I headed north on Sunday to visit ABC for a few days, and tomorrow I will be taking a megabus from Connecticut to Boston, where I will be for three days for work related things. I’m actually m ore excited about taking the megabus than I am the actual trip, but that’s just because I am a god damned weirdo.
At any rate, since I will be in the area, I was thinking of doing a potential Boston meetup. Or maybe not, as I am a fickle son of a bitch.
I DID BRING PANTS THOUGH!
John Revolta
FIRST BITCHEZZ!!
satby
The first step is the hardest.
dmsilev
A single tear drips down Joe Biden’s face when he learns that you’re not taking Amtrak.
schrodingers_cat
Are you safe or does Julia have to come and rescue you?
TOP123
@dmsilev: won that quickly
PaulW
You got someone to babysit the babies at home I hope.
dmsilev
@TOP123: One does one’s best.
Dcrefugee
Just remember what not to say when ABC asks if you’re happy to be with her…
SiubhanDuinne
John, do the Boston meetup! I met a lot of the New England jackals a couple or three years ago, and they are great people. But don’t let that deter you.
khead
You should live blog your Megabus experience. I’ve always wondered what the folks on I-95 are going through.
SiubhanDuinne
@Dcrefugee:
Right. Mix it up. This time, say you miss Thurston. Or Steve. (ABC would never believe that you missed Rosie, so don’t even try.)
lahke
Meet up! Meet up!
So you’re here on Friday night or Saturday? Will you be downtown or in the burbs?
geg6
It’s ALIVE!
debit
Pants!
debit
OT but I want to be Rep Maxine Waters when I grow up.
efgoldman
@SiubhanDuinne:
Why are you being nice? No need for that. Jackals is jackals, and we are the jackalsest.
max
I DID BRING PANTS THOUGH!
Check for the mustard, too.
max
[‘Also, definitely do not mop the bus in the nude. In case you got any weird ideas.’]
efgoldman
@khead:
I’ve spent too much time on I-95 in CT. You don’t want to know or go.
hovercraft
@debit:
Joy has been having her on the show almost every weekend, because she’s just that awesome!
Aimai
If you have time for a meetup let me know at aimaiami at comcast dot net. I’m frantic with papers for my MSW but I would love to meet you.
TaMara (HFG)
What’s a megabus?
germy
efgoldman
And yes, meetup!
Where are you staying?
RoonieRoo
I am so proud of you that you remembered to bring pants this time. **sigh** Our John. Only our John.
efgoldman
@TaMara (HFG):
A bigger bus than yours.
Not the same as a MAGAbus.
Mike J
I always assumed that even if the entire readership of the blog showed up in rural West Virginia, John would not appear at a meet up.
Hey Bean towners, when you’re done with him, crate him up and ship him to Seattle.
lamh36
@debit: me too. have you checked out the #BlackWomenAtWork Hashtag on twitter? inspired by he treatment of Maxine Waters and April Ryan today?
You should!
prgchrqltma
Yes to a Boston area meetup! It’s been too long since I went to one.
efgoldman
@Mike J:
We would, but once you say “Beantown” you’re on the shit list.
MomSense
If you find a lovely navy blue hand knit scarf on the megabus let me know. My kid left it on his seat.
Narya
I am on Amtrak, though–on a sleeping car no less! Not going to Boston though.
jacy
No, no — I want to imagine you on the megabus in overalls, muttering into an empty carton of Ben & Jerry’s. Until the bus breaks down — because you know it will!
hovercraft
@khead:
I-95 can be a nightmare, okay so more often than not, I remember years ago it took us five hours to drive from Eastchester, ( Westchester County, NY) to Boston, we left around 3.30 on a Friday during the summer.
Mike J
@efgoldman: My Red Sox cap, purchased at Fenway, is older than most of the players. I should get at least one free pass.
Steve in the ATL
@Mike J: I was in Seattle a couple of weeks ago. Where the hell were you?
ThresherK
Where in CT will you be and for how long?
Mnemosyne
@TaMara (HFG):
It’s a Greyhound that’s trying to appeal to hipsters.
rikyrah
@TaMara (HFG):
Seriously??
Steve in the ATL
@efgoldman: are you still mad that the first baseball franchise, the Boston Beaneaters, left town and, after various different cities and mascots, is now the Atlanta Braves?
Mike J
@Steve in the ATL: 1) I didn’t hear about it 2) I’ve actually come and gone a bit since the end of January, so it might not have mattered.
I remember you were in Portland at one point, but it’s sort of a trek for a meet up.
Jim Bales
John,
If you (and your pants) are interested in a visit to MIT, including a tour of the Edgerton Center (where we take high-speed photos of milk drops going splash, balloons popping, and bullets going through things), let me know. Tom Levenson can vouch for me!
Best
Jim Bales
cain
ABC please marry him so that we know someone will at least make sure that he has pants.. because clearly he needs someone to help project management his life!
Anyways, I hope you will do a meet up, dude and introduce your girlfriend!
I am sitting here having Irish whiskey because as the Irish told me once, I’m one of them (despite being Indian :-) Since then, I’ve held a torch to Ireland, and the Irish as a people they can never do any wrong. I am +4 on irish whiskey.
ETA – so no bolt bus? Please support your local amtrak. :P
rikyrah
Did you get a cheap ticket Cole?
My sister would visit me from Minneapolis and routinely pay $20-$25 round trip ?
jl
Be careful, John Cole! It’s not an atomic super bus, is it?
The Big Bus – Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68dTwJNvE1E
Mnemosyne
@ThresherK:
He’s going to be hanging out with ABC while he’s in CT, so I’m guessing he won’t be available for any GTGs.
rikyrah
Do the meet and greet Cole.
cain
@Mike J:
Da fuck? You were in Portland? Please let me know, I will arrange a meet up. I already handle all the open source events for Linux kernel events.. let me know if any of you are planning on coming to PDX. I will help you and you get the Indian hospitality that my mother has drummed into me since I was a kid.
debit
@lamh36: I will!
Tom Levenson
Vote for meetup!
cain
@Mnemosyne:
Nonsense.. meeting with his fans is part of the job. Besides, ABC wont mind, she’s going to be doing all the talking anyways, because sure as shit, John is not an extrovert.
cain
@rikyrah: on a bus/train/flight… ????
TaMara (HFG)
@Mnemosyne: I’d rather take the train.
Denali
I’ve seen mopping on a Megabus. But it was in Spain. Because of all the rain.
TaMara (HFG)
@rikyrah: ???
Steve in the ATL
@Mike J: I get confused about where I am too. I was in Portland one week, Seattle a couple of weeks later, somewhere in between i can’t even remember, and just this morning got back from a week plus in Denver and Breckinridge.
I’ll be in Boston next Tuesday night; I would stay longer but have to get back to Georgia for the Masters (not playing this year; just attending!).
SectionH
@TaMara (HFG): Cheap transportation on the East Coast (well, elsewhere too but in my exp. it skews that way).. Mr S says they’re owned by a Scottish company (Stagecoach).
If Cole’s starting in CT, he should survive to Boston.
Pogonip
@max: He doesn’t have a megamop.
schrodingers_cat
Boston is too big city for this country hick. You should come down to western Mass, I am not that far from Conn.
Regnad Kcin
@efgoldman: “The Hub” however, is canon.
Name the place and time. Sorry I missed the Peabody one last year.
Pogonip
@debit: How’s the new dog (whose name has slipped what’s left of my mind)?
zhena gogolia
@TaMara (HFG):
I never heard of it either.
zhena gogolia
@Pogonip:
Kelpie.
schrodingers_cat
@Steve in the ATL: Baseball is boring and Red Sox fans are the worst. If you say want to stop all conversation, just say that you are a Yankees fan.
schrodingers_cat
@TaMara (HFG): @zhena gogolia: Me three.
efgoldman
@Steve in the ATL:
My freshman year at BU. I lived 10 floors above what was the right field line at Braves Field.
The remnants are now BU’s Nickerson Field – a bit of the bleachers and part of the outfield wall.
Pogonip
Megabus offers a discount to customers who wear pants. Glad to see Cole’s saving up for the wedding.
Regnad Kcin
@Steve in the ATL: are you Steve Buckley or something?
http://oldtimebaseball.com/
efgoldman
@Jim Bales:
My late father in law, as a very young man, worked as Edgerton’s assistant and set up/tool the early pictures.
At family gatherings he’d haul out the old strobe and entertain his nieces and nephews.
Ruckus
@debit:
I’d just like to grow up. OK maybe not.
Lets run the tests.
1. If I don’t grow up I might be confused with a republican.
2. If I do grow up I might just have to be responsible.
3. If I don’t grow up I can eat ice cream and cookies all day long.
4. If eat ice cream and cookies all day long I won’t have to worry about growing up.
Hmmmmmm………
SiubhanDuinne
@Denali:
Naked?
Sayne
Don’t you hate pants?!
efgoldman
@SiubhanDuinne:
Why would Denali be naked on a Megabus?
cain
@Steve in the ATL:
You attend the masters (and I assume golf?) Nice.
MomSense
@Mnemosyne:
And cheaper.
O/T but dealing with a kid’s ADHD spiral. This is intense and I can’t do much of anything.
Fuck fucking ADHD.
SFAW
@hovercraft:
No kidding. But I hear Rte 128 isn’t too bad, if you hit it at the right time.
JMG
Dear John: This Bostonian is super stoked to have you visit our fair city, whether or not it turns out I can attend a meetup, because I’m sure it will at least inspire some quality rants. But I will make extra effort to attend such a meetup should it take place. Lot of Bostonians here, hope they can arrange things. I’ll stay alert for new information.
SFAW
@efgoldman:
What’s scary (for me) is that your reply was the first thing I thought of.
Well, actually, that’s probably scary for you, too, albeit for a different reason.
Pogonip
@efgoldman: Because Cole has his pants?
SFAW
@JMG:
That’s Cambridge MA, not Boston.
Steve in the ATL
@Regnad Kcin:
I am not, but that looks fun!
debit
@Pogonip: Kelpie is good. Sleeping at my feet right now, having cavorted around the back yard for a good 40 minutes once I got home.
Roger Moore
@Steve in the ATL:
That franchise was originally known as the Red Stockings, a name which the newcomer American League team took over. They were the Braves for the plurality of their time in Boston, substantially longer than they had any other name, including when they left town.
Steve in the ATL
@cain:
I golf because it’s a requirement of my profession. I attend the Masters because it’s close by and it’s awesome!
Practice days are actually more fun than tournament days. You get really fun groupings.
LAO
@Steve in the ATL:
Glad you clarified that. ?
efgoldman
@SFAW:
Inside joke.
ETA: “The right time” being between 200am and 500am – IF there’s no construction
SiubhanDuinne
@efgoldman:
I couldn’t say; you would have to ask Denali. (Also, too, that elephant in my pajamas.)
efgoldman
@SFAW:
Nah. Mrgrderf years ago my AP English teacher really, really had a thing about antecedents.
SFAW
@efgoldman:
I was hoping you’d spot that.
And I did consider putting 3AM as “the right time,” but thought that might be too obvious.
SectionH
@MomSense: I had good friends who struggled with their ADHD son. Really really tough. You’re in my thoughts.
efgoldman
@SFAW:
I still don’t know why the geniuses didn’t designate the x-way up thru the city as I-95, and give 128 a circumferential even number, like the DC Beltway, I-295 around Providence, or I-495
ETA: Altho what was originally supposed to be I-95 into the city never got built: starting at the I-93 interchange and following what is now the Orange line right of way. Frank Sargent, one of the last good Republicans, shitcanned it.
Omnes Omnibus
@efgoldman: Why wouldn’t Denali be naked on a Megabus?
frosty
@MomSense:
Been there with two, one of whom was dyslexic too. Other parents give you advice — which is useless. All the little behavior mod tricks (like the nickel in the jar every time they’re good) work for two weeks, tops. Then you have to find another one. Then you give up and grit your teeth.
They both matured and turned into fine young men. So hang in there.
BBA
@SectionH: Oddly, the other major bus company (Greyhound/Bolt Bus) is also Scottish-owned (First Group).
SFAW
@efgoldman:
It’s a Boston thing. I seem to remember — although I may be confusing Boston with some other burg “what should know better” — that a lot of street signs are (or were) missing. Not due to theft/vandalism, but (apparently) because the planners figured “Hey, youse live heah, youse should know what street yer on.” Coming from the NYC area, it was kind of appalling.
satby
@MomSense: Hope things level out soon, know how tough that is. Virtual hugs and strength for you and your kiddo.
SFAW
@BBA:
Yeah, sure, whatever. Next you’ll be trying to convince us that Budweiser isn’t American.
SiubhanDuinne
@MomSense:
I have no words and no advice, but I can offer unlimited virtual hugs. Here are a few.
{{{{{{{{{{{{hugs}}}}}}}}}}}}
More where those came from.
MomSense
Thanks, everyone. Ugh.
SectionH
@BBA: Mr S says he knows that too. He asks Is that the Aberdeen outfit? (The transportation infrastructure of the planet isn’t My hobby, but it seems to be his, and he’s usually quicker than google.)
Eta: I am amused. The Scots are still focused on getting away?
different-church-lady
Well, forget it then.
CaseyL
Hi, everyone! Boy, did I miss this place.
My computer was in the shop for a few days – corrosion on the motherboard, which they fixed very nicely, thank you, and also fixed my trackpad. I had no internet for nearly a week, unless I went to a kiosk, and couldn’t get into my email even from a kiosk because I couldn’t convince my email I was me.
Definitely missed you all. Definitely missed my preferred news sources – I had to actually watch TV news, ugh.
OTOH, I did get to read a LOT of books.
SFAW
@MomSense:
Keeping my fingers crossed that things smooth out for you (and the kid, of course) sooner rather than later.
different-church-lady
@SFAW:
Now CUT THAT OUT.
different-church-lady
@TaMara (HFG):
Oh, about three or four pounds.
Omnes Omnibus
@different-church-lady: Did he bring shoes and/or underwear?
Anne Laurie
@TaMara (HFG):
Here’s one version: Bolt Bus. Basically, small-dollar intercity bus companies, renowned for their low prices. (And the occasional spectacular highway breakdown, which, given Cole’s history… )
Here they mostly run between college towns (including Boston-NYC-DC) but I believe they’re popular for trips from the more run-down urban areas to reservation-based casinos.
laura
Get on up! Upstairs on the Megabus is the place to be. Safe travels and enjoy the ride, the company and the Boston.
DaveinME
I’m totally up for meeting!
95/128? Piece of cake!!!
/snark
Anne Laurie
@SFAW:
When we first moved out here, a native told us that the Bostonians removed all the street signs during the Revolution to confuse the British. It worked so well, as a source of entertainment, that they’ve only reluctantly put *some* of them back up!
khead
@hovercraft:
I-95 IS a nightmare between DC and….. anywhere. We live at a major choke point on I-95. Elkton, MD. I will never pay the MD/DE toll again.
I still want to know about what goes on in a Megabus.
Anne Laurie
Srsly, Cole, I hope you CAN bring yourself to meet your local commentors/front-pagers. Some of us would prefer at least 24 hours notice, since transportation between the ‘burbs and the city proper can require some planning in advance.
You going to be down in the Seaport area, near the big conference center, or further out on the Rte 128 ring?
tobie
@germy:
Aaargh. Anyone who cared about the prospects for the Democratic Party was irritated with the Senator from Vermont by April when he had zero chance of winning the party nomination. Staffers may have vented in emails but they did nothing to hurt or help either campaign. I’m so sick of the party leadership bending over backwards to placate a minority of the party even if they end up alienating the majority, that includes the party faithful who do the grunt work for elections every two years. Thanks, Tom Perez. I think I’ll hold off on my next contribution. I’m also pretty wary about purges. Sounds Stalinesque.
dmsilev
@Anne Laurie: What I was told when growing up in the area was that the operating theory was ‘if you don’t know where you are, you don’t belong here.’
dmsilev
@khead:
What goes on in a Megabus stays in a Megabus.
MoxieM
@SFAW: There is no right time. Anymore. OTOH, it gave us Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers’ Roadrunner.
Mnemosyne
@MomSense:
Ugh. Yeah, pretty much all you can do is stand by, wait for it to wind down, and prevent any injuries.
It might be worth asking the kid’s doctor to recommend an ADHD coach. Apparently some kids find that less intimidating than full-on therapy, and the coach is more focused on immediate problem-solving and process creation, like coming up with a process to help remember what homework is due when to prevent meltdowns.
Omnes Omnibus
@tobie: The organization is in his hands now. He may have people who he wants to bring in. Also too, just because on asks for everyone’s resignation, it doesn’t mean that you will accept each one. Perez has done well everywhere he has been – including reviving the moribund DOJ Civil Rights division. I’ll back him until he shows me that I shouldn’t. YMMV
scott alloway
@RoonieRoo: Clean underwear and socks, too?
p.a.
@khead:
The stretch between Portland and Houlton is quite nice!?
scott alloway
@Omnes Omnibus: Missed your comment. Posted later.
scott alloway
@p.a.: Been there, done that. Lived in Portland. ex was from Caribou. At the time. north of Bangor was a two-laner (1969).
p.a.
@dmsilev: was that an old NBC show? Supertrain, Megabus… With Cole on board it could be subtitled “Cranky in the Corridor”
I bet a GoPro documenting his travels in his Subaru would be must-see utube.
Omnes Omnibus
@scott alloway: It is an obvious concern. I am surprised more people didn’t care enough to ask.
p.a.
@scott alloway: On Maine interstates I don’t mind, but on windy state roads I hate seeing oncoming tandem logging trucks.
scott alloway
@efgoldman: Yep. So true.
BruceFromOhio
Someday, I’d like to collect a slew of these non-sequitur twits, and make a rap album out of them.
What’s ‘jackals,’ precious?
scott alloway
@p.a.: True that. Lived in Dover-Foxcroft. Going to anywhere was a challenge in the fall. In winter, …
jonas
Homer: “Where are my pants?”
Marge: “You threw them out the window in a fit of passion. You said you were never going to need them again.”
Omnes Omnibus
@BruceFromOhio:
Really? I mean, really?!
FlyingToaster
John, just a word of advice:
Be prepared to disembark at any time.
I don’t know if I can make a meetup [WarriorGirl’s violin graduation this weekend, recital next weekend], but you should come across the river to Central Square in Our Fair City and visit Toscanini’s*. Just sayin. And Suan La Chow Show at Mary Chung’s.
*I’m now a suburbanite in Watertown so I go to Ranc’s. Of course, the owner of Ranc’s is the brother of the owner of Tosci’s. Heh.
Jim Bales
@efgoldman:
So cool! What was his name?
Jim
FlyingToaster
@BruceFromOhio: The Jackal
Turbulence
Holy shit, John Cole is coming to my city!
You have to do a meetup, you just got to!
JanieM
@FlyingToaster: And once you’re at Toscanini’s, get the burnt caramel with hot fudge sauce. :-)
I’m heading to Cambridge in a few days as well, and would try to get to a Boston-area meet-up if the stars align..
danielx
What, did Cole forget to put on pants before driving to ABC’s at some point? Help me out here….
Not that I would be particularly surprised at any personal disaster involving pants, considering the source.
Omnes Omnibus
@Turbulence: He got up in the middle of the Madison, WI 2013 meet-up and went to play video golf. OTOH, his hand are the size of hams.
efgoldman
@SFAW:
Not just in Boston. In a lot of New England, easily visible street signs are considered a sign of weakness.
Before GPS and Google maps it was REALLY fun.
Aleta
@SFAW: You mean between 2 – 3:30 a.m. ?
efgoldman
@khead:
My kids live in Arlington VA and drive to NC (his family) twice a year. The bottleneck on that side, Northbound, is always, always in Fredricksburg.
Omnes Omnibus
@efgoldman: When my family moved back to CT in 1976, people in Newtown were confused about our need to put the house number on our address. Our name and street should have been enough.
efgoldman
@Jim Bales:
Tom Marzilli. mrs efg was his oldest daughter.
ETA: For fun, on Saturdays if he had to work, he’d bring the kids in with him to the EG&G building across the street from Fenway. Apparently there was lots of fun stuff to play with. They knew Doc Edgerton, but Doc being Doc, I’m sure he forgot who they were a week later. I’m sure mrs efg couldn’t have been older than five, maybe six, which would have made it late 1950s.
opiejeanne
@schrodingers_cat: That was cute! I love the plane at the end, especially the take-off.
Aleta
@efgoldman: Coming in from the north the GPS has a nervous breakdown every time I refuse the Tobin Bridge.
aj
Yes, but did he bring mustard?
Anyway come to Boulder. Don’t need pants.
rikyrah
@TaMara (HFG):
Cheap bus. Earlier you buy the tickets, cheaper it is. I’m in the Midwest, and like I said before, my sister could routinely get round trip tickets from Minneapolis to Chicago for $20-25. Takes planning, but if you Know when you are traveling, you can get a great deal. The Minneapolis-Chicago bus is usually a double decker. My sister loves sitting upstairs on it. They don’t go everywhere. They have expanded in the Midwest in the last 18 months.
Doesn’t have the reach of Greyhound, but if you want to travel on their established routes, compare prices.
FlyingToaster
@Aleta: I swear, Boston is the death knell for GPS’s. Mine is the ultimate in artificial stupidity. What portion of “if you start in Somerville you are not going to the airport via Boston; go via Chelsea” is so hard to understand?
And don’t get me started on Storrowing…
Aimai
@FlyingToaster: hey! Cambridge deserves a look in. How many of us are there? We need a big space for a meet up.
Jim Bales
@efgoldman:
Got it. It’s not a name I’ve come across (I’ve only been here since ’98).
If you and Mrs. efg are around, please come by! There are still some exhibits in the hallway to play with, and lots of pretty pictures :-)
Best,
Jim
Jeff R.
I went to the November meetup with Anne Laurie and efgoldman. I’d be up for another one.