Category Archives: Boston

News about Boston activities and going-ons

Lower the Flag in Honor of Boston Marathon Bombing Victims

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Massachusetts-statehouse-half-mast-flagAs I drive around the city I’m seeing lots of flags that remain at full staff.

Please share this post or let people know who own flags that the Massachusetts Governor Patrick has declared that all flags at least in our state be lowered to half mast.

After the April 15th bombing at the Boston Marathon I can’t help but feel it bring back a lot of feeling about the effects of Sept 11th, my friend Ray Rocha who died in the World trade center and eventually capturing Osama Bin Laden last year.

Please Lower your flags to half mast in respect of the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing.

Please be advised that Governor Deval L. Patrick and Police Chief Ed Davis has ordered that the United States flag and the Commonwealth flag be lowered to half-staff at all state buildings immediately and until further notice in honor of the victims of the acts of violence perpetrated in Boston on Monday, April 15, 2013.

This gubernatorial order applies to:

1. The main or administration building of each public institution of the Commonwealth, e.g. town and city halls

2. Other state-owned or state-controlled buildings

3. All state military installations

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Interview: Laurel Wolff of Jaded

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Laurel Wolff of Boston’s all female rock band JADED

3LDP: Laurel, you are seasoned musician, you play bass and you sing. What or who was your inspiration for playing music in general?
Laurel Wolff: Thank you :) Music has always been around me. My father is a classically trained pianist and I remember listening to him practice all the time growing up. Music was always on in the house and I was picking up different instruments waiting for one to stick-which was the bass. What really got me to take my bass playing further was seeing and hearing White Zombie’s bassist (Sean Yseult) play. I saw her and thought to myself, now thats what I want to do! As far as the singing, I wanted to form an all-girl band when I was 14 or so and we couldn’t find a singer, so I decided to take the job (as well as playing bass) and I’m glad I did, I’ve been singing ever since.

Photos of Laurel Wolff of Jaded

3LDP: JADED has had a few different lineups since it’s forming. Do you think this lineup is the most solidified since your joining and what is the relationship you ladies have with JADED?
Laurel Wolff: I think that we have THE lineup for the band now! We took our time looking for the right girl after Marina left and we definitely have found her! We are all very close, like sisters in a way. I feel very lucky to be working with such talented and smart chix!

3LDP: JADED has toured throughout the US and Europe. Any particular show you remember or that stands out the most?
Laurel Wolff: Oh man, there’s quite a few! Playing the London Astoria was one of my favorites though! The energy was electric! We also had a total Spinal Tap moment trying to find the stage!

3LDP: Your New single “Higher”, who produced it, where was it produced/mixed/mastered and how did the process of writing the single happen?
Laurel Wolff: The whole EP was produced and mixed by Richard Marr, Sammy Miami and JADED at Galaxy Park Studios in Allston MA and it was mastered by Jeff Lipton at Peerless Mastering. “Higher” had been a song in the works for a year or two actually, with many different versions. The version we have now is completely different than all the others, but has the same concept lyrically. The song came about at practice, just riffing around and then coming in with new parts/ideas, piecing it together.

Music: Jaded

3LDP: The New CD, has the writing process been a new experience with current singer Katy Reign?
Laurel Wolff: Yes, definitely! Katy comes up with really cool melodies and she just gels with us. I feel like we have matured a lot together!

3LDP: I have personally seen JADED live at shows and I must say, you ladies can ROCK and the stage presence is very theatrical and tight. Use one word that would best describe you band mates on stage.
Wow, thanx! …man, I’m not good at these types of questions haha but here ya go-
Britt Lightning: Flashy
Katy Reign: Strong
Hillary Blaze: On fire
Laurel Wolff: Aggressive

3LDP: Name a few artists that you have shared the stage with. Also name your influences.
Laurel Wolff: Alice in Chains, Halestorm, Doro Pesch, WASP, Twisted Sister, Buckcherry, Kittie, Disturbed. A few of my influences are Type O Negative, White Zombie, Iron Maiden, Drain STH.

3LDP: What are some of your goals as a band moving forward into the future?
Laurel Wolff: To spread our music around the world!

3LDP: How can fans-to-be gain access to your music? Do you have a website with samples?
Laurel Wolff: You can find us and hear us on: www.reverbnation.com/jadedrockers, www.facebook.com/jadedrock or our website (which is under construction at the moment) www.jadedrockers.com. You can also go to www.suicide-dream.com to hear my other project (Suicide Dream).

3LDP: What equipment do you use? Endorsers?
Laurel Wolff: I play an Ibanez SRX300 bass with Dunlop strings/picks. I’m also working with Carlino Guitars on a custom bass which I’m very excited about! I play through an Ampeg PR410H cab with a Hartke 2500 head.

3LDP: Thank you so much for your time, it has been a pleasure as usual. See you at the next show! Is there anything else you would like share with all the JADED fans?
Laurel Wolff: Anytime and thank you! To all the fans-you guys are amazing and keep checking the sites for more to come.

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Asian Longhorned Beetles are Everywhere in New England

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Asian Longhorned BeetleAsian longhorned beetles, a much-feared invasive pest with the potential to devastate New England’s forests, have been discovered in Boston, across the street from the country’s oldest public arboretum.

Six infested red maples bordering a parking lot at Faulkner Hospital in Jamaica Plain were cut down early yesterday morning. Teams of tree climbers and spotters, sent in by federal officials, have begun laboriously examining every tree vulnerable to the beetle within 1.5 miles.

The sighting of the beetles fanned worries that trees would have to be chopped down in treasured open spaces including the nearby Arnold Arboretum, Franklin Park, and Jamaica Pond. The beetle, which thrives on New England’s signature maples, has no known predators in the United States, and infested trees must be destroyed to prevent the insect’s spread.

The insect has “the ability to be the beetle that ate New England,” said Frank Lowenstein, director of forest health for the Nature Conservancy. “The trees that are its favorite food are the very trees that are characteristic of our region.”

But preliminary surveys, begun over the weekend, provide reason for cautious optimism.

“The good news so far is this appears to be very localized,” said Ian Bowles, state energy and environmental affairs secretary.

Bowles and federal officials said the infestation appears less widespread than one discovered two years ago in Worcester, which led to the destruction of 25,000 trees at a cost of $50 million in federal and state money.

Workers up in the tree canopy and on the ground have not found signs of the beetle in other trees around the hospital. While the insects can fly up to a mile and a half after they emerge from a tree, they are often “lackadaisical” and will lay eggs nearby or on the same tree they emerged from, according to Clint McFarland, director of the US Department of Agriculture’s Asian longhorned beetle eradication program.

The early positive news did not diminish environmental officials’ sense of urgency. They imposed a ban on transporting firewood or woody material outside of a zone within 1.5 miles of the epicenter and asked Boston and Brookline residents in the target area to search their yards and neighborhoods for signs of the inch-and-a-half-long, shiny, spotted beetles with curving black and white antennae.

The USDA, which is coordinating with state and city officials, had 13 workers combing trees yesterday and plans to hire more to inspect tens of thousands of trees in the coming weeks.

Since the beetles were found in Worcester in August 2008, arborists around New England have been vigilant. Just two weeks ago, volunteers inspected trees on Boston Common and found no beetles.

The new beetles were discovered during routine grounds keeping, according to Deb LaScaleia, grounds supervisor at Faulkner Hospital. She saw signs of some kind of insect infestation, sawdust created when beetles bore holes, and sent samples to be tested by a private contractor.

The presence of the beetles was confirmed, and around 5 a.m. yesterday the trees were removed. About 10 adult beetles were found, and about 40 beetles in earlier stages of development.

It is not known how the beetles reached Boston. One theory is that they arrived in wood products such as firewood.

McFarland said scientists will use genetics to try to determine the origins of these beetles.

The beetle, which is native to Asia, is an invasive species of much concern in the United States. First detected in 1996 in Brooklyn, N.Y., it also has caused infestations in Chicago and New Jersey, where thousands of trees were removed. While it is not known how the beetles first got to this country, one potential source is wooden shipping pallets.

Besides its lack of predators, the beetle is especially pernicious because it threatens so many types of trees, including maple, elm, willow, birch, horse chestnut, poplar, and mimosa. In the spring, a pesticide can be used to treat at-risk trees to try to prevent future infestation, but once a tree is infested, the only option is to cut it down and turn it into chips or burn it.

The beetles chew an oval-shaped pit in the bark of a tree in the summer, and females lay one egg in each pit. When those eggs hatch, larvae tunnel into the heart of the tree, where they eat the wood and spend the winter. When the larvae are grown, they emerge as adult beetles the following summer by boring their way to the surface of the tree.

While a single year of infestation will not kill a tree, the holes and tunnels the beetles make structurally weaken a tree and make it vulnerable to disease.

“This is a huge deal,’’ said Bob Childs, an entomologist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He said the new find is of particular concern because “the Arnold Arboretum is just a gem among gems.’’

“It’s a spectacular planting [ground] with great historic value, not to mention botanical value,’’ he said.

Julie Crockford, president of the Emerald Necklace Conservancy, a public-private partnership devoted to parks protection and public education, said that teens working in Boston parks this summer will be trained to monitor for the beetle.

“We’ve been waiting for this shoe to drop, and now it has,’’ Crockford said. “I hope we can contain it.’’

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Watch the Perseid Meteor Showers this August 12th

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If, around August 12th, you go outside between midnight and dawn and look up for a minute or so, you’ll most likely spot a meteor streaking through the sky. The August Perseid meteors were the first that astronomers associated with a particular comet. In the mid 1860s, Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli observed that Perseids followed the appearance of the Swift-Tuttle Comet.

Perseid-Meteor-ShowerThe Perseids are among the most reliable of the year’s cosmic fireworks displays. In mid-August, Earth passes through a stream of grit left behind by Comet Swift-Tuttle in its eccentric 130-year orbit. Flecks of debris burn up as they pass through the atmosphere, at a height of about 60 miles, producing streaks of light — and sometimes leaving behind glowing trails that fade into the night.

The Perseids are so called because the point they appear to come from, called the radiant, lies in the constellation Perseus. Meteor showers occur when Earth moves through a meteor stream. The stream in this case is called the Perseid cloud and it stretches along the orbit of the Comet Swift-Tuttle. The cloud consists of particles ejected by the comet as it passed by the Sun.

Most of the dust in the cloud today is approximately a thousand years old. However, there is also a relatively young filament of dust in the stream that boiled off the comet in 1862. The approximate rate of meteors originating from this filament is much higher than normal.

  • Watch for Perseid meteors in the night skies from July 23rd to August 22nd.
  • Get away from artificial light if possible.
  • Dress appropriately for nighttime viewing. As a summer event, Perseids may be one of the few meteor showers you can observe in shirtsleeves.
  • Look toward constellation Perseus for the radiant point of Perseid meteors. They’ll seem to come from that area, which is about halfway above the horizon in the northeast quadrant of the sky.
  • Begin your search for Perseids after 10 p.m. (although the best viewing comes from midnight until dawn).
  • Recline with your feet facing due south and look straight up. Perseids should appear to come from over your left shoulder.

The Perseid meteor shower peaks on the new-Moon night of Sunday–Monday, August 12–August 13 and can be seen from any place in the northern hemisphere. The Perseid meteors appear to stream away from their radiant near the border of Perseus and Cassiopeia.

The meteor rate, for an observer at a dark-sky site in the northern temperate latitudes, increases to roughly 30 per hour in the pre-dawn hours on Saturday, 45 per hour on Sunday morning, and 80 per hour before the sky starts to get light on Monday morning.

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Local Post Offices Are Closing. Is Yours on the List?

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As the United States Postal Service, weighed down by a crippling multibillion-dollar deficit, shrinks its operations, post offices across the country are on the chopping block. Each year, hundreds of postal operations shutter, but this coming fall could be the single biggest consolidation in Postal Service history.

post-office-closingOver the next three months, more than 3,200 post offices and retail outlets out of 34,000 will be reviewed for possible closure or consolidation.

Downsizing is a business imperative, says Linda Welch, acting vice president of delivery and post office operations at the Postal Service. “Revenues have declined, and mail volume continues to decline,” she says.

Do you want to see the whole list?

I’ve been working a few hours each day since the announcement to build this list of post office closings so people can look up and see if their local post office will be closing. If you want to be notified of updates to the Most Recent Announcements and to Download the list, subscribe below:

Can We Get A List Of The Post Offices That Are Closing?

If you know of any other post offices that are closing because of this please contact me. Partial list that I have got so far:

Kansas
New Albany, KS, Post Office, 101 2nd Street, New Albany, KS, 66759

Louisiana
Cameron Post Office (70631) is closed. Residents can pick their mail up at the Lake Charles Drew Station.

New York
The South Kortright, NY, Post Office 10675 County Highway 18, 13842 is temporarily closed. The mail is being redirected to Hobart, NY 13788 located at 698 Main St, Suite #1

Ohio
Birmingham, OH, Post Office 44816 is closed. All customers will be serviced at Wakeman Post Office, 16 W Main St. Wakeman, OH 44889

Are These Post Offices Closing Because of the Recession?

Not only have e-mail and electronic bill paying made for a skinnier mail stream, but the recession has caused a sharp pullback in advertising mail that has hurt the Postal Service even more.

In March, Postmaster General John Potter asked Congress for the right to reduce the mail week from six days to five, for a savings of $3.5 billion. Shutting down post offices will have similar cost-saving effects. And most Americans say they’re OK with the cutbacks, as long as they don’t have to pay more to send mail. A recent USA Today/Gallup poll found that more Americans would rather the Postal Service curtail services than seek a bailout or raise stamp prices.

At least, that’s what everyone says until it’s their beloved post office at stake. For various reasons, people tend to react with great fervor when their local offices are endangered.

Consider the case of the Hawleyville Post Office. After years of negotiations, the Postal Service in January notified the Connecticut community that its 166-year-old post office would close Feb. 14. An article in the local newspaper poignantly noted, “The long love affair between the Hawleyville post office and its loyal customers will come to an end on, of all days, Valentine’s Day.”

Its post office was rickety, but the community embraced it as a gathering place. One resident told the Newtown Bee, “The Hawleyville Post Office is like Cheers in Hawleyville.”

In fear of losing its precious haunt, the community mobilized. A Web site and online petition drive were created. Members got Congress involved. And lo and behold, the community won approval for a new post office, to be opened this summer.

Every time a post office is slated for closure or consolidation, the Postal Service is legally obligated to inform its customers well in advance. “There’s a very long process that they have to go through,” says Mario Principe, the post office continuance consultant at the National League of Postmasters. That gives the communities plenty of time, usually at least two months, to stage a rescue.

Your Post Office is Closing. Get Used to It

The Postal Service will typically send out a survey or host a town hall meeting before an endangered office closes. Perhaps the closing of a post office means too many lost jobs for an already-hurting community. The office might house the bulletin board that posts important community announcements. Or the next-closest post office may be really far away. If customers alert officials to such concerns, there’s a better chance that their office will be spared. Appealing the closure decision to the Postal Regulatory Commission often works, too, though it’s a step many communities don’t know to take.

It’s also important to check out why a post office is on the chopping block in the first place. Those under review this summer are mostly metropolitan branches or stations. But in the case of small post offices, federal law states that the reason can’t be just that the office isn’t bringing in enough revenue. If that’s the only explanation given, then the Postal Service can’t legally shut it down.

Oftentimes, post offices face closure because their leases expire. That’s the case in Deer Harbor, Wash. After attempts to find a new location for the post office failed, the community decided “in desperation” to buy the property just to keep it in business. If the community can raise the $250,000 purchase price by the June 30, the Postal Service says it will continue operations there.

The Postal Service seems willing to negotiate, and it’s not really bothered by the protests. “It actually it makes us very proud to know that we are a valuable member of the community,” says Welch. She says that the Postal Service appreciates the great lengths that some communities will go to just to ensure that their services continue.

What the Postal Service would appreciate even more: If those people would show their appreciation by taking the simple step of sending more mail. Oddly enough, that seems to be the unthinkable last resort.

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Massachusetts Beaches Now Have to Deal with Jellyfish

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Jellyfish attack Boston area beaches!

jellyfish-in-bostonPoisonous Portuguese men-of-war, in an unusually large invasion, stung at least 14 people in Massachusetts during the last week, prompting periodic swimming bans on Cape and Islands beaches during one of the summer’s busiest holiday weeks.

Local and state officials say the intermittent beach closings may continue through Thursday, as the jellyfish-like creatures continue to wash up on beaches from Westport to Nantucket. However, they believe that shifting winds should carry the strange creatures, which are more common in tropical waters, back to sea after that.

None of the stings appear to be serious, although several people were taken to local hospitals for evaluation. Contact with a tentacle, which can dangle 50 feet below the surface, can bring painful welts that look like whip marks. Some people are allergic to the stings and, in extremely rare cases, they may cause anaphylactic shock, which can cause death.

Yesterday, Nantucket officials prohibited swimming on about 13 miles of south-facing beaches, but reopened much of the area in the afternoon, after winds died down and numbers of the creatures appeared to decline.

In Falmouth, Menauhant Beach was closed early in the day, but lifeguards later put up a sign that said swimming was allowed “at your own risk.”

Chapoquoit Beach in Falmouth also closed briefly when eight men-of-war washed up on the shore or were spotted near the beach. Continue reading →

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Mark Wahlberg in Lowell To Film Micky Ward Movie – The Fighter

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Finally, the “Irish” Micky Ward movie The Fighter is a reality and it’s filming right here in Lowell.

Yesterday afternoon, actor Mark Wahlberg, who will play Lowell boxer Ward, met with scouts for the movie in the lobby of the Lowell DoubleTree Hotel in downtown Lowell to discuss possible locations to film scenes for the feature film.

Potential spots packing a punch in the discussion were Cupples Square in the Highlands section of Lowell, and, specifically, the Highland Tap barroom; the former Foxtail Lounge on Merrimack Street; the now-defunct Route 3 Cinema on Chelmsford Street, just over the line in Chelmsford; and Stevens Street a main thoroughfare in the Highlands where Ward, 43, grew up.

Talk of “dressing up” the Tsongas Arena for a fight scene was bandied about, and Lawrence, the other mill city just down the river, was mentioned, as well.

In addition to Wahlberg, who arrived at the hotel alone wearing sunglasses, Ward’s half-brother, Dicky Eklund, and Rich Farrell, the producer of the HBO documentary High on Crack Street: Lost Lives in Lowell, were on hand talking with the scouts.

Actor Christian Bale is reportedly portraying Eklund in the movie, which follows Ward’s boxing career from the streets of Lowell and his rocky relationship with his trainer half brother. Eklund was once a professional fighter himself who fought Sugar Ray Leonard before his battles with addiction.

Filming is set to begin in Lowell this July and will take about seven weeks. The Fighter was originally to be directed by Darren Aronofsky of The Wrestler fame, but according to the Internet Movie Database, www.imdb.com., Aronofsky backed out and was replaced by David O. Russell, who directed I Heart Huckabees and previously worked with Wahlberg on Three Kings.

The Dorchester-born Wahlberg, 37, is the star of such movies as Boogie Nights, The Perfect Storm, Shooter and The Happening, and was nominated for best supporting actor for 2006′s The Departed.

Micky Ward’s final pro record was 38-13, with 27 knockouts.

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Eleven years and Whitey Bulger still on the run

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No news conference this year, just a short press release announcing the 11th anniversary of the disappearance of notorious Boston gangster James “Whitey” Bulger.

Federal and state law enforcement officials on Wednesday said they’re still hunting for the fugitive, an alleged killer who ran drug and gambling rings. In 2005, leads and look-a-likes were investigated in at least 19 countries.

whitey-bulger“The public should be assured that we remain committed to leaving no stone unturned in the hunt for James Bulger,” U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan, Boston FBI Special Agent in Charge Kenneth Kaiser, State Police Superintendent Col. Thomas Robbins and state Department of Correction Commissioner Kathleen Dennehy said in a prepared statement.
In the past decade, Bulger has been “spotted” all over the U.S., as well as in Canada, Britain, Mexico. Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. But most of the reported sightings were people who look like Bulger, a balding, 76-year-old man who could blend in anywhere.

Bulger, the former leader of the Winter Hill Gang, was also an FBI informant who ratted out his competitors in the Italian Mafia. He disappeared in late December 1994 after being tipped by his FBI handler, John Connolly, that he was about to be indicted on racketeering charges.

Connolly is now serving a 10-year prison for warning Bulger and his cohort Stephen “The Rifleman” Flemmi to flee in advance of their January 1995 indictment.

In December 2004, authorities held a news conference to mark the 10th anniversary of Bulger’s disappearance and to highlight their efforts to find him. That year, agencies combined their efforts with state police and formed a single Bulger Fugitive Task Force.

Bulger is on the FBI’s “Most Wanted” list, alongside Osama bin Laden, and has a $1 million reward on his head. His “Most Wanted” poster is offered in six languages.

Investigators believe Bulger is traveling with his longtime girlfriend, Catherine Greig, 54.

Air Travel Sickness Bags Aren't Enough

Air Travel Makes You Sick. Lets Not Panic

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As international travelers help swine flu hopscotch across the globe, the potential pandemic sharpens a paranoia familiar to even the most casual flier. Isn’t sitting on a plane for hours, squished next to strangers and breathing the same air, a surefire recipe for getting sick later?

That common belief was underscored late last week by none other than Vice President Joe Biden. “When one person sneezes it goes all the way through the aircraft,” he declared on NBC’s “Today” show.

Air Travel Sickness Bags Aren't Enough

Air Travel Sickness Bags Aren't Enough

And heightened public concern was evident in how quickly a flight from Munich to Washington was diverted to Boston Friday to remove a passenger who said she felt ill. She was treated at a local hospital and later released.

It’s no surprise that people worry about getting sick every time they fly. Not only do planes ferry sick people to new locales where diseases can gain a foothold, but they put passengers in what seems like a hotbed of germs, with no way out.

“Whenever you put that many people that close together, the issue of disease transmission is going to be of concern,” said Byron Jones, a mechanical engineer at Kansas State University who studies airplane ventilation in his laboratory, which includes 11 rows of a Boeing 767 airline cabin.

But don’t despair if the guy four rows ahead sneezes. Scientific studies show that contrary to popular belief, germs and other contaminants don’t travel the length of the plane, infecting everyone. And there are steps you can take to minimize your risk of catching something.

“We have close to 2 billion people traveling by air annually, and we don’t hear of these huge outbreaks as a result of the air travel,” said Dr. Mark Gendreau, senior staff physician at Lahey Clinic and author of a recent study on medical issues on flights in the medical journal The Lancet.

The risk of onboard transmission of infection is mainly restricted to individuals with either personal contact, or seated within two rows of an infected passenger on flights longer than eight hours, according to Gendreau’s 2005 study that reviewed the available literature on infectious disease on planes.

In his new study, Gendreau reviewed the literature on diseases that spread on planes, finding incidents where everything from flu to measles to food poisoning have become mile-high contagions. But it’s important to remember, he said, that the cabin ventilation systems have been designed to minimize risk. There is evidence that when they are working properly, they do just that.

Typically, airplane air – about half from outside and half recycled after being passed through filters – enters at the top of the cabin. From there, the ventilation system keeps it from flowing forward and backward in the plane, limiting it mostly to the immediate row, before exiting through grilles in the cabin floor.

One study illustrates the importance of ventilation by showing what happens when it’s not in operation: On a 1979 flight, nearly three quarters of the passengers contracted influenza within 72 hours. The reason, researchers found, was probably because passengers sat on board for three hours with a broken ventilation system while repairs were done.

Other studies seem to show that our fears of catching cold on a plane may be overblown. A study of 155 travelers found they were probably infected before their flights: An analysis of the bacteria and viruses they harbored showed that few travelers had the same pathogens, and there were no links between pathogens and specific airports.

Plane infection has been studied sporadically, and often when outbreaks occur. But the issue is attracting more scientific interest. This fall, a two-day symposium is planned on the transmission of disease in airports and on planes by the National Academy of Sciences.

Studies have shown that numerous supplements do not prevent the flu. Last year, the maker of the popular supplement Airborne paid $23.3 million in a class action lawsuit, for making claims without sufficient evidence that the product could prevent colds.

But there are things passengers can do to protect themselves.

What’s most important on the plane is the same as on the ground. Passengers should be careful not to touch their eyes, nose, or mouth during the flight and to wash their hands or use a sanitizing gel.

Infection occurs when viruses or bacteria are sprayed from infected people in droplets from a cough or sneeze. The pathogens can then be picked up when passengers touch their tray table or the arm of their seat, and then rub their eye.

People should also be sure to stay hydrated in the arid cabin environment.

Vice President Joe Biden says you can get swine flu on a plane

Vice President Joe Biden says you can get swine flu on a plane

“The aircraft cabin is notoriously dry; it has poor humidity and the way it gets its humidity is through the breath of cabin occupants,” Gendreau said. “If you can keep your mucus membranes very moist, that’s our first natural barrier.”

Then there is a somewhat more creative theory of how to prevent getting sick on board by using the nozzle that sprays a jet of cool air onto passengers.

Gendreau said he turns the nozzle to a medium air flow and points it in front of his “face space,” with the idea of creating turbulence that could jettison any stray microbes.

Jones, the mechanical engineer at Kansas State, is officially skeptical about whether directing the nozzle’s air flow is an effective way to deter disease, calling it a bit of “false security.” But he admitted that he uses the same technique when someone on the plane is sneezing or coughing.

He also said that in picking a seat, common sense prevails.

“Nobody likes that center seat – you’ve got people on both sides of you,” Jones said. “There’s no magic there.”

In general, people shouldn’t fly when they are sick, whether it is an infectious disease or a recent surgery.

Gendreau said that he frequently writes notes to the airlines for his patients when it is not appropriate for them to fly, and that people are usually given vouchers to fly at a later time.

Dr. Richard Besser, acting director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that people who are sick or experiencing flu-like symptoms should not be flying.

But even in the throes of swine flu, healthy people have no reason to avoid flying.

“I think flying is safe, getting on the subway is safe,” Besser said. “People should go out and live their lives.”

Support Iraq war veterans running for Congress

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Tammy Duckworth lost her legs when the helicopter she was piloting was shot down over Iraq. But, she didn’t lose an ounce of her courage or her commitment to serve. She knows that it’s time for veterans to speak up for a stronger America. That’s why Tammy is running for Congress – and her election is right around the corner.She’s seeking the Democratic nomination in the March 21 Illinois primary for the seat being vacated after 32 years by Representative Henry J. Hyde. With your help, Tammy can bring her perspective on Iraq, health care, and other issues to the floor of the Congress. But, you have to act quickly. Continue reading →

Support Massachusetts Democrats

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Dear Friend,

In 3 months, voters across the Commonwealth will head to the polls for the critically important 2006 election. It has been 20 years — far too long — since we elected a Democratic governor here at home. Massachusetts, like so much of the country, is ready for a change.

That’s why the Democratic Coordinated Campaign in Massachusetts has organized a series of cookouts in support of Massachusetts Victory ’06, the impressive grassroots organization that we Democrats are building to help Democratic candidates win in 2006. Several cookouts have already been held, and a dozen more are planned throughout the Commonwealth that you can sign up for today.

I’ll be at the Lexington grassroots cookout on Sunday, August 13 to show my support for Massachusetts Victory ’06, and I hope you can join me. If you cannot attend this cookout or if you simply live too far away from Lexington, please consider participating in another cookout or making a donation in support of Massachusetts Victory ’06.

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Harpoon Winter Warmer Beer & Friends of Harpoon Winter Events

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Harpoon Winter WarmerI got this from the Harpoon Brewery today:

We are less than a month away from Harpoon Helps Spread Holiday Cheer . On Saturday, December 1st, we will be again be sending Harpoon Helpers to 25 different locations in Boston to decorate and spread good tidings to those who need it the most. We are still looking for volunteers to come help us decorate and invite you to sign up yourself or a group today. After a couple of hours decorating, everyone will return to our Boston brewery for some food and fresh Harpoon beers! We hope that you will join us for our biggest Harpoon Helps mission of the year!

SIGN UP FOR HARPOON HELPS SPREAD HOLIDAY CHEER

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Couple Beers No Beers WBCN’s Chili Guy

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Couple Beers No Beers

The Toucher and Rich show does drunken Red Sox recaps after most Sox home games and just interview the drunkest people they see about the game they saw the night before. At first they interviewed this guy and they thought he was a drunk guy at the game but a few months later they found out he was a homeless guy. He says some crazy things and the show has given back to him, always giving him food, gift cards and kind of take care of him. He is hilarious though.

For those of you around Boston that listen to WBCN will probably know who the Chili Guy is for the rest of you check out this soundboard for this guy, he is hilarious. Continue reading →

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Boston Sports Commercial Debuts During World Series

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Doug FlutieMayor Menino was the only non-athlete with the exception of the narrator, Dorchester native Donnie Wahlberg appearing in a 30-second advertisement for local footwear maker Reebok.

The company lined up star power endorsers including David Ortiz, Bruin great Bobby Orr, former Boston College and Patriots quarterback Doug Flutie, and Patriots running back Laurence Maroney.

The ad, hastily produced by Reebok staff last week without benefit of an advertising agency, flashed photos of the city and its athletes, as Wahlberg asked: “What do they all have in common? They all play right here, and they all wear . . .” He doesn’t finish the sentence; the word Reebok appears across the screen.

Flutie says, “This is Reebok Nation.” Continue reading →

Justin Timberlake Coming to Boston

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Justin Timberlake is coming to Boston to the TD Banknorth Garden (formerly Fleetcenter), Boston, MA on February 6, 2007 at 07:30 PM. I’m thinking there’s going to be a few of my girl friends that will want to go. The problem is that I need to find someone in the Justin Timberlake fanclub to get my the discount on tickets for the Boston show. If anyone knows anyone in his fanclub let me know.

Ticket prices are between $53.50 and $92.50. Not cheap but should be a good show. I haven’t been to the new TD Banknorth Garden for a concert yet but I’ve been there for plenty of Boston Celtics games.

Internet Presale for Fan Club members go on sale Fri, 11/03/06 09:00 AM EST

Everyone else can get them Fri, 11/03/06 10:00 AM EST only an hour difference but I’m sure all the Justin Timberlake fans out there will jam the phones and take a lot of the tickets ahead of time.

Justin Timberlake concert in BostonIs anyone in the Justin Timberlake’s Dance Club? This is what was sent to be in an email for upcoming big shows in the Boston area:

Justin Timberlake is bringing his chart-topping hits and incredible live show to stages across the globe on the new, must see tour – 2007 FutureSex/LoveShow! Performing music from his new album, FutureSex/LoveSounds, Justin will be accompanied by a 14-piece band and an incredible lineup of back up dancers. Adding to the excitement, special guest Pink will join Justin for the North American leg of the worldwide tour!

So anyone Justin Timberlake fan club members out there hook me up. I got some friends who want to go.

Thx

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Weymouth’s Own Sgt. Andrew Farrar

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DROPKICK MURPHYS – “Last Letter Home”

Listen to Last Letter Home (Album Version)

Hello there my dearest love
Today I write to you about our sons
The boys start school today
They’re the spitting image of you in every way

Hey son it’s Dad
I hope this letter finds you well out of harm’s way
We saw the news today it frightened your Mom
Now all she does is pray

If I lead will you follow?
Will you follow if I lead?

Hey Melissa it’s me don’t be afraid
I’m in good hands I’m gonna be home soon
It’s time to watch the children grow up
I wanna be more than a voice on the phone

Thanks Ma I got your package today
I love “The Fields Of Athenry”
I swear I want ‘em to play that song on the pipes
At my funeral when I die

I stand alone in the distance
And the foreground slowly moves

“We regret to inform you that on January 28th Sgt. Andrew Farrar died while serving his country in the Al-Anbar province of Iraq words cannot convey our sorrow”

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9/11 + 5

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Five years after the worst terrorist attack on American soil, families of some of the nearly 3,000 victims gathered Monday at Ground Zero for a solemn ceremony.

The commemoration included four moments of silence. Two for the times that hijacked planes hit the World Trade Center towers (which Dracut’s own John Ogonowski piloted flight 11) and two for when the burning towers collapsed into mountains of rubble, killing thousands of people working there and first responders who were trying to rescue them. Including my friend Ray Rocha.

An estimated 2,973 people were killed in the 9/11 attacks.

Memorials were also held in Washington and Pennsylvania.

After the wreath-laying ceremony, the president and first lady attended a service at Trinity Church near Ground Zero. Continue reading →

Red Sox Joke of the Month

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On a tour of Florida, the Pope took a couple of days off to visit the coast for some sightseeing. He was cruising along the beach in the Pope-mobile when there was a frantic commotion just off shore. A helpless man, wearing a New York Yankee jersey, was struggling frantically to free himself from the jaws of a 25-foot shark.

As the Pope watched, horrified, a speedboat came racing up with three men wearing Boston Red Sox jerseys aboard. One quickly fired a harpoon into the shark’s side. The other two reached out and pulled the bleeding, semi-conscious Yankee fan from the water. Then using autographed David Ortiz baseball bats, the three Boston heroes beat the shark to death and hauled it into the boat.

Immediately the Pope shouted and summoned them to the beach. “I give you my blessing for your brave actions,” he told them. “I heard that there was some bitter hatred between Red Sox and Yankee fans, but now I have seen with my own eyes that this is not the truth.”

As the Pope drove off, the harpooner asked his buddies “Who was that?” It was the Pope,” one replied. “He is in direct contact with God and has access to all of God’s wisdom.” “Well,” the harpooner said, “He may have access to God’s wisdom but he doesn’t know squat about shark fishing. How’s the bait holding up?”

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Massachusetts Schools Getting Money for Extending Student Day

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10 schools in Massachusetts will be paid by the state with state funds to lengthen their days, a pilot program dubbed “Expanded Learning Time” that people believe will improve test scores and opponents say is too costly.

The $25.2 billion state budget Gov. Mitt Romney signed Saturday included a $6.5 million item for the program that will increase anywhere from one hour, 45 minutes to three hours a day of instruction and other programs for all students at selected schools in Boston, Cambridge, Fall River, Malden and Worcester. Continue reading →

Ashlee Simpson Can Smile While in Massachusetts

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It isn’t easy being Ashlee Simpson.

There’s the gorgeous, mega-famous older sister. The Saturday Night Live lip-syncing snafu. Being booed at the Orange Bowl. Getting caught on tape drunkenly swearing and barefoot at a McDonald’s.

But Ashlee Simpson, 21, can laugh about it. A few years in showbiz, after all, makes you grow some pretty thick skin.

“It’s just a part of the business and I realize that criticism is something that comes with that,” says Simpson. “I just shrug it off — I don’t read any of the negativity.”

Talking on the phone from Los Angeles, Simpson chatted and giggled at a breakneck pace as she dished on fans, touring and life as Jessica’s younger sister.

Simpson launched a full-scale U.S. tour last month where she’ll take on everything from tiny nightclubs to gigantic arenas and amphitheaters.

Simpson says she loves both types of venues. Continue reading →