Well is is the end of March and I am so excited because it is spring again. The weather starts to warm up and the outdoor activities start to rev up here in Dorchester. I am looking forward to a great spring/summer/fall with plenty of festivals, cookouts and bike rides! Soon the smell of people firing up the backyard grills will waft through every neighborhood, children will shed thier bulky winter coats for sweatshirts and tshirts while they run in the park. Excuse me if I am getting a little nostalgic but somthing about the begiining of spring gets me a little giddy.

Lets make 2008 the best spring/summer/fall we have ever seen. Take part in community activities, talk to your neighbors, invite you freinds over to play a game. take you family to the beach or just a walk in your nieghborhood.

I have a great feeling about this one, Dorchester.

peaceandlove

Last Friday night I attempted to take part in the city of Boston's Martin Luther King Jr. celebration with a concert by soul legend Patti LaBelle at the "Citi" Wang theater. I got there early with my family because I had heard that the was some problems with the city giving out too many tickets and I wanted to secure my seat.

My family and I arrived 3 hours before the concert started and waited in the lobby. We were then told by "volunteers" that we had to leave the lobby and go stand out side. So we and about 50 other patrons went out side to await further instructions. As the minutes wore on people began showing up by the bus load, and because no one took the time to organize what was happening out side the front of the Wang just became a mass of people. A few ropes or instructions would have taken care of this. But instead people with "staff" name badges came out and told us to move to one side, then to move to the other side. They then began letting in large groups of people that were not even in the front of the line!

My family did, after 2.5 hours of being packed elbow to elbow, manage to get inside the theater, but by this time we were so disgusted with the whole experience and my daughter was crying because she was scared of being crushed, so we just left. As we were leaving I saw an older woman faint and was unable to get out of the crowd. It was a disaster.

I later got a call from a friend who had corporate tickets and was able to make it inside that there were allot of empty seats.

I think the city owes an apology to all the people that they turned away, mistreated and lied to. Whomever was in charge of this event needs to not be allowed to plan any more.

This will forever be referred to as the MLK Patti Labell fiasco!

OK... its really snowing now.
I love that short period of time when you realize it is snowing and you see that fresh blanket of white powder. It's like you see with a childlike innocence.

But soon that moment is over and you are stuck in traffic moving at 0 mph, you realize you are going to have to remove all this snow from in front of your house and the top of your car. It tracks in your house, gets all over everything, leaves you soaked, delays your life and makes everyone crazy.

That being said. I LOVE THE SNOW!!

I love to eat good food! I have found a number of great spots to get my eat on in the Dot. Here is the beginning of my list of the best of Dorchester:

Best pizza: Common Ground, Chicken Pesto. This pizza is so hearty two slices will fill you up. It comes with a delicious wheat crust and plenty of fresh tomatoes and cheese along with some tender chicken pieces. Grab a glass of the house iced tea and you are good to go!

Best Indian Food:Shanti, Taste of India on Dorchester Ave. near Savin Hill Ave. This place is the bomb. I would hold it up against any Indian restaurant in the city. The Lamb Tikka is tender and flavorful and comes out sizzling. The Channa Masala is spicy and good. The wait staff is courteous and ambience in comfortable. The best part: Lunch Buffet!!

Best Breakfast: This title has to go to McKenna’son Savin Hill. They have the best waffles with strawberries ever and you can order baked beans for breakfast. Their hours are short,(they close at 2pm most days) but you are there for breakfast anyway. I recommend the breakfast special, for $3.50 you get eggs, toast, and homefries, if you can get there before 8:30am.

Check back soon I will be adding more of my favorites.