Tag Archives: cambridge

Little Ironies

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Kind of like: “you park on a driveway, but drive on a parkway”.

  • Tazo tea bags – a very earthy crunchy brand – use tiny stapes to affix the paper tag to the bag, making it much more difficult to compost them. Most Twinings teas – another premium but very corporate brand – use nifty little string ties, meaning the whole bag & tie is compostable.
  • The automatic sprinklers at a local business were on in the rain this morning. Not necessary; there was plenty of rain overnight.
  • When I asked for slices of toast at a great local bakery/cafe this morning, the hostess mis-heard me and thought I wanted a whole loaf, sliced. Instead of complaining, I decided to make toast (they have a toaster for customer use). Yum, whole wheat sourdough.
  • Arrow Street in Cambridge is one way, the wrong way (i.e., towards Bow Street – which it crosses, of course).
  • Yesterday, while writing my blog post about Starbucks Via(tm), I was actually drinking tea. Tazo Awake, actually; I had to cut the tags with the staples off before tossing in the compost.

You know, “Time flies like an arrow; Fruit flies like a banana.”

Decent Office Chairs? And Friblogging

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So the time has come in my life to invest in a home office chair. I’ve done all the rounds of Inexpensive Office Supply House chairs, and even special order ergonomic chairs you can request at $dayjob if you figure out the right forms to fill out. And still, I have persistent back problems. So it’s time to invest.

Before I blow several hundred USD on an Aeron, does anyone have specific suggestions for fully-adjustable, comfortable, traditional-ish office chairs?

No, I don’t like the knee chairs. Yes, I might someday consider a ball chair with a back. And yes, I probably need something that rolls; that has seat level and angle adjustments; has back up, down, angle, and lumbar depth and height adjustments. None of the normal chairs I’ve tried ever end up being at the right place of my back.

And now for the Friblogging. You were wondering what that… well, maybe not.

Death Defying Driving!
Yes, it’s true: I drove under the Longfellow today – twice! – and lived to tell the tale. Even more amazing: there were simultaneously 2 red line trains atop the Longfellow at the same time. I seriously considered waiting, but there’s no place on the little Memorial/Land Blvd turnaround loop to pull over, so I took my chances.
SINGLE?
What’s with the recent invasion of little white “TownName SINGLES!” signs everywhere? I swear they’re worse than mushrooms after a heavy rain, or kudzu. Do my fellow readers to T/bike/walk ever see them? If you drive local roads in or near Cambridge, you can’t miss’em. I think one day I saw someone just walking by removing them just out of spite (or because they were DPW workers cleaning them up).
Bureaucracy stinks.
A project I’ve worked on is now suddenly – at the last moment – held up because of a missing approval. Sigh. Paperwork will get you every time, immaterial of actual work done. I think it’s time for everyone to simply have an unlimited mail store, so we can all save everything, just in case you need the records someday. (Yes, I realize that’s actually a huge issue for modern business).

Galleria:AppleStore:iPhone:Line:One week later

Galleria:AppleStore:iPhone:Line:One week later


Yes, Virginia, people have waited in line for ONE WHOLE WEEK just to be able to touch an iPhone. OK, just kidding, I keep going around lunchtime, so I’m sure it’s people who were only waiting an hour or so. I hope.
I was interesting, nonchalantly walking into the Apple store, right past the 3 mall security guards they had guarding the doorway. I actually needed to buy something that wasn’t an iPhone. There was still a line to pay, but not as long. Phew. Luckily, I had brought some food just in case I got trapped.

Pop culture references

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And now for the local news.

Galleria:Apple Store:Line 2 A local man, reported missing by his loved ones, was discovered today at the Cambridgeside Galleria. Reportedly he had been waiting in line to have his iPhone activated, and was unable to phone home to report his whereabouts.

In related news, coffee sales on Boylston St and at the Galleria are up 55% this weekend.

Wabbits! Giant, ravenous, carrot-eating, whitetailed rabbits have been spotted leaping over Arlington Heights this weekend. Suburban gardeners not used to natural predators are warned to keep a close eye on their gardens as these wascals invade new neighborhoods.

In related news, a new study on the Socioeconomic implications of food in animated American television is reported today.

BKLNE BMPR STCKR While up-and-coming Brookline may have it’s fair share of hybrid drivers, it now has enough bumper stickers going around to get easily spotted when waiting in Cambridge traffic.

In related news, Cambridge scooped the region with the largest Bastille Day celebration.

Film at eleven.

My Mid Summery-Day Commute

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A few observations driving to work mid-day the day before Patriot’s Day (actual).

  • How long does it take to build an Appleton? Seriously: just how long has there been a long row of contractor’s trucks parked atop the peak of Appleton St., on the Boston side? At least 2 years. They coulda built a whole new section of Tory Row by now, and it’s hard enough to drive up that street after shopping at the Fancy Stores for nibbles on my way into work.
  • Who’s getting buried today? Not to begrudge the funeral procession on Mt. Auburn their due respect at all, but I waited for a detail cop (actually doing useful traffic direction work – imagine that!) to wave me on as no less than 4 cycles and one police car (Cambridge, I think) escorted a hearse, limo, and count them: about 3 funeral-marked cars. Musta been someone important.
  • The tourists were out, at least a few. Sadly, there were no where near enough Bostonians jogging Memorial as I would have expected at 12:15p! That’s good, because a pair of construction workers were eating lunch on the bikepath across from Mahoneys, excuse me, across from yet another Harvard building.
  • I did not specifically see people smiling, but then again I was driving to work. I also did not appear to be stuck behind any of the gross of MA licensed drivers who are reportedly 100 years of age or older, nor did I see any buses on fire, Fung Wah or otherwise.
  • I did not eat any Solyent Green. Although I have seen an unusual number of references to it, without having seen the meme until I Googled it just now. Are people worried they’ll be eating a touch of the great Charlton Heston (R.I.P) in their Wheaties this week?
  • I also did not see any electric longboards chugging uphill on Appleton St., either, although this link is worth a read. Although I suppose the Tories discourage that kind of behavior in their neighborhood.

Who’s all going to what Patriot’s Day celebrations? I salute all the reenactors who help bring this important holiday to life, especially the early risers and them’s that celebrate it on the day, as opposed to just doing it right before the Marathon.