OT - NO POLITICS The Dog Days of Summer continue

[Kovi]

I miss easy in-state transportation *sigh*

 

[Terrier]

Another Boston institution lost to progress.

James Harold, owner of the Rat, dies, 79

James Harold, 79, of Medford, was owner of the Rat in Kenmore Square, in the pre-BU, pre-hotel era, when Mr. Butch held court and Deli Haus served breakfast late into the night. He died Sunday at 79. Let's Go to the Rat - a documentary.

www.universalhub.com

Ah, Dana Hersey, the Movie Loft, Tom Larson in the studio...

 

[BMC]

Count on the T to not take advantage of the 2 years of COVID shut downs to knock out their backlog of maintenance

I was going to say wtf were they doing when the trains weren't running?????

 

[Ludwig Fell Down]

I agree that this will be the right move. I have my doubts that the T will get anything meaningful done during this window. I'm guessing the sick days will start on 8/20, and the T will complete about half of what they hoped to get to. I've lived in this state way too long to have any confidence that a project will be done on time or on budget.

 

[Morris Wanchuk]

Going on our first kid free vacation ever (9 years) next week. Was supposed to go to Cape Brettan but were iffy because of COVID but settled on Blue Hill, ME. Lots of day trips planned to different parts of Maine. Excited to enjoy the quiet!

 

[Ladyfan]

Going on our first kid free vacation ever (9 years) next week. Was supposed to go to Cape Brettan but were iffy because of COVID but settled on Blue Hill, ME. Lots of day trips planned to different parts of Maine. Excited to enjoy the quiet!

Enjoy!

 

[Gee Wally]

Going on our first kid free vacation ever (9 years) next week. Was supposed to go to Cape Brettan but were iffy because of COVID but settled on Blue Hill, ME. Lots of day trips planned to different parts of Maine. Excited to enjoy the quiet!

nice….if you are looking for a nice day head to Bar Harbor. Under an hour away.

 

[BNHL]

nice….if you are looking for a nice day head to Bar Harbor. Under an hour away.

Did Bar Harbor 2 weeks ago. I would say an Acadia tour is a MUST. We hired a tour van for 4 people and the guide knew every nook and cranny with no time wasted and nothing missed. Approx 3 hours.

 

[Morris Wanchuk]

nice….if you are looking for a nice day head to Bar Harbor. Under an hour away.

Yes, we will be on MDI at least one day, maybe two. We had also looked at staying on MDI but the prices were nuts. Plus now we get to go to Isa-a-Haut and explore there.

 

[Gee Wally]

Did Bar Harbor 2 weeks ago. I would say an Acadia tour is a MUST. We hired a tour van for 4 people and the guide knew every nook and cranny with no time wasted and nothing missed. Approx 3 hours.

Acadia and Bar Harbor area is one of my favorite places in the world.
Just beautiful.

 

[sooshii]

Going on our first kid free vacation ever (9 years) next week. Was supposed to go to Cape Brettan but were iffy because of COVID but settled on Blue Hill, ME. Lots of day trips planned to different parts of Maine. Excited to enjoy the quiet!

Sounds glorious! Enjoy!

 

[Fenway]

@Si Hopkins

 

[Fenway]

Philadelphia now has more reliable transit than Boston

 

[Fenway]

 

[Fenway]

 

[Fenway]

I know this is borderline political but this is more about the incompetence of a state agency that has been controlled by both parties over decades with the same result.

I am disgusted at how the MBTA has fallen apart.

25-30 years ago the T decided to invest in expanding commuter rail and spent ONE BILLION DOLLARS on restoring commuter rail south of Boston that had ended in 1959.

In 2000 the T spent $4.5 million dollars to build this station that in 2019 was used weekdays by 528 people.

The core problem is to fund the commuter rail they deferred maintenance of the inner city lines and older subway cars were not replaced in a timely fashion. The T is still running cars on the Red Line that my Mom rode on and she died in 1971.

What fries my brain is the T has now spent more money on fare collection upgrades than NEW YORK CITY!!!!!!



The Orange Line has always been the grittiest line in the T system but it moved people.

@Kate08 - 8 years ago the T opened the Assembly station and look what happened.

50 years ago the poobahs decided Wellington would be the mega transit station but would not allow a commuter rail platform that Malden Center wound up getting.

35 years ago the T assured Bostonians the new Orange Line would be the best in the country.

 

[Si Hopkins]

@Si Hopkins

I just found this last night! Great stories. Sounds like maybe he had a couple before the interview or maybe that's just his Boston roots showing. Fascinating life story.

 

[Alicat]

I know this is borderline political but this is more about the incompetence of a state agency that has been controlled by both parties over decades with the same result.

I am disgusted at how the MBTA has fallen apart.

25-30 years ago the T decided to invest in expanding commuter rail and spent ONE BILLION DOLLARS on restoring commuter rail south of Boston that had ended in 1959.

In 2000 the T spent $4.5 million dollars to build this station that in 2019 was used weekdays by 528 people.
View attachment 574590

The core problem is to fund the commuter rail they deferred maintenance of the inner city lines and older subway cars were not replaced in a timely fashion. The T is still running cars on the Red Line that my Mom rode on and she died in 1971.

What fries my brain is the T has now spent more money on fare collection upgrades than NEW YORK CITY!!!!!!



The Orange Line has always been the grittiest line in the T system but it moved people.

@Kate08 - 8 years ago the T opened the Assembly station and look what happened.

50 years ago the poobahs decided Wellington would be the mega transit station but would not allow a commuter rail platform that Malden Center wound up getting.

35 years ago the T assured Bostonians the new Orange Line would be the best in the country.

Hit the nail on the head and then some.

The MBTA has had several opportunities to make Forest Hills better and more accessible especially for those who live in border towns like Dedham and a small section of Brookline but instead sold the large parking lots to private developers who have erected empty luxury condos. There is barely any parking now and if you want a spot in the small lot that is left, you gotta get there before the construction workers do. They act like they own the lot and some will actually start yelling if you park in "their" spot. The MBTA refuses to address them yet if I did that, they'd call the cops without hesitation.

I honestly hope that this shutdown fixes many of the longstanding issues but I won't hold my breath.

As for fares, allow us to put our Charlie Cards in our apple wallets if we choose to.

 

[Kovi]

Did Bar Harbor 2 weeks ago. I would say an Acadia tour is a MUST. We hired a tour van for 4 people and the guide knew every nook and cranny with no time wasted and nothing missed. Approx 3 hours.

Agree.

If I didn't live in Arizona, the only other place I'd live is Maine. and I'd move to Cape Porpoise, Baxter or Mt. Desert Isle.(Acadia) Absolutely untouched and mind blowing.
Arizona has beautiful landscapes, but that part of Maine is other worldly.

 

[Fenway]

 

[KnightofBoston]

Some garden and beewalls from the yard this year, bonus shot of a greenhouse I’m building out of old windows we had replaced happy summer everyone

 

[Bruinaura]

Police responded to an active shooter report at the local hospital, a couple miles from my office. Thankfully it was a false alarm.

Can you imagine being in the middle of an operation and having to deal with that?

 

[Fenway]

 

[Ladyfan]

I don't remember a Summer as hot as this one. Come on Fall.

 

[CHRDANHUTCH]

I don't remember a Summer as hot as this one. Come on Fall.

Maine rarely tops 100 degrees ambient, not heat index.... that's why it is more noticeable everywhere especially in a densely populated state like Massachusetts is....