Road Trip Nation. Road Trip Neighborhood? An enthusiastic contingent of North Enders set out by car early Friday on a 441 mile road trip to the Women’s March on Washington scheduled Saturday in the nation’s capital — 24 hours after the inauguration of the 45th president. Some of their posters incorporated the culinary flavor of Read More…
It’s that time of the year again when Earth tilts away from the life-giving sun and creatures big and small seek sanctuary in the warmth of a burrow or hearth. Thoughts bend backwards to the past — sometimes all the way to childhood — as creeping darkness slips over late afternoons, shrouding us in remembrance Read More…
(The celebration of Halloween evokes childhood memories, both fun-filled and fearful, and provides a commercial warm-up to the approach of the winter holidays. In this mad rush, the religious significance lies trampled and forgotten along with the saints we fail to recognize in our midst.) It was Halloween night in Boston’s North End. In the Read More…
(A cherished mom-and-pop vegetable stand was targeted for closure this by city code enforcement officials.) It was Saturday morning of Labor Day weekend, and something was out of place at the intersection of Salem and Cooper Streets. To the untrained eye, there were three potted plants discarded along the sidewalk on the corner. On closer Read More…
(You never know what you will encounter on an early morning stroll.) Ok, Ok – so it turned out not to be a corpse. But, I was only semi-conscious when I turned down Salem Street and found the body. I had awoken at 6:00 a.m. and assumed that I was in store for a quiet Read More…
(Sometimes we are thrust into situations which come without an instructional guide) My wife sternly admonished me that I should not be telling you this story — that I should be embarrassed by even mentioning it. But, there must be a statute of limitations of some sort for child neglect or parental ineptitude. And besides, Read More…
On March 16, 2016 our community lost a loyal and true North Ender who passed away far from the neighborhood she once called home, but not distant from the hearts of her friends left behind. Five years had elapsed since Fredda and her husband Bill Lee relocated to Florida at the conclusion of a defamation Read More…
(In some circles ‘Luck of the Irish’ isn’t so much unexpected good fortune, but rather a positive outlook on a discouraging situation.) It was Labor Day weekend and the phone was ringing. The caller was unidentified. So, for a second or two, I thought about not answering. Maybe it was an unsolicited fund raiser or Read More…
(This column was adapted from a eulogy given at a Mass of Celebration of the life of Mary Louise Schiavoni of Bradford, Massachusetts who passed away on January 28, 2016.) Imagine a time when there was not the sound of airplanes overhead or jet contrails streaked across a sky. Imagine a time when there were Read More…
We once had a neighbor on our street in the North End who annually went bonkers over holiday decorations far in advance of yuletide. Each year she pushed the envelope further and further while the yellowing elms of Copp’s Hill still wore their autumn colors. We knew that she had finally fallen off the deep end Read More…
These photos show what goes on behind the scenes in the filming of “Ben Affleck’s “Live By Night” movie. While the residents of Margaret Street got to turn back their clocks to sepia tones and the North End of the 1920s, the denizens of Copp’s Hill were stuck with 18-wheeler generator trucks and humongous portable Read More…
(Even in the North End, visitors from the wild sometimes drop by.) My wife called to say that she wanted to check out the sales and would be “nipping into town” — meaning anywhere west of the Haymarket for North Enders. I expected to find another notch on our credit card, not a Sciurus carolinensis Read More…