May 2006 Archives
Like yesterday, today was another extremely full day. My folks and I got up this morning and headed back downtown to explore Beacon Hill, where Mom traipsed down Charles Street poking her head into every antique store she could find while Dad and I grabbed coffee from a gold-plated Starbucks and then wandered around looking at the houses. Such very, very cool houses. What can I say? I'm a sucker for brownstone buildings and windy cobblestone streets.
After that we skirted the Common and paid a visit to Waterworks, where Mom did some more recon for her new construction project, and then the three of us wandered a few blocks over to explore the Boston Public Library for a little while. Again, magnificent architecture. I'm definitely going to be spending some quality time there this summer. After that, we headed back to my place to pick up the car and then headed out to the suburbs – first to a couple of design shops around Framingham, and then to the Wrentham Village Premium Outlets south of Boston. A few hours later, we re-emerged properly equipped for, well, whatever comes next. I picked up two pairs of Rockports (hey, they were at outlet prices, knocked down thirty bucks and then buy-one-get-one-half-priced, so I can be forgiven for buying two pairs of the same model, one in black and one in brown), a half-dozen pairs of socks, a pair of shorts, a shirt, and a present to myself for completing the school year in one piece...
I should make a note here about my recent obsession with bags. Some men mock women for owning dozens of purses and shoes. I myself am beginning to at least comprehend some of the logic here. I used to use a Brenthaven backpack that I picked up a few years ago at the Apple Store, which was great but it made me feel like I was back in high school. When that one somehow blew out a major hole in its ballistic nylon carcass (and yes, I know they have a lifetime warrantee but I was leaving for Japan in short order and I needed a new bag now), I bought a Timbuk2 Outtawhack, which is a great bag for day-to-day use... But then in recent weeks I've been doing more and more visits to our partner companies, and feeling slightly odd carrying a bike messenger bag while wearing a suitcoat. Hey, if I'm supposed to dress up, so should my bag. Thus, the addition of another bag to my collection – a black leather Kenneth Cole laptop bag. While I can't stand the cheesy poorly-made puns in his advertising campaigns, and his all-Flash website sucks, I've coveted a Kenneth Cole leather laptop bag for years because of the sleek elegance of their designs. They're stark and beautiful in their minimalist approach to the problem, but I'm anxious to see how well it performs in actual use.
One way or the other, I think next weekend I'm going to throw on my new shoes and shrug on my new bag, then head back to Beacon Hill and traipse around like a local instead of a tourist. Of course, if really want to go incognito among the fashionistas on Charles or Newbury, I probably need a haircut and to drop a solid 30 pounds, but hey – it's summertime, right? What better time to play outside and pretend?
As I write this, it's about 12:30 AM on the day after Memorial Day. Last week was the end of my first year at MIT and the halfway point to my Master's degree, and the several days' worth of aftermath so far has been filled with friends, films, food, family and fun. The biggest news: I am now a cousin once removed, with the birth of Samuel Lanier to my cousin Phil and his wife Emily.
Actually, there's tons of stuff that I want to write about, but it will have to wait until later. My folks are in town at the moment, and we're getting up early tomorrow to hit Boston again, so more details will have to wait until later. Soon enough this new version of TOTQ will be made truly public, and I'm sure I'll have much more to say then. Stay tuned.
