Serious Ponderings

I follow my study abroad bloggers from my school and I have to admit: Today I had a massive wake up call. Unlike my international-bound friends, I live in a city centered around the current U.S. unemployment crisis. As a journalism student, I have been aware that journalism is still changing to adapt to a new era of news media consumption. However, you would have to be a hermit to know that in the change, traditional journalism jobs are beginning to dwindle at a quickening pace.

I think studying in a different part of my country has made me more aware of a life after college than if I went to study in Europe or South America. Let's pretend I went to Spain this fall. I would have the time of my life, take great pictures, fall in love with the country (and perhaps someone) but I wouldn't realistically believe I would move there after college. Living in DC has given me a taste of a life I could practically and most likely lead after college. That fact thrills me and scares me at the same time.

They call my generation the "lost generation". Meaning the college graduates of my generation now face worse economic possibilities than the generation of my parents. This has never happened before since the Depression. Also, the unemployment rate is now at 10.2% while the rate for minorities and women are much higher than that figure.

This post is not meant to be depressing but a reality check. Studying in DC has allowed me to not only meet some dear friends but also prepare me for some of the harsh realities I will have to face after commencement in 2011.

One day I will use the people I work with as references and put my experience here on a resume. I wonder if I had gone to Ireland or Italy if I would have this opportunity. I admit I am not living half as glamorously as my friends in Europe this semester but at the same time, I know a little more about what I want after college and my employment appeal has boosted itself a couple notches. If you, reader, ever have to choose about to study domestically or internationally I do not recommend one over the other. I know that everyone is different but for me, DC was the only choice for me.

Didn't really plan that one...

They say pride always comes before the fall...sometimes even in the fall of a shoe.

Earlier I wrote about the importance of wearing the right shoe for any and every occasion. While I do try to wear the best shoe to compliment the event and my legs, sometimes one can not always know which shoe will be appropriate...let me explain.

I do not claim to be a California girl but I have adopted the west coast acceptance of wearing flip flops for all twelve months of the year. I knew living in DC would probably limit my time in open-toed footwear but I was optimistic I would last at least till November. Yet November has proved to be mixed with rain and sunshine thus giving me a false sense of security that I could wear my beloved Rainbows till Thanksgiving. I even went out in the rain one day in my precious foot wear to the local 7/11 just to spite the rain and convention.

Yet all good things must come to an end, some more suddenly than others. The sunshine spilling into my apartment inspired me to bust out the Rainbows and go to Target this afternoon. My roommates who went with me laughed on our to the metro how fortunate we were to be in a place where it was still warm enough to wear short sleeves and sandals. But oh how we should have taken more care!! Stepping off the metro I didn't even see how close Angela stepping behind me. In one brief step on my shoe, my leather sandal flew off my foot and went bump....bump...bump...plop.

Yes that's right folks, my shoe fell down into the metro rail tracks, leaving me speechless. Nobody prepares you for when your shoe falls into the metrorail. It's about four feet down from the platform and you are not going down there but what do you do? I didn't have a shoe for goodness sakes. The metro personal were not friendly nor at all sympathetic, my friends did not pack an extra sandal in their purses and the nearest store was outside. Whats a girl to do?

I ended up transferring and riding the rest of the metro trip to Target as planned. I did it with one shoe and one humiliated complexion. I walked barefoot across the street to the nearest Payless and bought the first pair of flats in the shortest amount of time ever.

This was definitely not one of the more glamorous moments I have had in DC but at the same time it was hilarious. How many people do you know lose personal belongings on a metro platform while going to Target? It was a first for me. While I'm saddened by my small silly loss, I love the story.

Where the Hill Climbers Are...

So far I have only shown my life out and about in DC. While I do go out and explore my new surroundings, I also spend time in my apartment building. I've never lived in an apartment before so getting used to four other roommates has been interesting but also rewarding. I am spoiled to live with good people so I thought I would share with you some glimpse of my life when I'm not out meeting the Dalai Lama...

I actually got a brief snapshot of my apartment when no one is in it. The living room is where my apartmentmates and many guests hang out. Our apartment struggles to find a happy temperature to appease everyone in the room. We are constantly living in either a tropical paradise or ice igloo. I may be fine in shorts in the photo above but my poor roommate below is freezing in her blanket.Our small kitchen is somewhat unique, particularly the stove. Three of the burners are almost completely useless. I have been known to turn on all four of the burners and wait in anticipation to see which, if any, will heat up. However, all the burners are lopsided; meaning if anyone wants to cook anything you will be standing there holding your ghetto blackened pot while your Hamburger Helper simmers.

The heat controls are actually located on the microwave above the stove which leads us to believe this might be the first stove/microwave unit ever invented. Our microwave also has a metal rack in it thus it's not really a microwave at all...Luckily our silly little kitchen does not stop people from visiting or even prevent amazing desserts from being created.New favorite thing to do? Jam sessions. Oh and for those who are curious, our bedrooms are just as nice too...except they're a little bare. That's the thing that no one tells you about living abroad for a semester. You may get a nice apartment, but at the end of the day you're still gonna have blank white walls staring at you--reminding you of your lack of insight to pack anything that would take away from the blinding glare of egg shell beige. But with airport weight limits, who has the room?

One of the spacious closets... also in egg shell beige...

Still want more of where I live? No worries. My gal and roommate Angela made this awesome video for the program we're in (Washington Journalism Center). It shows not only the apartment but the apartment building and other areas I hang out. The video also highlights where the apartment is located and what's available to the students here. Oh, and I may have a small but important role in this as well...

Newseum Love

Recently the program I am in, Washington Journalism Center took all nine of us to the Newseum. Now I have been to many museums while in DC. Some cool and some interesting but none held my attention as this one museum. Finally, I have found a museum that intrigued me, challenged me, and inspired me.

One the sixth floor of the museum, you can take your picture to over look the Capitol building. This is one of the better pictures taken of our group.

I found it sad and yet humorous women were once banned from entering the Press Club...especially since I work there currently.

My new favorite phrase.

The Newseum has a lot of great films in it but my favorite was the 4-D film on the history of news. Naturally the glasses were a big hit.

My roommate and I loved the news studio we got to tour.

The Newseum is definitely a must see when in DC for just about anyone concerned with freedom, American history, politics, oh and news. It made me cry (seriously I don't the 9/11 film could be any more touching), laugh, and broke (the bookstore loved me).

The best thing I got to take away from the Newseum experience? Well let me show you...


This is my new gem to my collection...

Grocer's Delight

Online shopping does not intimidate me. I buy all my textbooks off of Amazon and study the clearance sections at American Eagle weekly. Some readers may ask, Oh who doesn't do that?For my senior formal I bought my dress off of Ebay and I even purchase the majority of my make-up off of discount websites that sell high end mascara for cheap. I thought I would buy almost anything online; but when I first heard about ordering groceries online, I turned up my nose in disinterest...Then I moved to DC.

Big city learning lesson #67: Toss out everything I thought I knew about grocery shopping and succumb to the ridiculous extravagance of online groceries.

When I first moved to my apartment, I thought I had moved to the perfect location. Coffee shop on the corner, 7/11 on the end of the block and a metro in walking distance. Did I mention the view of the Capitol in my living room window? But no, oh no, nothing is really perfect. The reality is that during my stay in DC, I have ended up doing both.

I walked to a not-so-safe-Safeway a couple times for my food rations . The distance seems overwhelmingly far when you're walking (no car here, remember? if you feel sorry for me, send money), not to mention one has to push a bag Lady type cart the entire way there AND back to hold all the groceries. It also has started raining in DC so walking for long distances will become much more interesting....well scarce...in the near future.

(A slight exaggeration of how I look when I have to carry my groceries to my apartment from Safeway...)

Ordering groceries online is not that much more convenient. You would think it would be a simple and easy process, however, it takes just as much street sense as the traditional food shopper. For starters, you still shouldn't order groceries online if you're hungry or tired. I once ended up buying diet root beer in glass bottles for no reason except my tired butt had a craving and yet still attempted to be "healthy". Now I have alcohol looking beverages on top of fridge that I do not want to finish.

Either way, there is no easy way to get food in this town unless you're going out to eat. While I am a big fan of all and any restaurant in DC, my budget has not allowed that. Instead, I get to figure out how to gather and hunt for nourishment just like my ancestors did in years past. It's been a growing experience trying out both but some days I just really miss Wal-Mart or a Target in driving distance.

My Once in a Million Moment

Photo of the Dalai Lama when he was in Memphis, TN. The Mayor taught him how to "fist pump" during his stay there.

As I continue to live in Washington DC, I am beginning to notice a pattern of moments that literally take my breath away. A brief instance where a small town gal, like myself, just steps back and asks, am I really here right now?

One such moment happened last week when I came face to face with the Dalai Lama, last week.

As a life long protestant church goer, my church circle never referenced the Dalai Lama that often. I admit that it took Brad Pitt and the movie Seven Years in Tibet to actually grab my attention about the small peaceful man and the Buddhist religion. However, when I was packing for my DC semester, I lacked to pack an outfit for meeting Nobel peace prize winning religious leaders. But little did I know that in DC, opportunity to experience something great is not as far as I thought.

It all started when I was clearing story ideas with my editor. With the AP Daybook at her desk, my editor casually scanned the list of ideas while tossing out events she thought I could cover.

"The Dalai Lama is in town," she said as she scanned the Daybook, "You should probably go see him, he's speaking tomorrow at this conference"

It took me a few seconds to respond to that. The Dalai Lama? He was the guy one read about in the New York Times or tried to reference to appear intellectual. To actually go see him would be playing at a whole other level.

"Is that an option?" I asked, trying to hide the disbelief in my voice. My editor smiled and nodded her head.

"In fact, it's just one of those things you need to do while in DC, " she said, "You have to really."

The next morning I made my way to where the Dalai Lama would be speaking at the Mind and Light Conference, which was focusing on education and the future of the youth. Just for fun, I looked to see how much a ticket would be to attend as a normal civilian and about fell over at the time. Tickets were well over 350 dollars and that was for tickets booked in advanced! I thanked my lucky stars that I was considered press. I will not lie, getting to flash my press pass and walk in for free is literally one of the coolest thrills a cheap person like myself can get.

I managed to get into the building and find where the press were being seated. Then I walked to the stage trying to see where I could take a few pics while also rubbing elbows with the reporters around me. With another flash of my press pass I ended up at the edge of the stage the Dalai Lama would be speaking from. Me and the other reporters snapped mindless photos waiting for the religious leader to appear.

Finally the lights dimmed. Strange but calming eastern music began to play in the background. The reporters around me began to whisper that "he" was coming on to stage. I held my breath while also craning my neck to see if the Dalai Lama was indeed coming onto stage. I saw him get on stage and walk to his seat.

I couldn't help but smile, here I was watching the Dalia Lama amid all these reporters and viewers and I got a front seat view. I mentally prepared myself that was going to be the best of the show but then! The Dalai Lama got up and walked to the front of the stage. He walked in front of reporters and waved to crowd and chuckled ever so softly, (he's famous for it, did you know?)


This photo was taken a foot away from him. I was almost in too much shock that he was so close to take a photo, (I guess photojournalist is still a new thing for me).

I walked away from the conference in awe and in wonder. Besides wanting to do yoga and drink herbal tea, I also could n0t help but wonder how I got to experience what just occurred. I never thought about the Dalai Lama and never did I think I would be impacted by what he said. Now after seeing him, I feel compelled to read more on his thoughts on peace and education.

My walk back to the metro involved a stroll by the White House. A group of middle schoolers were taking a photo by the gate and I heard one girl say, "This is so cool we get to do this and be here. I can't believe this is really happening." I had to agree with her.

Heel Talk

Putting your best foot forward always begins with the correct shoe.

Before I settle on any outfit I prioritize which shoe will best compliment the task at hand. As I planned for my first day of interning at Market News International, I spent a special amount of effort to plan the proper footwear. Following the the Washington Journalism Center FAQ instructions, I had selected one pair of "comfortable" shoes for the walk to the office and one "business" pair to slip on for work.

However finding the proper business heel was not easy. The high heel is a very complex organ in the body of female fashion. On one hand there is the hooker heel. These are the shoes that defy nature when worn. They are colorful, shiny, and are worn for the sole purpose to enhance sex appeal. Trust me, every girl has a pair somewhere in her closet.Yet on the other end of the heal spectrum is the practical heel. These are usually black, plain and magnify cankles.

But as I left my apartment Tuesday morning, I knew I had made the right choice. Tucked inside my very grown up and professional bag were a sleek pair of black kitten heel pumps. My secret weapon to a empowering day. They had just enough height to sleek my legs into an confident woman while avoiding collapsing arches.

I managed to get to my building with a plan to change shoes in the bathroom outside my office. However, when I reached my destination, the bathroom was locked! Trying not to panic, I scanned the empty hallway as I threw one hand into my bag while the other hand removed the Rainbow sandal I had worn to get there. Much to my horror, I heard footsteps coming from around the corner. I was not about to be caught with one sandal on and a heel in hand on the first day. I somehow performed a ninja like move that transitioned the shoe switch and walked into my office without being caught.

On my first assignment I had to go to the Capitol to get a press pass. I changed shoes on the metro into my comfortable sandals. In the excitement of getting a press pass and trying desperately not to get lost, I forgot to transition shoes again! This time I walked into the Capitol completely forgetting my open toed sandals and the security guard frowned as he gave me a once over. His frown triggered I had a major crisis on my feet. I threw myself into the nearest bathroom and quickly changed. Only then could I return to the guard with dignity and ask him where to go for the appointment office for I could not bring myself to do so in flip flops.

Still recovering from my sandal faux pas, I managed to get my press pass with out anymore trips or stumbles. But as I walked down from the Hill to my metro stop a woman, in a suit that cost more than my entire wardrobe, stopped me.

"Excuse me, " she asked, "Where did you get your shoes?"

"Oh, um, well, actually I got them from ROSS" I answered.

"Really?" She threw a jealous look at my feet, "They are exactly the kind of shoes I have been looking for. Cute and comfortable, ya know?"

I eyed her three inch pointy toed heels and winced at her already swollen heels. We talked heels briefly before parting to our destinations.

Now, if I can only remember to put my heels on I think I might be able to do OK in this city...

Originally posted on InkTank on September 18.