Boston

PEABODY - Patriots receiver Wes Welker demonstrated a very good backpedal when he played defensive back against players at his camp Saturday morning at Bishop Fenwick High School. It got better in front of the media. Welker backtracked from comments he made two days earlier to the Boston Herald in which he voiced his frustration that talks over a new contract with the Patriots had "gotten worse. " Now? Everything is fine and dandy. "That was probably a bad choice of words saying they've gotten worse," Welker said.

PICK OF THE DAY Shedding light In the old days (before fancy-shmancy technology), sailors relied on lighthouses for safe navigation. The Egan Maritime Institute presents "Guiding Lights: Nantucket's Lighthouses, Keepers & Their Families," an exhibit of photos, stories, and tales of shipwrecks at the Nantucket Shipwreck and Lifesaving Museum . Daily 10 a.m.-5 p.m. through Oct. 8. $5, $3 ages 5-18. The Nantucket Shipwreck & Lifesaving Museum, 158 Polpis Road, Nantucket.

For decades, those with high cholesterol have been given a list of don'ts when it comes to their diet: Don't eat cholesterol-rich eggs; don't eat butter; don't eat red meat or regular ice cream. Well, now researchers have identified a list of do's for the diet that may work to lower cholesterol levels better than avoiding those don'ts. In a study published last week in the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers found that eating cholesterol-lowering foods like nuts, soy protein, and certain fiber-rich items result in bigger drops in "bad" LDL cholesterol than avoiding...

Not only are some of the best new stores opening on Newbury Street for men, but these stores have something else in common: The shirts and trousers on the hangers are tailored to a body-conscious fit. But is the average gent in Boston ­— those who are too often seen in generous wide-leg jeans and baggy shirts — ready for fitted clothes? "I think there's been a change in men's fashion over the past few years," says Andy Dunn, the CEO of Bonobos, which opened a store at 85 Newbury St. earlier this month.

MIDDLEBOROUGH - When they bought their brand-new home last year, the Pignets didn’t know they were joining a parade. They chose Middleborough because of the house, which was spotless and located in a 55-and-over complex in their price range, and situated between Boston, Providence, and Cape Cod. Lots of other folks, it turned out, had the same idea. The Pignets became part of a little population boom in Middleborough, which grew by 16 percent over the last decade, one of the fastest growths south of Boston.

With the school year winding down, Tufts University administrators met recently with students planning to study abroad, outlining what they should do before they leave and what to expect when they arrive. Above all, they stressed the risks - and ways to minimize them. But with an audience of young adults eager to see the world and seize adventure, it was hard to know whether the warnings truly hit home. "I think the message gets through," said Sheila Bayne, who directs the university's study-abroad program.

NEWTON - Dan Kennedy will graduate from Boston College on Monday, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, and the recipient of the school's most prestigious prize, the Edward H. Finnegan Award. Winners of the Finnegan, given to the student who best exemplifies the BC motto, "ever to excel," tend to go big - top grad schools, Wall Street, overseas fellowships. Kennedy is planning to give away his computer, recycle his Blackberry, and move to a modest communal house in St. Paul, Minn.

Former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach tweeted that he’ll be in Boston this week filming scenes for an online show called “Adults Only’’ that also features Vincent Pastore of “The Sopranos.’’

If we could peel off the asphalt and buildings and lay down a carpet of green, Boston would look like rural Ireland. That's because hundreds of thousands of years ago, Ireland and Massachusetts were invaded by the same indomitable force: the glacier. And because glaciers tend not to clean up after themselves, we now live on their refuse. The hills of Boston and the hills of the Irish countryside are great streamlined mounds known as drumlins. Other cities have higher hills, but - thanks to our ice age souvenirs - few have more hills than Boston -...

The Bruins returned from Vancouver this morning, and following a smooth landing at Logan airport, team captain Zdeno Chara carried the Stanley Cup onto Boston soil. The players boarded buses and were taken to TD Garden, where many fans were waiting to give them a hero's welcome. Plans for a celebratory parade are being discussed this morning at Mayor Thomas M. Menino's office. We'll have more details as they emerge.

See Gulman GARY GULMAN Just as he did for his last CD, Peabody native Gulman has been dropping in on the local clubs to work on material for his new one-hour stand-up special, which he will tape at these two shows. May 24, 7 and 9:45 p.m. $25. Wilbur Theatre. 866-448-7849, www.thewilburtheatre.com NICK A. ZAINO III CLUBS & DANCE NIGHTS NIKOS "NIVO" VOURLIOTIS This European house DJ is sort of a big deal back home in Greece, where he hosts his own late-night talk show and is the frontman for the Greek hip-hop group Goin' Through.

James E. Rooney , executive director of the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority, is among the Boston execs who will perform the Bard on Thursday night. He and other big business names — including Eastern Bank CEO Richard Holbrook , Bain & Company senior adviser Phyllis R. Yale , Tufts Health Plan CEO Jim Roosevelt , and Boston Globe publisher Christopher Mayer — will stage an abridged reading of Shakespeare's "Coriolanus," and will follow the drama by talking about themes in the play.

The Boston fashion designers showing their clothes at a June 16 runway event at the Seaport Hotel may not be internationally known, but the VIPs slated to be in attendance are instantly recognizable. "Sex and the City" fashion plate Sarah Jessica Parker will be in attendance at a show featuring clothes from Boston designers Candice Wu , Nara Paz , and Pavlina Gilson . The fashion show and shopping event will be hosted by Leighton Meester . Other guests watching the stylish proceedings that night include Naomi Campbell and Sharon...

Thomas H. O'Connor was an affable historian with a wise and compassionate ability to understand conflicts, especially the collisions among races, classes, and religions that shaped Boston from the early 17th century to modern day. By the time of his death Sunday, at 89, he was a local eminence who helped lifelong Bostonians and newcomers alike understand the city's tangled politics and folkways. O'Connor was as deft at lecturing on Separatist Puritans as he was on the city's desegregation battles of the 1970s.

Enedino Neto thought his prayers were answered in 2001 when he walked into a downtown Boston law office overflowing with illegal immigrants like him, all in a frenzied rush to apply for newly available work visas that could someday lead to US citizenship. Everyone said lawyer John K. Dvorak was the one for the job. But now, 11 years later, the government is sanctioning the lawyer, and Neto is being expelled from the United States. Last week, Dvorak's Massachusetts law license was suspended for 18 months, following federal sanctions in March for failing to provide accurate...

The heart of "On Broadway" is in the right place. But when the story behind a film is more interesting than what's on the screen, that's a problem. Writer, director, and Boston native Dave McLaughlin wrote a play called "God Willing" and staged it in the back room of The Burren pub in Somerville's Davis Square. The play reflected McLaughlin's Irish heritage and celebrated his connection to family through rituals, especially the classic Irish wake. McLaughlin then turned the journey of writing and producing the play into "On Broadway" - a reference to the fictional address of the pub where the play is staged...

Broadway in Boston announced its 2012-13 schedule Monday evening. One highlight of the event was an appearance by Joey from "War Horse," a large puppet, who is being "tamed" by Finn Caldwell (left), associate puppetry director for the National Theatre. It takes three puppeteers to bring Joey to life. For more on the Broadway in Boston season, see Page 8 in the g section.