I heard this song on the radio this afternoon and it made me wish that I was doing donuts in a ratty old Firebird, smoking a joint, and rocking a Jeff Spicoli hairstyle. Instead I was puttering along in the Focus with my daughter in the backseat, headed to the Gap outlet. Either way you slice it, this is a great Friday afternoon song.
Archive for November 6th, 2009
I’ve been living in Watertown for two months and I think I’m finally getting a lay of the land. I used to live in Allston, just a couple of miles from here, so you’d think I’d have a decent handle on this area, but I really didn’t know too much about it. For instance, did I know that you could get to Harvard Square from Watertown Square by zipping up Mt. Auburn Street? I did not, and I don’t even have a good excuse why I didn’t. A huge part of my job for the past five million years revolves around getting drivers quickly from Point A to Point B, so maps and routes fill up a large part of my cortex. That this simple straight-line navigation eluded me for so long is a huge embarrassment.
Anyway, I’m kind of getting the hang of the place. My daughter goes to school in Medford Square, and the first few times I drove her there I tried all sorts of “short cuts.” Let me tell you right now, if you’re ever with me in a car and I say I know a short cut, just ask me to let you out right away, because you’ll really be better off walking. For the sake of my own sanity I’ve settled on the most boring and obvious solution: I take the Pike to 93 North and then try to navigate the hell that is Medford Square. (I would like to say right here that most town squares are so illogically planned and laid out that they should be bombed into rubble and repaved in a way that lets me make a Goddamn left turn. I’m telling you that this whole turn-right-around-a-huge-confusing-fucking-rotary-thing-to-go-left deal that goes on here in MA just doesn’t exist in the rest of the country, and I’m really starting to get sick of it.)
The most important part of any neighborhood (aside from how to get to and get out of it) is how easy it is to locate essential goods. To me this means, “Where can I buy potato chips and beer?” Luckily, my options are many. Perhaps too many. Sometimes I skip food shopping altogether simply because I can’t decide where I want to go. Usually I hit the Star Market on Mt. Auburn Street in Cambridge because they sell beer and wine there, and also Lisa’s friend works there, and it’s always nice to visit with her. Though, I may have to boycott that store for a while because the last time I was there the snot-nosed kid at the register didn’t graciously scan his discount card after I told him I didn’t have my card, and it ended up costing me an arm and a leg. I’m a petty, petty bastard when I want to be.
In terms of quality of life, Watertown murders Chelsea to death. It’s much quieter. There’s a nice park across the street. There are three Starbucks within a mile or so from the house. The Spot Cafe is a great place for brunch and it serves a pastrami omlette that is blatantly, wonderfully obscene.
In fact, I’m kinda feeling like Eddie Murphy’s character in Trading Places: a derelict who is capriciously given a chance to life an opulent lifestyle.
