Blogs

I have a question that I hope some of you may be able to answer.

The building that I work in, in Newton (please visit my blog entry today - and scroll down to lower photo set) is similar in style to many of the Catholic parochial schools in Boston, which I assume were mostly built in the 40's & 50's. That is, they share the yellow bricks and low-slung institutional styling. The bricks also show up in quite a few housing project constructions.

Did anyone else see (or hear) the thundersnow this morning? At about 6:50 this morning I was driving past the Faulkner Hospital and the whole sky lit up, and a second later came the boom. We got a second round a few minutes later by Jamaica Pond.

Are you looking for like-minded progressives to hang out with in Boston? Want to cross-promote your events and campaigns? Are you new to the area and looking for groups to get involved in? Are you psyched about building strong cross-issue coalitions?

On the 5:40 Franklin Line train last night passengers got to listen to this odd little exchange over the intercom:

Man: Hello, Mo.

(minute passes)

Man: Helloooo, Mo.

Woman: Hello.

Man: Got a flashlight?

Nothing after that, so we were only left to wonder why the man needed a flashlight so badly, and if Mo had one or not.

Scot Lehigh gets it exactly wrong in the lead paragraph of his column today:

MOST CAMPAIGNS' [sic] are fought over issues. But this Democratic presidential campaign has been focused on something a good deal less concrete: professed governing styles.

He's right that the key factor is now governing style and the analysis that follows is sound, if not particularly insightful.

A friend and colleague, B.D. Colen, was in the Globe over the weekend talking about an upcoming show of photos he took while commuting on the T. The show is at the Brookline Arts Center form Jan. 21 to Feb. 29, and B.D. has a slidehow with lots of the photos on his website. The BPL also purchased many of his photos for their collection.

Does anyone know if Kalembar Dune is moving? I noticed that the building they are in on Spring Street in West Roxbury was up for sale a while back...

So, we'd heard rumors that MBCR, which "runs" the commuter rail, might get time added to its contract. Word this afternoon: their 5-year contract has been extended for three years! This for a system that "has regularly trailed Chicago's Metra, New York's Metro-North, New Jersey Transit's commuter rail, and the Long Island Rail Road, in on-time performance," according to Sunday's Globe.

As the Sunday story notes, three years is less than what MBCR wanted, but more than the minimum for a transition to a new contract.

I signed up yesterday for the new "T alerts" email/text delay notification service from the T. Turns out it works-- at least it did today. As I was preparing to leave home, i got this message:

Commuter Rail Providence/Stoughton - Train #0804 (6:07am inbound) experiencing 10-15 minute delays due to mechanical failure 12/4/2007 6:17 AM

By the time I got to my station, the displays said 15-20 minutes late, and the train was indeed about 15 minutes late.

Anybody have any suggestions for single folks over 50 to meet in the West Roxbury/Roslindale/Dedham area?

Gee, I guess the T's Customer Bill o' Rights on-time service guarantee really works after all! In the mail yesterday, I got a nice letter from Dan Grabauskas and a round-trip train fare reimbursement... for a one-hour delay that happened in January! Yes, Mrs. Calabash, more than 11 months ago! Good to know they're working on that backlog.

The nice letter hints at why it took so long:

Seen on Sidney St. on the way to Central Square this morning: several guys standing around drinking coffee and wearing posterboards with handwritten signs:

IMMUNOGEN
uses contractors
that "EXPLOIT"
their workers

Anybody have any idea what this is about?