RandomChurn

RandomChurn t1_j7apz5b wrote

Reply to Sunday birthday dinner by jensinoutaspace

Odinis in East Providence -- from the outside it looks unprepossessing but the food is spectacular (I always read the whole menu then get the same entree, the one with clams 😆) .. it's Portuguese

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RandomChurn t1_j7apfgh wrote

Reply to comment by olliefollier in Best coffee shops to sit in for a while to get some work done? by olliefollier

>coffee exchange is back open inside

It's reopened with a whole new space on the second floor! So, between people who got out of the habit of going there during the pandemic, and those who don't know about the new space upstairs, it's likely to offer more available space with less pressure to move on than it has in decades. And it has teas and food.

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RandomChurn t1_j765r2y wrote

Reply to Is Providence a good fit for me? by iLoveBear3000

Coming late to the conversation and whoa, guess it depends on neighborhood (because of course it does!) but I gave up driving decades ago and walk everywhere.

I don't even take buses because I just walk. My doctors and my dentist, walkable. Three grocery stores (counting the new Trader Joes), walkable. India Point Park, walkable. As is downtown, RISD museum, Avon theater, Trinity, Performing Arts Center (Broadway shows), Waterfire, the mall, bus and train stations, etc.

I live in the Fox Point neighborhood on the East Side. Dozens of small eateries, cafes, bars, shops -- all I need 🤷‍♀️

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RandomChurn t1_j764mfy wrote

Reply to No gracias... by Rogue-Island-Pirate

Just recovering from walking my dog at 5AM when it was -9 with wind chill -32 ... at first it didn't seem that bad, so I let him pull me into going a second block.

So far so good ~~ until we headed back facing north and it was so bad it triggered my asthma and I tore off the scarf swaddling my face, choosing frostbite over not being able to breathe.

Yup: sucked. But made it back without frostbite and dog was fine; couldn't understand what my problem was 😆

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RandomChurn t1_j6mk767 wrote

Reply to things to do here by Raerae126

Now (February) is the perfect time to go to the Botanical Gardens in Roger Wms Park. Cross the threshold and you're in Tahiti. And in February the citrus trees are in bloom 🤤 -- I've spent a small fortune seeking that fragrance in a bottle: it's divine

Then go over to the Natural History Museum. Two years ago we did a behind-the-scenes tour of the stored collection. Got to go through drawers and actually pick up and hold dinosaur bones and large chunks of rare minerals and loads of other fascinating stuff. Ask while you're there when they will be doing another.

Then visit the Planetarium next door. Then do the Zoo; I love the Zoo in winter. You can get breaks to warm up by going into the pavilions with special collections.

Then take the south park exit and go eat at Apsaras.

Another nice day, park on East Street and walk across the pedestrian bridge into India Point Park. First, walk right to the Community Boat House and read the historical plaque there, then head east and read all the rest all the way to the opposite end where the last (and my personal favorite) is, overlooking Brown's boat house. Then stroll over to Narragansett Brewery. Or go back to your car and if it's any day Wed-Sun, go to Ives St and pick out one of the little eateries there.

Take a slow drive around Swan Point Cemetery. Stop at the building just inside the entrance and ask nicely for a brochure. It's like 30 pages with a comprehensive description of the monuments, what the symbolism means (ex: broken pillar = life cut short) and bits about the most famous people buried there.

All the trees are labeled. It's an arboretum, and one of only five park/garden cemeteries in the US.

There are three roads that end at the river. You can walk along riverfront paths. We saw an otter there once.

Neutaconkanut Hill, Plainfield St, Silver Lake, Providence

Park at the base and climb up the hill by any one of several marked trails. Great view from the top.

There are some highly-recommended Mexican / Central American hole-in-the-wall restaurants there; at least one is right on Plainfield

There are places that you can see seals right from shore this time of year but I haven't gone yet. Down around East Greenwich?

And find a copy of "Walks and Rambles in Rhode Island". It's got them all mapped out with trails, est. time they take, degree of difficulty, where to park, descriptions of what each offers.

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RandomChurn t1_j683n90 wrote

Reply to comment by waninggib in Do you like living in Providence? by movingtori

Another transplant who grew up in MA 👋 .. I love RI and Providence!

I think the more someone has lived in other parts of the US and in other countries, the better they appreciate what RI offers, and in such a compact area.

As for driving, I gave up my car and driving entirely, years back. I'm in Fox Point and can walk everywhere I need to go: markets, doctors, dentists, bank, my old workplace (been wfh for over a decade), parks, rivers, the bay.

I find it really pretty darn idyllic 🤷‍♀️

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RandomChurn t1_j682f2l wrote

Reply to Schools, neighborhoods by Sure_Guest_4535

Good luck OP with making good your escape from TX 🤞

Not sure you can grasp how a native RIer views what constitutes a reasonable commute vs what a native Texan would.

To a RIer, commuting to Brown from Barrington would be onerous; to a Texan it would be a heartbeat away. Lots of Brown staff live in Barrington, which has among the top public schools in the state, and is lovely but boring -- its nickname is Borington. That said, it's pretty idyllic for families. As is its neighbor Bristol. And both are on the ocean.

During my time at Brown, one Provost chose the opposite direction, west to Foster. That's woodsy, sparsely populated, "away from it all" -- but during the occasional bad winter, a difficult commute because they get the most snow in the state out that way.

Another provost lived in the College Hill neighborhood on the East Side, 5 min walk to the main green. Also close to the city's three good private schools for kids, Wheeler, Moses Brown and Lincoln.

Just depends on what you prefer: living in the woods, a seaside bedroom community, or in the city.

Good luck with getting the job 🍀

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RandomChurn t1_j680cyw wrote

Reply to comment by kbd77 in Schools, neighborhoods by Sure_Guest_4535

>make a lot more in the private sector

Worked at Brown for 17 years, having come from the private sector. This was too true: wages and annual raises were crazy low at Brown by comparison. And while people think Brown offers great benefits, this stopped being true by the 90s!

That said, likely OP is an upper-level administrator. So, especially if they are comparing a state university in TX to an Ivy, salary should be adequate to live on the East Side or Barrington.

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RandomChurn t1_j634ypx wrote

Reply to A 10-year-old doubted Santa’s visit — so she sent DNA evidence to police by Beezlegrunk

Can't believe that these days an American kid can reach 10 still believing in Santa!

Story time: the Christmas when I was about to turn 9, my mother gave me a life-size (my then-size) painted wooden doll house in the shape of a French chateau that she had made.

Then she explained that Santa was actually a spirit who worked through people to give gifts.

(This dovetailed nicely with her teachings about how God works.)

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