Food: Best of the Bay State - Massachusetts Restaurant Roundup

Like most cities, Boston has its fair share of great dining options, but eating out in Massachusetts as a whole can be hit and miss.  Here are the best places my friends and I found during our summer vacation:

Santarpio's Pizza - This Boston mainstay is well over a hundred years old.  If you go to the original location in East Boston near the airport, street parking will be hard to find (your best bet is to use their lot under the overpass, but it fills up fast).  While Santarpio's is best known for their pizza, they grill a variety of delicious meats, including this awesome Italian sausage.

Aama Lama - There are a fair number of Himalayan restaurants in the Boston metro area, and the best one we went to was Aama Lama, a tiny place in Malden. I don't profess to be an expert in this type of cuisine, but there were a whole bunch of Nepalese people eating there, and the food tasted great - delicious momo, pakodas, and sukuti.

Marylou's Coffee - I am old enough to remember when Barnie's Coffee ruled Florida malls, and stepping into Marylou's Coffee gave me that same feeling: sweet-smelling flavored coffee, piles of premade muffins and other baked goods, and a distinct pink decor that, while certainly corporate, was less generic than a Starbucks. More importantly, Marylou's brews some of the best flavored decaf iced coffee I've ever had, and, with dozens of locations in south Massachusetts and Rhode Island, it was not hard to find one.

KKatie's Burger Bar - Plymouth has a raft of decent-but-not-memorable restaurants downtown, so we opted for something a little more casual - KKatie's Burger Bar. It's a small, family-friendly local chain serving up good burgers and beer in the South Shore. The "frickles" (fried dill pickle chips and banana peppers) and fried green beans (not breaded) were unusual, and pretty good.

Coffee Obsession - The Shining Sea Bikeway provides easy biking access to Woods Hole along with beautiful ocean views, and Coffee Obsession's two locations smartly bracket the Bikeway: one location is at the start point in Falmouth, right near the bike rentals, and the other is at the endpoint in Woods Hole, right near the ferry to Martha's Vineyard. Both locations offer pretty good coffee and tea drinks, as well as public restrooms.

Ziggy's - Finding dairy-free almond milk ice cream is a chore anywhere, but we found it was especially hard near the beach in Plymouth. One happy exception was Ziggy's, which has been there since 1957. The ice cream was great, the location was convenient, and the people couldn't have been nicer.

Neptune Oyster - For our last meal in Boston, we wanted to go out with a bang, so we grabbed a table at Neptune Oyster, a Michelin Guide-recommended seafood restaurant that typically has a long line to get in. The raw oysters themselves were good, but the real standout was the lobster roll, which is probably the best in the city.

Miscellany: 2026 Chevy Trailblazer LT review - Fond of sand dunes and salty air

For our summer vacation, we toured Massachusetts...everywhere from the charming fishing port of Gloucester, to the hustle and bustle of post-World Cup Boston, to the winding roads of Cape Cod. While some places were accessible via public transit, we needed a car to realistically get anywhere outside the Boston metro area.  As such, we got a Chevy Trailblazer, a Korean-made subcompact crossover that took over the nameplate from the old Trailblazer SUV:

Our 2026 model had the "LT" trim, which adds several big features, like keyless open and a better stereo system. Unchanged from the base model is the buzzy 1.2L ECOTEC engine, which squeezes 137 hp and 162 lb-ft of torque out of three turbocharged cylinders.  The engine (paired with an unremarkable CVT) had just enough pep to deal with everyday New England traffic, but it's certainly not going to throw you back in your seat, and long-term reliability may be...questionable.

Suspension-wise, I found the Trailblazer's ride to be a little noisy and harsh - the car had a tendency to crash over bumps and uneven pavement, which were pretty common on Boston streets.  On the plus side, the car handled well in the surprisingly hilly Massachusetts terrain, even when rain intruded on the last day of our vacation.

In terms of interior space, the Trailblazer fit four adults comfortably, along with their personal items and carry-on bags, though rear storage is reduced by the included spare tire (still a welcome feature in this day and age):

The car was pretty easy to drive, too - the dashboard layout is simple, and there are still physical controls for things like audio volume and climate. The wireless Apple CarPlay implementation was just okay - I didn't experience the full-on crashes of my last rental car, but Google Maps navigation was a little laggy, especially when negotiating the twisty intersections around the Boston area.

All in all, while I would never buy it, I was happy with the Trailblazer as a rental (my friends even liked the Cacti Green paint), and it'll always remind me of old Cape Cod:

Books: The Witchcraft of Salem Village

Salem, Massachusetts has really leaned into its historical association with the witch trials, so much so that almost every business in the downtown area caters to tourists looking for kitschy, witchy souvenirs (my understanding is that the place is absolutely bustling during the Halloween season).

After my friends and I digested about a dozen witch and goth-related shops, though, I felt it was time to learn some of the real history behind the tragic trials that led to the execution of 19 people (with more dying in prison or rendered paupers in the end). There are a lot of accounts of the trials, some scholarly and some less so, but a good middle ground is The Witchcraft of Salem Village by Shirley Jackson, author of The Haunting of Hill House.

The book is written for kids, so Jackson relates the events like a sad fable.  In her telling, the hysteria was caused by the lies of children, the pride and paranoia of adults, and the rigid doctrines of the Puritan faith.  There was also an absence of the basic tenets of the American justice system, such as the presumption of innocence and the confrontation of witnesses. My hope is that as long as we follow those procedural safeguards, nothing like the Salem witch trials could ever happen again.

Miscellany: Buying Pepper Spray in Massachusetts

As a lifelong Floridian, I am sometimes taken aback by the strange weapon restrictions that other parts of the country live under. When my friends and I traveled to Massachusetts, for instance, I knew that carrying a gun was out of the question, but I also learned that even pepper spray is hard to come by.  

You see, under Massachusetts law, you need a permit to buy pepper spray if you're under 18, and only an FFL can sell it.  The practical upshot is that unlike Palm Beach County, where pepper spray is available at retailers like Walmart and Target, I had to travel a solid half hour out of Boston to buy it.  Thankfully, the folks at J&J Arms had a whole rack full of POM canisters, so I was all set:

Tech: Star Fox (2026 remake)

I've written before about how the original Star Fox was one of my favorite SNES games, but the N64 installment (unimaginatively titled Star Fox 64) was great, too.  While it largely retold/rebooted the story of the first game, it introduced both the "Rumble Pak" force-feedback accessory and a surprisingly fun 4-player split-screen competitive multiplayer mode.  Since Star Fox 64, though, the series has been in a bit of a rut, bouncing between so-so sequels, spinoffs (anyone remember Star Fox Adventures?), and re-releases/remakes of the N64 game. 

Well, buckle up, Star Fox fans - they've remade Star Fox 64 again for the Nintendo Switch 2:

As far as remakes go, developer Velan Studios did a fantastic job, faithfully preserving the gameplay and level layouts of the 1997 classic, but totally re-doing the graphics and sound to the levels of a modern game. While you lose some of the now-classic cheesy voice-acting that the original had, you gain an amazing graphical overhaul that sometimes drastically changes the look and feel of a level, almost always for the better (the first level, for instance, depicts a war-torn city much better than the antiseptic, LEGO-like polygons of the N64 version).

Disappointingly, however, with the exception of the multiplayer maps, this is the exact same game you played almost 30 years ago, and it would've been nice to have some new levels and enemies to go along with the fresh coat of paint.  There's a very small amount of replay value in the form of special challenges that unlock entries for the in-game encyclopedia (in addition to the original game's medals and Expert Mode difficulty), but here's hoping Nintendo gives Velan Studios a crack at a true sequel.

Rating: 84/100

Sports: The Forever World Cup

A once-in-a-lifetime confluence of events has conspired to make this World Cup feel both ever-present and endless.  Of course, the U.S. is hosting this edition along with Mexico and Canada, but this summer is also America's 250th birthday and also the first time the qualifying field has been enlarged from 32 teams to 48 teams.

Practically speaking, that means there has been daily, wall-to-wall World Cup soccer for almost a month, with at least three matches televised a day.  If you have even a passing interest in association football, there have already been moments of high drama (underdog Cape Verde moving on to the knockout stages), shocking upsets (Germany bowed out after the group stage on penalties), and, in perhaps an effort to appease American tastes, a whole lot of goal scoring. The U.S. is scheduled to take on Bosnia and Herzegovina tonight in prime time, and time will tell whether this is the start of a generational run for the USMNT, or simply another disappointing early exit.

Music: Ivy "Traces of You" Concert review

Ivy has long been my favorite dreampop band, so when I heard that they would be playing a live show at Respectable Street, I couldn't believe my luck.  The concert would be just blocks away from my office, at an intimate, hole-in-the-wall venue, and was one of only a few stops on Ivy's 2026 "Traces of You" tour. I could understand them playing New York or Chicago, but West Palm Beach seemed like such a random city to visit - and so bizarrely convenient for me.

Respectable Street itself is little more than a bar, a small open floor, and a stage - there is some seating at the edges of the place, but for most concerts, including Ivy's, you have to stand for the whole thing. I lined up about a half hour before the show and heard the band sound-checking and rehearsing the classics, like "Undertow."  I even saw them pop out and walk down Clematis, presumably to kill some time while the opening act, Sweet Bronco, played their set.

Finally, Ivy took the stage.  As I expected, the songs were a mix of tracks from prior albums (though there was nothing from "All Hours," which I gather Dominique Durand and Andy Chase do not like) along with new material from "Traces of You." Of course, the concert was dedicated to departed bandmember Adam Schlesinger, who is gone but never forgotten.

The production was spare (a video screen and some lighting) and the arrangements were basic (along with Dominique, Andy, and Bruce Driscoll, there was a drummer and a horn player, and Adam's parts were played with a bass track), and the band showed some rust from not having played a show in 14 years. For an Ivy superfan like myself, that stuff just didn't matter.

Setlist:

Keep Moving

Thinking About You

Mystery Girl

Disappointed

Undertow

Midnight Hour

Tess Don't Tell

I've Got A Feeling

Fragile People

I Think Of You

Everyday

Say You Will

This Is The Day

Worry About You

Encore:

Get Enough

Edge Of The Ocean

Miscellany: Harriet Tubman

I've forgotten about 99% of the projects that I did in elementary school, but I do recall selecting Mariah Carey's song "Hero" to explain the life and times of Harriet Tubman, the famed abolitionist and "conductor" of the Underground Railroad:

While the song was in no way written with Tubman in mind (apparently it was originally intended for a forgettable Dustin Hoffman film), I think the lyrics still fit her life nicely, especially considering she was a devout Methodist who led herself and hundreds of people to freedom:

Lord knows (Lord knows)

Dreams are hard to follow

But don't let anyone tear them away

Just hold on (hold on)

And there will be tomorrow

In time, you'll find the way (you'll find the way)

Books: The Wrong Stuff

In this age of billionaire-backed companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin, it can be tough to recall that space travel was once the exclusive province of governments, and then really only two governments: the U.S. and the USSR. John Strausbaugh's book The Wrong Stuff (H/T to Tam for suggesting it) takes a look at the Space Race from the point of view of the Soviets.  Strausbaugh's main thesis is that far from being an implacable, bureaucratic foe whom the U.S. barely beat to the Moon, the USSR's space program was a dysfunctional mess held together by rogue engineers, jockeying fighter pilots, and a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-flaming-pants attitude - "The Wrong Stuff." 

The book mostly tracks famed rocket designer Sergei Korolev from his early successes with Sputnik and Vostok all the way through the Luna probes and his death in 1966. It was not until the end of the Cold War that Western observers would discover how ramshackle and improvised the Russian space program was. There were life-threatening technical problems with Vostok that would persist for years, ingenious but crude workarounds to make up for meager resources, and, tragically, many people whose deaths were covered up in the spirit of secrecy. While the book is of course critical of the oppressive system that the cosmonauts were stuck in, no one can deny their bravery, or their contributions to humanity's path to the stars.

Books: Moonwalk

The Michael Jackson biopic Michael lit up the box office for the past few weeks, but for any child of the '80s and '90s, even a big-budget 2026 production is but a pale imitation of the real thing. That's why I read through Moonwalk, Michael Jackson's 1988 autobiography.

Like the recent movie, Moonwalk was published in 1988, before the child abuse allegations and drug addiction that consumed the last years of Jackson's life. At the time Jackson told his story to writer Shaye Areheart, he was nearing the peak of his powers. He would play the Super Bowl halftime show five years later, he would be charged with child molestation fifteen years later, and he would die twenty years later.

The autobiography itself is pretty anodyne, as you might expect. There are some hints of the issues to come (passages where Jackson says he's never tried any drugs, explanations of why he loves the company of children, etc.).  The closest Jackson comes to being defensive is his frank admission of having multiple plastic surgeries - not a big deal, according to Jackson, since everyone in Hollywood gets work done. On the other hand, the book doesn't brag about the huge amounts of time and money Jackson donated to charity, either.

Whatever you think of Michael Jackson (and his legacy is being posthumously litigated now more than ever before, with documentaries and counter-documentaries left and right), he was the one of the greatest entertainers who ever lived. The best parts of the book go behind the scenes of his hit songs, his music videos, and his dance moves. If you've ever wondered where hits like "Billie Jean" or "Beat It" come from, or how the "Thriller" music video came together, well, this is one of the only places to hear it from the man himself.