Happening Lately

Friends, things around these parts are busy. Sister Kerry and I graduated* from our respective grad schools over the last two weekends,  I started my summer classes, and work is a little nuts right now. I'm also transitioning into working at my job just part time for the summer so that I can also work part time for an organization more closely related to my degree. 

Also lately, I insisted on dragging the family out to Lucketts, VA to go to an antiques festival, and earlier this week I went and saw Jonathan Adler speak at the Corcoran. He was just as pithy and preppy as you would hope.If I felt like $165 was the appropriate amount of money to spend on a pillow then I would certainly own this. or this.or perhaps this.

In other exciting news, last week I purchase my first adult dresser** and made some killer sloppy joes (thanks for the recipe Rachael!) This is Zoe inquiring after some of said sloppy joes. She has no dignity.

* Kerry is a real graduate, however I am a fake graduate. I still need these summer classes before anyone will actually give me a diploma.

** And by adult I do mean it was $25 on craigslist and is missing some pieces so it looks a little suspect. Overall I still feel good about it.

Adams Morgan

Because I'm 28 going on 40 I find Adams Morgan a little overwhelming on weekend evenings. There was a time when I happily took part in the reverie but now I find the swarms of young* professionals** bar hopping on 18th Street to be more than I can handle. I actually like AM the best on Saturday and Sunday morning when the neighborhood is gloriously empty and serene.

Zoe is also a big fan of weekend mornings in AM. She's figured out that drunk people + jumbo slice means leftovers!!! Seriously she finds pizza crusts scattered all over the neighborhood on Saturday morning and I can tell she feels the thrill of the hunt when she successfully searches out the pizza remnants tucked in bushes and other secret hiding spots. I imagine every Saturday morning she must think it's Christmas.

So like any responsible dog owner I brought my camera out to try to document her pizza hunting. Unfortunately whenever she finds a piece she magically becomes the most discrete dog in town and won't show me her face. I tried to catch her red handed in a photo but as you can see from the photo below she has a real knack for avoiding being caught on film. I know I shouldn't encourage this behavior but I feel like this is as close to hunting as this little hound dog is ever going to get so I allow it once in awhile.

Here's the pizza hunter stalking her prey.

* I swear they get younger every year
** by professionals I mean interns

Eleanor

I thought it was time to formally introduce my trusty steed Eleanor. (What you guys don't name your bikes?)

Mike got Eleanor for me a couple of years ago off craigslist. At the time Mike was riding his bike all over the city and I was steadfastly refusing to give biking a try. I was too nervous to ride in the city, and I wasn't comfortable with hand brakes. This is when Mike resorted to bribing me with my very own beach cruiser. Eleanor and I took a little while to hit it off but now I bike pretty much every day. She's great because she's simple, no fancy gears, but she really knows how to party.

 I had been meaning to take some glamor shots of Eleanor for awhile and this weekend I had the perfect opportunity to capture her splendor in her natural habitat when Mike and I biked the Mount Vernon Trail.

I've been thinking about getting her some ribbons for the handlebars, or those glow in the dark things for the spokes but I already get a lot of stares riding a beach cruiser around DC.

It's almost offensive how good looking she is right?

The Weekend

 I'm dragging a little after staying up entirely too late playing a never-ending game of Catan. Mike and I rarely let someone step in our front door without imposing a game of Catan on them. It used to be guitar hero but I like to think we've matured a little.

This weekend sister Kerry is graduating with her MSW so there will be graduation festivities all around. Sunday I'm going to the drum circle in Meridian Hill park with my grad school pals to celebrate our impending graduation next week. Just to be clear, I won't be playing any drums, just eating and watching other more musically inclined people get down.

Ugli Fruit

I found this fairly unattractive looking fruit at Whole Foods. It's from Jamaica and it's literally called the ugli fruit (perhaps it's not pronounced how I'm imagining?). I was expecting something a little more magical when I sliced it open but it just looks like a grapefruit.  Or perhaps a grapefruit's slightly homely cousin.

Despite it's normal appearance inside I was really pleased with the taste. Like a sweet, slightly citrusy grapefruit.

Please pardon the sunlight in the bottom picture. Living in a basement apartment means there is never any natural light inside so I documented this fruit testing extravaganza outside!

The Ladies

Based on this recommendation, I've been watching the new HBO show Girls. Lena Dunham is hilarious as the lead, and I'm more than a little impressed that she is 25 and writing her own show. I love how normal these girls are and how honest the writing is.




I've also been touched by this NYTimes blog written by 23 year old Suleika Jaouad about her battle with leukemia. She is amazingly poised as she writes about her relationship with her boyfriend, receiving bone marrow from her brother, and how awkward cancer can be. The video about her and her boyfriend is so sweet.

Happy Friday!

It's Friday. We've made it through another week! I'm going into the weekend with the right balance of free time and things to do which I feel good about. Tomorrow sister Kerry and I are headed to Pet Fiesta in Reston to volunteer with K-9 Lifesavers. I'm a fancy Adoption Counselor and Kerry is a lowly dog handler but we will both have equal access to hoards of puppies!!! The picture above is of her majesty the dowager countess lady Zoe, who we got from K-9 Lifesavers a year and a half ago.

We will also be celebrating the birthday of Kathryn of GPE blog fame on Saturday, and Sunday I am going to brunch at the O Street Mansion!

28th Year Bucket List

Last summer when I turned 28, I decided to make a 28th year bucket list with 28 things I wanted to accomplish before my next birthday. Some of the things were really easy and silly like make a cake, and read Jane Eyre (done and done), and others require a bit more planning like sailing down the Potomac, and picking blueberries (still need to do). Now that I'm closing  in on birthday number 29 (eeeeeekkkk!) I am trying to really get down to business so that I finish my list!

On the agenda for the next couple of months are:

Drinks at the W

A trip to Monticello

and going to Lucketts 

Yes, big things are happening in these parts.