Hi all,
It has been exactly one month since I signed onto a letter calling for Governor Baker to declare a shelter in place order. While no one could have imagined what life would look like at that point, we have all experienced the unfolding and unraveling of much of our world. AND the development of new ways of being and a blossoming of community and appreciation for much of what we took for granted. Who else can’t wait to just be able to go to a local restaurant or plan a weekend away? That time will come! We just don’t know when…. At least emissions are down more than anyone thought possible, and our cars are being used less than ever.
If you are feeling somewhat stable during these trying times, do your best to give back and support the most vulnerable members of our community. In the meantime, send back good news and we will include it in next week’s email!
Best,
Patty
The Mayor’s Disaster relief fund, which raised over $3 million, started to send out checks this week. So far, over $88,300 in checks have been issued to 74 Cambridge residents in need. As applications are processed, checks will be sent out twice a week moving forward.
Please join tonight for a 45-minute live concert featuring the fabulous musical family behind Sol y Canto and help us support Cambridge artists!
Singer/songwriter Alisa Amador joins her parents, Rosi and Brian, for a live streamed benefit concert to raise funds for the Cambridge Artist Relief Fund. They will welcome us into their home to share songs from their new album called “En Vivo, En Familia,” offering a dose of joy amidst the uncertainty and vulnerability we’re living in.
Great music for a great cause!
Update on the effort to feed our Frontline!
Wow! We are so close to our goal of $15,000! Thank you to everyone who has donated so far. We have started deliveries (that’s my son Josh dropping meals from All-Star Sandwich Bar at Mt. Auburn Hospital) this week with great success! Read more and donate below.
Contribute to scientific research from home!
The Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) is a research collaboration between Harvard University and the Smithsonian Institution, primarily located at the top of “Observatory Hill.” The CfA houses more than 500,000 glass plates of the night sky (taken between the 1880’s and the 1990’s), currently being digitized with the support of the National Science Foundation. The “metadata” needed for scientific use of the older data (for example, where the telescope was pointed, what the weather conditions were like, etc.) are contained in hundreds of handwritten notebooks, primarily entered by women “computers” hired at the Harvard College Observatory starting in the 1870’s. The Smithsonian Transcription Service and the Zooniverse Citizen Science organization host two websites where volunteers can contribute to this project, and learn some astronomy and history along the way.
Be a part of the historical record
The Cambridge Historical Society is asking residents to add their voice to the historical record during the COVID-19 pandemic. The folks there do amazing work and are thinking ahead by creating a trove of primary sources by asking people to take their survey now.
While you are on their website, do some digging and let me know if you find something about Cambridge that you did not know. I’ll include it as trivia in next week’s email.
This week: what is the oldest continually-operating restaurant in Cambridge?
(First person to respond with the correct answer will get a $5 gift card to a local business!)
“Little Fires Everywhere” by Celeste Ng: With the Hulu adaptation streaming, “it’s the perfect time to catch up, [but] I loved and would recommend … at any time.” – Rachel Cass
“The Resisters” by Gish Jen: “Takes us to the future world of AutoAmerica, where the things we see today – AI and surveillance technology, climate change – have reached their predictable end, in a cautionary tale both amazing and important.” -Carole Horne
All the Cambridge City Councilors with our masks!
Keep wearing masks when you leave your home! It will help contain the spread of COVID-19 and you can look good while you do it!
Cambridge students are making masks for anyone who needs one! Check out their work (and request a mask if needed)!
Stay well and stay safe. And as always, reach out at any time if you need anything!