Thank you, internet

Sunday in Cambridge

To say that this summer has had its share of weird weather would be an understatement. Incredibly hot and humid weather in June gave way to what seemed like daily thunderstorms and rain in July and August. So as summer quickly and sadly is coming to an end, I had no other plan for this weekend other than to get out and try to enjoy the (finally) perfect weather. After an excellent Figgs show on Saturday night (not to mention an equally kick ass set on Fri night), I pulled out the new camera and took a walk into Central Square on Sunday morning to meet up with the family for some breakfast at Miracle of Science. As a side note I should mention how thoroughly happy I am to have discovered breakfast here- it's always been a great bar but somehow I never realized they had such a good, cheap breakfast menu. I'm not sure what this says about the rest of my personal life, but this is one of the most exciting discoveries I've made in a long time.

Anyway, while sitting at breakfast we quickly realized that something different was going on when a 90% naked woman wearing a headdress walked by the restaurant. A quick walk up Mass Ave after breakfast confirmed that we were not hallucinating, but it was Caribbean Carnival Day in Cambridge. Or, better put, the complete and utter insanity that is Caribbean Carnival Day in Cambridge. Barely controlled chaos is probably the best description I can think of. Here's a few pics from the parade.

One thing to point out here is that the "floats" are basically rolling speaker rigs. I go to a lot of concerts at venues of all varieties, and I can honestly say that I have never experienced something as loud as one of these trucks. This pic shows about 3/4 of the length of one truck, and the back and total length of the other side are lined with speakers as well. My ears are still ringing.

The family had enough at this point, so they headed out and I stuck around for a little while longer before needing to get away myself. In search of some serenity after the ear shattering music, I walked up Mass Ave towards MIT to see the chapel there. It's one of those places that I knew of but in 9 years have never seen, and it is an amazing building. Built in the 50s and designed by Eero Saarinen, it's a bit like stepping into another world- not only because of the surreal design, but also because of how quiet it is despite the noise and traffic outside. Hard to do justice with photos- this is definitely a place to be experienced. Here's a few anyway.

After stepping out of the peaceful confines of the chapel, I made my way a bit further up to the Mass Ave bridge for a few more pictures- not the most original, but no less of an amazing view on a day like yesterday.

The older I get the more I think about moving out of the city, but it’s days like these that make me wonder why I would ever leave. 

Top O' the morning to ya!

This week, during my 6th trip to Dallas, I finally found the tribute to Mr. O'boma that I was looking for.

Red Sox vs Angels

7/30/08

Sox 2 Angels 9

In Attendance: Dan

One of the great things about baseball is that the season is so long, and over the course of 162 games, you get a huge range of experiences. Blowouts, shutouts, walk offs, maybe even a no hitter, to name a few. But that also means that you're bound to see some very boring games. The same applies to seeing games in person- if you go to enough, you're going to see all varieties. And after seeing some great games this season, number six fell driectly into the boring, even depressing, category. 

Listmaker managed to get some last minute seats online which put us in a brand new section for this season, directly under the new Coca-Cola sign in left field. We were basically in the last two seats of the top row in left field. These are upper deck seats, but being that it is Fenway, they are probably the equivilent of the mezzanine at most ballparks, and had an excellent view.

(Cell phone camera strikes again)

After a long walk around the entire ballpark trying to figure out just how to get to our seats, we settled in for what we hoped would be a good matchup between the Sox and Angels, who were at that point cementing their status as the hottest team in baseball. This quickly proved to not be the case, as Josh Beckett turned in a lackluster performance and the Red Sox played like little leaguers. By the time the fourth error was committed, the crowd was booing as loudly and angrily as any I've heard in 8 years of going to Fenway. 

Of course the big drama surrounding this game was Manny Ramirez's antics regarding his contract. This is old news now of course- Manny is happily settled in LA and pissing off a new manager. But at the time this was huge news in Boston and clearly had an effect on the team, and within 24 hours, he was gone. So while it may have been a lousy game, it was definitely notable to see Manny's last game in a Sox uniform. 

People who aren't from Boston are always shocked by the fact that we were all so ready to give up one of the best hitters in Sox history. But anyone who follows this team year to year had seen this whole charade before, and by the time he pulled himself out of a key Yankee game in July, we all knew it was time to go. But instead of dwelling on that, i'll post my favorite Manny moment in Boston- Manny's walkoff in Game 2 of the ALDS last year.  

Back in Business

Been an unusually long break (even by the standards of this often neglected blog) as a result of an unusually busy summer.  But all good stuff and much to report on, including 4 or so concerts, 2 baseball games, a few movies, and on and on. Of course i'll try to do this as I embark on yet another trip to Texas this week, not to mention just starting season 5 of The Wire, but I'm hoping to get at least a few entires in soon. Until then, thanks to everyone (anyone?) who still stops by despite the lack of new material...