beantown

Good old Beantown. I have never met anyone who has had a bad word to say about Boston. I mean, how could you. It’s the closest thing to a European city in the US and many of us need to visit Boston at least once to get a feel of what it was like back in the old days, when the redcoats were hanging around and most people walked to where they were going. Boston has always been a truly pedestrian town. Throw in some history, the Old North Church, some great old buildings and a fabulous river down the middle, and you’ve got your self a very cool atmosphere.

I mean this is where it all started, it was the cradle of democracy in those early years, with everyone from Washington to Adams to Hancock to Revere, all spending some time in Boston during the Revolutionary Era. It’s not too big and it’s not too small. Boston is just right, with just the right mix of people. You have the intellectuals across the river in Cambridge and you have the Irish in Southie and the Italians in the North End. In between, you have the most colleges in one city, thriving Chinese and Brazilian populations, all the blue-collar workers you could imagine and a strong gay population to boot. To the north, you have the beautiful White Mountains, Green Mountains, Maine Coastline and Canada. To the South, you have the Cape, the Islands, Casinos, and NYC. You are only a 5-hour flight to Dublin and a 2-hour flight to Bermuda. Drive 3 hours west and you are making a bet at Saratoga. Many people call Boston the “Hub of the Universe” and to me that is exactly what it is. At least that is what I thought when I moved up here in ’94.

After attending my brother’s wedding and selling all of my possessions, including my bed, in a garage sale, I loaded up the Supra and moved to Boston. My final destination was Allston St in Allston, MA. My roommates for the Summer of ’94 happened to be 6 lovely Irish women with me being the man of the house. Talk about landing on your feet. Through a few of my Irish friends I ended up living with my 18 year old Irish girlfriend and 5 other Irish beauties, one being my future wife.

The summer was a blast. I soon had plenty of guy friends sniffing around the apartment for dates with the girls. We would have a party every night with headstand keg drinking, nakedness running around and late night runs to the local pizza joint. It truly was a summer to remember. Nobody had a care in the world and whatever happened tomorrow, happened.