Nineteen inches of snow fell on Alexandria this Saturday and helped us get in the holiday spirit. We took a walk in our neighborhood, B helped out a few passing motorists and we stocked up on provisions before hunkering down with hot buttered rum and watching it snow for 24 hours. The next morning the sun was out and everyone began the long process of digging out, which two days later, people are still working at and frequently getting stuck in the street outside our window.
Thanksgiving was wonderful this year sharing it with my parents joining us in our tiny apartment for the feast. We started the day with a Turkey Stroll along the Potomac and ended the day by scrubbing the kitchen and eating pie.
Breathe Deep DC, the 5k to cure lung cancer was on Sunday and it was a huge success. All the signs and t-shirts I designed turned out great. In all, the event raised $245,000 for a sadly underfunded area of cancer research. The cancer that kills the most Americans each year and yet gets some of the least funding. We exceeded the original fund raising goal of $150,000 by almost $100,000 (and LUNGevity had even originally recommended the goal be only $20,000)! Here's a video someone by the name of purplespottedcow086 posted on YouTube with photos from the day of the event. It was more than 70 degrees and a great day for a walk on the Washington Mall for an important cause.
Happy almost Halloween! This year I organized the 2nd Annual Great Pumpkin Contest for my department at work. Teams of 4-5 designers painted and decorated pumpkins. The entire company is voting for their favorite pumpkins and also bidding on them in an auction. The winning team gets to donate all the proceeds to a charity of their choice. Here is my team's entry. A two-sided edition from Where the Wild Things Are. Let the wild rumpus begin!
I've been designing all the collateral for an upcoming event in DC, the Breathe Deep 5k to raise money for lung cancer research and awareness. The pieces will be seen in the Washingtonian, The Washington Post, on posters and postcards around the city, and on the event t-shirts. I'm also designing all the the signage and banners for the event day.
We spent three great days last weekend hiking, driving, tasting cider, and scarfing ice cream in Northern Vermont for some peak season leaf peeping. We saw leaves, cows, and covered bridges and even saw a famous Vermonter—Jerry from Ben and Jerry's. Yes THE Jerry.
It's always a sign of a good place when I threaten to intentionally miss my flight and not return to DC—although these days it doesn't take much to make me threaten that. We were fortunate enough to get the last room at the Inn—the Green Mountain Inn. It was charming and everyone was so nice.
As much as I'm eager to move away from DC, you have to appreciate a city where you can walk out your back door, hike for hours and stop for lunch along the way. We left the apartment thinking we would go for a short walk. Venturing down into Rock Creek Park, we split off from the bike path and onto one of the hiking trails that parallels the creek. Then we took a right at a fork in the path and suddenly found ourselves at Dumbarton Oaks Park. We wandered down the wooded, overgrown trails, a wilderness in the middle of the city, and emerged on a side street by the Danish Ambassador's Residence and an unusually large private home—even for DC—with a Bentley parked out front, the kind of car with curtains in the back seat. We walked toward Mass Avenue and passed the Center for Hellenic Studies, the Brazilian Embassy, and one of my favorite buildings—the stunning Italian Embassy.
Rather than walk on busy Mass Ave, we were able to immediately hop back onto one of the trails lacing the city and walk back down into the park. This time emerging by the Dumbarton Oaks Estate. From there it was an easy walk to Glover Park where we swung through the Georgetown Flea Market and admired a stunning mid-century modern couch, retro fruit crate labels, and antique postcards from around the country. Then, growing parched we walked up the hill to the Surfside, a taco restaurant I've been dying to try. My friend described it "DCs interpretation of a California taco stand." Read: Nicer and more expensive than anything on the beach in So Cal. I ordered the Maui (fish tacos with corn salsa) and B ordered the Cabo San Lucas (steak tacos). Plus two margaritas on the rocks with salt. Bonus? Even though it started to rain, the full belly and refreshing drink made the hike back home enjoyable.
All in all, quite the adventure walk for what was meant to be short stroll. I guess DCs not all that bad. (Map courtesy of NPS.gov).
Sat by the pool for the first and last time this summer, devoured a cinnamon raisin bagel whilst being devoured by mosquitoes, and, looking down into Rock Creek Park from the Duke Ellington Bridge, saw two of the biggest deer I've ever seen (a three point and a four point!).
After Cannon Beach it was up to Olympia and out on the boat for two nights with my parents where we tried our hand at catching our dinner from the sea.
Nineteen inches of snow fell on Alexandria this Saturday and helped us get in the holiday spirit. We took a walk in our neighborhood, B helped out a few passing motorists and we stocked up on provisions before hunkering down with hot buttered rum and watching it snow for 24 hours. The next morning the sun was out and everyone began the long process of digging out, which two days later, people are still working at and frequently getting stuck in the street outside our window.
Thanksgiving was wonderful this year sharing it with my parents joining us in our tiny apartment for the feast. We started the day with a Turkey Stroll along the Potomac and ended the day by scrubbing the kitchen and eating pie.
We spent three great days last weekend hiking, driving, tasting cider, and scarfing ice cream in Northern Vermont for some peak season leaf peeping. We saw leaves, cows, and covered bridges and even saw a famous Vermonter—Jerry from Ben and Jerry's. Yes THE Jerry.
Sat by the pool for the first and last time this summer, devoured a cinnamon raisin bagel whilst being devoured by mosquitoes, and, looking down into Rock Creek Park from the Duke Ellington Bridge, saw two of the biggest deer I've ever seen (a three point and a four point!).
"The elevation of mundane scenes and banal objects as fine art."
After Cannon Beach it was up to Olympia and out on the boat for two nights with my parents where we tried our hand at catching our dinner from the sea.
