A Recap

It has been far too long since making a post, so I'll attempt to remedy that this morning.

Speaking of mornings, the past couple of mornings walking in to work have been unusually pleasant, in terms of the temperature and overall state of the weather. No need for coat at all, in fact. And with today being the first day of spring, I can only assume that, FINALLY, the freezing temperatures of the past couple of months are finally behind us.

A couple of weekends ago Kevin and I headed south on a Greyhound bus (not the best of experiences, I confess) to see my friend from high school who happens to be going to school at UVA in Charlottesville. Our stay there was great, and just what I needed to relax and recharge after a busy academic unit in the program.

We visited Monticello, the estate which was home to Thomas Jefferson some 200 years ago. The house, which you can see in the picture to the right, was amazing. We also saw his grave and wandered around the estate for a while. We arrived at the earliest possible hour, beating the crowds of other tourists and obnoxious 8th grade classes.

While in Charlottesville, we also drove out to a park and hiked up to a collection of rocks high atop the Shenandoah Valley. It was during this hike where I concluded that I am a tad out of shape. Surprisingly, my legs were not sore at the end of things, but my heart and lungs were certainly overworked. The view, however, made everything worth it, as you might be able to see to the left.

These last few weeks in Washington will no doubt fly by. It's hard to believe that there are just over five weeks left; even though I had figured the time would be going by fast, I could not have imagined it going this fast. And there is no indication that it slow up at all. The next few weeks will be busy with academic projects (our next project is a group-oriented study of Syria's relation to Iraq) and work-related projects (I won't go into detail, but suffice it to say that I'll never be short of something to do).

Before I leave, I'm determined to go to at least two or three Washington Nationals baseball games, and possibly make it up to Baltimore to catch a game at Camden, which happens to be one of my very favorite stadiums. Good goals to have, right?

I am looking forward to being in Oregon soon, though, and look forward to the time when I can look out my window and see green again. And it will be great to see Mt. Hood once again.

First Half Highlights

Well, as expected, this semester is flying by. I am officially over halfway done with my time in D.C., and our next academic unit is rumored to be more managable than the previous. Of course, this makes me very happy.

Highlights from the first half of my semester include:

- Hearing oral arguments in two cases at the Supreme Court (it's hard to top that one)

- Sitting directly behind President Bush and Laura Bush at church (that was just surreal), and attending church with them on a somewhat-regular basis

- Our first afternoon in DC, standing on the roof of our apartment building and taking in the view of the city for the first time

- Getting re-addicted to "The West Wing" (it's a recent development that I'm not entirely proud of, but somebody here as the first five seasons)

- Attending a press conference right after the minimum wage bill vote and being just feet away from senators and religious leaders that I've seen on television many times (granted, one of the senators was Ted Kennedy, but still...)

- Walking around Alexandria with two friends one Saturday afternoon

- Eating pancakes with the family of the residence director every Saturday morning (what a GREAT family)

I'm here in Charlottesville right now, and just got back from visiting Monticello and the campus of the University of Virginia this morning. I'll post pictures soon.

I can see the light...

I'm almost done with my unit project here. After I submit it before Tuesday at 11:59 pm, I won't have any homework obligations until at least next Monday when they hand out the next unit's syllabus.

I can almost breathe freely.

Oh, and I shook hands with Laura Bush at church today. It only reaffirmed my previous belief that she is a very nice and lovely woman.

I'll post again when I'm completely free.