Boston + New England

Angela Davis Returns To Brandeis University

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On Friday, February 8th, Angela Davis returned to Brandeis University. My aunt and I are both alums, and were thrilled to see her speak at the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the Department of African and African-American Studies.

If you haven’t seen Angela Davis speak in person, go see her while you have the chance. She is 75 years old, and a living legend with much to teach us all. I will definitely be reading her autobiography soon.

Hearing her talk about her life, I realized that much of what many of us think we know about her is not true. There is “an idea” of her out in the ether – the mythology of a violent militant angry Black communist woman with a big afro who was a member of the Black Panther Party. A stereotype that was attributed to Michelle Obama and to many other Black women generally.

Based on this idea, I had always assumed that she had been part of the student takeover of Ford Hall in 1969. She actually graduated in 1965. She was long gone when the takeover happened! Her studies at Brandeis focused on French and Philosophy.

Davis spoke about how she was never part of the Black Panther leadership and doesn’t know how that idea started. She only briefly worked with them and thinks that most people don’t understand that most of the Black Panthers were women.

I was fascinated to learn a while back that one of the biggest impacts that the Black Panthers have had on American society is free breakfast for school children.

I could have listened to Davis speak for hours more and hope to see her speak again. It was so interesting hearing the influence that she has had on decades of Black Brandeis alumni. So many people in the audience stood up and told her that they decided to attend Brandeis after learning that is where she graduated from.

There definitely is a certain amount of pride to be associated with the same school that she attended. To see her during Black History Month at this time in history was especially poignant. What a gift.

If you’d like to see the video from the event, you can watch it online.

Breaking CBD News: CBD Wellness Drinks Arrive in Massachusetts!

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Golden CBD Latte

CBD just may be the big trend of 2019. Many, myself included, use CBD infused products for pain relief. More and more, it’s being added to foods and beverages as well in order to facilitate other desired health benefits.

NOCA Provisions, a Cambridge café, has launched a Wellness Drink Menu featuring lattes infused with CBD, an abbreviation for cannabidiol, a non-psychoactive cannabis compound. Even though they have similar chemical structures, it doesn’t produce a high like THC, the intoxicating ingredient in cannabis.

The Golden CBD Latte is made with coconut milk, steeped with turmeric, ginger and black pepper. The Calming CBD Latte is made with chamomile-lavender infused oat milk.

Both drinks are steamed to order with 5mg of CBD oil and are priced at $10.00 each. Guests can also add 5mg of CBD oil to their favorite coffee for an additional $5.00 each.

Calming CBD Latte

Along with many other states, Massachusetts has legalized the sale of marijuana. The Cannabis Control Commission oversees the laws in the Commonwealth. This legalization has contributed to the increasing popularity of CBD.

In June 2018, the FDA approved Epidiolex for the treatment of seizures associated with two forms of epilepsy. Other than that, no other health claims have been proven. But you know people. We’re curious and want to try different things.

Melissa Malamut wrote an article about how she tried CBD coffee for a week to see how it impacted her anxiety. Her reaction seemed to vary day by day depending upon a few factors.

Overall, I enjoyed the coffee and can see myself giving it out as a novelty gift. But it’s not something I’d drink every day, and I’m not convinced I prefer it to regular coffee.

I think when it comes to CBD, it may take a few tries to find the proper dosage that works for you. Talking to your doctor could help.

When I first heard claims about CBD oil, I was skeptical. But after using an oil infused salve, I’m a believer. The FDA may not agree with me, but it has made a real difference in alleviating pain in my back, neck and shoulders.

I love a good latte and am a turmeric fan as well. So I would definitely try these wellness drinks at NOCA Provisions, if in the area. What about you?

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Photography: Courtesy of Image Unlimited Communications, Ltd.

Boston’s Alexandra Hotel

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*7/19/2023  Update*

The Alexandra Hotel is for sale again. Read more here.

You know that specific period of time when lottery jackpots get higher and higher?

Frenzy reaches a fever pitch. Reporters ask random people in line buying lottery tickets what they would do if they win.  Most people mention that they would pay bills, buy a car, help their families, go on vacation, give to charity. Pretty normal stuff. Nothing too exciting or specific.

Maybe they have more detailed ideas in mind, but don’t want to share them. I would do all those too, but for about 30 years, I’ve had a very specific thing that I fantasized about doing.

I would buy the Alexandra Hotel on the corner of Washington Street and Massachusetts Avenue in Boston. Then I would restore it. Live in it and run a Bed & Breakfast in it as well. My scones would be on the breakfast menu everyday!

I have never felt a more magnetic pull to a location than I did when I first noticed the old Alexandra Hotel building. Although, I did love the Wollaston Theatre too. But I never truly wanted to own it.

Since the 90s, I have failed to win the lottery, but I continued following the building and always thought something would be done. It’s a majestic presence that has been woefully neglected for such a long time.

When I learned that the Church of Scientology owned it, I thought that I would see construction. But it never happened. The blight remained. The church agreed to sell it eventually and there were several possible buyers. But the sales fell through.

Now there is a proposed renovation project and a possible buyer for the Alexandra Hotel. I read about this latest development just in time to attend a public meeting last night. It was a full house and the audience was lively, filled with many community members and city officials.

Andrew Wang of CBT Architects gave the presentation showing possible future plans for the hotel. Jas Bhogal of JB Ventures answered some questions on behalf of the investor group that currently has ownership of the proposed project.

Nina LaNegra and Bill Singleton of United Neighbors of Lower Roxbury, Faisa Sharif of the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services, Boston City Councilor Kim Janey, and her Community Relations Coordinator Saynab Maalin were also in attendance.

The project proposes to retain and restore the facade of the building, construct a new approximately 150 room, twelve story boutique hotel, with a restaurant and cafe on the ground floor, outdoor seating and a rooftop bar/restaurant.

The cost to restore the facade alone is 9 million dollars and right now the anticipated cost of the new building is 66 million dollars. Jas stated that the number of rooms is the minimum needed in order for the project to be “successful.” The rooms will be very small and they will need a variance from the zoning code for the proposed height.

Many issues were discussed and some key takeaways are below.

1) The project is not using historic tax credits, but there are still standards that need to be adhered to based on the historic nature of the building.

2) Ownership is currently private, but additional investors are anticipated to be added to the project. Right now ownership is not open to the public. Community members hope that they will have a chance to buy in and have ownership and participation when the project is complete.

3) Diversity in ownership is a concern and the community wants diversity for people hired to work on the project. Jas, who is Indian, mentioned that he is the diversity in ownership right now. Community members want to ensure that diversity includes Black people and includes women.

4) The Silver Line stop in front of the property may be moved slightly in order to allow for picking up and dropping off. There will be no designated parking area, but there will be valet service.

5) Right now no eminent domain is planned.

6) Neighbors are concerned that the height of the hotel could block the sun and cause shadows on their homes. There will be a shadow study.

7) Someone from the building and trades union was there and mentions that he hopes that the jobs offered will be good paying permanent union jobs. The sentiment was reiterated by Councilor Janey. There was discussion that the hotel union should be involved as well.

8) If everything goes according to plan, work will start this summer and will be finished by the spring of 2021.

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The comment period is open until January 23, 2019  February 13, 2019 and comments are encouraged.

It will be interesting to see if this will be the winning project to go forward and bring the Alexandra Hotel into the 21st century. I still love this building and have secretly believed that the reason none of the attempts to restore it worked were because I’m supposed to own it. Well, time will tell. I still have a lottery to win and it needs to be a big one.

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*Updated 12/14/2019*  When I first wrote this post, almost a year ago, construction was to have started this past summer. From what I know, it does not appear to have started. Things appear to be behind schedule. In October, The Boston Sun reported a “lawsuit has been filed by the Tenants Development Corporation (TDC) against the Boston Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) regarding their decision to approve the Hotel Alexandra rehabilitation project.”

As I mentioned before, this property is my obsession, so I will keep you updated!

*Updated 5/14/2020*  Since COVID-19 has brought most everything to a halt, including construction, I was curious what was happening with this project. The last I had read, there was ongoing litigation. According to a December 26, 2019 article in The Boston Sun, the parties reached a settlement. However, it’s unclear what’s happening with the project currently. The BPDA website has a question mark next to project phase.

*Updated 12/4/2020* It looks like the brakes are on this project and the property could be up for sale again, according to a September article in The Boston Sun.

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Photo Credit: Nina LaNegra

Massachusetts Ballot Question 1

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house on the corner

It can’t be only me. Many of us must have noticed “that house” in our neighborhoods. Maybe it’s a house on the corner.

The lawn is green, lush and always freshly mowed during the summer. They put out comfy hammocks on the front porch. Clay pots with just the right herbs and plants. Flags for the 4th of July. Pumpkins and colorful yellow and orange flowers for the fall. Seasonal wreaths on the door. Beautiful Christmas lights and decorations. You get the picture. It’s visual perfection. A feast for the eyes.

But then 2016 rolls around.

The house that has always brought about a smile, suddenly has a Trump sign out front. This is what happened to to me. Since I am not a supporter, my feelings about that “beautiful” house changed. Because I started thinking about the beliefs of the people inside.

This picture above is not the actual house in my neighborhood, because I didn’t think it would be fair to them. Ever since that sign went up, I started thinking of it as the Trump house on the corner. And now every sign that goes up on their lawn, I view with skepticism.

In Massachusetts, we have three ballot questions to vote on. Question 1 has been giving me trouble. If passed, it would limit the number of patients assigned to registered nurses in hospitals and other health care facilities.

The nurse staffing issue seemed pretty easy to me when I first heard about it. Of course there should be a limit. I would vote YES. But then I drove by the Trump house on the corner and there was a sign for YES on Question 1.

Huh? Not what I expected. Also, they had a Diehl Senate sign. He’s the Republican running against Elizabeth Warren. So they hadn’t suddenly become Democrats.

So if these people are also supporting Question 1, am I missing something? Maybe it wasn’t as simple as I thought? Could there be unintended consequences? I started to dig a bit deeper into the question.

From what I’ve read, there could be hospital closures and longer waiting times to be seen as a result. WBUR did a segment about the issue, but I still don’t feel good about the question either way. Some nurses support the initiative and others oppose it.

A Boston.com article says that both Senator Warren and Senator Markey support it. The Democrat running for Governor, Jay Gonzalez, supports it as well. Our current Republican Governor, Charlie Baker, appears to not be taking a stand at this point. Not a surprise.

My mom and I have spoken about Question 1 a few times as well. She is not sure either. I was planning to do early voting today, but this question is holding me back at the moment. What do you think?

Now I’m wondering more about the people living in the Trump house on the corner.

Quincy Farmers Market

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This past Friday, I finally made it to Quincy Farmers Market. Even though I live in Quincy, I’m usually working in Boston. So the only farmers markets that I can get to in time tend to be in Boston.

I’ve been between projects for a couple of weeks, so I’ve had some free time to spend out and about closer to home. A few years ago I went to Quincy Farmers Market, when it was at a different location.  I was not impressed. If I remember correctly, it was in a parking lot in Quincy Center. There wasn’t much there and I encountered some less than friendly people.

Now the farmers market is in a much better location. It’s in a wide open green space at Pageant Field on Merrymount Parkway. There is a wonderful selection of fruits, vegetables, maple syrup, honey, baked goods, some prepared foods, skin care items and more.

The one thing that I don’t remember seeing and hoping for was fresh flowers, but maybe they have them at other times. There were lots of pumpkins though if you’re looking!

Everyone was friendly and eager to tell me about their products. It was a very welcoming atmosphere and  stayed longer than I had planned. The farmers market goes on through November 16th, so hopefully I’ll have the chance to go at least once more. The hours are limited though, Fridays from 11:30am – 5pm.

While I was there, I bought some sweet potatoes, onions, carrots, apples, pears and maple syrup. Maple syrup is one of my favorite things. I use it on my oatmeal and in my morning coffee.

The syrup that I bought is from Ackermann Maple Farm in Vermont. There were so many lovely flavors and I enjoyed a sweet taste testing!

The pears that I bought are Asian pears from Sky Meadow Orchards, in Scituate. A taste test revealed a very crisp and juicy fruit that I enjoyed immensely — almost more like an apple.

Even though summer is over, many summer farmers markets continue through late October mid-November.

Winter Markets will be open soon and we still have the year-round Boston Public Market. So there are still plenty of opportunities to continue getting fresh produce as the New England chill turns to frost, ice and snow.