Like I said, I haven’t been back to MIT since my graduation. This is my fist trip back to the scene of the crime. I walked all the way there, from my hotel through the Boston Common, through the Public Garden, and down Newbury Street. It was raining as hard as it was during my graduation and I was soaked. I was also hung over. After a stop at Starbucks and Newbury comics I got to MIT.

The coffee in Boston is like colored water, by the way, but Starbucks is the same bad coffee everywhere, thank goodness, with the dark being nice and strong. Even Peets Coffee let me down. And Newbury Comics has changed. No more records and not that many comic books.

Anyway, I had lunch at Legal Seafood with Alexander Hansen of the Fink Project and tooled around MIT for a while.

A lot of the rooms and buildings are locked now and you can’t just wander around. We did see the Media Lab and a few odd looking buildings like the AI lab.

and Spongebob Squaredorm.

I even got to go in my old dorm and see the view. It’s no longer an all-male Lord of the Flies kind of place but co-ed. Some of the things that were painted on the walls in our time are still there. (Dr. Michael Malaska, the Mr. Yuk image is still on the wall on the 7th floor McGregor.) I got a picture of the view, too.

What else did I see? The student center has changed greatly, the whole dead factory area north of campus has been revitalized with all sorts of biotech companies, and there are are women at MIT! And not just two or three, but 40%!

After my cathartic (hah) visit to MIT I walked up to Harvard Square to get a present for my sister. SHE BETTER LIKE THE CHOCOLATE. I was still hung over, so I had some disappointing Peets coffee and took the T back to my hotel.

On the T, I met a guy who plays the Euphonium for the US Air Force Band of Liberty. He was impressed that I knew what the Euphonium was and told me about the concert they were having in Faneuil Hall. A day of concerts and his band was playing a special Euphonium piece. I was, however, hung over so I took a nap, went to the Kendall Square Coop to buy my first MIT sweatshirt in 20 years, and only got back in time to hear their last four pieces. I think I’ve decided that it’s better to hear orchestras because loud rock music just sounds like crap to me when I hear them live, loud, and distorted.

So, now it’s five PM and the only thing I have left on my list is a visit to Revere Beach and Wonderland. I mentioned the movie Next Stop Wonderland, right? I got off at the Revere Beach stop and walked to the Wonderland stop. I think you can see the Wonderland shelter in the distance.

You know what I found at Wonderland? (I mean, it was kind of a self-imposed quest.) I found rain pouring so hard that the papers in my pocket were soaked and I found the wind-driven raindrops hitting my face so hard that they stung and I found (though I didn’t take his picture) a kindly older gentleman walking back and forth in the shelter who had the most effeminate Boston accent I’ve ever heard.

And here’s a picture of Wonderland station and the dog track beyond.

Dinner was at a bar, by myself, where I had baked haddock and a couple of drinks. Met a nice couple who live on Beacon Hill who chatted with me towards the end of dinner and even bought me a drink. Dinner “only” cost $42 tonight.

Ah, well. It’s not an ideal story but it’s my story. Next Stop Portland.

First, let me say my dinner at Lucca was fantastic. A $75 half-bottle of wine, tenderloin of lamb with a little bit of greens, and a small plate of cheeses. I felt a little silly being there by myself, and even sillier that I was seated in the DATE SECTION and there were five other tables of couples nearby. Good thing I had the three Sam Adams at the USENIX reception before I even stumbled into the North End of Boston. If anyone goes, by the way, Lucca is extraordinary.

Our two day meeting is over and now I have a day to myself to flip off MIT enjoy Boston. I’m meeting a guy I know online who works at MIT for lunch, and then I think I’m going to Revere Beach because of the movie Next Stop Wonderland. I know I’m not going to meet my Hope Davis, but I want to see the beach.

I could have sworn it was only a 10 minute walk from my hotel to the Prudential Center. Well, it was closer to half an hour or more. It was a beautiful morning to walk through the Boston Common, and I noticed a lot more attractive women than when I was here before (TWENTY YEARS AGO). What poor timing on my part. But I did see the Tealuxe store!

<This is where the picture from my cell phone will go when I figure out how to download pictures from my cell phone>

It was another long meeting day and lunch was from a food court. What a travesty! I’m in BOSTON! There must be better food! Fortunately, dinner was at a much better place but I couldn’t finish it.

How did I finish dinner last night?

Oh, and finally two more questions. Am I supposed to know more about the “Dropkick Murphys” other than that they’re from Boston and they were playing for free in the rain?

And what is it with women and pillows? What the hell are all these pillows for?