Loose Leaf Notes

The first thing I shot when we got to the city was a row of window washers cleaning a building that was part of the D.C. skyline.

At the White House, I was stunned to see that peace activist Concepcion Picciotto is still protesting nuclear arms across from the White House.  I met her in the late ‘80s when I was there with kids from Blue Mountain School.

She wears a wig over a helmet.  I asked her about that the first time I met her and she told me she wears it for protection.  I call her the Mother Teresa of peace activism.  HERE is a Washington Post feature about Concepcion and her 24-hour-a-day vigil.  I wrote about her too for our local newsletter, A Museletter around 1988.  Maybe that will turn up one day.

I’ve ridden on a double-decker bus in England but never an accordion one like this.

We did ride a bus (a regular one) into Adams Morgan to meet our friend La, who took this selfie. It was Joe’s birthday and La treated us to lunch for Joe at the Potter’s House, a non-profit café, bookstore and community space that encourages patrons to ‘pay it forward’ and provides a bowl of soup and cup of coffee to anyone, regardless of their ability to pay.

We rode the subway too, but I couldn’t have done it on my own.  I miss the simple token system that I remember as a young woman in Boston. But I do like the experience of going subterranean and the photo ops were good.

We made good use of our time in the city, taking in some Christmas lights, seeing a production of A Christmas Carol, enjoying some gingerbread and eggnog at the Tudor House, the home of Martha Washington’s granddaughter.

Our visit to the newly re-opened Renwick Gallery’s nine artist installation exhibit on Wonder (see HERE) was at the top of our list of things to do.

But the biggest reason for our trip to D.C. was the engagement party for our friends Greg and Laura at their home of Old World charm and elegance. Every time we visit, it feels like we’re vacationing in an Italian villa.

It was a celebration and a holiday party like no other, and through a Newlywed game show – in which guests posed questions to Greg and Laura – we learned that Greg played D&D in high school and that the Child’s Pose is Laura’s favorite yoga pose.

Note the double-decker (gluten free) rum cake that we watched Greg’s daughter (a professional baker, among other things) make. There were also cheeses brought from Italy, a full course of Indian food and an open bar.  With an engagement party this much fun, one can only imagine what the wedding will be like. It’s a spring wedding and Joe will be officiating.

________Our World Tuesday