Blame it on the Redhead...

It's official, our blog is seriously dead in the water...

I'm placing temporary blame on Red, where have you been?! We miss you!

Red, it's all you...

I'm Bascially Hawaiian

Went to Face of America: Hawaii at Wolf Trap on Saturday. Let's just say that after five-and-a-half hours of non-stop Hawaii -- food, prayers, chants, ukulele playing, singing, hula dancing, etc -- I was so saturated with the culture that I'm pretty much considering myself half-Hawaiian now. I went for a work thing so didn't really know what to expect but I gotta say that I'm completely hooked. In fact, I'm now seriously considering how I can incorporate Hawaii into my five-year plan. Oh, and might I add that Wolf Trap makes a mean pineapple and vodka, not that I would ever indulge in such a thing during a work event...

Ledward Kaapana, a Grammy award-winning slack-key guitarist, performed, and while I'm still not exactly sure what a slack-key guitar is -- it looked like a regular guitar to me -- he rocked it. Then, Keali'i Reichel sang with a troupe of hula dancers. Pretty typical -- girls (and a guy) swaying their hips and moving their arms in symbolic gestures, symbolism that completely escaped that half of me that is still non-native. A problem only a long trip to the islands will cure, obviously.

Then, the ol' WT kicked it up a notch with Halau O Kekuhi, a group of hula dancers that train for years and years, rarely perform and strictly follow ancient hula. They were i-n-t-e-n-s-e. Three large women (I think they prefer to be called "momona" -- yes, I also speak Hawaiian now), sat on the stage and banged on these gourd thingies while a group of dancers decked out in some serious regalia stomped, chanted and let out the occasional scream. Everyone there was saying it was a "chicken skin" moment which I only recently figured out meant that it gave them goose bumbs. And well, yes, I had goose bumps too along new-found obsession for all things Hawaii. So bad ass! Can't wait for my impending trip to the islands (aka my new home). Sha Bruddah!

Whoopie Pies and Garbage Pickers

Ok, so I know I'm new to Boston, but there are two things I really feel need to be addressed about this city. While I know I recently emigrated from DC, and thus have a different set of city "norms" these things just don't seem right!

FIRST of all....what's up with the Whoopie Pies people?! I mean, they are EVERYWHERE! Chocolate and white, blue and pink and green!....fresh out of the oven and vacuum sealed! I went into Foodies the other day (the South End's version of a low-rate Trader Joe's), and there was a Fuchsia one all wrapped up like a Twinkie! Now I'm sure these pies are quite tasty and Delicious (right Red?)...I just can't get up the nerve to try one out. If someone has the inside scoop on this regional delicacy, please fill me in. Isn't it just a Ho-Ho, flattened out?

SECOND....I live in what I've been told is one of the nicer parts of Boston, the pretty, trendy, yummy and ethnically, sexually and socioeconomically diverse South End. While it is all that...and apparently much more, I've never in my life lived in a neighborhood where garbage picking was not only a hobby, but a profession and sport.

My block's garbage pickup is twice a week. I and my neighbors have been known to put out our trash early the evenings before. This is the start of the frenzy. No sooner do I put out my week's worth of slimy lettuce and used Q-tips, when I notice someone rummaging through the bags. And it' s not just me, it's all over the place! I'm not trying to sound insensitive, but since when did people start ripping open EVERY bag on EVERY block of a neighborhood, not caring about what nasty things they might have to fight through to get to the golden ticket? I lived in DC for over four years and never saw such a thing.

So, Blondee happened to be in town during my first official week here, and they didn't pick up the garbage until around noon on Friday. After helping me with a load of miscellaneous items, we were back in my apartment when she noticed a lady with a shopping cart walk off with my old suitcase and cowboy hat! Which I might add was buried in about 3 feet of nasty crap. Sure, if things are just sitting out there, they are fair game, but when did people risk disease and self decency to get a used and grimy hat from the Madonna's "Music" tour?

A few days later, I put out some things and saw a woman, who to ME didn't look homeless, down and out, or insane....she was well dressed and had a poking stick to help her prod through the mess! I saw her lift up my garbage bag, feel around for the treasures inside...then thought better of it, and buggered off. Perhaps she saw me looking at her? Perhaps she could sense that the only things in there were burnt English Muffins and tampon applicators? Either way, what was she doing?

Later on, I brought out an old but still functioning CD/Radio. A HOT commodity. I needed to get rid of it, but it was also sort of a test. I brought it out with 2 other bags, and placed it beside them. It was gone before I got back upstairs and could look out to see. Oh yeah, and about an hour later the bags were torn wide open.

Is it just me, or should a city like Boston, and the apparently posh neighborhood of the South End, try getting their garbage pickup schedule figured out? By noon on a Friday it looks like a refugee camp! Maybe it's just me, and I'm used to living in a building with garbage pickup...but for the sake of my neighbors and the poor garbage men who need to pick up the bags after it looks like they have exploded on the nice brick sidewalks...SOMETHING needs to be done!

Ok, it's midnight on a Saturday, and I'm writing about garbage.....I need to meet some nice floppy-haired Harvard man....or just get my white butt back to Africa.

ps...catch the new link on the side to our friend Ms. Harvey's Blog.