Geoff and I may not live in Cambridge anymore, but we still work there and it is my heart-home. That’s why when a giantfireblewup in the middle of the city at the end of 2016 it felt not only like a giant slap in the face, we anxiously watched as people we knew, first responders primarily, fought to save the community we love. Some of the people displaced by the fire turned out to be from MIT. Nobody we knew personally, but the MIT and Cambridge communities rallied around them.
Collective memories are short, especially for tragedy. That fire was at the beginning of December. Other things have happened since then, and this next week is going to be a busy one in the US. Happily, there are still benefits happening in and around Cambridge for the 125 people displaced by those fires. Displaced is a really clean, clinical term for, “lost everything in a raging inferno from HELL.” I know, I had to deal with the aftermath of the fire that killed my grandmother. Once you’ve been through a fire you never, ever forget.
This weekend, if you’re around Cambridge and you can, help these folks out. I can pretty much promise you they had the worst holiday of their lives, and they’re going to be rebuilding for years. Here’s a really enjoyable way to lend a hand.
There’s even going to be time to go, enjoy yourself, and get home in time for the Sherlock S4 finale.
I like doing shows, don’t get me wrong, but I’m just glad that 2016 is almost over. We can count it in days now, people. So let’s celebrate with my last market of the year. Somerville Local First is presenting their Holiday Marketplace on Sunday December 11th from 10am-4pm.
This weekend isn’t all about Turkey, Black Friday, and football. It’s also about Small Business Saturday & Sunday, sometimes called Plaid Saturday & Sunday. These days are the exact opposite of what Black Friday is all about. They’re about shopping at local stores, shopping handmade, and keeping your holiday spending in your local economy where it will do the most good.
As it so happens, I have two Small Business Weekend shows this weekend, and they’re going to be a wonderful antidote to Black Friday insanity, indigestion from eating too much, and Forced Family Fun Time.
For the second year in a row I am proud to participate in the Old Schwamb Mill Craft Show and Sale. This Saturday from 11am-7pm, thirteen artisans will be on site at the Old Schwamb Mill to sell hand-made arts and crafts. The Mill will be open to the public and a portion of all proceeds will go toward the preservation and conservation of the historic mill building.
It’s that time of year again. The When PatientsHeal You concert is back. Only this year we’ve moved out of the lecture hall at the BU Medical Center and we’re back at my alma mater, Boston University. In fact, we’ll be performing in the concert hall where I did my undergraduate recital lo these many years ago.
It will be much like years past, all the performers will be neurology patients of Boston Medical Center and many of them will be epileptics like me. We’ll all get to perform two pieces and probably bring the house down at the end with big sing a long with Denise at the keyboard.
There’s usually a reception afterward with tasty food and a chance to mingle with the performers and the medical staff who not only provide us with excellent care, they sometimes even perform with us. Please join us on Friday night for a great concert and a lot of fun. This is a free event. Tell your friends.
If you haven’t actually gotten it together to go see Meravelha perform yet, well, I have no idea what you’re waiting for. They’re reprising their signature concert for two performances this month. Do your best to go and see, you don’t want to miss this.
Even semi-regular visitors around here know that Geoff and I like old stuff. And by old stuff I mean antiques. We have a lot of them around the house. (To be fair we have a reasonable amount of old rocks too, but most of them are set into jewelry.) Some of the antiques we own come to us in rough shape. Some of it we’re good at restoring ourselves, but sometimes we need to involve a professional. Note that you’ll never see an antique piece of furniture painted “shabby chic” or with chalkboard paint in our home. NEVER.
But, you will see furniture with good bones get reupholstered. Reupholstery is part of restoration, sometimes the fabric on a piece isn’t original or is but is too badly damaged to salvage. That’s where a really good upholsterer comes in.
This is going to be so much fun. This year I get to participate as a vendor in The Look of Local Fashion Show, an event put on by Cambridge Local First in conjunction with The Garment District and Boston Costume and a bunch of the most happening local businesses around. It is going to be fantastic.
My first Fall show is upon us! That’s right, it’s Riverfest 2016! Everything is happening tomorrow from 12-8pm and when I say everything I mean absolutely everything.
Before I start talking about this particular Park Service ranger, I wanted to put it in context of my own relationship with the Park Service. I have been a fan of the Park Service for a very, very long time, at least since I was a boy. And for about a decade in my twenties and early thirties I was a volunteer for them at Stones River National Battlefield (in fact, you can occasionally still see a photo of me in my Union Army Civil War uniform in old park literature) in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Occasionally I also did programs at other Civil War battlefields and sites. I miss it, frankly. Perhaps one day I will be in a position to do that sort of volunteer work again.
Anyway, I still read a lot about things going on with the Park Service and I generally try to keep up with things going on with NPS. Like any organization, NPS has its celebrities. I had the privilege of meeting one of them, Civil War historian Ed Bearss, now retired, on several occasions. Ed is a warm, funny, extremely intelligent and knowledgeable guy with an incredible work ethic. And in that regard I am reminded of him by Betty Reid Soskin, another NPS celebrity. Betty is an extraordinary woman who also happens to be the oldest serving U.S. Park Service Ranger. She currently works at the Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Park in Richmond, California. In fact, Betty was absolutely instrumental in the creation of that historic park. And since she herself lived through the events preserved at the site, she has her own unique and fascinating stories to tell about that time in our history, including what it was like to be a woman of color in that segregated era.
US Park Service Ranger Betty Reid Soskin (photo by Justin Sullivan via NPR)
Last year she lit the National Christmas Tree and got to meet President Barack Obama, who gave her a special commemorative coin as a souvenir and gift. At the ceremony, she carried a photograph of her great-grandmother, who was born a slave in 1846 and died in 1948 at the age of 102. She carried the same photograph in her pocket in 2009, when she witnessed President Obama’s inauguration.
Well, something terrible happened to her this past Monday. She was beaten and robbed in her own home there in Richmond. And one of the things the a**hole thief took from her was the coin the President gave her.
What kind of person does that? Who attacks a 94-year-old woman? How utterly depraved and/or desperate do you have to be to do that? God, I hope the police catch whoever did this to her. And the President has already said that he will replace the coin.
Luckily, she seems to be recovering. But if you want to help her, the Rosie the Riveter Trust has organized a fund to help Betty out with her expenses while she recovers. And being the awesome person she is, Betty has already said that any excess funds will be used for a special documentary film history project about her life.
Glad you are still with us, Betty, and from the East Coast, we all wish you the very best and hope you get well soon. We love you.
The Books are Taking Over... 