The Chances of Working Tonight are... Remote!

No matter how many times I heard the old Foxwoods jingle, I never got tired of it. I really miss it playing on NESN between innings; although, I did find the Lephrechaun and Wizard of Oz versions annoying. NESN's perfect commercial lineup between innings would be: the original Foxwoods "Wonder of it All" song, the Giant Glass jingle sing-a-long, the Jeep Liberty "Rock Me Gently" commercial, and (time permitting) the Red Roof Inn ads.

I've had the "Wonder of it All" stuck in my head for the past couple of days, because my mom, brother, Nick and I are going to see Billy Joel at the casino on Saturday. It was only this morning that I realized that the concert's at Mohegan Sun and not Foxwoods. When we arrive at the casino tomorrow, I had planned to turn to my family and say, "Let's pop the cork, and make it happen!" but sadly, that is no longer the plan. I guess I'll have to resort to my back up line and coerce my mom into playing black jack by telling her, "only the good die young."

Nantucket Dread

Yikes. I've seen 2 men willingly walking around Boston in Nantucket Red pants today. I guess Memorial Day has more than one unwritten wardrobe color rule... Thankfully neither pair of pants had little lobsters, hunting dogs or anchors embroidered all over them.
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Powdery Fresh

This is going to sound unbelievable, but I'm riding the 9 back home and the bus actually smells great. Normally it's fantastic if the bus doesn't smell like a hairy overweight man on a summer day. In this case, the bus smells like the inside of that store Lush. (A soap store on Newbury St). It seems like the public transportation gods are on my side tonight. Just not the wind and/or underwear gods.
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Bad Day to Dress Like a Librarian

When I walked out my door this morning, the sun immediately warmed my shoulders and legs. "Ah, another nice day," I thought as I strolled down Broadway. As soon as I had walked about a block to the bus stop, a bus arrived and I hopped on thinking what good luck I was having this morning. The bus wasn't overly crowded and we didn't get stuck at too many red lights. Having made it to Broadway in record time, the train pulled into the station just as I had stepped onto the platform. "Today's going to be a great day," I thought. The stars are perfectly aligned.

I got off at Downtown Crossing and was simultaneously fishing around in my bag for my Dunkin Donuts card while walking down Arch Street, when a gust of wind blew my skirt completely up over my head. Even more unfortunate than showing dozens of commuters my underwear, was the fact that I was wearing my librarian themed underwear that I received as a gag for my bachelorette party that has the following printed on the read end:


In the end, I have to say the public humiliation (and free public service announcement) was a small price to pay for a 10 minute morning commute. Today's outlook has been only been slightly downgraded from "great" to "good."

Smells like Teen and Young Adult Fiction

Thank you to Anali who alerted me to the fact that there's a perfume designed to smell like a library, appropriately called "In the Library."

Having spent a lot of time in libraries, I'm mildly surprised that there's a demand for this scent. Capturing the myriad of smells the library has to offer in a single spritz would be difficult for even the most seasoned chemists. For example, if it had been called, "In the Reference Section," this fragrance would be geared towards the introvert who would like to smell dusty with a casual hint of mildew. "At the Reference Desk," would be a pine scent for the curious yet uncertain. And for those who wanted to smell like nothing at all, there's "In Government Documents," because no brave soul has ever gone to this section (usually located somewhere in the bowels of the library), and returned to tell about it.

Final Fundraising Tally!

I wanted to thank everyone who donated to my 2008 Boston Marathon charity team, Team Eye and Ear. My original goal was $3,000, which was the minimum required to race. As the months went by though, and donations came in from my family, friends, & co-workers, I suddenly met and surpassed $3000, $4000, and then $5000! The grand total ended up being $5,845! Unbelievable! I am overwhelmed by everyone's generosity and am happy to report that the money will be benefiting one of the best hospitals in the country- the Massachusetts Eye & Ear Infirmary. I hope to raise $5,846 for MEEI in 2009!

Training for a marathon is extremely time consuming and often dictates your weeknights and weekends, whether you like it or not. I'd like to thank my husband, Nick, who not only assisted with my fundraising efforts, but also had to wake up extra early to our alarm every Saturday morning. If waking up to an alarm (and then sometimes a snooze alarm 9 minutes later) at 6:00 am on 12 consecutive Saturday's and not complaining about it isn't love, then I'm not sure what is.

Why does the cat want a cheezburger?

Usually if someone has to explain the joke, the humor ends up being lost in the explanation; however, I am willing to risk that for the sake of clarification. I cannot understand what's funny, or even slightly humorous, about the "LOL Cats" phenomenon. What am I missing?

Yoga as a Last Resort

When I was still in preschool, my parents signed me up for gymnastics. My dad recently told a story how when he came to watch my practices one day, that I was the little kid who couldn't do a headstand or a cartwheel. Somersaults were my specialty, but I could only roll forwards- not backwards too. I fell off the beam and couldn't touch my toes. As a result, the instructors gently suggested that I try to find another activity.
A few years later, despite my pleading that I just wanted to play soccer, my mom also signed me up for ballet and jazz lessons. I was a 7 year old who was 5'2'', about 100 lbs, and frankly, the only pupil who would've benefited from a tutu with a built-in training bra. Dance lessons probably lasted a couple of years until I took up tennis, and mercifully, that and soccer became my sole extracurricular activities.
During college, my roommate Kim was an active member of the Swing Dance club, as well as a club officer. Kim is one of the nicest people I know and I had a hard time saying "no" to her when she asked me to attend the club-sponsored lessons or dances. Once, during our junior year, I went to a lesson and was accused by one of my alternating dance partners as being "so stiff " that "[I] must be in the marching band." Then he reinforced his remarks by impersonating a marching drummer. I ran out of the building crying and thus, was exempted by Kim from ever attending another group lesson.
When I worked in Norwood after college, I went to Workout World (WOW) on Route 1. To give myself some breaks from the treadmill, I started to take a pilates class twice a week. After a month or 2 of classes, the instructor told me that since I was having so much trouble with one of the basic positions that kickboxing might be better suited to my natural abilities.
All of these stories bring me to tonight, when I have my first "Introduction to Yoga" class at the BCAE. For years, people have been asking me, "Do you do yoga?" or "Have you tried yoga? It's wonderful!" I always tell them that I tried pilates, dance, and gymnastics, but they always have the same answer: "Yoga's different. Just try it!" So tonight is the beginning of my 6 week $90 committment to yoga and more importantly, finally having an answer to the "Have you tried yoga?" question.

Ennio! Review (in the style of American Idol)

Randy

Ah.......ha ha ha....Yo, Ennio! ha ha ha... Ok, Dawg, let's check it. That was alright, man. There were some problems for me, but overall I like what you did with the piece. I especially liked the costume changes and how you kept the audience on their toes. We got to see Kylie, Cher, Elton, Whitney and Madonna, but what I'd like to see is who YOU are. It was just OK for me, Dawg.

Paula

(Standing ovation) You know Ennio, you really looked great tonight. This is who you are. You're a performer. Your enthusiasm and inner beauty really shined through. I was left wanting more!

Simon

I'm going to have to agree with... Randy. (Audience boos. Simon rolls eyes.) What?! OK, Ennio, can I be honest with you? It was OK... I didn't love it. It was all a bit cruise ship for me. At this point, song selection is key and what did you end your performance with... New York, New York! C'mon Ennio, ending with that song at a Boston performance was not a wise choice. I think you've put yourself into some trouble with that one.

Live at Ennio

I'm in my seat at the Huntington waiting for the show, Ennio, to begin. The theatre is really bright and clean, and there's some peppy pre-show music playing. I am extremely close to the stage and am worried this will be an intimate performance as there are not a lot of people here. I had a slice of pizza at Emilio's before coming here, and forgot how good the people watching in the South End is. Actually, the dog watching was even better. It seems that every other person who walks by is accompanied by a cute puppy. In the 15 minutes I spent eating, I saw a French Bulldog, yellow lab, pug, and a fuzzy brown terrier looking dog. Time to watch the show- hopefully the mobile device blogging feature I signed up for today sends this post to the right place...
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Veggin Out

Despite the fact that I think it would be easier for me walk the Freedom Trail backwards on my hands than it would be for me to give up cheese (and dairy in general), I have an interest in vegan cuisine. There are several vegan blogs that I enjoy reading- I'm pretty much in awe that so much can be created with seemingly limited ingredients. About a year ago, my husband and I went to Grasshopper, but I made the mistake of ordering a seitan dish without ever having tried it before, and I didn't enjoy it at all. (Nick ordered a noodle dish and fared much better.)
Recently, I was given an opportunity to try the Vegan Tasting menu at Upstairs on the Square. My friend Vince and I headed there last Wednesday, and I was anxious to give vegan food another shot. Vince has written several restaurant reviews before, and I was so happy to have his opinion and expertise during the meal. While I was waiting for him at the bar, I noticed the man next to me was eating an gooey grilled cheese with a bowl of tomato soup and tried to push how good it looked out of my head.

We started with roasted beets with horseradish and passion fruit, which were quite tasty. Vince taught me that this is called an "amuse bouche" and "it's only meant to be a small bite to engage the palate and be something small and fun."

Our bouches were amused

The first course was a nice mixture of tempura snap peas, chunks of avocado and jicama with a soy ginger marinade. The marinade was my favorite part of this course, and although this wasn't in the spirit of our dinner theme, I think it would go great with grilled tuna or chicken.

Tempting Tempura

The second course was one of my favorites! It involved roasted artichokes and some other vegetables and ingredients, that unfortunately I can't remember. (This could be partly due to the fact that the wine pairings were extremely generous.)

Our third course, poached veggies in a wine and cardamom broth, was my least favorite course. Whereas I really enjoyed the other ones, I actually disliked this course. The veggies weren't very flavorful; and the broth's cardamom flavor overpowered the dish.

This course looked a lot better than it tasted

For our fourth course, we had panzanella with a shiso emulsion and truffle vinaigrette. Unfortunately my photos from this point forward were lost, but take our word for it that the shiso emulsion looked quite impressive. It was essentially a minty bubbly green foam sitting on top of our cous cous, that tasted incredible.

We ended the evening with some cantalope sorbet accompanied by (peeled) lime and clementine wedges. We learned the hard way that the lime wedges should be eaten in the same bite as the sorbet, as the lime on its own was quite sour. We originally thought dessert was a trio of sorbets, and were a little disappointed that we were only offered one flavor; however, the cantalope sorbet was a fresh cool way to end the evening.

It should be mentioned that each course (including the amuse bouche) was paired with a wine or champagne. My knowledge of wine is quite limited and the only words I use to describe it generally are white, red or boxed. That being said, I unfortunately don't remember any of the pairings, but they were absolutely fantastic, more than generous, and one of the best parts of the experience. Also, the service was very friendly (the chef came out to introduce himself) and efficient. As Vince noted, it was maybe overly attentive, as some dishes were explained twice and we had multiple servers over the course of the evening. What I really enjoyed about this menu is that they didn't go the soy, tofu, seitan route and stuck to creating courses with fresh vegetables, grains, and fruit. If you're looking for a new and interesting experience, I would recommend checking out Upstairs on the Square, but the vegan tasting menu isn't for everyone. Don't come too hungry and be prepared to spend at least 3 hours over dinner. I'll definitely go back to the restaurant for it's fun atmosphere and friendly service, but next time I think I'll try the grilled cheese and tomato soup.

Would Jeter Approve?

We were on Long Island this past weekend for my friend Kim's wedding. Saturday evening, after the reception, my friends and I gathered in the hotel bar to unwind from the festivities. As we were catching up over some beers, I noticed a man standing at the bar in a sleeveless undershirt and pajama pants. Even though we weren't staying in a 5 star hotel, we were in a Marriott and you'd think that most people wouldn't hang out in the bar in their pajamas. This man's behavior made more sense though once you saw what his pajama pants were endorsing...

Typical...

Cookie Momsters

An article on Boston.com this morning talks about how Jenny Sharpe, a Girl Scout from Michigan, sold 17,328 boxes of Girl Scout cookies. According to the article, "Sharpe sold cookies every day on a street corner with help from her mother and troop leader, Pam Sharpe." That's a lot of foot traffic. Somehow I have a feeling that as troop mother, Mama Sharpe had more to do with the selling than just hawking cookies on a street corner with her daughter.

This story reminded me how last month, on the corner of State and Congress St, there was a grown woman selling Girl Scout cookies from the trunk of her car. For at least a couple of weeks, I could count on seeing her courting the after work foot traffic. She'd wave boxes of Do-Si-Dos and Tagalongs as we walked by and shout, "Girl Scout cookies!" She was either the world's oldest Girl Scout, or someone looking to help her daughter earn a badge (or free trip to Europe.) I was tempted to buy some Thin Mints, which I love to eat frozen, but something just felt wrong buying Girl Scout cookies from a middle-aged woman housed in the back of her Acura.

Today is Free Iced Coffee Day at Dunkin Donuts

Just a friendly reminder!

Coffee, Tea, or Me?

During lunch, I popped over to an AT& T Wireless store to see if they could fix the text messaging feature on my phone. It's been broken for a few days now and sadly, what prompted me to finally bring it in was when I couldn't text my vote to American Idol last night. On my way back, I walked past a packed PO Square. This time of year PO Square is a lunchtime fashion show, where the newest spring skirts (and pasty legs) intermix with fashionable business casual button downs (their sleeves carefully rolled-up.) Eating lunch outside by the fountain is just an excuse to scope out the hotties and maybe score some digits. My guess is that Missed Connections sees a spike in posts this time of year.

Fish or Cut Bait?!

Door to door, it's about a mile from our house on East Broadway to Broadway T station. Unless it's pouring rain or my bag is particularly heavy, I usually just walk to the T instead of waiting for the 9 bus. Since it's only about a 12 minute walk, it usually doesn't make sense time-wise to wait for the bus. Granted, riding the bus is quicker if I don't have to wait very long, but 80% of the time I end up getting to Broadway before a 9 passes me by. Normally I just continue down West Broadway and glance back down the street as I pass the bus stops to see if one's right behind me. More often than not, there's no bus in sight, and so I just keep plugging along to the T.
The past couple of days though, as the weather has been getting warmer and Spring-like, I've noticed how my side of the street is covered in shadows, while the opposite side is bright and sunny. This observation inevitably leads to the following internal debate:
"That side looks nice and sunny... maybe I'll cross to the sunny side of the street."
"Yeah, but if a bus comes by you'll miss it."
"One usually doesn't come anyway, and if it does, it's packed."
"You never know... And your legs are still a bit fatigued from last night's run."
And so, hope springs eternal and I stay in the cold shadows while clinging to a pathetic hope that an empty bus will appear. And, like a jilted lover, the bus continues to stand me up.
Tired of being disappointed, this morning I thought to myself, "I'm crossing to the sunny side of the street and not looking back." Enjoying the sun hit my back, I then watched not 1, but 2 buses pass me by.

Sing! Sing a Song!

When I first started working in a financial services library several years ago, I was amused by how many industry specific journals exist. Concrete Monthly, Beverage Dynamics, Pollution Equipment News, Pulp & Paper Week... My former employer used to subscribe to thousands of industry publications, and as the library shelver and cataloger, I became quite familiar with them. Depending on what day of the week or month it was, it would sometimes take me several hours to check-in and shelve all of these publications, so I'd make up little songs about each one to keep myself sane.
For instance, "American Banker" was to the tune of Dave Matthew's "American Baby."
(I hope you pay American, Banker/ American Banker)

"Defined Contribution and Savings Plan Alert" was to the tune of Robbie Williams' (fantastic song) "Radio"
(He put some dough in the arsenal/ Money flow/ Defined Contribution/Your retirement grows)

The best days were when "Asset-Backed Alert" arrived, because that meant I got to sing:
(Call me big daddy when you back that asset up/ Debt, who is you playing with, back that asset up/ Mortgages look good, won't you back that asset up/ Let's minimize risk, won't you back that asset up)

I'm sure that's just the interpretation that Juvenile was going for when he penned the original lyrics.

Move On Up! Specficially, to the East Side

I make a conscious effort to not use my blog to complain about life's daily hassles, but I have to make an exception tonight. I am so tired of people double-parking in front of the PS Gourmet Coffee on Dorchester Street. People usually stop here to pop into the package store at night or the coffee shop during the day, and by doing so they block off the right hand turn signal lane. Tonight there was a BMW SUV double parked there and an entire lane of traffic was prevented from taking advantage of the right hand turn signal and we had to wait until the left hand lane got the green light. Normally I just accept this as part of city life- sometimes you have to double park- but as I drove by the SUV, there was a lady behind the wheel just chatting on her cell. In that situation, if you're waiting for a friend, why not unblock the right hand lane and pull about 20 feet forward onto East Broadway? It's just common courtesy, people!

Importance of Proper Signage

I just noticed that the sign in the women's room on my floor that stressed the importance of hand-washing (and how to do it properly) has been taken down. The wall space that the sign formerly occupied has been replaced with a full-length mirror. I would have been more disappointed if the sign asking us (should need be) to "Please FLUSH TWICE" (with a cute clip art toilet) had been removed. Sometimes I'm tempted to cross out "twice" and write "thrice" since in some instances, three times would be the charm.

Because sometimes you need a reminder...

45 Province Boston: Taking Luxury to New Heights

The line at Chacarero was not only out the door this afternoon, but it also about 6 people deep onto the sidewalk. The building across the street from it is being built at an incredible pace, and I took some time to take in the 5 million dollar units while I stood waiting for my 5 dollar sandwich.

"45 Province Boston," or "Someplace I'll Never Live"

According the web site, the building will boast (among other luxuries, of course!):

• four-season roof top pool
• spa treatments and a fitness center
• library (I'd be happy to work there for free in exchange for room & board)
• theatre room (I can't decide if this is a movie theater room or a room dedicated to live theater)

All of these amenities are fine and dandy, but the real perk of 45 Province is that's directly across the street from 2 of Boston's finest establishments: Chacarero and Sam LaGrassa's. To me, that is luxury defined.

Abercrombie & Stench

Ever since Abercrombie & Fitch returned to Faneuil Hall, I'm transported back to junior high dances each time I exit through the back of our building. Our 7th and 8th grade dances were held each month in the gymnasium and were the social events of the year. Although there were no stated dress codes for these dances, both the boys and the girls all showed up wearing variations of the same outfit: Umbro shorts and t-shirts, which were preferably Umbro as well (although, Hypercolor and tie-dyed Grateful Dead t-shirts were acceptable.) Girls broke out their most colorful scrunchies and guys doused themselves in Drakkar Noir cologne. Drakkar does not gently insinuate masculinity; it's more like a strong testosterone-fueled punch in the face.
Umbro brand sportswear is no longer the benchmark of cool for middle schoolers, and neither is Drakkar Noir; however, it must still make tween girls swoon, because it's simply been replaced by Abercrombie & Fitch's FIERCE. The product description states: [the] scent is an immediate attention getter and rightly so. A&F pump this scent throughout their retail space, which results in a FIERCE noxious cloud that hovers within 20 feet of the store's entrance. Suddenly I have Rob Base's "Joy and Pain" in my head and I'm thirsty for a warm cup of orange punch.

General Audience - All Ages Admitted

Tonight Team Eye and Ear is having our post Marathon party at the Union Oyster House. Freshman year in college, my friend and I had a disastrous double-date there on Valentine's Day, which led us both to end our respective relationships shortly thereafter. It's not that I hold a grudge against the restaurant, but this will be my first time back since February 1998. Marathon Monday has come and gone, but our team's fundraising efforts are still going strong until May 21st. To date, thanks to everyone's generosity, I've raised $5,820 for Mass Eye and Ear Infirmary! I believe some additional matching donations are still on their way, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll crack the $6,000 mark.

I mentioned once before how random Internet users are finding my blog through search engines. Here are a couple of more search strings that caught my attention:

• screaming women
• tightest buns
• bowl movement
• over the hill librarians
• dealing with PMS
• picture of teabag women (I'm certain this user did not find what he was looking for here)
• the good looking librarian (this one was my favorite)

Payback's a Bitch

Zingah!

Back in the Saddle Again

I went running for the first time tonight since the marathon, and overall I felt pretty good. It was just a 4 mile loop around Castle Island, but a good start to post-marathon workouts. Nick and I are running Boston's Run to Remember over Memorial Day weekend, so I want to be ready for the half marathon. We've run the Run to Remember for the past 3 years, and have a tradition where we buy the photograph they take of you crossing the finish line even though we always look terrible.

The Boloco Police

I go to the Boloco on Congress Street at least once a week. Besides the actual food, one of the reasons I like going there is the staff. They're just extremely friendly and efficient, which makes them stand out from other places that may be just as quick, but definitely not as welcoming. I've been going to Boloco since 1997; this is when it was known as The Wrap. My roommates and I would go to the Cleveland Circle store when we wanted to escape BC's dining halls. In the 11 years I've been buying their wraps, they haven't once messed up an order. I ask for hot sauce on my burritos and no celery on my buffalo chicken wraps, and my order always arrives as expected. Perhaps this is why I get such a kick out of the customers that insist on following their wraps along the assembly line. People who refuse to move down towards the order pickup location because they need to watch their order being made. People with furrowed brows standing on their tip toes and holding their breath waiting for an errant ingredient to be added to their wrap. This constant scrutiny would really annoy me if I was behind the counter. To their credit, I've never once seen a worker give one of these peeping toms the evil eye, which is why I try and do it for them.

Friends with Benefits: the Nut Guy & the Tour Guide

Immediately outside of State T stop, there's a Roasted Nut vendor. I had gone to Viga in Pi Alley for lunch and as I was walking past the nut guy on my way back, I saw two of those Colonial tour guides greet the vendor with familiarity. One of the guides dips his hand into the copper bowl that holds the roasted nuts, scoops out a handful and keeps on walking. The vendor didn't even blink an eye, which made me think that this is a reoccuring event. If you're friends with the nut guy, do you get a complimentary handful of nuts each time you pass by?
When you're buying food off the street, I realize that you're sacrificing a bit of cleanliness; however, this is pretty disgusting.

Adventures at the Lush Lounge

Despite leaving 20 minutes late, the Bolt Bus managed to get us to NYC at exactly 3:30, which was the scheduled arrival time. I didn't pack a lunch with me, since their web site states: On a longer trip (over three hours) we will typically make a quick comfort stop. This stop will be at a location with vending machines and public bathrooms. The driver was on a mission to get us to NY on time though, so we didn't end up stopping. I was sitting in the front seat, and noticed he had an interesting habit of talking to other cars on the road and critiquing their driving. All in all it was a comfortable ride, and in the future, I'll definitely use Bolt Bus over the Fung Wah and the standard Greyhound and Peter Pan buses.

We had a great time at Kim's bachelorette party, which started off with dinner at the Cowgirl Hall of Fame and ended with karaoke at the Lush Lounge. I love singing karaoke, despite the fact that I am potentially the world's worst singer. On time in high school, some friends and I were flipping through our friend Kristina's piano song book and playing name that tune. I was actually singing the line, "I heard it through the grapevine. Not much longer would you be mine," and no one could Name that Tune. My friend Lauren thoughtfully said, "It sounds familiar...." but was stumped in the end. Having a terrible singing voice has never prevented me from belting out a few tunes though, and I kicked off our karaoke evening with .38 Special's, "Caught Up in You."

I was so terrible, I made myself grimace

We had all the usual bachelorette accouterments, including a bun pincher. The bun pincher was an immediate hit, and several people asked to borrow the pincher to try out on their unsuspecting friends.

This man's buns were housed in a previously unheard of brand of boxers: Saddles

All in all, we had a great time and Kim, our bachelorette, managed to end the evening without having done anything to put her future marriage in jeopardy. Well done!

Live from the Bolt Bus

We left 20 minutes late, but that's because the time was spent trying to help a passenger locate her confirmation number. I guess that's good customer service, but I am surprised they were willing to delay the trip like that. I bought my ticket online and it said C 05, so when I got to Terminal 21, I stood in the C line. There was an A,B and C line, and the A's boarded first, etc. I'm not sure how the letters were determined, but I'm guessing it has to do with when you bought the ticket. The driver is friendly, but tried to pull out of the terminal without shutting the outside luggage bins and had to be flagged down by another worker. Good thing someone noticed it, otherwise the anatomically correct cookies I haved stored there in my backpack for Kim's bachelorette party might have been strewn up and down the Pike. The bus is brand new and very clean, I think it will be a good ride!

Someone Cut the Cheese(man)

From Boston.com:
Carmen 'The Cheeseman' DiNunzio indicted in Big Dig corruption sting

Alternate headlines could be:

"Someone's got a beef with the Cheese"

"Cheeseman wants to be left aloam"

"FBI Caught the CheeseBoss, His Mama Never Sleeps at Night"

7th Heaven

If the Celtics win tonight, they'll advance to Round 2 of the 2008 NBA Playoffs; however, should they lose, the series will be tied 3-3 forcing a 7th game series tiebreaker. More importantly, if the series goes to a 7th game, I'll have a ride home from NYC Sunday morning with friends who have tickets to the game. I'm scheduled to take a 2:00 pm BoltBus back to Boston, but a car ride would be infinitely more comfortable. BoltBus does not offer any refunds or exchanges, but part of the beauty of a $15 ticket is that it's easy to blow off should something better come along.

Either way, tonight's game is a win-win situation.

Circle of Trust

Last night a button fell off my favorite leather jacket, but fortunately I heard it hit the sidewalk and safely stored it in my purse. The buttons are covered in the same leather the jacket is made out of, and it would be virtually impossible to find replacements. I toyed with the idea of sewing it back on myself; however, I am a terrible sewer and even when I try to sew a simple button, it looks like I used a stapler instead of a needle and thread. On my way into work I stopped at a dry cleaner and asked the woman behind the counter if she could sew my button for me and tighten up the others that were loose.
She was about 5 feet tall and 90 lbs, but she spoke as if she were built like a linebacker.
"You can't do this yourself?!" she demanded incredulously.
"Well, I think you would do a better job than me." I was immediately frightened of this woman, and thought that the best strategy would be to butter her up. "It's my favorite jacket, so I thought I should bring it to a professional."
"Ah... yes! Yes!" She wasn't looking at me anymore and instead was focusing on the jacket with such intensity I thought she might burn a hole through it. "OK! Do not move!" And with that, she took the jacket in the back and I stood still for 8 minutes. How did I know it was 8 minutes? I didn't check my cell phone for the time out of fear that she was watching the security feed in the back room and would know I had disobeyed her order to stand still. There just happened to be a wall clock in front of me, along with a sign that said, "We will make you look good!" and "No credit cards!"
She came out from the back room and showed me the jacket. "You will like this!" And, in fact, I did. All of the other buttons had been reinforced with a thread that perfectly matched the jacket and the other button was back where it should be. "How much do I owe you?"
She looked at me closely, leaned forward and said, "I like you and I like your jacket. I will give you a special price. Normally the cost is $10, BUT! I will only charge you $5."
"Oh, thank yo-"
"DON'T TELL ANYONE!"
"Uh, ok... thank you." I took the jacket and started to leave the store. As I started to push through the front door, she cheerfully said, "Have a great day! Please come again!"