Regina Spektor

I saw Regina Spektor last night at the Orpheum. She was charming and kooky and her vocal gymnastics were pretty darned spectacular. I had a stroke of luck regarding tickets. According to TicketMaster the show had been sold out for a couple weeks, but I guess they released tickets at the last minute because I was able to get a 9th row seat when I tried on a whim on Friday night. Yippee!

East Boston Open Studios

I went to the East Boston Open Studios this afternoon. Embarrassingly, I've never been to East Boston except for the Airport shuttle T stop. I haven't even been to Santarpio's Pizza - shame!! The main venue was the Atlantic Works Building at 80 Border street, around the corner from this neat building:



There were 4 floors and about 40 artists representing just about every medium except um, glassblowing and coppersmithing. The Atlantic Works Building has just been remodeled, so they missed last year's open studios. Whether the building is better now or before the remodeling seems to be a hot topic among the artists - perhaps it lost some quirkiness and grit. In any case, it's a beautiful set of artists' lofts, and the space and natural light distribution seems to be fairer than in some other buildings I've seen. Here's a view from the stairwell (the view was more interesting in real life than in this photo):



It was a good mix of media. I especially liked Karen Kemp's lithographs, Lorin Hesse's paintings & collages, and Eric Hess's photographs.

Hikey Hikey - Mt. Monadnock and Mt. Wachusett

I climbed Mt. Wachusett today and Mt. Monadnock last Sunday! Mt. Monadnock is supposedly one of the most climbed mountains in the US, and true to its reputation it was crowded. But really only at the top and for part of the way down. On the way up we bypassed most of the crowd by taking the quieter Red Dot trail. Here are some pretty scenes.

Baby pine trees:


A tiny brown frog (about the size of a quarter):


A particularly pretty section of the trail, with the red leaves it was like walking on confetti:


The view from the summit:


And in the other direction, the misty summit:



A dead body. No wait, just kidding. My friend's brother used to run far ahead when they were hiking and then pose to make it look like he'd fallen out of a tree or impaled himself on a rock. It sounds kind of sick in the re-telling, but we practically peed our pants from laughing.


The way down (there's basically one suggested way down) was much more crowded, loud and annoying. It's also very rocky, which is wicked on my knees. The fact that I have a problem with bending my knees exacerbates the problem, and I was caught not a few times teetering on rocks like Frankenstein's Monster. Which made us laugh even more, which slowed things down.

Today we hiked up Mt. Wachusett. It's a little closer to home, and also close to my friend's brother's farmhouse, where we took a little pit stop to admire his decorating taste and pick up a massive amount of catnip that he picked for our kitties. It was a nice gentle hike, and it would be good for the directionally challenged because you're never too far from signs of civilization. (You can drive to the summit.) Not to mention some of these:

On the way home we stopped at the farm stand where I got my required apple cider donut of the year, a butternut squash, a bag of Macoun apples, garlic, and 5 stems of zinnias for 50 cents each.

Waiting for Ray

My downstairs neighbor called me last night to let me know that my side of the cellar was covered with water. Indeed - the hot water heater was emptying its contents onto the floor - an entire tanks worth by the look of the puddle. At least the puddle drains into the French drain at the front of the house - we're all in trouble if that stops working! Luckily I was able to get ahold of my plumber, Ray (we're on a first name basis) and he'll be bringing a new hot water heater by sometime today. But in the meantime, I'm at home with dirty hair and a sinkful of dishes watching Ellen.

Here's a photo of a wall in my cellar. I know, most exciting post ever!

Secrets

My kitchen looked like a crime scene when I finished with the beets. My friend introduced me to two things I needed to know about at Trader Joe's; vacuum packed cooked lentils, and vacuum packed cooked beets. Lentils and beets are two of my favorite things - why didn't I ever notice them before? Probably because unless I go during lunch, Trader Joe's is so crowded that my brain shorts out and I just want to get the hell out of there and I hit the booze isle heavier than is necessary. Especially when there are baby carriages. My personal recommendation is frozen chimichurri rice. While it's not as good as homemade chimichurri sauce (which is well worth the work), it's a pretty good quick dinner with the addition of a chicken breast or a pork chop and a salad. Last week's revealed secrets included:

1. I can check magazines out of my tiny local library branch around the corner from me. Now I will never again be at the mercy of the recently small and dismal selection of magazines at the gym. Even if I'm desperate, I can't read Parenting of Golf.

2. I can access scholarly articles distributed by JSTOR through my online account at the Boston Public Library. Lucky me, able to read about Iron Age Phoenician pottery in the comfort of my own house!

Jamaica Plain Open Studios 2007

I really needed an intense injection of art, and the open studios are a good way to get it. I like the JP open studios more than the South End or Somerville open studios - I saw more artists that appealed to me for whatever reason, and I'm totally smitten with JP as a community. (Until it's time to go home, then I remember how far away it is from my usual stomping ground and why I don't live there). In addition to open studios I saw a number of open houses. All single family houses, with the exception of a conglomeration of unfinished multilevel loft condos that my friend, who graciously remembered my love of open houses and lofts, invited me to check out one with him. They were pretty dreamy, and I had no problem mentally replacing the model furniture with my own.

I'm eager to visit the Fort Point Open Studios on October 20 & 21st.

Sea of Morning Glories

The morning glories have taken over my front yard. I purposely planted things that are drought resistant, like cosmos, California poppies, and lavender. The California poppies haven't been the same since my downstairs neighbor's cat decides to use the poppy bed as a kitty bed. Flat! The cosmos, which are against the house, are getting a little drab and crisp but it seems like a waste of water to water them since there could be a frost any night now. I've also given up on dead-heading them because the last time I crawled into the jungle and dead-headed I got a nasty spider bite that itched for a straight week. After nearly a month, there's still a discolored rough patch the size of a silver dollar on my tender elbow pit. I've spent quite a bit of time this summer unwinding morning glory tendrils from the perky cosmos stalks, but now I've given up and am letting nature do it's thing. Thus, the morning glories are taking over. Thankfully they're quite colorful and spectacular!

Crapola

So many things much more fun than writing my paper. Bummer for me.

Cantabridgian Cerise

I refuse to admit to being a shoe person. It's not like I'm like Carrie Bradshaw spending $400 on Manolo Blahniks. More likely my money is going towards practicalities like Dansko clogs or Naot boots. I have to walk a hell of a lot after all. I've been smitten with a pair of cherry red patent leather John Fleuvog Mary Janes with four little straps for about a month. So I bought them today after work. I am back in school after all, and it's important to have a new pair of sturdy back to school shoes. With sturdy 2 1/2 inch heels and gummy rubber soles.

Labor Day Weekend: Providence Cerise

I made bean and pepper salad with cumin lime dressing, and jalapeno cheddar cornbread decorated with cubanelle pepper flowers to bring to my friends' BBQ. There was a fantastic selection of potluck goodies, and sadly it was my first BBQ since the Weber grill moved out in June.


Following the BBQ, we rushed to Providence to see Waterfire. A former coworker used to wax poetic about Waterfire as well as Providence's restaurant scene but plans to go over the past 5 years have always ended in failure. Thanks to the spontaneity and creativity of my holiday companion I finally made it. It was much prettier and more sensually affecting than I had expected. The burning wood smelled great, the pyres were mesmerizing, (as was watching the gondolas full of black clad volunteers replenishing the firewood), the music, including live opera was appropriate, and there was something comforting about being with a crowd of people who all seemed to be enjoying the evening.


We landed at Nick's on Broadway for a little dessert. I was instantly taken with the place if only for the shiny cerise tiles on the walls and the red glittery counter. The menu sounded sublime, and because we sat at the counter and watched the line cooks prepare the last dinners of the night we able to see that dinners on the menu looked and smelled sublime too. I lustfully eyed my neighbor's bowl of garlicky cioppino more than once. I ordered homemade lemon pudding served parfait style in a martini glass with crushed sugar cookies and whipped cream, and my friend ordered some sort of warm berry concoction. I paired my pudding with mint tea (served in a swank little pot) and he his with coffee. I read up on Nick's later, and it sounds like they have a killer brunch.

Sunday: brunched at the B-side, dined at Casa de Pedro in Watertown, and FINALLY watched Grey Gardens.

On Monday we returned to the Ocean State because one evening wasn't enough and Labor Day is the weekend to go for nice drives. We walked down student clogged Thayer street, which is almost as annoying as Harvard Square, and then wandered down a much more pleasant Wickendon street. To the beach to the beach! It took a while, but we finally found a beach that was open to out of state folks. I rediscovered the childlike joys of jumping over waves, changing into my bathing suit in the car, and the fabulous hair styling properties of salt water. After a sandy afternoon, we dined at Julian's Providence which was artfully delightful. There's a showcase of Star Wars figurines in the bathrooms, tabletops lined with vintage matchbox covers entombed in plastic, and a giant whisk shaped lamp. I took a number of silly tabletop panoramas before my dinner arrived.