Hello Everybody, the clock is officially counting down the days we have left here in Washington D.C. This semester was an event that I had been planning since fall of my sophomore year (2008). Now I have less than a month left. With fall 2010 class registration around the corner I've had to do some deep thinking about how'd I be spending my time post-graduation.
I know what Americorps program I want to do after I graduate. It's called Americorps NCCC, or the National Civilian Community Corps. For ten months, I would perform team-based service projects in five different areas: natural and other disasters, infrastructure improvement, environmental stewardship and conservation, energy conservation, and urban and rural development. I'd be based out of one of five different campus locations and travel to the 10-15 states in my region. I would be trained in CPR, first aid, public safety, and other skills before beginning my first service project. Like I said it's a ten month commitment chalked full with benefits. The biggest question is should I do it immediately after I graduate in the spring or wait till fall of 2011. Well for now we've decided wait till fall of 2011 so I can take some essential courses that I need prior to graduate school like foreign language and economics back at home in Missouri. Then hopefully I'll be able to apply for graduate school and start that journey fall of 2012. Right now, I've done some looking at American University and their Masters of the Arts in International Development. I'm hoping that this 10 month stint in Americorps will help confirm my beliefs that I want to start a career in international development. So for the past week most of my thoughts have been focused on the next two years of my life.
Work-wise things haven't been too crazy these last two weeks. Two weeks ago when my boss was in Paris work was at a minimal for me so I got to come in late and leave early. This last week has seen me do work on the Threat Assessment. Three weeks ago I had sent out a draft of the Threat Assessment to a panel of our experts and now they are responding back to us with their thoughts, opinions, and corrections. I've been working to expand on some parts of the report. For instance, I've help expand a section of our report on Pakistan's nuclear arsenal and the threat of those falling in the hands of extremists or the threat of a nuclear conflict with India. Hopefully some of my language will be used for the report, but my boss was bogged down in fundraising last week so he couldn't focus too much on the reports. If I'm lucky, I'll get to continue working on the threat assessment and writing for it so I could possibly get my name in the back of that too. Work is unfortunately winding down as well. I only have three weeks left which is a bummer because I like doing what I'm doing.
Socially, we've had some fun experiences. I went to my first opera two Fridays ago. Porgy and Bess is the name. It's an American classic which is okay but it's not like Italian or German opera which I think I might like better. Though the opera itself wasn't intolerable, it just wasn't my thing. Though it is nice to say that I've been to one at the Kennedy Center. We have also found a new bar in town called McFaddens and we've been to it three times this last week including a Tuesday night visit. We've also done a lot of walking around the city. After all the protesting two weeks ago the city has become a lot more friendly thanks to the Spring Blossom Festival. This weekend was very packed with people coming to see the Japanese Cherry Blossoms blooming along the Tidal Basin.
I'm going to have to start working on some of my papers for my courses soon. I think I'll start writing my big research paper on NATO and Europe tomorrow. The semester has definitely gotten better thanks to the 21st birthday, but I can't believe I've been here so long already and that it's almost over. Going into the new year 2009 I had the goals of finding a summer job, finding a summer volunteer program, finding someone to sublease for me when I leave the next spring, and finding an internship for my semester. Now at the start of 2010 my goals are bigger. Find an Americorps program, find a graduate school, find out what you want to do with your life. What a difference a year makes.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
Yay for Health Care!!!
Hey Everybody! Democracy's kicked in!
So big weekend here in D.C.
Like it or not reformed health care is here. Meh, with my internship keeping me focused on Afghanistan. I really don't care. But I do understand the historical implications of this event and it's been interesting none the less.
Take this last Saturday for example. So, friend and I decide to go walking to Capitol Hill. We wanted to take a look at the TEA protesters and do some reading/work outside. Well on our way there, we got stopped by a bigger, more impressive protest at Dupont Circle. The anti-war protest was hoppin! The anti-Bush, Cheney, Israel, Afghanistan, Iraq, even Haiti protesters were out and about. Many of the signs we saw attacked the cost of our deployments overseas, more so than the casualties taken. Lots of antisemitism (and I hate using that cliched word, but it applies here), anti-government, and anti-war. Though I obviously don't stand for anything they stand for - although I liked "Drop Tuition, Not Bombs!" - it was really cool to see a protest and democracy in action. Reports put this turn-out relatively low at 2,500 people. When we got to the White House we saw some remnants of protesting going on there as well.
We got to Capitol Hill to see protesters yell "Kill the Bill," but it wasn't as impressive. I think we got there late. Still interesting nonetheless. Yesterday, there was also an immigration protest yesterday as well. I didn't see that one, but I guess it was protest weekend in Washington D.C. Sunday night I did see the new Matt Damon "Green Zone." I liked it too. Though at first I thought it was going to be overly political and annoying (Matt Damon's character wouldn't shut up about the "intel" being bad), it turned out to be a nice political thriller. There were the basic messages of the critical mistakes preceding the invasion, chiefly the bad intelligence that led us to war. That was to be expected and since it's really fact to begin with it didn't bother me. The "Bourne-esqueness" of the movie overshadowed the politics in it and I'll actually probably buy it when it comes out. Go see it for a good action thriller and nothing more. You'll like it that way.
Probably my toughest week at work this week.I’m still doing a lot of significant, substantive work, but since my boss was leaving for France on Friday, I was under the gun the whole week to get both the supplement and the NATO Threat Assessment as finished as possible. I also had to help look up information on all my boss’ meetings in France as well as metro information. With him being gone for a week he wanted to have all the writing done in both reports so for this week we interns only have to do proofreading. What made this tougher was the type of statistics I had to look up and compile for the Threat Assessment. They were economic import/export numbers between NATO members and Central/South Asian countries. There was a lot of adding/subtracting and number crunching to get the most accurate numbers in my boss’ hands. It was just stressful. I did get to drive around again which was kinda stressful, but only because I had to pick someone up, a former German military officer, but he didn't show. I also drove my boss to the Treasury and one of his aids to Capitol Hill. Driving around the city isn't hard at all; I like it. And I also like knowing how to get to places and discovering where everything is.
This week looks to be more quiet since my boss is gone. He said I could come in late and leave early if I'm struggling for things to do. That's about all I know. I'll try to get pictures of some of the rallies up here sometime. Thanks for reading!
So big weekend here in D.C.
Like it or not reformed health care is here. Meh, with my internship keeping me focused on Afghanistan. I really don't care. But I do understand the historical implications of this event and it's been interesting none the less.
Take this last Saturday for example. So, friend and I decide to go walking to Capitol Hill. We wanted to take a look at the TEA protesters and do some reading/work outside. Well on our way there, we got stopped by a bigger, more impressive protest at Dupont Circle. The anti-war protest was hoppin! The anti-Bush, Cheney, Israel, Afghanistan, Iraq, even Haiti protesters were out and about. Many of the signs we saw attacked the cost of our deployments overseas, more so than the casualties taken. Lots of antisemitism (and I hate using that cliched word, but it applies here), anti-government, and anti-war. Though I obviously don't stand for anything they stand for - although I liked "Drop Tuition, Not Bombs!" - it was really cool to see a protest and democracy in action. Reports put this turn-out relatively low at 2,500 people. When we got to the White House we saw some remnants of protesting going on there as well.
We got to Capitol Hill to see protesters yell "Kill the Bill," but it wasn't as impressive. I think we got there late. Still interesting nonetheless. Yesterday, there was also an immigration protest yesterday as well. I didn't see that one, but I guess it was protest weekend in Washington D.C. Sunday night I did see the new Matt Damon "Green Zone." I liked it too. Though at first I thought it was going to be overly political and annoying (Matt Damon's character wouldn't shut up about the "intel" being bad), it turned out to be a nice political thriller. There were the basic messages of the critical mistakes preceding the invasion, chiefly the bad intelligence that led us to war. That was to be expected and since it's really fact to begin with it didn't bother me. The "Bourne-esqueness" of the movie overshadowed the politics in it and I'll actually probably buy it when it comes out. Go see it for a good action thriller and nothing more. You'll like it that way.
Probably my toughest week at work this week.I’m still doing a lot of significant, substantive work, but since my boss was leaving for France on Friday, I was under the gun the whole week to get both the supplement and the NATO Threat Assessment as finished as possible. I also had to help look up information on all my boss’ meetings in France as well as metro information. With him being gone for a week he wanted to have all the writing done in both reports so for this week we interns only have to do proofreading. What made this tougher was the type of statistics I had to look up and compile for the Threat Assessment. They were economic import/export numbers between NATO members and Central/South Asian countries. There was a lot of adding/subtracting and number crunching to get the most accurate numbers in my boss’ hands. It was just stressful. I did get to drive around again which was kinda stressful, but only because I had to pick someone up, a former German military officer, but he didn't show. I also drove my boss to the Treasury and one of his aids to Capitol Hill. Driving around the city isn't hard at all; I like it. And I also like knowing how to get to places and discovering where everything is.
This week looks to be more quiet since my boss is gone. He said I could come in late and leave early if I'm struggling for things to do. That's about all I know. I'll try to get pictures of some of the rallies up here sometime. Thanks for reading!
Monday, March 15, 2010
Vingt-et-Un!
Well the twenty-first has come and gone and it couldn't have gone any better. Saturday night was fantastic as four of my JMU pals came up and everyone plus some friends from Butler University came out to Dupont Circle to celebrate my birthday. It was an extremely fun night. The next morning I woke up (feeling surprisingly well) and opened up some great presents from the family and even got a couple from the friends here. Despite not being able to be with family this was an excellent birthday. I have some videos but they are taking forever to add on here. I'll try facebook later.
Last week saw some more substantial work on the supplement at the Center. Ryan's been making me add more to it due to the amount of calls he's getting from the embassies. That and a trip to the Turkish embassy made him rethink how much detail he wants going into the report. Hopefully, I believe it is almost done and should be released online by the end of the week. Now I'm switching over to reviewing the second report, the NATO Threat Assessment. The first half of the report is due out by the end of the week. Ryan wants to get it out before he makes this trip to France next week. There's a lot that needs to be done in a short amount of time, but I like all the work I'm doing. Writing in the supplement has been great and I look forward to seeing that end result.
He's an interesting story from last week. So on Wednesday last week I had to drive Dr. Abshire to the Federal Reserve to meet Chairman Bernanke. I haven't driven since I've been here and the amount of driving I've done in inner-city DC is limited as is, but I've done plenty in St. Louis. Traffic doesn't bother me as much as trying to figure out where I'm trying to get to. So I ran home to get my GPS and a pair of Aviator sunglasses as a co-worker suggested I should wear some when I'm loitering around the Reserve waiting for the meeting to get over with. That way I'll look more like a bodyguard than just an intern in a nice car. And a nice car it was! Dr. Abshire has a tan Cadillac worth more than my life and I had to drive it in DC. So anyway, I was able to make it pretty easily to the Federal Reserve to drop him and one of his assistants off. The hard part was finding a place to park for an hour, but fortunately I did and it was two hour parking so I was okay. I did look completely awesome though. In a Cadillac with gold framed Aviators on, a tie, navy blue blazer, and khaki pants completed the ensemble. I pretty much looked amazing. Anyway, I picked him up and drove back successfully without getting a scratch on the car. And I'm sure I've earned myself driving privileges for the rest of the spring.
So I talked about this week for work. I also have a five page paper due on Friday. I'll start on that tomorrow. Class is taking a trip to USAID on Friday so I'm planning on asking a lot of questions and I might even pack a resume. I need to get a better idea of what Foreign Service Officers do though before I start looking for a job there. I know they get a pretty bad rep here, but let's be honest, the whole diplomatic field gets a bad rep here, it doesn't matter who's president. Wednesday we have class so we really can't go out to celebrate St. Patrick's Day after work, but we might go after class for a drink or two. I'm exciting I now get to join my friends when they go out to bars on the weekends. That will help me relax and be more social on the weekends. So now I'm going to watch the first episode of The Pacific online. I've known about this show since I was in high school, learning about it in the fall of 2006. It was originally suppose to be out last summer, but got pushed back. I always wondered where I would be and what I would be doing when this show came out. Never thought I'd be in Washington D.C. working as an intern. Hope everyone has a good week and thanks for the birthday wishes.
Last week saw some more substantial work on the supplement at the Center. Ryan's been making me add more to it due to the amount of calls he's getting from the embassies. That and a trip to the Turkish embassy made him rethink how much detail he wants going into the report. Hopefully, I believe it is almost done and should be released online by the end of the week. Now I'm switching over to reviewing the second report, the NATO Threat Assessment. The first half of the report is due out by the end of the week. Ryan wants to get it out before he makes this trip to France next week. There's a lot that needs to be done in a short amount of time, but I like all the work I'm doing. Writing in the supplement has been great and I look forward to seeing that end result.
He's an interesting story from last week. So on Wednesday last week I had to drive Dr. Abshire to the Federal Reserve to meet Chairman Bernanke. I haven't driven since I've been here and the amount of driving I've done in inner-city DC is limited as is, but I've done plenty in St. Louis. Traffic doesn't bother me as much as trying to figure out where I'm trying to get to. So I ran home to get my GPS and a pair of Aviator sunglasses as a co-worker suggested I should wear some when I'm loitering around the Reserve waiting for the meeting to get over with. That way I'll look more like a bodyguard than just an intern in a nice car. And a nice car it was! Dr. Abshire has a tan Cadillac worth more than my life and I had to drive it in DC. So anyway, I was able to make it pretty easily to the Federal Reserve to drop him and one of his assistants off. The hard part was finding a place to park for an hour, but fortunately I did and it was two hour parking so I was okay. I did look completely awesome though. In a Cadillac with gold framed Aviators on, a tie, navy blue blazer, and khaki pants completed the ensemble. I pretty much looked amazing. Anyway, I picked him up and drove back successfully without getting a scratch on the car. And I'm sure I've earned myself driving privileges for the rest of the spring.
So I talked about this week for work. I also have a five page paper due on Friday. I'll start on that tomorrow. Class is taking a trip to USAID on Friday so I'm planning on asking a lot of questions and I might even pack a resume. I need to get a better idea of what Foreign Service Officers do though before I start looking for a job there. I know they get a pretty bad rep here, but let's be honest, the whole diplomatic field gets a bad rep here, it doesn't matter who's president. Wednesday we have class so we really can't go out to celebrate St. Patrick's Day after work, but we might go after class for a drink or two. I'm exciting I now get to join my friends when they go out to bars on the weekends. That will help me relax and be more social on the weekends. So now I'm going to watch the first episode of The Pacific online. I've known about this show since I was in high school, learning about it in the fall of 2006. It was originally suppose to be out last summer, but got pushed back. I always wondered where I would be and what I would be doing when this show came out. Never thought I'd be in Washington D.C. working as an intern. Hope everyone has a good week and thanks for the birthday wishes.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Week Eight (Last Week)
Well these weeks at work seem to be getting better and better as they progress. Last Monday my boss asked me if I wanted to write in the supplemental update for our first report. So all of last week I was writing in the supplemental update.
Really what we are trying to do now is to continually update Allied contributions to the Afghan war as they come. We sent out reports to all the embassies and a fair amount have gotten back to us with some of their own numbers that we'll use in our supplement. What I did was add a "Recent Actions" update to every NATO country. The last week in February all I did was find news articles on allied contributions so I put all the updates I had into the report. Then I was able to write a little bit in the "political background" section which is really an analysis of a country's political situation. It was difficult writing on the Netherlands section as they have a big mess on their hands themselves.
I also completely wrote a new section on non-NATO ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) contributions to the conflict. So for Australia (non-NATO ISAF member) I wrote about their contributions and how they are planning a pull-out in 2011 (I think) and how their top general believes they could contribute an extra 6,000 troops when and if the Dutch leave.
Anyway, we've got the think mostly prepped we just need to fix the table of contents. However, for my efforts my name will get to go down in "Project Staff" instead of CSPC Interns in the "Thanks" section. So yeah, I'm going to get a report with my name on it. Yeah, yeah. This one will be strictly online and will be updated continuously as changes occur. So that was work last week for me; I was making a real solid contribution to the Center's efforts.
I was also busy last week for school. My friend Jeremy and I had to give a presentation on Friday over the humanitarian crisis in Burma (Myanmar), whatever. That took up a lot of my time at night last week as it is still really hard to get work done here. However, we got it done and my teacher said we gave a good presentation.
This weekend we had highs in the 60s so a lot of walking was in order. Saturday saw us going to the Jefferson and FDR memorials on the south side of the National Mall. Sunday we walked Massachusetts Ave to see all the embassies on Embassy Row. I'll try to get pictures of that up sometime soon. I was impressed with the Turkish embassy the most out of the ones we saw. I also had lunch with a good friend of mine from Moberly on Saturday morning, Mr. Sam Richardson. He was in town working and called me up so he took me to breakfast at the fancy Wardman Park Hotel. We had a great breakfast and a quick two hour conversation. It was nice to see a familiar face.
Ummm, we switched up our workouts at the gym so my body has been killing me, but it is paying off going to the gym pretty consistently. We should be going every day this week because its technically spring break so I don't have classes on Wednesday or Friday. Ironing is improving now that I discovered using even the little ironing boards make things easier. Cooking continues to be a plus, but I'm still only cooking the same thing: chicken, rice/pasta, and green beans/corn. It doesn't bother me though; I typically eat around 10:00 after I've worked out and ran so at that point I'll eat anything.
So the big news: five more days and then I turn 21. This is turning out to be the event of the semester for everyone as my friends really can't wait for me to be able to go out on the weekends or go out to happy hour. Also, many of my JMU friends are coming by to for dinner and for the "zero-hour" festivities. I honestly can't believe it's been eight weeks. Technically, I've only worked six and half weeks. First week was only half a week because I started on Wednesday and we had that snow week a month ago. Spring semester has always flown by and when your at work every day till 5 the days go even faster than at school.
Can't think of too much else to say. I'm excited baseball is starting soon as always. GO CUBS!!! I'll try to get one post in before Saturday but if I don't I promise I'll do one Sunday. Also, I'm really exhausted and it's almost bed time so I'm not going to read this over. I'm sorry if there are any mistakes. Thanks for reading again.
Really what we are trying to do now is to continually update Allied contributions to the Afghan war as they come. We sent out reports to all the embassies and a fair amount have gotten back to us with some of their own numbers that we'll use in our supplement. What I did was add a "Recent Actions" update to every NATO country. The last week in February all I did was find news articles on allied contributions so I put all the updates I had into the report. Then I was able to write a little bit in the "political background" section which is really an analysis of a country's political situation. It was difficult writing on the Netherlands section as they have a big mess on their hands themselves.
I also completely wrote a new section on non-NATO ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) contributions to the conflict. So for Australia (non-NATO ISAF member) I wrote about their contributions and how they are planning a pull-out in 2011 (I think) and how their top general believes they could contribute an extra 6,000 troops when and if the Dutch leave.
Anyway, we've got the think mostly prepped we just need to fix the table of contents. However, for my efforts my name will get to go down in "Project Staff" instead of CSPC Interns in the "Thanks" section. So yeah, I'm going to get a report with my name on it. Yeah, yeah. This one will be strictly online and will be updated continuously as changes occur. So that was work last week for me; I was making a real solid contribution to the Center's efforts.
I was also busy last week for school. My friend Jeremy and I had to give a presentation on Friday over the humanitarian crisis in Burma (Myanmar), whatever. That took up a lot of my time at night last week as it is still really hard to get work done here. However, we got it done and my teacher said we gave a good presentation.
This weekend we had highs in the 60s so a lot of walking was in order. Saturday saw us going to the Jefferson and FDR memorials on the south side of the National Mall. Sunday we walked Massachusetts Ave to see all the embassies on Embassy Row. I'll try to get pictures of that up sometime soon. I was impressed with the Turkish embassy the most out of the ones we saw. I also had lunch with a good friend of mine from Moberly on Saturday morning, Mr. Sam Richardson. He was in town working and called me up so he took me to breakfast at the fancy Wardman Park Hotel. We had a great breakfast and a quick two hour conversation. It was nice to see a familiar face.
Ummm, we switched up our workouts at the gym so my body has been killing me, but it is paying off going to the gym pretty consistently. We should be going every day this week because its technically spring break so I don't have classes on Wednesday or Friday. Ironing is improving now that I discovered using even the little ironing boards make things easier. Cooking continues to be a plus, but I'm still only cooking the same thing: chicken, rice/pasta, and green beans/corn. It doesn't bother me though; I typically eat around 10:00 after I've worked out and ran so at that point I'll eat anything.
So the big news: five more days and then I turn 21. This is turning out to be the event of the semester for everyone as my friends really can't wait for me to be able to go out on the weekends or go out to happy hour. Also, many of my JMU friends are coming by to for dinner and for the "zero-hour" festivities. I honestly can't believe it's been eight weeks. Technically, I've only worked six and half weeks. First week was only half a week because I started on Wednesday and we had that snow week a month ago. Spring semester has always flown by and when your at work every day till 5 the days go even faster than at school.
Can't think of too much else to say. I'm excited baseball is starting soon as always. GO CUBS!!! I'll try to get one post in before Saturday but if I don't I promise I'll do one Sunday. Also, I'm really exhausted and it's almost bed time so I'm not going to read this over. I'm sorry if there are any mistakes. Thanks for reading again.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
“White Horse?”
Scene from Armageddon:
Harry Stamper: Um, Bear would like to stay at the...
[tries to read writing]
Harry Stamper: "White horse"?
[looks up at Bear]
Bear: White, *House*. White House.
Harry Stamper: White House. Yeah, he'd like to stay in the Lincoln bedroom of the White House for the summer. Stuff like that.
Truman: Sure, I think we can, uh, take care of... some of that.
Sorry, Armageddon has been cycling through FX recently and I figured this quote applied.
Anyway, Ryan (my roommate), Matt (my suitemate), Amber (my friend), and I (myself) went to the White House today. Matt works for an Ohio Congressman and was able to book us last minute on the standard tour that goes through the White House. So after rising bright and early this morning we hobbled on over to the White House for an 8:30 tour. Fortunately the day is beautiful and even at 8:00am it was sunny and 30 degrees. So we began our visit at the Visitor Entrance building which is on the East side of the House. For the time we were on the first floor we passed the Library where Obama would give an interview for like 60 Minutes. We also passed the Vermeil Room and China Room. In this first corridor before we went up the stairs to the East Room I found what is probably the most hilarious thing in the White House, this Painting (note that I couldn't take any pictures so these are off the internet and you can click on them to get a bigger picture):
I find this Painting hilarious (and creepy) to me for multiple reasons. 1. It’s a painting of Hillary Clinton. 2. She looks creepy. 3. It’s a painting of Hillary Clinton. Now honestly it’s not because I dislike Hillary Clinton, it’s just that the painting feels “out of place.” Yes there are other paintings of first ladies in the White House, but she was just so recent that I wasn’t expecting a painting. Anyway…
So we go upstairs and move into the East Room:
This is the largest room in the White House and the President uses it for receptions, ceremonies, press conferences, and other events. Just last night Obama used it to sign an executive order strengthening the long-standing White House initiative on historically black colleges and universities. Now in this room is this famous painting:
I recognized it and wanted to know if that was the original. Uniformed Secret Service agents were in every room willing to answer questions so I asked and found out that this is one of the original eight that Gilbert Stuart painted, but more importantly it is the one Dolley Madison saved when the British burned the White House in 1814. Dolley had to have had some help or she was an iron woman because this is a huge 8 by 5 painting. Needless to say it was cool seeing that painting. Moving on…
Next room was the Green Room:
This was Thomas Jefferson’s dining room and it is now a parlor and is used for receptions.
This room is the Blue Room:
It is often used by the President to receive guests and is dead smack in the middle of the White House on the second floor. Outside is the South Portico and the view from what we could see is amazing. So whenever you’re watching a movie that shows the White House it’s the one in the middle of the rotunda. Coolest room by far. It’s blue, obviously, and houses the Christmas tree during the winter.
Fourth room, Red Room:
It’s used for small receptions, apparently the first ladies like it. John Adams used it as a breakfast room. It’s red.
Final room is the State Dining Room:
This can seat 130 guests and carved into the fireplace mantel is this quotation from John Adams: “I pray Heaven to bestow the best blessings on this house and all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof.” Now in this room is famous painting number two:
Now I didn’t get as much background on this as I did the Washington one but it was bequeathed to the White House in 1939 by the widow of Robert Todd Lincoln, the President’s oldest son.
Finally, we end up in a cross hall before the exit. It was pleasant, there was a black choir group singing fun gospel music to add to our touring experience. Also, this room had famous painting number three:
Now this was my favorite because we were able to get inches away from it unlike the Washington and Lincoln portraits. It’s really beautiful up close and in person. I wish I had someone to ask about the history of this one and why that pose was chosen (even though it is obviously quite symbolic).
After that room we exited the White House from behind and went off to Macy’s for a one day sale where I bought two ties and saved 50 bucks. When we got on the Metro everyone was surprised it was only 11:30. As you can tell my crowd doesn’t wake up in the a.m. on weekends. So that is about it.
T-minus 15 days till numero 21.
Ryan, Matt, Amber, and me
Harry Stamper: Um, Bear would like to stay at the...
[tries to read writing]
Harry Stamper: "White horse"?
[looks up at Bear]
Bear: White, *House*. White House.
Harry Stamper: White House. Yeah, he'd like to stay in the Lincoln bedroom of the White House for the summer. Stuff like that.
Truman: Sure, I think we can, uh, take care of... some of that.
Sorry, Armageddon has been cycling through FX recently and I figured this quote applied.
Anyway, Ryan (my roommate), Matt (my suitemate), Amber (my friend), and I (myself) went to the White House today. Matt works for an Ohio Congressman and was able to book us last minute on the standard tour that goes through the White House. So after rising bright and early this morning we hobbled on over to the White House for an 8:30 tour. Fortunately the day is beautiful and even at 8:00am it was sunny and 30 degrees. So we began our visit at the Visitor Entrance building which is on the East side of the House. For the time we were on the first floor we passed the Library where Obama would give an interview for like 60 Minutes. We also passed the Vermeil Room and China Room. In this first corridor before we went up the stairs to the East Room I found what is probably the most hilarious thing in the White House, this Painting (note that I couldn't take any pictures so these are off the internet and you can click on them to get a bigger picture):
I find this Painting hilarious (and creepy) to me for multiple reasons. 1. It’s a painting of Hillary Clinton. 2. She looks creepy. 3. It’s a painting of Hillary Clinton. Now honestly it’s not because I dislike Hillary Clinton, it’s just that the painting feels “out of place.” Yes there are other paintings of first ladies in the White House, but she was just so recent that I wasn’t expecting a painting. Anyway…
So we go upstairs and move into the East Room:
This is the largest room in the White House and the President uses it for receptions, ceremonies, press conferences, and other events. Just last night Obama used it to sign an executive order strengthening the long-standing White House initiative on historically black colleges and universities. Now in this room is this famous painting:
I recognized it and wanted to know if that was the original. Uniformed Secret Service agents were in every room willing to answer questions so I asked and found out that this is one of the original eight that Gilbert Stuart painted, but more importantly it is the one Dolley Madison saved when the British burned the White House in 1814. Dolley had to have had some help or she was an iron woman because this is a huge 8 by 5 painting. Needless to say it was cool seeing that painting. Moving on…
Next room was the Green Room:
This was Thomas Jefferson’s dining room and it is now a parlor and is used for receptions.
This room is the Blue Room:
It is often used by the President to receive guests and is dead smack in the middle of the White House on the second floor. Outside is the South Portico and the view from what we could see is amazing. So whenever you’re watching a movie that shows the White House it’s the one in the middle of the rotunda. Coolest room by far. It’s blue, obviously, and houses the Christmas tree during the winter.
Fourth room, Red Room:
It’s used for small receptions, apparently the first ladies like it. John Adams used it as a breakfast room. It’s red.
Final room is the State Dining Room:
This can seat 130 guests and carved into the fireplace mantel is this quotation from John Adams: “I pray Heaven to bestow the best blessings on this house and all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof.” Now in this room is famous painting number two:
Now I didn’t get as much background on this as I did the Washington one but it was bequeathed to the White House in 1939 by the widow of Robert Todd Lincoln, the President’s oldest son.
Finally, we end up in a cross hall before the exit. It was pleasant, there was a black choir group singing fun gospel music to add to our touring experience. Also, this room had famous painting number three:
Now this was my favorite because we were able to get inches away from it unlike the Washington and Lincoln portraits. It’s really beautiful up close and in person. I wish I had someone to ask about the history of this one and why that pose was chosen (even though it is obviously quite symbolic).
After that room we exited the White House from behind and went off to Macy’s for a one day sale where I bought two ties and saved 50 bucks. When we got on the Metro everyone was surprised it was only 11:30. As you can tell my crowd doesn’t wake up in the a.m. on weekends. So that is about it.
T-minus 15 days till numero 21.
Ryan, Matt, Amber, and meMonday, February 22, 2010
2nd Business Card Today!!!
HI EVERYBODY!!! (Now repeat it again with Will Farrell being Harry Carry from SNL in your head and it makes sense)
Another week down, t-minus 21 days till that 21 birthday.
Last week was a real busy week for the Center. We finally got in those 2,000 reports so last week and this week we've been sending out reports to all the addresses I've collected these last three weeks. As I'm reminiscing about last week I can't think of anything too noteworthy at work to discuss.
However today was a very good Monday as I got to sit in on a meeting with a very large British think-tank. Ryan and I met with the head of the transatlantic program from RUSI or The Royal United Services Institute for Defense and Security Studies. It was founded in 1831 by the Duke of Wellington and is considered the leading forum in the UK for national and international Defense and Security. Long story short I got another business card; soon enough I'll have a collection. We met for about two years talking about a possible future partnership, working together on a couple of NATO's disconnects. It's funny. We're pretty small and they're pretty big, but I guess they are relatively new to DC and we do have some very good connections thanks to Ambassador Abshire. Needless to say, it looks like we will be partnering up on some future events and projects. Meetings with three or four people are just fun because they make me feel important and I get a business card.
I also hand delivered some reports over to Madeline Albright's office as she, herself has also had contact with Ambassador Abshire in the past and has been assisting us with this NATO project recently. And I made another trip over to Capitol Hill to deliver more reports (I had also done the same last Friday) including to Ike Skelton's office (but I didn't see him). I'm trying to get a lot of these reports out so I can begin actual research on the supplemental project. However with me being the only full time intern for Ryan it's hard to do what he needs done and to get the reports mailed out all over the globe.
Socially, I didn't do too much this weekend because I have a paper due Wednesday and a project being presented on the 3rd. I did go to the zoo for a little bit, couldn't see too many animals but did see their prized pandas. can't say I've ever seen pandas before, but I'm not sure.
I did see Shutter Island yesterday. About a 5-10 minute walk up the street is a giant one screen theater called the Uptown Theater. It's very old school looking and low key on the inside. But the screen is huge and it wraps around the wall a little bit, so cool. Anyway, the movie was just okay. Leo was great, but the movie didn't have a climax. There was no rising action and no falling action. It just ended. So... yeah.
I would also like to give a shout out to my friend Mr. Garreth Cooksey. He's a wonderful performer and has been such a real asset to the industry. Thank you Garreth for everything you've done and we'll miss your karate.
Another week down, t-minus 21 days till that 21 birthday.
Last week was a real busy week for the Center. We finally got in those 2,000 reports so last week and this week we've been sending out reports to all the addresses I've collected these last three weeks. As I'm reminiscing about last week I can't think of anything too noteworthy at work to discuss.
However today was a very good Monday as I got to sit in on a meeting with a very large British think-tank. Ryan and I met with the head of the transatlantic program from RUSI or The Royal United Services Institute for Defense and Security Studies. It was founded in 1831 by the Duke of Wellington and is considered the leading forum in the UK for national and international Defense and Security. Long story short I got another business card; soon enough I'll have a collection. We met for about two years talking about a possible future partnership, working together on a couple of NATO's disconnects. It's funny. We're pretty small and they're pretty big, but I guess they are relatively new to DC and we do have some very good connections thanks to Ambassador Abshire. Needless to say, it looks like we will be partnering up on some future events and projects. Meetings with three or four people are just fun because they make me feel important and I get a business card.
I also hand delivered some reports over to Madeline Albright's office as she, herself has also had contact with Ambassador Abshire in the past and has been assisting us with this NATO project recently. And I made another trip over to Capitol Hill to deliver more reports (I had also done the same last Friday) including to Ike Skelton's office (but I didn't see him). I'm trying to get a lot of these reports out so I can begin actual research on the supplemental project. However with me being the only full time intern for Ryan it's hard to do what he needs done and to get the reports mailed out all over the globe.
Socially, I didn't do too much this weekend because I have a paper due Wednesday and a project being presented on the 3rd. I did go to the zoo for a little bit, couldn't see too many animals but did see their prized pandas. can't say I've ever seen pandas before, but I'm not sure.
I did see Shutter Island yesterday. About a 5-10 minute walk up the street is a giant one screen theater called the Uptown Theater. It's very old school looking and low key on the inside. But the screen is huge and it wraps around the wall a little bit, so cool. Anyway, the movie was just okay. Leo was great, but the movie didn't have a climax. There was no rising action and no falling action. It just ended. So... yeah.
I would also like to give a shout out to my friend Mr. Garreth Cooksey. He's a wonderful performer and has been such a real asset to the industry. Thank you Garreth for everything you've done and we'll miss your karate.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Back to Work, Back to Work
Well for the first time since February 4th I have to wake up before 8:00. The two separate winter blasts kept the government closed Monday through Thursday of last week. I eventually went into work last Friday afternoon, the first time in a week. In addition, I didn’t have to go into work today due to President’s Day. So to sum everything up, I really haven’t worked/had to do anything in a long while. This also means I don’t have anything substantial to report. Despite the time off the winter weather kept us cooped up in the Washington Center. To put things in perspective, my friends and I on Thursday watched the final 22 episodes of Arrested Development, and there are only 53 episodes in the series. Though we did continue to go to the gym and made it out to dinner at a Mexican and Thai place on separate nights, I spent most of my time indoors.
Saturday was a big exception as some friends and I went shopping/exploring in Georgetown for most of the day. Georgetown has a wide variety of shops (we went into Urban Outfitters, Ralph Lauren, Banana Republic, Adidas…), but I only bought a new book from Barnes and Noble. I finished my second book on Afghanistan Sunday and started reading Three Cups of Tea today.
I also went to a Starbucks today to work on some of my school work. It’s really hard doing homework at the BU Center due to a lack of motivation. This is why you typically find me doing homework at Carrier Library on campus than back at my apartment in Sunchase. Though I was able to get some work accomplished Starbucks charges you for internet and I wasn’t going to pay 3.99 plus tax for it so work was somewhat limited.
Speaking of work, when I did return to the Center last Friday afternoon I discussed with my boss what assignments are coming up and it looks like I’ll be given some more substantive work. We are beginning research for a supplement to our report which will include updated NATO commitments since Jan 1st. I will get to conduct most of the research looking for announcements of increased aid/troops from NATO and ISAF countries. It will be a welcome change from finding expert addresses two weeks ago.
Like I said, outside of this, I don’t have too much else to report. It will be my birthday in one month, my 21st birthday, which is obviously exciting, but other than that I can’t think of any big events that I know of. So that’s going to have to do it for now. Thanks for reading.
Saturday was a big exception as some friends and I went shopping/exploring in Georgetown for most of the day. Georgetown has a wide variety of shops (we went into Urban Outfitters, Ralph Lauren, Banana Republic, Adidas…), but I only bought a new book from Barnes and Noble. I finished my second book on Afghanistan Sunday and started reading Three Cups of Tea today.
I also went to a Starbucks today to work on some of my school work. It’s really hard doing homework at the BU Center due to a lack of motivation. This is why you typically find me doing homework at Carrier Library on campus than back at my apartment in Sunchase. Though I was able to get some work accomplished Starbucks charges you for internet and I wasn’t going to pay 3.99 plus tax for it so work was somewhat limited.
Speaking of work, when I did return to the Center last Friday afternoon I discussed with my boss what assignments are coming up and it looks like I’ll be given some more substantive work. We are beginning research for a supplement to our report which will include updated NATO commitments since Jan 1st. I will get to conduct most of the research looking for announcements of increased aid/troops from NATO and ISAF countries. It will be a welcome change from finding expert addresses two weeks ago.
Like I said, outside of this, I don’t have too much else to report. It will be my birthday in one month, my 21st birthday, which is obviously exciting, but other than that I can’t think of any big events that I know of. So that’s going to have to do it for now. Thanks for reading.
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