All Things AP: A Full Sunday in DC!

I got up really early this morning.....at 4am.....to get to the airport in time to catch my 645am flight. I like to get to the airport early so that I don't have to stress if the security lines are too long....I try not to show it, but I get a kick out of people that get irritated at the airport, especially if it's because they are running late. Um, it's your fault, not the TSA guy, so just chill out, people.

Anyways, I always get to the airport with so much extra time.....well, ALMOST all the time.....not the last time that I flew to DC, but that's another story. I was wide awake when I got there, so I read some more of the book I started last night. Yes, I actually started to read a book. I haven't picked up a book in about 8 months, and it was really starting to annoy me, so after I spent several hours behind my computer getting everything from the 4th updated...and I couldn't sleep, I started to read. I need to join Barnes & Nobles Anonymous because I have a problem to where I can't go in that place and not come out spending at least $85....so I had plenty of unread books to choose from on my bookshelf. I was on a Jodi Piccoult kick a few years back, so I had purchased a few of hers that I hadn't gotten around to reading. Right now I'm enjoying Perfect Match. Her books challenge you to think about what you'd do in the most horrible situations. I enjoy her reading, it's easy to follow, but the content isn't always easy to swallow.

So, anyways....I read for a while, and then the need to sleep hit me, and I got a few hours of sleep before I landed in Baltimore right on time at 11am. I didn't mind the early morning flight because it meant that I got the day to explore in DC before my Monday morning meeting.

After getting my rental car, I made it to DC with no problems at all. It wasn't until I got to DC that I got a little turned around. Every other street was closed, so it was hard to navigate to where I needed to be. BUT, with the help of my iPhone, I finally found my hotel and got all settled.

I headed out around the corner and immediately saw the place that Joshua had recommended, Kelly's Irish Times. Made a quick call to Corey to confirm it was the spot, and went in to see what was happening. The place was pretty dead, so I parked myself at the bar and ordered a tuna melt, and made some new friends. There was a pretty rowdy bunch of guys there....it almost reminded me of a Cheers type scenario, they had just come off the golf course and were razzing each other like the best of them. Arnie, a Scot now living in Virginia, was pretty entertaining, and we had some nice conversations while I enjoyed a few of the local Pennsylvania beer, Yinglings.

It was a really neat place, a cop hangout actually, and everyone leaves their badges for display on the walls. I looked real hard, and managed to find one that was from Houston. Awww....made it feel like home. :)

I told the guys that I took pictures of everything, and so they needed to smile for a photo for me before I left. They happily obliged...but Arnie surprised me right before the picture was taken. Can you tell from the look on my face? :)

I took off and walked around Union Station, and decided to made a quick stop into the National Postal Service Museum (after I found the right door!). I didn't really follow too much of what you were supposed to at the museum, however, I really did want to get my picture taken in this fun 18 wheeler truck. I wasn't sure how it fit into the history of the postal service, but it just looked like fun. I felt too stupid to ask anyone to get me in the truck, so I didn't get the cool photo.

Instead, I used the timer to get this one. So, there was a really neat quote on the wall behind me in this picture, but I was so embarassed that I'd just taken this picture with the timer, that I kind of hopped out of there quickly after it was taken, so I don't have any idea what it was. :) Ooops!

I headed back to my hotel to get ready for my evening plans. Nita had put me in touch with a friend of hers that she used to work with in her law office in DC, and we made plans to meet for dinner. I was so thankful that she did that too. I don't usually end up eating anything if I am left to my own devices for dinner while I am on trips. So, it was really nice to meet Lyndon for dinner. We took a little trip to Arlington, and stuffed ourselves on Bleu Cheese Chips (yummm!!) and juicy steaks at Restaurant 3. We had a great time, and don't think that either of us took a break from talking the entire night. Turns out that Lyndon has a very diverse music taste, like me, and is one of the only other people that I know that knew of....and liked.....some of the obscure bands that I love.....but ALSO the silliest song by a certain hot American Idol contestant from a few years back about shoes. :) We ended up talked about music almost all night long, while mixing in some of our grammatical OCD tendencies, and of course a few laughs too. Oh, and get this....his apartment number is my birthday - 1107 - how weird is that? But...special thank you for a nice time goes out to Lyndon. Especially since this weekend was his birthday and he was going on very little sleep....so it was extra nice of him to entertain me when he would have probably been much more likely to be catching up on missed ZZZs! :)

He also happily obliged to take a photo with me after our dinner....but he had to bend down to get into it with me. Yeah, he's pretty much the tallest person I've ever met in real life (6'10!). He says that it comes in handy because if it weren't for him, and his view from looking down, I would have never known that I wasn't balding. ;)