Some of you probably went to the Mayor’s State of the City address last week. Some of you, like me, watched it on television. There was lots of blather about the standing ovation and the probability that Menino will run for office once again. Maybe he will. Few candidates could prevail over him, given the Read More…
Consider the rat—specifically the Norway rat, which doesn’t come from Norway. It is brownish gray and as long as 16 inches. During its year-long lifespan a female can produce up to five litters of seven babies, although litters can be as large as 14. It has excellent sight and hearing and an acute sense of Read More…
Many Bostonians at this time of year are tired of cold and darkness. I don’t share that affliction. I like winter’s atmosphere, albeit with a nice fire to keep me cozy. But because it is cold and dark we read, listen to the radio and watch television more than in the summer, and sometimes the Read More…
The Boston Public Schools have an illustrious history. In 1635, Boston Latin became the first public school in America. The Abiel Smith School on Beacon Hill was the first public school building in the nation built for African American children. The Boston Public Schools also have an embarrassing history. The lowest point was in 1974. Read More…
Have you heard the news? In late November Governor Patrick signed off on a plan to make Massachusetts highways look like Times Square. He must have decided that trees, rolling meadows and a granite road cut or two just didn’t send the right message in the souped-up, electronic world we now live in. The Times Read More…
The problems I hear most about are bikes. I get emails. People stop me in the street. People complain at neighborhood meetings. I bet you hear the same complaints even if you don’t write a newspaper column. Bikes shoot through intersections against the light. They weave in and out of traffic so drivers can’t see Read More…
I’ve heard that former North End residents are sending in their opinion as to what it was like growing up there years ago as opposed to some of the awful things that are currently occurring. (Letters From Longtime North End Residents Lament Noise and Quality of Life Problems, 12/16/2012) I was born in 1949 and Read More…
New Year’s Eve in Boston brings the arts-related First Night including fireworks on Boston Harbor at midnight. Vote in this poll about where you will be ringing in 2013! Polls are not scientific. One vote per user.
It’s Christmas week. For many, it is hectic, so you might not read this column until Christmas Day is over and you’re dealing with boxes, the wrapping paper that can’t be saved, and the instructions that came with the Lego sets the kids have already assembled. So don’t you think it is a good time Read More…
What about that royal baby? I’m sure I speak for all of downtown Boston when I say we’re over the moon with joy. I’m hoping he or she looks more like Kate than Will. And one wonders, if the future monarch of Great Britain can now be the heir-to-the-throne’s first-born girl, why can’t a lowly Read More…
It is but one opinion, that of René Loth’s mid-summer Boston Globe article, “Public space, public cash” (Opinion Page, Globe, Saturday, August 4, 2012), regarding the topical state of the Rose Kennedy Greenway. Some blooms did appear back then; but Loth must have been smitten with a whiff of some obscure fragrance, notwithstanding the Greenway’s Read More…
As the Boston City Council prepares to vote this week on the Nuisance Control Ordinance, the following series of letters were gathered from longtime North Enders as part of a Boston University student project by Alexander Herrmann on Boston’s North End, curated by Marie Montemarano and shared with permission here on NorthEndWaterfront.com. The letters are Read More…