highlights from the walk i just took

walking through where Vietnam collides with Latin America, the urban Black community, and old Irish names

statues of Mary and Joseph with flowers laid at their feet

dot2dot cafe has an open mic the last friday of every month, and they might be a good place to eat breakfast

gas costs about 30 cents less in dorchester than it does in brookline

why are white people so unfriendly?

julie andrews constantly playing outside the strip mall, met by a reggae cover of "when i'm 64" by the beatles inside the liquor store, where the cashiers are probably never going to stop addressing me as "young lady"

i love triple deckers

this morning's saturday drive through the "bad part of town" with the top down was also educational. catholics build the biggest churches. crowning moment: reading the huge "START THE PEACE" sign in the corner park, and a police car blazes through the intersection, all sirens and blue lights.

moment:

i saw two Black lesbians cross the street holding hands in my new neighborhood today, and it made me feel better about everything.

coming clean

i can't believe i ever let you silence me.

i can't believe i gave up my opportunity to tell you everything i had to say in front of everyone who should have heard it. i wonder if anyone interpreted my silence to mean you had won.

the fact of the matter is, that night solidified more than any other that your hate and your vitriol and your passive-aggression, simply, are not and never were worth my time. your words to me did not even deserve a response. even in my moment of potential vindication, if only i could speak sharply enough, you were not worth the effort and the frustration.

would have been nice if either one of us could have de-escalated it from that point. i tried. i stopped trying when you made it clear that you were never going to look me in the eye again, or respond to anything i said. i don't doubt you know just how many nights you brushed past me and i was looking straight into your face--you wouldn't even acknowledge me.

your loss, really. 

advice for young travelers

move to an unfamiliar city. 

get lost and then get found. 

experience as many things as you possibly can. 

be cautious, but don't be afraid. 

look people in the eye. 

always walk tall. 

have fun.