David loves that Obain Attouoman's students secured his right to stay in the U.S.:

... It's an important lesson: even teenagers have the power to change the world if they set their mind to it. It's something I hope I can impart on those 65 souls who sit in my class every day, that what they believe and do matters, that they can have impact, that they can make a difference. ... The experience of fighting for one's beliefs, fighting for a member of one's community, and succeeding in making the world a better place is the most important sort of education a young person could hope to receive.

Marilora sighs over the Herald's inability to get basic East Boston geography right even as it supplies such detailed information as the fact that an alleged victim in a knife fight there suffered "a slice across the left nipple."

Is Somerville being overrun by feral cats? Allycat AdvoCats is a group that traps feral cats, neuters them, then releases them back where they came from - where people can keep feeding them:

Through networking with these caregivers we have subsequently identified over 200 feral cats in need of neutering. This number is expected to grow with the inevitable rounds of kitten births.

Via Somerville Happenings.

Jennifer reports she's crossed over to the Boston side - she now uses her middle finger as a standard signalling device in rotaries:

... I gave the finger this morning to some innocent minivan driver, and I don't know why. I think it's because I suspected they were going to do something out of line. Or maybe because their car was taupe. ...

Is it my imagination, or does the Red Line seem to attract a lot more, um, interesting people than the other T lines? Latest evidence comes from Karl, who reports on a distinguished looking guy in a suit:

... What was interesting about this guy was that he was holding up his arm and moving his fingers (like a puppet's mouth) as he mouthed words. Even stranger, he was just mouthing the words and not saying anything out loud. He noticed me watching him and instead of ceasing this peculiar activity - he aimed his talking hand towards me and "hand-talked" evern more - as if his hand was yelling at me. ...

OK, for you youngsters: The real Senor Wences.

Kate wonders why WBOS loves John Mellencamp so much - or rather, two specific songs of his:

Despite the fact that WBOS 92.9 has the entire catalog of classic rock and modern rock at its disposal, it plays a shocking amount of repeats. For the past two weeks, it seems like they're playing John Mellencamp every half hour. That would be fine, if they actually reached into his fairly extensive repertoire. But no! It's always either "Pink Houses" or "Jack and Diane." ALWAYS. ...

Was that our very own Philocrites flashing up on the screen during last night's "Daily Show" report on "The New Journalism?" Why yes, yes it was:

My role? I supplied compelling visuals for the following bit of advice to would-be bloggers: "If you're liberal, you want to show people that you're smarter than they are. Try something obscure and literary." Eschaton (aka Atrios) and I were the two featured smarty-pants.

Looking out over Roslindale and Hyde Park from Grew Hill in Roslindale.

Prefer a more traditional Boston view? Here's a nice shot of downtown from the 15th floor of the Hyatt Harborside.

Rose is not impressed with the proposal to turn the old Assembly Square Mall into a "new urban village:"

... This new "urban village" is going to be at least as problematic as IKEA in terms of traffic and overloading public transportation. Will MBTA improve the bus service along that route? Will this place be pedestrian friendly? Will everyone living there have to own a car? Will there be coffeeshops, convenience stores, etc. in this forced village? How high will the residential rent be? Will anyone be able to afford it? Or will the city just be catering to the wealthy? ...

Joyce has the scoop - and makes you wonder: What were they thinking back then?

So yesterday Boston Sports Media Watch quoted an e-mail from boston.com Editor Teresa Hanafin on how we shouldn't take Boston Dirt Dogs "scoops" seriously because it's a blog, for God's sake. Today, Bruce over at BSMW pulls up an interesting post from Hanafin from last May, when boston.com announced it was buying Boston Dirt Dogs:

... We are going to hold BostonDirtDogs to the same editorial standards as the rest of the site, but we're going to work really hard NOT to squelch its spirit. ...

Note: To see Hanafin's original comments, click here and scroll past the stuff about boston.com acquiring me (something I think we can safely assume won't be happening).

Only click "read more" if you really have a newborn (or have had one in the past). Trust me.

Jay reveals:

... I have an outrageously strong gag reflex and couldn't even unfasten the diaper without trying to retch. So I went I gargled with a little Listerine wintermint before trying to change it. That was sufficiently overpowering and distracting to get me through it. ....

Jay, can you drop a line to Eric? He might appreciate the advice.

Goodbye FleetCenter.
It's now going to be the TD BankNorth Garden.

Alyssa discusses the challenges of driving in the Boston area:

... I have 400 different types of maps to the greater Boston area in my glove box.

The big issue that arises over and over again is that there are not a lot of signs. You sometimes can't figure out what street you are on. When the Democratic National Convention came to town this past summer – signage in and around downtown Boston improved greatly. But that only helps so much when you're on the edge of Jamaica Plain and you're trying to guess where next to turn. ...

Kristie reads about the latest dog electrocution and says she's trying to keep it from happening to her:

... I've taken to teaching Cash to walk AROUND anything metal on the street. But it's difficult because a) he's a dog and b) I'm incredibly indulgent even when I have the best of intentions and c) he's so darn tiny that walking AROUND for him can take like hours. ..

Which is probably good advice for people, too, given that even if the manhole covers aren't electrified, they could explode.

Frank's a newcomer to Waltham. He describes talking to a couple of locals at a garage about how to get to the Watertown RMV so he could get Massachusetts plates:

... Then the two of them got into a discussion about how long I'd be there and how slow it was at the RMV and how if I drove over to the Vineyard I'd get waited on much more quickly and could have my plates mailed to me. ...

Cape Cod Canal tunnel permits

Via H2otown.

Doubleperf reviews and photographs their show at the Somerville Theater:

... I'd never seen the brothers perform before, and it was a treat to see their brotherly similarities and interactions. ...

Ramon gets up early this morning to photograph the sun rising over the Back Bay.

Justin, meanwhile, has posted a set of photos of a snowy Arnold Arboretum.

You could drive by the Olde Irish Alehouse on Bridge Street in Dedham pretty much every day for 10 years and never notice the two carved swans up in the cupola atop the restaurant's roof (until one day you park nearby to take a photo of the old Waving Neon Chicken).