June 2006 Archives

Lots of stuff is happening in the city this July 4th weekend. Check one of them out although frankly this is the one weekend when everyone seems to want to visit a tourist site. The only way to avoid the crowds is to stay in. Or fly to Canada.

Going straight to the weird! Check out Firefly, which is an arts festival similar to Burning Man, only local -- it's in Vermont. People come with tents and create a real artist community. June 30 - July 3rd. firefly.chaoshacker.org. Noon Friday straight through to Noon Monday. Bring your own tent.

Not weird enough? OK, check out the Old Orchard Beach Parade & Sandcastle Sculpture Competition. This is in Maine, but it's less than 2 hours from Boston. www.oldorchardbeachmaine.com. July 3 - 4. Old Orchard Street at West Grand Avenue, Old Orchard Beach, ME. 207-934-9068. Parade, square dancing, sand sculptures.

Still not weird enough? The largest local Native American event of the year is happening this week. I got this straight from one of the leaders. It's the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Annual Pow-wow, July 1-3. 483 Great Neck Road South, Mashpee, MA, which is on Cape Cod. www.powwowschedule.com. 508-477-0208.

Boston Harborfest is this week, June 28 - July 4th, and it includes Chowderfest, which is about eating a lot of clam chowder. www.bostonharborfest.com. City Hall Plaza, Boston. 617-436-6339. Many small events throughout the city. The event is very touristy. Avoid. But it exists, so I'm listing it.

The summer season is starting for the Publick Theatre - the outdoor theatre at 1175A Soldiers Field Road, in Brighton. www.publicktheatre.com. 617-782-5425. Christian Herter Park. Take Storrow Drive west, which becomes Soldier's Field Road. Parking is 500 yards on the right after Harvard athletic fields. Closed when raining. Bring a picnic meal and arrive early for best seating. Not to be confused with the Shakespeare on the Common which are different people and doesn't start until late July.

New Bedford and Marblehead are both having summer festivals. Greater New Bedford Summerfest, July 1-2, www.newbedfordsummerfest.com. Over 20,000 attend. And the Marblehead Summer Festival, July 1-4, www.marbleheadfestival.org. Kites, model boat building, wood carving, sand sculpture, normally I avoid this small town stuff but this one looks surprisingly interesting.

It's also the Longfellow Summer Festival. Horn music and poetry, including presumably some of Longfellow's, at the Longfellow Historic Site. Participatory painting, drawing. Bring a blanket or lawn chair. July 2nd at 105 Brattle Street in Cambridge. 617-876-4491.

Obviously, the 4th of July celebration with the Boston Pops concert on the esplanade and fireworks is coming up. www.july4th.org.

But did you know that there are tons of other celebrations? Just about every city has one. Bristol RI has the oldest parade in the country. And Sturbridge Village, the re-enactment museum of the 19th century, is having a celebration too. www.osv.org. In Sturbridge, MA.

There's going to be a USS Constitution Sunset Parade on July 1st. If you've never see the Constitution, which is basically a very old ship, this is a good time to check it out. 7pm: fife & drum, Marine Corps, firing cannons, gun exercises. In Boston.

And if that's not enough for you, this weekend is also the Brockton Country Fair, June 29 - July 9th. It's one of many agricultural shows in Massachusetts. www.brocktonfair.com. It's fun in a shlocky cutesy way. Historic Brockton Fairgrounds, RT. 123. Brockton, MA. 508-586-8000. Rt 24S to Exit 17A, Rt 123E (Belmont St) two miles on the right. Contests for raising the best sheep, baking the best pie, and maybe they'll even have pig racing. Yee haw!

If that's unsatisfying, then I suggest that you check out the Paper House, www.paperhouserockport.com, 52 Pigeon Hill St, Rockport, MA. Rt 127N left onto Curtis St, left onto Pigeon Hill St. Open all day. Somebody made a house entirely out of newspapers. Wacked, yo.

Going straight to the weird! It's the Sandcastle Festival at Hampton Beach in New Hampshire, with the award ceremony happening June 24th but the sculptures are on display through June 30th. Ocean Boulevard, Hampton, NH. www.hamptonbeach.org. 603-926-8718. Great! Saturday June 24th, awards 8pm then fireworks. Competition is invitation only, looks great. They have fireworks at 9:30pm every Wednesday Jul-Aug, too.

Not weird enough? This weekend see Summer Revels at the Boston Children's Museum in Boston, June 24-25. www.bostonkids.org/calendar/calendar062006.html. 7-9pm performers, plus workshops, stage production and $1 admission. Don't ask whose idea it was to have a childrens' performance so late in the day.

Still not weird enough...? See the Western Mass Highland Games & Celtic Festival, June 24. Unfortunately, it is way out in Western Massachusetts at Franklin County Fairgrounds, 89 Wisdom Way in Greenfield, MA. 413-584-9182. www.wmhg.org. Bagpipes, fiddles, falconry, traditional games, dancing, pipe & drum, sounds quite interesting.

Also see The Capitol Steps Musical Revue, which is a comedy troupe doing musical skits parodying current events. These are the folks you may have heard on NPR. June 24th, Cutler Majestic Theatre, Boston. www.telecharge.com. 800-447-7400

At MIT they're having an Ice Cream Buffet, from 3-5pm, June 23rd, at the Stata Atrium at MIT. All you can eat from Brighams Ice Cream. Get tickets for $4 from MITAC which has a booth on the 1st floor of the Stata Center next to the cafeteria. I'm sure they won't ask you for a student ID.

The Newport Flower Show is June 23-25 at the Rosecliff mansion on 548 Bellevue Avenue in Newport. www.newportmansions.org/page4702.cfm. Friday 12-5. Sat-Sun, 9-5. It doesn't look like that big a deal, but a great excuse to visit the Newport mansions and cliffwalk.

If that's not exciting enough, try a Helicopter Ride. www.bostonhelicopter.com. 30 Rowes Wharf, Suite 330. Boston, MA. 617-737-2427. Year-round. $200 each for 30 minutes. Or Ryan Rotors in Plymouth, www.ryanrotors.com, $75 for 15 min, $125 for 30 min.

Speaking of vehicular tourism, try taking a Gondola trip on the Charles River. www.bostongondolas.com, April thru September. Makes a good gift. Call in advance. At the Hatch Shell on the Esplanade. Ride on the Charles River w/music. It's so romantic, they say a marriage proposal never fails. But that's partly because if your girlfriend turns you down, where's she gonna go? She's stuck on a boat with you, surrounded on all sides by water.

Speaking of the Esplanade, did you know that they have Hatch Shell events on the Esplanade all spring and summer? www.mass.gov/dcr/hatch_events.htm. Movies, classical concerts, and charity walks most weekends, May 1 - Oct 15.

I just went to Walden Pond for the first time ever in daylight. It's a good experience, here are a few tips. You can get away from the kids by walking through the woods until you come to an alternative beach. The Walden Shop doesn't sell lunch foods, but the ice cream truck does sell sandwiches heavily marked up... better to bring your own food. Walden's best feature is that it is close to Boston. But if you have time for an entire day trip, visit another state park instead. See http://www.mass.gov/dcr/forparks.htm

Finally, try taking a walk (or a guided tour) through the Forest Hills Cemetery (95 Forest Hills Ave, Boston), which is dotted with sculptures. www.foresthillstrust.org. 617-524-0128. Daily dawn to dusk. 275 acres. Or the Mount Auburn Cemetery, which has an audio tour and many famous people are buried there. 580 Mount Auburn St, Cambridge. www.mountauburn.org. every day of the year from 8 AM to 5 PM. From May through September the grounds are open to 7 PM. They're both quite beautiful and calming if you can get around the fact that thousands of dead people are there and someday you and everyone you know will be dead, too. Actually, personally I plan on living forever through technology, so whatever.

To see my big list in full, June edition, check Johnny's Big List of New England Activities.

See last two entries also for this week.

This just in. There's a "Portugal Day" festival at the corner of Cambridge St & Cardinal Medeiros Ave in Cambridge on Sunday June 18th.

The Boston Prostate Cancer Walk is June 18th as well. No, I am not making that up! See it at http://www.bostonpcwalk.org

June 17th they're giving free sailboat rides at the Boston Sailing Center. Lewis Wharf, off Atlantic Ave in Boston. 1:00pm-6:00pm, 617-227-4198, http://www.bostonsailingcenter.com

Don't forget Fathers Day and there's some kind of Cup around the World involving Socks.

There's a Big Band concert in Columbus Park June 17th from 3-4:30pm. http://www.bostoncentral.com/events/music/p2622.php

Sunday June 18th there's an Israeli celebration throughout the Boston area. www.cjp.org/celebrateisrael

There's a walking tour of the Arnold Arboretum on Wednesday June 21st, 7:30pm. Free. www.nps.gov. Finally you'll have someone to tell you something about all those trees besides just the tags with species names.

Heads up: Chicago and Huey Lewis and the News perform July 25-26 at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston. Kelly Clarkson, July 6th at the Tweeter Center.

See last entry for what's happening this weekend. I just wanted to take a break and talk about Maine, which I've been researching lately. Now I know a ton about Acadia National Park, which is supposed to be beautiful.

First off, Maine is a huge place which is frustrating because you can't just explore the whole state. You have to sift through all the brochures and websites and figure out what's going to be nearby. Acadia Park itself is sort of spread out, but it is mainly on Mount Desert Island, and the closest real town is Bar Harbor, ME. So that's going to be your base, unless you'd prefer to camp in the park itself. All the amenities and tour guides and cultural events stem from Bar Harbor.

Two parts. First, On the Way Up to or From Bar Harbor, you'll go through Portsmouth, NH, Kennebunk, ME, York, ME, and Old Orchard Beach, ME. The New Hampshire locations are on Rt 95 which is NOT the way to get to the White Mountains (Rt 93 is), so actually this is a nice excuse to visit a part of New Hampshire you wouldn't normally go to. I've done quite a bit of research and these are the largest tourist attractions on this journey, excepting shopping outlets. :)

Funtown Splashtown	Saco	www.funtownusa.com	207-284-5139	774 Portland Rd. Rt 1. Racing cars, water park, roller coaster, other rides.
Palace Playland	Old Orchard Beach	www.palaceplayland.com	207-934-2001	Old Orchard Street
Desert of Maine	Freeport	www.desertofmaine.com		95 Desert Rd
Mini Golf - Pirates Cove	Old Orchard Beach	www.piratescove.net/location/8		70 First St.
Racing mini-cars - Maine Indoor Karting	Scarborough	www.maineindoorkarting.com		23 Washington Avenue
York's Wild Kingdom, Zoo & Amusement Park	York Beach	www.yorkzoo.com	207-363-4911	Rt 1. Just 10 minutes north of Portsmouth, NH.
Water Country	Portsmouth NH
Strawbery Banke Museum	Portsmouth NH

Each of these looks worth visiting, and I've actually been to Water County, which is the largest in New England, and great fun. Also I've been to the Strawbery Banke Museum which is like Sturbridge Village (1840s) and Plymoth Plantation (1620s) in that they have live recreation actors who will teach you a little about the 1890s and settlers.

There are not a whole lot of festivals in Maine, but Festivals on the way to Acadia include the below. I always try to plan my day trips and vacations to co-incide with some kind of festival because I figure that way I am getting the most out of the region.

Festivals - On the Way to Acadia
Great Falls Balloon Festival	Lewiston	www.greatfallsballoonfestival.com	800-639-6331	Aug 18.
Great Northeastern War - Medievial Re-enactment	Hebron	www.malagentia.eastkingdom.org/FrameEvents.html		Jul 14-16.
Maine Highland Games	Brunswick	www.mainehighlandgames.org	207-688-4515	Aug 19
Old Orchard Beach Parade & Sandcastle Sculpture Competition	Old Orchard Beach	www.oldorchardbeachmaine.com	207-934-9068	Jul 3-4.

Some comments. The medeival re-enactment is an SCA event (Society for Creative Anachronism) and is likely to be very geeky and not necessarily accessible to outsiders. Any balloon festival is at the whim of the weather.

OK now let's get to Part Two, Things To Do Around Bar Harbor (Acadia). These include:

Swimming
Sand Beach				The two beaches in Acadia National Park
Echo Lake Beach				The two beaches in Acadia National Park
Kayak
National Park Sea Kayak Tours	Bar Harbor	www.acadiakayak.com	800-347-0940
Coastal Kayaking Tours	Bar Harbor		800/526-8615
Hiking
Bike rentals				The two most popular places to start your ride are Eagle Lake and Jordan Pond.
Acadia Bike Rentals	Bar Harbor		800/526-8615
Bar Harbor Bicycle Shop	Bar Harbor		800/824-2453
Moose tours
Bar Harbor Ferry to Winter Harbor	Bar Harbor	www.barharborferry.com	207/288-2984
Oceanarium
American Revolutionary War sites
Acadia Zoo	Trenton	www.acadiainfo.com/acadiazoo.htm	207-667-3244	9:30-dark. 45 species.
The Maine Lumberjack Show	Ellsworth	www.mainelumberjack.com	207-667-0067	Shows nightly at 7pm, June 17-Aug 15. Also log rolling lessons.
Criterion Theatre	Bar Harbor	www.criteriontheatre.com		Mainly movies, but "Così fan tutte" July 22nd
Pirates Cove Mini-Golf	Bar Harbor	www.piratescove.net/location/7	207-288-2133	RR #1 Box 1150
Birding - Downeast Nature Tours	Bar Harbor	www.mainebirding.net/downeast/	207-288-8128	behavior and ecology of land and sea animals
The Grand	Ellsworth	www.grandonline.org
Birdsacre Wildlife Sanctuary	Ellsworth
Rock Climbing
Acadia Mountain Guides Climbing School	Bar Harbor	www.acadiamountainguides.com	888/232-9559
Atlantic Climbing School	Bar Harbor	www.acadiaclimbing.com	207/288-2521
Dive Tours	Bar Harbor	www.divered.com	207-288-DIVE	Tourists watch but don't do any actual diving?
Boat Cruise - Margaret Todd	Bar Harbor	www.downeastwindjammer.com	207/288-4585
Whale Watches
Acadian Whale Adventures	Bar Harbor	www.barharborwhales.com	207/288-9800
Bar Harbor Whale Watch Co	Bar Harbor	www.whalesrus.com	207/288-2386
Seacoast Fun Park	Trenton		207/667-3573	go-karts, two short waterslides, and a miniature golf course

I don't have any experience with these events, but the lumberjack show looks like a lot of fun -- and finding something to do in the evening is the hardest part of a wilderness vacation. I went on a moose tour in New Hampshire and it was awesome, so I recommend that. Take some dramamine if you go on a whale watch. I went once in high school, the waves were choppy and about half the kids threw up. This is how I learned that I'm in the top half of non-queasy people, thank goodness.

If you can't read these tables very well, email me, johnnydeppfun@yahoo.com, and I'll send you the spreadsheet.

Finally, here are the festivals I was able to find around Acadia. I'm quite sure that I haven't missed anything big.

Arcady Music Festival	Bar Harbor	www.arcady.org		Jul 17 - Aug 24. Jazz is Aug 14-17. Just one band per week!
Bar Harbor Music Festival	Bar Harbor	www.barharbormusicfestival.org		July 2 - 30. All classical except July 23rd Jazz.
Independence Day	Bar Harbor			July 4th. Parade, seafood festival, lobster races, fireworks
Lobster Festival	Winter Harbor			Aug 12th

I am forced to say that I'm disappointed that so few cultural things are happening in the evenings. Acadia National Park is the only national park in New England and quite a few tourists attend. These people need more things to do when it's too dark for nature walks. Specifically, the two music festivals seem kinda lame. The Bar Harbor festival is classical only, which is not my bag, baby. And the Arcady Music Festival features one group per week... so if you take a week's vacation that's good for one night tops. Call me crazy but I really think a "festival" is an event which is happening at a pace of at lease one performer per night.

Finally, a word of caution! Those crazy Maine people recently changed all their highway exit numbers, and some of the highway numbers too. So your old map may not work very well. Keep track of the names of the towns you pass, they didn't change those, so I guess they think they're clever keeping tourists away but we'll outsmart them.

OK, now you know everything I know about visiting Acadia National Park. Personally I plan to go up August 12th and catch the lobster festival, and return Aug 18-19 and catch the balloon festival and the highland games.

Going straight to the weird! It's the Higgins Faire at the Higgins Armory Museum, June 17th. It's a medeival celebration, with pipe and drums, street performers, and re-enactors including vikings and roman legionnaires. I've been to the museum and there are hundreds of old suits of armor, it's quite interesting. This is their big event of the year so if you're ever going to visit the Armory this would be it. At the Higgins Armory, 100 Barber Ave, Worcester. www.higgins.org, 508-853-6015.

Not weird enough? Check out the Quechee Balloon Festival & Crafts Fair in Quechee, VT, June 16-18. I bet it's going to be awesome, but call ahead 800-295-5451 to book your balloon ride, and it's dependent on the weather. I went to the Balloon Festival at E3 last weekend (see earlier blog) and they weren't flying anything due to heavy wind. Unfortunately it's a 4 hour drive, so make it a whole weekend if you go.

It turns out, by the way that there are No Balloon Trips near-ish to Boston, because of safety regulations (everything airborne needs to have special equipment to integrate with air traffic patterns) and also because you can't really steer balloons very well and nobody wants to land on somebody's house or telephone pole. But if you're willing to drive an hour out, you can find balloon companies locally. Festival ballooning is about 50% as expensive though. You can pay more like $250+ for ballooning otherwise.

Still not weird enough? How about Going Caving in upstate New York, at Howe's Cavern (www.howecaverns.com) and the Secret Caverns (www.secretcaverns.com). Unfortunately, there aren't any real caves in New England (although they fake it at the Polar Caves in New Hampshire, see earlier post). However I took a day trip last weekend to upstate New York. There are two ways to do it. The easiest is to just show up and join regular guided tours. Howes is a little touristy but very professional. The tours are a little sanitized, you are basically on walkways and can't touch anything. Secret Caverns is more homey but beautiful and you may have the tour all to yourself. The tours are really amazing and highly recommended! Despite the 3-hour drive, it's worth it, especially if you make it a weekend and find other things to do in the area.

The second way to go caving is to call ahead (either location) and reserve an adventure caving tour. You actually put on a helmet and head lamp, boots, and go wading through streams and climbing around rock formations, really getting close and deep into the caves. I didn't try this but really want to. Also the MIT Caving Club at web.mit.edu/spelunk/www does weekend trips and many of them are suitable for beginners. They have club meetings Wednesdays at 7:30 but I went and found the conversation non-beginner-oriented, I left. So the best thing to do is just email 'em and go on a trip appropriate for your level of skill.

Not weird enough (or too far)? Check out The Liquor Store, which is a bar not a store, really bad branding I guess. www.liquorstoreboston.com, 25 Boylston Place in Boston, b/w Charles & Tremont St. They have Boston's only mechanical bull, which I bet is a blast. Call ahead and see if there's a long wait, 617-357-6800. No hats, sneakers, workboots, athletic wear. No ripped, torn or baggy jeans. No shorts, sandals or t-shirts.

This weekend is the Provincetown International Film Festival, June 14-18, on Cape Cod, www.ptownfilmfest.org, although I can't see why anyone would go to Cape Cod and spend 20 hours indoors, unless it's all in the evening I guess.

There's a minor celebration of Bunker Hill Day on June 17th, with a commemorative march and musket demonstration. But the big parade was apparently last weekend, which makes no sense whatsoever. Anyone, the site is closed and undergoing repairs so catch this NEXT year.

The Floating Gallery is having a show on June 17th, 4-7pm, at O2 Yoga at 288 Highland Avenue, Somerville. www.floatinggallery.org. I'm listing this out of pure kindness, since I have no idea what kind of art will be on display, even though I wrote the organizer and asked. But I went to the last one and it was worth stopping by.

Finally, the event I really recommend this week is the Cambridge River Festival, in Cambridge obviously, June 17th. www.ci.cambridge.ma.us/~CAC/. 12pm-6pm. Rain or shine. Along Memorial Drive b/w Harvard & Central Squares. Music, dancing, art, street vendors. It's Cambridge; they're a little hippie crazy and they want to share. Join them.

I'm going to listen to some Jazz at Scullers Jazz Club on Friday. I've heard that Wally's also has great Jazz. Use Google and explore if you care.

This just in.

The New England Conservatory "Guitarfest" is Wed 6/7 - Sunday 6/11. Harpsichords, sitars, and other string instruments are featured as well. www.newenglandconservatory.edu. 30 Gainsborough St, Boston.

Also, Rock 'N Ribfest 2006 and the New Hampshire State Barbecue Championships are this weekend, June 9-11, rain or shine. Music and BBQ, what could be better. http://rotaryribfest.org. Merrimack, NH, which is just over the border and not too far (just 1 hour) from Boston.

Also see last post, which is also for the upcoming weekend.

Plenty of stuff is happening this weekend. Going straight to the weird, you can meet Henry Thoreau at The Old Manse this weekend. Thoreau is the Walden Pond guy you learned about in grade school. He's dead but they'll have a re-enactor. June 10th in Concord, 269 Monument St. 12pm-2pm.

If that's not weird enough, how about the Boston Dragon Boat Festival, Sunday June 11th, www.bostondragonboat.org. 9am-5pm. It's on the Charles River in Cambridge. Dance and music performances all day.

It's the Lowell Comedy Festival, www.lowellcomedyfestival.com, Jun 8-11. I don't know what to say about this, except that I wasn't very impressed with the Lowell Folk Festival. Or Lowell in general.

Way out in Springfield, they are having the Big Y Annual Balloon & Music Festival at the "Big E". www.thebige.com. June 9-11. I went last year and the Big E is pretty hokey but worth checking out once in your lifetime. This is a different event that happens to take place on the Big E fairgrounds.

While you are out west, check out the Pioneer Valley Renaissance Faire, June 11th, www.sismoon.com/pvrf.htm. At the Amherst Town Common in Amherst, MA. 10am-6pm. Free.

Also the Boston Sport Kite Championships are June 9-11 at Millenium Park which is just off the VFW Parkway in West Roxbury. www.seasidekites.com/events.htm. I've been before and it's great fun. The kites have two strings so you can steer them. They have choreographed kite duets, kite fighting, etc. One secret about kites I learned when I went -- the cheap kites you buy in a toy store don't fly very easily for a novice. Go to a hobby store instead (they'll have a few booths there) and ask for something appropriate for your level of skill.

The Irish Connections Festival is also this weekend, Jun 9-11, www.irishculture.org/festival. It's at 200 New Boston Drive in Canton, which is off Rt 138. This is the largest Irish festival on the East Coast, with over 500 performers. I went last year and felt it was pretty hokey, unfortunately, although nothing could be as hokey as the Big E. Borderline worth checking out.

June 10th, which is Saturday, is the Coolidge Corner Arts Festival, at Beacon Street & Harvard Street in Brookline. There are many arts festivals throughout the summer. Basically about 80 artists set up tents and you can buy stuff. Not exactly worth traveling to see, but if you're in the area, check it out.

I would much rather suggest you visit the DeCordova Museum's Art in the Park Festival. June 11th (Sunday) only, 10am-5pm. at 51 Sandy Pond Road in Lincoln. The DeCordova is my favorite museum in the Boston area... they have fantastic sculptures and the museum itself is surrounded by a park dotted with more sculptures. This would be a great excuse to check it out.

If you have an excuse to visit Connecticut, see the New England Fiddle Contest, www.fiddlefest.org, June 10th in Bushnell Park in Hartford, CT.

Annie, the musical you love even though you may find the kid annoying, because dammit you could have been a child actor, is opening June 13th at the Opera House. www.broadwayinboston.com/html/shows

Last week I checked out indoor rock climbing in the Boston area. It turns out that there are two ways to do it. Way 1 is the serious indoor gym way. Unfortunately, you need a human to "belay" you -- they basically hold the rope for you and take up the slack as you climb, so that if you fall you drop about 2 inches and you're fine. Belayers at these gyms are few, so you need to plan 3-7 days in advance and reserve a spot. Another way to do it is to take a class, and then you and a buddy can belay for each other and you can come anytime (but you may have to become a member). Way 1 spaces follow: The world's largest rock climbing gym is in Fall River, Carabiners, www.carabiners.com, 328 Parker Street. The closest ones to Boston are Boston Rock Gym, www.bostonrockgym.com, 78G Olympia Ave in Woburn; MetroRock, www.metrorock.com, at 69 Norman Street in Everett. My pick would be the Oak Square YMCA at 615 Washington St. in Brighton, www.ymcaboston.org. Basically at the YMCA you take one class for $50 and then you can come in and climb all you want. Also some of these gyms lead tours throughout New England, or check out a local college like MIT for their climbing club.

OK, so what's Way 2? Way 2 is for explorers like me who are unlikely to ever go rock climbing and just want to try it in an amusement park atmosphere. I don't want to pay a lot, basically I just want to go climbing. Well, it was raining on Friday so that ruled out the local amusement parks -- Funway Cafe (Foxboro and East Bridgewater, www.funwaycafe.com) and Starland (Hanover, MA, www.starland.us). However! I discovered that a sports store, Dick's Sporting Goods is both indoor and gives you the no-fuss Way 2 experience. It's located at the Liberty Tree Mall in Danvers, MA. 978-646-6400. The website doesn't mention the rock climbing. The staff was really supportive and helpful. They give you climbing shoes, and there typically isn't a line to wait, so you can just drop in anytime wearing anything. I got about halfway before my fingers gave out. Then two kids both climbed fearlessly to the top. As a self-confident male with no need to prove my masculinity, I explain this simply by the fact that the kids weigh less so probably they have more finger strength as a ratio to body weight. Are you buying this? :)

As I mentioned last week, it's Pride Week, aka Gay & Lesbian & Others Pride Week. The big event of the week is on Saturday, June 10th, the parade and festival, and there's a "block party" happening Sunday June 11th. www.bostonpride.org

Finally, you are totally missing the Scooper Bowl (June 6-8), go check it out. See last posting.