Roundup of February and March 2017 Posts

We had our New England spring in January and February and now we are having winter again in March. The month came in like a lamb and is going out like a lion. We have a snowy nor’easter going outside while looking forward to Opening Day at Fenway Park on Monday. Boston By Foot’s “True Lies and False Facts” tour in the Fort Point Channel District on Sunday may be wetter and colder than usual. That shouldn’t keep hardy Bostonians away, though.

Wildlife Emerging

The wild animals have been coming out in force. A few weeks ago wild turkeys climbed over the wall from the golf course. I started counting; the flock usually numbers around 15. I lost count at 30 but they kept coming. There must have been 50 or 60 birds in the flock. It was like the Thanksgiving Day Parade in reverse.

A week later I looked out my living room window to see a coyote trotting through the back yard; a varmint on a mission. And last night on the way home from choir practice another coyote ran in front of my car. A mile further on a big red fox sprinted across the road. In the plant world, the buds that come out in February have curled up tightly against the cold once more and now they’re tipped with snow. Even for New England, this weather feels weird.

Keeping Things in Perspective

Roundup of Blog POstsThese sightings remind me to look out and pay attention to the world outside my computer. My consulting business has picked up steam lately and I have a lot to do. That means less time to write blog posts, which is why the quantity has dropped off lately. I would be happy to add another author or two to fill out the week. Anyone interested?

Here’s my roundup of blog posts from February and March 2017 so you can catch up if your work has kept you too busy to read.  Susanne and I have covered our usual range of subjects. And there are recipes. Pour a cup of hot tea or cold Scotch, whichever you prefer, put your feet up and read.

Animals 

Boston and History

  • Overnight Guests at Boston Police Headquarters – Aline
    Want to have dinner at The Precinct bar and grille and dessert at The Clink? You can go from dining at the old Boston Police Headquarters to schmoozing at the old Charles Street Jail. Here’s how.
  • The Haberstroh Building in the Back Bay – Aline
    I used to wonder how this Dickensian building came to be on Boylston Street. So I researched it and now I know. Read this and you will, too.
  • Domingo Mora, Congregational House, bas-relief sculptures, 14 Beacon Street

    Congregational House facade with bas-relief sculptures

    The Great Spring on Boston’s Spring Lane – Aline
    This covered-up and built-over natural resource is the reason Boston exists on the Shawmut Peninsula instead of in Charlestown. Do you know where it is? I tell you all about it here.

  • The Congregational House Bas Reliefs – Aline
    If you don’t look up when you walk past this Beacon Street building you will miss a work of art and four views of history.

Business and Technology 

  • Supermarket Robots: The Grocery Games – Aline
    Do you need a robot to carry your groceries home from the supermarket? Would you be shocked to find one stocking the shelves? Here’s why automating the supermarket may or may not be a good idea.
  • The high-tech innovation is a pair of robots from Piaggio Fast Forward called Gita and Kilo. The difference? Well, Gita’s carrying capacity will hold about a case of wine.

    Gita the Grocery Robot

    Will Artificial Intelligence Destroy the Middle Class? – Aline
    Scientists are making great strides in developing artificial intelligence. This alarms some pretty smart people. Others say everything will be fine. What do you think?

  • Building and Breaking a Corporate Culture – Susanne
    Suze makes the case that healthy corporate leadership makes for a healthy corporate culture. Culture drives behavior, which drives success.
  • 10 Best Jobs for the Gig Economy – Aline
    If you think working from home is the way to go, here’s a list of jobs you might consider. Full Disclosure: There’s a tradeoff.
  • Sell Me This Pen – Susanne
    Sales techniques and the art of the deal. Some people have the sales gene and some just don’t.

Culture and Lifestyle

  • The One Minute Life – Susanne
    This post deals with shortcuts and the importance of making the most of every day.
  • On My Mind: February 2017 – Susanne
    Book, movies, current events, cooking and more. Here’s what’s been on Suze’s mind.
  • Thoughts Before I Die – Susanne
    It’s not exactly a Bucket List but here’s what Suze has in mind for her Life After Business.
  • IllMannered Children and Rude Adults – Aline
    Do parents teach their children good manners? Does bullying flourish when parents don’t pay attention? Here are a few examples of both.

Current Events

I broke my “No Politics” rule lately because I can’t stop watching the slow-motion trainwreck in Washington and worrying that the damage is going to spread. Here are three posts on that subject.

  • Henry VIII and Contemporary Parallels — Aline
    This is the first of two posts on our current president and the English King Henry VIII.
  • Donald Trump and Steve Bannon as Henry VIII and Thomas

    Donald Trump and Steve Bannon as Henry VIII and Thomas Cromwell

    Steve Bannon: The New Thomas Cromwell – Aline
    When you make Thomas Cromwell your role model, you should be aware of how he ended up. Kings and Presidents do not always return the loyalty of their subjects.

  • Unfocused and Worried by the Shadow President – Aline
    I’m concerned about what the scruffy Man Behind the Curtain is drafting up in the White House. He advances his dark agenda while the front man distracts the media.

Health and Nutrition

  • A Healthy Vegetarian Diet – Susanne
    Suze takes us through the health benefits of eating a plant-based diet.
  • Vegetarian, Omnivore, Pescatarian – Aline
    OK, I know why I should become a vegetarian. I aspire to it. But I always fall short. Very short.
  • Lyme Disease, Vaccine and Lawyers – Aline
    With the incidence of Lyme Disease growing steadily you may have wondered why no one developed a vaccine. But wait—someone did. And then they took it off the market. Here’s a little history and some good news.

Movies and TV

Travel