Meet the Restless Mama

Guest Mass Hole #4:

Having the opportunity to guest post on the Mass Hole Mommy is a total honor. I’m so freaking honored that I just might pee my pants like in 8th grade when I won the Student of the Year award and I was dressed like a bum to accept the little honor plaque. Yeah bad fashion makes me pee my pants.

Anysnooooooooooooooooooooze….

Robin posted at my blog Restless Mama and she wrote about why she loves living in Massachusetts. So I decided to write about why I miss Massachusetts. My son and I moved from our little cottage in Salem, MA to a little town on the island of Oahu in a little state known as Hawaii. I think you may have heard of it. Sandy beaches. Swaying palm trees. Warm, oh so warm South Pacific Ocean water. Beautiful women in grass skirts and exotic men breathing fire…through their nose in front of their grass shacks!!! No not really through their nose and Hawaii and its people are a little more developed than that. But only a little. *wink* Anyway as beautiful as it is here in paradise there are just some things that I miss about living in Massachusetts. So here’s my list (in no particular order):

1. The North End’s Regina Pizzeria – the best freakin’ pizza known to mankind. You can’t get pizza OR service like that ANYWHERE! I don’t care what New Yorkers say – Regina’s pizza is the most wicked awesome dough meets cheese meets tomato sauce meets topping goodness EVER! Ever, ever, EVER!!! I mean people wait outside in a line for this pizza it’s that good. And the waitresses, “Whadda ya want honey? Hey! That door’s not an exit! Can’t you read?!?!?!” Mama mia you don’t want to mess with these women. They will cut you without warning.

2. Walking up and down Marlborough Street. I used to live right by Fenway Park and worked in Boston’s Beacon Hill so I’d always walk to and from work. It was my favorite thing to do. But I couldn’t stand walking on Beacon Street it had to be Marlborough where the streets are lined with Magnolia trees and the noise is a minimum. Plus you never know when you’ll stumble upon a movie set. Those were the days.

3. The accents and verbiage. “Def” was a major part of the New England vocab and you gotta love those “Cahs!” and “Ideers.” Who know that “r” was silent and that an “er” substituted “ea”.

4. The fall weather. Fall is my favorite season and so you can guess how depressed I am here in Hawai’i without any yellow, red, brown leaves to grace the streets. I miss the crisp air and the apple picking. Justifying the purchase of a Chai Latte to keep your hands cool while I walk to work. Fall is so beautiful in Massachusetts.

5. Seeing a Dunkin Donuts on every corner. I really didn’t like going to DD’s (being from Seattle and all) but it was comforting to know that if I was in desperate need for a cup o java that I could rely on Dunk’s.

6. The majestic sports teams, Red Sox, Pats, Celtics, & Bruins. Massachusetts is loyal and they love their sports!!! I still remember the time I walked into a Hooters and saw the Sox playing the Yanks and yelling out, “A-Rod!!!!” Alex Rodriguez used to play for the Seattle Mariners so I was really excited to see him but momentarily forgot where I was. Let’s just say I wasn’t welcomed back to that Hooters which was a bummer because I love their buffalo wings! Anyway, I love the loyalty and the passion. I was lucky enough to be there when the Sox won the World Series and the Celtics the NBA championship. I was even there when the Pats were ALMOST undefeated. Good times.

7. The company office. Where I used to work was the perfect location. It was so central. When I lived in the city it was walking distance from where I lived. When I got pregnant and moved to the North Shore it was only a 10 minute walk from the train station. The building itself was beautiful with its old architecture and spiral stairways. We had the sexiest most elegant conference room in town. I miss the people I worked with too – they were a major bonus to my job. In fact I still keep in touch with most of them.

8. Boston Public Gardens – B-U-T-FUL!!! Visit. It’s beautiful anytime of the year. Full stop.

9. Newburyport, Rockport, Salem, Concord, and the list goes on. Massachusetts has a lot of historical towns and any of the ones I visited I would have loved to have lived in. Newburyport (along with my family) was the reason why I wanted to live in MA. I visited during Christmas time and just fell in love with the town lights, the biting cold sea air, and it just had a holiday feel to it. It was magical. I didn’t want to return to Philadelphia after that. Then Rockport is full of artists a great place to gain inspiration. Concord is where “the shot heard around the world” was and who wouldn’t want to live around such history? And Salem. Cute little Salem full of freaks, witches, and history – and mine & the Bambino’s first place of residence together. Our beautiful little cottage. All of the houses there had uneven floors and misplaced chimneys but it gave a house more character with those wonderful flaws.

10. My family. My cousin and her family were the highlights of my days. They were kind enough to let me live with them while I found a job and a place in the city. Even after I moved to the city I would still visit them every weekend. And they even let me live with them while I found my own place nearby when I was pregnant, which I know was a hard decision for them to make with their girls being at such an impressionable age. I am forever grateful to them. They welcomed me in their lives without obligation or question. They are home. And will always have a special, special place in my heart. They are the real definition of family.

So that’s my list. Apparently I have a lot to say (sorry Robin). I could go on and on and on and on and on and you get the point but I think 10 reasons is a good start. Though I miss MA a lot (a lot, a lot) I am enjoying the process of getting in touch with my heritage and learning all about a new culture (even if it is my heritage). It’s definitely a culture shock coming from the fast paced life of the East Coast life to the easy going views and pace of the South Pacific but after a while one gets used to it. I mean it’s fother mucking Hawaii!!!! The land of surfing and hip shaking. Come visit.

Thanks for this opportunity Robin. You. Rock. My. World!!!!!!! Let me know when you plan on visiting here and we’ll go for surf lessons and the boys can boogie board. Or whenever I make it back to MA we can go apple picking together or a Pats game. Your pick. ;o)

-Restless Mama aka Aljolynn