Too damn early for the homeless protester band to be banging on pipes, cowbells and buckets. That's what it is.
It is now almost 12:30, and they haven't so much as taken a break since I got here this morning. They're currently protesting an empty building because the contractor allegedly does not pay standard area rates for carpenters and a few others.
No one is in the building. No one from the company they are protesting is on site. So, at least all the noise is productive!
Friday, August 28, 2009
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Cruuuuuuuuuising.
It's been far too long since the last update. My bad, once again. I always do that. I get really into the idea of a blog, I update fairly regularly for a few weeks and then who the hell knows...I just fade off it.
Well, much has happened in the past month. As a way of encouraging more updates by me, I'm not going to write a novel of an entry. I'm going to try to keep them short, and maybe I'll do this more often. I'll only tell you a bit of what's happened right now, and then in a day or so I'll write another entry, and so on.
First of all, I went on a cruise with Anne and my family and the Goldsteins (family friends). Would you like to see some pictures I took? If so, click here.
Faaantastic. I really love cruises. We weren't really sure what to expect from the cruise, to be honest. We've never gone on a Carnival cruise before, and, frankly, we hadn't heard good things about it going into our vacation. All in all, I have no real complaints. It wasn't as good as Celebrity or Princess, but that's to be expected.
I have nothing bad to say about Carnival, per se. I actually rather enjoyed the water slide, as did my dad and brother, so that was fun. This was also the first time we really tried to take advantage of the entertainment put on by the ship's crew (other than just playing bingo). We went to an 80s revue, the Newlywed, Not-so-Newlywed game, a couple comedy shows and some karaoke.
Lots of fun. I actually sang karaoke for the first time in my life. Stacy, Matt and I sang "Bohemian Rhapsody." It only took three or four drinks to get me up there. The original plan was for Matt and I to wow the crowd with our falsetto voices in "More Than a Feeling," but, sadly (or maybe not-so-sadly?), the song wasn't available.
I won $15 playing the penny machines in the Casino. Good times there. No small feat either -- betting a penny at a time and winning $15.
Whew, that was close! You almost baited me into writing a novel for you anyway! I'll cut myself off here. You have to know your limits, and if you get me started, I'll go on for days and days.
Adios!
-BG
Well, much has happened in the past month. As a way of encouraging more updates by me, I'm not going to write a novel of an entry. I'm going to try to keep them short, and maybe I'll do this more often. I'll only tell you a bit of what's happened right now, and then in a day or so I'll write another entry, and so on.
First of all, I went on a cruise with Anne and my family and the Goldsteins (family friends). Would you like to see some pictures I took? If so, click here.
Faaantastic. I really love cruises. We weren't really sure what to expect from the cruise, to be honest. We've never gone on a Carnival cruise before, and, frankly, we hadn't heard good things about it going into our vacation. All in all, I have no real complaints. It wasn't as good as Celebrity or Princess, but that's to be expected.
I have nothing bad to say about Carnival, per se. I actually rather enjoyed the water slide, as did my dad and brother, so that was fun. This was also the first time we really tried to take advantage of the entertainment put on by the ship's crew (other than just playing bingo). We went to an 80s revue, the Newlywed, Not-so-Newlywed game, a couple comedy shows and some karaoke.
Lots of fun. I actually sang karaoke for the first time in my life. Stacy, Matt and I sang "Bohemian Rhapsody." It only took three or four drinks to get me up there. The original plan was for Matt and I to wow the crowd with our falsetto voices in "More Than a Feeling," but, sadly (or maybe not-so-sadly?), the song wasn't available.
I won $15 playing the penny machines in the Casino. Good times there. No small feat either -- betting a penny at a time and winning $15.
Whew, that was close! You almost baited me into writing a novel for you anyway! I'll cut myself off here. You have to know your limits, and if you get me started, I'll go on for days and days.
Adios!
-BG
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Vacation!
Vacation next week! Woohoo!
On Friday after work, I'll be traveling down to Raleigh because Anne and I will be driving to Jacksonville on Sunday to head out on a five-day, five-night cruise to Key West and the Bahamas! For. The. Win.
It was a long and winding road even to get to the cruise at all. My mom had hip surgery in June, and doctors weren't sure if she'd be able to go, so they canceled the cruise. But on July 2, she went to the doctor and was cleared to go on the cruise. My parents went from the doctor's office to the travel agent and reinstated the cruise, so off we'll go on Monday morning!
It's going to be a good time.
In the meantime, a few awesome things I'm really loving about my new job:
1. They're getting me a Blackberry!
So a few people were in the hall, talking about smart phones and what they can do, etc. Afterward, one of the partners came into my office and asked why I didn't partake in the conversation.
I pulled out my Razr and explain how my phone is anything but smart, so I didn't have anything to add. He said, "Well you're a program manager here, are you not?" "I am indeed," I replied.
"Well, anyone here who's a manager or higher gets a Blackberry, so let's set you up."
Sign me up! I'm choosing between a Curve, Storm or Tour. I'm leaning away from the Storm because I haven't heard good things about the touchscreen Blackberries.
Thumbs UP. I will let you know when I have more information. I can tell how excited you are about it.
2. Happy Hours at work
Last week, we all gathered in the conference room at 4 p.m. to have wine, beer, champagne and some light snacks. Why? Why not? Just because we can, and we hadn't done it yet this month.
One of the partners traveled to Africa and brought back a ton of pictures, so we drank a bit and looked at pictures of Africa. Hard to argue with that as a way to spend an afternoon at work.
Anyway, this job is still FTW -- for other reasons too of course. I actually do enjoy the work. Learning about nuclear energy is more fun than, say, learning about corn. And I'm enjoying the increase in responsibilities here as well.
It's a good time. A little over a month into the job, and so far, so good. Still a good decision.
Laaater,
BG
On Friday after work, I'll be traveling down to Raleigh because Anne and I will be driving to Jacksonville on Sunday to head out on a five-day, five-night cruise to Key West and the Bahamas! For. The. Win.
It was a long and winding road even to get to the cruise at all. My mom had hip surgery in June, and doctors weren't sure if she'd be able to go, so they canceled the cruise. But on July 2, she went to the doctor and was cleared to go on the cruise. My parents went from the doctor's office to the travel agent and reinstated the cruise, so off we'll go on Monday morning!
It's going to be a good time.
In the meantime, a few awesome things I'm really loving about my new job:
1. They're getting me a Blackberry!
So a few people were in the hall, talking about smart phones and what they can do, etc. Afterward, one of the partners came into my office and asked why I didn't partake in the conversation.
I pulled out my Razr and explain how my phone is anything but smart, so I didn't have anything to add. He said, "Well you're a program manager here, are you not?" "I am indeed," I replied.
"Well, anyone here who's a manager or higher gets a Blackberry, so let's set you up."
Sign me up! I'm choosing between a Curve, Storm or Tour. I'm leaning away from the Storm because I haven't heard good things about the touchscreen Blackberries.
Thumbs UP. I will let you know when I have more information. I can tell how excited you are about it.
2. Happy Hours at work
Last week, we all gathered in the conference room at 4 p.m. to have wine, beer, champagne and some light snacks. Why? Why not? Just because we can, and we hadn't done it yet this month.
One of the partners traveled to Africa and brought back a ton of pictures, so we drank a bit and looked at pictures of Africa. Hard to argue with that as a way to spend an afternoon at work.
Anyway, this job is still FTW -- for other reasons too of course. I actually do enjoy the work. Learning about nuclear energy is more fun than, say, learning about corn. And I'm enjoying the increase in responsibilities here as well.
It's a good time. A little over a month into the job, and so far, so good. Still a good decision.
Laaater,
BG
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
July 4th Photos
I did not forget.
I uploaded them last night. Check 'em out through my Facebook profile, or just click here.
I uploaded them last night. Check 'em out through my Facebook profile, or just click here.
Monday, July 6, 2009
The Beatles: Rock Band
If you know me at all, you know I'm a huge fan of the Rock Band series. It's just fantastic. I've been playing the drums for about 11 years now, and a full drum set isn't the most convenient instrument to play.
Rock Band drums feels legitimately like you're playing the real drums. It's obviously not EXACTLY the same, but the motions and the movements -- I don't know how to explain it except to say it just feels right. As a drummer, it feels right.
I've got Rock Band and Rock Band 2, and on Sept. 9, I will have to find a way to acquire this game. Ladies and gentlemen, the game-play trailer for The Beatles: Rock Band.
Look at that! How awesome is that?! First of all, it looks fantastic, aesthetically. It has signature moments in Beatles' history recreated in the game from the look of the guys and their wardrobe down to the clubs and venues they played. Second of all, that's going to be a great game. I'm a big Beatles fan, so, to answer my own rhetorical question from a second ago, this is going to be VERY AWESOME.
Not just for the drums though! Did you notice the addition to the vocals? Three-part harmonies will be a part of this game. Again, if you know me at all, you know I'll be gunning for that high-note harmony part every time.
I've said this about Rock Band before, and it bears repeating now: singing is waaaay more fun than it should be. Good times all around, and not just when you've had a few drinks.
P.S. On a completely unrelated note, I have pictures from the exploration Anne and I undertook of DC this past weekend. I will post them to Facebook tomorrow.
Rock Band drums feels legitimately like you're playing the real drums. It's obviously not EXACTLY the same, but the motions and the movements -- I don't know how to explain it except to say it just feels right. As a drummer, it feels right.
I've got Rock Band and Rock Band 2, and on Sept. 9, I will have to find a way to acquire this game. Ladies and gentlemen, the game-play trailer for The Beatles: Rock Band.
Look at that! How awesome is that?! First of all, it looks fantastic, aesthetically. It has signature moments in Beatles' history recreated in the game from the look of the guys and their wardrobe down to the clubs and venues they played. Second of all, that's going to be a great game. I'm a big Beatles fan, so, to answer my own rhetorical question from a second ago, this is going to be VERY AWESOME.
Not just for the drums though! Did you notice the addition to the vocals? Three-part harmonies will be a part of this game. Again, if you know me at all, you know I'll be gunning for that high-note harmony part every time.
I've said this about Rock Band before, and it bears repeating now: singing is waaaay more fun than it should be. Good times all around, and not just when you've had a few drinks.
P.S. On a completely unrelated note, I have pictures from the exploration Anne and I undertook of DC this past weekend. I will post them to Facebook tomorrow.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
It's been two weeks
First of all, happy birthday to me! I turn 27 today (June 23). So, hooray for that. :)
Now that that's out of the way, I thought I'd give a run-down of all things DC. What I like, what I don't like, what's interesting...etc. Keep in mind, it's only been two weeks, so I'm obviously missing a lot. This is just a little bit about what I've found in my first two weeks in the nation's capital.
Warning, this is a long entry. You know I'm a wordy writer; it's how I roll. But I figure, I'm living in a new place, why not share my experiences so far? It takes some words to do that. So here you go!
Things I like about DC:
1. Riding the Metro
Awful tragedy yesterday aside, riding the Metro is fantastic. It's so easy, it's so quick and it's so cheap. It costs me $3.30 per day to get to and from work. Multiply that by 22 (days works in a month, not including weekends, obviously) and you get $72.60. Now factor in how I don't drive at all around the city. Get gas twice and tell me how much it costs. More than $72? I think so too. And I would need to get gas more than twice in a month.
Oh yeah, but work pays for my Metro usage to get to and from the office. So, yeah. That's a pretty great perk. The station is a block and a half from my house, and it gets you where you need to go quickly and efficiently. I'm a fan so far.
2. Turkey Avocado sandwich at Rumi
Rumi is a Mediterranean restaurant across the street from my office. The turkey avocado sandwich there is just fantastic. Turkey, melted provolone, tomato, lettuce, cucumber and avocado on large pita bread. Add some fries and a can of soda, all for $8, and you've got my lunch of choice now that the closest Jersey Mike's is 65 miles away.
Seriously, so good, and right across the street. Also, not even that bad. That's a reasonably healthy sandwich for lunch.
I'm still looking for a good REAL deli sandwich. One of my roommates mentioned a place called Vace (VA-chay) in Cleveland Park (a neighborhood west of here). It's a little Italian deli, and it's supposedly awesome. Undoubtedly, it's on my list of places to try in the next couple of weeks.
3. Walking Distance
I live within walking distance of almost everything I need to do day to day. Target, Best Buy, the Metro station, the grocery store, a Wachovia, Radio Shack, Staples and a 24-hour CVS are all within a 5- to 10-minute walk away. Excellent. I end up walking a couple miles per day just going about my business.
Which leads into my next item...
4. Not Driving
I don't have to drive anywhere. The only time I have to drive is to leave DC to go to Raleigh or Charlotte or New Jersey or wherever. It's pretty nice not to have to drive anywhere day to day. It's a short item on my list of things I like, but it's true nonetheless.
5. Living in a City
I don't think I'm surprising anyone when I say I'm more of a city guy than anything. I was born 25 minutes from the biggest city in the world. I lived in the two biggest cities in North Carolina. I lived just outside of Tampa, Fla., and I lived in Clinton, S.C. One of these things is not like the other. One of these things doesn't quite belong.
You guessed it...good ol' Clinton. Don't get me wrong, I loved writing for the Chronicle, and I loved the people I worked with, but living in Clinton wasn't my cup of tea. I'm much more suited to city life. No doubt. And here I am in Washington, D.C., living in the nation's capital. This is nice, I have to say.
I like walking out my door and walking to the Metro station to use mass transit to get to work. I like leaving the Metro station downtown and walking out and being surrounded by city life. People on their way to do important things. Sort-of-tall buildings all around (more on this later), cars speeding around...THINGS are going on. It just feels good. It's fun. :-)
6. Where I Live
I live in a row house in the Columbia Heights neighborhood. To be more accurate, I live in the basement apartment of the house with another guy. Three girls live in the house upstairs, but we have keys to the house to use the kitchen and laundry room.
My roommates' best guess is this house could be about 100 years old. It really is a charming little Victorian row house. Pictures are available on my Facebook page for those who haven't seen just yet.
It's plenty of space for me, and it's extremely affordable, which is pretty important for now. Also, my roommates are pretty excellent. Everyone is so nice, and they're really trying to make me feel welcome here. We're having a house dinner tonight (on my birthday!) to "officially" welcome me to the house. They're making manicotti! It's going to be a good time.
So yeah. I like the house, and I like my new roommates. Good times all around.
7. Work
I really enjoy my new job. It's great; it really is. I really liked my old job, and I genuinely miss some of the people I worked with there, without a doubt. But this is a great opportunity for me. In hindsight, getting laid off is one of the best things that's happened to me.
I have more responsibilities, more work and more clients. The people I work with are fun, and they're really trying to make me feel welcome in the office. The office culture is relaxed, but everyone works hard, so that's good.
The dress code is a bit more strict. During the spring, fall and winter, the regular dress code for guys is shirt and tie. After all, it is the capital, and more clients work in the area, so we try to look a bit more professional than most PR firms, which usually adopt a more casual dress code. During the summer we have a business casual code, which means I don't have to wear a shirt and tie when it's hot out. I appreciate that. I also appreciate my office having its own individual AC unit.
All in all, I really enjoy the work I'm doing -- especially the nuclear energy client, that's a lot of fun -- and I'm really happy I accepted this job.
Things I don't like about DC:
1. Not having Anne and Allie
Look, this goes without saying. I miss my girls. That's really all there is to say. For the past three years, I've been able to see them every day, and now I can't. That takes some getting used to, but I believe this is what's best for our little family. It sets us up in the best possible way for the future, so here we are. It'll be OK; it's just an adjustment.
2. People
OK, that's not REALLY true. More specifically, I have a problem with the people who decide to walk unbelievably slowly when trying to transfer between trains. Folks, I've got someplace to be. Whether it's work or home, I'd like to get there sooner rather than later. So let's try either to pick up the pace just a little bit, or abide by the normal rules of human travel: slower traffic keep to the right.
Some people just don't get it.
3. Rolling Suitcases on the Metro
I know these are necessary sometimes. The Metro is a means to travel back and forth between Reagan National Airport, and sometimes people need to carry suitcases. These rolling suitcases, though, take up so much space. It's impossible to maneuver them around the tight spaces and cramped cars, so people (myself included, from time to time) inevitably end up tripping over them. No thank you, sir.
Take your rolling bag and remove it from my path, por favor. Thankfully, I have yet to experience the nightmare that is someone stopping at the top of the escalator to mess with his/her rolling suitcase. Although, on the topic of escalators...please, ladies and gentlemen, stand right, walk left. Say it with me now: stand right, walk left. It's not hard. Please. I'm begging you for my sanity and everyone else's who walks around like responsible people.
4. Walking in the Rain
The downside to walking everywhere. Sometimes it rains. Even when it rains, I've walked to the office from the Metro station. It doesn't matter if I have an umbrella or not, my legs always get soaked. It's not comfortable, but I still wouldn't trade it. It's manageable, so it's OK.
Interesting Things I Neither Like Nor Dislike:
1. It's not "the city," it's "the district"
Pretty self-explanatory, no? I've called it "the city" before, but it is apparently referred to as "the district" as an alternative to saying Washington or DC.
2. Building Heights
None of the buildings in the district (see what I did there?) are taller than the Washington Monument.
According to Wikipedia: "After the construction of the twelve-story Cairo Apartment Building in 1899, Congress passed the Heights of Buildings Act, which declared that no building could be taller than the Capitol. The Act was amended in 1910 to restrict building height to the width of the adjacent street plus 20 feet (6.1 m). Today the skyline remains low and sprawling, in keeping with Thomas Jefferson's wishes to make Washington an 'American Paris' with 'low and convenient' buildings on 'light and airy' streets. As a result, the Washington Monument remains the District's tallest structure."
Interesting. I like my brother's story better, even if it's probably not true. He says the Secret Service doesn't want the buildings to be any taller than the Washington Monument because they don't want the roofs of any building to have a line of sight on the White House. You know, for snipers, and such.
That story is more fun, and maybe there's some truth to it, but there you go. Either way. If you made it this far, thanks for reading. I appreciate all of you. Leave me some love. Any suggestions on places I should check out? Places to avoid? Let me know!
-BG
Now that that's out of the way, I thought I'd give a run-down of all things DC. What I like, what I don't like, what's interesting...etc. Keep in mind, it's only been two weeks, so I'm obviously missing a lot. This is just a little bit about what I've found in my first two weeks in the nation's capital.
Warning, this is a long entry. You know I'm a wordy writer; it's how I roll. But I figure, I'm living in a new place, why not share my experiences so far? It takes some words to do that. So here you go!
Things I like about DC:
1. Riding the Metro
Awful tragedy yesterday aside, riding the Metro is fantastic. It's so easy, it's so quick and it's so cheap. It costs me $3.30 per day to get to and from work. Multiply that by 22 (days works in a month, not including weekends, obviously) and you get $72.60. Now factor in how I don't drive at all around the city. Get gas twice and tell me how much it costs. More than $72? I think so too. And I would need to get gas more than twice in a month.
Oh yeah, but work pays for my Metro usage to get to and from the office. So, yeah. That's a pretty great perk. The station is a block and a half from my house, and it gets you where you need to go quickly and efficiently. I'm a fan so far.
2. Turkey Avocado sandwich at Rumi
Rumi is a Mediterranean restaurant across the street from my office. The turkey avocado sandwich there is just fantastic. Turkey, melted provolone, tomato, lettuce, cucumber and avocado on large pita bread. Add some fries and a can of soda, all for $8, and you've got my lunch of choice now that the closest Jersey Mike's is 65 miles away.
Seriously, so good, and right across the street. Also, not even that bad. That's a reasonably healthy sandwich for lunch.
I'm still looking for a good REAL deli sandwich. One of my roommates mentioned a place called Vace (VA-chay) in Cleveland Park (a neighborhood west of here). It's a little Italian deli, and it's supposedly awesome. Undoubtedly, it's on my list of places to try in the next couple of weeks.
3. Walking Distance
I live within walking distance of almost everything I need to do day to day. Target, Best Buy, the Metro station, the grocery store, a Wachovia, Radio Shack, Staples and a 24-hour CVS are all within a 5- to 10-minute walk away. Excellent. I end up walking a couple miles per day just going about my business.
Which leads into my next item...
4. Not Driving
I don't have to drive anywhere. The only time I have to drive is to leave DC to go to Raleigh or Charlotte or New Jersey or wherever. It's pretty nice not to have to drive anywhere day to day. It's a short item on my list of things I like, but it's true nonetheless.
5. Living in a City
I don't think I'm surprising anyone when I say I'm more of a city guy than anything. I was born 25 minutes from the biggest city in the world. I lived in the two biggest cities in North Carolina. I lived just outside of Tampa, Fla., and I lived in Clinton, S.C. One of these things is not like the other. One of these things doesn't quite belong.
You guessed it...good ol' Clinton. Don't get me wrong, I loved writing for the Chronicle, and I loved the people I worked with, but living in Clinton wasn't my cup of tea. I'm much more suited to city life. No doubt. And here I am in Washington, D.C., living in the nation's capital. This is nice, I have to say.
I like walking out my door and walking to the Metro station to use mass transit to get to work. I like leaving the Metro station downtown and walking out and being surrounded by city life. People on their way to do important things. Sort-of-tall buildings all around (more on this later), cars speeding around...THINGS are going on. It just feels good. It's fun. :-)
6. Where I Live
I live in a row house in the Columbia Heights neighborhood. To be more accurate, I live in the basement apartment of the house with another guy. Three girls live in the house upstairs, but we have keys to the house to use the kitchen and laundry room.
My roommates' best guess is this house could be about 100 years old. It really is a charming little Victorian row house. Pictures are available on my Facebook page for those who haven't seen just yet.
It's plenty of space for me, and it's extremely affordable, which is pretty important for now. Also, my roommates are pretty excellent. Everyone is so nice, and they're really trying to make me feel welcome here. We're having a house dinner tonight (on my birthday!) to "officially" welcome me to the house. They're making manicotti! It's going to be a good time.
So yeah. I like the house, and I like my new roommates. Good times all around.
7. Work
I really enjoy my new job. It's great; it really is. I really liked my old job, and I genuinely miss some of the people I worked with there, without a doubt. But this is a great opportunity for me. In hindsight, getting laid off is one of the best things that's happened to me.
I have more responsibilities, more work and more clients. The people I work with are fun, and they're really trying to make me feel welcome in the office. The office culture is relaxed, but everyone works hard, so that's good.
The dress code is a bit more strict. During the spring, fall and winter, the regular dress code for guys is shirt and tie. After all, it is the capital, and more clients work in the area, so we try to look a bit more professional than most PR firms, which usually adopt a more casual dress code. During the summer we have a business casual code, which means I don't have to wear a shirt and tie when it's hot out. I appreciate that. I also appreciate my office having its own individual AC unit.
All in all, I really enjoy the work I'm doing -- especially the nuclear energy client, that's a lot of fun -- and I'm really happy I accepted this job.
Things I don't like about DC:
1. Not having Anne and Allie
Look, this goes without saying. I miss my girls. That's really all there is to say. For the past three years, I've been able to see them every day, and now I can't. That takes some getting used to, but I believe this is what's best for our little family. It sets us up in the best possible way for the future, so here we are. It'll be OK; it's just an adjustment.
2. People
OK, that's not REALLY true. More specifically, I have a problem with the people who decide to walk unbelievably slowly when trying to transfer between trains. Folks, I've got someplace to be. Whether it's work or home, I'd like to get there sooner rather than later. So let's try either to pick up the pace just a little bit, or abide by the normal rules of human travel: slower traffic keep to the right.
Some people just don't get it.
3. Rolling Suitcases on the Metro
I know these are necessary sometimes. The Metro is a means to travel back and forth between Reagan National Airport, and sometimes people need to carry suitcases. These rolling suitcases, though, take up so much space. It's impossible to maneuver them around the tight spaces and cramped cars, so people (myself included, from time to time) inevitably end up tripping over them. No thank you, sir.
Take your rolling bag and remove it from my path, por favor. Thankfully, I have yet to experience the nightmare that is someone stopping at the top of the escalator to mess with his/her rolling suitcase. Although, on the topic of escalators...please, ladies and gentlemen, stand right, walk left. Say it with me now: stand right, walk left. It's not hard. Please. I'm begging you for my sanity and everyone else's who walks around like responsible people.
4. Walking in the Rain
The downside to walking everywhere. Sometimes it rains. Even when it rains, I've walked to the office from the Metro station. It doesn't matter if I have an umbrella or not, my legs always get soaked. It's not comfortable, but I still wouldn't trade it. It's manageable, so it's OK.
Interesting Things I Neither Like Nor Dislike:
1. It's not "the city," it's "the district"
Pretty self-explanatory, no? I've called it "the city" before, but it is apparently referred to as "the district" as an alternative to saying Washington or DC.
2. Building Heights
None of the buildings in the district (see what I did there?) are taller than the Washington Monument.
According to Wikipedia: "After the construction of the twelve-story Cairo Apartment Building in 1899, Congress passed the Heights of Buildings Act, which declared that no building could be taller than the Capitol. The Act was amended in 1910 to restrict building height to the width of the adjacent street plus 20 feet (6.1 m). Today the skyline remains low and sprawling, in keeping with Thomas Jefferson's wishes to make Washington an 'American Paris' with 'low and convenient' buildings on 'light and airy' streets. As a result, the Washington Monument remains the District's tallest structure."
Interesting. I like my brother's story better, even if it's probably not true. He says the Secret Service doesn't want the buildings to be any taller than the Washington Monument because they don't want the roofs of any building to have a line of sight on the White House. You know, for snipers, and such.
That story is more fun, and maybe there's some truth to it, but there you go. Either way. If you made it this far, thanks for reading. I appreciate all of you. Leave me some love. Any suggestions on places I should check out? Places to avoid? Let me know!
-BG
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Washington, D.C.
Well, I'm here. That's pretty much the excuse I have for not posting something in two weeks. It's been a bit busy, to say the least.
I got here on Friday, June 5 at about 5 p.m. I spent the weekend getting settled in my room and getting used to my new neighborhood, Columbia Heights.
(Let me pause here and direct you to my Facebook page where you can see a photo album where I give you a tour of the major places I go right now. If for some reason you're reading this and you're not Facebook friends with me [why not friend me?], here's a direct link to the photo album.)
Work started Monday morning, and I've been pretty busy since then. My two biggest clients right now are a nuclear energy company and a trade association that represents companies that manufacture insulation. I'd say the insulation stuff is about as interesting as the corn stuff, but I'm totally loving learning about the nuclear energy stuff.
It is so unbelievably interesting, and it's a major issue in the country right now. It's nice to be learning about something that has really wide application value.
There will be other clients, but for now, that's what I've got. I'm sure there will be more stuff this coming week, but they didn't want to overload me in my first week. That's for my second and third weeks...haha.
So to get to work, I walk a block and a half to the Columbia Heights metro station. I take the green or yellow lines south to Chinatown, where I transfer to the red line. I take the red line west to Farragut North. Then I walk about three or four blocks west and a half a block north to get to my office.
For those keeping track at home, that's:
5 min from the house to the metro
5 min from Columbia Heights to Chinatown
5 min from Chinatown to Farragut North
10 min from Farragut North to the office
...for a grand total of 25 min transit time. It doesn't always take 25 min. During rush hour times, there are more trains, but sometimes you have to wait 2 to 4 min for a train. But mostly, it takes between 25 and 35 min, which really isn't bad. It's better than sitting in traffic, that's for sure.
It's good though. I think I'm really going to like living here. I'll DEFINITELY like it a lot more when Anne and Allie get here though. :-(
But yeah, the guy I'm sharing the basement apartment with is really cool, the three girls who live in the house upstairs are really cool and I really like the people I work with so far.
Financially, things are a bit of a...challenge? Definitely a challenge right now, but they'll get better over the next couple of weeks for sure.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Life is good.
I got here on Friday, June 5 at about 5 p.m. I spent the weekend getting settled in my room and getting used to my new neighborhood, Columbia Heights.
(Let me pause here and direct you to my Facebook page where you can see a photo album where I give you a tour of the major places I go right now. If for some reason you're reading this and you're not Facebook friends with me [why not friend me?], here's a direct link to the photo album.)
Work started Monday morning, and I've been pretty busy since then. My two biggest clients right now are a nuclear energy company and a trade association that represents companies that manufacture insulation. I'd say the insulation stuff is about as interesting as the corn stuff, but I'm totally loving learning about the nuclear energy stuff.
It is so unbelievably interesting, and it's a major issue in the country right now. It's nice to be learning about something that has really wide application value.
There will be other clients, but for now, that's what I've got. I'm sure there will be more stuff this coming week, but they didn't want to overload me in my first week. That's for my second and third weeks...haha.
So to get to work, I walk a block and a half to the Columbia Heights metro station. I take the green or yellow lines south to Chinatown, where I transfer to the red line. I take the red line west to Farragut North. Then I walk about three or four blocks west and a half a block north to get to my office.
For those keeping track at home, that's:
5 min from the house to the metro
5 min from Columbia Heights to Chinatown
5 min from Chinatown to Farragut North
10 min from Farragut North to the office
...for a grand total of 25 min transit time. It doesn't always take 25 min. During rush hour times, there are more trains, but sometimes you have to wait 2 to 4 min for a train. But mostly, it takes between 25 and 35 min, which really isn't bad. It's better than sitting in traffic, that's for sure.
It's good though. I think I'm really going to like living here. I'll DEFINITELY like it a lot more when Anne and Allie get here though. :-(
But yeah, the guy I'm sharing the basement apartment with is really cool, the three girls who live in the house upstairs are really cool and I really like the people I work with so far.
Financially, things are a bit of a...challenge? Definitely a challenge right now, but they'll get better over the next couple of weeks for sure.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Life is good.
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