Boston Bootcamp - Part One

I arrived in Boston late the night of June 15th. Matt and Becky picked me up from the airport. We went to their apartment, on the top floor of a Brownstone. That was when I knew I was in for it. The stairs!! I was, however, after several minutes of catching my breath, amazed at Becky's seemingly innate ability to make aywhere she lives into a lovely and inviting home. We stayed up until 3:00 am laughing and talking. During the next few days I spent the afternoons looking around Boston with Matt as guide. One afternoon we went into the IMAX by the aquarium. The girl at the desk told us there were no shows available since private parties had reserved the theater. I must have looked very disappointed because she said, "Oh, here are two tickets. Just go on in." We got to see two shows for free! I kept looking around for some famous person, but didn't see one. Whose party we crashed? We'll never know. We saw several of the well- known historical sites, such as Bunker Hill, the Commons, and Old Ironsides. Becky would join up with us after she got off work. Becky also had me over to her beauty salon where I met a group of older Italian women who all come together to get their hair done on Thursday mornings. This was definitely my inside glimpse into the Italian lifestyle. They ate, argued, oohed, aahed, laughed, and had opinions on everything. I learned that if you have an only son, he is your 'Christ Child'. On Friday, Becky outfitted me with a pair of prescription sunglasses with transition bifocals and polarization. (she also works at LensCrafters). The sunglasses were completely finished in one hour, so I could wear them to the Red Sox game that night. I am absolutely astounded at Becky's ability to find good employment quickly whether in Atlanta, Pocatello, Boise, or Boston. At night we dined on decadent Italian pastries, (from Mike's bakery) whole lobsters, (Dick's Last Resort), Caprese salad, strombolis, and baklava. All kosher, of course. All these wonderful adventures were accomplished during an extreme heat wave, which added much intensity to the Bootcamp experience. I have heard sweating is good for you, so I had a lot of 'good' added to my life. Friday night we were off to Fenway Park. Baseball was the sport of my youth. The Sox vs Orioles game lived up to my every expectation as did the stadium and food. I became a die hard Red Sox fan when the crowd broke out singing Neil Diamond songs between innings. Life could not possibly get better than this. (minus the ever appearing stairs and the stifling heat)