GF and were in Salem in October a few years ago (work-related trip - October was a coincidence). We loved the town and had a blast at the House of Seven Gables, Peabody-Essex museum, and one of the cemeteries. The witch museum was a bust. We also enjoyed lunch and beer at BeerWorks.

Someone came up to Tom once and asked him "where is the museum?" Tom asked, "The Peabody Essex?" The kid looked at him like he was insane and said, "NO! The Witch Museum."

Honestly, I actually don't know where the Witch Museum is. I do know where the Pirate Museum is, though! Because a) pirates and b) next to the Beerworks.

I love the Peabody Essex though.

I don't know if there will ever be a chance that Jamaica will be able to feed its children without a fair degree of whoring itself out, and for that I am steely-eyed in the face of tourism. Flipside, though--we're a third world country, and that's not pretty, and if we could pretend convincingly to be pretty for you through and through, well, then, we just wouldn't be ugly at all, would we?

So be sensible, and think twice about the things you're complaining about. Some of the things you wanted--you needed to stay home to keep getting.

I was in the coffee shop in our Botanical Gardens this weekend, and there was a sign by the cash register that said, "We accept US currency, but we cannot give you US currency as change."

Honestly, I actually don't know where the Witch Museum is.

There are several (although I think technically there's only one Witch "Museum" - there's also the Witch Dungeon and the Witch House, that I know of). I think the museum Museum is the big cathedral looking one near the common & Hawthorne Hotel. Alas, I think that cool looking front is just a facade and the building itself is no where near as cool, but I'm not sure.

I love Salem Common, though I hate the cheesy carny stuff they set up in October. I was so psyched when I moved into my current apartment and found I out I have to walk through it to get to town.

i am neurotic.

Report your neuroses here.

When I eat salads, I must eat the lettuce first. Then I separate all the toppings into piles and eat them one at a time in order from least liked to most.

...

When I was little, I would apologize to my stuffed animals if I dropped them or something, so they wouldn’t kill me in my sleep. I also tried to evenly divide my attention among them so no one got lonely or jealous, and tried to kill me in my sleep.

When I was little, I would apologize to my stuffed animals if I dropped them or something, so they wouldn’t kill me in my sleep. I also tried to evenly divide my attention among them so no one got lonely or jealous, and tried to kill me in my sleep.

Totally me.

Totally me.

Well, it obviously worked, as you have yet to be murdered by stuffed animals....

When riding in a car on the highway, I feel compelled to imagine a ball bouncing over each telephone/electrical pole in succession. Uneven spacing is a serious problem, as the imagined ball is sort of sluggish. This will go on until I start grinding my teeth and eventually force myself to stop.

OMG I totally do this. Except for the tooth-grinding part because the sound of tooth-grinding makes me want to jump out of my skin. (D has recently started grinding his teeth. Which is apparently a thing that babies DO because having teeth is a new and interesting sensation, but HOLY MOTHER OF GOD I HATE IT SO MUCH.)

I think my view of tourists has been influenced by growing up in a city like LA, because really the tourists are going to the same places as the locals (Disneyland, etc). But I always think for all the tourism LA is really not an easy place to see in a brief visit.

Also I am so amused to find the pizza discussion still going on. We do like our food here, don't we? Anyhoo, glad to know Zachary's is still making the great pizza, I've never had it anywhere else. And I don't think I've ever had a proper Chicago style deep dish, only those fatty, thick crusted ones sold in most chains.

Speaking of pizza, I want to go to lunch at Osteria Mozza at some point. It sounds like amazing pizza. But I need to get on the stick and make reservations--I figure DH and I can make it a date.