Stuff Boston

None of us are immune from the temptation of forming New Year's resolutions, those lofty goals that seem made to be broken. Sure, we know we'll struggle to fulfill even a single one of them, but it sure gives us something to strive for in the name of self-improvement, right?

The looming new year got us thinking about our fair city and all the promises we'd love to see it make to us, its loyal and loving citizens. In the realms of local dining, fashion, nightlife, and culture, there are plenty points of progress we'd like to see develop over the next 12 months, so we compiled a list of resolutions we want Boston (and our fellow Bostonians) to make - and keep.

We, the people of Boston, in order to form a more perfect city, establish nightlife, insure fine dining, provide for the common enjoyment, promote general fashion forwardness, and secure the blessings of ongoing awesomeness for ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this list of resolutions for the Hub in 2010:

Let's get this out of the way, publicists: small plates aren't new. Craft cocktail programs aren't new. And while we're thrilled to hear that "sustainability" and "going green" are of paramount importance to the business you're hawking, we'd love if you could provide a little more detail on how deep that commitment runs. We can smell an insincere press release from a mile away, so it's in your best interest to avoid acting like you just invented the wheel for a quick bit of ink.

2. Start the party sooner; keep it going longer.

You know how there are certain resolutions you make every year, but they never work out? Trimming the belly fat, finding Mr. or Ms. Right, and finally scaling that "master a second language" mountain all seem to get carried over every January 1. Well, each year we hope that this will be the time when Boston's bars and clubs can finally hold hands with City Hall, sing Kumbaya, and extend their closing hours. So once more, we're going to cross our fingers and hope that there's enough goodwill this year to make that happen. But just in case it doesn't pan out, here's an idea that's fully in our control: we can get out there earlier. We're all about making a dramatic entrance on the fashionably late side of things, but there's no reason bars and clubs should look like ghost towns before 11:30 p.m. Boston nightlife is going to have a tough time thriving and growing when we only give ourselves two hours of party time, so until our prayers are answered, we'll just tack on some time on the front end instead.

3. Ride the T more (if they'll let us).

This one goes hand in hand with club closing times as a repeat resolution. Life has improved dramatically since the City mandated that cabs be required to install credit card machines (no more scrounging up every last dime for a ride), but we'd still love the option to pony up a cheap fare and hop home on the T after a late night out. Back in 2005, the MBTA killed its Night Owl service, a series of buses that retraced a handful of important subway routes, due to low use and high cost (and the MBTA's fiscal woes aren't exactly a well-kept secret). But we're not convinced there aren't ways to implement a system that works for everyone (we'd even consider higher fares for a late service), one that would keep drunks from driving home and us from competing with throngs of other barflies to hail a cab at 2 a.m. 

4. Put the "fine" back in "fine dining."

With all the chic options for dining and drinking around town, it's easy to become a little blasé. But while it's not necessary to don a top hat and monocle every time you go out, it's also rather gauche to be the dude in flip-flops when everyone else in the restaurant is sporting something spiffy. So let's all make a greater effort to leave the Red Sox paraphernalia at the backyard barbecues and the dirty sneakers at the gym. Guys, don't balk at throwing on a jacket now and then: if your date did you the honor of getting all dolled up, a little mutual respect should be on the menu. Mind your manners, which includes only airing dirty laundry within your own personal ear-zone (we can't tell you how much we didn't care to know about your last nightmarish bikini wax while we were digging in to our dessert). In other words, elevate the dining experience back up to its old art form now and then. We know being fabulous sometimes feels like old hat, but that doesn't mean we should wear ours.

5. Make Tuesday the new Thursday.

We stopped calling it "Thirsty Thursday" around the same time we gave up keg stands, but as a practice, starting the weekend a night early has continued to stick with us. The downside, though, is that by the time Sunday rolls around, three consecutive nights of partying require more than one lazy day to recover (guess we can't do it like them whippersnappers anymore!). So in 2010, we're dubbing Tuesday the new Thursday, and giving that oft-overlooked day of the week on the calendar a chance to shine. We'll be helping out our favorite hot spots by frequenting an "off" night, and in the process reap the fringe benefits of grabbing the seat we want, getting more attentive service, and better breaking up our humdrum workweek. Now we just need a clever name: "Booze-day Tuesday"? Keep drinking 'til it's funny.

6. Go digital on the parking front.

It's hard enough to find parking in this city - so it feels like salt in our wounds when, upon finally finding landing a spot on the street (and nearly losing our life parallel parking amid impatient traffic), we're forced to accept the inevitable parking ticket because we can't find quarters for the meter. For better or worse, it's an age of plastic, and we want more electronic parking kiosks in 2010, like those found on Newbury Street and around the perimeter of the Public Garden. We think having the option of inserting coins, cash, or credit cards isn't too much to ask in the 21st century.

7. Bust a move in decade three.

Haven't you heard? Thirty is the new twenty - so why do we feel like cougars preying on baby-faced frat kids when we hit the clubs? We're not ready for the nursing home yet, so those of us who have jumped over the big three-oh (and realized, once we landed on the other side, that it wasn't as scary as it seemed) must band together and demand new nightlife options. We're going to bend the ears of club-owners, promoters, bartenders, and the like, and remind them that thirty-somethings are people too, and we deserve to be able to go dancing without our ears being assaulted by garbage music that we'd find on our nieces' iPods (and without our rears being assaulted by some college student's groping mitts). We've heard of nightclubs in other cities that have certain nights reserved for those 25 and up; maybe some of ours should follow suit, or set the age minimum even higher? Bottom line: we want to ramp up some clubs that cater to those of us who still love to dance - just not on top of the bar.

8. Make mimosa hour the new happy hour.

Since we're already playing with the timelines of our drinking and dining habits, let's take it a step further and officially designate mimosa hour as the new happy hour. Yes, we already look forward to Sunday brunch as the best meal of the week, but in the year ahead, we want the city to relax those liquor laws, which technically prohibit restaurants from selling alcohol before noon on Sunday without a special permit (which only lets them serve an hour earlier). We know that the ban is a hangover (no pun intended) from our Puritanical roots, and we wouldn't sell our local history short for the world. But when something gets in the way of us enjoying a nice morning buzz, well, that's when we believe the march of progress must soldier one. We'll adjust quickly: it seems like a lifetime ago that liquor stores were forced to close on Sundays, and earlier this year Massachusetts even decriminalized possession of small amounts of marijuana (the pilgrims never saw that coming)! That we still put obstacles in the way of a Bloody Mary seems even dopier now.

9. Keep it local.

In our efforts to stay abreast of all that is new and notable, we often find ourselves wandering all over town to try the latest dining destination or scope the current "it" spot. But in 2010, we resolve to give some added attention to our own local communities by making a concerted effort to support businesses in our backyards. We'll give our mom-and-pop restaurants a chance to show their stuff, even if they're not the sort of places where you'll see the city's glitterati posing for shutterbugs; we'll keep shopping at boutiques instead of mass merchants and encourage our neighbors to do the same. In return, we'll expect to find the kind of warm service and familiarity that you don't often find in big cities, but that is still possible in one the size of Boston: it gives us a warm, fuzzy feeling when we can ask for "the usual" at the corner deli, when the neighborhood wine store knows our taste well enough to suggest the perfect bottle. And for home cooking, we'll plan to get a share in community-supported agriculture (CSA) and head to our local farmer's markets whenever possible.

10. Fight hunger.

It's still here, and that's unacceptable. Sometimes we feel guilty about how well we eat (especially in this line of work!), but guilt can be a great motivator. There is no shortage of opportunities to help, whether it's by volunteering at The Greater Boston Food Bank or any other deserving non-profit. But here's the thing we really want to remember in 2010: hunger happens all year round, so we're not going to restrict our efforts to only the heartwarming holiday season. Plenty of non-profits see volunteerism spike around the New Year, only to peter out again as the months roll on and commitments fall by the wayside. Whether by checkbook charity or good old-fashioned elbow grease (or in this case, elbow EVOO?), we vow to make fighting hunger an ongoing priority. And we'll be sure to bookmark sites like volunteerboston.org and bostoncares.org for ideas on how to help other worthy causes, too.

11. Put the kibosh on texting while driving.

It's hard to resist sending texts and e-mails from the road, especially when trying to keep up with a 24/7 lifestyle. But meeting a deadline won't inspire pride if you run someone over in the process, and you'll be even later to that meeting if you have to make a pit stop in the emergency room along the way. Of course, the problem isn't that we don't know this; it's that we do nothing about it. According to a 2009 study from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 91.5 percent of drivers consider talking on the phone while driving a threat to their safety, and 97 percent say the same of texting or e-mailing. Yet the same study showed that two out of three drivers admit to talking on the phone while driving, and one in seven admits to text messaging. So in 2010, we promise to practice what we preach by putting our Blackberry in the cup holder and keeping our eyes on the road. Besides, between college students, one-way streets, construction, and cabbies, Boston streets are enough of an obstacle course already.

12. Learn to cook a new dish every month.

In a less-than-perfect economy, cooking at home is a tried and true way of saving dough. The idea is all well and good in theory, but delicious, balanced meals are hard to come by when your culinary repertoire only extends as far as the ability to toast a killer Pop-Tart and sling a mean frozen pizza. We think this year is the perfect opportunity to broaden our horizons by planning to learn at least one new dish every month. There's no shortage of recently released cookbooks available to help us do it, like Stir from local star Barbara Lynch and The Pleasures of Cooking for One by Judith Jones, former editor to Julia Child. Of course, if we're really serious about cooking like that legend, we could always look into the culinary programs offered at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Boston (well, actually Cambridge), located just around the corner from Child's longtime home; more recreational courses are available at the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts and the Boston Center for Adult Education. Before we know it, our friends will be asking us to hang out via OpenTable. 

13. Bring art to the masses.

We love the recent proliferation of the pop-up art approach, especially when otherwise vacant commercial spaces get filled up with art - think galleries like the Fourth Wall Project and innovative cultural programming courtesy of groups like Boston Street Lab. And even the City of Boston has made some strides by implementing Boston Art Windows, which allows local artists to fill the storefronts of empty Downtown Crossing properties. But we'd still like to see much more city-sanctioned public art displays, including performance art besides tumbling gymnasts and mediocre break dancing on Quincy Market cobblestones. Where's Boston's Lady Gaga when you need her?

14. Invest in a local artist.

Of course, in order to have public art, we need to have working artists. And that's a tall order when many of them have trouble moving their work enough to eat on the art alone. It's hard to part with our hard-earned money for something that seems like as much of an indulgence as art, but this year we're planning to put aside some funds and find a piece we love and want to keep forever. It may be a luxury, but so were those shoes we knew we couldn't really afford (but we really couldn't afford to not have them); so was that $12 martini, and it was gone the minute it met our lips with nothing to show for it later but a headache and someone's phone number written on our palm (okay, maybe it wasn't a total loss). We're going to keep reminding ourselves that not all the finer things are wearable or edible. Besides, we can't crow about a lack of creativity in the city if we don't support the creative economy.

15. Use "foodie," like salt, sparingly.

Most of us can name all the planets, but we'd never call ourselves astronomers. So why does mere enjoyment or basic knowledge of cuisine entitle you to adopt a vaguely pretentious and decidedly overused title? Calling yourself a "foodie" is kind of tacky, like giving yourself a nickname. 

16. Take it off - take it all off.

We know this isn't Amsterdam, but Boston could find a little wiggle room (no pun intended) to have more fun with adult entertainment. We're not exactly overflowing with existing options, and believe it or not, the after-work business crowd isn't the only market for the lust industry. Boston needs to loosen its tie and embrace a few more strip clubs ... though not sleazy joints that play host to Daddy Issues and Degradation: Live!  But upscale strip clubs, more burlesque shows, and female-friendly spots that celebrate the joy of sex in all its forms and in all its glory would definitely be welcome.

17. Repave the information superhighway.

It would make our lives immeasurably easier if we could hop online without having to find the nearest Starbucks. So until iPhones are distributed at birth (which sounds like an awesome idea, incidentally), we'd appreciate it if Boston could offer more public wi-fi. There are some initiatives, like NewburyOpen.net, which unites businesses in the Newbury Street and Kenmore areas in offering free wireless, but we need a more concerted effort from all sides to really make it happen on a citywide scale.

18. Eat well in the wee hours.

Picture it: Boston, 2 a.m. The club lets out, you've burned through the entire day's caloric intake on the dance floor, and your tummy's rumbling. But what to do for a nocturnal snack attack in a city with so few late-night dining options? Don't get us wrong: we love the small handful of spots that keep their ovens fired up late, from the greasy-spoon fare we scarf at all hours at South Street Diner to the upscale options at Stella, which serves its menu until 1:30 a.m. But we want to see even more join the thin flock of night owls, and we're not going to quit clamoring. Let us eat cake, damn it - and let us eat it with a can of Red Bull.

19. Bring sexyback ... in uniform.

There's a reason why male strippers show up to the bachelorette party dressed like cops, armed with handcuffs to arrest us for "breaking the law ... of love." The reason is, with the possible exception of the roly-poly types that always get stuck doing traffic detail, cops are hot. Admit it. Maybe it's the sexy sense of danger inherent in knowing those guns are locked, loaded, and ready to fire, the big old batons hanging by their belts, or the litany of creative other uses we can think of for those handcuffs. Whatever the reason, we'd love to see the uniforms get a 2010 makeover and look a little less hillbilly and a lot more Chippendales: a little snugger around the buns, a little more strapping across the chest, a little tighter around the big, bulging biceps we can't help but notice even when Mr. Hot Cop is in the middle of writing us a traffic ticket, his gruff, chiseled jaw line silhouetted against the streetlamp and his sinewy ... I'm sorry, is it warm in here all of a sudden?

20. Stand by the Seaport.

It wasn't long ago that the Seaport was being trumpeted as the new neighborhood of choice, with residences like the FP3 lofts, high-roller openings like Barbara Lynch's Sportello and Drink, and a general sense that convention attendees and ICA visitors weren't the only people populating the area. In recent months, though, we've picked up on a slightly frustrated vibe from folks down there, as though development has reached an impasse and the bloom is off the rose (the devastating close of neighborhood fave The Achilles Project didn't exactly boost morale). But remember, Rome wasn't built in a day, and the same can be said of the Seaport. Louis Boston's 2010 move to Fan Pier is proof that there are still plenty of votes of confidence being cast for its growth. Consider this another.

21. Be nice. A lot.

Ask any out-of-towner: the "Boston reserve" reputation is real. For whatever reason, there's a certain buttoned-down demeanor in this city that, to those who aren't born and bred with it ingrained in them, can come across as cold, aloof ... and, dare we say, a little unfriendly. But we know that's not true to our actual natures, so in the year ahead, we're going to try and strip away the frosty façade and wear our warm hearts on our sleeves. We're going to make a stronger effort to smile at strangers, say hello, make chatter in the grocery line, hold the door for the person behind us, remember "please" and "thank you," and approach the new year, and everyone we meet in it, with love, respect, and friendliness. It may not amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world, but it might make this Bean a better one.