Senator Scott Brown is fond of saying he is the 41st vote. He's also an "independent voter and thinker," or so he says. Bostonist thinks you can't be independent and always be the 41st vote. Anyway...Senator Brown faces a test of his independence/41stness today with the looming confirmation of attorney Craig Becker to the National Labor Relations Board. Republicans, including Senator John McCain, who we'll get back to, can hold up this nominee now that Brown has replaced Ted Kennedy. The GOP, according to FoxNews.com, doesn't like an article Becker wrote in 1993. In what has to be a pure coincidence - what else could it be? -, Politico reported Brown will campaign in March for McCain. We think the campaign swing might be more effective if Brown and McCain had a few votes in common. Bostonist is no expert on getting mavericky, though. more ›

We’ve been at this T station a million times, but we never saw it quite like this. Photographer Mike Cialowicz pits the weird, seemingly undulating seating structure against the regulated grid of the brick floor. We like how the once familiar station suddenly seems extraordinary. more ›

Do you love the Middlesex Fells? Do you want to have input on its trails? Now's your chance, as the Mass Department of Conservation and Recreation is holding a planning workshop to let people voice their opinions about Fells trails. Plans for the 2500-acre reservation spanning Malden, Medford, Melrose, Stoneham and Winchester will be developed in the short-term and long-term, beginning with an inventory and culminating in a draft trail plan by April 2010. more ›

Sure, our team may have been unceremoniously thrown out of the playoffs. We may be getting older, showing weaknesses, and be in for a few years of uncertainty and anxiety. But for a few hours, last night, it didn't matter that the Patriots were firmly in the middle of the NFL pack, because we got to watch the Colts unravel on national TV on the game's biggest stage. more ›

So sayeth Milan Lucic, whose overskating led to the game-tying goal yesterday at the Garden, as the Bruins' tour through the various circles of Hell continued with a 3-2 shootout loss to Vancouver, their 10th in a row. more ›

After weeks of erie politeness between the Kennedy clan and Senator Scott Brown, Representative Patrick Kennedy (D - RI) termed Brown's successful campaign to replace Senator Edward Kennedy "a joke" as he suggested Brown's expedited swearing-in was a political move designed to obstruct the Democrats' agenda. Brown responded by calling Kennedy's comments “mean-spirited” and said he simply wanted to "solve the problems" of citizens. more ›

Those who can't get enough of Egypt, Egypt should make their way to the MFA tomorrow afternoon where two Belgian Egyptologists (is there really any other kind?) will present free lectures on their recent discoveries. more ›

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The Boston Celtics needed a 24-14 surge in the fourth quarter to beat the New Jersey Nets, 96-87, on Friday night. The Nets led the game 73-72 after three quarters, which necessitated the furious comeback in the first place. Color us underwhelmed at this victory. Yes, the 4-45 Nets who sit 27.5 games out of first place in the Atlantic division and have won one road game on the 2009-2010 schedule forced the Celtics into a fourth-quarter rally to improve to 32-16. With Paul Pierce sitting out a second-straight game, scoring in the stretch fell to Eddie House, who scored all 10 of his points in the fourth quarter to spark the comeback. more ›

-- The Supreme Judicial Court ruled that it's legal for sexual predators to contact children using instant messaging since IMs are "typewritten" and the law covers just "handwritten materials.'' The Court reversed the 2007 conviction of Matt H. Zubiel for attempted dissemination of materials harmful to a minor. Justice Francis X. Spina wrote that Beacon Hill must update existing laws to account for technology. [Globe] more ›