Greatest Gift

I have had many great Christmas gifts in my life full of family, friends and great gifts: tickets to Annie, Ski's, the first season of Buffy. This year took the cake, Mel and my sister Jennie arranged for my 15 year old nephew Trevor to visit for six days by himself. After being laid up all last Christmas weekend with a bad back this year made up for it completely. I have been looking forward to the time when he could come up and I could show him the city. Once I found out he was officially coming, Mel and I have been planning for weeks. We had a well deserved week off to spend with Trevor and we kept him busy trying to be the best aunties ever.

Sunday
We started with the 5K Jingle Run in Somerville. I was pleasantly surprised when I turned the last corner toward the finish line and there was Mel, Trevor and our friend Laura cheering us on. It was a fun and festive run with this crew. The medals are bottle openers, of course.


That night the Patriots were playing and many of the Violent Femmes and friends headed to our place for football and pasta. We had a great time cheering on the hometown boys to a close win.

Monday
We headed out into the city and to our pleasant surprise it started snowing. Trevor was so excited he got to see some actual snow while he was here.




We headed through the Public Gardens and over to the Frog Pond to do some skating. Mel and Trevor did not make it too long on skates but they got around the rink a couple of times.




We walked all through the city and ended the night with a Bruins Game! First we stopped at Boston Beer Works for dinner and when you are on vacation with your aunties and want nachos for dinner, that is what you get.

I have not been to a Bruins game in so long. I think the last time was when they played at the old Boston Garden. Though they lost, we geared up and had a great time. A very fun night.

We had great seats too, 1st row balcony.


It was a long day but so fun.
Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday
We headed up north to the ski house so Trevor could try out some snowboarding. I was a little concerned he might be frustrated but he took to it really quickly. We put him in a lesson the first day and he actually wanted to go back for a 2nd day. He caught on so quick. It was so great being on the trails together riding down the mountain. I was completely impressed with how fast he learned. I was also so happy he had a great time and really loved it. The ski house was perfect, we played games, had a fire, an amazing beef stew, watched movies. We did not want to leave.

He even went to the top of the mountain with us a couple of times and made it all the way down.


He even went up the chair lift by himself for his last run.

Lucky for us the half pipe opened at Loon that day and we got to sit and watch some cool tricks while enjoying our apres ski.

We were sad to leave the ski house after a wonderful couple of days, but we headed home. When we got home we put Trevor to work helping us make labels for our holiday gifts from H.C. Quimby Brew Co.

HC wanted to help.

He is going home with two hats, one Bruins and one from our friends at Wannagoout.


Friday
The week flew by and even HC was sad to see Trevor leave.

We had a wonderful week. It was everything I hoped for, and cannot wait until he comes to visit again. A Christmas to always remember.

Goodbye Old Lady

Tonight we said goodbye to my old lady Ramona. It has been a tearful month and day at the H.C. Quimby Brew Company. It was a really hard decision to make, but we worked with a wonderful vet at Angell Memorial who guided us through our decision making process. As many of you know, her health has been deteriorating for the better part of a year. It was important to us that we made the decision at the right time and wanted to remember her as a happy dog- which she was to the last day. She got bacon and a run in the park with a tennis ball.

Most of the people in my life who know me have known Ramona. She has been with me since she was 8 weeks old and in a couple of weeks she would have been 14 years old. She has been my constant companion throughout all these years and as I joke my longest relationship with a lady. She was loyal, happy, crazy, and co-dependent. She saw me through 5 major relationships, the death of my father and graduate school. If you knew her she probably has either licked you, barked at you, head butted you, slept on the bed with you, or farted by you. She was a sweet dog who was never as happy as when she was:

Chasing tennis balls

Swimming

Rolling in the snow

Cuddling on the bed

or playing with her friends:

Stella Louise, one of her best dog park pals

Finn, who was in love with her

Her roommate Izzy, who I still miss to this day

Bear (or as I like to call her, Bacon)

Miggs and Rosie, the best Cockers ever

and of course Henry, who I think will miss her too

I really got lucky with Ramona, she was a great dog who loved being around people, especially babies, whose heads she especially liked to lick.

Even though saying goodbye is really hard and we never think about these things when we get pets, the sadness is worth the unconditional love you always receive and the great stories you get to tell about them. One of my favorites is when we were walking with a bunch of our friends at Peter's Hill, it was pitch black. We decided it was a good idea to put those flashing red bike lights on the dog's collars to keep track of them. Well, my roommate Gayle's dog Stutz came back to the group missing his light. About 5-10 minutes later we saw this bouncing red light coming over the hill and were like, "What the hell is that?" As it got closer we saw that Ramona picked up the light and brought it back to us. It was one of her best true Lab moments.

I want to thank all my friends and family for all the support they have shown Mel and I these last couple of weeks. We really appreciate knowing that you understand how hard it is to say goodbye to a beloved pet. You all are the best. I will miss my girl, but I know it was the right time and that she in a better place probably chasing an unending supply of felt covered green spheres in and out of the water.

Goodbye my beautiful lab, you were the best, and on this Thanksgiving Eve, I am most thankful you were part of my life the last 14 years.

Cancer can eat my Poo!

Yes, you read correctly. In the witty words of Tina Fey, Cancer can eat my poo!!!

Over the weekend my friend Amanda's sister, Allison, succumbed to Breast Cancer, she was 32 years old. Anyone who has been touched by this disease or lost a family member understands how difficult this can be. Though I lost my Dad to Pancreatic Cancer 9 years ago, I think about him each and every day and I imagine that will never go away.

I only met Allison a couple of times but based on all the work and fundraising her and Amanda did for cancer awareness a tireless voice was lost for a very important cause. I can only offer my sympathies and support to Amanda her partner Maia and their family. I have watched my two friends support Allison through some rough times these last few years. Amanda is a tireless caregiver and fundraiser and I hope she can find some peace now that Allison is in a better place. Allison was lucky to have such a wonderful sister by her side, and I know Allison's spirit will live on through Amanda always.

You can read more about Allison Bladt Fawcett here:
http://www.thereporteronline.com/articles/2010/10/05/news/doc4caaf456c80a3502894560.txt

and

Here, Amanda is quoted in this article:
http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/news_details/article/113/2010/october/06/death-comes-spirit-lingers.html

To support Amanda in the 2010 Susan G. Komen Philadelphia 3-Day for the Cure you can donate here:
https://secure3.convio.net/npt/site/Donation2?idb=608893643&df_id=2300&FR_ID=1468&2300.donation=form1&PROXY_ID=2612522&PROXY_TYPE=20&JServSessionIdr004=2azu5gs891.app321b

Take Care Maia and Amanda, my two travel buddies.

City Pedaling

I love commuting on my bike. I get to ride through the city, get some exercise, and it relieves stress. There are so many benefits. 90% of the time I have a smooth ride to and from work. This morning did not fall into that 90%. There are some mornings and afternoons that I have a ride where one thing after another happens. Unlike many bikers I see I wear a helmet, never listen to headphones and follow the rules of the road. I think it is these things that keep me safe on my bike. It takes time and practice to hone your bike instincts while riding through the city. However, there are just some days that are so aggravating it is just really scary.

Today was a dozy:
1. Roslindale- barely a mile into my commute. School bus van on Washington Street in Roslindale decided even though there were plenty of spots to pull into she parks in the bike lane forcing me to weave into the traffic behind me to get around her. She got out of the van with children and proceed to cross the busy street. I was like,"You could not pull into a spot?", her response, "No!". Nice....and people trust you with their kids. UGH.

2. Brookline Village- about 4 miles into my commute. I am riding with traffic through a green light and I see this woman trying to pull out of a parking spot in front of the Post Office. She has her window open and is looking out the window behind her to see when she is clear. I am riding with the cars and they all pass me. She looks right at me and pulls out right in front of me anyway. This caused me to weave around her to avoid her. Since her window is open I say, "REALLY, you are going to pull out in front of me anyway?", she yelled something and drove beside me yelling at me then pulled in front of me again to pull into a parking spot. I was so angry. I yelled something about if she kills someone it will affect her the rest of her life. What a jerk. I would not mind if she did not see me or was just looking in her mirror, but she had her head out the window and saw me coming.

3. Harvard and Comm Ave.-about 6 miles into my commute. I am riding through a green light, this guy decides he wants to take a right and cannot wait the 1 second it will take me to get past the street he wants to take a right on(Comm. Ave.). So he swerves around me to beat me to the right turn, thus cutting me off. This happens a lot while I am riding. People do not realize how fast I am going and try to get ahead of me thus completely cutting me off. Not be morbid but I knew a young women in Western Ma. who was killed this way. Really sad.

This was certainly an unusual morning for incidents. After hearing about a biker getting killed the other day one would think both drivers and bikers would be more careful. I see so many egregious driving and biking violations it is surprising there are not more deaths on the road. I think many drivers do not realize how much damage they can do with their car, they drive like it is a weapon. But why should anyone care, I never see police doing anything about it. Until that starts to happen things will not really change. All I can do is follow the rules of the road and enjoy each bike ride while I can.

Last night at The Fort

This is my last night at Fort Hill. I feel like I have so much to do but I am at that point where I cannot not really do anything until right before the movers get here. I always want to feel more secure about my organizational skills but I have done this so many times I know it will be fine. I have been living in Roxbury for a little over 2 1/2 years, I have had great landlords and all in all really enjoyed this neighborhood and living alone. I am glad I finally got a chance to do that. It was totally worth it.
There are things I will miss about Fort Hill and things I will not...

Things I will miss:
- Having a park right across from my apt., it has made it so easy with my old lady Ramona. We have been able to enjoy this park at any time of the year

- My friendly neighbors. The folks that live around me have been nothing but friendly, helpful and warm
- The close proximity to the S. End, JP and Brookline
- Having the opportunity to live by myself. It has been great
- My landlords, they have been nothing but responsive and completely generous
- The views of the city from the park, each time I go up there I am amazed about the view, it is quite special
- Forth of July fireworks, for three years I got to walk out my door and see a great show. I am glad I could share that with friends
- Most importantly I think Mel, Myself, HC and Ramona will miss my deck. We have had so many great times out there just relaxing, entertaining, eat, reading, enjoying the crazy stuff our domestics do, and almost being killed by spiders


Things I will not miss:
- The reality of living in a city. All tires stolen. Blurg
- Living in a garden level apt means, you might have mice
- Living in a quiet residential neighborhood means not really being able to walk to coffee shops, bars, markets etc
- People who consistently start their laundry but never seem to finish with in 24 hours. There are 3 other apts in the building. World does not revolve around you
- Living across dog park means having to deal with bad dog owners, aggressive dogs off leash, not cleaning up after dogs, untrained crazy dogs, you get the picture

All in all this 'hood has been good to me, I have made some great memories and I will miss the people, the history, and the lovely Fort. It really is a hidden gem in this city, one that more and more people are discovering. However, I am ready for the next chapter and really excited about my new neighborhood and moving in with the LF. We are more then ready.