July 4, 2009, Boston

The Fourth of July came to Boston in spectacular fashion and made for an amazingly busy day. First, there was the Freedom Trail. In total, we got fewer people than the day before, but that was partly because we had to close early for a wedding. In the middle of the morning we had another fun event: a recreation of the first public singing of the song "America" (aka, My Country 'tis of Thee) on the steps of the church. It premiered there on July 4, 1831, sung by the children of the Park Street Church Sunday school (which, by the way, was one of the first in the nation and was begun to teach poor children who couldn't afford to go to school how to read a write). I took a bit of video, but conditions on the street were less than perfect, so I didn't record all 4 verses. Yes, there are 4 verses, not just the one that everyone knows.

My country, 'tis of thee,
Sweet land of liberty,
Of thee I sing;
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the pilgrims' pride,
From every mountainside
Let freedom ring!

My native country, thee,

Land of the noble free,

Thy name I love;

I love thy rocks and rills,

Thy woods and templed hills;

My heart with rapture thrills,

Like that above.

Let music swell the breeze,

And ring from all the trees

Sweet freedom's song;

Let mortal tongues awake;

Let all that breathe partake;

Let rocks their silence break,

The sound prolong.

Our father's God to Thee,

Author of liberty,

To Thee we sing.

Long may our land be bright,

With freedom's holy light,

Protect us by Thy might,

Great God our King.

Also in the course of the morning, an honor guard came to the Granary Burial Ground to salute the patriots buried within with a musket salute and by playing Taps. Since we weren't busy at the time, I stood on the church steps to watch. A man who appeared to be homeless asked what was going on, and after I explained what I thought it was, he told me I was beautiful, then asked if I was Irish, because "the Irish are very beautiful people." So random. Since he left right afterward, I decided he wasn't creepy.

Once we got the church cleaned up for the wedding, I was off to see what else the city had to offer for the holiday. I snagged some more free stuff at Government Center and then hopped on the T to head out to a birthday party for Calvin Coolidge organized by a fellow Simmons student. After that I needed a nap in order to make it to the fireworks that night.

I went to the fireworks show with Christina and Jen, and we staked out a place on the Boston side of the river. The only problem with our spot was an awkwardly placed streetlight, which we didn't notice until it was too late, having arrived when it was still light out. Jen brought along a radio, and we listened to the live broadcast of the Boston Pops concert while we waited. And as the fireworks display itself was timed to music, the radio was necessary to enjoy the show to the full extent.

The fireworks are launched from a barge on the Charles River, and they make awesome reflections on the water. I'm so glad I saw it in person, though my mother assures me it was also impressive on TV. Below is a short clip of the fireworks finale for you to enjoy.

And the best part of this weekend? It's been raining for the past month, and long-range forecasts had been dismal for this weekend as well, but the weather was perfect! I would have been sorry to miss what is probably the only Fourth of July I'll get to spend in Boston for something as silly as a thunderstorm.

-Kim

July 3, 2009

The Fourth of July is not a single day in Boston. Rather, the festivities go on all week, and, frankly year-round. But the weekend of the Fourth is a whole different level of patriotism. Boston's Harborfest overlaps the Fourth, providing a vast number of activities that I couldn't begin to take advantage of properly, especially with my work schedule. But I did what I could, and it's been an amazing weekend!

On July 3, we had over 2,000 visitors to Park Street Church on the Freedom Trail. That was a busy day, let me tell you! After work, I made my way down to the Charles River esplanade, where the Hatch Memorial Shell is. There, the Boston Pops were going to do a dress rehearsal for the Fourth of July concert. The dress rehearsal is a lot less crowded than the actual event, so it made sense to go for that instead. Even so, there was a huuuuuge line to get in. I waited about 45 minutes to get my wristband and get into the area in front of the stage to stake out a place to sit. I ended up a ways back, but with a decent line of sight. The only problem with my location was that I was one of the few people who didn't have a lawn chair. I could still see because there was a paved path in front of me that had to be kept clear, but that didn't stop people from stepping on me. That's right, other concertgoers saw my spot as a perfect path through the lawn chairs and were continually stepping on the edge of my tarp (a used plastic tablecloth I snagged from church) and, if I happened to be standing to stretch my legs, in the center of it. Very rude. The worst, though, was when I lay down for a while to rest (I got my spot more than 3 hours before the concert actually started). I heard noise and opened my eyes to see a man stepping directly over my head! The gay couple next to me acted offended for me, as I was too shocked to react before the man had moved on.

In spite of the awkwardness of waiting for the concert, it was definitely worth the trouble. Not only did I get to see the Boston Pops, but Neil Diamond performed as well! And Craig Ferguson was hosting. I will never again have the opportunity to hear Neil Diamond sing "Sweet Caroline" live for free--that just doesn't happen!

And because I know many of you, my readers, envy the opportunity I had, I took the liberty of recording a few short video clips of the concert for you to enjoy. First up is a portion of Tschaikovsky's 1812 Overture.

Next is Neil Diamond singing what has become the official song of the Boston Redsox, "Sweet Caroline."

And finally, Boston Pops playing "The Stars and Stripes Forever"

It was great fun, and the celebration doesn't stop here. The Fourth itself will be posted next!

-Kim

wild turkey menace?

Below is the text of an email I received from my school today:

"Wild Turkeys on Campus

As you may have noticed, wild turkeys have been seen daily on both our main and residence campuses, as well as in the surrounding neighborhood. Please be advised that wild turkeys can be quite aggressive and dangerous to passers-by. We are currently reviewing humane options to remove the turkeys from our campus. However, the presence of wild turkeys is not limited to Simmons, but is a (growing) problem in the Boston area generally. Our removal options may need to follow directives from the City of Boston as well as other agencies.

In the meantime, please refrain from feeding the turkeys and use caution when walking near them. Do not approach them or try to touch them.

Thank you for your cooperation."

Seriously? Are they wild animals or dangerous escaped criminals? Too funny, Simmons, too funny.

-Kim

food for thought from literature

"God has made us so that we must be mutually dependent. We may ignore out own dependence, or refuse to acknowledge that other depend upon us in more respects than the payment of weekly wager; but the thing must be, nevertheless. Neither you nor any other master can help yourselves. The most proudly independent man depends on those around him for their insendible influence on his character--his life."

-Margaret Hale to Mr. Thornton in Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South

constant rain

The entire month of June was a grey, soggy mess in Boston. Though the sun peeked through a few times, the days were largely overcast, unseasonably cool and rainy. The ten day forecast shows hope ahead, but I've been jilted by the weather man before. Good weather for the Fourth is all I'm concerned with now. It's a huge holiday here in Boston, and I mean to enjoy it fully. Boston Pops will be playing an outdoor concert, complete with cannons for the 1812 Overture, and a massive fireworks show is set to go off over the Charles River. They do it every year, but this is the only time I'll be here to see it. You can see it too, even if you're not within T distance of the river. The concert will be broadcast on CBS starting at 10/9 central. There's also a preview concert the day before, which is supposed to be much less crowded, so I'm hoping the rain hold off that day too!

-Kim