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This lovely hunk of Chocolate Lab is Riker, and he's our Sunday Dog today. Riker was taking his soccer ball on a walk with his family. After all, he considers his favorite toy part of the family.
Our Maggie Mae will choose her stuffed jack to bring to Ed for playtime each evening.
All the pups seem to have one toy they love the best. What's your dogs most beloved possession?
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Writers: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photo: © 2010 Penny CHerubino
Or does it?
Is this a creation of Mother Nature?
Or is Elvis making an appearance in the Back Bay?
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Writers: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: © 2010 Penny Cherubino
I never thought I'd ever have to admit this, but.... I am an iPhone Brat. "There's an App for that!" Well, no. Not yet anyway.
But in Boston, when you want the city to deal with a problem, (fill a gaping pot hole, erase graffiti, replace that streetlight...), there IS an app for that! It's called, Citizen Connect and it's free from the iTunes store. I'm making it our Friday link this week.
Penny and I have both added it to our phones and, so far, we've had great results. One axle-busting pothole fixed within days, an empty appliance box whisked away within hours, and a potential electrical hazard gone the next time we walked by it.
The software lets you report a problem, as you see it, using an exact google map location, a quick description, with room for a photo. And, you'll be given a tracking number to follow your service request.
The city says, depending on reaction to this app, they'll likely be more mobile applications ahead.
To find out more, check out the Citizens Connect iPhone App at
http://www.cityofboston.gov/mis/apps/iphone.asp
Here are a couple of books that we find handy to have around. Longtime residents will learn a few things. For newcomers they are great resources.
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Writer: Ed Cherubino
Photo: From the iTunes Store
Where, on one of Boston's busy shopping streets, will you find this window with a movie making theme?
"Attention to Detail" is a game we play here on BostonZest and in a newspaper column that Penny writes each week.
When you're ready, scroll down after the ads or click through to find the answer to this visual scavenger hunt.
Here are a few of the books on Boston architecture that Penny relies on for her research.
Continue reading "Where Is This Window With A Movie Making Theme?" »
We attend a good number of tastings, and truth-be-told, we (well one of us) had to learn the hard way how to successfully navigate larger tastings. Consider the following a guide to surviving and getting the most out of any wine tasting, but especially the stadium-sized events.
Here’s everything you’ll wish you had brought to a big event like the Boston Wine Expo...
A backpack, soft-sided briefcase, or tote bag with the little extras that will save you time on the Expo floor and help you enjoy the wines to the fullest. The bag should have a convenient outside pocket for stowing your tasting glass when you need two hands.
A loaf of French bread. While some exhibitors offer bread, or crackers to clear your palate, packing your own supply will ensure that you can clean your taste buds whenever you choose without wandering around looking for the nearest offering. Our friends, Peter and David, improved on this tip by pre-cutting the bread into large cubes for easy munching and adding slices of cheese to ensure we had food to offset all the wine.
Paper towels, dish towels, or cloth napkins. While there are pitchers of water and dumping buckets on every table, you’ll find yourself wanting to clean your glass more thoroughly about once an aisle.
A small note pad or voice recorder/SmartPhone for tasting notes, and a pad of Post-It® Notes to add comments to vendor's handouts. You can also use a camera to shoot wine labels you want to remember.
A pen that will write on almost any paper and a highlighter to mark the program. We find a Sharpie® extra fine point permanent marker seldom fails to perform.
Here are more tips that have worked for us.
Attend more than one day of a multi-day event. It'll give you a chance to try more wines and do better comparison tastings. For example: sample whites one day, reds the other. We've also limited the varieties we taste. One year we concentrated on pinot noir. In other years we tried syrahs, zinfandels, and sparkling wines.
Examine the program and highlight the tables you want to be certain to visit.
Arrive early. As the crowd builds, it can slow you down and some of the premium wines do run out. Hit your "must tastes" first thing on day one.
Remember to .... Spit!
Embarrassed to use a spit bucket? Then, try this. For the wine expo we carried a large plastic cup for spitting, and emptied it into the nearest table bucket, when it was convenient. (One of us has even been known to use her spit cup to pour out the wine the vintners require you to taste, before they'll let try their best offering.)
At a more intimate, invitation-only tasting over the holidays, we each grabbed an empty water tumbler for spitting. It took us some time to get comfortable with this process. And, there will invariably be occasions when you just won't allow yourself to spit those spectacular high-end wines.
Know your capacity - how to tell when you’ve reached your limit.
Remember, you'll never realistically be able to taste all the wines, so make some decisions before you begin. Getting the most out of the Boston Wine Expo takes planning and discipline. Let us know how you make out and add your own survival tips in the comments below.
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Writers: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: Our thanks for the use of these photos by Steve Garfield (used under Creative Commons License.) http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevegarfield/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Be sure to click over to:
We asked Steve to tell us about his book:
I've been blogging since 1997 and videoblogging since 2004. Over that time I've had thousands of interactions with people who are interested in learning how to put video online. This past year I wrote a book that compiles the latest information in an up to date guide. Steve
'Get Seen: Online Video Secrets to Building your Business'
Testun cheese, pressed and aged with the must of Nebbiolo grapes is our best bite this week.
We discovered a stack of it on the counter at Salumeria Italiana in the North End, asked a few questions and took home a hunk.
The Salumeria staff told us their customers love it and come back asking for the "Barolo cheese." Just say that, and they'll know exactly what you mean.
The Slow Food community also loves this cheese. In 1999 they awarded it first prize as the "Best Drunken Cheese in Italy." And, in an effort to preserve its production for future generations, they added it to the International "Ark of Taste"– an effort to "rediscover, catalog, describe and publicize forgotten flavors."
Of course, buying and eating these foods is the best way to protect their existence! We're willing to do our part– especially for a cheese with a wonderful nutty flavor and the kind of long aromatic finish that we normally associate with great wine. You really can taste the fruit from the must in the cheese.
Now we're looking for the perfect Barolo to match with our next piece of Testun. If you prefer beer with your cheese, the Artisanal Cheese Clock Pairing Tool suggests an ale or lambic beer with testun.
Testun is made from a blend of cow's and ewe's milk and is usually found in a semi-soft stage these days. The name "Testun" is from the local dialect word for headstrong or stubborn. It's been suggested that this is because it was often aged until it was hard and suitable for grating. We think it might be because once you've tried it, you become stubborn about having it regularly.
If you're reading this from another part of the country, you can buy this cheese through Amazon.
And, if you want to learn more about cheese, we highly recommend this new book from one of the best mentors in the world of cheeses, Max McCalman. We thank all of you who do your Amazon shopping from BostonZest. That's one way to keep this site going.
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Writers: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: © 2010 Penny Cherubino
Here's how to find out where you vote for tomorrow's (Tuesday, January 19th) special U.S. Senate election. This is an old post here is the 2012 Voter information. If you've moved since you last voted, are new to Boston, are voting for the first time or just can't remember where to cast your ballot, find your polling place at http://www.wheredoivotema.com/bal/myelectioninfo.php. And, this site works for any community in Massachusetts. The "Where do I vote MA" site will also answer other questions including: How to Register to Vote, the Names of your Elected Officials and City/Town Hall Addresses. Some voters in Boston do have different polling places for the January 19, 2010 Special State Election. The press releases from the Boston Election Department say, In South Boston:
"The three precincts (Ward 6, Precincts 7, 8, and 9) which voted at Saint Matthew will now vote at the Monsignor Powers Apartments, 120 L Street.
Since the Powers Apartments are located in Ward 6 Precinct 6, all voters in that precinct, who previously voted at the South Boston Neighborhood House Senior Center, will also vote at thePowers Apartments, 120 L Street.
Finally, voters in Ward 6 Precinct 4, who also voted at the Senior Center, will now vote at Julie’s Family Learning Program, 133 Dorchester Street. The voter entrance will be on the West Fourth Street side of the building, near the intersection of Dorchester Street. "
Details at http://www.cityofboston.gov/news/default.aspx?id=4511.
"The Boston Board of Election Commissioners reminds voters in Ward 4 Precincts 5 and 8 that their polling location will be temporarily moved for the January 19, 2010 Special State Election for United States Senator.
Due to a previously scheduled event at the Matthews Arena, both precincts will vote at Northeastern University’s Fenway Center, 77 Saint Stephen Street. Polls will be open from 7AM until 8PM."
Details at: http://www.cityofboston.gov/news/default.aspx?id=4512 . You may also contact the Boston Election Department at 617-635-3767. Details: Writer: Ed Cherubino Photo: © 2010 Penny Cherubino
