HBS Admitted Students Welcome

Well our time at the admitted students welcome was certainly just that...... welcoming. The students we met, classes we saw, and professors we talked to affirmed everything we had hoped to find at HBS. Some of the admitted students we met were still deciding if they were going to attend, but for the most part we met several of Hudson's future classmates. The school did a wonderful job of making all of the HBS partners (such as me) feel extremely welcomed and included. You honestly couldn't tell who was a student and who was a partner. As a partner I will have complete access to all of the facilities, clubs, and services that the school has to offer, pretty sweet!



Getting prepped for Admitted Students Welcome..... doesn't he look cute!


Quiche Lorraine, yes please


Hydrating, everything is smaller here ....... including the cups


Paper man in the coffee shop where we had lunch


View of the Charles River from Cambridge. Across the river is HBS and this is the foot bridge.

We found an apartment!!

After meeting with multiple brokers and touring various apartments, we finally stumbled on our new home, and we love it. Our main requirements in our apartment was that it would:

1. Be in walking distance of Harvard Business School
2. Pet friendly

We had many other amenities in mind but knew that these two requirements would greatly restrict our search. It is nearly impossible to find a pet friendly apartment in Cambridge. What we found met all of our expectations and more! It will be about a 15 minute walk to HBS and the landlord is a dog lover, so we lucked out :) The unit includes a parking spot, a storage unit, heat (which with older buildings and windows can really rack up), and snow removal. The pictures included the current tenants belongings but you can still get a pretty good feel for the place. It's located across from a park and library which you can see in one of the photos. There is not much grass between buildings so this space will be perfect for the pups. The pictures don't do the place justice, but it's dripping in charm, charm, charm. We will be in the middle of the three major squares or villages within Cambridge, and you can see a photo of Inman Square.

Quick Update

Well the past 48 hours have been filled with signing leases, meeting new friends, eating good food, exploring our new home, walking way too much, and learning what Hudson’s next two years of school will look like. Needless to say, we are PUMPED and exhausted!! We will be revisiting the apartment that we are going to lease tomorrow so be looking for an apartment post and some pictures coming soon :)

Visiting Boston: Day 1 Part 1

These boots were made for walking!

It's only noon and we have logged four miles of walking on our apartment tour. Not much to tell yet so I will give you a few pictures that pretty much capture our morning :)


Enjoying a continental breakfast

Waiting on the realtor......

We navigated on Hudson's Xoom, no shame

Walking down a typical residential street in Cambridge.

"Backpacking" from Cambridge to Boston over the Charles River

Walgreens, Wendys, and Jesus

Last night as I was scurrying around town to finish up Hudson’s Easter basket (and to procrastinate studying for my pharmacology final) I made a special trip into Walgreens. After buying a few fun basket fillers I scoured the shelves for Hudson’s favorite candy, holiday themed Reese’s. It turns out that they happen to be everyone else’s favorite candy as well since there were none to be found. I quickly made up my mind that I would head to the nearest grocery store and try my luck there. As I walked to my car I saw a man headed towards me. With my Easter basket plans still pending, and my notes waiting to be studied, I quickly headed to my car, knowing what this stranger wanted.

In a drunken stupor he asked if I could spare him a few dollars. With a cigarette in one hand and an oversized beer in the other, he quickly realized what I thought he wanted the money for. As if he could read my mind he quickly added, “I just drink for my nerves, I promise I will spend it on food.” After an awkward moment of contemplation, I responded, “I don’t have any cash on me but I can go buy you a meal. What would you like?”
He answered as if he had been thinking about it all day, “a Wendy’s burger, cheese only, and mayonnaise….. oh and french fries too…. and lots of mayonnaise.” I laughed at his specific request and told him I would be back in ten minutes.


As I drove out of the Walgreen’s parking lot I actually thought about just not going back. I would most likely never see this man again, and maybe he wouldn’t remember what he had asked for, but as this crossed my mind I was confronted with the thought of who this man really was.

At first sight I saw what the world sees, a man struggling with addiction, probably some sort of mental illness, and acting as a drain on society. He was dirty, homeless, drunken, and confused.

But what God sees is a son, not only a son but His Son, a man made in His own image, designed for His glory and His own purpose. Jesus might just be making a dwelling place in this man’s body and I wanted to meet him.

So $2.67 and a drive thru window later I was back in the Walgreens parking lot with a Wendy’s cheeseburger, french fries, and a lot of mayonnaise. He gave me a hug through my car window and told me that he would wash my car whenever I wanted. I wasn’t really sure how he meant us to arrange this meeting but before I could tell him “Happy Easter” he disappeared around the corner of Walgreens and down a dark alley with his Wendy’s bag in tow.

I don't know this man but I love the one who made him. I hope that I get to meet him again, and maybe next time I can tell him a little more about his Father while enjoying a Wendy's frostie.

Visiting

Looks like it's time for a visit! In spring of 2009, Hudson, Tots, Ruthie, and I traveled up to Boston for Hudson to interview for graduate school. In our short 72 hour trip, we walked the Freedom Trail twice, bought long underwear, stayed in a jungle themed hotel, caught pneumonia (Ruth), and wondered about living in this far far away land.


(I told you it was jungle themed)



Well after lots of waiting, a few pictures and a cookie cake later, it looked like we were Boston bound!



We haven't been back since then, and believe me, trying to find a place to live when you aren't actually there is quite the challenge. Let's just say google maps and I have become best of friends. We will be making our way to Beantown in a couple days to hopefully find an apartment and attend a new students event. Wish us luck!

Drum Roll Please........

Hi there! Welcome to my cozy corner on the interweb. Grab your coffee and a blanket and snuggle up for some good conversation. Here you will read about our transition to Boston, life thereafter, and everything in between. Besides just giving the facts and info on our days, I want to share our thoughts and prayers in between life happenings. I have been pondering what I wanted the purpose of this blog to be, what kind of commitment I wanted to make of it, and what fruit might come of it. My hope is that God would use my thoughts and words in this season of life to bless you in yours. Of all the blogs I read, the ones that I find myself going back to time and time again are those with real people, with honest hearts and open stories.
So here goes nothing……Welcome to Beantown Chronicles, I am glad you stopped by!