Actually, I was somewhat social Friday night, too. (Wasn't I going to take it easy in September? Well, it wasn't really like that.) I met friends at the house of my friend with the new twins, and we hung around and admired the babies and gave them bottles and had a wonderful time (they are So Cute). Then one of my friends came over to my place, and we had something to eat, and made cookies, and watched part of a movie (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban). Just an overall fun evening.
My Saturday didn't start well. As I mentioned before, I was thinking of going in to Boston to watch the Bruins at training camp, but when you wake up at two-something AM with a migraine, and then do a sleep-wake-sleep thing until ten trying to get rid of it, you just don't get up and moving the way you wanted to. It was somewhat better, or at least not so bad, when I got up, but not in a way that left me with a lot of energy to get moving. I took it easy and waited to see which way the wind was blowing, head-pain-wise, instead, and watched the rainy morning with dismay. As long as I was paying to go in to Boston, I wanted to do more while I was there, but it didn't look like it was going to be the kind of day for walking around, and so many of the other things one can do in the city lead to spending money, which I am trying to not do these days. Small dilemma.
Eventually, I decided that the head was going to be well enough, and I drove to the T and went in to the Garden. Getting there, I was in a medium-flat mood, enough that I didn't feel like taking a picture of the sign outside that said training camp was going on, but inside, they had a little more of a fuss, and I felt my spirits lift slightly. Enough to get out the camera, anyway!
Yes, there were balloons all over. Not, I think, for such as me, but more for the season-ticket holders, for whom they were having further festivities. Still, it was nice. The season returneth. And, as I told a nice young lady who invited me to consider joining the ranks, when I win the lottery.
So, I was there for the afternoon session, which was the rookies, most of whom I know nothing about, and the team didn't help by not putting numbers on their jerseys (I suppose they don't even want to invest that much on them, which is kind of sad, but most of them won't make it on the team, it's true). The only one I could ID was one of the goalies, Tuukka Rask. I was intrigued to see how he tucked his stick in the top of his pads when he needed his hands free, instead of putting it on top of the net.
I don't recall noticing another goalie do just that with a stick, though perhaps they do; I'll have to keep an eye out.
At one point, a number of players were alternating taking shots on Rask, and he made a save that sent the puck up into the netting and over the glass not too far from where I was sitting. No one else was near where it fell, so I went to pick it up (hockey pucks make good paperweights). It was wet and cold, like holding the promise of winter. I kept it in the palm of my hand for a few minutes, but it didn't warm up.
I'll spare you the rest of the hockey pictures, as even I can see they aren't that exciting to hockey-muggles. It was just so fun to be there, seeing hockey, hearing it. Eventually, of course, it was over, and they kicked us out, and I went out to find that the cloudy, maybe I'll rain again weather was passing, and the day was turning nice. What a surprise! I promptly decided to walk around for a while before leaving, and headed toward the Esplanade and the river. On the way, I got sidetracked into Beacon Hill, which is probably my favorite part of Boston. We used to live there when I was little, before we moved to suburbia, and though I don't remember it much at all, maybe that's why I have such fondness for the narrow streets and hidden corners.
I stopped to look at the Hatch Shell,
and at first I mis-read the inscription.
Did you get it right, first time? For some reason, at first I was thinking of it as being done by her will, by the force of her personality, rather than her Last Will and Testament, which is more than likely what is meant. I guess I was still a little in la-la land.
If you look at the side of the first Hatch Shell photo, you can see it has this odd decorative element off to the right. There was one on the left as well. I can't think what they are, other than decorative.
I did rather expect Superman to leap out of it, fully costumed, but other than that...
I learned something else about the Hatch Shell just by walking by it, which is that the Pops don't just bring these in:
for the fourth of July. I love the 1812 Overture!
Near the Shell is a memorial to Arthur Fiedler, commonly called the Fiedler head. Is it cool, or is it creepy? You decide:
Wow, you hear that? I actually did enough this weekend to break into two posts! Who would have thought?
There's a padlock at the bottom of the Superman closet, so my guess is they're functional as well as decorative. Maybe there are speakers in them, or panels for the sound & lights rigs to plug into?
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