I got around the log in issue by adopting a new pseudonym (username). It kept rejecting my old one. Sure the old profile and data still survive somewhere. Existing in parallel universes has its perks, I guess. But all this white hurts my eyes. Do we need to go to settings each time we visit here to reduce luminosity?! I feel like I now know what it must be like to go snow blind!!! Maybe just wear a pair a shades.

A friend on a non-hippi list sends a photo of her cool CAKE and there is a hippi in the background. She replies that she knows nothing of this Apple Blossom (not an AB) and you say that it looks like Pink Diamond and suggest she looks it up on the internet. She replies that she did a GOOGLE search for Pink Diamond and lo and behold her search reveals a photo that you took posted on this photo. She then refers to you as a wealth of knowledge and starts bombarding you with questions...and of course you encourage her to join the FORUM!! K

Boston is our favorite city. We're only a 3 hour trip, so we're fortunate to be able to visit and stay at least 2-3 times a year. The North End is a wonderful place to eat, walk and relax. There are cobblestone streets, churches, salumerias, green grocers and wonderful restaurants. Maurizio's is a good restaurant (Sardinian cuisine) with a nice atmosphere and good service. Our two favorite pastry shops are Maria's on Cross Street or Modern Pastry on Hanover Street. They're more of a "local" bakery rather than a tourist attraction (pardon my opine but Mike's reminds me of a "Buddy the Cake Boss" type of place. Mediocre but let's line 'me up and get 'em out LOL. And yes, I've had a Buddy's cake and it was nothing to write home about). Try Modern Pastry's cannoli's and Maria's sfogliatelle...Maria's sfogliatelle is swoon-worthy. And Modern Pastry fills their cannoli to order, which is crucial. If it's pizza you crave, make the trip to Ernesto's. For a very reasonable price you get 2 slices (which is half a pie) and a drink. It's my hubby's favorite haunt and their pizza is delicioso! Faneuil Hall (the meeting hall, not the marketplace) has National Park Service rangers presenting historical talks every day and they know their history! You can usually walk in and wait for the next session to begin (every half-hour or 45 minutes). And it's free ;o) A visit to the Isabella Gardner Museum is worth the trip. It's a beautiful, intimate museum with an interesting history. The Museum of Fine Arts is wonderful and the two museums are a stone's throw away from each other. Check their web site to see what showings they currently have on their calendar. Take a trek to Boylston Street. While you're in that "neck of the woods", go to the Boston Commons. The Boston Commons is also the start of the Freedom Trail. I agree about the trolley tour. It's a nice way to get an overview of the city and the guides will interject some fascinating stories and have interesting information about the parts of the city your tour takes you. The "T", which is Boston's subway, is very easy to maneuver and cheap. Just pay attention because sometimes the train doesn't stop at a "scheduled" stop, instead going past where you planned on stopping. You might have to get off before/after a planned stop, so just pay close attention. Close to Faneuil Hall are some great local bars. Some of them have terrific food, too. The Black Rose is an authentic Irish pub and the food is down-home Irish fare. They also have live music (Irish, of course) on certain nights. Enjoy your visit...I'll bet you'll fall in love with this wonderful city.

dedtired, I checked out Dukestown and found that is part of the old iron working town of Tredegar in Monmouthshire, probably so called after the then local land owner the Dukes of Beaufort. Today the place does not have much going for it after all the closures of the mines and heavy industry. A run-down area of high unemployment with all the problems that brings. However the countryside to the North, known as the Brecon Beacons, is very beautiful in a rugged sort of way, with farms in the lowlands, lots of streams and small rivers, tiny villages and lonely farm houses. You can read about the general area in the fiction of Alexander Cordell; the best known is The Rape of the Fair Country set in the time of the Industrial Revolution. In this area of South Wales there are a series of 'valleys' running generally from N to S. The roads follow the same pattern as do the narrow rows of houses. The people seem to have little contact with their fellows in the next valleys to the E or W. It used to be a place of gaunt-looking chapels for a Sunday, Male Voice Choirs and brass bands. And the women rule the roost! The Tredegar/Dukestown valley is the 'Sirhowy' named after the river which runs through it. Here is a link that might be useful: info on Cordell and the area.