No indication as of yet that these events have been cancelled. Given the weather, double-check with the venue. Books Former secretary of state Madeline Albright has a few things to say in Memo to the President-Elect: How We Can Restore America's Reputation and Leadership. Now if only the pundits would shut the hell up and listen. First Parish Church Meetinghouse (via Harvard Book Store), 8:00 pm, $5. (Event is sold out, but, as always, the......

Even though the guys who held up the "Iron My Shirt" sign during a Hillary Clinton campaign speech were determined to be pranksters from Boston station WBCN, people are still pissed at Adolfo Gonzalez Jr. and intern Nick Gemelli from WBCN's "Toucher & Rich" show. Apparently Gonzalez had several jokes up his sleeve when he was escorted out. The NY Daily News reported that Gonzalez told a reporter that his name was "Hugh Jas." Wonder......

First Night Monday, December 31 Everywhere (see below) All outdoor events are free. All indoor events are accessible with a First Night button ($15) Official First Night site Artists use the cold weather to their advantage with ice sculptures. The sculptures will be on the Common starting at 1:00 pm until midnight. You can look at a frozen version of Florida courtesy of Donald Chapelle, an American eagle that would make Stephen Colbert proud, and......

Boston is a college town, and right about now it's chock full of stressed-out students who've just finished finals and are looking forward to a few weeks of rejuvenation at home--whether home's here or somewhere less disgustingly cold. Since student types--or at least those of us not able to borrow Daddy's black AmEx on a whim--tend to be dirt poor, they're relatively easy to please. Still, there's always that relative who gives out homemade doilies......

Enza Sambataro may not be a household name, but she inspires a passionate response from baseball fans. She's about to marry the beloved Red Sox player Kevin Youkilis. The Globe recently ran a light lifestyle piece about how Sambataro won't be the ordinary baseball wife. She dated Ben Affleck, she jokes about Yooooouk drinking too many margaritas, and she has a shoplifting record, around which the article danced delicately. Adam Reilly at the Phoenix detected......

As Bostonians we pride ourselves on our history as a city steeped in sea-faring tradition. Whether it be our statuesque U.S.S. Constitution, the ubiquitous story of the Boston Tea Party, or the ever-present duck boats, Boston and the ocean will be forever intertwined. As such, Bostonist presents some last-minute gift ideas that pay homage to our salty roots. Looking for the perfect gift for the animal lover in your life? Consider giving a "Proud Parent......

It's a hot debate right now. The Somerville Journal posted pictures and video of the annual Tufts Naked Quad Run. The video and pictures are far from titillating. It's tush, tush, tush as far as they eye can see. But some readers, including Tufts students who participated in the Naked Run, were aghast that the pictures emerged, the Herald reported. They argued that it was a private event. The Herald pointed out, though, that taxpayer-funded......

--After the panic, let's think about the fun aspects of winter--sleighs, end-of-year parties, presents, twinkling lights, and the general atmosphere of coziness. --This just in: The Patriots win, and the world learns that referees are sensitive about snowballs. More from the Redux tomorrow. --In Massachusetts' ongoing effort to get as far ahead of the political primary process as possible, the Globe has endorsed Barack Obama as the Democratic nominee and John McCain as the......

Harvard's sex magazine, H Bomb, is … uh … coming soon, and the staff threw a naked party in New York, according to the Crimson. And they had quite a turnout: The naked party in New York attracted 40 to 50 students and alumni from Harvard and other schools, people there said. Photographs from the party will be featured in the February issue. The photographer, Spencer Tunick, is known for his massive installations of naked......

Now that absinthe is legally available for sale in the US, the green fairy has landed on cocktail menus in Boston. Bostonist went to a couple local bars recently to try out the storied liquor of artists and poets. First, we tried out a more-or-less classic absinthe preparation at Kingston Station. It’s an interactive cocktail, and very pretty—you pour a bottle of spring water over a sugar cube sitting on top of a slotted......

New PotD photogdecor8 captured this neat shot while on a walk in Jamaica Plain's Arnold Arboretum. We love the great depth of focus and the bright bold green. Welcome to our new contributor - lovely work! The snow is coming, we expect lots of fun snow days pictures to pop up in the pool over the next few days!......

Some Bostonists found out about this the hard way--by actually being on the green line and having our drivers announce "last stop Government Center"--but the Green Line is closed between Park Street and Kenmore Square this morning after two trolleys collided at Boylston. One trolley rear-ended a stopped trolley, and one car derailed, according to the Globe. Not only were legions (including some Bostonists) made late for work, but the Globe reports nine people complained......

--The following falls more in the "Don't Panic" category instead of the "Blotter" category. If you stuck a TV set on top of a light pole at the corner of Main Street and Bishop Allen in Cambridge this morning, the Cambridge Police Department would like to have a word with you. You caused quite the freak-out. [Cambridge Chronicle] --The Christmas tree at the State House is covered blue light-emitting diodes," which conserve energy. However, the......

--Handheld red laser beams can be a lot of fun, but a guy from Medford with a laser beam caused a ruckus on Saturday night when he pointed his beam at a State Police helicopter. The State Police swiftly summoned themselves, the Coast Guard, the Medford Police Department, and the Somerville Police Department to find the person. The feds are investigating. --The man who is accused of being the "Green Line Groper" has pled not......

How did The Golden Compass, Juno, and Atonement do critically and commercially? Of Compass and its controversy, the Dig's David Wildman said, "So screw the religious nuts, there's no reason not to see this fun little flick." James Verniere at the Herald disagreed, finding it a "long and often tedious slog." Unless you're a sci-fi fan or want to stick it to The Man, you might want to stay away. The movie opened at Number......

Big Brother Casting Call Saturday, December 8, 12:00pm - 3:00pm Felt, 3rd and 4th floors, 533 Washington St., Boston (T: Downtown Crossing) Big Brother casting site The only people happy with the Writers' Strike right now is reality television fans and those who want to be on reality television. The latter will rejoice because CBS is launching another cycle of Big Brother, and auditions will be held at Felt. The release states that casting directors......

Four Stories The Bitter End: Stories of loss, endings, and final acts Featuring Jeremiah Healey, Drew Johnson, Julia Glass, and Joan Wickersham The Enormous Room 
(567 Mass Ave,
 Central Square) Monday, December 3 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. Free! Four Stories is a unique reading series: Boston-based but also Japan-based, set in a bar, and featuring four writers instead of just one, the event proves that readings don’t have to be torture. The unorthodox setting and......

Mike of The Food Monkey has joined Bostonist to share his thoughts about cooking, food history, restaurant trends, and any other Epicurean issues. He promises to discuss what tastes good, but not always what is in good taste. For more, go to the Food Monkey website. To contact Mike, go to the Food Monkey's contact page. In friendly competition, one attempts to best one’s opponent–so long as it doesn’t happen to cause too much of......

On Saturday night at the Paradise, UMass alums Dinosaur Jr. brought their intense melodies and insane guitar work back to Boston for the first time since the release of their latest album, Beyond. For a show featuring dudes old enough to be your dad, it rocked much harder than most indie bands do today. Satisfying both longtime fans now in their forties (or beyond), twentysomethings who felt the pain in middle school, and XX-handed minors......

Where do you start when giving Thanks to everyone in the local sports scene who's made the past eight months or so almost perfect? Not to beat a dead turkey, but the Red Sox are world champs, the Celtics are rejuvenated and playing great basketball, the Revolution made the Finals again, BC is headed for a bowl game you've actually heard of, the Bruins are playing better than expected and are fun to watch, and......

Diane Rapaport Saturday, December 1, 1:00 pm Massachusetts Historical Society Book Fair 1154 Boylston St., Boston More local readings from Rapaport Official site for The Naked Quaker Thanksgiving means it's time to think about a lot of things, namely food and football, but also history. Bostonist has decided to talk to author Diane Rapaport about the history of the Puritans and their traditions. Rapaport, a lawyer-turned-author who has researched court records, wrote The Naked Quaker,......

A fun shot today from new contributor charlieontheradio. He grabbed this shot while on one of Boston's ubiquitous duck boats, and we love the tight framing, bold lighting and cool effect from the glare of the sun. Another cool thing about charlieontheradio? He really IS on the radio - check him out mornings on WFNX......

No Christmas shopping today. No Thanksgiving shopping, either. Get your remote control warmed up and tell the family they're on their own for dinner, because there's a lot of sports to be watchin' today. The fun starts at 2:00, when the Revolution try to get from "happy to be in the championship game", which is old hat, to actually winning the thing. They're matched up against Houston for all the marbles again; goalie Matt Reis......

The mayor has opened his virtual food court so you can find out if your favorite Boston eatery is a squeaky-clean bastion of hygiene or a rat-infested hellhole. We wondered what happened to the swanky spots that Northeastern journalism students found to be filthy back in September, so we looked them up: Figs (As in Todd English's Figs) - Failed on Aug. 2, for many reasons, including "Management has not properly trained staff to use......

Ukulele Noir Nave Gallery, Clarendon Hill Presbyterian Church, 155 Powderhouse Blvd, Somerville Saturday, November 17, 2007 8-10 pm, $10 Bostonist never thought we'd hear the words "ukulele" and "noir" used together, but now it's happened. And it sounds pretty rad. Tonight's installment of Ukulele Noir, an assortment of skilled ukulele players, will feature Craig Robertson, Melvern Taylor and the Fabulous Meltones, Uncle Shoe, and the East Boston Make Out Club Band. All will strum tiny......

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney may be trying to tell potential voters to set his Mormon faith aside, but one large chunk of the voting bloc is speaking out about Romney's beliefs. The Osmonds, that legendary Mormon entertainment dynasty, have so many members it's difficult to count them all, but they're welcoming Romney into the fold. In one of the least shocking semi-endorsements of all time, Donny and Marie Osmond delivered a positive evaluation of......

Few things in this state offer so much buildup with so little payoff as Plymouth Rock. It's famous, it's historic (well, kind of), it's enclosed in a grand and stately pavilion, and people run towards it with eyes aglow and camera readied, and...it's a rock. In some sand. It's not even a particularly big rock. And for a few months next spring, Plymouth Rock will be even more disappointing. It will be put in a......

Fun Fun Fun Fest 2007 Recap from Super!Alright! on Vimeo. Austinist attended a town hall meeting about proposed noise ordinances that could undermine the city's future as the Live Music Capital of the World, and lamented the possible loss of Texas's only feminist bookstore. Throughout the week, they interviewed a bunch of indie fashion designers and D-I-Y websites—Etsy, Ornamental Things, 31 Corn Lane, and Aorta Designs—for the upcoming Stitch Fashion Show. They also did......

Father David Ajemian, who was arrested in New York City last week for stalking Conan O'Brien, is back in town after making bail. Once home, he promptly went missing, only to be found a few hours later. So if you thought you saw Conan O'Brien's priest-stalker around the South End, you probably did. The BPD issued a report telling people to be on the lookout (BOLO in BPD parlance) for Father Ajemian. The report notes......

Sarah Hartshorne, also known as Vita Lightly of the Boston Babydolls, was eliminated from this week's America's Next Top Model. She took the time to answer a few of Bostonist's questions about the experience and her future plans. 1. What advice would you give anyone who is considering trying out for America's Next Top Model? I would say to take everything seriously except for yourself. There is so much to learn and so much to......