😬 Answering your stupid questions

🐳 It might be a little touristy … But whale-watching cruises are back for the season today. We don’t care how much of a local you fancy yourself, everyone loves to see a whale. Grab tickets here.

🪧 And we have an update! Thanks to an Instagram-savvy reader, we now know exactly who’s responsible for that aggressive sign in Dorchester (and how they funded it). 

👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

On a scale of one to tough, being an adult in Boston might be an 11. Especially if you’re a recent grad or new to the area. Enter: “No Stupid Questions,” a new series by the Globe’s Dana Gerber, designed to be a series of go-to guides to answer all your adulting questions.

We chatted with Gerber to hear the best tips she learned while creating the guides as a 20-something Bostonian herself (and yes, even if you’ve lived here forever, some of these might surprise you!).

🚗 No. 1: “In the case of traffic, knowledge is power.” Being in the right lane at the right time (literally, sometimes) can be the difference between an extra 20 minutes added to your route, Gerber said. So having an idea of where all the major highways and tunnels in Boston go is helpful, GPS or not. Her tip? If you’re using a GPS, “go to the directions page and look at the steps and see what you're doing” before you set out, so you’re not caught by surprise when it tells you to take an exit in 500 feet.

💸 No. 2: Tax deductions and credits are your BFF. Basically: If you’re not taking advantage of the many tax credits and deductions available here in Mass., you’re losing money that you’re 100% entitled to just for things like renting, commuting, or paying interest on student loans. And if you don’t feel confident doing it alone, TurboTax is far from your only option. There are “a lot of free resources depending on your income level” right here in the city, like the Boston Tax Help Coalition, Gerber said.

🏠 No. 3: Insider data can help you apartment hunt. If a neighborhood’s vibes are your priority when looking for an apartment — we get it. But it turns out that beyond rent prices and the number of bedrooms, there are other pieces of data that can help you find a good deal, like vacancy rates or the amount of time units are on the market. Knowing the amount of available places in your neighborhood and how long they usually stay listed “can arm you a little bit,” Gerber said, giving you insight into how difficult it’ll be to find a place, or even if you have more negotiation power.

🔧 No. 4: Google isn’t the only tool for finding reliable services. “Google should not be the beginning and end of your search for a new mechanic or cleaner or whatever,” Gerber said. Using a search platform like the Better Business Bureau or Consumers Checkbook that are “a little more scrupulous” can be a second step of due diligence to “have a better chance of getting the service or product you wanted to and not getting price gouged for it,” she said. And these databases exist for everything from Black-owned to eco-friendly businesses, too. 

👀 Want more? You can read the rest of the “No Stupid Questions” series here. 

🎶🎷 *Immediately downloads Duolingo* Say “au revoir” to expensive and overhyped festivals (we’re looking at you, Coachella) and “bonjour” to the Festival International de Jazz de Montreal — an event close(ish) to home that features over 350 shows, most of which are totally free. Returning for its 44th year from June 27 through July 6 with headliners like André 3000, Norah Jones, Hiatus Kaiyote, Laufey, Robert Glasper, and Orville Peck, it’s an experience you definitely won’t want to miss. Snag your tickets online now and start assembling the road trip group chat.

♻️ Gov. Healey dropped some big climate news in Vatican City. While delivering her keynote speech at the Vatican Climate Summit, Healey announced a new fund to help get more Mass. residents into climate tech sector jobs, dubbed the Massachusetts Climate Careers Fund. It’ll work by providing zero-interest loans for folks enrolled in training programs for those jobs — like electricians or heat pump installers — plus it’ll cover needs like childcare and transportation. The money for the fund, which officials hope will hit $10 million, will come from donors, and will be refilled as the loans are paid back.

💅 The Museum of Science is glowing up. The museum announced a major renovation project this week that’ll totally transform its Cahners Theater into what they’re calling the Public Science Common, an event space with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Charles. According to museum officials, this new space will go a long way toward helping the museum put on galas, exhibitions, lectures, and more. Plus, it’ll also be an important step toward making the entire campus carbon-neutral. But don’t hold your breath; it’s probably not going to be done until 2026.

🏀 The C’s are heading to round three. Another round of playoffs has come and gone, and with this one, the Celtics have secured their spot in the conference finals with a 4-1 series finish against the Cavs last night. Their 113-98 victory came thanks in part to solid play from Al Horford, who snapped out his shooting slump in a huge way, ending the game with 22 points. Next stop: They’re going to face off against either the Knicks or the Pacers, depending on how Game 6 goes Friday night, hopefully with the addition of one (healthy) Porzingis. 

🏒 Hot take: PWHL Boston > Bruins. While the B’s are hanging onto their Stanley Cup dreams by a thread, Boston’s professional women’s hockey team punched their ticket to the Walter Cup finals in the most commanding way: By executing a 3-0 sweep against Montreal in the semis. Tuesday night’s win came thanks to forward Susanna Tapani, who rallied after a tough start to bring in the game-winning goal in OT, with a final score of 3-2. As for the finals, Boston will compete against whoever comes out on top between Toronto and Minnesota. You can grab home game finals tix here!

Enter to win a pair of 3-DAY VIP passes to Boston Calling from May 24 to May 26, a $2,400 value! If you have already referred a friend to B-Side (and they’ve accepted), you're eligible. Full details below*

Most ordinary folks are lucky if we don’t have to plan our own birthday parties. But Mark Zuckerberg is no ordinary person, and that’s probably why for his 40th b-day, he got several full-sized replicas of places he’s spent a lot of time at over the years — including two in Cambridge. 

The two local spots were Zuckerberg’s Harvard dorm room (with Bill Gates in it, for some reason) and a truly impressive replica of Cambridge’s Pinocchio's Pizzeria, where Zuck said he basically “lived in college” (which Pinocchio's owner has confirmed). 

We’re just wondering: One, whether it would have been more fun (not to mention a lot easier) to just … rent the place out? And two, who let him out wearing that chain and shirt combo?

— Written by Gia Orsino and Emily Schario

🍕 Thanks for reading! Rich people, man. 

💜 Special shoutout to today’s sponsor, the Festival International de Jazz de Montreal, for supporting local journalism and giving Bostonians a chance to experience jazz, the Montreal way.  

🚇 The results are in: Close, but no cigar. 38% of poll respondents understandably assumed the worst of the MBTA, guessing that we started 2024 with 173 MBTA slow zones. But the correct choice is actually 143! One reader said: “173,000,000!” 

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