Boston 2009 4th of July Fireworks From the Office

Boston 4th of July 2009 fireworks over the Charles River

I work in Kendall Square, and there's a really wonderful view from my office's kitchen area. Last night we watched the fireworks from there, and it's just the perfect view. There were some odd moments, though. For example, we noticed at one point that the Sheraton Hotel in Boston had some kind of light display going on. There were three rows of pulsating lights along the building, and they all pulsed in unison... it became a bit disturbing when we realized that that was actually the room televisions, all tuned to the simulcast of the fireworks, and therefore all changing brightness in unison.

The other bit that I found strange was watching so many people get worked up about Neil Diamond. Now, I was never a big fan of his, but even still I can see why he had a fan base 30+ years ago. What boggles my mind is how that translates to what I saw last night. Oh well, he clearly enjoyed himself, and while I always thought America was a little too blunt, the songs he sang were good ones.

My gallery of fireworks photos from last night is fairly small. I used my PowerShot S1000, and while it's capable of excellent night photos, getting it to focus correctly is a battle of wits, and I may have lost. Anyway, enjoy what I have, and I'll try to get a better setup next year (hopefully, I'll have the T1i by then).

Same Sex T-Shirt

I'm off to Boston's Gay Pride this weekend and I thought I should make up a T-shirt this year, since I haven't done anything at all for Pride in ... well, a long time. I used Custom Ink for the shirts and the design came from a Wikipedia image that I was able to scale appropriately using The Gimp (my favorite tool for photo and design editing).

It's not that I expect people to be able to make out what the T-shirt is about at first. It's more a conversation starter and something colorful to wear and remember the event by. Long ago, the first shirts that I wore to an event like this were to Gaylaxicon. I wore an "I'm With Him" shirt, and what I remember most about it was the friendly and courteous service I got from the silk-screening place I went to... right up until the moment I told them what went on the shirt. I suppose it's not surprising that they weren't in business when I went to see if they still had the screen for those shirts a year later.

Anyway, back to this year. I'm sure it's going to be the most amazing Pride ever. Rhode Island is the only state in New England that hasn't made same sex marriage legal; Prop 8 was a blow, but has really served as a rallying point for the community; we have a President who has vowed (though so far not acted) to end the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy in the military; and there's new news every day. It seems like the tide is changing, and while I won't hold my breath for everyone's attitudes to change, it's just wonderful to look back at my youth and imagine how shocked I would be to discover all of the progress we've made.

I'll see you all there!