South Boston (red), United States gun yard (blue) 1852. Cannon were tested by the batch. Samples would be taken from each batch, and fired into earthen walls repeatedly to test for defects. If there were no failures, the batch would be shipped.They also fired guns from Nut island, Quincy towards a target on Peddock's island.


Cyrus Alger was also active in the community. He served on Boston's Common Council and as an Aldermn.  He paid to have sidewalks laid and trees planted along Dorchester avenue. He is said to have kept his workers on half time when they weren't needed, and introduced the 10 hour day to South Boston industry. When he died, stores closed along the route of his funeral, and factories all over South Boston shut down. Today, Alger cannons sit in front of Town Halls and on village greens all over the country, and are bought and sold by collectors as pieces of American history.






Sources: Gaining Ground: A History of Landmaking in Boston, Nancy S. Seasholes.

 A genealogical history of that branch of the Alger family which springs from Thomas Alger of Taunton and Bridgewater, in Massachusetts. 1665-1875