And, just like that, it’s May.
How did that happen? Only last week we were shivering in January cold. At least, it felt like January but was really April. Anyone who has ever felt the Montreal Express blowing down from Canada knows what I’m talking about.
This has been one of those miserable, raw, wet springs in New England. We had measurable rain for 21 days–seven out of 10–the most since 1872.
We say we don’t like these wet springs, complaining about the lack of warm weather and sunshine, but they do recharge the water table—and then some. I’ll take a cold wet spring over a hot dry one any day. And the flowering trees have been spectacular this year.
Keeping Busy
Regardless of the weather, I have been very busy. The tour season kicked off and I have been giving historical and architectural walking tours for Boston By Foot and ghost tours for Haunted Boston. If you thought it was cold and windy during the day, try giving a tour from 8:00 to 9:30 at night when the sun has gone down but the wind has not. If my lantern had been a real candle, it would have blown out.
April also held the First Parish of Sudbury’s rummage sale—and I don’t want to admit how many hours I spent setting that up. Also, we had our annual Music Sunday, where we presented “A World Beloved: A Bluegrass Mass,” with the Southern Rail Bluegrass Band. This involved more hours of choir rehearsals both on our own and with the band. Both events went well and, now that they’re over, I hardly know what to do with myself.
Just kidding.
Epic Battles on Two Fronts
This past weekend we saw two epic battles against the forces of evil: Avengers: Endgame and Game of Thrones Seasons 8, Episode 3, with the Battle of Winterfell. That made for a lot of desperate fighting and the deaths of some characters we have known and loved.
Of the two, I preferred the television clash of ice and fire. A battle in which superheroes get thrown about like rag dolls, pummeled, shot, stomped and whacked only to get up unscathed has a lot of spectacle but no drama — and no human interest. I confess to being bored.
The Battle of Winterfell, on the other hand, gave us both. We never doubt for a moment of GoT that death awaits good guys who run up against more wights than they can handle or get caught by Viserion’s blue fire. To those who departed on Sunday night; Valar Dohaeris.
Roundup of April 2019 Posts
Can we take a moment to stop and catch our breath? Can we sit down in the sunshine long enough to see what we have missed? Well, maybe not in Westeros but we can certainly do it here. And, while you’re sitting down, here’s the monthly roundup of April 2019 posts. Suze and I explored our usual range of topics and offered our considered opinions. You may agree or disagree but at least no blue-eyed, re-animated corpse will interrupt your reading.
Boston and History
Books / Movies / Television
- Dysfunctional Women and Disagreeable People – Aline
- History Tells Us Who Will Win the Game of Thrones — Aline
Business and Technology
- The Deceptive Practice of Greenwashing – Susanne
- Self-Regulation: The Zombie Myth That Kills – Aline
- The Hiring Process: Ghosting in the Workplace — Susanne
Friends and Family
- On Becoming My Mother – Susanne
- BRAT: The Military Child — Susanne
Health and Safety
Lifestyle and Culture
- The Decline of Good Manners – Susanne
- The Rummage Sale Treasure Hunt – Aline
- A Slappy Award for Not Analyzing Trump’s Dementia — Aline
Now we move on to May when the weather should warm up and make for more pleasant days.
