It was lucky I set my alarm early, both to escape the dream and to catch the train. I left with plenty of time, but because I was unable to go to the station I'm most familiar with, I forgot where to pay, and had to wander around for a while. I also realized I looked at the weekday times instead of the weekend times. Oops. Nevermind, I still had ten minutes on the platform to finish my bagel.
When I arrived at North Station, I knew that Science Park was the stop I wanted, and that I could walk the distance for a single stop. I just wasn't sure which direction to go. Fortunately there was a man on the train holding a sign for the Museum of Science. With an arrow. So of course I followed him.
I am not making this up.
Once I could see the building, I took a little detour through the park on Nashua Street to take pictures and soak up some sun. Gotta stock up on vitamin D before the winter! ;) It was also fun to see the Duck Tour boats on the Charles. I saw the one my husband and I rode last year.
I arrived 15 minutes early and found the right entrance and the cafe on my first try (anyone who knows me well will never believe that I found the first station, museum, entrance, and cafe without incident but I am not making this up either. Props to the man with the sign and the arrow).
I wandered around the cafe a few times, counting myself lucky that it was too busy for the staff to be concerned why I was doing this and not getting food. After asking one woman sitting in a corner on a laptop (sounds like a blogger to me) if she was meeting Jodi and getting a no (glad I didn't ask "Are you a blogger because I can see you have a laptop), I sat near-ish the windows and Emailed her to say I was there and wearing purple.
And within 5 or 10 minutes, there she was!
She didn't ACT like a celebrity, even though I know I wasn't the only one who was a little bit in awe of her. I think it helps that she and I are practically neighbors (turns up she even lived in the same town I grew up for a few years). So she was just so easy to talk to about local stuff and teaching.
Soon Mrs. Mack arrived, and once again I was starstruck (although her daughter is the bigger Instagram star; half my feed is of her little cutie!) It was so surreal seeing a stranger posting on IG "walking my dog" one minute, and within the hour sitting down to lunch with her and putting a voice with the updates!
I prefer taking photos to being in them! |
It was great talking to Furnell too, because she had certain work experiences that I could relate to and learned from. Next came Susan, who is one of my readers, and got the ball rolling on getting everyone's blog address and a group photo. And finally, a grade level partnership from Connecticut arrived! Props to Sara and Emily for driving out (even this MA native took the train in).
It was so amazing to meet the bloggers I knew before, and those who I didn't know have some super cute blogs to follow. I'm linking up at the bottom of the post so you can go check them out too. It was a very casual meeting; we talked more about our home towns and teaching than about blogging. But only because Jodi forgot to bring along her slideshow (joking).
Once we left I was not ready to leave so I went back to the park to enjoy the sun, make some notes, then tinkered with my phone until I was able to make it find me some "local places of interest."
I would not have guessed that the closest spot was the Cambridgeside Galleria; I haven't been there in years! So I shopped until my feet hurt. I was so ready for some updates to my fall wardrobe (and so in need of some sneakers).
If you're a blogger reading and not sure if you want to go to a blogger meetup, DO IT. Part of me was nervous to send Jodi a confirmation that I'd attend, because I'm quiet in person. Blogging is a great outlet for me to share ideas, and I wondered if many other bloggers would be the same. But no, there was lively conversation throughout. I'll definitely pursue the next opportunity if the timing is right. Having a four day weekend (with our school letting out for Rosh Hashana) made this the perfect time to do it. So I hope to see you (and the bloggers I met today) there!
Here are the bloggers I met (by the way, the grade range is K-3):
Jodi @ http://clutterfreeclassroom.blogspot.com/
Mrs. Mack @ http://thirdgradecupcakes.blogspot.com/
Furnell @ http://owlalwayslove2ndgrade.blogspot.com/
Vera @ http://thetututeacher.blogspot.com/
Susan @ http://pinkwatermelons.blogspot.com/
Emily @ http://munchkinsinc.blogspot.com/
Sara @ http://www.framptonsfundamentals.com/
I hope you find someone new to follow!
I'm so behind on blog reading, but this was so fun to read. I had a great time that day and really enjoyed meeting everyone in person. Thanks for making the trip. :) Jodi
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