5.31.2004
weekend sightseeing
steph was in town for the long weekend, so dana and I again got to see some dc sights that we usually don't take in. thankfully, it was not as blazing hot and humid as the previous weekend when we all turned to little prunes walking around on the mall. the weekend was cool and rainy, so much so that we stayed in several nights and had to close up the windows.
on friday, when dana was at work, steph & I went down to see the rivera exhibit at the east gallery. it was small, but well worth the trip. after that, we went to the thai place near dana's office for lunch and then visited the main library of congress building. the mosaics throughout the halls are lovely, and we had a fun time on the tour, hearing the history from an elderly volunteer. you could easily spend hours looking at all the inlays and frescoes (the paintings were not technically frescoes, as apparently they were done on canvas, cut out, and plastered onto the walls and ceilings. but they provide the desired effect of appearing to be. similarly, the mosaics were not done directly on the walls themselves, but set into beds and transferred to the walls in sheets). after that we were museumed out and took the metro home, where we had bread & cheese for dinner and watched several brainless movies for hours on end.
saturday, in an attempt to avoid all the hoohah on the mall, we walked downtown to the national museum of women in the arts. the building was more ornate than I was expecting, and the sponsorship plaques that were everywhere struck me as a bit crass. it was a little odd to be perusing art in "[evil well-known weapons manufacturer] hall," complete with gilt ceilings, marble floors, and elaborately carved cornices. the special exhibits were interseting, though, and it was worth the trip just to see the two frida kahlos that were on display, as I'd never seen an original of hers before.
after that we snacked and then visited eastern market, where I finally caught up with the artist I'd been looking for since we moved out here. I'd seen her pendants when we'd first arrived in 2002 and had been kicking myself since then for not buying one. after window-shopping through the stands, we headed back to the house to freshen up for dinner. we took steph to la tomate, where the service was disappointing. this was unfortunately a bit of a theme for us, as we brought steph to several of our favorite places and they weren't really up to par. after dinner we set steph up for her early morning training run (I was sending her out the capital crescent trail to bethesda) and then went to bed.
sunday, after we'd all slept in, steph & I went to georgetown to wander about, have lunch and see a movie. everything went according to plan, and we returned home for a pasta dinner and...yet another movie. since dana had the day off on monday, we braved the mall and visited the botanical gardens. althouth small, some parts of the conservatory were quite pleasant, notably the children's garden (in an interior courtyard) and the desert section (which reminded me of my favorite part of phoenix). the outdoor garden across the street is really the best part, with the central fountain and the wildlife garden off to the side. I'll have to go back when the weather's nicer and see how many familiar birds I can spot. after the gardens, it was lunch and then back home to get steph off to the airport.
it was lovely to see steph, and for all the walking around we did, the weekend was surprisingly restful. and, for all the time we spent outside, I only got attacked by cicadas twice.
on friday, when dana was at work, steph & I went down to see the rivera exhibit at the east gallery. it was small, but well worth the trip. after that, we went to the thai place near dana's office for lunch and then visited the main library of congress building. the mosaics throughout the halls are lovely, and we had a fun time on the tour, hearing the history from an elderly volunteer. you could easily spend hours looking at all the inlays and frescoes (the paintings were not technically frescoes, as apparently they were done on canvas, cut out, and plastered onto the walls and ceilings. but they provide the desired effect of appearing to be. similarly, the mosaics were not done directly on the walls themselves, but set into beds and transferred to the walls in sheets). after that we were museumed out and took the metro home, where we had bread & cheese for dinner and watched several brainless movies for hours on end.
saturday, in an attempt to avoid all the hoohah on the mall, we walked downtown to the national museum of women in the arts. the building was more ornate than I was expecting, and the sponsorship plaques that were everywhere struck me as a bit crass. it was a little odd to be perusing art in "[evil well-known weapons manufacturer] hall," complete with gilt ceilings, marble floors, and elaborately carved cornices. the special exhibits were interseting, though, and it was worth the trip just to see the two frida kahlos that were on display, as I'd never seen an original of hers before.
after that we snacked and then visited eastern market, where I finally caught up with the artist I'd been looking for since we moved out here. I'd seen her pendants when we'd first arrived in 2002 and had been kicking myself since then for not buying one. after window-shopping through the stands, we headed back to the house to freshen up for dinner. we took steph to la tomate, where the service was disappointing. this was unfortunately a bit of a theme for us, as we brought steph to several of our favorite places and they weren't really up to par. after dinner we set steph up for her early morning training run (I was sending her out the capital crescent trail to bethesda) and then went to bed.
sunday, after we'd all slept in, steph & I went to georgetown to wander about, have lunch and see a movie. everything went according to plan, and we returned home for a pasta dinner and...yet another movie. since dana had the day off on monday, we braved the mall and visited the botanical gardens. althouth small, some parts of the conservatory were quite pleasant, notably the children's garden (in an interior courtyard) and the desert section (which reminded me of my favorite part of phoenix). the outdoor garden across the street is really the best part, with the central fountain and the wildlife garden off to the side. I'll have to go back when the weather's nicer and see how many familiar birds I can spot. after the gardens, it was lunch and then back home to get steph off to the airport.
it was lovely to see steph, and for all the walking around we did, the weekend was surprisingly restful. and, for all the time we spent outside, I only got attacked by cicadas twice.
5.23.2004
weekend visitors
matt and allison were in town for the weekend, so we got to explore a bit more of the city. on friday we went up to asylum, a goth bar complete with (purposefully) dead roses on the table. the hip hop was incongruous, but the veggie fare was great, and three out of four diners agreed that it was entirely appropriate for a goth bar/pub to exist in the year 2004. the dc veg guide recommended it, and as with the recommendation of the falafel at el khartoum, the veg guide was spot on. after dinner we walked down to the mall and visited the new WWII memorial, the vietnam wall, and the lincoln memorial. after hopping into a taxi to get us back home, we christened the deck and made good wine-drinking use of the 1/2 hour before the rain started pouring down.
yesterday we spent another long hot summer day down at the mall, after taking them to the luna for brunch. we saw the dinosaurs and wandered through the rest of the museum for a while. we then trekked up the hill and recovered in firehook on penna ave. after a swing by eastern market, we came back to the house to shower and change for dinner. I at least was completely melted from the day in the sun, and was happy to cool off and sit down for a good meal. we took them to our favorite italian place, la tomate, in dupont circle, where we again sat outside and caught the cooler evening breezes. then it was over to the helix lounge, which we'd been curious about since cedric stayed at the hotel. besides being in danger of falling off the other side of both the age and trendiness curves, we had a good time. they served oddly named soda-pop drinks in martini glasses, but that seems to be the national trend of late. then it was back to the house to cool off, shower for the 3rd time, and go to bed.
this morning we went for brunch at a place around the way, rosemary's bistro, and (can you guess?) sat outside. the food was good, and we even managed to locate some of this year's periodical cicadas to satisfy matt's curiosity. we unfortunately didn't know that there was an exhibit on at the smithsonian, but there were enough around to catch them au naturel. then it was off back into the car for them and back in front of the fan for me.
yesterday we spent another long hot summer day down at the mall, after taking them to the luna for brunch. we saw the dinosaurs and wandered through the rest of the museum for a while. we then trekked up the hill and recovered in firehook on penna ave. after a swing by eastern market, we came back to the house to shower and change for dinner. I at least was completely melted from the day in the sun, and was happy to cool off and sit down for a good meal. we took them to our favorite italian place, la tomate, in dupont circle, where we again sat outside and caught the cooler evening breezes. then it was over to the helix lounge, which we'd been curious about since cedric stayed at the hotel. besides being in danger of falling off the other side of both the age and trendiness curves, we had a good time. they served oddly named soda-pop drinks in martini glasses, but that seems to be the national trend of late. then it was back to the house to cool off, shower for the 3rd time, and go to bed.
this morning we went for brunch at a place around the way, rosemary's bistro, and (can you guess?) sat outside. the food was good, and we even managed to locate some of this year's periodical cicadas to satisfy matt's curiosity. we unfortunately didn't know that there was an exhibit on at the smithsonian, but there were enough around to catch them au naturel. then it was off back into the car for them and back in front of the fan for me.
5.14.2004
undergrad thesis on war rhetoric
I am frequently impressed with the kinds of work some undergrads produce for their honors theses, but this report on bush's rationales for invading iraq takes the cake. let's hope it gets some press beyond the university paper.
5.13.2004
summertime
although this semester is one that takes a licking and keeps on ticking, it's finally coming to an end.
having a few months with no responsibilities beyond becoming a migrant berry-picker sometime mid-july, this seemed like a good time to launch this more general blog.
after two years out here, the season's goal is settling into dc. pearl needs a tune-up, the deck needs some furniture, and the spare room needs a futon for our future houseguests. and then, we'll be ready to roll.
having a few months with no responsibilities beyond becoming a migrant berry-picker sometime mid-july, this seemed like a good time to launch this more general blog.
after two years out here, the season's goal is settling into dc. pearl needs a tune-up, the deck needs some furniture, and the spare room needs a futon for our future houseguests. and then, we'll be ready to roll.
