Alexandra Vaillancourt
Santa Claus Came to Town
Dateline Boston — A couple weeks ago I took my little charge to see Santa Claus at our local independent toy store. The girl I take care of, I’ll call her Aurora, is 4 years old. I didn’t know if she’d ever visited with Santa Claus, but her mom signed her up (it was free!), and I was in charge.
Open Mouth, Insert Trash
Dateline Boston — Last week, after I wrote an essay about how my mom and I used trash pickings to decorate our humble abodes, H and I went to a fancy party. The hosts had just bought and beautifully restored a huge Victorian house. We went through the whole place, admiring the woodwork and fireplaces. The house looked like something out of Architectural Digest.
Trash to Treasure
Dateline Boston — Last weekend I began decorating the apartment for Christmas. Even though this year will probably be the leanest holiday season we’ll ever have, putting up the stockings and fake evergreen garland puts me in the spirit of giving.
NO! Vember
Dateline Boston — November 2012 has not been a great month for my family. Things went from bad to worse. During my annual art show, I didn’t even make enough money to cover the cost of the table I rented. Our car bit the dust. My husband got laid off.
Spaced Out
Dateline Boston — I’m not into space—astronauts, moonwalks, robots on Mars. They don’t do much for me. I’m also not into daredevil acts. I don’t get a thrill from watching people risk their lives by bungee jumping off bridges or diving off cliffs.
Res Poof Inn
Dateline Boston — Last weekend H and I went to New York City. We needed a cheap place to stay—no way we were going to pay $800 for what was essentially one day in the city. A friend recommended a place. The price was right, so we made a reservation online for Friday night.
Oh, What a Night
Dateline Boston — So I’m done with my haircut, and I notice it’s just about time for H to be heading home from work. I text him and coordinate a plan to take the train home together. He’ll be coming in from uptown, stop at my stop, I’ll just jump on and we’ll ride together the rest of the way.
