Blog

  • We Didn’t Find Sunday Dogs Olive and Ziggy, They Found Us!

    While we didn’t know where we’d find this week’s Sunday Dogs, we never guessed that Olive and Ziggy would find us!

    Our recent post on the Hotel Fensgate opened a conversation with a reader, Rich, who not only has two wonderful rescue dogs, but also happens to be a terrific photographer. So, we asked him to send us a photo of his girls, along with their stories, for today’s feature.  

    Olive and Ziggie May 2002 copy

    Ziggy (dressed in black), who has a Terrier/Chihuahua background, came from Buddy Dog in Sudbury when she was just a year old. Rich says, “She wants to play 24/7, mostly just fetch (and of course keep-away … from me, that is). She is very territorial.”

    Olive, a Rat Terrier (with very expressive ears), was rescued at 2 years of age, after having survived a home with an abusive husband. Rich told us, “It took a year before she would even go near a man. Fortunately we came along at the right time, and she has been a gem for the last 14 years.”

    Today, at 15 and 16 years of age, Oive and Ziggy are thriving. “We attribute their health and longevity to keeping them at the same weight all these years, with almost no human food.” As Rich says, they’re “still going strong!”

    Get to know all of our Sunday Dogs at Boston Dogs.

    And, to see more of Rich’s stunning photos Click Here.

    Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

    Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photo Credit: Rich Snider (copyright image used with permission) 

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

  • We Didn’t Find Sunday Dogs Olive and Ziggy, They Found Us!

    While we didn’t know where we’d find this week’s Sunday Dogs, we never guessed that Olive and Ziggy would find us!

    Our recent post on the Hotel Fensgate opened a conversation with a reader, Rich, who not only has two wonderful rescue dogs, but also happens to be a terrific photographer. So, we asked him to send us a photo of his girls, along with their stories, for today’s feature.  

    Olive and Ziggie May 2002 copy

    Ziggy (dressed in black), who has a Terrier/Chihuahua background, came from Buddy Dog in Sudbury when she was just a year old. Rich says, “She wants to play 24/7, mostly just fetch (and of course keep-away … from me, that is). She is very territorial.”

    Olive, a Rat Terrier (with very expressive ears), was rescued at 2 years of age, after having survived a home with an abusive husband. Rich told us, “It took a year before she would even go near a man. Fortunately we came along at the right time, and she has been a gem for the last 14 years.”

    Today, at 15 and 16 years of age, Oive and Ziggy are thriving. “We attribute their health and longevity to keeping them at the same weight all these years, with almost no human food.” As Rich says, they’re “still going strong!”

    Get to know all of our Sunday Dogs at Boston Dogs.

    And, to see more of Rich’s stunning photos Click Here.

    Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

    Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photo Credit: Rich Snider (copyright image used with permission) 

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

  • Vegetable Literacy Is Our Friday Link

    “Vegetable Literacy” by Deborah Madison has quickly become my go-to reference when I want to explore a familiar or unusual produce item. I like it so much that I'm making it a Friday Link.

    The full name of the book, Vegetable Literacy: Cooking and Gardening with Twelve Families from the Edible Plant Kingdom, with over 300 Deliciously Simple Recipes, gives a better picture of what the author has created.

    Www.randomhouse

    Madison takes her years of expertise in vegetarian topics, divides the veggie world into twelve families, and then provides background, recipes, and kitchen and garden tips for each family member.  She makes you look at the offerings at your local market in a new way.

    Speaking of local markets, I decidead to buy the Kindle version of Vegetable Literacy. That allows me to call up a recipe on my phone when I'm shopping to be sure I have what I need to make it. Or, if I want to know what I might do with some parsnips or fennel, I can search for those and even have tips on buying them.

    Great photography is always a bonus in a cookbook or reference book and this one has wonderful photos spinkled among its pages. The photos are by the Canal House team, Christopher Hirsheimer and Melissa Hamilton.

    Screen shot 2013-11-13 at 9.47.56 AM

    This time of year, when many readers are looking for gift ideas, this book would make a great present for many people on your list. Anyone who loves to cook or collect cookbooks would treasure this edition. Even someone like me who has far too many cookbooks considers this a major reference, must-have.

    It's an ideal gift for a vegetrian or someone who has to feed a vegetarian or anyone who needs to add more vegetables to their diet to get their 5-per-day!

    Deborah Madison has been my mentor on vegetarian cooking. I have well-worn copies of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone and Local Flavors: Cooking and Eating from America's Farmers' Markets.

    Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

     Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

  • Vegetable Literacy Is Our Friday Link

    “Vegetable Literacy” by Deborah Madison has quickly become my go-to reference when I want to explore a familiar or unusual produce item. I like it so much that I'm making it a Friday Link.

    The full name of the book, Vegetable Literacy: Cooking and Gardening with Twelve Families from the Edible Plant Kingdom, with over 300 Deliciously Simple Recipes, gives a better picture of what the author has created.

    Www.randomhouse

    Madison takes her years of expertise in vegetarian topics, divides the veggie world into twelve families, and then provides background, recipes, and kitchen and garden tips for each family member.  She makes you look at the offerings at your local market in a new way.

    Speaking of local markets, I decidead to buy the Kindle version of Vegetable Literacy. That allows me to call up a recipe on my phone when I'm shopping to be sure I have what I need to make it. Or, if I want to know what I might do with some parsnips or fennel, I can search for those and even have tips on buying them.

    Great photography is always a bonus in a cookbook or reference book and this one has wonderful photos spinkled among its pages. The photos are by the Canal House team, Christopher Hirsheimer and Melissa Hamilton.

    Screen shot 2013-11-13 at 9.47.56 AM

    This time of year, when many readers are looking for gift ideas, this book would make a great present for many people on your list. Anyone who loves to cook or collect cookbooks would treasure this edition. Even someone like me who has far too many cookbooks considers this a major reference, must-have.

    It's an ideal gift for a vegetrian or someone who has to feed a vegetarian or anyone who needs to add more vegetables to their diet to get their 5-per-day!

    Deborah Madison has been my mentor on vegetarian cooking. I have well-worn copies of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone and Local Flavors: Cooking and Eating from America's Farmers' Markets.

    Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

     Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

  • Vegetable Literacy Is Our Friday Link

    “Vegetable Literacy” by Deborah Madison has quickly become my go-to reference when I want to explore a familiar or unusual produce item. I like it so much that I'm making it a Friday Link.

    The full name of the book, Vegetable Literacy: Cooking and Gardening with Twelve Families from the Edible Plant Kingdom, with over 300 Deliciously Simple Recipes, gives a better picture of what the author has created.

    Www.randomhouse

    Madison takes her years of expertise in vegetarian topics, divides the veggie world into twelve families, and then provides background, recipes, and kitchen and garden tips for each family member.  She makes you look at the offerings at your local market in a new way.

    Speaking of local markets, I decidead to buy the Kindle version of Vegetable Literacy. That allows me to call up a recipe on my phone when I'm shopping to be sure I have what I need to make it. Or, if I want to know what I might do with some parsnips or fennel, I can search for those and even have tips on buying them.

    Great photography is always a bonus in a cookbook or reference book and this one has wonderful photos spinkled among its pages. The photos are by the Canal House team, Christopher Hirsheimer and Melissa Hamilton.

    Screen shot 2013-11-13 at 9.47.56 AM

    This time of year, when many readers are looking for gift ideas, this book would make a great present for many people on your list. Anyone who loves to cook or collect cookbooks would treasure this edition. Even someone like me who has far too many cookbooks considers this a major reference, must-have.

    It's an ideal gift for a vegetrian or someone who has to feed a vegetarian or anyone who needs to add more vegetables to their diet to get their 5-per-day!

    Deborah Madison has been my mentor on vegetarian cooking. I have well-worn copies of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone and Local Flavors: Cooking and Eating from America's Farmers' Markets.

    Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

     Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

  • At the Market: Winter Farmers’ Markets 2013-2014

    The summer market season is over, and it's time for us to start our list of the 2013-2014 Winter Farmers' Markets in the Boston area. We'll add to this list as we discover more markets opening.

    This is an old post, here's the newest schedule:

    2014-2015 Winter Farmers' Market Schedule Around Boston

    6a00e54fc42bb88834017d3d90d8a3970c-800wi

    Brookline Winter Farmers' Market 

    Winter Indoor Farmers’ Markets Around Boston

    Boston/Egleston Winter Farmers Market, 45 Brookside Avenue (map) Saturdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, (11/02 to 02/22 – closed 12/28)

    Brookline Winter Farmers Market, Arcade Building, 314 Harvard Street, (map) Sundays
    12:00 pm to 5:00 pm (11/03 to 06/15)

    Cambridge Winter/Alexandria Technology Square Farmers Market
    700 Technology Square Atrium, (map) Wednesdays, 11:00 am to 3:00 pm (11/13 to 04/30)

    Somerville Winter Farmers Market, 191 Highland Avenue, (map) Saturdays, 9:30 am to 2:00 pm (12/07 to 04/19)

    Cambridge Winter Farmers Market, 5 Callender Street, (map) Saturdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm
    (01/04 to 04/26)

    Dorchester/Codman Square Winter Farmers Market, 6 Norfolk Street, (map) Sundays, 12:00 pm to 4:00 pm (01/05 to 03/30)

    Updates from our readers

    Chelmsford Agway Winter Farmers Market, 24 Maple Road, Chelmsford, MA (map) Saturdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm (11/2 -2/22)

    PMC_6885 - Version 22012-11-11- JJ Gonson-shopping-brookline-farmers-market-silverbrook-farm-Scott-vegetables-© 2011 Penny Cherubino copy

    Chef JJ Gonson shops the weekend markets, like this one in Brookline, for the Cuisine en Locale cooked and delivered Once a Week CSA food shares.

    Destination Markets Worth the Trip

    Wayland/Russell's Garden Center Winter Farmers Market 397 Boston Post Road Rte 20 (map) Saturdays, 10:00am to 2:00pm (01/11 to 03/15)

    Newburyport Winter Farmers Market, Tannery Marketplace, 50 Water Street (map)
    Sundays 9:00am to 1:00pm, Dec. 8 & 22, Jan. 5 & 19, Feb. 2 & 16, March 2, 16 & 30, April 6, 2014

    Do you have a favorite place to shop for local foods in winter? Let us know!

    Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

     Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

  • At the Market: Winter Farmers’ Markets 2013-2014

    The summer market season is over, and it's time for us to start our list of the 2013-2014 Winter Farmers' Markets in the Boston area. We'll add to this list as we discover more markets opening.

    This is an old post, here's the newest schedule:

    2014-2015 Winter Farmers' Market Schedule Around Boston

    6a00e54fc42bb88834017d3d90d8a3970c-800wi

    Brookline Winter Farmers' Market 

    Winter Indoor Farmers’ Markets Around Boston

    Boston/Egleston Winter Farmers Market, 45 Brookside Avenue (map) Saturdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, (11/02 to 02/22 – closed 12/28)

    Brookline Winter Farmers Market, Arcade Building, 314 Harvard Street, (map) Sundays
    12:00 pm to 5:00 pm (11/03 to 06/15)

    Cambridge Winter/Alexandria Technology Square Farmers Market
    700 Technology Square Atrium, (map) Wednesdays, 11:00 am to 3:00 pm (11/13 to 04/30)

    Somerville Winter Farmers Market, 191 Highland Avenue, (map) Saturdays, 9:30 am to 2:00 pm (12/07 to 04/19)

    Cambridge Winter Farmers Market, 5 Callender Street, (map) Saturdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm
    (01/04 to 04/26)

    Dorchester/Codman Square Winter Farmers Market, 6 Norfolk Street, (map) Sundays, 12:00 pm to 4:00 pm (01/05 to 03/30)

    Updates from our readers

    Chelmsford Agway Winter Farmers Market, 24 Maple Road, Chelmsford, MA (map) Saturdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm (11/2 -2/22)

    PMC_6885 - Version 22012-11-11- JJ Gonson-shopping-brookline-farmers-market-silverbrook-farm-Scott-vegetables-© 2011 Penny Cherubino copy

    Chef JJ Gonson shops the weekend markets, like this one in Brookline, for the Cuisine en Locale cooked and delivered Once a Week CSA food shares.

    Destination Markets Worth the Trip

    Wayland/Russell's Garden Center Winter Farmers Market 397 Boston Post Road Rte 20 (map) Saturdays, 10:00am to 2:00pm (01/11 to 03/15)

    Newburyport Winter Farmers Market, Tannery Marketplace, 50 Water Street (map)
    Sundays 9:00am to 1:00pm, Dec. 8 & 22, Jan. 5 & 19, Feb. 2 & 16, March 2, 16 & 30, April 6, 2014

    Do you have a favorite place to shop for local foods in winter? Let us know!

    Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

     Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

  • At the Market: Winter Farmers’ Markets 2013-2014

    The summer market season is over, and it's time for us to start our list of the 2013-2014 Winter Farmers' Markets in the Boston area. We'll add to this list as we discover more markets opening.

    This is an old post, here's the newest schedule:

    2014-2015 Winter Farmers' Market Schedule Around Boston

    6a00e54fc42bb88834017d3d90d8a3970c-800wi

    Brookline Winter Farmers' Market 

    Winter Indoor Farmers’ Markets Around Boston

    Boston/Egleston Winter Farmers Market, 45 Brookside Avenue (map) Saturdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, (11/02 to 02/22 – closed 12/28)

    Brookline Winter Farmers Market, Arcade Building, 314 Harvard Street, (map) Sundays
    12:00 pm to 5:00 pm (11/03 to 06/15)

    Cambridge Winter/Alexandria Technology Square Farmers Market
    700 Technology Square Atrium, (map) Wednesdays, 11:00 am to 3:00 pm (11/13 to 04/30)

    Somerville Winter Farmers Market, 191 Highland Avenue, (map) Saturdays, 9:30 am to 2:00 pm (12/07 to 04/19)

    Cambridge Winter Farmers Market, 5 Callender Street, (map) Saturdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm
    (01/04 to 04/26)

    Dorchester/Codman Square Winter Farmers Market, 6 Norfolk Street, (map) Sundays, 12:00 pm to 4:00 pm (01/05 to 03/30)

    Updates from our readers

    Chelmsford Agway Winter Farmers Market, 24 Maple Road, Chelmsford, MA (map) Saturdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm (11/2 -2/22)

    PMC_6885 - Version 22012-11-11- JJ Gonson-shopping-brookline-farmers-market-silverbrook-farm-Scott-vegetables-© 2011 Penny Cherubino copy

    Chef JJ Gonson shops the weekend markets, like this one in Brookline, for the Cuisine en Locale cooked and delivered Once a Week CSA food shares.

    Destination Markets Worth the Trip

    Wayland/Russell's Garden Center Winter Farmers Market 397 Boston Post Road Rte 20 (map) Saturdays, 10:00am to 2:00pm (01/11 to 03/15)

    Newburyport Winter Farmers Market, Tannery Marketplace, 50 Water Street (map)
    Sundays 9:00am to 1:00pm, Dec. 8 & 22, Jan. 5 & 19, Feb. 2 & 16, March 2, 16 & 30, April 6, 2014

    Do you have a favorite place to shop for local foods in winter? Let us know!

    Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

     Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

  • The Case for Year-Round Street Sweeping

    -street-sweeping-case-for-year-round-

    Yesterday, we walked by gutters filled with leaves and trash. The City of Boston forgot to tell Mother Nature that we only clean the leaves until November 30th, so she'd better make sure they all fall by then.

    Even if our fall leaf season doesn't extend into December, the litter season in Boston is year-round. We also have a natural phenomenon called snow that makes its appearance from December 1st to March 31st.

    Now, imagine what the city could look like and how easy it would be for everyone to get around and park cars to the curb, if the streets could be cleared to the curb on the next street cleaning day after a storm.

    With the city's excellent notification system, it would be very easy to cancel street sweeping any time the conditions would not allow it. It's far more difficult to get cars to move with less warning in order to remove snow or give the streets a sweep when weather permits.

    What's your take on year-round street sweeping?

    Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

     Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

  • The Case for Year-Round Street Sweeping

    -street-sweeping-case-for-year-round-

    Yesterday, we walked by gutters filled with leaves and trash. The City of Boston forgot to tell Mother Nature that we only clean the leaves until November 30th, so she'd better make sure they all fall by then.

    Even if our fall leaf season doesn't extend into December, the litter season in Boston is year-round. We also have a natural phenomenon called snow that makes its appearance from December 1st to March 31st.

    Now, imagine what the city could look like and how easy it would be for everyone to get around and park cars to the curb, if the streets could be cleared to the curb on the next street cleaning day after a storm.

    With the city's excellent notification system, it would be very easy to cancel street sweeping any time the conditions would not allow it. It's far more difficult to get cars to move with less warning in order to remove snow or give the streets a sweep when weather permits.

    What's your take on year-round street sweeping?

    Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

     Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.