Actually, these are nonrandom photos—I constantly hear people misusing the word “random” all the time.
First, today’s morning Easter Coffee, complete with a Marshmallow Peep® (I have to admit that I absolutely love these sugary death-bombs):
Garcia, the resident cat:
We took a walk through Cambridge and then across the river to Boston yesterday. Along the way we passed the house where I lived for four years as a grad student at Harvard. This large house was owned by an economics professor at the university, and we had an apartment on the second floor to the left of the stairs. I hadn’t revisited this place in years.
Crossing the river to Boston (left) from Cambridge (r). Of course someone is doing yoga by the river:
The Boston Garden: home of the Boston Bruins hockey team and the Boston Celtics basketball team (often called the “Smelltics” because their performance, lately, has stunk):
A bronze statue of the great hockey player Bobby Orr sits in front of the Garden. It’s labeled “The Goal,” and celebrates his “miracle goal” in that won the Bruins the Stanley Cup on May 10, 1970 in overtime against the St. Louis Blues.
Here’s a short video of that famous goal, and you can see that Orr actually does leap into the air as depicted in the statue. He was only 22 when he made that score.
Now this is a random photograph. I have no idea what river herring even are!
Yesterday afternoon I had ice cream with several Cambridge/Boston humanists at Toscanini’s in Cambridge (a very good place, but not quite as good as Christina’s). The get-together was organized by Melissa Chen, a biology grad student at MIT and one of my co-administrators of the very popular Global Secular Humanist Movement Facebook site. In my honor she wore cat-themed garb, and her headband even looked like cat ears:
Sheesh, the least you could have done is turn around when crossing the Charles photographed and captured the glory of the REAL school down the river a bit.
Herring = Alewife as in Alewife Brook Parkway in Cambridge, and beyond, and the terminus of the T red line in North Cambridge (although in my days at MIT the terminus was Harvard Square – but who went there).
Menhaden!
That statue’s plainly labeled “The Goal” on the plaque–not “The God.”
Ether one works well.
My mistake! I’ve fixed it, thanks.
lol
In Canada it would be the same thing. I feel very at home in Boston. 🙂
Had to try the peep in coffee. I don’t really like these to begin with, but have some in my Easter basket so tried it. Still not a fan, but I think it made the peep less sweet which I think is better. Also, my coffee is black so don’t know if that makes it different.
The best Peep in my opinion is a stale one. They become hard and chewy and very interesting. It takes months for the process to occur, however, so my friends buy me Peeps ahead of time and give me boxes that have been opened.
There’s another way to do it, as I prefer my Peeps stale as well. Just slit open the cellophane and let it sit for two days before eating.
Try keeping them in the fridge, unwrapped. That should dry them out pretty quick.
Did you go for burnt sugar icecream again, PCC?
You’re craving that ice cream, too:-))
Yes, I am. One fine summer’s day, I’ll really have to have a go at that recipe!!
Oh! I wish I had a peep to go in my morning coffee!
Pro tip: Buy Peeps after Easter. Much cheaper. Cheap! Cheap!
🐣🐤🐥
As a student, I’d hit Walmart after easter for mega chocolate deals. Now they aren’t as good. I think it’s because the chocolate is mostly plastic and wax so it can keep for next year. 🙂
For some reason, I was instantly reminded of 1984 when I read your description of Walmart chocolate….
b&
Walmart probably keeps the “chocolate” in room 101.
In no way am I surprised to learn of rat infestations at Walmart….
b&
I bought a plastic Christmas tree on December 26th at 90% off. It was $100 two days earlier, $10 when I got it. I just have to store it somewhere. That’s how we Irish and Italian Atheist Jews roll on the holidays. Before I got that tree, we hung tree decorations from the menorah; next year the menorah will probably hang from the tree. And we’re very likely to celebrate on the wrong day as my wife always volunteers to work on Christmas.
Yeah, Easter Monday is THE day to get sugar fixes!
Sub
On this (eastern) side of the Atlantic, fish of the genus Alosa are usually known as “shad”. They’re clupeid fish that spend most of their lives in coastal marine waters, but swim up rivers to spawn in freshwater, much as salmon do. Over here they’re been hit very hard by overfishing, pollution, damming of rivers and so on, and are much reduced in abundance compared with pre-industrial times. I imagine the same is true of the North American species.
I know very little about fish but understand the River Herring are ocean fish that go up the rivers to spawn and maybe that is why “no fishing”.
Here in our lake in the Midwest we now have a fish that many refer to as Shad. Never had them until more recently and I can only guess they got in here from the river. This is a long way from the ocean/gulf of Mexico. I understand the Shad are also Alosa, same as Herring but different species.
There are shad that migrate up the Hudson to spawn. Shad roe has been a seasonal delicacy on New York tables for generations.
I’m on the Hudson River at Poughkeepsie. A friend of mine fishes shad for the roe, and I guess can make good money. He complains that the numbers are dwindling. He blames the water temperature increasing from power plants for one thing.
Is Garcia the cat named after Jerry Garcia?
I thought Garcia was eyeing Jerry with great suspicion – obviously doesn’t read WEIT!
Love the cat shirt.
That herring sign makes me think of the Knights who say Ni.
Many years ago on a visit to Boston I went with some friends to the Garden to see the Hawks play the Bruins. That was the real Boston Garden, not the TD Garden in the picture. The old Garden didn’t have as many seats, but it did have real hockey atmosphere, which TD Garden lacks. I wouldn’t go to a game at TD Garden for the same reason that I wouldn’t ever go to the United Center.
Yeah, when I lived in Boston, it was the “real” Garden. When Jerry did too, of course!
“The Boston Garden” was demolished. It’s now some other Garden, maybe TD North … I can’t keep up with the renaming.
Some Other Garden seems like a good name.
Hi,
Here’s some info on river herring and why fishing for them is restricted. River herring spend most of their lives at sea, then swim up rivers in Spring to spawn. Unfortunately, dams in rivers and overfishing at sea have severely depleted their populations. This video shows what the Herring Alliance is doing to help bring them back:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Djc0QHvrt3c
Thanks!
Jeff
I thought Melissa’s shirt would be the perfect gift for my wife.
She immediately pointed out that the accent is in the wrong direction. 🙁
très, not trés .
(The Bobby Orr goal is one of my earliest hockey memories, although I’m actually a Habs fan.)