The Freckled Diaries

Here We Go Again

I will get to last Friday and why it was so great, but when I'm in a bit more of a happy/descriptive mood. Right now, I'm in a rushed mood. It's 11pm on Wednesday, and this is the earliest I've been home all week. Monday--ballroom dance started back up, followed by dinner with the gang. It was great to get back in that particular swing of things, but I do need to learn to bow out earlier. Tuesday--parade planning meeting moved (it's usually on Wednesdays) because we needed to go to City Council, which meets on Tuesdays. That was followed by a regular meeting (which started and ended late) and social time (which started late and ended later). 

Tonight, I went to the ballet at the Kennedy Center. It was a ballet of The Great Gatsby, which is pretty much my favorite novel ever. I have the poster to prove it. And about half the thing memorized. It was awesome. It was also apparently the world premiere, which was very cool. I can't even get into all of it--I'll just link to a professional review when it comes out. Basically--there was a jazz band instead of an orchestra, there were vocalists (and some great songs), flapper costumes, AMAZING dancers (the man who danced the part of George, Myrtle's husband, in particular was an astonishingly accomplished and athletic dancer). We were treated to a solo tap routine, and really....I don't know if it's because I know the book backwards and forwards or what, but they did somehow manage to get it. Not the allegory "it", not the dancing with words "it", but I'm not sure how you can get something THAT big into something (nearly) wordless. But the plot was all there. And clear. It's probably the most enjoyable live performance of anything I've ever seen.

They're calling for more snow. Not much this time--3 inches or so. No one's batting an eyelash. Washingtonians, please hear me out. THIS IS WHY WE'VE ALL BEEN MAKING FUN OF YOU ALL THESE YEARS.  You get that feeling of "three inches ::shurg::". That's normal. That's not us freaky Northerners being all hardy, or looking down on you. No, most places don't get what we just got on any sort of regular basis. But 3 inches of snow is 3 inches of snow, folks. Never hurt anyone. This reaction you've got? That's.....normal. So welcome to the game. Do you understand now? Don't you feel a bit silly about your past behavior? You should. As said on the Capital Weather Gang comments section: "1-3 inches, 50 mile-an-hour winds--and no rush to the store for eggs, milk and bread. We have all become so flinty". 

What else? I'm less than optimistic about Perfect Job, but we shall see. Nothing to be accomplished by worrying, so I'm not going to. 

Also, good news and bad news on the ol' love life (generally a topic left off these pages), only being shared because it's a little too funny-in-a-sad-way not to. The gut-wrenching, never-gonna-happen terrible crush from hell on one impossibly unattainable individual (it's been alluded to now and again on here) seems to be going away (yay!). It's being deflected instead onto a decidedly more attainable (and, depending on your perspective, already attained) young man (yay?). But I think I've already managed to make a mess of the whole thing and probably ruined it (boo). Considering trying to re-deflect away from Mr. You Messed It Up and back to Mr. Keep Dreaming, which SOMEhow is the better option. FML. 

(But it might not be messed up. Maybe?)

That's all she wrote, folks! Goodnight.

Checking in

As you may be able to infer based on my return to sporadic blogging, things are more or less back to normal. Don't get me wrong, there's still mountains of snow everywhere and I'm now on something like Day 23 in wellies-as-main-footwear. But there's work, and there's school, and there's karate, and there's parade planning, and there's the usual weekend shenanigans. So I've been busy.

Just hopping on to share a bit of happiness from last night, and will certainly embellish when I'm not 30 minutes late getting out the door (and my hair's still wet!). But last night's Facebook status update, sent from my phone from the upstairs bar at Murphy's....."at this moment, cannot imagine anywhere she'd rather be". I love my friends, I love my community, I love my town and last night was just the most beautifully perfect storm of all of them. I don't know what I did to have such good fortune smile on me, but I'm just oh so glad it did.

Until next time!

41.4

Inches. Of snow. That's the official Alexandria total (between the two storms--but they really were back-to-back), as reported in the local paper which finally showed up today. Wow. Even I didn't think it was that high. 

The National Guard came, I didn't see them until the other day though because they were mainly down by City Hall doing their thing. I think they're gone now. The President declared Virginia a disaster area, and I suspect that Maryland's not too far behind. We had work today, though, finally. The government was on a 2-hour delay, mainly to allow for transportation issues. It was weird being back, and very difficult to concentrate. Everyone was in good spirits and it was nice to be back roaming the buzzing halls again.

Still, it's an adjustment. I suspect it will take a little while for things to feel normal again. Good news, though: I'm up for a pretty great (permanent) job very closely related to the one I have--different building, similar sort of setup (I'd still be a Capitol Hill librarian--just for a different library). I'm trying really hard to not get my hopes up, but my boss called the person doing the hiring (who she knows and has worked with) and sang my praises and highly encouraged her to consider me. So....that's good, right? It would be so perfect if it worked out (which is kind of why I'm pretty sure it won't). Fingers crossed!

I Don't Wanna!

This has been the craziest week (er...10 days) ever. It's been fun. It's been kind of boring at some points, but it's just SO incredibly out of the realm of "normal" that it's been mostly nothing but interesting and exciting for people like me. And by "people like me" I mean people who really believe and practice the philosophy that "an inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered; an adventure is an inconvenience rightly considered". I never actually heard this until a year or two ago, but turns out, that's my natural state of being. It's totally true, too. Anything's an adventure if you approach it the right way.

I love how my lovely little town felt so banded together in this, partly in the "we'll muddle through" kind of way but also in the "hey! Look at this! This is great!" kind of way. I love that snowman outside my corner store. I love that I saw the owner building it at 2am while I drifted up King Street in a starry eyed embrace. I love the piles of boots and coats that populate entrances of public places. I love pink cheeks and bright eyes. I love the collective freeing feeling of No Work Ever Again! I love the people watching that happened. It was, as I've frequently stated, intense. First rule of Snowmageddon: There Are No Rules. And how.

It's already lost a lot of its sheen--the roads are getting progressively clearer and clearer and we've all adjusted to this (temporary) New Normal.  (Heck, they're calling for 4 inches of snow tomorrow and no one seems to even notice. 2 weeks ago, that was enough to clear the stores of milk, eggs and toilet paper). This bizarre parallel universe we've been living in is necessarily ephemeral. Nothing like that can be permanent--it only even existed precisely because it's so abnormal and temporary that there's really nothing to do BUT cheerfully roll with it and maybe go a little crazy. Like the electric excitement that comes with first kisses, it can't be recreated or recaptured. It just was. And now it's gone.

Our slow return to normal, of course, is a good thing. For me in particular. I dragged my bike back outside last night and rode the 3 miles to my friends' house in Del Ray. First time in 10 days I was on the bike, and the farthest I've been from my house since February 4. It was the annual Valentine's Day party: watching the Princess Bride en masse, laughing, eating and enjoying company. This year was particularly special because two of our friends just welcomed their first child into the world three short weeks ago. It was great to meet him.  Some photos:

 

  

I left a bit early to head to Bistrot Lafayette for the return of piano bar night!  There was the tail end of a private party going on, otherwise it was just me and a half-dozen of the regulars (and me the only female!). The private party cleared out and it was just us. I sang solo twice (NOT Dream a Little Dream--I'm branching out) and we stayed late into the evening, after the pianist's departure drinking wine, talking about the Olympics and generally chatting and laughing.  It's so nice getting to know everyone better--we usually don't have time to talk because the pianist never takes a break (which is a good thing, but conversation is difficult when you're busy singing!).

So. Getting back to normal: not a bad thing. But I think I'm going to miss Snowmageddon as much as I miss those magic summers at camp in the mountains of West Virginia and those wonder-filled first days discovering college life, freedom and new friends in the foothills of the Berkshires. 

So as much as I "don't wanna" go back to work, I know I must. And I do love my job, so it's not bad at all.

And Thank You, Senator

Sledding ban on Capitol Hill lifted through Monday!  You're not all big meanies after all (but my prior rant stands). Now to go find a sled.....

Wouldn't that be several shades of awesome? Just me?

Really Now?

I'm not recapping the issue because I don't want this to appear on internet searches, mostly because of where I work. So read this first.

I would like to join in the chorus of DC-Metro folks in defending ourselves here. First, alright, people from upstate New York and other lake effect places MIGHT have a bit of a point. Might. But they actually don't because you EXPECT to get 3 feet of snow all of a sudden in Buffalo and South Bend and places like that. Here, not so much. So...apples, oranges. And plus....not all of those taking us to task are actually FROM lake-effect regions. Ahem.

Also, I have LONG been someone who routinely makes fun of this area for the COMPLETE AND TOTAL panic that sets in every time they call for snow to stick to the ground. I've done it on this blog this and every winter. I've lived in snowy places, I've seen a lot and still I can say this was bad. This was very, very, very bad. Also, even if it wasn't very, very, very bad and we were willing to go to work (which, seriously by the second day off most people were) we weren't ABLE to without 4 wheel drive. Metro--HALF the system was just plain ol' Not. Open. Plus, about half of us don't even own cars anyway (DC is the second or third highest non-car-having population in the US--will cite later), let alone 4 wheel drive cars. I mean--you know it's bad when the local news stops anouncing cancelations and closings (everything's canceled, everything's closed) and starts soliciting people with four wheel drive vehicles to volunteer at their local hospitals to get doctors, nurses and staff back and forth. Seriously. It was bad.

We know you're just posturing for the snow-hardy folks back in Peoria (or Milwaukee, or Rochester)  who don't like that they, the taxpayer, basically paid for a whole bunch of us to have a big long vacation (which I don't think we need to apologize for having fun with--lemons to lemonade, right), but that's an issue of the government's policies, which oh by the way, YOU WRITE, not about our laziness or wimpiness. If your constituents don't like that Feds get paid on snow days, you are one of the 535 people in this country that can actually DO something about it (but you won't because many of your constituents are Federal employees, too and they'd surely have something to say about that). Don't turn the blame back around on us, thanks.

Lastly, we have now had more snow fall in this city than any other city in the country this winter (including Buffalo and the like). Yes, many places are having lighter than normal winters. But (a) them's the facts (b) we got it all in THREE EVENTS, two of which were separated by about 12 hours, and was really more one massive "clusterflake" as they've been calling it than two separate events. Edited to clarify: 2nd most, and that's if you measure at Dulles. Citation: here.

Oh and PS, Chicago's stats for most snowfall at once: (picked it because of the Senator currently in question and because I'm of Chicago people and can fact-check).

1. 23.0 inches Jan 26-27, 1967
2. 21.6 inches Jan 1-3, 1999
3. 19.2 inches Mar 25-26, 1930
4. 18.8 inches Jan 13-14, 1979
5. 16.2 inches Mar 7-8, 1931
6. 15.0 inches Dec 17-20, 1929
7. 14.9 inches Jan 30, 1939
8. 14.9 inches Jan 6-7, 1918
9. 14.3 inches Mar 25-26, 1970
10. 14.0 inches Jan 18-20, 1886

I just checked in with my parents, who lived in Chicago for the "big" one and they confirmed that the city was shut down for days. Kind of like we just were. And guess what? Even the reports from National Airport (which, seriously, is almost completely surrounded by water and therefore gets FAR less snow than anywhere else in the area) beat that. (18, then a short break, then 8). The reality everywhere not National Airport was more like 25+ followed by 10+. That's 35. Thirty. Five.

So calm down, change some laws if you're really that outraged over it, but remember that you can't change the laws only for us lazy wimps in DC.

Thank you.

A Return to Normal

Or close to it, at least. The government opened back up today (2 hour delay though) and Metro opened up half of the above ground stations, including mine! However, they were running on an every-35-minute schedule, which when compared to the normal rush hour schedule of every-3-to-6-minutes....disaster. I don't generally work on Fridays, but I called my boss last night offering to come in if the Metro situation wasn't too bad. She called me this morning just telling me to sleep. I think I'm going to insist on taking this as a vacation day or a leave-without-pay because while I love snow days and all...it's all a bit nuts and I feel really bad for taking my normal day off when I just got 4 of them. So, there you go, American taxpayer. I'm doing what I can.

Trucks are back out on the streets, making deliveries. Clean-up crews and construction crews abound (there's a LOT to fix--awnings falling down, whole pieces of roofs on winding up on the sidewalk, tons and tons and tons of downed trees and branches etc).

Rebecca's still here and will stay through the weekend, even though it's no longer out of pure necessity (or maybe it is--I have no idea what the roads outside of Old Town look like). We're having fun and there's lots planned for this weekend so we decided to just run with the sleepover :). She found a drop-in yoga class to take this afternoon, I went back to karate for my regularly scheduled private lesson and then ran some errands. She's still out there somewhere doing something.

We're going into President's Day weekend, which means that most people around here don't have work on Monday. This whole thing has just been so very odd. Fun, lots and lots of fun. But odd. I mean walking to karate class and to friends' houses (often in the middle of the night on like a Tuesday) in the midst of two back-to-back massive blizzards. That was my new normal. It feels kind of weird now that it's sunny and the roads are passable. Funny what you can get used to!

Day 7--Rumors and Coincidences

There have been tons. The biggest rumor flying has been that the government is considering canceling the President's Day holiday (this upcoming Monday) for Federal workers in an effort to make up for what will probably be this whole week. I have just gotten confirmation from a friend who works at FedLine (the blog of Federal Times, a newspaper for the government) that this is false. Whew? I'm not sure. I'm kind of ready to not be on "vacation" anymore.

Oh, and it goes without saying that there was no work again today. The storm is finished, the skies are bright and blue but it is a MESS out there.

More rumors (slash/ facts?): a quarter of the DC snowplow fleet is down for repairs. Some jurisdictions gave up on plowing on the second day of Round Three because the crews had been working 'round the clock for days and were starting to fall asleep behind the wheel.

Also, the National Museum of American History is (it's rumored) collecting objects and photographs from this storm. It's been history-making in many ways--record snowfall in this area and very close to a full week's closure of the government. Apparently there's a movement to get Capital Weather Gang in there somehow. They have been HANDS DOWN the most accurate, most up to the minute and by far the funniest and most entertaining of any of them. Go CWG boys!

Coincidences? Well, as mentioned earlier, they abound. A good example is that on Saturday night I saw a girl who I've met once before. Turns out we experienced the same burglar this summer. Also turns out that she's friends with a girl who is dating the roommate of a friend of mine. She goes to introduce me to the friend, and she and I say "actually, we've met" which was kind of mind blowing to burglar girl. I also ran into one of the karate instructors while out for the Super Bowl on Sunday. We got to talking a bit, and turns out we know pretty much all the same people (ok slight exaggeration but still). Mostly the Irish-bar entertainer types, but it's odd how we both have a level of familiarity with the same ones. Rocky, for instance. Rocky I consider to be part of my wider circle of actual friends (as opposed to only the friendly guy with the guitar you chat to on occasion, which is many of the rest of them), particularly since the recent passing of our mutual friend Jim. Turns out this karate instructor has been actual-friends with him for years. And always tries to go out on nights he's playing. Which I do, too. Which begs the question why we haven't seen each other before.

Best one is on the Capital Weather Gang's blog today. They've complied a "best-of" of the comments from readers over the course of Snowmageddon (or however we're spelling it). I highly recommend reading it. It's all kinds of awesome (and has a crazy picture of Cleveland Park!). But the funniest part?--The "most personal connection made". Right here in OT. Because this is the Smallest Town Ever (sometimes).

Most personal connection made

@Snowlover2 - thanks for posting those pictures! I recognized the picture of the pool, and if that's from your apartment, we're in the same building. :)
Posted by: oldtowngirl | February 6, 2010 2:35 PM

@oldtowngirl, Yes that was taken from my condo! I was wondering if anyone in my building would be on here and say something :)
Posted by: Snowlover2 | February 6, 2010 2:51 PM

@snowlover2 and @oldtowngirl I'm in the same building too ... I still want to know who built the snowman last night in the courtyard???
Posted by: tidalwave1 | February 6, 2010 2:51 PM

@Snowlover2 @OldTownGirl @TidalWave1: I used to live next door to y'all. I'm around the corner now ...
Posted by: AlexandriaAnna | February 6, 2010 2:57 PM

Most likely to go on a date

@Snowlover2 @OldTownGirl @TidalWave1: I scrolled the messages to see whether there was any new love blossoming ...
Posted by: MikeinDC2 | February 6, 2010 4:09 PM

@MikeinDC2,
No babies for us- I could be wrong, but I think we are all girls- so unless we adopted....
Posted by: Snowlover2 | February 6, 2010 4:14 PM

@snowlover2 I'm a guy!
Posted by: tidalwave1 | February 6, 2010 4:46 PM

Cute, huh?

There's more of this silly/amazing small world stuff but this post is getting long. Rebecca and I are spending the day eating and doing homework (yes, there is a real life out there somewhere). Not sure on how to spend the evening. Every option has been exhausted many times over. I've been trying to cozy up with a book for days but the near total lack of physical activity won't let me concentrate. I even had to watch my beloved LOST in 3 sections because I Just. Couldn't. Sit. Still. for more than 20 minutes at a time!

Off to climb some more walls in an apartment which I cleaned and organized from top to bottom, then decided to organize my clothes--mentioned frequently on here as the major source of disorganization around here--and so now it's all disorganized again (I failed to realize that because of the snow the throw aways can't be thrown away, and the give aways can't be given away and I've just got mounds of everywhere). Grrr.

Oh, PS. There's an Alberta clipper in the forecast for Monday. This has surpassed insane. But it's an adventure!

Dear Reader,

This post is rated PG-13.  I'm also writing strictly as an observer of mayhem. Participation fully denied.

What I've been avoiding blogging for proprietary's sake, but which can no longer ignored is as follows:

There are pretty much only two things that can be done during the End Of The World: obscene consumption of alcohol and gratuitous sex. Lots. As far as I can tell, those are the only things happening in this zip code.

There. I said it. Try this experiment: take an entire town. Dump over three feet of snow on it in six days with little to no warning and with NO resources to handle it. No one outside of emergency and military personnel (um, and bartenders) have to go to work. No. One. Observe the "under 30" crowd. See what happens. No one is doing anything else but. Guaranteed. Seriously. It's mad. But highly amusing. I'm cutting off the storytelling here, as mentioned earlier, to protect the innocent and not-so-innocent. But really, it's kind of how I always pictured Semester-At-Sea. But on land. Plus 5 or 10 years.

So, that's the vibe of the town. Or the younger/ single contingent of the town. It's been amusing, to say the least. Kind of like a movie, but it's playing out in front of your eyes.

I'm not the only one who has observed this phenomenon. Our entertainer added this song to his repertoire tonight, right at last call.....