Beantown: Day the First

If my Boston "to do list" consisted of: contribute to the early death of someone, sit in a cold dark room for hours, and get rained on, then I would have had a successful trip thus far. The flights up here were unremarkable except for awesome turbulence, an older couple (in their 80s) taking my window seat on the plane, which I don't know why since they got up to use the bathroom every half hour, and realization of how awful the security/boarding process is. I'm happy to say that my checked bag my it also and met me at the airport. After getting to a friend's place, unpacking, and getting settled in, I decided that it was time for some food.

Isn't it a picturesque scene?

So, I set off to satisfy the hunter/gatherer in me and find some food. I was fine walking through the snow and the rain but I learned about something that I really do not like. Which, as an aside, anybody reading this post who has actually lived in snowy climates might actually already know about this problem. I did not. It seems that when snow gets scraped to the side of the road and its raining that the rain really likes to accumulate in the handicap ramp part of crosswalks.

You may not be able to see it well in the picture, but within that puddle was a land shark, a small child, and one of those cartoon-y bear trap things.

I found out about the puddles the hard way--yep, I stepped in no less than seven before I figured out what was happening and why I kept making big splashes. In my own defense, I was a bit distracted thinking about how delicious the Greek Corner food was going to be. Once I did get to the Greek Corner I walked in and had this conversation (read "Host" in a thick Greek accent):

Host: We don't have any power.
Me: Okay (as I get ready to turn around and walk out).
Host: So, our credit card machine isn't working.
Me: I have cash.
Host: Okay, you come sit over here.

Waitress: What would you like?
Me: Can I get the sausage pita with fries?
Waitress: Let me check....yes, you can get that.
Me: Excellent.

Right, not that exciting right? Well, the sausage is cooked over charcoal. And there is no power. Which means no exhaust vents in the kitchen (where I was told they were using flashlights to see their cooking). Do you see the problem yet? I was not the only person eating there either. By the end of my meal, which was delicious, there was a lot of smoke in the restaurant and I'm scared to check the Boston news today because I really don't want to read about how everyone in the Greek Corner died.

Anyways, to make the long day shorter, the power was out all over town. I came back to a dark, cold house, tried to do some preparations for the interview, and then hung out in a cold dark room where at least it was dry. Power come back on around 9pm.

Thus far in the trip I have learned, snow really isn't that bad. Boston is very expensive to live. I really miss The Wife and The Boy.