Did George Washington Swim in the Potomac?

Five weeks down in the capital city already. It’s weird to think I’ve been here for that long, and I only have six weeks left to go! In some ways I feel like I’ve completely got the hang of this city, and the places around here and how to do my job, and in other ways I’m still completely new to everything. Fortunately, no one I’ve met yet has minded me asking questions, about everything from every aspect of my job to why the Coldstone Creamery isn’t where the GPS told us it would be.

Weekends are still definitely the most exciting part of being here in WashDC. The week is pretty much the same, consisting of working, Frisbee, and the occasional trip to Friendship Heights to hit up the TJ Maxx or Dupont to hang out with Julie. Last week did have the added excitement of the USA World Cup game, which I kept track of via highlight reels on FIFA.com. It would’ve been better to see Donovan’s goal in person, but it worked out well. I recently found a live-streaming website (in Spanish) so I’m able to keep the game up beside my spreadsheets. Hillary and I also found out that the chocolate store beside our building is running “Dollar Deals” all summer, with different treats for one dollar every day. Monday is chocolate-covered pretzels, so you can guess what my new Monday treat is!

This weekend started much the same as last, with meeting Bailey at Jazz in the Gardens, but this week we added Ben and Shannon to our blanket! It’s such a nice stress reliever after a week of work, to just go sit in a garden with a bunch of pleasant people and listen to nice jazz music with great weather – at least the last two weeks have been great weather. My fingers are already crossed for next week. Later that night, we all headed to Shannon’s apartment to hang around for a few hours and enjoy the weather.

Saturday morning, Bailey and I were out of our dorm by 8am and on our way to meet friends of hers from ACU (her school in Texas) that are living or interning in the city this summer. We met up with Sylvia, Katie, and Colin for a day trip to Mount Vernon… or should I say, Phyllis Street. Our first few attempts at navigating via the iPhone GPS were slightly unsuccessful, unless the nation’s first president originally lived in a suburban Cape Cod circa 1974 with worn out soccer nets. We eventually made it to the REAL Mount Vernon, and headed in on our mission to act like the perfect tourists! Katie had packed her video camera, as well as Sylvia and I both toting our digital cameras, so there were plenty of touristy opportunities.

The last time I was at Mount Vernon, I was somewhere around the age of eleven, and a lot has changed since then. You wouldn’t think so, with it being a historical landmark and all, but there is now a beautiful new visitor’s center, education center, and museum of artifacts originally from the household that have been steadily recovered over the last few years. In addition, the house itself and the grounds are consistently being restored and updated, so the whole place is like walking back into 1760 or so. The guides were very knowledgeable, with one exception. We asked every docent we found (except the cranky one who resembled Terry Schuster from Glee) if George Washington was a swimmer. Most told us there was no way, but one or two of them said absolutely, George would’ve been a hunter, swimmer, fisherman, and an overall outdoorsman. The one part they all DID agree on, was that women would absolutely not have gone swimming, in the Potomac or otherwise, due to period ideas of modesty. We took a tour of the house itself, including a guide lady who fist-bumped Bailey for guessing “harpsichord,” even though I think Katie and I were fine with “pianoforte.” Way too many Jane Austen movies and books. We ate lunch at the Mount Vernon Inn, famous for its peanut and chestnut soup, which Colin confirmed tasted like a mug of melted peanut butter. The other diners were by far the best part of the meal; our contemporaries included a precious baby of debatable gender (due to the shoes), and a teenage girl very intent on her fried chicken. After lunch, we rounded out the trip by walking down to the Washingtons’ tomb, the 16-sided barn, and the wharf, where Colin almost succeeded in trampling a teenage girl, we accidentally discovered one of the world’s worst group photographers, and spotted a lady who must be a princess of some sort in disguise – or her mind – sauntering about the plantation. All in all, it was a very successful and enjoyable trip. Katie combined her film footage into a highlight video, which I will attempt to post here for your viewing pleasure.

Mount Vernon from Kathryn Barnard on Vimeo.

I was able to finally make it to mass this Sunday at the National Basilica at Catholic University. If you’ve never been there, I highly suggest going, even if you’re not a stitch religious. The building is absolutely incredible, and the beauty of all of the small chapels is overwhelming. The priest didn’t make a huge impression, but sitting in the Basilica with its artwork and architecture more than made up for the lack of relevance in the sermon. The crypt church on the lower level is by far my favorite, because of its simplicity and the historical aspect.

Only one more week until the 4th of July! It will be very strange not being in Zelienople for the 4th, because I’ve only missed two other years there, and the last time was 2006. I am excited to experience such a big holiday in the nation’s capital, though. The crowds I’m sure will be incredible, but I’m not here often for it, so why not? I think the things I’ve missed most about being away from home in the summer and in a dorm are cookouts and trips to our cottage by the lake. It sounds weird, I’m sure, but there’s nothing like sitting on a back porch on a summer evening with a freshly grilled hamburger in hand. I’m hoping for the 4th I’ll be able to find some way to pull off a mini-cookout, but we’ll see.