It’s not every day that you get to dance in the middle of Boylston Street in Boston. But here they were, a bunch of Emerson College move-in “street team” members, dancing along to that awful Black Eyed Peas song…
9.7.2009 — BOSTON — The Emerson College move-in 'Street Team' was having an impromptu dance party as they waited for the remaining four students of the incoming class to move into the dorms on Boylston Street on Sept. 7, 2009.
9.7.2009 — BOSTON — Junior Brittany Parro, 20, left, of Northbridge, senior Molly Goodman, 21, of Newton, center, and Cherylynn Tsushima, 20, of Pasadena Calif., and the rest of the Emerson College move-in 'Street Team' was having an impromptu dance party as they waited for the remaining four students of the incoming class to move into the dorms on Boylston Street on Sept. 7, 2009.
Ah, college…
What a week!
Things got real busy for me when Sen. Ted Kennedy died last week — not because I had to cover the event and hoopla, but rather everything else going on around behind the scenes.
8.29.2009 - BOSTON - A large billboard on a building on Tremont Street in Mission Hill pays tribute to Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, whose funeral will take place Saturday morning at the Mission Church (in background), on Aug. 29, 2009.
It was basically a lot of running around the state, photographing whatever the Herald had leftover with so many resources tied up with the big show.
I kind of felt like this guy, who was painting the Boston Police bomb squad truck the day before Senator Kennedy’s funeral… while it was parked in front of the church! I kid you not.
8.29.2009 - BOSTON - Antonio Echemendia of Boston Public Works applies some last-minute touch up paint to the Boston Police's Bomb Squad truck outside the Mission Church, site of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy's funeral, on Aug. 28, 2009.
Despite the somber occasion, it felt good to be involved in another major news event.
Thank you Senator Kennedy for all your service to the people of Massachusetts.
So here’s the complete take on what I submitted for the 2009 AAJA Convention Dith Pran Photo Shootout, which featured the theme “The Freedom Trail.” Growing up in Boston, I never experienced the Freedom Trail from the point of view as a tourist. I always just saw it as something that tourists would flock to in the summer, and so that’s kind of the approach I took in shooting it for the contest — to shoot it from the outside in, looking at the marginal people around the Trail.
So here we go:
8/13/2009 — BOSTON — Timmy Gammon, 20, left, Gabby, 20, and Steve, 20, play music in Boston Common along the Freedom Trail for money on Aug. 13, 2009.
8/13/2009 — BOSTON — Steve Chaplisk, who is homeless, feeds dozens of birds outside the State House at the head of the Freedom Trail while commuters head home from their jobs on Aug. 13, 2009.
8/13/2009 — BOSTON — Street vendor, Juan, gets some reading time next to his stand along the Freedom Trail on Washington Street on Aug. 13, 2009. With cloudy skies, business was slow, he said.
8/13/2009 — BOSTON — A homeless woman watches tourists pass by along the Freedom Trail on Congress Street near Faneuil Hall on Aug. 13, 2009.
And of course, the award winner:
8/13/2009 — BOSTON — College student Sam Hines, 21, gives out 'Free Hugs' at the corner outside the Park Street T station for the simple reason that, 'It makes people happy!' on Aug. 13, 2009. It was Hines' first day at the spot at the head of the Freedom Trail this summer, though she said she spent a number of days out there last summer.
The Park Plaza Hotel in Boston last night put on a “Taste of Park Plaza” event to benefit the Greater Boston Food Bank. As part of a preview story for the Herald, I was sent to the Swan Cafe, where the hotel’s tea sommelier Cynthia Gold came up with an idea for tea-marinated hot wings.
7.27.2009 — BOSTON — The Park Plaza Hotel's Tea Sommelier Cynthia Gold is now featuring several tea-infused items on the menu at the hotel's Swan Cafe, including these grilled chicken wings served with a basil-jalapenÃÉo sauce on the side.
So it’s starting to seem like every time the Herald calls me in, some horrible tragedy seems to happen. First visit in, the day before a house blew up. A few weeks later, a fire truck crashed into an apartment building. And now this… another house explosion.
This happened in Gloucester, which is about an hour and a half away from my house. Needless to say, by the time I got there, things had pretty much settled down. I guess that goes with the territory when you work Sundays — I think I was the only one on duty.
Here’s the story
I’ve never been much of a spot news hound, but I gotta say, running around the state trying to get to these things has been exciting. Working at the Trib, it seemed more often than not that we’d be sent to spot news in support of the TV crew that was already there. It made sense from a convergence/cost-savings standpoint, but from a content standpoint, you can only do so much at a time.
Oh yeah, thankfully, it was a balmy 17 degrees when I got there. Quite a relief from the 2 degrees from when I woke up yesterday morning!
And it warmed up enough in the day to almost 30 that I went out and got a weather feature!
