I have been on fire this week re: the birthday list. I did a shot of fernet-branca on Tuesday. It tasted like Listerine with a bunch of herbs thrown in. There’s something about it, though. I might have to try it in a cocktail sometime. I went to Scullers Jazz Club on Wednesday. My friends and I saw Buster Williams, a jazz bassist, and his quartet. They were great. The atmosphere was cool, except for the couple who talked really loudly through half of the show. To our surprise, there were even a couple of overzealous jazz fans in the audience who made us laugh.
Tomorrow, I am taking a tour of the Massachusetts State House. I don’t know a thing about the state government, but it will still be interesting. I will definitely learn something! And I will be watching Doctor Zhivago over the weekend (#39 on AFI’s top 100 list). AND I am working my way through John Dos Passos’s U.S.A. Trilogy (#23 on Modern Library’s top 100 novels list).
Last but not least, I’ve chosen a destination for my birthday trip: Nantucket. If anyone has recommendations, let me know.
fancenance.com 
congrats on making such progress with the list! and yay for nantucket. i’ve never been, so i can’t wait to hear your thoughts on it.
thanks! are you still up for a jack’s abby road trip?
Loving your blog, Nancy!
What were the overzealous jazz fans doing? Scatting loudly? Playing air bass?
Thanks, Anya! Well, one woman stood up during a pause between songs and exclaimed, “I can’t help myself; I love the acoustic bass!!” And Buster replied, “I can’t help myself either.” Later, another woman jumped up and went on about how she felt like she was in church being preached to, or something like that. The outbursts were kind of unexpected in the laidback atmosphere!
Hilarious! Boston jazz fans can be pretty obsessive. I go to the Regattabar pretty often but haven’t been to Scullers.
I had no idea that jazz fans were so enthusiastic! I should check out Regattabar sometime…