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Take a breath of fresh air. The outdoor mask requirement in Mass. is looser as of today

You can take that mask off, Massachusetts — IF you’re outdoors and not in close contact with someone. Masks are still required in Massachusetts “at all times in indoor public places,” as well as at events, whether indoors or outdoors, and whether in a public place or a private home, the state says.

These 26 Massachusetts communities are at high risk for COVID-19

This week’s total marks the third week in a row that the number of high-risk communities has dropped.

Why do some people feel worse after their second COVID-19 vaccine dose? Your vaccine questions, answered

You may have heard from friends or family members — or maybe it happened to you — who were left feeling lousy after their COVID-19 shot. Here are answers to questions you may have about side effects from the vaccine.
More COVID-19 vaccine news and resources

Dave Epstein | Weather
Many areas will see wind gusts between 40 and 45 mph with some areas exceeding those numbers. The National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory through this evening.
Gusting winds will move into the area Friday
Wind is back in the forecast for today with an advisory posted for this afternoon and evening. We’ll start Saturday on a cloudy note, but slow improvement will bring sunshine for the afternoon.

IN THE FAMILY WAY
The Reach Every Reader literacy initiative at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education launched three apps last week designed for early childhood.
Running out of things to talk with your toddler about? These apps can help
Three new apps developed by Harvard University encourage parents to talk with their kids, not at them, to promote literacy skills at risk during the pandemic.

Globe Magazine | Summer Travel

Illustration for vacation travel guide for summer. Image of summer vacation scenes, including beach umbrella, car towing a trailer, an amusement park, a plane, etc.

You’re vaccinated and ready to roam. Here’s how to make the most of your summer vacation

Tips for saving money and exploring off-the-beaten-path destinations this summer.
Wellfleet, MA- July 1, 2014- Globe Staff Photo by Stan Grossfeld- Damon Wolf, 13, New Paltz, N.Y. does a handstand as the sun sets into Cape Cod Bay in Wellfleet.

Pack patience along with your sunblock when heading to Cape Cod this summer

Record house rentals and booming hotel reservations mean the Cape could be busier than ever this summer. Here’s what you won’t want to miss.
Massachusetts 54th Regiment reenactors in front of the Robert Gould Shaw and Massachusetts 54th Regiment Memorial in 2018.

The Black Heritage Trail: A walking tour deep into Boston history

The trail leads visitors through Beacon Hill and offers a glimpse of the 19th-century Black experience.
Mass. coronavirus at a glance |
Vaccinations
Daily doses:
Weekly doses:
1+ dose received:
Fully vaccinated:
% of doses used:
7-day trend/avg.:
Cases and deaths
Cases
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Deaths
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Other resources:
SOURCE: Mass. Dept. of Public Health
On the Street

Known for its diversity, Fields Corner now must make room for development

Residents have come to know Dorchester’s Fields Corner as a place where newcomers can find a home. From Vietnamese to Haitian Creole to Spanish to Portuguese, signs in the store windows and chatter on the street reflect a neighborhood like few others in Boston.
A bicyclist made his way across Dorchester Avenue in Fields Corner.

Known for its diversity, Fields Corner now must make room for development

A new style of apartment building pictured on the left, with a past style pictured on the right, on Faulkner Street in Fields Corner.

Creating small-scale solutions to a big housing crunch

Explore the full 'On the Street' series
On the Street: Fields Corner
Fields Corner, a Vietnamese enclave, boasts locally owned businesses. But as development continues, rising costs threaten to displace residents. ( Shelby Lum/Globe Staf )

Mass. commits over $70 million for summer programs to combat learning loss during the pandemic

The funding, announced by Governor Charlie Baker Friday, will include assistance for school districts to launch “acceleration academies,” where students will focus on just one subject in a hands-on learning environment.

Man suffers a graze wound to the head during shooting inside Framingham restaurant
One man narrowly avoided serious injury during a shooting inside a Framingham restaurant that left him with a graze wound to his head Thursday night, Framingham police said Friday.

Elliot Page, left, with Oprah Winfrey during an episode of "The Oprah Conversation," an interview series on Apple TV+.
‘It is life-saving’: Elliot Page opens up about surgery
The Oscar-nominated actor said wearing a T-shirt and having a towel around his waist after a shower made him “feel comfortable in my body for probably the first time.”

First lady Jill Biden participates in an Arbor Day tree planting ceremony at the White House.
Jill Biden plants tree to mark Arbor Day as White House readies for family cat
Biden said that the family's cat would be coming to the White House “pretty soon.”

Six flower-themed gifts for Mother's Day: flower totes, floral scissors, earrings, floral pattern robe, felt flowers, and a covered cake stand.
Six garden-inspired gifts for Mother’s Day
Celebrate mom with these gifts from New England shops and makers.

74-robins-road-pembroke-kitchen
Home of the Week: In East Bridgewater, a four-bedroom starter home in the $300s
When returning from the pond, relax on the screen porch while the catch is cooked on the open-air deck.

Opinion

The claim that the Capitol invasion was a "nonviolent protest" is one of many untruths that have been festering in Republican circles.
RENÉE GRAHAM

The Republican Party’s big little lies

From downplaying the deadly insurrection to falsehoods about the Biden administration, the GOP elevates disinformation over legislation.
While the Trump administration was trying to stop the 2020 Census early, Rhode Island used innovative strategies to engage residents who were the hardest to reach.
Sabina Matos

The key to Rhode Island’s successful census? Counting immigrants.
Stacks of bitcoins sit near green lights on a data cable terminal in an office in London office.
Alex Beam

A cryptic crypto explainer
A police officer receives his COVID-19 vaccination at Gillette Stadium's vaccination site on January 15 in Foxborough. As of last month, 30 percent of State Police had not been vaccinated at department-run sites, indicating that many of them have yet to be vaccinated.
EDITORIAL

It’s time for employers to impose vaccine mandates
SCOT LEHIGH

Joe Biden rolls the liberal dice

Recommended reads

Jeneé Osterheldt
In this image from Senate Television video, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., delivers the Republican response to President Joe Biden's speech to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday, April 28, 2021, in Washington. (Senate Television via AP)
Tim Scott is right. America has made progress. But it’s still racist
Tim Scott is right. America isn’t just a racist country. It’s a supremacist and individualistic nation where sometimes those who manage to navigate its hurdles tend to deny the systemic realities of a rotten foundation.

Two Van Gogh exhibits. Two Secret Bostons. And now, a swirl of controversy

Secret Boston founder Michelle McCormack has accused a competitor of causing confusion and hurting her reputation.

‘He asked me if I wanted to date a board member’: An Asian American grant writer on being treated like a commodity at work

Angela Chan O’Donnell is a grant writer for a local nonprofit. Here, she talks about the experience of being a young Asian American woman treated like a commodity by the older white men she used to work with.

Older teens are now eligible for the COVID vaccine, but will their vaccination rates catch up to those of their elders?

So far, roughly 28 percent of Massachusetts 16- and 17-year-olds have gotten at least a first shot, state data show.

In Maine, the debate over schools returning full-time rages town by town

Unlike Massachusetts and New Hampshire, where state officials have ordered schools to reopen, Maine has deferred to its school boards and the principle of local control.

metro

CVS Health announced Friday that it would begin administering COVID-19 vaccines at employer-based vaccination clinics through its Return Ready program.
CORONAVIRUS

CVS Health offers to administer COVID-19 vaccine at large companies across the US

The “Return Ready” program is aimed at companies with at least 1,000 employees.
RI BUSINESS

Roger Williams Medical, Fatima Hospital owner withdraws hospital conversion application
RHODE MAP

Rhode Island’s least (and most) vaccinated communities

Sports

Alabama's Mac Jones has many traits that the Patriots value in a quarterback.
chad finn

Selecting Mac Jones was a fine decision by the Patriots, but why did it seem … boring?

Regardless of the lack of excitement he generated, Bill Belichick may well have gotten the player he wanted most all along.

Resetting the Patriots’ draft board: Which players might they target on Day 2 of the NFL Draft?
NFL DRAFT

2021 NFL Draft: The Patriots have nine picks left

business

CarGurus hired Brad Rosenfeld to be executive vice president of digital retail commercialization.

CarGurus hires Amazon executive to helm digital retail business

CHESTO MEANS BUSINESS

Former senator Scott Brown played a pivotal role in bringing back road races next month

Global chip drought hits Apple, BMW, Ford as crisis worsens

politics

First lady Jill Biden participates in an Arbor Day tree planting ceremony at the White House.

Jill Biden plants tree to mark Arbor Day as White House readies for family cat
Analysis

Why the next 100 days will define the Biden presidency more than the first 100 days

Federal health officials vow again to ban menthol flavor in cigarettes, cigars

Living Arts

Various Grammy Awards are displayed at the Grammy Museum Experience at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

Grammys may cut nomination review committees

‘It is life-saving’: Elliot Page opens up about surgery
IN THE FAMILY WAY

Running out of things to talk with your toddler about? These apps can help

education

Baker announces $70 million for summer learning programs

Mass. commits over $70 million for summer programs to combat learning loss during the pandemic

Mass. reports 718 new coronavirus cases among public school students, 94 among school staff over two-week period

rhode island

CVS Health announced Friday that it would begin administering COVID-19 vaccines at employer-based vaccination clinics through its Return Ready program.
CORONAVIRUS

CVS Health offers to administer COVID-19 vaccine at large companies across the US

RI BUSINESS

Roger Williams Medical, Fatima Hospital owner withdraws hospital conversion application
RHODE MAP

Rhode Island’s least (and most) vaccinated communities

Newton

Newton

Newton mayor ‘frustrated’ over pace of 52 bus route’s return to service

Here are the top Massachusetts high schools, according to the 2021 rankings from US News & World Report

video

Comfort Zone

Miss Lilly returns with some salvaged goods.
Meet the ‘rope broker’ who cleans up the Cape’s seafloor and supplies artists with the salvaged goods
Laura Ludwig will go to most any length to find new uses for rope, nets, buoys, traps, and other equipment hauled from the depths.

COMFORT ZONE
Arlen Weiser, the inspiration for his dad's book, "The Boy Who Wanted to Rock."
On the pages of his dad’s book, ‘The Boy Who Wanted to Rock’ gets his wish
While his scientist wife was working on the rollout of Pfizer's vaccine, keyboard programmer David Weiser of Haverhill wrote a book inspired by the couple's AC/DC-loving 6-year-old.

MUSIC
Dropkick Murphys St. Patrick's Day livestream
20 concerts made during quarantine that you can stream right now
Musicians got creative during the pandemic and put on unforgettable performances you can still enjoy without leaving the couch.

Authors Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka's latest YA novel, "What's Not to Love" is out April 20 from Penguin Random House, following two high school seniors vying for a coveted spot at Harvard.
YA authors Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka on Harvard and high school love
The real life couple discuss their latest book, filled with hyper-competitive Ivy League longing.

The summer season at Jacob's Pillow will include a performance of “joyUS justUS" by CONTRA-TIEMPO.
After a lost summer, Jacob’s Pillow will return for a full season in 2021
The June 30-Aug. 29 season will also offer unprecedented online access to most festival programming.

Special Projects

Jeneé Osterheldt

A Beautiful Resistance

Black joy, Black lives, as celebrated by culture columnist Jeneé Osterheldt.
See the full project Follow @abeautifulresistance on Instagram

On the Street

A bicyclist made his way across Dorchester Avenue in Fields Corner.

Known for its diversity, Fields Corner now must make room for development

A man repacked the food he got from a food pantry on Broadway in Chelsea. Chelsea has been one of the places in Greater Boston hardest hit by the pandemic.

In tackling the pandemic, Chelsea finds new strength
A mural on the side of the Mayor Bill Carpenter Garage in Brockton.

Brockton offers a gateway to a new generation

See more from our business series ‘On the Street’: The changing face of Greater Boston neighborhoods

More

PROJECT TAKEOUT | DEVRA FIRST
The Globe launches Project Takeout, an effort to help restaurants make it to the other side of this pandemic.
Get takeout. It’s your civic duty.
Ordering dinner will help small local businesses survive the pandemic. But that’s just the start.

Boston Globe launches ‘Fresh Start’ initiative: People can apply to have past coverage about them reviewed
Similar to “right to forget” programs that have cropped up across the country, the undertaking is meant to address the lasting impact that stories about past embarrassments, mistakes, or minor crimes, forever online, can have on a person’s life.

Boston Globe Spotlight Report
Boston’s hospital chiefs moonlight on corporate boards at rates far beyond the national level
Hospital chiefs and trustees defend this as boosting public-private partnerships, but critics say these board positions — some paying millions of dollars — raise troubling issues of conflict of interest and hospital priorities.

Opinion, ideas, and commentary

US Attorney General Merrick Garland announced on April 26 that the Justice Department will begin an investigation into the policing practices of the Louisville Police Department in Kentucky.
Kimberly Atkins

Garland lays first blocks in rebuilding path to trust
Packs of menthol cigarettes line a shelf at a grocery store in New York.
Mark A. Gottlieb and Richard Daynard

FDA finally moves to ban menthol cigarettes
If Governor Baker leaves office after two terms, what exactly did he stand for? He’s known for finding the safe middle ground, not for breaking new ground. And COVID-19 put any initiatives he did embrace on hold.
JOAN VENNOCHI

Baker will run. Probably.

Wooden arrows show the distances to various cities on King George Island, Antarctica.
IDEAS | BEN JACKSON

The bottom of the world rises to the top of social media
The author addressing the audience at a Concerned Lifers Organization Conference at the Washington State Reformatory, 2017.
IDEAS | CHRISTOPHER BLACKWELL

Letter to my younger self: hard-won insights from an incarcerated writer
Ingrid Zavala, right, with her mother and sister in 1990.
ideas

Left behind after my family’s deportations, I still dream of making it in America

STAT

Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 Transmission electron micrograph of a SARS-CoV-2 virus particle (UK B.1.1.7 variant), isolated from a patient sample and cultivated in cell culture. Image captured at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland. Credit: NIAID
We know a lot about Covid-19. Experts have many more questions
More than two dozen virologists, epidemiologists, and others responded to STAT's question about what they still most wanted to know.

Boston, MA -- 03/16/21 -- The cover of the summary report of the review hearing for Jospeh Messere, is seen on March 16, 2021, provided by his attorney David Apfel.(Kayana Szymczak for STAT)
Cement Head’s last fight: He was denied parole six times — until he was about to become a Covid-19 statistic
In lawyers' view, the Department of Correction was trying to make it seem like it had fewer Covid-19 deaths on its hands than it really did.

JAMA illo
Troubling podcast puts JAMA, the ‘voice of medicine,’ under fire for its mishandling of race
Critics say editors have asked authors to scrub the term racism from their articles even as they publish others that include racist notions.

SCT illo
Despite resistance, researchers investigate the possibility of a new mental health disorder
Many researchers say the study of sluggish cognitive tempo, which is still in its early stages, can’t yet support a formal diagnosis.

magazine
Illustration of a house, key, and outdoor activities to go with a story about how the pandemic has affected the real estate market, causing people to want more space and outdoor space in particular.
On the Cover

Top Spots to Live in Greater Boston in 2021
The Citizens Bank Opera House and Emerson Paramount are among the many performing arts spaces that have been closed because of the COVID pandemic.
Top Spots to Live

City living lost some appeal for condo hunters
Person wearing a "Hello I am ... bored" sticker on their shirt.
Perspective

Dear Grads: Don’t believe the myth that work has to be a slog

Caramelized pork with orange and sage.
Cooking

Oranges shine in 4 savory recipes, including a beef stir-fry

sports

Mac Jones said greeting NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on the draft stage was like a "video-game moment."

What quarterback Mac Jones said about getting drafted by the Patriots

Despite drafting Mac Jones, Bill Belichick says Cam Newton is still the Patriots’ starting quarterback

Scouting quarterback Mac Jones, who finally had a chance to shine for Alabama in 2020

metro

Gerly Adrien, who made history by becoming the first Black woman elected to the Everett City Council in 2019, plans to announce that she’s running for mayor.

Everett city councilor to challenge mayor

Baker announces $70 million for summer learning programs

Mass. commits over $70 million for summer programs to combat learning loss during the pandemic

Nation

People walked along Storrow Drive in Boston on Friday.

Take a breath of fresh air. The outdoor mask requirement in Mass. is looser as of today

Jill Biden plants tree to mark Arbor Day as White House readies for family cat

Baker says Mac Jones has similar story to Tom Brady, and ‘that story is constantly being underestimated’

World

A Brazilian flag hangs on a cross near mock body bags as activists from the NGO "Rio de Paz" paid homage to the 400,000 dead of coronavirus.

Brazil backs away from the virus brink as deaths top 400,000

Religious festival stampede in Israel kills 44, hurts dozens

US aid to begin arriving in India amid record virus surge

politics

Senator Tim Scott.

GOP’s Senator Scott delivers rebuttal of Biden’s speech to Congress, criticizing him over race, pandemic

House unanimously passes $47.7 billion state budget

Politicians react to President Biden’s first formal address to Congress

business

People waited in line, resumes in hand, while waiting to apply for jobs during an outdoor hiring event for the Circa resort and casino Tuesday in Las Vegas. The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits dropped by 13,000 last week to 553,000, the lowest level since the pandemic hit last March and another sign the economy is recovering from the coronavirus recession.

Jobless claims hit new pandemic low for third straight week as labor market picks up

Terminated Marriott Copley workers launch hotel boycott

IBM to buy Boston-based Turbonomic in latest software deal

lifestyle

Contessa will open in June atop the Newbury Boston.

We now know the name of the restaurant that’s opening atop the Newbury

Mass. boasts some of the best pizza in America, according to Food and Wine Magazine

A modern tavern inspired by a historical one

marijuana

Kathleen Owens, left, and Linda Noel grow hemp at Terrapin Farm in Franklin.

‘We feel like the ugly stepchildren of cannabis.’ Mass. hemp farmers wait in regulatory purgatory

On 4/20, Boston’s acting mayor turns to marijuana industry for campaign cash

US House passes marijuana banking bill with bipartisan support

opinion

The Longevity Hub

The key to Rhode Island’s successful census? Counting immigrants.

It would be tragic if federal infrastructure bill missed this racial-justice moment

food & dining

Contessa will open in June atop the Newbury Boston.

We now know the name of the restaurant that’s opening atop the Newbury

A modern tavern inspired by a historical one

Recipe: Giant break-apart sugar cookies to celebrate gathering for the first time in a long time in person

travel

David Bromstad in Mykonos, Greece.

HGTV star David Bromstad loves his annual tan, his pillow, and the Cape

Traveling with an autistic child is hopefully becoming less restrictive and stressful

Boston Harborwalk in four easy pieces

Books

Around the world

On finding freedom for every body

Reading Raymond Chandler and other mysteries

Movies

Ruth E. Carter, the Oscar-winning "Black Panther" costume designer, is the subject of an exhibition at the New Bedford Art Museum

Meet Ruth E. Carter, the costumer behind ‘Black Panther,’ ‘Malcolm X,’ and more

This year’s IFFBoston shows the virtues of going virtual

Alexa, Siri, look up ‘diva fit’

Television

According to Variety, John Mayer (pictured at a Grammy Awards rehearsal in March) is nearing a deal with Paramount+ to host a talk and music series modeled after the BBC’s “Later … With Jools Holland.”

It looks like John Mayer has another TV show

It’s the streaming era, but channel surfing and appointment TV are back

Recalling when the magic happened at Presto Records

music

Various Grammy Awards are displayed at the Grammy Museum Experience at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

Grammys may cut nomination review committees

Billboard Awards nominations include 16 nods for Weeknd, 6 for Morgan Wallen

English rockers Genesis announce 1st US tour in 14 years

Theater/Dance

Jared Troilo as TJ and Tah-Janay Shayoñe as Sally in the SpeakEasy Stage Company production of James Ijames's "TJ Loves Sally 4 Ever."

Playwright James Ijames on ‘TJ Loves Sally 4 Ever,’ reimagining history, and who gets to tell the story

In ‘Until the Flood,’ a portrait of a town and the ravages of racism

After a lost summer, Jacob’s Pillow will return for a full season in 2021

globe local

Road to Responsibility has outfitted a group home in Norwell with iPads and other high-tech devices that residents can employ to accomplish everyday tasks on their own.

Nonprofit outfits ‘smart home’ in Norwell for people with disabilities

Nomination papers for Newton’s city election in November available starting Monday

Helping shelter dogs get to their forever homes

Obituaries

CIA operative turned best-selling author Jason Matthews

Jason Matthews, author of ‘Red Sparrow’ thrillers, dies

Leo Stapleton, former Boston Fire Department commissioner, dies at 93

Michael Collins, who orbited moon during famous landing, has died