The obvious thing to say about February is that it is a time for romance. This isn’t untrue, for smack in the middle of our shortest month is a day dedicated to chocolates and flowers and scarce dinner reservations. It’s a time to show that special someone that you care about them.
But you know what? Keep that same energy for the other 27 days of the month and care about you. I’m talking about taking all the necessary steps to be your best self. Maybe you’ve got that dinner reservation, but why not boogie on up to Cambridge and try some Malaysian bites from pop-up Sekali, because you want to. Have many miles separated you from regular physical interaction with your friends and/or lover(s)? Go make a new friend at a board game night. Please, stay hydrated and moisturized, for this cold air is no friend to your skin, and the air indoors can be quite dry.
Put on a coat and go for a walk — it's far too easy to lounge on the daybed for hours on end and forget to go outside, like I have done while compiling this list of free and cheap-ish things to do in Boston and its surrounding suburbs and municipalities. Maybe I should go on a hike, or volunteer to take care of a local park.
Stewardship Saturdays at World’s End
Saturday, Feb. 4
9 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
World’s End
Free
Ideally, we’d be taking the ferry to this Olmsted gem. But it’s still winter, which means such watercraft is not available to the average Bay Stater. Nonetheless, if you can make the (shortish) Saturday morning trip out to the Harbor Islands, and join the assembly on the drumlins of World’s End, you’ll be doing a most noble service to the park. Learn about the ecology of the peninsular tip, and volunteer your efforts to help maintain it.
Within Our Gates
Sunday, Feb. 5
2:00 p.m.
Somerville Theatre
Adult $16; Senior $12
“Silents Please!” is a program series all about film from the silent era, and Somerville Theatre is kicking off the cycle with "Within Our Gates," Oscar Micheaux’s 1920 feature film, the first by a Black director. The film proved controversial at its release, not in the least because of its violent subject, the tinderbox of American race relations and white supremacy. Composer and educator Jeff Rapsis will be providing music to accompany the screening.
Materialia Lumina
Thursday, Feb. 9
6 p.m.
Boston Athenæum
The concert is free, but registration is required. For more information, please visit the
BFO website
The Boston Festival Orchestra and the Boston Athenæum are teaming up to present a program that, in all technicality, could be described as a multimedia experience. A quartet featuring Hannah Shanefield (soprano), Alyssa Wang (violin), Nicholas Brown (clarinet), and Ruoting Li (piano) performs works by composers dead and alive, including J.S. Bach, Jennifer Higdon, Philip Glass, Jennifer Margaret Barker, and Jean-Philippe Rameau, to name a few. Each work is paired with a book in the library, because bound pages and music are a perfect pairing. It’s free, but it is filling up fast — so if you miss it, mark your calendars for more BFO and Athenæum programming on April 8 and June 22.
Sekali @ Lamplighter
Sundays, Feb. 12 and 19
4:30 - 7:30 p.m., or until sold out
Lamplighter Broadway, Cambridge
No reservations are required. You must be 21+ attend, all guests will be asked to show valid government ID
Prices vary depending on what you order
Sekali chef Derrick Teh recently pulled down a James Beard nomination for Best chef: Northeast, all the more reason to sample some of the Malaysian bites that this pop-up kitchen slings. A glance at their recent shared photos whets the appetite for apam balik, nian gao, and pulled pork sandwiches. In February, they’ll be posting up at Lamplighter Broadway on back-to-back Sundays, feeding mouths for a set three hour period, or until the kitchen is empty. My bet is on the latter.
Katie McNally Trio Album Release
Tuesday, Feb. 14
Doors 7 p.m.; Show 8 p.m.
Club Passim, Cambridge
$25 non-member; $23 member
There used to be a time, before an artist was scheduled to drop a new album, that people would gather in one place to hear bits and pieces of the soon to be released project. These gatherings were aptly dubbed “album release parties,” and they haven’t totally gone away. In fact, you could go to one yourself at Passim, featuring the eponymous fiddler of the Katie McNally Trio. The Boston native has once again assembled her trio, including pianist Neil Pearlman and violist Shauncey Ali, to commit a new set of Celtic tunes to wax. Or appropriately formatted digital audio files.
Board Game Night
Thursday, Feb. 16
6 p.m. - 8 p.m.
Lamplighter Broadway, Cambridge
No reservations required. You must be 21+ attend, all guests must show a valid government-issued ID.
Free, cost of food and drink not included
Maybe you discovered a small thing for board games early on in our pandemic decade. Or maybe you’ve always liked them, ever cherishing the tactile and communal nature of turn-based competition. Either way, you aren’t alone, as events like this board game night well demonstrate. Two hours, first-come first-serve.
Quantumazing!
Saturday Feb. 11-12
9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Museum of Science
Included with museum admission, $29 for adult; $24 for child; $25 for senior
I am not a quantum scientist, and my understanding of the world (and the physics therein) are downright laughable, despite the efforts of my scientifically minded friends. But those quantum goings on still hold relevance to us on a macro level — this is all taking place in our observable universe, after all. If you’ve got an impressionable and curious youth in your charge, then thank heavens, for the Museum of Science, which wants us to understand our world just a little bit better. Two days of activities, presentations and discussions with scientists ought to do the trick. Who knows, maybe they’ll grow up to be more scientifically minded than you could ever imagine yourself to be.
