A Weekend at the Capitol

Washington D.C.

Our nation’s capital, and I’d never been. *holds out hand for vicious slapping*

So, I went. And…

OH MY GOSH I LOVED IT!

I didn’t really have any expectations, well, other than a few museums, a statue or two, walls of white marble pillars, Men in Black, Starbucks…

We (meaning me and my work friends) left Newark, Delaware bright and early on Saturday morning and drove a quick two hours to DC (thanks, Jean-Francois, for driving your van, and Carolyn for being our road-trip DJ! I'm even listening to Kid A as I write this...)

Mandarin Oriental

We checked in to our hotel, the Mandarin Oriental, where they had warm, damp hand towels waiting for us (um, it was so gorgeous inside and out that, for a moment there, I felt famous - no, really), and we headed straight for the Capitol like a bunch of unsuspecting, bright-eyed tourists. And...

 .

WOW!

There I was, minding my own business, when we turned a corner and...*gasp* 

Washington Memorial
(The crew, from left to right: Philip, Jean-Francois, Carolyn, Me, Veronique)

Everywhere I looked were big beautiful buildings and monuments and water fountains and landscaping (aside of the huge yellow crane…) – the sun was bright and warmed us from the cool breeze. It was…perfect. *sighs*

The very first thing we did (after waking from momentary paralysis) was go to the National Museum of Natural History. 

Dinosaur bones. *cues Jurassic Park theme*

I remember dreaming about them when I was little (those pictures in history books are tantalizing); it was INCREDIBLE looking upon them with my own eyes. It was also pretty funny seeing the T-Rex surrounded by little kids, gazing up wide-eyed and open-mouthed, saying things like, “Mommy, I’m scared!” and then crawling into the safety of their stroller.

We meandered through the past and through the continents, in no particular order, while I kept thinking about Night at the Museum. (I kept my gaze on that lion. *narrows eyes*) Once we went through all the rooms, including a VERY impressive gemstone exhibit harboring the Hope Diamond (Ben, I saw some gorgeous emeralds…*nudge nudge*), we continued our private tour through the capitol.

Now, for those of you that haven’t been to the capitol, everything sort of coagulates around the National Mall. No, this is not a shopping mall, nor are there any stores. It’s a long-LONG! lawn of green, with a fence made of monuments and museums. Before me was the capitol building, behind me was the Washington Memorial, to my right was the Air and Space Museum, to my left was the Natural History Museum (I spun in circles taking photos and, consequently, ran into innocent bystanders). And the greatest part about it was that ALL of it was FREE! The Smithsonian Institution was a "gift" to our nation from the British Scientist, James Smithson, for the "increase and diffusion of knowledge."

U.S. Capitol

Library of Congress

Christmas tree inside Library of Congress

Guess what...IT'S THE LIBRARY!!! *jumps up and down, clapping*

Supreme Court

From left to right: Philip, Carolyn, Jean-Francois, Veronique, Me

As the sun began to set, we took off for dinner at a Greek/Lebanese/Turkish tapas restaurant called Zaytinya, where we had lamb and domas and tzaziki and kibbeh...our mouths (and tummies) were in ecstasies...

Jean-Francois, Carolyn, Philip (pre-dinner :D )

Veronique & Me

After we had our fill (um, 2.5 hours later), we headed for the White House to see the Christmas tree. Well, I WISH I could go on and on about how beautiful it was, but, truth is, we sorta looked at it with tilted heads and crinkled noses and said, “That’s it?!” (We’ve since learned it fell over and part of it broke off, so “they” decorated the remnants…but still. You would agree the tree in the Library was waaayyyyyyy better.)

The White House at night and decorated for Christmas

We walked a large loop through all the monuments and memorials, smiling and loving every minute of our shoes rubbing the skin off our heels…

World War II Memorial

Freedom Wall: "Here We Mark the Price of Freedom"

Lincoln Memorial

We finally got back to the hotel around 11:30ish, to a lobby/lounge filled with women in beautiful gowns and men in suits and a live jazz band (we found out later that there were a lot of celebrities in town because the Kennedy Awards were that weekend). We took a seat, some wine, watched and listened until our eyes glazed over…

The next morning we headed straight for the National Air and Space Museum.

Me, Jean-Francois, Carolyn and a Russian rocket :)

Carolyn and the Hubble (replica...well, the "ship," not Carolyn)

Saturn V engines...there were five of these on the real one.

Planes and rockets and spaceships hung from the ceiling, and so many of the displays were interactive and constructed in a way that helped you visualize things like gravity & lift, that our planet is a microscopic speck in the universe…

I love these sorts of things. The sun is that sliver of
yellow on the left and Earth is the small blue ball.

We finished the afternoon with more monuments...

The White House, during the day, obviously.

Washington Memorial...again.

World War II Memorial, during the day, with Lincoln Memorial in background.

Jefferson Memorial

Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial

Jefferson Memorial

"...I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man."
 - Jefferson to Dr. Benjamin Rush, September 23, 1800

View from Jefferson Memorial. (Those aren't ants. Those are
two Americans and a Canadian :D )

...and then we drove "home." (aka the Hilton.)

Thanks to my Canadian friends (Veronique & Jean-Francois) and my American friends (Carolyn and Philip) for such a FABULOUS weekend – it’ll be a memory I’ll always think on and smile :D

p.s. you are all beeezarre.

WE MADE IT...ALIVE, TOO!

Wow.

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind and finally, here I am, returning to the blogosphere and world wide web. It was odd not checking blogger almost daily, or email, or reading, or writing [um, that didn't stop me from talking to my characters in the car all by myself. Three days of driving with only the dog for company (Ben drove our other car)...you can hardly blame me...]. What did we do before the internet?! I felt lost - completely disconnected from mankind - peppered with fear, driving through Death Valley while my cell phone displayed comforting words like, "No Service".

I've got loads of photos to share from our GORGEOUS drive - and plan on doing so - but I must organize them first. The new homestead took precedence, and I gladly report things are in order...well, mostly. Just a few odds and ends remain, you know how it goes...

Personally, I think "odds and ends" play a game of "divide and conquer" when your back's turned...

But I want to take this opportunity to say THANK YOU!! Ben and I feel spoiled rotten having such awesome friends and family. All the cards, all the gifts, all the support...there was so much it was hard to accept (and made it harder to leave...). :'( Your encouragement has made the varying emotions easier to handle and the unknown seem less frightening.

I wasn't sure what to think, walking into our new home for the first time. Part of me was thrilled - WE'RE FINALLY HERE! - and the home was so cute and perfect for us. But the other part, the one that doesn't have a reputation for being very logical, was extremely sad. Sad at the emptiness, the foreignness, the lack of memories...the silence.

I immediately went about, setting your encouraging cards on the counters, leaning your pictures against the walls, putting all the goodies on display (they're all lovely!)...it was like you were there with us. Having those pieces of you brightened the corners and filled the spaces in our empty home with love when I couldn't have needed it more. Thank you.

While I know this isn't really "goodbye" forever, I'm going to miss so many of you. The last minute dinners, the weekend trips, the conversations, seeing many of you at (and after) work amidst cap wars while getting kicked out of my chair (yes, I know I deserved it). Now you HAVE to visit and see all the decor you helped purchase :D

Until we get all the photos in order, I'll leave you with this. See if you can find Sammy :)

ps I'll have you know I spent a good deal of thought and time making him a comfortable passenger seat.

Hot Bloggers!..amidst other things...

Hello everyone!

It's been a crazy week(s) and, unfortunately, my blog has suffered for it. No time to post and read and comment on all of your wonderful posts. :( Please forgive me! Moving and transitioning between jobs is catching up with me. Thought I'd let you know that I haven't fallen in a hole somewhere, nor have I been held hostage by my characters (though they've tried...they're sorely neglected at the moment).

Aside of all things crazy, I wanted to say "thanks" to Kristine Asselin over at Writing. For Real. for giving me this very HOT award... *sweats*

And now I shall pass it onward to some great friends and followers!

Christine Arnold
PK Hrezo
T.D. McFrost
Julie Tuovi
Sari Webb
Alex Azar

Happy writing & blogging, and I hope to join you all again soon!

The Kitchen. An Incredible Dining Experience

If you're from the Sacramento area, you may have heard of The Kitchen. If you're not, you probably haven't. So let me tell you what it is not. It is not a restaurant. It is not a hurry-up-and-eat-so-I-can-seat-the-next-growling-stomach. It is not like anything you've ever done before. No, what The Kitchen is is an experience. And two of our favorite people in the entire world (Troy and April Franklin) took us there for a mystery date.

We stepped foot into a beautiful dining room, tables littered about with white linens, a U-shaped bench  around the cooking area (also where we sat), candles, a wall of wines, a full service kitchen in back (they encourage you to walk through it too!). Once all ~50 people arrived, they locked us inside, pulled the draperies closed, and the entertainment began.

Me and Ben

Me and April with Troy in the background

Ben and Troy

The menu is fixed, organized into Acts like this:

ACT I was an overview of our evening, with introductions, and information about food. The food began with ACT II. Thai Style Bisque and Quail Confit with Black Rice, Coconut Milk, Fresh Turmeric, Fuji Apple and Chives. Sound good?

It was heaven.

ACT III came along. A Warm Salad of Sanger Lamb Sausage, Good Egg, Artichoke, Blood Orange, Frisee, and Brioche.

They prepared every dish before us.

Voila!

That, also, was heaven. Did I mention you can order more servings? Of anything? Decisions, decisions, decisions...

Then came INTERMISSION. A beautiful spread of Sushi and Sashimi awaited us. There was even real wasabi. 

Oysters!

By the way, this real wasabi was over $100/lb!

ACT IV. Maine Lobster Carbonara with Lardo, Tarragon and Duck Broth. Okay, just so you know, Carbonara is one of my favorite things. If you've ever had it, you know it's usually paired with a pork product. Needless to say, I was overwhelmingly curious to know what it would taste like with lobster. The answer? AMAZING! Also, in case you're wondering, Lardo is pork fat. Croutons of fried pork fat.

I didn't think anything could trump bacon.

Live lobster!

Masters at work...

Remembering the flavor makes me salivate.

ACT V (no, we're not done!). Brown Butter Poached Beef Tenderloin with Potato-Gruyere 'Puffs', Porcini Mushrooms and Cabernet Reduction. You could opt to add Fois Gras, which April and Troy did. It tasted like butter.

ACT VI was a nice 'pause' for our stomachs: a white-gloved tea service and fresh brewed coffee.

Until ACT VII came along with Bittersweet Chocolate Tart, Sweet Lime Custard, Candied Pecan 'Dos Leches' Ice Cream and Strawberry Cream.

Then midnight chimed, and we turned into pumpkins. Well, not really. But we certainly felt round!

What an incredible dinner. After such an experience with so many incredible flavors, Ben and I decided we are forever ruined. Thanks April and Troy for an amazing night!