State Treasurer Shannon O'Brien disavowing the comments of her own father, Edward M. O'Brien, when he blasted Swift for holding meetings via speakerphone while pregnant.
"How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is to have a thankless child."
Ryan Wading Pool
The Ryan Wading Pool is our pick for the city’s best spray deck, where kids can clean up and cool off after a hard day’s summer play as they get soaked under the buckets that dump water from overhead. 350 River St., Mattapan, MA 02126, mass.gov/locations/ryan-wading-pool.
Burn Fitness
This South End powerhouse hosts more niche classes than many larger gyms, manna for the indecisive athlete. Rowing, Broga, Pilates fusion, kickboxing, TRX, and Tabata—they're all here. We also go for the sparkling-clean basement locker rooms with showers. 547 Columbus Ave., Boston, MA 02118, burnfitboston.com.
Jacob Kulin
Using reclaimed wood to create mixed-material tables, benches, and shelves with a '60s-era Scandinavian feel, Jacob Kulin produces furnishings that pull double duty as functional art. No wonder homeowners go gaga for his clean, modern, and eco-friendly work. By appointment only. kulinmodern.com.
The Maids Home Services
The Maids didn't so much clean our apartment as unleash a hellfire of spic-and-span. Wearing vacuums on their backs and armed with motorized bottles (seriously), the housecleaners left no corner, crack, or crevice undusted, unscrubbed, or unwashed. They even tackled that war zone underneath the couch cushions. 179 Boylston St., Jamaica Plain, MA 2130, maids.com.
Vizio Optic
Regardless of your spectacle tendencies—quirky or clean—Brookline's Vizio Optic will identify the most flattering frames for your face, then present you with options: Chanel, Beausoleil, and Ray-Ban are just a few of the brands carried. An optician on site guarantees that you'll soon be seeing—and looking—much better. 11 Harvard St., Brookline, MA viziooptic.com.
The Designers
The old suede jacket was looking a little shabby, having survived the winter of '95-'96, but Designers said not to worry: They'd hand—clean and buff it back into shape. And they did. A great place for cool new leather clothes—many in delicious colors—too. 106 Charles Street, Boston, MA .
Boston Marriott Long Wharf
You just finished up a morning at the aquarium down the street. One kid has to pee. The other needs a bottle. Everyone is exhausted. Where do you go? This sprawling hotel on the waterfront, where the lobby bathrooms are sparkling clean, and there are plenty of comfy chairs for chilling out between activities. 296 State St., Boston, MA 02109, marriott.com.
Julie Michaud, Michaud Cosmedix
Makeup artist Julie Michaud's devotees swear she can do more wonders for the face than all the Botox injections in the world. Her emphasis: clean, graceful lines and a sense of subtle shape and natural coloring that can transform even the least defined brows into aesthetic arcs of perfection. 297 Newbury St., Suite 21, Boston, MA .
Mattapan Car Wash and Quick Lube
To quote ourselves from a few years back, Mattapan Car Wash is Cadillac cleaning at Corolla prices. A gentle scrubbing for only $6.50, and a thorough interior wiping and sweeping for only $7. Plus, they have self-wash bays for the do-it-yourselfer. 1480 Blue Hill Ave., Mattapan, MA .
Julien Bar at the Hotel Meridien
There's no more appropriate place to seal the deal than in the Julien Bar, once the reception room for the governors of the Federal Reserve Bank and now the financial district's most appealing watering hole. But keep it clean: N. C. Wyeth's murals depicting Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and Alexander Hamilton set a lofty tone. 250 Franklin St., Boston, MA .
The <em>Globe</em>'s Alex Beam
Alex Beam savaged former Bostonia editor and publisher Keith Botsford, whose journal had criticized a Beam column a year earlier. Beam noted that Botsford had left a "legacy of toadying and journalistic embarrassment that will take months to clean up."
Taqueria Cancun
It’s worth the haul to Eastie for these homemade flour tortillas replete with spicy chorizo, succulent carne asada, or beef-brain carnitas. But the restaurant’s best-kept secret is the taco de pescado, filled with buttery tilapia and topped with bright, refreshing pico de gallo. 192 Sumner St., East Boston, MA 02128, .
Jo Jo Taipei
The "homemade flour corner" options reign supreme here, and the huge, aromatic xiao long bao (soup dumplings) put Chinatown's version to shame. For intense flavor and generous portions, try a "three cups" meat special or the spicy ma-la hot pot—if you dare. 103 Brighton Ave., Boston, MA 02134, jojotaipei.com.
Brother Blue
Just don't ask him to recite the lines form Lear. Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA .