Became a true American by purchasing food from a street vendor. Yes, to be a TRUE American, I should have bought a hot dog, but I just couldn't bring myself to eat what looked like a slightly warmed over stick o' mystery meat slathered with room temperature mustard, ketchup, and relish.... so I bought a pretzel instead! :-)
Experienced Jackson Pollock in person at the National Gallery of Art's east wing.
Rocked out Irish style at a St. Patty's Day party. I also cooked Corned Beef and Cabbage for the first time.
Visited the National Zoo and was convinced that though apes DO have very human-like attributes, there is no way I could have descended from an Orang-utan or Gorilla!
Oooed and Aaawed at the perty flowers at the Botanical Gardens.
Took a tour of the capitol building....
and snapped a photo with good ol' Brother Brigham Young
Learned more about our Judicial system by listening to an Oral Argument at the Supreme Court.
Shed a tear or two and pondered on the meaning of the thousands of lives lost in the Civil War during a visit to the Gettysburg battlefields.
Learned about early American architecture and new trends to build more environmentally friendly communities during a visit to the National Building Museum.
Rocked out Irish style at a St. Patty's Day party. I also cooked Corned Beef and Cabbage for the first time.
Visited the National Zoo and was convinced that though apes DO have very human-like attributes, there is no way I could have descended from an Orang-utan or Gorilla!
Oooed and Aaawed at the perty flowers at the Botanical Gardens.
Took a tour of the capitol building....
and snapped a photo with good ol' Brother Brigham Young
Learned more about our Judicial system by listening to an Oral Argument at the Supreme Court.
Shed a tear or two and pondered on the meaning of the thousands of lives lost in the Civil War during a visit to the Gettysburg battlefields.
Spent the weekend with the in-laws for my birthday weekend. Rebecca, Taia, and Baby Marleigh even got to be there!!! What a great family I have!
Learned about early American architecture and new trends to build more environmentally friendly communities during a visit to the National Building Museum.
For those of you who care to read and have the time, interest, and attention span, here is a longer more detailed journal of this week (March 15-21, 2009):
This week was another one full of adventures. On Sunday I spoke in Church about trusting in the Lord during our trials. I shared some of the things I have learned from being a widow. I was a little nervous about being too personal in sacrament meeting, but many people told me that they really appreciated what I said. I am very thankful for the lessons I have learned from my experiences, and I hope that I can use what I have learned to help others.
St. Patricks day began with my front tooth breaking when I took off my retainer that morning. Actually, it wasn't my tooth, it was the cosmetic veneer on the top of my front tooth that my dentist put on a few years ago after I got my tooth knocked out. Luckily, my supervisor at work knows a good dentist that was able to get me in right away and fix it up. Later that evening I had an Irish feast of Corned beef and Cabbage with my friends. It was my first time making it, but it turned out pretty good.
On Wednesday I saw a show about planets and galaxies in the Einstein Planetarium at the Air and Space museum.
On Thursday I had a tour of the East Wing of the National Gallery of Art. I saw some famous works by Jackson Pollock and Jasper Johns.
On Friday we had 3 great lectures in the Washington Seminar class that I am taking. Elder Hardy from the Quorum of the Seventy came and spoke to us about his experiences in Washington DC and how his membership in the church has been a great blessing in his life. (For those of you who are not a member of the LDS faith, "Elder" is a title that is given to men who hold a certain office in our church. A Quorum is an organization within our church. Click here to learn more: http://www.mormon.org/ )
We also had a lecture from the Syrian Ambassador who gave us a different perspective on the conflict in Israel and the Gaza strip than what we usually hear from our media. I have a lot more sympathy for the Palestinians because of the crimes against Humanity that have been committed against them by Israel. As the Ambassador said, no country should have the right to dominate the lives of citizens in another nation. Right now the Palestinians in the Gaza strip and the West bank are being held captive in their own neighborhoods. Israeli soldiers often occupy the homes of the Palestinians, prevent them from traveling between checkpoints even within their own neighborhoods, and have cut them off from outside resources. The Palestinians have been driven to despair by the suffocation of Israel's control. It is no wonder that they have been driven to extreme measures to the point of firing makeshift rockets into Israel as a sign of protest. Hearing the atrocities that are going on in places around the world like this makes me so thankful that I live in the country that I do. The United States is not perfect by any means. There are many problems here that need to be addressed. However, I am thankful that we are able to enjoy the basic freedoms of life. I think this is something that we all take for granted.
The third lecture we heard was given at the Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia by Judge Griffiths. We were able to sit in his courtroom and learn more about what he does and about the opportunities there are for us if we want to go into a legal career. I am always amazed at the talent and intelligence of many of the people that I get to listen to. Being here has totally opened my eyes to how many opportunities there are to make a significant difference in this world.
On Friday night I went to another performance of the National Symphony Orchestra with my friend Jason. He has a sweet hookup where he can get free tickets to NSO performances. I love being able to participate in amazing cultural experiences without having to pay a dime!! Later a bunch of us went to Hard Rock cafe, where I had a less than favorable experience with my beef fajitas. I have been to Hard Rock a couple of times before, and I am always disappointed with their food. For some reason I forget how bad it is until after I'm already there and my plate is sitting in front of me waiting to be eaten and I am again disappointed. oh well.
On Saturday I had a tour of the Capitol building. I re-learned a lot about our system of government and once again was amazed at the genius of our Founding Fathers. I picked up a copy of the Constitution on my way out and have been reading it. I am embarrassed to say that I think this is the first time I have actually read the whole Constitution. I used to not be able to understand the language and would lose interest soon after the famous preamble of "We the people...." Now that I am in DC and have actually seen the buildings where much of the work of our government takes place and have listened to senators, congressmen, judges, and lobbyists who actually do a lot of that work, I understand it a lot better.
After the Capitol I had a tour of the National Building Museum. Its a really cool building inside, but theres not that much to see.
Thats about all for this week. I know I've missed a few weeks of blogging, but with so many adventures to be had, who has time to blog?
