Nicole, Worcester

CWW: Westboro Public Library book sale

Nicole — Wed, 16 May 2012 11:03:43 +0000

The Friends of the Westborough Public Library will hold a booksale in the Forbes Building from Thursday, May 17 through Sunday, May 20. The hours are:

* Thursday, May 17: 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
* Friday, May 18: 10:00 am – 8:00 pm
* Saturday, May 19: 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
* Sunday, May 20: 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm

The Forbes Building is next to the library on the corner of Parkman and West Main Streets (where the Police Station is located).

Beware of Zombie Teddies

Nicole — Mon, 14 May 2012 14:42:13 +0000

Someone didn’t want to stay in his grave today:

(Note: this is NOT at Hope, and this does NOT appear to be at a marked grave.)

The Worcester-Galactica Connection

Nicole — Sun, 13 May 2012 12:49:26 +0000

We all know that the scrappy Battlestar Galactica finally made it to earth in 1980 after 30+ years of dodging malevolent shiny robots called Cylons, because they got a ten-episode TV series out of it called Galactica 1980.

So what did the intrepid space travellers get up to from 1981 onward? I’m thinking they settled in Worcester, earth’s answer to a strange distant galaxy. The evidence is a bit flimsy, but Galactica’s interstellar typography has been spotted right here in Worcester:

Battlestar Columbia

No word yet whether they’re employing any futuristic manufacturing processes in there, but I’m holding out hope for a Lorne Greene autograph one of these days.

Worcester’s Centennial Bridge

Nicole — Sun, 13 May 2012 11:48:10 +0000

Birthday bridge pining for its long, lost Oilzum Man.

What if Worcester did it right?

Nicole — Sun, 13 May 2012 03:48:24 +0000

This handsome street name sign is fully MUTCD compliant:

It features a full City of Worcester seal, correctly sized typography in uppercase/lowercase as required by the latest standards, is correctly positioned both vertically and horizontally on the sign blank, and uses a FHWA-approved typeface which is designed to be readable from greater distances than typical fonts.

As you may have guessed by now, this is one that the DPW’s sign shop did not create. Worcester prefers to ignore the research & experience of the FHWA by using a serif-style typeface better suited to term papers & recipes. And I’m sure it’s less bother to spit out a red dingbat heart than actually print Worcester’s beautiful seal.

Mediocrity, thy name is Worcester.

Decorated by a gang of deranged first-graders

Nicole — Thu, 10 May 2012 18:59:03 +0000

Ride a P+W train to the zoo

Nicole — Thu, 10 May 2012 17:33:57 +0000

The Roger Williams Zoo in Providence is a blast — and if there’s a railroad fan in the family or you just don’t like driving, this might be a opportunity worth exploring. If you’re interested, call the Kiwanis at 1-800-447-2003 ext. 0 for more information. You can also find pricing for this excursion (train ride + zoo admission) on the Providence & Worcester Railroad website.

Ghosts of past business names

Nicole — Thu, 10 May 2012 14:42:35 +0000

Franklin St.

Raising a street to depress a city

Nicole — Thu, 10 May 2012 13:01:24 +0000

If you’re like me, you’ve probably been avoiding the part of Franklin St. near the rail yards during CSX’s expansion. In case you haven’t seen what they’re doing to Franklin St., here’s a glimpse:

Behind the fencing you can see the start of the new pitch of lower Franklin St.

The new grade goes steeply uphill.

The retaining wall fills one with such confidence.

Up, up & away.

This is the point at which Evel Knievel’s ghost will jump a bunch of cargo containers.

Here’s where there will ultimately be an underpass for tractor trailers to haul cargo containers to & from I-290 through busy Grafton St. traffic.

Any nominations for who should be immortalized in the naming of this streetscape ramp?

CWW: Open Farm and Food Days this weekend

Nicole — Wed, 09 May 2012 22:48:03 +0000

Mass Local Foods is sponsoring their first Open Farm and Food Days the weekend of May 12-13.

The following is a list of farms that are participating.

Ashburnham
Kalon Farm
28 Corey Hill Rd.
10:30-4 both days
See the animals, shop at the farm store.

Barre
Hartman’s Herb Farm
1026 Old Dana Rd
Open Saturday and Sunday

Berlin
220 Soap
66 Village Court
Tours of Stephanie Henry’s soap making studio

Hardwick
Robinson Farm
42 Jackson Rd
Farm store is open both days 7a.m. to 7pm.

Hubbardston
High Meadow Farm
28 High St
Sunday, May 13 farm tour at 1 pm to visit the animals and orchard. Plan on walking about 1 mile though a wooded trail and fields. You are welcome to bring a picnic to enjoy after the tour but plan on carrying it in a backpack to the picnic site.

Lunenburg
Open Meadow
5 Leominster-Shirley Rd
Sunday, May 13th from 9 a.m.- 1 p.m. If you would like to see how we feed the animals we will be doing so around 9:30. We welcome you to come see our cow pastures and wooded pig enclosures where we can answer any questions you may have about how we raise our animals.
Directions:From Route 2 east or west take Exit 36 (Shirley Road); On Shirley Road take your 2nd left onto Chisholm Trail; go straight through the gate until you see the cows.

Royalston
Sweet Water Sugarhouse
56 Brown Road – (978)249-3464
Open Sat. noon to 4 p.m. and Sun. 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Wendell
Diemand Farm
26 Mormon Hollow Rd. – 978-544-3806
Open Sat. & Sun. 10a.m.- 2 p.m.

West Boylston
Buzz Brand Honey
243 Lancaster St.(Route 110) – 508-835-8870
Saturday, May 12 10 a.m.-2p.m.
Empty hive demonstrations

Westminster
Maple Heights Farm
70 Howard Rd.
Saturday, May 13 morning and evening
See baby chicks, pigs and cows; hay equipment demonstrations; walk around the farm and picnic on the nearby Midstate Trail.

Worcester
Acoustic Java
932 A Main Street
Free Coffee Cupping Saturday.May 12 at 10 a.m. and Sunday, May 13 at 11 a.m.
Coffee cupping is a method of evaluating different coffees by carefully examining their distinctive characteristics, which include aroma, acidity, body, flavor, and aftertaste.Each characteristic is judged on a scale of 1 to 10 and the coffee is awarded an overall score. Coffees awarded a score of 80 or above are called “specialty”coffees. Also offering a free cup of coffee with the purchase of a pound of beans.