Bureaucrat310

2011-12-13T21:34:00.001-05:00

Hello everyone! Just sayin hi...

2010-11-07T20:55:00.002-05:00

Hi world! Just checking in to say that I'm still around and doing well...unlike this blog, which needs some serious updating.

A lot has happened since my last blog post - I bought a condo, switched jobs, and traveled all over the place. Not much else to report thanks to the one or two people that still check in.

2010-05-23T19:31:00.014-04:00

I spent a weekend in Philadelphia! It was my first time in the city. Pictures below:

This is the view of Philadelphia from the Art Museum (Rocky steps). Great view!

Rocky's small feet at the top of the steps.

This is that "LOVE" sculpture with a view of the Art museum in the distance.

This is city hall. I liked the sculpture.

The line was really long for the Liberty Bell so we decided to look at it from outside.

This is where Benjamin Franklin is buried.

A view of the Independence Hall tower.

A view of Independence Hall.

One of my favorite tourist spots - Elfreth's Alley. It is the oldest continually inhabited street in the country. People still live here! One house was built in 1703.

Another shot of the street.

Philly phanatic!

2010-04-07T19:51:00.010-04:00

I never thought I'd spend 5 days in Arkansas but I did recently. I loved it! I stayed in Hot Springs for my entire trip and did a quick drive-thru tour of Little Rock. I thought it was a beautiful state. Pictures below:

This is one of about eight bath houses that line downtown Hot Springs. The first national park was founded here and the National Parks Service still maintains the park.

Only two of the bath houses offer traditional baths. Most, like this one above, have been turned into a museum. For sixty bucks, I was able to get a full traditional bath and a massage - a great deal!

This is a view of the hills that line down town Hot Springs from the promenade that wraps around bath house row.

This is a shot of one of the natural hot springs.

I didn't know this but Bill Clinton was raised in Hot Springs. This is his boyhood home.

I spent some time at Oaklawn where I bet on some horse races.

I won 100 bucks. This is a shot of some horses finishing up a race.

If you ever get a chance, go to Hot Springs!

2010-03-28T15:30:00.006-04:00

Another year, another Cherry Blossom and Kite Festival! Pictures below.

2010-02-07T20:35:00.008-05:00

Blizzard 2010!!!

This is my street corner during the middle of the blizzard.

Someone cleared their sidewalk. Look how high the snow has piled up! It only got higher throughout the day.

I decided to walk down to the White House. This is a shot of 14th street - it's normally really busy but there wasn't a single car out. It was really peaceful.

This is a look up Rhode Island Ave. to Logan Circle.

This is Lafayette Park, right in front of the White House.

The White House covered in snow!

This is one of the gates outside of the White House.

Work is cancelled tomorrow! Thank you snow gods!

2010-01-03T22:14:00.003-05:00

Happy new year everyone!!! Thanks to all two of you who read my blog every once-in-awhile. I appreciate your support. I know the posts have slowed down tremendously but I promise to check in every now and then and at least posting twice a month. I realize this has also become more of a photo blog than anything but hopefully you'll like that.

Have a great year!

2009-12-21T14:31:00.008-05:00

Here are some photos of the aftermath of snOwMG 2009!

A view from my window.

Someone built an alligator in my front yard!

It was over 17 inches.

This house looked really nice - looks like a postcard!

Stanton Park...

The blizzard was exciting but I'm ready for it to melt. It's hard to walk around in!

2009-12-19T12:41:00.009-05:00

Washington, D.C. Blizzard 2009! I decided to go for a walk in the freezing snow. I had fun and snapped some pictures.

2009-12-10T18:33:00.010-05:00

Another year, another White House Holiday Tour. After another HUGE fail on the part of the Social Secretary and Secret Service staffs (apparently a whole bunch of us weren't on "the list"), we were finally let in to a huge disappointment. To be brief, Bush did it better. Photos below:

This was a unique idea but it was poorly executed. It wasn't clear if this was a "write your own wish and stick it in the tree" or if it was a "send the Obama's good wishes" or something totally different. It was the first thing you saw when you walked in and it set the tone for the tour.

This pine cone topiary must have been a Sasha and Malia elementary school project. It fit the theme, which I guessed was a "natural" theme because everything was a little too wood-sy for me.

This is the official Christmas tree in the blue room. Same old idea - an ornament representing each state. Snooze.

Snooze. Overall the House was not as opulent or extravagant as the Bush's. If this was done intentionally (because, you know, we are in a recession) then whatever, but I somehow suspect that this was just because of a lack of effort on the Obama's part.

"Gingerbread" house. Bo is at the entrance - can't really see him but he's that little black blob. Cute.

My favorite portrait. The Bush Administration always took this portrait down and put a big tree in its place but I'm glad that the Obamas decided to keep it hanging.

Happy Holidays!

2009-10-12T16:35:00.006-04:00

I recently took a trip to West Virginia. It was a great visit - the leaves were just turning colors so it was quite beautiful.

When there was free time, we went on a hike in the local state park.

This is a view from the porch of my room at the guest house. The sunset every night was gorgeous.

This is another view of the guesthouse but in the daytime.

This is another shot from our hike.

I had a great trip!

2009-10-05T19:46:00.004-04:00

I was on the metro today when two older gentlemen walked in - one white and one Indian (from India). They were both probably late 60s, maybe 70s. All of the seats were taken so they stood. One white gentleman who was sitting down in a disability seat stood and pointed at the older white gentleman and asked if he wanted to sit down. The older white gentleman said, "no thanks" so the younger white gentleman sat back down. The younger white gentleman didn't bother asking the Indian man if he wanted to sit.

Why?

2009-09-20T15:16:00.011-04:00

I love my job. I've had the opportunity to do some pretty amazing things. I just returned from a trip to an aircraft carrier while it was at sea. I was flown to and off an aircraft carrier and witnessed carrier operations for several hours. Photos below:

The folks on the USS Harry Truman (CVN-75) hosted us. This is a shot of the tower while we were watching landings on the flight deck.

This is an F-18 waiting for take off.

And there it goes!

We also watched plans land. I forgot what kind of a plane this was - maybe a Hawkeye? It's about to land.

And there it goes! If you look closely you can see that it caught the first arresting gear wire.

This is a shot of the back of the carrier from the Captain's chair.

Overall it was a worthwhile trip. I learned a lot about aircraft carrier operations, especially it's power system. If you ever have a chance to do something like this - DO IT!

2009-09-14T20:27:00.004-04:00

Alright! I'm back! Photos from Paris:

My camera died on day 6 of 9 so I don't have pictures of Place de Voges or Versailles but we basically hit up every major tourist destination. Luckily my sister had her camera so the final days in Paris were documented.

Had a great time - thanks to my family for housing us!

2009-08-24T20:17:00.001-04:00

I'm in the middle of travel hell and have a two week respite before I head off to Paris. Sadly, I have no pictures from San Diego or Delaware - I fail, sorry!

Stay tuned...

2009-08-06T21:23:00.003-04:00

I've got a busy August ahead. I'm headed to San Diego for work in about a week. Right after I return, I head back out to Delaware and then to Maine, Connecticut and finally Paris - all in August and the first week of September! When all my travel is complete I'll be sure to update my blog regularly and, as usual, post some pictures.

2009-07-27T20:25:00.005-04:00

My trip home was great! The reunion went well and I managed some quality time with the family. I spent one afternoon in Sacramento and enjoyed Old Town quite a bit. I took a few pictures:

The historical buildings were pretty well preserved. The building obviously evoked a "wild west" theme and I could imagine cowboys wandering from building to building and smoking cigs out on the balcony. The Sports Fan downstairs kinda ruins the imagery.

Another view of some old buildings. I first visited Old Town Sacramento as an elementary school kid on a field trip. It hasn't changed much.

I think it's tacky to take pictures of the "old" and "new" and then claim that somehow the photo is unique...cause everyone does that. I'm going to break my rule - twice. This picture above shows an old schoolhouse in the foreground with the shiny newly painted golden bridge in the background.

This is another "old" vs "new" photo with the modern skyscraper in the background and an old hotel in the foreground.

2009-07-25T17:40:00.003-04:00

My car is packed full of orange and black balloons, I've collected all of my memorabilia, the favors are made, the quizzes are printed, and the restaurant is ready to go...After months of planning, my 10 year high school reunion is finally happening tonight. I'm excited to see people but I'm also nervous that the event will turn into one big major FAIL. Wish me luck as I head off to the restaurant to begin set-up.

2009-07-05T13:02:00.010-04:00

The President invited some staff to the South Lawn for desserts, free booze, and a concert for the fourth of July. The event lasted through the end of the fireworks show on the mall. In addition to staff, some members of the military and their families were also invited. The south lawn was tastefully decorated - I didn't get a picture of it but my favorite decorative item were these white, circular paper lanterns hanging from the trees. Pictures below:

This is a view from the south end of the fountain. You can kind of see the circular paper lanterns in the distance hanging from the trees. We were so busy trying to find the perfect spot for the fireworks show that we missed the President's arrival and handshaking. Oh well.

This is another view of the south lawn - it was a sea of people!

Jimmy Fallon was the MC for the event. He was surprisingly talented. He sang a couple of songs (he actually had a really nice voice) and did some impersonations.

Michelle Branch sang. Apparently she was in a country music duo recently?

And of course, the final act - THE FOO FIGHTERS!!! The performance was awesome. As they wrapped up their last song, the fireworks went off on the mall.

Fireworks.

And more fireworks...

It was a great event and I feel fortunate to have been apart of it.

2009-07-03T22:36:00.003-04:00

Holy canoli! It's been over two weeks since I've last posted. Sorry.

I'm having way too much fun this summer. I think summer is my new favorite season - move over fall! Tonight, I went for the longest walk ever. I started by taking the metro down to L'enfant and then walking all the way down to the Lincoln Memorial and back home. It was about a two-hour walk. Although the monuments were beautiful and the tourists were fun to watch, my favorite part was walking through George Washington University's "campus". There were lots of college kids out, all dressed up and ready to party. It reminded me of my college days - not that I partied much but the atmosphere was quite similar. Even though the memory made me long for my younger years, I'm glad that I'm older and wiser now.

I realize some people hate musings but that's all you're getting tonight.

2009-06-20T11:06:00.002-04:00

Ah, Georgetown. I've never spent more then an afternoon in that part of DC, however last night my coworkers and I thought it'd be fun to "dress Georgetown" (sun dresses/pastel/boat shoes/seersucker/madras) and hit up some bars. After much debate about what Georgetown really meant (student bar like the Tombs or slightly sophisticated waterfront) we decided to do a progressive happy hour starting off at the waterfront and ending up at the Tombs. We never made it to the Tombs, instead ending up in a more intermediary bar - Old Glory.

We took the circulator from work over to M street and decided to sit outside at Sequoia where the waiter cheerfully offered us a wonderful deal - 5 coronas for $25 bucks! I realize Mexican beer might be a little exotic out in these parts but seriously, $5 for a corona?! As a deal?! After dinner and coronas we meandered over to Old Glory where nothing eventful happened.

To be honest, I thought when my coworkers suggested "dressing Georgetown" that it would be a big joke. I thought we'd stand out and look ridiculous but had we not "dressed Georgetown" we wouldn't have fit in! Everyone really does wear boat shoes! Without socks! I also discovered that Georgetown is so not diverse at all. There is one type of guy - all American boy next door, and one type of girl - fake tan probably originally from New Jersey. Georgetown is not my scene - I'm glad I did it but I think I'll keep myself in the real district for now.

2009-06-17T19:49:00.002-04:00

I was supposed to go play ultimate Frisbee today (first game of the summer) but it got cancelled due to the rain. But...it never rained, not even a sprinkle. So here I am, sitting on my butt watching HGTV and typing away at my computer.

These HGTV shows always amuse me. My favorite is when there is a small family and they say stuff like, "we need at least five bedrooms" or "that backyard is too small" when the yard is like the biggest yard ever. Do people really need that much space? I live on my own in a tiny studio and it'll probably take me 5 years to accumulate enough crap to make the place too small for me. And then there are those shows that make fun of first time homebuyers - the ones that can only afford a 250K home but want 4 bedrooms and a big backyard in a trendy neighborhood. These shows make me want to move back to small town California where 250K can go a long way. I think, though, that my favorite show is "What you get for your money" where they compare what a certain dollar amount gets you in various cities. This show always does a good a job profiling the city. Who knew Ashville, NC was a great place to go whitewater rafting, for example?

2009-06-14T22:24:00.003-04:00

Woa. It's been 14 days since I've last posted. It's the middle of June and I'm only now making my first posting of the month!

Things have been busy but this time it's not work - it's my social life. I'm so not the social butterfly but let me tell you what I did this weekend so you can understand why I've been such a bad blogger.

On Friday night after work, I went to hang out in Virginia! Gasp! I ended up with a friend at some Irish bar in Courthouse and stayed out past 2am. The very next day, I had to be awake and out on Logan circle to meet some friends for some lawn games including badminton and bocce ball. After that, I went to a bbq and watched a parade until the sun went down. What do you do after such a parade? You drink...until 2am. Sunday brought a game of budgetball on the mall and dinner with a friend. Meanwhile, I had to cat-sit so I was feeding cats twice a day.

Things have gotten so bad that I haven't even had time to clean my little studio. As some of you know, I'm a neat freak to the extreme so it is a rather huge deal that I've let my apartment go. I've had dishes in my sink since Thursday!

I hope you found that interesting.

2009-05-31T11:51:00.003-04:00

I had a really awesome weekend. It started with dinner with a friend on Friday that led to a long night of drinking and laughing and will end tonight (Sunday) in the exact same way. In between, I managed to hang out with the cast and crew of Rent, see the show, and go backstage and then start a new workout regimen (crossfit), watch the final episodes of the Wire, finish all my errands, hang some pictures on my wall, and go to the whitest farmers market I've ever been to in my life.

I'm looking forward to welcoming June tomorrow - humidity free!!!

2009-05-26T20:03:00.003-04:00

Today, I wished I was a lawyer cause I would totally care about the latest supreme court justice nominee and California's ruling on gay marriage. Why did I ever go the public policy route? Ok, so, I actually had pretty strong feelings about both...surprisingly. It's not like either issue was a shocker (Sotomayor was the front runner all along and I figured the California supreme court would be too afraid to intervene on something that the people voted for) but I feel that these are rather historic events. On the same day, Barack Obama appointed the first Latina to the highest court ever while gays lost ground on their movement for equality. It's upsetting that minority groups have to work so hard for their rights when non-minorities achieve whatever rights they want just by being born in the majority. I guess this is life in America.

2009-05-19T19:36:00.001-04:00

I turn 28 today. FML.

2009-05-16T19:49:00.004-04:00

I went to a baseball game today at the newish National's stadium. It was HOT but I had a great time. Some observations/thoughts/stories...

-There were more Phillies fans than Nationals fans. It was a little confusing to hear loud cheers when the opposing team did something good (and no cheering when the home team did something good) especially because both teams wore red. Yea, I don't follow baseball at all.

-This was my first time at the stadium. I seem to remember people telling me about how awesome the views are. There were no views! What views?! There was a great view of Anacostia?

-Around the second or third inning this bird or something came out and shot t-shirts into the stands with this hand held gun thingy. One of the t-shirts landed right next to where my friends and I were sitting. Our seat neighbor unrolled the t-shirt and found A HOT DOG stuffed in the middle!!!! It was totally shredded to pieces and smelled horribly. We got a really good laugh out of it.

-They stop serving alcohol at the bottom of the seventh inning (MLB rules, apparently). My friends and I were standing at the bar waiting to order drinks. Even though we were standing there when the time indicated that it was the bottom of the 7th, only one of my friends was served. We shared the drink.

It was fun, too bad the Nationals lost.

2009-05-09T10:55:00.007-04:00

This is the Navy's latest! It is the very first of a whole new kind of ship for them - the USS Freedom Littoral Combat Ship. It was built by Lockheed Martin in Marinette, Wisconsin. It was over $225M over budget and about 2 years behind schedule. Not only is it one of a kind (in an operational and mission sense) but it is a classic example of how the Department of Defense's acquisition process is totally jacked up. It was docked at the South Robinson Terminal near old town Alexandria.

This is a side view of the ship. The big black thing in the center-right of the photo is a unmanned vehicle that collects and analyzes data on mines.

Big ass 57mm gun on the bow.

The ship can handle two MH-60 R/S helicopters or 1 MH-60 R/S helicopter plus two MQ-8 Fire Scouts. This is the MQ-8 Fire Scout - an unmanned aerial vehicle.

A view from the stern of the ship. If you look closely (or just imagine it) you can see the Capitol in the background.

I was trying to be artistic.

A side view. Unfortunately there is no wrap around deck so if you're a sailor on board you're pretty much stuck inside most of the time.

Go out there and do good things, ship!

2009-05-07T22:12:00.006-04:00

Gavin Newsom (Mayor of San Francisco and California Gubernatorial Candidate) is in DC this week. He had an event at Halo tonight. It was a great event - props to those who helped organize it. I was moved by Newsom's speech even though the entire focus was on gay marriage. It would have been nice to hear a little bit about his health care plan, foreclosure problems in California, the huge budget crisis there, etc...but I suppose gay marriage was good enough. It's so refreshing to hear a straight man be so openly supportive of gay rights - I feel like that's the only way things will change, if straight allies speak up a little. Pictures below:

Ok, so this is a bad picture. Whatever.

Look at that smile! No wonder women and gay men swoon over this guy.

The guy behind him and to the left a little was his body guard. Kind of a small man and not too intimidating, if you ask me.

Goodbye Gavin and Good Luck!

2009-05-07T22:08:00.004-04:00

It's done, people! Hooray!

2009-05-03T21:09:00.003-04:00

I had a really awful headache today. You know how they say that the early signs of swine flu starts with a headache? So, yea. I thought I had swine flu all day...but now that my headache is gone (thank you tylenol) I don't think I have any kind of flu anymore.

Aside from my headache I spent the day running errands. I ventured to Virginia for a quick brunch with a friend then wandered around clarendon. I visited the container store where I resisted the intense urge to buy every type of box organizer thingy I saw and then bought a mortar and pestle from crate and barrel. I also stopped by whole foods and discovered that the whole foods in clarendon is kind of better than the one on 14th and P. I HATE when things in the suburbs are better than things in the city. After I got home I sat around, returned some emails, watched four episodes of entourage, watched rob and big on MTV, and read the latest New Republic.

I finished the evening by making one of my favorite dishes thanks to a recipe from mom and am now watching Iron Chef.

What a thrilling life I lead.

2009-04-30T18:28:00.000-04:00

Now that someone at work has been confirmed for having the H1N1 virus - I'm scared. I don't know who it is but I know where they work and I don't think I've come anywhere near that office in the last month, but still...

It's a little bit unnerving too that the advice I keep hearing for keeping safe from the flu is nothing new. Wash your hands? Duh...shouldn't you ALWAYS wash your hands frequently? Cover your cough? Duh...no brainer. I got an email from a co-worker that told all members of the water club to not touch our cups against the spigot on the water cooler. DUH...that's gross and no one should be doing that ever. I was watching the local news tonight and they showed metro workers cleaning buses...um...shouldn't they always be cleaning those buses? I guess the only thing that's new is the frequency of which we should do these things?

Anyway...gotta go wash my hands.

2009-04-23T20:38:00.004-04:00

It's amazing how people bring their personal lives with them to work. I always try to keep my personal life outside of M-F 9-6 but I guess that's more my personal preference than the norm. I eavesdropped on a coworker today as he fought with his wife about what kind of cleaning their spa required. I listened as he called around to several spa-cleaning services to find the best deal. He was enamoured with a type of cleaning called "winterizing" where I guess they do a deep cleaning of your spa after several months of non-use...or something. He called his wife to pitch the idea to her and a fight ensued.

He asked, "How often do you think we'll use the spa?"

Without knowing what she said...he then replied, "that sounds great but would we realistically use the spa that much?"

The following are snippets of some more of the argument from his perspective:

"I mean, ideally I would love to drink a beer and read a book in the spa every night but realistically that's not going to happen."

"I would love to enjoy the spa with you every night (I had to stop listening at this point in order to get the nasty visual of him crawling into a hot tub half naked with his wife, yuck) but I work long hours (BTW, this guy gets in at 9:30 takes a two hour lunch and leaves by 5:30 every day) so I know we won't get to enjoy it that much."

"Ok, FINE! I was just asking"

"So, do you want me to get the cleaning or what?"

"Look, I have to call...hello? hello?"

He got hung up on...I never found out if the cleaning got scheduled and I guess you won't either...but anyway, this made me ask myself a ton of questions. Why do couples fight about stupid things? Am I lucky that I don't have to deal with that pettiness? Why do people waste time on this stuff at work?

And...totally unrelated but how do you deal with pregnants at work? There is a pregnant (1 month in the pregnancy) and she keeps asking me to do things like move boxes for her. Can I just tell her to move things on her own? Is that insensitive? She's the one that decided to get pregnant, why do I have to help her through it? How do I politely tell her, "please don't tell me about how you've changed your diet and when your doctors appointments are and how your body is changing cause I DON'T CARE!?"

And what about chi-chat during staff meetings? Ok...I'll stop asking questions...

2009-04-20T19:36:00.001-04:00

Relief! The move is complete and I'm all unpacked. More to come soon - hopefully pictures of my new place!

2009-04-18T08:10:00.004-04:00

Oh, the joys of moving. I'm moving from Columbia Heights down to Logan Circle this Sunday. I'm really excited about my new place. There are so many things I won't miss about Columbia Heights...like the sirens, the awful commute, the fear of death when walking home at 2am, etc. However, there are a lot of things I will miss like the big dog I walk by every morning named Ogre, my metro crushes (you know, the cute people you see every morning on the train), and my current apartment. Anyway, change isn't all that bad. I'll be fine.

I've sunk to a new low. I walked by the US Global Aids Coordinator yesterday while he was waiting for the metro. I couldn't believe that I recognized him. Who recognizes the US Global Aids Coordinator? I don't even work in that field. DC has seriously screwed me up.

2009-04-15T21:26:00.003-04:00

I started taking the new green line circulator route this weekend. It appears to be totally convenient! I wait at the corner of 14th and Irving and get off at Franklin Park - it usually takes 10-15 minutes and I don't have to transfer at dreaded Chinatown! With stops at U St. and Logan circle how could you go wrong?

I thought I'd write about my first impressions of this new route. See, I've been a metro rail rider ever since I moved here and rarely take the bus. I think I took the 42 once when I had one of my I'm-going-to-learn-the-damn-bus-routes moments but I got over that pretty quickly. Here were my thoughts from day to day:

Saturday: "Wow, I have to wait outside and I have no clue when the next bus will arrive. That's odd but I can handle that. I notice that the buses are supposed to run every ten minutes...it's been fifteen and I haven't see one....oh, wait, there it is! It's nice...it's clean...it's practically empty! This will be a great alternative to metro."

Sunday: "I think I can do this regularly."

Monday: "OMG Where is the damn bus! It's been 25 minutes! I should have just taken metro, I would have made it to work already. Screw it, I'm taking metro."

Tuesday: "Should I give this circulator thing another shot? Ok, sure, the thought of transferring at Chinatown is enough to make me do crazier things. Hmm...it's been ten minutes...twenty minutes....FINALLY, it's here!"

Wednesday: "Ok, if the bus doesn't get here in ten minutes....oh, screw it, I'm taking metro."

Conclusions: The buses don't run every ten minutes as advertised. It's hard to break the metro habit. I talk to myself way too much.

2009-04-12T10:25:00.005-04:00

I feel really bad about what's happened to Ben's Chili Bowl. I wasn't around in it's early days but I imagined it (totally based on my own probably racist stereotypes) was a place of social gathering among blacks in the neighborhood. I imagine it was a place where local blacks sat at the counter for hours on end chatting with their servers and paying a small cost to eat there. It probably wasn't crowded, you probably never felt rushed to leave and I'm sure there wasn't a line out the door every Friday and Saturday night. Perhaps this is my own warped sense of nostalgia but I imagine some of this was true.

It's all different now - with tour buses parked outside, white urbanites packed in booths historically packed by blacks, and terrible price inflation as two sodas, two half-smokes, and an order of chili cheese fries cost $22 bucks...$22 bucks for greasy after-2am food! I was at Ben's Chili Bowl last night with an out-of-town friend who wanted to "visit the place where Obama eats." It was 2am, crowded and loud! I sat at the counter next to an elderly black man and about three or four of his buddies. Yes, an old guy out past 2am! We'd already ordered as a white college-aged man started shouting his order behind me. The man, for some unknown reason, stuck his arm in between me and the elderly black man to rest his hand on the counter. He accidentally brushed against the black man who did not enjoy being touched - a small argument ensued. It was no big deal, they eventually apologized and life went on. It got me thinking though, about how that tiny interaction was just a microcosm of what was actually happening to that establishment and U street in general. Of course this is the typical story of gentrification and I'm not sure I like it.

It doesn't feel right to have your culture stolen from you or invaded by others (or at least to feel like that's happening to your culture). I see this happening everywhere - the hijacking of siracha, the "discovery" of banh mi and pho, the obsession with papusas...but I can also understand the good that comes out of it all. Spike's siracha dipping sauce at Good Stuff Eatery is pretty tasty and all the new types of banh mi creations I've seen in New York are good too. I'm sure the siracha makers along with the Ben's Chili Bowl owners are making a fortune so I suppose that's good for them too.

There really is no point to this post. I'm just thinking about this as I kill time before I head off to volunteer this afternoon.

2009-04-04T21:58:00.011-04:00

I've lived here for 2 years now and haven't participated in any sakura (or cherry blossom, I suppose) festival events so I decide to brave the crowds and take a stroll along the tidal basin this weekend. Enjoy!

Ok, ok just kidding. It was really crowded. However, I survived the millions at the inauguration so this was really nothing.

I'd like to call this one, "strange white man playing ethnic music to promote harmony and tranquility." Sorry buddy, it didn't work. It was weird.

Do you see that random white stain in the upper middle part of this photo? I captured a petal as it fell to the water. I am so bad ass! The blossoms look like a painting.

The George Washington Monument.

This is kind of a classic photo. Just a little branch in the foreground with the Jefferson Memorial in the background.

Pretty!

Another view of the George Washington Monument.

It was worth a visit! Lots of cute dogs everywhere too.

2009-03-31T21:47:00.003-04:00

I've moved every single year since I was 18 years old. I'm getting too old for it and my next move better be my last for at least a couple more years. I always run into the same dilemma when I'm apartment hunting - do I give up the neighborhood I want for a nice apartment or do I live in a dumpier apartment but in the neighborhood I desire? It sucks when you can't afford both! I've always opted for the nicer apartment in a less desirable neighborhood but that will be changing. When I move out soon (either mid April or mid May) I will move to Dupont and pay an arm and a leg for a crappy apartment. We'll see how this turns out...

2009-03-28T15:15:00.003-04:00

I've had a rough week.

My metro smart trip card doesn't always work right. One of the most annoying things that can happen is when you tap the card on the reader and it tells you to "go see a customer service agent." I have no idea why that happens but when it does it usually adds a couple minutes to my commute as I have to wait to speak to an agent. You might also remember that I live in a particular bad part of DC so the metro trains service my station far less frequently (even during rush hour) than it would if I lived off the northwest section of the red line. If I miss a train during rush hour I have to wait an entire 8 minutes before another one shows up. In the nicer sections of DC it's usually 2-3 minutes in between trains.

On this particular morning I was running late. Just as I descended into the columbia heights metro station I noticed that the next train would be arriving in 2 minutes. I hustle, run to the turnstile, swipe my card and get the dreaded "go see a customer service agent" warning. The customer service agent is this humongous woman with thick curly hair down to her chin. She looks at me and sees that I'm waiting to speak to her with the smart trip card in my hand. She looks at me, finishes pouring probably her 10th packet of sugar into her coffee, and starts to stir it...slowly. Meanwhile I'm freaking out because I know that if I miss this train that's about to arrive in a minute, I'll be stuck on the platform for a whole 8 minutes and end up being late for work. There is absolutely no sense of urgency in the agent as she continued to slowly stir her stupid coffee! After she's satisfied with the distribution of sugar in her coffee, she finally grabs my smart trip card, waddles to her computer and figures out what's wrong with it.

It's too late. The train is in the station and as I run down the stairs the metro train driver announces, "the doors are closing." I wait 8 minutes and end up late for work.

That's not really why I had a rough week. Metro customer service agents will always ruin your day. You want to know why I had a rough week? Well, to wrap it up quickly, something I did made it into the news where I was called an "over exuberant mid-level career civil servant." Not nice.

2009-03-16T21:31:00.007-04:00

I'm back from Chicago. Pictures kind of suck this time but you'll survive.

Here comes the speed boat dyeing the river green - a tradition in Chicago since 1961.

Apparently the green stuff is kept super top secret and only a few people know how the dye is made. It's apparently not harmful to the river - cause the river is so pristine as it is.

The corn cob building where one of my favorite commercials was filmed.

Another shot of the river and the skyline.

More city scenery - told you this round of pictures was boring.

We stayed at the Ritz Carlton. This was the view on the east side.

This is the view directly north. The black building to the left is the Hancock building.

I had a great trip and now I need some recovery time!

2009-03-10T21:53:00.003-04:00

I know I'm in a rut when I start fantasizing about how nice it would be to lie out on a beach and soak up some sun while reading a good book. I hate the beach. I especially hate sand. I hate when your feet get wet and the sand sticks to you. I hate how I smell after sweating from the heat and how exhausted my face feels usually from squinting for hours on end. I hate that the sun shines so brightly that it makes reading difficult. So, yes, things are rough...they have to be if the idea of sitting out on a beach means pleasure to me right now.

I leave for Chicago on Thursday and I'm excited about the weekend. It will be my first time staying at a Ritz and celebrating St. Patrick's Day - a holiday I usually forget about. Maybe this trip will get me out of this rut but for now, I'm in a foul mood so stay clear!

2009-03-07T10:10:00.013-05:00

I shook the First Lady's hand yesterday. She came to work to thank us for all we've done on the budget and the recovery act (or as republicans would probably call it - the stimulus). Photos below:

She was running a little late so we waited....and waited....and waited. Even the secret service officer seemed impatient.

OMG!!! Here she comes with our Director leading the way! As you can see she's way casual but still classy.

Our Director introduced her. In this photo, he makes a joke that goes something like this, "The Obamas are really special to us because you can't spell Obama without O-M-B." LOL We all laughed and so did the FLOTUS.

She gave a quick speech and thanked us for all of our hard work.

We all cheered when he walked by. Best OMB Director ever? Probably.

And then she made the rounds like they all do...shaking everyone's hands.

She was so close I had to back up to get her into the shot. We shook hands right after this photo was taken.

She's so cool!

And then she went on to her next meeting.

While we went to McDonalds and ordered a McGangbang. So disgusting.

2009-02-28T10:39:00.008-05:00

Since we last talked, I was on my way to a farm in Maryland for a long weekend. Below are pictures from that visit.

Rural Maryland is kind of nice. Nice rolling hills and lots of open space. I could see the stars at night!

Another horse. They're cute!

We took a day trip to Harper's Ferry - a nice historic town in West Virginia.

Some buildings preserved from the 1800s.

Another view of Harper's Ferry.

There were lots of cats on the farm. This one was my favorite - his name was Moose and he was mean! He had the cutest limp when he walked.

This was a baby kitty that wouldn't get down from the barn roof.

After Maryland I had visitors from Australia. This is the only photo I took - when we visited the brand new visitor's center at the Capitol.

It's been a busy month and March is shaping up to be just as busy. Enjoy the last few weeks of winter!

2009-02-10T22:01:00.001-05:00

Ok, so...my next post will be awesome, I promise. Just wanted to let you know that I'll be in Frederick, Maryland for a few days...but when I get back I'll devote more time to blogging. Cross my heart hope to die.

2009-02-03T21:25:00.002-05:00

I am so excited for the weekend - 50 degrees on Saturday AND Sunday! Woo hoo!!!

I've thought a lot about how the quality of my posts have degraded since my earlier blogging days. I apologize for this. I am using most of my writing wit on work related stuff that seems to drain all the creativity out of my skull. I've also noticed that I haven't posted pictures in months...and to think, I once thought of turning this blog into a photo blog.

Stay tuned, you'll love my next post!

2009-01-24T13:00:00.003-05:00

I got a very kind letter from #43 today. It read:

"Laura and I thank you for serving in my Administration. We appreciate the long hours you put in to do your job, and we are grateful to you and your family for the many sacrifices you made on behalf of the American People.

We have made history together. We have worked to solve problems, instead of passing them on to future generations. We have made our country safer, stronger, and more secure. We have shown the world the compassion and generosity of our people. And we have supported freedom's march around the globe.

May God bless you.

Sincerely,

The Devil."

Unbelievable. "We have worked to solve problems, instead of passing them on to future generations." Seriously? Wow. Delusional even until the very last day. Our national nightmare is over!

2009-01-23T08:57:00.002-05:00

I'm not really sure how to describe my inauguration weekend. I had so much fun and it went by way too fast. Some friends were in town visiting from California (mostly) so I was lucky to have some good people to share this experience with.

We first started with the concert on Sunday afternoon where every famous musician and movie star took the stage to celebrate Obama. My favorite performer was Garth Brooks - he energized the crowd in a way that no other performer did. I also enjoyed Mary J. Blige and Jamie Foxx's impersonation of Obama. The concert was uneventful until it was time to leave. I've never been in a crowd of 500,000 people so I guess that was a first. It was so crowded that I wasn't really walking...people pushed me and I just moved like moses floating above water.

The swearing in ceremony was awesome. We woke up early and got to the mall around 7am and found a great spot right at the base of the Washington Monument. We had a direct view of the capitol and a jumbotron. In fact, an ABC news camera crew came by and shot some footage of us and we ended up on the nightly news that night. The video of us was not too flattering as we were bundled up in our coats and scarves.

Aside from the historic events we went out every night and had way too much fun. It was the kind of experience you had to go through once but I'm not sure I'll be up for it again in 4 years.

2009-01-13T21:26:00.003-05:00

I'm totally thrilled about the inauguration but I'm also terrified of the chaos that DC is about to experience. I'm sure that in the end, there won't really be THAT many people and all hell will not break loose but, I can't help but wonder what'll happen when metro screws up just once this weekend. When metro screws up during rush hour - OMG the world feels like it's about to end...if metro can't deal with rush hour, how are they going to deal with rush weekend?!

As a DC blogger, I have to complain about the metro at least once - it's a rite of passage. I have to complain about how tourists don't know how to use the metro and about how they always stand on the left of an escalator when they should be walking. Seeing as how this complaining is obligatory for a DC local like me, I will dedicate the rest of this post to the unspoken rules of riding metro...

There are several rules that tourists must recognize before riding metro (subway, not bus - I don't do buses).

Rule #1: When you are about to board a train please let passengers off the train first before you board. Remember - we are south of the Mason Dixon line therefore we are southerners...and southerners are polite (shivers).

Rule #2: Once you are on the train choose your seat/standing position carefully. When the train stops at a station and you happen to be standing in front of an exit door, please step off the train momentarily to let passengers off and then get back on the train again. It's all about facilitating the flow of traffic.

Rule #3: This is just a personal peeve of mine - it's not necessarily an unspoken rule. Please do not hog the poles. Hold on to the poles, do not lean your entire body against them - others may need to hold on.

Rule #4: Do not eat or drink on the train. It's gross.

Rule #5: When you get off the train you will inevitably get on an escalator. If you want to stand make sure you are on the right side of the escalator. The left side is reserved for walkers.

Rule #6: Just buy a smart trip card. Use it. The paper shit is annoying.

Can metro publish these rules somewhere? In big font? It would be nice if these rules were official.

2009-01-11T16:09:00.002-05:00

I finally watched the movie "Signs" today. I've been wanting to see it for years but was too afraid to watch it alone. I finally sucked it up, put it on my netflix queue and made sure to watch it during the day when it was sunny out. It was surprisingly decent and now I'm afraid of aliens.

This was a great weekend. I went grocery shopping and made some stuffed bell peppers that turned out disgusting (I put too much oregano in it) but it was relaxing to cook and watch tv. I went to the gym and ran more than I've ran in a long time. I also beat my cold! I highly recommend Emergen-C and lots of sleep.

Now I'm catching up on Charm School and Desperate Housewives of Orange County...I love lazy weekends!

2009-01-07T20:03:00.003-05:00

I still can't believe I live in DC and experience the things that I do. It still freaks me out when I watch the news that the setting is usually less than a block from where I work and that the hot issues of the day usually cross my desk in some way. I also can't believe that the work I do makes the news...often...even in the New York Times! I'll get over it, I'm sure.

Today, I saw five Presidents leave the White House in their motorcades. One minute I was reading about the "historic" lunch and the next I was outside witnessing their departure. One day my walk to work is typical and the next I'm walking by Obama's temporary residence. This just can't happen in California so episodes like these remind me of why I love this city and why it's important for me to stay.

2009-01-06T19:43:00.003-05:00

I've been back from California since Jan. 2 but it's been busy. I've been such a bad blogger lately. Oh well.

My trip was uneventful - 5 days at home and 2 days in SF. Good to see the family and friends and had a great New Years Eve.

All this running around got me sick. It seems like I've been getting sick once a year - always at the beginning of January. My goal is to get well before inauguration, which, btw is going to be such an awesome weekend!

Obama is now moved in - one block from my work where his presence has caused massive street closures until he moves his ass into the White House. I have to say, if I were a driver and needed to drive through that area for work every day, I would be annoyed. Luckily I walk everywhere and the street closures have made it easier for me to cross several streets without having to wait for the "walk" symbol. I can't believe I'm breathing the same air as Obama!

2008-12-24T20:48:00.002-05:00

California here I come! Be back after the new year. Thanks for your readership.

2008-12-20T12:31:00.003-05:00

I've had my mind on California a lot recently - not exactly sure why...

Maybe because I'm going home in less than a week? It's a habit of mine - right before a trip home I get impatient and I start to focus on what I'm missing out on for living so far away.

Maybe because I'm rediscovering the Postal Service's album "Give Up" where my favorite song is "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight." They sing (metaphorically) about how DC is a lonely place to be, "with [all] it's gaudy apartment complex[es]" and how it might be time to leave. I haven't listened to this album since my road trip with my sister where we spent the entire three day drive from California to Michigan listening to the Postal Service and the Killers - this was 2005, bear with me.

Maybe because it's cold, rainy, and therefore dreary here and all I want is a little sunshine. I don't care if it's 20 degrees out, please weather gods just make it sunny!

Or maybe because I had a great time with a California friend at the White House holiday party who reminded me of all the fun I had at Berkeley.

Anyway, I'm excited about going home...I miss the Golden State!

2008-12-15T20:37:00.003-05:00

I watched the 60 Minutes interview of Congressman Barney Frank (D-MA) last night. He talked a little bit about when he decided to come out as a Congressman and what the reaction was like from the Speaker of the House back then, Tip O'Neil. Excerpt below:

"But by 1986 enough people knew [that he was gay] that he felt compelled to tell Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill.

"And I said, 'I just wanted to alert you that there may be some stuff coming out about my being gay,'" Frank remembers. "He said, 'Oh, Barney, don't be listening to that crap. They say all that stuff about all of us.' I said, 'Well, Tip, the point here is that it's true.' And he sort of slumped. He said, 'Oh, Barney, I'm so sad. I thought you might be the first Jewish speaker.'"

I hope that my generation will do better.

2008-12-11T21:40:00.003-05:00

Yikes! This has probably been the longest period of time where I've neglected to post...apologies to my loyal readers. It's been a busy month and it looks like it'll get busier. I have 8 holiday parties scheduled (I have no idea how I became so popular)...one of which is with the President at the White House. I am shopping for the perfect suit this weekend! I'm also busy trying to help the government pay for this war while accommodating the demands of Obama's transition teams. People told me the transition would be an exciting time - frankly, it's more work than excitement.

I'll be in CA later this month so the postings will become even more sparse but I promise to pick it back up after the New Year.

2008-12-04T20:37:00.002-05:00

I hate 5 o'clock meetings. It's dark out, work is supposed to be winding down, and the people I work with turn neurotic. I had one of those moments today, as I was sitting in the big boss' office staring out the window right at the Washington Monument and the White House xmas tree all lite up, where I started to ask myself ridiculous rhetorical questions. What the hell am I doing here? How did I get here? Why am I here? Life is strange. I would have never guessed that when I first visited DC as a 13 year old that I would ever end up living and working here. These moments of reflection don't happen enough in my life. New Years resolution #1984723: Reflect more.

2008-11-30T16:16:00.003-05:00

How come it is so hard to find good bananas in DC? After living here for almost a year and half, I've discovered that you just can't ever get good bananas here no matter what time of year it is. Actually, come to think of it, it's really hard to get good fruit in this city. It's kind of sad when the only good fruit I can find is the cherry in Ben and Jerry's cherry garcia.

And why can't I get any Indian or Thai food delivered?

Or soyrizo?

What kind of city is this?!

2008-11-29T12:52:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was the day after Thanksgiving, in case you didn't realize this. I decided to go to work even though I was exhausted from all of the previous day's eating. I thought it'd be nice to walk into a quiet office and do some online xmas shopping for my niece and nephews (I had no intention of doing any work). I should have just stayed home - It was CHAOS and I ended up working way longer than I ever wanted to.

The day started off so perfectly. I woke up a little late, gathered all of my dry cleaning, dropped it off, and headed to the metro without incident. It was one of those mornings where I felt like I was walking along a babbling brook and jumping over cute baby ducks as they trailed their mother, while holding hands with someone I cared about. It was a little warm (40 degrees probably) and I made it onto the metro where there were maybe 5 people in my car (normally it's standing-room only). I sat down, turned up my Sasha Fierce on the good ol' iphone and daydreamed about what a nice day it would turn out to be.

I get to my office early (I guess less people on the trains mean less time at each station which translates to all trains running early), turned on all the lights, turned on the printers, fired up my computer, opened up microsoft outlook and nearly screamed. SO MANY EMAILS OVERNIGHT AND OVER THANKSGIVING DAY. WHO DOES THIS? I end up playing catch up all day on top of several unplanned meetings and by the time it was 5pm I realized I got in zero time of online shopping. Major disappointment. Instead of buying toys for my niece and nephews I ended up helping the government buy weapons to kill kids in other countries. Go me.

The one thing I was looking forward to all day (aside from online shopping) was to go see the movie "Milk" about Harvey Milk. I meet up with friends immediately after work for some dinner and then walked over to the theater. The movie, of course, was awesome. All the reviews about it are spot on - excellent. BUT, it sent me into this deep pit of self reflection that was not easy to get out of. I was so depressed - it was not a good way to start off a Friday night. In fact, I went straight home after the movie.

I had to pee so badly. Sitting through a long movie after drinking diet cokes all night was not exactly a good idea. I didn't realize this until I got off the metro and started walking home. No worries though, cause it was only a ten minute walk. I get home, run up the stairs and notice something peculiar. The lock on my door is, well, broken. The real estate agent that showed my condo earlier in the day (the condo I am living in is for sale) broke the damn lock. There was some sort of safety feature that basically sealed the door shut. I was locked out. I'll spare you the drama that ensued well into the evening but I did manage to get into my condo but not before peeing into a bush outside.

What a day!

2008-11-24T20:28:00.003-05:00

I'm really digging this new themes application on Gmail. I have mine set to ninjas!

It's another year and another Thanksgiving. It will soon be another Christmas and yet another new year. I've survived 26 of these...can you believe it? Twenty-six! I think it's time for me to put together a "things-to-do-before-turning-30" list.

1. Get a cat and name her Ms. Dashwood (cause she'll be fast and sensible-get it? sensible? ha!)
2. Buy a fixer-upper and start renovating it - all HGTV style.
3. Change jobs - not because I want to but because I should.
4. Organize a European family reunion and appease my mother so she can inch a tad closer to nirvana (long story).

I think this is all for now but I'm sure the list will grow. Now I must go and create more lists - a grocery list and a to-do list for tomorrow. Ciao!

2008-11-17T21:03:00.002-05:00

I've discovered why the government is messed up. It's all because of lazy people. I don't mean lazy like your 55 year old who's just there to pick up a paycheck and treat the government like it's some kind of jobs program (I guess this is apart of it too but these types of employees are worthless anyway). I mean the kind of lazy like your 55 year old who is in a position of authority but refuses to stand up for what's right. Maybe lazy isn't the right word for this...maybe spineless? Anyway, In my 2.5+ years of government experience I've noticed that if an issue is going to "rock the boat" or if there is no precedent for the issue than people are less likely to deal with it because it actually requires work! My new years resolution will be to not fall into this trap! I am a public servant because I want to change things not to reinforce the status quo.

And so it begins...the time of year when I jump the gun on making resolutions. YEAH!

2008-11-08T11:40:00.001-05:00

Fact #1: More gays voted for John McCain than any other Republican candidate for President, ever.

Fact #2: 70% of blacks voted yes on Prop 8.

Conclusions: Gays hate blacks and blacks hate gays.

2008-11-06T19:00:00.005-05:00

The President invited his staff to the South Lawn this morning to give us a quick 5 minute "pep talk." His message was basically "we've had an historic election so do your best to make sure the transition is smooth." It was the first time in my entire life that I smiled in his presence. He teared up near the end of his talk - I wonder what it must be like to go from being the most powerful man on earth to being just another joe six-pack. Pictures from this event below.

The invitation merely stated that the President was addressing his staff - we had no idea the ENTIRE CABINET was going to show up too! The entire head of the US government on one stage - amazing. The only person not there - Condi Rice. She was probably in Iran looking for nukes. Dick and Laura Cheney stand to his left and his wife to his right.

After his speech he came by to shake hands and kiss people on the cheek. Goodbye buddy!

2008-11-05T18:24:00.003-05:00

The craziest thing about the election last night is that, now, there are really long lines (equivalent to lines at polling places) throughout the city of people trying to buy today's Washington Post. I realize this election is historic but how valuable will the paper be if everyone has one!

I still can't stop smiling (except for when I think about prop 8) and every time I walk by the White House I think of the thousands of people shouting "yes we can" last night. I am excited to serve our new President!

2008-11-01T18:00:00.002-04:00

Yet another sign of my old age...

After looking at condos today I decided to take a nice stroll home through Howard University's campus. I noticed a long trail of charter buses parked along one street near the stadium and could hear the sounds of a band playing. I figured it was a high school band competition which could explain all the charter buses (the buses were from various locations - williamsburg, norfolk, newport news, etc) and the music in the background. I walked right up to the stadium. It was tiny--much smaller than my hometown high school stadium--and I could see a band performing. They didn't do any formations - they basically stood in place and did some dance moves. Some of the dancing was way too sexy for high schoolers but they all looked pretty young. After two bands performed I hear an announcement...."Welcome back onto the field the Howard University football team!"

WTF...it was a bunch of college students! Not high schoolers! I was watching the Howard University band. Since when did I start mistaking college students for high schoolers? I was in disbelief and was still pretty convinced that it might be some local high school football team. I came home, googled it and discovered that I was wrong--it was Howard University vs. Norfolk State University.

2008-10-30T20:03:00.002-04:00

Quick update: I saw Alan Greenspan today. Apparently he's not really retired yet, he's still pallin' around with those DC economics people. I regret not shouting "thanks for ruining our damn economy."

2008-10-28T19:46:00.002-04:00

I had an opportunity to tour the Blair House today. It is not open to the public so it was a special treat. Many world leaders have stayed there on their visits to the U.S. including Vicente Fox, Ariel Sharon, Boris Yeltsin, Queen Elizabeth II, Hamid Karzai, Pervez Musharraf, and so on. For some time, while the White House was under renovation, Truman lived there. I walked through the room where the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan were conceived. Pretty cool!

Overall the house was pleasant. It had this strange Asian theme throughout but it was also classic American--lots of ornate candlestick holders and fancy armed chairs. The courtyard was also pretty cool. There were also several paintings of classic American landscapes and of course, there was also a maid in traditional black and white attire. Overall it was a pretty cool place and I'm glad I was lucky enough to see it.

2008-10-27T21:13:00.005-04:00

Apparently there is potential for snow showers this Wednesday?! I AM SO NOT READY FOR THIS! Take me back to California!

Meanwhile, I am ready for this election to be over with. Enjoy this video:

2008-10-20T21:14:00.002-04:00

I have a love-hate relationship with my cafeteria at work. I love it because there is surprising variety for a cafeteria that serves such a small number of employees but I hate it because it is ridiculously overpriced. Today was one of those days that I hated it. I only eat in the cafeteria when I'm lazy. It's usually on a day when I don't bring lunch or it's too hot or too cold to go outside to find food. Today my excuse was that it was too cold and when I saw that they were serving onion rings, I was all about it. So I got some food, put it in a box and took it to the weigh station to pay for it. There was a woman in front of me (she had to be a visitor because she looked a hot mess) who had a blt sandwich, a small bag of chips and a diet coke. The sandwich looked pathetic--they must have used that disgusting iron kids bread. It was something you'd make on your own on a Saturday afternoon--something that would cost no more than 50 cents to make. The checkout lady looked at her and asked "how many pieces of bacon do you have?" The woman replied "two" so the checkout lady charged her an extra seventy cents! SEVENTY CENTS for a piece of bacon! Apparently their BLTs only come with one slice of bacon and any more would cost extra. Her entire bill came to $7.37--for a pathetic sandwich, a tiny bag of chips, and a soda. What has this world come to?

I did a little better--my meal was five bucks even. After accidentally paying 10 bucks or more for lunch for so many months I've finally been able to find the good deals.

2008-10-18T22:06:00.001-04:00

It is soooOooOooOOoOoooOooo cold. I love it!

2008-10-16T00:04:00.002-04:00

I can't sleep. I've got some questions. If you're a liberal and a fan of blue collar workers but you have a job that might require you to write a paper suggesting that thousands of blue collar workers should be laid off, what do you do? Be objective and write a paper based on good data even if that data suggests the firings? Do you tweak the data in a way that somehow shows these jobs are necessary (I'm not suggesting lying here)? Or do you insert your opinion in a supposedly objective paper by masking your opinion through a proposed option even if you know the option is ridiculous?

Does any of this change if you've actually met some of the Joe Six-Packs and Joe Plumbers out there who this would affect? Like, you know the guy by name and have even met some family members?

I'm not faced with this dilemma or anything, I'm just a little obsessed with ethics right now.

2008-10-11T15:54:00.007-04:00

As some of you know I've been talking a little bit about making my first home purchase. I realize the market is still bottoming out and that some might say this isn't the best time to buy (yet). Others believe it is a perfectly decent time to buy as long as you're willing to wait out this recent crisis (5+ years). My opinion is of the later and it makes sense for me because I do plan on staying in DC for at least the next 5 years.

In an effort to learn more about buying a home I went to a housing seminar. It was held in a huge church near Thomas Circle and it was attended by at least 200+ people. However, the seminar was divided into two sections--people like me who were there as first time home buyers and other people we own a home but face foreclosure because, well, they're idiots. When I walked into the church they divided us by first time buyers and people who were there for what they called the "home save" program. First time buyers sat on the right while home save people sat on the left. By 10am, when the program was supposed to start, the home save section was filled to standing room only while the first time home buyers had ample space. It was a sign of the times. By 11am the first time home buyers section became filled to standing room only but it was the overflow from the home save section. Unbelievable.

I don't personally know anyone that is in danger of losing their home or at least no one has talked to me about it. It made me realize that the crisis is real--it's not something I just read about in the papers anymore. Hundreds and Hundreds of people from all kinds of backgrounds were in that room hoping to save their homes. Kinda crazy.

On to happier news: I had a good hair day today and Michigan lost to Toledo 13-10.

2008-10-07T20:17:00.002-04:00

Did you guys know that Monday is Columbus Day? I had no idea we still celebrated this holiday! In fact, I get that Monday off--I'm all about three day weekends but...seriously? For Columbus? I learned about this holiday in the most awkward way today. While I was in an elevator with a co-worker and a secret service officer, my co-worker asked me what I was doing this 3-day weekend. I was confused about why it would be a 3-day weekend. He told me it was Columbus Day and without a second thought I exclaimed, "Why do we still celebrate this genocidal maniac?" Oops. The secret service officer glared at me and muttered under his breath something like, "without him we wouldn't be here." Dumb. Ass. I LOVED that he muttered this and didn't have the guts to say it out loud and to my face. I felt so powerful.

In fact, my nasty attitude carried into my commute home. I was on a VERY crowded metro train--I mean, my face was practically in some dude's armpit. Standing near me was a stupid metro worker--fat dude, maybe 40 years old, wearing that orange vest with reflector lights. He was no authority figure--probably a train track engineer on his way home. When the doors opened I tried to move out of the way to let people off--surprisingly, not a single person got off the train but about 20 people were trying to get on the train even though the train was already crowded. When I moved, I sort of blocked a walkway so the metro worker tapped me on my shoulder and said, "you need to move out of the aisle way." Now, I knew I was blocking traffic for a second but I was planning on moving right back to my original spot, it just took me a couple seconds to realize that no one was getting off the train. I quickly turned to the metro worker and said something like, "I know, I'm moving." Then about two seconds later I realized that the stupid ass metro worker was STANDING RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE DOOR. He was blocking half of the door with his huge belly! So I said, "It would also be helpful if you moved away from the door--you're kind of blocking it." He was so mad. I got props from my fellow riders--they all smiled at me. There is this underlying hatred of metro workers in DC. You don't realize it at first--it's something you tap in to after riding metro for a while. So anyway, he didn't move but he got off at the next stop.

I've decided to put away my new found attitude and bring it out when it can be more useful. Fighting with waste-of-life metro workers and offending a man who is supposed to protect me from terriers (terrorists, I'm being cute) is probably not the best way to use this attitude.

2008-10-04T17:04:00.008-04:00

I caved. I did it. I bought one. I am now one of them.

Below are random pictures I took last weekend. I've pretty much posted every touristy photo of D.C. so these photos are of D.C. but are only sort of touristy. Enjoy.

This is the view from Robert E. Lee's house. Nice. I guess it pays to be a racist slave owner.

Ohhhh, Thomas Jefferson. The new John Adams HBO series really doesn't paint you in the best of lights but you were still a brilliant slave owner. TJ was once VP of the U.S. Do you think Palin belongs on this sacred list of past VPs? Along with John Adams? Aaron Burr? Al Gore? Teddy Roosevelt? Harry Truman? Hell, even Richard Nixon? UGH.

I like this monument because it is SO dramatic. SO dramatic--look at her!

I took about a hundred photos of this rainbow. This was the best out of the 100...and it isn't even really a good picture.

The 9-11 memorial with the pentagon in the background. It was a peaceful place.

2008-10-02T18:36:00.005-04:00

Whew! It's been a hectic week. I'm back from ME/CT/RI without photos--sorry. Just trust me when I tell you that Maine, especially, was GORGEOUS. I love the fall.

I think J pretty much summed up his trip to D.C. here so I won't go over it again but it was a lot of fun.

I saw a guy on the metro this afternoon that looked like Raiden. Remember him from Mortal Kombat? He was my favorite character--I always picked him because I liked how he shocked people. It was also the only character I could relate to as an Asian American...except for maybe the Street Fighter characters like Chun-Li...but she was a woman. Or maybe E-Honda...but he was really fat. Oh, and of course Ryu...he was like the back-up hero after the white Ken. Hm. Wait a second. Maybe I did have Asian American role models.

I'm eagerly awaiting the VP debate tonight. If Biden screws this up I'm so going to beat him up. To my new list of favorite past times I'd like to add "browsing the web for anti-Palin material." I love clips of her interview with Katie Couric where she doesn't make any sense--like when she was asked to name a Supreme Court decision she didn't agree with or the one time she was asked of her opinion on the $700B bailout bill. I love watching her fail.

I was listening to NPR while I was in a cab last night and made this really radically Republican revelation that *gasp* - Palin is kind of treated in a sexist way by the media and both campaigns. As a fervent hater of Palin I'm kind of disgusted that I even agree with this but, well, it's kind of true. I only think this because of the way G.H.W. Bush treated Geraldine Ferraro in their VP debate back in 1984 (when I was 3 years old, yea!). He was basically an ass and constantly reminded everyone of her lack of experience, but, wait. Could her lack of experience possibly have been due to the hundreds of years of oppression perpetrated by old, straight, christian, white, men? Duh, she lacked experience because men denied her those experiences. Maybe that's why Obama, the black guy and Palin the woman are the inexperienced ones in this campaign.

Ok, I'll shut up now. Carry on.

2008-09-23T21:43:00.004-04:00

I baked cookies today as I was seething over learning that Palin has only had her passport for less than a year. I hate her and the republican party so much.

I will be m.i.a. for a few days as I spend this upcoming weekend with J and then head out to CT/RI/ME for another work trip. Will update with photos (hopefully) when I get back next Thursday.

2008-09-18T20:15:00.005-04:00

I'm back! Here are some pictures from my journey.

My first stop was Jacksonville, Florida. The buildings sure were tall for such a quaint city.

And then I ended up in the middle of nowhere Georgia paying $4.30 a gallon for gas.

Have you ever seen a gas pump that didn't accept credit cards? WTF!

We ended in Hot-lanta. It was big and surprisingly cool. No, seriously...it was cool like a perfect 70 degrees nice breeze and 0% humidity. It was the perfect day to visit Atlanta and definitely worth another visit in the future.

And now I am back gearing up for another trip to the Northeast.

2008-09-14T18:04:00.003-04:00

I went to the Cal v Maryland football game yesterday. After enduring shouts of, "go back to gay San Francisco!" and "Shove your hybrids up your ass!" and of course "go eat tofu!" Cal fans left college park as defeated losers. Oh well, I got a really nice tan out of it. I'm now this nice golden brown hue--hawt!

I will be in the boonies (Georgia and Florida) until Thursday on a work trip so you won't be hearing from me for a week. Meanwhile, visit my blog often and click on some ads for me!

2008-09-09T22:38:00.003-04:00

Tropical Storm Hanna ruined my office! I work on the top floor of a building where there just so happened to be a leak in the roof this weekend. The roof caved in. Disaster. My neighboring co-worker's office was worse off than mine but two days later and we still have gigantic fans aimed right at the wet spots to get the carpet to dry asap. It also smells like mold.

Yes, people. I work for the United States government. The most powerful government in the world. Incidents like these make me wonder, though.

I voted today in the DC primaries. When I lived in Capitol Hill, there were polling stations on practically every street corner. My polling station was one block away. How come in my new precinct, there are only 3 or 4 and the nearest one to me is a 20 minute walk and an additional 20 minute walk to the nearest metro station? It took me a full hour to walk to my polling station, vote, and then walk to a metro station to get to work. In Capitol Hill it took me no more than 10 minutes. So, first the metro comes every 8 minutes during rush hour (when it comes every 2 minutes for Capitol Hill residents) and now voting is made particularly difficult. God, it sucks being poor.

2008-09-06T11:30:00.002-04:00

Tropical storm Hanna is ruining my weekend!

This is the view from my back balcony. It has been raining consistently like this for the past few hours and it is getting worse.

Anyway, I guess staying in on a Saturday isn't too bad. I've got food, books, and netflix which should keep me busy until the storm lets up tomorrow.

2008-09-04T20:44:00.005-04:00

Whenever I visit the pentagon I take a convenient shuttle that leaves right from the front door of my office building. This shuttle takes a rather scenic route to and from the pentagon. For the last year, this shuttle has driven by the site of the 9-11 memorial and I've seen it from early construction to now. The dedication ceremony is scheduled to take place next week so the memorial is pretty much done--they're now setting up bleachers, microphone stands, etc. Every time we drive by I can't help but look at this section of the pentagon and notice the discolored walls, obviously signifying the rebuilt section that was attacked that day. The rebuilt section fits right in--it looks like it's always been there but the slight discoloration is obvious enough. Every time we drive by I notice the discoloration and it instills this irrational fear in me. This fear lingers with me subconsciously, I'm convinced. It explains why I'm afraid of walking around the E-ring and why I hold my breath every time I walk through the turnstiles in the front entrance. This might sound dramatic but this fear dictates my life for those couple of hours that I'm in the pentagon.

It reminded me of a chapter in Al Gore's book The Assault on Reason where he posits this idea of amygdala politics where people use memories of past tragedies to instill fear in people thus mobilizing large groups based on this fear. I'm not saying the 9-11 memorial is somehow this administration's attempt at amygdala politics (although this and other war memorials can probably be construed as such) but this administration is really good at it. McCain and his hooker seem to have adopted these tactics too. In this election, the right has used amygdala politics by constantly referring to McCain's "service" in Vietnam (call me an ass but why do people think he did anything--he was dumb enough to get shot down and then spent the entire war in a prison. How in the world did he "serve" when he was sitting around getting tortured all day). Conjuring thoughts and images of Vietnam certainly rile up Americans as it reminds us of a time when America was unstable and Communism won. I don't mean that fear of Communism is what is mobilizing the right now--I almost mean Communism in a figurative way, that perhaps Communism might also mean liberalism or anything that isn't moderate. Maybe if we remember Vietnam, we'll be scared enough to vote for McCain. Anyway, examples of this abound in the hooker's speech last night and throughout the RNC.

I also learned something else from this chapter--that we have these things called "mirror neurons." Supposedly, these neurons allow us to feel empathy. Gore writes about an experiment where a patient felt the same pain from being poked with a needle as when he watched another patient being poked. I guess the pain was no different whether the patient was actually poked or was just watching someone else get poked. This explains why fear of traumas and tragedies can easily be passed down several generations and why Greeks are still mad at the Turks--because you can just describe a tragic event to someone and that description will instill enough fear that will motivate them to act. You don't even have to experience the tragic event in person! God is hella jokes.

The point of this is that I think we're fucked. I'm not really saying anything new, but republicans have been so effective at monopolizing this exploitation of fear that I will forever associate 9-11 with republicans. 9-11 belongs to the republicans and they can use it to scare people into voting and supporting them. Instilling fear based on 9-11 doesn't have to be explicit, all they can say is the word "terrorist" (practically a synonym) and that's enough to galvanize ignorant America. I love you Obama but I think McCain might win.

2008-08-31T00:51:00.003-04:00

So I was just at the Dupont metro station hanging out, waiting for my train when I noticed a huge pile of vomit (HUGE) sitting right in the middle of the platform. I'd just spent the night watching Cal beat Michigan State (I know, when did I start watching football? Lets just say I was there for other reasons) and now I was spending the rest of the night watching people avoid this huge pool of vile. Some people had different approaches. One person walked dramatically around it basically navigating away about 10 feet. Others walked right up to it, noticed it was vomit and then walked around it (or jumped over it in one case). Others, of course, walked right into it. I loled every time this happened.

One gentleman walked right into the vomit, noticed it was vomit, and then walked toward me and the bench I was sitting on. My instincts told me to get up and run but for some reason I wanted to stay so I could witness what was sure to be drama. I was occupying one end of the bench while another guy was sitting on the other. The guy who walked into the vomit decided to sit right in between us and then proceeded to stomp his foot on the ground to try and get the vomit off. At first I didn't mind and thought I was safe as long as I didn't step in the bits that were flying off his shoe...until I got a whiff of the puke. I almost threw up. The vomit boy didn't feel satisfied with his stomping so he decided to take off his shoe and scrape the puke off on the edge of the bench. I had enough. I got up and walked away with the other non-vomit guy just as the train pulled up.

Turns out the other non-vomit guy went to Michigan so we bonded over that and how rude the idiot vomit boy was. I love coming home late on the metro!

2008-08-29T19:18:00.004-04:00

My roommate and I are cat sitting for the weekend. The cat caught a mouse. We had a mouse in the house. Gross.

This is the cat. You'll notice the mouse. It is dead.

Forever.

2008-08-21T23:20:00.001-04:00

Merced can now be viewed in "street view" (jesus I love google!) I looked up my home address and can see my sister's car parked outside! CREEPY!

2008-08-18T16:35:00.003-04:00

If I were to title this post I would call it something like "All about my trip on a submarine" or something. It was, well, kinda awesome.

I woke up extra early and took a cab down to a certain federal agency where I was whisked away (along with a couple others) in private cars to Andrews Air Force Base (this is the same base that the President flies out of when he's not using his helicopter). We got on a private plane (it was one of those gulfstream ones) where I was greeted by a 4-star admiral, which was pretty special cause there are only like 9 or 10 four star admirals in the whole country. For you Hollywood types it would kinda be like being greeted by a B-list actor (A-list would be like the President, VP, or a Senator or something). Then, off we went.

Our destination was Cape Canaveral. During our flight we were fed the best airplane food of my life. I had my own private stash of chocolate (lots of M&Ms--my favorite!) and basically the best amenities ever. As we were landing we flew right over the space shuttle runways and got pretty awesome views of all the launch pads. Kinda awesome.

Now, since we were with a 4-star admiral we were treated like royalty. We had our own police escort from Cape Canaveral to the pier where the submarine was moored and once we got to the pier the welcome was rather impressive. I felt like a rock star. The submarine was pretty cool--it was pretty much what I expected. Once the sub got underway I started to feel queasy and began to wonder if I'd make it without throwing up. The tour was extensive. We spent a few hours in the engine room where I learned all about nuclear power and also spent a good amount of time in the control room.

As we were checking out the monitors in the control room, our guide began talking about the sonar screen and described how the young sailors responsible for sonar go through extensive training. In fact, these sonar guys can usually tell with near 100 percent accuracy what stuff is based on the noise it makes. The guide pointed to the screen and asked the sonar monitor, "report classification." The young sailor replied, "biological." It was straight out of Hunt for Red October. Anyway, "biological" meant some type of animal. As the guide continued to explain this I couldn't help but hope that the poor dolphin that they detected didn't die from the sonar!

Speaking of dolphins, the highlight of my tour was when I climbed up to the bridge and got to peek outside of the submarine as it was steaming toward shore. I saw the cutest shit ever--dolphins playing in the wake that was created by the submarine! It was so so cute, they were jumping in and out of the water--it was as if they were racing us.

So, I didn't end up throwing up and we were able to escape Florida before the gnarly pseudo-hurricane hit. This was definitely a trip of many firsts. That was about it--on our way home we got back on our private plane and ate steak and shrimp scampi. Sigh, work is so hard.

2008-08-16T17:33:00.005-04:00

I woke up today and realized that I had absolutely no commitments. I had the entire day to myself! I live for days like these. After waking up and eating breakfast I headed to the metro to begin my day. First stop--West Elm.

As I was waiting for the metro (brace yourself, yet another metro story) I witnessed a smelly man spit into his hands, rub them together, then wipe them off on his clothes. He then decided to grab onto every single pole on the train. Every minute or so he would lick his palm or some of his fingers as if he was trying to get rid of something sticky and then touch everything in site. This was absolutely disgusting. I will never touch anything on the metro ever again.

West Elm was fun. I've decided that it's way too expensive and I can get the same quality stuff at Ikea for cheaper even when you include renting a car to drive out to College Park or Woodbridge.

After buying nothing at West Elm I decided it would be nice to go visit a museum that I haven't been to. So, off I went to the National Gallery of Art. It's basically that one museum you have in town that holds all that cliche European crap by Van Gogh, Monet and Rembrandt. BTW, Rembrandt was a really sad man. Anyway, there were some really cool exhibits though like one by this one guy named Martin Puryear. He made some really cool sculptures mostly from wood. Kind of amazing. There was also an exhibit called, "Afghanistan, Hidden Treasures from the National Museum, Kabul." As you can probably guess, since this is America, it was the most crowded and annoying part of my visit. Why does it have to take a damn war for Americans to care about countries like Afghanistan? I spent at most 3 minutes in the exhibit because it was clear that the people there seemed to be there only out of guilt. I didn't want to be apart of it.

Now I'm off to some football thing. Weird, I know.

2008-08-15T19:13:00.002-04:00

On Monday I will be in a submarine in the middle of the Atlantic ocean. You won't be able to contact me from 5:30am until about midnight. I hope your life doesn't fall apart without me.

I hope you're enjoying the Olympics. I certainly am. Unlike years past, I've been able to manage the amount of time I spend in front of the tv. I devote a maximum of 3 hours a day on the Olympics which includes reading about it online. I hope I don't lose my security clearance over this, but China deserves a pat on the back. Good on ya!

2008-08-09T23:28:00.003-04:00

I've definitely moved from one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in DC to one of the poorest. I can tell this by the way the metro trains service my metro stop. During rush hour, in Capitol Hill, the trains came every two minutes. I NEVER had to wait for a train. During rush hour, in Columbia Heights, the trains come every 6 minutes. I ALWAYS have to wait for a train. 6 minutes during rush hour is unacceptable. I know 6 minutes doesn't sound like a lot but you'd be surprised how many people show up and how crowded the platforms get in a matter of minutes. This is starting to annoy me because this shit is racist.

The demographic make-up of my fellow passengers are, of course, totally different. I used to have to fight against crowds of obnoxiously young hill staffers in their suits. I now make sure to avoid all crowds cause I'm afraid I might get stabbed. Today, as I was waiting for my train I sat sat next to these two youngsters flirting with each other. The girl tells the guy that she's hungry and that her main problem in life is that there isn't any food in the house. So the guy reached over and started rubbing her belly and saying, "is this stomach full?" The girl replied, "Yea, its full for now cause I need to be careful since I'm eating for two!" HILARIOUS. The guy freaked out. This would not happen in Capitol Hill.

2008-08-08T21:48:00.002-04:00

A lot has happened in the past few weeks and there really hasn't been much time for blogging. In fact, there really hasn't been much time to notice things happening, which means I've got no material for this blog.

I still plan on posting pictures of my new place but my room is still a disaster and needs at least a few more weeks of work. Maybe you won't see these pictures for a while.

That's all for now.

2008-08-06T09:00:00.003-04:00

I moved. My life is all over the place. Will update with new pictures of my place soon.

2008-07-29T22:42:00.003-04:00

This is my last night in Capitol Hill. I'm not sad. I can't wait to move! I've moved every single year since I was 18 which means I'm a total master at it. However, this year is proving to be the most challenging move yet--having to move in the middle of the week while juggling work and making an overnight trip to Norfolk and without a car! Thank god I'm type-A.

I was having one of those existential crises earlier today where I was debating the purpose of my life in relation to my career. I sat in a briefing where the presenter described his experience with a suicide bomber, losing a fellow marine, and surviving the siege of Fallujah. He was so matter-of-fact and almost celebratory of his experiences. I wanted to die. Do I really want to be a part of the problem? Or am I being a good enough mole? I don't get it, there is like, really no point in public service anymore. I should just move home and open a McDonald's--at least I'd be helping to feed people instead of imposing economic sanctions on them. Why did I not take one of those gap years like the Europeans where I fart around for a year trying to find myself. I could have really used this!

Anyway, back to packing. My next post will be from my new home in Columbia Heights. Peace.

2008-07-24T20:08:00.004-04:00

Two posts in a day! Lucky you!

I finished reading Scott McClellan's book, "What Happened." It was kinda dumb. The media totally mischaracterized his book. However, I learned a lot about Condi Rice. This is one of the meanest paragraphs from his book:

"Condi Rice is hard to get to know. She plays her cards close to the vest, usually saving her views for private discussions with Bush. Over time, however, I was struck by how deft she is at protecting her reputation. No matter what went wrong, she was somehow able to keep her hands clean, even when the problems related to matters under her direct purview, including the WMD rationale for war in Iraq, the decision to invade Iraq, the sixteen words in the State of the Union address, and postwar planning and implementation of the strategy in Iraq. Some say she should have pushed harder to heed the threat warnings and focus the White House on terrorism prior to 9/11. Although she has been the president's top foreign policy advisor and coordinator of his national security team, she has largely allowed responsibility for all these matters to fall on people like former CIA director George Tenet, Paul Bremer, and Don Rumsfeld. If, as President Bush likes to say, results really do matter, then history will likely judge her harshly as the person responsible for overseeing a number of the defining--and, at least in the short term, ill-fated--policies of the Bush administration."

Damn. Condi, I hate you now.

2008-07-24T19:55:00.003-04:00

Do you guys remember Spike from the last season of Top Chef? He's the one that's got messed up facial hair and always wears a silly hat. I MET HIM TODAY! He opened up Good Stuff Eatery on Capitol Hill a few days ago about two blocks from my house. I decided to stop by after work to try it out.

The line was LONG. I had to wait about half an hour to order but once I ordered, I got my food within ten minutes. I ordered a turkey burger and the village fries--both freaking delicious. Everything he had on the menu was pretty unique in some way. There was also a nice array of dipping sauces (well, I used them as such) such as the siracha mayo. I was a little dismayed by the heating lamps--some burgers were sitting in a little try under a hot lamp. That was not cute. I was also a little weirded out by the "enviro charge" of eleven cents. If you're gonna try to be all cool and enviro friendly than don't pass those costs onto your customers. Pay them yourself--out of your profit.

So anyway, I was totally shocked to see that Spike was there--AND WORKING. He was busy passing out food to people. I couldn't believe that I didn't notice a single person chatting with him. I thought he'd be all celebrity status with crowds all around him, but nope.

If you live in DC you've got to try this place!

2008-07-20T19:47:00.010-04:00

Just got back from California. Although I spent most of it in LA and SF I've decided to dedicate this post to pictures I took while at the Merced County Fair. YEEEEE-HAWW!

The main drag. I ate at that "Eggroll on a Stick" joint. It was so good.

They had turkey races. It was entertaining for like two seconds.

DESTRUCTION DERBY! Yee haww! Car number 11 (that black one) won!

Car 11 is ramming car 69 from behind. Hahaha I'm so funny.

One of the cars decided to spew mud all over us. Gross.

Then we went to look at the animals. These are pigs--for all you city folk who might not know.

I don't really know what's going on here. Something with some animal from another pin stealing from these two little goats or something.

A camel.

2008-07-09T23:13:00.003-04:00

Alright folks. I'll be out in CA until the 21st. I may or may not post while I am there--chances are that I won't. Don't get too bored while you wait for another one of my enthralling posts.

2008-07-06T18:31:00.002-04:00

I have an embarrassing moment to report. So, today while I was volunteering at the Smithsonian someone noticed that people were setting up a stage and chairs near my desk so they asked me what was going on. I told them that there would be a performance at 3:00. Naturally the visitor asked, "what is the performance about?" I looked over at some poster that indicated that the title of the performance was "Buddhist Dances of the Monastery." So I go to say, "the performance is called 'Buddhist Dances of the Mona....Mona-stri....Monastray.'" I COULD NOT PRONOUNCE MONASTERY.

There is some history here that I should probably enlighten you with. You see, just to be an ass I started pronouncing monastery as "mon-ASS-tery" a few years back cause I found it amusing. Ever since then I've only ever had to say the word among friends and they usually got my sense of humor. When it came time, today, to actually use the word in a professional sense I completely forgot the correct pronunciation. Eventually I figured out how to say it but for the first few people that asked about it I pointed my figure at the poster and basically said, "that's what the performance is."

I'm sure that as I get older this will only get worse. Sigh.

2008-06-30T22:12:00.003-04:00

On my walk home from work today I overheard something really funny. I was near the Capitol when I came upon this mom with her two sons. The sons looked to be about 10 years old or so. One boy looks at his mom and asks, "Mom, is Diane WEINstein the Senate Majority Leader?" I nearly died...cause he clearly meant to say Feinstein but inadvertently said Weinstein which could have also been interpreted as WHINEstein. Hilarious! FYI the Senate Majority Leader is Harry Reid and I have no idea why a ten year old would want to know who the senate majority leader is or even what that is. Only in DC.

It looks like I will be moving to Columbia Heights on August 1st so I won't have anymore exciting Capitol Hill stories to share. Instead of complaining about ridiculous "Dear Ann" letters to the local Capitol Hill newsletter I'll probably be complaining about murders and dangerous thugs (cause Columbia Heights is like that). I predict I'll probably be mugged at least once (although, I was sort of mugged in Capitol Hill/Eastern Market a few days ago--some stupid kids stole cash and my metro card from my wallet at the local pool) and I'll probably talk about how I fear for my life and am afraid to leave my house when it's dark out. The thugs in DC are way more hardcore than anywhere else that I've lived--including Ann Arbor and LA. I suppose if I lived in South Central or Detroit it would be different, but still--DC thugs are no joke. Pray for my safety.

2008-06-21T17:11:00.015-04:00

I was stuck in Virginia for work this past week. It was a pretty interesting trip--I got to walk underneath the first nuclear powered aircraft carrier ever. Aside from working really really hard (:o)) I visited the beach, Williamsburg, and Jamestown. Enjoy the photos.

Virginia Beach! I am not much of a beach person but I brought a book and tanned for a few hours.

Another shot of the beach. It looked pretty much like every other beach I've been to.

I could totally hear the conversation now. Mother to son, "now, if you would just lose some weight you would be able to serve on board one of those aircraft carriers in those pictures" as she points to the monument in front of them.

The plaque read, "I am the Norwegian woman." Apparently the Norwegian woman is supposed to save ships from wrecking or something. This was outside of the old Coast Guard station there.

And then I went to Colonial Williamsburg. I've been wanting to see this little town for quite some time now. This is a picture of some garden.

This was some old church. Notice the funny looking guy standing guard at the front door. They had people in costumes and stuff. I have to say, they did a pretty good job never breaking character and creating a fairly authentic feel of what it would be like to be around in the early 1700s.

The costumed people were actual characters of real people that were alive in this town back then. I was too cheap to buy the 30+ dollars to be able to talk to the interpreters so I'm not sure who this guy driving the cart is.

Another church. This one is still in use.

And then I went to the Jamestown settlement. No, silly, this brick building isn't actually the settlement. It's just the visitor's center.

The white people that recreated the settlement to make a profit (it cost $13.50 to get in) felt guilty about what their ancestors did to the Indians so they created a little village in their memory. This is how the Powhatan Indians lived, apparently.

I don't really know what this is but it was pretty cool looking.

These are replicas of the original three ships that landed at Jamestown. I walked on each of them--it is amazing that these small little things made it across the Atlantic. Them English sure were brave.

Another one of those costume guys hanging out.

2008-06-14T14:31:00.008-04:00

Did a tour of the White House gardens this morning. Pictures below.

Jackie O's sculpture garden. Near the East Wing.

West Wing entrance from the South Lawn.

West Wing entrance to Oval Office through the Rose Garden.

Jeb Bush's hand print in the Children's Garden.

Maybe Barack Obama will allow black soled shoes on these tennis courts!

2008-06-13T09:58:00.002-04:00

Major power outage in DC today. Like, totally Victoria Beckham major. This means I've got an entire day off! Hmmmm...what do I do with all this time?