4th of July Weekend - Wedding

So here's a recap of my weekend home - video style!

On Friday bright and early I flew out from Reagan National Airport. I was worried with the holiday that it might take me longer to get through security, so I got up at 6 and was at the airport by 7 to make my 10:15 flight. Needless to say I sat in the terminal for awhile - I was through security by 7:30. Whoops! Maybe I'll become a more savvy flier as time goes.

My mom picked me up from the airport and we did some fun things around Cleveland - the Great Lakes Brewery for lunch, and the West Side Market to get some snacks for the weekend. That night I went on a picnic with Ian and saw Toy Story 3 in 3D - it was great! I'd really recommend it for people my age - it seemed like it was geared toward kids who grew up with the original Toy Story.

The next morning my mom and I headed to Columbus to do a little shopping before I went to my cousin's wedding. I met up with Annie for lunch at Cosi:



And then we went over to get ready!

I put together highlights of the wedding:



In short - it was fantastic. I really enjoyed seeing my family, and I think everybody had a great time!













On Sunday, we grabbed some breakfast at NorthStar Cafe. For anybody in or even remotely near the Columbus area, you MUST check out this restaurant, located in the Short North. Their food is phenomenal - they've got fresh squeezed orange juice that'll revive you after any long night, great breakfast fare, and no matter how full you are, grab a chocolate cookie for the road - it'll make you speechless.

Update on the 4th (and other exciting things more related to work) soon to come!

Ben's Chili Bowl

Hi everybody! Hope you had a fun filled 4th. I had an event filled weekend! But before I get to that I thought I'd catch up on what I did last week - went to the famous Ben's Chili bowl! The hole-in-the-wall turned DC landmark has been visited by many a celebrity, so some friends and I decided to check it out after work last Wednesday, and then headed to a bar nearby for "cheap" beer ($3 for a can of PBR) and some bad video games.

I took my camera with me and made a cheesy (pun definitely intended, on account of all the cheese fries) video.

In the news

Life in DC is definitely faster paced than what I'm used to. Sometimes I forget that I live in such a big city because I'm inside a lot, between working all day in a quiet office environment, and relaxing where I live. However, when I tried to walk out of my dorm early Wednesday morning, a crowd of fellow interns, students, and a police officer filled the lobby.

I soon realized I wouldn't be getting to work any time soon:



(Click here or on the photo to read the rest of the article.)

Authorities enacted something called "sheltering-in-place", which meant we weren't allowed to leave the building. Initially we were told it would be about an hour, so I grabbed my laptop and headed back to the lobby to wait, eager to get to work as soon as I could. I was nervous at first but was assured that any threat that might have actually been wasn't large or dangerous enough to affect me in the building, and that they were simply ensuring everyone's safety by keeping us contained.

After four hours of "sheltering", however, any fear definitely went out the window and was replaced with something more towards exasperation - but everyone stayed in good spirits, shared snacks, and broke the ice with fellow residents. I met interns that work for all sorts of organizations and government sectors, and even two who work where I do!

Additionally, everyone I spoke to from the area and people from work assured me that it's all part of life in DC. It's always better to be cautious.

On another, lighter news note, I'm a Top Chef fan, and this season is taking place in DC! The most recent episode was especially fun for me, because the guests tasting the chef's food were interns. I'm posting a little clip you can watch:



Hope everybody has a fun and safe 4th of July!

Fun Things Around the Building

I work within a group of buildings that includes a cafeteria, gym, museum, gift shop, med center, and even a post office - it's pretty much its own little world! Along with all of that, there's a lot of great sculptures and fountains around the area. When it's not too hot out and I've got time, I like to sit outside at lunch near the fountain and admire all the artwork.

Some of these are with my cell phone camera as I was popping in and out of work, so sorry about the hazyness.

My building!



Fountain shaped like a mountain ridge, the water runs over the left side.



And where there's water... there's a shark!



Dragonfly in the courtyard between the buildings.



And there's grasshoppers in the courtyard too! There's a neat giant golden beetle as well.



But I think my favorite thing is the fountain in the courtyard. It's supposed to represent the canyon walls of a river in a piece of literature (I can't remember at the moment, I'll update when I do). I really like the way it looks like a part of nature, yet honed into sculpture. Kinda neat.

First Weekend - Newseum

Here's a little video of what I did today:



I know that's a lot of blog posts for today -- I had an action filled weekend! And I'll be fairly busy this week, so I probably won't do a lot for awhile.

Hope you're all doing well! I know some people were asking about my address, so if you want it (or if you want something from me!) email me at Edwards06(at)gmail.com.

First Weekend - Potomac

On Saturday, I had one thing I wanted to accomplish - to go swimming! I've wanted to since I got here, and spending a week in 90 degree weather certainly helped that. My friend Eric's from the area, so he knew of some local swimming holes to show me.





We went swimming in the Potomac, which is a brackish (or partially salty) river that feeds into the Chesapeake Bay. It was kind of interesting - it looked like a river, but between the sandy beach, salt water, and even a few waves made by quick-moving powerboats, it definitely felt like a beach on the ocean.

So we made a sand castle!





EDIT: Eric posted a few photos over on his blog (check it out) so here's one of me!



It was really fun and silly - from adding cannons made of sticks to fighting off the waves, I felt like a little kid on vacation. All in all the day was really relaxing and a nice change of pace from the busy movement of the city.

First Weekend - Silverdocs

I had a wonderful first weekend in DC - I think I did a little bit of everything the city has to offer. Friday night I went out with a few of my fellow interns (and some former interns) to a bar called Big Hunt. It's as cheesy as the name sounds, but they've got Great Lakes on tap, and despite the crowds we got our food quickly. It was great to get to meet some of the other interns.

After that I headed out to Silver Springs for Silverdocs, a documentary film festival. My friend Eric was a volunteer this year, and was able to get me in for free!



Thanks Eric!



We went to a film called Barbershop Punk - a really interesting mix of the feeling of punk and questioning authority and Net Neutrality. Here's a little trailer, if you're wondering how those two things might come together.



The documentary focuses on Robb Topolski, the guy who uncovered how communication companies were restricting their users' service. After the viewing, questions were answered by him and the directors, which was really interesting.



After the movie we were able to go to the sort of VIP room upstairs, hosted by the A/V club.



The party had very animated karaoke, a game room, and an open bar, so naturally everyone was having a lot of fun and was really friendly - I even chatted with a director from Norway about his movie and what he thought of DC.





We then headed back down to the theater to the after party - they had light sabers for people to play with.





All in all, it was a really great night hanging out with friends and people interested in film.