30 By 30: Monument Walk

After 11 years in D.C., it was really, truly hard to say goodbye.  I know I will still continue to see my amazing friends, and I hope they will all come to visit here for weekends (one already has!), but it will never be the same as meeting up after work for happy hour or kickball or trivia nights.  While we certainly added to the group over the years, my core group of D.C. friends were all from undergrad, so for my going away festivities, I decided to go back to our undergrad roots with a drunken midnight monument walk. 

Midnight monument walks are certainly up there on the list of things I will miss the most about D.C. 

Sober, there is an unbelievable sense of peace and awe walking around the empty monuments lit up at night.  I remember freshman year, wandering down to the Lincoln Memorial shortly following September 11th with a new group of friends and lying down on the floor, reading the Emancipation Proclamation, etched in giant marble letters, out loud to each other.  My senior year, struggling with the decision of where to go to grad school, my best friend suggested an after-dark monument walk to just chat about pros and cons while we strolled through the city. 

Drunken, that sense of peace and awe is still present… with a little bit of laughing and inappropriateness on the side.  As undergrads, it was an inexpensive source of entertainment (and perfect for underage participants) – pack up a portable beverage of choice (traditionally a 20 oz bottle of diet coke, half he diet coke poured out and filled with rum) and set off for an evening of mischief.  Sometimes, it would be a big group and we’d sit along the tidal basin and laugh for hours; other times, only two or three of us, and we’d talk about big life experiences and our goals for the future.  Either way, I’d always return home in the wee hours of the morning wondering what I did to deserve such amazing friends.

I didn’t take too many pictures at my farewell monument walk, mostly because my dSLR has a sensor broken beyond repair leaving me with just a point and shoot, and after buying a house, there is no money in the “camera replacement” fund… but thankfully, memories last a lifetime, and I can’t think of a better way to say goodbye to some of the very best friends I will ever have.

Bad Decisions (with a view)

I am at that awkward age in life where I am too old to stay up drinking Friday night and not pay the consequences when I have to be in lab early Saturday morning, but still too young and immature to turn down the invitation to spend the night playing flip cup on a friend’s roof.

Rehearse after me:

“Thank you for the invitation, but I have to be in lab by 7am Saturday, so I must decline.”
“Thank you for the invitation, but I have to be in lab by 7am Saturday, so I must decline.”
“Thank you for the invitation, but I have to be in lab by 7am Saturday, so I must decline.”
“Thank you for the invitation, but I have to be in lab by 7am Saturday, so I must decline.”

But really, who could pass up good beer, great friends, and a perfectly chilly fall night with this lovely view of the city I am fortunate to call home?

New England

Last weekend, Husband and I attended the wedding of two of his medical school classmates in Kennebunkport.  Since we were driving all the way to Maine, we decided to stop in Newport, RI for a day on the way up.  The trip was so lovely and relaxing, and it is getting harder and harder to come back to D.C. and the lab each week (especially when it was over 100F back in D.C., and a beautiful, breezy 74F in Maine).  I have lost so much motivation, I almost don’t even care if I ever finish or not…

Touro Synagogue – oldest American synagogue

The Breakers – Vanderbilt’s summer “cottage”

View from our hotel in Kennebunkport

beautiful day for a wedding!

Carrot Cake with Lemon-Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

Somewhere over the past six years, I became the official “birthday baker” of the lab. With 20+ coworkers, it means there’s always an excuse to bake a cake! Peanut butter and chocolate are definitely the favored flavors in the lab, but once in a while, someone picks something new and different and it’s the perfect opportunity to create a new recipe. I was quite pleased when someone requested a carrot cake, as I have (shockingly) never made one before. I looked through a few different recipes and then just decided to make one on a whim as I went. The benefit to creating your own recipe is tailoring it to your exact tastes: in this case, lots and lots of cinnamon, very heavy on the carrots, light on the nuts, and absolutely no pineapple whatsoever. Baking for my coworkers also means I have a built in recipe-testing panel, and it seems like they all approved of this original creation!

    

Carrot Cake
(a Sugar Scientist original recipe)
Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 box (4 ounces) instant vanilla pudding mix
• 4 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons cinnamon
• 1 1/4 cup milk
• 3 cups packed shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line the bottoms of two 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, pudding mix, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk together to blend.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Mix in the eggs one at a time and blend in the vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, add half the dry ingredients, all the milk, and the rest of the dry ingredients. Beat each addition until just incorporated. Mix in carrots and pecans by hand.
4. Divide the batter between the two pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Transfer the pans to a wire rack and cool for 20 minutes. Invert cakes onto the rack, peel off the parchment, and cool completely before frosting.

Lemon-Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 10 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 2 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Beat together butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add in lemon juice and cinnamon.
2. Slowly incorporate powdered sugar. If frosting is too stiff, add in one tablespoon of milk.

4th of July

Even before I moved to DC, July 4th was probably my favorite holiday. I'm not super patriotic or gung-ho American, but I am thankful to live in a country where I have so much freedom (mostly, I love summer gatherings with friends and fireworks). This is my 10th year living in DC, and yet I've only been in DC on the 4th for three of those years -- mostly thanks to weddings dragging me across the country. I am sad to report that once again I am missing out on the fun, since I am still recovering from surgery and taking a temporary hiatus from my life in DC.

I am super bummed to miss out on the tradition of gathering for food with friends beforehand and walking down to the mall 15 minutes before the fireworks start. You sure can't beat living in DC for that kind of convenience -- tourists sit out all day to claim a spot, and we sneak in right as the first firework goes off. And then, while everyone elbows their way back to the metro, we just walk right down the street, back to a friend's apartment, and pass around the tequila.

In the meantime, these pictures from last year will have to suffice since I can't make it in person this year. My secret superhero alter-ego is The Human Tripod -- I love taking fireworks and night photography, because I can hold still enough to not need a tripod. I've read so many articles stating how a tripod is necessary when photographing fireworks, but I'm pretty content with my hand-held pictures. So, what's your superhero alter-ego?

Spring in DC

Things have been a little down around here lately, between discussing my unhappiness with where my life is right now, my grandfather's heart attack, my mother-in-law's chemo, and the death of my cat. So, it's time to brighten up the blog with a few pretty pictures.

Spring seems to be everyone's favorite season in D.C., though I can't say that I agree (I'm partial to fall around these parts -- beautiful weather, minimal rain, and far less humid), but that doesn't mean that I can't still enjoy the cherry blossoms in bloom. I thought for sure I would be doing a post-doc in Philly by now (ha, ha) so last year, my parents came down to visit for "one last" day of enjoying the cherry blossoms before I moved away.

Of course, I'm still here. Which means I have had three more "one last" trips down to check out the cherry blossoms in springtime.

Mark my words, if I'm STILL HERE, STILL A GRADUATE STUDENT come next year, my annual cherry blossom visit will end in drowning myself in the tidal basin.

My first visit was with some of Husband's fellow radiology coworkers, about a week before the cherry blossom prime. We walked and walked and walked and did a great tour of the "highlights" of D.C. I don't think I've ever popped by the tidal basin so early in the year; all the blossoms were still pink!

Then, I went back again on a beautiful Sunday evening with Jenny when the blossoms were just about at their perfect peak. The temperature was ideal, the sun setting was lovely, there was hardly a crowd since all the tourists from the weekend had returned home -- one of those very rare moments when I understand why everyone here loves spring so much.

A few days after that, my parents made a spontaneous trip down to D.C. for another "one last" visit. Most of my lab was off at a conference so I snuck out for an afternoon at the National Gallery and a walk around the tidal basin. There was a torrential downpour the night before, so most of the blossoms were scattered across the ground. It was also kind of an ugly day; cold, cloudy, and windy, with some rough water as far as the normally motionless tidal basin goes!

I absolutely love D.C. and the opportunities I have in my backyard... but.... I sure hope I'm not around to see the cherry blossoms bloom again next year!

The Snowpocalypse

We disrupt our regularly scheduled blogging (hahaha… I wish I had the dedication to blog regularly) due to digging out from under three feet of snow.

People, there’s a lot of snow out there.  And, aside from the minor detail that the melting snow freezes and turns to ice and I am certainly going to slip, fall, and break something next week walking to lab, I am LOVING it.  Of course, I say this as someone with no sidewalk to shovel and no car to dig out.

 

My all-time favorite childhood book was Joe and the Snow, and these past few days have really been like the book coming to life (hopefully, however, as the snow melts my condo building won’t float away…).

 

After a bout of food poisoning last week and three days out of the lab, a week off seemed to rejuvinate me and helped to get over my frustrations in the lab.  I also learned, however, that I can spend a full week trapped inside… and never once be bored.  I knitted.  I caught up on TV.  I read four books.  I organized and cleaned like crazy.   If this whole science thing doesn’t work out, I’m pretty sure I could cut it as a housewife without feeling cooped up.  What can I say – all those years of learning to entertain myself as an only child are paying off.

The last time D.C. had a worthwhile snowstorm, I was a sophomore in college.  My roommate and I woke up early, walked down to the Ellipse and made snow angels in the pristine snow.  This time around, I didn’t have anyone to “play” with, but was thrilled to have several days to explore various areas of D.C. within walking distance, all of which were even more delightful than normal buried under three feet of snow. 

More pictures of the snowiest winter in D.C. history can be found here.

2009: A (Personal) Year in Review

Yeah, yeah.  I know.  Everyone is already over the whole new year thing, and the train has already left the station.  But, suffice to say,  the end of 2009 and start of 2010 has been a bit… less that desirable, and I am running a bit behind here.  December was plagued with no electricity, followed by a plumbing valve issue in which,  no joke, my toilet started spewing soapy water like a geyser (that was a fun one to clean up), and of course, leaving me without water for 2 days while the condo plumbing was searched for problems.  Then, my laptop bit the dust (it had been having problems, so fortunately everything except my Lightroom custom presets were backed up)… and this week, my desktop decided to stop connecting to the internet.  And today was the icing on the cake – received a call from the condo manager that water was leaking from my unit into the basement.  He searched our bathroom and couldn’t find any problems from this end, but tomorrow they are turning off all the water to the building and tearing out drywall to see if they can locate a problem.  Awesome.

So, that said, things are running a little behind.  Here is my belated personal year in review – later this week, I’ll do a lab (lack of) progress year in review!

January 2009:

Every year, the best part about January was attending the Pennsylvania State Farm Show – a giant indoor affair in which farmers from across the state bring their prize livestock, tractors, and produce for competition.  The Farm Show Arena is mere miles from my house, so despite the traditional “Farm Show Blizzard” we would always make the trek to visit the animals and eat the amazing food (personal favorites include fried mushrooms, mushroom soup, vanilla milkshake, and potato doughnuts).  This year, we took Husband for his first farm show!

 

We also braved the crowds and the cold and went to the Inauguration.  When you live in walking distance, how can you not go?

February 2009:

The beginning of February brought the Superbowl… and with it, a sixth Lombardi trophy for the Steelers.  So maybe we didn’t even make the playoffs this year… but at least we are still Sixburgh!  To celebrate the occasion, I threw a big Superbowl party…. complete with the amazing edible stadium.

March 2009:

In March, Husband and I, along with another friend, took a tour of the Naval Observatory.  It had been on my to-do list for quite a while, but tours are only offered a few Monday’s a year, so it’s something that needs to be scheduled far in advance.  We were all far more impressed than we thought we would be, and it was a crystal clear night, so they even broke out the gigantic telescope so we could check out Jupiter.  If you are in the DC area, I highly recommend checking out the Naval Observatory!

   

April 2009:

By the time April rolled around, Preppy Chemist had moved up to D.C. and was settling in, so I offered to take her on a cherry blossom monument tour.   Preppy Chemist moving up to D.C. was definitely one of the highlights of 2009 – someone who started as a casual blogging acquaintance has rapidly turned into one of my closest friends in DC!

May 2009:

In May, Husband and I attended two weddings in one day, on the weekend of our own anniversary.  It was quite a whirlwind, but we were thrilled to be able to attend both weddings!

First up, Husband’s friend from medical school was married in a nearby church and had a reception on a rooftop with a beautiful view of the Capitol!

 

Then in the evening, we attended the reception of our college roommates.  I lived with the bride and Husband lived with the groom the year they started dating, so I feel like I’ve been through their whole relationship, too!

And, of course, we celebrated our first anniversary!  Even though it fell on Memorial Day, we both had to work, but we were able to take some time out to go to a dinner at Bourbon Steak and have a few bites of our wedding cake afterward.

June 2009:

The end of May meant VACATION!  We spent 10 days through May and June traveling to Husband’s uncle’s house in Myrtle Beach, where we relaxed on the beach, took a day trip to Charleston, and visited my best friend on the way down and a good friend of ours from undergrad on the way back up.  The trip was a little bittersweet, though – as soon as we returned, Husband moved to Philadelphia for the rest of his radiology residency.  June was kind of the low point of the year – along with Husband, two of my closest friends from D.C. also moved away, and I was left without my husband and my girlfriends.

   

On the upside, the Penguins won the Stanley Cup and we spent a weekend back in my hometown for the Harrisburg Brewer’s Fest – aka “drinking for charity”!  Every year, downtown Harrisburg sponsors a big festival, closes off a few streets, and dozens and dozens of breweries show up with kegs upon kegs.  The proceeds go to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, and we spent the evening drinking lots of beer!  My two best friends from home came as well, and we had a great time.

July 2009:

July was a really uneventful month.  I started the first of what will be many Greyhound disastrous trips to Philadelphia, but mostly I used my newfound free time to crank out more experiments in the lab.

August 2009:

August started out with the family concert – Husband, my Mother-in-Law, my parents, and I all went to the Billy Joel/Elton John concert in Philadelphia.  It was the first time our parents were together since the wedding, and it was nice to have everyone together. 

The lab also went berry picking at a local farm, kicking off an entire week of blackberry related recipes.  Mmmm…

September 2009:

September was also a relatively unremarkable month, mostly due to two weeks with swine flu.  I also had a biopsy done on a “totally healthy, normal mole” which I thought was the end of the story.  I did, however, return home over Labor Day, and was able to hang out with two of my favorite people!

October 2009:

Husband and I took a trip up to NYC to visit an old high school friend of his.  We spent the morning walking around Chelsea Market (home of the Food Network!) and Central Park, and then met his friend at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

I also received news that the biopsy returned as melanoma in situ and would have to undergo more surgery to try to remove all the cancer cells before they spread.  26 years of avoiding the sun and always applying sunscreen… and my reward is melanoma.  Harumph.

November 2009:

November was the busiest month of the year… in a great way!  I was barely in lab (two thumbs up) because I spent 10 days in the Caribbean, came home for a night to do laundry, and was then off to Boston for my first conference (details to come).

  

December 2009:

The month started off with my melanoma surgery, and even now, 5 weeks later, my foot STILL has not healed.  In fact, just yesterday I had to return to have the wound cauterized, since the stitches dissolved.. and my foot is still bleeding through two gauze pads and my sock.  But, the pathology result did come back with clear margins, so even if takes another 5 weeks to heal, it will be worth it to be cancer-free!

We had our yearly Chrismukkah party in the beginning of December… maybe even our last Chrismukkah in DC!

And lastly, I rung in 2010 fun and low key… a couple friends, lots of classic board games, and a plethora of alcohol.  I think we had way too much to drink by the time Life rolled around, because there were lots of “drunk driving” accidents!

So… what will 2010 bring?  Who knows, but I’m up for the adventure.  Hopefully, however… it will include a Ph.D.!  Disgruntled Julie, Ph.D. has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?