Mr. Scott goes to Washington - Act Three, Scene Six: "Y'all ready for this?"
Alright kids, here we are again - back for another update. This post is going to cover the period from Friday Nov. 18 to Wednesday Nov. 23.
Oh, I forgot to mention that on Thursday night (Nov. 17) Claire, Jake, and I went to see the movie The Weatherman after work. It was all right - neither great nor bad. Just one of those movies where I left thinking... meh, it's over. Of course, that said, Michael Caine was spectacular, as he is in every role he's given.
So, Friday (Nov. 18) after work I went for dinner with my friends Jen (from the embassy) and Karen. We were going to go to this really awesome-sounding place up on U Street (their menu included gnocchi in some kind of an acorn squash sauce with blue cheese, but I digress) , but by the time we got there the wait for a table was well over an hour, so we ended up going over to a surprisingly empty (albeit fantastic) Thai restaurant instead. After that, the girls went out to a bar and I came home... it was a fairly long dinner, though, so I didn't get home until around 11.30.
Saturday night we had a little party at my friend Kristina's place. The original plan had been (I think) to eventually go out to an all-ages club (it's so degrading to be back in a place where I need to go to all-ages nights), but it didn't take long to realize that we were not going to make it that far. That didn't matter, though, as Kristina's roommate had an absolutely brilliant CD collection to satisfy our musical needs - it was complete with Phil Collins, Bruce Hornsby (most random CD find ever!), Jock Jams, and a really obscure Hits of the 80s compilation. Suffice it to say there are a number of hilarious pictures from that night, including a number of various people wearing construction-paper crowns, or with "NAFTA" written in Sharpie marker on different parts of their bodies. That's just how we roll.
Sunday, of course, was another day of rest and relaxation.
On Monday (Nov. 21) we had a pretty busy day. First we had a speaker from the Pan-American Development Foundation, then we went to the CATO Institute (the crazy libertarian think tank I mentioned a couple of weeks ago) where we got a lecture about the virtues of free trade from the director of their trade policy section. After that we went back to the Washington Center for an 'advocacy forum,' which was basically a couple of lobbyists talking about their work. Then, as always, we had class Monday night. Luckily our group presentations were fairly short so I was home in time to watch Prison Break.
On Tuesday and Wednesday not too much was going on - Congress is in recess, so there hasn't been a whole lot for me to cover. On Wednesday, though, I had a meeting with Colin Robertson, who is the Advocacy Minister at the embassy. For our internship program we have to conduct an "informational interview" with someone whose job we might like to have someday. I'd met him at an intern briefing he'd given us a few weeks ago, and decided I'd like to talk to him some more.
He's a really interesting guy, with a tonne of really amazing stories to tell: he's worked at Canada's missions in UN and Hong Kong; he helped negotiate NAFTA; and he worked on the Charlottetown Constitutional Accord. I had arranged to speak with him for 45 minutes and we ended up chatting for over an hour and a half! I also thought it was also pretty cool that he knows a couple of members of my family who are/were in the Foreign Service, although I really shouldn't be surprised - everybody pretty well seems to know everybody else.
Oh, I forgot to mention that on Thursday night (Nov. 17) Claire, Jake, and I went to see the movie The Weatherman after work. It was all right - neither great nor bad. Just one of those movies where I left thinking... meh, it's over. Of course, that said, Michael Caine was spectacular, as he is in every role he's given.
So, Friday (Nov. 18) after work I went for dinner with my friends Jen (from the embassy) and Karen. We were going to go to this really awesome-sounding place up on U Street (their menu included gnocchi in some kind of an acorn squash sauce with blue cheese, but I digress) , but by the time we got there the wait for a table was well over an hour, so we ended up going over to a surprisingly empty (albeit fantastic) Thai restaurant instead. After that, the girls went out to a bar and I came home... it was a fairly long dinner, though, so I didn't get home until around 11.30.
Saturday night we had a little party at my friend Kristina's place. The original plan had been (I think) to eventually go out to an all-ages club (it's so degrading to be back in a place where I need to go to all-ages nights), but it didn't take long to realize that we were not going to make it that far. That didn't matter, though, as Kristina's roommate had an absolutely brilliant CD collection to satisfy our musical needs - it was complete with Phil Collins, Bruce Hornsby (most random CD find ever!), Jock Jams, and a really obscure Hits of the 80s compilation. Suffice it to say there are a number of hilarious pictures from that night, including a number of various people wearing construction-paper crowns, or with "NAFTA" written in Sharpie marker on different parts of their bodies. That's just how we roll.
Sunday, of course, was another day of rest and relaxation.
On Monday (Nov. 21) we had a pretty busy day. First we had a speaker from the Pan-American Development Foundation, then we went to the CATO Institute (the crazy libertarian think tank I mentioned a couple of weeks ago) where we got a lecture about the virtues of free trade from the director of their trade policy section. After that we went back to the Washington Center for an 'advocacy forum,' which was basically a couple of lobbyists talking about their work. Then, as always, we had class Monday night. Luckily our group presentations were fairly short so I was home in time to watch Prison Break.
On Tuesday and Wednesday not too much was going on - Congress is in recess, so there hasn't been a whole lot for me to cover. On Wednesday, though, I had a meeting with Colin Robertson, who is the Advocacy Minister at the embassy. For our internship program we have to conduct an "informational interview" with someone whose job we might like to have someday. I'd met him at an intern briefing he'd given us a few weeks ago, and decided I'd like to talk to him some more.
He's a really interesting guy, with a tonne of really amazing stories to tell: he's worked at Canada's missions in UN and Hong Kong; he helped negotiate NAFTA; and he worked on the Charlottetown Constitutional Accord. I had arranged to speak with him for 45 minutes and we ended up chatting for over an hour and a half! I also thought it was also pretty cool that he knows a couple of members of my family who are/were in the Foreign Service, although I really shouldn't be surprised - everybody pretty well seems to know everybody else.
posted by Scoops at 3:50 p.m.
4 Comments:
You LIKE Thai food? They hardly make a dish that doesn't have shrimps in it! Does that mean you are now a confirmed seafood lover?
You expect us to take your word for it that the pictures from the party at Kristina's place were hilarious? Where's the evidence?
And what's so random about a Bruce Hornsby CD? I have a couple of them and they're excellent. Did you know he played keyboards with the Grateful Dead for awhile?
Why The Weatherman instead of the new Harry Potter film? Don't tell me you're also underage for Harry Potter films in the U.S.! Or are you holding out to see it on IMAX in Mississauaga?
By the way, word will probably leak out down there in a week or so, but Edmonton beat Montreal 38-35 in the Grey Cup last night.
Your Dad and Elliot were among our guests for the party. Sorry you couldn't join us.
You only have a couple of weeks left to convince us why we should visit Washington, so keep writing.
Scotty,
So how did the pumpkin pie turn out? Were your American friends totally impressed ?
Big doin's in the Canadian government. You better hurry home so that you can cast your vote. The Conservatives are going to need it.
Scottman,
Don't listen to your uncle - I've actually *been* to Thailand, not to mention Singapore, Indonesia, and a few other places where toilets consist of a hole in the floor and two footprint-like marks. (If you're lucky, the 'footprints' are on either side of the hole...)
In fact many Thai dishes are made entirely sans shrimp ('goong' in Thai), and instead include such common foodstuffs as chicken (can't remember the Thai for that), pork (that either), and of course hound (now *THAT* one I remember - 'ma'), although not miniature collie or anything...
Also, there's nothing 'crazy' about the CATO Institute. It might be a bit librarian, but having a lot of books can't be all bad...
Also, not to contradict your Aunt Liz, but no real need to rush home - the vote's not 'til January some time, and since Harper is so far running on a platform of mostly not being the Liberals, plus of course, the repeal of gay marriage, things looketh not rosy. Hilariously, Martin is claiming that if we don't vote Liberal we're risking the phantom $30 billion in tax cuts that net us a big $300 in 2010. It is to laugh...
Gotta Go - Two Words: Send Photos!
Love,
Denny Crane
Snotty, don't listen to her about thai food if she is comparable in whiteness to yourself. She may have been to Asia, but that doesn't change her into being a smart, efficient computer hardrive that my people are known to be. Moreover, I totally agree, a private subway should be similar to a space-aged-shuttlecraftish-thing zipping through a tunnel at unthinkable velocities, kind of like a wormhole from one part of the city to another. That is all, see ya soon bud.
Derek
Post a Comment
<< Home