PART 2Sorry I’m so behind on updates!!! Okay, continuing the story …
So last Saturday (as in March 7 … I know, I’m behind!), we were invited to the concert and went straight to Pentagon City from Arlington to meet Chad, Eli and her friend. We got food at the food court and then explored the mall. The high light was by far the FAO Schwartz store … Jason had seen it on the directory and we were all super excited about seeing the gigantic toy store! But then it ended up just being a corner of Macy’s, haha. But we still surprisingly had an amazing time running around with the stuffed animals, guys included =)
We then went to the bus stop to wait and stood around for about 20 minutes before checking the schedule and realizing we had another 20 minutes before the bus came. So all, like, 12 of us ran over to the park across the street and played on the playground! Between the toy store and the playground we were just having an amazing time!! Then we finally caught the bus and took it to the Pentagon where we had to transfer … and we had to wait another half an hour for that bus! But it was okay because Christine taught us dance moves.
Finally we got to Alexandria, which is a really tiny town in Virginia and we walked around before finding the building that the concert was in. It looked like a little rural church from the outside, but inside it had the coffee shop/concert set up. We had missed the first band, but we got there just in time for Will Grey. He was an R&B singer (amazing voice!!) with a banjo, a cello and an acoustic guitar for his background. Hip hop and acoustic??? Yes please! It was sooooo good! I absolutely loved it!
When the concert was over we walked back to the bus stop and waited. Theme of the night, right? After a bit, though, Rachelle and I recalled that the we had seen a sign that said that the buses stopped running in that area at 10, and by that point it was 10:30 or 11. This was suburban Virginia after all, not DC. A group of people decided to take a cab to the nearest metro station, but Rachelle, Jason, Chad, Christine, Mark, Zack and I decided to tough it out.
So we walked out of the neighborhood and after a while found a gas station. Chad asked for directions and we found out that there was a metro station 2 miles down King Street. So we walked. It was actually kind of nice because we got to see the area. But it wasn’t like we hadn’t walked everywhere earlier that day. Or like I had gone on a run that morning. Needless to say, when we finally found the station I was more than happy to sit down! But we made it safe and sound! A really fun, random, amazing day!
Last Sunday (as in a week ago) we went to the 11:30 service at National Community Church at Union Station, and then that afternoon Yvette, Ren, Rachelle and I walked to the Capital and
took pictures! But it was amazing, amazing weather that day and that evening a huge group of us decided to walk to a bunch of the monuments. It was probably 10, but I went out in jeans, a tank top and my Rainbows and was totally fine – beautiful!! We went to the Washington Monument, the World War II Memorial, walked in the Reflecting Pool (it was drained, haha) and went to the Lincoln. And then remembered that the metro closed at midnight. So once again, we walked all the way back home. Chad told us later that it was a 7-mile walk, so we definitely got our walking in last weekend!
Monday we had class, a guest speaker in the afternoon and family dinner. But I don’t really remember the details of those anymore, haha. But that evening I went with Michaela, Kate and Jenny to Ebenezar’s, which was fun because I got to get to know those girls a bit better. We all took books to get some reading done, but we just ended up talking until the coffee shop closed. I really enjoyed our talks! Then I got back and Rachelle, Christine, Jeff and Jason were watching my Disney Robin Hood movie in the lounge! And of course I had to join them since it was my favorite Disney movie!
Tuesday at RNS I got to go to an event! A Methodist Church that was about a 20 minute walk from the offices was hosting an event of people rallying together to push for Obama to give more funding to public transit, especially in poorer areas with minorities and to provide more jobs for minorities. There were some pastors and representatives from religious organizations, but there were also just a lot of secular activist groups. The room was packed with at least 100 people from all over the country – the woman I sat next to was actually from Ventura. I sat through a few talks and then during the lunch break talked to some of the key speakers. It was so funny how importantly I was treated by all the people there. I’m really, really glad they didn’t know I was only 20, haha.
Then I went back and wrote the story. That part wasn’t as fun. When I got back to the apartment I had a headache, so I decided to skip Bible study and just take a run instead to clear my head and then take it easy before heading to bed early. So I did just that!
Wednesday I wrote a brief on how an Arkansas lawmaker is trying to bring back a proposal to allow concealed guns in churches, as a result of the shooting that occurred in a church near St. Louis in which a man shot and the killed the preacher during the message in front of the entire congregation. I also began researching for a story on how Obama’s proposal to reduce the tax deduction for charitable giving from 35 percent to 28 percent for couples who earn more than $250,000 annually would affect religious charities. That night we had progressive dinner: chips from the girls, tacos from the guys, and Jason and John made African donuts. Fun as always!
Thursday I wrote most of the article on the reduced tax deduction. It was probably the most interesting article I’ve written, and I really enjoyed it! If any of you happen to be interested in the topic, I would love to talk to you about it and what I learned. Then when I came back Alyssa and I went to Union Station and met up with Chad. We got dinner at Johnny Rockets and then went to the theater to get tickets for Fanboys, but it wasn’t playing anymore. So we went back to Chad’s house and watched Role Models and then threw in The Office and Flight of the Conchords – good stuff =)
Friday we had class in the morning and then guest speakers on the issues of being a woman in
the workplace. I think it’s such an interesting topic, and I was really glad that the two women brought in were so different and provided different insight. But some of it was kind of frustrating. But it was definitely a good dialogue to start at least. Then we went to Ebenezar’s for our typical Friday deal. Then we came back, and got ready for the Libertarian event. There was going to be a showing of the 20/20 with some speakers and such at Release, a venue at Dupont. It’s one of the first underage events I could get into, so naturally Rachelle and Alyssa and I decided we needed to, and we got all dressed up for it. It ended up being really crowded and fairly boring. We talked to some people for a little while, but left after about an hour and went to Larry’s Homemade Ice Cream for ice cream and cupcakes. Then we went to Chad’s and watched a movie.
Saturday (yesterday – I’m finally catching up!) I slept in, talked to Aliayh for a few hours, went for a run in the rain (loved it!), and then showered and got ready for girls’ night! We went all the way out to Alexandria, Virginia to go to this karaoke bar … but it ended up being a 21 and up place. So we went to Tex Mex instead, haha. I got the Hangover Burger: cheeseburger with chile, jalepenos, bacon, and a fried egg. I know. So not a Karin meal. But it was quite the experience! When we got back Christine and I decided that Extreme Days was a must – we both loooooooove that movie, haha! She’s the first person (other than my sister) who I met who likes it as much as me! So Christine and Rachelle and I watched it in the lounge with a few guys who just made fun of us for it … but it was wonderful!
Today a group of us went to Capital Hill Baptist and the intern lunch. And then Rachelle and Christine and I went to Safeway to do grocery shopping. We got a lot. And then it was raining and we barely missed the bus. And we had quite the ordeal with the shopping cart. And ended up getting a ride with a “courtesy driver” back. A little sketch. But we made it, haha. And Mandi’s parents are visiting and they were really sweet and made dinner for a bunch of us. Then a group of us just sat around and talked for a while. And tonight my apartment’s been having a massive makeover. We put up artistic pig pictures on our entry wall. And a height chart with all of us marked on it. And our names with descriptive words. And sheets with what we want to report about and what superpower we would want. And a quote sheet – Danielle and I made the first one!
So yeah. Sorry for the longest update EVER.
So last Saturday (as in March 7 … I know, I’m behind!), we were invited to the concert and went straight to Pentagon City from Arlington to meet Chad, Eli and her friend. We got food at the food court and then explored the mall. The high light was by far the FAO Schwartz store … Jason had seen it on the directory and we were all super excited about seeing the gigantic toy store! But then it ended up just being a corner of Macy’s, haha. But we still surprisingly had an amazing time running around with the stuffed animals, guys included =)
We then went to the bus stop to wait and stood around for about 20 minutes before checking the schedule and realizing we had another 20 minutes before the bus came. So all, like, 12 of us ran over to the park across the street and played on the playground! Between the toy store and the playground we were just having an amazing time!! Then we finally caught the bus and took it to the Pentagon where we had to transfer … and we had to wait another half an hour for that bus! But it was okay because Christine taught us dance moves.
Finally we got to Alexandria, which is a really tiny town in Virginia and we walked around before finding the building that the concert was in. It looked like a little rural church from the outside, but inside it had the coffee shop/concert set up. We had missed the first band, but we got there just in time for Will Grey. He was an R&B singer (amazing voice!!) with a banjo, a cello and an acoustic guitar for his background. Hip hop and acoustic??? Yes please! It was sooooo good! I absolutely loved it!
When the concert was over we walked back to the bus stop and waited. Theme of the night, right? After a bit, though, Rachelle and I recalled that the we had seen a sign that said that the buses stopped running in that area at 10, and by that point it was 10:30 or 11. This was suburban Virginia after all, not DC. A group of people decided to take a cab to the nearest metro station, but Rachelle, Jason, Chad, Christine, Mark, Zack and I decided to tough it out.
So we walked out of the neighborhood and after a while found a gas station. Chad asked for directions and we found out that there was a metro station 2 miles down King Street. So we walked. It was actually kind of nice because we got to see the area. But it wasn’t like we hadn’t walked everywhere earlier that day. Or like I had gone on a run that morning. Needless to say, when we finally found the station I was more than happy to sit down! But we made it safe and sound! A really fun, random, amazing day!
Last Sunday (as in a week ago) we went to the 11:30 service at National Community Church at Union Station, and then that afternoon Yvette, Ren, Rachelle and I walked to the Capital and
took pictures! But it was amazing, amazing weather that day and that evening a huge group of us decided to walk to a bunch of the monuments. It was probably 10, but I went out in jeans, a tank top and my Rainbows and was totally fine – beautiful!! We went to the Washington Monument, the World War II Memorial, walked in the Reflecting Pool (it was drained, haha) and went to the Lincoln. And then remembered that the metro closed at midnight. So once again, we walked all the way back home. Chad told us later that it was a 7-mile walk, so we definitely got our walking in last weekend!Monday we had class, a guest speaker in the afternoon and family dinner. But I don’t really remember the details of those anymore, haha. But that evening I went with Michaela, Kate and Jenny to Ebenezar’s, which was fun because I got to get to know those girls a bit better. We all took books to get some reading done, but we just ended up talking until the coffee shop closed. I really enjoyed our talks! Then I got back and Rachelle, Christine, Jeff and Jason were watching my Disney Robin Hood movie in the lounge! And of course I had to join them since it was my favorite Disney movie!
Tuesday at RNS I got to go to an event! A Methodist Church that was about a 20 minute walk from the offices was hosting an event of people rallying together to push for Obama to give more funding to public transit, especially in poorer areas with minorities and to provide more jobs for minorities. There were some pastors and representatives from religious organizations, but there were also just a lot of secular activist groups. The room was packed with at least 100 people from all over the country – the woman I sat next to was actually from Ventura. I sat through a few talks and then during the lunch break talked to some of the key speakers. It was so funny how importantly I was treated by all the people there. I’m really, really glad they didn’t know I was only 20, haha.
Then I went back and wrote the story. That part wasn’t as fun. When I got back to the apartment I had a headache, so I decided to skip Bible study and just take a run instead to clear my head and then take it easy before heading to bed early. So I did just that!
Wednesday I wrote a brief on how an Arkansas lawmaker is trying to bring back a proposal to allow concealed guns in churches, as a result of the shooting that occurred in a church near St. Louis in which a man shot and the killed the preacher during the message in front of the entire congregation. I also began researching for a story on how Obama’s proposal to reduce the tax deduction for charitable giving from 35 percent to 28 percent for couples who earn more than $250,000 annually would affect religious charities. That night we had progressive dinner: chips from the girls, tacos from the guys, and Jason and John made African donuts. Fun as always!
Thursday I wrote most of the article on the reduced tax deduction. It was probably the most interesting article I’ve written, and I really enjoyed it! If any of you happen to be interested in the topic, I would love to talk to you about it and what I learned. Then when I came back Alyssa and I went to Union Station and met up with Chad. We got dinner at Johnny Rockets and then went to the theater to get tickets for Fanboys, but it wasn’t playing anymore. So we went back to Chad’s house and watched Role Models and then threw in The Office and Flight of the Conchords – good stuff =)
Friday we had class in the morning and then guest speakers on the issues of being a woman in
the workplace. I think it’s such an interesting topic, and I was really glad that the two women brought in were so different and provided different insight. But some of it was kind of frustrating. But it was definitely a good dialogue to start at least. Then we went to Ebenezar’s for our typical Friday deal. Then we came back, and got ready for the Libertarian event. There was going to be a showing of the 20/20 with some speakers and such at Release, a venue at Dupont. It’s one of the first underage events I could get into, so naturally Rachelle and Alyssa and I decided we needed to, and we got all dressed up for it. It ended up being really crowded and fairly boring. We talked to some people for a little while, but left after about an hour and went to Larry’s Homemade Ice Cream for ice cream and cupcakes. Then we went to Chad’s and watched a movie.Saturday (yesterday – I’m finally catching up!) I slept in, talked to Aliayh for a few hours, went for a run in the rain (loved it!), and then showered and got ready for girls’ night! We went all the way out to Alexandria, Virginia to go to this karaoke bar … but it ended up being a 21 and up place. So we went to Tex Mex instead, haha. I got the Hangover Burger: cheeseburger with chile, jalepenos, bacon, and a fried egg. I know. So not a Karin meal. But it was quite the experience! When we got back Christine and I decided that Extreme Days was a must – we both loooooooove that movie, haha! She’s the first person (other than my sister) who I met who likes it as much as me! So Christine and Rachelle and I watched it in the lounge with a few guys who just made fun of us for it … but it was wonderful!
Today a group of us went to Capital Hill Baptist and the intern lunch. And then Rachelle and Christine and I went to Safeway to do grocery shopping. We got a lot. And then it was raining and we barely missed the bus. And we had quite the ordeal with the shopping cart. And ended up getting a ride with a “courtesy driver” back. A little sketch. But we made it, haha. And Mandi’s parents are visiting and they were really sweet and made dinner for a bunch of us. Then a group of us just sat around and talked for a while. And tonight my apartment’s been having a massive makeover. We put up artistic pig pictures on our entry wall. And a height chart with all of us marked on it. And our names with descriptive words. And sheets with what we want to report about and what superpower we would want. And a quote sheet – Danielle and I made the first one!
So yeah. Sorry for the longest update EVER.
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