Winging it in... Boston

And this is good old Boston, the home of the bean and the cod…

And for the first time in a few weeks I was actually in “good old Boston” for the whole weekend. A few things have happened this week that have made me see the world in a slightly more glowing and warm way. The snowstorm of last weekend seems to have signaled the end of winter and spring really seems to be thinking about making an appearance. There have still been some cold days, actually some really cold days with highs of about 18F, but there have also been some deliciously warm days, today making it as high as 60F. I have also discovered that H2O can fall in liquid form from the sky, and not just in icy crystal form. The parking lot has yellow lines to demarcate spaces, I do still need to learn to park in these, and the sidewalks are substantially wider than I remember. I have enjoyed running outside so much this week that I have canceled my gym membership and thus discovered I have an extra $80.00 s month to spend on fun and frivolity. Spring is definitely in the air.

That said, this week the entry will be short and sweet with very little adventurous activity to report. That isn’t to say that I haven’t been busy, just that it has all been tasks that need doing, or people I have been wanting to catch up with that have consumed my weekend.

Job number one was to make sure that my car made it to the garage in order to have its State Inspection. So, I duly turned up at 9.30am on a Saturday morning to queue. Last year this was a relatively long task. I wasn’t able to book an appointment, it was a first come, first served system and I had to wait a good two and a half hours. This year I was prepared. I arrived with a book, and a friend to have coffee with while I waited. Predictably there was no wait! The car was taken straight in, and 15 minutes later I left the garage $29.00 lighter and with a new sticker on the windshield saying that my car had passed every single aspect of the test! This concerns me slightly on two counts…

1. It took a grand total of 15 minutes for me to stop the car, explain why I was there, pay, sign the paperwork, complete the test and be back on the car and on my way for coffee.

2. The certificate says that my windshield wipers passed the inspection, and my tires passed the inspection. I know for a fact that both of these need looking at more closely, based entirely on the fact that the wipers don’t clear the water, and the tires are nearly five years old have done 35,000 miles and were under inflated!

All of which leads me to speculate on how through they were. Then again I look at some of the cars on the road and I think I may have a fair idea.

The rest of the weekend has been fairly taken up with catching up with friends. I know the general perception is that I am either very anti-social or that I hate everyone, this is not entirely true and I do actually talk to people on occasion. So brunch and a chance to actually find out what people have been up to was a welcome treat today. Unfortunately “Church” the usual venue for this type of social event has slipped slightly in the standard of service. It used to be a great place for a Sunday brunch but since a TV appearance of the chef in November it has gotten a lot busier, started serving donuts when you first arrive (you get three, regardless of how many people there are, or how many more turn up, you get three donuts). I don’t have a problem with free donuts per se- lots of places have free bread, but they do usually manage to get the food out relatively quickly. Here they seem to have managed to increase the wait time to a good 50 minutes from ordering. I could understand if I was asking for something complicated, but omelette and toast- really? I am the world’s worst cook and even I can create that in 10 minutes. I’m not sure what the plan is for next week, but it may involve a new breakfast location- personally I’m hoping for Chocolate milk shake.

I shall finish off the weekend with regular chores- the exciting life I lead! A bit of floor cleaning, a quick grocery trip to 7-11 J and an early night, all ready for the alarm call tomorrow morning.