Ah, the hub of the universe, my favorite place in the whole world. Boston figures prominently in my writing, and here’s why.
I Love That Dirty Water
So, I first fell in love with Boston when I was a teenager and my brother was looking at colleges. I guess he was looking at Harvard (which is in Cambridge, anyway), but I don’t honestly remember.
All I do recall is seeing Boston and thinking—that’s for me.
Roadrunner, Roadrunner
I have lived in a bunch of different places in the northeast United States. And the only ones that come close to Boston are Providence and Philadelphia.
I just, I fell in love, is what happened.
It’s More Than a Feeling
Because my home is such an intrinsic part of my life, it naturally crept into my writing. Mettle takes place here because I wanted people from my favorite city to meet the apocalypse head-on. And win.
Of course, The Real Hub of the Universe comes from Oliver Wendell Holmes’s famous take on the place, that we fancy ourselves as being at the center of it all.
And so I think, well, what if we really were?
The entire Obolonk universe keeps Boston (rather, the New England Meg, if you want to get technical about it) close and important because that’s the way I feel about the place, too.
And I want it to still be around, even in the far future.
Just What I Needed
Nothing grounds me like this city. Nothing moves me as much as the sight of Fenway or the Hancock Tower, or the lights off the harbor at night.
When my characters have a connection, too, then I can feel them coming home.
Consider disruption (NSFW): Good Lord, people, hide the fine china! Lock up your children! Clutch your pearls! It’s all gone NSFW!
Still, I shouldn’t kid.
This assignment is about using social media being as a tool for disruption. I chose to examine the Boston Marathon bombings, and of course, that’s nothing to be flippant about. Further, I selected a completely NSFW (Not Safe For Work) moment during the ordeal.
David Ortiz for the Disruptive Win!
I chose to center my video around Boston Red Sox player David Ortiz taking the microphone during the first game after the bombs went off, and him bellowing into the mic, “This is our f—in’ city!”
There are some people who complained, after the fact, about the obscenity. But the vast, vast majority of viewers took it all in stride.
How Did Social Media Handle All This?
What did Social Media do? How did it disrupt coverage? Well, let’s just put it this way. If the bombing had occurred fifteen years ago, or even five, coverage (and our memories of it) would have been far, far different.
It would have been far less immediate. We would not have seen the carnage in anywhere near as much graphic detail. Jeff Bauman would have maintained some privacy with reference to his grave injuries.
And David Ortiz, if he had dropped the f-bomb live on TV at all, would have been fined, big time, as would have the Red Sox organization.
Instead, we know. We have seen. We have heard. And it’s a lot harder to forget. The news is no longer being sanitized successfully in America.
Welcome to the media treating us like grownups.
Disruption Eight Years Later…
Looking back at this post in last 2022, my first observation is that it’s almost quaint. No one seemed to really care about Ortiz dropping an f-bomb on television. But why?
It’s quite simply because he just said what we were all thinking. And many of us had probably said it in the comfort and privacy of our own homes.
Be aware, there are adult words in here, for very adult events. Turn back if four-letter words bother you more than terrorism. That makes no sense to me. But maybe it does to you.
Stay Strong and Keep Every Sense About You
For all who have been living under rocks, things here in Boston have been astounding over the course of the past week. If it were a film script, it would never be made. Because no one would believe it.
On Monday, April 15th, 2013, the unthinkable happened, when two bombs went off at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. Three people died, and nearly 180 were wounded, many gravely.
Close call in Brighton – the blue star is more or less where I live
And then, going from Thursday, April 18th at night, into about 24 hours later, Friday, April 19th, at about 8:40 PM, there was a lockdown and a manhunt here.
To give you an idea of how close it all was, check out this map – I can scarcely fathom it.
And I have friends, former colleagues, who were even closer, people who heard shots and explosions.
This is reality.
But I want to put in what, to me, is a bit of perspective, I hope.
A Sense of Destruction and Despair
There are plenty of horrible images and I will, mainly, not focus on them.
But this image should tell the tale of Friday. We, like most people, did as requested and stayed in our home.
I took maybe 20 minutes at about lunchtime and sat on my front porch. I saw a guy walking his dog and another getting a smoke. Plus maybe three cars went by.
And that was it.
I firmly believe that staying out of law enforcement’s collective way was vital in not just keeping bystanders from being harmed but also in the swift conclusion to the manhunt. Also, I will not publicize the alleged (yes, alleged; I believe in the right to a fair trial) perp’s name.
A Sense of Hope and Glory
There are a lot of images and words and I cannot possibly cover them all so I will cherry pick a few.
Neil Diamond and Sweet Caroline
So Neil Diamond hopped on a plane yesterday morning at 4:30 AM.
He just showed up, 40 minutes before the Red Sox game was to start, and asked if he could sing “Sweet Caroline“.
Sure thing, Neil.
David Ortiz (who never made more sense than at this very moment)
David Ortiz got on a microphone and dropped the f-bomb on live TV. The FCC shrugged and said the equivalent of, hey, no sweat.
And I am sure most of us agree with him and aren’t about to hold the f-bomb against him. I know I don’t.
People care. And they have also expressed their caring in some amazing and offbeat, quirky ways. These are the ways that make the most sense to them.
Always & Forever
The Always & Forever Tattoo Salon in Watertown has a sidewalk memorial going. Add to it, if you like.
Fundraising
There are multiple fundraisers going on. The big one is the OneFundBoston. This charity was started by Mayor Menino and Governor Patrick and is of course legitimate.
The local running club, the Brighton Bangers, also held a fundraiser.
Sense, Memory, and Healing
I refuse to provide the names of the alleged perps. But I will gladly share the names of the lost and the injured.
Krystle Campbell
This young woman was 29. She was a restaurant manager at Jasper White’s Summer Shack and mainly worked in Hingham and Cambridge, putting in 70- and 80-hour weeks.
I celebrated my 50th birthday at the Cambridge location last September, and may very well have seen her.
Sean Collier
This MIT police officer lost his life in the Thursday night shootout. Boston Police stood at attention with respect as his hearse passed, remembering this young man who gave his all.
Lingzi Lu
This young woman was a graduate statistics student at Boston University, my alma mater.
The wildly generous trustees of Boston University have already raised over half a million dollars for a Lingzi Lu scholarship in her name.
Martin Richard
This eight-year-old child was wiser than most of us, eh? His father, mother and sister were also hurt. So please remember them, also.
Jeff Bauman
This young man‘s image was all over the news, as Carlos Arredondo helped get him to safety and care. Some images were cropped. Others showed the full extent of the awful damage to his legs. This site is a legitimate fundraising site to help pay for his care.
Also, if you want to send him a card, send it to:
In care of Jen Joyce
for Jeff Bauman
117 Tynsboro Rd.
Westford, MA 01886
Celeste and Sydney Corcoran
Sydney and Celeste Corcoran at Boston Medical Center
These women are mother and daughter, and they were both also hurt (Celeste has more extensive injuries). Also, there is a legitimate fund to help with their care.
Dic Donohue
This police officer and Navy veteran was also wounded in the Thursday night gunfight. And so here is a legitimate fundraising site for him.
So he is neighbor to a friend who lives in Stoneham. And this young roofer has already lost one leg, and there is shrapnel in his heart. There is a legitimate fund to help him, too.
In Every Sense, It’s Personal
I have loved Boston ever since I attended BU (I am from the Class of ’83) and am also a runner (but only 5K races – marathons are too long for me). Many of these directly affected people are second and third degree of separation from me.
I cannot begin to describe just how personal it all feels, and I know that my feelings are rather small within the scope of this immense tragedy.
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