Bean Town Blogging
Please excuse my absence from the blog-o-sphere! The show I was part of finished it’s run in mid-April and I started my new job (stand-in/photo double for Kate Winslet on “Mildred Pierce”) less than two weeks later. In short, April was a busy month!
Between gigs my boyfriend and I took a 24-hour trip to Boston to see the Red Sox play the Yankees at Fenway stadium. Boston has been on both of our lists of places we want to visit, and being Red Sox fans, we jumped at the chance to go.
Boston is an amazing town for a wide variety of reasons. Here are a few of my favorites (in no particular order):
- Beauty: The streets are clean, wide, and often cobblestone. The buildings are brick instead of skyscrapers, and Boston Commons is green and relaxing.
- History: Just walking around you can stop by Paul Revere’s house, Old North Church, or take the Freedom Trail.
- Academia: Nicknamed the “Athens of America,” and boasting over 100 colleges, Boston made me feel smarter just by being there. I especially loved Harvard with it’s red brick buildings and walking around Cambridge.
- Accessibility: Boston is small enough to walk around and there are plenty of sights to see while you stroll. The subway system (called the T) is clean and easy to use, although I believe it stops running at midnight. Even the walk to Fenway from our hotel was only about 20 minutes.
- Fenway: I love this ballpark. It’s packed with devoted fans, has more of an intimate setting than most fields, and of course, sports the Green Monster. Plus they now serve veggie dogs, and veggie burgers! What I didn’t know until I went, was how many bars and restaurants surround the stadium. Even if you can’t score tickets to the game, watching with the rest of Boston while raising a glass sounds like a great time as well.
- Neighborhoods: Like NYC, Boston is divided into distinct sections. From China Town to Little Italy at the North End, to Beacon Hill, each area feels like a little town of it’s own.
- Food: We ate twice at The Other Side Cafe on Newbury Street and once at Veggie Planet in Cambridge. The former has indoor and outdoor seating, tons of vegan options, beverages of all kinds, and is turns into more a a bar atmosphere at night. The latter is located near Harvard in Cambridge and although a bit hidden, has delicious vegan pizzas and desserts.
- Proximity to NYC: A $15 ride on the Bolt Bus got us to Bean town in less than four hours.
Boston really does have something for everyone! I can’t wait to go back… who’s with me??
Goal Gold
If you love making lists, goals, and resolutions, you will LOVE the Goaltender online service through Lululemon Athletica. This FREE service allows you to fill in your values, ideal life, goals etc. and then emails you reminders that your deadline is coming up. (more…)
La Vida Vegan
I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter Weekend! The weather was gorgeous here in NYC and my boyfriend, our dog, and I took full advantage with lot’s of outdoor time. Our new neighbor (who has a good sized balcony- can we say covet much??) invited us over for mimosas and testing out her new grill. Now, I know a lot of vegans don’t want to go near a carnivorous summer bar-b-q and I totally understand that. However, in the right company, I really see it as a time to answer people’s questions when the enevitable “oh, wow, you’re vegan?!” question/emphatitc statement comes up… and they ALWAYS do!
So this Meatless Monday seems like a good time to post my top 10 TIPS FOR SOCIAL VEGANS during summer picnics, grills, bar-b-qs galore:
1. ALWAYS bring a yummy vegan dish. This way you have something to eat and your friends can revel in how delicious vegan potato-salad can be!
2. ARM YOURSELF with facts. YOU know the meat industry’s stamp on the environment, our health, and animal rights and if you want to convince others of the truth it’s helpful to know the (inarguable) statistics.
3. POINT THEM in the right direction. Got a meat eater who wants to lessen his carbon footprint? Or wants to go vegan but has no idea what to cook? Or has kids? Or has a wheat intolerance? There are so many amazing vegan websites and books that are specific to people’s needs. Share with them your favorites.
4. SPEAK POSITIVELY about your choice to be vegan but don’t get on a soap box. Remember- you catch more BEES with honey. (Figuratively speaking of course!)
5. IDENTIFY with their concerns. It wasn’t easy for me to give up cheese at first so I understand when people have a hard time with this. But then I always explain how it became easy for me and what I eat now instead. Just saying “Oh get over it- do it for the animals” might not get the results you were hoping for.
6. TAKE THE HIGH ROAD. If someone clearly wants to antagonize you about your choices, don’t fire back with personal insults towards them. A simple “clearly we disagree on this issue” is sometimes all you can say.
7. BE AWARE of when the right time to discuss the puss in milk or the ecoli in the burger is… HINT: it’s NOT when it’s in their mouth.
8. BE NORMAL. By this I mean I mean talk about things other than veganism- we want to encourage people to look at their health and the world around them- not scare them with our “crazy hippy ideas.”
9. ENCOURAGE carnivores when they show an interest in being vegan without smothering them or making them feel like they are signing their life away. That’s what makes Meatless Mondays so awesome- everyone can commit to one day a week!
10. HAVE FUN… No one likes a party pooper!!!
