One score and seven years ago, I was born. And today I celebrated my first DC birthday at Lincoln. But, we'll get to that.
I started my birthday by waking up to a boat-load of well-wishes on Facebook. I don't mean this to sound like I think I'm important. I bring it up for two reasons:
Don't you people sleep?
If you ever think, "hmm..should I say happy birthday to this person? I haven't seen him/her in a long long time," then, the answer should always be YES. It feels good to have people wish you a happy birthday.
I continued the birthday cheerfulness by treating myself to a large iced green tea at Caribou Coffee. (I know, dream big.)
As exciting as iced green tea is, I was most looking forward to going out with friends after work.
Thanks to my sister for organizing the soiree. I feel bad that she had to do it a bit last minute but I literally forgot it was the week of my birthday. I was so preoccupied with figuring out all my stuff with the DMV that I hadn't noticed the calendar. (Ugh, I must be a grown-up or something.) So, despite her requests, I didn't email her names of my friends until Monday. Fortunately (in this case), I only know about 5 people in this city.
Per the suggestion of social guru, Jessica, we met at Lincoln.
Now, if there's anything I love, it's a theme. And the thematic decor at Lincoln was awesome. Who would've thunk it? "Lincoln" is not what readily comes to mind when brainstorming themes. I don't remember a Lincoln Party in college. Although, that would've been pretty cool. Instead of party t-shirts, we could've gotten tall hats. Take note, college kids. 80s parties are out.
And, the clue is... This girl watched two rounds of Jeopardy and hung out with Anderson Cooper and Dr. Oz.
. . . . .
Who is, ME?
That's right, Jeopardy lovers.
Well, that's sort of right.
Ok, so I didn't actually hang out with Anderson Cooper per se. We were in the same room. Is the stage considered part of the room? I think yes.
Let me start at the beginning...
When Lauren and I were rocking out to Mayer Hawthorne, she mentioned that she was going to a Jeopardy taping on Saturday and that her friend had an extra ticket. Her friend, Katie, had actually been on Jeopardy last October as a contestant. Since she is now forever part of the "Jeopardy Family," she was able to score tickets to all of the tapings in DC.
Did I mention that they were filming "POWER PLAYERS WEEK?" That's like Celebrity Jeopardy but with very smart people. No offense, non-Power-Players-Week celebrities. You guys are smart too. But, Jeopardy doesn't always think you're smart and gives you clues like, "The holiday on February 14th that celebrates love." I know you're smart. It's Alex Trebek who doesn't believe in you.
Alas, I digress.
Lauren, Katie, and I arrived at DAR Constitution Hall - which is fantastic, by the way - Saturday afternoon to find tents, production trucks, and a line of trivia-thirsty spectators. Turns out Katie scored us "Contestant Guest" tickets so we got to go in a special door. I had decided that, if anyone asked, I was going to tell them that "Contestant Guest" meant I was personally invited by Anderson Cooper. .
I try not to make this blog more serious than it needs to be and, more importantly, I try not to take myself too seriously. Because, really, who am I? I'm a twenty-something who likes to share anecdotes with friends and occasionally be snarky. In no way do I ever think my opinions on restaurants, museums, or people-who-wear fanny packs are anything more than tidbits you read on your phone while sitting in a waiting room. I get that.
That said, I do need to share my opinion on a topic that has nothing to do with Metro Rides or frozen yogurt. We'll get back to those important topics soon.
While this blog is about my move to DC, it is also still very much about my home state of NC. I mean, NC is in the title y'all. So, I've decided that it isn't just enough to post articles and forwards on Facebook. I'm moving this message to the blog as well. In hopes that just maybe someone from NC stumbles upon it.
I'm talking Amendment One, you guys.
When Amendment One was proposed, my first thought was, WTF North Carolina?! And, that's not a term I use often. I'm more of a "what-the-heck" and "daggone-it" kind of a girl. This makes NO sense. Why blatantly hurt and undercut part of the population? Amendment One is a direct "F-you" to a group of people who already don't have the rights they deserve.
I'm a heterosexual woman who hopes to someday fall in love and marry the man of my dreams. I'm glad to be able to have that dream. Other than by a drought of eligible bachelors, my dream is not threatened. And, I don't see how my future marriage with my future husband will be negatively impacted by more people being in committed, loving relationships. I could go on and on about why I think gay marriage should be legal or on why, as a Christian, my faith is in no way rattled by the notion of gay marriage.
But, that's not even what this is about.
This isn't about legalizing gay marriage.
It's about changing our constitution. Changing it in a way that will harm people.
This amendment affects more than just homosexual couples. You think you or people you love won't be harmed by this amendment? You're wrong. Read more here.
Or, watch this:
Now, am I an expert on politics? No. Am I an expert on frozen yogurt? Yes. Given these qualifications, I'm going to link to some of my favorite articles from the people who said it best and know what they're talking about.
All I ask of you, North Carolina, is that you educate yourself and really understand what you're deciding. Please don't embarrass me up here in DC by letting this thing pass. It's been awesome to see so many friends on Facebook express their opposition to the Amendment. But now you need to get out and vote no. There are too many people who stand to get hurt if you don't. It's too important.
Early voting started today. I wish I could be there. But, I'm trusting you to vote no.
Many have been sharing this powerful video. So, I leave you with this:
I'm having one of those low key evenings when you turn on the TV and get so zoned out that you don't even realize you are now 19 minutes into an episode of Khloe and Lamar. So, why not blog? After all, the reason I'm zoned out and tired is because I got all jazzed up (that means excited on good music, not on drugs or alcohol) at a concert last night, couldn't fall asleep at a reasonable hour and then had a busy day at work.
I love going to concerts. I especially love concerts in smaller venues because it makes it easier for all the musicians to fall madly in love with me from the stage. Happens. Every. Time.
When I left Charlotte, I was pretty sad to leave my favorite Neighborhood Theatre behind. I'd been to so many good concerts there. Therefore, finding some fun concerts in DC was a top priority. I was excited to see that one of my Pandora favorites, Mayer Hawthorne was performing at the 9:30 Club. I was also glad that my friend Lauren was willing to trust my musical tastes and come along!
It seems the seven people I know in DC are all out of town this weekend so it was up to me to explore more of this fine city on my own. Which, truth be told, is sometimes the best way to do it. Although, even more truth be told, that's usually because I end up shopping.
I must jump back to last night though because I got to kick off the weekend with one of my favorite Davidson Wildcats, Anna. We'd been trying to meet up and, when we randomly ran into each other Thursday night at the Dupont Circle metro, we figured we can't fight fate. So Friday night we met for a late happy hour (which I guess is just called dinner?) again at Dupont. It was a beautiful night and so we wanted to sit outside so Anna opted to show me her favorite happy hour spot.
But it was full. So we went to another place she loves across the street.
But it was full. So we wandered down a block to check out an Asian restaurant with a pretty decent patio.
My ambitious goal was to to blog 2-3 per week so I figured I'd give a bit of a mid-week update, should anyone care.
We're only three days into the week but it's already been a week of firsts. I thought I'd share a few with you.
For the first time....
I partook in a DC happy hour. (Thanks, Lauren Hughes!) I've learned HH (as the kids abbrev it) is big here. Which works pretty well for me because I love any day when I can visit with friends, have a glass of wine, and still be in pajamas by 9:30 p.m.
I saw a gentleman driving his car, listening to Latin music, and playing the maracas (He was also trying to turn into a pedestrian crosswalk. I saw the maracas and got the hell out of the way.)
I actually did something that I saw on Pinterest! I'm impressed by people who find things on Pinterest and then DO them. For me, Pinterest is a fantasy world, not a practical tool. Now, before you get excited and think that I whipped up something glorious in the kitchen or built my own television set out of recyclables or what not, I should come right out and say that what I did was follow instructions on how to keep my earphones from getting tangled. Didn't see that coming, did you? It's life-changing though, y'all. Life-changing. If you don't understand, then you've clearly never tried to pull earphones out of your pocket while running out the door to catch the train only to find that they are a big ol' tangly mess.
I gave someone directions in DC!! Well, sort of. I was so proud. The conversation went a bit like this:
I wish I had some witty anecdote or thoughtful story I could tell you but, I'm just plain tired. I guess that's the sign of a good weekend, right? I attempted to fully embrace my new city this weekend and tried some great new places thanks to my DC tour guide and future neighbor, Jessica. Here's how my gloriously exciting weekend shaped up:
Friday Destination: The Container Store Highlight: Organized silverware drawer and spice rack - Lindsay: 1, Kitchen: 0
Hold on to your hats, kids. It gets even more exciting than this. Try to contain yourselves. (pun intended.)
Yeah, ok. It wasn't the President. But, it was his car and hey, I haven't even been here a month yet. I'm not expecting him to personally invite me for dinner or anything until at least month 4. Or, maybe we could just have a beer or two in the rose garden after I spend the afternoon shopping with the First Lady and hearing about how to get arms like her's. That's what people in DC do, right?
So here's how it all went down. I was leaving work and heading on my merry way to Metro (which I can do without the aid of the iPhone maps, by the way) and I saw the streets were completely backed up with cars.
(I'm not sure why I thought I needed to clarify it was cars. Maybe you thought they were backed up with something else...like turtles or something? That probably would've been a more exciting blog post. Can you imagine? Geez, so many turtles.)
Anyways, I turned the corner and saw that the road (16th Street, I think? I don't know. It's the one with the fancy building at which I make a left turn. That's how I know it) was completely closed and there were police officers everywhere and an ambulance on the corner. My first thought was not, "Oh no. Was there an accident? Is everyone ok?" My first thought was, "Damnit, that's the only route I know to the Metro. Ugh, now what?" Because, apparently I've become completely self-absorbed. Although, to my credit, my second thought was, "Oh no! I hope everyone is ok!"
Let me start out by saying that I will be sharing pictures with you on the progress of my apartment but I'm waiting until I can make a trip out to The Container Store to help fix a little problem I like to call "a whole lotta junk in the kitchen."
(SIDE NOTE: How much do I love the Container Store right now? SO much. I called them out on Twitter because I kept getting "Welcome to your new home" coupons multiple times a day for about four straight days. They told me to email someone there and so I did. This was not to complain, mind you. I love me some coupons. But, being in communications myself, I thought they'd want to know. Some non-coupon-loving people may get frustrated and click the dreaded "unsubscribe" button. Anyways, they said they are sending me a gift certificate as a thank you for bringing it to their attention. Great use of social media and great customer service. There's a good chance the giftcard will probably only be for $5 but, if it's for any amount greater than $0, then I'm pretty pumped.)
Alright, back to it.
I've been writing about the excitement and fun of moving to a new city. But, let me tell you, the occasional "bad days" apparently know no geographical boundaries. Nothing earth-shattering happened. My world is not disrupted. I'm not teetering on the edge of sanity. But, it was one of those days when none of the "little things" seemed to go right. And, whether you're interested or not, I've compiled a list for you. It goes a little something like this...
Is this glass half-full or half-empty? (Yes, that's a box I haven't
unpacked yet in the background. Ugh, I guess it's half-empty)
I tripped over the ironing board in my apartment.
I had to iron this morning
I dropped a giant dollop of peanut butter directly on the floor. I was making a sandwich and literally just missed the bread, like a loser.
I had to wait forever for the elevator to go from the 12th floor to the 1st floor only to get outside and realize that I'd left my Metro card upstairs in my apartment.
I forgot to use my hand sanitizer post-Metro, pre-eating and now I'm 99.7% I'm going to get the plague. (I love being able to commute via Metro but going from working in a hospital to riding mass transit is quite an adjustment, germ-phobia-wise)
After I got off of the Metro, I got turned around and had to use the map on my iPhone to get me to my office. I tried to hold it in front of me (while I followed the blue arrows) and pretend like I was reading emails so that my fellow DC professionals wouldn't know. I'm a tool. Is there an app for that?
Yesterday was the big day. And, this post should really just be one big "Thank You" list so I think that's how it should start:
Thank you:
1. Mom, Dad, Melissa, Pete, and Mark for spending their Saturday unloading my stuff
2. Lady at the front desk for answering all my freight elevator questions and also for ignoring the fact that I took about 10 chocolates from the candy dish
3. The people moving in after me who said we could have a few more minutes on the freight elevator
4. The RCN guy for showing up on time and giving me the gift that keeps on giving: internet/cable (It's also the gift I keep on paying for so I guess I gave myself the gift.)
5. My neighbors for ignoring all my furniture that filled the hallway
6. My neighbors for not getting mad that I slammed the door every 10 minutes.
7. Jelly beans for being so delicious
8. My Mom for buying wine/beer for the move
9. Mark and Pete for their patience
10. House Hunters for being on TV at all times and providing entertainment
11. Alero for sangria.
12. Mom, Dad, Melissa, Pete, and Mark again.
We ventured out around 9:30a.m. to get my keys and check out my new digs. I couldn't actually have access to the loading dock or freight elevator until 3pm, but the RCN guy was supposed to be there between 11am and 2pm. And, we all know that internet/cable was far more of a priority to me than having a bed, clothes, or furniture.
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