Today I had a 3 hour tour. 3 hours!!!! Damn line to get into the House gallery. blah.
After work I met Amanda and Amber at Union Station and we went to Chinatown to meet up with Amanda's friend Elina. She is one of the most amazing women I have ever met. LOOOVED HER. She's Cuban and took us to this Spanish tapas bar where we got to speak Spanish and eat awesome food and drink sangria. She is one of those people who is so energetic and intelligent...felt dumb, but loved her.
With the sangria we got to have a little paella mixta tapa which was delicious and served right from a giant paella dish from right in front of us. Then we got a table for "dinner" which was just more tapas. We had pan catalan, patatas bravas, croquetas de pollo, y chorizo. Sooooo good! I was listening to Estopa today and getting really Avila-sick. Tonight was the perfect medicine. For dessert we split churros y chocolate y tres leches. Awesome. I am now OBSESSED with tres leches. sooo good.
Saw Charlie St. Cloud afterwords...you know...just because. Not so good. Zac was nice though.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Happy Hour
Booooring day of work. Yesterday I went to a hearing on foreign policy with Turkey which was Awesome, but today: nothing. really boring. Asked Sara for work and she had nothing...ugh. After work made plans to meet up with John and Dan to go to McFadden's where Dan had a happy hour so drinks were for $2. Took Karen with me and we ended up having a great time...as usual. I have gone out with those guys almost every day this week and it's been so much fun. LOVE them. But also miss friends from home. :(. Wish Eric or Lauryn or Proma were here...o well. I am enjoying myself. Tomorrow is an hour short!
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
GREAT NIGHT! After work we decide rapidly to go to the Nationals game. I met up with Erica and Annie and went to the stadium and then met up with John and Dan. The game was really fun and we ate hot dogs and cracker jacks and drank beer. A lot of fun. We took the metro there but ended up walking back...it wasn't even that far.
Monday, July 26, 2010
12 Angry Men
1. Work
- run some things to the capitol building and get to explore to find some hidden rooms
- play the LA Times crossword with a group of people and finish one in under 15 minutes
- meet Carl. We have a coffee date together. Get to ask questions and talk about ourselves a bit. He was really interested in me because of my Mac roots. He went to Swarthmore which is pretty similar so he was loving that. He told me about a 5 minute history about Scots-Irish and their objection to government and gun control and their declaration of independence from britain in 1775. I received with this story a good 5 minutes of eye contact which was kinda awkward and uncomfortable, but cool...i felt like I was in "Baby Mama".
He was actually a very interesting and funny man...not that I thought he wouldn't be, but he surprised me with how much he made us laugh. He story about a guy calling him a whore. The most interesting part to me and the question I had for him was his comments on the polarization of our political system. He attributed a lot of it to the lack of camaraderie within the senate now-a-days. Everything is done over e-mail or phone and the senators don't see each other much outside their offices or the floor like his experiences when he first joined. The lack of the human experience with the other allows the hostile environment and willingness to refuse compromise....pretty interesting stuff.
Pub: After work I went to Union Pub with John, Dan, Mike, Keifer, Erica, and Annie. We got 1.50 16 oz PBRs (haha) and $5 quesadillas. Decent stuff. Afterwords I went home and changed really fast and practically sprinted the mile to the park where I met Dan
so we could kick a ball around. It felt good to get some touches though I don't feel so comfortable with the ball yet. Good time. Walked back home and took a quick shower.
Movie: Karen and I left around 8:30 or so and met Dan and John at their place. We had some blankets and walked to the national mall where a movie was being played on a screen in front of the capitol. Very cool setting. 12 Angry Men was the film and it was just 1.5 hours of twelve guys arguing out a case and debating facts and reasonable doubt, etc. Pretty decent movie actually. We met Annie, Erica, and Chris there. After the film ended we decided to walk to the WWII monument. It was so pretty in the moonlight with the fountain going. Made the trek back home swapping some good stories with the guys. I love hanging out with them...with our little Michigan gang. ha.
NEEDED some water, but now I feel hydrated and ready for bed. Made my call to Omeed for his birthday today and I actually need to get up early to go to the grocery store so I have milk for breakfast and bread for lunch...ah!
- run some things to the capitol building and get to explore to find some hidden rooms
- play the LA Times crossword with a group of people and finish one in under 15 minutes
- meet Carl. We have a coffee date together. Get to ask questions and talk about ourselves a bit. He was really interested in me because of my Mac roots. He went to Swarthmore which is pretty similar so he was loving that. He told me about a 5 minute history about Scots-Irish and their objection to government and gun control and their declaration of independence from britain in 1775. I received with this story a good 5 minutes of eye contact which was kinda awkward and uncomfortable, but cool...i felt like I was in "Baby Mama".
He was actually a very interesting and funny man...not that I thought he wouldn't be, but he surprised me with how much he made us laugh. He story about a guy calling him a whore. The most interesting part to me and the question I had for him was his comments on the polarization of our political system. He attributed a lot of it to the lack of camaraderie within the senate now-a-days. Everything is done over e-mail or phone and the senators don't see each other much outside their offices or the floor like his experiences when he first joined. The lack of the human experience with the other allows the hostile environment and willingness to refuse compromise....pretty interesting stuff.
Pub: After work I went to Union Pub with John, Dan, Mike, Keifer, Erica, and Annie. We got 1.50 16 oz PBRs (haha) and $5 quesadillas. Decent stuff. Afterwords I went home and changed really fast and practically sprinted the mile to the park where I met Dan
so we could kick a ball around. It felt good to get some touches though I don't feel so comfortable with the ball yet. Good time. Walked back home and took a quick shower.Movie: Karen and I left around 8:30 or so and met Dan and John at their place. We had some blankets and walked to the national mall where a movie was being played on a screen in front of the capitol. Very cool setting. 12 Angry Men was the film and it was just 1.5 hours of twelve guys arguing out a case and debating facts and reasonable doubt, etc. Pretty decent movie actually. We met Annie, Erica, and Chris there. After the film ended we decided to walk to the WWII monument. It was so pretty in the moonlight with the fountain going. Made the trek back home swapping some good stories with the guys. I love hanging out with them...with our little Michigan gang. ha.
NEEDED some water, but now I feel hydrated and ready for bed. Made my call to Omeed for his birthday today and I actually need to get up early to go to the grocery store so I have milk for breakfast and bread for lunch...ah!
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Wind Storm!!!
Woke up and got ready to go to the Holocaust Museum with Amanda, Karen, and Amber. We went and walked around, but got there too late to see the permanent exhibition. Oops. We left a bit after 3 and started to walk towards Chinatown to get some fro-yo. At the crosswalk this policeman rolls down his window and says, "Ladies, you are going to want to turn around and get inside."
Weird, but we did. Went back to the museum where a bunch of people were trying to get inside. Suddenly this big gust of wind starts blowing and we just get hit with tons of silt and sand. It eventually starts pouring and thundering and lightning and we are just stuck inside a museum which we just saw everything in. About 1/2 hour later or so we were able to leave and made our way home.
I am tired, but it was a great day and hilarious when the policeman rolled down his window to instruct us to go inside. ay.
Weird, but we did. Went back to the museum where a bunch of people were trying to get inside. Suddenly this big gust of wind starts blowing and we just get hit with tons of silt and sand. It eventually starts pouring and thundering and lightning and we are just stuck inside a museum which we just saw everything in. About 1/2 hour later or so we were able to leave and made our way home.
I am tired, but it was a great day and hilarious when the policeman rolled down his window to instruct us to go inside. ay.
La Loma
Had a nice last day before Hannah left. Amanda, Hannah, and I walked to Union Station to mail some of Hannah's stuff to her house and then we hit up La Loma, a mexican restaurant on the way home. I got a chicken enchilada and a tamale. Delicious. We had a good time. It is ridiculous how close I am with these girls already. Not enough time.
Came back home and watched TV as Hannah finished packing up and Amber and Karen came over. When she had to leave we went out to the curb to hail a cab. Nima grabbed his scale to weigh her bags and we found her larger one was 3 lbs over so we transferred some things and ended up taking out 4 lbs. It was funny how accomplished we all felt. Hailed a cab and Hannah left. :(
Amanda and I came back and had Shrek 3 on, but we so tired we just fell asleep on the couch. I woke up a little before 9 and made a sandwich before the girls from upstairs came down and we decided to go to the store to get some sort of sweet and watch a movie. We watched She's Out of My League - which is a GREAT movie. by the way. Had a great night. Came back and watched some of the Jersey Shore marathon before heading to bed.
Came back home and watched TV as Hannah finished packing up and Amber and Karen came over. When she had to leave we went out to the curb to hail a cab. Nima grabbed his scale to weigh her bags and we found her larger one was 3 lbs over so we transferred some things and ended up taking out 4 lbs. It was funny how accomplished we all felt. Hailed a cab and Hannah left. :(
Amanda and I came back and had Shrek 3 on, but we so tired we just fell asleep on the couch. I woke up a little before 9 and made a sandwich before the girls from upstairs came down and we decided to go to the store to get some sort of sweet and watch a movie. We watched She's Out of My League - which is a GREAT movie. by the way. Had a great night. Came back and watched some of the Jersey Shore marathon before heading to bed.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
O Fer Hersure/Hannah's Last Night
Epic night. Awesome.
Had TWO tours today. The first one involved a woman who works for the FSI and told me to ask her anything I wanted about Foreign Service. Second was a group of 15 boy scouts. One who hit on me, at 8th grade. So funny. "So every statue is made from marble or bronze...that's fascinating." Best part of my day.
Got off work and came home. Went for a run with Hannah and Amber. It was shortish and slow, but we did a killer ab workout on the mall lawn. Felt good. Came back to the apartment and got dressed up and showered and ready to hit the town.
Went to Georgetown and stopped at McFadden's first. John and Dan were there and told us to tell the bouncers that we were there with Matt Kelly's happy hour. We got in for free and bracelets that gave us $2 drinks until midnight. Awesome. Good time there. Eventually Hannah wanted to leave and we went to The Guards. The crowd was really old and the girls started pairing off...I got bored and went and sat outside.
An English guy sat down next to me and started talking, he had told someone that he was from Portsmith and I overhead. I asked him if he was really from Portsmith and he said yes. I asked him how he felt about being relegated and laughed for a while. He thought it was cool I knew the EPL. Went to walk back to the metro and passed a bread shop. Amanda and I both took a loaf from boxes of bread outside thinking it was bread from the day that wasn't sold, like they do at breadsmith in St. Paul. However, upon biting into the bread it was very warm and we noticed a truck that looked like it was preparing to load. Oops. We walked fast and got away from there.
Caught the last metro to Union Station and now I am at home. Also, btw, spent much of the night telling people Hannah was engaged and we were part of a bachelorette party. There was a lot of yelling, singing, drink-buying, and hugging from strangers. Great night!
Had TWO tours today. The first one involved a woman who works for the FSI and told me to ask her anything I wanted about Foreign Service. Second was a group of 15 boy scouts. One who hit on me, at 8th grade. So funny. "So every statue is made from marble or bronze...that's fascinating." Best part of my day.
Got off work and came home. Went for a run with Hannah and Amber. It was shortish and slow, but we did a killer ab workout on the mall lawn. Felt good. Came back to the apartment and got dressed up and showered and ready to hit the town.
Went to Georgetown and stopped at McFadden's first. John and Dan were there and told us to tell the bouncers that we were there with Matt Kelly's happy hour. We got in for free and bracelets that gave us $2 drinks until midnight. Awesome. Good time there. Eventually Hannah wanted to leave and we went to The Guards. The crowd was really old and the girls started pairing off...I got bored and went and sat outside.
An English guy sat down next to me and started talking, he had told someone that he was from Portsmith and I overhead. I asked him if he was really from Portsmith and he said yes. I asked him how he felt about being relegated and laughed for a while. He thought it was cool I knew the EPL. Went to walk back to the metro and passed a bread shop. Amanda and I both took a loaf from boxes of bread outside thinking it was bread from the day that wasn't sold, like they do at breadsmith in St. Paul. However, upon biting into the bread it was very warm and we noticed a truck that looked like it was preparing to load. Oops. We walked fast and got away from there.
Caught the last metro to Union Station and now I am at home. Also, btw, spent much of the night telling people Hannah was engaged and we were part of a bachelorette party. There was a lot of yelling, singing, drink-buying, and hugging from strangers. Great night!
Friday, July 23, 2010
2nd to Last Day
Yesterday was slow again and I came home to hang out with Amanda before BJ and Hannah came home and we went out to Union Pub with Karen. Some Sangria and we came home. In such a goofy mood. Amanda and I watched a lot of snl skits.
Amber had a date so we had a good time hearing about that...just a good night with the girls. I am sad Hannah is leaving. I don't think I have ever made friends so quickly. I love these girls and it is nice that I have been able to make friends everywhere I have traveled lately.
Amber had a date so we had a good time hearing about that...just a good night with the girls. I am sad Hannah is leaving. I don't think I have ever made friends so quickly. I love these girls and it is nice that I have been able to make friends everywhere I have traveled lately.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
McFaddens
Yesterday was such a slow day. By the end of it it was really nice to be done and I went out to Union Pub with John and Dan and Mike. When we were done we went home, got changed, and then went out to Georgetown to go to a bar called McFaddens because drinks were $2.
Awesome night. I love John and Dan! They are both from Ionia and just very nice, funny guys. At one point there was a dance-off at the bar and the winner won a $500 bar tab. The girl who won I guess has won 29 of the past 30 dance offs and she just opened the bar to everyone so we were drinking for free most the time. It was very cool.
When the bar closed we were walking back to the metro and ran into a guy that we knew and went to his apartment to say hi to his roommate. Got back in the elevator to leave and pressed the button for G (G for ground right?). G actually stood for garage so we figured out 3 was actually the lobby so we pressed 3, but we couldn't take the elevator up without a keycard. So we went into the garage to just walk out, but at the entrance the door was closed and everything was locked. Being in an underground parking garage we couldn't get phone service. We ended up using a phone in the garage to call security so they could send someone to save us. We had to wait like another 20 minutes but eventually got out. Crazy funny story.
Also...at one point I had my back to the bar and I was talking with John and suddenly a ton of whip cream landed on my shirt/arm/glass. It was in my hair and I had no idea what had happened. I turned around, but could not figure out where it had come from. I just ended up eating it off myself. haha. Weird...just a crazy Wednesday night.
Awesome night. I love John and Dan! They are both from Ionia and just very nice, funny guys. At one point there was a dance-off at the bar and the winner won a $500 bar tab. The girl who won I guess has won 29 of the past 30 dance offs and she just opened the bar to everyone so we were drinking for free most the time. It was very cool.
When the bar closed we were walking back to the metro and ran into a guy that we knew and went to his apartment to say hi to his roommate. Got back in the elevator to leave and pressed the button for G (G for ground right?). G actually stood for garage so we figured out 3 was actually the lobby so we pressed 3, but we couldn't take the elevator up without a keycard. So we went into the garage to just walk out, but at the entrance the door was closed and everything was locked. Being in an underground parking garage we couldn't get phone service. We ended up using a phone in the garage to call security so they could send someone to save us. We had to wait like another 20 minutes but eventually got out. Crazy funny story.
Also...at one point I had my back to the bar and I was talking with John and suddenly a ton of whip cream landed on my shirt/arm/glass. It was in my hair and I had no idea what had happened. I turned around, but could not figure out where it had come from. I just ended up eating it off myself. haha. Weird...just a crazy Wednesday night.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
National News
Second Day of National News Clips...fun for me because you are working as fast as possible while staying organized. Went a little crazy when the girl with me took forever to cut out her articles.
Saw Olympia Snow today. Cool...this was on my way to deliver a letter to Harry Reid's office in the capital. also cool. Didn't have too much to do today in the afternoon. Read a lot of news, cleaned up my reports due tomorrow, and listened to a lot of music.
Found a great park today and did a sprint workout. Showered and met EJ for dinner and Good Stuff Eatery or something like that. Famous for burgers and shakes. It was delicious, but my stomach doesn't seem to be loving it as of yet.
Saw Olympia Snow today. Cool...this was on my way to deliver a letter to Harry Reid's office in the capital. also cool. Didn't have too much to do today in the afternoon. Read a lot of news, cleaned up my reports due tomorrow, and listened to a lot of music.
Found a great park today and did a sprint workout. Showered and met EJ for dinner and Good Stuff Eatery or something like that. Famous for burgers and shakes. It was delicious, but my stomach doesn't seem to be loving it as of yet.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Fro Yo
FRO YO!!!!
delicious greek yogurt fro-yo with mango. yum.
good day at work with a briefing about noncitizens and their place in PPACA, the new health care system, and national-clip-booklet making.
Nothing too exciting, but it was a good productive day.
Today walking to work I was waiting at the corner with the woman and her child in a stroller and this woman walks by and says "I never walk up to you and say 'Bitch, ho, slut'" the woman was just like, thank you. Bsby's first swear words. haha.
delicious greek yogurt fro-yo with mango. yum.
good day at work with a briefing about noncitizens and their place in PPACA, the new health care system, and national-clip-booklet making.
Nothing too exciting, but it was a good productive day.
Today walking to work I was waiting at the corner with the woman and her child in a stroller and this woman walks by and says "I never walk up to you and say 'Bitch, ho, slut'" the woman was just like, thank you. Bsby's first swear words. haha.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Slow Day
today was slow. Woke up at noon and sat around for a while watching tv with Shawna. Went for a run and then came back and showered and watched some more tv. Around 5:30 Amber came down and got all of us to come upstairs for a suprise birthday party for Amanda. It was the girls of the house and we sat and talked, drank white wine, ate pizza bagels, and cupcakes. When the guys got back they got their cupcakes and we turned on the tv and watched the Sandra Bullock marathon that was one. Had seen Miss Congeniality earlier and currently Practical Magic was on.
When the movie ended Shawna, Amber, and I went for a walk to the capital in the moonlight and decided we wanted to go out. Got back and changed and walked over to the Pour House with Hannah and Karen. Once there though, it was hot and not that fun so Shawna and I walked home. This day has seemed very long, but I really haven't done too much. Got a new subletter for the next month. yay.
Amanda's Birthday!
My first Friday at work...finished my memo about birth tourism in the morning and wrote a letter about Home health Services initiated by medicare. Busy, but the last hour was completely unproductive. Just sat around the table at the end of the day with John, Dan, and Erica and talked about nothing. I think I am really lucky that the people of my office are awesome. Really enjoy working and hanging out with them.
After work I came home and hung around with Shawna and we went out for drinks at Union Pub with the guys who live downstairs. Got some Sangria and then came home to hang out and wait for the birthday girl, Amber, and Hannah who had gone out to dinner. Really like the guys and we had a good time.
Eventually we were ready to go out (at like 11:30)but Amanda was on the phone with her family and got depressed that she missed them and didn't want to go out. We left, but Nima wasn't going to make it, so at Union Station he finally gave in to going home so BJ and Fernando took him home. Sitting in the metro waiting for the train Justin puked so Hannah stayed with him and Amber and I got on the train with Shawna and her friend and some guy but at our transfer stop Amber decided she wanted to go back because we were all split up. We went back and ran into Hannah and Justin walking back and they had found Joe so we went back with them.
Amber and I went to Union Pub where the bar tender loves her and gave us a free shot while we waited for Fernando, Joe, and BJ. It turned 1:00 so I called Eric at midnight central to wish him happy birthday. We eventually decided to go to Adams Morgan so hopped in a cab. The cabbie was this crazy dude and he started driving around in crazy directions and the guys were calling him out on it and then we got stopped at a police check point thing and he got ticketed for having too many people in the car. We all put bets in on how much it was and even the driver got in. It was only $50. eventually we got there, but the meter had been running through the whole cop ordeal so the guys were pissed and paid him $6 and we got out.
We went to a bar named "The Reef" I believe and I was walking to get in line I hear someone yell "Martha Coe!" I had no idea what was going on when I turned around and saw none other than....Carson Gorecki. It was crazy and I talked to him for a bit until he got in so I went back to my group. The first floor was just a bar and basically a waiting room. The second floor was dancing and the third floor where we ended up was the roof with tables and a laid-back feel. It was nice and I talked with Joe for a long time.
Eventually we had to leave and pull Fernando away from some guys he met. As we walked looking for a cab Fernando started talking to me in Spanish about the hispanic experience in the U.S. We found a cab and I have NO idea what happened but Fernando and the cab driver started talking about race in the U.S. and the cab driver started making us listen to Elijah Muhammad's son give a speech and talking about black supremacy. It was one of the craziest experiences. Hannah and Amber were just pissed because it was about 3:30 in the morning. haha.
At home I called Eric again and we talked for a while until he went to sleep and I wanted to go in, but we were sitting on the stoop with Fernando Joe and Nima's friend and Fernando told me to stay out and talk. I have no idea what we were talking about, but Fernando got into doing spoken word and I eventually needed to go to bed so I went in and went to sleep at like 4:30. Very long and interesting night.
After work I came home and hung around with Shawna and we went out for drinks at Union Pub with the guys who live downstairs. Got some Sangria and then came home to hang out and wait for the birthday girl, Amber, and Hannah who had gone out to dinner. Really like the guys and we had a good time.
Eventually we were ready to go out (at like 11:30)but Amanda was on the phone with her family and got depressed that she missed them and didn't want to go out. We left, but Nima wasn't going to make it, so at Union Station he finally gave in to going home so BJ and Fernando took him home. Sitting in the metro waiting for the train Justin puked so Hannah stayed with him and Amber and I got on the train with Shawna and her friend and some guy but at our transfer stop Amber decided she wanted to go back because we were all split up. We went back and ran into Hannah and Justin walking back and they had found Joe so we went back with them.
Amber and I went to Union Pub where the bar tender loves her and gave us a free shot while we waited for Fernando, Joe, and BJ. It turned 1:00 so I called Eric at midnight central to wish him happy birthday. We eventually decided to go to Adams Morgan so hopped in a cab. The cabbie was this crazy dude and he started driving around in crazy directions and the guys were calling him out on it and then we got stopped at a police check point thing and he got ticketed for having too many people in the car. We all put bets in on how much it was and even the driver got in. It was only $50. eventually we got there, but the meter had been running through the whole cop ordeal so the guys were pissed and paid him $6 and we got out.
We went to a bar named "The Reef" I believe and I was walking to get in line I hear someone yell "Martha Coe!" I had no idea what was going on when I turned around and saw none other than....Carson Gorecki. It was crazy and I talked to him for a bit until he got in so I went back to my group. The first floor was just a bar and basically a waiting room. The second floor was dancing and the third floor where we ended up was the roof with tables and a laid-back feel. It was nice and I talked with Joe for a long time.
Eventually we had to leave and pull Fernando away from some guys he met. As we walked looking for a cab Fernando started talking to me in Spanish about the hispanic experience in the U.S. We found a cab and I have NO idea what happened but Fernando and the cab driver started talking about race in the U.S. and the cab driver started making us listen to Elijah Muhammad's son give a speech and talking about black supremacy. It was one of the craziest experiences. Hannah and Amber were just pissed because it was about 3:30 in the morning. haha.
At home I called Eric again and we talked for a while until he went to sleep and I wanted to go in, but we were sitting on the stoop with Fernando Joe and Nima's friend and Fernando told me to stay out and talk. I have no idea what we were talking about, but Fernando got into doing spoken word and I eventually needed to go to bed so I went in and went to sleep at like 4:30. Very long and interesting night.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Day of Sightseeing
Today = Crazy.
First, meeting Al Franken. Awesome amazing. I was walking to work and waiting at the corner to cross the street to the Hart building. I quickly noticed the senator standing to my right and was pretty much just staring and being very excited. He eventually looked over at me...
Me: good morning sir
him: good morning...where are you from?
Me: I am from Michigan, but I actually go to school in Minnesota.
Him: o reall, where?
Me: Macalester College
Him: O, that's a great school.
Me: Yea, I really enjoy it there.
by now we are across the street and he has to turn while I continue to Russell. Me: Have a nice day.
Him: you too.
it was pretty cool.
Went into the office and started work on my memo about "birth tourism". I got to watch a couple news reports on it including ABCs. also had to work on putting together a memo on the after school educational programing briefing I went to yesterday.
Mid-morning we got a call to run something over to the house offices so I volunteered and went up to get some signed books from the senator's scheduler (read assistant). Carl happened to be behind her desk talking to another person, but it was the first time I had seen him. I said good morning. (senator #2 of the day).
Came back eventually and worked more on my things including looking up and researching the court case Rumsfeld vs Hamdi and immigration statistics. Had to leave again to give a tour of the capitol. Our first tour assigned to the interns. Justin and I showed around a guy who works for the GR office that was in town for some training in research tools. It went decently well. The guy was young and cool enough that it wasn't high-pressure. Good run-through.
Worked a little more before going for training on our research programs. After this went with a group to see Justice Ginsberg speak. We had to drop a speech off for Carl in the cloakroom at the capitol first. Another intern from a different office was doing the same thing so we befriended him and went to get in the line to see the lecture. We arrived at the supreme court 40 minutes early, but were too late and got turned away with a ton of other interns because the room had filled up. too bad. Instead though we went to the gallery and watched some republicans complain about the financial reform bill that had passed that morning.
While two guys ran up to the coatroom to drop the speech, Alex and I stayed and waited on the first floor where Senator Dodd came with his family and stood right next to us. He was with his granddaughters I guess and they were very cute in their interactions. One of the little girls fed him some ice cream. Alex and I were just looking and smiling because it was so cute and Dodd looked at us, said hello, and said sorry for blocking the elevators. We told him it was fine and that the girls were very cute. (senator sighting #3!)
Resigned to the workroom afterwords and outlined my memo, printed some reading off entitled "U.S. Citizenship of Persons Born in the United States to Alien Parents" from CRS and chatted with the other inters a bit until it turned 6 and I left.
Went for a run, but my body is so tired. Ready to sleep and ready for the weekend. 9 hour days are exhausting!
First, meeting Al Franken. Awesome amazing. I was walking to work and waiting at the corner to cross the street to the Hart building. I quickly noticed the senator standing to my right and was pretty much just staring and being very excited. He eventually looked over at me...
Me: good morning sir
him: good morning...where are you from?
Me: I am from Michigan, but I actually go to school in Minnesota.
Him: o reall, where?
Me: Macalester College
Him: O, that's a great school.
Me: Yea, I really enjoy it there.
by now we are across the street and he has to turn while I continue to Russell. Me: Have a nice day.
Him: you too.
it was pretty cool.
Went into the office and started work on my memo about "birth tourism". I got to watch a couple news reports on it including ABCs. also had to work on putting together a memo on the after school educational programing briefing I went to yesterday.
Mid-morning we got a call to run something over to the house offices so I volunteered and went up to get some signed books from the senator's scheduler (read assistant). Carl happened to be behind her desk talking to another person, but it was the first time I had seen him. I said good morning. (senator #2 of the day).
Came back eventually and worked more on my things including looking up and researching the court case Rumsfeld vs Hamdi and immigration statistics. Had to leave again to give a tour of the capitol. Our first tour assigned to the interns. Justin and I showed around a guy who works for the GR office that was in town for some training in research tools. It went decently well. The guy was young and cool enough that it wasn't high-pressure. Good run-through.
Worked a little more before going for training on our research programs. After this went with a group to see Justice Ginsberg speak. We had to drop a speech off for Carl in the cloakroom at the capitol first. Another intern from a different office was doing the same thing so we befriended him and went to get in the line to see the lecture. We arrived at the supreme court 40 minutes early, but were too late and got turned away with a ton of other interns because the room had filled up. too bad. Instead though we went to the gallery and watched some republicans complain about the financial reform bill that had passed that morning.
While two guys ran up to the coatroom to drop the speech, Alex and I stayed and waited on the first floor where Senator Dodd came with his family and stood right next to us. He was with his granddaughters I guess and they were very cute in their interactions. One of the little girls fed him some ice cream. Alex and I were just looking and smiling because it was so cute and Dodd looked at us, said hello, and said sorry for blocking the elevators. We told him it was fine and that the girls were very cute. (senator sighting #3!)
Resigned to the workroom afterwords and outlined my memo, printed some reading off entitled "U.S. Citizenship of Persons Born in the United States to Alien Parents" from CRS and chatted with the other inters a bit until it turned 6 and I left.
Went for a run, but my body is so tired. Ready to sleep and ready for the weekend. 9 hour days are exhausting!
Franken!
OMG OMG OMG! I just met Al Franken! Like MET as in SPOKE TO HIM FOR AN "extended" CONVO!!!!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Bastille Day
BEST day so far.
At work there was little to do for most of the day so in the morning I read a lot of news and then went to the senate gallery and watched Dick Durbin and a senator from Iowa talk about the financial bill going through and extending unemployment benefits.
Worked on the "meet the staff" board. Good time and it kept me busy.
At 3:00 I went to a briefing with Erica on after school educational programs. It was actually really interesting and the panel spoke about various programs aimed at a diverse population of students to focus them on their future and give them skills that can be transferred to a career, from construction to engineering to globalization skills. Very interesting and I am glad I went and took notes.
Sara, my adviser/immediate boss, is going out of town until next Wednesday so Erica and I were loaded with some work to research and write letters about for constituents. Should be fun and keep me busy.
After work (well technically during because I left early) I went with a group to a reception...my first one! Receptions happen on capitol hill ALL the time and it is said that if you are well connected you never have to spend money on food here. Today was my first one and it was for soy beans and natural oils. I got some free wine and a plate of little finger foods. It was a lot of fun actually.
Ran to CVS to get a notebook when I got a text from some guys in my office about going for a drink. I met them at Union Pub (I am the only girl of age) and we had some beer and hung out. It was a lot of fun and I really like the group of people I work with.
Run home to change before going to Union station to take the metro to celebrate Bastille Day in Adams Morgan, a neighborhood to the northwest. I went with Justin, Eric, Annie, and Annie's roommate Lama. It was a TON of fun. A whole block was blocked off and we got wristbands to dictate if we could drink or not while dancing and singing in the street.
Right when we walked in the guy who gave me my wristband asked me if I would dance with him. I told him I was there with my friends and moved on to get a drink. A lot of people had masks and Louis VI was there with Marie Antoinette.
We danced a bit and enjoyed ourselves before everything stopped at 11:00 so people could move indoors to the bars or go home. Somehow we were standing next to this guy who had an AMAZING mask so I started talking to him and then we got some pictures together. He put his expensive camera around my neck at one point. I asked him what he would do if I ran off with it and he told me he would have to murder me. He did this so that he could get a card about of his wallet and give it to me. It reads:
Alfredo Flores
Freelance Music and Entertainment Journalist
etc. etc. etc.
He bragged about how he has interviewed Alicia Keys and Jay Z. He asked me what I was doing and I consulted the group before I told him I had to go home...I couldn't leave the group and risk walking home in the dark (yikes!) He says "ok, well I guess I'll stay around here while some girl just leaves me"...no idea what that means, but I ended up leaving WITH A BEACH BALL! Rode the metro home and Justin walked me towards my apartment until we were close enough I felt safe. WORK IN THE MORNING WHOOO!
At work there was little to do for most of the day so in the morning I read a lot of news and then went to the senate gallery and watched Dick Durbin and a senator from Iowa talk about the financial bill going through and extending unemployment benefits.
Worked on the "meet the staff" board. Good time and it kept me busy.
At 3:00 I went to a briefing with Erica on after school educational programs. It was actually really interesting and the panel spoke about various programs aimed at a diverse population of students to focus them on their future and give them skills that can be transferred to a career, from construction to engineering to globalization skills. Very interesting and I am glad I went and took notes.
Sara, my adviser/immediate boss, is going out of town until next Wednesday so Erica and I were loaded with some work to research and write letters about for constituents. Should be fun and keep me busy.
After work (well technically during because I left early) I went with a group to a reception...my first one! Receptions happen on capitol hill ALL the time and it is said that if you are well connected you never have to spend money on food here. Today was my first one and it was for soy beans and natural oils. I got some free wine and a plate of little finger foods. It was a lot of fun actually.
Ran to CVS to get a notebook when I got a text from some guys in my office about going for a drink. I met them at Union Pub (I am the only girl of age) and we had some beer and hung out. It was a lot of fun and I really like the group of people I work with.
Run home to change before going to Union station to take the metro to celebrate Bastille Day in Adams Morgan, a neighborhood to the northwest. I went with Justin, Eric, Annie, and Annie's roommate Lama. It was a TON of fun. A whole block was blocked off and we got wristbands to dictate if we could drink or not while dancing and singing in the street.
Right when we walked in the guy who gave me my wristband asked me if I would dance with him. I told him I was there with my friends and moved on to get a drink. A lot of people had masks and Louis VI was there with Marie Antoinette.
We danced a bit and enjoyed ourselves before everything stopped at 11:00 so people could move indoors to the bars or go home. Somehow we were standing next to this guy who had an AMAZING mask so I started talking to him and then we got some pictures together. He put his expensive camera around my neck at one point. I asked him what he would do if I ran off with it and he told me he would have to murder me. He did this so that he could get a card about of his wallet and give it to me. It reads:
Alfredo Flores
Freelance Music and Entertainment Journalist
etc. etc. etc.
He bragged about how he has interviewed Alicia Keys and Jay Z. He asked me what I was doing and I consulted the group before I told him I had to go home...I couldn't leave the group and risk walking home in the dark (yikes!) He says "ok, well I guess I'll stay around here while some girl just leaves me"...no idea what that means, but I ended up leaving WITH A BEACH BALL! Rode the metro home and Justin walked me towards my apartment until we were close enough I felt safe. WORK IN THE MORNING WHOOO!
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Real Work
Today was a little more busy...and longer. Working full time is hard. (pout). I put together a report on a bill in committee in senate about funding for independent living institutions. Not to be influenced by ARRA funding.
Also went and listened to John McCain and the senator from South Dakota rant about how mad they were that Obama appointed someone to the office that will carry out his health plans during recess. It turned into a rant against health care reform which was weird because they KEPT complaining about the government taking funding from Medicare. This made little sense to me. If they are mad that funding is being cut form Medicare then people like the program...Medicare is a government program so how does this argue AGAINST government-run health-care or something like it??? Seemed dumb to me. And they kept saying it!
Spent the afternoon reading 3 newspapers and looking all through Time.com and cnn.com. Bit boring. Helped with the mail and ran some errands to the photography and graphics departments. Good time walking around. I got to dress up all nice and work my khaki pencil skirt with brown blouse and my platform heels. I felt all fancy!
Came home after work and got a run in before our second thunderstorm in 2 days before eating some indian and watching good ole "The Hills". Justin is definitely too hot and that is obviously why he is a weirdo. O god, I have started watching the hills...
Also went and listened to John McCain and the senator from South Dakota rant about how mad they were that Obama appointed someone to the office that will carry out his health plans during recess. It turned into a rant against health care reform which was weird because they KEPT complaining about the government taking funding from Medicare. This made little sense to me. If they are mad that funding is being cut form Medicare then people like the program...Medicare is a government program so how does this argue AGAINST government-run health-care or something like it??? Seemed dumb to me. And they kept saying it!
Spent the afternoon reading 3 newspapers and looking all through Time.com and cnn.com. Bit boring. Helped with the mail and ran some errands to the photography and graphics departments. Good time walking around. I got to dress up all nice and work my khaki pencil skirt with brown blouse and my platform heels. I felt all fancy!
Came home after work and got a run in before our second thunderstorm in 2 days before eating some indian and watching good ole "The Hills". Justin is definitely too hot and that is obviously why he is a weirdo. O god, I have started watching the hills...
Monday, July 12, 2010
First Day on the Job
First day was Grrrrreat! I got up nice and early and had time to get ready, relax, watch some news, and eat breakfast. Left with 20 minutes to get there, but couldn't find my passport to fill out my I9...o well.
Filled out some forms when we got to the office and then got a tour of everyone's desk. We then got to see our room where we learned how to use the computer system and everything and got our assignment of which legislative coordinator(?) (LC) we would be working with. Mine is Sara Fitzwater who I guess deals with human rights/immigration/foreign policy as that is what I wrote I was interested in...
Got a 1 1/2 break for lunch (it is usually an hour whenever we want) but we ended up spending most/all of it doing a scavenger hunt so we were running around the tunnels finding the different buildings, using the secret subway, and exploring the different buildings (capital included).
After lunch we met back up in the office with everyone and went on a tour that was aimed at teaching us what to say and point out because we will have to give tours if people request them through the office. There were a lot of interesting things and I think I did a good job of remembering things to point out, but I have no idea the route we took or how to get to anywhere to talk about it. ha.
Final stop of the day was the mailroom to learn how to sort the mail, a duty we must perform about 1-2 times a week. The end of this signaled the end of our day and I went out afterwords with Erica and Chris, two other interns, to get coffee (though I got chai) down on Indiana. It was raining a little so it was nice to sit inside and people watch.
Found my way back to my apartment later and rested my EXHAUSTED feet for a bit before going for a run. A day of standing or walking for 6 hours does not feel good. I am ready for days of research and memo writing. Also for days of leaving the office to go sit in on hearings. yay.
Showered after my run and found Fernando in our room when I got out chatting with Hannah. I changed and came out to hang out with them and then Amanda came home with Amber and BJ, a guy who lives with Fernando I guess. Everyone here is very nice. Fernando admired my "Los Secretos" and I watched the most adorable video of Iker kissing Sara during her interview. sooooo cute.
Heated up some indian, made some phone calls, and now I am waiting to feel tired enough to pass out. Good busy day. Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.
Filled out some forms when we got to the office and then got a tour of everyone's desk. We then got to see our room where we learned how to use the computer system and everything and got our assignment of which legislative coordinator(?) (LC) we would be working with. Mine is Sara Fitzwater who I guess deals with human rights/immigration/foreign policy as that is what I wrote I was interested in...
Got a 1 1/2 break for lunch (it is usually an hour whenever we want) but we ended up spending most/all of it doing a scavenger hunt so we were running around the tunnels finding the different buildings, using the secret subway, and exploring the different buildings (capital included).
After lunch we met back up in the office with everyone and went on a tour that was aimed at teaching us what to say and point out because we will have to give tours if people request them through the office. There were a lot of interesting things and I think I did a good job of remembering things to point out, but I have no idea the route we took or how to get to anywhere to talk about it. ha.
Final stop of the day was the mailroom to learn how to sort the mail, a duty we must perform about 1-2 times a week. The end of this signaled the end of our day and I went out afterwords with Erica and Chris, two other interns, to get coffee (though I got chai) down on Indiana. It was raining a little so it was nice to sit inside and people watch.
Found my way back to my apartment later and rested my EXHAUSTED feet for a bit before going for a run. A day of standing or walking for 6 hours does not feel good. I am ready for days of research and memo writing. Also for days of leaving the office to go sit in on hearings. yay.
Showered after my run and found Fernando in our room when I got out chatting with Hannah. I changed and came out to hang out with them and then Amanda came home with Amber and BJ, a guy who lives with Fernando I guess. Everyone here is very nice. Fernando admired my "Los Secretos" and I watched the most adorable video of Iker kissing Sara during her interview. sooooo cute.
Heated up some indian, made some phone calls, and now I am waiting to feel tired enough to pass out. Good busy day. Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.
CAMPEONES!!!!
SPAIN IS THE CHAMPIONS OF THE WORLD!!!! How excited am I? VERY VERY VERY!!!! It was only four years ago that I watched Spain play in the world cup and said, yes. This is my team. I didn't deal with the years of under-achieving like others, but people did tell me I was silly for loving Spain. Now they are European Champs and World Champs. My love sent me to Spain and now I can say my love is THE BEST IN THE WORLD! It was a great day of watching the game outside with people (although the majority were dutch). It would have been way more fun with a bunch of Spaniards or Spanish fans...o well. I was ecstatic.
After a run and some green curry I did some Levin research to prepare and watched some good ole tv.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
DAY 1: Out on the Town
Got a call from Eric at 2:50 in the morning...he hung up after 5 minutes of apologizing for waking me and me telling him that it was ok because I like talking to him.
Woke up for breakfast with my parents at 8:45ish. We went to a little place Hannah recommended on 7th and North Carolina where everything is organic. It was like Au pain ckjfalsidjfsoij....something. We drank coffee from bowls. It was fun. After saying goodbye to my parents I went back to bed and woke up at 1:30 when Amber came to our room in her running stuff wondering what we were up to. I went out to the living room and watched some TV and played on my computer until 2:15 when I turned on the world cup.
GERMANY WON!!!! LOVE Ozil. Good game though: 3-2. Watched the majority of it with my neighbor Joe and his friend Kevin. Good time. Came back to my room to change into my running stuff and went for about a 3 mile run. It felt good...i'll go farther tomorrow. After my shower I watched some TV with Hannah and Amber. We eventually went to Chinatown and got dinner at Chipotle and walked around a bit and went into Urban Outfitters. Came back to drink the white wine and dress up. I wore my black corset and black shorts with leopard print shoes.
First stop for the Pour House on Pennsylvania Ave. We met some rugby players who were nice but we were set on changing locations after 1 drink unless it was awesome so we soon left. Second stop was some lounge where drinks were $1.50 extra...blah. Not awesome and Amber and I decided we wanted to dance so we decided to go to Georgetown.
Got on the Metro (I bought a ticket!!!) and took the 9 stops to Foggy bottom or something....I found a paper in the train with a picture of Villa which I ripped out and kept. Ran into a guy from Mac on the street and chatted with him a bit: Zack. It was funny. I saw him as we passed him and said to the girls that he went to my school. Hannah looked back and told me he was looking at me so I turned and called out to him and then we started chatting.
Before this we stopped off in a hospital to use the bathroom because we all had to pee so bad after getting off the metro. Funny experience.
We ended up at a bar called The Guards. Drank a bit and then went to the "dance floor". Some guys came up and started dancing with me and Amber. Mine was actually quite good looking and kinda hipster with his oversized glasses. We started talking and he told me he was from Israel (hmmm). He had a giant star of David around his necklace. I stared texting Eric and he told me that Americans were addicted to our cell phones. He told me he was 22 and at some camp for the summer here. Eventually as we were dancing I was looking to the side and his face was straight into my ear as if I turned to face him we would be kissing so I stared desperately looking at Amber who pulled me away to "use the bathroom" and we got out of there.
We went to Johnny Rockets and got some food (too much) as I talked to Eric about my night. He wasn't too happy about the Israeli, but he showed off his accent to Hannah which I had been bragging about. haha.
I miss him a LOT! I hate being away so long, but what can I do. It won't be too long until we will be around each other so much that we will be sick of each other...although I doubt that will ever happen. I miss him.
Woke up for breakfast with my parents at 8:45ish. We went to a little place Hannah recommended on 7th and North Carolina where everything is organic. It was like Au pain ckjfalsidjfsoij....something. We drank coffee from bowls. It was fun. After saying goodbye to my parents I went back to bed and woke up at 1:30 when Amber came to our room in her running stuff wondering what we were up to. I went out to the living room and watched some TV and played on my computer until 2:15 when I turned on the world cup.
GERMANY WON!!!! LOVE Ozil. Good game though: 3-2. Watched the majority of it with my neighbor Joe and his friend Kevin. Good time. Came back to my room to change into my running stuff and went for about a 3 mile run. It felt good...i'll go farther tomorrow. After my shower I watched some TV with Hannah and Amber. We eventually went to Chinatown and got dinner at Chipotle and walked around a bit and went into Urban Outfitters. Came back to drink the white wine and dress up. I wore my black corset and black shorts with leopard print shoes.
First stop for the Pour House on Pennsylvania Ave. We met some rugby players who were nice but we were set on changing locations after 1 drink unless it was awesome so we soon left. Second stop was some lounge where drinks were $1.50 extra...blah. Not awesome and Amber and I decided we wanted to dance so we decided to go to Georgetown.
Got on the Metro (I bought a ticket!!!) and took the 9 stops to Foggy bottom or something....I found a paper in the train with a picture of Villa which I ripped out and kept. Ran into a guy from Mac on the street and chatted with him a bit: Zack. It was funny. I saw him as we passed him and said to the girls that he went to my school. Hannah looked back and told me he was looking at me so I turned and called out to him and then we started chatting.
Before this we stopped off in a hospital to use the bathroom because we all had to pee so bad after getting off the metro. Funny experience.
We ended up at a bar called The Guards. Drank a bit and then went to the "dance floor". Some guys came up and started dancing with me and Amber. Mine was actually quite good looking and kinda hipster with his oversized glasses. We started talking and he told me he was from Israel (hmmm). He had a giant star of David around his necklace. I stared texting Eric and he told me that Americans were addicted to our cell phones. He told me he was 22 and at some camp for the summer here. Eventually as we were dancing I was looking to the side and his face was straight into my ear as if I turned to face him we would be kissing so I stared desperately looking at Amber who pulled me away to "use the bathroom" and we got out of there.
We went to Johnny Rockets and got some food (too much) as I talked to Eric about my night. He wasn't too happy about the Israeli, but he showed off his accent to Hannah which I had been bragging about. haha.
I miss him a LOT! I hate being away so long, but what can I do. It won't be too long until we will be around each other so much that we will be sick of each other...although I doubt that will ever happen. I miss him.
Parents in DC/ARRIVAL
We arrived on Thursday night(ish). checked into the hotel and then went to look for a restaurant. Tried to find "Sticky Rice" but had the NW/NE mixed up and ended up with nothing. Ran across a thai place and ate there so that mom would stop being grumpy. I got my green curry with coconut milk which Dharshana has gotten me fixed on...delicious.
Friday family and I walked around everywhere. From my apartment on 510 C we walked down Massachusetts to a bagel place for breakfast and then to Hart to find my office. A nice guy met us in the building looking for Senator Levin in 269 and helped us find it in RUSSELL a building 2 away...we eventually found it along with some other famous senator offices. I introduced myself to the girls working the desk and then we left.
Throughout the day we wandered around DC seeing the national mall, the Smithsonian: Natural History, American History, and Air and Space. Fun but looooong and hot. After dinner at Aatish where we STUFFED ourselves with Indian foot I came back to my apartment to shower and then watch some TV and relax.
My roommates are Hannah, Amanda, and Shawna. Amber lives upstairs and I met Fernando and Larry my first night here. Fernando and I spoke in Spanish to each other and I guess he told Hannah I was cool and he was glad he had someone to speak to in Spanish. I loved it as well.
Hannah and Amber went out Friday night, but I was too exhausted from my day in the sun. I went to bed decently early. Enjoyed the people and place so far.
Friday family and I walked around everywhere. From my apartment on 510 C we walked down Massachusetts to a bagel place for breakfast and then to Hart to find my office. A nice guy met us in the building looking for Senator Levin in 269 and helped us find it in RUSSELL a building 2 away...we eventually found it along with some other famous senator offices. I introduced myself to the girls working the desk and then we left.
Throughout the day we wandered around DC seeing the national mall, the Smithsonian: Natural History, American History, and Air and Space. Fun but looooong and hot. After dinner at Aatish where we STUFFED ourselves with Indian foot I came back to my apartment to shower and then watch some TV and relax.
My roommates are Hannah, Amanda, and Shawna. Amber lives upstairs and I met Fernando and Larry my first night here. Fernando and I spoke in Spanish to each other and I guess he told Hannah I was cool and he was glad he had someone to speak to in Spanish. I loved it as well.
Hannah and Amber went out Friday night, but I was too exhausted from my day in the sun. I went to bed decently early. Enjoyed the people and place so far.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)