Harvard Square changing

 Harvard Square holds a special place in my memory.

When I heard that Mr. Bartley's Burgers was for sale, there was a moment of sadness even if Mr. Bartley says he hopes the buyer will continue his tradition. When I worked in the Square in the 1970s, it was a great place for lunch. The last couple of times back in Boston, I wanted to take Rick, but like most visits, the time passed too quickly.

The Out of Town Kiosk has been there since 1928 and is now owned by the City of Cambridge. I loved browsing foreign newspapers and it was there in July 1990 where I found the edition of the International Herald Tribune with the help wanted ad that led to my job in Switzerland. What will happen to it, is still not sure.

Pan flute players often played between the kiosk and the Harvard Square T-entrance.

When I lived in Boston my two housemates and my daughter used to go to the Square almost every Friday night. It was family night. We would eat at one of the many restaurants, buy books for the week and listen to the street musicians paying them with quarters.

I swore I could have saved a fortune on day care had I merely left my daughter in the children's book's section of any of the bookstore or the kid's bookstore before I went to work. I could have given her a baloney and peanut butter sandwich (YUCK, I know, but for a four-year old it was considered gourmet) and pick her up after work and she would never have noticed I was gone. Of course, I didn't.

Each Christmas I checked the toy store window that had a 18-inch cloth pea pod with smiling velvet peas inside and a sign "Peas on Earth."

 

The Wursthaus is gone. I'm not a steak eater usually, but they had the best Black Forest Steak I've ever eaten and probable will ever eat. When I was working with Digital we took a visiting Arizona manager there and watched her eat the entire jar of mustard with a spoon.

The Blue Parrot is gone. My best friend Mardy and I would meet there. Our schedules were such that often we had to change the date. Rather than tempt fate, we would say, "Let's not meet on the 10th at 7 o'clock." It worked. We needed to change plans less often.

There were the coffee houses where I heard different folk singers: Chrisine Lavin, Buskin & Bateau, Bob Franke, Cheryl Wheeler (she had her new puppy on stage). Folk music was experiencing a come back and Emerson and Boston University radio stations had programs featuring them and I'd listen to and from work. Every now and then I will go to youtube to listen to some of my favorite songs.

Cardullo's is still there with its cheese. The last time I went in it no longer had its small chocolate cups that could be filled with Kahlua and floated on top of an espresso until they melted. I bought them for when I had dinner guests. It's nice to know not everything has changed.

When we stayed in Cambridge about four years ago, it was in Central Square. The BnB didn't have a garage so we parked at a hotel garage in Harvard Square. That's the same hotel where we meet up with our friends Bruce and Nicole on the too-rare times we get to see them. 

The Square may have changed over the years. It is more corporate stores than one-owner shops. The musicians are still there. And of course Harvard is there. When people mock me on my Boston accent and have me say, "I pahk my cah in Hahvahd Square" I add, "but I cahn't. It's grass and the police would come."