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David Coffin sings the praises of going unplugged, packing light, and eating raisins – The Boston Globe

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David Coffin sings the praises of going unplugged, packing light, and eating raisins – The Boston Globe


If you ask David Coffin, he will tell you that most people don’t understand the full scope of maritime music. “They think it’s just sea shanties, but those are a very specific kind of song … rhythmic songs that [crew members] would sing on ships while they were working,” said the New Haven native. “Sea shanties are an entry point into maritime music, but there are so many others like whaling songs and songs about being at sea.” Coffin, 64, is a well-known area raconteur who performs maritime concerts, leads maritime music programs in schools, and has been the master of ceremonies for ‘Christmas Revels’ — held annually at the Sanders Theatre in Cambridge in celebration of winter solstice — for more than four decades. He has also been guiding tours for Boston Harbor cruises for nearly 25 years and said he is excited about a new harbor cruise he created and narrates for Boston Harbor City Cruises called the Boston Lighthouse and Outer Harbor Cruise, which is offered Thursday-Sunday through May 12. “People are enamored with lighthouses, and on this two-hour cruise, we show them four lighthouses and one surprise lighthouse,” said Coffin, who said there will be a musical component to the cruise. “I really enjoy storytelling — and there is so much history right here in Boston Harbor. To me, every trip is a performance, and even though it’s been almost 25 years [as a tour guide] and has [included] the same information, it never gets old.” Coffin added that he has the “coolest office in town — and it floats. And I’m so successful that I have windows on all four sides of my office.” We caught up with the father of three (one adult daughter and two adult stepchildren), who lives in Gloucester with his wife, Kirsten Wiberg, and their two dogs, two cats, and one bird, to talk about all things travel.

If you could travel anywhere right now, where would you go? I’d go to Fiji. Why? I think the water speaks for itself.

Do you prefer booking trips through a travel agent or on your own? My wife takes care of it.

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Thoughts on an “unplugged” vacation? I’m all for it. Hard to do but very healthy for the brain.

What has been your worst vacation experience? It was a busman’s holiday — meaning it was a holiday but I was still working — on a Carnival Cruise about 20 years ago. It was like a floating city with thousands of people. Never again.

What is your favorite childhood travel memory? Flying back from Paris, where we were visiting my grandparents when I was 6 or 7, and the plane lost an engine — so we had three instead of four. Everyone lost their appetite, so I had a lot of extra desserts. Remember, I was a child and since we were still flying, everything seemed fine to me.

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Do you vacation to relax, to learn, or for the adventure of it all? Strictly to relax. My last vacation was an enforced vacation.

What book do you plan on bringing with you to read on your next vacation? Nothing. Reading takes me away from where I am, and I didn’t travel all that distance to get away from where I went.

If you could travel with one famous person/celebrity, who would it be? My wife.

What is the best gift to give a traveler? An amazing restaurant recommendation and a prepaid bill.

What is your go-to snack for a flight or a road trip? Trail mix — any kind with raisins — and ginger ale.

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What is the coolest souvenir you’ve picked up on a vacation? A hole in my foot from stepping on a sea urchin at a beach in Spain. It was low tide and I was way out there on my own. I was a young kid and all I remember is that I couldn’t walk for a couple of days, and I got lots of ice cream.

What is your favorite app/website for travel? None. My wife makes travel arrangements and goes through the airlines directly.

What has travel taught you? Get there early.

What is your best travel tip? Unpack half your suitcase and leave the items you unpacked at home. You don’t need as much as you think you do.


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Juliet Pennington can be reached at writeonjuliet@comcast.net.





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Boston, MA

Greater Boston enjoys a light snow, travel not significantly impacted – The Boston Globe

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Greater Boston enjoys a light snow, travel not significantly impacted – The Boston Globe


The snow showers come from a weakening system approaching from the Great Lakes that tapped into some of the moisture from a strong storm passing south of New England.

The region was spared the worst precipitation of the storm thanks to persistent sub-freezing temperatures earlier this week, which pushed it south toward its current location off the coast of North Carolina, Nocera said. New England’s light snowfall is on the northern fringes of the storm.

Nocera added that this weekend’s “decorative snow” will not significantly impact ground travel.

The Massachusetts Port Authority issued a travel advisory for flight delays at Boston Logan International Airport. According to the flight tracking website Flight Aware, as of around 1:00 p.m. 212 flights were delayed at Boston Logan and another 15 were cancelled.

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Margo Griffin, a teaching associate at the University of Cambridge in England, was initially worried about driving through the snow on her way to get coffee in Cambridge, but said the view from the Charles River was worth the trek.

“I thought it might be a problem, but I just decided to go ahead with the plan, and I’m enjoying walking through the snow,” Griffin said.

People walked along a snow-covered path at the Arnold Arboretum in Boston Saturday, as a winter storm brought light accumulation to New England.

Erin Clark / Globe Staff

Other Boston-area residents who spoke to the Globe Saturday morning were happy to wake up to the winter scene on Saturday.

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“I am feeling wonderful about the snow. I haven’t seen it in a long time,” said Barbara Delollis, a communications lead at Harvard Business School.

Delollis already made snow day plans.

“We want to go out and have some fun in the snow, and take a lot of pictures and just remember this moment, because we don’t know how much more snowfall we’re going to see in the Boston area anymore with climate change,” Delollis said.

Talia, a Cambridge resident, said that the snow had no effect on her plans to attend synagogue with her two-year-old son Saturday morning.

“It feels nice and seasonal, which is cool because climate change is terrifying,” she said.

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Snowstorms can still occur, despite warming temperatures from climate change, Nocera said. Although Saturday’s snowfall cannot guarantee heavy snow this winter, there is a slightly higher chance of snow towards the end of the month as cold temperatures ease.

A frostbite sailor passed snow covered houseboats while headed out to race on the Annisquam River in Gloucester, Mass. Jan. 11, 2025. John Blanding/Globe Staff/The Boston Globe

Materials from previous Globe stories were used in this report.





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Boston, MA

Boston College drops Hockey East contest to Merrimack

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Boston College drops Hockey East contest to Merrimack


The second-ranked Boston College men’s hockey team suffered its first home loss of the season, falling to Merrimack by a score of 5-2 in Hockey East action on Friday night at Kelley Rink. The Eagles jumped out to a 2-0 lead early in the second, but the Warriors scored the next five. BC falls to 12-4-1 overall and 6-3-1 in Hockey East, while Merrimack improves to 8-10-1 overall and 4-5-1 in league play. The Eagles opened the scoring midway through the first period when Oskar Jellvik one-timed the rebound off an Aram Minnetian shot that was saved by the Merrimack goaltender. Minnetian’s shot fell right into the path of Jellvik for the quick shot into the open net to put the Eagles in front. BC added to its lead shortly into the second period when Brady Berard scored a short-handed goal. Merrimack responded 32 seconds later with a power-play goal to get on the board, before scoring the game-tying goal less than one minute after that. The Warriors took the lead nearly three minutes later when Merrimack scored its third goal of the period. The Warriors scored twice in the third period to push their lead to three. Jacob Fowler made 23 saves while Nils Wallstrom had 27 stops for Merrimack.



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Syracuse men’s basketball: predictions and poll vs Boston College

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Syracuse men’s basketball: predictions and poll vs Boston College


The Syracuse Orange (7-8, 1-3) are back on the road tomorrow to face the Boston College Eagles (9-6, 1-3). The game tips off at 3:00 ET on The CW and here’s what we’re predicting in this #OrangeEagle battle:

Kevin: Syracuse 82, Boston College 80

I’m thinking this is higher scoring than the metrics suggest because neither team defends well. I also have a feeling that Elijah Moore hits double-figures in this one. Moore didn’t make a shot against Georgia Tech, but he didn’t commit a turnover and I’m looking for him to get an early 3 to drop and for him to find space as the Eagles try and contain JJ Starling and Eddie Lampkin. It’s not going to be pretty, but I’m taking Syracuse to get their 1st road win of the year.

Max: Syracuse 72, Boston College 65

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The Orange finally have some momentum going into this one and a lowly Eagles team is just what the doctor ordered for another win. Believe it or not, Syracuse’s offense shoots better from the field and commits fewer turnovers than BC (and most of those numbers are without Starling). We’ll see if Donnie Freeman suits up, but hopefully, it doesn’t matter against a Boston College defense that allows its opponents to shoot over 57% in conference play (worst rate in ACC).

Dom: Syracuse 79, Boston College 73

BC’s offense over the course of the year is very much hot or cold, but I don’t expect a repeat performance of the Orange’s defense compared to how things turned out against Georgia Tech. That being said, if both defenses are going to be suspect, Syracuse will have the best scorer on the floor and I think this is the game we see J.J. Starling have a pre-injury-like performance that propels Syracuse to the win column once again.

Szuba: Syracuse 78, Boston College 71

Syracuse has certainly struggled and has been shorthanded this year, but it still hasn’t fallen to the Boston College threshold. BC doesn’t do much of anything well — it rebounds decently, it shoots from three at a fair clip but overall the offense is poor and its defense is worse. I would think Syracuse should be able to score the ball more effectively in this game as opposed to last. Starling leads the way once more with solid contributions from Lampkin and the supporting cast as the Orange win its second straight conference game.

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Sam: Boston College 72, Syracuse 70

This prediction hinges on Donnie Freeman not playing, if he does, I’d probably lean towards Syracuse by a point or two. Without him, I’m just not confident enough to pick the Orange on the road – a building they lost in last year – even against a bad Boston College team. There’s undoubtedly a path to a win, specifically, if the Orange can force about 15 or more turnovers, and convert off of them. A true toss-up game for me.

Mike: Syracuse 78, Boston College 70

Two really bad defenses should make these not-so-great offenses look better for one afternoon. Like Sam said this is the definition of a toss-up and I really think it’ll be close all the way through. This should be a time where Lampkin can use his size in the paint and be the one to break the stalemate.

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Poll

Who wins the game between Syracuse and Boston College?

  • 50%
    Syracuse wins and maybe?

    (3 votes)

  • 50%
    Boston College wins and nope!

    (3 votes)



6 votes total

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