fourth of july in boston

4th of july fireworks

ingrid and i went to see the 4th of july fireworks this weekend. boston is a city known for this celebration so we had high expectations. the fireworks and the music from the boston pops orchestra lived up to the hype, but i found it odd that the orchestra didn’t play throughout the fireworks show; instead, the producers played recorded tunes of lesser-known country tracks. i couldn’t quite understand why these songs were played, but the explosions in the sky made up for those bizarre choices.

in addition to the fireworks, orchestra, and weird country songs, the event was hosted by “tv’s craig ferguson” and there was a live performance by neil diamond for a CBS live broadcast. unfortunately, neither ferguson nor diamond were given much time to shine. it felt like their performances were carefully measured and reserved for the TV-viewing audience instead of the nearly 500,000 people in the crowd lined up along both sides of the charles river in boston and cambridge.

lockhart and ferguson jig: photo by bill brett, boston globe

still, in spite of the limitations on the performances for tv, ferguson was a good host. he kept the evening rolling. diamond was also in good form for two songs (sweet caroline and america), but i didn’t think we got a full dose of either artist.  to their credit, both performers tried to entertain the huge crowd. ferguson did a short jig with boston pop’s director keith lockhart during a commercial break, and diamond played another verse from sweet caroline but had to cut it short before the tv cameras went back on. speaking of “sweet caroline,” this song plays during every red sox home game and, apparently, was written with carolyn kennedy in mind. this might explain why this is such a hit in boston, but i still don’t understand how this is such a hit at every wedding in the country.

neil diamond and woman with crazy flag hat: photo by bill brett, boston globe

regardless of the limitations on the artists for the television production, the night was a rousing success and a fantastic reminder of what makes this country great. as we walked down the charles river looking for a perfect viewing station, we were surrounded by people of all shapes, sizes and ethnicities. once we settled on a spot, we were behind two elderly, white locals, who seemed to know when the fireworks were coming. they knew exactly when to stand up, and when to ready their lawn chairs so they could leave. in front of them were a younger, rowdier bunch of white, latino and african american kids. this crew, adorned in their red sox gear and tats, would break into chants of “USA, USA, USA”  one minute, and “YANKEES SUCK!” the next. Just to the right of us was a woman with a thick Spanish accent who kept yelling, “VIVA USA, VIVA USA.” just to the right of her was a college student tying (very hard) to pick her up.

probably, our tiny corner on the banks of the charles was a microcosm of what went on throughout the city. we all sang along with neil through both versions of sweet caroline, we all oh-ed and aw-ed at the fireworks, and we all enjoyed celebrating another year of this country. it didn’t feel overly jingoistic or political, just communal and fun.

graduation 2009

It’s hard to believe that graduation was just a week ago today. It’s harder still to believe that the program is over. The year flew by quickly thanks to great teachers, interesting classes and, more than anything else, a star-studded group of classmates. I’m thankful to have been a part of such a talented lot and I hope to keep in touch with many of these good people for years to come. I’m glad the future of higher education is left to these able hands, agile minds and compassionate hearts.

In addition to celebrating with friends, I was fortunate to have 6 family members in town for the festivities.

eddie, nick and eric

My two brothers flew in from Austin and traded in their comfortable beds for our hard floor to see their older brother graduate. This, I think, is significant, since they both love their sleep. It also isn’t insignificant to say that they are still the two “things” I miss most about Austin. Smart, easy-going, and funny, Eric and Nick always make me happy when they’re around. I thank them both for being great brothers and good friends in spite of whatever childhood torture they may have endured by me.

eddie and maggie

My 80+ year old Great Aunt Maggie made her first trip to Boston to see her nephew graduate. She and her late husband, Uncle Bob, were always there for my brothers and me. Aunt Maggie remains the most positive, cheerful, and vital person I know. At 83, Aunt Maggie gave most of us youngsters a run for our money by easily traversing the uneven streets of Cambridge in heels! I’m glad that she isn’t showing any signs of slowing down, and, I’m delighted to have her in my life.

carlos and eddie

My cousin Carlos and his two sisters have always been some of our closest (and coolest) cousins. That Carlos took time out from his busy schedule designing space treadmills in Houston is a big deal. As kids, we would read our grandpa Carlos’s National Geographics. He’d look at photos from space and I’d look at images of people in far away places. In some ways, we’re still doing a version of that. As Carlos looked up to space, I looked up to him. And, I still look up to him now.

eddie sr, eddie jr and sylvia

Mom and Dad have always provided Eric, Nick and me with their complete love and support. Dad has always instilled his unparalleled sense of justice and healthy skepticism in authority, while mom has always been the paragon of compassion and commitment to caring for others. If my brothers and I have taken just a tiny bit of these virtues from our parents, we’ll be in good shape. Beyond this, mom and dad are funny–they’ve taught us to laugh, and it was good to laugh with them all again this past week. I’m lucky to have them as parents, and I was happy to have them here last week.

ingrid and eddie

And finally, my wife Ingrid played hostess to this motley crew of Texans. She was gracious and composed, thoughtful and cheerful as always. She made the week go by without a hitch. Even in the face of  5 boys (and I include myself in this lot) living in her apartment, she kept her sincere smile. All of our guests, male and female, made a point of reminding me to thank my wife for her hospitality. And so, Thank you Ingrid for you hospitality, love and everything else.

colors

seeing colors

Ingrid has been busy capturing the many vibrant colors of  spring on her blog. Her photos of flowers are loaded with color and life. She has nicely recorded mother nature’s elegant artistic expressions. In looking at her great snapshots, I’m reminded of some of my favorite artists who are now categorized as anything from abstract expressionists to color-field theory painters to  post-painterly abstractionists. Regardless of what they’re called today, folks like Rothko, Newman, and Stella all used color in important and evocative ways.

Above (and below) I’ve posted a few photos where color steals the show. I’ve slightly tweaked the original snapshots, but, for the most part, I’ve tried to keep true to the original subject.

wall in amsterdam, 2007

a restaurant in el paso, 2008

walls at mit, 2009

a poster in spain, 2007

The light falls nicely

Now that the days are getting longer we get beautiful sunlight in our apartment in the afternoons. It’s especially lovely on the counter by our knives. I’d like to spend more time capturing the light but school has picked up, so there may be little time for that.

winter break is over

Our winter break in Texas is over. Ingrid and I both got to spend some quality time with our friends and (most especially) family. It was good to be back where the food is spicy, and the food and people are warm.

snow

the first snow

It snowed today, although, it didn’t accumulate at all. For me, the mark of a good snow is a day off from school or work. Today was Sunday so there was a fat chance of that happening. Oh well, at the very least, it was pretty while it lasted.

new winter banner

I’ve updated the banner to accommodate the imminent winter chaos in New England. Hopefully the benevolent snowman dingbats will help ease the transition into our killer snow season.

harvard stadium

Last weekend Ingrid and I stopped by Harvard Stadium in preparation for next week’s Harvard Yale game. Around here, they call it “THE GAME.” Since Ingrid and I will be at THE GAME on Saturday, I thought I’d post this calm-before-the-storm photo. It’s a bit shameful, since I never attended a single game at UT, but this feels more like a novelty, or historical reenactment.

Speaking of history lessons, this marks the 40 year anniversary of the so-called “Greatest GAME of All Time.”  There is a Salon.com article, and movie about that game–a tie!–and here is a quote from Andrew O’Hehir:

“I’m sure that football fans in the southern and western seven-eighths of the country would dispute the point vigorously, but for a certain Northeastern upper-crust sector of American society, no single event in college gridiron history comes close to the legendary status of the Harvard-Yale game that occurred almost exactly 40 years ago.” For more, here’s a link to the article.

Needless to say, I can’t imagine a tie should be given such a lofty title. The best game in my football watching lifetime was the 2006 Rose Bowl victory by Texas over USC.

The arc of history is long…

…but it bends toward justice.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said that, and it is a quote I’ve heard a lot in the context of this month’s election of Barack Obama as president. Ingrid and I saw this mural on Sunday in our neighborhood.

It was good to see this mural, and even better to see the outcome of the election. While there will always be struggles for justice and equity, it’s good to know that change does take place, and that over time, the arc of history does get bent, ever so slowly, in the right direction.

the arnold arboretum

A classmate of mine recently said, “things in Boston aren’t necessarily the best, but they’re usually the oldest.” Today we went to the oldest public arboretum in North America. While I haven’t been to enough arboretums to judge whether or not this is one of the bests, it certainly was lovely. It is called the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University and, unlike many things at Harvard, this place is very free and very open to the public.  We had a wonderful day there with beautiful weather, gorgeous light and stunning foliage. Hopefully we can go again and see what it looks like in the winter.

breakfast tacos: hecho en cambridge

Breakfast Tacos are a staple in Austin. They didn’t really exist in El Paso. There we ate burritos, which were also tasty, but not nearly the culinary and social phenomenon that they are in the Capital City.

Needless to say, breakfast tacos are a non-entity here in Cambridge. This is a donut town. And, while I don’t mind living in a place that so freely worships sugary fried dough, I occasionally miss those little rolled missiles of Tex-Mexy goodness. I made some breakfast tacos this weekend and have posted them here in all their glory.

I also made some cappuccino.
This week also marked the official mid-term of the fall semester–and what a busy mid-term week it was! Many of us in the Higher Ed program had papers due in more than one class. Hopefully, my professors and teaching assistants are kind in their grading, but if not, I’ll go into business selling breakfast tacos to the Harvard kids.

pico de gallo!

Whenever I have a paper due, everything else seems more important. Next week there are two papers due. Rather than write, I felt the need to chop the fresh jalapeños my mom sent me from home. Hopefully, now that I’m sufficiently spiced, I can get to work.

Ingrid and I had a fun Saturday Afternoon. We tried to find the Alewife Brook Reservation and while we couldn’t find the entry way to the foot path, we did find a few lovely photogenic spots along the way. It was a fun way to spend the afternoon and it made for more nice fall photos.

october surprise

   

There really haven’t been any surprises.  The leaves are starting to change, the weather is getting cooler, and (since this is an election year) the campaign ads are getting more vicious. The third week of classes zipped by quickly and I barely noticed that we’ve been in Cambridge for a full month.

Margret Spellings, the US Secretary of Education, came to speak at the JFK school on Wednesday. She gave a fairly short talk on the state of education in the United States. Sadly, in the context of the presidential election and the current economic crisis, her major announcement didn’t seem so major.  She unveiled a new, simplified FAFSA that should help reduce one of the hurdles many students face in applying for federal aid. Let’s just hope there will still be lenders and money available once the new forms get printed. There’s a short article about her talk in the Harvard Crimson.

HGSE has posted a short Q & A with professor Bridget Terry Long. Dr. Long is an expert in financial aid and has been doing some very interesting work on financial aid simplification.  We all get to take a course with her next semester, but for now, here’s her response.

There is also an article on the speech in Inside Higher Ed.

 Here’s a shot of Spellings (and her futuristic outfit) from the Crimson.

Madam Secretary (photo by KANE HSIEH)

second week of classes is soggy

The second week of classes is over. Lucky for me we have a washer/dryer in our apartment so I was able to clean and dry the multiple outfits I had drenched by the rain. Once again, I think the week can be best summed up with bullet points.

• Ingrid and I found a place that sells chiwda that is right across the street from our apartment. Chiwda is a delicious Indian snack that’s usually salty, sweet and spicy. When I was in Rajasthan they called in Namkeen and it was equally delicious. Sometimes we ate it for breakfast. 
• It rained.
• I finished my first assignment for the history of higher education class.  The readings were interesting so the assignment wasn’t so painful.  We’ll see how I feel after we get grades and class feedback.
• It rained.
• There was a thorough, and slightly scary, talk on the state of the economy by a few of the professors here.  Ingrid and I weren’t able to go to the lecture, but the talk was posted online and we watched it here.
• Oh yeah, it also rained, and I made a video with a surprise, M. Night Shyamalan ending.
  

  so much rain that her head hurts

   

we made it!

we’ve finally made it to boston.  we’re a bit tired from the long trip but we were lucky to have great navigators in texas sending us updates on the storms and road conditions.  we’ve got loads of pictures that we’ll post soon.

austin to boston to beijing

With the glow of the olympics now faded, much of the world’s attention has moved past the games and to other world affairs.  I for one will miss the olympics and will miss all the stunning shots of Herzog & de Meuron’s wonderful Beijing National Stadium (seen below courtesy of the olympics official website).

 

Beijing National Stadium

Not too long ago, Herzog & de Meuron were commissioned by UT to build the Blanton Museum.  Thanks to good ol’ boy provincial politics, (and a couple vocal UT’s regents), the original plans of these pritzker prize winning architects were rejected.  I found a few  of their original renderings online.  I’ll post them below so we can see what could have been.

 

A view from Jester

A view from MLK blvd.

As it turns out, Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron are on the faculty at Harvard. Maybe I’ll meet them there and apologize for our silly regents and see if they’ll return to Austin and build something else.  Maybe they can build a new Taco Deli?