The oddest things show up in the Miscellany notice box. This week, for example, it was disheartening to discover a message from the Boston Museum of Science informing the general public that Charlie, the Museum's seven-year-old alligator is about to return to the Okeefenokee (sic) Wildlife Refuge in Georgia; although don't get too disappointed, because Charlie is being replaced by another baby North American alligator named Herman. Veh. This month, you can go see "The Revolution" in the Faneuil Hall Marketplace between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., or "Victorian Boston" in the Castle on Arlington St. near Park Square between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Gee whiz. If you're really into the bicentennial, and haven't had enough American history from reading the backs of your sugar packets, you can start getting ready for the bicentennial Halloween Ball to be held at the Victorian Exhibit on the 30th.
Not, of course, that there aren't interesting things once in a while. This week there just happens to be a dearth of them. Ramon Jiminez, who successfully led the students and teachers of Hostos Community College in New York to resist the closing of the East's only bilingual college will speak on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the Blackstone Community School about the student movement in Puerto Rico; but aside from that--which I have the uneasy feeling may be in Spanish--it just doesn't look as if much is going on this week.
For some reason, the Miscellany box tends to collect science announcements, which as a rule don't sound too exciting. Alan Lightman of the Center for Astrophysics is speaking on "Quasars and Collapsing Clusters" at the Cahners Theater of the Museum of Science at 8 p.m. on October 20--go right ahead if you want, but don't blame me. If I were you, I'd wait until November 10, when William Press, also of the Astrophysics Center, is speaking on "Gravity Waves and Black Holes."
Then there are the children's films announcements. All fine and good, but if you want to know what's playing all you have to do is call the Boston Public Library and ask for a schedule.
And this year at least there are always bicenntennial events being announced. You'd better be really into it, though--there's a $10 donation required at the door.
No doubt you begin to get the drift. It's all right, you know--there are lots of good movies this weekend. Who knows? Maybe next week something really exiciting will show up, like a demonstration pretesting the general belief that the earth is round.
