Hi! I did wash dishes at OccupyBoston once, largely because it was a good excuse to check out the camp. They want everyone to be "one of us," and the easiest way is to show up and say, "Hey, what can I do to help?" I definitely second the encouragement to check it out, but do so on a normal non-protesting day.

While perhaps not as Carebears as Portland, I wouldn't necessarily describe Boston as "heated" most of the time. The cops have mostly been fine, as has the mayor. I don't know of any major threats to the main camp here. It's a pretty liberal town.