Lansing Comes to Town

So what happens when one of the school districts we partner with calls up and wants to plan a teacher workshop in D.C. including visits to the National Portrait Gallery, Museum of American Art, the National Archives, the American History Museum, the American Indian Museum, the White House, the Capitol Building, and Mt. Vernon? We gladly oblige and create a hectic, action packed, three day itinerary of course.

I am almost positive that the laundry list I just rattled off would appear daunting to just about any tourist coming to D.C., unless they were armed with behind the scenes passes to all the museums and a private chauffeur or something. However, my supervisor Ann did an excellent job planning ahead, which resulted in what I thought was a very impressive program. The teachers did indeed get to race all over the city seeing the sights and snapping pictures galore, but the educational workshops held at each of the museums were also very well done. We coordinated with the Director of Education at each museum to ensure that the teachers would return home with extensive lesson plans as well as new and interactive ways to get their kids excited about American history.

I could honestly write a book about this past week, I feel like so much happened in just a few days! However, in order to prevent the blog website from going into information overload, I'll focus on a few highlights.

Observation #1 - Although they make their living teaching kids, teachers themselves are often a lot like small children. Trust me, you would feel the same way if you were responsible for moving a group of 25 people from point A to point B in Washington, D.C. with crosswalks, presidential motorcades (yes we did see the president!!!), and countless roadside refreshment booths standing in your way. Let me tell you, it is no easy task motivating a group of people rather unaccustomed to walking to trek from the American History Museum (14th street) all the way to the American Indian Museum (2nd street...) in 90 degree weather. But in the midst of all the walking we did I got to know some of the teachers really well and I think I will keep in touch with a few of them. After spending three days herding people on and off tour buses, directing them to the bathrooms and water fountains, and sitting through the workshop sessions with them, you can't help but do some quality bonding.

Shirley McCormick, an eighth grade art teacher, taught me how to sketch (yes ladies and gentlemen, I actually sort of know how to draw now!) and I am now far less artistically challenged thanks to her. I also had a great time practicing my Spanish with a woman named Dorcas Gonzalez who is a middle school teacher originally from Puerto Rico. Zeke was probably one of my favorite teachers on the tour. I think he had spent way too much time around his fifth grade students since he was always cracking somewhat immature jokes or snickering at the nude statues we passed when we were visiting the American Art Museum. (However, I probably shouldn't be talking since I am pretty sure I laughed at every single one of his jokes...)

The group at 7 am before our tour!

But it was so rewarding to actually see all of our hard work paying off. I really don't mind all the busy work that comes along with the internship, like making copies, confirming travel arrangements, collating the teachers' binders, etc, etc. In fact I actually really like that part! But I especially love my job when I actually see what all of our time and hard work produces and when I actually get to meet and interact with the teachers. It's cool to hear them talk about their students and watch them get excited to take these new activities and new approaches back to their classrooms. Plus, they're sometimes just downright funny running around D.C. with their fanny packs, a bottle of water in hand, and cameras dangling from their wrists, stopping every five seconds to snap a picture of anything and everything. (Besides, it makes me feel far less silly when I join in and do the same... just minus the fanny pack.)

Shannon, Aislan and me in front of the John Bull steam locomotive at the American History Museum

After our teacher program ended on Thursday night, I came home and flopped face down on my bed for two or three minutes while roommate Kelly looked on concernedly, trying to figure out whether I was just resting or in some sort of coma. It was a great week and definitely worth it, but it was also an incredibly exhausting week. After catching up on sleep that night, I had a chance to attend the Marion Wright lecture series on Friday, which is given each year to help interns learn more about the job application process here at the Smithsonian. It was extremely helpful and I also got a chance to make some more networking contacts as I look towards opportunities for next summer.

Then... drumroll please... this morning at 8:30 am I began my first shift volunteering at the Legg Mason Tennis Classic!!!!!!!!! I am going to meet Andy Roddick and Lleyton Hewitt and John Isner and stalk them until I get their autographs!! Well, most likely not really, I won't stoop that low... at least I don't think I will. But still, it is SO COOL to get to watch all of this great tennis for free! It makes me even more excited for/terrified of the moment when I pick my racket back up for the first time since February once I get home... that should be quite interesting. But for now I am perfectly content with my duties as an usher on the grandstand court for the next three days. Perhaps if I absorb enough amazing tennis now it will pay off and my first time back on the court will only be mildly terrible rather than horrific.

Well, I must bid this blog adieu since I absolutely cannot put off packing any longer. The original plan was to go get my car from Rachael's immediately after getting home from the tennis tournament. Well... first I napped, then I snacked, then I watched television, then I ended up meeting up with Rachael and Eric and his parents who are visiting for the week up in Georgetown where we then shopped for two hours before driving home... where we then decided to organize a spur of the moment trip to Wegmans (aka the greatest grocery store in the world). Think Whole Foods meets Costo and has a beautiful grocery store baby that surpasses both of their levels of spectacularity, and there you have Wegmans. So obviously we had to spend an hour and a half there. So now it is 9:34 and although I have tons of bags strewn around my now half empty apartment (Kelly moved out this afternoon...) :( I have nothing down in my car. But never fear, I performed an impressive show of aggressive downtown D.C. driving when I got home and procured a parking spot right smack dab in front of my dorm. Actually... I could probably just open up the sunroof and chuck things right down into the car it's so convenient. So in that case, let the moving begin!

Behind the Scenes

You know one of the things I love the most about D.C.? The ability to indulge the Top Chef, Food Network, famous chef obsessed side of my personality. For example, Season 6 of my all time favorite show, Top Chef, took place here in D.C. So now, everytime I watch a new episode I am bound to recognize the grocery store where the chefs bought their ingredients and the venue where each challenge occurs. Going to Whole Foods is a whole new experience when you know that Top Chef contestants might have stood in exactly the same place!!!! Okay, wow I better stop. Now I'm just sounding like a crazed pre-teen Hannah Montana fan.

But last night I had the chance to attend a Smithsonian lecture with Greek chef Michael Psilakis. He is a Greek immigrant who owns three famous restaurants in New York City and has been credited with redefining Greek cuisine in the United States. He also received one of the Best New Chefs Awards from Food and Wine Magazine. So basically, I was in heaven. Oh and did I mention that Washington Post food writer Jane Black was the one interviewing him? And I had a chance to meet her after the program?? Ahhhh!!!! Anyways, during the interview Michael talked a lot about his new cookbook How to Roast a Lamb and told lots of funny stories from his childhood as well as from experiences he has had in the restaurant industry.

Apart from that I have also had some other neat D.C. experiences this week. It has been an incredibly busy and incredibly HOT last couple of days. Since we have our teacher workshop coming from Lansing, Michigan next week, Ann, Aislan and I have been trekking all over the city doing our "walk throughs" to be sure we have all the details down pat for when our 25 teachers arrive. Since we have such a busy schedule to keep to, we are trying to ensure that everything goes as smoothly as possible! So on Monday we took a taxi up to the Capitol Building and met with our contact up there. We will be taking a tour and hopefully visiting both the House and Senate galleries while we are there next Thursday. Since it was just the three of us this time though, our guide Rob took us through the behind the scenes, off limits to the general public part of the building. So we wove our way through the basementof the Capitol and ended up walking right out onto the front and down the stairs... right past the policemen with the huge machine guns. Oh and you want to hear something I found rather humorous? Apparently the policemen are highly suspicious of visitors rooting through the trashcans and you can get in a whole lot of trouble for that. I had shared my coffeee mug story with Aislan and Shannon and we could barely keep a straight face when Rob shared that little bit of information with us as we were walking along.

Yesterday we made our way over to the White House Visitor's Center and guess who we saw along the way?? The president!! We were standing in front of the Visitor's Center and then his entire motorcade comes zipping out of the White House. The security guard outside the building knew which car he was in and pointed him out to us, so we could just make out his profile. We figured out later that he had been on the way to sign the new financial reform bill at the Ronald Reagan Building. Which explained the closed off sidewalks and blaring sirens we encountered on our walk over there.

This afternoon my supervisor and I are heading over to the Natural History Museum to meet with an expert from the mineral sciences department to discuss a program we are planning for October down in Louisiana. It's really cool how much responsibility we are getting as interns at this point, being able to actually help plan and design our teacher workshops.

Tomorrow night Rachael and I are looking forward to a night filled with homemade pizza, her mom's famous chocolate cake and a viewing of the five hour Pride and Prejudice movie. I can't wait!

The Lovett Family Sure Knows How to Cook!

I feel as if I have enrolled in cooking school for the summer. Cousin Rachael is one of the best cooks I have ever seen! (She laughs and shakes her head every time I say that but it really is true.) In the past I would always pass up the delicious, yet daunting, recipes in Bon Appétit and Gourmet, thinking they were far too complicated and involved. But now NO recipe is off limits. From beef bourguignon to homemade cinnamon buns, she can do it all thanks to a bookshelf jam packed with culinary knowledge. Also, she has compiled a family cookbook so that all the delicious Lovett favorites can be passed down to future generations. Aunt Lib's pound cake, Aunt Louisa's rolls (yup grandma, that's you!!), her mom's famous chocolate silk coffee cake - it's all in there. And I now have a copy so watch out family! I'm going to be cooking up a storm when I get home.

Yesterday was the big day. We had been eagerly awaiting Saturday all week long. Want to know why?? Ginger ice cream. Yup. Ever since I was served a bowl of crystallized ginger ice cream at Thai Noy at our family dinner on Monday night, Rachael and I had our sights (our crazy ginger obsessed sights that is) set on trying out our own rendition. And I am very glad to report that it was immensely successful. Here are some pictures since I had to document the end result... before we ate it all that is.

Sous chef Chloe

Our gelato!!! Fresh out of their brand new high tech ice cream maker, courtesy of Eric as a 6 year anniversary present. We were both very, very impressed by his gift giving skills.

Oh and did I mention that since making homemade, gourmet gelato just wasn't enough, we decided to bake a loaf of homemade oatmeal bread? Oh yeah, no big deal at all. Here's the end result of that baking endeavor (I like taking pictures a bit too much...) and on your left you'll find the most amazing piece of toast ever created. The reason it's half eaten was because I couldn't put it down after the first bite. It's lucky I even managed to stop eating long enough to snap a picture.

But Mom, Dad, and Julia, get ready because when I come home I am coming armed with a list of recipes that I will proceed to cook for you until you bust. That Pepperidge Farms cinnamon raisin swirl bread we all love so much?? Yeah, I'm going to make you a homemade version. And the cinnamon buns from a tube? Nope, we're having homemade. All thanks to Rachael.

On a non food related note... yesterday I had a chance to attend a Smithsonian Resident Associates music seminar titled "Eros in Music." It was led by Saul Lilienstein who is a Smithsonian music lecturer and a Washington National Opera CD commentator. This little old man knew everything I think there is to know about music, it was quite impressive. We started off with the 17th century language of courtship and listened to madrigals from composers such as John Dowland, William Byrd, and Claudio Monteverdi. Then we moved into my favorite part of the program which featured a piano performance including Schumann, Brahms, Schubert, and Strauss. The afternoon covered opera and 20th century ballet music. I am just constantly amazed by all the opportunities at the Smithsonian! This week I'm attending two more lectures... it may be summer but it's really cool to feel like I'm still learning and getting to indulge my nerdy side while I'm away from Davidson. I'm kind of falling in love with this place...

I also went out to "the farm" with Rachael and Eric today. Rachael's Aunt Sarah and her family live up in rural Maryland on this beautiful house situated on 26 acres of land. Their kids, Lilly and Austin, were really fun to hang out with and I received the grand tour-chickens, chinchillas, dogs, the goldfish, the inside fort, the outside tree fort, the pool table in the basement... I saw it all. This outing also included more delicious Lovett cooking in the form of fried chicken (YAY SOUTHERN FOOD!!!!!!!!), creamed corn, cabbage, cornbread, and Caprese salad made with tomatoes from a garden not 20 feet away from their front door. Somehow after eating all of that Lilly, Austin, and I managed to make it down to the creek where we ran around and explored while simultaneously trying to avoid all the patches of poison ivy and thorns. (I don't know how good of a job I did on that, my legs are feeling rather itchy and scratched. Oh well, it was completely worth it!)

We also visited Lewis Orchards right up the street and stocked up on ginger gold apples, blackberries, and peaches. Austin even convinced me to buy an entire watermelon which is now perching on top of my fridge. I may have to go test it out... It was a great day though and very fun to get to know even more of the Lovett family.

Family Time and Sightseeing Galore

So the remainder of the Lovett clan rolled into D.C. around dinnertime on Saturday night, just in time to catch our dinner reservation at Farmers and Fishers in the Georgetown Harbor. The "teenage unit" (as my parents have now started to refer to Julia) was definitely not her usual peppy self after a straight month of CIT duties, and the parents were pretty exhausted after a six hour drive. So our first night involved the three of them sprawled across the hotel beds completely conked out while I sat there enjoying three different sets of snoring.

All the sleep was completely necessary though. You see Dad had us on a strict biking schedule on Sunday - the bikes were to be delivered to our hotel at 8 am sharp and then we were off on our 30 mile bike ride on the Capital Crescent Trail, the Georgetown Branch Bike Path, and finally through Rock Creek Park. We started off a little later than planned (duh, that's a family tradition) and had an absolutely amazing day.

We rode all the way up along the Potomac into Bethesda, Maryland, where we stopped to refuel on samples at a local farmers market. For me refueling primarily involved seeing how many little tiny sample cups of coffee I could sneak from the coffee vendor's tent without getting glares from the owner... however, we also sampled the best mango gelato I've ever tasted, pickles that made your mouth pucker up (I went for the "full sour" version... poor decision), fresh fruits and vegetables, cheese, cookies, scones, etc, etc, etc. It was a miracle that we still fit into our bike shorts after all of that. Yet somehow we were able to make our way back to our bikes and continue on our merry way... at a somewhat slower pace.

For the rest of their visit Mom, Dad, and Julia would take off to sightsee and check out museums while I was at work. They managed to accomplish the Holocaust Museum, the Spy Museum, Fords Theatre, and parts of the National Art Gallery. Not too shabby for a mere day and a half in downtown D.C. We also got lots of chances to make fun of Dad for his habit of reading EVERY SINGLE plaque, sign, informational leaflet, etc. Basically anything that contained even the faintest inkling of historical value, he had to read every single word, no excuses. So of course the Lincoln Memorial was prime time joking around territory as Dad diligently

focused on the huge inscription of Lincoln's second inaugural address on the wall. For about

20 minutes straight. :)

They headed out early Tuesday afternoon on my orders since I did NOT want them

getting caught in rush hour traffic, as wonderful of an end to their trip as that could

have been. Since then I have just been busy at work and signing up to volunteer for/attend even

more things. My strategy is to accept basically every opportunity I come across and it

is certainly keeping me busy and making this summer a ton of fun. I have been trying to

take full advantage of that Smithsonian badge of mine while I can, I don't want to miss out

on anything! Next week I'm attending two lectures, (normally would cost $50 but I'm going for

FREEEEEE!!) one titled "My Life on a Plate" with Greek chef Michael Psilakis and the other

called "Secrets from the Past: From Ancient Texts to Modern Medicine" with an historian

from the Natural History Museum. I'm also volunteering at the Hirshhorn After Hours event

next Friday night. There will be live entertainment, access to all the art exhibits, and probably

some pretty swanky, yummy food, so I'm excited about that! I'm also volunteering to help

out with the annual Legg Mason Tennis Tournament the last weekend of July. The bracket

includes Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewit, John Isner, and Robby Ginepri. I AM SO EXCITED!!!

I'm hoping to get to be a ball girl, orientation/training is next Saturday so we'll see!

Other than that I've been scrambling to cross things off my big old D.C. to do list. I only have

a mere three weeks left, so I better get busy! I feel like I have done so much at this point but

I just know that I probably won't make it to everything I have my eye on. This place has really grown

on me... not going to lie I was not a fan of the big city when I first got here. All I could think about

was how much I missed the beach, flip flops and bathing suit coverups, and the beautiful sound

of people saying the word "ya'll"... while drinking sweet tea of course. But now, I really do like

it here. Maybe it has something to do with not feeling like a tourist anymore and actually

knowing what on earth I'm doing. Oh and not getting lost like every five minutes and having to

consult a map. That always helps. Here's some pictures from this morning's adventures, which

included a tour of the Capitol Building with some other Smithsonian interns, a trip to the

Botanical Gardens, and the National Art Gallery.

Oh, and a funny story for you which shows just how cheap I am and how attached I am to my possessions.

So I decided to walk to the Capitol from my dorm... for those less familiar with D.C. geography,

that's a good 2.2 miles, so you're looking at a good 50 minute walk. It was a great walk but I got

to the Visitor's Center right at 10:00 on the dot, so not much time to dilly dally since I was supposed

to be meeting my tour group RIGHT then. Well, I had heard about how the Capitol Building has this

rule about absolutely under no conditions, no matter what, never ever ever ever never never are you

allowed to enter the premises with a water bottle, coffee mug, etc. In short, no liquid receptacle

of any kind could get past those security guys with the freakishly shiny shoes. Well... come to find out

they are not referring to only water bottles that are actually filled with some sort of liquid.

Nope. Incorrect. Actually that rule also pertains to really cute blue and green polka dot coffee

travel mugs that you got as a graduation gift and that you use every single day since you're living

in a kitchen that is three feet wide max and lays claim to only two cups. So, sadly, my nice little mug

found its way into a trash can outside the Visitor's Center. I grieved for a moment, pulled myself

together and then went off to meet up with my tour. But!!! I had a plan. After all of this...

I actually went back and got my mug out of the trash can. Okay, before you get completely grossed

out, allow me to qualify my actions. Those trash cans outside are primarily filled with the sad

remains of other people's possessions which have also been confiscated by the security guards.

So we're not talking nasty trash cans here. We're talking trash cans probably full of tons of

cool things from tourists that travel here from all over the country and the world only to have their

very favorite mug or Nalgene chucked in the waste bin. So the trash can I placed my poor little

coffee mug in was nearly empty both when it was placed there and when it left, save for a few

empty plastic bottles. So my desperate actions were totally justifiable. Haha, no... now that I think

about it I realize the cold hard truth. I dug through the trash can to get my precious coffee mug

back. I really do have a coffee problem, I should just face up to it.

Alright, well I have to run since I am off to babysitting job number one of the weekend. Gotta make

some money!! I'll post again once I have more pictures.

And the award for the world's largest human sunburst goes to...

So, you may be familiar with the official Smithsonian logo, fondly known as the "sunburst" among Smithsonian employees as I have now learned. You can find this image basically everywhere in the 19 museums here in D.C., whether it's on flags, folders, gift shop bags, or the stickers on the really yummy chocolate chip cookies you buy at museum cafés. However, last Thursday July 1st, all 3,500 Smithsonian employees gathered on the mall to attempt an unprecedented feat. Yes ladies and gentlemen-we created the world's largest human sunburst!

This groundbreaking event happened on the same day as the annual Smithsonian Folk Life Festival picnic. So at 11:00 sharp, all the Smithsonian employees from around D.C. flocked to the mall where we were assigned to one of the various numbered sections and corralled there until the photographer was ready for us. You see, he had to mount his giant crane and be raised 50 feet up in the air so he could get a good view of all of us first. Very important step. Once this had been accomplished we were all directed into position... it was oddly reminiscent of an airplane being ushered into the gate by those guys with the orange cones on the tarmac. It took about 15-20 minutes to get everyone in place, but with the help of a few guys with giant megaphones shouting directions at all of us, the chalk outline that had been drawn in the grass, and the fact that is was only 85 degrees that day as opposed to the normal 100, we managed to create our sunburst!

I actually managed to find myself in the picture too! I was placed down here in the bottom right ray... looking through this picture trying to pick out my face was kind of a like a really intense page in a Where's Waldo book.

So after we stood there for a while, alternately waving and smiling, we were given the okay to disperse and go off to enjoy the picnic. And oh BOY did I enjoy it! You see, one of the main perks of the whole official Smithsonian Folk Life staff picnic was the $12 worth of food coupons they gave to each of us. I of course took it upon myself to pay a visit to one of the fruit stands where you could choose from options such as a 1/4 of a watermelon, an entire mango sliced up and ready to eat, a whole bag of grapes, or a container of cherries. I seriously considered spending all my money on fruit, but then decided to balance the grapes out with some basil chicken from the Asia food stand. The Folk Life Festival happens annually, and each year they choose three different geographic regions. This year's themes were Mexico, East Asia and the Pacific Islands, and then a section called Smithsonian Inside Out which dealt with all of the research that is currently taking place across all of the museums. So you could wander around in the Mexico section, eat a burrito or a chile relleno, and learn how to make authentic Mexican crafts. Then you could visit Asia and get a henna tattoo, learn how to put on a kimono, or learn the art of ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arrangement. It was really cool to get to actually see the festival after having walked through all of the preparations and set up for a few weeks on my way to work each day.

Last week was pretty slow at work since both of my supervisors were on vacation after our crazy busy period which included four simultaneous teacher workshops spread out among Louisiana, Michigan, and D.C. So it was nice to slow down a little bit and after we had finished all of our work, my fellow intern Aislan and I were able to go out and explore some of the exhibits at the Natural History Museum and see the dinosaurs IMax movie. I also got to spend a week with Patrick since he flew all the way over here to visit me for my 20th birthday and the Fourth of July :) We managed to pack a lot of stuff into six days... we went to the zoo, saw a Nationals baseball game (with post-game fireworks included), checked out Union Station, visited the Postal Museum and the Museum of American History, saw the Fourth of July parade on Constitution Avenue, watched the fireworks from cousin Rachael's friend's rooftop, played putt putt golf (he won just for the record... by a lot. Putt putt golf is not exactly my strong point!), went up to the top of the old post office tower and got a great view of the mall, and... I think that might be it. Whew!

This week it was back to being busy at work again now that both Wally and Ann (my supervisors) are back in the office. It's nice to be working hard again and we're already thinking ahead to several programs that will be taking place this fall. I've been spending lots of time with Rachael lately since her husband Eric has been working insane hours at his law firm due. I spend the night at her house on Thursday night as well as last night. Those visits out to her house in Arlington always include EXCELLENT food, tons of funny YouTube videos, and lots of time spent lounging on the floor petting their dog Chloe, so I'm a big fan. Yesterday after she got off work she called me and asked if I was up for an adventure. I, of course, agreed immediately with no questions asked. It looks like Rachael and I have now embarked on what we call a D.C. milkshake challenge/expedition (it's a toss up between those two words... I kind of like expedition since it makes it sound more intense). Anways, we have taken it upon ourselves to test out all of the highly acclaimed milkshakes in the area. She and Eric subscribe to the Washingtonian magazine and the most recent issue had a list of the most delectable shakes. Yesterday's target was the peppermint shake at the newly opened Ted Bulletin's restaurant over in Barracks Row near Eastern Market. So, given that Eric would be working until an undetermined hour, aka we didn't think we'd be eating dinner anytime soon, Rachael and I drove ourselves over to the Capitol Hill area in search of our milkshake fix. We eventually had to give up on trying to acquire a parking space, instead resorting to me darting out of the car and into the restaurant while Rachael circled the block and I ordered our treat. And it was well worth it, let me tell you. (For future reference, if you order one milkshake and ask them to put it into two to go cups for you, you basically get two full shakes for the price of one. Just in case you were wondering.)

Well, now that I have spent a massive paragraph talking about food... right now I'm back in the city just for the afternoon since my roommate Kelly and I are meeting up with a bunch of her friends from home to go see the aquarium. I've heard the D.C. aquarium is not really impressive or anything, but I still think it should be fun. Then my FAMILY GETS HERE TONIGHT!!!!! :) :) :) I was instructed to act as restaurant tour guide so I have already picked out all the places I've been wanting to go but... can't quite afford on my unpaid internship budget. Tonight we're trying Farmers and Fishers in the Georgetown Harbor, which is supposed to be a great restaurant with all their food coming from local farmers. Then tomorrow we are going on a biking adventure and riding 25 miles on the Capital Crescent trail which goes to Maryland and back. So it should be a busy next few days!