Massachusetts vs. Florida, Advertisements, Etc.

First of all, sorry about the ads. Most people I surveyed said they would tolerate them, so they're in. Basically I still have around $10,000.00 of student loan debt from my undergraduate studies at Rice University and I figure even if I just make ten bucks a month it will help with that.

Second of all, O.M.G., Florida is totally underrated. I appreciated it well enough when I lived there, but I didn't fully grasp the glory of the F state until last weekend when I left the ice-crusted soul grinder of the urban northeast and stepped into the summery eden of Florida's Treasure Coast. What a change going from the crooked, narrow, dirty, slush-lined streets of Lynn and Revere to the warm wide avenues of West Palm Beach and Vero. From run-down roast beef sandwich shops to charming open-air restaurants. From craggy skeletal trees to lush palms and Bougainvillea flowers. From paying $46 to skid down an icy hill on a snowboard to riding free over the warm ocean on my buddy's kiteboarding gear. From lonely bachelorhood to my girlfriend's sweet embrace.

Here's some recent pictures from before, during and after the recent Florida trip. This first one is from Logan airport on my way out. By some miracle my flight was one of the few that wasn't cancelled during that particular blizzard.


This next one is from Florida. It's Emily at her birthday lunch. Cute, huh? She's not actually Mexican, but she can speak Spanish and she enjoys guacamole and fiestas.


Back to reality again, these two are at the "Wonderland" subway station in Revere, Massachusetts. It's the nearest subway station to where I live in Lynn, but you still have to take a longish bus ride to get there. It's across from an abandoned dog-racing track. Yuck. Revere and Lynn are mysteries to me. I don't get how ideally located waterfront communities so near the thriving yuppie metropolis of Boston can maintain such a level of sleaziness.



This one is from my trudge home from the Lynn bus station. That's my luggage, which probably isn't designed for such challenging urban terrain and weather conditions. The snow pile alongside the road is over my head.


Wednesday we had another big snow. After I dug out of my parking spot the plow came and piled a bunch of snow in it so now I don't have anywhere to park where I won't get towed when it snows. Shucks. I actually like the snow, though. It's pretty. It's just the urban living that gets me down sometimes.