Photos!

As promised, here are some long-awaited photos of my apartment! (and Lindsey, Kristi and Sara's). They're a little out of order. This is my bathroom, with its own linen closet.
A walk-in closet that has more than enough space for both Lindsey and my clothes. It's kinda ridiculous.

Guess what's behind these doors? A washer/dryer!

This is the view from the balcony. We're on the 16th floor!

The view looking straight down into the courtyard. Everything looks miniature!

This is the view from the entryway.


Our beautiful kitchen!

The table with a bouquet of gerber daisies. We take turns buying fresh flowers.

The other side of the living room.

Lindsey's and my room. Yes, mom, we really do keep it that clean. ;)

Good times!

This week has definitely improved from the bizarre weekend. Shayla (my roommate from last year) was in Washington with her parents for a few days, so she and I went to the Museum of Natural History and saw the Hope Diamond and explored Chinatown (it's really small, but a fun area of the city). We also dined at Hard Rock Cafe with a bunch of friends on Tuesday night. While the comraderie between us was great, our waiter was capital C crazy. At first we thought he was just funny, but the slew of sarcastic comments, pornographic tattoos and constant attempts to join our conversation became a little overwhelming. But somehow I got the nickname "princess", so at least I was on his good side... I guess? Still, it was a great time.

Sunday was an absolute highlight- I found a church! It's called The City Church (www.thecitydc.org), and it was started two years ago by three churches on the west coast, one of which is Sara's home church. Sara, Kristi and I attended on Sunday morning, where they were meeting for the first time in their new building. Well, the building is actually 163 years old, with some stained glass panels on the walls and high ceilings with dark wood beams and dusty, creaky stairs. And then there's the fully array of electrical equipment and modern musical instruments on the stage, creating quite a juxtaposition of new and old. Because my internship doesn't start for another week and a half, I plan on helping out with the renovation projects that are still incomplete. Also, there is a Bible study on Tuesday nights for the Young Professionals group (which includes interns- this is so DC), which I'm really excited to attend. It's very obvious that the church takes the literal interpretation of the Bible seriously, and they have such an inspired vision to reach out to Washington.

Humanities class is going well. Our professor can be slightly long-winded at times but because there are only nine students, the class discussion is usually interesting and well-paced. We're going to the Shakespeare Theatre next week to see a play, but of course we have to write a paper on it. Class usually goes the full two hours and twenty minutes, but last night we were dismissed half an hour early. Thank goodness, because we would have otherwise missed the first quarter of the Lakers game. As there are several basketball enthusiasts (mostly Lakers fans), watching the games has become ritual. Last night's game was ridiculous- the San Antonio Spurs kept a lead- once at 20 points- until the last five minutes or so of the game, and the Lakers came back to win by four.

I'm really looking forward to Memorial Day weekend, and not just because there's no class on Monday. My friend Daniel is coming to visit! So right now I have to go plan some fun things to do this weekend.

I had planned on using this Saturday to explore Washington, but my excursion has been postponed due to the happenings of the previous evening. That's right: Friday night drama. The evening began well-intended and low-key with plans to watch the Lakers playoff game against the Utah Jazz at a sports bar in the city. But one miscommunication after another caused four of us to end up in Adams Morgan while the majority had gone to the Georgetown neighborhood, and what should have been a half hour commute turned into a two and half hour adventure. Apparently, this is what happens when you allow a group of men to coordinate a social event. By the time we arrived at the crowded, classless, hip-hop-blasting bar in Georgetown, the game was nearing the end of the third quarter. Before I was able to get settled at a table with the few friends who actually went out to see the game, I received a few comments (undoubtedly encouraged by alcohol) which indicated that petty-- and untrue-- rumors regarding my opinion of certain individuals had been circulating. Needless to say, it wasn't the most fun night out, despite my determination to have a positive attitude and enjoy the company of friends. At least the Lakers won.

We got back home at about 2:30 and I decided that reading my Bible would be the only way to make the frustration in my mind fade away enough to sleep. I read Matthew 11:28 and Hebrews 4:16, which say, "come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." and "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Just as I was about to drift into sleep, my phone rang. Who was calling at 3:30 in the morning?! It was my apartmentmate, Sara, whom I had accidentally locked out. (Mom, you will appreciate knowing that our door has both a bolt and a chain, in addition to the normal key lock). After everything that had happened Friday night, a very unsophisticated hour-long debriefing of the evening was in order.

I had been asleep for about 3o minutes when I woke up (if you've been keeping track, it's now about 5 am) and realized that someone was in the bathroom. Throwing up. Well of course that made me slightly nauseated too (I am far too empathetic). My poor roommate, Lindsey, had come down with the stomach flu in the middle of the night. I got her some water, saltines and mints and talked with her for awhile to distract her from the queasiness. I finally got back to sleep at about six, knowing that my day was shot, but finally able to laugh at the absurdity of this sequence of events.

Well, it's Tuesday now...

Sara says that it's good that I haven't written for four days because it means that I've been enjoying life. And I think that's true. Today was probably the best day so far, and I didn't even go into the city. Rather, I slept in and got a ton accomplished, then made a great dinner (stirfry- I know you were wondering) and spent quality time with quality people. Oh, there were some adventures today, like when Sara left her iphone at the grocery store and we walked the 2/3 mile back to find it. Luckily, a store employee had found it and returned it. And the electricity went out sporadically during the day, including at the grocery store and while running the washing machine. Despite these incidents, the laundry got done and the shopping was completed. I was even able to finish unpacking (and organize my clothes in the walk-in closet!), clean the kitchen and straighten up the apartment. It feels so homey and inviting, especially with the bouquet of bright pink gerber daisies that I arranged in a wine glass on the dining table and the orange lillies on the coffee table.

Earlier this evening, Sara and I made chocolate chip cookies for the boys on the 13th floor because they had helped us transport and carry our groceries several days ago. And because we just think that they're great guys. We included a thank you note and took the plate of cookies to their apartment. Since they were all home, we decided to hang out for awhile, which turned into a 2 1/2 hour long discussion of sports, politics, music and religion. (Cultured, no?) It was such good quality conversation between old friends and new, as well as a wonderful reassurance from God of His presence and influence in this group of interns.

Now for a short description of the events of the past few days:
Saturday: A morning scavanger hunt had us running around DC for 3 1/2 hours, followed by a 4-hour bus tour of the city (which actually involved more walking than bus-riding). The tour guide told us more about her "hot, single 24-year old son who is a bartender and has a business degree from Virginia Tech" than about the monuments we visited. Also shopped at the grocery store and Target with the roommies.

Sunday: Obtained eight hours of sleep for the first time since Wednesday, then got all dressed up for a group photo. It was cancelled. So I went to the mall instead, where I discovered the cheap section of Nordstrom.

Monday: Slept in again (this is becoming a glorious pattern that will be difficult to break) then went to the Holocaust Memorial Museum with a few friends. It's one of the newer Smithsonian buildings, and the architecture is very impressive, as are the exhibits. The only downside was the presence of multiple middle school student groups. I can't believe I used to be one of those. Monday evening marked the beginning of classes. My humanities professor is an over-zealous phD student- he is generously assigning a 24-30 page paper for the final. Still, I am remaining optimistic that the course will be interesting and insightful.

Tomorrow I will go to the zoo.

First Impressions

Where to begin? Right now I'm sitting on the living room sofa with my apartmentmate Sara, happily exhausted from the activities of the past 24 hours spent in Crystal City, the Arlington neighborhood where our high-rise apartment building is. After a short delay in Miami, I finally landed in Washington at 5:15 pm, just an hour before the group dinner. Getting to the apartment building was no problem, though when I stepped inside the lobby I thought I had made a mistake. This place was way too upscale to be home for the next 10 weeks. But the front desk handed me a key and I took the elevator to the 16th floor where my apartmentmates were all waiting for me. Tired but energized by adrenaline, we quickly changed clothes for dinner and took the metro with the group to a Mediterranean restaurant where we stayed for three hours. On the way back, my new shoes gave me new blisters. And we got caught in a thunder storm. I arrived back at the apartment tired, bleeding and soaking wet. But at the same time, I hardly cared because I was (and still am) so happy to start experiencing life in Washington.

It rained all day today, so the long-awaited scavenger hunt has been postponed to tomorrow. Luckily, we were able to complete our program orientation sessions instead, which means that the rest of the weekend will be spent exploring the city and settling in. Sara, Kristi, Lindsey and I went to the grocery store and Target today to stock up on some basics. By the time we returned and had everything put away, it was already 7:15. I decided to make parmesan crusted chicken for dinner, and you better believe I enjoyed all that granite kitchen counterspace. Sara and I ate while Kristi and Lindsey worked out in our apartment's gym. I'm way too tired to go to the gym tonight. I'll go tomorrow.

Two days away

Two years ago I thought this day would never come, and now it is only two days away. In two days I'm moving across the country-- temporarily, at least. I'm moving to Washington, DC for a summer internship at The Heritage Foundation, a public policy think tank. Sometimes when I tell people about my summer plans, it feels as though I'm talking about someone else. Reality hasn't exactly set in yet, evidenced by the empty suitcases and incomplete paperwork sitting at home.

As thrilled as I am to have this internship and to experience the DC lifestyle, I'm also trying to keep my expectations in check. Ideally, work will be fun, I'll meet tons of great people, join a dynamic church, take full advantage of the gorgeous stainless steel appliances in my kitchen, and suddenly perfect my time-management skills so that I can work, study, socialize AND sleep in any given 24-hour period. Oh, and my hair will remain unaffected by the frizzing effects of east-coast humidity. The last one might be a little too ambitious.

In all seriousness, I'm trying to expect that God will do great things without predicting how that will play out. I want my job to be fun. I want my classes to be easy. I want to enjoy the company of friends. I want to look like a fabulous young professional every single day. But more than that, I want my job to be challenging. I want to learn something in class. I want to be a blessing to the people around me. I still want to look fabulous every single day. And I want God to use me in all of it, even if that means certain expectations must be surrendered.

Already I've been getting hints to expect the unexpected this summer. And to just roll with it. Like today, I learned that my original roommate decided to not participate in the program, which meant that I would be assigned a roommate. Obviously, this was not part of the plan. Correction: this was not part of my plan. Lindsey, my new roommate, and I apparently have several mutual friends, plus our apartmentmates-- Kristi and Sara-- couldn't be better ladies to live with. They are two of the kindest, smartest, most beautiful and fun people I know. (If you know them, then you know that I'm not "just saying that.") And from what I've heard, Lindsey is too. So basically, we have a fantastic apartment and a great opportunity to become closer friends. I couldn't have planned it better myself.