Secede
If California wants to fight a war of secession, I'll fly back tomorrow to fight. I'm serious.
DTX (Downtown Crossing)
I recently read something about an effort to revitalize the Downtown Crossing area. It's hard to argue against that effort. The area isn't really a great shopping destination compared to Newbury or Copley or the Pru. There are a lot of vacant store fronts, including notables Filene's and Barnes and Noble, and of the shops that are open for business, it seems like a quarter are dealing used jewelry.
As part of the effort to bring shoppers back, it was mention
ed there would be events to attract families to shop at Downtown Crossing. Friday on my lunch break I was lucky enough to run into one such attraction. A small ragtime band was driving through the area very slowly on the back of an old-fashioned fire truck. The band was being followed by an old woman dressed up in a home-made lizard costume, which for some reason included wings. She may have actually been a dragon, rather than a lizard. She was dancing to that ragtime music like a pro. It was amazing and made me want to always shop at Downtown Crossing!!
ed there would be events to attract families to shop at Downtown Crossing. Friday on my lunch break I was lucky enough to run into one such attraction. A small ragtime band was driving through the area very slowly on the back of an old-fashioned fire truck. The band was being followed by an old woman dressed up in a home-made lizard costume, which for some reason included wings. She may have actually been a dragon, rather than a lizard. She was dancing to that ragtime music like a pro. It was amazing and made me want to always shop at Downtown Crossing!!And I don't know if this was at all related to the broader effort to revitalize the Downtown 
Crossing area, but last Friday I saw this funny guy hanging out in front of Borders. And the interesting thing is he wasn't doing anything. No dancing, no greeting people, no asking for money or holding a global warming protest sign. It was just a penguin with a crown standing there in the cold. I mean, it makes sense right, penguins like the cold and usually just stand there without talking to anyone or dancing for that matter. But I mean he was just standing there in front of Borders. It made me semi-nervous. I'm wondering if I should have maybe called Homeland Security or something.
Crossing area, but last Friday I saw this funny guy hanging out in front of Borders. And the interesting thing is he wasn't doing anything. No dancing, no greeting people, no asking for money or holding a global warming protest sign. It was just a penguin with a crown standing there in the cold. I mean, it makes sense right, penguins like the cold and usually just stand there without talking to anyone or dancing for that matter. But I mean he was just standing there in front of Borders. It made me semi-nervous. I'm wondering if I should have maybe called Homeland Security or something.Good Thanksgiving, Good NYC
I elected to hang on the east coast for Thanksgiving weekend, rather than fly back home. I took the train down to NYC to hang with Becca's family Wednesday night. Thursday morning I got to go to the Thanksgiving Day Parade with her family. It was a ton of fun. They set up two ladders and a plank of wood every year in order to see over the crowds. I can't say the parade was all that exciting, but it was pretty fun every time a new balloon came into view and the whole crowd cheered. It also helped that it was about 50 degrees that morning.
Thanksgiving dinner Thursday night was easily the biggest family meal I've ever been a part of. We ate at Becca's Aunt Bobbi and Uncle Steve's house and there were forty people there. It was a bit overwhelming but a lot of fun. The meal culminated with Becca's cousins re-enacting the Thanksgiving story. Here's cousin Nate on the table being a stalk of corn:
Friday Becca and I headed to NYC and walked all over town. One stop was a crazy new building I'd read about on Bond street near The Village. Dan and Becca and I pose for a self portrait in front of the modern architecture:
The brunch place we ate at that morning had a huge mural of Justin Timberlake on the wall of the bathroom...
And one more cool photo from the trip. We stopped by a rice pudding place in Soho. Here's the sign from the window:
Thanksgiving dinner Thursday night was easily the biggest family meal I've ever been a part of. We ate at Becca's Aunt Bobbi and Uncle Steve's house and there were forty people there. It was a bit overwhelming but a lot of fun. The meal culminated with Becca's cousins re-enacting the Thanksgiving story. Here's cousin Nate on the table being a stalk of corn:
Friday Becca and I headed to NYC and walked all over town. One stop was a crazy new building I'd read about on Bond street near The Village. Dan and Becca and I pose for a self portrait in front of the modern architecture:
The brunch place we ate at that morning had a huge mural of Justin Timberlake on the wall of the bathroom...
And one more cool photo from the trip. We stopped by a rice pudding place in Soho. Here's the sign from the window:
The River Charles
The second to last weekend in Boston is the Head of the Charles Regatta, the largest crew event in the world. It's a lot of fun. After threatening rain, it turned out to be very nice weather for the race. And it turned out to be one of those epic Boston sports weekends, as there were crew races going on, Bruins games, and games 6 and 7 of the ALCS at Fenway.
Here the men's eight from Brown (front) passes another team. Notice the construction vest "uniforms" and the construction hat on the coxswain.
Here the men's eight from Brown (front) passes another team. Notice the construction vest "uniforms" and the construction hat on the coxswain.
Back to Boston
After six weeks at home in California, it was tough to leave but good to get back to Boston. After a couple weeks back I'm settling back into things at home and at work.
Saturday Kate and I went down to Providence to watch the Red Bull Soap Box Derby on the hills by Brown University and RISD. Some photos from the races.
A viking-themed soap box racer, "The Valhalla Express:"
"The Rhode Island Red" racer:
A covered wagon soap box racer paying homage to the old computer game Oregon Trail:
Saturday Kate and I went down to Providence to watch the Red Bull Soap Box Derby on the hills by Brown University and RISD. Some photos from the races.
A viking-themed soap box racer, "The Valhalla Express:"
"The Rhode Island Red" racer:
A covered wagon soap box racer paying homage to the old computer game Oregon Trail:
Ice Cream From The Sky
Some of my cousins have been sending packages to my parents house to entertain my dad, mostly flowers and CDs. There was also a toy snake made out of newspapers which had very cool googly eyes. But the best delivery was a UPS package that contained 12 pints of premium Graeter's ice cream from Cincinnati. (This is where I should include a clever remark about how "great" it tastes...) The flavors are all really good, and thanks to the wonders of dry ice, they all arrived here unmelted. It was a big hit and we're still enjoying all the flavors. It's worth noting that San Francisco's own It's-It company also ships their special ice cream sandwiches wherever you like. I sent some to my sis for her birthday.
Porsches on the Autobahn
Today my dad and I went for a ride with family friend Steve in his Porsche convertible. We went up switchbacks through the hills on Moody Road, and up to Skyline Blvd, which follows the ridgeline of hills up the peninsula. The ride up was great, the view from Skyline was really good, the drive down through the redwoods was nice, and coming home on the freeway was really fun. My spot in the back seat wasn't very comfortable (there would've been more space in the glove box, I think...) but that's beside the point. A good drive and a big hit with my dad.
-- the road we drove --
-- the road we drove --
My commute is shrinking
I've officially moved to a different department at work. I'm looking forward to this as it allows me to move away from finance and get some experience with the marketing strategy work my company is well-known for. Among other things, this switch means that I've moved from the 19th floor to the 18th floor. I look forward to a shorter commute.
Second time, second place
In our first attempt at the Donner Lake Tri relay last year, we came in first. And in our second attempt last week, we came in second. (Let's hope this trend doesn't continue with our third attempt...) In the photo: Jay, the swimmer; Jeff, the bike; me on the end, without the cool t-shirt; Michelle, our coach. That's Donner Lake in the background.
Yosemite
Week one in California. I went up to Yosemite with my Dad for four days and got to see all the sites in the park, including waterfalls, giant Sequoia, and lots of granite. It's one of my favorite places and his too. Here we are at Glacier Point with Half Dome in the background.
Party No. 4
The fourth big-time themed party came and went, and it was a huge success. The Spring Cleaning Swap Meet was centered on the premise that while it would be great fun to have all our friends over to our apartment for a party, it'd be even more fun if they brought something cool to trade with the other guests. Some of the items (and I can't come close to recounting all the gear) brought to trade included : shirts, hats, scarves, belts, ugly sweaters, a water balloon launcher, a nice ski jacket, salt and pepper shakers (traded separately), cowboy hats, cowboy hats with fake fur, tin foil, tin foil hats, home-brewed beer, bottle rockets, a bike pump, candle sticks, a barbecue skewer set, a laptop case, a stuffed toy goat, a gift basket with soaps and shampoo, a bamboo musical instrument from Bali, a Chairman Mao watch, a bottle of wine, a carton of wine, and much else...
I think the pictures below of Higs, myself, JLew, and Loco capture the spirit of the party, with JLew and I swapping a smooch. Much was traded that night, and everyone went home with something cool to show for it. (That's not to say that JLew and I went home together...) All in all the whole thing was a big success.
I think the pictures below of Higs, myself, JLew, and Loco capture the spirit of the party, with JLew and I swapping a smooch. Much was traded that night, and everyone went home with something cool to show for it. (That's not to say that JLew and I went home together...) All in all the whole thing was a big success.
An Open Letter to Candy, Inc. (Part IV)
I'd like to close my thoughts on increasing candy sales with a proposal that extends beyond one holiday to reach the summer holidays as a whole.
A theme for all the summertime holidays (from Memorial Day to July 4th and Labor Day) is that of barbecues. And candy and chocolate just don't come to mind when you think of barbecues. But rather than a failure, I see this as an opportunity. Because somehow you -- the brilliant enterprising marketing minds of the candy companies -- have helped establish door-to-door candy quests and Easter egg hunts as
tradition. So I'd like to propose a new tradition that will bring more candy to barbecues, which are already established as a huge part of the summertime.
My idea is to make chocolate fondue a part of the barbecue. Consumers could buy your kit, which they would just throw on the barbecue after the burgers, and then dip all sorts of fun stuff (marshmallows, candy bars, other stuff made by you, the candy companies.) It's fun, it goes well with a barbecue, and it gets them to buy more candy. I know "fondue" has a French connotation for most, and the summertime holidays are very patriotic, and I understand there is some nascent Francophobia here, so maybe we come up with another name like Fundue or Choco-BBQ or something like that. I'm sure you can work out the details (the dude in this picture from Switzerland figured it out).
That's all for my ideas on saving your businesses. I hope it works out. If you need me I'll be in the produce section.
Sincerely Yours,
AOK
A theme for all the summertime holidays (from Memorial Day to July 4th and Labor Day) is that of barbecues. And candy and chocolate just don't come to mind when you think of barbecues. But rather than a failure, I see this as an opportunity. Because somehow you -- the brilliant enterprising marketing minds of the candy companies -- have helped establish door-to-door candy quests and Easter egg hunts as
tradition. So I'd like to propose a new tradition that will bring more candy to barbecues, which are already established as a huge part of the summertime.My idea is to make chocolate fondue a part of the barbecue. Consumers could buy your kit, which they would just throw on the barbecue after the burgers, and then dip all sorts of fun stuff (marshmallows, candy bars, other stuff made by you, the candy companies.) It's fun, it goes well with a barbecue, and it gets them to buy more candy. I know "fondue" has a French connotation for most, and the summertime holidays are very patriotic, and I understand there is some nascent Francophobia here, so maybe we come up with another name like Fundue or Choco-BBQ or something like that. I'm sure you can work out the details (the dude in this picture from Switzerland figured it out).
That's all for my ideas on saving your businesses. I hope it works out. If you need me I'll be in the produce section.
Sincerely Yours,
AOK
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)