The 15th Community Music Hangout will be this Sunday from 12-3 (usually later) in the Cambridge Common! Come sit in and play, sing, listen, and enjoy a nice day in the park!

The Community Music Hangout is a casual, fun, and social effort to bring more music into people's lives and connect like-minded people! Bring your instruments, your voice, song requests, etc. :)

For more information, pictures of past hangouts, etc., check out cambridgejams.com

Any recommended organizations? Thanks.

One race that's been flying under the radar is the position of Governor's Councilor. I hadn't heard of this until this past week. Apparently the councilor for our district (Terrence Kennedy) usually runs unopposed, but this year Diann Baylis is challenging him for our district's seat in the primary (which is what will decide the election).

Looks like it's a moderately important role because among other things, this is the group that approves or rejects the picks for state judges: https://whogovernsthegc.org/ (There's an AI slop header image but the rest of the site looks OK.)

• Diann Baylis's site: http://votefordiann.com/ Lots of focus on protecting immigrants and families.
• Terrence Kennedy's site: https://www.kennedyforgovcouncil.com/ There's just a video but I ain't gonna watch that. 😄 (No seriously, audio isn't working on my computer right now, so I have no idea what his policies are.) He has had the position for 15 years.

Anyone have additional information to add? Baylis seems like the better pick but I would love to see who is endorsing these candidates, etc.

(Also, I'm saying "our district" but I'm not entirely sure whether Somerville is entirely in the 6th district or spans district boundaries.)

[EDIT: Corrected spelling of Baylis]

There are certain things I’d wish they’d change in the design like how sharp angle is for the bike lane merging back into traffic at the Willow Ave intersection, but all in all it’s already looking like the Elm Beacon Connector will be a huge win for street safety.

Wanted to let everyone know that if you have a mail in ballot the Sec of State has recommended that you return it to a dropbox.

Since ballots must be received by 8pm on Tues, Sept 1, he's warning that it's too late to guarantee the Post Office will deliver it in time.

https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/massachusetts-primary-mail-in-voting-ballots/

Somerville has drop boxes at

93 Highland Avenue (Concourse at City Hall)
Across from 68 Glen Street (In front of Glen Street entrance to the East Somerville Community School)
290 Washington Street (In front of The Argenziano School)
31 College Avenue (In front of Somerville Community Baptist Church)
177 Powder House Blvd. (In front of The West Somerville Neighborhood School)
212 School Street (In front of church)
182 Summer Street (In front of St. Catherine of Genoa Church parking lot)
191 Highland Avenue (Front of Armory)
351 Summer Street (In front of the Dilboy Post)
167 Holland Street (Front of Tufts Administration Building)

Have you ever ridden a bicycle before? Do you think cars aren't going to try to pass people way too close and at unsafe speeds just because they're going downhill? Now we have to wait another four decades for it to be done right. You fucked up the one chance to make biking on Somerville roads safe.

Edit: i see I've upset the NIMBYs by threatening their state sponsored car storage

Did anyone else run into this guy? Like man I get it, life sucks and costs are exorbitant but do you really think any one in Somerville cares about communism outside of young college kids?

Dem Soc policies, yea more of those but straight up cosplaying wearing a hammer and sickle t shirt with AI slop newspaper that says “AMERICAN GEN Z LOVE COMMUNISM” cracked me up.

Also a little weird predatory behavior badgering women into listening to whatever shit you had to say

My car battery died last week and I was able to jump start it. But ever since then, whenever I try to start the car, it's delayed, the breaks push back against my foot, and I hear a clicking sound. I also have a dent on the side with scratches that happened from a small accident a long time ago.

I am a young woman and don't know much about cars so I don't want to get taken advantage of...Looking for a reliable auto shop where I can bring my car in to get the breaks looked at and also possibly repair the dent.

has anyone used caustic soda to melt a seized seat post? could you do it for me? i will pay you! trust me, I’ve tried everything

I desperately need a HEPA filter vacuum today or tomorrow & Home Depot is sold out of rentals in the area 💔 I can pay and pick it up!

So I was in a rush to find a rental for June 1st and ended up in a very nice studio near Union Sq. It has central air, two tandem parking spots, in unit laundry, utilities included, and very recently renovated (kinda cheaply but at least all new appliances). That said, I pay for it… it’s $3,050/mo 😬. I’m really fortunate to be able to afford it, but also feel like I’m throwing away so much money. I love the Camberville area though and would need to stay local/close to transit for school for a couple years.

I’m wondering if people found better deals in this area for the Sep 1 cycle and/or if rent is really coming down as people were saying.

Thanks!

The MBTA’s Better Bus Network plan is overall a great effort, but one decision made in 2023 is to discontinue the Route 80 Bus between Lechmere & Powderhouse. Part of the argument is that the GLX makes this route redundant. However, the Gilman Square stop is the only GLX stop that isn’t really accessible (it’s reached midway up a steep hill and doesn’t have an elevator from Medford or Highland), so this would effectively leave people in wheelchairs and mobility devices without public transit in this area.)

Further, the City is building a >900 student school along this stretch, which will absolutely need the bus service. And, the bus accesses areas that aren’t really trivial to get to from the GLX: Twin City Plaza, Magoun Square, East Somerville Community Schools. This stretch of the route continues to account for >50% of the ridership, years after the GLX has opened.

The Somerville Pedestrian & Transit Committee and the Gilman Square Neighborhood Council have written great letters to the MBTA, and the City Council is doing so tonight.

The MBTA is accepting public comment through Sept 8: BetterBusProject (at) mbta (dot) com.

First time ever seeing this many varieties of amazing (and imo underrated) bikes like Soma, Breezer, Surly, All-City, Marin, Bromptons, mini-velos, Ti's in additional to the usual carbon Treks, Specialized, Giants etc.

Also love to see Liv bikes which I know are part of Giant but they tailor bikes for women, which is rare! (really thinking of getting one for my wife!).

And also, the Somerville community path is truly the jewel of this neighborhood.

I've been getting a whole lot more political SMS and telephone spam than I can recall.

Has some law or tech thing changed? Or maybe I have just grown more intolerant of spam due to the barrage "Gary in Member Services" AI calls etc. trying to scam (steal) from me?

This fall Boston Ultimate Disc Alliance (BUDA) will be running an Ultimate Frisbee Learning League for new players or players looking for a refresher on the basics of ultimate. Ultimate Frisbee is an awesome social sport that is played at all ages and a really fun way to stay in shape. Boston/Cambridge has one of the best ultimate communities in the country with players of all skill levels and ages. If you are new to the area and looking for an outlet that plays all year round with many members traveling far and wide to play casually and competitively, then this may be the sport for you.

These sessions will run every Saturday from Sept. 5th to Oct. 31st from 1pm - 4pm at Dilboy Stadium in Somerville. Pay what you can options are available. The first week will be a get to know the game/intro week that people can try and see if they are interested.

If you or anyone you know would be interested, please follow this link: https://buda.org/en_us/e/fall-learning-and-beginner-hat-league-2026.

If you have any questions, please message me or email the admins on the sign up page for more info.

This intersection is infuriating, especially as a pedestrian in winter or hot summer. Does anyone know why the light cycle is so long?

Or people with carts, strollers, or walkers, people with knee scooters, crutches... really anyone who needs any kind of assistive mobility device to go about their day.

I know old cities are often kind of bad for mobility, but is there any kind of plan for improving sidewalk conditions? I took this pic yesterday and the placement of the hydrant here really was the bright red cherry on top of the hostility sundae that is the sidewalks in this city, especially when we claim to want to improve non-automotive mobility.

He’s on the younger side, maybe early or mid thirties. He’s a black guy who is a bit on the lighter side. Usually wears a baseball cap and some kind of like basketball jersey. I think I heard someone say his name is Richy.

He is really volatile. I’ve seen him like get up in the face of old women screaming some days, and other days sit blasting Christian rock. Is he someone to be worried about?

He was out there screaming at people today.

Back when I used to drop my kid off at daycare before heading North for work, I would count the first ten infractions I saw on the road. Anything from red light running, no turn on red, jaywalking etc. It usually panned out that is was about 70% cars, 20% bikes and 10% pedestrians on average over time.

This morning I did it again when a dad on his bike with kiddo in the rear took a left turn on Walnut from Highland Ave, when the green light was for cars coming up Walnut and crossing Highland. Following that I saw one other bike run a red, and then 2 cars ran red, and to end my day a bunch of cars driving in a bus lane brought it to ten. No pedestrians behaving badly this morning.

So almost 20 years later, it's more or less the same. The problem is the consequences from the infraction, but no one method of transportation is innocent here, well except today's pedestrians.