Saturday, February 9, 2013
Do you agree with the governor's decision or was it too drastic?
All non-emergency drivers were ordered off the roads on Friday when Gov. Deval Patrick issued an executive order banning travel during the blizzard. (Editor's note: The ban is lifted statewide as of 4 p.m. Saturday.) Patrick's executive order is being praised by some and bashed by others, reported The Boston Globe. While former Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis, who was in charge of the commonwealth during the Blizzard of ’78, praised the governor’s move, others called the order “tyrannical” and say the strict ban and hefty fines were too much, according to The Globe. Those caught violating the ban would face up to a year in jail and a $500 fine. What do you think? Do you agree with the governor’s decision or do you think the travel ban …
Monday, February 4, 2013
Which were the best Super Bowl commercials of 2013? Which were the worst?
Millions of sports enthusiasts around the world and in Lexington watched Super Bowl 47 on Sunday. Likely, many tuned in just to watch Super Bowl commercials, just like they do every year. According to Ad Age, CBS essentially sold out its ad inventory for Super Bowl XLVII at prices averaging between $3.7 million and $3.8 million. More from Ad Age: The usual coterie of big sponsors is more or less on board again —hello, Pepsi! hello Bud Light! — accompanied by opportunistic, smaller brands that want to make a big splash, such as Century 21 and GoDaddy.com, both of which are also returning to the game. In addition to Ms. Patrick and Mr. Fogle, celebrities and pseudo-celebs on the ad roster will include Willem Dafoe, Amy Poehler, Bar Refaeli…
Friday, November 16, 2012
It's a little less than a week to Thanksgiving 2012. Are you prepared?
Most people plan Thanksgiving well in advance, but with so much time spent on the elections this year, Thanksgiving has kind of sneaked up on us. Would you believe Thanksgiving, and with it the traditional start of the holiday season, is one week from yesterday? If you haven't started planning for Thanksgiving yet, you're already in trouble, according to the website Epicurious. It suggests a six week prep time if you want to do the holiday justice. Are you prepared for Thanksgiving? And more importantly, in what has been a very contentious year, what is it that you can be most thankful for this year? Share your thoughts in the comments field below.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Getting to know your neighbors is as easy as throwing a party.
When we moved into our new home a year ago I was thrilled, great town, great schools, great next door neighbors. Life was good. I did however begin to miss living in a traditional neighborhood. We live on a bust street and while I do like the constant hustle and bustle of that, I worried we wouldn’t get to know our extended neighbors. I chalked it up to one of the few things I would have to give up living in our new house, could be worse. Life was moving along fairly well and we had a great relationship with our next door neighbors from day one. Soon, new neighbors moved in behind us and we started enjoying playing with their son, sharing a glass of wine and just hanging out. Soon I was introduced to another family on the other side of …
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
It doesn’t matter if you are a mom or a dad, making time for yourself is the key to parenting sanity.
I don’t consider myself a martyr, but when I admitted to friends that I hadn’t been away from my kids overnight in years I began to rethink things. The weekly all-nighters, the hourly feedings and the screaming fits are over. Well, to be honest, the screaming fits still happen just not at 4 in the morning because of diaper rash. So, doesn’t that mean that taking time for myself should be easier?Maybe the problem aren’t the kids, maybe the problem is me. Well, that’s a load off my shoulders. I thought my kids were dragging me down. It turns out, I am dragging myself down. I am the one who stays home with the kids so my husband can go on four (yes four) boys weekends in one summer. I am the one who makes sure the soccer and ballet …
Saturday, October 6, 2012
The Boston Globe reports that the Transportation Security Administration unveiled new body scanners that show less details to TSA screeners. Does this cool the debate over the scanners, or are they still worrisome?
When full-body scanners at airports became prevalent at airports in recent years, it stoked a debate over whether the scanners are too invasive. Yesterday, however, the Boston Globe reported that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) unveiled new body scanners that show less details to TSA screeners. Instead of detailed images viewed in a private room by security personnel, the scanners initially only produce generic outlines of passengers, while still picking up on weapons or suspicious objects on a would-be traveller's body. When full-body scans were introduced, some protested that the images were too intrusive and that the scans themselves would be ineffective because they would not detect "low-density" materials like …
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
The new fall television season is well underway; which new shows are you sticking with?
Yes, I know, cable TV shows launch year-round. But network television still, mostly, stays with the annual fall tradition of launching a slew of new shows at once and calling it 'the new season.' Which ones have you tried? I was surprised by how much I liked the first episode of Last Resort (ABC) — and how much I, a fan of the BBC series, Sherlock, disliked the new Holmesian series Elementary on CBS. Not to rush to judgment, but there's only so much space on my DVR hard drive. While we're at it, not a completely new show, but what about the TNT series Major Crimes, which has just recently been spun out of the late, beloved The Closer? Of the new shows you have you seen — which do you recommend? Tell us in the comments section below.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
When is the right time to teach kids about stranger danger and how much do they need to know?
I pride myself on being a very well informed and in-touch parent, but just as my daughter’s first sleep over request snuck up on me so did the realities of stranger danger. I did the basic "stay away from strangers" talk, roll played common abduction scenarios and how to yell "fire" instead of "help," reminded them never to leave my side and harped on who is OK to talk to and who isn’t, but when the outside world comes close to home my talks suddenly seemed inadequate. My small town is struggling with and debating over what to do after a Level 3 sex offender has been hanging out in places where children congregate downtown, play soccer and bike to school. While he has not committed a crime in our town (he is from a neighboring town) his …
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
The urban legend of the easy baby is just that, and I am here to put that baby to bed.
Believe it or not, I have a friend who once claimed, “I am bored at home because raising this baby is so easy. My baby is easy!” Of course every set of eyes at the dinner tabled rolled with contempt as our friend blathered on about life with an easy baby. "She coos all day. She goes to sleep without any fuss and her poops smell like roses." Blah, blah, blah. None of us bought it for one moment and, while I wanted to press her for the real deal, I let it go. If she believed her baby was easy, then what was wrong with that? For starters, it makes the rest of us feel like inadequate, unappreciative underachievers. And I was not having it. Therefore, I have decided that there are no “easy babies." There are only degrees of difficulty that do…
Monday, September 24, 2012
With opening weekend behind us, and plenty more to look forward to, we're wondering what you've liked best so far.
Saturday was super busy, and Sunday a little slower but still exciting as the town of Lexington began celebrating its 300th anniversary. There were opening ceremonies, an all-town photograph, an arts and crafts festival, a country fair, a race around town, a community dance and even a world premiere composition peformced specially for the Lexington's tercentennial. Indeed it was a full weekend. Maybe you did it all. Maybe you picked and chose a few events. Either way, we're wondering what you liked best -- and what you're looking forward to over the next nine months. Take our poll to tell us what's been your favorite Lexington 300th event to date, and use the comments section below to let us know what future events you have circled on …
JT
3:40 pm on Sunday, February 10, 2013
People should use their common sense in situations like this--but there are always some who won't and will endanger others in the process. The ban was good in that respect, and the $500 fine certainly should have made folks think twice if they were hesitating over driving or staying home for no particular reason. However, the threatened jail time was absurd--and enough's been said about that here… more ›