Bostonist would like to offer some advice for future New England Real Ale Exhibition attendees: (1) Buy tickets in advance. (2) Bring plenty of friends, and make sure they do (1). Bostonist did (2) but not (1), and consequently spent two hours over the course of two evenings waiting in line to see the inside of the Dilboy Post VFW just once. There's some incredible beer in there—eighty firkins of it (which is a......

--Dice-K is a daddy! [Boston Herald] --Yet another Globe reporter, Charles Sennott, is jumping ship. [Media Nation] --Somerville's potential Hotel Davis Square will not be a "fly-by-night Motel 6," so says Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone (especially not one that advertises jacuzzis, right?). [Somerville Journal] --Still feeling the love for freshly former NESN sportscaster Tina Cervasio and the rear end that launched a thousand ships. [Surviving Grady] --Families with money have found a new playground......

--Fraternity brothers at MIT's Delta Upsilon are saying that Robert Wells, who died over the weekend, fell from his window in an accident. [Boston Globe] --Over at the State Senate, Therese Murray has introduced a health-care reform bill. One point of the bill is to demand that health insurance firms explain themselves when they raise their rates. [Boston Herald] --Massachusetts legislators will discuss a bill officially allowing breast-feeding in public because there are still......

Bostonist tends not to eat at places with the word “junkyard” in their name, but when the food is as good as at Spike’s Junkyard Dogs, rules can be broken. Spike’s offers up hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, subs, salads, and wings (plus burgers at the Somerville and Boylston branches) that are quick, inventive, and delicious. The obvious order is a hot dog, but there are so many toppings to choose from. You can order......

Movies --The ultimate sci-fi slumber party will happen with the 33rd Annual Boston Sci-Fi Film Festival, where this year's theme is "The Future is Passe," and the main event is a screening of A Boy and His Dog, starring Don Johnson. Get more details. Somerville Theatre, Davis Square, 12:00 noon, running through 12:00 noon the next day. Gender Bending Trannies take the stage for Traniwreck, Boston's only all-gender, all-genre burlesque variety show. Expect comedy,......

Music --The Magnetic Fields, on Valentine's Day? Could anything be better for a first date, or any sort of date? They even work well for a broken heart. Well, only if you got tickets in time. Check the Craig, as this one is a hot ticket. Somerville Theatre, Davis Square, 8:00 pm, $27.50. Good luck getting in! --Drown your Valentine's Day sorrows with a night of indie rock and dancing at Viva Viva's Valentine's......

Whether your New Year’s resolution is to clean out your closet or expand its contents, local consignment shops are a great resource for thrifty shoppers. Second Time Around, with three locations in Boston, is a treasure trove of high-end fashion priced on an automatic markdown system—your discount is determined by the color of the price tag. As with all consignment and vintage stores, it’s better to go in without a particular piece in mind. And......

Highland Kitchen is a little off the beaten path—it’s situated somewhere in the no man’s land between Davis Square, Porter Square, and Union Square. But with a laid-back vibe, delicious Bayou-influenced food, and a fantastic cocktail menu, it’s well worth the trek. And if you don’t want to hoof it, never fear: There’s parking in the back, if you’re lucky enough to snag a spot. Bostonist went on a recent Saturday night to check......

The Somerville News reported some heartbreaking book news--McIntyre and Moore Bookstore of Davis Square, the perfect place to find literary buried treasure, is closing. Their lease is up on April 1, and the reason for the move is that, in the age of Amazon, a place like McIntyre & Moore simply isn't as profitable. Bostonist called up co-owner Dan Moore, who had some heartening news about the closing. Chances are that the store will......

If you stop in to When Pigs Fly Sourdough Bakery’s new shop outside of Davis Square, be sure your stomach is empty—the friendly loaf slingers behind the counter have samples of every bread right out on the counter, and it’s hard to say no. Bostonist enjoyed all of the bread we sampled, but we really loved the banana pecan, maple, and brown sugar bread, especially smeared with a little bit of their own pumpkin......

For the past few months, Bostonist has engaged in a scientific experiment. We've been sniffing around T stops to find out which ones are the most pleasant and which ones are an offense to the olfactory nerves. Each day this week, we'll evaluate the odors you will find at various T stops. And here it is--the complete list of T stops with the most distinct odors: Aquarium: High tide, dolphin pee Airport: Pleather luggage,......

Ethan Gilsdorf and Ted Weesner, Jr. Friday, December 14, 7:00 pm Willoughby and Baltic Art Space 195 G Elm Street, Somerville (T: Davis Square) Free Ethan Gilsdorf's official site Listings for readings may be slim while everyone is busy for the holidays, but it's quality that matters. Two recipients of fellowships from the Somerville Arts Council will be sharing their latest projects for free tomorrow night. Journalist/poet Ethan Gilsdorf and novelist Ted Weesner, Jr., are......

For the past few months, Bostonist has engaged in a scientific experiment. We've been sniffing around T stops to find out which ones are the most pleasant and which ones are an offense to the olfactory nerves. Each day this week, we'll evaluate the odors you will find at various T stops. The Red Line offers so much variety that you just might get dizzy--or drunk: Central Square: 40s, vodka, burnt rubber, more 40s,......

Josh Ritter Tuesday, December 11 Club Passim, Harvard Square 7 p.m. and 10 p.m., $35-$75 (SOLD OUT) When Josh Ritter closed his most recent Somerville show with a rambled monologue in which he dispensed impractical driving directions from Davis Square to Canada (via the Fresh Pond Whole Foods) and plugged his two upcoming benefit concerts at Passim, Bostonist jumped at the chance to see him in such a cozy, acoustic-friendly venue—and so did everyone......

--When word got out that Mayor Menino wanted to bring in a petting zoo to revitalize Downtown Crossing, we thought it was a joke. But it turns out that the barnyard animals are at the crossing on weekends outside Filene's Basement. Animal activists are underwhelmed, and how can looking at sad, cold animals inspire people to shop? [Boston Herald] --Wondering what all the screaming was about early yesterday evening at Downtown Crossing? It didn't......

Illuminations Holiday Tour Saturday, December 15 Tour times: 4:30, 5:00, 5:45, 6:15, 7:00, 7:30, 8:15, 8:45, 9:15 Tickets on sale at McIntyre and Moore Booksellers, 255 Elm Street, Davis Square More info Fighting off a raging case of Seasonal Affective Disorder? Somerville has a cure. The city's residents know how to decorate, and when it's the holidays they want to share their spirit with everyone. The Somerville Arts Council will be offering 45-minute-long trolley tours......

There might have been a couple nosebleed seats in the balcony left at last night's very well attended Michael Showalter and Michael Ian Black's Somerville Theater show, but, for those of you who missed it, you really missed a treat. As evidenced by various available YouTube clips, Black and Showalter are extremely funny on their own, but together they brought humor to an entirely new level. The two have been comedy collaborators for 20......

Michael Ian Black With Michael Showalter Thursday, November 29, 7:30pm Somerville Theatre 55 Davis Square, Somerville (T: Davis Square) Get tickets Listen to the Interview Here: Unless you've been living under a rock for the last 20 years, then you've seen the work of comedian/writer/actor/director Michael Ian Black. Let's rattle off just a few of his accomplishments: co-creator of "The State," "Viva Variety," and "Stella." You've seen him co-star in NBC's "Ed," as well as......

Beauty and the Geek: For the next-to-last episode, the teams traveled to wine country for an "I Love Lucy" challenge. They had to pick grapes, stomp them, and bottle grape juice--while tied to each other. Despite the disturbing sight of Big Dave and Little Jasmine hunkered over each other while stomping grapes, the pair won the challenge, prepared three bottles of grape juice laced with Eau de Foot, and guaranteed themselves a spot in the......

Attempt at Largest Gathering of Halloween Witches (Reciting Poetry) With Lesley Bannatyne Saturday, October 27 Book signing at 7:00 pm McIntyre & Moore Booksellers, Davis Square, Somerville Record-breaking at 7:30 pm Davis Square, Somerville Do the past few Halloweens seem to go by, leaving nothing more than a little tummyache after eating too much candy corn? Well, Somerville author and Halloween expert Lesley Bannatyne is aims to leave a mark this Halloween by attempting to......

Jimmy Tingle called Bostonist yesterday to console us about the closing of Jimmy Tingle's Off Broadway in Davis Square. Tingle admitted in the conversation that the sheer work involved with running the theater was taking its toll, and he needed a break. He said, "I've done this, and I basically need to do something else." He stressed that his decision to close the Theater had nothing to do with the fact that the lease was......

Ryan C. Hickox is an MIT astrophysicist who studies "large populations of infrared-selected active galactic nuclei (AGN) from the wide-field multiwavelength survey in Boötes" (haha, he said "boötes"!) as well as unresolved cosmic X-ray background, accretion on X-ray pulsars, and other things you probably need some kind of physics background to understand. Fortunately, music is something we can all understand--or at least appreciate--and Mr. Hickox also engages in musical endeavors. With John Mileham (piano, organ,......

In some truly sad news for local comedy and the arts, Jimmy Tingle has decided to close Jimmy Tingle's Off Broadway Theater in Davis Square. The theater will close when the lease expires at the end of this month. Jimmy Tingle's Off Broadway always brought in some incredible artists that you wouldn't see anywhere else, and, to Bostonist's delight, the legendary Mort Sahl did a few nights there recently. The theater looked suspiciously like a......

Zombie Movie Marathon Somerville Theatre 55 Davis Square Saturday, October 6, 7:00 pm to 7:00 am Sunday $24 in advance/$30 day of show BostonSci-Fi.com, the same folks who brought you the SciFi Film Festival, is offering a little taste, so to speak, of what's to come with night full of brain-starved zombies. Garen Daly, local sci-fi master, has listed a few of the movies of the evening on the Boston Sci-Fi.com website. The Somerville Theatre......

Like frozen-yogurt chains in the ’80s and bagel shops in the ’90s, cupcake bakeries are sweeping the nation. And, as with many trends, Boston is a little late to the game. But, in September, we finally got our own cupcake joint, Kickass Cupcakes in Davis Square. Bostonist went to Kickass to see if the cupcakes really lived up to their purveyor’s name. First we tried vanilla. Ours was a sweet, precious number with baby-pink buttercream......

Honk! Friday, October 5, through Sunday, October 7 Honk!'s official site The full Honk! schedule Despite the festival's name, Honk! is about more than making noise. Street bands will be performing, but the purpose of the second annual Honk! celebration is to "Reclaim the Street for Horns, Bikes, and Feet!" Honk! is a sound, a lifestyle, and a movement, according to the Honk! mission statement: "Honkers have been providing a heartfelt musical antidote, a soundtrack......

And the store isn't even open yet! A tipster on our Contribute Board left a little note about the store Kickass Cupcakes, which will have its grand opening on Davis Square on Highland Avenue tomorrow. Cupcake fans should swarm upon Kickass Cupcakes, as their website features dizzying cupcake possibilities. Cupcake Shooters immediately captured our attention. The shooters are not what you think. Instead of filling cupcakes with kahlua and hoping for the best, Kickass Cupcakes......

A phalanx of U-Haul vans driven by college students has descended upon the city. Eventually, one of these vans will get stuck under an overpass on Storrow Drive. That's when you know fall is here. So Bostonist's writers have compiled a list of tips so both students and year-round residents can learn to coexist. 1. If you plan on attending the Sox game on Labor Day weekend, brace yourself. Some nitwit set up the schedule......

Saturday afternoon filled Davis Square with whimsical sculptures, Indian food, hipster-crafted trinkets, musical performances, children on stilts, and all the well-groomed puppies Somerville could muster up. Which, for the the record, is lots of puppies. Above: Mr. Davis, designed by local blogger Tinctoris, has been the square's mascot for nearly a year; the Diesel pulled up its garage door to serve lemonade and let in the pleasant weather; Bostonist stood for Boston Typewriter Orchestra—if only......

Update: Reader Ron points to Davis Square Live Journal, which has numerous harrowing reports from local residents following the crash. Somerville News and WBZ are reporting that the man who died was in the taxi. His name was Paul Farris. He was only 23 and a recent graduate of Tufts. --The action isn't stopping in Somerville. After a bank robbery in which an employee was tied up and left in the basement, a wild early-morning......