Friday, November 24, 2017

My Third 21 Days as a D.C. Resident


1.     Enjoyed round two at the Army Ten Miler, but afterwards admitted that ten miles is really not my distance
2.     Got invited to join the National Press Club
3.     Asked the Assistant to the President to let me take a photo of his socks for #Socktober17, a fundraiser for the homeless
4.     Finally watched the Blair Witch Project in honor of Halloween at the Library of Congress
5.     Seriously considered buying cheap flights to Paris or Seattle on Skyscanner
6.     Hunted for the perfect pumpkin with Jordan at Eastern Market
7.     Savored a wonderful vegetarian Ethiopian spread at Ethiopic with Starr
8.     Officially acknowledged Capitol Hill as a hill
9.     Got 13 hours’ notice to run a 10k with theMarine Corps crew and re-embraced that distance
10. Attended a reception for the Bare Short Film
11. Enjoyed an incredible Kurdish four course meal cooked by my brave new friend Julia
12. Ran into a fifth familiar person out and about the D.C. metro area
13. Watched the last seven minutes of a Supreme Court case (after over two and a half hours in line)
14. Took a photo with Mariah and the alternative Fruit of the Loom bunch (from Wegman's)
15. Joined Capital BikeShare and traipsed about the city
16. Attended a “wine down” with stimulating conversation
17. Hit two twenty minute metro delays after mistakenly going on autopilot late at night
18. Walked a cat on a leash around Capitol Hill with Sofia
19. Made a fourth visit to the DMV
20. Continued to debate when the weather might reliably become autumnal
21. Reengaged my French skills at a French conversation group dinner after too much dormancy 
22. Discovered that I was sitting next to a Secret Service agent at Ebenezers
23. Fundraised to bar-goers at Penn Social
24. Finally made it to the White House Garden tour
25. Marveled incredulously at my GPS’s ability to show me getting further and further from a nearby target destination
26. Went to the Senate briefing on biodiversity and wildlife corridors
27. Did a HIIT workout downtown in Halloween costume (accompanied by a snowman, Iron Man and Ariel)
28. Spotted several people doing pro-circulation yoga relaxation with their legs up the wall of the base of the Washington Monument
29. Talked my way into puppy-sitting duties
30. Appreciated noon fireworks and shared a bench swing with a stranger at the grand opening of the Wharf
31. Considered Yoga District intensive teacher certification
32. Watched sunrise from the Lincoln Memorial and couldn’t stop myself from taking another photo of the “same” view
33. Admired the skills of the roller skate dancer at the Walk Out of Darkness finale
34. Made repeat visits to the Protein Bar and La Loma with Matt
35. Had a coffee date with Emily at the Senate fountain
36. Added some diversity while volunteering for Diwali at the Freer Gallery
37. Fought the rain to get to a Kennedy Center Millennium Stage concert

Monday, November 6, 2017

More Intentionals and Unintentionals: My Second 21 Days as a D.C. Resident


  1. Spotted the AMTRAK Special Operations team 
  2. Barely survived an Equinox Tabata class with Melissa 
  3. Officially crowned Un Je Ne Sais Quoi as awesome (and converted Matt’s coworkers and Grace) 
  4. Reminisced about recent years with two fellow Army brats from middle school and earlier
  5. Waited hours for free ice cream and then got photobombed by Jeni
  6. Rediscovered the National Zoo and its most excellent informational signage 
  7. Got hit by a bike while jogging
  8. Met two members of the Sweetgreen events team…however, I’m still trying to figure out the pattern behind the forward versus backwards e logos? 
  9. Visited several trendy Alexandria shops with Emily
  10. Ordered the “Melania” mocktail at Off the Record while Matt tricked me into dinner instead of appetizers 
  11. Discovered the existence of the Mean Girls musical on Mean Girls Day 
  12. Reveled in the nearby brand spanking new Trader Joe’s 
  13. Failed twice at getting into the Bureau of Engraving and Printing tour 
  14. Nerded out while touring NPR headquarters 
  15. Made two visits to Shake Shack with Matt 
  16. Took way too many photos at the United States Botanic Garden 

  17. Participated in car-free day 
  18. Got offered a free cappuccino at DC Coffee Fest  
  19. Watched the This is Us premiere with Emily 
  20. Was serenaded by the “Honk 4 Trump Unity Bridge”
  21. Spent more than twenty minutes in line at Columbia Heights Target on a Tuesday at 6:35 pm 
  22. Adventured through four galleries with Morgan for First Friday Dupont 
  23. Marveled at every corner of Union Market
  24. Passed crew teams on the Potomac and the George Washington cross country team on the nearby streets
  25. Spotted a senator on a date night walk (complete with a blissful McDonald’s hot fudge sundae)
  26. Debated which business-appropriate, laptop-fitting bag I should purchase to match the local uniform
  27. Discussed the merits of Logan Circle with Robin 
  28. Jogged through a cloud of pigeons on the National Mall 
  29. Ate lunch with Janie behind the waterfall in the National Museum of the American Indian