Third Places

This afternoon I was in the middle of writing up comments on Ella’s personal essay when I was interrupted by a reporter and cameraman from Fox News doing interviews for an upcoming segment on wireless security issues. They asked if I’d be willing to chat about the ways I use my laptop to access wireless networks. After clearing a seat for the reporter and threading the microphone up my sweater, I explained how Cafenation has become part of my dissertation-writing routine in large part because of its free wireless connection and how this has give me greater flexibility in deciding where I would work.

I was sitting in my regular spot—the table near the back where I can get the best wireless signal strength and plug into an outlet when my battery goes dead. The café was full of activity, with two children behind me pretending to be fishing from the couch and with the baristas navigating around the cameraman to deliver pesto chicken crepes and coffee to other customers.

When the segment airs on the late news next Tuesday, I hope they’ll include my plug for Cafenation so that it gets some well-deserved publicity. What’s more likely is that I’ll say something to reveal my ignorance of wireless security threats, and I will serve to represent the throngs of hapless wireless users whose laptops are ripe for hacking. Since it’s Fox, it’s bound to be dramatic. By the end of the segment, viewers will feel sorry for me, blissfully drinking my light roast coffee and surfing the web as some malicious wardriver reads my emails and steals my identity. Maybe watching myself on Tuesday night will motivate me into figure out if I actually need to be worried.

Last night I spend my third evening in Harvard Square this week, and I was glad to find that the square on a summer evening still has its charms, despite the many changes in recent years. Waiting for my friend Marlene—stuck in traffic on the Mass Ave bus—gave the chance to hear Lisa Bastoni play in front of Out of Town News.

This morning I’m at Cafenation, the Brighton Center coffee shop that has become by go-to work place in the mornings. I’ve been coming here 2-4 times/week since late January and it’s become an important part of my writing routine. Most mornings I’ll check my email briefly after breakfast and then suit up to get on the road. I slide my computer and a few books into a laptop backpack I bought recently to make with my computer more comfortable. I jump on my 8-yearold Creststone mountain bike to and ride one mile west on Cambridge St/Washington St. until I get to Brighton Center at the intersection of Washington St. and Market St. The ride is just far enough to get warmed up and awake but not long enough to get too sweaty.

This morning I went with my housemate, Monica, and her parents to Sorella's in Jamaica Plain, and I was glad to discover a spot to add to my list of good Boston breakfast joints. What's remarkable about this small restaurant on Centre street is the shear amount of reading it takes to sort through your options. The menu can't contain the list of inventive omlettes, pancakes, waffles, and french toast; the choices spill out into the restaurant itself, onto the hand-written descriptions plastered on every spare inch of wall space.

Tonight Robert, Staci, and I celebrated the end of busy week with dinner at Red Sauce, housed in one of the Water Arsenal buildings. Walking to the restaurant, Robert and I commented on how nicely renovated the buildings and grounds looked, and on our way out, we were amazed to discover the Italianate Commander's Mansion standing just behind the Arsenal grounds. When I got home, I began to poke around on the web to find out more about the mansion and the Arsenal property.