Category: Boston/Cambridge

Goodbye Southie!

Posted on by in Boston/Cambridge

13 years ago I made what seemed like a questionable decision and moved to South Boston with a good friend. I was single and working at Fidelity Investments in my first job out of college. Before moving here I hadn’t spent more than a couple days in the area, and knew little about it other than (1) the location was great, (2) the area was nice, albeit a bit rough around the edges, and (3) it had a really bad repuation. I’ve spent the last 13 years in this neighborhood, living in three different houses. And it’s been awesome. Over that time, I went to grad school, started this website, got a new job, got married, and had two kids.

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Good Data on the Coronavirus

Posted on by in Boston/Cambridge, Charts & Data, Data Visualization, Greater Boston, Health

As things have escalated quickly, I’ve found several resources that provide extremely valuable data and perspectives. The first is this article on Medium by Tomas Pueyo. Everyone should read this, and he’s helpfully had it translated into 26 languages. It’s the single best synthesis I’ve seen of everything going on. He starts with this summary: When you’re done reading the article, this is what you’ll take away:The coronavirus is coming to you.It’s coming at an exponential speed: gradually, and then suddenly.It’s a matter of days. Maybe a week or two.When it does, your healthcare system will be overwhelmed.Your fellow citizens will be treated in the hallways.Exhausted healthcare workers will break down. Some will die.They will have to decide which patient

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Sunday Morning Boston Shots

Posted on by in Boston/Cambridge, Photography

A few weeks ago I got up early on a Sunday morning and took a walking photography course in the North End. I’m trying to get into a better habit of taking my camera out around town, as I usually shoot when travelling then put my camera back in a drawer until next time. So this was the perfect excuse. Here are a few highlights. Fire escapes in an alley: Shadows against a brick building: Mamma Maria: North Square Oyster: Sunlight through leaves: Mr. Revere: Dog Tag Garden Memorial: Bacco and Al Dente: And the cruiseship terminal from my walk home:

Family Dinner

Posted on by in Boston/Cambridge, Food

I’m excited about an awesome new food delivery service called Family Dinner started by my friends Tim and Erin. They source fruits, veggies, cheese, yogurt, meat, fish, pasta, bread, and eggs from local farms around New England, and deliver a share to your home weekly. It sounds like most of the items are organic, and those that aren’t are still coming from local farms with sustainable practices. It’s similar to Boston Organics, which I subscribed to for a number of years. But for me the differentiator is the meat, dairy, and grains. It’s nice to get a mix, and to be able to take the share and cook a full meal. Really pumped for dinner tomorrow. Here’s what I received

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Boston: Built on Water

Posted on by in Boston/Cambridge, Data Visualization, Greater Boston

I’ve always enjoyed looking at old maps of Boston that show how the coastline has changed over the past 400 years, as more and more “man made land” was created. I was just talking about this over the weekend with a few friends, and then today National Geographic put out a piece, “How Boston Made Itself Bigger,” with some great maps illustrating the changes. Here’s the simplest view, comparing 1630 to today: A few things: As a South Boston resident for 10 years, I’m getting tired of my mom telling me that when sea levels rise, I’m dangerously close to the water. Look mom, I don’t live in the filled in area! (and yes, I’ve checked the topographic maps as

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Andrew Combs’ Rainy Day Song

Posted on by in Boston/Cambridge, Music

I discovered Andrew Combs about a year and a half ago when he opened for Shovels and Rope at the Sinclair in Cambridge. He’s got a really nice country/folk/americana thing going on, and if you like that sort of sound, I recommend checking out his album Worried Man on Spotify, and his earlier EP Tennessee Time. I recently saw him a second time at Atwood’s Tavern in Cambridge, and he opened the set with a folk song off his upcoming second album which brought the noisy bar room to silence. I just found a recording of it, and thought I’d share. Doesn’t quite compare to how it sounded live, but beautiful nonetheless:

UberBoat Boston

Posted on by in Boston/Cambridge, Technology

This could be interesting. Starting this week, Uber began offering boat rides around Boston Harbor for $10/person: “June 4 through June 15, you can use the Uber app to request a water taxi, powered byBoston Harbor Cruises. Make waves as you ride to your favorite Seaport restaurant. Sail over to the ICA for First Friday. Add a splash of fun to your morning commute – or even a quick cruise to or from Logan. Catching a flight has never been so easy!” It actually seems like a reasonable deal to the airport from the Seaport, especially during rush hour. Or potentially as a quick way to get to Charlestown. Here’s a list of the pickup docks and destinations.

Joie de Vivre (JDV) in Businesweek

Posted on by in Boston/Cambridge

Max Jahn, what a guy. I used to be a part of the JDV club during my last year at Sloan, which mostly meant that I spent time with some great people and organized group homebrewing sessions. A nice shout out in Businessweek: “In January 2011, 20 students at MIT Sloan School of Management traveled to Austria to learn about chocolate-making, the waltz, and proper etiquette for greeting a dance partner in the grand tradition of the Viennese ball. (The gentleman bows his head to the lady’s outstretched hand, but stops short of planting his lips.) Those aren’t skills most MBAs have on the top of their to-learn lists. Then again, Sloan’s Joie de Vivre club, which organized the trip, isn’t your typical

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