(Part 2) Best products from r/boston

January in Boston is generally a cold month with winter-weather, but it can be highly variable.

There are afternoons where the temperature is in the 50s.

There are also days where the early morning low temps are the single digits.

It can rain, it can snow, sleet, wintry mix. It can be sunny. Really you will experience all weather in January in Boston except for heat.

Tips:

• Look at the weather forecast when you leave in the morning, but be prepared for a little deviation from the forecast.
  
• Always carry some clothing in a backpack, so you can take off or put on any layers or cold weather accessories depending on the constantly changing temperature and weather.
  
• Be prepared for temps between 5°F and 50°F.
  
• When trying to decide how warmly to dress, pay attention to the Accuweather RealFeel. It's the measure that comes closest to telling you how cold it actually feels outside.
  
• Knowing the RealFeel and what you are wearing, take note of whether you are too cold or too hot and make an adjustment next time. Everybody is different and this will inform you as to what changes to make. For example, if the RealFeel is 30°F, and you go out in jeans and a sweatshirt and your hands are freezing, you'll know that you should wear gloves when the RealFeel is 30°F, and take charge of that decision making like an adult. Not an attack on you, but it's amazing the number of full grown adults who have lived in this climate their whole lives who are incapable of doing this. It's like, "dude, this isn't your first time going outside in 30 degrees. You have access to incredibly in depth weather data. Grow up and figure out what you need to wear to be comfortable and don't complain when you fail to do so. It's your own fault for being cold." Be better than those people.
  
  With all of that being said, here are some general pieces of advise and clothing (all items under $100) to look for, but you can figure out when you need them yourself:
  
  
• Overall: If it's 45°F and dry, you may be able to get away with cotton socks, sneakers, jeans, a sweatshirt, and a baseball cap. But, if it's much colder and wetter, you want to wear as much warm, insulated, waterproof, non-cotton, layers as possible. There's a saying in the backcountry skiing and hiking community: "cotton kills." If you are spending extended periods of time outside, the last thing you want is wet cotton, whether it be from sweat, rain, snow, whatever.
  
• Feet: If it's dry and not too cold, I often just wear regular sneakers with good traction. If it's wet or snowy out, there is a lot of snow on the ground, or it's very cold (RF ~<10°F), you'll want a good pair of warm, dry winter boots that you are comfortable walking around in. With boots, and sometimes with sneakers, I wear ski socks. As it gets colder, I advise going cotton_socks/sneakers -> ski_socks/sneakers -> ski_socks/boots. For ski socks, the best brands are Darn Tough and SmartWool. Don't get anything cotton. Look for merino wool. Don't wear cotton socks under your boots as that defeats the purpose.
  
• Legs: Again, if it's dry and not too cold, I often just wear cotton underwear and jeans. But if it's really cold, the best way to keep your legs warm is to layer a thermal base layer underneath your pants. Look for polyester or merino wool. If it's raining or snowing (or sleeting), you want to avoid having the cotton outer layer like jeans. You could throw some rain pants over your jeans or you could forgo the jeans and wear snow pants. It may not be very fashionable, but when the alternative is sitting in wet jeans all day, I'll usually choose the functional option.
  
• Torso: Layering is the most important thing for your core. I advise against spending a ton of money on the highest-end coat, and instead focus on base layers. You will be warmer and able to adjust to constantly changing temperatures and conditions. As the temp starts to drop, if your core is cold, the first thing you should look to avoid is wearing a cotton bottom layer. A lightweight or thermal weight base layer is much more important than a jacket. I find myself much more comfortable wearing a good thermal base layer, a flannel, and a regular sweatshirt in 20 degree temps than all cotton layers $500 jacket. If you wear a cotton T-shirt under a Canada Goose jacket (don't do this), you'll start sweating, and then your both hot and cold, with a wet shirt pressed against you. With all of that being said, you still want to get a warm outer layer of some kind. And, if it's raining or snowing, you definitely want to wear something water proof. For staying dry, I am a huge fan of the non-insulated variety. Personally, I wear a Patagonia torrentshell rain jacket. This allows you to be comfortable and dry wearing the same jacket in 55 degree rain and 30 degree sleet, and layer accordingly underneath. Sometimes, you'll experience that whole range of weather in one day, so that versatility becomes important. You will still need an outer-layer to keep warm in very cold conditions, but that is where people spend money very foolishly, in my opinion. Look for something you like the look of, that doesn't break the bank, and isn't too bulky. Again, layering and wearing good base layers is key.
  
• Hands: Look for good, affordable glove liners. They are much more affordable and practical than big, bulky ski gloves. You will probably want to use your hands while outside, so it's a very good idea to look for glove liners that work with your phone. That way your hands aren't freezing when checking when the next bus is coming. Also, at most temps we experience in the winter, glove liners will keep your hands warm enough to not need anything else. If your glove liners aren't enough to keep your hands warm on the coldest mornings, look for mittens rather than ski gloves. Mittens keep your hands warmer than gloves. If you do need and opt for mittens, still wear your glove liners underneath. That way, your hands will still be warm when you inevitably take the mittens off to use your phone.
  
• Head: If your ears are cold, get ear muffs or a wool cap. If your neck or face are cold, get a scarf, neck warmer, face mask, or a balaclava.
  
  I hope this helps.

1. Layers. Get some base layers. Personally, I like these, which are the cotton waffle-knit long underwear style (pants too for when it's really cold). You can get much more expensive stuff at REI, but it's just not worth it to me. You'll also want to think about layers as you get dressed. Don't put on a T shirt and a coat. Depending on the coat, you could be fine, but if you have no ability to regulate if it gets warmer or if you're on the T or something. Instead, wear an undershirt, a T shirt, a sweater, and a coat.
   
   
2. Footwear. Invest in some thick wool socks. They're not always cheap, but check amazon or Costco or somewhere. Also, make sure you have waterproof (and ideally insulated) boots. These don't need to be all out REI-style snow boots, but you can't wear sneakers out when it's snowy and slushy, especially if you have to walk places.
   
   
3. Gloves. I own gloves, but I pretty much only use them for driving and shoveling snow. Otherwise, I just keep my hands in my coat pockets, and that works fine for me. I have a pair of gloves that let you use your phone, but they're pointless. All those gloves are super thin anyway, so if you can use them, you could just take off your gloves. If you find your hands get cold really easily, keep in mind that all else being the same, mittens will keep your hands warmer than separate-fingered gloves.
   
   
4. Accessories. Hats are not optional. Beanies are the most popular. Whatever you get, make sure that you can pull it down and it will cover your ears and stay there. If you're worried about hair, you can get ear muffs, but they don't keep you nearly as warm. If you want an intense hat, you can get something like this, but that's a little much for me (plus, I found it was hard to hear when the ear flaps were down). Scarves are great, but I also like something like a turtle fur, which keeps your neck warm and you can pull it up to cover your face, but it's easier to deal with than a scarf (for me, at least).

I don't have a car, and I've lived here for 3 years. It's very livable, but you do make certain concessions based on where you want to live. I now live a 10 minute walk from the train, and a mile from the closest grocery store. I use peapod to have my groceries delivered and it's very convenient, but I do have to spend more money per "trip" than I would if I went to the store myself.

Winter is not bad. Get some longjohns for layering under your pants (something like this tends to be less bulky than hanes waffle patterned longjohns). You'll need a winter coat as well, and a scarf, and I really like the 180 ear warmers, as well as any glove by Kombi. I also have a pair of touchscreen gloves from Lord and Taylor (the only ones I could find where the entire glove works on the screen instead of just one finger).

On the really cold days I'll wear my longjohns under flannel-lined pants. Let me tell you, on those days only my eyes are cold because they're the only thing not covered.

Working near Prudential I'd say living on the green or orange lines would be most convenient, though personally after living on the green line my first year here that should be your last resort. This might mean living in Allston/Brighton/Brookline/Fenway (green line) or Jamaica Plain/East Somerville (on the Orange line). JP is more conveniently located around the orange line than East Somerville and rents tend to be cheaper in JP, plus it's a beautiful place. Red line isn't bad if you don't mind a transfer to the green or orange lines to get to the back bay, though the areas the red line serves tends to be super expensive (see: hipsters, students, and gentrification).

Things to do? I have been learning salsa since June and there are a bunch of clubs you can go salsa dancing in on the weekends. There's also a great site started by some redditors called TheBostonCalendar as well as /r/BostonSocialClub which is always full of things to do too. There are a lot of gaming meetups here too (board games as well as video games at a bar).

Good luck!

Hat with a brim is life-changing! You can actually see when snow is flying at your face.

Like this one: Carhartt Men's Knit Hat With Visor,Army Green,One Size https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005442A0K/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_T4o0Bb4EQK6BJ

As a skier, I use glove liners and mittens. Mittens keep your hands warmer than gloves. I have Gordini down mittens. It’s like putting your hands in pillows! Look for gloves/mittens that are waterproof but breathable. Sweaty hands lead to cold hands so breathable fabrics are super important.


For just out and about in Boston, you can get away with much less sturdy gloves then $90 Gordinis. LL Bean, Columbia, REI all have good fleece or leather ones that are good. Hell, even Target makes pretty decent fleece gloves. Synthetic will last longer but natural fibers feel nicer.

For just going to the car, I usually stock up on those little liner gloves from Target, they’re like $5. I always keep them in my pocket or in my car. For things like shoveling, I might wear some old ski gloves or mittens that are more waterproof.

Seirus Heatwave liners are the bomb. Though I really like the feel of silk liners.

There’s really no perfect glove—you just have to find something you like.

One thing you might want to think about are gloves with touch screen compatibility— I usually look for it now with liners or gloves.

And do not forget a nice scarf—really useful for face protection when winds are bad.

There are loads of hiking trails in the White region, and several primitive camp areas. I highly recommend one of these books to get started. They will tell you the hiking difficulty and have very good maps.

White Mountain Guide: AMC’s Comprehensive Guide to Hiking Trails in the White Mountain National Forest https://www.amazon.com/dp/1934028851/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_qd1-BbG5WQQB9

AMC's Best Day Hikes in the White Mountains: Four-season Guide to 60 of the Best Trails in the White Mountain National Forest https://www.amazon.com/dp/1628420286/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_ee1-BbKJAZCXB

Also this website has some great info and resources: https://www.visitwhitemountains.com/attractions/hiking-the-whites

My favorite short hike is Mt Willard. The summit has a beautifully stunning view of the notch and the highway below. It’s the best bang for the lowest amount of effort.

Please do not underestimate the weather in the Whites. Even in the summer the high peaks can get very cold and experience sudden weather changes. If you see signs at a trail head warning to be prepared, make sure you are. People require rescue every year.

That being said, enjoy yourself and good luck

Woah, easy killer.

Look I get what you're saying. Highways and wide lanes seem like sexy things. That's exactly what I used to think as well before I started learning about urban planning and transit design. There's a lot of intricacies about it but here's some good beginner stuff

First, check out r/urbanplanning. Super interesting sub about the city ecosystem and how to design a successful city.


Books:

"The Death and Life of Great American Cities" by Jane Jacobs. Basically the bible of city design.

"Walkable City" by Jeff Speck is also an awesome book. That guy is a great presenter as well

Videos:

How Highways Wrecked American Cities

Why Public Transportation Sucks in the US

Why Trains Suck in America

How Closing Roads Could Speed Up Traffic - The Braess Paradox

How to Fix Traffic Forever

Presentations:

Basically any presentation by Jeff Speck

What it boils down to, is you destroy the urban environment by introducing cars. They take up so much room that can be used for dense development but requiring parking sports and wide streets.

Great representation of what car do to cities

This is my last comment here. I can't argue with someone about urban development/planning if they haven't studied the topic themselves. It's a topsy-turvey thing to us living in the post automobile United States, but it makes sense after you do some research.

Enjoy!

Capacitative gloves, in my experience, are useless. I don't have enough dexterity to operate my phone with gloves on any way. Just get less addicted to your phone. Its not like it is so cold your hand will freeze if you really have to take your glove off to use the thing.

I'm from a far colder place, and so I consider Boston's winter pretty mild. I just wear a wool over coat with my usual garb underneath, something like this (I have never tried that exact coat, so I can't give you a review, but that style).

If you want something warmer, down is about as warm as it gets. You can get last year's models (why do coats have model years? I don't know) at a signficant discount at reioutlet.com. Long underwear is also very helpful.

Regarding shoes, I recommend a good pair of hiking boots (something like this maybe). They will give you a good grip on icy surfaces, and are water proof (like, you can pour a bucket of water on them, and your feet will be dry). Good boots are expensive, but will last for many years and are repairable (you will have to get them resoled once in a while).


I don't know if you are interested in cycling around here in the winter, but if you are you will want good gloves, a balaclava, boots, and some snow pants.

I'd search for a Bartenders Kit - something like this - to get a good sense of what equipment you might want for the types of drinks you'll be making. I definitely wouldn't buy one of those kits because they're almost always crap, but just for reference.

Basics that I have in my bar are:

• mixing tins (I like the full-metal ones, others prefer the Boston Shakers w/ the glass)
  
• a stainless bar strainer
  
• a layering spoon/tool (yes, I have the turtle)
  
• a long cocktail spoon for stirring drinks
  
• some cocktail rimmers for rimming margaritas, lemon drops, etc.
  
• some jiggers for your higher-end stuff and pour-spouts for the basic stuff
  
• and a wine key + decanter + aerator if you're into wine (plus a vacuum pump for bottles you don't finish off right away).
  
  I just included the links for reference - you'll probably want to search a little for the highest-quality tools, because you really don't want flimsy stuff.
  
  For glassware, I like to just pick out unique stuff that I find in my travels, but I have all the basics - rocks glasses, highball glasses, long-stem martini glasses, margarita glasses, pint glasses, Guinness glasses, a couple of snifters, and a Chimay glass.
  
  For the booze it's kind of up to you, but just think about what liquor types a bar has in its speed-well for your base, and then just add higher-end, unique stuff from there. I always have a nice vodka, rum, tequila, gin, bourbon, irish whiskey, cognac, and brandy in the cabinet.
  
  Then I have the popular mixers/liquers - Grand Marnier (skip the Triple Sec and get the good stuff), Bailey's, Kahlua, Amaretto, Limoncello, Frangelico, Chambord, White/Dark Creme de Cacao, Blue Curacao, Sweet/Dry Vermouth, sour mix and simple syrup, soda + tonic, juices, Fireball, various Schnapps, etc.
  
  And then from there I just gradually collect bottles of high-end stuff that will get sipped slowly and dress the bar up a bit. Just picked up a bottle of Kraken that has one of the cooler labels I've ever seen (and tastes pretty damn good, too).
  
  Have fun!

Wow man. In reading this and the comments below it's clear that the people in this sub see car ownership as a problem to be incentivized away - which is to say, heavily taxed. We're talking economic incentives, such as "congestion pricing" (some form of toll, I'm assuming) and raising the fuel tax, but also behavioral incentives: part of the solution is to make it really annoying for you to drive in the city.

Am I crazy, or is this heavy-handed and elitist? I'm repressing the urge to use harsher language, but how on earth is the answer to city congestion "don't drive your car"? I find it unsettling that the answer to heavy city traffic is to price the lower and middle class out of driving in the city. That absolutely would be the end result of implementing the above policies.

But the biggest eye-opener to me is that raising the fuel tax is a bullet point here! How on earth is that being presented as a serious option? Everything you have ever bought IN YOUR LIFE was brought to the point of sale by truck. Rising fuel costs are a major cause of the increase in cost of living we've seen since 2008. This is why milk is $3.50 a gallon today (and that's a GOOD price) when it was $2.50 a gallon four years ago. Changes to driving habits would not be the only consequence of slapping more taxes on gas.

Finally, the increased costs you're talking about implementing would be on top of extant taxes, licensing fees, parking costs, parking tickets (which the city of Boston is hardly shy about handing out) tolls, and current fuel costs. There's already plenty of "nudging" going on when it comes to cars. The simple reality of the way our society is laid out is that you need a car to function as an adult, unless you live IN the city. I'm not some Ford F-150 driving mouthbreather, by the way - I'd love not to have to make a monthly car payment. But I live outside it, and I do. I'd also like to be able to come visit from time to time.

I don't mean to dismiss your argument, by the way. I often park at Alewife and take the T into the city if I'm visiting friends. I certainly never drive my car straight to Fenway or the Garden, I park outside and take the T. And traffic definitely sucks. But making public transportation a SUPERIOR alternative is different than using "incentives" to make driving prohibitively expensive: the T is great, but it's not great. It's faster to drive ANYWHERE than it is to take the T. (I went to BC, this is an argument I'm familiar with). At what point did the costs of improving public transportation (bus, rail, and bike) to the point of truly being a more attractive option than driving a car become so much lower than the costs of improving road infrastructure? Could you point me in the direction of some info on this?

TLDR: the "solutions" you're offering look to me suspiciously like class warfare. No offense. Any comment?

I have never been able to find them, despite looking frequently. I'm pretty sure I have tried Whole Foods, Market Basket, and Wegmans. I have also tried a number of Asian specialty markets and haven't found them there either. For what it's worth, I am not Thai or of Southeast Asian descent, so I wouldn't really be able to recognize these chilies solely by their appearance and definitely not if they were not labeled as spur chilies. To further complicate matters, I have seen the Thai name for them vary significantly. I believe they're referred to as "prik chee fa" chilis, which may help you in your search, but I'm not positive.

I do know that you do not want to use the typical bird/Thai chilies you can find fresh in the grocery store, though. Those are a lot smaller and a lot hotter than spur chilies.

The woman whose recipes I use for Thai food says that you can use guajillo peppers if you can't find spur chilies. She also has the following note on her curry paste recipe.

>Large dried chilies are mild, while the small ones are spicy, so you can control the curry paste’s spiciness by adding more or less of the small ones. If you can only find the small ones, make sure you remove all the seeds, and use about 7 for medium spiciness and up to 15 if you want to get some sweat going! In this video, I only had small ones, used about 13 chilies and yes, it was quite spicy! 

Here's the recipe, in case it's helpful! Maybe you could try a Hispanic market and ask them to help you find a medium sized mild chili?

I eventually gave up and bought them on Amazon. Here are the ones I bought. It seems like the farm that grows them sells them directly on Amazon, which is nice. That said, it did take a little over a month for them to arrive. It made a tasty chili jam, though!

I third this, but to be honest this might be a little daunting for some people....even if it is easy for us. If you want step by step instructions on how to do this using a USB thumb drive I can help.

Another thing you can try is buying one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Drive-Adapter-Converter-Optical-External/dp/B001OORMVQ/
You have to take the HD out of the computer, then plug one end of the cable in the HD (the HD will also need power, so plug in the power too) and the USB end in to a working PC. If you are lucky the HD might show up like an external HD with a drive letter. If it does, just download everything you need and you are done. Ive done this a bunch of times and it has always worked for me, but the issues I had may not be the same as your friend.

Good luck

That area will develop really quickly, I imagine. Especially as nearby Boston Landing takes off in the next few months (they're building 1100 housing units, plus restaurants and retail, plus fun activities like bowling, ice skating's already happening, plus office space, plus a hotel). It's all near the new 1A train station (which opens later this month, and YES, that is the same cost as the T. It'll take you to South Station in 10 minutes) and there's lot of frequent bus activity that takes you to Harvard Square in 10 minutes.

Continuum's also getting a grocery - Trader Joe's. That'll help.

All this stuff is like.. in between actual neighborhoods of Harvard, Lower Allston and Brighton. It'll fill up, I 100% assure you.

It's expensive but if noone rents/buys, they'll drop the prices until they do. I imagine a lot of Int'l Harvard Students will go there first.

Just as an FYI, any housing project approved by the city has to have a certain percentage of apartments be 'affordable housing units'. Mixed income areas are good for development because you diversify customer's competing for resources. It's nice to have options, like a Whole Foods and a Market Basket, ya know?

If you're interested in city planning, I'd highly recommend reading Suburban Nation by Jeff Speck. Or googling some of his youtube lectures. Very eye opening.

Or the videos by James Kunstler - like 'The Tragedy of the Suburbs'. REALLY interesting take.

I learned a lot from Power Squadron classes, but that was more about navigation and safety than maintenance. Very useful however. It will put you in touch with a bunch of great folks who will love to chat maintenance. Other than that, I got the Nigel Calder book (http://www.amazon.com/Boatowners-Mechanical-Electrical-Manual-Essential/dp/0071432388/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1373317120&sr=1-1) and chatted up everyone in the Marina.

Also check out the Wollaston Yacht Club in Quincy. It's got a bunch very cool down to earth folks who love boats, boating, and maybe beer.

I shoot portraits but arguably the three most important things for a good shot in general is:

1. Have a solid tripod, weigh it down if you have to. If you cant afford a good one or dont wanna carry around a big one, i recommend the Manfrotto Mini. The more stable your tripod the better your long exposures will be, which leads to:
   
   
2. Learn your exposure triangle if you dont know it already. drop your ISO to a manageable level and try to get as much light as possible out of the analog options first, so drop that shutter speed to 1s or 2s (which is why the tripod comes in handy) and open your aperture as wide as possible (the lower the number the better, i usually shoot at f2). Finally, if its still too dark slowly raise your ISO until the image resolves well, you dont want too grainy of a photo from in camera sensor processing.
   
   
3. Have a decent prime lens! Whether your goal is to shoot landscape or portraits a prime lens will always be cheaper in quality than an equivalent image quality zoom lens, this is because its easier to build a static lens with good glass than it is to build a lens that zooms in and out with good glass due to distortion. All of my photos are shot at 55mm and 85mm, but landscape peeps tend to use everything from 35mm to 14mm primes for their shots.
   
   Hope that helps!

This costs $7 with free 2-day shipping. I consider it a mandatory item to have when moving out.

https://www.amazon.com/3M-Patch-Plus-Primer-fl/dp/B00UY39TZ0/

Here is the book you are looking for: https://www.amazon.com/Death-Life-Great-American-Cities/dp/067974195X