Cripes, I forgot to post — what day is it again?! A million years ago when I worked from home, I used to feel that disconnect from the standard workweek — wait, is it Tuesday or Wednesday? So I think it’s funny that right now, in a job that is in many ways focused on the calendar (meetings, events, etc.) I lose track. It’s a summer thing…. we’re all kind of drifting along, kids hanging out at home, DC’s kinda quiet. It’s grown and changed a lot in 50 years, and there are still moments, like on a sultry August day, that I get that small-town feeling I remember when I was little.
I love working in a city; it’s one of the most delightful aspects of my job. I live in the ‘burbs pretty close to the DC line, but I work at Metro Center. Downtown Washington is beautiful. If you look at it all the time, you sorta take it for granted. You stop really seeing it, much the same way (I assume) that you’d stop seeing the Golden Gate Bridge, or Lake Michigan, if you looked at them all the time. They’d become part of the background noise except in the odd moment where a lovely sunset, or a tourist’s reverie, caused you to notice all over again. In the city, I walk almost every day at lunch. DC is a great place to meander. I remind myself to look up, because some of the most interesting architectural details are way above street level. I challenge myself to find one cool/interesting thing on my walks. The church with the charming and quasi-secret pocket garden. The bus-stop tourist-trap souvenir joint around the corner that serves breakfast and burgers and –surprise!– really good pho.
I can see September coming ’round the bend like a freight train… the twins start high school, we gear up for conference season, things get crazy busy, every nose to the grindstone. So I’m all for meandering along right now, drinking the sweet nectar of the unexpected, wherever I may find it.
Enjoy these last minutes before the rush! That’s what I’m trying to do so that I have a memory of a moment of calm to look back on when I feel overwhelmed.
DC is a wonderful city to explore. I’ve vacationed there once and been 3 or 4 times for conferences, and still don’t feel as if I’ve scratched the surface. You’re lucky to live and work there!
March,
I remember a time when I worked in downtown DC and commuted by Metro, so I walked a lot. I completely agree about the value of walking and looking at the city. The small pleasures of each season, the smells and sights of learning a certain neighborhood. Mine, back then, was McPherson Square on the orange and blue line. I worked for a non-profit on Vermont Avenue. Nowadays, I’m out in the suburbs, and have a completely different neighborhood experience. Thanks for the reminder. Best wishes to the twins as they start HS. My DD is at the other end of that journey, getting ready to start her senior year. 🙂 Time flies so carpe diem, right?
Hi there! Nice to hear your ‘voice’ on an August morning! I’m in the Adirondacks wearing Knowing and other odds and ends. I work in the city – downtown Geneva and I also love walking around at lunch time window shopping, people watching… Hope all is well with you! x Sarah
Hi, darling! Wow!! The twins are starting high school? That’s hard to believe (for you, too, I imagine). Seems like just yesterday they were in elementary school. My son is a junior this year (yikes!) and I’m already feeling a bit under the gun with so much to be done this year. But I hear you on stopping to smell the roses — sometimes we’re just so caught up in the hustle and bustle (back to school, particularly) that we miss the beauty all around us. I need to do more stopping, seeing and appreciating. Btw, hope you and Anita had a good time on your trip.
LOL! I jumped onto the site in a blind panic because I couldn’t remember if it was my Tuesday or yours! It’s …well, it’s just that time of year. I want to come downtown with you sometime and walk along the canal!
xooxo