This Is Framingham

Last November I developed plantar fasciitis, you should be so lucky if you never had it or even had a reason to hear of it.  I asked a podiatrist while I was training for the Boston Marathon  if it’s okay to still run and he said yes, while it’s not damaging, it’s just uncomfortable, he suggested having surgery that snips the tendon that runs along the bottom of your foot and releases the strain.  Sounded a little drastic so passed and  I tried acupuncture, which some people swear by and I found to be a total waste of money (as is the strassburg sock– for me anyway).
I’ve been stretching and rolling my feet which helps but it’s not completely gone. Some days are worse than others so when my sister heard of “Good Feet” near her in Oregon she said they have stores in MA and they’re supposed to have something that cures PF.  Sounded great so I went to check it out.
It’s a small store at 497 Worcester Rd. ???? ???????  I was greeted by an older lady who was cheery enough and eager to show me how amazing their three step system was.  They are three different levels of arc support, one you wear while you run, one while you walk and one in slippers around the house. ???? ???????  She had me put the first kind in asked me to walk around and asked me if the pain was gone. ???? ????  I didn’t want to be difficult but I didn’t notice a difference.  She said to keep walking – still nothing and she said that’s unusual.  So we tried another kind, same thing.  after a couple of minutes it was slightly better but it gets better on it’s own anyway so I couldn’t tell if it was from the insoles.  Third, same thing.
Then she had me try these sneakers they sell there that have springs in the soles.  They were just ok to walk in and there was no way I’d run in them.
After a while she explained the system and basically these non-customized pieces of plastic are $289 each, actually I think the ones for slippers are in the low $200’s.  With prices like that I asked what their refund policy was and she said if I don’t like them I could get store credit(?)  I said if they’re not working for me I wouldn’t want store credit and she said I could put them towards the shoes.  I said I didn’t like how the shoes felt and wouldn’t want those. And then it was so weird, she said “Well we have a store in Newton that makes custom men’s shoes”. I looked at her and said “but…I’m not a man” and she just shrugged her shoulders and said “well we can’t take back used products that have been in your shoes”.
I don’t know, you’d think if these things are so super-awesome they’d stand by the product and give you a refund, especially for what they charge.  So that was the deal breaker for me.  I know some people must like them because they have stores all over the country but I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to about $800 without being able to get a refund.
If anyone has had a good experience with these products (or anything else for PF) I’d love to hear it.

I was driving home on Rt. 9 today and I passed Trolley Square. ??????  As I was traveling up the ramp to Edgell Rd I noticed a new sign where Vera’s Deli used to be.  I was in the left lane it was too late to take a right to check it out but actually turned around at the next light just to go back and take a picture. ???? ??

Yay! I’m so excited something fun is moving into this space.   According to Sweet Spots’s Facebook page they will have 45 rotating frozen yogurt flavors with over 60 toppings to choose from. casino 888  Sounds awesome, I’m looking forward to checking them out.
You can check out their facebook page here:http://www.facebook.com/sweetspotfroyo

I’ve posted about this before but for anyone who gets hopeless about downtown (I’m guessing similar to how the officer in the above photo feels) there is a fine group of people who are part of the Framingham Downtown Renaissance group that have put together a new website you can check out at http://downtownframingham.com
You can see their vision plan and documents, studies what upcoming plans and collaborations like the Farm Pond Initiative with FSU and participating the the Main Streets program, which focuses on revitalizing dowtnown areas.
It’s worth checking out and meetings are open to the public for those interested and can attend.
So although progress is slow, people (smart people) are working on making downtown a desirable place to go to.   I’ll be attending next month’s meeting and hopefully have something interesting to report. ????? ???? ???? ?????

Our washing machine bit the dust and while we were in-between washers at home we decided to do a couple of loads at a local laundromat.  The closest one for us was “Friendly Cleaners” in Sad Plaza but as much as I truly love retro appliances from the 70’s, (I really do) that place is a little sketch at night considering it’s tucked in the corner of an empty plaza that leaves a note asking the last customer to close the door.  So we headed north to Royal Laundry in Nobscot (847 Edgell Rd.)
It wasn’t bad, were the only ones there but didn’t feel unsafe.

It’s very clean and they have TVs and wifi there. comprar ivermectina online españa   The only  thing that was a disappointment was the totally vacant vending machine. ivermectin dose in chickens

We were looking for a snack but just got some pizza at Gianni’s across the way.  But the machines we used worked properly and I’d rather have a pleasant washing experience than a wide (or I guess any) selection of snacks. securom failed to initialize pes 2013 fix   So it was nice but hopefully we won’t be needing to visit again anytime soon.

Happy Holidays!
I hope everyone has a great holiday season (next 11 days). ???? ?????? ??? ????????   Although I’ve asked before, I’m putting another shout out to anyone who might have any pictures of the old Shoppers World. I’m excited about co-authoring a book about the original Shoppers World that is just in the beginning stages.  Specifically, we’re looking for photos from the 1970’s and 80’s.  For some reason most of the archives at the Framingham History Center that we’re working with are from the 1950’s and 60’s and then skips to just about three weeks before it was torn down.  Why the era of the 70’s and 80’s are missing, I don’t know but we’d like to document that era of awesomeness as well.  So in this season of giving, we’d appreciate it if you dig deep into your basements and pull out those old photo albums to see if there are any photos of our dear SW. ????? ??? ??   If you have anything you’d like to submit, we will of course give you full credit for your contribution. bet365 ?????? You can email me here at michelle@thisisframingham.com
Thanks and a Happy-Merry to all!

Another non-‘ham post but I couldn’t resist sharing these images of the old Natick Mall.  I always considered Shoppers World and Natick Mall to be retail and community sisters. Many times kids (like me) had trekked through the woods (before Flutie Pass) to get from one to another.  As much time as I spent at Shopper’s World growing up, I have just as many fond memories of the old Natick Mall.
Even though it was smaller than the monstrosity that is it now, I feel like it was more “grand”. It probably had something to do with the ample sunlight, large potted plants, hanging lights and the ever-changing choreography of the main water fountain by Sears (don’t forget the delightful little rock waterfall by Filene’s)  I hope some of these photos bring back some nice memories for some of you as well.

We got the latest edition of the town planner calendar and are wondering where in Framingham this was taken 🙂
I must drive by it every day and never notice!