White House
Four months ago we had requested tickets for the White House tour. You don't really get a say in when you get to go and you don't even know if you will get to go. So we were grateful Saturday morning at 7 am shivering in the cold queue. Grateful...but still really cold. We sat hugged our arms together and made little jumps to get warm like all of the other line waiters. We were black and white and Indian and young and old and arrived in slick taxis and dropped off by friends. And we were cold.
I kept thinking about the Washington farewell address we had heard performed at Williams burg a few days before. He talked about how we must focus on what unites us and not on what divides us. He was talking about political parties but I preferred to think in terms of the shared experiences of Americans. I felt, standing in that line, that I was having one of those. The White House was a place we shared. It used to be called the peoples house. I kind of liked being with a line of people going in thinking of it being a house for the people.
We walked from room to room while secret service men told us who sat where and what kids of Teddy using to do in what room. They were animated and enthusiastic. When I talked to one of them about how secret service ended up as guides he laughed. "We are mostly supposed to stand here and watch you guys. But we figure, we may as well tell you things we know."
We all left the White House at roughly the same time. The line full of cold Americans hopped back into Taxis or walked down the mall or home. Me and my kids got into Jeanette's (my sister in law's) car. Jeanette had woken up early and put her baby in a cold car and driven slowly around DC all so we could go to the White House. And then she pretended like she had had just as wonderful a morning as we had had. Completely disbelieving her we went to IHOP.
The Titaniboa that Wasn't Even There
There is a snake that is large enough to fight a T Rex. It would break your front door as it tried to push its way in and it was 42 feet long. Yeah. Let's all take a moment to be grateful it is extinct. But ever since my kids watched the Smithsonian on the topic they have been dying to see it. We asked the information guy where it was "Oh that..." He looked a little past us "I'm pretty sure we have that in storage now" That is fair. The Smithsonian has the right to rotate its collection. But, here is the problem, at each exhibit I thought "Well...this diamond is cool...but not as cool as a TItanaboa" It really is hard to be a winner against a giant snake. Even if it is extinct.
Sam's Memories of DC
(By Sam)
I really liked DC. I enjoyed seeing the White House and being with Jeanette. I also liked how you could get to things really quickly. And there were lots of things to do near by.
Eden's Memories of DC
(Typed by Eden)
I like
DC because we got to play with Otto the baby we got to have cereal for breakfast I really love it
we got to go to the white house I really liked it it was fun!
(Me again)
So I just have to point out how much I missed the boat on what was important. Just to elaborate...we had Lucky Charms for breakfast. Like, every day. My kids never get cold cereal. It is at the nexus of expensive and sugary meaning it just doesn't happen. Unless you are at Magical Jeanette and Steve's house. Then Lucky Charms can happen every single day. DC is awesome.
I also have to point out that hanging out with our amazing family gets top billing. This was the first part of the trip that we were staying really close to family. It really was pretty awesome. Not just because they are amazing people but because to quote Sam "I like being with Jeanette because she is like dad and I like to think about dad while we are here"
Four months ago we had requested tickets for the White House tour. You don't really get a say in when you get to go and you don't even know if you will get to go. So we were grateful Saturday morning at 7 am shivering in the cold queue. Grateful...but still really cold. We sat hugged our arms together and made little jumps to get warm like all of the other line waiters. We were black and white and Indian and young and old and arrived in slick taxis and dropped off by friends. And we were cold.
I kept thinking about the Washington farewell address we had heard performed at Williams burg a few days before. He talked about how we must focus on what unites us and not on what divides us. He was talking about political parties but I preferred to think in terms of the shared experiences of Americans. I felt, standing in that line, that I was having one of those. The White House was a place we shared. It used to be called the peoples house. I kind of liked being with a line of people going in thinking of it being a house for the people.
We walked from room to room while secret service men told us who sat where and what kids of Teddy using to do in what room. They were animated and enthusiastic. When I talked to one of them about how secret service ended up as guides he laughed. "We are mostly supposed to stand here and watch you guys. But we figure, we may as well tell you things we know."
We all left the White House at roughly the same time. The line full of cold Americans hopped back into Taxis or walked down the mall or home. Me and my kids got into Jeanette's (my sister in law's) car. Jeanette had woken up early and put her baby in a cold car and driven slowly around DC all so we could go to the White House. And then she pretended like she had had just as wonderful a morning as we had had. Completely disbelieving her we went to IHOP.
The Titaniboa that Wasn't Even There
There is a snake that is large enough to fight a T Rex. It would break your front door as it tried to push its way in and it was 42 feet long. Yeah. Let's all take a moment to be grateful it is extinct. But ever since my kids watched the Smithsonian on the topic they have been dying to see it. We asked the information guy where it was "Oh that..." He looked a little past us "I'm pretty sure we have that in storage now" That is fair. The Smithsonian has the right to rotate its collection. But, here is the problem, at each exhibit I thought "Well...this diamond is cool...but not as cool as a TItanaboa" It really is hard to be a winner against a giant snake. Even if it is extinct.
Sam's Memories of DC
(By Sam)
I really liked DC. I enjoyed seeing the White House and being with Jeanette. I also liked how you could get to things really quickly. And there were lots of things to do near by.
Eden's Memories of DC
(Typed by Eden)
I like
DC because we got to play with Otto the baby we got to have cereal for breakfast I really love it
we got to go to the white house I really liked it it was fun!
(Me again)
So I just have to point out how much I missed the boat on what was important. Just to elaborate...we had Lucky Charms for breakfast. Like, every day. My kids never get cold cereal. It is at the nexus of expensive and sugary meaning it just doesn't happen. Unless you are at Magical Jeanette and Steve's house. Then Lucky Charms can happen every single day. DC is awesome.
I also have to point out that hanging out with our amazing family gets top billing. This was the first part of the trip that we were staying really close to family. It really was pretty awesome. Not just because they are amazing people but because to quote Sam "I like being with Jeanette because she is like dad and I like to think about dad while we are here"
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