* supreme court rules in favor of nationwide gay marriage

* getting the bike ready for a long ride: pumping the tires led me to deciding to oil the chains which then turned into replacing the front break pads and almost thinking i had to replace the break arms before figuring out how to adjust the balance. i finally left by around 1:40.

* while oiling my bike chain in the backyard, i noticed movement from the corner of my eye. when i looked i saw what i thought was a cat and gave it no additional notice. but i looked at it again i noticed it had an odd shape, and when i saw the animal's face i recognized it as a raccoon. it was slightly larger than a house cat, its fur sort of sticky up like it just woke from sleep. it lazily ambled away. a few seconds passed and i decided to fall this creature in order to get a photo. it must've heard me following it because it quietly slipped through a gap in the fence and hid underneath my neighbor's backyard porch, where a myriad of empty boxes made for better afternoon sleeping.

* getting to wellington station via assembly square mall: a 4.2 miles stretch, essentially the way i'd normally go to the assembly square mall by bicycle. once i was there, i went behind the assembly row outlet mall to get onto the trail adjacent to the mystic river, what is known as the sylvester baxter riverfront park. i was surprised by how many people where there, out enjoying the sun. this is just a great location, with the new assembly T station nearby. from there i crossed the wellington bridge. there's actually a sort-of bike lane so i took that instead of crowding with the pedestrians on the narrow bridge walkway. once across the bridge there's no easement back onto the path so i pulled my bike up to the curb and continued a few yards until i connected with the trail again. this stretch is called the wellington greenway, a very quiet and shady mixed use trail facing the mystic river from the north, passing by the public boat ramp. i accidentally took a wrong turn and went up constitution way, which ends at kelly's roast beef. i detoured back onto the greenway, followed it onto i arrived the wellington T station parking lot. from there i made my way across the station to rivers edge drive. there's no marked trail, i basically had to just wing it, jumping curbs, riding in bus lanes, until i got there.

* true value hardware store next to malden super 88, they didn't have small sizes of cabot stain but for $6 the woman there could whip up a small container of benjamin moore arborcoat in flat finish with the exact same color (slate grey). "you can do that?" i said, incredulously. "they can't, but i can," the woman replied with a conspiratorial smile. she gave me a ticket with the specification number so if i come back next time, they can just mix up a batch for me.

* malden super 88 a great asian supermarket, how much i never knew about it? bumped into mrs.zhou, my mother civil servant friend, just retired yesterday. i got some snacks and a box of korean instant cup of noodles ($10 for a dozen).

* backtrack to medford street, crossed the malden river to get to the northern strand bike trail, next to bell rock cemetery. actually a very old cemetery, established in 1640. i had a feeling it was old because many tombstones have winged skull motifs. nearby was the former train station.

* i road from the bell rock cemetery start of the bike trail to the end, at the border between malden and revere, a distance of 2.8 miles. would've taken just 17 minutes, but because i kept stopping, it took longer than that. i would've kept going until i got to revere beach, but it was already well past 4:00, and i still had to get back and visit ac moore at assembly square mall to pick up some yarn for my mother.

* at ac moore i got 15 skeins of yarn (only $21) before finally heading back home.

* i went to star market to buy a watermelon.

* after my bike ride back, i was so thirty and hot i finished off an entire pitcher of leftover sweet ice tea. that cold and sugary elixir really hit the spot. my body was craving more nutrients and i made myself some maruchan chicken instant cup-of-noodle.

* prison escapees standoff with police; one killed, one escaped

* went to the cambridge dance party, auspiciously on the same day as the supreme court ruling for same-sex marriage, as it was here 13 years ago that cambridge was the first city in the US to grant marriage licenses for gay couples. i was there that night with bruce; at the time i knew it was an important moment, just didn't realize i was also witness to something historical as well. it was very touching to see so many people crowd cambridge city hall tonight. i'm sure not everyone came out in remembrance of that night 13 years ago, but there was a kind of infectious and electric happiness in the air, like tonight there was something else to be joyful about.

* my other reason to be down in central square was so i could get some falafel for dinner. but i didn't want to navigate through the sea of people to get there, so i went home instead and had some pizza rolls.