Missing Out

I just realized the way I can make tangible my feelings of not being in San Francisco.
I feel like I'm missing out.
It's like when you have to study for a test, but your favorite band is playing in a building next door. Or when your friends are eating at your favorite Indian restaurant, but you are stuck at home with a TV dinner.
And, it's weird b/c I have a pretty ideal life here in D.C. filled with lots of interesting people (more than I can keep track of) and a job I really like. I live in a beautiful apartment in a great part of town. I *should* be totally satisfied.
But, San Francisco is that concert or Indian restaurant. Coupled with the feeling that time is 'a-tickin'/life is finite/time is running out, it is sort of a stressful feeling.
I oftentimes wonder/worry (like when I was on the grocery line yesterday), however, that when I get back and miss everything I take for granted here in D.C. Will I experience something akin to Garden State?
I had lunch with Bryony yesterday. She is someone who inspires me to think out loud. And, I realized that D.C. is too conformist and pragmatic for me; and that context leads me to different ways of life. San Francisco inspired me to go to farmers markets and eat raw foods, to get involved in musical theatre, to have conversations about human cheese and lucid dreams. In D.C., I work and go out to eat, and watch tv, and go home.

Good Lawyer

I don't know if the average person gets this, but all the time people tell me that though they chose not to go to law school they would be a great lawyer. I wonder if those same people that say that know how many other people say this. And, how meaningless what they say is. And, how that is exactly what I used to say (and what I was told my whole life). And, if they know what it really takes to be a good lawyer -- a great attention span and attention to detail, the willingness to work more hours, the ability to work well independently, and some combination of avarice/pride/or unbridled passion for an issue (and if it's passion that's the driving force, being OK w/ a middle-class life). Being argumentative, brilliant, and extroverted are not the key ingredients of a good lawyer (though they obviously don't hurt).

Also, last night's democratic debate made my day. It was wonderful.

Also, I am starting to create a corps of service professionals who make me smile (you know how happy Guddu makes me). I got a "clean up" haircut last night at fiddleheads. I love that place! Friendly and fun, and talented doo-dressers. I love Sarah's concierge, Winnie. The guy who cleans my office, Tony, is the sunshine of my life. The owner of Java Green, he's a great man!

Postsecret

Tonight I went with Mike to a really cool art expo thingie called Artomatic in Crystal City (they basically take an abandoned or to-be-renovated office building and turn it into a gargantuan multimedia artists lair).

The most riveting things I saw were (1) this project called postsecret (www.postsecret.com), where people share a secret on an anonymous postcard for the world to see; check it out; send one in (2) a kissing booth, where you and your friend each pick a disenfranchised country out of a box, pose for a picture holding your country, and kiss and make up on behalf of these countries, (3) a really cool yellow photograph for $50 framed that I want and will probably purchase after I finish this blog. (whoops I have the wrong website for it).

I also watched a "blacklight fire dance". The worst part was this uninspired 10-year old girl, who was like the girl from Little Miss Sunshine sans personality. It's amazing how much confidence can make a difference.

I have also recently decided that I want pursue this fad "lemonade" cleanse/diet starting next Sunday: http://www.falconblanco.com/health/cleansing/lemoncleanse.htm
I am so excited for my concoction of fresh lemons, grade B maple syrup, and cayenne pepper for 10 days that I can hardly contain myself.

Today, the weather was perfect in the same way that the weather was perfect on a Spring day in Minnesota. Everybody sits outside in tank tops with their doggies, and radios, and food -- just because. It's loverly.

Nashvegas

My 15 minutes of fame was fun! The best part was that is gave me an excuse to send a short e-mail to everybody I know - from my high school spanish teacher (who is a Jew for Jesus) to my wacky/brilliant law school professor (who is going to show it in his class). Geraldo has apparantly seen it too!

The weirdest part was being accosted on the street by a random woman who squealed and took a picture with me.

I went to Nashville to visit Petey. I had a very nice time. Nashville was a lot of fun; he lives in this cool area which somehow others perceive to be sketchy, but my sketchydar is a little out of whack after living in D.C. It seemed perfectly safe to me.

Peter has this wonderful eclectic group of friends out there. The highlights of my trip were spending quality time with Peter (watching him get a haircut) and Cindy (getting an acupressure chair massage with her at the Opry Mills Mall). And, going to a concert with Petey's buddy bear (a wonderfully interesting Nashville expert/descendant of Thomas Jefferson) Gia. Well, it was supposed to be a rally for Edwards that got cancelled (due to the VA Tech tragedy). We went to the Ryman, a pretty historic spot, and instead of politicking in the traditional sense - they brought Vince Gill from off the golf course, and Ashley Judd, and others and they sang solemn songs and it was just totally moving - especially the call-and-response version of Amazing Grace that we sung.

The plane trip back was rocky. On the plane, I sat next to an off-duty commercial pilot and there were German high school exchange students (1/2 of the plane at least) who screamed with every bump. It lightened the experience.

The one thing about Nashville that I didn't love was how smoky the bars were.
I am now sick at home with a cold that isn't quite debilitating, but rather yields magical, flourescent phlegm. I have been eating Asian food exclusively - which is a family tradition for us; something about the lack of dairy, the spice, the ginger, the hot tea perhaps? Call us crazy!

My roommate has been around and has been uber-friendly. I realize now the ultimate sign of a roommate liking you is when they speak to you through your door without knocking.

I am really into my new Nouvelle Vague/Bande a Part CD. I bought one for Petey for his bday.

Yo

Hey - random stuff:
1) My boss (who recruited me to leave CA) is leaving (for CA). Many things may change around work and in my life. More details to follow.
2) My office (that I love so dearly) is moving. Apparently my new one is even larger, so no harm, no foul.
3) I was nominated (thanks to Katie Miller) and interviewed for a documentary series called "onbeing" put out by the Washington Post. A lot of people are going to know me as of this Wednesday. They basically condense a 3-hour interview into a less than 4-minute documentary that I won't see until it goes live. The weird thing about my interview is it made me realize how nice it would be to have a therapist. I wasn't 100-percent my normal self, or how I thought I would be. I didn't tell any of my stock stories (about uvulas, Iceland, childhood garage sales), or discuss kombucha. I mostly mused a lot more about my life and drew some important connections about how my socialization truly shaped me to be who I am today - however trite that may sound.
4) I am going to Nashville, Tennessee this upcoming weekend to visit my buddy bear Petey and am mighty excited about it.
5) Today we had a fun Easter party, and ate handmade potstickers, drank fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice, and played win, lose, or draw. My friends here are first class.
6) Last night I saw a wonderful movie called "The Lives of Others". The ending disappointed me, and made me feel like a total capitalist.
7) I am so proud of Geraldo after watching a Youtube video where he creams Bill O'Reilly on the issues of free speech and immigration. Go watch it now.
8) I discovered the hippy haven of Mt. Pleasant this weekend. My friend Mike knows the city really well and is generally a good person to know and have in your/my life. He hosted a really fun sedar this weekend. I like singing the Hebrew songs.
9) Last weekend, Jessica, Doug, and niece and nephew were here. We ate lots of vegan food per their new diet and I sort of dug it. We did the kite festival, the Natural History Museum, the carousel on the mall, the monuments, the zoo, and lots of restaurants. It was good bonding. Doug my bro-in-law gave me a lot of his clothes, including Gucci pants that probably cost $500. I have a whole new wardrobe. Some of them don't technically fit me, but it's worth the squeeze. (Though not with shoes - my pinky toe is achey breaky!)
10) I hosted a crew regatta on Georgetown Harbour this weekend. It was cold and entailed lots of standing.
11) I saw a church production Godspell this weekend (this version was set on the D.C. Metro). And I enjoyed it. It was very interactive, and I was at the center of audience participation (one of the cast members, a friend, sold me out for this purpose) I am on a CD-ordering kick. At the aforesaid sedar I discovered Nouvelle band a parte, and ordered it (a French band that does an interesting array of cover songs). I also got Avenue Q pursuant to my last post.