Tamara

This is my friend Tamara Okhinchenko who came to visit for a few days.  She was my real estate client in Utah where I became fast friends with she and her husband Leland.  Tamara loves to travel and has been all over the world and when I found out she was heading to New York to go see the Metropolitan Opera, I invited her to stop in DC for a few days.  She has been in the US for 11 years and became an American citizen a few years ago but had never been to Washington and was excited to see it.

She got in late Saturday afternoon so after she settled in and Tom got home from Coast Guard work we did the DC drive at night to see the monuments lit up.  Came home to hot chicken soup and relaxed conversation.  We share a love of the arts and she is a walking encyclopedia of literature, ballet, art, and theatre so there is always something to talk about!  She has a very thick accent so it takes a lot of concentration to understand what she is saying.  I played a Russian real estate agent in a play once and used her as my subject and model.

Lots of preparations going on for the inauguration

Tom had to work Sunday morning so Tamara and I started at The White House and did the city/monument  walk for several hours.

Michelle Obama's garden in The White House yard

Tamara also loves animals and speaks to them in Russian.  She was especially taken by the giant squirrels that run around everywhere!

The Nation's Menorah

 As you can see it was very overcast and a bit misty but still the temperature was very pleasant for walking around.

The Korean War Memorial

 We had to be back by 1:00 because we matinee tickets to see My Fair Lady at The Arena Stage with  Jeff and Marilyn Smith.  I found the show rather disappointing but afterwards we headed to Georgetown for dinner at a place called The Tombs.  It's down 2 flights of stairs on a street a block away from the university.  The food was great! I ordered a turkey pot pie and the thing was huge!  Tom helped me eat  half after he finished his dinner.  Really delicious!

Monday we went to The Library of Congress.  I had never been there and it IS GORGEOUS!  Oh my gosh, I'm going back there as soon as I can.  Getting a library card and going to just go sit in that stunning reading room.  I didn't have my camera with me because I sent it with Tom for his day's adventure, but will definitely get photos next time.  Also, going to look into jobs there.  I could be a janitor and still be in heaven just to be surrounded with such beauty.  Very Italian Renaissance in design.  Sigh.  Heavenly.

The Supreme Court is being worked on so we skipped it and headed to the Senate bldg. because we had an appointment for a tour through Orrin Hatch's office scheduled.  We were the only two on the tour so we had nice intern Nick all to ourselves.  The poor kid had to be on his toes as we had plenty of questions.  The Capitol Visitor's Center is new since I've been so we started there before going into the capitol.  We got to sit in the gallery both in the Senate and House but nothing was going on.  It just so happened that Hatch was giving a speech in the Senate but it was a little odd to see him basically speaking to no one. There were a few pages sitting on the steps, a stenographer standing next to Hatch, Hatch's assistants putting up visual aids and then someone sitting in the Majority leader's chair working on his own stuff.  It was funny because Hatch's delivery was very much as if the entire room was full but Nick told us C-Span has to keep the camera on a tight shot, so we at home don't see that the room is actually empty.  After his speech he gives a copy of it to someone who puts in on the official record.  Nick said that senators come and give speeches so their constituents see that they're working, when in reality most of the work is done in private offices and committees.  The last time I was in the senate gallery I was with Taylor several years ago.  We happened to be there during an important vote so sat and watched as each senator came in and recorded their vote.  Now, they don't all come in and sit down to vote, they have a certain amount of time to come in so they were going in and out as we watched.  It was fascinating though to see Ted Kennedy, Hilary Clinton, Bob Bennet, Senator Byrd (who could barely stand on his own) and all the other high profile senators running in to place their vote.

I think we're so used to seeing movies where each member stands and to a full house delivers an eloquent and persuading speech, then an immediate vote takes place with everyone in their seats.  It's just not at all that way, but I still find the process fascinating.  Tamara too was just flabbergasted by the whole thing.

 It's so interesting to listen to her talk about her years in Russia where she was a patent attorney so had a background in both law and science.  Her father was a doctor and her mother an engineer.  Her stories of the Kremlin, KGB, and Perestroika are just fascinating.  She knows so much about history and finance and politics....it's just very interesting to be with her.  Tom has listened to me talk about her for so long I was glad they finally got to meet.

We wrapped up our very busy day with salads at Thunder Grill in Union Station, did a little shopping then purchased her train ticket for her ride to NYC on Tuesday.

 She brought us this beautiful piece of art painted by her Russian friend who no longer can paint because of illness.  This is number one in a series.  What a treasure!

Date Night in the City

Tom and I have both had colds of some sort with coughs and me with a croupy voice.  Tom worked at Fort Meade all last week assisting the media covering the WikiLeaks Trial.  He stayed in a hotel there so he wasn't traveling back and forth every night with their crazy hours.

We've pretty much just crashed after dinner since he's been home but last night we both had a burst of energy so decided to go walking.  Bundled up (the weather was nice so light jackets worked) and started out with no real destination in mind.  We headed to the capitol where they're building the stands for the inauguration and have put up a gorgeous tree.  

 Continued walking down the mall and just stopped to check out the skating rink, the garden art and a few monuments along the way.

 I've been to the Lincoln Memorial several times but never have been in the museum underneath it.  Didn't even know it was there! The door was open with a light on so we wandered in.  We also went in the book store which is just off the Lincoln statue.  It's really quite wonderful being there at night.  No crowds, quiet and cool.

 Took us a few hours but very pleasant.  Settled in back at home with soup and a sandwich and watched Moneyball on TV.  Cheap Friday night date!

Christmas Goodies

My friend Dalliss had an extra ticket to the International Justice Mission benefit so invited me along.  First of all, it was the first time I wore my boots with heels so by the time I did my Metro switches and walked the several blocks to the JW Marriott hotel I was about ready to scream.  I have a new testimony of flat shoes!  I wasn't familiar with the IJM but they're a human rights organization who fight human trafficking around the world.  Inspirational speakers and Isaac Slade (he's a big supporter of IJM) entertaining on top of a delicious meal and great company ( a table of people from Vienna Presbyterian Church) made for an enjoyable evening.


Christmas means cooking and even though at this point I'm not doing any entertaining and only going to one party I still feel compelled to put on the holiday music and make my stand by goodies.  I brought my two aprons from 1991 that Jessica and Nicholas made for me.  I don't remember if it was school or church but they have their hand prints and handwritten notes on them.  I just love these!

There's not room on our little tree for the ornaments so I used them this way!

I found some cute little containers at Dollar Tree so maybe I'll just start giving goodies away!

Our friends Kirt and Jerry just adopted a baby in North Carolina.  Oscar was born Nov. 20th and I finally got to meet him via Skype.  He's absolutely darling.  It was very difficult for the birth mother and father to give him up but they're not together and both know they're not in a position to raise a child. My friends are a gay couple from Utah who had to go to NYC to get married then have been in North Carolina since the beginning of Nov. waiting for the birth of the baby.  They have been supporting this young couple emotionally and financially through this pregnancy and will continue to do so through Jan.  They still have to wait until Dec. 31st because there is only one judge in NC who is an advocate for gay couples adopting.  I know this is a delicate subject but these guys have wanted a child and have been together as a couple for many years.  They'll love this baby like no one else and I'm very happy for them.

My DC Day with Dalliss

 My friend Dalliss was celebrating her birthday this week so we met at the Chinatown Metro with no other plans than lunching somewhere.

Thought the Chinese street sign with the Nissan ad behind in the middle of DC was kinda cute! 

 We started wandering and happened upon an open chapel.  Would have snapped some more photos but there was a woman enjoying the quiet so we stayed in the back.

 Next we headed toward the National Portrait Gallery because we both love it there and spent some time roaming around.

Get It?

I don't think I've seen this portrait of Brigham Young before.

We had both recently seen LINCOLN so it was interesting to see this mask of his face

 We had seen a sign in front of another church advertising a free concert at noon so we headed in to small upstairs chapel to listen.  A flautist, pianist, guitar player and a soprano.  They were just okay and fortunately only performed three numbers (opera) so it was a pleasant enough stop but as soon as they finished we wandered a bit more then decided on a place for lunch.  We lingered and chatted a little longer than our charming waiter would have liked.  Had already paid the bill and the area was cleared out so not sure what his issue was.  Alas, we had a grand time!

Had yummy lunch at Clyde's

 I'm joining Dalliss for a benefit dinner Tuesday night so we decided to try and find it so we wouldn't be wandering aimlessly in the dark that night.  On our way found the outdoor Holiday Mart with all kinds of fun stuff.  May have to make another trip back there.

We found the hotel where we'll meet Tuesday but across the street is the historic Willard Hotel.  She had been there before and said it was gorgeous so we had to make a pit stop!

 Turns out that President Grant wasn't a big fan of the White House and he liked to get out and have a cigar in the evening.  He would go to the lobby of the Willard almost every night for a cigar and a drink.  People would wait in the lobby until he got there then talk to him informally about what it was they needed.  They became known as lobbyists!

A little something the pastry chefs whipped up!

 Was a great day.  My favorite way to spend a few hours.  Completely impromptu and a terrific way to explore a neighborhood.