Boston Week 2

The reason I'm in Massachussetts is because I signed up for a developmental program where you go somewhere and learn something different. I'm not going to keep the job after this is over, I'm just learning to learn. Well, I got assigned Cemetery Operations. WHAT? That's a thing? Sure nuff! I had no idea what I was getting into, and jokes abounded. "What are you going to do, the flower arranging?" It turns out there was a big to-do a few years back at Arlington National Cemetery and the whole military cemetery system got an overhaul. (You can read about it here.) So my job is going through and checking records for accuracy and correcting stuff.


SO... my second week they sent me to SAN ANTONIO to get training. Leave all this snow?? Eat Mexican food every day?? Um, yes.

So here's a little comparison. This is the cemetery in San Antonio where I did the training.

 And this is my cemetery in Massachussetts. Needless to say, I won't be photographing headstones.

I was not the only "intern" assigned to this base. My supervisor got another person for a different office. So we team up to do the touristy things together. He is from Uganda, originally, and does NOT like the snow. He mentions it about ten times a day.


Well, to be fair, it does look like this right now:

Last weekend we went and did the obligatory tour bus around Boston. I'm pretty embarrassed by the quality of the photos since we almost didn't get out of the bus at all. Partly because it was freezing @$$ cold and partly because the bus driver was awesome and I just wanted to listen to him speak in Bostonian and drive me around.


OK, so Harvard.

It's just kind of there! Kind of everywhere... In the Harvard area you basically spin in a circle and everything belongs to Harvard - where the kids are wicked shmaaaart.


We also did a drive by through the MIT campus, which just looks like giant office buildings. Seriously - you can't even tell it's a school. AND they are surrounded by all these bio-tech firms and stuff. Kids literally graduate and then walk across the street into a job. Yeah, I don't think I'm smart enough to live in this city... OH, almost forgot, they operate their own nuclear power plant at MIT. I bet 18 year old MIT kids are better at it than Homer Simpson.


Moving on! Shiny! (It's the State House if you're interested, but I really was just attracted to the shiny gold dome.)

 I did make it to the original Cheers for a beer. (Technically a hard apple cider, but we'll call it a beer)

This cool old building had a Curious George store. But more curious than that was what's in the upper floor window. Can you see it?

It's the Law Offices of Dewey, Cheetham and Howe!! I laughed so hard!

Boston Harbour is slightly frozen.

I was completely alone on the warf (no one else got off the bus) and the seagulls were out singing. It was really peaceful!


They call this the Long Warf because the water used to go up into the city, and the pier was like two miles long or something crazy. I think they said it would dock something like 80 ships... Can you imagine the poor kids who had to unload the boat that got stuck at the end of the pier?

Below, see that tiny little building where the arrow is?  That's the Old State House. That used to be at the water's edge. Everything between that building and where I was standing is artificial land. They used wooden palettes, of all things, to fill in the water and create the artifical shore. So clearly Boston is where the DIY obsession with reusing palettes started!

Speaking of old wood - this is the oldest wooden house in Boston. Guess who lived there...

Paul Revere.  

(They didn't allow photos inside.)

The British are coming! The British are coming!

Hey, that's ok, we've got Old Ironsides!

This is the USS Constitution, or "Old Ironsides." Wikipedia can tell you all about it if you are interested. But just briefly - it's from 1797. That's not a typo. It's the oldest Navy vessel still floating, and it was made right there in Boston.

Last for this installment - you have to drive across this bridge everytime you enter and leave Boston. (At least from the direction I have to travel) See the little blue streak of light in the bottom right corner? It changes color depending on which sports team is playing! It was Bruins (hockey) night.

Well, I hope my little virtual tour of Boston is a little interesting. I wish I could have Blogger read it to you with a Boston accent!