the beginning of spring.

pictures (favorite building in dc, the eisenhower executive office building and arlington)

so it is very strange to think that in a month i'll be back in nashville/athens and no longer living and working in this city.  i have grown to love dc and i can't wait to get back up here.  i'm still looking around at internships but finally got a response from one and interviewed on friday.  everyone pray that the interview was a success and i get a call back! i'm excited about springtime and hope the nice weather stays around for a while.  last weekend we went to arlington cemetery and got a great insider's look into the old guard (the soldiers that do ceremonial things at the white house, etc., funerals at arlington, and the guarding of the tomb of the unknown soldier).  it was a very special trip and we got lots of special treatment including a briefing from the lt. col now in charge and the arlington historian.  as time winds down i'm feeling the pressure of class and research papers that have yet to take form but am trying to continue to enjoy everything and get some last minute sight seeing/weekend excursions in.  this week (fingers crossed) i'm actually going on a dome tour of the capitol.  only congressman/woman can give this tour so it's been a struggle to get our member's schedule to open up so we could go but i think this time we're actually gonna do it! lots of pictures will ensue and i'm excited to get to go out on the top of the actual dome...crazy.  i love you all and can't wait to see many of you when i get back! 

the metro.

so i'm getting kind of bored with my blog posts and wanted to revert back to just telling you random stories from my days here in washington. here goes.  the metro is a magical tube that scoops you up at one place and pops you out at another in mere minutes.  the only problem about living here without a car is that i take the metro everywhere and thus have no idea how the neighborhoods connect to one another. this is not inherently negative it just warps the way i view dc a bit.  at any rate, the metro is also the best place in dc to observe humanity at its best and worst. mostly i love the metro because you literally never know what kind of people you will come in contact with or what they will have just been doing or if it will be ridiculously crowded or not.  today's adventure:

while lugging 15 pounds of groceries and other necessities back from target, my friend and i came upon the gallery place/chinatown exit where we had to disembark from the green line and switch to the red line to get home.  this detour found us on the red line platform surrounded by hundreds of children and their parents coming from...the circus.  that's right, barnum and bailey were in fact at the verizon center this weekend giving children of all ages in the DC Metro area the chance to watch the elephants walk around in a big circle, eat cotton candy and peanuts, and make their parents regret telling them the circus was in town.  there were cute kids with clown hats on, toy swords and light sabers, big foam hats, and then the middle aged dad who tried to entertain his young daughters by wearing THE creepiest clown mask/hat combination i've ever seen.  when the train came everyone rushed onto the metro and deciding it wouldn't be possible for us to sit down, my friend william and i awkwardly tried to stand by the door so we could get the heck off ASAP.  aside from being poked in the back of the leg with a little boy's light saber, there was surprisingly not a lot of drama with the circus crowd if you don't count the parents that were so clearly at the ends of their ropes you felt a little bad for them.  as we reached our destination and were able to escape the circus, i appreciated the way the metro brings people together and then spits you out again to go on your way.  there's a lot of shared experiences with fellow patrons that never go above ground.  i like it because you know there's always and x factor to your day. and that keeps it interesting.  

march.

when did march get here? seriously, i have no idea how this time has gone by so fast.  sorry i'm awful at posting but that just means you get longer, juicier posts when i do.  the past couple weeks have been insane on the hill and i'm so glad i have a front row seat.  with the stimulus package and the omnibus appropriations bill going through congress within a week of each other we've been pretty busy keeping up with all the news and calls from back home in the district.  i've been able to work on some special projects for staffers and giving some capitol tours which has kept the days interesting and busy.  this past week we got to go to the white house (just the standard east wing tour) but it was so great to go in and ask the guards to tell us what they new about each room.  they were also setting up a dinner in the east room and for the record the centerpieces and tables were lovely.  for those of you who have ever talked to me about the american president (best movie ever) i definitely got to see the staircase michael douglas walks down before he goes to the state dinner...so sick.  annette benning, however, was no where to be found. weird.  i'm still working on getting an internship up here for the summer (if anyone knows anyone that wants to pay me to answer their phones in dc for a summer let me know...seriously) and figuring out where to live if i do get to stay.  i am still loving the city and this past week i got a serious itch to work on the hill for awhile.  it may happen, you never know.  

like the rest of the east coast (and apparently atlanta and athens) we got about six inches of snow last weekend....the only difference between us and atl is that unfortunately we still have to trudge to work through the slush.  luckily i live 20 yrds from the senate buildings and was able to take the warm, dry tunnels to work that day.  it is now a beautiful 62 degrees outside and i wish it would stay that way forever.  yesterday i spent some time at the farmer's market and then went out to arlington for a dinner party with some new friends.  one of my brother's groomsmen, tanner, was gracious enough to invite me out to his house for dinner and it was really nice to get out of the city for a little bit and meet some new folks.  i'm still enjoying exploring the different areas around dc and know that there's so much more to discover. 

this week is spring break for the UGA kids and that means about half our program headed back south.  the rest of us stayed to work and entertain guests....i'm so excited to see friends and family that are coming to visit and show them where i live/work on a daily basis.  we'll also probably head to the white house for a quick dinner with the pres....just kidding, i don't have that kind of hook up.  

i hope everyone is doing well wherever you may be and that you're all happy and healthy (c: