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The Lantern Bookstore on P Street

I have a few new goals for this semester, all working toward one big goal: feel at home in DC. I want to go out and explore much more—find the cool little shops around the city, beautiful study spaces for when I need a change of scenery, and the best places to get a smoothie. I want DC to feel like home. Right now, my home is still Johns Creek, but my family won't live there forever. Ever since I was a child, my parents have talked about wanting to move back to Nebraska, and now that I live in DC, there's very little stopping them from finally moving. I won't always have Johns Creek to come back to, so I need to make DC my new home. Living here, it seems, isn't enough. I have to get to know the place, too.

Today my friend Julia and I walked down P Street toward the public library, and we found a cool shop that sells "Used & Rare!" books. I'm considering making every Sunday my day to get off campus and find something cool and new. I would say I like DC, but honestly, I don't know it well enough yet. We've only just met.

Blizzards?

Last weekend DC, along with much of the East Coast, was hit with a large storm. Along the southern coast was mostly rain, but the DMV area was hit with more snow than I've ever seen in my life. There was a frankly horrific amount of snow. Growing up in Georgia, I didn't see much snow. In two days, 22 inches of snow fell on DC, and I was overwhelmed. During the snow storm a few friends and I walked about a mile to deliver food to a soup kitchen; the streets were deserted and everything felt eerily apocalyptic. Classes were cancelled on Monday and Tuesday, and then I became very sick and missed class on Wednesday and Thursday. There is still snow on the ground everywhere, but the roads and sidewalks are (mostly) clear. 

Today is a beautiful, sunny 57 degrees. I'm mostly healthy again, although I still have a bit of a stuffy nose, and Jesuit Heritage Week begins this evening. Jesuit Heritage Week is essentially a week-long celebration of the Society of Jesus, and Georgetown celebrates with Jesuit-student volleyball matches, special prayer services and religious services, and a number of talks and events. Tonight I'll be attending puja, the Hindu religious service, as part of Jesuit Heritage Week and also to complement my readings in my theology class. (Aunt Judy, if you're reading this, I'll be sending a few essays on Hinduism your way very soon!) 

I'm excited to start a new week, a new month, a new and sunny phase of life. Be well and happy, my readers! And let me know if there is anything I can do for you, such as writing about specific topics or even just including you/your intentions in my prayers.

Snowy Beginnings

Snow & Book Hill Park, January 17th, 2016

I've been back in DC for less than a week, and on two separate occasions have enjoyed the beauty of falling snow! The snow isn't sticking yet, but it's still beautiful.

My first three days of classes were fine and even interesting, despite just being the introductory syllabus week. This semester will be extremely busy, and to stay on top of things, I'll have to work very hard. I'm considering dropping a class so that I have a little more time to breathe, but we'll see how everything turns out.

On my plane ride back to DC, I listened to the musical Hamilton, which I highly recommend. A blend of hip-hop, rap, R&B, and musical theatre, Hamilton follows the life of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, an immigrant who "[wrote] like he's running out of time" and rose from poverty to fame through determination and hard work. The musical was written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, the son of an immigrant who also works insanely hard. Listening to such an inspiring story by and about hard-working people was a great motivator for the beginning of this semester. Over the past few days I've often said, "Alexander Hamilton would have started and finished that by now," and, "Lin-Manuel Miranda would do this immediately." It's always a pleasure and a gift to find new sources of inspiration and motivation.

I am currently writing this post from the Georgetown Public Library, an old and beautiful building that looks like it could have been a plantation house once upon a time. I can't imagine the history that must have occurred here, the people that have been here, and it's an amazing place to work and think. The collection of books is quite good as well, and I have five books I'm going to check out and hopefully find time to read. I don't want my life to be all work, all the time. I doubt I could survive that with my sanity intact.

My classes are quite interesting for this semester! Already I've learned that the human tongue is a muscular hydrostat (meaning it has no bone, cartilage, or other structure) and its "closest biological analogs are the trunk of an elephant and the tentacle of an octopus" (from Sounds of Language by Elizabeth Zsiga). I've learned about Hinduism, fairy tales, native languages in Latin America, and the complications of "justice" and its meanings. I'm confident that this semester will be interesting and engaging; I'm hopeful that I'll escape in one piece!

Be well, warm, and happy on this lovely Sunday!