Why the delay in writing this post? Because I’ve been TRYING ALL FRICKIN’ WEEK LONG TO UPLOAD VIDEOS TO YOUTUBE and I cannot get them to load, no matter WHAT I try. Tears… They account for two of my top ten picks…for now I’m going with Plan B. Dang it.
WAHOO! STOP THE PRESSES!! BACK TO PLAN A. I FIGURED OUT A WAY TO MAKE IT HAPPEN (cartwheels and handsprings on my end…backwards and forwards). So what if I’m a bit s l o w…nothing wrong with being a remedial student. Einstein wasn’t born that way, was he? No sirree, he was born wrinkly and naked with a brain the size of a kiwi….so there!
It finally occurred to me to search "video uploading alternatives" and voila…enter Google Video. I can continue this post without the accompanying angst…turmoil…POSTAL-TURNED-ROAD-RAGE frustration!! I ** heart ** search engines right now, I’m buying rounds for the house, I love all creatures great and small, and although it is certain y’all would’ve known to do this within five minutes of youtube not working, I could care less that you’re rollin’ your eyes at me, feeling an earned sense of superiority. It is my pleasure to bolster your self confidence.
Perhaps this would be a good place for me to move along (lol). These are numbered 10-1 to help you (and me) keep track of where I am, but order doesn’t matter…at this point, these are the things I’m remembering. Who knows what the list would’ve looked like if I got the videos to load Monday or Tuesday.
10. Last one in is a rotten egg.
Departure from school was scheduled by apparent sadists for 6:00 a.m. After getting, oh, about 1 1/2 hours of sleep because I was scared I’d oversleep,
we left our house at 5:57 a.m.; the only problem with this is we live
about 15 minutes from school. Screeching into the parking lot on two
wheels I wish, I didn’t see any students…just parents
staring at the bus. Yep, we were the last ones on and I wished I was
the two inches tall I felt so I could sneak onto the bus without anyone
noticing.
Last one on means you don’t get to choose your
seat–it chooses you. All the mom chaperones were paired up already.
That left Big Dave for me (big as in athletic stocky, not big as
contender for circus freak). I knew David before the trip (once
whipped his tail and took his money as a substitute player in Texas
Hold’ Em. I was the player you’d DESPISE playing with, an innocent (ha!) a poker ingenue (ha!ha!) pretty doggone
clueless throughout the whole night, and I’M the one who goes home with
the cash…heh heh, hustler without even trying 😉 ), but after the trip, I REALLY knew him.
9. Sanitary wisdom.
The lady cleaning the bathrooms at The National Museum of the American Indian was one of the happiest people I’ve ever met. Her body smiled out loud, her countenance radiated joy, she was a princess who could’ve cared less that her current vocation involved cleaning up after other people all.day.long. In just a few words, I KNEW this about her. Of course, how could I not adore her after she told me I looked like Sarah Jessica Parker. I told her I was voting for her in the next presidential election. She just laughed and told me she shouldn’t have been watching so much "Sex in the City", explaining that her niece had given her the videos. What I’d do for Carrie’s size four killer body AND the ability to run in stilettos. But even more than that, this lady’s aura that had the ability to make my day in a matter of minutes.
8. "Off Campus" Field Trips.
For the first time ever, I had opportunity to tour both Mt. Vernon and Monticello, respective homes of Presidents Washington and Jefferson. Worth it, Worth It, WORTH IT! Knowledgeable and animated docents brought these homes to life. The architecture and the home sites are, in a word, amazing. It’s clear these men were progressive, visionary, great thinkers and risk takers. But it’s also clear they couldn’t have maintained what they had without slave labor.
Which gives me pause to contemplate how not having slaves would’ve changed the evolution and progression of our country. Wow…think about that one…how would the complexion of our country be different without the savagery and indignity cursed upon one man for the gain of another.
Never mind, it’s easier not to think about it :/.
(Heather was already thinkin’ about it with her comment in the Jefferson post…).
7. Eat your heart out, Miss Congeniality!
One of our nights, dinner was scheduled in Old Town, a section of Alexandria, Virginia. Old Town is a wonderful district, the perfect place to walk and dine and shop and people watch. It’s on the Potomic River, and the architecture bleeds history. It’s very animal friendly–I wish I could’ve gotten my camera in the "ready position" fast enough when I actually saw a woman walking her dog that was riding in a baby stroller (arms on the bar in front, tongue hanging out, happy as a lark!), but she was out of sight quickly. Everywhere you turned pets were walking their owners, and not surprising few were mutts (this is the high-rent district)…tons of (I’m guessing here) purebreds.
Anyway, dogs were not the "top" memory here, Jamey Turner was. Remember Sandra Bullock’s talent in "Miss Congeniality"? Well, her coach must’ve been Jamey.
We walked to the Marina after dinner–the weather was fantastic all week long!–and as we rounded a corner, there he was with dozens of water-filled brandy snifters. A fantastic entertainer, Jamey knew how to work the crowd. He held us captive as long as we were "allowed" to stay (tour guide Miss Joy kept us moving…you’ll "meet" her later…), and I’ve never seen a street musician’s hat sooo full of tens and twenties, there had to have been hundreds of dollars. Interestingly, he was in Chattanooga the week before we saw him, so we could’ve seen him here AND there. This guy has played concert halls and been featured on all the major networks, but he seems to delight in being up close and personal with his audience. His joy was as palpable as Miss Cleaning Lady’s in #9 above.
A disclaimer: Sorry the quality isn’t better…this is with our digital camera and I always seemed to begin a bit late. Also, my seat partner, David, aka "Bama" (so named by me because he wore an Ala-freakin-bama tee shirt every.day.!) was drafted to play wrench.
Sadly, I’m having trouble saying this correctly now, for which I deserve to be cursed. God-love-her 76-year-old tour guide self Miss Joy referred to it as "Libary of Congress"…which gave me giggly reason to bastardize it even more, calling it "Libary of Commerce" and now I can’t seem to get it right. I sound rather ignorant, which, like I said, I deserve, because I shouldn’t have been having fun with Miss Joy, mocking her and all, and I’m really sorry, but it was funny, so it was worth it at the time. SHE didn’t mind when I called it that, but now, well, now it’s not funny anymore. And I can’t seem to alter my teeth, tongues and lips to say "liBRARY". It’s kind of like when you tell your kids not to make faces because they’ll get stuck like "that"… I’m stuck like that :/.
Anyway, this was my first visit to the L of C. In three words, a maze ing! Have I used that word before? Can you tell I love D.C.? Get this, we barely saw any books; the L of C is housed in three separate buildings, and we toured the oldest, The Thomas Jefferson Building built in 1897. We wondered around for about 45 minutes (not nearly long enough) and I’d recommend you scheduling a tour so you could have a full appreciation of what you’re looking at.
I don’t know the language of architecture but this place was stunning. STUNNING. This is NOT a place to leave out when you’re visiting the area, trust me. Even if you burn books for a living, you will STILL thank me for insisting you visit. And plan the guided tour.
Whew…this is enough for now. I’ll finish with the remaining "Top Tens" later. Long posts wear me out…writing AND reading them ;).
I volunteer to be The Wrench Wentch.
Wonderful music on crystal.
wow – best busker I have ever seen! Amazing!
Dear robin. Wow, sounds like a fun trip – I especially would love to visit the Old Town after a day of tramping around the museums and monuments!
Pamela, I think you’d be the best one EVAH! And you’d look lovely in the costume ;).
T.O.B. Heeeey, blogging is educational (again!)…you taught me a new vocabulary word!
Dear Little Miss Moi, it’s a wonderful way to end the day (or begin it or just get stuck there a while).
NOTE: Y’all aren’t crazy…I posted this yesterday afternoon, then added a picture and accidentally saved it to “draft”, then posted it only to realize something happened to ALL the pictures…and FINALLY, I’m getting around to re-posting it now…
Ummm, that explanation applies to anyone who saw it in a reader yesterday, or got to it while it was still in cyberspace….
The technical difficulties continue, eh? 🙂
Your video is wonderful. My husband and I are planning a trip to the east coast in the coming week, and Jefferson’s home is one our first stops. Any tips?
That man on the video was amazing, was that you laughing? Loved the pictures, been to Alexandria (in fact hubby lived there for a year or two while his Dad was stationed at the Pentagon – Air Force.
I love the water glass guy so, so much.
Whew! Great post! Looks like it was an amazing trip!
Oh you got to see Jamey Turner live on the street corner! Lucky girl. We love him over here.
SO COOL!!!!
Molly, I’ll write ya in the next few days…
Jenny, as you should!
Sabrina, I’m still “whewing” ;).
Erin, just how close are you, chickadee?
Hey Debbie 🙂
‘Bout an hour.