On the Freedom Trail

      Boston is the city of my childhood.  I grew up just a few miles from the center of the American Revolution, went to college across from the Boston Common and still gravitate to my home city whenever I am able to.  A dear friend of mine had claimed the need to explore Boston, so we planned a 2-day getaway to vacation in our back yard.  We packed up our overnight bags, grabbed the commuter rail and headed to Beantown.  The goal: to take a tour of the freedom trail.

     Considering the rich history in Boston, the tour could have been a very long one.  As a child I had taken a long version of the tour, which began at The Boston Common, went down Tremont Street, onto School Street and headed over to Faneuil Hall.  We then crossed over to the North End, visited Paul Revere’s house and ended at the Old North Church.  However, that was the 1970s and part of a middle school field trip.  This tour was considerably shorter.  Since my feet began to hurt and swell a bit, it might have been for the best that the tour we took this past weekend was abbreviated. 

     There is a sense of joy and appreciation that comes from exploring a familiar place.  One can embrace home again and truly enjoy nuances that escape us during the everyday.  It’s also interesting to see how much things have changed.  Stores I loved as a young teen, such as the Jack & Jill Joke Shoppe, are now but a memory.  Downtown crossing lost its iconic Filenes Bargain Basement where I learned how to successfully find a deal.  Other locations I remember such as The Corner Mall still exist even though the shops inside are not the same houses of fashion from the 1980s.  However, that may be for the best.

     My friend was amazed at the beauty of the Boston Public Garden as well as the general cleanliness of the city.  She loved the flowers and decorated storefronts, commenting on how much nicer Boston is compared to the behemoth that is New York City.  While I contend that there is no comparing the two, Boston won my heart at the tender age of three.  My parents relocated our family from Rhode Island to Massachusetts because my father got a new job.  We moved into the town of Winthrop, which was so close to the heart of Boston that I could hear it calling to me.

     My feet and legs are not as young as they once were and even though the Freedom Trail walk was abbreviated my body ached considerably.  After all, we had walked for 7 hours all together!  We managed to walk back to our hotel and relax for a while before crossing the street to go to dinner.  We were unable to go any further than that.

     I’d like to return and continue to explore the city again.  Next time I believe I’ll wear sneakers instead of sandals and map out other locations to visit.  There are so many things to do and see in the city of Boston, one trip simply isn’t enough. And I love that dirty water…

OMFUG

            I decided to rent the movie CBGB over the weekend.  It’s a fantastic film staring one of my favorite actors, Alan Rickman.  The film focused on the founder and owner of the club CBGB’s, Hilly Krystal, and how his musical ear helped create the punk soundtrack of the 1970s and launch the new wave scene of the 1980s.  Hilly gave opportunities to young musicians exploring their art to present their work in front of live audiences.  The bands that performed on the stage at CBGB’s reads like an all star lineup: The Ramones, Blondie, Patti Smith, Iggy Pop & Stooges, The Talking Heads, just to name a few.

            Music brings people together.  It can time stamp a moment, an emotion or cement a feeling.  How many times have you heard a song and remembered exactly where you were the first time it was on the radio?  I still remember the day I took the train to the city so I could buy an album by The Ramones.  Instead of one, I bought three: The Ramones, Rocket to Russia and Road to Ruin.  How apropos that on my way to the city, I went over the blue line walkway in East Boston that reeked of human urine.  How very punk.

            Some of my friends in school didn’t appreciate The Ramones like I did.  They would make fun of me and say that the band only knew 4 chords.  My counter argument was, “yeah, but they play them really well”!

            I discovered The Ramones because my parents invested in cable television and HBO.  We loved HBO at my house.  They had a limited number of films available on the channel at that time, but Rock N Roll High School was one of them.  I was riveted, sitting in front of the television religiously whenever the movie was on.  The Ramones music was fast, energized and fun.  They even included concert footage of them playing live!   The cry of “gabba, gabba, hey” rang out in my living room as I jumped around.  After watching the movie over and over again, I had to go buy as many of their albums as I could. 

            I began to notice other stories about punk music.  One of the television magazine shows had a segment about a nightclub in New York City that catered to the punk crowd.  They even had a punk buffet that included chicken legs tied to a rope and hanging from the ceiling as well as a fish tank that held a baby doll submerged in jello!  It was both revolting and fascinating to me.  The club’s name escapes me, but this sealed my desire to go to New York and see everything for myself.  That would take another 6 years, but I eventually made it to the city.

            Today, it’s hard to believe that all the original members of The Ramones are now gone.  A large part of my youth has passed onto the other side and it saddens me.  I can close my eyes and picture the band playing together once again.  All I can do to celebrate is chant “gabba, gabba, hey” and pogo in my living room. 

The Mystery of the Walkway

            I’m a cyclist.  I love to ride my ruby red Cannondale around the park on the bike path.  It’s great exercise and just plain fun to fly down the path surrounded by nature.  I express this joy by singing as loud as possible while I ride, listening to my iTunes. On my way to the park, I often use a walkway bridge that crosses one of the major roads in my city.  It is strategically placed next to a parochial elementary school and church connecting that side of the street to the baseball diamonds and park across the way.

            I have looked at this walkway with a great deal of sadness of late. Here is a structure with a memorial plaque that is weathered beyond true legibility.  It is not maintained nor is the walkway itself, which is rusting and damaged.  The cage style fence that encloses it has been broken in various spots. One day in May, I took a series of photos of the structure and sign with the plan to learn more about its history.  I’m rather good at research, if I do say so myself, and I was certain I could learn more through my various methods.  Imagine my surprise when I came up with nothing. 

            The name the walkway is dedicated to in memorial is Bernard J. Smith, Jr.  The sign itself is very difficult to make out as the paint is chipping away.  There was nothing on it regarding the date of the dedication or why the walkway is named after him.  There is no dedication plaque on the structure itself or a date plague of any kind.  I couldn’t find any information on the Internet either.  As of today, I plan on setting off to the public library to research this further. 

            Right now, the memorial walkway is a mystery that I intend to solve.  I have big plans on how to proceed with this and am talking to various people to raise awareness. For now, the best thing I can do is show you all what I am talking about.  Below are the pictures.  What do you think?

Pandora's Box and Parking Violations

            My office window faces the street with a clear view of all the activity – mostly vehicle activity – on a frequently traveled road.  On this visible stretch there are a half a dozen metered spaces, a fire hydrant and handicap parking spots. Meter maids are on hand dutifully writing out tickets and placing citations made of neon orange paper on window shields.

            The parking meters were increased in number over the past two years and currently plague our city streets.  This has caused those of us who work or live in the area a great deal of trouble, as several of these spaces were once free to park in for a number of hours.  Every day I watch people attempt to park, driving up and down the street with horns blowing at them as they crawl along.  Often, I witness someone park illegally and nod my head knowing that they will be targeted by one of the many meter maids on duty.  More often than not, they get citations placed on their vehicle.

One of the most frequent parking violations I witness occurs in front of the fire hydrant.  I believe some people take a risk parking there because they don’t expect to be in the spot very long and go someplace near by.  Of course, this is just an assumption on my part, for perhaps they don’t care or aren’t aware that it’s illegal.  Just beyond the fire hydrant is a legitimate parking space with a meter.  Many times I witness a driver approach this spot and maneuver outside of the parking area and place their vehicle in front of the fire hydrant with the parking meter behind them.  They then feed the meter believing that it is in the proper place for their vehicle.  This continued pattern has made me question what is taught about U.S. parking rules.  Is it supposed to be common knowledge that a parking meter should be in front of your car?   Obviously, this isn’t the case as I see this error made on a daily basis.  I’ve witnessed people of all ages doing this so it isn’t limited to one group.  I assume that some of these people maybe from out of town or from a foreign country and are visiting.  They may not be aware of the rules.  However, I don’t recall reading anything in particular about city parking or meters when I took drivers education.  Yes, that was a long time ago and times have changed.  I can take a deep look into the Internet and see what answers I can find.

If you Google U.S. parking rules several links come up for various states – mostly California and Minnesota - as well as pages targeting international travelers such as justlanded.com, path2usa.com and a Wikipedia page.  Most of these sites covered parking meters in so much that they advise travelers to carry change with them.  However, they don’t include any information regarding where the car should be placed in relation to the parking meter.  They should include a line that reads, “a parking meter should be next to the front end of your car just above or close to the front left tire.” This would save travelers a great deal of money in tickets.  

Out of curiosity, I downloaded the current drivers instruction manual from the Rhode Island Department of Motor Vehicles.  I was surprised to see that there was no information in it regarding parking meters.  Apparently, this information isn’t being taught by the state.  I looked at the booklet for Massachusetts as well and found that they didn’t address the issue either.  Massachusetts did include a brief paragraph covering parking meters that reads, “Many public parking spaces are operated by coin-fed meters.  Rules and time limits usually apply during posted days and hours.  If you park longer than allowed or fail to pay the meter fee, you may be issued a parking citation.”  However, they don’t address proper location of the meter in relation to a vehicle either.

Apparently, I’ve discovered an oversight in both Rhode Island and Massachusetts drivers manuals.  Can one argue that we were never taught where to place our cars, focus on the fact that the department of motor vehicles doesn’t teach this and fight all the parking tickets?  Perhaps I just unlocked Pandora’s box.  Discuss amongst yourselves.

And Then I Met a Former Nun

            For the past decade or so, I have had the pleasure of working with my dear friend Bruce Haring on his DIY conventions.  These began in Los Angeles as a way to educate those within the creative community on how to successfully develop an entertainment based career without the aid of having corporate America’s support.  As a successful writer and journalist, he focused on self-publishing and expanded to include independent music and film.  It was his belief that creative people who had talent, but didn’t necessarily fit into the mainstream marketing category, deserved to find their place within the entertainment behemoth. You can see more on his events and how they have grown at www.diyconvention.com.

            When I relocated to the east coast, Bruce asked if I’d continue to work with him on the New England Book Festival.  The yearly event would take place each winter in Boston to celebrate independent authors and their works.  Of course, I accepted and each year the event has grown in size and scope.  I have had the pleasure of meeting a wide variety of authors from all walks of life and have read some of the most amazing books created by them.  There was one author, however, that left a lasting impression.  She was a former nun by the name of Patty Ptak Kogutek who wrote a book about her experiences titled A Change of Habit: A Spiritual Journey from Sister Mary Kateri to Sister Mary Vodka. 

            At this particular point in my life, I was struggling with my religious upbringing and my views of the world at large.  It was fortuitous that Patty and her husband attended the award ceremony that year.  I had the pleasure of listening to her speak about her experiences and the role that Catholicism played in her life as a former nun.  As an Italian American girl, I was raised Catholic.  While I’ve had many issues with the church and its views on women, gays and modern life, as I age I have felt a calling to return to the church. It’s something that I have often struggled with.  I feel very separated from the foundations of the Catholic Church.  My views on female reproductive choices, a women’s place in the world and alternate lifestyle choices are both feminist and liberal.  My belief is that women can be anywhere we choose to be and that there is no need to become a wife & mother if that isn’t your calling.  I also believe that people can be born gay and that there is nothing wrong with that if it is truly who you are.  Love is a gift and no one should be told who to love and who not to love.  These are my views.  Obviously, they don’t go hand in hand with my religious upbringing.

            I’ve felt better about the Catholic Church since Pope Francis became Pontif. He is more progressive than any other before him and is addressing issues others have long ignored.  Through his leadership, I believe the church can finally walk into the light of this century and leave behind archaic practices. 

            I had a moment to talk with Patty about this.  Our conversation brought focus to my feelings.  In my view, her experiences within the nunnery during the early 1960s were less than positive.  However, she was able to forgive the flaws and misdeeds by the humans around her.  She actively chose to embrace the teachings of the Catholic Church that were positive, reinforcing and loving.  I choose to do the same.

            If you are interested in learning more about life as a young nun, how Catholicism affects ones life and moving forward, I recommend reading Patty’s book A Change of Habit: A Spiritual Journey from Sister Mary Kateri to Sister Mary Vodka.  It’s available via Amazon. 

Andy Warhol's Insight

“In the future everybody will be world famous for 15 minutes.”

Andy Warhol

            Apparently, Andy foresaw the birth of the Internet.  If anyone could have seen it far ahead of its time, I believe an artistic person open to experimentation and unique viewpoints would be the one.  The visuals of color and glorified views of ordinary objects put Andy Warhol in a special place.  Not everyone could see things as he did.  Even today, we can’t escape noting when one has an “artistic temperament.”  Many people use that phrase as an insult, but I see it as a compliment.  Who wants to live life on the straight and narrow, marching in a straight line that leads to death?

            Viewpoints are significant to all people.  However, what is clear to one may be completely muddied to another. The insistence that only one view is correct is truly absurdist.  As we wander through life, people see the same thing on multiple occasions yet describe it in a multitude of ways.

            While there are perceived notions of “good” and “bad” many see these things with blurred vision.  For instance, this week a young Carolina mother posted a photo of her 2-year-old daughter and friend in bathing suits on Facebook.  The mother, a professional photographer, captured a beach moment reminiscent of the early 1950’s Coppertone advertisement.  That ad featured a young female child and dog that pulled her bathing suit down revealing a bare bottom and significant tan line.  Checking with her friend, they decided that the photo was innocent in nature even though it showed the 2-year-old’s bare bottom.  Facebook was quick to respond to the posting and this lead to her account being frozen for 24 hours.

            Was the photo innocent? Yes, I believe it was.  However, this isn’t a sweet picture shared only with friends and family.  This is Facebook a portal on the Internet open to those who would willingly use the photo in unnatural ways.  It’s easy to share a picture, but it is also easy to steal it.  And I’m sure that this thought never crossed the young mother’s mind.  She was innocent in her decision to share the image.

            While Facebook allows for some questionable photos and sites to continue - a recent uproar regarding a young teenage big game hunter has caused serious issues (rightfully so, she depicts a blatant disregard for life and disrespect for many endangered species) - this innocent 2-year-old’s bottom became another.  Facebook is attempting to protect itself as well as their billion-numbered membership.  Could there be pedophiles on Facebook?  Probably. They are certainly in the deep web, known as the dark space of the Internet, as are many other questionable people, business practices, etc.  None of them will jump up to identify themselves.

            The photographer mom has since adjusted the picture by placing an emoticon over the nude portion.  I’m sure she will think long and hard prior to posting any photo in the future.

            Meanwhile, I can only consider the brilliance of Andy Warhol’s statement and note that he was right.  This mom has had her 15 minutes of fame, unwanted I’m sure, but there none-the-less.  I wonder who will be next.

Campaigning

         While walking into Whole Foods the other day, I was approached by a young man canvasing on behalf of a potential political candidate.  He was seeking signatures to support placing another young man onto the fall ballot in a run for congress. I asked for material on the potential candidate and found myself holding a glossy piece of paper, a little larger than a business card, with the photo of a male who looked to be under the age of 20 in a suit.  The information on this card was vague at best.  It gave his name, the fact he is a medical student, and an email next to the photo.  Scrawled on the other side was an attempt at a political tag line. What was missing was much more significant.  For instance, his party affiliation wasn’t anywhere to be seen. 

         While I find it admirable that such a young man is interested in pursuing a political career, I wasn’t impressed enough to sign on his behalf.  Why? The role of a Member of Congress is quite large.  Anyone aware of the workings of the U.S. government knows that this isn’t an entry-level job.  This young man has a great deal to prove prior to entering such an arena. 

         As I mentioned in a previous post, campaigning is a long job interview with the general public.  We need know something about candidates and it’s best to focus this information on what makes you stand out as a great fit for the job.  For instance, what forms of public service have you been involved in? What is your standing on the big issues? What are your personal success stories that can be related to the position you are campaigning for?  

         I hope that this young man’s interest in politics continues to grow, but that his awareness on how to campaign increases. 

The Modern Oracle

            In ancient times, people from all walks of life would gather to make inquiries of the Oracle of Delphi in Greece.  The Pythia, a priestess of Apollo, would answer a variety of questions, making predictions about the future as well as revealing details from the present and the past.  Although the Oracle was officially closed in the 4^th Century A.D. with the rise of Christianity, we still have a modern version of an Oracle today.  These are known as psychics. 

            To me it isn’t far fetched that some people are blessed with unique gifts.  Spiritual teachers have been a part of humanity since the beginning of time whether they were associated with a religion or not.  While there are many skeptics, there are also many believers.  Those of us who believe accept that some people can communicate with the dead and see into the possible future.  Many have found a level of fame doing this such as John Edward, Theresa Caputo, and James Van Praagh. They are sought out to provide insight and guidance.

            This past weekend I spent time with two friends who have this special gift.  We had a great time - a group of women, enjoying beverages, pizza, and a treat or two.  They decided it would be fun to read tarot cards as part of the evening’s activities.  I enjoyed my reading experience as the woman who read me picked up on several things currently happening in my life.  Since she isn’t a close friend, I know that she wasn’t aware of my circumstances previously. While I look toward the advice given as a guide, I don’t expect everything to occur exactly as she predicted.  Spiritual guidance isn’t an exact science.  Circumstances change every day. 

            I know that I have many positive things ahead of me, mostly because I am working to make them happen.  I have the support of family, friends, and work associates to help manifest it all.  I believe in myself just as much as I believe in my friend’s gifts.