A day at the beach...

We were there for maybe 30 minutes, tops.

Last Monday we wanted to check out Wollaston Beach, just a few minutes from our apartment. I will let the photos do most of the talking. Our first visit may not have been at a bad time because it was low tide...stinky and LOTS of rocks. However, this is not a beach you can go to swim. Those rocks hurt my feet even when I wore my flip flops!

Luke with the ocean and Boston skyline behind him

That water was seriously disgusting!

The beautiful beach

Luke skips some rocks

We took note and will be going to Cape Cod whenever we get an itch to go to the beach. :)

Massachusetts politics

People are more active politically here in Massachusetts. However, judging by what we witnessed a couple weeks ago, they are relatively polite to the competition.

A mix of Tim Cahill , Independent (dark blue signs) and incumbent, Deval Patrick , Democrat (royal blue signs)
Currently, Cahill is in the lead of a 4-candidate race.

We are in the midst of a governor race and supporters from both sides came to an intersection near our apartment.

This jeep drove through the intersection about 5 times in the minute we were there.

Both sides were very respectful and even had polite discussions of differences. It was refreshing after seeing all of the antics in Arizona.

Hambone in the city

Hamilton has been settling down since the big move. He took the first week exploring every inch of this 1 bedroom, 800 sq ft high rise apartment. What he found were a couple new hiding spots and a lot of noise coming from the hallway.

Luke and Hamilton wait for the firemen to figure out there is no fire.

Last Friday we had a fire emergency in the apartment. There is strobe light in the bedroom and Hamilton flipped his lid when he saw the light flicker on and off. We grabbed him and took him down many flights of stairs as the loud alarm screeched through our ears. When we got to the front of the building, we were greeted by two loud fire trucks and a swarm of dogs. Hamilton was in hell. Luckily, it was a false alarm and Hamilton was relieved to get back into the apartment.

We found you!

One of his favorite places to hide is between the lining of the box spring of our bed. The lining is falling off, so Hamilton climbs in and just hangs out for hours every day. He will be so disappointed when we move to our permanent apartment...we will need to make sure he doesn't tear a hole in our bed's lining...eek!

So photogenic!

The day in the life of the unemployed

I laughed when I looked in the mirror today...

****

Not having anywhere to go and the lack of two cars has equated to me at home most of the day. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. Hamilton and I have become closer than ever, we're saving lots of money and I've memorized most of the names on the Ghana World Cup soccer team (Go Kwadwo Asamoah!!!).

The days have been a little slower, both in time and activity, but I'm trying to enjoy the time off as much as I can. It's tough...I don't think I will retire quietly 40 years from now. Besides maintaining a steady bank account, I just want to feel like I'm contributing to society and that I have a place in Boston. Don't get me wrong, I love it here! This city is vibrant and amazingly friendly. But that makes me want to be a part of it even more.

Enough of my pity party. My patience will grow (hopefully). The job will come. For now, I'm going to celebrate this nation's history right where it started: Boston. :)

**** Disclaimer to future employers: This is not my normal work appearance. I will not be wearing a beat up shirt nor will my hair be in tangles...not even on a Friday before a holiday weekend. Promise!

Boston: The North End

One of the things we are really enjoying here in Boston are the different neighborhoods. Each area has its own feel, personality and architecture. The first neighborhood we went to was the North End. We hadn't visited this part on our first trip, so it was top priority.

First stop was Mike's Pastry. I've seen this place on the Travel Channel and Food Network, so we had to see what the hype was all about. We were greeting with a long line of people who had long lists of the pastries, notably cannolis, to order. We chose the traditional cannoli and a strawberry smoothie. It was all amazing. We will be frequenting that place again after a good workout in the gym.


Another great thing about Boston is the history. Pretty much anywhere you walk in this town there is so sort of history associated with it. In the North End the Freedom Trail is the main attraction. You can check out the Old North Church, Paul Revere's House, the USS Constitution and Copps Hill Cemetary.

The buildings we loved:
Whaddya Need pretty much does anything. Love the name and saying it in a Bostonian accent.
All Saints Way is a sight to behold. Definitely brings some peace to the bustling city life.
The buildings are so close to each other that they even squeeze them in alleyways.

The buildings alone are a great reason to visit this neighborhood. They all have that cute revolutionary character to them and are tastefully updated. Each building has it's on uniqueness to it and we had a great time wandering around the brick roads looking at them all.

After the walk, it was time to do some shopping! We ventured back over to Quincy Market and checked out the stores. It was a good way to end the day and get some much-needed AC. The humidity will take some getting used to. :)

Baseball and Obama=Boston

Just your typical Revolutionary soldier walking the streets of Boston.