July 04

Happy Independence Day!

Boyfriend and I got our usual late start today, but we did shoehorn a full day's work into it. We positively filled our bagster, though we're still shoving stuff into the nooks and crannys. We got an excellent start by moving a large but beat-up dresser first; getting something large out of the way showed real progress right away. I also have to admit, busting down the drawers with a hammer to lay flat was quite cathartic.

Unfortunately, even with all our work, we're not nearly done with the cleaning and decluttering. Fortunately, we have tomorrow to try and finish up.

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May 23

The City of Boston is holding a small Memorial Day observance tomorrow at the Mount Hope Cemetery in Mattapan. Boston purchased this cemetery 140 years ago, and offers veterans and dependents free plots here. It is also the site of a memorial dedicated to all veterans.

I drove by this afternoon and was struck at the sight of all the freshly-planted flags. Each flag marks the gravesite of a veteran. It is a moving sight.

Getting this photo of the day was very difficult. I couldn't -- and wouldn't -- cheapen such a moving sight by merely viewing at it as camera fodder. I tried many angles, including close-ups of individual stones and shooting the memorial without the gravesites, before deciding on this shot of some of the graves, with the memorial standing guard in the back.

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March 17

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Or, since I'm in Boston, I suppose I should say Happy Evacuation Day!

Normally I wear a pretty blue Addison on Madison silk necktie as part of my uniform. However ... (select below):

1. ... in honor of St. Patrick driving the snakes from Ireland, I decided to wear this pretty green necktie instead.
2. ... in honor of George Washington driving the British from Boston in the first major victory of the Revolutionary War, thus setting in motion the events that led to our independence from Great Britain, I decided to wear this pretty green necktie instead.

Whatever reason is given, it's a dandy excuse to wear a pretty new tie to work. :-)

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February 14

Happy Valentine's Day!

Boyfriend and I both feel somewhat under the weather, so we decided not to do anything for this utterly commercial holiday. Why bother? We've been together for seven Valentine's Days now, so it's obvious that we don't need to spend money on each other to prove our love.

That having been said, on my way home from running errands today, I happened to pass the romantically-named "Halls of Tara" florist in West Roxbury -- it appealed to my Irish heritage, I suppose. So I turned around, parked, and picked up some flowers (tulips) for the boyfriend in a pretty purple vase.

Boyfriend, on the other hand, had already picked up a little something for me while returning from his trip. He got me a beautiful pair of Duchamp cufflinks from Harrods in London.

Obviously, neither of us follow directions very well. And really, it's kind of sweet, isn't it?

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