Back from Boston

I'd hoped to be able to blog from Boston, but, as I tweeted the other day, that posh hotel where Pearson billeted us charges extra for Internet service. (Have you noticed, by the way, that the budget hotels often include "free Internet access," and the nicer ones have those pesky daily charges?)

It's been a crazy weekend, but I'm finally in a spot where I can post a picture or two from Beantown.

If you follow me on Twitter, you will recall my query about a salmon BLT. Not everyone agreed that such a combination should see the light of day, but I found it excellent!

I guess Mike's Pastry is a rather famous joint in Boston. It's just a few steps off the famed "Freedom Trail," so I stopped in. This picture shows about half the crowd waiting for service. On the wall were pictures of Bill Clinton dining here. The brownie was really good. The eclair was just okay. Maybe this is one of those places that is famous for being famous . . .

Personal indulgence. I like the colors of the buildings here. No other reason for posting this one.

Robert McCloskey's 1941 children's book Make Way for Ducklings is set in Boston's Public Garden which happens to be across the street from the hotel where I stayed. This bronze statue was erected in 1987 in honor of the famous story. It's just about impossible to take a picture of this statue without a child or children in the shot (and a parent or parents standing by with camera in hand).

Above is the Granary Burying Grounds were many patriots, including Paul Revere, and early New England leaders, the first mayor of Boston, for example, are buried. Phyllis Wheatley's owner, Samuel Sewall (a Salem witch trials judge), John Hancock, and Mother Goose (probably not the original Mother Goose, but a woman named Mary Goose who had many children and was well-known at the time for her knowledge of nursery rhymes) are also buried here.

It was a fun, if brief, trip. The food was wonderful and the publisher's presentations were bearable. I made a couple of new friends, and I got some ideas for fall classes. All in all, a pretty productive and enjoyable three days. (Oh, and the woman in charge of our trip said I look like Kevin Spacey. What do you think?)

The picture I didn't get (my camera was already "stowed" for landing in SLC) was of the Oquirrh Mountain temple. We flew right over it in our approach and the afternoon light was wonderful. Ah well.