I just want to leave this room with a little bit of dignity

What new pieces of knowledge have I learned during my first week of interning on the hill in our proud Nation's Capital?


Nothing far from what I knew before, but I did gather this: Larry Flynt sends a complimentary edition of Hustler every month to every congressional office. To think that one of the pieces of mail I will have to sort through will be a pornrag. It would not be the most disturbing thing I have come across. Conflict of interest keeps me from saying much about what happens in the office, but I will say this: Dennis inspires and/or attracts people of political and emotional extremes, and I and the fellow interns are stationed at the front lines, dealing with them all.

Despite the initial impact of starting up work again, I am starting to like this town, mainly because I am finding people to enjoy it with. The heat is still obnoxious, and everyone from out of town is immediately disturbed by the obvious toleration of racial segregation here, but indeed, it is possible to have fun. You would have to institute fun making in a city where politics is the heartbeat, we all know how that can be less than heart-soaring from time to time. DC's answer to when the government lets you down is the bottle, with so many bars, nightclubs, and lounges to explore for a smaller city that I will not run out of new places to sip gin and tonics before I leave. But, despite the quantity of watering holes here, I have found little quality. Most of it is due to atmosphere and the poor behavior of the men I have encountered. Take the Science Club, for example. Finally, a club where the music doesn't suck, the decor is not offensive, and there isn't a ever-present pressure to dance with aggressive guys. I was on a lovely date when some dude interrupts to make me aware to the fact that I am a redhead. "When you can tell you have red hair in the dark, you know its really red," he said. I braced myself for what I knew was coming. "So, you must have a magic carpet, right?" ARGH! If I had not already finished my drink, I would have drenched him, but instead, I pushed him away and walked out. Way to go, loser DC guy, trying to ruin my evening at an otherwise cool club.

Needed side note: I told my roommates this story, and was met with the expected "ewws!" and "pervert DC guys!" But I was also asked, "was he cute?" When is asking about a stranger's pubic hair ever a winner, even if you are a fucking supermodel? Oh, straight girls.

Back to the unanticipated charm of this city...

Alexis and I were sitting on a bench in Dupont Circle, taking refuge in the shade and observing one of the million statues in DC, when two teenage boys walk by and one pulls out a bag of weed to admire "the buds." Even for an Ann Arbor resident, this seem brash, and well, stupid. They soon sit down next to us, start up a conversation with a man selling copies of the local homeless people newspaper, and combine their resources to roll and smoke a joint on a busy Saturday afternoon. I was quite pleased. In a town where there needs to be at least five alcohol dispensaries on every block for people to loosen up a bit, there are no cool sex toy stores (seriously, what the fuck?), and people wear pantyhose in 80 degree weather, it was comforting to know that one could enjoy a smoke in public without everyone flipping their shit.

In other news: C-SPAN is still mysteriously muted on the dorm channel system, so what do I do instead during those infrequent periods of down time? I become addicted to America's Next Top Model reruns. Damn you Tyra and all those pretty girls! One episode and I am a gonner! More than once have I sat down with a spread of cucumber, cottage cheese, marmite, and crackers and munch while appreciating all the work that goes into being a model. Ah, marmite. I tried to get my Australian yeast-spread hook-up from the embassy across the street. Alas, they failed to deliver. But I still managed to find a bottle to give me B vitamin nourishment, as I prepare for another week of Kucinich lovers and haters, and avoiding the worse men DC has to offer. Buck up, kiddo!