:::What Can I Say?:::

I had a dream Monday night that blogging friend Jill called me to see what my deal was. In the dream I told her, 'Remember last year when we were sitting at Michelle's dining room table, and I had no idea what to say for myself, about myself, about my life, what I wanted, what I thought I needed? How I couldn't form coherent thoughts about the direction I was taking? How I just didn't know anything? I still feel that way. It's been a year now.'

1. My friend MBC posted a few weeks ago about the many disappointments of Pinterest. How true. I can tell you that the marshmallow-as-frosting trick does not work. Horrible, horrible lie.

I do have a trick that works, but I didn't see it on Pinterest. At a recent Relief Society activity on simplifying, they passed out homemade shower cleaner made from 4 ounces of white vinegar and 4 ounces of blue Dawn detergent. Not sure how crucial it is that it's BLUE Dawn...Anyhow, heat the vinegar in microwave until hot and pour it into a squirt bottle. Add Dawn, put the lid on and gently shake. Spray on tile/fixtures, scrub and rinse. Let soak on tough soap scum overnight then scrub and rinse.

2. I started a new job about a month ago. It's a contract position thing that will probably end in December-ish? Who knows. The work isn't super fancy, but can be interesting. The people are nice. The end.

3. I think about DC every day. I want to go back but don't want to go back at the same time. I still don't feel settled here, but I don't think I ever feel settled anywhere. My visiting teacher told me I have commitment issues. True.

4. My camera broke, so I don't have any recent pictures for you. All the old pictures I have of the past year are on my external hard drive.

5. I've been experimenting with no-knead bread lately. I had a batch ready to bake tonight, but decided to smash it down and roll it out into rectangles instead of making a loaf. This combination is both pleasing to the belly and the eye -- whole wheat flatbread dough topped with sauteed red onions and mushrooms, sliced honeycrisp apple, and blue cheese. A picture would work so well here.

6. It's still hot.

:::In a Good Place:::

Oh, I feel so good right now.

Today I went to Target, and while I was there I tried on three different nail polishes.

I bought the purple-y one and I love it. It matches my newly found footloose and fancy free attitude. I feel more like myself than I have in a long time. I can't wait for the next step!

I love the idea of having different themes to my life. This chapter of city dwelling life is coming to a close. I may live in a city again some day, but as Aragorn said outside the Black Gate, today is not that day.

I am not sad to leave DC because I've done all that I wanted to do here. I've been very blessed since December 2007, and I'm not leaving with any bad mojo.

I can tell that some people here think that I'm making a bad decision. Through so many words they've said that I haven't given it my all, that by leaving I'm running away from 'real' life, or that the best opportunities for me aren't back in suburbia. Eh, okay.

The truth is that I've had a great time in DC. There are like two things left that I've always wanted to do and haven't yet, but otherwise I've seen and done everything on my to-do list. I love this town, I just don't want to be here anymore. And because I don't have to be here, I don't need to be here. I want to leave, so I am. That's all. I'm excited to be around family again and thrilled to be back West after almost four years of East Coast living. Amen. 

My friends are happy for me and think I'm making a great decision. I still get frustrated when people express doubts about my plans, but we aren't responsible for other people's perceptions of our lives. I am very happy and will leave here without regrets. Amen.

So, a week and some change and then I'm a Westerner again. Ha, ha! I'm so excited to go back! I know that there are going to be great opportunities coming my way, as well as the usual ups and downs of life. I'm ready for it all.

I'll leave you with some delicious photos. Last week I was invited to the going away lunch for dear little coworker Erica, and yesterday was my very own going away lunch.

Founding Farmers

Devil-ish Eggs -- Maine Lobster, Crab, Smoked Salmon

Cornmeal Battered Fried Green Tomatoes with Herb Goat Cheese and Green Goddess Dip

{I almost cried}

 

Ricotta, Pistachio, and Date Flatbread 

 

Skillet Corn Bread with Sea Salt and Honey Butter

 

Macaroni and Cheese with Gouda, Gruyere, Ham, Peas, and Apples

Pan-Fried Chicken with White Gravy, Waffles, and Mac ‘n’ Cheese

Jaleo 

I know it's not an original choice, but I love the food José Andrés makes. I was too busy eating to take many photos.

Pasamontés Manchego, D.O. Manchego
Sheep’s milk cheese, sweet and tangy
Idiazábal, D.O. Idiazábal
Sheep’s milk cheese, smoked, nutty flavor
Murcia al vino, D.O. Murcia
Semi-soft goat’s milk cheese bathed in red wine with a balance of salt and acidity
Garrotxa, D.O. Catalunya
Semi-soft goat’s milk cheese, delicate flavors of milk and a hint of nuttiness
Caña de cabra, D.O. Murcia
Semi-soft goat’s milk cheese, sweet and salty
Valdeón, D.O. Asturias
Blue cheese of cow and goat’s milk, intense flavor

{Those apricots were soaked in some kind of honey/cinnamon concoction that was to die for}

Gambas con Gabardina
Batter-fried shrimp with caper mayonnaise

{My friend ordered these and it totally freaked her out that they came with the heads on. It was hilarious.}

Ensalada de Remolacha con Cítricos
Salad of red beets with citrus segments, Valdeón cheese, pistachios and Sherry dressing

Croquetas de Pollo
Traditional chicken fritters

We also had...

Manzanas con hinojo y queso Manchego
Sliced apples and fennel salad with Manchego cheese, walnuts and Sherry dressing

Tortilla de Patatas al Momento

Spanish omelet with potatoes and onions cooked to order

Pimientos del Piquillo Rellenos de Queso
Seared piquillo peppers filled with goat cheese

Dátiles con Tocino ‘como hace todo el mundo’
Fried dates wrapped in bacon that you will want to eat every day

{How's that for a hard sell?}

Gambas al Ajillo
The very, very famous tapa of shrimp sautéed with garlic

Codorniz con Salsa de Romero y Alioli de Miel

Grilled quail with rosemary sauce and honey alioli

Lomo de Buey

Grilled hanger steak with piquillo peppers

Arroz de pato ‘Jean-Louis Palladin’
Rice with duck confit, duck breast, and foie gras cream

We had more than one order of a few of those!

Pastel Vasco con Helado de Leche Merengada
Basque cake with semolina cream, cinnamon-vanilla sauce and ice milk

{So, so very good}

Compota de Manzana al Pan Perdido con Pedro Ximénez
Apple Charlotte with Pedro Ximénez & vanilla ice cream

{Not mine :)}

Helados y Sorbetes Caseros con ‘Carquinyolis’
Peach
Apple


Thank you, corporate Amex. :)

:::Really, I'm fine:::

I had the opportunity to spend today traveling to and from two medical appointments.

That's what I did today. That's sad.

At my first appointment I was supposed to have blood drawn. I told the stand-in NP that I was a hard stick. She chuckled. I bet everyone tells her that. A couple fishing expeditions later I walked out of the office with a band-aid and a rescheduled appointment for this Friday. Use my neck next time! It wouldn't be a first.

Insult to injury -- I had to fast for this appointment. I hate fasting! And yesterday was Fast Sunday! I was generally in a bad mood today. Too much fasting, and headaches due to too much travel.

Fast forward to the post meridian, and I'm on a bus for one earth hour out to Sibley for the second most invasive medical procedure I've ever experienced in my life. After enjoying that fresh hell, I shared a bus stop with three harmless but toffee-nosed tweens -- two girls and a boy -- who spent 20 minutes talking loudly and excessively about jailbreaking their iPhones and how much they loved flip-flops. Then the boy started giving one of the girls the business because she goes to a charter school --

'You might as well go to public school! Ha, ha, ha!'

'We aren't connected to DCPS! We're in charge of ourselves!!!'

Yeah, yeah, CAN IT!

The bus doesn't take me all the way home, so I opted for a cab ride in rush hour traffic instead of barfing on the metro. Headache. Thirty earth minutes, t w o  m i l e s, and $15 later I made it home.

Now I'm sitting in my underwears and watching Curious George on public television. I just ate a tuna sandwich, and now I might wash my hair with vinegar in the dark.

The Man in the Big Yellow Hat is a prancing idiot.

:::From the Drafts Folder -- Oh, the Neighborhood (10/6/10):::

I live across the street from a housing project. Of all things, it is mostly loud. Right now it's 9:48 at night and someone is playing music so loudly that I can hear it clearly even in my bathroom.
When the weather is warm children play in the concrete courtyard. They are playing right now. There are people gathered in a circle of plastic chairs talking. At one house people are sitting out on their porch. I like that.

There is always laundry out on the line, even when it's raining. Even in the winter. Even when it's snowing. Bless.

When I walk to work in the morning I spy...one broken bottle, three used you-know-whats, and one large group of teenagers smoking not-cigarettes.

Their is a precinct, an emergency vehicle repair garage, and a homicide unit a block or so down the street. We've got a lot of cars with those fancy European sounding sirens, so, ooh-la-la.

The police end up across the street a lot, sometimes just driving through the neighborhood, sometimes to stop and talk to people, and sometimes they go into houses for who knows what purpose. I've never seen anyone be arrested. Wait...yes I have. All in all though, I think the police mostly deal with domestic issues. Sometimes the police act as family counselors.

The paramedics and fire department show up frequently as well. Many, many times the paramedics and firemen act as doctors.

There is an ice cream truck that shows multiple times throughout the evening. The driver rings what sounds like an old fashioned school bell loudly and without pause. When I was in high school the bell would always give me a heart attack if I was standing underneath it. I have the same reaction now.

His primary customers are adults. From what I can tell, I mean, my binoculars aren't that powerful, people don't leave his window with much. Actually, more often than not, when people step away from the window their hands are jammed deep into their pockets.

I hope we're on the same page as far as subtle hinting goes.

On the Sunday of General Conference I missed the end of President Monson's final address because there was a huge fight going on over there between four women. I think some people just like to fight. One group was in a fire red Jeep Grand Cherokee, and they kept getting in and out of the car to yell at the women who kept coming in and out of the house. It never got violent. The police didn't come.

Am I safe? Yes. I'm safe because I know what I should and shouldn't do. I'm safe because more than anything, this ghetto is mostly crazy ghetto, and not so much violent ghetto. Big difference.


I really wish they'd turn that music off...

:::Part 1 -- A Dark Night in Virginia:::

Let me tell you a story...

3 1/2 years ago I left California on a jet plane. Six-ish hours later I landed at Reagan, and that's how all of my now began. I went to baggage claim, dragged my gigantic suitcases over to the taxi line, and gave the driver directions to a house that I had never been to before.

It was pitch black dark, like 11 pm at night, as we drove into my new neighborhood in Pentagon City. Not a soul around, and so dark. The driver stopped in front of a house that didn't look anything like the fuzzy picture I'd been sent. I didn't want to leave the cab. I was scared like a baby. The cabby was fidgeting, so I asked him again if he was certain that we were at the right address, and very reluctantly got out of the car. He didn't help me with my bags.

I lugged my suitcases up the creaky wooden steps and knocked on the door even though I knew everyone was home for Christmas. I wanted someone to welcome me to my new home, but I had to open the door myself.

Once I dug out my key, I opened the door to more darkness and more emptiness. Up more creaky steps to my attic room with heavy luggage thumping and bumping behind me. Out came the air mattress. I looked around my room and accessed the situation -- an attic without insulation with a tiny room eked out with wood paneling that bowed when I press my hand against it. The wind was howling, and it cut through my new room, and through me, like a knife.

To be continued...

:::Used Books:::

On Saturday I went to the funniest little used bookstore near Eastern Market. Books were crammed everywhere, everywhere, even along the staircase, making for a tight walk up to the second floor.

Foreign language books were in the bathroom where opera was playing.

Books were stuffed into closets and around chairs. They really utilized every single space, and then some.

One of the shop owners is an endearing curmudgeon type. There are funny signs all over the store, such as a sign over a stack of books about George Washington that says, 'George Washington lies here.' Near the register there are some featured books set out with humorous tags.

These were my favorites --

I stayed for a while, but then gaggles and gaggles of GW students poureded in, so I made my exeunt. I'm sure I'll be back though.

:::Alarming:::

I know most people my age are still out in da club at 1:30 in the morning, but I was sound asleep. Waking up to the screeching noise of my building's fire alarm was fairly confusing to my mottled brain. It took me a looong time to get in response mode this time around (fire alarms are a fairly, but not too regular occurrence), and then it took me an added 6 or 7 minutes to get dressed because I had to find and put on scarf, gloves, thick socks, snow boots, coat, and hat on top of my regular clothes. It's been pretty cold here lately, and I didn't know if or how long we'd have to stand outside. Then I had to find my cell phone, keys, and wallet, then I worried about having cash for a cab ride to Arlington* (and getting a cab in the middle of the night) just in case I had to stay in a hotel overnight...did you know that I overreact to emergency situations?

Of course, by the time I was all bundled up the alarm stopped, which is good because I was sure that if there had been major flames, a jump off my balcony would be my only escape option left by the time I was ready to go. The firemen still had to come though. Bless their hearts.

And my neighbor's dog barked for the rest of the morning, so I had to put in ear plugs. But that is another story in and of itself, which I will tell you later.

*There are a plethora of Marriott and Hilton type hotels concentrated along the same street in Crystal City, and a metro station very nearby. If push came to shove, I could walk from hotel to hotel to find a room if I had to.

:::Metro Song:::

The guy that did the Arlington Rap just posted a new video about riding our beloved Metro, and it's awesome.



Mom and Auntie, I will post later about the inside jokes so you can laugh as well.

:::I Moved A Month Ago:::

At the end of July I moved into a studio apartment here in SW. The whole process was extremely stressful, and continues to be so. Without a car or family who can help me, I've had the character building (ahem) opportunity (ahem) of doing it all by myself. I now know, more than ever before, that there isn't anything that I can't do. Being single you gain this confidence(not the right word) as life progresses, but after having gone through all of this alone, I feel like I've reached a new level of 'I may not want to do hard things alone, but if I have to, I absolutely can.'

{Last thing you pack, first thing you unpack}

I'm working on my resume right now, as getting a better job is the next step in my 'If I Stay In DC' plan, but as soon as I get the motivation to do another arduous task, I want to document each little step that it took -- the good, bad, and ugly -- to move into this apartment. There have been a lot of tears, fears, heartaches, and stresses involved. A few happy moments too.

But, don't cry for me, Argentina. It's just life, you know? Everybody has stuff going on. And, funny thing, this morning I decided to move my bed, and I feel so much happier in this space. Ha! It's the little things, I guess.

:::Ka-Boom:::

The upside to sharing each inch of your personal space with people is that you get to eavesdrop on so many entertaining conversations.

Today, I present you with 'Threat Level Midnight,' a conversation in one part.


An office elevator, somewhere near Metro Center.

Lady: $#@%! I forgot my lunch!

Man: Huh?

Lady: I forgot my lunch.

Man: On the metro?

Lady: Yes.

Man: Oh well, they'll just blow it up.


Scene.

:::Dammit! I Want To Move To Texas!!!:::

I want to move to Texas, but I have no idea how I'm going to make it work.

I would have to:

1. Buy a car (which I really don't want to do)
2. Scrounge together a down payment for a car (Grrr...)
3. Start paying for car insurance (*#%@$!!!)
4. Get rid of half of my crap (I'm actually looking forward to this)
5. Drive to Texas (fun)
6. Pay for motels, gas and food between here and Texas (Not fun! &@*$#!!!)
7. Save enough money to cover bills until I get some kind of job


If I stay, I need to:

1. Find a place to live for the end of August (In an area where I won't get shot/harassed/assaulted)
2. If I get my own place, I kind of need a new job so that I won't be so strapped every month
3. So, I need to get a new job (Yeah, that's not stressful)
4. Pay tons of money for a security deposit
5. Pay tons of money for first month's rent, and every month thereafter
6. Somehow pay to buy bare bones furnishings for an empty apartment
7. Put off my goals for another 2-3 years...

Or, hey, I could just move into a run-of-the-mill shared apartment with other Mormon girls (and want to die every day).


The difficulty is that each option is going to cost inordinate amounts of money.

Honestly, I just don't want to stay. I certainly won't be sad if I have to. I like DC, I have friends here, I love my ward (hopefully I can stay in my ward), and there are a lot of opportunities here. But I still want to move to Texas at some point.

However, if I had to stay, saving more money for a move at a later date wouldn't really be a possibility because I'll be on such a tight budget until I make a big career step to a higher salary level (P.S. -- That's not going to happen anytime soon).



I've been fasting and praying since December, I've been researching like a fiend, I've looked at apartments here, I've talked with my Bishop, I've received blessings, I've asked everyone I know for advice, sigh...I'm at a loss. Never in my life have I not had some idea of what my next step in life would be. This time, I've got absolutely nothing. Niente.

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:::You Go, Girl!:::

I like to imagine that she has a closet full of mint condition LA Gears and BK Knights.

:::Lunch at the W:::

On Friday, I went out to lunch with one of my coworkers, Fred, and our old coworker Lindsay. She was also my sister's roommate for years, and she recommended me for my job when I moved out here.

We went to POV at the W, which is in the old Hotel Washington building. The last time I was there it was still the Hotel Washington, I was 20 years old, living in Foggy Bottom, and interning on K Street. Man.



The decor was nothing less than you'd expect from the W...plus a little bit more.


The view is still one of the best in the city. You can see the White House, the Washington Monument, the Jefferson, the WWII, the Lincoln, and all of the Mall from one rooftop deck.


Lindsay.


Fred.

Yeah, you wish you were cool enough to rock a pair of spider cuff links. Only Fred could pull them off with such panache. This is a man who wears exquisite and colorful silk ties and custom made shirts every day, and is currently having a pair of eyeglasses hand crafted in Italy. Seriously, I wish I was that cool.

The lady was wearing a combination of Le Maison de Lane Bryant and Tar-jay, if you care to know.




Pistachio ice cream on top of a rhubarb cobbler. Two of my favorite flavors in one dessert.




I doubt I would ever decorate my house this way, but I still loved the fun decor. I'm pretty hip, though, so that doesn't surprise me.

:::Let It Be Known -- I Moved:::

Last weekend I moved off the Hill and moved in with my RS Prez down in the Waterfront area of DC.
Life is pretty sweet down here.


The only catch is that her regular roommate is coming back on August 30th. So, gots to make a plan for the end of summer, cuz I'm about to be without home...

:::'French' Market:::

On my suggestion, last Saturday Shorty and I went to the French Market in Georgetown. As it turns out, it was neither French nor a market. What we experienced instead was a sort of sidewalk jumble sale.


For some reason, this type of fake cultural branding really annoys me. A cute poster and some dude playing the accordion do not a French theme make.


I think I spotted two items in the entire event that were overtly related to France. One was this cute poster of Les Invertébrés, my favorite being 'les protozoaires'.


And these processional candles, handily labeled, 'From France.' I made Shorty hold one so I could take a picture. She's Catholic, so I thought it was only fitting. I really think she experienced a spiritual awakening as a result.

The same vendor with the processional candles also had a few other things that were fun to photograph...






But I didn't buy anything, since they were dealing in Georgetown dollars. It's a whole different system of economics over there, one that apparently requires a degree from a prestigious foreign university to gain entry into...


Hmm.

After our brief walk up and down the market, Shorty left to attend an annual alumni event at the University of Maryland, and I went to Paper Source, where I bought many stamps on sale for 75% off.

So that was Saturday.