Woke up at 6:00 and had to rush a bit to get everyone through the single shower and out the door. Max led to Arlington High School, and we had more AAGH caravan moments, trying to stay together in rush hour traffic.
Being in a high school again made us feel pretty old (I felt ancient). The school bell freaked me out. The first time I heard it, I was right under the ringer and I did a massive flinch. I used to make fun of Marquette’s gentle chimes, but yeesh. If I heard that bell 16 times a day, I would be so inured to klaxons that if I would here a real alarm, I’d probably just yawn and look around for a locker.
The teams performed for about a thousand kids for their assembly. My team went first, so that Britt could headline. I told them to unlock the joy and try to show the audience how much they liked playing with each other. They did OK for running on empty sleepwise. I was controlling lights from the light booth and trying to stay in touch with Mike via the school’s walkie talkies, but mine was out of battery, so it wouldn’t transmit and he just kept talking and talking and asking, “Do you copy?” After the shows, we talked for a period with the Drama 4 class about improv and did some scenes with them.
We left the high school hungry and looking for lunch and after a false start to Blue Ribbon BBQ, decided to drive to Faneuil Hall. Game plan was to eat there and wait for Joe to finish work. He’d meet up with us there, and then we hang until it was time for Laurel to get off work at which time she’d hop onto the T, meet us and have dinner. I was operating under some grave miconceptions at the time I made this plan, such as ease of getting to Faneuil Hall and the amount of things to see at this location.
Driving there from AHS was crazy. I’d gotten directions from Sprint, but Max dismissed them as freakin’ stupid. He called his dad and got better ones, down Mass Ave. We gave him our walkie talkie and then trucked out behind him. Unfortunately, I got cut off by a Corona truck driving like a doof and I was leading the rest of the cars. Took a poor turn through Harvard Square and ended up on N. Harvard instead of Mass Ave. Just like the night before. Had to turn around. Got back on Mass Ave back up to Arlington. By this time I was so annoyed that I pulled the most illegal U turn in Boston history, over a brick median. Mike followed, but Peter’s car didn’t have time to make it. Meanwhile, Max and the rental were waiting on Mass Ave up ahead. I made the loop around Mass Ave, oh wait, Brattle St again and managed to stay on Mass Ave for a bit. Except, oh, wait, now Mass Ave was called St. AUburn, so I faked myself out and had to loop around. We finally linked up with Max, but had lost Peter, but then he was right in front of us. He had no walkie either, and he didn’t look behind, so he didn’t realize where we were and so Max tore off after him. Turns out Britt had called his dad and gotten directions. Finally, we made it to Faneiul Hall, my nerves shot. I took the first parking I could and gingerly stepped down from the Durango, vaguely trembling. Laura and Jenny and Sarah tried to cheer me up.
The others parked over by the IMAX (I was in government center) and we met up with them finally inside Quincy Market. Mike took a look at me and started laughing. “You can see it in his face, the drive. There’s that business on Mass Ave. There’s Harvard Road,” he said. I laughed, still a bit high strung. We all ate different things from the hall of food that is Quincy Market and then split up again, planning to meet at 5:45. And then came the realization that Faneuil Hall is just restaurants and shops and there’s really not 3 hours of stuff to do. The group had broken up a bit and Mike and I were waiting on Joe, really. We took a few people walking through North End to Mike’s Pastry, where Jessie and I split a cannoli that was so rich it glowed.
Back to Faneuil Hall. I got some cards for people and met Joe while the others went to the tourist Cheers bar. This was the long haul of boredom for them, because we all wanted to leave for improvBoston area for Mike and Joe to do their workshop and for the rest of us to eat with Laurel for her birthday. We had nixed staying around Faneiul Hall because it was expensive and we were all deathly bored of the place. But we couldn’t leave because we were missing two people, so we had to go all the way until 5:45. Joe and I got directions from the info booth on how to get to improvBoston from there and the directions seemed clear. Cambridge St, over the Longfellow bridge, and then Cambridge St to improvBoston. I was anxious to redeem myself for getting lost before and leading everyone astray. However, they were all parked together near the IMAX and I was in Govt Center, so I just told them I’d meet them there. I was prepared. I had a free cartoon map.
This drive almost destroyed me. Getting over the bridge and through MIT was fine, but then I missed going left just past Harvard Square, since there were no signs (I hate you Harvard Square!) and ended up on Mass Ave again. Peter called to say that they were at the resaurant, but they wouldn’t get seated until we were all there. Called Joe and he told me to take a left on Prospect off Mass Ave, but I drove it way too long and was getting back up to Arlington before I turned around. Had to head back into Harvard Square (pit of hell) and then I got messed up as to whether I should stick on Mass Ave to hit Prospect and in doing so, ended up near Faneuil Hall again. Holding back the tears, trying to keep Jessie from exploding, I turned around. Back through Harvard Freakin’ Square and this time I got on Cambridge somehow. Faked myself out one more time with a street sign but finally made it to improvBoston and S&S Deli. Where I found no parking. Let Jessie out of the car again, lest we kill one another and zipped around with Sarah trying to calm my nerves down. Laurel called to say she couldn’t find us, and I thought she was at the restaurant, but after parking and walking over, realized that she was at improvBoston. And then there was much rejoicing.
Dinner was fun. We caught up. I gave her her card. Her roommate Anna was also there. After dinner, I bought some liquor for the kids and sent them on to Duxbury without me. I stayed with Laurel and Anna and we went to a bar to wait for Mike to finish his workshop. Talked more and then went to the theater at ten before the others told us that he and Mike were at MIT. “Aw crap,” I thought, “I’m going to have to drive to Duxbury alone.” I gave Anna and Laurel a ride back to their place and she called Joe again and they picked up. More Boston driving fun later, they arrived at Laurel’s, although parking problems there kept me from saying goodbye to Joe.
And then Mike and I drove back to Duxbury. And we did not lose the way. Or each other. Just frickin’ drove to Duxbury with only one mistake (overshooting to country road by 30 feet, ooo). Frickin’ redeemed. Inside, we found the group in chill drinking mode, with some kids passed out already and other just lying around waiting to sleep. Peter’s Killer game was pretty anticlimactic as we all accused Max since he was killed at a time that no one else was around. Turns out Samantha had emailed him the death card. Pretty sneaky, but still, anticlimactic.
Kearney tried to teach me to shotgun beer. I didn’t do so well. Sam and Kearney were pros. As for me, the beer foamed up over the top and hit my nose, ran over my face. Sick. Oh look, Justin feels ancient again.
I was going to sleep in my own room last night, but Kearney put one of the passed out kids in there on my pillow. I grabbed another pillow and headed down to the couch I slept on Sunday night. Mike and two of his incubators were up so freakin’ late talking and there was a cell phone beeping “new voicemail” over and over so I was really grumpy getting to bed.