Category Archives: Day in the Life

David Papazian, co-owner of DZian Gallery, sits for a photo in his factory-turned-art-gallery. With a wonderful collection of international and local art in a wide variety of media, this gallery, which opened in May, marks another example of the gradual revitalization of the Canal District neighborhood. And be sure to check out the special events, like Jazz nights and wine tasting.

Since we’re almost in the final month of A Day in the Life, I wanted to give you a chance to tell me what I have missed. So please fill in the blank: “No overview of Worcester County would be complete without ________________.”

Lindsay Brisette stars in the West Boyston High School production of The Disappearance of Daniel Hand.

The stately drive toward Notre Dame Academy, the the only all-girls independent college preparatory school in Central Massachusetts.

Our Christmas Tree went up today, thanks to the great selection at The Farmer’s Daughter nursery in Auburn. A large portion of our garden has been purchased over the years here. And just for the record, the friendly and helpful Christmas tree assistant shown in this photo is NOT the farmer’s daughter.

My aunt had four marionettes hanging in a closet in her basement. The two that I remember are a witch and a mariachi. Since I don’t remember the other two, they musn’t have been as terrifying. I don’t know what kind of sick electrician wired her house, but you had to walk through the entire basement to to turn the basement lights on. That meant walking past the marionettes in the dark. Still, I’m strangely drawn to them and all sorts of other wonderful toys at the Classic Toy Shop on Park Ave. I had trouble picking my favorite photo, so here are some bonus shots.

I first heard of Worcester’s very own waterfall earlier this year (Thanks, Beth!), and then again from the Greater Worcester Land Trust, but I wasn’t prepared for the real thing when I went to finally check it out yesterday, a day after Thursday’s heavy rains. I had no idea how enormous and beautiful Cascading Waters was going to be. The main section falls about 100 feet (Thanks, Google Earth!). I got there after the sun had just set, so I was only able to take a few photos before it became too dangerous to walk up and down the rocky slope covered with wet leaves. How many people even know how to find this place?

Soapmakers from the Sweet Wood Soap Company sell their wares during the Worcester Center for Crafts’ annual Festival of Crafts (through this Sunday). WCC offers classes in ceramics, glass, metals, photography, fiber arts, drawing, woodworking, and refinishing. They also have a gallery and store which is worth checking out throughout the rest of the year as well.

From a Massachusetts government auditor’s report:

The Irving A. Glavin Regional Center is operated by the Department of Mental Retardation. . . The Center provides support, housing options, training, and services to mentally retarded persons of all ages throughout central Massachusetts. The objectives of the Center include promoting optimum development of the mentally retarded, preventing costly long-term institutionalization of these individuals, and providing assistance to agencies and professional assigned to the care of these individuals.

For the 24th year in a row, Salem Covenant Church has hosted a group of Glavin Center residents for a Thanksgiving dinner on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving Day. Students from the church serve and eat dinner alongside the residents, and a short program of Christmas carols follows.

The pedestrian bridge over Rt. 146 will be a part of the Blackstone Gateway Visitor Center, reinvigorating Worcester’s Quinsigamond Village area and the Blackstone Canal itself. This is one of the projects I am most excited about because I lived in “the village” my first two years here.

For a fascinating tour of what happens to all the nasty items you drop into your toilet after you flush, visit the “Process” section of the Upper Blackstone Water Pollution Abatement District’s website. Now that’s good reading.

Implications of cigar-wielding psychoanalysts aside, even industrial pollution can look beautiful given the right lighting. This stack is part of the Wheelabrator Trash to Energy Company, which converts over 1500 tons of trash per day into usable energy.