I'm Back!...and I have a question

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

Geez...it's been about 5 years since I've been here, way too long. Some of you may remember my ordeal with my extremely premature son Izzy (born weighing 1.5 lbs). Life has been a bit crazy but I realized this morning how long its been since I've come to Prog Ears. In this span, my wife and I had another addition to our family, Izzy's little brother Tiernan (now age four). Just want to say its great to be back. I look forward to catching up with people and I have a lot of forum reading in my future.

I also have a question for anyone in the Massachusetts area...Our family is moving to Massachusetts in about 2-3 weeks. We needed a change and we're pretty excited about the move...I would love to know from someone where the best places of interests(prog and non-prog) are in Massachusetts. I doing plenty of research myself but I would love to get some great ideas of shows to catch, festivals, anything really.


Thanks,
Ran

[NogbadTheBad]

Boston and Cambridge have excellent music scenes, plenty of great sports teams with Celtics, Patriots, Bruins & Red Sox, loads of good places to eat and drink, good beaches and plenty of countryside, beyond that I'd need to know your interests

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

Thanks for the reply...I enjoy live music, festivals, historical sights,....Aquariums and places of aquatic life are definitely an interest, my 4 year old son is obsessed with deep sea creatures and even knows the scientific names of certain jellyfish, I want to continue to cultivate this interest. That's all I have right now although I'll post when other things come to mind


Thanks,
Ran

[NogbadTheBad]

There's loads of historic sites around the area, there's Whale watching off the coast, there is an aquarium in Boston but haven't been so I can't speak to it's quality.

[progeezer]

Welcome back, Ran.

Yeah, I'm still breathing:).

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

Thanks...and awesome news :)...I saw your name as I was glancing over some of the forums...I'm noticing quite a few names...

[Duncan Glenday]

Ran, welcome back!

I well remember the difficulties you had with Izzy. What is the status of your family now..?



I hope you stay a while...

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

Ran, welcome back!

I well remember the difficulties you had with Izzy. What is the status of your family now..?



I hope you stay a while...

Thank you Duncan, it's great to be back...

Izzy is doing fine, he was diagnosed with autism about two years ago, however not a strict diagnosis, we know he is on the spectrum but we just don't know where exactly. His extreme prematurity is the main factor preventing a solid diagnosis, we still want to give him time to catch up. He is six years old now and we have worked hard with his communication skills and he is talking. He receives occupational and speech therapy twice a week. We unfortunately had to pull him from the public school here in Richmond about a month ago due to the lack of communication and a general backsliding of things we have been working so hard to correct. My wife has a friend in Massachusetts who is reserving an apartment for us and after our research we realize this will probably be a great move. We should have access to the services we need to help Izzy. He is a smart boy and his health is great, we want to move forward.

He has a younger brother Tiernan who is four years old and was born premature as well although he was two months premature at 3 lbs. He had a much faster recovery and was out of the hospital after a month. He is the opposite of his brother, He's a real wild child. Very smart and very obsessed with sea creatures...jellyfish, angler fish, squids, sharks, etc...This child has the word "species" in his regular vocabulary...no kidding...

My wife and I are doing fine, we are excited to move to MA and leave some painful memories behind.


Ran

[Sean]

Ran! Really nice to see you back! Good to hear you and your family are doing well! This is PE v3.0. Hope you like it.

[spellbound]

Welcome back, Ran! I have no information about Massachusetts, having never been there, but I do remember you. Just wanted to say 'Hi' and that I'm glad you and your family are doing well. Best wishes for your move. Be sure to find a home on high ground. Here are pictures of what Boston will look like after sea level rises 12 feet:

http://assets.climatecentral.org/images/uploads/news/5_14_14_Lamm_Back-Bay-12-Feet.jpg

http://assets.climatecentral.org/images/uploads/news/5_14_14_Lamm_Boston-Harbor-12-feet.jpg

And Cambridge:

http://assets.climatecentral.org/images/uploads/news/5_14_14_Lamm_Harvard-12-Feet.jpg

[rapidfirerob]

I went to summer camp in the Berkshires many, many moons ago. It is beautiful there, plus Tanglewood for music and Jacob's Pillow for dance.
I've been to Northampton and that is quite a hip town, though I never spent a lot of time there. Enjoy your new life there!

[Adrian]

A great resource for local city info is http://www.city-data.com. Click on the forum button, pick the city, region, or state you're interested in, and you can ask questions of the people who live there. There's loads of demographic information, too. I love that site -- it was an invaluable resource for us when we were researching the Pacific Northwest.

[Lopez]

Hi Ran,

I'm in Medford, about 4 miles north of Boston. Prog's a once in a while thing in Boston, but you can find it if you want it. Last year Goblin played twice, the Strawbs (electric and acoustic) have been here several times, Van der Graaf's been twice in the past few years, etc. Here's a show taking place in two weeks at the Regent Theatre in Arlington (two towns north west or so of Boston), http://www.regenttheatre.com/details/newears_presents_a_day_of_prog_art_rock_showcase.

Also check out http://www.newears.org/. It tells about prog happenings all over New England.

[Jerjo]

Welcome back Ran, good to get an update on Izzy.

A while back I took one of those silly Buzzfeed quizes on what part of New England I should live in. It came up with the Berkshires.

[Trane]

Hey Ran,
welcome back...


Boston and Cambridge have excellent music scenes, plenty of great sports teams with Celtics, Patriots, Bruins & Red Sox, loads of good places to eat and drink, good beaches and plenty of countryside, beyond that I'd need to know your interests

I agree that Boston (and NE in general) is probably the better place to live in the US (though I've never "lived" in the 35 states I've been in or visited), but Spellbound's advice is a sound one... Always look for a higher ground to live...

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

Ran! Really nice to see you back! Good to hear you and your family are doing well! This is PE v3.0. Hope you like it.

Thanks Sean, I like the new site...I'm trying to catch up on some reading and it's great to see lots of familiar names...

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

Welcome back, Ran! I have no information about Massachusetts, having never been there, but I do remember you. Just wanted to say 'Hi' and that I'm glad you and your family are doing well. Best wishes for your move. Be sure to find a home on high ground. Here are pictures of what Boston will look like after sea level rises 12 feet:

http://assets.climatecentral.org/images/uploads/news/5_14_14_Lamm_Back-Bay-12-Feet.jpg

http://assets.climatecentral.org/images/uploads/news/5_14_14_Lamm_Boston-Harbor-12-feet.jpg

And Cambridge:

http://assets.climatecentral.org/images/uploads/news/5_14_14_Lamm_Harvard-12-Feet.jpg

Thanks Spellbound,

We're moving to mid Massachusetts, in the Worcester area. Boston is about 45 min. away from us I believe...I believe most areas in Worcester County are about 363 ft above sea level on average

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

I went to summer camp in the Berkshires many, many moons ago. It is beautiful there, plus Tanglewood for music and Jacob's Pillow for dance.
I've been to Northampton and that is quite a hip town, though I never spent a lot of time there. Enjoy your new life there!


Thanks Rapid,

We're pretty excited about a fresh start in a new state

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

A great resource for local city info is http://www.city-data.com. Click on the forum button, pick the city, region, or state you're interested in, and you can ask questions of the people who live there. There's loads of demographic information, too. I love that site -- it was an invaluable resource for us when we were researching the Pacific Northwest.

Thanks Adrian,

I am familiar with city-data.com although oddly enough I haven't gone to the site in awhile...oversight I guess...I will definitely check it out now, thank you.

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

Hi Ran,

I'm in Medford, about 4 miles north of Boston. Prog's a once in a while thing in Boston, but you can find it if you want it. Last year Goblin played twice, the Strawbs (electric and acoustic) have been here several times, Van der Graaf's been twice in the past few years, etc. Here's a show taking place in two weeks at the Regent Theatre in Arlington (two towns north west or so of Boston), http://www.regenttheatre.com/details/newears_presents_a_day_of_prog_art_rock_showcase.

Also check out http://www.newears.org/. It tells about prog happenings all over New England.


Hey Lopez,

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll definitely check out newears.org and the Regent.

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

Welcome back Ran, good to get an update on Izzy.

A while back I took one of those silly Buzzfeed quizes on what part of New England I should live in. It came up with the Berkshires.

Thanks Jerjo,

Once we move and get settled in we look forward to checking out different places in Massachusetts and New England, in general.

[Death Has Blue Eyes]

Hey Ran,
welcome back...



I agree that Boston (and NE in general) is probably the better place to live in the US (though I've never "lived" in the 35 states I've been in or visited), but Spellbound's advice is a sound one... Always look for a higher ground to live...

Thanks Trane,

the NE area ranked high on our list due to services available for our son and educational opportunities and safety. So when my wife found out that her friend had an apartment reserved for us, we accepted without reservation. The winters will definitely be more intense for us but that's ok.

[wideopenears]

Welcome back, and yes, I recall your story. Glad to hear things are moving in a good direction!

[Plasmatopia]

I don't think I am at all familiar with you or your story, but welcome to New England. I have some friends who moved to Worcester and they seem to like it there. I lived there for a few months in the early '90s. Plenty of high ground. :) This is totally random, but they have a couple of decent Vietnamese restaurants there that I've eaten at as well.

[JKL2000]

Hi, Ran! I remember you though I don't think I knew Ran was your name. Glad to see you here again.

Jed

[rickawakeman]

We're West of Worcester (Northampton) where life is bucolic and sane. Northampton has multiple music venues, multiple record stores and a rich cultural life. You'll be about 45 minutes east of us here in the beautiful Pioneer Valley. Come visit!

[Plasmatopia]

I just saw (today, somewhere on the 'net) that they are opening a Great Wolf Lodge in Fitchburg (I think). It's an indoor water park. It might help make the winters more bearable.

[Hunnibee]

I remember you, Ran! Glad to hear that things are going well for your family, other than Izzy's autism. MA has great healthcare, so I'm sure he and the rest of your family will get excellent help with his diagnosis. I've never been to Boston, but my friend Robin Stratton is a popular writer/poet in that area. I also know there is a huge contingent of Yes fans in MA, so if you are a Yes fan, you will be in good company. Good luck with your move and enjoy all that history!

[Rune Blackwings]

Geez...it's been about 5 years since I've been here, way too long. Some of you may remember my ordeal with my extremely premature son Izzy (born weighing 1.5 lbs). Life has been a bit crazy but I realized this morning how long its been since I've come to Prog Ears. In this span, my wife and I had another addition to our family, Izzy's little brother Tiernan (now age four). Just want to say its great to be back. I look forward to catching up with people and I have a lot of forum reading in my future.

I also have a question for anyone in the Massachusetts area...Our family is moving to Massachusetts in about 2-3 weeks. We needed a change and we're pretty excited about the move...I would love to know from someone where the best places of interests(prog and non-prog) are in Massachusetts. I doing plenty of research myself but I would love to get some great ideas of shows to catch, festivals, anything really.


Thanks,
Ran


Late congrats on the new son!