Groton meets my freshly butchered meat, best ever steakhouse, kayaking and hiking needs…read more Five stars.

Groton is a quaint little town situated in the North-northeast section of Massachusetts. The…read moreAmerican Indians who lived here thousands of years ago called this area "Petapawag" meaning "swampy land" - and you'll notice when driving through that there are a lot of wetlands in the area. The town itself doesn't have much going on. You won't find any malls or movie theaters or McDonalds or a Stop & Shop. Storefronts are zoned to look old-timey. You'd never know the Citizens or Bank of America located downtown were banks, except for the small signs out front. The town hall is gorgeous. Looks small from the outside, but inside every department is clearly marked and everyone inside is very polite and helpful. Groton is a rich town - and their taxes certainly reflect this! Homes, even two-family homes, are zoned to look like one-family dwellings from the outside. This keeps the quaint nature of the town intact. When you mention Groton to people, they generally know if from one of two things: The Lawrence Acadamy, which is the most expensive private high school in America, or Gibbet Hill, which is known as an excellent restaurant in town. If you like nature, Groton is your place - there's a huge bike path through town (part of the old Boston & Maine railway) as well as many lakes and ponds and forest to explore. Groton has grown over the years, but knows to keep itself looking as it should instead of bursting at the seams with modern stores, etc.

Old town hall transforms into an indoor flea market w/ unique finds. It is a must visit in Salem,MA…read morein October.It's packed w/ a mix of vendors that have all sorts of goodies from delicious foods & chocolates to all kinds of Halloween items that capture the spooky Salem vibe perfectly. You can wander through different vendor spaces full of treats, handmade crafts, & seasonal décor, picking up everything from sweet snacks to quirky Halloween treasures. The atmosphere is lively & festive, making it more than just shopping it's an experience. If you're hunting for gifts, indulging in some chocolate, or just soaking up the Halloween spirit, this flea market has a little something for everyone. It's a fun, colorful stop that really shows off Salem's charm.

We checked off Old Town Hall from our Hocus Pocus movie sets tour while walking around Salem last…read moreweek! While it was not open to explore, it was still really cool to see the outside of where the movie was filmed - the Halloween party that Max and Dani's parents attend. If you're a fan like me, I highly recommend taking a quick photo outside! I hope to check out the inside next time we visit Salem!

This experience officially solidified my belief that my girlfriend is a long line repellent. (see…read moreBoston RMV review) I'm not exactly sure that the Cambridge City Clerk's office is normally a high traffic area, but as I understand it, anything having to do with the city or state requires a minimum 2 hour wait and donation of your non dominant hand's pinky finger. We were there to get a domestic partnership (not a marriage. Lets be clear) because since Health insurance is required now (gripe mumble gripe) well you know. Anyway, since my company is national, they offer health benies to domestic partners. Thus we found ourselves at City Hall. We walked in. No Line... We were helped right away and with a smile..... We filled out the paperwork, raised our right hand, said we were telling the truth, and didn't have to show any documentation whatsoever........ We were in and out in 5 minutes. WHAT?!?!?! Not complaining, just baffled. The clerk also told us that our license/documentation or whatever would be in the mail tomorrow, but we'll see if that happens. So now we are happily partnered in domesticity, I didn't waste my entire day, we both have all our fingers and health insurance in case we do lose one. Sweet. EDIT: Our paperwork did indeed arrive that Saturday, and retains its 5 star rating.

NEWS FEED ------------ ------------ ------------…read more------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ You have been invited to join the group 'Lets Go To Green Street 'Cos It's Snowing' You have joined the group 'Lets Go To Green Street 'Cos It's Snowing' You, Tracee D, Kabir H, Annie P, Melissa A and Chad have been tagged in the album 'Drinking Absinthe And Prank-Calling Joc' You have changed your status to 'Stumbling Out Of Green Street' Kabir H is 'Trying To Snowboard Down Green St' Four of your friends have thrown SNOWBALLS at each other Annie P has added the TRASHCAN LID application You have started the group 'Lets Trying Sledding At City Hall' Chad has been hit by THE SIDEWALK application Melissa A has invited you to join the group 'White Cellphone Lost In The Snow' Kabir H, Annie P, Melissa A and Chad have joined your group 'Lets Trying Sledding At City Hall' You have been hit by a SNOWBALL Throw a snowball back? Download the SNOW application to throw one now. Kabir H, Annie P, Melissa A and Chad have been tagged in the album 'Lost In Deep Snow In Central Square' Melissa A has commented on Chad's photo "You're wrecked, you can't walk let's go home" You have joined the group 'Sledding At City Hall Was Awesome But Let's Go Drink At The Field' You have changed your status to 'Drunk And Bruised'

This place is so well organized. Taxes, car registrations as well as transfer station tickets are…read moreso easy to resolve. You guys are great,

How fast Susan mailed me my absentee ballot. She was so attentive to my needs. She always has a…read moresmile on her face and she's always willing to help.

Havent had a physical copy of my library card in a few years, and needed the card number for free…read moreaccess to the Mango Language learning app. So I headed in to get a new card. The librarians were immensely helpful. Best $2 I've ever spent(replacement card fee) When I needed help accessing Mango I called and they were able to figure it and get me situated. Can't wait for the library to be back in its own building!

A lot of open spacing, a lot of seating for readers and students. The floor plan is really spaced…read moreout, so I wonder if they would be willing to compress the shelves in order to hold more volumes. Parking is also a bit of an issue.

As someone who has never had a great experience dealing with government services, this place has…read morebeen a pleasant surprise. I wouldn't say they were friendly but were still very professional and direct when I came here to get my parking permits for my movers arriving in a van. And I also came here to hand in an application for a mail in ballot several minutes prior to the 5pm deadline that day and a clerk was readily available to take it; that's something that would never happen in any of the other places I've lived.

I was here to attend an elopement. Town clerk, a very nice gentleman who officiated the ceremony…read morewas able to accommodate his off day to fit couple's schedule. They have a metered lot in addition to more metered spots on Washington St & Holden St.

What can I say? I love this town!…read more Now while I haven't moved to as many towns as restaurants that I have been to, I do have to say that Merrimack is one of the best that I have lived in! Town services are top-notch. When snow falls, the roads are clear to the pavement in record time. I can /always/ tell when I hit another city's demarcation line when suddenly I'm having issues with traction. Town Hall is also wonderful, the employees there are always respectful and appear to value your time. I have been there a multitude of times and apart from staff changes, it's always great. Bottom line, I'm happy with where my tax dollars are going. The schools are great, the city services are great, and the people that listen to my muttering about the cost to register my car are empathetic!

Every form is pen and paper, but boy are the employees friendly! It may seem progressively…read morecounter-intuitive, but this is township living. Parking permit? They mail it to you. Voter registration? Fill the form, and the lovely ladies of the voter affairs desk will take what you wrote, hunt-and-peck it into the system and send you off with a smile. Why does this happen? Is this the bass-ackwards source of bureaucratic inefficiency? Shouldn't this make Gen X and Yers flip their "there's an app for that" mentalities for the lack of immediate gratification? Yes, it is. But I've got to say, for someone with limited needs (like, say, a recent move-in to a township) and the freedom to do a fly-by during quiet hours, the anachronistic approach to local governance actually has quite a bit of old world charm. Fine, fine - here's a tech enabled shortcut. Print your necessary forms at home, pop them in a postage-free envelope addressed to the appropriate dept and drop it in the "mailbox" along the side of City Hall. You won't have to take a number or talk to a person, but I'm telling you, you're robbing yourself of a little genuine person-to-person interaction.

Like Fenway Park, some older venues are worth saving. Medford City Hall is like going back in time…read moreand it's beautiful circular center stairway and ceiling and gorgeous marble construction is just fun to visit. I've had nothing but friendly help from different city hall departments. And the early voting is always well run, friendly and efficient.