I've been on so many adventures. Here are the ones I remember.
Places I've Gone:
- The top of the Washington Monument. I freaked out at the incredible view.
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| Not many people get to see the front door of the MRR thrown open like this |
- The White House (just out front. I'm still waiting to get tickets to go inside)
- Inside the Library of Congress' Main Reading Room--Finally! I know you're all thinking: what took you so long? I don't really have an excuse except that it's annoying to have to check your personal belongings at the door in order to get in and also I haven't really had anything to research. I'd rather focus on my job hunt! But, during an evening open house event, I got to be the Main Reading Room doorwoman, which meant that I got a nifty silver clicker and got to smile and welcome people through the open front doors of the Main Reading Room (normally researchers have to wind their way to the back entrance for security reasons) and count them with the clicker. It made for a delightful evening.
- Spit Dat open mic. A friend who had my internship a year ago recommended me some poetry events and I have been feeling a bit poetry-bereft lately, so I headed down to a new part of town to try out an evening open mic. And boy am I glad I went. The people there were inclusive and kind and the open mic itself was filled with talented people singing, reading, slamming, or reciting poetry, rapping, playing guitar, and the community was just outstanding. Plus there was fun audience participation. It was an event I felt I had been missing my whole life, and I am glad it happens every week.
- On top of the LC Jefferson building dome My office is the one that gives dome tours, which are pretty exclusive events, but, since I'm the intern I am special enough to get my own personal dome tour! It was amazing and amazingly peaceful. I wanted to stay up there all day. Then after we went up as high as we could on the dome (not quite all the way to the flame of knowledge, but close enough), my coworker brought me into the Main Reading Room for my second time so I could see just how high up we were. Then we left by going down the super secret staircase inside the central desk. It leads to the book retrieval department. Wicked cool.
- On John Marshall's lap. Let me preface this by saying I do not condone climbing up on statues. But it's John Marshall. He was sitting there in the middle of a dim park, all alone and begging for me to go say hello. I was gentle to him, but accidentally not to my roommates who gave me a boost (sorry guys, I'm not terribly athletic). No one was the worse for the wear though, and I only feel a little guilty about the whole thing. I promise I won't do it again.
Museums or Galleries I've Visited:
- Air and Space Museum
- Museum of Natural History
- National Gallery of Art
- DC Fashion Week. These are the sorts of things I wouldn't get up to if it weren't for my fab roommate Miranda. They were giving away free tickets to a fashion week show, and we were stoked. When we got there, we found out that it was in a crappy old storefront and the fashion designers were mostly college students. Hence the "free" pricetag. But it made for fun people watching--and being watched, and we walked away not entirely disappointed.
- Claremont Trio at the LOC. Twin sisters playing strings and their piano-playing friend. Wonderful.
- Too much of and not enough of the Capitol building. Okay, if you haven't been in the Capitol building, let me tell you that it's HUGE, and if you haven't had a tour of it, you're going to get VERY LOST while trying to make deliveries for your office. It was terrifying. I asked a lot of people for help, and some were extremely helpful. I wouldn't have made it out alive if it weren't for some of those staffers. I would have wandered the crypt forever.
- A drag show. My little school in Morris has a student-run drag show every year, and it's the best thing that happens on our little campus. It's fun to see people you know turn into people you very much don't know on stage, it's exciting to see the professional drag queens, and there's always a message of love and acceptance. So I thought I'd share the love with my group of friends and take them to a big city drag show. Plus I wanted to see what they were like when they weren't in a college auditorium. The show was everything I expected and more--there was a lot of glitter. My experience can be summed up in one vingette: me standing in the front row while a queen stares me intensely in the eye and sings "It's a Woman's World."
- Another snow day! It snowed quite a lot so I had the day off and I didn't go outside once, but I did make tarts and was otherwise happily lazy. This is the life, I tell you.
- Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address in person. In person. Lincoln's Second Inaugural. The one where he tries to stitch together a torn country in 700 words or less. This 150-year-old document was just a few inches away from my eyes. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience since the Library doesn't display it often anymore.
- Curtis Chamber Orchestra. A bunch of kids. Kids I tell you! (they were college students but they certainly didn't look like it) They packed the tiny Coolidge Auditorium stage at the LOC and played some amazing music. My favorite was the one percussionist. He was so earnest. And accidentally dropped a drumstick during the silence following a dramatic finale. <3
- Breakfast with my senator okay, this one is a stretch, but I DID sign up to have breakfast with Senator Al Franken, which is something he does for his constituents every Wednesday orning. Unfortunately for me, an MS group was there hanging out with him, which took him away from the breakfast. Oh well. The wild rice porridge was still delicious. You should try it. Recipe here.
- The first robins of spring on the lawn of the Jefferson Building on March 12th. Weeks earlier than they arrive in Minnesota!
- Capitol Hill Books. It's a two-story shop absolutely packed to the gills with books, used and new, organized by a very dedicated person who puts helpful signs around pointing you in the right direction. And seems to be a bit crotchety, judging by the sign of youngster slang not allowed to be spoken in the store. But I forgive them.
- DC St. Patrick's Day Parade. It was so cool! Holly and Kay and I made sure to get there really early so we could get good spots on the curb, but we needn't have worried, because apparently the St. Patrick's Day parade is slightly less popular than other parades. Anyway, there were dozens of gorgeous horses, military bands, firetrucks, various Irish cultural groups, bagpipes, and so many Irish dance groups. Seriously. I didn't know so many existed in the country, let alone the nearby area. I got two pieces of candy and stole a shamrock tattoo from a child to give to Holly. You're welcome, Holly. Then after the parade we went to Sweetgreen for some amazing salads. That place is so amazing. It's like chipotle for salads, but not trying so hard.
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| BOOKS. |
- Free queso at Tortilla Coast--twice. Thanks, Miranda, for getting two coupons for free queso at a giveaway. We made two trips out there, and I'm pretty sure our waiter really resented us for being poor and just getting a drink with our queso so we didn't spend a lot of money. Sorry, man, I would totally have tipped you extra if you didn't give us an entire bowl of crumbs instead of tortilla chips. We'll call it a draw.
- Shake Shack. I got a classic burger and fries at the Union Station Shake Shack, and it was definitely a quality meal. Then I found out they have a nifty hideaway corner where you can sit and work on your computer, so I did that for the rest of the afternoon. Thanks, Shake Shack. I'll have to come back and try a shake next time.
- An Amish whoopie pie at Eastern Market. Miranda and I tried the chocolate (was supposedly nutella but I didn't notice that flavor) and the mint. They were pretty good. I felt slightly more conservative afterwards. Like I wanted to wear only blue and black forever.
- McDonald's. Okay, it seems silly, but you have to understand that there are zero fast food restaurants on the hill. Sure, there are pizza and sandwich shops, there's even a Subway and Dunkin Doughnuts in my work's basement, but they're all so hipster. There aren't any good old fashioned cheap and fast and greasy chain restaurants. So when my roommates and I picked a random direction and started walking, we didn't expect to find a McD's. We all freaked out then bought fries and a shamrock shake and a McDouble to celebrate. Awww yissssss.
- Mr. Yogato. Let me explain. It's a frozen yogurt shop where you can do silly things and answer trivia questions to get discounts on your order. I ordered like a ghost, named one element that ends in "y," and got a giant blue stamp on my forehead that said "Mr. Yogato stamped me!!" in order to get $1.00 off my order. Not half bad! I'm gonna work on the "stand one-legged on tiptoe with eyes closed for 15 seconds" challenge for the future.
- A lot of good homemade food. In spite of not having a fully-stocked kitchen, I've kicked up my cooking a notch, and I've learned to eat mushrooms, made delicious elaborate salads, spaghetti squash, chili, pizza, refried beans, tiny fruit tarts, and more. Mmmmmm.
Things I've Learned:
- DC drivers are assholes. Like to the point where they'll swear at you because you crossed on a "walk" sign and traffic was bad so they were in your way in the crosswalk.
- I'm still incapable of using elevators without getting off on the wrong floor.
- Lobbyists and other groups love to host receptions with open bars and piles of catered food for congress, and if you know anyone in the House or Senate *cough*Miranda*cough* you can just walk in like you own the place. You do have to listen to little men talking about how their companies are looking for the missing Malaysian Airlines plane, but hey, plusses and minuses.
