Don't Mess with Mass

One thing that stands out to me, having moved back not long ago, is the aggressive in-your-face'ness of people in Massachusetts.  I grew used to more mellow attitudes on the west coast.  We have always been referred to as Massholes and I've always been proud to call myself a Masshole.  I realize that may not be seen as something to be proud of by our European and Canadian friends, but out here it sure is.  

As everyone knows, the Boston Marathon bombers were killed/caught, just a few days after the bombing.  Thanks to all the photos and surveillance videos, the leads poured into authorities, and by Friday morning, they had the entire city and suburbs in lockdown.  No one was allowed out of their homes/apartments, all schools and college classes were canceled, the MBTA stopped running trains & buses, no cars allowed to drive around and the FAA prohibited aircraft travel over the city.  Residents complied without complaint and cheered on the cops from their livingrooms.  After the initial shock of the bombing had set in, people became Wicked Pissed, Wicked Fast.  It was like, excuse me?  You did WHAT in MY city?  Unacceptable! We're comin at you and we're comin at you hard.

Everyone was posting conflicting news all over Facebook the morning of the manhunt, which was kind of annoying, but I did like the pictures, most of which conveyed the 'you mess with Boston and you will be sorry' message to the world.

Oh snap.

See what I mean?  

Right before the suspects fled during the overnight hours and before the lockdown, the cops were able to kill the 26 year old bomber but his 19 year old brother got away.  Not before they murdered an MIT (Mass Institute of Technology) officer in his car.  The kid managed to get as far as Watertown, where he hid in a tarp covered boat.  The authorities lifted the curfew and when the resident came out of his house, he noticed the edge of the tarp was flapping in the wind, and had blood on it.  He quietly slipped inside and called the cops, who riddled the boat with gunfire, wounding but not killing the 19 year old. 

Then these popped up within minutes.  And as for the guy's poor boat?  Donations are pouring in from across the USA towards purchasing a new one, since this one is full of bullet holes and was taken into evidence.

But this one really cracked me up, of North Korea's Kim Jong Un.  Yeah, dude.....prolly not a good idea.

This photo portrays a policeman delivering 2 gallons of milk to a family that had run out of milk that morning and couldn't leave the house.  It was the right thing to do.

Slain MIT Officer Sean Collier's escort.

Never forget.

I Heart Boston

I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge what just happened in my state yesterday, in my old college stomping grounds.

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised by it, but I was.  It was only a matter of time before a major sporting event was attacked.  I just always thought it'd be like the Superbowl or the Olympics.  I admit that I almost expect it.  But not at the Boston Marathon.  Not in my state.....

I am so upset and keep getting all weepy, even though I wasn't there or even close by.  I live about 55 miles south, but I have been on Boylston x Exeter hundreds of times when I lived at Emerson.  That's the Back Bay and it was my old neighbourhood. 

Patriots Day has always been kind of a big deal here in Massachusetts.  Time out of mind, I remember it always falls the first Monday of spring break, it's a state holiday but not a federal one, the Boston Marathon is always run that day, and the Red Sox always play a home game at Fenway at 11:00 a.m., the only day of the year a game starts that early.  You can count on these Patriot Day things in the Bay State, just like you can count on Christmas.  It's part of our fabric, and I didn't forget it at all when I lived out west.  I was always aware of the day of the marathon and by rote would also immediately think, '11:00 start time for the Sox'.  

In April of 1986, my senior year at Emerson and with a month left before graduation, I walked up to the marathon finish line area, although I really don't remember much of that day, except that it was wicked crowded.  I had been working at Boston's Hot Hits WZOU answering the request line for a few months and found the ZOO crew.  I had a lot of friends that worked or interned at ZOU; it was one of the local media outlets that always, always hired Emersonians.  Here's a pic of fellow Class of 86 friends, Tom on the far left, and my best friend Ellen, on the right.  She was the one that got me in at the station because she was working there part time since we started senior year in the fall of 85.  The man in the middle is DJ Harry Nelson, who I grew up listening to on WRKO when I was a little girl. To be in his presence....to get to answer the request line on his show which I did a few times, was like....well, imagine someone you've always admired and emulated, who inspired you to pursue radio and communications, and then getting to work for them and that's what it was like.  The fact that he was a truly a wonderful, kind, patient and friendly man was the icing on the cake.  Everyone loves him. This is my only real memory of the Marathon in 1986.  

Right after the news broke, I texted Russell to let him know since he is unaware of news while he's on the road.  He called me and we talked a few minutes...it was just good to hear his voice and say I love you....he was far away in NJ.  Then Marsha invited me for dinner and it was good to be with people as chaos ensued up north.  But after I got home I had to step away from all the conjecture, media vultures & misinformation.  This is why I left TV news.  It bugs the shit out of me that the stations are posturing to be the first to break new information that they mislead everyone with rumours.  It's so that later on they can do promos saying they were first.  BFD.  It also bugs the shit out of me that TV stations will do whatever they can to find a person that was there or knows someone that was there, as if that person's presence links a whole other region to the tragedy.

I decided that I was gonna have to go to the beach the next day and I was on Scusset by about 9:15.  It was still low tide and I was the only one there.  

So I serpentined up and down the tide lines, looking for flat rocks and glass.

So pretty.

Coast guard

This made me laugh.  It's at the top of the Scusset jetty.

I couldn't resist making a little guerrilla beach art.

EPIC scores today.  This is a record for Scusset.  Those blue chunks are amazing, and the olivine glass is unusual.  The piece next to the blue is a very pale purple, and next to that are 2 pieces of pale aqua.  And a piece of ceramic too.  Plus a couple of heart shaped stones, and up at the top on the left some unusual quartz, a button and a little clam shell.  And a pretty purple bit of shell next to the heart rocks.  Beach brick down the bottom.  

I hope they find the bastards that did this, and soon.